Also, I Like It When Men Serenade Each Other For Charity

My favorite winter song made adorbs by Mister Chase and Chris Salvatore. Plus if you download it you'll be donating money to charity!

Happy Holidays And All That Crap

I've been busy schlepping around the country enjoying my winter break, but I thought I'd stop by the blog to give a quick shout-out to all my readers.

It's been a fantastic year, marked with some amazing events. If it weren't for this blog, I'd probably have no focus and little determination; it's because of you guys that I have the drive and motivation to improve my life and the lives of others around me.

So thank you, dear readers. Whether we spend these days alone or with family, I want you to know that you're ALL family to me.

From OneAngryQueer and all our guest writers*, Happy Holidays.

*And guest writers? If you don't start posting I'm firing the lot of you. 

Tragedy: Man Dies Waiting For Marriage Equality

The one thing Ed Watson wanted to do was marry his partner, Derence Kernek, before he died. Unfortunately, due to the machinations of anti-gay groups that mired California in the legal nightmare that is Proposition 8, he was unable to fulfill his dream and passed away Wednesday. In a sad ironic twist, he died the day before hearings on the controversial "Prop H8" began.

Gay rights activists lamented Watson's death as a reminder of the harm inflicted on same-sex couples throughout the state because they are denied the right to marry. 

"It's ironic that he died on the eve of appeals about peripheral issues around a case that should have been settled more than a year ago," said Richard Jacobs, chairman and founder of the gay rights advocacy group Courage Campaign, as he was en route to San Francisco for a hearing before the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. "None of this will matter to Ed or Derence." 

U.S. District Judge Vaughn R. Walker ruled on Aug. 4, 2010, that Proposition 8 violated the constitutional rights of gays and lesbians to due process and equal protection under the law. Sponsors of the initiative passed by 52% of Californians who voted in November 2008 have appealed Walker's ruling and won a suspension of it pending the 9th Circuit's ruling.

This is sad. How many more LGBTs have to die disappointed before people just admit, like Hillary Clinton did before the UN, that gay rights are human rights?

Happy Labor Day

I hope everyone is having a safe and happy Labor Day.

It appears to me a bit ironic, in some ways, that our country still celebrates Labor Day. Today's American holiday began in 1882 in New York City, a large parade having been put on by the Central Labor Union of New York. Although it was inspired by a labor festival in Canada, Oregon was the first state to officially recognize this celebration of the workers' contribution to society in 1887.

Following the death of Labor protestors and agitators at the hands of the US Army and federal marshals in the Pullman Strike, thirty states across the union followed Oregon's lead and adopted the holiday by 1894, when the federal government finally adopted Labor Day as an American celebration of the working class.

Traditionally, Labor Day consisted of local industry's parade to show esprit de corps followed by a festival for laborers and their families. Now, the day seems to inspire no more than an excuse for barbecue and beer.

Labor wants to eat your Bibles! Or something.

Perhaps that's why it's still celebrated. If Michele Bachmann was more well-versed on American history, she likely would be screaming her head off that it was a Communist institution inspired by Satan. Scott Walker would likely instead say "Labor Day hurts jobs" and then continue his war of attrition on worker's rights. The true meaning of the holiday likely has slipped beneath the attention of most of these anti-Labor fatcats. After all, it's far more well-known as the last day on the calendar to wear white.



Not so here. At OneAngryQueer, I'm celebrating, with gratitude, the sacrifices made by brave union leaders in years past. It's because of them that we have things like maternity leave, a minimum wage, and a 40-hour work week. We owe them a lot, and we can fulfill that debt by continuing to fight for the rights of the lower and middle class, and by saying "no" to the Koch Bros.-inspired policies that have attempted to destroy Labor in recent years.

So, Happy Labor Day from OAQ. Enjoy your barbecue and your beer, but take a moment to reflect why we have today's day off, and why Labor still fights for the right of the common worker.

Egypt's Muslims: Sticking Their Necks Out for Christians.

This is amazing.

 

Previous Christmas celebrations resulted in clashes with police.  Not this year, vow Egyptian Muslims.

