TampaYankee

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: If it is not one thing, it's another.

Maryland Gay Marriage: Governor Martin O'Malley Signs Bill Allowing Same-Sex Couples To Wed By SARAH BREITENBACH Associated Press BELTSVILLE, Md. (AP) — With Maryland legalizing gay marriage, some conservative opponents and religious leaders are counting on members of their congregations, especially in black churches, to upend the legislation at the polls this fall. Many African American church leaders oppose gay marriage in the liberal-leaning state that's nearly one-third black, and President Barack Obama's re-election campaign is expected to drive many of their congregants to the polls. Opponents submitted draft language for a ballot referendum to overturn the measure just after it passed the Legislature last week. Gov. Martin O'Malley signed the bill into law Thursday, and it takes effect in January 2013. Over the weekend, some pastors at predominantly black churches were already using their sermons to shop the referendum effort to their congregations, asking members to sign up for email alerts, put their name on petitions and overturn the law come November. The Catholic Church, which has 1.2 million parishioners in Maryland, has also openly opposed the bill. A Sunday service at the Hope Christian Church in Beltsville was filled with murmurs of agreement as a spokeswoman for the Maryland Marriage Alliance rallied the mostly black congregation against the law. "We will have the last say on how marriage will be defined in Maryland," spokeswoman Dee Powell shouted repeatedly to the audience of several hundred. Some churchgoers said they are bound by their faith to vote against gay marriage. "It's a personal value and opinion. It has nothing to do with President Barack Obama," said 54-year-old DeBorah Martinez, who has attended Hope Christian for three years. When a gay marriage bill fell short in the legislature last year, black pastors were given much of the credit for pressuring lawmakers to oppose it. The measure was pulled from the floor of the House as leaders realized if fell short of the needed votes. Opposition from black pastors in Maryland belies an overall political stance that routinely includes their endorsement of Democratic candidates and support for their agendas. Opponents will need to collect nearly 56,000 valid voter signatures, equivalent to 3 percent of the people who cast ballots in the 2010 gubernatorial election, to put the measure on the November ballot. Even gay marriage advocates expect the referendum to end up on the ballot. Six states and the District of Columbia currently recognize gay marriages. The state of Washington has also legalized gay marriage, and its law takes effect in June. Voters there are expected to petition the measure to referendum this fall. Maine legalized the unions for same-sex couples in 2009, but later that year became the only state overturn a such a law passed by a legislature. Meanwhile, about 30 states have constitutional amendments that seek to prohibit gay marriage, most by defining marriage as between a man and a woman. Donald Norris, chairman of the department of public policy at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, said black churches could heavily influence the referendum, but liberal voters who come out to support Obama could offset the votes against same-sex marriage. A number of factors could tip the vote on a referendum, Norris said. For example, a weak Republican presidential candidate could mean conservative voters stay home and don't cast ballots against the law. "It's going to really depend upon a variety of things that are going to happen between now and November," Norris said. Gay marriage advocates are hoping that young voters — whom they expect to support their cause — will turn out for Obama as they did in 2008. "I think Obama's election turns out a number of different people," said Sultan Shakir, campaign manager for Marylanders for Marriage Equality, a coalition of gay rights groups that worked to get the bill passed. "(There is) a lot of attention around people who attend church, but there are plenty of other demographics who are going to be turned out." The advocates also think it is inappropriate to leave what they consider a civil rights issue to the discretion of voters. "It's sad to me that anyone would think that it's OK to put up the rights of a minority to a popular vote," said Lisa Polyak, chairwoman of the board of directors for the gay rights organization Equality Maryland. "We have children, we have lives, we have jobs and we just want to go about them with integrity." Proponents of gay marriage are also counting on religious leaders who support of the bill to influence their congregations and for labor unions to urge their members to vote to keep gay marriage legal. Some black pastors who supported the measure as a matter of civil rights appeared publicly with O'Malley, a Democrat, during the legislative debate. Babatunde Adedayo, a 29-year-old from Upper Marlboro, said the president and his stance on gay marriage will likely influence his peers in November. Obama supports civil unions, but has not endorsed marriage for same-sex couples "I think this affects every facet of our culture," Adedayo said after the service at Hope Christian. "As a black African American in America, it is something the black church takes seriously and depending on Barack Obama's stance on this, it will affect a lot of people." See original article at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/01/maryland-gay-marriage-martin-o-malley-signs-bill_n_1314352.html

