The US Congress is once again debating this fifteen year old bill, and again the religious nut jobs are in full throttle. Again they claim that having openly serving gays will disrupt unit cohesiveness, will create untold problems, but what they don’t get, that shit didn’t work in the late 1940’s and 1950’s either when they tried to deny blacks from serving in mixed units.  Racism Never Works.

Among the most arresting debates Wednesday came when Rep. Patrick Murphy, D-Pa., a first-term congressman and the only Iraq war veteran in Congress, accused a witness of implying that U.S. service members weren’t professional enough to handle serving with homosexuals. (source – CBS News)

In some ways, I would agree. Americans really don’t seem willing to accept change, or people who are different very easily. I would call that racism, but then I am not politically correct. Course all those who oppose homosexuals, do so out of a deep moral conviction, a deep religious belief. They seem to forget, that as all man is created by HIM, that even us nasty queers are HIS CHILDREN.

So now, they have come up with a new one. They claim that allowing us Queers to openly serve, and because we are such horny persuasive people, the incidents of HIV INFECTION will rise Dramatically among the US Military Personnel.

Donnelly contended that if the law were repealed the number of HIV-positive service members would probably increase.

Rep. Vic Snyder, D-Ark., a Vietnam veteran and medical doctor, called that comment “so inappropriate” and suggested that Donnelly advocate for the military to recruit only lesbians, who he said have a low incidence of HIV. (source – CBS News)

You gotta love these hypocrites. To begin with, HIV is not restricted to just Gay Men, just as Gonorrhea or Syphilis aren’t restricted to single straight heterosexuals. Then again, I suppose this is all part of the secret Gay Agenda, to infect straight soldiers with HIV, so we can make them all Gay too. What galls me is that these people are being paid by Tax Dollars for their warped opinions. No wonder the Military is so screwed up.

Fact is, 44 States have some form of state constitution amendment banning same sex marriage. So what is he going to do about that little obstacle?

So does his support mean anything, and is this just another ‘surrogate‘ telling an audience what they want? I would like to hear Barack Obama take that stand, make that pledge himself.

NEW YORK – Barack Obama will fight for equal rights for gays just as he fought to help working-class families overcome poverty, the Democratic presidential hopeful’s wife told a gay Democratic group. (source – MSNBC News)

Maybe it is just that Gays have been led down the garden path before. Remember Bill Clinton who lovingly gave us ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell‘ and let’s not forget the other candidate, John McCain. He opposed a federal constitution amendment, but worked hard to get one passed in his home state. So just how Gay Friendly are either of these candidates?

While Obama has said that DADT (Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell) is counterproductive, he HAS YET TO SAY HE’D REPEAL IT. Even Hilary Clinton NEVER said she would either, and we know John McCain isn’t about to, given how he thinks it works just fine.

Makes you wonder, how can anyone run for President when they ARE NOT PREPARED TO STAND UP FOR EVERY CITIZEN. I mean are Gay’s simply not have the VOTING CLOUT of say the EVANGELICALS that both Obama & McCain are cozying up to? Heck, they must have the CLOUT, given how they seem to feel it is their God Given Right to choose the REPUBLICAN NOMINEE.

(CBS) Most Americans continue to think there should be some legal recognition of gay and lesbian couples, and 30 percent say same-sex couples should be allowed to marry – the highest number since CBS News began asking this question in 2004.(source – CBS News)

It is something I simply do not understand. I know up here in Canada, the majority support the right of Homosexuals to be married. After all, it really has nothing to do with any particular Church or Religious Order even. Mind you, awhile back the Conservative Jewish Congregation voted overwhelmingly to allow for Gay Rabbi’s as well as to allow for ceremonies between Gay Couples to take place in the Shul, synagogue, church. So that basically was the last piece in the Jewish Group that had been holding out on same sex marriage. Only the super ultra orthodox wing, a few per cent of all Jews, still refuses to acknowledge that two members of the same sex can be in love, and live as a couple.

Fact is that I don’t know of any Gays who are pressing for any Church to let them be married in their facilities, or are pushing for ANY LAW that REQUIRES a Priest, Pastor, Preacher, or whatever to marry them either. They are simply wanting to be treated EQUALLY UNDER THE CIVIL LAWS OF THE COUNTRY. That too is what the California Supreme Court stated in its decision, as a reason for granting Marriage over Civil Unions or Civil Partnerships.

I am legally married. I can honestly say that it has its ups and downs, spiritually, but legally it does really make a difference, specially as I get older. My health is not the greatest, and I can see problems coming up as I get even older, God Willing. So it does help, to know that if I am unable to make my own decisions, that someone who knows me, who loves me, will be there to make those decisions, Plus, they will be ENTITLED TO DO SO.

