Box Turtle Bulletin

The Quiet Death of Uganda’s “Kill the Gays” Bill?

Uganda’s draconian Anti-Homosexuality Bill, which imposes life imprisonment on gay people, with the death penalty added under certain circumstances, was introduced in Parliament last fall. It was then sent to two Parliamentary committees for further review, namely the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee and the Presidential Affairs Committee. A month later, Uganda president Yoweri Museveni urged the Parliament to “go slow” on the bill, citing international outcry and the resulting foreign policy implications.

And slow it has certainly gone since then. When Parliament returned from recess in early February, the anti-gay bill was expected to be near the top of the agenda with passage expected in March and a presidential signature by Easter. But Easter has come and gone with no apparent action from either Parliamentary committee. AFP is now reporting that Members of Parliament say there is little enthusiasm for the bill and no time table has been set for its debate:

“I think it is useless and will not achieve what it intends to achieve,” said Alex Ndeezi, a member of the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee tasked with reviewing the bill before it can be presented to the house.

…The panel’s chairman Stephen Tashyoba said the draft law was not a priority. “As far as I am concerned, we really have more urgent matters to discuss like electoral reforms, which are already behind schedule,” he said.

Portugal’s supreme court approves same-sex marriage bill

The Portuguese supreme court had until today to approve or reject the same-sex marriage bill forwarded to them by the President. Today they have announced that it is not unconstitutional.

IOL Diario (Google translation)

The Constitutional Court Thursday gave this ‘green light’ to the law that allows marriage between same sex, whereas the norms sent by Ben to preventive control are constitutional, reports as saying.

Judge adviser Victor Gomes was the spokesperson for the ruling, which had eleven votes, of which seven presented the declaration to vote, and two dissenting opinions.

The constitution of Portugal has a clause supporting marriage but this was deemed not to be contradictory to including same-sex couples. (tvi 24 – Google translation)

The Constitutional Court held that “the extension of marriage to same-sex ‘is consistent with the recognition and protection of the family as” fundamental element of society, emphasizing that marriage is’ open concept’, which allows different political views.

In a memo distributed to the media after the public reading of the ruling on the request for preventive control of four rules of law that allows marriage between same-sex requested by the President read that the TC concludes that the legislative initiative ‘not violates the constitutional guarantee of marriage. ”

President Cavaco Silva now has until the 28th to approve or veto the bill. The legislature is believed to have adequate votes to override a veto.

Does Televangelist Joyce Meyer Support Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill?

That might be an odd question to ask. After all, televangelist Joyce Meyer isn’t known for getting involved with culture wars type stuff. My observations of what Meyer’s all about seems to jive pretty well with this Wikipedia entry:

Meyer frequently talks about overcoming obstacles and finding strength to deal with difficult circumstances. She shares her views on how to deal with everyday life situations, often drawing on her own experiences. Meyer speaks candidly and with a sense of humor, sharing with her audience her own shortcomings and taking playful jabs at stereotypical church behavior.

Building directory for Crown House in Kampala, home to Joyce Meyer Ministries' Uganda office in Suite 11. (Click to enlarge)

She’s also been criticized for her lavish lifestyle, but that’s not uncommon with contemporary televangelists, nor is it the point of this post which is this: Does she support Uganda’s draconian Anti-Homosexuality Bill?

There’s a good reason why I’m asking that question. According to Meyer’s web site, her Enjoying Everyday Life program broadcasts all over the world. BTB readers in Uganda report that Meyer enjoys tremendous popularity in that country, where her program is not only available over satellite television via South Africa, but is also broadcast over the air via Lighthouse Television (JPG: 460KB). LTV appears to be an affiliate of Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) headquartered in Costa Mesa, California. Joyce Meyer’s program airs on LTV three times every weekday, at 8:00 a.m., 4:30 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. (She also enjoys a fourth time slot on Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m. and Wednesdays at 4:30 a.m., and her program airs again on Sundays at 2:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.)

But Meyer’s presence in Uganda isn’t just from afar and over the airways. Her ministry also maintains a physical presence in Kampala, right there on the main road through the business district. A helpful BTB reader in Uganda sent these photos of her ministry, located at in Suite 11 of Crown House, located at Plot 4A on Kampala Road.

Joyce Meyer Ministries in Kampala, Uganda. (Click to enlarge)

In February, we asked another American evangelist who maintains a physical presence in Kampala, Andrew Wommack, whether he supported Uganda’s proposal to legislate gay people out of existence and criminalize their families, friends and acquaintances. The answer we got was a resounding and enthusiastic “yes!” — complete with a full-throated apologia from Wommack’s man in Uganda who repeated the same distortions about the bill that we’ve heard before and have disproved repeatedly.

When we wrote to Wommack’s ministry asking for their opinion on the bill, we also attempted to contact Joyce Meyer’s ministry as well but we received no response. We followed that up with further inquires this week, but again we’ve received nothing but silence.

As I said, Meyer is very popular in Uganda — popular enough to maintain a physical presence there. And she seems like a genuinely nice lady. Her latest book, Eat the Cookie, Buy the Shoes, is all about lightening up and not being too obsessed with some of the sillier rules in life. Saddleback Pastor Rick Warren likes to come across as a genuinely nice guy and he condemned Uganda’s proposed anti-gay bill by calling it “unjust, extreme and un-Christian toward homosexuals.” Exodus International, whose board member Don Schmierer participated in that “nuclear bomb” of a conference that sparked this legislation, eventually came around and denounced the bill. It’s what good people of conscience do, especially when they have a measure of popularity and influence in Uganda, and who have sought to reach ordinary people in that country — as Warren and Exodus have done, and Meyer does as well.

So why the silence? Where does she stand? Is she with Rick Warren, who came out firmly against criminalization of homosexuality? Or is she with Andrew Wommack, whose response was to say, in effect, that yes, his ministry really does support killing gay people?

As it happens, there may well be a chance for some of you to ask Joyce Meyer directly. Next week she will be on a whirlwind book tour, hitting five cities in three days. So here’s your chance. If you happen to live near any of these locations, you can go and ask her yourself. Does she support killing gay people? And more importantly, will she add her voice to those of Rick Warren and Exodus against the bill.

Meyer will appear at:

• April 13: Plano, TX: Legacy Books, 7300 Dallas Parkway, 12:00 noon.
• April 13: Tucson, AZ: Barnes & Noble, 5130 E. Broadway, 6:00 p.m.
• April 14: El Cajon, CA: Walmart, 13487 Camino Canada, 12:00 noon.
• April 14: Ontario (Rancho Cucamonga), CA: Borders Books & Music, 12370 South Mainstreet, 6:00 p.m.
• April 15: Concord, CA: Sam’s Club, 1225 Concord Ave., 12:00 noon.

Gay Activist Mulls Presidential Run?

That’s what this web site appears to show. And as a openly gay Republican, no less. Fred Karger, founder of Californians Against Hate, is a former campaign manager for numerous Republican candidates since 1977 until his retirement in 2004. Since then, he has been very active in LGBT causes in California, particularly during the campaign to defeat Prop 8 in 2008. I don’t know how far he’ll get in the Republican primaries, but seeing him debate Sarah Palin and Mike Huckabee might be worth a donation or two.

What will LA’s new Cardinal selection mean for CA’s fight for marriage equality?

Los Angeles Cardinal Roger Mahony will retire in February, 2011, and the Catholic Church has just announced his replacement, Archbishop Jose Gomez of San Antonio. Considering that California will likely be voting again in 2012 on whether the state will recognize same-sex marriages, and considering the importance which the Holy See places on this issue, I doubt this move is unrelated.

As a Mexican native, Gomez will have a natural appeal and a greater sense of authority than had Mahony. And he could be a far more committed opponent of equality.

Cardinal Mahony was active in seeking Latino and other Catholic vote in favor of Proposition 8. Yet his was not the image of the initiative and his activism seemed more cursory than heartfelt. He opposed equality but not with ferocity.

This may, in part, be due to Mahony’s less rigid ideologies and his affiliation with the more moderate wing of the Church, one focused on advancing social good rather than upholding the dictates of Rome. Jose Gomez is cut from a different cloth. (LA Times)

During his six-year tenure atop the San Antonio archdiocese, Gomez emerged as a leading advocate for doctrinal conformity, determined to stave off what he saw as creeping secularism in the church.

He denounced one Catholic university when it invited then-Sen. Hillary Clinton to campus, because she favored abortion rights, and another when it invited a Benedictine nun, because she had advocated the ordination of women. Under his reign, a local Catholic high school ended its relationship with an organization that raised money to fight breast cancer, because the same organization gave grants to Planned Parenthood. After a 17-year-old lay advisory commission created by his predecessor suggested that gay marriage might be a human rights issue under one reading of the church’s teachings, Gomez disbanded the commission.

“The doors were closed for collaborative communication,” Mary Moreno, one commission member, said in an interview Tuesday. “We just got a letter. And when things are done like that, it kind of leaves a sting.”

Such hardline authoritarianism is natural considering his affiliation within the church. Gomez comes out of the conservative Opus Dei movement, one which frequently seems present when the Church lodges attacks the civil freedoms of non-Catholics, especially gays and lesbians.

And Gomez does believe in advancing his church’s agenda by means of the ballot box. In 2008 he wrote an op-ed in the San Antonio Express-News in which he said

Recently, the Express-News published its voter’s guide. It was a comprehensive listing of races and candidates running for office in November. I’m sure it was a helpful tool for many. I recognize it is challenging to make any voter’s guide comprehensive. However, the inclusion of the fundamental life issues for pursuit of the common good would have made the publication a more complete, accurate and useful tool at this critical time.

People need to know the positions of the candidates on the key issues that protect the right to life such as abortion, euthanasia, embryonic stem cell research and capital punishment. Voters also would have been better served if they had been provided information about the candidates’ positions on the definition of marriage, the basic cell of society as a union between a man and a woman.

But Jose Gomez may find that being Cardinal in Los Angeles is quite different from being Archbishop in San Antonio. He’ll soon discover that California’s Latino Catholic politicians are socially liberal and will not fall in line to follow the Church’s anti-gay positions. It will be interesting to see to what extent the new Cardinal will seek to impose his will on the local political power structure. And it will be interesting to see whether Gomez’ support for immigrants (with which he shares ideology with local Catholic Latino politicians) will cause him to tread more lightly on those other issues with which he disagrees.

But in any case, I think that this move is likely to change the game in the next proposition battle. I suspect that Gomez will be much more aggressive in the Church’s campaign to impose its will on its neighbors.

Cardinals blame press coverage of pedophile priests on gay marriage

The Catholic Church has come up with a new way to blame their current problems with pedophile priests and institutional cover-ups on the gay community. Yes, they are still blaming the press, but now they’ve assigned the media a new motivation (telegraph):

The head of the Vatican City State’s government, Cardinal Giovanni Lajolo, also came to the defence of the Pope, condemning what he said was a campaign of “hatred against the Catholic Church.”

Another cardinal, Julian Herranz of Spain, said that the Pope’s opposition to gay marriage and abortion put him at odds with “powerful lobbies (which) would like to impose a completely different” agenda on the Church.

Yep. The only reason why the press cares about the kiddie-diddling priests is because of gay marriage. Un-huh, sure. See if that sells.

Ya know, if these Cardinals had cared about the children who were victims of predatory priests even one tiny fraction as much as they care about the Pope’s reputation, there never would have been a scandal.

The “Christian” response in Fulton

Why do so many gay people believe that Christians hate them? Perhaps this letter to the editor in Fulton, MS, about segregating and excluding a lesbian student will give us a clue:

Dear editor,

As pastor, board of deacons and members of Fairview Baptist Church, we wish to say we fully support our county superintendent of education Teresa McNeece, Itawamba County School Board members and school administrators in their stand on dress codes and immoral conduct.

Bro. Gene O’Brian
Pastor
Fairview Baptist Church

Or perhaps this one:

Dear editor,

The purpose of this letter is to commend the Itawamba County School Board and Superintendent of Education Teresa McNeece for the stand they have taken in the midst of the controversy surrounding this year’s IAHS prom. The policy of the school district was in place long before Constance McMillen decided to “assert her rights.” The majority of the headlines and news casts regarding this subject have blamed the school board and superintendent for trying to deny this girl her rights. However, that simply is not true. She has the same rights as every other student in our school district. They also blame the school board and superintendent for canceling the prom, but that blame lies completely with the homosexual activists and the ACLU.

