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Monday, June 30, 2003
The right-wing is running scared... Following the Supreme Court's decision to strike down Texas's sodomy law and our neighbors to the North enacting gay marriage... conservatives are freaking out that we might finally be on the verge of equal rights for all citizens in this country... including us pesky homosexuals. (It must suck to be a conservative bigot living in a country that has a document declaring all men are created equal with equal rights to pursue life, liberty and happiness.) Alas, have no fear, the knee-jerk reaction may end up being a push to amend the constitution to specifically ban gay marriage. That seems appropriate, right? When the Supreme Court interprets the constitution in such a way that we don't like... let's just change it! Absolute insanity. And if you follow the link above, you'll see that Bill Frist, Senate Majority Leader, is already on board to vote for just such an amendment. Yesterday on Meet the Press, Tim Russert was asking James Carville and Mary Matalin (sp) if they thought gay rights was going to be a pivotal issue in the 2004 elections following the recent developments. They both said it WASN'T going to be... I hope they're both wrong. And speaking of gays in politics, this all makes me remember a story that I wanted to share a few weeks ago. I was at Syracuse Pride and was surprised to see a table for the Log Cabin republicans. The minute I stepped into the vicinity of the table, a particularly outgoing guy came up to me and said, 'Are registered to vote?' I said, 'Yes.' hoping that his only mission was to register voters and that he'd leave me alone. He continued, 'Are you republican?' And when I answered in the negative, he suggested that I switch right then and there. I said, 'No thanks.' to which he responded, 'Come on, I bet you can't give me three reasons why you're not a republican. If you can't, you have to switch right here.' I can hear a few of you laughing already. So I said the easy one first, since I was at Pride... 'I don't agree with the majority of republican positions on civil and equal rights, especially for gays and lesbians.' He quickly interjected that in New York State republicans were more socially liberal and that shouldn't be an issue. I said, 'Really, is that why SONDA was held up for decades by the state-level republicans? In my opinion, a vote for a republican is a vote for the republican majority. And I can't do that in good conscience.' He looked at me blankly and said, 'OK, you've still got two more.' I laughed and said, 'I think republican tax plans are hugely skewed to the wealthy who don't need them and create irresponsible deficits. And, #3, I was and still am very anti-war in Iraq.' Luckily, instead of engaging me in more conversation, he just said 'Thanks' and walked away. And, I left with my party affiliation intact. | private feedback | (0) public comments Saturday, June 28, 2003 The Best Democracy Money Can Buy About a week ago I finished reading Greg Palast's book with that title. I mean, come on, we all know that money buys power. But perhaps if you read his book you might get a little angry and do something about it. Some chapters are better than others... If you can borrow a copy and only have time to read one chapter, read the one on how Bush managed to win Florida in the 2000 election. If true, this is an eye-opening lesson about every possible thing that can go wrong in elections. The rest of the chapters feel more like laundry lists of corruption and republican wrong-doing. (He does dish about the Dems, as well, but we don't necessarily know if there's less to dish or if he's politically biased. I sort of lean towards the former.) And you start to wonder if this guy's book and research is really true... Is the government and politicians really that corrupt? I came across an article in this week's New York Times magazine about the effort to re-build Iraq which gave me pause. It seems that a sub-division of Haliburton (remember, Dick Cheney's company) won a cushy contract to get the oil flowing again without a definite end or ceiling to the monetary compensation. The goverment justified awarding the contract to them by saying they were the only company that was capable of implementing the plan. Hmph. And who wrote the plan? Answer, Haliburton. Don't you wish you were capable of writing government plans in such a way that you were the only one who could implement them and you could get away with charging them whatever price you want since they can't hire anyone else? | private feedback | (0) public comments Friday, June 27, 2003 I can now have sex in Texas... ...without fear of being arrested. The Supreme Court struck down the Texas anti-sodomy law. My vacation options have just exploded. | private feedback | (0) public comments Tuesday, June 24, 2003 Best shot of the 'long shots' Of all the candidates who are running