The Kansas Evolution Election: Stealth creationist is unmasked & moderate candidates are endorsed
No Joke: "Careless" breeding behavior of heterosexuals forces ban on gay marriage
Friday, July 07, 2006
Today's Headlines: More on the evolution campaign, "careless" breeding & the twisted reasoning of a gay marriage ban
The Kansas Evolution Election: Stealth creationist is unmasked & moderate candidates are endorsed
In the latest news in the campaign to unseat the anti-evolution majority on the Kansas Board of Education:
Red State Rabble unmasks District 1 candidate Jesse Hall as a stealth candidate for the right and the Lawrence Journal-World picks up the story. Thoughts on Kansas adds, well, a few thoughts on the topic and links and information on how to support moderate candidates here.
Kansas Families United for Public Education issue their endorsements of moderate candidates. See Red State Rabble's item here and see the group's web site here.
Also, a report from Western Kansas on how District 5 candidate Sally Cauble is challenging radical anti-evolution incumbent Connie Morris. If this report is true, then Cauble is facing a well-financed campaign and some PR muscle.
Red State Rabble unmasks District 1 candidate Jesse Hall as a stealth candidate for the right and the Lawrence Journal-World picks up the story. Thoughts on Kansas adds, well, a few thoughts on the topic and links and information on how to support moderate candidates here.
Kansas Families United for Public Education issue their endorsements of moderate candidates. See Red State Rabble's item here and see the group's web site here.
Also, a report from Western Kansas on how District 5 candidate Sally Cauble is challenging radical anti-evolution incumbent Connie Morris. If this report is true, then Cauble is facing a well-financed campaign and some PR muscle.
No Joke: "Careless" breeding behavior of heterosexuals requires ban on gay marriage
[revised 12:30 p.m. CST]
Yesterday's New York high court ruling upholding a ban on same-sex marriage echoes a recent Indiana Court of Appeals decision. That Indiana decision used some rather odd reasoning revolving around the concept of careless heterosexuals, according to a legal analysis in the Gay City News. Hat tip to PageOneQ.
The news writes (emphasis mine):
Yesterday's New York high court ruling upholding a ban on same-sex marriage echoes a recent Indiana Court of Appeals decision. That Indiana decision used some rather odd reasoning revolving around the concept of careless heterosexuals, according to a legal analysis in the Gay City News. Hat tip to PageOneQ.
The news writes (emphasis mine):
The Indiana court theorized that while same-sex couples can only have children as a result of deliberate intention through adoption or donor insemination, opposite-sex couples can have children through carelessness, accidents (broken condoms, drunken orgies, what have you), or indirection, and thus the Legislature could rationally believe that the purpose of providing the rights and benefits of marriage should be used as an incentive to corral those careless breeders into bonds of matrimony.
Of course, (New York Judge) Smith utterly fails to explain why not letting same-sex couples marry advances this goal of getting opposite-sex couples to do so.
"Twisted legal reasoning" guides New York gay marriage ban
The New York Times pegs it right today when it editorializes that yesterday's ruling by the state's highest court is filled with "twisted legal reasoning."
In This Moment's thoughts on the ruling can be found here. Excerpts from the well-written dissent of the court's chief judge can be found here. An American Academy of Pediatrics report that shows how bans on gay marriage hurt children is here.
In This Moment's thoughts on the ruling can be found here. Excerpts from the well-written dissent of the court's chief judge can be found here. An American Academy of Pediatrics report that shows how bans on gay marriage hurt children is here.
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Headlines: States dump on gay marriage; teaching evolution may be decided Aug. 1 & the Statue of Liberty remade
Fairness for Lesbian & Gay Families
No Surprises: Georgia upholds gay marriage banChief Judge: Banning gay marriage undermines the welfare of children
New York high court declares the children of lesbians & gays to be 2nd-class citizens
Attacking families & banning gay marriage hurts children. Why is this even news?