Since this controversy began, there has been an outcry of support for the homosexual cause. Let us say that there are those of us who support the cause of Christ. Since Ms. McMillen chose to reference the Bible in support of her lifestyle choice, we felt compelled to set the record straight. Please be clear. This lifestyle is a choice. No one is “born that way.” As Ms. McMillen sat and held her Bible in one of her televised interviews, we wonder if she has read Leviticus 18:22 which reads, “Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is an abomination” and Romans 1:26-27 which reads, “For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: and likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet.” Other scriptures for reference include: 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, Genesis 19, Judges 19 & 20. We encourage Ms. McMillen and others to read the Bible for themselves. We believe that homosexuality is wrong, a perversion, and detrimental to society in general. Several years ago, this behavior was virtually unheard of and not all accepted by the vast majority. Now it is heralded as an alternate lifestyle. Sexual immorality of any kind should not be on public display in any arena and especially not in the school system.

We are all sinners, Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God,” but God’s abundant grace is free to all, Romans 10:13, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” When we come to Christ in repentance and faith, we come as we are, but we do not leave unchanged. God calls us to a higher standard of living. The “my way” and “I’ll live any way I choose” attitudes are replaced by “not my will but thine be done.” Clearly from the scriptures listed above, homosexuality is NOT God’s will.

It is not our intention to give the impression that we hate the homosexual community. We do not. We have a Christian love and concern for their souls. However, we could not sit in silence as if we agree with this behavior. Saying you are a homosexual and proud of it is one thing, but to imply that the Bible endorses it is foolish. We felt we had a responsibility to this and future generations to take a stand for the right. Ephesians 6:13 “… and having done all, to stand.”

If there are others in this county and elsewhere who are in agreement with our position on the matter, we invite you to stand with us. Write letters of your own, call senators and representatives and most of all, pray.

Concerned about our children,

Membership of Bethany Baptist Church
Oakland Community
Fulton

I will be overjoyed to quote any Fulton church that wants to refute these statements.

Dowd’s Vatican II Lunacy

Maureen Dowd decided to be the meek, obedient Catholic girl and let her devout brother analyze the Church’s sexual abuse problems. He diagnoses the problem from personal experience just fine:

When I was in the 7th grade, one of the new priests took four of us to the drive-in restaurant and suggested a game of ‘pink belly’ on the way back; we pulled up a boy’s shirt and slapped his belly until it was pink. When the new priest joined in, it seemed like more groping than slapping. But we thought it was inadvertent. And my parents never would have believed a priest did anything inappropriate anyway. A boy in my class told me much later that the same priest climbed into bed with him in 1958 at a rectory sleepover, but my friend threw him to the floor. The priest protested he was sleepwalking. Three days later, the archbishop sent the priest to a rehab place in New Mexico; he ended up as a Notre Dame professor.

But then in the very next sentence, he blamed Vatican II, whose “liberalized rules set up a takeover of seminaries by homosexuals.”  But that ecumenical council didn’t start until October 11, 1962, and ended November 21, 1966. For those keeping score, that’s four to seven years after that future Notre Dame professor was kicked to the floor.

She might as well have invited Bill Donahue to write her column.

118 British MP’s Sign Motion Condemning Uganda’s “Kill the gays” Bill

One hundred and eighteen Members of Britain’s Parliament signed on to what is known as an “Early Day Motion” condemning Uganda’s proposed Anti-Homosexuality Bill, which would impose lifetime sentences for LGBT people as well as the death penalty under certain circumstances. Early Day Motions, or EDMs, are formal motions submitted for debate in the House of Commons. EDM’s are not voted on by the House, and few are actually debated on the floor of the house. Instead, they are used to express the views of individual MP’s or to draw attention to specific concerns, events, or causes.