"Egypt’s majority Muslim population stuck to its word Thursday night. What had been a promise of solidarity to the weary Coptic community, was honoured, when thousands of Muslims showed up at Coptic Christmas eve mass services in churches around the country and at candle light vigils held outside.
"From the well-known to the unknown, Muslims had offered their bodies as 'human shields' for last night’s mass, making a pledge to collectively fight the threat of Islamic militants and towards an Egypt free from sectarian strife.

"'We either live together, or we die together,' was the sloganeering genius of Mohamed El-Sawy, a Muslim arts tycoon whose cultural centre distributed flyers at churches in Cairo Thursday night, and who has been credited with first floating the 'human shield' idea."

In a time when Americans are shooting each other at a "Christian" politician's urging, a message of hope from what many consider to be our worst enemies.  Does our Christian community do the same? 

[AhramOnline]

A Christmas Wish (No Tiny Tim Stuff! Don't Even Think About It!)

So, let me be plain:  I.  Hate.  Christmas.

I know, isn't that terrible?  It's like hating... Democracy.  It's practically Communist.  But there you go.

I come by it honestly, though.  Every holiday season for the past four years has been uniformly terrible, and I've just given up on the whole notion.  Examples:  Last year I got hit in the face by a boyfriend.  Year before I found out I had HIV.  Year before I was a homeless coke fiend.

You get the idea.  I'm kind of a Grinch.

This holiday wasn't particularly stellar-- not nearly as bad though.  Yes, I'm some sort of version of homeless, and my family is so broke we exchanged hugs.  I wish I could say that we were overcome with the Christmas spirit, danced around in circles, sang songs about family togetherness and were happy, but no.  This ain't the fucking movies.  We were a bit glum, but we did okay.

The worst thing I had to endure, though, was a phone call from someone I knew at rehab.

Perhaps endure is the wrong word.  I was happy to hear from her.  You don't spend weeks sharing your soul with a group of people without loving them.  What you hate to hear, however, is that they're using again.

Listen:  I'm not perfect.  I do drink, not to excess, but I know that my addictions counselor would have a fit.  I stay away from drugs, and happily so, but I'm certainly no paragon of sobriety.  I don't judge.  I told her I loved her and that I would help her fix things any way I can.

It breaks my heart though.  It just breaks my heart.

We talked on the phone for a while, I gave her my two cents, and I think when I got off the phone she knew what she had to do.  I hope she does it.  I pray that she does (yes, I DO pray, but don't tell anyone).  I am glad she contacted me.  There are too many people from rehab that I really care about who haven't.  I hope they are safe this Christmas.

Listen:  Christmas is a day like any other.  You do the best that you can to get through the day, and hopefully this one is joyous, but if it's not, you get yourself through, and you work on staying well.

Do I have any particular message tonight?  No.  Is there a Christmas miracle in the works?  Fuck no.  You can't expect miracles.  You have to do it yourself-- no-one else will, especially not a fat man in a suit.  You don't get to exchange gifts every Christmas, and some holidays you don't even get to have a home.  You make do, though, and you get yourself through.

So no miracles.

I have a wish though.  I wish that all of you are safe tonight.  I wish that all of you are well, and that you are taking care of yourself.  Whether you're an addict or not, we all have unique, sometimes terrible, challenges.  I wish-- I pray-- that you overcome them.  And most of all, I pray that you know this:  You are loved, by someone.  At least one person loves you.  It's me!  So take care of yourself. 

And maybe we can hang next Christmas.  And dance around in a circle.  Maybe sing a fucking song.

Really.

I love you.  Stay well.

PS-- Here's a picture of a Dalek Christmas tree.  Deal.

Antoine Dodson Has a Very Special Message for Santa

My latest fave performer is the delectable Antoine Dodson.  He rocketed to YouTube fame when he foiled a rape attempt on his sister and then blew up into a cloud of rainbows and unicorns on the local news.  If you haven't seen the auto-tuned version of his testimony, then you are so dumb.  You are really dumb.  For real.

Anyway!  He came up with a charming holiday ditty which was aired on George Lopez.  Merry Christmas!




Plus, here's the original auto-tuned masterpiece: