ADDENDUM::Utah Gov To Speak At Anti-Gay, Anti-Contraception Group's Event | Right Wing Watch

The World Congress of Families sent out a press release today announcing that Utah Gov. Gary Herbert and Attorney General Sean Reyes will both address the group’s upcoming convention in Salt Lake City.

The presence of two of Utah’s top elected officials lends legitimacy to the gathering of opponents of reproductive rights and LGBT equality from around the world. Among the speakers are the National Organization for Marriage’s Brian Brown, Peter Sprigg and Pat Fagan of the Family Research Council, Sharon Slater of Family Watch International and Mark Regnerus, whose faulty research on gay parents has been used to justify anti-LGBT discrimination around the world. 
,,,
But most troubling is the World Congress of Families itself, which is a project of the Illinois-based Howard Center for Family, Religion and Society. The Howard Center and the World Congress of Families were founded by Allan Carlson, an adherent of the anti-contraception, anti-women’s-rights “Quiverfull” ideology.

The World Congress of Families exists to promote what Carlson calls the “natural family” — something that does not include LGBT people, reproductive rights or, often, women working outside the home.

In their “Natural Family: A Manifesto,” Carlson and Paul Mero, then the president of the Sutherland Institute, which is hosting next month’s event in Utah, laid out their vision of a world full of homes “open to a quiver of children,” with “young women growing into wives, homemakers, and mothers” and “young men growing into husbands, homebuilders, and fathers.” They call for “more babies and larger families” to counter the “war on human fertility”; gay marriage bans and tight divorce restrictions to “end the war of the sexual hedonists on marriage”; and the abolition of “state programs that indoctrinate children … youth, and adults into the contraceptive mentality.”

“We will craft schooling that gives positive images of chastity, marriage, fidelity, motherhood, fatherhood, husbandry, and housewifery. We will end the corruption of children through state ‘sex education’ programs,” they add.

Utah Gov To Speak At Anti-Gay, Anti-Contraception Group's Event | Right Wing Watch

"Together We Can Achieve'."

As some of you may recall, I posted about the plight of Baguma Berges Ronnie and his fellow LGBTQ folk in Uganda.  Besides the insidious persecution by governmental elements (encouraged by cretins such as Scott Lively, Rick Warren, and the slags that run World Congress of Families), an issue that is prevalent among the LGBTQ community is homelessness. Over the course of the past two weeks I have been discussing said issue with Baguma and how he and GRAC would like to combat it.

First, GRAC is an underground resistance group committed to reversing the draconian laws put in place by Yoweri Museveni and gaining basic human rights for all Ugandans. It is a LGBTQ "group dedicated to fighting homophobia and transphobia; and bring[ing] together all LGBTQ people irrespective of color, race, creed, religion, political party, etc. We strive to promote the rights of the sex oriented persons in a homophobic environment"  GRAC's online presence began in late 2012 with the goal, "All LGBTQ people around the world unite to fight and defeat homophobia for good!"  What started as a 10 member group currently has over 500 members; locally we dont disclose their identities in the media for security reason.

As I noted in my initial post, "homelessness is a major problem affecting the LGBTQ community and here it's worse due to impoverished communities, high levels of unemployment, etc.."  I think what struck me in our conversations, was not only Baguna's dedication to this cause, but his willingness to put his neck on the line - literally.  I was hesitant in using Baguma's full name in my initial post even though the article associated had.  Our lines crossed but he posted this in response to my query, "Please go ahead and use my name as I am an activist who wants equality for LGBTQ persons and I don't mind [being] a martyr as long as the next generation gain their freedom!"

So with that in mind, Baguma filled me in on, let's call it phase one, what he and GRAC are trying to accomplish.

I do have a few questions, do you definitely have a building in mind touse for a shelter?  I know you mentioned one is available that is in your target purchase/rental,,,

We would like to rent a building in the city suburbs which can accommodate most of the members who are homeless. This idea was brought up today after meeting with the landlord and agreed on the rates per month; though this has to be done with the help of some generous donors out there.

You mention a cost of $350, is that per month and is that amount in US dollars?

That amount is for every 3 months and its in US dollars.

