Obama’s Plan For Gay Rights June 19, 2009

Sad but true.

Preeetty much, yeah (That’s a screenshot, btw, of the simple-yet-endearing http://www.obamasplanforgayrights.com).

So, this has been building for a while – ‘this’ being ‘Obama’s not as ‘fierce’ as he would like to think with the queers and their civil rights’ – and I haven’t said much, if anything, on it. Maybe a couple things. But nothing, really, on how he’s pretty much done jackshit on his ‘promises to the BTLG community’ shtick since getting into office. I’ve wanted to, yes! And the tension has only been building. But I haven’t, for a few reasons:

• I’ve been posting very sporadically in general
• I’ve been either busy (school) or destressing from said busy (cuddling with the dogs, and reading the entire ‘Earth’s Children‘ series by Jean M. Auel, which happens to be in my local library. Ayla and Jondalar FTW!)
• Lots of other shit has been going on, in the country and the world (WTF Iranian election?! I’ve been glued to Twitter since Saturday!) and in the dark corner of my head where I think up blog posts, i.e. abortion, patients’ rights, right-wing hate speech, misogyny in the media, ad infinitum.

Newsflash: Knowledge is power! June 11, 2009

Here’s your history lesson of the day.

Affiliation with the National Socialist German Workers’ Party does not, in fact, make one a “leftist” or “left-wing extremist”. The idea that the word “socialist” means that fascism, the actual type of government espoused by the Nazi party, is the logical extension of progressivism is facile and asinine. Here’s a hint: racial supremacy, legally enforced gender roles, execution of homosexual people, jingoism, statism, militarism, and corporatism, while not unheard of under “liberal” regimes, are not what we’d call the “go-to” hallmarks of progressive governments. Here’s a quote from the WIKIPEDIA ARTICLE (talk about a good time to link to Let Me Google That For You):

According to most scholars of fascism, there are both left and right influences on fascism as a social movement, and fascism, especially once in power, has historically attacked communism, conservatism and parliamentary liberalism, attracting support primarily from the “far right” or “extreme right.”^[32]

I* Hate My State April 8, 2009

04/08/2009

‘Traditionalist’ Rhode Island Gov Joins Anti-Gay Marriage Campaign

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) – A group against gay marriage has a very prominent politician in its corner. Gov. Donald Carcieri and his wife, Sue, joined the Rhode Island Chapter of the National Organization for Marriage Wednesday morning at the State House as it launched its new media campaign.

This, my dear friends, is why I predict that Rhode Island will be the last of the New England states to legalize gay marriage. Because a large portion of the state’s population has no problem with this shit. A lot of people that I went to school with wholeheartedly agree, and I’m sure they’re welcoming this new and novel approach to treating minorities like crap. RI is odd in that it’s stalwartly blue, but fairly anti-gay, anti-choice, etc. in its legislature and in the cultural zeitgeist.

This just in… April 7, 2009

The Vermont legislature has overriden Governor Douglas’ veto of the same-sex marriage bill passed last Thursday. The Senate passed it 23-5 and the House just squeaked through, approving it 100-49. As compared to Iowa’s legalization (just 4 days ago!!!) this is less groundbreaking in that Vermont is a stereotypically hippie-dippie state unlike steadfast, corn-fed, All-American Iowa, but this is revolutionary in a different sense – this is the first instance in which same-sex marriage has been legalized through the legislature rather than the courts, indicating widespread popular support. The right wing can’t whine about “activist judges” this time*. And they actually overrode the governor! HAH! Way to stick it to him.

Our Fearless Leader Speaks (about some things) April 5, 2009

Okay, so Obama has actually made a public statement about that law that stripped away women’s rights in Afghanistan, publicly condemning it while at the G20 conference (via).

I’m glad that he took a firm stance on women’s rights being human rights, and an important thing regardless of one’s culture or religion; only time will tell if his speaking out against the law will actually do any good. Karzai, for his part, has promised to review the law, but to me it doesn’t sound like he’s planning on actually changing anything rather than attempting to cover his ass (emphasis mine).

