I Didn't Say It....

.....or at least Blogger wouldn't let me.......until now! 

Actor, or wacktor, Stephen Baldwin, on LGBT rights....or religion....or marriage equality.....or the constitution....or something:

"For society, and a majority of our society, to be asked by a very small minority to change its ways — and everybody can interpret that for themselves; that can be constitutional, that can be by law, that can be by faith — the homosexual community wants to go and start its own churches and get married, they’re free to do that. And I don’t see that being unreasonable to say, why should people who believe this in a big way that’s been around for a long time turn around and alter what they feel is their sensibility just because those folks feel like, ‘We’re not being treated equal.'"

Apparently, unless Stephen Baldwin has a script to read, everything he says is gibberish.

Barney Frank, on Uganda's 'Kill The Gays' bill:

“I’m disturbed by the news that Uganda is considering going ahead with a measure that denies the humanity of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people....I was pleased when the Financial Services Committee overwhelmingly, in a bipartisan way, voted in favor of my amendment urging the Secretary of the Treasury to oppose any financial assistance from multilateral development institutions to countries that persecute people on the basis of their sexual orientation, gender identity or religious beliefs. In the discussion of the amendment I offered, I specifically mentioned the deeply troubling case of Uganda, which is now considering legislation to legally deprive people of these basic human rights....If the bill before the Ugandan parliament becomes law, it must be the policy of the United States government to oppose any aid to Uganda from the World Bank, the African Development Bank, or any other international financial institution of which we are a member.”

Bravo, Barney.
For us, or any nation, to lend money or support to a country that legislates, legalizes, or justifies murder, for any reason, much less based on someones supposed sexual orientation, is in defensible.
If Uganda wants to go ahead with this criminal action, then they should go ahead alone.

Chaz Bono, on acceptance of being transgender:

“Until I really accepted this about myself and got over any of my own transphobia that I had, I really felt like I wouldn’t be accepted. I thought I would ruin my life. I thought it was, ‘Be yourself but become a pariah and put your family through hell,’ or, ‘Don’t be yourself and live a horribly uncomfortable existence where everybody relates to you in a way that’s not you.’"

I am fascinated by transgendered people, and how they struggle for acceptance from the world, their families, and even themselves.
So many people, and I include some gay folks, too, believe that being a gay man means that you want to be a woman. We don't don't. And lesbians don't wish to be men.
But then you read parts of Chaz Bono's story, about growing up attracted to women, believing 'she' was a lesbian, until 'she' recognized that 'she' was actually a 'he'.
And he was a straight man attracted to women.
Chaz Bono was never a lesbian. He was always a straight man trapped in the wrong gender. How wonderful for him that he can now be truly himself.

Alice Hoagland, mother of openly gay rugby player and 9/11 hero Mark Bingham, on the death of Osama bin Laden:

"I am going to miss my son every day of my life but this, the death of Osama bin Laden, seems to be perfect closure for the foul and evil deeds that that man has committed. Bill Clinton made a real effort to root out Osama bin Laden. George W. Bush promised the American public that we will not rest until we have Osama bin Laden in our control, and then Barack Obama was able to make good the promises and efforts of his two predecessors. I'm very grateful to all three men for their strength and their persistence in this project."

As I have said for the past week or so, the death of bin Laden has given closure to those people most personally affected by 9/11. And Alice Hoagland is right to thank Clinton, Bush, and Obama. All three worked to get bin Laden, and all three deserve a piece of the credit.

Exodus International's head homo Alan Chambers, on Google's airing of an It Gets Better ad during Glee:

"Children all over the world, including my two children are fans of Toy Story and to see a character like that [Woody] endorsing something that at this point children have no need to know about, it’s disappointing. For organizations like Exodus International, which has thousands of men and women like me who have lived a gay life, it obviously didn’t get better living a gay life for them."

It didn't get better for you, Alan, because you chose to go back in the closet and denounce who you are; these ads tell children, and adults, that it's okay to be gay, and to be open and honest, and expect openness and honesty in return.

Former President Bill Clinton, on marriage equality in New York:

"Our nation's permanent mission is to form a ‘more perfect union’ - deepening the meaning of freedom, broadening the reach of opportunity, strengthening the bonds of community. That mission has inspired and empowered us to extend rights to people previously denied them. Every time we have done that, it has strengthened our nation. Now we should do it again, in New York, with marriage equality. For more than a century, our Statue of Liberty has welcomed all kinds of people from all over the world yearning to be free. In the 21st century, I believe New York's welcome must include marriage equality."

It's long past time when all Americans are treated equally under the law.
Long.Past.Time.


Representative Michele "Crazy Eyes" Bachmann, on how the Holocaust is just like raising taxes on the rich:

"Expecting me to bear a fair share of my civic responsibility is like gassing me to death. We are seeing eclipsed in front of our eyes a similar death and a similar taking away. It is this disenfranchisement that I think we have to answer to. The question comes down to this: what will you say to that next generation about what you did to make sure that wouldn't be their fate?"

We might say that we turned things around so that taxation is fair and equitable.
The more you make, the more you pay. We might also say, You're welcome. we were happy to take that burden off of you.
But we would never compare the rich being taxed to six million people being put to death.
That would be stupid.

Chelsea Clinton, on marriage equality:

"As a New Yorker who not that long ago got married to her best friend, I certainly believe that all my friends should have the right to marry their best friends. And I certainly believe that those of us who are straight cannot expect our gay friends to do this on our own. And I certainly expect my straight friends to help us achieve that for all New Yorkers, for all Americans, and for the children that Mark and I expect to have one day..."

Like father, like daughter,
The LGBT cannot move forward without the help and support of the straight community, and it's nice to see Chelsea Clinton ask that of her straight friends.
No one is equal until we are all equal.


Judith Light, longtime advocate for the LGBT community, and the HIV/AIDS community, on LGBT youth:

"It's very important to me that young people, who are struggling with their sexuality, and trying to understand what it's like to live in a world that can be, at it's worst, cruel, and at best, dismissive, that they know and they understand that they are appreciated and loved and valued and respected and honored."

Judith Light has long bee n a supporter of all things LGBT.
To paraphrase an old Barbara Mandrell tune, 'She was gay friendly when gay friendly wasn't cool'.