Cody's Take on the Streetcar

Hello all!

I'm currently unemployed, and due to the fact that I'm unemployed and have litterally no money left (and debt to pay off), my parents are talking about throwing me out... That makes perfect sense doesn't it...? Yeeeaaah...

Anyway, as another consequence of my predicament, I've been applying to as many jobs as possible, including applying to be Examiner.com's Public Transit writer. for the application I had to write a brief article about my chosen subject matter, so I figured I'd share it with you folks (since this blog tends to feature the Streetcar periodically):

Ignorance is not always bliss… There hasn’t been much in the media about the proposed Cincinnati Streetcar lately. In fact, the only public exposure I have encountered has been a clipboarder campaigning to stop the streetcar project back at the Cincinnati Pride Festival in June and a poster for the upcoming film showing of “Taken for a Ride,” a film about GM’s role in the disappearance of streetcars, which I saw in Northside. Regardless, because yours truly is such a transit fan, the subject is always nagging at me like an angry spouse. There are so many different sides to the story to take into account, and here are a few that move me most:
1.) www.cincystreetcar.com has some good points about the benefits of a streetcar system. It is true that a streetcar system is a bit more permanent than the use of motorbuses because there are tracks laid in the roadbed. Permanence of a route could certainly spur business development along routes because of the guaranteed movement of people in the area.
2.) The same aspect of a streetcar system has a number of drawbacks however. There is a huge cost of materials and labor to tear up a roadbed, lay tracks, repave the road, and set up the overhead wires to power the cars. Also, when there is bad weather or road work bus routes can be diverted to compensate for flooding, snow, or maintenance. Streetcars cannot do this. In fact, there are photographs of rail lines built on stilts during flooding. This could cause Cincinnati to spend even more of the money it already doesn’t have…


Enjoy,
-Cody, The Seeker

The Curse of Casual Sex

I'm never sure the motivations of people forwarding me some things I get in my inbox, but a link to a story over at DH Blog entitled "The Curse of Casual Sex" interested me:

Although sexual sharing clearly need not flow from love—indeed, it can just as easily be motivated by hatred or the desire to feel powerful or attractive—it is only through an act of deadening oneself to one’s feelings to some degree that one can fail to experience any emotional consequence of a sexual encounter. The payoff of deadening one’s feelings, of course, is immediate gratification of a powerful, instinctive urge with no further thought needed. The cost of deadening one’s feelings is a diminished capacity to feel anything and a consequent difficulty initiating and maintaining intimate relationships that require one to be in touch with one’s own and one’s partner’s feelings. This fact should give pause to those who indicate in their dating profiles that they are seeking a long-term relationship but are willing to hook up or play around in the meantime. When you habitually deaden your feelings to treat the intimate sex act as something casual, you create an emotional habit that in time becomes a personality style that may be impossible to turn on or off at will. Those who claim they are not interested in long-term relationships often have been so damaged emotionally already by loveless, “casual” encounters and disappointments in love, that they simply stop trying and convince themselves that they don’t really need anyone special. Being unwilling or unable to love certainly is a curse in my book, and Freud considered this a key symptom of mental illness. (“Zu lieben und zu arbeiten,” “To love and to work,” was Freud’s definition of mental health.) In a culture that glorifies casual sex, as popular gay culture does, it should not surprise us to find some form(s) of mental illness normative.

I would say this was one of those, "Barry, you're sleeping around too much these days!" emails I occasionally get from friends/acquaintances that I ignore, but it came from someone that... well, let's just say they don't come from a place to judge me nor my behaviors. :-) Regardless, it's worth a thought, and I am, as always, curious as to your thoughts.

A lot rings personally true in this article, but I'm not sure how much I wish to disclose, so I'll just let y'all talk.

BRAVO Alert

A string of anti-LGBTQ crimes seems to have struck the country, from soldiers to trans-identified individuals, and it's worth taking note that the spree seems not to be limited to just "out there." The Buckeye Regional Anti-Violence Organization (BRAVO) monitors all sorts of activities. I was recently contacted on Twitter about three separate attacks in Central Ohio (read: Columbus-area) around July 4th. From their website:

BRAVO, has received 3 reports of anti-LGBT attacks in multiple neighborhoods around several LGBT Bars on Friday night of the 4th of July weekend. The description of the attackers in each incident is very similar and BRAVO strongly believes that these attacks are related and were perpetrated by the same group of assailants.

