Joe. My. God.

Click On Over To The New JMG!

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Mon, 10 Aug 2015 09:51:00 +0000

The new JMG is live right now so you can click right over and create a bookmark for JoeMyGod.com. But keep the old bookmark for a bit as we're going to keep this here Google-hosted version live for a day or so. After all, something could go horribly wrong during the launch and we'll want you beautiful people to come back here during the fix. Also, surprise, it's taking a rilly rilly long time to port over millions of your brilliant comments. So until your Disqus histories are finished loading onto the new site, you can still come back here and finish up this weekend's arguments. Anyway, off you go, there's a full page of new posts waiting for you.

Holding Hands In Jerusalem

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sun, 09 Aug 2015 16:34:00 +0000

Via Pink News:

A social experiment where a gay couple holds hands in public has been recreated in Jerusalem, with shocking results. Similar to videos created in Ukraine and Russia, and shows the men enduring vile abuse. As they walk down the street, dozens of people look, and others make homophobic comments. This video comes just two weeks after six people were stabbed at a Pride parade in the city, which left one 16-year-old dead.

The clip auto-plays so you'll have to watch it at the link.

SEATTLE: #BlackLivesMatter Activists Shut Down Bernie Sanders Speech

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sun, 09 Aug 2015 14:38:00 +0000

The Seattle Times reports:

A Seattle speech by Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders was pre-empted in a chaotic confrontation Saturday afternoon with a pair of Black Lives Matter protesters, who took the stage and refused to let him speak. The Vermont senator, who has drawn huge crowds around the country, was to be the star attraction and final speaker for a rally at Westlake Park to celebrate the 80th birthday of Social Security and the success of other anti-poverty programs. But his afternoon plans were scuttled by protesters determined to turn attention instead to Sunday’s anniversary of the shooting by a white police officer of Michael Brown, an unarmed black man in Ferguson, Mo. Later in the evening, Sanders received the reception he’d expected from the Seattle area as the progressive alternative to Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton. An estimated 15,000 supporters packed Hec Edmundson Pavilion and an overflow area as Sanders took the stage to thunderous applause and delivered an hourlong populist stemwinder about his plans to wrest the country from the control of billionaires.

New Date Set For Terry Bean Trial

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sun, 09 Aug 2015 14:13:00 +0000

The Oregonian reports:

A Lane County judge agreed Friday to reschedule the trial of prominent gay activist Terry Bean to allow the state more time to find its elusive star witness. Bean, 66, and his former boyfriend, Kiah Loy Lawson, 25, are accused of having sex with the boy at a Eugene hotel in 2013. Each is charged with two counts of third-degree sodomy, a felony, and third-degree sexual abuse, a misdemeanor. The trial was scheduled to start Tuesday in Lane County Circuit Court, but the boy, now 17, is nowhere to be found and the trial cannot proceed without him. Circuit Judge Jay McAlpin ruled Friday that there was good reason for a delay and reset the trial to Sept. 1 over the opposition of attorneys representing Bean and the boy.

Last week prosecutors accused the alleged victim and his mother of engaging in an elaborate series of ruses in order to avoid being served with a subpoena before the trial deadline. The state says it may now take the teen into custody as a material witness and hold him until the new trial date. If they ever find him.

Imagine President Trump

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sun, 09 Aug 2015 13:00:00 +0000

Erickson Reads Pro-Trump Hate Mail

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sun, 09 Aug 2015 12:58:00 +0000

There's a longer, more raunchy clip at The Hill.

Larry Kramer On Stonewall Boycott

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sun, 09 Aug 2015 12:00:00 +0000

"Don't listen to the crazies. For some reason there is a group of 'activists' that insists on maintaining their prime importance and participation during this riot. Unfortunately there seems no one left alive to say 'it wasn't that way at all,' or 'who are or where the fuck were you.' As with so much history there is no way to 'prove' a lot of stuff, which allows artists such as yourself (and me I might add) to take essences and attempt to find and convey meaning and truth. I sincerely hope this boycott your film shit peters out. We are not dealing with another 'Cruising' here. Keeping your film from being seen is only hurting ourselves. Good luck and thank you for your passion." - Larry Kramer, responding to the Facebook page of Stonewall director Roland Emmerich.

Duck & Cover

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sun, 09 Aug 2015 01:07:00 +0000

Trump's Top Adviser Leaves Campaign

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 21:32:00 +0000

Politico reports:

Donald Trump made the surprising announcement Saturday afternoon that he was firing his top adviser, Roger Stone, but hours before the political consultant’s friends told POLITICO that he was actually quitting. Earlier in the day, Stone’s friends told POLITICO that he sent an email to Trump announcing his decision to leave the campaign. More than an hour later, Trump told a Washington Post reporter he fired Stone. The news coincidentally hit Twitter about 15 minutes after Stone told a Fox News TV show that he couldn’t appear Saturday because he was no longer affiliated with the campaign, friends say. “I can’t believe Roger got out-Trumped, that he got out-Stoned,” one of Stone’s friends said. “Roger’s mistake was trusting Donald and not establishing a clear record that he was resigning first.” Regardless of who resigned or was fired first, the campaign shakeup was the first sign that Trump’s election effort was seriously damaged from within after his Thursday night debate performance and his subsequent comments in which he attacked one of the Fox debate moderators, Megyn Kelly.