I also know that fear of the unknown is not good for someone who is ill. By having some piece of mind, in knowing that David will be there to render decisions, and that the hospital MUST LISTEN, is a good thing. That is what this is all about. Not just about benefits or tax breaks, but of having some piece of mind, that any other loving couple has. And why shouldn’t gay men and women have that, under a civil law that proclaims itself to be FOR ALL MEN.

So when I see a figure like only 30% support EQUALITY, it is a bit sad, a bit disheartening. To me, when you can’t see your way to support others having the same rights as you, well, it makes one a bit nervous. What other rights do you believe others who are different than you, who believe differently than you, should not have?

For those who want to put more than just lip service or ‘click’ service to the day, you can easily make a donation at the ‘ National AIDS Fund ‘ online as well. And they can use any amount you would care to contribute to. Now for those who can’t or are unwilling to put out some hard earned cash, how about doing something else to commorate this day and to maybe be a bit more practicle in dealing with it as well.

AIDS is rapidly becoming a growing killer. Most experts believe AIDS will be the #3 killer worldwide, but then it is #4 right now. Still by moving up even a notch, it says that people are not totally getting the message here. We are somehow forgetting that AIDS is sexually transmitted as well as blood transmitted. So how about for today we pledge a few things.

1. We practise Safe Sex.
2. We write our Government Leaders demanding more relevent Sex Education in our schools, no matter how much the Religious Right scream.
3. We attend political functions to push forward the need to address proper funding ‘without strings’ for developing countries and AIDS medicines.
4. We push political leaders to properly FUND FULLY research into curing this horrid disease.
5. We educate ourselves and our friends on just what AIDS and HIV mean to us.
6. We visit local HOSPICE locations to bring some companionship to those struggling to survive just one more day with this illness.
7. We fight racism and bigotry about this illness by writing, by being active in our communities and showing that Gays are not evil, are not sex fiends or perverts.
8. We get regular TESTING for ourselves and our partners, no matter how frightening it is.
9. We VOTE FOR those who are supportive of our lifestyle and we VOTE AGAINST those who would keep us in the closet and let these diseases ravage our community and friends.
10. We Take a Stand and be Counted.

Now it sounds bit radical, but actually you can’t get a worldwide concensus if you don’t start somewhere. I mean it is fine to have a national day to remember, a world wide day even, but we need to keep the pressure on, daily. In some ways it is like the spirit of Christmas. It shouldn’t be for one day each year that we are nice to others, that we reach into our pockets and share. It should be something we do daily, without hesitation.

If we wish to have equality, we need to be out there, in the faces of the racists and bigots who would keep us hidden in some dark smelly closet. For too long we lived that way, and like any fledgling civil rights movement, we need to keep moving forward, despite setbacks.

“There are now 40 million people living with AIDS,” says Julie Rhoad, the executive director of the NAMES Project Foundation, the custodian of the AIDS Memorial Quilt. (full story)

AIDS is not going to go away because we preach abstinence. It will only continue to reach out and take many from us, just as it has over the last 25 years since the first case was identified. It is this mind set that we, as responsible members of the human race, must address and fight daily, not just today or tomorrow or this month. Each and every day we must reach out and show that burying the topic into the mire of so called religious belief is a mistake. We must continue to press for real solutions in our society, including real sex education in our schools.

Despite those advances, parents and schools need to focus their safe sex education on not just high school students, but middle school students, said Michael Harmon, chief of HIV/STD Service for the Oklahoma Department of Health. (full story)

It isnt about pushing some secret agenda either. It is about educating the kids that there is no armour, no protection really and that sex needs to be responsibly entered into. It means discussing sex, and methods to help keep one safe. Simply because the Church somewhere thinks condoms are useless, it does offer some protection. Unprotected Sex offers only a greater risk of illness, disease, and DEATH.

Number of people living with HIV/AIDS: 1.2 million, including more than 400,000 with AIDS (Kaiser Foundation pdf report 2006) (this is for the United States only!)

Too many have the notion that while AIDS and HIV are a threat, it is not one for them. I know I have that same urge and need to try and bury my head. However, I love my wife, David, and so I go through the agony of wondering every six months when I have a test done. It isn’t painful in the sense of mechanics, but you know the waiting to hear the results is. Still, it is a small price to pay to insure that your life isn’t about to be shortened.

There are many advances in science that prolong life too. That is important to know but the key is that you have to KNOW if you are sick first. Without that knowledge the risks are just too great. So even if you don’t want to make a donation, don’t feel right in being politically active, do yourself and your sex partners a favor. GET TESTED!