No. Lying is a proactive action usually committed for deception or to lead one in the wrong direction. Omitting information is a passive action that, at worst, may or may not obscure the right direction. Those are not the same thing. The fact that both do not help you to achieve your objective does not make them the same. There are occasions in life where not saying something is the best choice. Unfortunately, it isn't always easy to know which occasions those are. Just my opinion.

I believe you have to have 'skin' in the game. I do not see where the House has any skin the the California Constitution. In fact, the Tenth Ammendment might prohibit them from participating. I believe that the same players in the District Court Case will have to push it to the SOTUS. I think they have filed notice of intent to do so. All the above being said, I am neither an attorney nor have I ever played one on TV. IMO, color this another PR and fund raising activity for the GOP.

I, for one, have never been disapproving of gratuitous display of lust, eroticism or sex. Au contraire, I'm grateful if the display is well done.

I don't watch AI but I have watched other similar shows like DWTS and SYTYCD. I have always thought it was a little more fair and rational to all involved to give the contestants a week or two to get their stage legs before dropping the guillotine. Appearing on stage and in front of a huge TV audience can be a rattling experience for some. Better to get them over that initial stage fright before tossing people out. Else, really good talent might be sacrificed to the initial stage trauma experience. It is easy enough to drop two people after two weeks to keep the show on schedule. Just a thought.

Gay Sex Legal, Says India Government NEW DELHI (AP) — The Indian government Tuesday clarified to the Supreme Court that it accepts a recent ruling legalizing gay sex in the country. A lawyer told the Supreme Court that the government would not challenge a 2009 order by the Delhi High Court striking down a colonial-era law that made gay sex a crime. The order was appealed by conservative groups and the Supreme Court is now hearing opinions from those groups as well as gay rights activists. The latest statement comes days after another government lawyer told the court that gay sex was "highly immoral" and should be banned. The government quickly denied that lawyer's statement, prompting confusion about its stance on the law. On Tuesday, a Supreme Court justice asked the government's lawyers to file an affidavit to reconcile the two divergent positions heard in court. Neither lawyer explained Thursday's confusion. The 2009 high court order had said that treating consensual gay sex between adults as a crime was a violation of fundamental rights protected by India's constitution. Sex between people of the same gender had been illegal in India since the 1860s, when a British colonial law classified it as "against the order of nature." Prosecutions were rare, but the law was used frequently to harass people. Over the last decade, homosexuals have slowly gained a degree of acceptance in some parts of India, especially its big cities. The last two years have also seen large gay pride parades in New Delhi and other big cities, including Mumbai and Kolkata. Still, being gay remains deeply taboo in most of the country, and many gays and lesbians hide their sexual orientation from friends and relatives. See original article at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/28/india-gay-sex-legal_n_1306054.html?ref=world

Say ah!!

He's got wood... twice.

I'm not sure which 'God' you have in mind? Certainly not the God of the Old Testament which was the God of Jesus. He exacted some pretty harsh actions from followers to prove their devotion. Is this a 'Do As I Say, not Dot As I Do' wise, loving God? He seemed to demand devotion with fear as leverage. The Christians still teach that with the bottom line choice of: Be Saved or Go To Hell for eternity.

I don't know where all the small-c conservatives have gone. Ron Paul is the closest thing and he sorta of goes too far, even for them.

Don't you think that you ought to be replaced for fucking up the world so badly?

Yo también, pero cam4 es estrictamente democrático. Tal vez los mormones han inundado el sitio?

Well, I actually attributed it to your shorts being a bit too tight today.

