This week, in SFGN

Dermot Meagher, judge, artist, writer and neighbor. Not the easiest interview to write, but when I bumped into him earlier today, he had three copies of the paper with him and said he loved what I wrote. I'm very glad he's pleased.

Incorrectly Splitting Hairs

In his letter to the NYTimes, the Archbishop of New York cites Harvard's Dr. Green:


An otherwise perceptive column was somewhat scarred by two comments: recent work by experts like Dr. Edward Green of the Harvard School of Public Health, and experience in countries like Uganda, lead many to conclude that dependence upon only condoms to control H.I.V.-AIDS is dangerous policy, making Mr. Kristof’s comments about the Vatican (“whose hostility to condoms contributes to the AIDS epidemic”) unjust.

The Archbishop's conclusion is not really a valid one. Read Dr Green's letter to The Lancet, titled "Was the Pope Wrong" (provided below). I don't think anyone has been advocating for "condoms alone" as the complete strategy for ending the spread of HIV. It is not the condom that is inefficient, but rather the inconsistent use of it. That same aspect of human nature that makes abstinence fail as a way to stop HIV also makes condoms fail: the fact that people sometimes do dumb things when driven by sexual desire. Abstinence is a daunting challenge. Always using a condom is a daunting challenge. Note that Dr. Green talks about "partner reduction" as a more successful strategy. Understandable, and if all the world's leaders proclaimed 2010 as a year in which nobody will have sex in order to slow the spread of HIV, partnering and HIV would be reduced, right? Because everybody would follow that prescription, right?

Note that Dr. Green is not saying that condoms should be withheld from Africans.

The Archbishop of New York has perhaps not thought about the fact that if he or his predecessors had distributed condoms to the many priests who have died of AIDS over the last three decades or if the bishops had made preventive confidential counseling available to those priests along with condoms, the current shortage of priests would be alleviated considerably.  The number of priests who have died from AIDS has never been correctly reported for two reasons: the families of those priests almost always were ashamed of the fact and preferred to list an opportunistic disease such as pneumonia or cancer as the cause of death. The bishops did not want the faithful to know that priests are gay and sexually active. If the bishops were more courageous, Christlike and compassionate, they would have reached out the families of priests victimized by AIDS and to the gay clergy rather than become complicit in denial. We may also never know the number of men who have died because they contracted the virus from a Catholic priest.

I think any sensible bishop should attend to his own house before he starts spouting opinions about HIV in Africa, and that includes the German Shepherd who is the Bishop of Rome where he presides over a male prostitution ring operating within the walls of his own palace. I wonder how many choristers and seminarians involved in that business are HIV positive.

Was the Pope wrong?

Edward C Green a, Norman Hearst b

The Lancet published an Editorial1 condemning comments Pope Benedict gave on a trip to Africa, calling them “outrageous and wildly inaccurate.” The Pope said he thought money alone could not solve the problem; moreover “If there is no human dimension, if Africans do not help by responsible behaviour, the problem cannot be overcome by the distribution of prophylactics: on the contrary, they increase it.” Notice the construction: ifno responsible sexual behaviour (or primary prevention) then condom distribution will not overcome risky sexual behaviour, which is surely the case in Africa's generalised HIV epidemics.

Ecological and epidemiological evidence from generalised epidemics points to partner reduction as the primary behavioural factor explaining declines in HIV prevalence, which we now see in several African countries. Increased condom availability or use has not shown a similar pattern of association with prevalence decline across multiple generalised epidemics.2, 3

Could condom promotion exacerbate epidemics? The phenomenon of risk compensation—engaging in higher-risk behaviours because risk reduction technology conveys a greater sense of safety than warranted—could account for higher infection rates,4 and has been suggested by at least one randomised, controlled study, which found that “gains in condom use seem to have been offset by increases in the number of sex partners.”5

The root of the problem is that people do not use condoms consistently, no matter how they are promoted. A little bit of condom use might be like a little bit of antibiotic use—not ultimately helpful.

We declare that we have no conflicts of interest.

References

1 The Lancet. Redemption for the Pope?. Lancet 2009; 373: 1054. Full Text | PDF(82KB) | CrossRef | PubMed

2 Potts M, Halperin DT, Kirby D, et al. Public health: reassessing HIV prevention. Science 2008; 320: 749-750.CrossRef | PubMed

3 Green EC, Hearst N, Mah T, Herling-Ruark A. A framework of sexual partnerships: risks and implications for HIV prevention in Africa. Stud Fam Plann 2009; 40: 63-70. CrossRef | PubMed

4 Cassell MM, Halperin DT, Shelton JD, Stanton D. Risk compensation: the Achilles' heel of innovations in HIV prevention?. BMJ 2006; 332: 605-607. PubMed

5 Kajubi P, Kamya M, Kamya S, Chen S, McFarland W, Hearst N. Increasing condom use without reducing HIV risk: results of a controlled community trial in Uganda. J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr 2005; 40: 77-82. CrossRef | PubMed

a Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies, 9 Bow Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA

b University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA

Having It Your Way

The Archbishop of New York, Tim Dolan, wants to embrace some parts of this article while trashing others. Sounds like a "Cafeteria Catholic", doesn't he?

Vatican Gay Prostitution Ring

It makes me want to cry when I think of how much I could have earned during my four years there if I hadn't been so goddam precious.

I've been called many things in my day, but

this really made me laugh. This is one of those lines I wish I had written myself. It's from one of the comments on this article:

I googled "Father Tony Adams, wiki" and the name which appeared first was Victoria Beckham. So, either you aren't as famous as you'd like to believe or the internet is having trouble distinguishing over-the-hill spice girls.

Matthew 23:24 Straining Out The Gnat But Swallowing The Camel

I have been reminded that today's gospel selection, assigned to Tuesday of the Second Week of Lent, is from Matthew 23.

It reads:
Mt 23:1-12 (You ought to click on that link and read the rest of it to hear Jesus at his angry best, pitching a hissy fit!)

Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples, saying,
“The scribes and the Pharisees
have taken their seat on the chair of Moses.
Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you,
but do not follow their example.
For they preach but they do not practice.
They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry
and lay them on people’s shoulders,
but they will not lift a finger to move them.
All their works are performed to be seen.
They widen their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels.
They love places of honor at banquets, seats of honor in synagogues,
greetings in marketplaces, and the salutation ‘Rabbi.’
As for you, do not be called ‘Rabbi.’
You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers.
Call no one on earth your father;
you have but one Father in heaven.
Do not be called ‘Master’;
you have but one master, the Christ.
The greatest among you must be your servant.
Whoever exalts himself will be humbled;
but whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”


And before that gospel is read, the first text of the day is from the old Testament book of the prophet Isaiah:


Is 1:10, 16-20

In part:
Wash yourselves clean!
Put away your misdeeds from before my eyes;
cease doing evil; learn to do good.
Make justice your aim: redress the wronged,
Come now, let us set things right,
says the LORD:
Though your sins be like scarlet,
they may become white as snow;
Though they be crimson red,
they may become white as wool.

I think perhaps the Cardinals have misread that text. It says "redress" not "red dress".

This week, in SFGN

I review the Steichen show at the Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale, and deliver a profile of innkeeper Roger Handevidt.

The New Darth Vader?

In one of the more recent comments on this post, I am given more credit than I deserve:

Now you, Tony Adams, used by these dark forces, collaborate in the overthrow of Western morals

How they think

There are now 56 comments on this article, 7 of which are mine. Almost all the rest are from very conservative and homophobic Roman Catholics.

This set of comments includes almost every major assertion used to deny queer Catholics their rights:

it's a disorder, like alcoholism
it's a choice
it's a mortal sin
gay is OK but gay sex is sinful
tradition teaches us that its wrong
the bishops have the magisterial authority
it's a cross to bear
the bible tells us it's wrong
some things really are black or white

This thread should be read by anyone attempting to understand the homophobia embraced by the rank and file of American Catholicism.

Cardinal Antonelli to the ladies: Stay home.

Cardinal Antonelli thinks women should stay home baking cookies for their kids. He also thinks that gay marriage and adoption by gay couples could cause "complications". Well he got that part right!

