Gay Pride in New York!

The subject line shouldn't be startling. If anything, it shouldn't even phase you. New York's been long known as a center for Gay Pride, and yesterday was no different! Yesterday was the annual Gay Pride Parade that extends down 5th Avenue down towards the West Village. It also marked the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots.

Here's a brief history lesson in case you aren't sure what Stonewall was. In 1969, people were feeling the love -- it was a decade of revolution, of free love, of expression, of drugs, of love beads, of sit-ins and getting tear gassed, of protests and demonstrations. In the Village, there was a place called the Stonewall Inn, known for being gay-friendly in a time when everything but homosexuality seemed to be all right. Police raids were more or less routine, but on June 28th, 1969, the gay and lesbian community fought back against the police raids. The following year, the Gay Pride Parade began in New York & Los Angeles to commemorate this act of justified rebellion. If you want to read the whole spiel, you can read all about it here.

So, yesterday was the 39th Gay Pride Parade in New York, and it gets more and more fabulouuuuus! every single year! One of my favorite things about this year is that Governor David Patterson marched in it -- he's already said that if the bill passes the Senate, he's going to sign it.

I wanted to head to the Parade myself, but having a dentist appointment at 8 AM, after which I couldn't feel the right side of my face, I came back home and fell asleep until the afternoon. Then made myself lunch and hung around until I went over to a friend's house and subsequently went on our usual trip to Starbucks. So. You know. I didn't actually get to the Parade, but my gay-loving side was there in spirit! That's what counts, right? The gay spirit? Or something?

Anyway .. have some pictures and TRY to tell me they're not fabulous!


Drag queens! I'm still on my mission to become BFFs with one. Any takers?


Rainbow balloons outside St. Patrick's


Work it, honey, work it!


Governor David Patterson! <3 He's so adorable!


I imagine them skipping through a meadow of daisies .. FABULOUS.

Pictures taken from here (Link to the Washington Post).

- May (you, at the end of the day, remember the love).

Just Beat It! No, Not THAT, You Freak.

Look.

Let's be frank here, okay? (I suddenly have the urge to say, "And don't call me Shirley.") Michael Jackson was weird. As some comedian said, and I'm paraphrasing here, 'Only in America can a poor black guy turn into a rich white guy.' The guy obviously had issues. More issues than all the psychologists/psychiatrists/counselors could ever attempt to talk about. He grew up with an abusive father (come on, admit it - you've seen that Michael Jackson movie on VH1, more than once. Don't lie. I'm onto you). If I'm remembering correctly, his father used to talk about his nose and how wide, how "black" it was. It was something he used to harp on constantly as MJ was growing up, hence his obsession with making it small, petite, and virtually non-existent.

The guy was accused of being a pedophile. In case you have selective amnesia, though, the charges were dropped because the stories of the kid and his family were inconsistent. There was even a Law & Order: Special Victims Unit episode paralleling the story ('not based on actual events' my ass, Dick Wolf) where Shirley from Laverne & Shirley was actually poisoning her granddaughter and making her think she had cancer. They then fabricated a story about a famous pop singer who'd had charges of molestation/improper relations with children before, but it all ended up being a plot to get money from him.

So. I mean. I don't know. I'm not saying that MJ didn't do it (he fully admitted letting kids sleep in his bed), but if Dick Wolf, Elliot Stabler, and Olivia Benson are insinuating that people are money-hungry bastards who poison their grandkids to make a more convincing story, then .. you know. It makes you pause and think. Because Benson and Stabler don't lie. They just don't do it. Except when Benson's trying to protect her long-lost brother ..

Anyway, the point is - the guy had his issues. I think people really are money-hungry bastards who'll do just about anything to exploit someone else (is it that far-fetched? Think about the lawsuit-happy culture we all live in right now) .. I mean, it's like that person who sued McDonald's after she spilled her hot coffee in her lap and burned herself.

And won.

That's sick. You're an idiot who ordered hot coffee and were too stupid to put it in a cup holder and instead squeezed the cup between your thighs and oops! Surprise! Hot coffee lap. Deal with your own stupidity and own up to your mistakes.

All of that aside, MJ revolutionized music. He changed it forever.