Karzai did not mention Article 132 [the infamous "marital rape clause"] during a news conference Saturday. But he said he had studied the law earlier in the day and that “I don’t see any problems with it.”

He complained that Western media outlets had mistranslated it [which would imply that the women's rights issues were exaggerated, except...]. He read an article of the law during the news conference that appears to restrict Shiite women’s right to leave their homes, though Karzai underscored a provision that allows women to leave in emergencies.

Call me a militant feminazi, but if the least misogynistic thing you can say about your new law is that it lets women leave the house when it’s on fire, you’re doing it wrong.

On Appeasement April 1, 2009

Today, we have two recent examples of political appeasement – one in Afghanistan, and one in the United States. In the U.S., Kansas governor Kathleen Sebelius, who is nominated to head the Department of Health and Human Services, has signed into law a bill passed in the Kansas legislature, restricting women’s abortion rights (via).

As far as fetal ultrasound mandates go, I think Twisty says it best:

Because stupid ignorant women apparently don’t have the slightest idea what pregnancy is; they need this vital information, available only through a medical procedure, about what is really going on in their lady-ovens. If they are given the opportunity (i.e. forced) to endure a fetus-screening (”Here’s baby’s precious little beating heart, here’s his adorable little brain stem …”), they will see the error of their ways and comply with the godbag mandate to shut up and be punished for the sin of fornication by incubating to term, followed by a lifetime of child-rearing drudgery.

[...]For a woman seeking an abortion, this weepy ultrasound intervention, like most state and medical interference in private lives, is wildly inappropriate. It’s nothing but pressure to conform by shaming the woman into a culturally-mandated response. No “information” is imparted, only social cues. The only possible rationale behind any [...]anti-abortion bill is to make abortion as inconvenient, shaming, and difficult as possible.

“Pro-Life” Myth No. 3: Pro-choicers hate babies! January 25, 2009

This is a persistent one. Besides being chanted by every Planned Parenthood protester with a fetus picture, it got a lot of mileage during the latest presidential campaign. Basically, at a campaign event in March of last year, Obama said the following scandalous statement:

“I’ve got two daughters — 9 years old and 6 years old. I’m going to teach them first of all about values and morals, but if they make a mistake, I don’t want them punished with a baby.”

I dislike his equating “values and morals” with abstinence and lack thereof with sex, but I do like that he’s encouraging contraceptive use (this speech was not actually about abortion at all). He also recognizes, as most reasonable people do, that being pregnant when one does not wish to be is distinctly unpleasant, and when this unpleasantness is the result of sex, a pregnancy (particularly a pregnancy that one is unable to get rid of) can reasonably be called “a punishment” for said sex.

Well. I’m sure you can guess how that radical sentiment worked out.

Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey hey… January 24, 2009

Curse my lack of faith! The Global Gag Rule, officially known as the Mexico City Policy?

Buh-bye now.

To celebrate, please enjoy the following clip of the late and irrepressible George Carlin, on abortion rights:

Obamadinistration, Day 3 January 23, 2009

Feministe has a good post up listing some of Obama’s executive orders since he’s started working. He clearly came out of the gate running; one of the most interesting is that he has frozen all pending policies and legislation passed by the Bush Administration, subject to review. Among the affected policies? Our old favorite, the HHS “conscience clause” rule! According to California NOW,

While the regulatory process had been completed and the final regulations reported in the Federal Registry, HHS had not yet developed guidelines for implementation. [A contact at HHS confirms] the Department believes the regs. fall under President Obama’s executive order “freezing all last minute Bush administration regulations for review prior to final implementation”.

Woohoo! In other reproductive health news, yesterday was the 36th anniversary of Roe v. Wade.

Grin January 12, 2009

Why am I giddy right now? It’s probably because of one of my Firefox add-ons: in particular, the President Bush Countdown 1.1.2. As you can see in my previous post that used a screenshot of my browser, the P.B. 1.1.2. resides in the bottom left corner of my browser. I added it a year or two ago, so when I started it the number was in the 5 or 600′s; over time, the number has steadily decreased (as would be expected), and a couple days ago:

Deep in the bowels of The Radical Notion

Can we get a close-up on that, please?