A Warm Evening in Fort Lauderdale

A convivial gathering on the outdoor pavilion of the Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale at yesterday evening's Members' Reception for the debut of the exhibit Edward Steichen: In High Fashion the Condé Nast Years, 1923-1937. Left to right, R. Layton Massengill, Rod Stafford Hagwood, Gary Lodge, Terry Whited, Ivonne de la Vega and Robert Wilson.

Mr. Massengill is President of Massengill Ltd. Mr. Hagwood is the fashion columnist of The Sun-Sentinel. Ivonne de la Vega designed the gown auctioned to benefit the museum. Mr. Wilson is an international management consultant. Mr. Massengill and Mr. Whited have been partners for 33 years. Mr. Hagwood and Mr. Lodge have been partners for 7 years.

Mr. Whited sported a real leopard vintage cloche, a mink vest and several pieces of stunning Elsa Perretti jewelry. My review of the Steichen show will appear in the South Florida Gay News. Here is the gown created by Ivonne de la Vega to be auctioned to benefit the museum. I told her I loved it but was worried that the lower bows around the flowers might be ungapatch. Ivonne assured me that they were detachable!

A Seed Planted In Winter Has Sprouted

Are those storm clouds?

New gig

I'm a columnist at the South Florida Gay News. This week, the editor asked me to write about Brian McNaught. Coincidentally, I had been introduced to him just two weeks earlier.

Grouse

The New York Times is my home page.

As much as I like it, I was upset with it today.

There was no mention of the fact that four people got arrested in the course of a protest at the city marriage bureau. Not exactly a secret. All over the blogs, facebook, twitter, etc. It's now almost 10 hours after the event.

This is the difference between the new and old media. The old need more sleep and take it during the day.

Don't tell me to put this news in perspective. I just went through all the stuff featured in the New York Times City Room and found not much of superior value. It's not like it was a big news day wherein the paper had to make choices based on importance of news. They got close to nothin' today. Just some developments on previously reported stories.

You know the phrase "Don't kill the messenger"? These days, the message delivered by an arthritic messenger is that the messenger is close to death and wants to rest. OK. That's my rant.

Dan Choi to hit the streets in NYC

A "Queer New York" exclusive.

A Triple Charles Morning

Yesterday morning was a delightfully exhausting one composed of overlapping conversations with three different Charleses.

There was Chuck Colbert, a reporter, dishing about the planned palace coup.

There was Charles Busch, talking about his new play The Divine Sister.

And, there was a favorite correspondent who has a variety of red herring noms, including the above. We compared notes about the men of DC.

I don't know how I ever managed to fit work into the day. Really.

Catholics for Equality - The Mutiny Begins

I was in DC this weekend as one of the "founding fathers" of Catholics for Equality.

I wasn't sure what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised. This could work.

The Latest Mr. Deity

This entire series is so good, I don't think it can be improved.

The Language of Catholicism in Crisis

It has been reported that the surviving auxiliary bishop of Port-au-Prince, at the funeral of its  archbishop who was killed by the earthquake, said

God had something to say and he said it here. He did it because he wants Haiti to become a new country.

Granted, people say crazy things at their times of loss and must be cut slack, but the consistent language of organized religion is like the extrication attempts of someone who has painted himself into a corner. Pitiful enough in times pacific. Unforgettably irritating in harrowing times. Let us all now conclude this funeral mass by joining together to praise God in song for having helped Haiti become new. Page 35 in your hymnals. A Mighty Fortress is Our God.

What ten percent looks like

This is what the new census will reveal. I performed this visual exercise with conflicting feelings about the fact that Florida's Broward County has begun a census that will ask questions about the sexual preference of households. It's good to be counted. It is bad to give a hateful government that much information. Also, if we decide to avoid identifying our households as gay, the government will report that we are not so large a portion of the general population after all, and this would be used against us. Damned if we do, damned if we don't.  Also, those who are closeted still will remain uncounted.

I'm coming to the conclusion that asking census questions about sexual orientation may be a very dangerous misstep. Our advocacy organizations should be protesting this rather than endorsing it.

A New York Mystery

Let neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night keep you from going to Queer New York for the baad lamb's wonderful account of the mystery of artist Rico Lebrun.

