this is fyf

Let's start talking about The Mormon Agenda, shall we?

When the Mormons attacked us via Prop 8 in California, they demonized gays in media assaults preying on the fears of people who are easily influenced by those types of things.  Now that "one of theirs" is running for President, where are our "Mormons are freakshows" advertisements?  Seriously, they declared war on us, and we're letting this battle go without screaming to the hills that Mitt Romney is a lunatic in crazypeople magic underpants?  It's time to end this war with concise victory.

Isn't it time to use one of their own weapons against them?  The ads in California featured massive doses of conjecture to stir up fears.  The dark shadow-voices of commercials would speak of The Homosexual Agenda.  

What about The Mormon Agenda?

• Will the Mormon Church rebaptize all deceased Americans as Mormons?
• Will Mormon schools receive more funding than traditional Christian schools?
• Your Children will have to learn about Mormonism in school.
• Teachers will have to teach children about Mormonism.
• Do Mormons pledge allegiance to the flag?
• Mormonism claims there are prophets living today.  Who are these prophets and does Mitt Romney consult with them?
• Who are these Mormon Prophets that Romney follows?
• Who are Anne Romney's sister wives?
• Have we seen an actual Marriage Certificate from the Romneys?
• Why have we forgotten that Mormons once declared war on the United States of America?  (No, really, why have we?)

What do we really know about these Mormons, anyway?  

That's the only question to which we really need to lead.  Is this tactic "insensitive" or "mean"?  Is it really less moral to demonize a lifestyle choice (religion) than a genetic attribute (sexual orientation)?  No, it's not, so don't seeing it as stooping to their level; see it as looking a combatant squarely in the eye.

Why the Gingrich win in South Carolina is incredibly important to gay people.

I'm a polical news junkie and sure this isn't a political site, but having read the polical sites (becuase it's freezing out and the gym can wait, right?)  Anyway, the story that I don't see out there is this:

Evangelical leaders, the talking heads that you constantly hear lambasting "the homosexual lifestyle" united in calling for the election of Rick Santorum.  The James Dobson's and the Gary Bauer's of the world for years now have continually slammed gay people in a never-ending campaign that is financed in an effort by horrible people like the Koch Brothers to influence people to vote against their best interests by use hate, fear and division.  Their access to and influence of their audience has made them rich and given their extreme voices throughout mainstream media.

Image via cnn.com

South Carolina was a rebuke to their leadership of their supposed flock.  The "Leadership" endorsed Santorum.  Voters identifying as "Evangelical Christians" reported a majority voting for Newt Gringrich.  Second amongst them was Romney.  The endorsed Santorum barely pulled one-fifth of their votes.

Assuming the Koch brothers and others have been funding these blathering blowhards based on influence and not confluence and further assuming that as businessmen they expect a return on investment, this mighty rebuke should mean less funding for the "leaders".  Assuming news operations take note of their lack of leadership and note that their "Q Factor" is now a negative to their audiences, we should see a decrease in coverage.  South Carolina is the turning point were the misleading hateful voices that have been vilifying gay people for years now will begin to be muted.  The end of the Religious Right is now.  Good riddance.

Fireworks on 9/11...

...make as much sense as clergy at the memorial service:

"Is that an explosion?"

"No, it's a fireworks display the night before 9/11 with the City on high alert due to a "credible threat of terrorism"."

--

"Is that an Imam preaching hate and bigotry?"

"No, it's a Pastor."

--

The fireworks did happen - the night before - at least in my little corner of Brooklyn, but I'm glad the city stood firm against the demands of demagogues looking for a stage.

I think you may be taking "God works in mysterious ways" a little too literally, David Tyree.

Akin to praying that God let "the Tigers" - or whichever team you're rooting for - win before a game, David Tyree's assertion that God played a direct role in causing him to make a spectacular catch (albeit one he'd trained his entire life to make) three years ago during a Super Bowl so that he may now serve as a spokesperson against gay marriage is a bit of a stretch.