In all 3 assaults the victims were jumped by a group of 6-7 young men, in well lit and populated areas. The attacks took place between midnight and 2:00 AM. The assaults involved beating, kicking, and punching with "brass knuckles". Injuries included concussions, stitches, abrasions, bruises, and head injuries; medical attention was required in all cases. Anti-LGBT language was used in all 3 of the attacks.

If you have been the victim of, or are aware of, similar assaults please contact BRAVO (614 294 7867) or the Columbus Police Department. (614 645 4545)

For further information BRAVO can be reached at 614 294 7867 or 866 86 BRAVO.

Description of Perpetrator:
Sex: 6-7 Males in a group
Race: Caucasian, African American and Latino
Age: Late Teens

STAY ALERT
TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS
BE AWARE
KNOW THAT THIS TYPE OF CRIME IS NOT RARE

If you know of anything, please contact the above listed phone numbers, and make sure you and those you love stay safe. The fight is not over -- there are still those who wish to do us harm.

Also: if you have been a victim of a hate crime, please contact BRAVO. If you would like to contact this blog -- queercincinnati@gmail.com -- about your story, please do so.

On My Interview with David Krikorian

Long awaited post on my interview with Ohio's Second District presumption Democratic nominee in 2010, David Krikorian over at Rainbow Cincinnati. Your excerpt:

Krikorian dares to tell me, on one had, that he is the best hope for an LGBT friendly, electable candidate in the Second District, while, in the next breath, saying that he will not march in a parade and wave a flag. That kind of candidate -- he insists -- could never win the district, and hasn't yet. He speaks passionately that, no, he will never sign a Defense of Marriage Act; and then, when informed that no DOMA needs left to be signed on either the federal or state level, is willing to fess up to his own ignorance of all the issues and asks for more information.

As he gesticulated wildly with a soon-emptied coffee cup throughout our time together, I knew that I liked him and that he may be ballsy enough to win... and mayhap even do right by his queer constituents in the process.
Click here for the rest

As always, check out the excellent content at Rainbow Cincinnati by clicking on the link below.

Le Jazz Hot

Victor/Victoria is my mother's favorite musical. Apparently, when we were little (it came out the same year I was born), my mother got so frustrated, handed the two of us -- my brother and I -- off to my dad, told him to take the day off from work, and went to the movies by herself. She stumbled into this flick completely by accident and it was played at least 2-3/year in my house ever since.

Needless to say, my mother made me gay.

And possibly a drag queen:

If you haven't figured this out, I sit at my desk and listen to Sirius's Broadway channel. I post musicals when I hear one that I'm like, "God, I love that song." Right now, I'm working on Cool Summer and trying to figure out a few things about Texas (a few things, and one thing about Salt Lake City)... and I thought I'd share happiness rather than sadness.

CincyPride 2010 + Apologies

Been busy these last two days with nothing of value. HA! But, before I headed off to work for the night, it was made official today that the Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Greater Cincinnati will no longer be organizing Cincinnati Pride (as announced here) and has passed the torch onto the Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber recently had huge success organizing EQUINOX to rave reviews. I wonder what it will be like for them, organizing two huge events within a month of each other?

From the Rainbow Cincinnati post:

This afternoon, Bill Abney, President of the Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Greater Cincinnati announced that the organization will not organize Pride 2010.

The announcement came at the Pride Appreciation volunteer party hosted by the Community Center and the Bar Monet of Willard Street in Covington, KY.

Concurrent with this news, Nigel Cotterill, President of the Greater Cincinnati Gay Chamber of Commerce says his organization will organize the event for Cincinnati in 2010. Their Vice President, George Crawford will have charge of the event. George was chair of the successful Equinox celebration held just last weekend.

Nigel Cotterill will be forwarding a "release" of additional details in the next few days.

The Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Greater Cincinnati had been the organizer for the past five years.

Also: don't forget the Cincinnati Drag Races tomorrow on Main Street, or next week's COOL SUMMER Cocktail Hour for Ronald McDonald House on Friday the 17th from 7p-10p at Below Zero Lounge.

GLEE PREVIEW

I watched it on HULU after a huge response on Twitter after it premiered this past Spring, but then it got pushed aside for new episodes into the Fall and I nearly cried.

How could they tease us with a halfway decent show and then strip us of a follow up?

Because it's on FOX.