At The 2010 Golden Globes a few minutes ago,

there was an audible gasp as Cher appeared wearing Donna Summer's hips strapped sideways into  a dimestore dominatrix costume.

The only gown colors were black, white and nude. Who knows why, but Drew Barrymore  accented her edition by perching a blanched porcupine on her shoulder.

OMG. Sophia Loren just appeared. Timeless beauty perfectly attired.

Anyone know what this is?

It is dropping seeds from its lurid orange pine cone-like fruit things in front of my gym. I took two home.

Gagapelle

I am only a tepid fan of native New Yorker Stephani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, but I do love these photos I saw on yvymag. New Yorker David LaChapelle's energy may be waning as a natural consequence of his inevitable growing older. Witness his parents: Pierre et Gilles (mother), Gilbert and George (father) and Viktor and Rolf (aunt).  Also, it is interesting to note that he always chooses and focuses on a muse whereas his partnered parents seemed to scrapbook more of themselves into their projects.

In any case, I am becoming a fan of yvymag where I am able to sample all the current imagery of young male pulchritude that I ordinarily encounter only in my gay doctor's waiting room.

Cynthia Nixon Warms Up Freezing Miami Beach

Go to Queer New York for  the unedited version of my interview with Cynthia Nixon.

Cynthia Nixon in South Beach for the ACLU

I was there for Bilerico where you will find my interview with the radiant Cynthia Nixon tomorrow. Here's a still from the video.

(Thanks to cameraman Bob Wilson, my neighbor in Fort Lauderdale and Manhattan)

Today on Bilerico: "16 Years Old and Already a Rebel Catholic""

You'll have to go over to Bilerico to see my answer to this (enhanced with video of Mama Cass Elliot, Leslie Gore and Martha Reeves and the Vandellas.)

Fr. Tony, 

My name is Donny, and I am a 16 year old Catholic. I read one of your articles online about the Roman Catholic Church and homosexuality and LOVED it. You brought up a really good point about the "fan club card"! My question to you is this... I love Jesus and most teachings of the Catholic Church but some just do not click. (Especially when it comes to homosexuality being "sinful"). I really want to have a partner some day and I do not want to be looked down on because of it! Would it be wrong to explore and find Jesus myself without the aid of the Church? Thanks for taking the time, and I hope to hear from you soon.

God bless,

Donny

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

That's it? That's all? Unbalanced Reporting

In this huge NY Times profile of Florida Governor Charlie Crist,  the only mention of his rather frequently verified gay life is summed up a little too benevolently by Mark Leibovich:

For much of his term, Crist’s approval ratings sat in the 60 and 70 percent range. He was largely free of scandal, other than for having had to endure the dreaded “longtime bachelor” tag in politics. Crist, who was married for less than a year in his 20s, has been subjected to the requisite wink-wink about sexual preference that accompanies middle-aged bachelorhood in politics. It abated slightly after Crist got engaged in July 2008, around the time — wink-wink — that John McCain was considering him to be his running mate. Critics saw even this as a comical example of Crist’s willingness to do anything to further his career. NBC’s Chuck Todd joked on the air that Crist might call off his engagement if McCain did not pick him. (Crist married the former Carole Rome that December.)

Tell me Mr. Leibovich isn't hoping for gratitude. Obsequious.

QNY Recall - Come Home, Kitchenbeard

You'll have to go to QNY for my interview with Kitchenbeard.
(His NSFW photo self-portraits are all after the jump.)

(Walter Kurtz photo)

What We Should Do About the Suddenly More Saintly Pope Pius XII

Many are up in arms about the fact that B16 has moved Pius XII up a few steps on the board game "Sainthood". Many feel that Pius XII, a lover of things German, did not do enough to fight the Holocaust.

As usual, most folks don't know how to deal winningly with the Roman Catholic hierarchy.

They want to protest, express anger, demand retraction. That is simply not the right strategy.

