BREAKING: Christian rock star - 'I'm gay. God loves me just the way I am'

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Thursday August 14, 2014 · 5:39 AM PDT

2014/08/14 · 05:39

Kudos to Vicky Beeching for coming out. That cannot have been easy. I've seen up close how difficult it was for my own sister to come out, so I am very sympathetic to Beeching's struggles. There will undoubtedly be much wailing, pulling of hair and gnashing of teeth among those who purport to call themselves true Christians, but have such difficulties loving their 'enemies'.

In my church I am already slowly seeing some changes in attitudes. It won't come fast, but it will come. As she says herself:

"The Church's teaching was the reason that I lived in so much shame and isolation and pain for all those years. But rather than abandon it and say it's broken, I want to be part of the change."

Amen!

http://www.independent.co.uk/...

AP "reports" Premiums to rise under Obama plan

mierts

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Wednesday March 17, 2010 · 2:41 AM PDT

2010/03/17 · 02:41

Well, here's some clear-eyed objective journalism. The AP is running a story with the title Fact Check: Premiums would rise under Obama plan

It goes on to report that what Obama says is "misleading" when you look at the fine print of the draft legislation. Obviously the article's title is not misleading, no Siree.

mierts

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Wednesday November 11, 2009 · 12:43 AM PST

2009/11/11 · 00:43

[Apologies if this has been previously diaried, I couldn't find any reference to it]

A picture speaks a thousand words. Many pictures tell a whole story, and the link that I post below tells an entire story that is both moving, haunting and provides a vivid image of the life of a young soldier serving in Iraq.

Veterans Day (or Remembrance Day, as I prefer to call it, given my years of living in the UK; or Armistice Day as it is called here) is a solemn occasion: but I think that it is not only about recalling the terrible loss of life in the abstract, it is also about reminding us of the humanity behind each solider: that every single one is and was a human being with dignity, feelings, doubts, fears, joys, frustrations, a soul. Only when we can remember, affirm and celebrate our common humanity can we as a society move forward in the quest for lasting peace.

Whatever the motives of the young man in the linked photo diary, I think we must not lose sight of these things. It is what binds us to one another. And it is what can undo us when we forget.

mierts

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Thursday November 05, 2009 · 12:15 PM PST

2009/11/05 · 12:15

Speaking today in front of the Capitol, Jon Voigt had the following to say:

I am honoured to be at the side of MichelleBachmann, a great Congresswoman, [sniff sniff], a great Congress-, a great human being, and a true American patriot to hopefully be a voice for all Americans who do not want to pass Obama-run government healthcare. [sniff] We do not want our freedom of choice taken away from us. [Cheers follow in crowd]

title=

Well, there you have it. Pro-choice Republicans. Thank God there were so many of them to turning out, it sure does feel good to know how important Freedom to Choose is to these folks. Maybe we need to think of ways to act together to really push back anti-choice activists, you know, those really, right-wing nutj-...... What?!? Huh?!? [Head explodes]

For Mary.

mierts

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Wednesday October 21, 2009 · 2:29 PM PDT

2009/10/21 · 14:29

A wife. A mother. 10 children. Pregnant with the 11th. A selfless worker for the homeless and the hungry in South Omaha. Diagnosed with advanced lung cancer. No health insurance.

Her name was Mary. And she died today, together with her unborn child.

mierts

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Monday October 12, 2009 · 10:53 AM PDT

2009/10/12 · 10:53

For starters, I think what Grayson has done in the last few weeks is simply excellent. Words, when carefully chosen and spoken with profound conviction and with justice on their side, can move mountains. So, I can only add my voice to those who want to see more Grayson-esque behaviour in those of his Democratic colleagues who are wavering, cautious, uncertain, or simply lack the courage of their convictions.

But what I really wanted to do was, despite the fact that you might call this old news and therefore irrelevant, post a brief letter I sent to the Nobel Committee last night. I don't expect many of you to read this, but for the record, I hope that it might still inspire a few of you to go and write the Committee to let them know how you feel, now that the initial hoo-ha has died down.

mierts

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Friday August 14, 2009 · 4:00 AM PDT

2009/08/14 · 04:00

(This was diaried by UltravioletUK but I think needs more attention to point out that a so-called "expert" on European "socialised" medicine is being slapped down by his own Conservative party leader in the UK.)

The health-insurance reform debate is making waves over here in Europe. Specifically, party political leaders in the UK have come out staunchly defending the much-malinged National Health Service, the NHS.

UPDATED: Cameron has now given an interview to Sky News (Prop.: R. Murdoch), and his language could not be more unequivocal, including highlights:

mierts

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Wednesday August 12, 2009 · 6:05 AM PDT

2009/08/12 · 06:05

The time has come for universal health care in America.
- Barack Obama, Jan. 25, 2007

Now is the time to finally keep the promise of affordable, accessible health care for every single American.
- Barack Obama, Mile High Stadium, Denver Colorado, August 28, 2008

It's the story of hardworking Americans who are held hostage by health insurance companies that deny them coverage, or drop their coverage, or charge fees that they can't afford for care that they desperately need.