That's ok, here' the preview for the next season and I am positively GIDDY with the upcoming season!

And for those who have not checked it out yet, here is the entire Hulu archive of GLEE footage and the Pilot.... which, I just discovered, I could embed:

I actually have to give a nod to, of all places, ManhuntDaily -- Manhunt, which despite its operator's support of John McCain in 2008 and provides for the sexual outlet of innumerable gay boys in the world, runs a damned good blog... so much so it's been blogrolled.

2010 Election Update

You know my love of Jennifer Brunner, but, after my experience at the Ohio Democratic Party Family Dinner about a week ago, I started to wonder, due to the overabundance of Lee Fisher stickers and absolutely no Brunner stickers, about her candidacy (especially with GOP Senate candidate Rob Portman posting $1.5million in fundraising, Fisher at $900,000, and Brunner's numbers undisclosed). When I inquired, a Fisher worker informed me, with an ironic tone, that she had said it was inappropriate to campaign at the dinner. I wonder which was right, but there are still some rumblings, and she responded sharply on her website:

Ever since I decided to give up the security of what is widely regarded as a "safe" re-election for Secretary of State and instead run for the U.S. Senate, the political insiders in Columbus and Washington began actively discouraging my candidacy. "She can’t raise the money," said many. "You shouldn’t run for the Senate if the Governor supports Lieutenant Governor Fisher," warned some Washington insiders in January. "You need to take one for the team, even though I don’t think the Lt. Gov. can win in the general election," one Congressman cautioned. "I think you have the political skills to win this election, but you need the money,” said a political mentor...

I am in this race to stay.

For the second time today, I'll say it: Snap when you say that girl. Despite expected disparities in fundraising (word of mouth, no actual source, but I think I read it somewhere) in the previous quarter of FEC reports, polls are showing a dead heat in a Fisher-Brunner matchup -- 24-21 (Quinnipiac, 7/7/09) or 22-17 (Daily KOS/Research 2000, 7/9/09). Meanwhile, KOS/Research 2000 (same article) show Fisher and Brunner polling ahead their all-but-nominated Republican counterpart, former Bush OMB director Rob Portman, by 7 and 4, respectively, or by 4 and 1, depending on whom you listen to. Portman is actually closing the gap; Republicans are finding new candidates right and left in the flagging economy, as Obama's polls numbers continue to drop. In Ohio, it's under 50% for the first time since he was elected.

Meanwhile, Democrats still look solidly ahead (second source which also shows Gov. Strickland ahead of potential GOP candidate Rep. Kasich by 5%) for 2010, though it appears Steve Chabot will be challenging Rep. Driehaus for his OH-01 (that's, uh, Cincinnati, folks) seat back in the coming election.

And that's your long-delayed 2010 election update, thought I have something bigger coming likely in the morning.

Neat from Neatorama

Neatorama was one of the many blogs I used as inspiration for this one, and remains one of the few blogs I follow on a regular basis. Singularly one of ... well ... the neatest sites on the web, but it's rare (well, rare these days) to repost anything from over there. I thought you might like these two bits.

Introducing the Warp Drive

Dr. Richard Obousy, a physics and technology consultant out of Houston, has created the first theoretical warp drive, which would move along the a wave of dark matter. The only problem, of course, is that we do not have enough understanding of dark matter to harness it.

The shape of the warpship was chosen to optimize the manipulation of surrounding dark energy, creating a spacetime bubble. How exactly the bubble would be created is still a mystery. But once the bubble gets created, spacetime at the front of the warpship would be compressed, and behind, it would expand. Inside the bubble, spacetime remains unchanged; therefore the warpship floats in the center of stationary space while the bubble moves through spacetime.

The bubble itself, containing the warpship, "drives the spacecraft forwards at arbitrarily high speeds," said Obousy. This means the warpship can travel faster than the speed of light.

The picture on the right is the proposed design of the futuristic warp ship, which he asks be built in the hopes that the he can study the possibility.

Guinness Record for Vagina Lifting: 31lbs

On the list of crazy records comes the record for vagina lifting, a 42 year old Russian woman recently broke the record.

According to local media, Tatiata has been exercising her vagina for fifteen years. “After I had a child, my intimate muscles got unbelievably weak. I read books on Dao and learned that ancient women used to deal with this problem using wooden balls,” she said. “I looked around, saw a Murano glass ball and inserted it in my vagina. It took me ages to get it out!”

