Vermont Same-Sex Weddings Off to Slow Start

Same-sex marriage will be legal in Vermont beginning Tuesday, but few couples have taken out licenses in advance, the Associated Press reports.

City and town clerks have issued just a handful of marriage licenses to same-sex couples, making the situation a far cry from the rush to take out civil union licenses when those became available to same-sex couples in 2000.

In Burlington, Vermont's largest city, only three same-sex couples have taken out marriage licenses. In Rutland the number is four. Some other cities, including Manchester, Brattleboro, and Montpelier, the state capital, report that they have issued no licenses to same-sex couples so far.
"I expect that after September 1, it's going to pick up," said Vermont secretary of state Deborah Markowitz.

When civil unions, which carry many of the rights and responsibilities of marriage, became available to gay couples July 1, 2000, clerks' offices did land-office business. There were 1,704 civil unions established in the next six months, with 405 coming in the first month. Couples from other states represented 78% of them.

"Of course, we were the first state, so that made the draw much bigger," Manchester town clerk Linda Spence told the AP. Spence said that while she has yet to issue any marriage licenses to same-sex couples, she has heard from three couples who want them, including two who obtained civil union licenses from her. "It makes me feel good," she said. One of those couples is from Australia, she added.

One reason for the slow start for marriage licenses, according to the AP, may be the gap between the state's adoption of a marriage equality law -- in April -- and the September 1 effective date, and the fact that the gap covered the busiest season for weddings. Also, with marriage becoming available to same-sex couples in other states in the past few years, there was less of a pent-up demand than there was when the civil union law took effect.

Still, couples and the businesses that cater to weddings are making plans. Two men from Whitehall, N.Y., are planning to be married at midnight Monday at the Moose Meadow Lodge in Duxbury. And in honor of gay couples, Vermont-based Ben and Jerry's is renaming its Chubby Hubby flavor Hubby Hubby for the month of September.

A Wish

First Solar to Build 250MW & 300MW Solar Farms in California, Enough to Power 170,000 Homes

First Solar is one of the leaders in thin film solar power, and it just sealed a deal with California's SoCal Edison for two solar power projects totalling 550 megawatts of capacity: "The projects in the California counties of Riverside and San Bernardino would provide enough power to supply 170,000 homes when completed in 2015, the companies said."

“Baptism is coming out the closet for Christ. It says publicly:"I'm not ashamed of loving Him." God has no secret agents.”

A tweet by RICK WARREN, mega church pastor and author of The Purpose-Driven Life, who has been criticized by gays for opposing same-sex marriage

13 Love Stories

China's High Speed Rail Will Leave U.S. in the Dust

While it attempts to kick-start its struggling auto industry, the U.S. is talking about building a high-speed rail network with an initial $8 billion in stimulus funds. Meanwhile, China is investing over $300 billion in high-speed rail through 2020, in a bid to speed ahead of the rest of the world's train systems.

Together

Airline Gas-tronome

Take a tour of some of the, um, most interesting Airline Food From Around the World. It's tempting to take to the air just to try these epicurean delights. Click to board your flight...

Scandinavian Airlines "Raw salted salmon and rye bread with chocolate cake as a dessert."

Austrian Airlines "some green olives, and half a hard boiled egg. Past that, I don't know. But at least they get some delicious Trinkwasser to wash it down with."

Turkish Airlines "Beefaroni, hard to go wrong. Some sort of chocolate desert, veggies."

"Taiwanese food on China Airlines. Chicken with a side of tripe"

JALways Airlines "Mystery pink substance, and some Sakai"

Iceland Air "Brown lumps of meat, a brownie, fish salad, a roll and some Icelandic butter."

Control Your Living Room By Dragging, Dropping, Swiping a Surface Table

CRISTAL is a research project that moves the universal remote to a Microsoft Surface-type table with incredibly intuitive gestures. Want to watch a movie? Drag the cover to your TV. It even lets you trace a path for your Roomba.

The awkwardly-acronymed CRISTAL, which stands for ""Control of Remotely Interfaced Systems using Touch-based Actions in Living spaces," uses a camera to take an overhead shot of your living room setup, and you designate the compatible parts: TV, speakers, digital photo frame, HTPC, Roomba. Then you simply touch, swipe, drag and drop to control the room. Your digital media collection shows up as almost a Cover Flow-type design, and can be dragged either to the speakers or TV, or just examined more closely on the Surface-type screen itself. I love that you can watch a preview right there on the table, or quickly toss it to the TV to output it.

Iowa Panel Supports Marriage Equality, Opposes Anti-Gay Amendment

The Iowa Civil Rights Commission, a seven-member bipartisan panel whose duty is "to enforce state and federal statutes that prohibit discrimination in employment, public accommodations, housing, education and credit by investigating and litigating civil rights complaints," voted unanimously yesterday that it would formally oppose any effort to overturn any constitutional amendment that would overturn the state's same-sex marriage law.

The panel also voted to formally support the decision of the Iowa Supreme Court in allowing same-sex couples to marry.

Said Republican commissioner Rick Morain to the Des Moines Register: "I don't think we're saying that there can't be a constitutional amendment raised. I mean, that's under the constitution. My personal feeling is that if that kind of amendment were adopted, it would clash with Article 1 of the constitution, which is the Iowa Bill of Rights."

According to the paper, "August is typically a month when commissioners review policy positions and decide which legislative priorities to focus on."

Betsy McCaughey's Ideas Called "Hyperbolic... Dangerous" By Jon Stewart

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Betsy McCaughey Pt. 1
http://www.thedailyshow.com/
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Healthcare Protests

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Exclusive - Betsy McCaughey Extended Interview Pt. 1
http://www.thedailyshow.com/
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Healthcare Protests

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Exclusive - Betsy McCaughey Extended Interview Pt. 2
http://www.thedailyshow.com/
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Healthcare Protests

Lutherans Allow Sexually Active Gays to Join Clergy

In a vote of 559-451, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America today adopted a resolution to allow sexually active gays to join the clergy.

The resolution the 4.8 million-member church just passed revokes an earlier ban that allowed gay clery to lead churches only if they remained celibate. Star Tribune:

Delegates heeded warnings not to react as the outcome was read, but onlookers in the gallery hugged one another in celebration.

The mood shifted today as the hours of public argument wore on, with opponents coming to the microphone to try one last time to sway the 1,045 voters.

"What we are doing today is wrong," said one.

Earlier in the day, delegates voted 670-344 to defeat an amendment proposed by former Minnesota Gov. Al Quie that would have precluded the "rostering" of homosexuals as ELCA pastors.

This morning's session was extended half an hour so more people could speak. By then the debate was starting to loop. People on both sides of the issue who had spoken earlier in the week stood up and made basically the same speech all over again. When one delegate came to the mike and identified himself as a "first-time caller," a grateful cheer went up.

World-Class Runner Accused of Faking Being a Woman

A day after winning her first 800-meter world title amid a gender-test controversy, the father of South African teenager Caster Semenya dismissed speculation his daughter is not a woman.

The 18-year-old runner’s father, Jacob, told the Sowetan newspaper: "She is my little girl. ... I raised her and I have never doubted her gender. She is a woman and I can repeat that a million times."

