Young, Gay And Homeless: Fighting For Resources

Unfortunately I find that I'm writing more and more about a segment of our society deemed by many to be throwaways - homeless teens. Among this group between 30 and 40 percent fall into the LGBTQ group, many kicked out of their homes for being gay, or even for being perceived as being LGBT. As this article points out, and as I strongly feel, the race for equality we are so vehemently struggling for as adults is running over this group of high need young people.

In the struggle for equal rights and marriage equality we are leaving behind, or ignoring, some of the neediest of all. They are teens that are forced to survive in any way they can, whether it be by stealing, robbing, even giving up their bodies for sexual favors. Anything to survive all because nobody wants them.

In New York City, nearly 4,000 young people are homeless every night — many of them gay. Based upon statistics that's a potential 1,600 LGBT teens that have been kicked out or left the safety of their homes because they are gay, 24 hours of the day, 7 days of the week, 52 weeks a year. As if that wasn't shocking enough, a greater percentage of them are beaten by bullies and gay bashers and left to die in the street, victims of a society that chooses to ignore its most vulnerable in favor of material things and money. Even worse, our society encourages the bullying openly. Shame on us as parents, shame on our society, and shame on those who cut social programs in favor of budget shortfalls caused, in part, by excessive waste and greed among the politicians who are supposed to enact legislation to protect our children.

This holiday season ask yourself,  what am I doing to encourage this, or help stop it?

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More Useless Seat Warming : Tina Dupuy

This article by award-winning writer and managing editor of Crooks and Liars appeared in a local paper this morning. I share this because of the relevance to issues I've blogged about lately and that are so "in-the-face" of Americans today.

Wednesday November 9, 2011 :  Tina Dupuy

I asked an Occupier in D.C. namedRob Wohl, why the movement he’s a part of is resonating with people -- why as over 3,000 Americans have been arrested in demonstrations and even journalists and vets have endured tear gas and rubber bullets, the movement is still growing.

His answer? "Because we are analytically correct."

What does that mean? Apparently, they believe they have the facts on their side. History certainly is. And as author Michael Lewis said when asked about the Occupy Wall Street movement, they also have justice on their side.

New census data released shows we have record high poverty in this country. It’s up to 16 percent or 49.1 million Americans (that’s over five New York Cities). We have the worst wealth inequality in the industrialized world (meaning we’re on par with some third world countries). We have the highest health care costs in the world. And a recent study by the Economic Policy Institute notes, "U.S. productivity grew by 62.5 percent from 1989 to 2010, far more than real hourly wages for both private-sector and state/local government workers, which grew 12 percent in the same period." Basically Americans are working much (much) harder for much (much) less. Pair that with the fact U.S. businesses are making record profits and that’s why Americans have taken to the pothole-laden streets to protest. It’s not just about the bank bailout. It’s not just about Wall Street. It’s about the goal of the wealthy to milk their fellow citizens until they’re completely dry. And while regular Americans are condescended to about their proverbial bootstraps, the U.S.government has helped the wealthy at every turn. So it’s no surprise they’ve won. And now that people are brittle and dusty -- there are encampments all over the country.
The question isn’t, "Why are there so many people sleeping in parks?" The question is, "Why aren’t there more?"

In the wake of this massive protest -- right in the middle of the tenure of the lowest rated House in our nation’s history -- a group of men and women whose approval rating of 9 percent is hovering just above the margin of error -- what do they do? They pass another symbolic (think: busy work) nonbinding resolution to reaffirm "in God we trust" as the national motto.
I could have made that up as satire and I’d get a letter saying I was being too harsh.
Time spent on a bill (of which there are FOUR versions) reaffirming a phrase already on every denomination of money, every courthouse and most public buildings is about as contemptuous as this body of seat-warmers can get.

It’s "let them eat cake" with a little of King George III’s "the colonies will submit" thrown in for flavor.

Yes, the do-less-than-nothing House has passed a whopping 54 bills originating in their chamber in their nearly full year in office. Their counterparts in previous congresses usually author and pass three times that. And if you subtract passing go-no-where bills to defund NPR, Planned Parenthood and other specters like Obama Czars and take into account their days off (next year they’re only set to work 109 days out of the entire year) -- they’ve put in a lot of effort to be ineffective.