Just in case you haven’t tried lifting weights with your vagina before, Tatiata recommends it to all women who want to improve their sex life. “It’s enough to exercise your vagina five minutes a day, ladies, and in just one week you’ll be able to give yourself and your man unforgettable pleasure in bed,” she said.

Check out the Mayo Clinic article on Kegel exercises. I have no idea if that's the kind of exercises she does, but it's good practice for people, none the less.

Total Eclipse of the Heart: Literal Version

It's making the rounds on YouTube and Twitter, thought you may enjoy it:

I LOL'd a lot. I thought you might, as well.

And the claws come out...

I am fond of saying to people, "Snap when you say that." Well, to the American Foundation for Equal Rights, snap when you say this:

The Letter from AFER to NCLR, Lambda Legal, and the ACLU

July 8, 2009

Kate Kendell
National Center for Lesbian Rights
870 Market Street, Suite 370
San Francisco, CA 94102

Jennifer Pizer
Lambda Legal
Western Regional Office
3325 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 1300
Los Angeles, CA 90010

Mark Rosenbaum
ACLU of Southern California
1313 W. 8th Street
Los Angeles, CA 90017
Dear Kate, Jennifer and Mark:

On behalf of the plaintiffs and our board, donors and supporters, I am writing to ask that you not intervene in Perry v. Schwarzenegger.

Given our willingness to collaborate with you, and your efforts to undercut this case, we were surprised and disappointed when we became aware of your desire to intervene.

You have unrelentingly and unequivocally acted to undermine this case even before it was filed. In light of this, it is inconceivable that you would zealously and effectively litigate this case if you were successful in intervening. Therefore, we will vigorously oppose any motion to intervene.

In public and private, you have made it unmistakably clear that you strongly disagree with our legal strategy to challenge Prop. 8 as a violation of the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the United States Constitution. Your strident criticism of our suit has been constant:

• May 27, Joint Statement from ACLU, Lambda, NCLR and Other Organizations -- “Now that the California Supreme Court has refused to strike down Proposition 8, we need to go back to the voters. Since we lost Proposition 8 just six months ago, and since a ballot initiative to repeal is likely to require a huge investment in time and money, it is tempting to at least try a federal lawsuit first. But it’s a temptation we should resist.”
• May 27, The Advocate -- “‘This is an attempt to short-circuit the process, to go all the way to the end….To us, that seems like a lot of risk for a long shot when we know that if we worked to establish more of the predicates, we could do this and not be taking such a big risk.’” (Matt Coles, ACLU)
• May 27, New York Times -- “‘We think it’s risky and premature,’ said Jennifer C. Pizer, marriage project director for Lambda Legal in Los Angeles.”
• May 27, New York Times -- “‘Federal court. Wow. Never thought of that.’” (Matt Coles, ACLU)
• June 26, Associated Press -- (Within a story on the filing of the ACLU, Lambda and NCLR amicus briefs): “ACLU attorney Matt Coles said the groups filed their arguments reluctantly because they still believe federal court is the wrong forum for their fight.”
• Even after you filed an amicus curiae brief urging the district court to grant our motion for a preliminary injunction against the enforcement of Prop. 8, you refused to characterize your position as one of “support.” Indeed, Jennifer Pizer of Lambda Legal went so far as to insist that we alter a press release that described your amicus curiae brief as “supporting” our suit. In response, we issued a second release addressing her concerns.

Having gone to such great lengths to dissuade us from filing suit and to tar this case in the press, it seems likely that your misgivings about our strategy will be reflected—either subtly or overtly—in your actions in court.

Despite your well-publicized hostility toward filing suit in federal court, we actively sought out your advice and counsel, and have incorporated it on many occasions. We value your leadership, experience and expertise on the issue of marriage equality. Thus, from the outset, we have sought to stand together with you, shoulder to shoulder, in this battle. Some examples:

• In the fall of 2008, a representative from what would become AFER spoke to Paul Smith, cochair of Lambda Legal’s board of directors, and asked him to play a role in the case. He declined.
• In May 2009, an AFER board member discussed the case in New York with Jon Davidson of Lambda Legal, asking for Lambda’s involvement. Several days later, AFER board members had a conference call with Lambda in which we again asked for Lambda’s involvement.
• On May 14, 2009, a meeting was held in the home of an AFER board member with Ramona Ripston and Mark Rosenbaum of ACLU, and Jennifer Pizer and Jon Davidson of Lambda. Both groups declined to participate in the case and urged AFER to cease its efforts.
• On June 2, 2009, Theodore Olson and other members of the legal team spoke with and solicited the input of Kate Kendell and Shannon Minter (NCLR) via conference call.
• On June 8, 2009, Kate Kendell and Shannon Minter actively participated in a lengthy strategy meeting with our legal team at the Los Angeles offices of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.
• On June 9, 2009, members of the legal team solicited the input of Jennifer Pizer and Jon Davidson of Lambda Legal via conference call.
• Representatives from Lambda Legal, ACLU and NCLR were invited to participate in a moot court exercise scheduled to take place in San Francisco on July 1, 2009 in advance of the first court hearing in this case.
• When the moot court was delayed due to an order by the Judge, representatives of Lambda Legal, ACLU and NCLR participated in a conference call where we discussed the order and potential next steps.
• That call was followed by two subsequent calls that afternoon to discuss how to further integrate Lambda, NCLR and ACLU.

Regrettably, you embarked on a public and private campaign to undermine our efforts to vindicate the federal constitutional rights of California’s gay and lesbian residents. We nevertheless remain willing to work closely with you at all stages of this case and welcome your continued participation in the district court proceedings as an amicus curiae.But we cannot and will not support your motion to intervene. Your intervention would create a complex, multi-party proceeding that would inevitably be hampered by procedural inefficiencies that are directly at odds with our goal—and the goal of Chief Judge Walker—of securing an expeditious, efficient, and inexpensive resolution to the district court proceedings. As a result of your intervention, we could be mired in procedurally convoluted pre-trial maneuvering for years—while gay and lesbian individuals in California continue to suffer the daily indignity of being denied their federal constitutional right to marry the person of their choosing. Such potentially interminable delay is antithetical to the values on which your organization was founded and for which you and your supporters have fought so tirelessly.

Delaying equal marriage rights in California serves none of our interests.

Again, we continue to welcome your input and advice as we move forward in this case. We look forward to working with you to resolve this issue and bring the focus back to the constitutional issues at hand.

Sincerely,
Chad H. Griffin
Board President

The letter is in response to the National Center for Lesbian Rights, the ACLU, and Lambda Legal's recent statement in support of the Boies and Olsen federal lawsuit against Proposition 8 based on the Equal Protections and Due Process clauses of the Constitution. You can read the letter and get an idea about the fight. For the record, I'm against the lawsuit. Rather not create the legal precedent...

...but no one listens to me about these sort of things. I was right, though, on the original Prop8 lawsuit. I still think we should win at the polls in California. Would be more decisive.

I said early on Twitter that we are all trying to claim the legacy of the movement. My thoughts? Well, I'm reading Mists of Avalon, and I have to wonder if we wouldn't benefit from an Arthur like figure (more modern reference: MLKJr) to bring us together as a leader. You know, move us forward. And, also for the record, I do not believe we have yet to see that leader come forward. Even Cleve Jones, as much as I adore him, I do not believe it is him, either. *sigh*

Nods to the Box Turtle Bulletin.

Equal Marriage Updates

A few things floating out on the web today, just a quick run down:

• Maine: Opponents to equality have announced that they have reached the 55,000+ signatures necessary to force a "People's Veto" referendum on the equal marriage law in that state. A rarely used law -- less than 30 times in the state's history -- allows the voters to veto any law put into place by the legislature. The movement is being spearheaded by the group, Stand for Marriage Maine. Per polls, Maine would have a rough fight at the polls as, though the legislature voted for it, the voter base is slightly against it. The ME law is due to go into effect Sept. 12, though will be delayed if the signatures are filed.
• Massachusetts: The Attorney General of Massachusetts has filed one of the strongest federal suits against the Defense of Marriage Act, claiming that it interferes with states' "soverign authority to to define and regulate marriage." LawDork, 2.0 has a great run down of the suit, including a copy of the suit.
• New Hampshire: Gov. John Lynch is experiencing a bit of a polling backlash after signing the equal marriage bill into law. His numbers have dropped to a measly 62%. Actually, the change may make him vulnerable as it will be the first time in his whole tenure where his approval rating dropped below 70%. Kevin Smith of Cornerstone Policy Research has this to say: "The governor assured voters time and time again that he did not support gay marriage, but when it reached his desk he broke his word to the voters... What we're seeing here is a trend where this governor is really tied into the far left wing of his party. And people are now starting to wake up to that fact, and that's why his poll numbers are dropping."
• New York: Former Democratic gubernatorial primary candidate, Tom Suozzi, has come out in favor of full marriage equality. Meanwhile, rumors are growing that the Republicans in the state senate of this state forced the gay marriage issue in an orchestration of the recent Republican coup. WTF is up in NY?