Semenya dominated her rivals to win the 800 on Wednesday despite revelations that surfaced earlier in the day that she was undergoing a gender test. Her dramatic improvement in the 800 and 1,5000, muscular build and deep voice sparked speculation about her gender.

Lutherans move toward more open view on gays

Leaders of the country’s largest Lutheran denomination have agreed to disagree on homosexuality, endorsing an official statement on human sexuality that says there’s room in the church for differing views on an issue that’s divided other religious groups.

Delegates to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s nationwide assembly in Minneapolis on Wednesday approved a “social statement on human sexuality.” The vote was a prelude to a bigger debate Friday, when delegates will tackle a proposal that would allow individual ELCA congregations to hire people in committed same-sex relationships as clergy.

The social statement lays a theological foundation for a liberalized policy on gay clergy, and supporters of the proposal praised Wednesday’s vote. “We are encouraged and hopeful that … this will result in the church’s elimination of the current ban on ministers in same gender relationships,” said Emily Eastwood, executive director of Lutherans Concerned/North America, a group of pro-gay Lutherans.

Opponents of the social statement said it ignores clear scriptural direction that homosexuality is a sin. “We are asked to affirm a description of sexuality based on a reality that’s shaped not by Scripture but by today’s culture,” said Curtis Sorbo of Adams, N.D., a convention delegate from the ELCA’s Eastern North Dakota Synod.

ELCA officials said it shouldn’t be assumed that passage of the social statement automatically means the proposal on gay clergy will be approved. “We haven’t yet had that debate, and I would not want to conjecture that,” said the Rev. Rebecca Larson, an official in the ELCA’s headquarters in Chicago.
Still, the social statement passed a higher bar than what will be required to approve the new clergy policy. The social statement, as a foundational document for the church, needed to be approved by a two-thirds supermajority of the 1,045 convention delegates. It got exactly that, passing with 66.67 percent of the vote.

The new clergy policy needs only a simple majority to pass.

The 34-page social statement actually touches on homosexuality only briefly, and is intended as a sweeping definition of the ELCA’s approach to matters of human sexuality. It also sketches out the church’s approach to gender, friendship, marriage and children, cohabitation outside marriage, the commercialization of sexuality, and the global sex trade.

But it acknowledges what Larson described as an utter lack of consensus toward homosexuality and same-sex relationships across the ELCA’s membership. She said the statement’s drafters agreed that such differing views could be accomodated because the homosexuality issue is “not central to our faith,” Larson said.

Wednesday’s debate was interrupted briefly in the afternoon when severe storms and a possible tornado passed through downtown Minneapolis, damaging the steeple of an ELCA church across the street from the convention center. Delegates were allowed to remain in the convention hall, but a few jokes about God’s wrath proved inevitable.

“We trust that the weather is not a commentary on our work,” said the Rev. Steven Loy, who was helping oversee the convention.

Workers Accused of Pro-Gay Bias in WA Ref-71 Signature Count

As the error rate climbs again in the signature count on Referendum 71 in Washington state ("Last week it was around 10.5 percent and, as of today, it's up to 11.67 percent. If the error rate exceeds 12.43 percent, R-71 won't make the November ballot.") , right-wingers who are behind the anti-gay measure are accusing election workers of bias and blaming gays for telling workers to count faster:

"Gary Randall of the Faith and Freedom Network, part of the campaign group called Protect Marriage Washington, made its allegations in an e-mailed 'state wide call to action and prayer,' saying the 'homosexual lobby' had pressured the Secretary to accelerate the signature check. That had the effect of boosting the group’s error rate due to 'carelessness and/or sympathy for the other side,' he wrote. The group flooded the Secretary’s offices with hundreds of phone calls, emails and blog comments."

Strangely enough, there were no peeps from the right-wingers when the error rate dropped. Referendum 71, if it reaches the ballot, could repeal the state's "everything but marriage" law. A "yes" vote on the referendum would be to sustain the measure; a "no" vote would overturn the law.

Nevada secretary of state's office to start taking domestic partnership applications next week

The Nevada secretary of state's office will take applications starting next week from couples who wish to register as domestic partners.

Same- and opposite-sex couples who apply soon will receive their certificates of domestic partnership on Oct. 1.

That's the day a new state law goes into effect extending rights similar to those held by married couples to cohabitating couples, whether gay or straight, who register with the secretary of state's office.

Applications will be accepted at Secretary of State Ross Miller's office starting Monday. There is a $50 fee, and the applications must be notarized.

Judge Denies Gay Groups in Federal Prop 8 Case, Sets Trial Date

U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker set a January 11 trial date for a federal challenge to Proposition 8 brought by Ted Olson, David Boies, and the American Foundation for Equal Rights. The Alliance Defense Fund, which is defending Prop 8, had argued Friday that the case could be quickly decided without a trial. Boies and Olson wanted a trial before a judge without a trial before the end of the year.

Walker also denied a coalition of gay groups (Our Family Coalition; Lavender Seniors of the East Bay; and Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG)) the request to stand by Olson and Boies at that trial. Walker also disallowed the conservative Campaign for California Families to join the Alliance Defense Fund in the defense of Prop 8. Olson and Boies requested last week that the gay groups not be allowed to join the case, saying their participation "would needlessly delay the case's resolution," according to the Washington Post.

Lambda Legal and the ACLU, who were representing the coalition of gay groups, released a statement: "On behalf of our clients, we are disappointed that the court did not permit organizations that represent California’s diverse lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community to participate in the case as the Court weighs the harms inflicted by Proposition 8. The significance of this case for our entire community is enormous. To exclude the people whose very freedom is at stake is troubling. Our commitment to restoring marriage for all Californians is unwavering, and we will continue to do everything within our power to secure full equality and justice for LGBT people."

According to the SF Chronicle, the city of San Francisco, which had requested to join the case as well, will be allowed to participate, "but only to assess Proposition 8's impact on local government."

The Mercury News reports: "Walker ordered the parties to start taking depositions and sharing information in the discovery process immediately, with expert witnesses to be designated by Oct. 2 and discovery to conclude Nov. 30. A pretrial conference will be held Dec. 16, rebuttal expert witnesses must be designated by Dec. 31 and trial is set for Jan. 11; meanwhile, he'll hold an Oct. 14 hearing on Proposition 8 proponents' motion to dispose of certain issues by summary judgment before the rest of the case is tried. Walker indicated this timeline would balance the need for speed, so Californians aren't left hanging with the issue unresolved, with the need for developing a solid record for the assured appeals, perhaps all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court."

Anchorage Mayor Vetoes Gay Rights Ordinance

An ordinance banning discrimination against LGBT people passed earlier this week by the Anchorage Assembly following month of debate was vetoed by Mayor Dan Sullivan:

"In a statement...Sullivan said he sees no need for the measure. 'My review shows that there is clearly a lack of quantifiable evidence necessitating this ordinance,' the mayor said. 'My review also shows that the vast majority of those who communicated their position on the ordinance are in opposition.' Sullivan said he had received almost 2,500 comments as he was considering whether to let the measure stand. He said he will have no further comment today. The measure was the subject of intense public interest and debate all summer. The Assembly approved a compromise measure last week by a 7-4 vote."