for president... only Howard Dean has been able to get me really excited. I was hoping against hope that Carol Moseley Braun would do something miraculous to draw some more attention to her campaign as the only woman running for president and one of only two African-Americans... but alas, she hasn't. And while I'd still like her to stay in the race as long as possible to lend her invaluable point-of-view... I've officially decided to support Howard Dean. Howard Dean is the closest thing the Democratic party has to a maverick like the republicans' John McCain. (John McCain is the ONLY republican I have ever even thought about voting for... Well, OK, there was Libby Dole when she was running, but only because I was excited about a woman running for President... until I realized just how conservative SHE is.) Dean speaks his mind, is energetic and matches most of my positions on issues, especially when it comes to civil rights. (I think I remember something, though, about him having a perfect NRA rating which I'm not crazy about... but none of these Democrats could be PERFECT, right?) Check out his Web site, donate money, and support his campaign if you believe strongly that it's time to take back our country from the Bush-Cheney nightmare that is currently reigning in Washington.  Friday, June 20, 2003 Ogunquit  Surprises in Birthday Cards... June 12th, 2002 (for those of you who haven't been reading my blog that long), I gave myself a birthday present. I called my father and began a discussion about all the things that he's done over the years which have hurt and bothered me and have, in my opinion, caused us to have a very superficial relationship which consisted of phone calls on holidays and when family members fell ill or died. At the end of this conversation, which I had hoped would clear the air and get us talking again... he hung up on me. So I haven't talked to him for a year. I got a birthday card this year, from him, written out in HIS writing (not his wife's as usual) which said, 'Some things never change. You're sensitive. I'm hard headed. And I will always love you.' (Although he did sign it with his first name.) Hmph. A complete surprise. I was on my way to Maine this Sunday and called Mom for some help looking up information on the internet. I got to telling her all about the great birthday I had... and how great the boyfriend is. I must have talked for a few minutes straight, just gushing. Then there was this long pause. I said, 'Mom?' and she responded, 'So when I took my computer in to get fixed they messed up the settings.' And I have to say I was a little hurt. Not even a 'That's nice' in response to all the things that my boyfriend had done for me for my birthday!? She sent her card to me late this year, as usual. In fact she sent it the day after I talked with her on the phone and it was waiting for me when I got back from our short trip. It said, 'Shane, Sorry the card is late. I'm glad you got to spend your birthday with someone special.' Awwwwwwww. Apparently we don't talk out issues well in our family... but we express ourselves pretty well in writing. | private feedback | (0) public comments Wednesday, June 18, 2003 The last week or so... I feel like I've been apologizing more for not writing than actually writing. But I have a good reason this last week... I've been insanely busy! The highlights... Thursday was my birthday. And my super amazing boyfriend planned a 24-hour celebration. First he showed up at my apartment at midnight to spend the first minutes of my birthday with me. He had chocolate-covered strawberries (that HE personally made) and a bottle of champagne with him. Then, in the morning he made me an amazing breakfast... lemon souffle french toast with raspberry cream cheese filling and a strawberry preserve topping. Oh yeah, and little carmelized onion, baked ham and goat cheese quiches to die for! Then we spent the day together. I thought he had to work later that night but he surprised me with a little party at Maxie's... Amazing! It was, by far, the best birthday I have ever had. Thanks to all of you that made it so special! Thanks especially to the boyfriend... you rock! Saturday was Ithaca's first pride. It was such a great turnout... bigger than I could have imagined or hoped for. A few glitches at the rally, but overall it was so great and most people stuck around for the entire thing. I am so glad that I got to be a part of it. Sunday, the boyfriend said, 'Pack a bag. We're goin' out of town.' He didn't even have any clothes beyond what he was wearing and his dirtly clothes from the day before. We took a very spontaneous trip to Oqonquit, Maine. What a beautiful little town right on the beach... I took a few pictures... hopefully I can post them soon. And on the way back we took a little pit stop in Worcester, Mass. Didn't get to see much of it... but am looking forward to future visits since the boyfriend is from that area