Work for fair laws for ALL Kansans with the Kansas Equality Coalition
Evolution
The Kansas Evolution Election: How the Aug. 1 primary could change everything
The Separation of Church & State
No surprise: Georgia upholds gay marriage ban
By Diane Silver
The Georgia Supreme Court surprised few today by upholding the state ban on same-sex marriage.
Although this is a blow to lesbian and gay Americans and particularly to those folks in Georgia, I don't see it as being as severe a setback as the decision in New York.
Today's Georgia ruling doesn't seem to deal with the merits of gay marriage. Instead, it focuses on whether the constitutional amendment passed by the state's voters violated the rule against including more than one issue in a proposal. So far, every lawsuit that has taken this tack in challenging a marriage ban has failed.
Gov. Sonny Perdue, a supporter of the ban, however, provided what has to be one of the most bizarre comments today. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports:
You bet he would!
The Georgia Supreme Court surprised few today by upholding the state ban on same-sex marriage.
Although this is a blow to lesbian and gay Americans and particularly to those folks in Georgia, I don't see it as being as severe a setback as the decision in New York.
Today's Georgia ruling doesn't seem to deal with the merits of gay marriage. Instead, it focuses on whether the constitutional amendment passed by the state's voters violated the rule against including more than one issue in a proposal. So far, every lawsuit that has taken this tack in challenging a marriage ban has failed.
Gov. Sonny Perdue, a supporter of the ban, however, provided what has to be one of the most bizarre comments today. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports:
The governor also said that he hopes gay Georgians do not feel marginalized by the decision. He said they are free to work and live their lives here - they simply can not marry in the state of Georgia.What planet is Perdue living on? Wouldn't he feel marginalized if he was not allowed to marry in his home state?
You bet he would!
Chief Judge: Banning gay marriage undermines the welfare of children
All of New York Chief Judge Judith Kaye's dissent from today's New York high court ruling upholding the state's ban on gay marriage is well worth reading.
Her dissent can be found here. Be patient when you use that link. You have to scroll through the very long main opinion to get to her dissent. Below are a few excerpts. The emphasis and some of the paragraph breaks are mine.
Kaye writes:
Her dissent can be found here. Be patient when you use that link. You have to scroll through the very long main opinion to get to her dissent. Below are a few excerpts. The emphasis and some of the paragraph breaks are mine.
Kaye writes:
Defendants primarily assert an interest in encouraging procreation within marriage. But while encouraging opposite-sex couples to marry before they have children is certainly al egitimate interest of the State, the exclusion of gay men and lesbians from marriage in no way furthers this interest. There are enough marriage licenses to go around for everyone.
Nor does this exclusion rationally further the State'slegitimate interest in encouraging heterosexual married couples to procreate. Plainly, the ability or
desire to procreate is not a prerequisite for marriage.The elderly are permitted to marry, and many same-sex couples do indeed have children. Thus, the statutory classification here -- which prohibits only same-sex couples, and no one else, from marrying -- is so grossly underinclusive and overinclusive as to make the asserted rationale in promoting procreation "impossible to credit" ...
Of course, there are many ways in which the government could rationally promote procreation -- for example, by giving taxbreaks to couples who have children, subsidizing child care for those couples, or mandating generous family leave for parents. Any of these benefits -- and many more -- might convince people who would not otherwise have children to do so. But no one rationally decides to have children because gays and lesbians are excluded from marriage.
In holding that prison inmates have a fundamental right to marry -- even though they cannot procreate -- the Supreme Court has made it clear that procreation is not the sine qua non of marriage....Marriage is about much more than producing children, yet same-sex couples are excluded from the entire spectrum of protections that come with civil marriage--purportedly to encourage other people to procreate.
Indeed, the protections that the State gives to couples who do marry--such as the right to own property as a unit or to make medical decisions for each other--are focused largely on the adult relationship, rather thanon the couple's possible role as
parents.