Which is what you’d expect from self-hating government workers like the House leadership. They’re illustrating how lazy, stupid and useless government can be -- by example.
To sum up: The American people are paying more for less, working more for less and asking more ... and Congress is doing (wait for it) less.

The Occupiers are right. They are "analytically correct" in their assessment. Their government is failing them. As another Occupier put it, maybe it’s "time to replace Congress with people."

Tina Dupuy’s column is distributed exclusively by Cagle Cartoons newspaper syndicate. She is an award-winning writer and the managing editor of Crooks and Liars and can be reached at tinadupuy@yahoo.com.

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Two 14 year Old Students Sent Home for a Hug?

The "Moral" right sometimes goes even farther than we've come to expect them to go. This example of their "righteous indignation" crosses the line of any such morals and over into the realm of absurd, anti-family (which they so proudly wave in front of themselves like a big banner), and confirms the absolute hypocrisy  that is - being "right."

Two 14-year-olds in Palm Beach, Florida weren’t expecting to be sent home from school when they greeted each other with an innocent hug.

Nancy Crescente was shocked to find out that Palm Bay Southwest Middle School suspended her son, Nickolas Martinez, and his friend.  “I thought it was the most bizarre thing I’ve ever heard,” Nancy Crescente told WOFL. “We’re a cultural family and this is what we do.”

Students suspended for hugging: MyFoxORLANDO.com

“They said this is what they do across the board, it is what it is. And that was that.”
School administrators say there are no plans to update the “no hugging” policy that was approved by a committee of parents years ago.

“‘Public Displays of Affection’ is a school board policy,” Brevard County School spokesperson Nancy Davis explained. “It relates to kissing and holding hands and hugging. It is a blanket-wide policy across all schools here.”

But Nancy Crescente thinks that its time for that policy to change. “There was nothing inappropriate. Hugging is mutual. It was a mutual hug, and I just don’t understand how something so innocent can be turned into this chaos.”

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November is Anti-Bullying Week/Month : Nov. 13-19, 2011

October was officially recognized as anti-bullying month. However, that has been extended into November, and hopefully, even longer. 

Download and share this mp3 audio file. Ask that it be played in your school or send it
to your local radio station and request they play it as a public service announcement.

Here is what Rick Mercer of CBC Television's Rick Mercer Report said about
the importance of the annual Bullying Awareness Week!

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Dumbing It Down: The Pursuit of Intellectual Mediocrity in America

Finally, somebody dare say something about the apathy and ignorance so prevalent today, not only in our educational system, but with the adult population - the ones that vote! Having said this so many times before in previous postings, it is becoming so clear that the "Dumbing Down of America" is real and so obvious that, ironically, most people don't even see it.

Just take a look at the slogans of the bunch of idiots running on the GOP ticket - "9-9-9", use of the word "simple" repeatedly - and one that really gets me going..."Their going to...", the blatant misuse of words and contractions. Of course it's easy to make a mistake on the keyboard now and then, but in the constant monitoring of comments about differing issues on the social network it is hard to believe that such a high percentage of Americans can write even the basic of sentences.

The fundamental ability to speak and write concisely is basic to our civilization and also our ability to understand the issues and make informed decisions about them. The best example of this is the continued use of simple slogans and phrases by the current slew of candidates, aimed at the general public as if we were a bunch of morons and couldn't understand complex explanations of a candidates platform. However, we are exactly where they want us to be...stupid, apathetic and too lazy to try to understand. In essence, believe me and what I'm saying ...everything I tell you is the truth. So we believe, we come back with comments on social sites that are way off-track, and we sit back in our chairs and wait for someone else to make it better.

The Republican agenda of education cuts over the years has done its job of making the general public in this country stupid, ignorant, and unable to communicate in an effective manner so as to intelligently discuss the merits of so many of the concepts and platforms of these candidates.

Wake up people! This coming election is possibly the most important election of any since the Great Depression. People who are intending to take the time to vote need to understand what these candidates stand for and how their policies and platforms are going to affect each of us in the future. Now is not the time for cutting education, but the time for investing in it. Something the current roster of idiots running on the GOP hangman's platform know and don't want us to know.