And this building will be used as a shelter like facility?  Are you going to be offering any other type of services - schooling, job training - or is your focus right now just on housing?  

We are going to use the building as a shelter facility. We have a vision of setting up projects like vocational training to equip people with skills for self sustainability, but that is long range.

So, what is being asked of us?  Help in securing the funds necessary and help in spreading GRAC's cause far and wide.

Questions::  ronbaguma07@gmail.com
Donation being accepted via Paypal::Baguma Ronnie c/o. mawa@godfreymawa.com
Western Union and Money Gram are also options

One final question I had for Baguma:  Besides GRAC are there other organizations also working towards the same or similar goals?  And does GRAC have a working relationship with any of them?

Sure they are there and currently we are working with TASO for HIV/AIDS

The AIDS Support Organization (TASO) was founded in Uganda 1987 by people living with HIV and AIDS (PLWHA), based on common experiences faced when encountering HIV/AIDS at a time of high stigma, ignorance, and discrimination. TASO's activities include HIV/AIDS counselling, medical care, social support, training and capacity building, HIV/AIDS education and community mobilisation, and advocacy and networking.

and Youth on the Rock Foundation!

This is a mess "we" have helped create,

A bunch of conservative Christians from US are bemoaning cultural imperialism in Africa? There's a direct connection between US missionaries working within Uganda and the writing and passing of this draconian legislation. The laws that they support are artifacts of cultural imperialism.

Or do they imagine we've all forgotten that? Or do they believe Scott Lively's work time in Uganda doesn't qualify as imperialism? Out-fucking-rageous!!

It Is also a mess we can help fix!!

A Chat with an Activist from Uganda - Proud Queer (PQ Monthly - Daily Online)

If you have followed my blog long enough you will know that one issue I follow is the Reich's exportation of hate via Scott Lively and the crew over at NOM.  Although there are many players in this game (Bryan Fischer, Liberty Counsel, Mike Bickle, World Congress of Families [1], and Rick Warren to name a few) these are in my opinion two of the major players, or the ones garnering the most attention with their vile rhetoric.  As you may recall, it began in earnest with Uganda [2], and the "Kill the Gays Bill".  It then jump to Russia and Putin's dalliance with members of the Reich.  Ireland has also been touched by the hate and it looks as if Australia is now in the cross-hairs. [3]

But through all the various postings, one thing has been missing, personal stories and experiences, that is about to change.  Like the author, I "was messaged by a gay male Ugandan who friended me on Facebook,,,[w]e began to talk regularly[4] and I realized that a lot of us don’t understand the real situation happening in Uganda." Although the authors interest in the situation in Uganda appears a bit more personal,

I found out that the president of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, had a very close advisor that made me remember every excruciating minute of high school when (the failed) Measure 9 was being fought in Oregon. Scott Lively, for those who don’t know, was the second in command of the Oregons Citizen’s Alliance (OCA), a Focus-on-the-Family-type group and he wrote a charming little book titled, The Pink Swastika, Homosexuality and the Nazi Party.

Carroll's interview is enlightening,

The problems in Uganda are complicated and widespread—including extreme poverty (the average Ugandan makes $510 dollars a year, according to WHO, and $600 a year according to my interview subject), limited access to education (half of school age students live 5km from the nearest school and most people are on foot), skyrocketing HIV rates, and an ongoing conflict with Rwanda. Add that to the fact that according to a 2007 Pew Global Attitudes Project poll, 96% of Ugandans say they agree with punishing homosexuality, it makes for a very hostile and dangerous environment for all LGBT Ugandans.
,,,
 PQ: You have an organization, called the Gay Rights Activist Club, what are the goals for the club? What would you like to see? 
Baguma: Concerning goals for the club, GRAC, Gay Rights Activist Club, we are here to promote the rights of gays, fight homophobia, create sustainability, and provide basics like: shelter, food, and medical care for Ugandans.[5]
,,,
PQ Monthly: Is it hard to find employment as a gay person in Kampala?
Baguma: I feel it vital to tell you about gay prostitutes who are mostly found in affluent suburbs of Kampala, and their clients are mostly whites and Asian executives. Places for gays to pick up include; Buziga, Ntinda, Wandegeya, where there are cozy bars.