Nor does the plurality even attempt to explain how offering only heterosexuals the right to visit a sick loved one in the hospital, for example, conceivably furthers the State's interest in encouraging opposite-sex couples to have children, or indeed how excluding same-sex couples from each of the specific legal benefits of civil marriage--even apart from the totality of
marriage itself--does not independently violate plaintiffs' rights to equal protection of the laws.
...
The State plainly has a legitimate interest in the welfare of children, but excluding same-sex couples from marriage in no way furthers this interest. In fact, it undermines it.
Civil marriage provides tangible legal protections and economic benefits to married couples and their children, and tens ofthousands of children are currently being raised by same-sex couples in New York. Depriving these children of the benefits and protections available to the children of opposite-sex couples is antithetical to their welfare, as defendants do not dispute.
...
The State's interest in a stable society is rationally advanced when families are established and remain intact irrespective of the gender ofthe spouses.
New York high court declares the children of lesbians & gays to be 2nd-class citizens
By Diane Silver
The New York Court of Appeals -- the state's highest court -- declared today in a 4-2 decision that marriage discrimination is legal and then noted that any end to discriminatory laws has to come from the state legislature.
The practical result of this ruling is that the families and, thus, the children of lesbian and gay New Yorkers are cast as 2nd-class citizens. They have fewer legal protections and less financial security than the children of heterosexual families.
AP reports:
This decision -- and justices' deferral to the legislature on an issue of civil rights, of all things -- also make me wonder if the religious right's constant drumbeat about activist judges has scored a victory.
Perhaps, I'm wrong. You can read the opinion and dissents here (see Jason Seymour v. Julie Holcomb et al) and see for yourself. No one except the four justices on the winning side can know whether their courage failed them. Were they too afraid to stand up for fairness under the law?
The New York Court of Appeals -- the state's highest court -- declared today in a 4-2 decision that marriage discrimination is legal and then noted that any end to discriminatory laws has to come from the state legislature.
The practical result of this ruling is that the families and, thus, the children of lesbian and gay New Yorkers are cast as 2nd-class citizens. They have fewer legal protections and less financial security than the children of heterosexual families.
AP reports:
The Court of Appeals, in a 4-2 decision, said New York's marriage law is constitutional and clearly limits marriage to between a man and a woman.AP also reports:
Any change in the law would have to come from the state Legislature, Judge Robert Smith said.
"It's a sad day for New York families," said plaintiff Kathy Burke of Schenectady, who is raising an 11-year-old son with her partner, Tonja Alvis. My family deserves the same protections as my next door neighbors."The end result of this decision is that our children will suffer. See here for what the American Academy of Pediatrics says about the impact on children of bans on same-sex marriage.
This decision -- and justices' deferral to the legislature on an issue of civil rights, of all things -- also make me wonder if the religious right's constant drumbeat about activist judges has scored a victory.
Perhaps, I'm wrong. You can read the opinion and dissents here (see Jason Seymour v. Julie Holcomb et al) and see for yourself. No one except the four justices on the winning side can know whether their courage failed them. Were they too afraid to stand up for fairness under the law?
Attacking families & banning gay marriage hurts children. Why is this even news?
By Diane Silver
This week we get the stunning news that the nation's largest pediatricians group is reporting that legal and economic barriers designed to destroy families hurt children.
Not a shock, really, except when you realize that the report from the American Academy of Pediatrics is talking about the impact of same-sex marriage bans on the children of lesbians and gays.
365gay.com reports:
Nothing in this report is surprising, except for the fact that it is needed at all.
Common sense is often thrown out the window in political debates about lesbian and gays. Perhaps, the problem isn't simply that common sense is jetisoned, but that some heterosexuals are incapable of seeing us as human beings. If these folks could open their eyes, nothing in this week's report would be a surprise.
We love our children. Our children love us. Our families help our children grow strong. Undermine our families, make them legally insecure, threaten their financial safety, and our children will be hurt.
It is as simple as ABC.