originally. And, I've become Chair of Michelle's campaign in the meantime, too. *deep breath* I know I'm forgetting stuff... just wanted to catch you up on the happenings. I'll try to keep my postings more regular and hope that you all haven't abandoned me in the meantime!! | private feedback | (0) public comments Wednesday, June 11, 2003 "It's About Time" "It's About Time" is the theme of Ithaca's first gay pride celebration... to be held this Saturday, June 14th. I've had the pleasure of helping out the last few weeks with last minute rally details... finding and confirming speakers, scheduling, etc. It's a small but dedicated group of individuals who have helped to pull this together. The events (for those of you in the Ithaca and Finger Lakes area) are as follows: 12:00 Meet up at Washington Park (Buffalo and Park Streets) to organize for the parade. (Even if you haven't signed up for a contingent, you can join one on the spot!) 1:00 Parade starts (ends at Center Pavillion on the Commons). 2:00 Rally begins at Center Pavillion on the Commons. Various speakers and performances. 3:00 A 'bring your own food' picnic at DeWitt Park. I hope all who can, will come out to celebrate and help make Ithaca's first Pride a success! | private feedback | (0) public comments Just for fun... Check out Jerry Springer's Exploratory Committee Web site. He's exploring a run for Senate in 2004. | private feedback | (0) public comments The DOJ will allow Pride to go on... ...They just won't 'support it.' Supposedly, all those news reports about banning the Department of Justice Pride event were just 'a case of miscommunication, a misunderstanding.' A misunderstanding that noone sought to clear up until a full week later? A likely story. More like the Department of Justice took a more middle-ground stance and backed down due to pressure. | private feedback | (0) public comments Tuesday, June 10, 2003 A Democrat AND a republican? Now that my 'rumor' of one of the Democratic candidates being offered the republican endorsement was on the front page of the City & County section yesterday I guess I can be a bit more candid. Not only was Beau Saul offered the endorsement, he accepted it! Why would any Democratic candidate accept the endorsement of the republican party? There are issues where the republicans and the Democrats are literally at opposite ends of the spectrum. You can't support both platforms. That's a hell of a wide fence to straddle. I can't help but think this is the kiss of death for a candidate in this overwhelmingly progressive Democratic city. (In this city, if you're a republican... you get on the ballot as an Independent.) Beau Saul can wrap up this endorsement in bipartisanship, but *I* (and many others) wouldn't vote for anyone who got the nod from the City republican committee... | private feedback | (0) public comments Monday, June 09, 2003 Where republicans draw the line... Apparently, for republicans, it's OK to politicize race. It's OK to politicize religion. It's OK to politicize women's personal medical choices. It's even OK to politicize tragedies like the Laci Peterson murder trial... but they draw the line at 'a person's sexual orientation.' The Department of Justice has cancelled the annual DOJ Pride celebration which has been held for the last six years. John Ashcroft claims his decision to cancel was because Dubbya didn't sign an official proclamation to designate June as Gay Pride Month. When asked for a reasoning behind not signing the proclamation, a White House spokesman said, 'The president believes everybody ought to be treated with dignity and respect, but he does not believe we should be politicizing people's sexual orientation.' 'Everybody ought to be treated with dignity and respect, but...' BUT!? (This is the same bullshit Dubbya's spokesman says every year, by the way.) So apparently just acknowledging Gay Pride Month is politicizing sexuality rather than treating gays and lesbians with dignity and respect. So it's OK for Dubbya to deny us something that many racial and cultural minorities, and even Leif Erikson and various health causes get... a day to recognize our existence in the richness and depth of diversity that is America. Contrary to Dubbya's best efforts, I'm feeling very disrespected. | private feedback | (0) public comments Why can't we be more like the Brits? They're not afraid to question their leaders. Unfortunately, we have been taught (especially since 9/11) that questioning Dubbya and the government is just plain unpatriotic. Tony Blair is under fire for exaggerating the threats that Iraq posed... and specifically their possession of Weapons of Mass Destruction... in order to justify war. And citizens as well as elected officials are calling for his head. Truth is, he probably isn't guilty of much more than having his head so firmly up Dubbya's ass that he couldn't see daylight. But to be honest, I can't be too sympathetic to anyone who believes