Obama statement on DOMA

From the White House:

Statement by the President on the Smelt v. United States Brief

Today, the Department of Justice has filed a response to a legal challenge to the Defense of Marriage Act, as it traditionally does when acts of Congress are challenged. This brief makes clear, however, that my Administration believes that the Act is discriminatory and should be repealed by Congress. I have long held that DOMA prevents LGBT couples from being granted equal rights and benefits. While we work with Congress to repeal DOMA, my Administration will continue to examine and implement measures that will help extend rights and benefits to LGBT couples under existing law.

If EQCA Is Waiting Till 2012 to Repeal Prop 8, Why'd It Collect $1M For a 2010 Effort?

Some newspapers might be siding with Equality California over its call to wait till 2012 for a Prop 8 repeal (and urging the Courage Campaign to also heed the advice), some nagging questions remain over Geoff Kors' non-profit. Namely: Was EQCA collecting more than a million dollars from supporters by telling them they were going to push for a 2010 repeal?

That's the charge made by Yes! on Equality, the group led by Chaz Lowe that, like the Courage Campaign and David Comfort's Equality Network, isn't holding off until 2012 to get marriage rights back for California's gays. Lowe's group already filed paperwork to put the issue up to voters on the 2010 ballot — and they plan on continuing the fight with the shorter timeline.

Yes! claims EQCA snapped up more than $1 million in donations through telephone calls telling donors their money would go to a 2010 fight, not 2012.

Officially, it wasn't EQCA making the phone calls, but the fundraising firm Grassroots Campaigns Inc., which was contracted to raise funds. (Outsourcing the phone calling is standard operating procedure.) Except to plump EQCA's coffers, the dialers working for Grassroots were reading from a script about 2010, claims Yes!.

Denying the charges, EQCA says Grassroots' staffers were "specifically and repeatedly told not to mention a particular year for a ballot initiative," according to marriage director Marc Solomon. "We have heard of about a dozen cases where canvassers have not followed this directive, and we have immediately gotten in touch with GCI to correct the error. GCI has repeatedly told its canvassers to focus on the issue and not discuss the year in which we would return to the ballot box. If anyone on this list has been asked to donate for 2010, we are very sorry. These canvassers were not following the explicit instructions they were given."

Not good enough, says Lowe, which wants EQCA to at least offer to refund the cash those callers donated. And as Patrick McDonald points out, Lowe has reason to be suspicious about EQCA's fiscal activists: Kors and Solomon offered paying jobs to Lowe and other Yes! staffers, which Lowe interpreted as the org's attempt to buy Yes!'s claim on the ballot measure it already filed with the attorney general for a 2010 repeal. Not to mention this pair is on record just months ago supporting a 2010 effort.

Oh, and then there's this bit of undeniable evidence: "We contacted a few directors/workers with Grassroots Campaigns and were informed that the money was being raised for 2010," Lowe tells McDonald. "There were several people on the call when we dialed CGI about the money being raised. Not to mention, what are the odds that dozens of CGI workers would make the same 'mistake?'"

Highly. Unlikely.

And that's the sad part: It's looking pretty obvious that EQCA benefited, whether on purpose or otherwise, by telling marriage equality supporters they would fight for 2010. They collected cash from Californians — our allies — under a falsehood. And with all the existing in-fighting between California's gay rights groups, the last thing we need are accusations of fraud aimed at our own groups.

And the last things Mr. Kors needs? More criticism. He's already the face of bungling the failed No On 8 effort — in part because he relied on outside professionals. His reputation as a civil rights leader is already damaged goods, and while he's given himself the three years until 2012 to repair it, he's off to a sorry start.

Lutheran gay clergy proposal passes 1st hurdle

Leaders of the country’s largest Lutheran denomination prayed for unity Monday as they waded into a weeklong debate over homosexuality and the clergy, while a rule change that would allow people in same-sex relationships to serve cleared its first hurdle.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, which is meeting this week in Minneapolis, is debating a proposal to allow individual congregations to hire gays and lesbians in committed relationships as clergy. A final vote is not expected until Friday.

But delegates on Monday rejected a move by critics of the proposal to require approval from a two-thirds supermajority instead of a simple majority when the measure comes to the final vote.

Supporters of the supermajority said a higher hurdle was needed to signal wide support for what they called a major change in the church’s approach to homosexuality. But the move received support from just 43 percent of the 1,045 voting delegates.

ELCA Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson said earlier in the day that the outcome of the majority versus supermajority vote shouldn’t be seen as strongly indicating the ultimate outcome of the debate.

Trans Woman Sues Over Photo Request

A Pennsylvania transgender woman has filed suit against her former employer, who she said requested a photograph of her genitalia as a condition of continued employment.

In 2007, Kate Lynn Blatt, was employed by Manpower Inc., a staffing services agency that placed Blatt at an aluminum products manufacturer for $10 per hour as a temporary factory worker. However, she was let go by the plant after a supervisor said she was not healthy enough to complete her job.

Shortly following her dismissal, Blatt returned to the Manpower office to regain employment. It was at this time that Irene Kudziela, a Manpower branch manager, said she needed to turn in a letter from her surgeon that documented her sex-reassignment surgery along with a photograph of her genitalia, which Kudziela said would solve problems related to appropriate use of restrooms and locker rooms.

Blatt, 28, told the Philadelphia Gay News that she found the request “disgusting,” refused to comply, and promptly filed a bias complaint with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, saying she was dismissed wrongfully due to her gender identity and her disability -- she identified her disability as sexual dysphoria.

“I was trying to work there in a dignified and private manner, but my dignity and privacy were constantly being violated,” she said.

A spokeswoman for Manpower Inc. told the Philadelphia Gay News that she could not comment on the specifics of the case, but said the company works to ensure a safe and nonexploitative work environment.

Now Blatt is looking to prevent similar situations. Currently unemployed, she said she’d be interested in advocating on behalf of the transgender community, assisting companies through tolerance training.

Prop. 8 Stained Mormons Long-Term

The extensive involvement of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Proposition 8 may “frustrate the church’s image for years to come” and become a public relations problem akin to the church’s onetime support for polygamy and opposition to African-American men in the priesthood, according to an article from the Associated Press on Saturday.

The article cites multiple former Mormons, gay activists, and experts who suggest that Prop. 8 created a long-term public relations challenge for the 13 million–member church.

Church members donated tens of millions of dollars to the campaign to ban same-sex marriage in California last year, while the institutional church contributed nearly $200,000, which is now the subject of a state investigation.

Kate Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, who was raised Mormon in Utah, is among those quoted. "What I hear from my community and from straight progressive individuals is that they now see the church as a force for evil and as an enemy of fairness and equality," she said.

The article also cites the story of Linda Stay, who quit the church after the passage of Prop. 8, along with her husband and 18 family members, including two children who are gay. Now an activist for LGBT rights, Stay will be a subject of filmmaker Reed Cowan’s forthcoming documentary, 8: The Mormon Proposition.