This week we get the stunning news that the nation's largest pediatricians group is reporting that legal and economic barriers designed to destroy families hurt children.
Not a shock, really, except when you realize that the report from the American Academy of Pediatrics is talking about the impact of same-sex marriage bans on the children of lesbians and gays.
365gay.com reports:
"Children of same-gender parents often experience economic, legal, and familial insecurity as a result of the absence of legal recognition of their bonds to nonbiological parents" and that "legal recognition of a [same-gender] spouse can increase the ability of adult couples to provide and care for one another and fosters a nurturing and secure environment for their children," the report said.The report also notes:
Nationwide political and religious debate over same gender marriage has intensified an already unstable climate for gay men and lesbians in our society. The lack of societal tolerance, acceptance, and support that gay and lesbian individuals, couples, and their children experience can and does affect their psychosocial and physical health and safety.The 55,000-members Academy is considered the most influential professional organization for pediatricians in the United States, according to 365gay.com.
Nothing in this report is surprising, except for the fact that it is needed at all.
Common sense is often thrown out the window in political debates about lesbian and gays. Perhaps, the problem isn't simply that common sense is jetisoned, but that some heterosexuals are incapable of seeing us as human beings. If these folks could open their eyes, nothing in this week's report would be a surprise.
We love our children. Our children love us. Our families help our children grow strong. Undermine our families, make them legally insecure, threaten their financial safety, and our children will be hurt.
It is as simple as ABC.
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
The Kansas Evolution Election: How the Aug. 1 primary could change everything
By Diane Silver
When I first moved to Kansas, I thought primary elections were a total bore. After all, the only thing a primary does is nominate party candidates. The real election is in November, right?
Very wrong, at least when it comes to Kansas. We are, after all, a scarlet state. The Republican Party registers twice as many voters as the Democratic Party does. Often the candidate who wins the Republican primary is the candidate who wins in November, even if he or she faces a Democratic opponent.
This year's election in Kansas is more interesting and important than most. With the primary less than a month away -- and preliminary voting starting July 12 -- it is time to pay attention.
Amidst all the other offices we are deciding this year, we are also voting in what I'm calling the Evolution Election.
What happens in the Nov. 7 election will change what our children face in school. Because of the Republican majority in Kansas, the entire election, and our children's future, could well be decided in less than a month in the Aug. 1 primary.
Will they be taught a solid science curriculum or indoctrinated into the ideas of one, narrow branch of Christianity? Will sex education be taught? Will public schools be funded, or will taxpayer money to funneled into private schools? Will competent staff be hired in the state Department of Education, or will inexperienced ideologues like Bob Corkins be given the job of running the state school system?
At issue are five seats on the 10-seat Kansas Board of Education. Four of them are currently held by Republicans who pushed the anti-evolution, anti-sex-education agenda of the radical religious right. One is held by a moderate Republican who tried to fight back.
Three moderates on the board do not face election this year. This means that if moderate Janet Waugh of Kansas City can retain her seat and only two of the incumbent radicals can be defeated, we can bring sanity back to education in Kansas.
Because primary elections are so important in Kansas, it is time to get involved. Donate to a moderate candidate. Volunteer to call voters or to canvas. And at the very least, educate yourself about your district race and get ready to VOTE.
The MAINstream Coalition is already bringing in volunteers to work on the campaign. Kansas Families United for Public Education and the Kansas Alliance for Education are working for moderates and can help connect you with campaigns.
The best blogger coverage of the campaign is from Red State Rabble.
Quick Evolution Election Cheat Sheet
The Anti-Evolution Radicals are:
District 3 - Incumbent John Bacon
District 5 - Incumbent Connie Morris
District 7 - Incumbent Ken Willard
District 9 - Incumbent Iris Van Meter decided not to run again. In her place is her son-in-law, Brad Patzer, who is expected to carry on her agenda.
Moderate Republican Janet Waugh of District 1 in Kansas City is also up for election.