EDM 575 reads:

ANTI-HOMOSEXUALITY BILL IN UGANDA
12.01.2010
Cohen, Harry

That this House calls on the British Government and the European Union to press the government of Uganda not to proceed with the Anti-Homosexuality Bill, which violates the equality and non-discrimination provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the African Charter of Human and People’s Rights; abhors that this Bill, currently before the Uganda parliament, proposes the death penalty for repeat homosexual acts, extends the existing penalty of life imprisonment for anal intercourse to all other same-sex behaviour, including the mere touching of another person with the intent to have homosexual relations and imposes life imprisonment for contracting a same-sex marriage; notes that under the provisions of the Bill membership of providing funding for gay organisations advocating gay human rights and providing condoms or safer sex advice to gay people will result in a sentence of between five and seven years for promoting homosexuality and that a person in authority who fails to report offenders to the police within 24 hours will incur a three year prison sentence; further notes that this monstrous proposed law contains extra-territorial jurisdiction so that it will apply to Ugandans who breach its provisions whilst living abroad, even in countries where such behaviour is not a criminal offence, and that such Ugandans living overseas could be subject to extradition, trial and punishment in Uganda; and demands that the Ugandan government uphold international humanitarian law by abandoning the Anti-Homosexuality Bill, decriminalising same-sex acts between consenting adults in private, and outlawing discrimination against gay people.

The motion, which was jointly written by MP Harry Cohen and Outrage!’s LGBT advocate Peter Tatchell, garnered 118 signatures. Sixteen Conservative MP’s joined 63 Labour, 33 Liberal Democrat, and 6 other MP’s from various parties (including one independent) to condemn the bill. The House consists of 646 members. EDM’s remain open for signatures for the duration of Parliament. The current Parliament will be dissolved on April 12 with elections called for May 6.

Troop concerns appear to be practical rather than homophobic

The AP is reporting that a meeting was organized to get foot soldier responses to proposed reversal of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy.

Picked at random and assembled in the Pentagon auditorium, about 350 rank-and-file troops asked the leaders of a new working group whether bunking arrangements would change and if the spouses of gay personnel would be given military family benefits, among other issues.

Although no official response was provided and the press was not invited, the reports seem to suggest that the concerns were practical in nature rather than the “I’ll quit first” attitudes that some had predicted.

Attendees of the Tuesday session said that one female Marine stated that bunking with a lesbian would be the same as being told to share a room with a man. A soldier said he didn’t want to wade into the political debate and that he would follow orders.

Another service member asked if a gay service member who gets married — now forbidden under law — would receive military family benefits.

At one point, a moderator asked how many troops believed they have served with a gay person. About half the people in the audience raised their hands.

Canadian social workers condemn Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill

Canadian Association of Social Work
Condemns the Anti-Homosexuality Bill in Uganda

The Canadian Association of Social Workers (CASW) strongly condemns the Anti-Homosexuality Bill currently before the Ugandan Parliament and firmly rejects the position taken by the National Association of Social Workers of Uganda (NASWU) to support the bill.

CASW condemns any move that perpetuates and advances positions on homosexuality that run contrary to the principles and values of the social work profession and international conventions and treaties. Specifically, social workers do not tolerate discrimination based on age, abilities, ethnic background, gender, language, marital status, national ancestry, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation or socio-economic status.

“CASW cannot go far enough in condemning these actions,” said CASW President Darlene MacDonald. “Upholding basic human rights is not an option for social workers, but rather an ethical responsibility. The CASW Code of Ethics commits social workers to upholding human rights as enshrined in Canadian law as well as to international conventions on human rights created or supported by the United Nations.”

CASW joins the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW), the Parliament of Canada and many other organizations and individuals who are calling on the Ugandan Parliament to reject the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Bill. Further, CASW encourages social workers in Canada , who respect the unique worth and inherent dignity of all people and uphold human rights, to make their views known to NASWU.

“CASW extends its unwavering support and solidarity to the people of Uganda who are experiencing the real threat of incarceration and death based on sexual orientation,” states MacDonald. “We are appalled by their situation in Uganda and will remain vigilant in the defence of their basic human rights.”

Please click the link to access the IFSW Statement on Human Rights and Social Work in Uganda.

Has the Ontario District Branch of the APA completely lost its mind?