And, finally, the National Education Association, the nation's largest union, has come out in supprt of equal marriage. From the notes of the 2009 Representative Assembly:

NEA will support its affiliates seeking to enact state legislation that guarantees to same-sex couples the right to enter into a legally recognized relationship pursuant to which they have the same rights and benefits as similarly-situated heterosexual couples, including, without limitation, rights and benefits with regard to medical decisions, taxes, inheritance, adoption, and immigration.

They also support anti-discrimination.

Though, I will say, it's nice that everyone seems to be on our side, the question is when will someone show some leadership?

Guest Blog: Gays vs. Media

I am ever open to guest bloggers, and Jason of Out-With-it-Already has appeared regularly here at QueerCincinnati.com. He forwards this on to post here with our happy little nest of queer Cincinnati bloggers :-).

Let's talk this all out, shall we?

Yesterday, NPR.org published an article titled, "Black Ministers In D.C. Divided Over Gay Marriage," detailing the vocal opposition from predominantly African-American churches in D.C. to the recently approved bill that recognizes same-sex marriages performed in other states.

We've got some good stuff in here:

"Like many evangelicals, Walker reads the Bible as the literal word of God. And he sees in those pages a blueprint for a healthy family. It's not the only blueprint. Walker himself was raised by a single mother, and he appreciates the grandparents in his church who raise their grandkids.

"I'm not taking away from that," he says. "But I think God's perfect order for family is mom and dad.""

News flash: The world ain't perfect and it never will be. But thanks for playin', buddy!

"In 2007, Wiley and his co-pastor — his wife, Christine — held two same-sex blessings, prompting two-thirds of their congregation to leave. Since then, they've attracted new members who were looking for a gay-friendly black church."

OK. I'll take acceptance wherever I can get it but I have serious reservations when religious folk--well-intentioned as they usually are--begin meddling in same-sex marriage. I appreciate the Wileys' commitment to the inclusion of same-sex couples in the institution of marriage but when they give blessings to these marriages they are misleading the general public into believing that same-sex marriage advocates aim to require religious entities to recognize and perform same-sex marriages. As I've always understood it, at least, same-sex couples are seeking civil marriage. Civil. As in not religious. Of course, many people--including LGBT people--are religious, so I can understand that some same-sex couples should desire any form of affirmation of their union from their respective religion. But this is dangerous territory we are entering, folks. When the general public believes same-sex marriages are happening in places of worship, then they are likely to vote against legislation allowing same-sex marriage because they overwhelmingly wish to preserve the tradition of their faith community.

"Wiley acknowledges that there are a handful of biblical passages condemning homosexuality. But he says blacks don't take the Bible literally when it comes to racial issues.

"The Bible says, 'Slaves, be obedient to your master,' etc. Well, we don't hear black people saying, 'OK, we got to stick with that,' " Wiley says. "Yet when it comes to the issue of homosexuality, then people are running to the Bible.""

You speak great truth, Reverend Wiley.

"For Wiley, who studied under liberation theologian James Cone, gay rights are simply the next step in the civil rights movement. Like blacks, he says, homosexuals did not choose this life.

But Walker calls the comparison "ludicrous."

"When I talk to most people of African descent, many of them are absolutely appalled by any comparison to the civil rights movement, simply because we cannot take off our blackness," Walker says."

Just as you, Reverend Walker, cannot "take off [your] blackness," I cannot opt out of a feeling; I do not control attraction. Sure, I could make the CHOICE not to live openly and to deny my identity but I cannot CHOOSE to whom I am attracted. You, on the other hand, can CHOOSE to refrain from rhetoric that persecutes and marginalizes people seeking civil rights and protections completely outside of the religious realm in which you operate.

Here is an additional thought I have:

The media might also be holding us back. I'll explain.

When reporting on marriages of same-sex couples, the language is almost always "gay marriage." We need to move away from this notion of "gay marriage" and here's why: Gay marriage sounds like "other marriage." What I mean by this is that it sounds exactly like same-sex couples are in fact redefining marriage.