I'm personally looking forward to information and experiences that Baguma may be able to share.  Not only is he looking for support in attempting to house the homeless , but ideas as well to combat the hatred.

A Chat with an Activist from Uganda - Proud Queer (PQ Monthly - Daily Online)

[1]   World congress of Families as I have discovered recently is a much bigger player than I realized.
[2]   I have not yet seen the full documentary by VICE as I am attempting to obtain a copy.  As noted in my orgianl post David Badash offers a nice summary.  For another perspective to the same, see "World's Worst Place to be Gay?" (2014, BBC).
[3]  Do a bit of digging and you will find that Faust is "sponsored" by none other than Alliance Defending Freedom.
[4]  I have just recently "met" Baguma and our personal dialogue is just beginning.  And it was I that contacted him via a mutual friend who thought I may be interested.
[5]  The existence of GRAC was a point that Baguma noted as well, when in conversation, I mentioned that homelessness withing the LGBTQ community is a world wide problem.

His reply, "Sure homelessness is a major problem affecting the LGBTQ community and here it's worse due to impoverished communities, high levels of unemployment, etc.."

It appears that the plight of the homeless is an issue of concern when he sent the enclosed photo, with the following caption, "Where can you put all that number of persons as you can see."

NOM Chairman Defends Uganda Anti-Gay Law, Suggests Gay 'Recruitment' The Real Human Rights Abuse | Right Wing Watch

Maggie Gallagher, Brian Brown and "now" John Eastman. NOM's hatred of all things LGBTQI is shining brightly as usual.  What started out as a religious organization seeking to influence voters and legislatures to limit the civil rights of others based upon the teachings of the Catholic Church, has now "grown" to an international juggernaut of sadistic evil spouting hate wherever they land.

Eastman quoted Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni’s insistence that the new law was “provoked by western groups who come to our schools and try to recruit children into homosexuality." Noting that US aid restrictions prevent assistance from going to governments that commit human rights violations, including the failure to take “appropriate and adequate measures” to “protect children from exploitation,” Eastman implied that the real “exploitation” was coming from gay rights advocates recruiting children.

He also suggested that US opposition to laws criminalizing homosexuality hinders efforts to fight HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa. (In fact, experts say that the criminalization of homosexuality hurts the effort to fight the epidemic.)

What is farcical concerning Eastman's statement, consider the following comments from Joe.My.God:

But what struck me the most is how he waxes outrages about how US aid might be cut off to select African nations because of their tendency to commit genocide against gay people. He becomes emotional as he emphasizes how important these aid programs are. But this man cares not a whit about these aid programs. He never once in his entire public career ever uttered a word about them. And his party generally opposes foreign aid and constantly seeks to cut it.
__________
A bunch of conservative Christians from US are bemoaning cultural imperialism in Africa? There's a direct connection between US missionaries working within Uganda and the writing and passing of this draconian legislation. The laws that they support are artifacts of cultural imperialism.

Or do they imagine we've all forgotten that? Or do they believe Scott Lively's work time in Uganda doesn't qualify as imperialism? Out-fucking-rageous.

Both of which ring true specially in regards to the British colonial origins of anti-gay laws and Scott Lively.

NOM Chairman Defends Uganda Anti-Gay Law, Suggests Gay 'Recruitment' The Real Human Rights Abuse | Right Wing Watch

NOM Asks Presidential Candidates To 'Prevent The Promotion' Of Gay Rights In Schools | Right Wing Watch

In a “marriage pledge” released today, NOM asks presidential candidates to support a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage and commit to overturning court rulings in favor of marriage equality.

NOM’s pledge also includes a plank similar to Russia’s infamous “gay propaganda” law, which bars “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relationships among minors.” In the third plank of its pledge, NOM asks candidates to “prevent the promotion of a redefined version of marriage in public schools and other government entities,” along with reversing Obama administration policies “that have the effect of undermining marriage.”

NOM also asks the candidates to “direct the Department of Justice to investigate, document and publicize cases of Americans who have been harassed or threatened for exercising key civil rights to organize, to speak, to donate or to vote for marriage and to propose new protections, if needed,” a reference to the sentiment among anti-gay activists that they are being persecuted by prohibitions on anti-LGBT discrimination.

Zack Ford over at Think Progress adds this, 

In other words, wholly committing to undoing all of marriage equality — as NOM is unequivocally asking — is a nothing short of a death wish for a candidate actually hoping to win the general election. Still, it seems likely that at least a few candidates will sign the pledge. Ted Cruz surely will; he has already filed for the passage of a federal marriage amendment. Scott Walker, Rick Santorum, Bobby Jindal, Ben Carson, Mike Huckabee, and Rick Perry have all expressed support for an amendment. Marco Rubio has claimed he’s never supported such an amendment, though he actually has.

NOM Asks Presidential Candidates To 'Prevent The Promotion' Of Gay Rights In Schools | Right Wing Watch

US Christians ‘bankrolling’ no campaign in Ireland’s gay marriage referendum | World news | The Guardian

  Just like NOM and Brian Brown has absolutely nothing to do with what is occurring in Russia?

With just five days to go before Ireland’s historic referendum on the legalisation of gay marriage, a bitter row has broken out between supporters and opponents over the funding of their respective campaigns. Supporters of a yes vote have accused opponents of a lack of transparency over finances and of accepting funding from rightwing Christian groups in the US.

Ireland’s referendum is the only one in the world where a national electorate is being asked to legalise gay marriage. If it is passed on Friday, gay couples will have the right under the state’s constitution to marry – at present only civil partnerships are recognised in law. Marriage equality would provide full rights of inheritance but, despite it being a contentious issue in the campaign, would not alter the law on adoption, which was recently changed to allow gay couples to adopt.

A yes vote would also mark yet another defeat for the Catholic church and the political power it used to wield in Ireland.

[,,,]
One of the no side’s strongest supporters in the US is the lavishly funded National Organisation for Marriage (NOM). In a letter to supporters around the world, it has urged evangelical Christians to visit keepmarriage.org, which is campaigning for a no vote.
 
“Just like in campaigns for marriage here in America,” the letter says, “slanted public opinion polls become fodder to influence and depress supporters of marriage. This is happening in Ireland. If [the no campaign] can manage to pull off a victory, it will be a tremendous boost to the cause of marriage worldwide. Please do what you can to bring awareness to their efforts.”

However, a spokesperson for NOM in the US denied this weekend that it had channelled funds to any of the three main opposition groups to gay marriage during the campaign. NOM is aware that foreign donations to lobby groups during referendums in Ireland are banned, the spokesperson said.

US Christians ‘bankrolling’ no campaign in Ireland’s gay marriage referendum | World news | The Guardian

‘Only God’ Can Stop Gay Marriage - The Daily Beast

Two points I harp about, the rash of alleged "religious liberty" incidents and the exporting of hate,,,

"They have a tough road ahead, and more and more they're being honest about that. That's becoming their new cry, now they're the David against Goliath," said Jeremy Hooper, a political consultant who has monitored the activities of anti-LGBT groups for a decade. “They're owning the fact that they're at a loss now.”

Those who have watched anti-gay groups closely suggest that there will be two major strategic shifts in their strategy.

First, as opposition to gay marriage collapses, American anti-LGBT activists will slow their battle against it. Instead, they’ll fight for the rights of those who hold anti-gay views—with resources shifting to so-called “religious freedom” groups.

"It's becoming increasingly evident that where the opponents of same-sex marriage can make a serious case is that it is a violation of religious liberty to sanction same-sex marriage," said Jonathan Rauch, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and a long-time adovate for marriage equality. “[Their strategy is] to circle the wagons and say, look, if we're not going to win the debate on the public legitimacy of same-sex marriage, we can win the religious liberty one so that we don't have to be a part of this."

And second, with falling support domestically, many anti-LGBT groups will take their message abroad to places where the momentum is with them.

“It looks like the hardest core of anti-gay marriage advocates are turning their attention overseas, by lobbying for anti-gay marriage and anti-gay rights in places like Uganda and Russia,” Rauch said.

‘Only God’ Can Stop Gay Marriage - The Daily Beast

Ten Years From Now | NOM Blog

Not quite as nice as Brad Paisley's "Letter to Me" (5th Gear, 2007), I can only hope that a majority of what Brown "cites" come true.

But I am also a bit confused as to this "preservation of marriage" or "redefining marriage." I would have to say that if there is any redefinition going on, it would be at the hands of the church. Biblical references aside for the moment, me thinks that Brown needs to acquaint himself with the work of John Boswell, Christianity, Social Tolerance, and Homosexuality: Gay People in Western Europe from the Beginning of the Christian Era to the 14th Century, which shows that the Roman Catholic Church did not condemn homosexuality until at least the 12th century. Or, The Marriage of Likeness: Same Sex Unions in Pre- Modern Europe which lists in detail some same sex union ceremonies found in ancient church liturgical documents.

Though Boswell's work is considered controversial by some, his findings need explaining especially in light of pre-Christian Greek attitudes towards homosexual relationships. Although I am loathe to cite the following due to interpretational controversy, one cannot ignore the presentation of Achilles and Patroclus in Homer's Illiad or Aeschylus' Myrmidons; even Plato had something to say in the Symposium, Phaedrus offers his commentary. Again in the Symposium, we have Pausanias of Athens and Agathon. And last, Alexander the Great and Hephaestion.

"For Roman citizens, marriage was a duty and was not meant for the purpose of fulfilling erotic needs. Therefore, it was considered normal for a male to look for sexual fulfillment outside marriage, though females did not have such liberty. Presumably, the main Greco-Roman moral view on human sexuality was that sexuality was good, as long as it did not interfere with a person's obligations to the state or family or involve the abuse of free children or married women. Other views stated that sexuality was dangerous and should be limited. People that held such beliefs would usually commit themselves to celibacy or limit their sexual activities either to marriage, or strictly for the purpose of procreation. Such views, though, did not preclude homosexual acts; they simply aimed to reduce promiscuous heterosexual activity."

As to he so-called "biblical" marriage,,,

Vaughn Roste, in 2004, put this piece together Biblical Marriage: A Bad Source For Debate:

1. Marriage consists of one man and one or more women. (Gen 4:19, 4:23, 26:34, 28:9, 29:26-30, 30:26, 31:17, 32:22, 36:2, 36:10, 37:2, Ex. 21:10, Judges 8:30, 1 Sam 1:2, 25:43, 27:3, 30:5, 30:18, 2 Sam 2:2, 3:2-5, 1 Chron 3:1-3, 4:5, 8:8, 14:3, 2 Chron 11:21, 13:21, 24:3).
2. Nothing prevents a man from taking on concubines in addition to the wife or wives he may already have. (Gen 25:6, Judges 8:31, 2 Sam 5:13, 1 Kings 11:3, 1 Chron 3:9, 2 Chron 11:21, Dan 5:2-3).
3. A man might chose any woman he wants for his wife (Gen 6:2, Deut 21:11), provided only that she is not already another man's wife (Lev 18:14-16, Deut. 22:30) or his [half-]sister (Lev 18:11, 20:17), nor the mother (Lev 20:14) or the sister (Lev 18:18) of a woman who is already his wife. The concept of a woman giving her consent to being married is foreign to the Biblical mindset.
4. If a woman cannot be proven to be a virgin at the time of marriage, she shall be stoned. (Deut 22:13-21).
5. A rapist must marry his victim (Ex. 22:16, Deut. 22:28-29) - unless she was already a fiancÈ, in which case he should be put to death if he raped her in the country, but both of them killed if he raped her in town. (Deut. 22:23-27).
6. If a man dies childless, his brother must marry the widow. (Gen 38:6-10, Deut 25:5-10, Mark 12:19, Luke 20:28).
7. Women marry the man of their father's choosing. (Gen. 24:4, Josh.15:16-17, Judges 1:12-13, 12:9, 21:1, 1 Sam 17:25, 18:19, 1 Kings 2:21, 1 Chron 2:35, Jer 29:6, Dan 11:17).
8. Women are the property of their father until married, and their husband after that. (Ex. 20:17, 22:17, Deut. 22:24, Mat 22:25).
9. The value of a woman might be approximately seven years' work. (Gen 29:14-30).
10. Inter-faith marriages are prohibited. (Gen 24:3, 28:1, 28:6, Num 25:1-9, Ezra 9:12, Neh 10:30, 2 Cor 6:14).
11. Divorce is forbidden. (Deut 22:19, Matt 5:32, 19:9, Mark 10:9-12, Luke 16:18, Rom 7:2, 1 Cor 7:10-11, 7:39).
12. Better to not get married at all - although marriage is not a sin. (Matt 19:10, I Cor 7:1, 7:27-28, 7:32-34, 7:38).

