Archive for Archive for August, 2009
Maggie’s Crystal Ball
I think it’s time for people who are serious about the marriage equality debate to bump Maggie Gallagher off the stage. Her assertions are increasingly groundless or off-point, and it probably doesn’t make sense to waste much more time debating them. (This isn’t just because I strongly disagree with her; David Blankenhorn, for example, has [...]
What About the Women?
In my previous post, I wrote about the protests being staged against Dr. LeRoy Carhart, a self-claimed abortionist who’s one of the few doing late-term procedures. Now the anti-abortion forces are met by an equally passionate and committed pro-choice group, led by the National Organization for Women. The two sides converged in an angry Tower [...]
“Abortion is an ObamaNation.com”
The quote that forms the title for this post was plastered on a truck driven by a member of Operation Rescue. The vehicle also sports a poster of a fetal hand on a coin. They’re not going for subtlety.
The vitriolic protests against abortion providers continue, this time with Dr. LeRoy Carhart filling the late Dr. [...]
Bash Back!
How much of this is theater — angry theater — and how much is meant as true, violent threat, I don’t know. But Bash Back! seems to be the spiritual descendant of ACT UP!, mixing a radical (not always clear) political message with performance. Read the whole article to get a sense of who these [...]
More Good News from Iowa
A constitutional amendment overturning the Supreme Court’s marriage equality decision looks less likely :
A state civil rights commissioner said Thursday that an amendment to the Iowa Constitution banning gay marriage would clash with the fundamental rights of Iowans spelled out in the same document.
“I don’t think we’re saying that there can’t be a constitutional amendment [...]
The Limits of Religious Liberty
It’s vital for a trial judge, and for a jury, to be able to assess the credibility of witnesses. As we all know, credibility is a complex determination that relies on all kinds of conscious and unconscious verbal, physical, and facial cues. But what happens when religion interferes with one of those cues?
In this story, [...]
Mike Gallagher on Ted Kennedy and Political Disagreement
I heard the news of Ted Kennedy’s passing this morning; sad, although hardly unexpected. Here’s a comprehensive obit.
Well, I was driving to work when I heard the news, so I thought I’d listen to what the conservative talking heads were saying. Glenn Beck, nothing (too busy going on about ACORN and other reliable red meat). [...]
Evangelical Lutherans 1, Californians O
“I urge you not to do this to all of the people in the pew and in my family.” According to this story, this “tearful plea” wasn’t made on behalf of the pro-gay relationship side at the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s national assembly, where the pastors in attendance were voting on whether to permit [...]
Enabling “Mad Men” — Part III: Salvatore Romano’s Complex Closet
In my first “Mad Men” post, I said that the women were generally the most interesting characters on the show. Given the repressive social and legal structures in place during the early 1960’s, their efforts at success, happiness, and simple self-esteem were a complex dance around the men who called the shots But the life [...]
Caster Semenya, Gender Ambiguity, and…Marriage Equality?
Surely by now you’ve read of Caster Semenya, the new South African running sensation who clobbered the field in the 800-meter run at the recent World Track and Field Championships on Thursday. Before the gold medal been draped around the 18-year old’s neck, controversy erupted about the winner’s gender. Why? Take a look:
Is the green-and-yellow [...]