Here is what we ought to do. The queer community and the Jewish community and all modern enlightened Roman Catholics (and I know some of you will protest the possibility of such a critter) should praise this papal action resoundingly as a demonstration that the gay clergy is finally being recognized for their holiness in Roman Catholic history. Much should be written about the well known fact that Pius XII was best friends with little Frannie Spellman when they both young and randy clerics. Spellman would probably have never amounted to much in terms of ecclesiatical power had it not been for the ascendancy of  his "particular friend" Pacelli to the papacy. A mere six weeks after becoming Pius XII, Pacelli made Spellman Archbishop and soon Cardinal of New York, much to the chagrin of almost all other American bishops. It's a love story full of ambition and church politics, some Kennedys, A Roman princess, and not a little sex and romance. Let us trumpet the move to sainthood of one of the great queen popes of modern history. And then let's watch as the fidgety clueless Vatican tries to spin that while abandoning their affection for Pius XII.

If B16 is going to push anyone forward to sainthood, let it be this woman who was excommunicated because of gossip and episcopal jealousy and had the patience to endure it because she loved the Catholic Church and eventually received an apology.

Here's the young Pacelli and covergirl Francine Spellman with the man behind her throne.

PS: In Rome, I came to possess the key to Francine's desk. I still have it. I also was given the scarlet cassock she kept in Rome for quick trips to Eugenio. It fit me perfectly. One crazy night, I gave it to a young German Benedictine monk named Anselm whom I met through Rembert Weakland....I wonder if he still has it.

PS: Their grandmother introduced Pacelli to Spellman. An interesting squabble over a fabulous inheritance. I'm searching for a photo of the Jonathan's lucky Brazilian partner.

Update: To hear Francine speak, go to the 3:33 point in this video. No wonder she hated Fulton Sheen!

OMG it has public restrooms!

The Baad Lamb reviews New York City's newest public space on Queer New York.

NYC Karma

A true story from last night. Good way to start the year.

His Very First Time

My husband, the Baad Lamb, writes about his very first time. Photos included.....

Tomorrow on Bilerico: "GM Unveils The New 2010 Queer"

Right. We may not live to see the day when GM will name a car "The Queer", but could it sell any worse than the rest of their products? Meanwhile, I've come up with a list of ten features, qualities or improvements that I would like to see in every fully loaded 2010 Queer. You'll find it tomorrow on Bilerico.


Update: It's up. Get on it.

A Better Night in Fort Lauderdale

Tonight I had drinks with Asaf and Eric who are going through their life. We spoke about time and obsession and marriage and movies and where one ought to live. We discarded various constructs and expressed horror at others. We seemed disgusted by similars. Disavowing all fears, I carefully went home.

Straight, Not Narrow

The blog Straight, Not Narrow has picked up on something I wrote on Bilerico. I wonder how many straight married couples secretly agree with the premise that the glorification of marriage is undeserved.

Entertaining the Tourists

He was aggressive without being annoying. All sly smiles and flattery and hands that kept trying to pull me into a dark corner. I didn’t mind, but I was just, as is said, chilling, and watching the crowd.

He didn’t give up. Standing behind me with arms suddenly wrapped around my waist he whispered suggestively into my ear “My name is Rough.”

I shook him off while laughing.

“Yeah right. And my name is Stud.”

“No, really, my name is Rough.”

“You mean your porn name would be Rough.”

“No, no, it’s my real name.”

“OK, if that’s what you want me to believe, fine. You’re Rough and I’m Stud. Actually my name used to be Studmuffin. It was originally German. Schtüdmüffin. But it got accidentally shortened on Ellis Island. The customs agent must have misunderschtüd my grandfather.”

“I’m not kidding.”

“Prove it.”

He handed me a driver’s license from a distant state. In the low light, I had to walk it over to a gas fireplace to read it.  I apologized when the flames quickly curled and darkened the laminate. He wasn’t kidding. 

Nice to have met you, Mr. Ruff.  Sure hope you don’t have difficulty at the airport because of the condition of your ID!

Christmas 2009 Fort Lauderdale

Don't ask.

Attacking the Pope

At last, some video. She's athletic!

I was the deacon at Christmas Midnight Mass for Pope Paul VI in 1976. If she had dared to disrupt my performance, I'd have booted her boney ass out onto the piazza before she had finished her jump over the barricades.

(I wonder how much MSNBC paid for that video!)

Peter Sokolowski has set off my gaydar.

If this guy is single, all you other single guys should give chase.

Watch his video and tell me this guy isn't gay-hot. I mean I don't know, I suppose he could be straight...naaaaah.