So, as you can see one can not make such a blanket statement that "gay theology" or the "gay agenda" is redefining marriage when it is quite obvious from history, biblical history as well, that marriage was never pigeon holed in the first place. It's just not that simple,,,

_

After Gilgamesh has a series of bad dreams, Enkidu comforts him, saying, “’Take my hand, friend, and we shall go [on] together, [let] your thoughts dwell on combat!’” (Tablet IV).

Ten Years From Now | NOM Blog

Brian Brown Gets Defensive About His Russia Activism: 'Absolute Lies And Slurs' | Right Wing Watch

So earlier today I was involved in a two-pronged conversation concerning WW2 and the role and responsibilities of the railroads (and by proxy the workers) had in the Holocaust.  The question was asked were any of those "workers" ever held accountable?

Things were going along great till this, ",,,do you think that there will be a modern day holocaust with Christians being forced out of their homes and thrown in FEMA camps? That's what I'm concerned about these days."

Frustrated by this conversation stopper (faux Christian Persecution Complex), I posed the above to a group of like minded thinkers, we bandied about some of the myth-conceptions surrounding Hitler and the Third Reich. One comment touched on one of Hitler's alleged proclivities and the "most of the Nazis were homosexuals" canard that some like to pull out of a hat and teach.

The ensuing discussion centered around where this thought may have originated and why, ",,, found myself reading The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich,,,At any rate in book one which was about Hitler's early life and his efforts to start the political party; this book says that he went anyplace he could to gain support and that some of his early supporters were thugs and homosexuals. This may have been the reference your teacher had,,,But this was before he had any power and it would be a stretch to make that idiotic statement." (Ed. for grammar, spelling and punctuation)

To which I responded (minus the citations),,,
The Right's misinformation concerning Hitler and gays could be coming from Scott Lively's book the Pink Swastika: Homosexuality in the Nazi Party, it is his favorite canard and he uses it very well.

Lively's ideas have proven too radical for the mainstream family values movement, but they've gotten some traction on the far right. Bryan Fischer, director of issues analysis for the influential American Family Association, regularly parrots his arguments linking gays to Nazis. ("Homosexuality gave us Adolph Hitler," he opined in a 2010 post on the organization's website, "and homosexuals in the military gave us the Brown Shirts, the Nazi war machine and six million dead Jews.") Lively's theories have also gained currency in foreign countries, including former Soviet republics, where he has helped advance anti-gay legislation. But nowhere has his influence been more keenly felt than in Uganda

Lively is one of many western evangelicals responsible for Uganda's kill the gays bill as well as the anti-gay sentiment in Russia.

What's less well known is that three American evangelical preachers, Scott Lively, Caleb Lee Brundidge and Don Schmierer, visited the country a month before the bill was introduced, giving talks about how "the gay movement is an evil institution" which seeks to prey on children, destroy "the moral fiber of the people," and abolish marriage and the family and replace it with "a culture of sexual promiscuity." Lively boasted that their campaign was "a nuclear bomb against the gay agenda in Uganda," and later admitted to meeting with Ugandan lawmakers to help draft the bill, although he professed ignorance of the death penalty provision. Other American evangelicals, including Kevin Swanson and Lou Engle, have also expressed their support for the so-called Kill the Gays bill.

It's not just LGBT people in Uganda who've been harmed by the spread of aggressive evangelicalism. American megachurch pastor Rick Warren has a Ugandan protege, a pastor named Martin Ssempa, who has preached aggressively against contraception (in one bizarre public stunt, he burned condoms in the name of Jesus). Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni had formerly been a staunch advocate of the so-called ABC program (consisting of abstinence, monogamy and condom use) which successfully reduced HIV infection rates in Uganda; but thanks in part to Ssempa's influence and access, the government was persuaded to stop free condom distribution, and as a result, new HIV infections spiked again. (Ssempa, too, has called for the imprisonment of gay people. President Museveni also has ties to the Washington, D.C.-based fundamentalist group "the Family," which has called him their " key man" in Africa.)

The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany by William L. Shirer though a landmark book has a few "problems" from a strict academic standpoint although one has to remember it was written in 1960s. So you could be correct as well (name removed) I do remember back in the mid 90s Shirer's attitude towards homosexuality (it being a perversion) was taken to task.

So the attached article, which mysteriously appeared on my news feed tonight, and the accusation comes as no big surprise, although I didn't realize that NOM's influence ranged beyond domestic interests. I should have known better.

Joe Jervis points us to a debate on C-SPAN this weekend between the National Organization for Marriage’s Brian Brown and Freedom to Marry’s Evan Wolfson, where things got a little contentious when Wolfson confronted Brown about his anti-gay activism in Russia.

Brown has never explicitly advocated for repressive Russian anti-gay policies, including the infamous “gay propaganda” ban, but he has acted as an outside validator for Russian politicians imposing the harsh new policies.

Last year, for instance, he spoke to a Russian parliament committee about the supposed dangers of gay adoption just a few days before the legislature voted to tighten its prohibition on the adoption of Russian orphans by same-sex couples or by couples in countries where same-sex marriage is legal.

And this year, Brown was a member of the planning committee for a World Congress of Families event in Moscow that was to take place at the Kremlin and was financed by members of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle. Although the World Congress of Families dropped its official sponsorship of the event under pressure from some of its member groups, the event went ahead as planned, with Brown as a featured speaker. That conference ended with delegates issuing a resolution calling for more countries around the world to pass “gay propaganda” bans like Russia’s.

Brian Brown Gets Defensive About His Russia Activism: 'Absolute Lies And Slurs' | Right Wing Watch

NOM's Rally Crashed, Burned, Flopped, Failed, Fizzled, Disintegrated And Imploded All At Once

The other day a friend of mine posted the attached article to which I responded,

You know what I find interesting. For all the noise NOM makes in the media about their so called cause, their base is really really small. If people were truly so up in arms over marriage equality you'd think they would show up and a support the "grand daddy" of all protests.

So riddle me this rhetorical question (as I do know the answer or at least part of it), where is all their money coming from, hmmm?? Explains why they want to keep their donor list private,,,

In 2007 and 2008, its first two years of existence, NOM never bothered to file any tax returns with the IRS. Its leaders think that they are above the law,,, NOM is clearly trying to keep all its financial information secret. This is illegal if you are a 501(c)(3) or a 501(c)(4) tax-exempt organization like NOM.

According to HRC,,,

“The National Organization for Marriage continues to push the notion that there is some sort of grassroots support for their discriminatory anti-gay agenda,” said HRC Vice President of Communications Fred Sainz. “Last week, that notion was soundly rejected by voters in Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, and Washington State. Now, NOM’s own financial records are serving as the latest proof that support for LGBT equality is common-sense and mainstream. NOM is nothing more than a conduit channeling the anti-gay agenda of a few secretive, wealthy donors.”

NOM's Rally Crashed, Burned, Flopped, Failed, Fizzled, Disintegrated And Imploded All At Once

Mark Regnerus Watch: Utah, Michigan | The Bilerico Project

Tuesday I posted concerning Regnerus and his flawed "sociological study." The one where data and conclusion don't exactly line up. This article again touches on the influence of said study but also delves into some of the other players in the Utah case (and Michigan as well).

Relying on information from Joe.My.God.:

Another familiar name on the Utah brief is Professor Douglas Allen, of Canada's Simon Fraser University. Allen sits on the board of directors of NOM's former hate-satellite, the Ruth Institute. Allen is a supporter of Regnerus and claims to have analyzed a 2000 census and come to the conclusion that "children being raised by same-sex couples are 35% less likely to make normal progress through school."