The difficult prognosis for the church appeared on the same day activists held the Great Nationwide Kiss-in to protest recent incidents including the arrest of two gay men for trespassing on Mormon Church property in Salt Lake City after the couple kissed on the cheek in July.

Obama Administration: DOMA, Anti-Gay Marriage Law, Unfair

The Obama administration filed court papers Monday claiming a federal marriage law discriminates against gays, even as government lawyers continued to defend it.

Justice Department lawyers are seeking to dismiss a suit brought by a gay California couple challenging the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act. The administration's response to the case has angered gay activists who see it as backtracking on campaign promises made by Barack Obama last year.

In court papers, the administration said it supports repeal of the law.

Yet the same filing says the Justice Department will defend the statute in this case because a reasonable argument can be made that the law is constitutional.

The government's previous filing in the case angered gay rights activists who supported Obama's candidacy in part because of his pledge to move forward on repealing the law and the "don't ask, don't tell" policy that prevents gays from serving openly in the military.

"The administration believes the Defense of Marriage Act is discriminatory and should be repealed," said Justice Department spokeswoman Tracy Schmaler, because it prevents equal rights and benefits.

The department is obligated "to defend federal statutes when they are challenged in court. The Justice Department cannot pick and choose which federal laws it will defend based on any one administration's policy preferences," Schmaler added.

Huge Santa Barbara County wildfire caused by marijuana farm; suspects at large in forest

A fire that has burned more than 75,000 acres in Santa Barbara County over the last week was started in an illegal marijuana growing area operated by a Mexican drug organization, authorities said.

Authorities said they confirmed that the blaze, which is burning out of control, started in a cooking area of the pot farm. They believe those responsible are still in the forest area trying leave the forest by foot.

"The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Narcotics Unit has confirmed that the camp at the origin of the fire was an illegal marijuana operation believed to be run by a Mexican national drug organization," according to a statement from the Los Padres National Forest. "The Narcotics Unit has been working in the area within the last month eradicating other nearby marijuana cultivation sites."

The location of those who ran the pot farm isn't known, but forest officials warn "not to approach anyone who looks suspicious but to instead contact the nearest law enforcement agency."

The fire, known as the La Brea fire, is now 25% contained. Vicki Collins, a fire information spokeswoman at Los Padres, said that although the La Brea fire was only 10% contained by Friday night, firefighters successfully charred some lines in front of the fire in the Tepusquet Canyon area, depriving the blaze of new fuel.

Lutherans begin gay clergy discussion in Minnesota

Leaders of the country’s largest Lutheran denomination began discussing Monday whether or not to allow people in same-sex relationships to serve as clergy.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, which is meeting this week in Minneapolis, plans to decide whether to approve a proposal that would allow individual congregations to let gay and lesbian people in committed relationships serve as clergy.

Delegates plan to take an early vote on the issue Monday, when they will decide whether to require a simple majority or a two-thirds supermajority to pass the proposal.The final vote on the proposal is not expected until Friday

In ESPN magazine's college football preview, Bruce Feldman and Ryan Hockensmith survey 85 current college players about the state of their game. One of the questions players were asked was if they had any gay teammates:

"Almost half of those surveyed (49.4%, to be exact) said yes, they believe they have at least one gay teammate. In the Pac-10, 70% of those surveyed said yes."

Evangelical group faces ’serious’ shortfall

A “serious budget shortfall” at Focus on the Family has prompted the conservative Christian group to issue a special fundraising plea, and contributed to a decision to cede control of its contentious “Love Won Out” conferences about homosexuality to another religious organization, a spokesman said Tuesday.

Focus on the Family, founded by child psychologist James Dobson, is on pace to fall $6 million short of a $138 million budget for the fiscal year that began last October, spokesman Gary Schneeberger said.

Jim Daly, president and CEO of the Colorado Springs, Colo.-based evangelical ministry, explained the challenges in a letter to approximately 800,000 donors.

“Right now we’re facing a serious budget shortfall that threatens our ability to reach out to parents, families and married couples who count on our help,” Daly wrote. “Income is down nearly $6 million from what we expected and planned for this year. I want to assure you that we’re committed to good stewardship AND living within our means, just as so many families are today.”

Focus on the Family also announced Tuesday it would no longer stage “Love Won Out” conferences across the country. The events drew both participants and picketers for their promise to “help men and women dissatisfied with living homosexually understand that same-sex attractions can be overcome.”

The events will go on, instead staged by Orlando, Fla.-based Exodus International, a network of ministries whose core message is “Freedom from homosexuality through the power of Jesus Christ.”

Schneeberger said it made strategic sense for Exodus, which is expanding its work with churches, to take over the conferences starting in November.

“Financial realities played a role in the decision,” he said. “That said, Exodus is really the one who should be running ‘Love Won Out’ anyway. It makes sense independent of economic realities,” he said.

Gay rights groups have long criticized such initiatives as harmful. The American Psychological Association last week said mental health professionals should not tell gay clients they can become straight through therapy or other treatments. The group also endorsed approaches “that integrate concepts from the psychology of religion and the modern psychology of sexual orientation.”

Schneeberger said that one staff position will be eliminated and that other financial steps are under discussion. Last fall, budget problems prompted Focus on the Family to eliminate more than 200 positions

Anchorage Passes Antidiscrimination Ordinance

The Anchorage assembly passed an ordinance that bans discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity by a 7-4 vote on Tuesday, reports the Anchorage Daily News. However, inability to reach the eight-vote supermajority means that Anchorage mayor Dan Sullivan, who has not yet revealed his intentions, will have seven days to decide whether or not to veto the ordinance.

Long the subject of controversy in Anchorage, the ordinance bans discrimination against LGBT people in employment, credit, public accommodations, and housing. It passed in compromise form with exemptions for churches and other religious organizations, which will be allowed to choose employees according to their religious beliefs. Another exemption allows employers to maintain restrooms segregated by gender, in response to opponents who voiced fears about unisex facilities.

The hour-long, emotional debate in the assembly was the culmination of the latest conversation about the ordinance, which began June 9. The first gay rights ordinance passed the Anchorage assembly in 1976. It was vetoed by then-mayor George Sullivan, the father of the current mayor.

Malaysia’s state newspaper says gay sex leads to swine flu

Malaysia’s state newspaper, Bernama, claims in a recent article that avoiding masturbation and gay sex will help prevent swine flu.

Avoiding masturbation and homosexual activities are among preventive measures one could take against Influenza A (H1N1), according to an eminent practitioner of complimentary therapy.

Dr. V. M. Palaniappan said that such activities caused the body to develop friction heat which in turn, produced acid and made the body hyperacidised.

“Thus, the body becomes an easy target for H1N1 infection,” he told Bernama, emphasising however, that normal sexual union between members of the opposite sex was absolutely safe.

Homosexual sex is illegal in Malaysia, an Islamic country; sodomy can lead to 20 years in prison. In two states, the punishment is death. In 1994, the country banned any open gay or lesbian from appearing in the state-controlled media. In 2001, the Prime Minister announced it would deport any foreign diplomats learned to be gay.

California Votes in 2010 and 2012

Equality California, the organization that spearheaded the battle against Proposition 8 in the November 2008 election, announced Wednesday that it will wait until the next presidential election to bring the issue of marriage equality back to the ballot.