I was adopted in 1988. MJ was at the early peak of his solo career. Thriller had come out in 1982 (it's the world's best-selling record, in case you weren't aware) and Bad had just come out the year before. My brother's cabbage patch doll was named Michael. My sister's doll was named Billie Jean (these names were given by my brother and sister, respectively). If you watch my arrival video, you can see Michael Jackson's "Bad" video on the TV behind me as I bounce around in my wheeling-chair-with-tray-attached thing, which I called my Boinga Boinga. Don't ask questions. Just keep reading.

The "Thriller" video still scares the shit out of me if I watch it by myself and at night. Because of that video, I sprint past cemeteries if I happen to be walking past one at night. The opening beats of the song immediately pop into my head, in addition to Vincent Price's creepy-as-hell voice over, as I imagine decomposing hands and limbs coming forth from the depths of the crypts and graves and mausoleums. But then I think to myself, "Even if that did happen, we just have to do a synchronized dance sequence with the werewolf hand march and we'll all be okay. They'll think I'm one of them and then I'll turn around as I leave with yellow eyes and fangs. Success!"

Everyone, I don't care who you are, has tried to Moonwalk. And probably fallen over/tripped/backed up into a wall/kicked a small child. Everyone, secretly or not, dances around to Billie Jean, The Way You Make Me Feel, Bad, Beat It, and/or Thriller. Everyone's at least tried to lean the Thriller dance in its entirety. And who didn't cry at the end of Free Willy when "Will You Be There" came on? Admit it! You bawled like a baby. As did everyone else in the theatre. GO FREE WILLY, GO!

Ahem.

His personal life aside, MJ was a staple in the music world. I grew up listening to him, even if it was after he'd made it big. I grew up watching his videos. Wanting to imitate his dance moves, only to realize that I couldn't ever Moonwalk the way he did. The man may have been on the creepy side of life, but my Social Work education has made me look at him for who he really was, despite public persona: the result of an abusive, abusive father, an unhealthy family system, and a child who was stripped of his chance of being a child in order to be a performer.

To quote Micky J himself, "It don't matter if you're black or white." His death is a loss for everyone.

Here's a link to one of my favorite MJ videos, "Black or White."

- May (you remember to listen to the music).

Prop 8. No, Really. Why?

Well.

Again.

California has proven itself to be less progressive than Iowa. People, are you listening? Iowa and Maine are MORE progressive than California. California, land of surfers, sun, beach, sand, SAN FRANSISCO (rivaled only by Provincetown, Massachusetts and the entirety of the Village, New York City), and happy cows (from which comes good cheese) is less progressive than Iowa, which has nothing really notable in it, and Maine, land of lobster and snow. Did I mention that Iowa and Maine are stereotypically full of backwards people?

Don't get your long johns in a twist -- I said stereotypically.

Somehow, the majority managed to overturn these people:



I mean, look at them! Raising their fists and rainbow flags to fight injustice! There's even a large man wearing a pink shirt, for Pete's sake. Also, side note, who is Pete? And why are we always excusing ourselves on his behalf?

Anyway, I just don't get it. I don't think I'll ever get it. Love is love is love.

But if you need some convincing as to why you should vote NO on Prop 8, if it ever comes around again (which it probably will), might I offer:

The National Organization For Marriage's "The Gathering Storm" video. It's a repost, but you know what, it's SO ridiculous that it deserves to be posted twice. Because listening to it once is just enough to melt your brain. The second time around, the rest of your explodes.



Jason Mraz's comical picture to show his lack of support for Prop 8.



And if those don't work, have a picture of me, pissed at the way things are going. You don't want me going all Ninja (yes, I realize those are typically Japanese and not Korean) on your ass. I'm serious.



Now. Once you've gone and changed your now-brown underwear (or long johns), go out and fight against this stupid, stupid ban. Even if you're not in California. I don't care. Go out and fight. Organize. Something. Anything. Just do it and do it for love.

- May (you remember love).

New York, New York!

We are officially one step closer to legalizing Same-Sex Marriage in New York!

The NYS Assembly passed the bill today (89 to 52)! Now, it's on to the Senate, and if it passes there, then Governor David Paterson must sign it, which he has already said he would. The Assembly already had passed this bill back in 2007, but I think that since so many states have already legalized it, now's the time it'll actually happen. I mean, if Iowa and Maine are more progressive than New York, which houses such areas as The Village, something is seriously wrong.

Anyway, this bit of legislative action is, in a word, awesome!

A quote from Mayor Bloomberg pretty much sums it up: "I applaud ... members of both parties for moving this historic legislation forward."

California, you'd better catch up. Over-turn Prop 8 now!

Here's the article at CNN.com.

- May (you take your steps in the right direction).

Don't Ask, Don't Tell Leads to Ignorance

Because I was sucked into the world of Twitter, I've been following a slew of different people. Some are celebrities, like Rainn Wilson and Jason Mraz (well, his Joyoligist, since she's doing the Tweeting). Others have to do with politics, like one account called Obamawatcher.

Something caught my about one of the twats: "Obama Caving on Gays in the Military." There's an article at The Huffington Post about it, which is what the link was in the twat (sorry, Mraz, I stole that term from you; the PC term would be tweet).

Anyway .. I don't think I've ever really fully understood the DADT policy. What does someone's sexual orientation have to do with his/her ability to protect his/her country? No, this is really a question I'd like someone to asnwer.

Seriously.

How does having a sexual preference for the same gender mean that you're unworthy of doing a civic duty? Especially since there isn't a draft and so many men and women (the "special and straight" ones, mind you) are being sent back for their third or fourth tour because there's a shortage of soldiers.

But really. Are people afraid that they're going to "catch the gay" or something? Are they worried that if they spend time in close quarters with someone who is homosexual, they're going to get hit on? First of all -- a compliment's a compliment, regardless of who gives it. Get over it and be flattered. Secondly, is that the worst that can happen? Someone gets uncomfortable because someone thinks they're attractive?

Please, someone explain the point of this policy to me. Why, logically (that's the key word here), does it matter whether someone is straight or gay? When an enemy's charging at you with a gun or a bomb, I don't think it matters.

To quote the verifiably insane and talented Jack Nicholson from "The Departed:" ... Today, what I'm saying to you is this: when you're facing a loaded gun, what's the difference?

- May (you make the right decision when the time comes).

Also, Obama, please hurry the hell up and dissolve this policy. KTHNXBYE.

Rain Rain Go Away

I was randomly thinking about some childhood songs I used to sing without really understanding. One of them was "Alouette," which .. as it turns out .. is kind of a mean song. Alouette, in French, means Lark. Like the bird. And the French songs talks about plucking feathers from the poor bird's body!

Don't ask why I was thinking about this song or why it suddenly dawned on me that it's some inadvertent way to promote ripping feathers out of a poor bird's body. I mean, I obviously didn't know that when I was a kid -- I just thought that I sounded cool and bilingual, singing songs in French. Add on Frere Jacques and heck, I could work for the United Nations .. so long as they sang in rhymes and catchy melodies.

And also stuck to those two songs.

Maybe this is what dreary, rainy weather does to people because you can't do anything else, like .. hiking. Or sun bathing. Or .. any number of other activities which require sunlight and warm temperatures. Like calculating how strong UV rays are.

In case you don't remember the song, the Wikipedia entry is here.

Oh, I also found something funny in Googling pictures for my thesis presentation.



Okay, so the premise is funny. To an extent. The file title is called "Why Most Men are Republican." First of it, there are plenty of men who aren't Republican (and if you're one of them, please feel free to send me a message). Second, since when are credentials based solely on a person's looks?

I think that Miss South Carolina pretty much proves that just because you're physically attractive does not you're a full set of Chef Tony's Miracle Blade knives. Maybe they forgot the Rock n' Chop at the warehouse or something. Or maybe she was that piece of the boot that he cut up and forgot to throw in the trash.

Anyway. It just made think of sexism. Because hello, it's overly blatant in this situation. I couldn't find any similar images with men, because women are the only ones who are judged based on appearances -- at least in most circumstances. So, because the creator of this wonderful little image carefully chose the most attractive Republicans and the least attractive Democrats, that somehow proves their value and their ability to think clearly and make rational decisions. Just because they're aesthetically pleasing.

But if we're going to play that nasty, dirty game, must I remind the image creator of Shirley Phelps-Roper?



One of THE MOST conservative, Republican people in the whole freakin' universe?

Don't play that game with me, you random Republican person with too much time on your hands who should have his/her internet taken away so you can no longer do Google image searches! You're going to lose!

- May (you find the strength within yourself).

Om Nom Nom Nom

I wish that I could chomp down and swallow up NOM (the National Organization for Marriage).

I wish that I could take all of the hateful people in the world and just .. let them secede from the rest of the earth.

I wish that people could simply be who they are, be who they want to be without fear of judgment.



The reason for this post is because of the ridiculous ad that the National Organization for Marriage came out with not too long ago. It's called "The Gathering Storm," and it's fueled by the lack of support for Gay Marriage. PS - If you're like me, you may suffer a stroke, heart attack, leprosy, enlarged duodenum, or other uncomfortable/deadly ailment from watching that. I was pretty sure I had a seizure following that video. A large, leggy creature was also crawling its way across my desk, unbeknownst to me -- a sign of a plague, I'm sure, except it's the Plague of Hatred.

And look, I understand that not everyone is in support of the movement. I get that. I can respect that (though barely). But the arguments given, particularly the ones in this video, are laughable, at best.

If anyone can figure out what kind of job the Californian doctor has where she would have to choose between her job and her faith, please share with the rest of the class. My room mates and I couldn't figure it out. I'm sure there was .. actually, you know what, no. I don't think there was anything logical in the entire commercial.

Except for that rainbow coalition they mention at the end. Which I found to be rather ironic. A rainbow, huh? Are you sure you're not just a bunch of closet homosexuals?

There was a study done, actually, where scientists took two groups of men (one was homophobic, the other wasn't) and studied them to see if they had any kind of sexual response to homo-errotic stimuli. They would measure the circumference of a participant's penis before showing pictures or videos of homosexual people (I think it was both women and men), and then measured the circumference again. The ones who were the most homophobic had the greatest increase in measurement, meaning more bloodflow to the penis, meaning .. they were sexually aroused.

It just goes to prove the old addage: "The lady doth protest too much, methinks." Except in this case, instead of lady, it's homophobic idiot.

May (you feel love).

Trying my heartest .. Get it? Didja?

Good news, New Yorkers! Well .. for the LBGT ones and for the ones who support the LBGT community, like this wee Asian girl does.



Gov. Paterson said yesterday (Thursday, April 16th, in case you've got selective amnesia like me) that he's going to introduce a bill to legalize same-sex marriage!

I think I just heard a part of the earth explode with cheers, dancing, maybe some confetti. No, it's okay. Take your time. I'll still be here when you're done. In fact, I'm going to join you in the confetti-dancing because this is great news!

It's about damn time, don't you think? After seeing what happened in California (boo to you, my West Coast Brother), I'm glad New York is trying to take a step in the right direction. Don't get your underoos all in a twist if you don't agree with it. I don't want to hear all of those excuses like it "takes away from the sacred institute of marriage." Since when has marriage really been sacred? Since Vegas opened up those 24-hour chapels for people to get hitched? Since the 1950's when girls who got pregnant out of wedlock were forced to get married to the guy she probably never wanted to see again? Since Britney Spears had a 55-hour marriage while in a drunken and idiotic stupor?

Don't tell me about the "sanctity of marriage" when straight people (and I'm included in this category, so I'm allowed to talk about it!) go and defile it all the time. While religious meaning of marriage would be great for the LGBT community, the focus for this is on the legal meaning -- thousands upon thousands of Federal rights that married couples take for granted. Seriously. Look it up. I'm not lying.

For all of those who say that two people of the same sex can't get married because marriage and the subsequent sexual relations that occur are unnatural, please kindly find a bridge and jump. You know what's unnatural? Trying to restrict and impede upon another person's rights. Or trying to interfere with someone's life that really, really doesn't affect you at all. If LGBT people get married, the world isn't going to blow up in some fiery apocalypse -- we're already halfway there thanks to a man called George W. Bush and his greed for oil and money and power. If anything? Allowing LGBT marriage will save us from the raging fires of destruction.

When love is shared and felt and spread and given and taken, you just get it. And somehow, things are a little brighter .. the world's a little better .. and you're smiling a little wider.

Besides, karma's a bitch, and it doesn't like when you keep sending its Negative-Nancy-sister to people who haven't harmed you in the least. So stop it with the negative attitudes and energies!

Anyway .. for all of those who actually like the idea of celebrating in love who are currently in New York? Let's make it happen. Let's show our support in every way we possibly can.

You've got to spread love to get love.

May (you find peace).