Not as big a stretch as his catch (below), but a stretch, nonetheless.

If that's God's plan for David...what's Her/His plan for you? Best use of specious reasoning and implausible connections in their own lives to show "the hand of God" wins an ice cream (or two!?) on FYF. Leave yours in the comments, now!

Do you have to be a woman to represent women?

...Or Muslim to represent Muslims?

This graph detailing the racial, gender (or external sex characteristics so far as we know, anyway), religious and political ideology makeup of the United States House of Representatives begs this question.

Although I sympathize with the intent of graphing the relative diversity of the House (presupposing the lack of racial diversity found is the result of the continuing sequestering of power in the hands of Caucasian, Protestant men...or just Caucasian men, period.), I question the assumption that its lack inheres a lack of proper representation for those races, genders and beliefs not present in the appropriate proportions as well as question the underlying belief that a particular race, gender or belief cannot be considered adequately and respectfully by a person of differing race, gender or belief as part of his or her role representing a region that may include a wide variety of races, genders and beliefs.

Interestingly, calculations of relative wealth are not included in this graph.

Side note: While the original post seeks to highlight the lack of racial diversity in the House when compared with the U.S.'s population's racial diversity, the greatest discrepancies between actual and reflective are in the area of religious beliefs. Which begs a whole OTHER question (begged again and again?!): Why all these religious zealots ruling the land?

Also? Love the Talking Heads reference.

Free Manhunt for New Yorkers this weekend. You know...For the end times!

Everybody is throwing an "End of the World" party May 21.

They look like a fun bunch don't they?  Well, they're making for a fun time on May 21.  See, a multi-millionaire radio broadcaster Harold Camping has announced on his multi-million dollar radio network Family Radio that two things will happen on May 21:

1) A great earthquake that will throw open all graves, resurrecting all believers.
2) All non-believers will be "thrown upon the ground to be shamed".

Some folks are into being thrown upon the ground and being shamed though, so they made the choice to party like it's the end of the world.  For example, there will be the Dance Parade that night, the Cherylites will be throwing a dance party exhibition with The Whitney, and DJs Ron Like Hell and Ryan Smith have something up their sleeves too.

Everyone will be getting worked up about this.  Seriously, this multi-millionaire has billboards and bumper stickers, so you know it's real!  And you know it will get lots of news play because, well, it's an easy story and most reporters are lazy.

FYF is into it too, so we've set up our own End of the World party central board on Facebook.  Join in for all the end times fun, fun, fun and invite all your friends!

What Ugandans really need to know. (Hint: It STILL isn't fisting.)

Reminded today of the galling video of Chairman of the Ugandan National Task Force Against Homosexuality and rabidly anti-gay (to reiterate) Martin Ssempa's "educational" sessions by Lady Bunny's post of the clever, if still disturbing when you remember what it is, remix of that video, I was again left wondering what possible purpose this "education" of Ugandans served. Were they a nation of "budding" fisters (Oh god!)? Was there rampant "drive-by fisting" occurring on the streets of Kampala against which the average citizen needed to be armed (HA!...I say again, HA!)?

But seriously. Nevermind the high rate of illiteracy among females, or the lack of adequate facilities and the poor quality of primary education in Northern Uganda. No, nevermind those real educational needs, this man needs to be able to show gay porn in Ugandan churches.

If it weren't in such poor taste, this whole thing'd be soooo FUCKING rich!

The Pope and the Acrobats - You'd think it was a Terry Gilliam movie.

I'm sure there're those who consider the Bible unsanitary, too.

Certainly, visitors carrying the Holy Book into foreign countries in the past can be accused of wreaking havoc on a scale in keeping with any catastrophe the FDA might be hoping to avoid in restricting the above?

Just a thought presented to hopefully raise a question in the reader's mind along these lines: What makes Biblical beliefs more or less valid than the beliefs held by the person carrying the above "religious paraphernalia"? Also, what does it say about our culture that one belief system is seen as more "logical" and less superstitious than the other?

