‘What Would You Do If a Gay or Lesbian Were In Your Shower?’ and Other Pentagon Survey Questions – Political Punch

The Pentagon angered GLBT groups by spending $4.5 million on a survey they called "insulting" and "derogatory." In the survey, questions are "repeatedly phrase[d]…in terms of 'if' the repeal happens," Jake Tapper writes, despite Obama's announcements that the only question is when.

One "question asks troops 'If [DADT] is repealed and you had onbase housing and a gay or lesbian Service member was living with a same sex partner onbase, what would you most likely do?' Options range from 'I would get to know them like any other neighbors' to 'I would probably move offbase.'" Servicemembers United, a lobbying group, says "In questions about how the belief that a coworker was gay or lesbian impacted the unit's morale, the 'question and its accompanying answer choices…suggest a negative impact on morale. No options are given to express a belief in a positive impact on morale.'"

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Ugandan Gay Activist Found Beheaded :: EDGE Boston

This week, "some in Uganda are not waiting for the [Anti-Homosexuality 2009] bill to pass into law: a priest has vanished after delivering a sermon urging compassion for gays, and a young GLBT equality activist, who had also disappeared, has been discovered dead—his head severed from his body and thrown down a latrine." Although mainstream US media outlets have been silent on this issue, "[o]ne or more suspects had been arrested before the head’s discovery, according to a news report that has subsequently been posted at YouTube. The report noted that 'blood stained clothing' was discovered along with the head."

Killan Melloy reports, "The dismembered head of Pasikali Kashusbe, who, together with his partner—referred to only as "Abbey"—worked with GLBT equality group Integrity Uganda." Make absolutely no mistake: such horrors are partly the result of American conservatives' spewing hatred.

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Update: SayenCroWolf points us to this retraction by Box Turtle Bulletin: “We’ve worked hard at BTB in establishing our credibility, and I believe that a key component of that is also to maintain an atmosphere of transparency and accountability when we get it wrong. Along the way, I’ve learned that some sources on the Internet are trustworthy, and others are not worth the electricity it takes to power their servers.” It sounds like there’s still some mystery over what happened in Uganda but, either way, I’m really glad to see how quickly reputable sources can self-correct themselves when they receive new information. Good on you, BTB, and thanks to SayenCroWolf for the stunningly fast pointer, too!

Update: xMech points us to an even fuller explanation from Box Turtle Bulletin. Thanks!

Think Progress » Wisconsin GOP U.S. Senate candidate wants to outlaw homosexuality and pornography.

Cue the space music (no, srsly, there's space music), because Republican Senate candidate Ernest J. Pagels Jr. from Wisconsin is "vying for the opportunity to run against Sen. Russ Feingold (D) this September." His campaign's premise: "if elected I will initiate a bill to outlaw homosexuality, abortion, and all forms of pornography. I think these are three ills that are plaguing our nation and bringing it down." (Emphasis ours.)

Although he's in Wisconsin, Mr. Pagels's platform parrots the official Texas GOP 2010 platform, itself eerily similar to Uganda's unabashed anti-gay human rights violations. But don't worry, Pagels' 1-minute TV ad scrolled a Bible verse along with the space music, so we'll be fine. (Right?) Gotta give the haters props for staying on message….

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DOMA decisions released (ruled unconstitutional by federal court judge)

"In an enormous victory for same-sex marriage, a federal judge in Boston today (Thursday, July 8) ruled, in two separate cases, that a critical part of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional," Lisa Keen reports. "Judge Joseph Tauro ruled that Congress violated the Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution when it passed DOMA and took from the states decisions concerning which couples can be considered married," and he also ruled that "DOMA violates the equal protection principles embodied in the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment."

The ruling is expected to be appealed at the U.S. Supreme Court. Judge Tauro took only 2 months to decide that "there was no justifiable reason to the federal government to treat same-sex couples [differently]." According to a report by Denise Lavoie, Nancy Gill, a plaintiff in the suit against DOMA, said she is "thrilled" with the decisions.

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Kink On Tap 48: They Call Themselves Gayglers