It's not like Carpet Fresh, for crissakes.

This section of the New York Times report about the woman who moments ago tackled the Pope demonstrates that either the reporter is a fool or traditional liturgical practices such as swinging a smoking incense pot are unknown to many young adults including reporters who should know better.

Benedict made no reference to the incident as the service started. As a choir sang, he sprinkled incense on the main altar before opening the service with the traditional wish for peace in Latin: ''Pax vobis''

I would not be surprised if it turns out she is an Italian nun. They get very aggressive against the barricades on Christmas Eve.

Tomorrow on Bilerico: "My Marriage is a Stone"

You'll have to go to Bilerico tomorrow to see what I mean by that!

Spa at Chelsea Piers- Ask for Scott

Like most New Yorkers, the Baad Lamb and I have limited space and so we have stopped collecting stuff. Instead, on holidays, anniversaries and birthdays, we are apt to give each other spa treatments, a luxury that is memorable but involves no ongoing servitude and accommodation. We have tried a variety of NYC spas but there is one to which we frequently return. It is located in the Chelsea Piers complex.

You'll have to go to Queer New York for the full experience.

Send JoeMyGod on a cruise.

Please vote for Joe.
He needs to get out of the house.

Susan Gibbs, did you laugh or cry while you typed this mess?

It's been a long time since I've had to wallow through gibberish this thick. In case you've fogotten, the archdiocese of Washington threatened to deny social services in DC if gay marriage passed. With today's vote, it will most certainly become a reality, so the archdiocese has released this ridiculous, hilarious and pitiful bit of caving-and-face-saving. Enjoy.

Legalization of Same Sex Marriage in the Nation’s Capital


Archdiocese Remains Committed to Serving Poor




December 15, 2009




Today the District of Columbia joined a handful of states where legislatures or courts have redefined marriage to include persons of the same sex. Since this legislation was first introduced in October, the Archdiocese of Washington opposed the redefinition of marriage based on the core teaching of the Catholic Church that the complementarity of man and woman is intrinsic to the definition of marriage. However, understanding the City Council was committed to legalizing same sex marriages, the archdiocese advocated for a bill that would balance the Council’s interest in redefining marriage with the need to protect religious freedom. Regrettably, the bill did not strike that balance.


The Archdiocese of Washington and Catholic Charities are deeply committed to serving those in need, regardless of race, creed, gender, ethnic origin or sexual orientation. This commitment is integral to our Catholic faith and will remain unchanged into the future.


Religious organizations have long been eligible to provide social services in our nation’s capital and have not been excluded simply because of their religious character. This is because the choice of provider has focused on the ability to deliver services effectively and efficiently. We are committed to serving the needs of the poor and look forward to working in partnership with the District of Columbia consistent with the mission of the Catholic Church.






Contact:
Susan Gibbs
Director of Communications
301-853-4517
gibbss@adw.org

Update: Listen to her voice. Just as I suspected: young, caffeinated, smirking, unconvinced of her own words. 

How he loves New York

My husband, the Baad lamb, has delivered an ode to the city he loves complete with a tour de force video combining his original music and photography.

See it and hear it on Queer New York.

A Queer New York Christmas Greeting

This is for anyone who might be longing for a cheerful New York Christmas moment.

Yesterday, on Fifth Avenue.

Mitchell Gold - A Queer New York Video Interview

Please head over to Queer New York for my interview in Miami with furniture and decor guru Mitchell Gold. You'll get 2 minutes about his new book, "The Comfortable Home" and 5 minutes of bold criticism for the current leaders of gay advocacy groups who are failing more often than winning the battle for gay equality. I was impressed.

Inadvertently Christian Fort Lauderdale Municipal Signage

This sign appeared on the beach earlier this week. I'm quite sure it is a municipal attempt to be religiously neutral. The beach is patrolled constantly by gliding pelicans who suddenly drop into the shallows for fish. 

Yes! Let's show a pelican in a Santa cap!

