Monday, October 29, 2012

Trying to win against gays through fearmongering about children (again)

According to Think Progress:

The campaigns against marriage equality in Maryland, Maine, Minnesota, and Washington are all running some variation on an ad featuring David and Tonia Parker, a Massachusetts couple who in 2005 objected to their kids learning in school that same-sex marriages existed. Conservatives regularly highlight David Parker as a victim to scare voters, but his story is told in incredibly misleading ways.

There is a big difference between mentioning that some kids — including students in the class — have same-sex parents and teaching about same-sex sexuality. The former is what happened in schools, but the latter is what the Parkers claim they objected to. In fact, David Parker so objected to the use of materials including all families that he appeared at the school to protest and refused to leave, forcing an arrest for trespassing. Parker then sued and a federal judge dismissed his complaint, saying that schools are “entitled to teach anything that is reasonably related to the goals of preparing students to become engaged and productive citizens in our democracy.”

The following is a mashup of all of these ads and a few others which basically breaks the fact that the anti-marriage equality folks are relying on the same old lie about how gays will harm children. This time, however, they are disguising it through a phony "parents rights" agenda:



However the folks in Washington are combatting this fear mongering with an ad featuring parents who have no problem with children learning about same-sex families:




Bookmark and Share

'Video footage shows Romney lying about same-sex families' and other Monday news briefs



I talked about these comments from Romney about same-sex families last week and here they are now on video.  And while making these comment, Romney told a deliberate lie:

One of two video clips that Waas has now uploaded to YouTube shows Romney speaking to conservative voters in South Carolina in 2005, as he was testing the waters for a presidential bid, discussing his battle with the Registry of Vital Statistics and Records regarding the birth certificate forms. Romney distorted the Registry of Vital Statistics' plan, which was to change the labeling of boxes on the forms from "father" and "mother" to "father or second parent" and "mother or second parent." He claimed the plan was to change the form to have "Parent A" and Parent B" boxes, when, as the documents Waas obtained show, those terms were not in fact used:
"Today, same-sex couples are marrying, under the law, in Massachusetts. Some gays are actually having children born to them. We've been asked to remove the phrase "mother" and "father" and replace it with "parent A" and "parent B." It's not right on paper. It's not right in fact. Every child has the right to have a mother and father."


In other news:

 First out of the gate: fundie pastor blames Obama, Romney and TEH GAY for Hurricane Sandy - Tell me you didn't see this coming. At least he didn't blame us for those awful uniforms the Pittsburgh Steelers wore yesterday.  

CCL of Maine flips Thurgood Marshall quote; repurposes positivity for fear - Apparently religious right groups are doing down a list of all of the civil rights leaders whose quotes they can distort.  

Anti-bullying program draws more participants despite boycott call - In your face, American Family Association!


Bookmark and Share

Don't hold marriage equality against Romney. It's not his fault



In 2004, Massachusetts became the first state to allow gay and lesbian couples to get married. And it happened under Mitt Romney's watch. However, according to this December 2007 appearance on Howie Carr's radio show, Romney doesn't want anyone to hold it against him.

Let's see - that's negative statements against same-sex families and now this. Why did the Log Cabin Republicans and GoProud endorse Romney again?

Oh wait. Let me guess by remembering the words of a GoProud member:

“I understand I’m going to be subject to certain limitations . . . I understand I won’t have equal rights. But I also want to be filthy rich, and I think the Republican ticket can get me there.”
 
Big hat tip to Jeremy Hooper, who was recently chosen as one of Instinct magazine's "Leading Men of 2012." 


Bookmark and Share