March 4, 2010

Don’t You Do It, Kors! Don’t You DARE Do It!

Equality California, one of the most powerful gay rights groups in California, appears ready to cross a union picket line today at 5 p.m.

EQCA, led by executive director Geoff Kors, is holding a party at the El Paseo Inn in downtown Los Angeles to celebrate Mexico City’s legalization of gay marriage.

The only problem, according Richard Zaldivar, founder of The Wall Las Memorias Project, an HIV/AIDS education group based in Los Angeles, is that no social justice groups in L.A.’s Latino community meet there because it is non-union.

Zaldivar tells the Weekly that El Paseo was picketed just last week for that very reason. …

More: “Will Equality California Cross A Union Picket Line?,” Queer Town, March 4, 2010

Don’t you do it, Kors. Don’t you dare be a scab — and don’t you dare do any more damage to the LGBT community than you’ve already done.

If you can’t change venues, you cancel the damned thing — and suck up any charges, because (as QT supposes) you didn’t do your homework.

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February 25, 2010

Citibank Shuts Down Gay Entrepreneur’s Bank Account Over Blog’s Content

Too busy with Base8 to even breath lately, but had to stop and pass this along. If you were ever on the fence about pulling your money out of Citibank, this should put you over the top:

Nope, never seen the site in question, and don’t particularly care if it’s full fledged porn — that’s not the point.

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December 24, 2009

Merry Christmas, You Liar.

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September 8, 2009

Wal-Mart Kills

If this sounds like nothing more than a bizarre, isolated incident in China, keep reading; after the fifth paragraph, your jaw will be on your chest:

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August 14, 2009

To Hell With Whole Foods

You’re not getting another dime out of us. Ask my lovely wife why.

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August 13, 2009

Speaking of Doug Manchester’s Money Troubles…

…and we were, the boycott of Manchester properties only continues to gain momentum.

Karma’s a bitch, ain’t it, Doug?

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Karma Strikes: Marriage “Defender” Doug Manchester in Midst of Ugly Divorce

We’ve been hearing the rumors (and so have many of you, judging by the number of Google queries for “Doug Manchester” and “divorce” we’ve been getting for months), and now we have the facts: Doug Manchester — the hotelier who donated a whopping $125,000 to Proposition 8, who has been suffering the backlash via a boycott of his properties (by gay folks and union workers and lawyers and other groups who don’t cotton to propping up the bigot brigades with their hard-earned money) for more than a year (and he is suffering), and who tried to buy off the LGBT community with a token donation to HRC (which was rejected; well done, HRC) and hotel credits for queers — is getting a D-I-V-O-R-C-E from his wife (and $1,000 Prop H8 donor), Elizabeth:

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August 12, 2009

Tim Hortons Tells Maggie Gallagher to Get Her Doughnuts Elsewhere

Canadian coffee-and-doughnuts chain Tim Hortons…

…has reversed its decision to sponsor a Rhode Island rally held by a U.S. group that opposes same-sex marriage, after encountering fierce criticism for the move.

The August 16 event, organized by the National Organization for Marriage, is billed as a “Celebrate Marriage & Family Day.” Held in suburban Providence, the rally is to include speeches, a cookout and a ceremony in which married couples are invited to renew their vows. …

In a flyer for the event, Tim Hortons was listed as a sponsor, and was promptly criticized. …

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July 31, 2009

Californians: See How Much $$$ Schwarzenegger Gouged From Your City

If you think “It can’t be that much,” you’ll probably be quite shocked to learn otherwise. My piddly-ass little town of +/-26,000 is losing over a million bucks. How about yours?

Related:

“People Are Going to Die Now”: Schwarzenegger Slashes AIDS, Medi-Cal, Children & Senior Care Funding… And Builds a New Death Row
July 30, 2009

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July 30, 2009

“People Are Going to Die Now”: Schwarzenegger Slashes AIDS, Medi-Cal, Children & Senior Care Funding… And Builds a New Death Row

Is this Arnold’s Final Solution? Kill all of us who aren’t as rich as he and Maria?

While gutting $656 million in funding (up from an earlier $489 million) — on top of previous cuts by the state legislature for programs on which Californians’ very lives depend — Arnold Schwarzenegger simultaneously approved the construction of a new Death Row housing unit at San Quentin. Cost: $356 million, with a predicted $39 million overrun.

