Christopher di Spirito's Open Salon Blog

Lieberman Introduces Bill to Repeal 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'

Thu, 4 Mar 2010 07:03:48 -0500

Thursday, March 4, 2010

They say politics makes strange bedfellows and there is no more strange turn of events than the news of Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-CT) introducing a bill to repeal the Clinton-era “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law that mandates discrimination against openly gay and lesbian service members. This is the first time such a legislative effort materialized in the U.S. Senate.

Servicemembers Legal Defense Network executive director, Aubrey Sarvis, issued this message for gay troops who now serving:

”The 66,000 gay and lesbian service members should know we are one big step closer to ending the ban.”

Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI), who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, has signed on as a co-sponsor of the bill, a rare move for the chairman.

I find it more than a little curious that in the 17 years since former President Bill Clinton took pen to hand and signed the viciously homophobic policy into law, not one of the LGBT community’s alleged Democratic friends in Congress dared to step-up and do what Sen. Joe Lieberman did.

NY Gov. Paterson Could Face Charges if Allegations are True

Tue, 2 Mar 2010 08:03:38 -0500

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

New York Gov. David Paterson could face possible criminal charges if the newest rounds of allegations in the witness tampering scandal are true.

A second New York Times piece appearing Tuesday about his role in protecting his driver and BFF, David Johnson, from charges of domestic violence claims that Paterson, besides calling the alleged victim himself, personally directed two aides to call the woman shortly before she stopped pursuing domestic violence charges against Johnson.

Paterson, allegedly told one of his aides, press secretary Marissa Shorenstein, to ask the woman to say that no violence took place during the incident, according to a Times source.

If true, Gov. Paterson could face charges of witness tampering and obstruction of justice.

The victim, identified as Sherr-una Booker, called 911 and, according to police records obtained by the Times, told police Johnson had “choked her, stripped her of much of her clothing, smashed her against a mirrored dresser and taken two telephones from her to prevent her from calling for help.”

Tony Perkins is Screeching He's the Victim of the Gays!

Mon, 1 Mar 2010 07:03:36 -0500

Monday, March 1, 2010

Have you noticed whenever a radical rightwing, Christian extremist is prevented from espousing antigay bigotry, they immediately play the victim card? And so it goes with Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council.

Perkins, a critic of President Obama’s pledge to reverse the viciously homophobic, Clinton-era policy of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,’ is whining that Andrews Air Force Base pulled a longstanding invitation for him to speak because of his views.

The Family Research Council has been lobbying lawmakers to oppose the repeal of ‘Don’t ask, Don’t tell.’ “Do not let our military be used to advance a radical sexual agenda,” says an item on the council’s web site. Radical comments like that were too much for the military base.

Air Force Chaplain Lt. Col. Gary Bertsch wrote Perkins to cancel the invitation saying:

“As a former Marine officer, I’m sure you understand the situation in which we find ourselves. As military members we are sworn to support our Commander in Chief, and are forbidden to make or support statements which run counter to our roles as members of the armed forces.”

But Perkins is having none of it and claims he’s a victim of the gay mafia.

“People don’t understand that in the military there is a chain of command, and you have to follow orders. You’re not free to disagree.”

As a former member of the military, Tony Perkins, should understand that military personnel answer to the Commander in Chief — in this case, President Obama and not to some media whore, waving a Bible while saying all gay people should be sent to jail. Don’t worry Tony. I’m certain FOX News or CNN will be calling you in short order to be their Christian spokesman as to why the ban shouldn’t be repealed.

Massive 8.8 Magnitude Earthquake Hits Chile

Sat, 27 Feb 2010 07:02:10 -0500

Saturday, February 27, 2010

A massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck Chile early Saturday, collapsing buildings, killing at least 76 people and downing phone lines. President Michele Bachelet declared a “state of catastrophe” in central Chile and said the death toll was rising.

Tsunami warnings were issued over a wide area, including Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Antarctica and as far away as Australia.

The quake hit 200 miles (325 kilometers) southwest of the capital, Santiago, at a depth of 22 miles (35 kilometers) at 3:34 a.m. (0634 GMT; 1:34 a.m. EST), the U.S. Geological Survey reported.

The epicenter was just 70 miles (115 kilometers) from Concepcion, Chile’s second-largest city, where more than 200,000 people live along the Bio Bio river, and 60 miles from the ski town of Chillan, a gateway to Andean ski resorts that was destroyed in a 1939 earthquake.

In Santiago, the capital, modern buildings are built to withstand earthquakes, but many older ones were heavily damaged, including the Nuestra Senora de la Providencia church, whose bell tower collapsed. An apartment building’s two-level parking lot also flattened onto the ground floor, smashing about 50 cars whose alarms and horns rang incessantly. A bridge just outside the capital also collapsed, and at least one car flipped upside down.

The largest earthquake ever recorded struck the same area of Chile on May 22, 1960. The magnitude-9.5 quake killed 1,655 people and left 2 million homeless. The tsunami that it caused killed people in Hawaii, Japan and the Philippines and caused damage to the west coast of the United States.

PAC Targets Anti-Gay New York Lawmakers

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 09:02:53 -0500

Friday, February 26, 2010

New York’s anti-gay lawmakers should be afraid — very afraid. A new political action committee is targeting state senators who voted against a marriage equality bill late last year.

The committee; FightBackNY, was set up and funded by a group of donors to LGBT causes, most notably Tim Gill of Denver, Colorado. This according to report appearing in the New York Times.

Bill Smith, an adviser to the committee said:

“Politicians who deny gays and lesbians basic equality should be thrown out of office, starting with convicted criminal Hiram Monserrate.”

Monserrate was kicked out of the senate by his colleagues following being convicted of assaulting his girlfriend. But this being New York, arguably the most dysfunctional state government in the U.S., Monserrate is now running in a special election to regain his seat. You can’t make this stuff up.

A group of senate Democrats surprised marriage equality advocates last year when they voted “no,” leading to a lopsided defeat. So much for the erroneous view that the Empire State is one of the most liberal and gay-friendly states in the country.