Friday, August 5, 2011

I received this from a close friend, and believe it to be true

Despite the negatives flooding the airwaves and our lives, the good in all of us shall come out and form a cover to protect us and those around us.  Positives will win.

A Spiritual Conspiracy

On the surface of the world right now there is war and violence and things seem dark. 

But calmly and quietly, at the same time, something else is happening underground. 

An inner revolution is taking place and certain individuals are being called to a higher light. It is a silent revolution. From the inside out. From the ground up. This is a Global operation... A spiritual conspiracy. 

There are sleeper cells in every nation on the planet. You won't see us on the T.V. You won't read about us in the newspaper. You won't hear about us on the radio. We don't seek any glory. We don't wear any uniform. We come in all shapes and sizes, colors and styles.

Most of us work anonymously. We are quietly working behind the scenes in every country and culture of the world. Cities big and small, mountains and valleys, in farms and villages, tribes and remote islands. You could pass by one of us on the street and not even notice. We go undercover. We remain behind the scenes. It is of no concern to us who takes the final credit. But simply that the work gets done.

Occasionally we spot each other in the street. We give a quiet nod and continue on our way. During the day many of us pretend we have normal jobs. But behind the false storefront at night is where the real work takes a place. Some call us the 'Conscious Army'. We are slowly creating a new world with the power of our minds and hearts. We follow, with passion and joy. Our orders are from the Central Spiritual Intelligence. We are dropping soft, secret love bombs when no one is looking.

Poems - Hugs - Music - Photography - Movies - Kind words - Smiles - Meditation and prayer - Dance - Social activism - Websites - Blogs - Random acts of kindness.

We each express ourselves in our own unique ways with our own unique gifts and talents. 'Be the change you want to see in the world.' That is the motto that fills our hearts. We know it is the only way real transformation takes place. We know that quietly and humbly we have the power of all the oceans combined.

Our work is slow and meticulous. Like the formation of mountains. It is not even visible at first glance. And yet with it entire tectonic plates shall be moved in the centuries to come.

Love is the new religion of the 21st century. You don't have to be a highly educated person. Or have any exceptional knowledge to understand it. It comes from the intelligence of the heart. Embedded in the timeless evolutionary pulse of all human beings.

Be the change you want to see in the world. Nobody else can do it for you.

We are now recruiting. Perhaps you will join us. Or already have.... All are welcome... The door is open.

~Author Unknown

---

Bal wrote: "Thanks , the author is Brian Piergrossi. http://www.facebook.com/l/PAQCQXVeh/brianpiergrossi.com/"

Quote of the Day:

"Life's work is to wake up, to let the things that enter into the circle wake you up rather than put you to sleep. The only way to do this is to open, be curious, and develop some sense of sympathy for everything that comes along, to get to know its nature and let it teach you what it will."

- Pema Chödrön from her book, The Wisdom of No Escape

Zinnia advisory: Please update your invective

Via JMG: Last Known Gay Surivor Of The Nazis' Concentration Camps Dies At Age 98

Rudolf Brazda, believed to be the last known gay survivor of the Holocaust, has died at the age of 98.
Brazda was sent to the Nazis’ Buchenwald concentration camp in August 1942 and held there until its liberation by U.S. forces in 1945. Nazi Germany declared homosexuality an aberration that threatened the German race, and convicted some 50,000 homosexuals as criminals. An estimated 10,000 to 15,000 gay men were deported to concentration camps, where few survived. When a memorial to the Nazis’ gay victims was unveiled in Berlin in 2008, the LSVD said the last ex-prisoner that it knew of had died three years earlier. But the group said it was then contacted by Brazda, who visited the memorial at its invitation and became an honorary member. Brazda was born in 1913. He grew up in the eastern German town of Meuselwitz and repeatedly ran into trouble with Nazi authorities over his homosexuality before being sent to Buchenwald.
Earlier this year Brazda was named a knight in France's Legion of Honor.


reposted from Joe

Via JMG: Return To Sender


(Courtesy of JMG reader Craig)

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reposted from Joe

Via JMG: NOM Is Astroturfing Facebook


According to NOM defector Louis Marinelli, NOM is paying people to plant anti-equality comments on Facebook pages.
As social media manager for the National Organization for Marriage, Louis J. Marinelli, the then 24-year-old behind the "Protect Marriage: One Man, One Woman" page, was asked to put together a "SWAT team" of people to comment in favor of NOM's content and opinions. "There was a system where we would track what they did and they would accumulate points.... We were working on a program where they would redeem those points for prizes," said Marinelli. The group also planned to create media teams in key 2012 election states who would be asked to take online actions as well as attend events or write letters to editors, according to Marinelli. When he resigned on April 7, he said about 15 people were on the online astroturf team.
The author of the above-linked story says that NOM has refused multiple requests to comment on the issue.


reposted from Joe

GLEE AYH 2011 7 CDO BTY converted

Via JMG: Log Cabin Denounces NOM's Hate Pledge


Radio silence from GOProud, of course.


reposted from Joe

Via JMG: Billboard Of The Day


(Source)


reposted from Joe

MSNBC - Brian Brown Vs. John Lewis On NOM's GOP Anti-Gay Marriage Pledge

Via Gay Politics Report:

  • Anti-LGBT group wields clout in 2012 race for the White House
    The American Family Association is influencing presidential politics ahead of the 2012 elections, despite having leaders who have said the Nazi party was created by homosexuals and that Muslims should be prevented from becoming American citizens, according to this article. The association has hosted several Republican presidential candidates on its radio show, and is underwriting a prayer gathering organized by Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who is considering a presidential run. "Many Republican candidates see no shame in lending credibility to the extremism and bigotry on [the group's] radio shows," said Peter Montgomery of People for the American Way. The New York Times (tiered subscription model) (8/3) LinkedInFacebookTwitterEmail this Story
  • U.S. tribe legalizes marriage for same-sex couples
    The Suquamish tribal council, based in Washington state, has voted unanimously to allow same-sex couples to marry. "It is part of our tradition and our culture to be inclusive, to accept people who may be different," said an attorney for the tribe, explaining that the vote was not controversial. Google/Agence France-Presse (8/4) LinkedInFacebookTwitterEmail this Story
  • N.J. gay couple separated by arrest, deportation
    A New Jersey gay couple who had entered into an official civil union have been separated after an immigration agent tracked down one of the men -- a Peruvian national who had overstayed his visa. Unlike straight married couples, gays and lesbians cannot sponsor their foreign partners for naturalization in the U.S. because the Defense of Marriage Act bars recognition of their legal relationships. Daily News (New York) (8/4) LinkedInFacebookTwitterEmail this Story
  • National psychology group backs marriage equality
    A policymaking body of the American Psychological Association has voted unanimously to approve a resolution supporting marriage rights for same-sex couples. Some say the move could have a big impact on the political debate surrounding the issue. USA TODAY (8/5) LinkedIn

Via Gay Politics Report: Romney, Bachmann and Santorum sign new marriage pledge

Republican presidential candidates Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum and Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., have signed a new pledge to oppose marriage equality, support a federal marriage amendment and restrict their judicial nominations to judges who disagree that gay and lesbian couples have a constitutional right to marry. The pledge, put forward by the National Organization for Marriage, also says signers promise to establish a presidential commission to investigate claims that marriage-equality opponents are being harassed or threatened.  

CBS News

From My wonderful US Senator:

United States Senate
Dear Dr. Orey:
Thank you for contacting me to express your support for efforts to repeal the discriminatory Defense Of Marriage Act (DOMA).  I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue, and I share your opposition to DOMA.
The Defense of Marriage Act has nothing to do with defending marriage - all it does is discriminate against millions of Americans by denying them equal treatment under the law.  It is long past time to repeal this unjust law and start treating all our families with the dignity and respect they deserve.
I am proud to be an original co-sponsor of S.598, the Respect for Marriage Act of 2011.  This bill would repeal DOMA and establish equal rights for all lawfully married couples - including more than 18,000 legally married same-sex couples in California - and allow them to receive federal marriage benefits.
S.598 has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.  Be assured that I will work with my colleagues to pass this important bill and see it signed into law.
Again, thank you for writing to me.  Please feel free to contact me again about any issue of importance to you.

Sincerely,

Barbara Boxer
United States Senator

Zinnia advisory: Please update your invective

Via Kate Clinton: Puppet Time

Via AmericablogGay: A reminder of what an extreme flip-flopper Mitt Romney is


As noted earlier, Mitt Romney signed NOM's hate-the-gays pledge today. It's a viciously homophobic document. 

One reason people don't like and don't trust Romney is that he'll say anything to win. He's a big phony -- and a wicked flip-flopper. His positions on gay issues are a vivid example of that.
See, Mitt used to love the gays. From the Boston Globe today:

Romney has opposed gay marriage in his presidential campaigns both this year and in 2008. But he said in his 1994 Senate campaign against Democrat Edward Kennedy that he would be a greater advocate for gay rights than Kennedy.

Better than Ted. That's quite a standard. We wrote a lot about Mitt's flip-flopping during the 2008 campaign, but it's such an extreme shift in position that's it worth repeating. And, it wasn't just back in 1994. Mitt courted the gays in 2002. Here's a post John wrote in November of 2006:
This just in from the Boston Globe:

When he ran against Ted Kennedy for the Senate in 1994, Romney wrote a letter to the Massachusetts Log Cabin Club, pledging that as "we seek to establish full equality for American gay and lesbian citizens, I will provide more effective leadership than my opponent." During that same campaign, Romney was accused of once describing gay people as "perverse." In response, Romney's campaign vehemently denied that he used the word "perverse" and said that he respected "all people regardless of their race, creed, or sexual orientation."

While running for governor in 2002, Romney and his running mate, Kerry Healey, distributed pink fliers at a Gay Pride parade, declaring "Mitt and Kerry wish you a great Pride weekend." He backed domestic partner benefits for public employees, winning the endorsement of the national Log Cabin Republicans. In his inaugural speech, he promised to defend civil rights "regardless of gender, sexual orientation, or race."

As governor, he appointed openly gay and lesbian people to high-profile administration positions. He doubled the budget line item for the Governor's Commission on Gay and Lesbian Youth, until he tried to disband it last May -- more political theater for the Republican right.
So, Romney was a big gay-lover just until the last two years when he decided he needed the religious right gay-haters in order to become president. Typical, pathetic Republican. They are a party that no longer believes in anything.

Yeah, Mitt used to love the gays. But, that was then, Now, he really, really wants the right-wing homophobes to vote for him. So, Mitt hates the LGBT community.

To paraphrase, Mitt was for the gays before he was against them.