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July 24, 2009

At Least One Republican Recognizes the Liability That is Meg Whitman

Backstory:
eMeg’s Impartiality, Objectivity Fly Out Window When Challenged on Prop 8 Vote, July 23, 2009

GOP 12 recaps the flustering of emotion-ridden and unobjective Meg Whitman (who, we’re always happy to remind you, couldn’t be bothered to register to vote until 2002 or 2007, depending on who you ask, because she was just “too busy making money and raising a family to vote“), and then opines:

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AAA South Redeems Itself: Married L/G Couples Get Spousal Benefits

Backstory:
AAA South Proves, Again, Why “Marriage” Matters, June 26, 2009

Gay spouses to get AAA discounts

AAA Auto Club South will now allow same-sex married couples to receive spousal discounts under AAA’s Associate Membership program, a rights group that advocates for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people announced Thursday.

The company met with members of Equality Florida on Wednesday after the group received calls from gay couples who had been denied family memberships. …

More at the link.

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July 21, 2009

San Jose’s Billy DeFrank Center Hits Money Wall, May Close

Via email from the DeFrank Center:

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July 19, 2009

Base8: New Entries: Arizona Lawyers

It’s coming along slowly, but it’s coming.

List of lawyers just entered into Base8, after the jump.

And guess what? Most are Mormon! What a surprise! Not.

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July 17, 2009

Bluehost vs. the Lesbians

Must-Read:
“Bluehost.com:
I invite you to eat a…”
 

Or: A Funny Thing Happened While Investigating the Lesbian Web Site That Ran Up Against the Mormon Web Host: I Stumbled Across an International Incident.

First things first: There are only five hard-and-fast rules I follow in life, without exception:

1. Keep your marriage vows.

2. Be nice to people until they give you a reason not to be.

3. Give money to homeless people, and never question what they’re going to do with it.

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July 12, 2009

Are You Going to Be Stupid and Buy Rockstar Energy Drink?

Addendum: By the way, Russ, we’re not suggesting, even remotely, that Michael Savage is involved in any way with Rockstar. Nope, not us, nossirree, so there’s no reason to sic your lawyers on us, the way you sent them after GayWired.com, et al.

Nope, we’re not claiming Michael Savage is involved with Rockstar Energy Drink. We are saying we’ll never drink your stuff because, frankly, Russ, you give us plenty of reasons, all on your own — like being a Republican, and co-founding the Paul Revere Society (or are you doing to “disavow” that, too?) — that would make us drink our own pee before ever lifting your product to our lips.

And never mind that — it’s rumored — “Rockstar’s sole officer other than Russell Weiner is Savage’s wife and Weiner’s mother, Janet Weiner, who fills the positions of director, treasurer, and secretary. Ms. Weiner must be exceedingly adept at these diverse responsibilities since she is also the director, treasurer, and secretary of Savage Productions.” (GayWired) Or that — it’s rumored — “Rockstar and Savage Productions do share the same mailing address and street address.” (NNDB)

Original post:

Oh, give me a freaking break, Russell Weiner — any queer with half an ounce of gray matter doesn’t buy your buy-in for one nanosecond. And any LGBT organization (a.k.a. SOGs — Sell-Out Gays) that accepts your tainted money should be shunned by all self-respecting LGBTs for eternity — not as punishment, but simply because they’re as stupid as a dog that’ll lap up any sign of affection, no matter how fake, from the owner who’s been beating said dog, mercilessly, since day one.

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July 10, 2009

How Much Land Underneath Your Town Do the Mormons Own?

Settle in for a long one, folks — we’re back to the mindboggling web of connections that comprise the powerhouse of Mormons, money, and marriage inequality.

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July 3, 2009

Gray Davis is Just Too Nice a Guy to Go: “Nyeah! Nyeah! Suckersss!”

But we’re not nearly as nice as Gray Davis. So, to all the poop-for-brains Californians who 1) voted to recall Davis, and 2) voted in Musclehead Steroid Boy: “Nyeah! Nyeah! Suckersss!”

It’s not easy be right so often, you know — so you have to get your yoks where you can find them, especially as your once-beloved Golden State is sinking into the Pacific, without the benefit of so much as a gigantic earthquake.

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June 27, 2009

When They Call You A “One-Issue Voter”

It’s annoying enough to hear the “You’re just a one-issue voter!” line (what do they do, issue a list of talking points at Bigot Central?) from an openly hostile Anti-Gay, but when you’re on the receiving end of the same thing from someone who’s supposed to be LGBT, or an ally… it’s downright maddening.