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New Bill Being Considered In Congress Could Shut Down Social Media Sites Crucial To ‘Occupy’ Protests | Addicting Info

This is a little "off-topic" for me, but so important that it needs to be passed on so Americans will smarten up/wake up/ stop the apathy/ get involved in what's going on. Our self-appointed ruling class (aka Republicans, Wall Street, corporate thugs) are quickly attempting to shut down the internet in response to the OWS movement and severely restrict public access to information while making it illegal and a felony when you do.

This is a step too far towards the totalitarian government that we almost have now. Sign the petition, call your senator(s), become active in what's going on now before it's too late and you have no voice, no vote, no freedoms, and no money because the 1% have it all.

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Occupy Wall Street's Battle Against American-Style Authoritarianism

After reading the article several times, I think that, in general speak, the author is on target. I believe that over many years, even before Reagonomics pulled the rug out from under us without the people realizing it, we have been fed a stream of capitalistic 'logic' that has led us, much like the sheep mentioned, into a false sense that all is well. 

Meanwhile our individual freedoms were gradually replaced by the rules of the ruling class with the thought that we shouldn't question such changes as everything we do is necessary for 'our protection', and that we should not question this self-authorized authority. When you take a look at the policies of the last 4-5 administrations you can see the pattern of 'dumbing-down' of America by the false media-controlled "truths" shoved down the throats of the people by the ruling class. Unable to distinguish between real and fake because of lack of education, control of information, and upper class "secrets", we have been slowly reduced to the point of being that herd of sheep, ready to accept anything told to us. 

The OWS movement is something that has sprung out of the realization that individual freedom no longer exists, the Constitution can be applied as necessary by those who rule against those who don't understand, and that the current political system is evidence that the system is not only broken, but is the cause. So much of this is evidenced daily by the reaction of the police in each state to the OWS movement (e.g. using violence against peaceful protesting, the Republicans motto - "NO" - to anything involving social and financial reform), the reaction of the political machine as it changes reasoning and direction daily according to the corruption of power and the controlling hand of the super rich, and the disassociation of thought in so many comments on so many blogs and social networks left by people of a generation that were fed capitalistic dreams while their freedoms and bank accounts were being slowly, patiently drawn down behind their backs. The next generation seems to be unwilling to accept this, thankfully, and is now fighting against this broken system, but as the article mentions, is not forging ahead with a slogan or single sign, but as a "movement" that will hopefully change the entire system and bring back the capability, and ability, for a free-thinking people to bring socialism and capitalism together to function for the good of all. 

That's my opinion only...agree or disagree, but only time is going to tell, and most of us that are commenting seem to be from the baby boomer generation. One I suspect won't be around long enough to see the final outcome of this new change. History does have a tendency to repeat itself.

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A Question of Integrity - Supreme Court Justices

As this sign says, it's a question of Integrity...this is a 15 minute film highlights the inconsistencies and ties that our Supreme Court Justices have with politicians and the lack of integrity that they show for those they make such important decisions about.

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Anti-gay Twitter users mock Stuart Walker’s death - PinkNews.co.uk

I know how frustrating it can be to read about this sort of thing, but there's that old 'Freedom of Speech' thing to contend with. But actually posting tweets and comments such as this tweet, "Another user, @Realist_Eman, wrote: 'Lool a gay Man called Stuart Walker got killed for being gay, that will teach people not to be gay.'," can really make the hairs rise on one's neck. Where do people get this crap from?

I firmly believe that people are entitled to speak their minds, but there has to be some line that can be crossed when those comments physically or emotionally affect others' lives. How or when that line is crossed is pretty grey in a homophobic society that encourages bullying in so many ways. Politicians bully, companies,leaders,schools,parents and students all bully to great extent. But at some point society has to say, as it is lately, that it's not right and you will be held accountable for your actions. However, therein lies the big problem. How can you hold people, like the ones who made comments such as these in this article, accountable for cyberbullying and causing emotional abuse on a family in grief when society supports that bullying? People are dying, are emotionally scarred for life, and some end up taking their own lives because of the stress and feeling that they are alone in their depression and humiliation.

The time has come to put an emphatic end to this attack. But the obvious question remains...how? At any rate, tweet this: "Rest in peace Stuart Walker; we're so sorry."