A marriage is a marriage, and we know that. You know who doesn't know that?: A lot of people in the majority. If we can somehow strike "gay" from "gay marriage" and still find ways to accurately report on same-sex marriages, that'd be fantastic because, let's face it, marriage cannot be gay. Marriage is not an orientation, or an identity, for that matter.

What also doesn't help is that we still live in a world where the word "gay" continues to be used by people when they mean to say something is stupid, silly, or dumb. Translation: bad. So, when people here "gay marriage" is it not too difficult to see how they might be processing same-sex marriage as "bad marriage"?

Now, I recognize the difficulty reporters will have in creating concise headlines and news beats addressing same-sex marriage. Take NPR's headline, "Black Ministers In D.C. Divided Over Gay Marriage." Why do members of the media use the phrase "gay marriage"? Probably because it's short and to the point and also because "same-sex marriage" includes the word "sex" which still shocks a lot of people. Never mind we're talking about someone's actual biological sex and not the act of sexual intercourse. Whose wise idea was it to use this same word--sex--for both? I can say I'm not happy with them.

However, herein lies the problem: Am I expecting that NPR's headline might have read "Black Ministers In D.C. Divided Over Civil Marriages Between Same-Sex Couples"? Yeah, I'm not holding my breath on that one. But in my ideal world it would go something like that because if we allow media to continue using "gay marriage" to define our loving unions, we'll be gettin' wherever we're goin' real slow.

Cincinnati Drag Races

A mainstay of Cincinnati's Pride calendar returns -- the Cincinnati Drag Races! After the raucous success of last year's event, held in conjunction with the popular and ever growing Second Sunday on Main festival, the two parties teamed up and will be hosting this year's races on Main Street on July 12th from 2pm-5pm.

Thanks to Nigel from Below Zero, here's a bit about this year:

Second Sunday is Open 12 – 5 p.m. in historic Over-the-Rhine on Main Street between 13th and Liberty. The event is free and open to the public.

“Drag your Dog OUT” please drag you dog out in fun attire

Drag Races 3 – 5 PM Between 14th street and Orchard Street
Open registration for last minute teams opens at 2 PM
Festivities will start at 3 PM

This year we are planning a few different categories: Non Prophet Races, Arts Community Races, and Bars and Restaurants Races

Objective of Race: From the start line the first member from a team of 4 gets dressed in Dress, Wig, Handbag and Heels must be 2 inches high. Then runs one block to the exchange line, where they pass off the same items to the next team member who in return runs back down the course. The race is complete once all four team members have completed course.

Judges and special guests will include Penny Tration, Truly Scrumptious, Quasi, and Just Joan. Event-goers are invited to continue the revelry by heading over to On Broadway (817 Broadway) for a cookout, or to Below Zero Lounge (1122 Walnut Street) or Shooters (927 Race Street) for after party adult beverages.

Below Zero will also be hosting the races' "Pit Stop," starting at 1pm, where you can get quick service drinks before heading down the street to watch those bitches run.

WEARING WHAT WEDNESDAY: Josh Duhamel

I am only giving you a little bit of a sneak preview today, but I am warning you that this link is completely NSFW. Josh Duhamel -- all around hunk -- recently posed nude and the link will take you to pretty pictures of him with both full frontal and full rear nudity. Click at your will. I just thought you'd like to see. :-) Have a nice day, all.

As for your hot website of the week, I think we might have to go with the site that brings us this website: Outrate.net's Eye Candy blog. Yet another, whenever-I-feel-like posting site of beautiful men, usually NSFW.

Again, you have been warned and I am not at fault if you decide to click on those links when it's inappropriate...

...like, say, at work.

Do it at home. You'll have more time to enjoy it then, too.

12:34:56 am on 7/8/9

Neat. Completely pointless, but neat for something that only happens, what, twice a century.

Cool Summer: Our House to Yours

From QueerCincinnati.com; Wine Me, Dine Me, Cincinnati; Kate's Random Musings; and Cincininnati Women Bloggers, with a special thanks to MB2 Designs, and to Lancome...

Cool Summer: Our House To Yours
A cocktail hour to benefit Ronald McDonald House of Cincinnati
July 17th, 7pm-10pm at Below Zero Lounge (1122 Walnut Street)
$10 Suggested Donation at the Door

Check out the Facebook event -- tell us you're coming!