That said, here’s an excellent response (particularly the first paragraph), by gayjaybird, overheard at Pam’s:

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June 26, 2009

AAA South Proves, Again, Why “Marriage” Matters

Shades of UPS in New Jersey…

Leave it to the private sector to prove, once again, that marriage — not civil unions, not domestic partnerships, but marriage — does matter:

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June 25, 2009

What Do You Do When An Employee’s Politics Hurt Your Business?

Very interesting article by Rieva Lesonsky at AllBusiness, which uses the specific example of Proposition 8 (and the transparency of political-donor information — which is as it should be) to illustrate “the consequences of speaking out versus alienating customers, vendors, suppliers, and the like”:

Now if you’re the owner of the business, you can weigh the possible outcomes and make your choice to speak up, contribute, or stay out of it, at least publicly. But what if it’s one of your employees who is involved? Or what if you’re a franchisor and one of you franchisees jumps in the fray? This is where it gets tricky. …

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June 24, 2009

AARP Commemorates Stonewall, Pays Tribute to Our History

Very cool — and a nifty place to send folks who need a crash course in our heritage, with some very worthy pieces about Frank Kameny and the Mattachine Society, and a great photo-illustrated timeline of milestones in LGBT history since 1958. (Click the image to go there.)

Incidentally… A few months ago, as my wife and I were talking about health insurance — and how we could expect Obama to write us a check for a million dollars before we’d ever see single-payer — I contacted AARP to ask if I became a member (which I’ll be eligible to do in just a couple of years — gulp!), would the AARP health plan cover my wife as well? I explained that we were married, but only in California, and she’s a fair bit younger than I am, and… yada yada yada… The answer was short, simple, and perfect (and I paraphrase): AARP recognizes the diverse needs of all families… so the answer is “yes.”

Nice. I’ve had issues in the past with AARP — all over its advocacy of private insurance, but nothing having to do with equality — but since knowing my wife and I will be able to get health insurance (we just need to stay healthy and uninjured for another couple of years!), and now, seeing this big, positive tribute to Stonewall… Well, nothing’s going to make me feel better about hitting my 50s, but it looks like AARP is going to ease some of the pain and horror.

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June 23, 2009

“When Money Was the Weapon of Choice … The Gay Team Won”

It’s way too long to even try to excerpt — and I’m not saying I agree with every sentence — but I do think it deserves to be read in full.

I also think one paragraph heading — “How Mickey Mouse kicked Jesus’ ass” — should have been the headline, instead of:

Incidentally — and apart from the overall thrust (i.e., money talks, which I did know) is one thing I didn’t know:

Around 20 years ago, Waldenbooks, et al., sued the Un-American Family Association under RICO (the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act) — and won.

Short version: It wasn’t the AFA’s boycott of Waldenbooks (for selling Playboy and Penthouse magazines), but interference with Waldenbooks’ ability to freely conduct business. (Lawyer-types, correct me if I’m wrong in any way on this super-short summary.)

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June 22, 2009

Our Next Dirty Martini Will Be Made with SKYY

Sure, Skyy gets free advertising from us via a self-congratulatory press release — but we’re always happy to give a free plug to a company when we like what they’re doing… and we like what they’re doing:

SAN FRANCISCO — June 17, 2009 — SKYY® Vodka has announced its increased support of events and programs supporting the national Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender communities and a cause near to their hearts, HIV awareness. For 2009, SKYY is devoted to developing and expanding its partnerships with numerous gay and lesbian organizations across the country, including the STOP AIDS Project in San Francisco, Frameline33 — San Francisco’s International LGBT Film Festival, Equality California, Heritage of Pride in New York, amfAR — The Foundation for AIDS Research, AIDS Project Los Angeles and the LGBT Center in New York.

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June 21, 2009

High Irony: Money, Not Rights, Only Thing That Inspires California Dems to Overrun “Will of the People”

So, let me get this straight:

A bare plurality of bigots votes to strip their fellow Californians of a fundamental civil right, and there’s nothing our Democratic-controlled legislature can do about it, because it’s “the will of the people.”

But when an overwhelming majority of Californians (up to 66.4%) vote down every lame attempt to shift the burden of bringing our state economy back from the brink of death, suddenly that Democratic-controlled legislature is compelled to override “the will of the people.”

Oh, the irony. Oh, the cowardice.

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