When I first moved to Kansas, I thought primary elections were a total bore. After all, the only thing a primary does is nominate party candidates. The real election is in November, right?
Very wrong, at least when it comes to Kansas. We are, after all, a scarlet state. The Republican Party registers twice as many voters as the Democratic Party does. Often the candidate who wins the Republican primary is the candidate who wins in November, even if he or she faces a Democratic opponent.
This year's election in Kansas is more interesting and important than most. With the primary less than a month away -- and preliminary voting starting July 12 -- it is time to pay attention.
Amidst all the other offices we are deciding this year, we are also voting in what I'm calling the Evolution Election.
What happens in the Nov. 7 election will change what our children face in school. Because of the Republican majority in Kansas, the entire election, and our children's future, could well be decided in less than a month in the Aug. 1 primary.
Will they be taught a solid science curriculum or indoctrinated into the ideas of one, narrow branch of Christianity? Will sex education be taught? Will public schools be funded, or will taxpayer money to funneled into private schools? Will competent staff be hired in the state Department of Education, or will inexperienced ideologues like Bob Corkins be given the job of running the state school system?
At issue are five seats on the 10-seat Kansas Board of Education. Four of them are currently held by Republicans who pushed the anti-evolution, anti-sex-education agenda of the radical religious right. One is held by a moderate Republican who tried to fight back.
Three moderates on the board do not face election this year. This means that if moderate Janet Waugh of Kansas City can retain her seat and only two of the incumbent radicals can be defeated, we can bring sanity back to education in Kansas.
Because primary elections are so important in Kansas, it is time to get involved. Donate to a moderate candidate. Volunteer to call voters or to canvas. And at the very least, educate yourself about your district race and get ready to VOTE.
The MAINstream Coalition is already bringing in volunteers to work on the campaign. Kansas Families United for Public Education and the Kansas Alliance for Education are working for moderates and can help connect you with campaigns.
The best blogger coverage of the campaign is from Red State Rabble.
Quick Evolution Election Cheat Sheet
The Anti-Evolution Radicals are:
District 3 - Incumbent John Bacon
District 5 - Incumbent Connie Morris
District 7 - Incumbent Ken Willard
District 9 - Incumbent Iris Van Meter decided not to run again. In her place is her son-in-law, Brad Patzer, who is expected to carry on her agenda.
Moderate Republican Janet Waugh of District 1 in Kansas City is also up for election.
Work for fair laws for ALL Kansans by keeping up to date with the Kansas Equality Coalition
By Diane Silver
If you want to get involved in the battle for fairness for all Kansans -- including lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered folk -- the Kansas Equality Coalition is the place to start.
Some upcoming events include:
Flints Hills First Friday Dinner in Manhattan
When: July 7th, 2006, 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Where: Happy Valley Restaurant, Aggieville
Southwest Chapter's July Meeting/Cookout
When: July 9th, 2006, 4:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Where: Cimarron
KEC Wichita 3rd Annual BBQ
When: July 15th, 2006, 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Where: First Unitarian Universalist Church, Wichita,
Get details for these events and get in touch at the Equality Coalition web site www.kansasequalitycoalition.org.
The Equality Coalition is also sending questionnaires to political candidates. As we get closer to the elections, check its web site for updates on candidate positions on equality for LGBT Kansans and for endorsements.
One way to support the coalition is through donations, of course, or purchase of a shirt or coffee mug from the Equality Coalition's new online store. Take a look here.
If you want to get involved in the battle for fairness for all Kansans -- including lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered folk -- the Kansas Equality Coalition is the place to start.
Some upcoming events include:
Flints Hills First Friday Dinner in Manhattan
When: July 7th, 2006, 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Where: Happy Valley Restaurant, Aggieville
Southwest Chapter's July Meeting/Cookout
When: July 9th, 2006, 4:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Where: Cimarron
KEC Wichita 3rd Annual BBQ
When: July 15th, 2006, 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Where: First Unitarian Universalist Church, Wichita,
Get details for these events and get in touch at the Equality Coalition web site www.kansasequalitycoalition.org.