Marc Solomon, EQCA's marriage director, said that after evaluating several options and consulting with the top 100 donors from the 2008 campaign, the organization will continue a localized, three-year education campaign for the 2012 election.

EQCA's campaign began in May 2009, following the passage of Proposition 8, which repealed same-sex marriage rights after just five months of marriage equality in the state. Since the launch of the campaign, Solomon said, nine new offices have been opened throughout the state, housing 18 field organizers and 16,000 new volunteers who have already knocked on half a million doors to start conversations to change the hearts and minds of those who voted for the repeal.

The announcement came less than an hour after the Courage Campaign, another activist organization, announced that it will move forward on a 2010 ballot initiative. On Tuesday, Courage Campaign chair Rick Jacobs asked members to raise $42,000 within 60 hours to help decide the timing of the measure. As of Wednesday morning, the organization reported that it had received donations totaling $77,905 within just 24 hours, raising their total amount available for research, polling, and focus groups to $135,998.

EQCA says that the effort is notable and that it will support the other group's push for the 2010 ballot measure, but EQCA will continue to forge ahead on a 2012 ballot measure because, the group maintains, more California voters will support marriage equality by then.

"It's extremely hard to win a campaign like this," Solomon said. "It's a $40 million to $60 million venture. It's moving people who just voted on this less than a year ago. It would be really irresponsible to say to a group or an organization that we're going to contribute dollars even though we don't think this is the smarter approach."

Andrea Shorter, the organization's deputy marriage and coalitions director, also said that a 2010 ballot measure may be too soon to garner financial and grassroots support for those in disadvantaged communities and those hit harder by the recession. Solomon also suggested that current teenagers, who are more likely to support marriage equality as well as participate in presidential elections, would then be eligible to vote. While that bump in the electorate may be small, Solomon said, "In a situation where the numbers are so close, it's a meaningful difference, without question."

10 News San Diego had its money on 2012: "Sources tell 10News the leaders of the group are leaning toward 2012. 'I'm not surprised,' said Mesa College political science professor, Carl Luna. He said he shares the opinion offered by a team of consultants brought in by 'Equality California.’ 2012, they said, would give same-sex marriage supporters more time to outreach to minority communities who supported Prop 8. They would also gain more time to raise money and have better demographics during a presidential election. 'In 2012, you get younger voters. They tend to be disproportionately in favor of gay marriage, and that could be the difference in a close election of overturning Prop 8,' Luna said."

The SF Chronicle reports: "On Thursday, the 700,000-member liberal online hub Courage Campaign, whose members advocate a 2010 run, will say whether a $200,000 challenge grant it issued for preliminary campaign work was met. If it wasn't, then as Courage Campaign founder Rick Jacobs wrote to supporters, 'We will have to accept that our movement is not ready to repeal Prop. 8 in 2010.'"

According to the Chronicle, "The secretary of state's office suggests that ballot measures be submitted to the attorney general's office by Sept. 25 to qualify for the November 2010 ballot. Organizers need to gather 1 million signatures to sift out 694,354 valid ones."

Lutherans Brace for Gay Clergy Debate

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America plans to consider lifting its ban on non-celibate gay and lesbian clergy when its general assembly meets in Minneapolis beginning on Monday.
Delegates from the 4.6 million–member church, led by Bishop Mark Hanson, will debate whether gay and lesbian clergy may be involved with committed same-sex partners, a choice that some congregations already allow. Currently, official church policy states that openly gay and lesbian clergy can be ordained, provided they remain celibate.

California support for same-sex marriage still below 50 percent, says new report

Support for same-sex marriage among Californians has not yet reached the 50 percent mark, according to a new Field Poll analysis released Wednesday.

According to the California Opinion Index analysis, which examines the changes in voter attitudes on social and other issues over the course of previous Field Polls, support for same-sex marriage hovers at 49 percent between 2006-2009. That figure represents an 18-point gain over the 31 percent who favored marriage equality between 1975-1977, the analysis states.

According to the analysis, currently 44 percent of voters oppose same-sex marriage. Only 7 percent of those in previous surveys had no opinion.

The analysis comes just as marriage equality advocates throughout the state prepare to make a decision about whether to return to the ballot in 2010 in an effort to repeal Proposition 8, the constitutional amendment passed last November that eliminated same-sex marriage in California.

At a lively statewide leadership summit in late July, no consensus was reached on when to return to the ballot. Many grassroots organizations favor a 2010 repeal effort, while LGBT nonprofit executives and many LGBT minority groups favor waiting until 2012 or later. A nonbinding straw poll taken at the summit was in favor of a 2010 effort, but not everyone participated and votes that were received online were not counted.

Equality California is expected to announce its recommendation about the timing of a repeal effort as soon as next week. The statewide LGBT lobbying organization has been consulting with political experts, conducting field work, and talking to major donors about the issue. EQCA also has participated in the various statewide meetings. An informal survey this spring of EQCA members found a majority favor a 2010 repeal effort. But since that time, there has been wide discussion in the LGBT community about whether such an undertaking would be successful. The economic downturn has raised questions about whether sufficient campaign funds could be raised, and some LGBT community members have expressed concern that a winning strategic plan has not yet emerged.

More work left to doIn June, Marriage Equality USA released its analysis of a May poll conducted for same-sex marriage supporters that showed advocates would need to get nearly 1,000 new supporters a day in order to win a ballot measure next year.

That poll was commissioned by Polling 4 Equality, a broad coalition of large and small state groups (including the Courage Campaign, EQCA, and MEUSA), and conducted May 9-13 by David Binder of David Binder Research and Amy Simon, a partner at Goodwin Simon Victoria Research. Overall, the poll showed that California is split down the middle when it comes to same-sex marriage, with 47 percent in favor and 48 opposed.

Pamela Brown, policy director for MEUSA, said in an e-mail Wednesday that the new Field Poll analysis shows progress has been made.

"All these polls show we have come a long way and we are almost there," Brown said, referring to the recent voter surveys and this week’s Field analysis. "But to win we need to connect with people who aren’t yet with us, who have some conflict or confusion on why marriage equality matters."

Geoff Kors, executive director of EQCA, said that the new poll analysis "demonstrates not only that there has been tremendous movement in California on this issue over the past few decades as more and more people come out, but that the trend is moving solidly toward majority support for marriage equality among registered voters."

But Kors cautioned, "In order to win a ballot measure to restore marriage equality, we must secure majority support not just among registered voters, which is what the Field Poll measured, but rather among likely voters for a specific election."

Kors said that unlike the Prop 8 and Proposition 22 battles, when anti-same-sex marriage proponents put the measures on the ballot, "our side will get to determine when we go back to the voters."

"We must be strategic in selecting the election that gives us the best opportunity to prevail," Kors added.Yes on Equality, which has drafted some possible ballot language for a repeal, was encouraged by the new analysis.

"There is momentum and growing support in California and around the nation for marriage equality and an urgent need within the LGBT community in this state to win back our civil rights sooner, rather than later," Yes on Equality founder Chaz Lowe said in a statement Wednesday.