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The Rich Say the Funniest Things: Laughing Until You Die of Hunger | BuzzFlash.org

PAUL BUCHHEIT FOR BUZZFLASH AT TRUTHOUT

Great satire of the "rich" who "say the darndest things", as Art Linkletter used to say. 
Here's an excerpt:

Taxes, while usually not funny, bring out the best in corporate
spokespeople. Like Anne Eisele of General Electric, which paid no taxes
from 2008 to 2010: "G.E. is committed to acting with integrity in relation
to our tax obligations...GE did not pay US federal taxes last year because
we did not owe any." And Ken Cohen of Exxon Mobil, which paid 2% in taxes
from 2008 to 2010: "Any claim we don't pay taxes is absurd...ExxonMobil is
a leading U.S. taxpayer." And John Watson of Chevron, part of an industry
with the lowest federal tax rate: "The oil and gas industry pays its fair
share in taxes" And Paul Ryan on Boeing, which paid no U.S. taxes on over
$4 billion of income in 2010: "Their tax rate is extremely high, far
higher than their competitors.

GOP Senators Kill Obama Jobs Bill as Boston Protestors are Arrested!

The fact that the Republican led Senate has killed President Obama's Job Bill comes as no surprise. Their hypocritical methods of politics once again shine brightly as they will most likely attempt to split up the bill, piece by piece, and then drown those in politics and filibusters.

They (Wall Street...aka the 1%) are not concerned about us, the other 99%, having to survive in this failing economy. No, the Republican Agenda of "Just Say NO" to anything Democrats propose is more concerned about gaining complete control of this country through their devious, misleading lies and Koch-backed political manipulation. It doesn't make any difference what the current administration proposes to get the economy going again, Republicans are going to vote against it, even though many of Obama's proposals are the very same ones that Republicans have previously proposed themselves as being the solution.

Is it any wonder that this country now has more than 200 cities involved in non-violent protest uprisings against the "1%" and Wall Street?

Speaking of that, apparently in Boston, where the Veterans for Peace were camped out in in the Rose Fitzgerald Greenway this morning, were dispersed and about 100 of them arrested by the Boston Police as the police commissions looked on. Other cities have reported the same actions being taken against them by the police, but no matter how hard they try the growing social movement around the country to change the direction we are going in is not going away and will not stop until change is made. I guess it remains unclear what that change will be however.

Chart Showing How Candidates Would Vote on LGBTQ Issues

This chart indicates how the current candidates would vote on different LGBT issues (go to this site frequently as candidates' votes change in different areas and are updated on the chart.)

Methodology  •  Starting in August 2011, a survey was delivered to the office of each active, formally announced candidate via e-mail, web mail, and/or facsimile, and also via certified U.S. mail for which a campaign employee signed a receipt confirming the delivery.  Each candidate’s survey showed his or her latest stand on each LGBT issue, based on speeches made, documents signed, and interviews given.  All candidates were invited to notify MEUSA of updates to their positions as they occur, up through election day on 6 November 2012. 

Send questions and comments to:  NFlaherty@MarriageEquality.org.

Michael Bloomberg tells Occupy Wall Street protesters to lay off banks - Mackenzie Weinger - POLITICO.com

It seems as though New York's corporate sponsored Mayor is not liking how the people are going against his wishes. Since he is one of "them" on Wall Street, and made a lot of his millions there and through his large handouts from them, he's now stuck in a bad place.  As politicians typically do, he is twisting the truth into more lies about how well his Wall Street cronies create so many jobs.  It's a little early for April Fool's Day Mayor!

This isn't just  small protest happening in "his" city, it's all across the country, growing, and now forming into a real movement. Too late Mayor...call your dogs off (the $4.9 million,  JP Morgan sponsored NYPD.)

JP Morgan donates record $$ to NYPD after Demonstrations start!

Not much to say about this little ditty...apparently this happened within two days of the Wall Street Demonstration start. Money buys anything...in this case the lack of media coverage and harassment by the NYPD!

Forrester resume misleads :: WRAL.com

We just blogged on this guy, and now it seems that Senator Forrester is not only misrepresenting facts about the LGBTQ community to the public and on his resume, but has also lied on his website and campaign webpage that he is: a Fellow of the American College of Preventative Medicine (Michael Barry, the executive director of the American College of Preventive Medicine, says Forrester is not and has never been a Fellow of the College), a member of the American Medical Association (an AMA spokesperson says Forrester is not currently a member of the group), and also an Associate Fellow of the Aerospace Medical Association (but his name does not appear on the associate fellows' list at that organization's website.)

So, not only does this elected official of the people misrepresent himself to his constituents and the public, but he also appears to be a pathological liar. No wonder he couldn't answer gay advocate Michael Signorile’s questions (see previous blog.)

What's more amazing is how long he has been able to keep up his self-made credentials, but that the Republican party and some of the public support him in his recent proposition to place the anti-gay ballot initiative before the people in North Carolina. But, as this discovery (thanks to blogger Scott Rose, a contributor to the GLBT blog Pam’s House Blend) should seriously affect the upcoming ballot vote...or at least it should. We'll see how much he's managed to buffalo his campaing workers and constituents. In the end, it always comes down to this: What Goes Around, Comes Around!

No Home In North Carolina: LGBT Group Warns "We Will No Longer Accept Hate Crimes at Ballot Box" :: EDGE New England

With the upcoming DNC Convention set to be held in N. Carolina, the recent legislation by the GOP to legislate hatred and bigotry in that state has raised the ire (finally) of GetEQUAL and other LGBT groups to begin taking action.

Obama needs to get off the fence and stand behind his previous position on same-sex marriage, and the GOP needs to hear from EVERY person who supports equal rights in the this country.

Apathy is a dead issue (nor an option), just like the gay community will be if the GOP has any say in the matter. Get involved, support LGBT Equal rights groups in your state, and let your senators know that this agenda of hate and bigotry will not be tolerated any longer. The time is now to stand up and be counted. After the lines are drawn it's too late to complain.

Tell Michele Bachmann: Denounce anti-gay bullying in your district.

A string of nine teen suicides has devastated Minnesota's Anoka-Hennepin School District -- the largest district in the state, which is represented by Congresswoman Michele Bachmann. Many of the suicides have been linked to students being bullied for their perceived homosexuality, which has prompted a federal investigation of the district's failure to address anti-gay harassment.

Unfortunately, Anoka-Hennepin enforces a dangerous "neutrality policy" -- a gag rule that handcuffs teachers from adequately addressing anti-gay bullying. As a congresswoman and a former Anoka-Hennepin student, Michele Bachmann is in an important position to speak out against this rule, and the tragic suicides that have lead public health officials to call the area a "suicide contagion."

Instead, Bachmann has remained totally silent on this issue. I just signed a petition to Michele Bachmann, telling her to denounce anti-gay bullying in her district. You should sign the petition, too. Click to take action if you care about our children.

To Michele Bachmann:
This has to stop! As an elected representative of the PEOPLE (not the politicians or the church) you must follow the will and direction set by the ones who elected you to your powerful position. Your lack of direction in being a leader directly impacts your race for the presidency and threatens the security and safety of many teens who are depending upon responsible leadership from parents and elected officials in all levels of their lives.

Rep. Duncan Hunter introduces legislation to keep homophobia legal in the military

These politicians just won't give up, bless their "peapickin' little" hearts.  It seems as if the homophobic Republicans have forgotten all about job creation, the lousy economy, and most all other more important issues. They're like a slug...one direction, one mind...which means that there's no multi-tasking in the GOP room.

Give it up and get to work on the real issues facing us...like getting some of that money in your pockets out to the people who really need it instead of yachts and additions to your multi-million dollar vacation homes.

AFA Spokesman Wants to Re-criminalize Homosexuality | News | The Advocate

Bryan Fischer, spokesman for the American Family Association, took to his radio show Monday to call on the fifty United States to reinstate laws making homosexuality a criminal offense.

“By the time of the founding until the late 20th Century,” Fischer said Monday, “homosexual activity was a felony offense in the United States of America, there is no reason why it cannot be a criminal offense once again.”

Bachmann on Natural Disasters, Divine Intervention | News | The Advocate

Only a fanatical idiot like Michele Bachmann could attribute natural disasters to "Divine Intervention." It's funny, but I saw the exact same thing in 1973 when I was very young. I also lived in Las Vegas through many earthquakes and they weren't attributed to divine intervention then.

I guess natural disasters are really a readily available, political catapault for this stupid, ignorant fool. Maybe, just maybe, they might be due to global warming?  Of course, we all know that, according to the GOP, there is no such thing. Maybe Bachmann should be more worried that her hate-filled rhetoric is causing the highest teen suicide rate in the country in her own home state and not worry about hurricane Irene.

Where in the hell did she come from anyway...some alien craft?