Committee to Protect Journalists and Reporters without Borders, two groups committed to the freedom of journalists abroad, have called on the Iraqi government to free Adel Hussein, who was found guilty of violating "public custom" for publishing an article about homosexuality in April 2007 in the independent weekly Hawlati.
Said Reporters without Borders: "Sexual practices are part of the individual freedoms that a democratic state is supposed to promote and protect. Furthermore, Hussein did not defend homosexuality. He limited himself to describing a form of behaviour from a scientific viewpoint."
CPJ reports: "The sentence handed down was based on ...
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Dr. Daniel J. Kliman, "an Alameda physician and one of the Bay Area's foremost pro-Israel activists," died after apparently plunging seven floors down an elevator shaft in the nine-story Sharon Building at 55 New Montgomery St. in San Francisco. The elevator was out of commission at the time and nobody is quite clear how it happened.
"Kliman, 38, lived near the temple in Oakland and was perhaps best known as co-founder of S.F. Voice for Israel, a 4-year-old organization that vociferously demonstrates on behalf of Israeli causes. He also maintained a practice in Alameda as a doctor of internal medicine ... Flag post
The WSJ reports:
"For the rainbow cabinet of the nation’s first African American president, Mary Beth Maxwell is the perfect labor secretary you’ve probably never heard of: a gay woman, community organizer and labor leader with an adopted African American son. And this founding executive director of American Rights at Work is about to get the full-court press....Some labor leaders from both the AFL-CIO and Change to Win, a splinter union group led by the Service Employees International Union, back her as a consensus choice, citing her efforts on behalf of legislation to allow unionization at workplaces with the signing ... Flag post Flag post
American folk singer and civil rights icon Odetta has died at 77, of heart disease:
"Odetta sang at coffeehouses and at Carnegie Hall, made highly influential recordings of blues and ballads, and became one of the most widely known folk-music artists of the 1950s and ’60s. She was a formative influence on dozens of artists, including Bob Dylan, Joan Baez and Janis Joplin. Her voice was an accompaniment to the black-and-white images of the freedom marchers who walked the roads of Alabama and Mississippi and the boulevards of Washington in the quest to end racial discrimination. Rosa Parks, the woman ... Flag post
Last May, I posted about University of Toledo associate vice president of human resources Crystal Dixon, who was suspended after writing an article in the Toledo Free Press slamming gays. Later that month, UT decided to fire her.
Said Dixon in the article, "As a Black woman ... I take great umbrage at the notion that those choosing the homosexual lifestyle are civil rights victims. I cannot wake up tomorrow and not be a Black woman. Daily thousands of homosexuals make a life decision to leave the gay lifestyle."
She concluded: "My final and most important point. There is ... Flag post
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Here's another shot of the recent Venus-Jupiter-Moon conjunction as it appeared from the Mt. Wilson Observatory overlooking L.A. just after sunset on Friday night. If you missed it, our earlier post, which includes some video from Australia. Larger shot here.
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The current issue of Rolling Stone has posted its Prop 8 article online, which takes to task the "No on 8" campaign for its failure to anticipate that it had a major opponent in the Mormon church and criticizes its strategies both on the ground, and on the air.
An excerpt:
"But evidence of entrenched homophobia and religious intolerance obscure a more difficult truth. Prop 8 should have been defeated — two months before the election, it was down 17 points in the polls — but the gay-rights groups that tried to stop it ran a lousy campaign. According to ... Flag post
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Hairspray composer Marc Shaiman (whose boycott lead to the resignation of Sacramento's California Musical Theatre creative director Scott Eckern following his donation to Prop 8) wrote and conceived this hysterical short piece (presented with a wink and a nod by the 'Sacramento Community College Players'), which was directed and staged by Hairspray director and choreographer Adam Shankman and features plenty of folks you will recognize.
Shaiman plays the piano. Jordan Ballard, Margaret Cho, Barrett Foa, J.B. Ghuman, John Hill, Andy Richter, Maya Rudolph, Rashad Naylor, Nicole Parker star as 'California Gays and The People That Love Them'. John C ... Flag post
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Jog your memory fiercely.Really work those mnemonic muscles.Remember that early bird Best Actress Oscar prediction contest "Actress Psychic"? Well the point totals are finally here. I had some spreadsheet difficulties but it's now done with a little less than 2 months to go before the contest ends. Once Oscar nominations are announce I award gold, silver and bronze medals for the most psychic of all TFE readers. Rich Aunt Pennybags, Patrick T, JarJar K and Ben F are tied for first place so far.So here are the points amassed since the contest began...Anne Hathaway Rachel ... Flag post
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