Lowe also said that the poll analysis "doesn’t even take into account some of the provisions we will be including in our ballot language, which we believe will increase our numbers."Changes in BallotsIt is widely expected that any ballot measure will include language specifically stating that churches do not have to perform same-sex marriage. Such language polled well in the Binder-Simon survey in May, bringing support for same-sex marriage above the 50 percent mark.

Rick Jacobs, founder and chair of the Courage Campaign, said that his group continues its work "to build the movement to change the electorate so that we can win back equality in California and win nationally."

Jacobs said that last weekend in East Los Angeles, 279 activists, including monolingual Spanish speakers, attended a two-day "Camp Courage" training.

"This one was the best yet," Jacobs said of the trainings, which have taken place across the state in the last several months. "The room looked and felt like California."

In spite of all the grassroots efforts, some donors remain uncertain about a repeal effort next year. A story last week in the New York Times stated "the timing of another campaign has ... been questioned by several of the movement’s big donors."

EQCA marriage director Marc Solomon told the Bay Area Reporter last week that people he has spoken with are "extremely skeptical to outright hostile to a 2010 ballot campaign."

Grassroots organizers such as Love Honor Cherish, however, are moving forward with a plan for 2010; a meeting will be held in Los Angeles Sunday with numerous groups that favor a campaign next year.

The new digest summarizing the Field Poll notes that Californians’ greater acceptance of same-sex marriage over the past 30 years "has come entirely from the ranks of registered Democrats and nonpartisans rather than Republicans."

"Democratic voter views about allowing same-sex marriage have shifted from greater than two to one in opposition in 1977 to greater than two to one in support this year," the poll analysis states. "Similarly, while a five to three majority of nonpartisans opposed allowing same-sex couples to marry in 1977, they are now in support by a five to three margin."

But the analysis suggests there has been no movement among Republicans.

"Republicans, on the other hand, have not changed their views on the issue, and if anything, are now more opposed than they were 30 years ago," the analysis states.

Charles Moran, vice president of Log Cabin Republicans’ California chapter, said that he wasn’t necessarily surprised by the analysis of Republicans. He said that he believes many disaffected Republicans who are more moderate on social issues have left the party and are now independent voters.

"Not all these independents come from Republicans, some come from Democrats," he added.

Moran said that Log Cabin has not taken a position on the 2010 versus 2012 issue; it’s members are split like the wider LGBT community."We are making a lot of headway in California," he added. "We have so much energy and enthusiasm."

Prop. 8 foes to decide whether to fight in 2010

This is a big week for same-sex marriage advocates, as a clearer picture will emerge about whether they're going to put the issue before voters again in November 2010 or wait until 2012. Or beyond.

On Wednesday, Equality California, one of the organizations at the forefront of the anti-Proposition 8 campaign last year, will announce which "way forward" it suggests taking.

On Thursday, the 700,000-member liberal online hub Courage Campaign, whose members advocate a 2010 run, will say whether a $200,000 challenge grant it issued for preliminary campaign work was met. If it wasn't, then as Courage Campaign founder Rick Jacobs wrote to supporters, "We will have to accept that our movement is not ready to repeal Prop. 8 in 2010."

The time pressure to decide: The secretary of state's office suggests that ballot measures be submitted to the attorney general's office by Sept. 25 to qualify for the November 2010 ballot. Organizers need to gather 1 million signatures to sift out 694,354 valid ones.

The decision has split advocates across the state, many of whom are still smarting from the Prop. 8 campaign loss, emotionally and financially. Although Equality California and Courage Campaign say their supporters have urged them to go for it in 2010, a coalition of state organizations representing Latino, African American and Asian Pacific Islander gays say not enough outreach has been done to their communities - one of the major reasons the anti-Prop. 8 campaign failed.

Time pressure
Several California ACLU chapters have suggested waiting. So has the Alice B. Toklas Democratic Club in San Francisco, the oldest Democratic LGBT organization in the country, which said, "If we set the vote for 2010, we essentially need to net 1,000 voters per day, a theoretically achievable but extraordinarily ambitious goal."

Marriage Equality USA found "no consensus" when it posed the question at 40 community gatherings across the state this summer. But what was clear, the organization's report said, "is that many people are still trying to heal from the deep anger and sadness of having their civil rights stripped away" by last year's vote.

Build momentum
In July, several top political consultants told Equality California that they either explicitly or implicitly suggested waiting. Sue Burnside, co-chair of the National Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund Campaign Board, is "convinced that we should refrain from rushing in 2010, and instead build on grassroots passion and strategically prepare for a 'Yes on Marriage Equality' referendum in 2012."

"If Barack Obama had relied on the polls, then he never would have run for president," Steve Hildebrand, one of Obama's top confidants and a gay rights advocate, told The Chronicle. Hildebrand has informally advised the Courage Campaign on the issue. "And 16 months until an election is a lifetime."

But Equality California marriage director Marc Solomon, who was at the forefront of the legalization of gay marriage in Massachusetts, said, "We can't base our decision (putting it on the ballot in 2010) on how badly we want to win marriage back.

"This issue is different than running a campaign for a political candidate. There are not a lot of undecided voters," said Solomon, who estimates that about 15 percent of voters are in the movable middle.

Funding issue
Then there's the money issue. Advocates estimate that it would take $50 million to run a campaign against deep-pocketed opponents.

"The money is there," Hildebrand said. "If there is a well-run, disciplined campaign, people will donate. Lots of small donors."

But others, like Solomon, are "skeptical, based on the conversations with many major donors."

David Bohnett, the technology entrepreneur who donated more than $1 million to the anti-Prop. 8 campaign, has been publicly reluctant to commit to 2010. And social service organizations that serve the LGBT community are worried that there won't be enough money for social services, especially after Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger cut $52 million in AIDS services from the state budget last month.

"Our donors are telling us that they're torn between giving to us and giving to same-sex marriage," said Dana Van Gorder, executive director of Project Inform, an advocacy organization for people living with AIDS/HIV.

And then there's the organizational issue. A number of grassroots groups formed online after Prop. 8's passage last year, and there hasn't been a clear-cut leader or organizational structure to this growing coalition. Several donors have said they are reluctant to open their wallets again until they see a better-run campaign than last time.

"But there is always a certain level of chaos when you're building a coalition," Hildebrand said. "That said, they have to make a timely decision about whether to go in 2010 in the next couple of weeks."

Pros and cons of forging ahead in 2010 or waiting until 2012
By early September, same-sex marriage advocates need to decide whether to place the issue on the November 2010 ballot. Here are some of the reasons for each view:

Why to push for 2010
Reaching out to new audiences: Courage Campaign and others have made grassroots progress in the Central Valley and among communities of color, opening offices in Fresno and elsewhere.

Momentum: Favors same-sex marriage (it is now legal in Iowa, Massachusetts and Connecticut, and laws allowing gay weddings will soon take effect in Vermont, Maine and New Hampshire). New Field Poll shows Californians support same sex marriage, 49 to 44 percent.

Not much of a gap to close: 48 percent of the voters opposed Prop 8. "A lot of campaigns would kill to be at 48 percent to start a campaign," said President Obama's confidant and same-sex marriage advocate Steve Hildebrand.