It would seem more viewers are interested in their minds or at least their clothes. I hazard this rash judgement on my understanding that the front page, in fact all of the first several pages are filled by order of interest measured by the number of viewers logged in to that 'model'. If they fall out of disfavor with the viewers then hits will drop and they will move down the list. No es verdad?

Not that I want to get into a dialog over this but some were asking about free shows on F4F. You confuse his dick pumping with cow milking. I defer to Indiana natives on that one. There is some nice eye candy on cam4 but the video quality and lighting often sucks, although that does not deter me if the guy is hot. Please alert us when your next hairy asian is pumping his giant dick in the mode of cow milking or any other way. I'll take a gander. I might even find something positive to say.

10:48 ET

Not that Conservatives were always against enlightened ideas. Here's one example who rose to lead the party and the country. He was the first to take active action for clean air, water and land by creating the National Park System. Will we ever see the return of enlightenment to the GOP?

Alessio gave a free show this morning just before 10:00 ET. I caught a good five minutes joining it already underway. Ten minutes later caught a free minute lead-in to a group chat for Jared & Dilan. Nice smooth Colombian twink shaking his dick and ass at the cam while the other was prepping to bottom just off cam.

I started this thread not to congratulate Lawrence about being a Proud Liberal or about how wonderful Liberals are. I posted this thread to point to the shame of Conservatives. I can understand that everyone may not agree on ALL of those issues that Lawrence points out. Maybe everyone doesn't want clean air and water or doesn't think it worth the cost. Maybe not everyone thinks we need safety oversight in industry, especially coal mines. But who is against every one of those issues or even a majority? Sure, not every conservative is a biggot or wants to keep women suppressed or old people in the street or in county homes and blacks marginalized with no vote or much of an education, or queers out of the military. There are some enlightened 'progressive' members of the conservative community. The problem is that one is known by his friends -- the company he keeps, by the factions he strengthens through the support of them in office thus supporting the furthering of their views. Whether one is an enlightened conservative or a mainstream conservative the shame is theirs just the same. Truly they are known by the company they keep and the 'morality' of their views regarding human rights and compassion and material desires. Just one opinion.

Sometimes liberals go too far. Some are even wackos when you explore their limits. But all in all I more comfortable with that community than with the alternative. Lawrence O'Donnel explains succinctly why he is proud to be a liberal. I think he has some good reasons.

Congrats Lucky. Good to see the individual prevail over the entrenched system.

You got that right.

This GOP is reaping the wild wind that they embraced with open arms during the TARP, stimulus, and health care debates. They ALL did, including the likes of Bush, George Will. McConnel... all of em not to mention Faux News. Most contributed actively, some passively by allowing it to happen without opposition. I said at the time they will pay for it eventually and clearly they are paying the piper now. Serves them right for embracing the crazies either wholeheartedly on many issues, eg. death panels, and on not disowning some of the outrageous stuff that went around, eg. birtherism. They had an opportunity to back away from it but they chose to use it and have come to own it. More correctly, it now owns them. They continue to do it!!!! Look at the House Committee hearing on Contraception, the invasive sonagram bill in VA that got to be too much of an embarrassment for McDonald's VP aspirations. Look at the GOP controlled legislatures trying to disenfranchise likely democratic demographics. Look at the Presidential Primary candidates stumbling all over themselves to continue the embrace crazy shit. They espouse blatant lies to appeal to the crowds that demand to hear them. Unfortunately for them lots of moderates and indepedents are listening also. Yep, they reaped the wild wind. Screw em. They need to crash and burn and rise out of the dust a sane responsible party that puts country ahead of party politics and recognize the outcome of elections. We need a viable responsible opposition party to reign in the Dem crazies who, unchecked, will emerge over time. I hope the GOP will climb back up over the edge and return to fact based rhetoric and actions and sound governing principles. That will take some time and probably new people. I think we will have four years, at least, to watch that happen. The question is: Will that be enough?

I don't believe in inhaling anything other that air, natural food aromas, and medications. If you need caffeine take a tablet or drink Jolt Cola. If only it came sugar-free.