The site for ranting and reporting by John Masters
This is a collection of posts generally related to the debate over gay marriage rights.
I found one of the most despicable and disturbing quote to be from Carrie Gordon Earll, (not surprisingly) a policy analyst for the conservative Christian ministry Focus on the Family. According to Ms. Earll, it’s just not important whether or not the child is loved, so long as it is born to a heterosexual couple. Said Ms. Earll, “Love can’t replace a mother and a father.”
At the end of March, Nadine Smith, Co-Chair of Fairness for All Families, took on John Stemberger of Florida Family Council at the Orlando Tiger Bay Club for debate on the Amendment 2, the Florida Marriage Protection Amendment. Basically, he got his ass handed to him by Ms. Smith, but I don’t think she was aggressive enough. The event was videotaped, and posted on Youtube in four parts. This is the first in a series about each of the four segments of the debate.
Nadine Smith is a long time LBGT activist here in Florida. She’s part of a coalition of nearly 200 organizations that have banded to oppose Amendment 2 as the Fairness for All Families Coalition. This is the second installment in my review of a recent debate between her and John Stemberger at the Orlando Tiger Bay Club.
You will be pleased to know that the hardworking men and women in the Florida State Senate have now protected you from one of the greatest threats to civilization as we know it…the bull testicles hung from trailer hitches….oh, and it appears to also mean Calvin whizzing on the Ford/Chevy/etc. logo. I’m wondering about all the truckers who will have to remove their mud flaps with the chrome women on them when they cross the state line.
In this post, we’ll review the moderated part of the debate between Nadine Smith of Fairness for All Families and John Stemberger of the Krazy Kristian Kooks or Florida. They were debating the Florida Constitutional Amendment 2 at the Tiger Bay Club of Orlando. This is part of series on Florida’s Amendment 2.
This is the final in the series analyzing the debate between John Stemberger and Nadine Smith at the Orlando Tiger Bay club luncheon. This debate was held on March 27, 2008. This will analyze the Question and Answer section, and the closing comments by Smith and Stemberger.
In the Maine same-sex-marriage campaign 87-year-old Philip Spooner, a World War II veteran spoke in favor of same sex marriage at public hearing at the Augusta Civic Center last spring. Spooner says he is a life-long Republican who believes gay and lesbians should have equal rights. He says it’s what he fought for in WWII, and says he didn’t raise four sons for three of them to have equal rights, and the gay son to be treated differently.
Although defeated because of eight regressive Democrats in the New York State Senate, straight Senator Diane Savino gives one of the finest floor speeches I’ve ever heard, and does an outstanding job of making the case for the importance of equality for all. This is a must watch.
Last Fall, during the unfortunately successful campaign to repeal Marriage Equality in Maine, 86 year old WWII Veteran Phillip Spooner stood before a packed hall and delivered a stirring call for equality to a Senate Committee. When asked by a woman at his polling place if he supported equal rights for gay and lesbian people. He tells how surprised he was to even be asked, and said his response was, “What do you think I fought for at Omaha Beach?” His statement was subsequently set to music by Melissa Dunphy, and was selected as the winning work for the 2010 Simon Carrington Chamber Singers Composition Competition.
This is a great Pride Month story. These two Washington, DC residents have lived together for 64 years (they have known each other longer than that). Now, thanks to marriage equality in Washington, they were able to get married last Saturday. As the Rev. John DeTaeye said, “By your actions today you remind us that God is love, and love is for everyone.”
Congratulations to Illinois for passing a civil unions bill yesterday in their legislature. The Governor has indicated an intention to sign the bill. And once in a while a person steps up, speaks truth to power, and says what needs to be said. Illinois State Senator Ricky Hendon stood on the floor of the Senate and said, “It’s just fairness y’all, that’s all.” He speaks of his Baptist background, and calls out the hypocracy that’s been so much part of the arguments. Would that more politicians spoke like this.