Vatican: Pope Will Speak on Abuse Crisis

Pope Benedict XVI recognizes the damage and pain caused by the clergy sex abuse crisis and will seek to heal wounds during his U.S. trip next week, the Vatican's No. 2 official said Tuesday.

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, in an interview with The Associated Press, said Benedict will deliver a message of "trust and hope" when he meets American clergy at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York.

Benedict "will try to open the path of healing and reconciliation," said Bertone, the Vatican's secretary of state.

The abuse crisis has caused "so much suffering for the victims, for the families of the victims and above all to the church because it was a contradiction with the great educational mission of the church," Bertone lamented during the 30-minute interview in the frescoed Treaty Hall of the Apostolic Palace.

U.S. dioceses have paid out hundreds of millions of dollars in claims since the crisis began six years ago in Boston, where Cardinal Bernard Law ultimately resigned as archbishop. Nearly 14,000 molestation claims have been filed against Catholic clergy since 1950 - a substantial chunk of them in recent years.

Catholics in Boston had hoped Benedict would visit their city in the wake of the scandal. Bertone said Benedict, who will turn 81 during next week's visit to the U.S., is fit but could not meet all the invitations from U.S. cities and had to limit himself to Washington and New York.

"The pope is well, everyone sees it, all those who are near to him see his freshness," Bertone said.

[Think he will try to blame it on the homosexuals again?]

Tutu Speaks Out On Gay Civil Rights

Archbishop Desmond Tutu told an international LGBT human rights group that it has been impossible to keep quiet "when people were frequently hounded...vilified, molested and even killed as targets of homophobia...for something they did not choose-their sexual orientation."

Tutu was in San Francisco to receive the Outspoken award from the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission. The presentation was made as part of the organization's A Celebration of Courage human rights ceremony on Tuesday, April 8, 2008 at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco.

In his 30-minute address Tutu said that in the face of this ongoing persecution LGBT people were "compassionate, caring, self-sacrificing and refusing to be embittered."

Tutu spoke critically of the worldwide Anglican Church, apologizing for the way it has ostracized LGBT people, and for making them feel as if God had made a mistake by creating them to be who they are.

"How sad it is," he said, "That the Church should be so obsessed with this particular issue of human sexuality when God's children are facing massive problems-- poverty, disease, corruption, conflict..."

"We struggled against apartheid in South Africa, supported by people the world over, because black people were being blamed and made to suffer for something we could do nothing about-our very skins," he wrote. "It is the same with sexual orientation. It is a given. I could not have fought against the discrimination of apartheid and not also fight against the discrimination that homosexuals endure, even in our churches and faith groups."

GOVERNOR PATERSON VOWS TO BRING FULL MARRIAGE EQUALITY TO NY

New York Governor David Paterson delivered a funny and eloquent video message to the crowd at last night's National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Leadership Awards dinner since he was being "held hostage" in Albany and couldn't be there in person.

Joked Paterson: "If any of you can hear me, please contact the FBI or Interpol. I'm being held hostage in the dysfunctional Albany. I wanted to come to this dinner tonight. I'm actually tied to this chair and a gun is being pointed at my head. They're trying to get me to reverse my opinions on a number of issues, but I won't do it. If I am shot or killed during this interview, remember that I did the right thing."

Paterson praised outgoing Executive Director Matt Foreman as well as former Governor Eliot Spitzer: "I am proud to have run on a ticket with Eliot Spitzer that became the first ticket in this country to actually advocate for marriage equality for all citizens and to win on that premise."
He added: "Marriage equality in NY may not come just this moment but it is no longer an issue mostly for conviction, it is an issue for courage. People more and more understand that when people love each other they should express it in whatever way they deem necessary and possible. They should have all the rights that the rest of us have. And so, we will push on and bring full marriage equality to New York State. And when we have done that, we're going to do more. We're going to protect young people from bullies. We're going to protect against the discrimination of people in the transgender community, and we're going to fight for decent and affordable healthcare for all citizens in this state. If you will join with me, and if we work hard enough, we can change the face of New York, which will be the catalyst to changing national policy."

States sue EPA over global warming

Citing Supreme Court ruling, 17 states want to force rules within 60 days.

Seventeen states on Wednesday sued the Bush administration to force it to comply with a Supreme Court ruling that rebuked what justices called inaction on global warming.

The Supreme Court said in April 2007 that carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels is a pollutant subject to the Clean Air Act. The court directed the EPA to determine if carbon dioxide emissions, linked to global warming, endanger public health and welfare.

If that is the case, the court said, the EPA must regulate the emissions.

The 17 states, two cities and 11 environmental groups said in a court filing Wednesday that the EPA has not issued a decision on regulation. Their court filing seeks to compel the EPA to act within 60 days.

Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley said the EPA is failing to deal with the dangers of global warming.

The Sierra Club, which is also part of the lawsuit, accused the Bush administration of favoring industry. "While this administration has done everything possible to make a mockery of the rule of law in this country, it’s still stunning that they refuse to yield even to the high court," said Sierra Club climate counsel David Bookbinder.

EPA chief signals go-slow approachAn EPA spokesman did not immediately respond to a call seeking comment, but EPA administrator Stephen Johnson last Thursday told lawmakers that the agency would not be rushed into deciding whether to regulate emissions linked to global warming.

Such action "could affect many (emission) sources beyond just cars and trucks" and needs to be examined broadly as to other impacts, he wrote the leaders of the House and Senate environment committees.

That process could take months and led some of his critics to suggest he was shunting the sensitive issue to the next administration.

"This is the latest quack from a lame-duck EPA intent on running out the clock ... without doing a thing to combat global warming," said Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass. He is chairman of the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming.

"Rather than rushing to judgment on a single issue, this approach allows us to examine all the potential effects of a decision with the benefit of the public insight," Johnson wrote.

Sen. Barbara Boxer, who heads the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, noted that Johnson has had nearly a year to respond to the court but "now, instead of action, we get more foot-dragging."

"Time is not on our side when it comes to avoiding dangerous climate change. This letter makes it clear that Mr. Johnson and the Bush administration are not on our side, either," Boxer, D-Calif., said in a statement.

EPA staff: Draft rule shelvedSenior EPA employees have told congressional investigators in the House about a tentative finding from early December that CO2 posed a danger because of its climate impact. They said a draft regulation was distributed to the Transportation Department and the White House.

The EPA officials, in interviews with the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said those findings were put on hold abruptly. Johnson has said that enacting tougher automobile mileage requirements in December meant that the issue had to be re-examined.

The plaintiffs in Wednesday's court action include attorneys general from Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and the District of Columbia, plus the city of New York, and the mayor and city council of Baltimore.

The Chicks Were Born Today

I order 15 chicks, which were born today. They are being shipped from Texas to California and I should have them on Thursday or Friday.

Oil Chiefs Say High Prices Not Our Fault

Don't blame us, oil industry chiefs told a skeptical Congress. Top executives of the country's five biggest oil companies said Tuesday they know record fuel prices are hurting people, but they argued it's not their fault and their huge profits are in line with other industries.

Appearing before a House committee, the executives were pressed to explain why they should continue to get billions of dollars in tax breaks when they made $123 billion last year and motorists are paying record gasoline prices at the pump.

"On April Fool's Day, the biggest joke of all is being played on American families by Big Oil," Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., said, aiming his remarks at the five executives sitting shoulder-to-shoulder in a congressional hearing room.

"Our earnings, although high in absolute terms, need to be viewed in the context of the scale and cyclical, long-term nature of our industry as well as the huge investment requirements," said J.S. Simon, senior vice president of Exxon Mobil Corp., which made a record $40 billion last year.

"We depend on high earnings during the up cycle to sustain ... investment over the long term, including the down cycles," he continued.

The up cycle has been going on too long, suggested Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Mo. "The anger level is rising significantly."

Alluding to the fact that Congress often doesn't rate very high in opinion polls, Cleaver told the executives: "Your approval rating is lower than ours, and that means you're down low."

Several lawmakers noted the rising price of gasoline at the pump, now averaging $3.29 a gallon amid talk of $4 a gallon this summer.

"I heard what you are hearing. Americans are very worried about the rising price of energy," said John Hofmeister, president of Shell Oil Co., echoing remarks by the other four executives including representatives of BP America Inc., Chevron Corp. and ConocoPhillips.

While Democrats hammered the executives for their profits and demanded they do more to develop alternative energy sources such as wind, solar and biofuels, Republican lawmakers called for opening more areas for drilling to boost domestic production of oil and gas.

UK CHURCH TAKES GAY UNION STAND 'ON THE SIDE OF LOVE'

North London's Newington Green Unitarian Church is standing up for same-sex couples by refusing to conduct any heterosexual marriages until the Civil Partnership Act is changed to allow religious content in civil partnership registrations.

"The church in Islington suspended full wedding ceremonies from 30 March. The church describes itself as 'an inclusive, liberal religious community welcoming people from all traditions and perspectives'. It said it would continue to bar full weddings until the law was amended. [Minister Andrew] Pakula said: 'When we realised the extent of the injustice in the existing civil partnership law which completely prohibits any connection between religion and civil partnerships, we decided it just wasn't something we could take part in. We have at this point continued to do blessings and civil partnership blessings so anyone who has done the legal business in the town hall can come to us and do a gorgeous religious celebration...Historically churches have been major perpetrators of injustice for gay and lesbian people and as a church that welcomes people of all sexual orientation, as both members and clergy, we feel it is our duty to stand up on the other side. We are standing on the side of love here and that is our stance.'"

'God Hates Fags' sect could lose their church

A federal judge has ordered that the Westboro Baptist Church (WBC) building and the Phelps-Chartered Law office be taken away from the owners in order to pay a $5 million fine.

The church, based in Topeka, Kansas, runs numerous websites such as GodHatesFags.com, GodHatesAmerica.com and others expressing condemnation of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people, Roman Catholics, Muslims and Jews.

The religious organization was ordered to pay the damages after members of its congregation picketed the funeral of two American servicemen.Westboro Baptist members regularly picket funerals of members of the US Armed Forces killed in action, contending the deaths are God's punishment for the country's support of homosexuals.

Some states, including Kansas, have passed laws prohibiting picketing at funerals.I

f the court's decision is upheld then the Phleps family will be made bankrupt and will loose both the church and the building housing the family law firm.However, the family may be able to keep hold of the buildings through a legal loophole.

By law a persons home cannot be seized to pay legal costs, the family are maintaining that both the church and office buildings are part of the family home.

The family has been ordered to provide financial information about their interests.

[See, there is a god! I hope they lose everything.]

U.S. GOES PREPPY FOR OLYMPIC WARDROBE

"The preppy styles Polo is making for the athletes to wear in the Opening and Closing ceremonies and in the Olympic Village will mark a departure from sporty outfits that the American team has worn in recent years, such as retro ski jackets inspired by vintage Ducati motorcycle ads that were worn in Turin, Italy, in 2006."

[I love the Olympics!]

IKEA Bans Plastic Bags for Good

Almost two years ago, IKEA announced it was going to start charging for plastic bags in the UK; then we heard that IKEA US was following suit by charging five cents per plastic bag. Soon after, that news was followed by a plastic bag ban in their UK stores, so perhaps the latest from the Swedish flat-packers shouldn't be too surprising: in an effort to promote the use of reusable bags, IKEA will no longer offer plastic bags starting in October.

Judging by the numbers, this won't be a huge stretch for IKEA customers: last March, IKEA set a goal of reducing its US stores' plastic bag consumption by 50%; after crunching some numbers, a whopping 92% of IKEA customers went for the reusable bag over the pay-for-plastic option. That's a lot of big blue bags, and even more plastic bags kept out of landfills.

Leno Apoligizes

“I agree it was a dumb thing to say, and I apologize.”

JAY LENO after gay-rights activists blasted the host's request that guest Ryan Phillipe give the camera his "gayest look" during a taping of The Tonight Show. Phillipe threatened to walk off the set

500 Megawatts of Solar-Thermal Power in Mojave Desert

Because of California law, PG&E needs to get 20% of its electricity from renewable sources (not including big hydro) by 2010, so it has contracted with Brightsource Energy for 3 new solar-thermal power plants in the Mojave desert, one of the best spots for solar power in the world.

"Solar thermal energy is an especially attractive renewable power source because it is available when needed most in California – during the peak mid-day summer period," said Fong Wan, vice president of energy procurement at PG&E. These first three plants will add up to 500 megawatts of capacity, but PG&E has also signed contracts for options on an additional 400 megawatts, which could bring the total to 900 megawatts.

George W Bush Sewage Plant' Proposed In San Francisco

Looking to honor the forty-third President of the United States of America, George W. Bush, the recently formed Presidential Memorial Commission of San Francisco is looking to change the name of the Oceanside Wastewater Treatment Facility. It seems the group would like to rename the SF Zoo adjacent facility to the 'George W Bush Sewage Plant.’

The grassroots movement is "proposing an ordinance initiative for the November 2008 San Francisco ballot"

California OKs first step for cigarette tax measure

Supporters of a California measure that would impose an additional sales tax of 75 cents on a pack of cigarettes may begin collecting signatures to qualify it for the ballot, the state's top election official said on Tuesday.

The measure would raise revenues to increase the number of children who could enroll in California's Medi-Cal and Healthy Families programs and for programs that discourage the use of tobacco products.

The measure would initially raise an estimated $750 million annually, according to estimates by California's Legislative Analyst's Office.

If proponents collect 694,354 signatures of registered voters by late June, California's secretary of state could place the measure on the November ballot.

Smart Fortwo Selling Like Hotcakes

In a year, sales of the second-generation smart fortwo have gone up 80%, reaching 100,000 units in 37 countries. Italy and Germany represent the biggest chunk of new smart fortwo sold, with about 2/3 of combined sales during the past year.

But the question we really want to ask Daimler is, where are the diesel-hybrid and electric versions? The diesel-hybrid apparently got fuel economy of 2.9 liters/100 km (81 mpg US), and the EV had a range of 110 kilometers (62 miles), which would work for a urban car. It was good of Daimler to make a start-stop version of the smart, making the car up to 20% more efficient in city driving, but there's an opportunity for real leadership here.

“The image of Benedict XVI is not only not well known, but it is badly known.”

Archbishop PIETRO SAMBI, the Vatican's top diplomat in the U.S., as the Pope prepares for his first papal trip to America, which the Vatican sees as an opportunity for him to soften his image

“Corruption is the tree. Terrorism, destabilization, smuggling and poppy are its branches. If you cut down corruption, the rest will die.”

Afghani parliamentarian HOSSEIN BALKHI as NATO leaders discuss the growing corruption in Afghanistan

Congress Has Big Questions for Big Oil

Big Oil is once again being called on the carpet. [Ummmm, yeah. Or is it just another big show for the public where nothing really happens to the oil companies, oil prices go higher, the oil companies set new levels of record profit, and they get to keep all of their federal susbsidies?]

Senior executives of the five largest U.S. oil companies were to appear before a congressional committee Tuesday where they were likely to find frustrated lawmakers in no mood for small talk.
"These companies are defending billions of federal subsidies ... while reaping over a hundred billion dollars in profits in just the last year alone," complained Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., in previewing the hearing.

The lawmakers were scheduled to hear from top executives of Exxon Mobil Corp., Shell Oil Co., BP America Inc., Chevron Corp. and ConocoPhillips, which together earned about $123 billion last year because of soaring oil and gasoline prices.

Markey, chairman of the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, said he wants to know why, with such profits, the oil industry is steadfastly fighting to keep $18 billion in tax breaks, stretched over 10 years.

He said the executives would be asked to explain how they can get energy prices down in the short run and "in the long run what are they going to do to shift the focus to a renewable energy agenda."

"We have to move beyond this oil economy," Markey said Tuesday on CBS' "The Early Show." "We have to move to a renewable energy economy. ... We can never get out of this trap as long as the oil companies want to hold us hostage to this old agenda."

The House last year and again on Feb. 27 approved legislation that would have ended the tax breaks for the oil giants, while using the revenue to support wind, solar and other renewable fuels and incentives for energy conservation. The measure has not passed the Senate.

The oil industry has argued on Capitol Hill and at the White House that the tax breaks are needed to assure continued investment in exploration, production and refinery expansions. President Bush has promised to veto any such bill, saying that the oil companies should not be singled out.
The threat of nationwide $4-a-gallon gasoline, perhaps this summer, and $100-a-barrel oil is producing strong political reverberations, even as lawmakers acknowledged there is little that Congress can do to bring prices down.

Supporters File Briefs in Iowa Marriage Case

At least 17 friend-of-the-court briefs will be filed this week with the Iowa supreme court on behalf of six same-sex couples who are suing the state for the right to marry. Supporters including professors, attorneys, pediatricians, and elected officials have filed the documents to bolster the couples' case.

“All that is necessary for evil to prevail is for good people to do nothing.”

GOVERNOR CHARLIE CRIST of Florida, quoting philosopher Edmund Burke, after the state's legislature formally apologized for a history of slavery

Arguments Filed In Same-Sex Marriage Case

A gay rights organization will file legal arguments in a case before the Iowa Supreme Court on the state's ban on same-sex marriage.

Lambda Legal is a New York-based group that has spearheaded a same-sex marriage drive across the country. It plans to file the arguments Friday in a lawsuit on behalf of six gay and lesbian couples who were denied marriage licenses.

An initial lawsuit was filed in Polk County District Court in 2005, naming former Polk County recorder and registrar Timothy Brien.

That lawsuit prompted a ruling last August by Judge Robert Hanson, who said the state law allowing marriage only between a man and a woman violates the constitutional rights of due process and equal protection.

Polk County attorney's office officials have said lawmakers should decide the issue.

New Beginnings in San Joaquin...

The reorganization of the Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin officially began on the evening of March 28 in a church partially illuminated by the Paschal Candle.

Officiant Bonnie Anderson, president of the House of Deputies, began the service at the Episcopal Church of St. Anne in Stockton, California, with the Easter acclamation: "Alleluia, Christ is risen." After the Prayer for Light and the rest of the candles were lit, she and the congregation recited the three Easter Lucernaria, or anthems.

The service was based The Book of Common Prayer's Order of Worship for the Evening.

Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori led the congregation of about 300 in the Litany for Healing, praying in part that God would "heal our wounds received at the hands of our friends, our fellow parishioners, and the clergy of this diocese, and help us to know the joy of your saving help."

The litany also included a prayer that God would "remove the darkness of our anxiety and despair over what has been done in our parishes and in our diocese, and let us see the glories of new possibilities, new friendships, and new ways of serving you." And the litany included the prayer that God would help the people of the diocese to know that God is always present "guiding us to Easter hope and resurrected life."

SORDID LIVES: THE SERIES IS COMING

The new trailer for Sordid Lives The Series, based on Del Shores 1996 play and 2000 film, has hit the web. The show stars Beth Grant, Rue McClanahan, Caroline Rhea, Jason Dottley, Bonnie Bedelia, Leslie Jordan, and Olivia Newton-John. Tammy Wynette is played by Wynette's daughter Georgette Jones. It was rumored to be coming to LOGO in the fall.

Only in LA!

Easter and Andy's Birthday

Since Andy's birthday was only a few days after Easter, Nick wanted to give Andy a little surprise: Andy's birthday party and Easter Bonnet party combined. Everyone (read "most of us") wore our best Easter Bonnets for the celebration.

Sean and I had matching bonnets... if you look closely, you can see the butterflies above our hats.

Nelson will make a good bride!

As always... plenty of great food and great company.