Also signing the brief is Professor Joseph Price from Utah's Brigham Young University. Last year Price and four other (presumably Mormon) members of the Brigham Young social sciences faculty filed an anti-gay SCOTUS brief against the overturn of DOMA. Their brief denounced the APA's position that gay people make fine parents. From the brief: "Boys who do not regularly experience the love, discipline, and modeling of a good father are more likely to engage in what is called 'compensatory masculinity' where they reject and denigrate all that is feminine and instead seek to prove their masculinity by engaging in domineering and violent behavior." In other words, lesbian parents produce violent boys.

What I, and by reading through various comments from JMG, and a few others have pondered: how is a widely discredited study continually cited in cases all the way up to the supreme court?

The answer simplified, "[t]he reason this study still carries weight in Court is because it does, to this day, remain Peer Reviewed and Published, although 2 out of 3 peer reviewers were CONCOMITANTLY paid consultants to the study." Unlike the Wakefield vaccine study which was rescinded, this study has not been.

Mark Regnerus Watch: Utah, Michigan | The Bilerico Project

How Marriage Equality Opponents' Three National Strategies All Contradict Each Other | ThinkProgress

2013 represented a significant turning point in the marriage equality fight with the Supreme Court’s overturning of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), but the next — and possibly last — phase of that effort is already taking form. What’s left is for the Supreme Court to address whether state constitutional bans on same-sex marriage violate the rights of gay and lesbian couples, and with cases in Nevada, Utah, Ohio, and Oklahoma already headed to the appellate level, that could happen within the next few years. In the meantime, opponents of marriage equality are doing their best to slow the momentum and limit the recognition of same-sex marriages as much as possible.

At the federal level, opponents currently have three proposed strategies for rolling back some of the recognition that same-sex couples now have. Particularly in the wake of the Utah and Oklahoma decisions, groups like the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) and Family Research Council (FRC) have been emphasizing two talking points: that states should have the right to establish their own definition of marriage and that the religious views of people who oppose marriage equality should be protected. Each of the three proposed strategies would limit same-sex marriage to a certain extent according to these talking points, but the principles that inform each strategy are in conflict with each other.

While none of the three plans seems to be politically viable, here’s a look at how conservatives are tripping over themselves to stem the tide of marriage equality.

How Marriage Equality Opponents' Three National Strategies All Contradict Each Other | ThinkProgress

Maggie Gallagher: Moral Gays Deserve The Right To ‘Ex-Gay’ Therapy | The New Civil Rights Movement

The “ex-gay” industry kept the cash flowing into the coffers of hate groups like the American Family Association and the Family Research Council, as well as Gallagher’s National Organization For Marriage (NOM).

So, imagine my surprise when Maggie Gallagher, co-founder and former Chair of NOM, the National Organization For Marriage, chose to write a glowing response to Cumming’s op-ed.

In her regular National Review column, Gallagher calls Cummings “rather a giant in the field of psychology,” which is kind of like calling ExxonMobile “rather a giant in the field of climate change denialism.”

But the best line from Gallagher’s post?

“Cummings’s point is that competent therapy can be helpful to highly motivated patients who choose to deal with same-sex attraction in other ways than, well, being gay.”

Maggie Gallagher: Moral Gays Deserve The Right To ‘Ex-Gay’ Therapy | The New Civil Rights Movement

Federal, state ethics complaints against NOM, Iowa Family Leader, Santorum being evaluated | God Discussion

Last month, gay rights activist Fred Karger filed a complaint in Iowa against the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), a Washington, D.C.-based organization that opposes same sex marriage, saying it violated state law by not disclosing who contributed money during its Iowa efforts to oust Iowa Supreme Court justices during the elections in 2010 and 2012.

According to the Des Moines Register, the complaint will be considered at the Iowa Ethics & Campaign Disclosure Board’s Aug. 8 meeting, where it will be decided whether the complaint is "legally sufficient" for investigation.

Federal, state ethics complaints against NOM, Iowa Family Leader, Santorum being evaluated | God Discussion