More media savvy: Better understanding of the power of showing gay families in TV ads, which didn't happen in 2008.

Help at the top: Likely Democratic nominee for governor in 2010 will favor same sex-marriage, providing "high level spokesperson for the issue," said the Simon/Binder report.

Opportunity in the middle: 15 percent of the electorate believed to be in "movable middle."

Why to wait until 2012
Doubts about ability to raise $50 million for campaign: Especially given recession and strain on social service funding for LGBT community. Dave Fleischer, a consultant who has worked on many LGBT campaigns, said a November 2010 run "is a very brief time to raise $40-50 million."

Public opinion static in California: A May survey by pollsters David Binder and Amy Simon found that 47 percent favor same-sex marriage and 48 percent oppose.

Not enough time: "We essentially need to net 1,000 voters per day, a theoretically achievable but extraordinarily ambitious goal," said Alice B. Toklas LGBT Democratic Club.

Not enough outreach yet: Anti-Prop 8 did not reach communities of color or religious groups, and new grassroots outreach is still in embryonic stage.

Time passing helps: Younger voters tend to favor same-sex marriage while older voters oppose.

Supporters are emotionally exhausted: Marriage Equality USA found "many people are still trying to heal from the deep anger and sadness of having their civil rights stripped away by last year's vote."

Both sides of Prop. 8 court case can only agree to disagree

Forty days ago, opposing sides in a federal challenge to California’s same-sex marriage ban were asked to propose a timeline to try the case speedily, and to determine in which ares of fact they are in agreement. On Friday, the dueling attorneys agreed on one thing: that they disagree on virtually everything - whether a person’s sexual orientation can be changed; how much political power the queer community wields; even on whether a trial should be held at all.

The players are District Court Chief Judge Vaughn R. Walker; Theodore Olson and David Boies, attorneys representing two same-sex couples suing the state to declare Prop 8 invalid; and Charles Cooper, the attorney defending the marriage equality ban.

All parties will meet on Aug. 19. Walker will need to resolve two diametrically opposed views of how to proceed--from one that promises a contentious public trial winding up before the end of this year, to a judicial finding based on depositions, motions, hearings and arguments ending sometime after June 2010.

In a brief filed Friday on behalf of Yes on 8, Cooper argued, "This Court should follow the course set in each of the many gay marriage cases that have been litigated over the course of the last decade. In not one of these cases has a trial been held."

Cooper said the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1972 dismissal of a Minnesota same-sex challenge was enough for the court to rule against the Prop 8 challenge after hearing a motion in September. If that does not resolve the case, Cooper asked that the opposing sides complete reports and depositions by late May and the final briefs be filed with the court by July, setting the stage for final arguments and a decision.

But Olson wants it all on the record:
· the statements made by campaign workers as they labored for Prop 8’s passage
· the historic and continued discrimination against gays and lesbians
· the value gay Americans offer society - including the ability to procreate and raise children in same-sex relationships
· and the ever changing definition of marriage.

Olson argued that if expert testimony is presented to the district court outside of a trial, it would not be part of the court record should the case wind up in appeals court (which this one is almost guaranteed to do) and would prevent it from being re-introduced.

"The issue in this trial will not be, as Intervenors would have it, whether ’same sex marriage’ is deeply rooted in this nation’s history and tradition," Olson wrote. "Rather, the issue will be whether the deeply rooted right to marry has been denied to a single, disfavored group without a compelling state interest for doing so."

Under Olson’s proposed scheduled, the opposing sides would obtain information from each other through September, exchange reports in October, have motions to dispose of portions of each other’s claims filed and heard by late November, then hold the trial in front of Walker on Dec. 14.
Olson, asking for an expedited discovery process before that trial, said his "schedule would bring this case to conclusion roughly seven months earlier (than Cooper’s). Given the importance of the issues raised by Plaintiffs’ claims, the Court’s decision to defer ruling on Plaintiffs’ motion for preliminary injunction, and the fact that Plaintiffs suffer irreparable harm each day that Prop. 8 remains in effect, the Court should not impose a schedule that takes more than a year to get from the filing of Plaintiffs’ Complaint to a Judgment."

Cooper dismissed Olson’s schedule as moving at "breakneck pace."

In addition to sorting out the case’s scheduling details, Walker also will have to rule on what role, if any, the City of San Francisco and other organizations will play in the proceedings. In other papers filed Friday, Olson objected to a request by Campaign for California Families to join the defense of the case and to requests by San Francisco; Our Family Coalition; Lavender Seniors of the East Bay; and Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays.

He claimed that they were arguing nothing new and would only lengthen the process. He also said that Our Family Coalition’s legal counsel has actually urged against a Prop 8 federal challenge.

But Olson left the door ajar for the involvement of San Francisco - the city that set in motion the sequence of events that led from Mayor Gavin Newsom’s ordering same-sex marriage licenses to be issues in 2004 to the passage of Prop 8 last November.

"If there is to be any further intervention into Plaintiffs’ case," Olson wrote, "it should be the City alone that is permitted to join. The City Attorney’s demonstrated experience in assembling factual evidence pertaining to the constitutional issues presented in this case and its demonstrated willingness to take on Plaintiffs’ fight as its own mitigates the threats of delay and unnecessarily prolonged injury to Plaintiffs."

Walker had asked the attorneys to see if they speed things along by agreeing on several key points - including what sexual orientation is, the degree to which gays are discriminated against. But they are determined to differ.

"We will present evidence that gays and lesbians wield substantial political power," Cooper wrote, meaning that gay rights are immune to political threats and therefore their "alleged liberty" needs no protection.

One of the oft-repeated arguments for banning same-sex marriage was the idea that allowing it would destabilize heterosexual unions. Cooper said that should bot be an issue in the case, "Rather," he wrote, "the Court’s inquiry is limited to whether California’s decision to preserve the traditional definition of marriage as the union of one man and one woman rationally serves the State’s legitimate interests, such as its interests in promoting responsible procreation and child rearing."

Olson, however, wants evidence presented on the destabilization claims to show the animus toward gays behind the Prop 8 campaign.

As to Cooper’s contention that the 1972 dismissal of the same-sex marriage issue in Minnesota meant that the issue is moot, Olson wrote that because Minnesota in that case was refusing to recognize any same-sex relationship, the issue was still alive in California because the state does recognize and defend some same-sex relationships without terming them marriages.

And Cooper said the judge court should acknowledge that the state Supreme Court and the Ninth District Court have both already ruled that sexual orientation cannot be changed.

California diocese first to split on gay divide

The conservative Diocese of San Joaquin voted Saturday to split from the liberal-leaning Episcopal Church, becoming the first full diocese to secede from the denomination in the debate over the Bible and homosexuality.

Clergy and lay members of the Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin voted 173-22 at their annual convention to remove all references to the national church from the diocese's constitution, said the Rev. Van McCalister, a diocesan spokesman.

The diocese, based in Fresno, plans to align with the like-minded Anglican Province of the Southern Cone, based in South America. The decision is almost certain to spark a court fight over control of the diocese's multimillion-dollar real estate holdings and other assets.