Photo of contents of man's baggage confiscated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials upon his arrival in the U.S. at Washington-Dulles Airport.

Male prostitutes adorn the walls of The Vatican in the paintings of Michaelangelo.

"The muscular figures in Michelangelo's Last Judgment fresco in the Sistine Chapel were based on male prostitutes he encountered in homosexual bathhouses and brothels" - The Telegraph brings forward claims of an Italian art historian that the gigantic painting that took four years to complete is "replete with homosexual imagery, including a man being dragged into Damnation by his testicles and kisses and embraces between male figures." (Click here to explore the subjects close up.) h/t: Christopher Conry

Take a sexy romp through the Stations of the Cross with Cocksnaut and Paul Short.

The problem with religion is that it just isn't fun or sexy enough.  Mister Paul Short set out to solve that at this week's SPIT party at Rush.  Themed as "Heroes and Villains of the Bible" (yes, really) the party featured the debut of this untitled Cocksnaut film.  Sort of sexy romp through the Stations of the Cross, the film features some faces (and crotches) that may be familiar to you as shot in the exotic Holy Land known as Paul Short's back yard.  

(Please note that FYF is not responsible for electrical damage caused by lightening striking your computer while viewing this.)

Welcome to the Church of Slayer.

Mashing up the music of Slayer and others with church-folk speaking in tongues and possessed with "the spirit of the Lord" or whathaveyou is the genius of the Baptasia.  They use dancehall, metal, and techno in combination with head-banging, high-stepping, hair-swinging Christians to create mesmerizing video.  A full collection can be found here.

Religious questions? Ask an atheist.

A new poll shows that the people with the most religious knowledge are atheists and agnostics:

A majority of Protestants, for instance, couldn't identify Martin Luther as the driving force behind the Protestant Reformation, according to the survey, released Tuesday by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. Four in 10 Catholics misunderstood the meaning of their church's central ritual, incorrectly saying that the bread and wine used in Holy Communion are intended to merely symbolize the body and blood of Christ, not actually become them.

God hates the Qur'an for being a fag day.

No further comment necessary really.  

Video is post-jump.  (Via Sullivan)

More "Ground Zero Mosque"...uh...musings?

(We'd like to think the artist was inspired by FYF, but it's QUITE safe to assume that's a wild exaggeration of our influence.)

Seems like - at this point - there's little left to be said on the topic that will sway anyone one way or the other (doesn't mean we're gonna shut up about it. Clearly.). New Yorkers are complaining of "mosque fatigue" and yet more and more leaders are coming out with statements regarding their view on the project, while the media continues to stoke the fires creating all the hot air on both sides of the issue.

Here at FYF, all we ask is for people to show some discernment. Be introspective a moment. What is this really about? Is it about your safety? Is it about our "National" pride? Is it about propriety and manners? Sensitivity? Is it about education and tolerance? Is it about ideology and principle?

Problem is, it seems like discernment has gone the way of Compact Discs. Polls (why we're still giving any weight to poll results is a topic for another time) show a significant percentage (37%) of respondents disapprove of President Obama's stance on the Islamic center, yet - as this article points out - we're not entirely sure where he stands on the issue?! Then there's the whole Post/Newt cabal spewing (scarily sane-sounding) insanity you would hope no one would accept at face value (then again, what source can we trust these days? Journalism's pretty much traded its credentials for ad revenue after Bloggers and Tweeters got between "good reporting" and the feed trough, hasn't it?)

We just want you to think...ideally, for yourselves. Put down the Crackberry and the iFun. Step out of hearing of the idiot box. Swivel around in your desk chair from the time-sucking internet and think. Think about what this little construction project in Lower Manhattan actually is, vs. what it stands for. Think about what it stands for, for you...and why. Think about assumptions being made about the story and about the organization and about Islam, in general, and try to tease out any you're making in your assessment of why this building is or isn't something that should happen.

Think. It's not so tough once you get going...

Some things (that might) help, after the jump.