Actually, the pelican is an ancient Christian symbol of self-sacrifice. Supposedly, the pelican will gouge its own breast to feed its young with its own blood. (Whenever anchovies are not plentiful, I guess.) The crazed Saint Thomas Aquinas called out to Jesus "Pelican of mercy, cleanse me in they precious blood!" (Yuck.) Slightly more palatable is Shakespeare in Hamlet where Laertes says 

To his good friends thus wide I'll ope my arms,

And like the kind, life-rendering pelican,

Repast them with my blood.

"It's marvelous" said Bishop Egan with institutional pride.

“It’s marvelous,” he said, “when you think of the hundreds and hundreds of priests and how very few have even been accused, and how very few have even come close to having anyone prove anything.”

A Christmas Eve Call to Catholic Action

Will you please consider sending this call to Catholic action to all your Catholic friends and relatives?

Did you know that the mistreatment of women, married men and gay men by the Catholic bishops is really the same issue?

I began to realize this while thinking about why the struggle for gay equality in America seems to be failing.

Recent losses in California, Maine and New York have left gay activist leaders arguing about what exactly went wrong. Those battles have, however, made clear the identity of an aggressive enemy of the gay community, the bishops of the Roman Catholic Church.

To please the Pope, the American Catholic bishops have pooled financial resources to overcome marriage equality. They have threatened the cessation of social services and have bound their flock to the belief that God demands that marriage be exclusively between one man and one woman. They have mandated the taking up of collections to support their battle against marriage equality.

These bishops also believe that women are not good enough in the eyes of God to be ordained priests. These bishops also believe that married men are not good enough in the eyes of God to be ordained priests. These bishops also believe that gay men are not good enough to be ordained priests (a particularly curious belief given the huge gay portion of their own ranks).

Now is the time for Catholic women, married men, gay men, and all their Catholic friends and relatives to band together and to end this nonsense. You have the ability to gain your rights if you will realize that these bishops no longer speak for God in this matter. They have gone astray and are misleading you. In your hearts you know this to be true.

You can rectify this situation by holding back your financial support until women, married men and gay men all have equal access to the Catholic priesthood. Do you understand how critically important your financial support is to the life of the Roman Catholic Church in America? Do you understand what would happen if, as a group, you turned off the financial faucet? There would be a panic among those bishops and soon they would find a way to announce that the Holy Spirit has revealed a new truth; that women and married men and gay men deserve equal places in the church and are all worthy of the priesthood. The threat of bankruptcy can be a fast route to holy wisdom.

I am suggesting that on Christmas Eve, all Roman Catholics in America refrain from giving money when the collection basket is passed, and that you continue that restraint until your God-given rights are granted.

I am also suggesting that you consider placing a small pebble in the collection basket as a clear message to your bishops. Your priests who are torn between believing in your equality and their sworn obedience to the bishops might send those pebbles to those bishops just as they do a good portion of the money you routinely give them. And remember, those bishops have already cast the first stone. All you would be doing is politely returning it to them.

The Roman Catholic Church in America is at a crossroads. There will soon be either a healthy enlightenment or a rapid withering. Catholic women, married men and gay men who understand that their bishops are speaking for the Pope rather than for Jesus Christ in this matter will save their Church if they act together. Christmas Eve is the perfect time to start.

I am urging you to refrain from financial support as an act of love for your church. I do not want to see the Catholic Church destroyed by a generation of bishops who are confused and in need of your intervention. They will someday thank you for doing what they could not do.

Will you please consider forwarding this call to Catholic action to all your Catholic friends and relatives?

Miami Drive By

I have developed a fascination with these ubiquitous second story psychics.
Great book title, no? "Second Story Psychic".

Surgery

The operation took four days.
113 posts ( 600 print pages) were removed.
The organs have been harvested.
All the sexy and good stuff is gone but will reappear elsewhere.

Art Burn!

Over on Queer New York, you'll find my video of this totally delightful event.
I met El Celso, and I also met c-monster. My husband, the Baad Lamb, reads her much more often than he reads me! He drags me to everything she lists for which I am ultimately grateful. He is green with envy that I have made her acquaintance in Miami while he is toiling in the cold of yet another approaching winter.

Here is one mysterious pic from Art Burn. Behind the BBQ pit, and beyond the "art pyre" and on the far side of the metal fence looms the "North Miami Pain Management" sign. It seemed to make the whole arrangement feel like a crucifixion at dusk, or, it sometimes recalled the eyes of Dr. T. J. Ecklesburg.