The Advocate's Perez Interview

As if we needed any more reason to dislike Perez Hilton today, these were his thoughts in a recent Advocate interview about the recent scandal where he called will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas a faggot:

“I thought about calling him the n word,” he says over the phone a week after the incident, “but I thought the f word was even worse. I was so filled with hate at that moment because I was hated on so much, and I reacted in the worst way possible. Then I went on to make a bunch of other mistakes. I shouldn’t have made the video. I shouldn’t have released so many statements. But what’s come out of all of this is that I’ve learned so much about myself, and I’m in a much better place. I’m actually thankful that it happened. As cheesy as it may sound, I had almost a spiritual moment when I just let all of the anger and worry go and am now filled with peace, happiness, and wisdom. I could let this jade me and go back to being the super bitch that I was when I first started the website, but I’ve softened on my website and in life, maybe because I’m happier in my personal life than I’ve ever been.”

And yet he manages to dominate the gay headlines. Hrm. This is like Carrie Prejean all over again. Too much coverage of someone whose actual value is approximated at 0.

A Quick Thought on Metro

Cincinnati's bus system, Metro, is facing budget cuts. A lot is out there right now about this, but there are threats of route cuts, reductions, layoffs, fare increases, and any number of other awfulnesses which threaten to cripple the already mediocre single public transit option in the city. This, amongst talks of adding a streetcar with, seemingly, the best outcome being gentrification and business development in downtown and Over-the-Rhine.

Laura's Carbon Footprint said it best: Metro is a social justice issue. "Each of us, as part of this society, is intrinsically linked to people that are dependant on the bus, whether we know the individuals or not," she writes, far more eloquent than I could ever hope to be.

Years ago, I read about the Bus Riders' Union in LA and did a pretty extensive research study on them. I'm not going to write about it here -- I do have a 15 page research project, including pictures, if you're that interested -- but I'll share the history from the above linked website:

The BRU/SDP was initiated in 1992 as the Strategy Center's Transportation Policy Group and soon began organizing bus riders in the "Billions for Buses" campaign to confront and defeat the transit racism reflected in the policies of the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). In 1994, the BRU led popular protests against a massive fare hike and obtained a temporary restraining order to stop the MTA in its tracks. The BRU then sued the MTA for violating the civil rights of transit dependent bus riders.

In 1994, the Labor/Community Strategy Center and Bus Riders Union, along with the Korean Immigrant Workers Advocates and Southern Christian Leadership Conference, represented by the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, brought suit against the Los Angeles MTA, charging them with violating Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act which prohibits government agencies that receive any federal funds from distributing those funds in a racially discriminatory manner. The Strategy Center, BRU, and NAACP LDF charged the MTA with establishing a separate and unequal mass transit system-a dilapidated, overcrowded bus system for 400,000 overwhelmingly Latino, Black, and Asian/Pacific Islander bus riders (at that time, estimated at 81% people of color, but on most of the worst inner-city lines it was essentially 100% people of color).

When the MTA signed the civil rights Consent Decree in late 1996, the BRU took up a formidable obligation-to represent the civil rights of 400,000 daily bus riders in Los Angeles County-88% of whom are, more than 50% of whom have annual family incomes under $12,000 and 57% of whom are women.

Since then, we have written a new chapter in the civil rights and environmental justice movement: a grassroots group wins a well-known civil rights suit, but then has the guts and commitment to enforce its provisions for a decade to build a clean-fuel, world-class mass transportation system in the most air polluted and auto-dominated city in the U.S.

I'm just saying. The similarities could be eerie. And, when we consider the streetcar, perhaps we should look less at the success story of Portland, and look, instead, at the failures of LA.

I've been an exclusive bus rider for a year, and I cannot stomach or live on any less service than they currently provide. And I am not the only one.

Save the environment. Improve your health. Help the city. Ride a bus.

RIP, MJ

Today is MJ's funeral. Bad was the first album I ever bought. I was being selfish and wanted the cassette, which my mother couldn't dub (we had a single deck) so other people couldn't have a copy of it. But The Wiz sticks with me as amazingly, simply Michael. But you know my fondness for Broadway. He was the king of showmanship, afterall.


Don't try to read anything into my choices of music this morning. The videos suck, by the way. Just turn 'em on while you're doing something else. You'll be doing yourself a favor.

Go here for a live stream of MJ's funeral today, starting at 1pm.