According to Politico, Stone is considered to be a "Nixon-era dirty trickster." Hit the link for a conversation that reportedly took place between the two after the debate.

Trump: All You Loser Deviants Are Totally Misinterpreting Meaning Of "Wherever"

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 17:31:00 +0000

And yes, it does change fonts halfway through.

More GOP Blowback For Trump

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 15:55:00 +0000

Big Think: George Takei

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 14:25:00 +0000

From the clip recap:

Actor, activist, prolific meme-generator, and cultural icon George Takei graces Big Think with his presence today in this powerful 5-minute clip. Takei explores Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry's ambitious and progressive vision for the future: "Roddenberry felt that the Enterprise was a metaphor for starship earth and the strength of this starship lay in its diversity." We also learn that Takei's character, Sulu, represented a united Asia free of the many strifes Roddenberry witnessed during the 20th century. Takei tells us how the name "Sulu" came about; it's an incredibly inspirational story. Finally, Takei explains the now-glaring omission of gay and lesbian characters from Roddenberry's progressive Enterprise. In short, it was the 1960's and the biracial kiss between Uhura and Kirk nearly sank the show. Roddenberry knew there were limits to what the public would tolerate and he couldn't risk losing his platform for social commentary by testing them. Thankfully, as Takei notes, times have changed quite a bit since then in so many ways. And Star Trek and Gene Roddenberry are partly responsible.

PETITION: Stop Megyn Kelly

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 14:00:00 +0000

From the petition:

Megyn Kelly apparently finds the state of our union amusing and "fun", whereas the viewers (our fellow citizens) deserve a much more serious moderator. In addition, she had a clear agenda to attack Donald Trump, by tenaciously clinging to his past rather than his vision for the future. She focused on Trump personally, rather than politically. Ultimately, she did not not live up to the "fair and balanced" slogan at Fox News and News Corporation. While her disdain for Mr. Trump was evident, this peititon is a call for truly fair and balanced coverage of ALL candidates. Thus, Megyn Kelly should be barred from hosting or moderating all future Republican Presidential Debates.

Donald Trump hasn't signed. Yet!

Trump Disinvited From RedState Event

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 13:30:00 +0000

Trump was to be tonight's headliner and most of the other GOP candidates will be speaking there this weekend. While we enjoy the escalating teabagger implosion, let's not forget that Erick Erickson, the person now leading the charge against Donald Trump, regularly calls you a NAMBLA-supporting member of the gaystapo and a hell-bound mentally ill homofascist. Erickson has also called the First Lady a "Marxist harpy wife" and called a member of the Supreme Court a "goat-fucking child molester." And then there are the times that newly-minted feminist Erick Erickson refers to "ugly feminazis" who should "get in the kitchen and learn to cook." Oh, but he totally has the right to the moral high ground regarding Donald Trump.

Brian Brown Has The Fox Debate Sadz

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 13:00:00 +0000

"The nation watched the first debate of the presidential cycle this week, as Fox News hosted the affair from Cleveland on Thursday evening. As many NOM supporters have observed, the mainstream media rarely treats the marriage issue with the importance it deserves, and even Fox News has been reluctant to give it fair and balanced coverage. Regrettably, this was evident in their handling of the marriage issue during the presidential debate. Only two candidates were asked about marriage, and it was phrased in an adversarial way, pitting support for traditional marriage as being at odds with support for a gay family member. How ridiculous! Sadly, when it came to the marriage issue, Fox News bumbled badly. We hope that future debates will give the candidates a fuller opportunity to expound on their views about protecting marriage and the actions they will take as president to reverse the illegitimate ruling of the Supreme Court. NOM is committed to helping the American people separate out the marriage champions from the pretenders by issuing our Presidential Marriage Pledge. A number of candidates have signed onto our pledge, and we will be announcing those names soon." - Hate group leader Brian Brown, writing for NOM's blog.

Donald Trump On Megyn Kelly: There Was Blood Coming Out Of Her Wherever

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Sat, 08 Aug 2015 12:00:00 +0000

Breitbart Blows Fuses In Fox Furor

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Fri, 07 Aug 2015 21:54:00 +0000

Delicious.

Ben Carson: America As We Know It Will Be Destroyed By Independent Trump Run

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Fri, 07 Aug 2015 21:14:00 +0000

"I’m hoping that he will at some point come to an understanding that if he runs as a third-party candidate, he will essentially hand the election to the progressives, who will get two or three Supreme Court picks, and America will be gone as we know it. I hope he realizes the seriousness of the situation." - Ben Carson, speaking today on Fox News radio.