The Episcopal Church is the U.S. member of the global Anglican Communion, a 77 million-member fellowship that traces its roots to the Church of England.

Anglicans have been moving toward a worldwide schism since 2003, when the Episcopal Church consecrated the first openly gay bishop, V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire. San Joaquin is also one of the three Episcopal dioceses that will not ordain women.

The Episcopal rift over theology began decades ago and is now focused on whether the Bible condemns gay relationships.

"We have leadership in the Episcopal Church that has drastically and radically changed directions," McCalister said. "They have pulled the rug out from under us. They've started teaching something very different, something very new and novel, and it's impossible for us to follow a leadership that has so drastically reinvented itself."

Episcopal and Anglican advocates for accepting gay relationships say they are guided by biblical teachings on social justice and tolerance. Traditionalists believe that gay relationships violate Scripture.

Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, elected last year as the first woman to lead the church, had warned San Joaquin Bishop John-David Schofield against secession but did not outline specific consequences. Jefferts Schori supports ordaining partnered gays and lesbians.
"We deeply regret their unwillingness or inability to live within the historical Anglican understanding of comprehensiveness," she said in a statement after the vote. "We wish them to know of our prayers for them and their journey."

Clergy delegates at the convention voted 70-12 to break away and lay delegates voted 103-10 in support of the move. The outcome leaves in question the status of the five or so parishes in the San Joaquin diocese that wish to remain aligned with the Episcopal Church. Local clergy who agree to leave could lose their ministerial credentials and their pensions.

Jefferts Schori indicated in her statement that the national denomination will not give up the diocese. "The Episcopal Church will continue in the Diocese of San Joaquin, albeit with new leadership," she said.

The diocese serves about 8,500 parishioners in 47 congregations in central California. Nancy Key, a member of Holy Family Episcopal Church in Fresno and co-founder of Remain Episcopal, which fought the secession, said she was "very disappointed."

"This has been threatening to split our diocese apart for a long time," she said. "We feel like what we want to do is follow Christ, who included all, and used all of us for his ministry. And that didn't happen today."

The Episcopal Church was divided along North-South lines during the Civil War, as several other Protestant groups were, but the denomination was not considered formally split over theological differences, making San Joaquin the first full Episcopal diocese to break away.

Nationally, about 55 conservative Episcopal parishes, out of more than 7,000 around the country, have split off from the church in the last few years, and some have affiliated directly with Anglican provinces overseas, according to national church statistics. Courts have mostly ruled against allowing the breakaway congregations to take their property when they go.

Three other dioceses have taken initial steps toward splitting from the U.S. church. They are Fort Worth, Texas; Quincy, Ill.; and Pittsburgh.

In his address to the convention, Schofield said the vote was "all about freedom."

"It is about freedom to remain who we are in Christ. It is freedom to honor the authority of Scripture," he said. "It is freedom to worship with the Prayer Book we know and freedom from innovations and services that are contrary to the Word of God."

Wash. Senator: Not Enough Signatures

The rate of invalid signatures on a petition to repeal Washington state's expanded domestic-partnership law is leading one lawmaker to think the question might not even appear on the ballot in November.

Washington senator Ed Murray said in a statement on Thursday that the secretary of state's reported 13.3% rate of invalid signatures is probably lower than the actual failure rate. Murray faults the secretary of state's office's day-to-day changes in calculating the figures on its blog.

Given the number of signatures turned in (137,689), those looking to repeal Washington's "everything but marriage" law would need 120,577 signatures validated, or 85.8%. Murray said that while the forces behind the signature drive might feel comfortably within the margins, they shouldn't feel too victorious.

"It’s confusing when one method is used to determine the overall rates and the opposite method is used in the daily reports," he said. "If the secretary of state’s blog had first used the math that it is using now, it would have divided the total they need to verify [120,577] by the total number they will count [137,689] -- and, again, subtracted 1 -- for a maximum invalid rate of 12.4%," he said. "Or, if the secretary of state’s blog were still using the math it began with, the current error rate would be 15.4%, rather than 13.3%."

When asked by Advocate.com in July whether signature authenticity may be a problem with so many volunteers, Larry Stickney of the Washington Values Alliance said he is not too worried with that process. "[The secretary of state's office] will take a sampling, and make that determination," he said. "Usually when you're dealing with churchgoing folks, as we have in times past -- the last time I headed an initiative, we had the highest percentage of validated signatures up to that point -- we expect it to be pretty good."

Fed. Prop. 8 Lawyers Reject Gay Orgs

The two attorneys behind the federal case to overturn California's Proposition 8 have turned down legal help from the city of San Francisco, the ACLU, and two gay legal organizations.

Attorneys David Boies and Theodore Olson are petitioning U.S. district court judge Vaughn Walker to prevent intervention in the case by city officials and three legal groups -- Lambda Legal, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the National Center for Lesbian Rights -- according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Olson and Boies stated that adding more parties to the legal battle would delay the process, which their opponents, the Alliance Defense Fund, have also argued.

Boies and Olson also filed to bar the Campaign for California Families from joining the opposing legal team because it has "failed to offer any argument that differs from those raised" by parties already involved in the lawsuit, according to The Washington Post.

The groups filed a motion to intervene in the case in July because they wanted more plaintiffs involved in the lawsuit, aside from the two couples represented.

While the Alliance Defense Fund's attorneys wrote on Friday that the case should be decided without a trial, Boies and Olson argued that the case should go to trial before a judge, and without a jury, by the year's end.

The city of San Francisco was at the epicenter of the marriage equality debate when, in 2004, Mayor Gavin Newsom ordered that marriage licenses be issued to gay and lesbian couples. The surge in marriages launched a four-year legal battle, which led to the California supreme court's 2008 ruling that marriage rights must be extended to same-sex couples, and then the repeal of that ruling in the November 2008 election.

Daniel Radcliffe Gives Big to Trevor Project

The Trevor Project announced Monday that it had received a major donation from Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe, who joined Trevor’s Circle of Hope with his cash donation.

The 24-hour crisis and suicide hotline for LGBTQ youths was founded in 1998 by three filmmakers whose film Trevor, about a gay teenager who attempts suicide, received the 1994 Academy Award for Best Short Film (Live Action).

While the 20-year-old actor has made known his support for the gay community in interviews, his donation to Trevor puts his advocacy front and center.

“I am very pleased to begin my support of the Trevor Project, which saves lives every day through its critical work,” Radcliffe said in a statement. “It's extremely distressing to consider that in 2009 suicide is a top-three killer of young people, and it's truly devastating to learn that LGBTQ youth are up to four times more likely to attempt suicide than their heterosexual peers.
I deeply hope my support can raise the organization's visibility so even more despondent youth become aware of the Trevor Help line's highly trained counselors and Trevor’s many other resources. It's vitally important that young people understand they are not alone and, perhaps even more important, that their young lives have real value.”

Trevor Project executive director Charles Robbins said the organization is extremely grateful for Radcliffe's donation, adding, “He is setting a meaningful example for millions of young people around the world by embracing diversity and demonstrating that he cares deeply about the well-being of LGBTQ youth.”