I believe it is wrong. It is bankrupting families and businesses, and that's why we are going to pass health insurance reform in 2009.
- President Obama, Portsmouth, NH, 11 August, 2009

I've listened to the President's townhall and have been reading various commentators over the past few days. In particular, something struck me about the President's choice of language. It suggests a subtle re-shifting of the language.

mierts

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Thursday January 22, 2009 · 2:45 AM PST

2009/01/22 · 02:45

(If anyone has already published a diary on this, my apologies, but my search came up with nothing)

It's not an every day likelihood that one would quote Qaddafi in support of a particular argument. This is a leader whose track record does not exactly inspire confidence, and whose credibility as an advocate of peace is wafer-thin at best, non-existent at worst.

Yet I was going through the Times' site this morning, and came upon his Op-Ed on promoting the One State solution in Israel-Palestine. It intrigued me because it acknowledges the utter failure of any two state solution to achieve any tangible success:

But everywhere one looks, among the speeches and the desperate diplomacy, there is no real way forward. A just and lasting peace between Israel and the Palestinians is possible, but it lies in the history of the people of this conflicted land, and not in the tired rhetoric of partition and two-state solutions.

mierts

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Friday October 31, 2008 · 6:02 PM PDT

2008/10/31 · 18:02

I have always told my wife that I wanted to make a difference in this campaign. Well, today I did. I made a difference. Except not quite in the way that it was supposed to happen.

My day started off by waking to the beautiful sunrise here in DC. I had flown in yesterday from Europe, and had a work related meeting at the GAO this morning. My plan thereafter would be to head down to the DC Obama headquarters on Florida Avenue to do some phone banking with a buddy of mine. That part went all according to plan.

mierts

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Thursday October 23, 2008 · 9:29 AM PDT

2008/10/23 · 09:29

It's been happening for months now. It happened ever since I received a package from a close friend containing 2 Obama coffee mugs and a raft of bumper stickers (for all my cars, obviously). As I opened the box, I felt like a small child taking the wrapper off a chocolate bar: sheer excitement at the prospect of what was inside, and the undiluted pleasure it would provide me with. I quickly ran to the car, wiped the dust off the back, and carefully peeled away the back and delicately placed the sticker on my little car (not the bumper, but high up, where everyone could see it). It looked beautiful: simple, elegant, clear.

I drive my car with my Obama '08 bumper sticker on the back with pride. And yet, even with all the good news in the polls, I still get odd looks. Comments from colleagues and friends. Questions as to why I would want to adorn my car with a sticker expressing my support for Obama, since I'm not even one of "them".

title=

Poll

137 votes Show Results

Would you like to see Kula2316's "Morning Reaction" column elevated to front page status?

137 votes Vote Now!

Would you like to see Kula2316's "Morning Reaction" column elevated to front page status?

Yes

112 votes

13 votes

Never read it

12 votes

UPDATED: Woman to meet some people

mierts

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Wednesday September 17, 2008 · 4:33 AM PDT

2008/09/17 · 04:33

So Sarah Palin is going to visit the United Nations. Yipee! The good news for her is that she doesn't need a passport to visit all the countries in the world.

According to the WSJ, Palin is to meet foreign leaders,

a move to boost her foreign-policy credentials, a Republican strategist said.

That is just taking the piss. I'm sure they all realise that she will none the wiser, but the McCain campaign is probably hoping for a little video footage that they can insert into ads showing her mingling with the great and the good.

There must be a flaw in this plan, though, I suspect . . .

Poll

87 votes Show Results

Who will be least likely to ever meet with Palin?

87 votes Vote Now!

Who will be least likely to ever meet with Palin?

Queen Elizabeth II

11 votes

Nicolas Sarkozy

1 vote

Robert Mugabe

2 votes

Vladimir Putin

14 votes

Hu Jintao

3 votes

Gordon Brown

4 votes

David Mohato Bereng Seeiso, aka Letsie III

1 vote

Silvio Berlusconi

0 votes

Angela Merkel

3 votes

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

17 votes

George Bush

11 votes

Hugo Chavez

16 votes

Mikael Saakashvili

4 votes

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BREAKING: Christian rock star - 'I'm gay. God loves me just the way I am'

AP "reports" Premiums to rise under Obama plan

On Veterans Day: an extraordinary Photo Diary

Michelle Bachmann: Leader of Pro-Choice Americans

For Mary.

Not another Grayson diary: my letter to the Nobel Committee

UPDATED: UK Conservative leader slams Fox News mouthpiece over NHS smears (w/video)

Reframing: How this debate will be won

I agree with Qaddafi?!?

I royally screwed things up for the Obama campaign today

The strange reactions to my Obama bumper sticker

UPDATED: Woman to meet some people