The Equality Coalition is also sending questionnaires to political candidates. As we get closer to the elections, check its web site for updates on candidate positions on equality for LGBT Kansans and for endorsements.
One way to support the coalition is through donations, of course, or purchase of a shirt or coffee mug from the Equality Coalition's new online store. Take a look here.
Transforming the Statue of Liberty into a threat
By Diane Silver
Here's an interesting Independence Day feat: Some of the good folks of Memphis, Tenn., yesterday succeeded in transforming the Statue of Liberty from a welcoming image into a gesture of intimidation.
The New York Times reports that a megachurch called the World Overcomers Outreach Ministries unveiled its new $260,000 version of the Statue of Liberty. The morphed American icon has the Ten Commandments tucked under one arm and "Jehovah" inscribed on her crown. Instead of holding a torch aloft, the lady holds a huge gold cross. There is also one tear on her artificial cheek.
The statue was the idea of the church's pastor, Apostle Alton R. Williams. The Times reports on some of his ideas as noted in several books he has written.
Because the United States really is the land of the free, Williams and his megachurch have every right to muck up the image of the Statue of Liberty. Because I personally believe in the ideals of this country, I defend his right to do so. But I do not defend or accept his message.
On this day after Independence Day, I think it's a patriot's duty to stand up for the true American Dream: The insane idea that we ALL have the right to be free to believe as we choose.
That is true freedom of religion. It is as true for Williams and his brand of Christianity as it is for me and my spiritual mix of Buddhism and New Age and for the many Americans who are secular. Until Williams and his conservative cohorts understand that, we are all in danger.
Here's an interesting Independence Day feat: Some of the good folks of Memphis, Tenn., yesterday succeeded in transforming the Statue of Liberty from a welcoming image into a gesture of intimidation.
The New York Times reports that a megachurch called the World Overcomers Outreach Ministries unveiled its new $260,000 version of the Statue of Liberty. The morphed American icon has the Ten Commandments tucked under one arm and "Jehovah" inscribed on her crown. Instead of holding a torch aloft, the lady holds a huge gold cross. There is also one tear on her artificial cheek.
The statue was the idea of the church's pastor, Apostle Alton R. Williams. The Times reports on some of his ideas as noted in several books he has written.
In "The Meaning of the Statue of Liberation Through Christ: Reconnecting Patriotism With Christianity," he explains that the teardrop on his Lady is God's response to what he calls the nation's ills, including legalized abortion, a lack of prayer in schools and the country's "promotion of expressions of New Age, Wicca, secularism and humanism."The real Statute of Liberty was dedicated in 1886 and is most often associated with a poem by Emma Lazarus, called "The New Colossus." The poem's most famous lines read:
In another book, he said Hurricane Katrina was retribution for New Orleans's embrace of sin. Mr. Williams said his statue's essential point was that Christianity should be the guiding ethos of the nation.
Give me your tired, your poor,I wonder if Williams' image of Lady Liberty should now be associated with a new poem. Shall we rewrite this as: "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddle masses yearning to breathe free, but only if they are Christian, and oh by the way, only if they believe in one narrow form of conservative Christianity that yearns towards theocracy and hates the American ideal of allowing all to worship as they please."
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free
Because the United States really is the land of the free, Williams and his megachurch have every right to muck up the image of the Statue of Liberty. Because I personally believe in the ideals of this country, I defend his right to do so. But I do not defend or accept his message.
On this day after Independence Day, I think it's a patriot's duty to stand up for the true American Dream: The insane idea that we ALL have the right to be free to believe as we choose.
That is true freedom of religion. It is as true for Williams and his brand of Christianity as it is for me and my spiritual mix of Buddhism and New Age and for the many Americans who are secular. Until Williams and his conservative cohorts understand that, we are all in danger.
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