Jeremy Hooper's Blog, page 291

Report: Modern-day Peggy Olsons know LGBT people buy things

Here's a really great AP report about the powerful inclusivity we're now seeing in American advertisements:

SNIP: "They're no longer just targeting gay and lesbian people. They're targeting people like my mom, who want to know that a company embraces and accepts their gay and lesbian family members, friends and neighbors," said Rich Ferraro, a spokesman for the media watchdog group the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD).

FULL PIECE: Ads out of closet, into mainstream with gay t...

NOM's Roback Morse: My verbatim audio was 'mischaracterized'; Clementi family should meet me

Responding to her controversial remarks about the late Tyler Clementi, the National Organization For Marriage and its top surrogate, Jennifer Roback Morse, continue the familiar pattern of not taking responsibility for anything:

San Diego, CA — Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse, President of the Ruth Institute issued the following statement today: "The media and activists groups are mischaracterizing my remarks, in which I urged students to befriend gay students, and also urged them all to adhere to t...

Today in overdue milestones: Chattanooga chooses first openly gay officeholder

Great news from my home state:

Victory Fund endorsee Chris Anderson made history Tuesday night when he became the first openly gay candidate to win election in Chattanooga, Tenn. Anderson beat a two-term incumbent to represent City Council District 7.


Gay man elected to Chattanooga, Tenn. City Council [Victory Fund Gay Politics blog]

NOM engages pastor who prayed for President Obama's death

Wiley Drake is extremely anti-gay. The Southern Baptist pastor is known for two prominent campaigns he waged during the mid-'90s: [1]Leading the charge against Disney in the mid-'90s (Drake wrote the resolution calling for an anti-gay boycott) and [2] Heading the campaign against openly gay ambassador James Hormel.

However, while his extremely anti-LGBT views are clear, what Mr. Drake is most known for are his "imprecatory prayers." Imprecatory prayers, for those not in the know, are prayers...

Talk show host Janet Mefferd warns of 'huge unforeseen situation' connected to marriage equality; uses 9/11 allegory

After scoffing at the Obama administration's support for marriage equality, far-right talk show host Janet Mefferd proceeded to warn her listeners of all the unforeseen havoc that will befall our more equal nation. "Not necessarily a terrorist act," she clarifies—but something. Listen in:

[SOURCE: Janet Mefferd; 3/4/13]

So what you're basically saying, Janet, is that life and its potential for both good and ill will continue to happen? Wow, terrifying.

Boy Scouts still have ban, no longer have bands

For its National Scout Jamboree, the Boy Scouts of America booked the ban train and the pop star Carly Rae Jepsen. Oops:

Train refuse to play Boy Scout event unless ban on gay scouts is lifted [NBC News]

Carly Rae Jepsen Backs Out of Boy Scouts Jamboree Over Gay Ban [Towleroad]

Pat Boone might be available.

Illinois Family Institute vs. 'abhorrent' gays, incest, Zumba

Laurie Higgins' latest denunciation of marriage equality in her home state of Illinois is so chock full of obvious animus, it's hard to pick a proper snippet. There's this, in which the Illinois Family Institute's senior researcher decries young people's acceptance of their gay friends:

From birth our young people hear one monolithic cultural message about issues related to homosexuality. Our children are powerfully affected by the demagogic images and narratives to which they are exposed, and...

NOM confuses ability to extend an invite with actual support

The National Organization For Marriage's "March For Marriage" Facebook page is stale. Our two-week-younger pro-equality page has been outpacing it for weeks, currently standing at about 1,300 LIKES above the NOM effort. Plus there are even questions about the support NOM does have, since the most popular city connected to their U.S.-centered "march" page is listed as Paris, France.

Bottom line: NOM's social media effort is flailing. So what do they do? Well, in true NOM fashion, the staffers a...

Audio: NOM's Roback Morse repeats belief that gays are to be chaste, live non-sexual lives

If you believe the lie that the National Organization for Marriage is only about marriage, you are not listening to what it's own senior employees are saying:

"What I would hope for for that person would be a lifetime of chaste friendships"

[SOURCE: Catholic Answers Live, 3/4/13]

Natl Religious Broadcasters head: DOMA defense 'not looking terribly good'

Tony Perkins remains "optimistic." But it's the President and CEO of the National Religious Broadcasters, Frank Wright, who speaks the truth that's being whispered around far-right circles: DOMA is likely DONE.

[SOURCE: Washington Watch w/ Tony Perkins; 3/4/13]