"Ground Zero Mosque" bothering you? How about the "Ground Zero Strip Club", "Ground Zero OTB", and "Ground Zero Gay Sex Party"?

The "Ground Zero Mosque" - the one that is blocks away from Ground Zero at the location of a former Burlington ("It's moooore than great coats!") Coat Factory - only wins the war when journalists allow the Sarah Plains of the world to repeat the misnomer "Ground Zero Mosque".  Let's be clear: Ground Zero is the gaping hole that has yet to be filled in after the terrorist attacks of almost nine years ago.  It does not encompass the area radiating out several blocks, surrounding the former World Trade Center site.

If, however, you're going to call those blocks nearby "Ground Zero", and come up with names like "Ground Zero Mosque" then you should be required to discuss some other "Ground Zero" sites.

• The Ground Zero Strip Club
  
  
  From their own website: "The number one Gentlemen's Club in NYC since 1969. We have a wide selection of drinks and our loving ladies will give you unforgettable striptease dance! There is also private room available for the lap dance." Convenient to the World Trade Center at only three blocks away, I'm fine with it.  But shouldn't the "hallowed ground" crowd have a problem with it?


• The Ground Zero OTB
  
  
  Just two blocks from the former World Trade Center (you can see WTC-Seven being rebuilt in the distance from this old shot) the OTB allows bettors to wager on horse races without going to the tracks. Again, no problem by me, but not exactly "hallowed ground" is it?


• The Ground Zero Gay Sex Party

Their address won't go up here because I don't want them to have trouble, but the Baña parties also take place three blocks from Ground Zero.  With friends from Rentboy.com (which conservatives know well), the parties are good debauched dirty fun.  Where's the outrage, Sarah?

So, point being?  The area around Ground Zero has a diverse set of residents and businesses and has for years.  Despite the intentions of out-of-state interlopers and those they manipulate into fury, the area should continue to be diverse and welcoming of anything that wants to build there.

Aptly named, the "Tea Party" movement allows its "leaders" to have their cake and eat it, too.

As reported here previously, Sarah Plain's (yes I know how it's spelled) latest demagoguery aims to use a Muslim group's application for a permit to build an Islamic community center and mosque near (about two blocks from? maybe four...) Ground Zero to improve her standing as potential presidential candidate and bolster her popularity with the burgeoning (and bumpkin?) Tea Party movement.

At the same time, Republican politicians (arguably many with Tea Party sympathies, either ideologically, or out of a pragmatic desire to keep their office.) in the House voted down a bill to pay for the health care of those who suffer ill-health and potentially life-threatening medical conditions as a result of their exposure to asbestos and other harmful substances in the air at and around Ground Zero after the attack on the World Trade Center.

"Cart before the horse", "Can't see the forest for the trees" and all that, but mostly - wow, don't your words ring hollow Sarah Plain and (of all entities??) the American Defamation League!?!?

From what I understand, their collective reasoning for decrying the Muslim center is they feel it would be insensitive to the families of 9/11 victims having a mosque so close to the site of an attack by Muslim terrorists. Specious as this reasoning is (the mosque and its adherents almost certainly didn't have anything to do with the attack, despite sharing - ostensibly in name only - a common faith.), insensitivity/a lack of compassion for the victims is certainly what the Republicans and their bastard children, the Tea Partiers, are showing by voting not to take care of those victims who are still alive?!

Does this make ANY sense to anyone reading this??

The comment in the screenshot above is on a Gawker article regarding the Islamic center's announcement that it will include a memorial in its building for the victims of 9/11 and nearly perfectly captures my sentiments on the matter...not to mention sets visions of hot Puerto Rican/Italian cops dancing through my head.

Jesus is flaming...

They're gonna rebuild. Guess they missed that whole "graven images" thing? Via Gawker.

I Say a Little Prayer, Aretha Franklin, 1970

President Obama declared today a National Day of Prayer. I have no idea what this means (and don't bother to tell me, as don't like it when my President panders), but it made me think of this song. Maybe later today we'll put up some gospel house. Any requests? (Include a link, please?)