Psychiatrists in Canada received the following invitation:

Dear Colleague:
As you may know sexuality is a ‘hot’ issue in the DSM V revision process. At one time, so was homosexuality. Do our attitudes change with science? Do come, and participate in a stimulating evening.

Topic: Should Homosexuals Be Treated with Psychotherapy?
Speaker: Dr. Joseph Berger, FRCPC, DLFAPA
Date/Time: Thursday, May 13, 2010, 7 – 9:30 p.m.
Location: TARTU College Main Floor/Masters Buffeteria
310 Bloor Street West
(1 block east of Spadina) at corner of Madison & Bloor
416-924-7651
There is street and lot parking on Bloor St and also Spadina Rd and side streets North of Bloor; subway 1 block from venue
Learning Objectives: At the end of this session, participants will:

1. be better able to distinguish between scientific evidence and media propaganda, personal beliefs, and organization – however prestigious – position statements.
2. understand the difference between voluntarily undertaken insight-oriented psychodynamic psychotherapy and past attempts at aversion or conversion so-called ‘therapies’.
3. be able to acknowledge that homosexual people can have emotional problems and conflicts and psychosomatic symptoms as can any other human being and be similarly fully deserving of psychotherapeutic treatment.

“This event is an accredited group learning activity (Section 1) as defined by the Maintenance of Certification Program of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, approved by the Canadian Psychiatric Association.”

Wait! What?

You mean that the Ontario Branch of the APA is hosting NARTH member Joseph Berger to discuss whether gay people should be subjected to psychotherapy? What kind of crazy is that?

Here is the letter I sent to the local head of the APA:

Mr. Sommers,

I am a bit perplexed at the decision of the Ontario District Branch of the APA to sponsor a presentation by Dr. Joseph Berger. And I am even more startled at the seminar’s Learning Objectives.

Perhaps you are unaware of Dr. Berger’s reputation and affiliation. Although Berger has served as ODBAPA’s president in the past, he is better known as an anti-gay activist and participant with NARTH, an organization that is hostile to the APA and it’s official positions on sexual orientation.

I am greatly concerned that Dr. Berger will be presented as an authority on distinguishing between scientific evidence and propaganda. As part of his association with NARTH, Berger has for many years been engaging in anti-gay propaganda that is in direct opposition to scientific evidence.

NARTH has repeatedly been criticized by study authors and researchers for misstating, twisting, and in some cases fraudulently claiming the opposite of their conclusions. Most of the mental heath profession recognizes NARTH to be primarily an anti-gay political advocacy organization invested heavily in propaganda.

Their latest endeavor was to send out propaganda to school principals (under the alter-ego American College of Pediatricians) in which they distort legitimate research in order to make outrageous claims about gay people (e.g. “more likely to suffer from a host of negative outcomes including psychiatric disorders, domestic violence and sexual assault, and increased risk for chronic diseases, AIDS and shortened life spans”), claim that reparative therapy is effective (“individuals with unwanted same sex attraction often can be successfully treated”), and advocate for principals to deny same-sex attracted youth from access to support systems. These are all in direct opposition to stated positions of the APA.

And Dr. Berger is still closely alligned with this organization. He sits on their Scientific Advisory Committee and as recently as November he contributed an article to their site. His premise was 1) removing homosexuality from the DSM was a political decision rather than based on science, 2) the APA is persecuting those who wish to perform ex-gay therapy, and 3) that the decision by the APA to endorse the legalization of same-sex marriage was not handled to his satisfaction.

Further, Berger is not a moderate member of the anti-gay community. His differences with the APA are not mild or limited to perspective or opinion. He advocates for treatment that is far beyond the norm and which may well be in violation of professional ethics. In 2006, Berger wrote an article on the NARTH website in which he addressed the appropriate way to treat gender non-conforming children:

I suggest, indeed, letting children who wish go to school in clothes of the opposite sex – but not counseling other children to not tease them or hurt their feelings.

On the contrary, don’t interfere, and let the other children ridicule the child who has lost that clear boundary between play-acting at home and the reality needs of the outside world.

Maybe, in this way, the child will re-establish that necessary boundary.

This was of sufficient concern to merit an article in the Los Angeles Times.