anything our dullard 'president' says. Even if Blair does suffer damage from the current investigations (and he's proven to have exaggerated the WMD claims), Dubbya will still come out smelling like a rose since he's mastered the art of conning the American audience by ramming his canned message down the throats of the press. The Brits seem to be more about 'content' and 'truth'... while Americans seem to be more about 'message' and 'hype.' | private feedback | (0) public comments Quote of the Day Mental health isn't for everyone. | private feedback | (0) public comments Chicago... on stage  This weekend, Syracuse played host to the traveling Chicago: The Musical troupe. As an early birthday present (this Thursday is my birthday, for those that don't know *grin*), Lori and Dar Dar treated me to the show and dinner yesterday. Our tickets were in the first row of the balcony, which was a pretty great vantage to see the action on the stage. The only problem was the sound. During the first number... 'All That Jazz'... we could barely hear Velma sing. But the dancing was fantastic and so I was pumped to be seeing the play in its stage version. There were enough different songs and the way they told the story was different enough that it didn't feel like sitting through the movie a third time. There were things that they could do on stage that they couldn't do in the movie... and vice versa. In fact, I would say that both mediums had their pros and cons, neither really completely better than the other. The actors were all phenomenal. The woman who played Roxie was so fantastic... and the woman who played Mama Morton was just as I imagined the character should be. Richard Gere easily could have been replaced by Gregory Harrison who played Billy Flynn in this stage version. (Lori said to me, 'You don't know who Gregory Harrison is!? He played Trapper John M.D.!') Throughout the show, Dar Dar kept her eyes on the floor and spied four seats that were empty throughout the entire first half. So as soon as the lights went up for intermission we ran down to the floor and snatched them. Second Row from the stage... slightly off-center. Fab! Even though I was afraid we'd get booted if the ushers caught us... from this new position we could see everything up close and personal. Things that weren't evident from so far away like facial expressions and sweat beads on the foreheads of dancers and the spit flying out of their mouths when they sang... we could see clearly now. I was even more impressed with the actors when I was this close to the stage. They weren't just dancing, they were ACTING as well. Who knew!? So if you haven't seen Chicago on stage, go see it! What a fantastic show... Thank you Dar Dar and Lori for the perfect birthday present!!! *huggles* | private feedback | (0) public comments Friday, June 06, 2003 Overheard last night... ... a woman complaining about her lack of a sex life. 'I moved to this town that is supposedly full of lesbians. I've only met two, and I'm not getting any.' She said 'any' as though she was referring to sex. I almost offered my services as a Lesbian Networking Specialist. Apparently, she didn't get the City of Ithaca Lesbian Orientation Packet that lists me as an 'Honorary Lesbian' and 'Lesbian Community Gatekeeper.' Her packet must be in the mail. | private feedback | (0) public comments Rumor has it... ...that the local republican party will endorse one of the folks running for the Democratic nomination for Mayor of Ithaca. WTF!? Would this happen anywhere else? The republicans endorsing a Democrat? Maybe Ithaca republicans are so far left that they're basically conservative Democrats... Or maybe this particular nominee (who shall remain nameless for now) is really a republican who knows that s/he could never win city-wide office running in that party. So at this point we have one candidate for Mayor who has openly stated that s/he will seek the office as an independent if s/he loses the Democratic primary and one that may be endorsed by the republicans whether or not s/he loses the primary. And lord knows who the Greens are going to endorse or run for that office. Who says local politics isn't fun? | private feedback | (0) public comments Thursday, June 05, 2003 Pataki does something right for a change... I bash the Governor of this great state enough... but when the guy does something right, I suppose I oughta give him a little credit. Especially when it involves Gay and Lesbian issues. Our normally lame leader has stepped in to ask the Department of Labor's Unemployment Insurance Appeal Board to reconsider its decision denying benefits to Jeanne Newland, who quit her job in Rochester to follow her same-sex partner to Virginia after her partner had found a higher-paying job there. New York law, says that a person is not eligible to receive unemployment benefits if they quit their job to move to another state to continue living with their unmarried