First let me say I support Jack Conway in his bid to become a United States Senator, but I also reserve the the right to be critical of his Campaign and how it's operating. From the very beginning the Conway campaign has been, what I consider, top down, all grass and no roots, with support from Kentucky Democrats like Jerry Abramson, Greg Stumbo, Crit Luallen, Congressman John Yarmuth and Congressman Ben Chandler. Yes Ben Chandler, the Big Blue Kentucky Dog that did his best to kill real Healthcare Reform. This is what Joe Sonka over at Barefoot And Progressive had to say about Ben Chandler:
We are back, just a bit late, to wrap up the discussion we began about the pair of rulings issued in Boston by Federal District Judge Joseph Tauro this week that declare the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional.
I don't usually tell you the end of the story at the beginning, but this time I will: there are a lot of happy Plaintiffs this week, and the Federal Government, as Defendant (whom I will refer to as "the Feds" from time to time), is not so happy at the moment.
As with last time, there's a lot of ground to cover, and the sooner we get to it, the better.
The recent Supreme Court decision CITIZENS UNITED v. FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISION seems to say that Corporations are the same as people. OK Supreme Court, lemme ask you this: If two male corporations or two female corporations want to merge (Same Sex Merger), will you let them or will you deny the merger and cite DOMA?
In a stark turn from the former Congress and Administration, the Senate followed suit with the House in extending new hate crimes protections to Homosexuals and members of the military. The bill had been offered up numerous times by the late Senator Ted Kennedy and stalled in the Senate. While George W. Bush was in office, he had vowed to veto it if it would have passed. However, a new day has dawned and the current Senate saw fit to pass the measure which President Obama has vowed to sign.
There was a time, in the 1990s, when “boy bands” walked tall in the musical world. New stars with names like “BoyzIIMen” and “Backstreet Boys” and “*NSYNC” were everywhere to be seen, and positioned prominently within this firmament of stars was an Irish band, “Boyzone”.
One of the five members of Boyzone’s most famous lineup, Stephen Gately, died over the weekend in Mallorca, aged 33, much to the dismay of the group’s fans and friends.
Because Gately came out at the height of his career, and at considerable risk to his (and the group’s) “brand” prospects, the LBGT community is experiencing considerable dismay over the loss as well.
Today’s story, however, isn’t about any of that.
Instead, we’ll consider what’s likely to happen to Gately’s estate.
The point of the exercise? With this being one of the most prominent deaths of a gay celebrity to occur since civil commitment came to pass, and with Mr. Gately being legally committed to husband Andrew Cowles at the time of his death, it seems like a good time to examine how the law responds to these situations in the UK—and how it could work in the United States.
Former President Bill Clinton has come out in support of same-sex marriage.
The Nation After speaking at the Campus Progress National Conference in Washington, DC, on July 8, the former president was asked if he supported same-sex marriage. Clinton, in a departure from past statements, replied in the affirmative.
Clinton opposed same-sex marriage during his presidency, and in 1996, he signed the Defense of Marriage Act, which limited federal recognition of marriage to one man and one woman. In May of this year, Clinton told a crowd at Toronto's Convention Centre that his position on same-sex marriage was "evolving."
Apparently, Clinton's thinking has now further evolved. Asked if he would commit his support for same-sex marriage, Clinton responded, "I'm basically in support." Read More.
Senator Mitch McConnell, the current Senate Minority Leader was this year's Convocation speaker at the University of Louisville's Brandeis School of Law graduation ceremony. Many graduating students, their families and friends attending the graduation sported buttons that read "Sen. McConnell Does Not Speak for Me." Outside the graduation, activists protested McConnell's support of the Defense of Marriage Act. Although the City of Louisville didn't anticipate any problems from the protest, even noting "No off-duty police provided" on the permit, there were several Louisville Police Department Officers on the scene for the duration of the 3 hour protest. Noticeably missing were the news outlets, WAVE, WHAS, WLKY and the Courier Journal. It should also be noted that the major Louisville blogs didn't cover the protest. Click here to view photos of the protest.