Camille Paglia: The Crafty Clinton Machine Sent Trump To Destroy The GOP

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Fri, 07 Aug 2015 20:45:00 +0000

"What's with the carpet-bombing Don Rickles routine? Does Trump have any facial expression beyond knotted, squinting scowl? It's a strain even to look at him. The entire debate begins with Trump getting booed for refusing to rule out a third-party bid. He has a slashing, entertaining wit, but his braggart narcissism is on painful display. He speaks in simplistic polarities of 'winners' versus 'losers,' as if geopolitics were a jangling Atlantic City casino. He sets high goals but lacks real answers to any government issue. Trump is a Trojan Horse sent by the crafty Clinton machine. He has a bellyful of swords aimed at GOP hearts." - Camille Paglia, writing for the Hollywood Reporter.

The GOP Debate: Songified

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Fri, 07 Aug 2015 19:58:00 +0000

STUDY: Trump Fans Don't Spel Gud

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Fri, 07 Aug 2015 19:04:00 +0000

Via USA Today:

Fans of Carly Fiorina venting their views on Facebook are far more likely to do so with proper grammar than fans of Donald Trump. A new study by the folks at the grammar-checking app Grammarly concluded that commenters on Fiorina’s Facebook page made an average of 6.3 grammatical and spelling errors per hundred words compared with 12.6 errors per hundred for folks posting on Trump’s page. The grammar used by Ben Carson’s Facebook followers ranks up there near Fiorina’s at 6.6 errors per hundred words, while Rick Perry’s commenters are second worst, at a 12.5 goof rate.

Shocking!

Todd Starnes Swipes At Megyn Kelly

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Fri, 07 Aug 2015 18:44:00 +0000

TEXAS: State Issues Amended Death Certificate For Husband Of Gay Man

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Fri, 07 Aug 2015 17:55:00 +0000

The Houston Chronicle reports:

Facing possible contempt and a court order, Texas officials have now changed the death certificate of a gay man to add his husband as the surviving spouse. The Department of State Health Services "has issued an amendment to the death certificate for James Stone-Hoskins. It now lists John Allen Stone-Hoskins V as his spouse," a department spokeswoman said in an email Thursday night. "The amended death certificate was issued this evening as ordered by the U.S. District Court and requested by John Stone-Hoskins." The department had refused to change it after John Stone-Hoskins, 37, of Conroe tried to get the state to make the amendment following the landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling on June 26 that said gay marriage is legal in all 50 states. He married James Stone-Hoskins in New Mexico in 2014 after being together for 10 years. James Stone-Hoskins died in January at 32.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is due in court next week to face potential contempt charges over the state's earlier refusal to issue the correct death certificate. (Tipped by JMG reader Mike)

Hillary Campaign Mocks GOP Debate

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Fri, 07 Aug 2015 17:20:00 +0000

OREGON: Alleged Victim In Terry Bean Case Accused Of Evading Subpoena

noreply@blogger.com (JMG) — Fri, 07 Aug 2015 16:52:00 +0000

Earlier this week I reported that the teenage alleged victim in the Terry Bean sexual abuse case had vanished and that the trial might be called off without him. Yesterday prosecutors accused the unnamed youth and his mother of engaging in an elaborate series of ruses to avoid being served with a subpoena which orders him to appear for next week's trial.

Oregon law enforcement, along with investigators in California, attempted to serve the teen in San Diego County on July 26 after a judge in Lane County rejected a defense plan to dismiss the case. Once in California, however, detectives learned that the teen had quit both of his jobs in the days that followed the judge’s decision and had disappeared with his mother, who had flown from her home in Oregon to meet the youth in California on July 18 as the trial date approached. The pair then took an Amtrak train back to Eugene with tickets purchased by a friend of the boy’s mother, the document states. Officers returned to Oregon, determined who had bought the tickets and interviewed that person. That individual told police she bought the tickets, picked the two up from the train station when they arrived in Eugene and allowed them to stay in her home in Cottage Grove. The boy’s mother paid her friend in cash for the train tickets and later asked her to rent a car for them. During this time, the teen and his mother had turned off both of their cellphones and were using a “burner,” or untraceable prepaid phone, to communicate to avoid police detection. They also avoided using any credit cards to keep their activities secret from police, prosecutors said.

The now 17 year-old, who reportedly hooked up with HRC co-founder Bean and his then-boyfriend on Grindr in 2013, has said that the sex was consensual and that he doesn't want to press charges. Last month an Oregon judge rejected Bean's attempt to settle the case with a payment to the alleged victim. The amount of the proposed settlement was not disclosed. Citing the alleged victim's evasion tactics, yesterday the lead prosecutor requested a continuance in the case. Earlier this week the judge had warned him that trial schedule was to be strictly adhered to. Should the alleged victim be served with the subpoena in time, he faces contempt of court charges if he fails to appear.