A few select news stories. Things we just want to talk/rant/snark about. Briefly.

by Lorraine Mazza & Amanda Vontobel

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Take him out of the ballgame…. We say, good riddance!  Baseball players and umpires have been known to go at it from time to time over a bad call.  But, this man’s behavior was disrespectful, hateful and completely uncalled for.  We commend the powers that be for taking him out of the game, sending the positive message that it’s not acceptable to use anti-gay slurs against anyone.

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What century are we in?  Oh yeah, 21st.  Banning a book from high school libraries in 2010 seems a bit outdated, no?  This particular book is a collection of several gay youths sharing their stories,  Apparently the stories take a turn down the “pervasively vulgar and obscene” road.  It’s 2010, not 1910.  Let’s have a little bit of a reality check here, okay?  We’re fairly confident that the teens of today are aware of anything that’s being written about in this book.  Slap a “parental warning” sticker on there if you must, but banning is a bit extreme.  Now, where are our flying cars?

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We cannot say enough good things about this ruling!  It’s been a long fight for the almost two years since Prop 8 was voted in “by the people”, but we stood our ground and have finally reached a small victory.  There is still a long haul ahead, but each victory is cause for celebration.  The very fact that our civil rights are up for debate, voted on by citizens goes against what this country is supposed to stand for (equality for ALL, remember?). And as of today, thanks to Judge Walker, the stay on Prop 8 will be lifted. And starting 8/18/10 same-sex couples in California can start getting married again. As Rachel Maddow put it, “But here’s the thing about rights. They’re not actually supposed to be voted on. That’s why they’re called ‘rights’.  We couldn’t have said it any better, Rachel. 

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IN THE LIFE is a documentary web series dedicated to breaking down the walls of LGBT stereotypes.  Their mission is to showcase LGBT people of all walks of life who are making a difference in the community.  A brilliant concept because after all, the rainbow flag is supposed to symbolize that we represent from one end of the spectrum to the other, and everything in between.

In the first segment, we get a look at the lesbian eco-friendly Sweet Cruise Line, truly a Cruise with a conscience.  Several volunteers, or “voluntouristas” called Sweeties chose to do more with their trip than just soak up the sun.  Each island they visited was in dire need of a variety of services, so the Sweeties cleaned up beaches, planted trees, painted and drew artwork in a childrens classroom, donated books and computers, and made a world of difference in the lives of the inhabitants of those islands where tourists visit but tend to ignore the poverty. 

The second segment brings us into the into the hip hop world which has long been riddled with homophobia, violence and objectifying women.  These artists discuss how they first kept their homosexuality under wraps, but then found empowerment to bring it to the forefront of their art.  Rather than continuing to feed the stereotypes, they each found ways to incorporate positive words in their rhymes and are rising above the negativity.  They probably have a longer way to go than others regarding LGBT issues, but they are truly pioneers in this goal and are making the first steps toward breaking down the wall. 

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Breaking news:  “it’s the quality of the parenting that creates a psychologically healthy child, not the sexual orientation of the parents.”  Wow, who knew?  We did. We can name a few wonderful children who have wonderful parents. Who happen to be of the same sex.

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