partner. But you ARE eligible if you quit your job to move to another state to continue living with your spouse. Read the article here. | private feedback | (0) public comments Wednesday, June 04, 2003 Getting my feet wet in the eBay pool For a while I've been wanting to jump on the eBay bandwagon. I've seen those commercials where everyday folks dance in the streets singing about the online auction service... who wouldn't want to be part of that!?... And the other day I ran into a friend on the street with a few packages under his arm... he was taking his most recently sold auction items to the post office. So, I figured, how hard can it be? Turns out I have a lot to learn... there is a bit of an art to writing a catchy eBay listing... People write entire books on selling items on eBay. Scary! But, in the meantime, I've started with something really stupid... listing some Simpsons Trading Cards that I got when I was a teenager. My brother and I used to spend all of our allowance on trading cards... and when he outgrew collecting them, I sort of became the keeper of the cards and kept them in storage. And, frankly, I don't want them anymore. These boxes of cards have followed me around from apartment to apartment for the last eight years. So I'm going to divvy them up and try to get rid of them, starting with the Simpsons cards (there are only 25 of those).  Some person out there who collects Simpsons stuff is going to want them, right? And then once I master the art of writing eBay listings for these piddly things, I can graduate to bigger and better things... like obsolete computer equipment. | private feedback | (0) public comments Tuesday, June 03, 2003 Unemployment Orientation To collect unemployment benefits (like those of us who get laid off from our jobs with exactly 48 hours notice), one must attend an 'orientation.' They should use the term 'orientation' very loosely. Does one need to be 'oriented' to be unemployed? I mean, you just don't have a job and you're unemployed, right? Well, you're forced to sit through an atrocious PowerPoint presentation and get talked to as though you're a 2-year old. Then they show you this 'Job Bank' Web site assuming that you don't know how to use the web. The whole hour is painful. They'll say things to you like, 'Your checks might be held up if you do X.' 'You'll be punished if you don't do Y.'... What a snoozer. And of course they threaten that if you get called in for an audit and can't demonstrate that you're constantly looking for work then you could lose your benefits. I suppose the logic goes that if they treat you poorly, you'll never want to have to do this again and it will motivate you to get a job. They really make you feel like you're a ward of the state. Well done, New York. | private feedback | (0) public comments Monday, June 02, 2003 The Weekend... The Ithaca Festival (i.e. the 'Thank god the students are gone' festival) was rained out... But I still had a full and exciting weekend. Friday night I went to see Finding Nemo with a gaggle of friends (My opinion: A fantastic movie!) and then watched The Amazing Race on tape over at Cheri's. I think we'll make that a regular date. Saturday, I had a campaign meeting and then had to run to the internet cafe to buy Cher tickets online... I got really bad tickets, but they were the only tickets that came up under a search of 'best available.' So mom will just have to be happy with them. And then I got some laundry done... spent some quality time with my boyfriend including dinner and a drag show at the Common Ground. Sunday morning the bf and I got up early to meet some friends for breakfast... but that sort of got cancelled on us at the last minute. So we got breakfast ourselves, shopped, and attended to errands. He 'forced' me to do some driving at the middle school parking lot... practicing 3-point turns and parking. And then we picked up Cheri for a pool tournament at the Common Ground. I made it pretty far, probably four or five rounds in. I was probably in the top 25% of competitors which was WAY better than I was planning to do. By the time we finished the tourny, it was nearly 7 and so we watched Sunday night TV and the movie Studio 54 (which I had never seen before even though the main character shares my name) and then caught some z's. Today looks to be no less exciting... a meeting at 10. A meeting at 11. Business and campaign stuff I gotta tend to throughout the day... and the bf is threatening to make me drive some more this afternoon. I think he's determined to get me to take my road test before my birthday. But that's only 10 days away and I'm not holding my breath. | private feedback | (0) public comments |
Hey! I'm Shane... a proud gay progressive Democrat who has recently relocated to New York City from Ithaca, NY. As I am no longer in Ithaca, I haven't quite decided the fate of this blog. Drop me a line!
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