Here's a full set of Art Burn pics.

Queer New York

If you go there now, you can say you were there on Day One.

Queer New York is a magazine-style assemblage of some of the best queer LGBTQ NYC voices I know. (About two dozen, so far. Their names will appear as they sign in over the next few days.)

Expect opinions, action alerts, news, reviews, pod casts, party photos, essays and a little bit of everything New Yorkish from queer writers who love and live New York. We will be finding our voice in the weeks to come. Don't hesitate to comment or to make suggestions.

DOMAnagrams

I lifted this from Will who also lifted it:

Top Ten Anagrams for "Defense of Marriage Act"

10. Free! Free! Satanic dogma!
9. America's negated offer
8. Fanatics referee dogma
7. Fear of Satanic emerged
6. Farce of a disagreement
5. I fear act of same-gender
4. Deceit of free anagrams
3. A farce of it: same-gender
2. A. Gore fancies mate Fred
1. Fear decrease of mating



I wonder if these are computer generated or does someone have more time than I.

Today on Bilerico: "Go Ahead. Step Over That Line"

My response to this will appear this morning on Bilerico:

Dear FT,

About 10 years ago I met a guy.  He was in on business from another state and asked me out.  We went out a few times before he went home, and we had incredible chemistry.  Things didn't work out, and he broke it off with me.  I can't help it, but I still think of him from time to time.  I got married to another man, and had 2 children.  I love my husband, but I feel I am falling out of love with him.  It's lack of communication, and everytime we do talk, it escalates into an argument.  I always feel I have to walk on eggshells around him.  

Recently I contacted this old flame.  I know I shouldn't of, but I did.  He is starting to flirt with me, giving me that attention I crave, and I like it.  He has mentioned me coming out to see him, and I have thought about it-that is if I could get away with no problems, which is impossible.  I sometimes feel the only way I can find true closure is if I sleep with him.  I feel these thoughts are really corrupting with my life.  I know I should just break it off, but deep down I don't want to.  I have so many mixed emotions.  Please help. Tani

Marriage Equality Fails in New York

Today the New York Senate voted down gay marriage 38 to 24.

I think gay activists need to regroup and study what happened not only in New York but in California and Maine. It isn't simply a matter of more money and better ads. The entire battle needs to be reframed and recast. Losing may be enlightening.

Turn a Roll Down Gate into a Thing of Beauty

The NY Times invites its readers to spruce up these two roll down metal gates. Twenty minutes later I sent them these two "afters" to their two "befores":

Update: Here are some of the ones the NYT has chosen to highlight.

World AIDS Day vigil in Wilton Manors Florida

At The World AIDS Day candlelight vigil in Wilton Manors earlier tonight, Broward County's recently selected first openly gay mayor, Ken Keechl, who lost his first companion to AIDS, addresses the crowd.

Today The Ocean Said

The Cupboard is Bare

Last week, I took this picture of the kitchen next to my office to illustrate for my husband the temptation I am up against on a daily basis in my delightful one-week-per-month workplace.

Alas, that temptation has been removed. The boss had a Friday afternoon chat with me about the budget for the coming year. A budget in which I do not appear. Part-timers are always the first to go in a time of tightening fiscal constraints.

Our discussion was cordial and sentimental. I reaffirmed that I have enjoyed every second I've spent at this office. I reminded him that I had not been looking for work when the offer was made and that his guess that I have a full life outside of work is more than mildly accurate. The office holiday party next month will be my last day with the finest group of folks one could imagine as co-workers.

This curious little boutique blog was the reason for that job. Could it happen again? Be forewarned all ye who have need for a writer/editor. I am fond of bouncing back and forth between NYC and Fort Lauderdale with tidal governance. I don't much cotton to wearing a tie. Most of all, I am a man who is extremely conscious of time and the setting of good priorities and the expedient and diplomatic solving of the problems of others. Also, I tend to make what I do look easy, so I'm a pleasant au revoir when you decide you can do without me.

Have you chocolate? Let's talk.

I am amazed that I have had my part-time NYC job for two years. It felt like five minutes.