But it is not just the specific selection of Dr. Berger or his extremely unorthodox proposals. It is the very premise of the presentation, “Should Homosexuals Be Treated with Psychotherapy?”

This is extremely offensive. It is akin to pondering such things as “Should races be kept segregated?” or “Should cancer be treated with leaches?” Such questions are not only outdated, but contrary to decency and they should not be awarded credibility by professional organizations.

I look forward to hearing your response explaining your decision to lend the name of the ODBAPA to Dr. Berger’s views on curing homosexuals. I’ll be sharing them with the readership of Box Turtle Bulletin.

Should he choose to respond, I’ll be sure to let you know exactly what Sommers intended by this presentation.

Fun Facts about Fulton, MS

In addition to being the world’s cruelest town, Fulton, MS, is the county seat of Itawamba County. Fulton has a population of about 4,000 and the county has about 22,800. In Fulton (and Itawamba County) there are:

• 1 Pentecostal Church
• 1 Catholic Church
• 1 Christian Church (Restoration Movement)
• 1 Church of God
• 1 Quaker Fellowship
• 4 Non-denominational Churches
• 9 Church of Christ Churches
• 10 Methodist Churches
• 40 Baptist Churches
• 0 People who treated Constance and the learning disabled kids the way they want to be treated

(in order to be strictly accurate, I replaced “0 Christians who believe in treating others the way they want to be treated” with the above language)

LA Times Poll: Californians support marriage equality

A new LA Times/USC poll has findings similar to last month’s PPIC poll:

Q.46 Do you think that same-sex couples should be allowed to become legally married in the state of
California?

Yes, strongly ………………………………………………………………40
Yes, not so strongly …………………………………………………..12
No, not so strongly……………………………………………………….8
No, strongly………………………………………………………………..32
(Don’t know)…………………………………………………………………6
(Refuse) ……………………………………………………………………….2

Total Yes……………………………………………………………………..52
Total No ……………………………………………………………………..40

The poll claims a margin or error of about 2.6%, but in looking at the demographics, I’m not sure that this poll is exactly representative.

CNN’s Kyra Phillips: ‘Homosexuality: Is It A Problem In Need of a Cure?’

This came in from Andy Towle:

CNN’s Kyra Phillips just ran a repulsive and shockingly irresponsible segment on Lowenthal’s efforts in which she asked, “Homosexuality —Is it a problem in need of a cure?” 

She then brought on crackpot “ex-gay” Richard Cohen, spewing lies about how people can change their sexuality and become straight, with nobody to rebut his disproven arguments.

For background, CNN’s blog posted this:

California has a law that requires doctors to look into “the causes and cures of homosexuality.” The law was established in 1950, part of harsher laws to crack down on sex offenders. Today a California Public Assembly Committee will vote on whether to abolish it.

At 10:40 we’ll talk with the State Assemblywoman who’s heading up the repeal effort. We’ll also talke [sic] with a leading expert on sexual reorientation, who was gay but is now married to a woman and has 3 kids.

Cohen is the ex-gay “therapist” who was eviscerated last fall by Rachel Maddow for his organizations participation in the Uganda anti-gay conference which led to the introduction of the proposed death penalty for LGBT people under certain circumstances. On March 23, 2002, Richard Cohen was permanently expelled from the American Counseling Association for multiple ethical violations. CNN’s “expert” on curing homosexuality now practices as an unregulated “coach,” where he sells “certification” for treating homosexuality from his web site.

In 2006, he accomplished the rather remarkable feat of embarrassing the entire ex-gay movement when he demonstrated his unorthodox “holding” technique for “curing” gay people with CNN’s Paula Zahn. He compounded that embarrassment by appearing on the Daily Show six months later to demonsrate the same techniques. 

This latest debacle was prompted by the discovery that buried deep within California’s massive Welfare and Institutions Code is a 1967 provision that charges the department of Mental Health with the task of conducting research on “the causes and cures of homosexuality.” California assemblywoman Bonnie Lowenthal has introduced a bill to remove it from the books. It’s unconscionable for CNN to turn to Cohen as an “expert” in curing homosexuality, and its doubly unconscionable to compound that error by not having a reputable spokesperson to rebut Cohen’s wild claims.