From the GREAT STATE OF MAINE…
Wedding Bells in Maine? Part II: The Sequel
Hold on to your cummerbunds, kids, here we go again:
With momentum growing from last week’s victory in New York, supporters of marriage equality think that the time has come for another try in Maine.
Today, EqualityMaine will launch a campaign to gather signatures to place marriage equality on the ballot in November 2012. They will face much work and a long campaign to legalize same-sex marriage here.
That's right---we're giving Maine voters a do-over. A second chance to become instant civil-rights rock stars.
I'm not going to spill any behind-the-scenes beans just yet. There's an official press conference by Equality Maine this morning at 10:30 in Lewiston, and they'll update their web site with more info afterwards. Suffice it to say, pro-equality organizers have been busy little bees since the last marriage vote narrowly failed back in November, 2009. And there is much to feel hopeful about as we give 'er another whirl on the dance floor, this time in a presidential election year.
Our side, of course, will wage a squeaky-clean campaign, telling our stories and making our case for basic equality honestly and directly. The other side will again be spearheaded by the Catholic Diocese and the Mormon-funded mystery-donor-funded National Organization for Marriage, both of whom will stick to their coordinated smear-and-fear formula. I know this because the guy who authorized the spoon-feeding of lies to the public in '09 has confessed the sins of the campaign he personally ran:
"We use a lot of hyperbole and I think that's always dangerous," says [Marc] Mutty during a Yes on 1 strategy session, at the time on leave from his job as public affairs director for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Maine.
"You know, we say things like 'Teachers will be forced to (teach same-sex marriage in schools)!' " he continues. "Well, that's not a completely accurate statement and we all know it isn't, you know? … I think we use hyperbole to the point where, you know, it's like 'Geez!'"
That'll be a swell rebuttal when they trot out those same ads.
This is very exciting and very scary at the same time. But I noticed something unexpected when we lost two years ago: there seemed to be a kind of quiet sense of remorse and regret over the outcome. Somehow, it just didn’t sit right. And seeing the teabaggers jumping for joy over it was unseemly. Over the top. Borderline sadistic. People took note of that and, I think, felt a sense of, "What have we done?" As heartbroken as I was, that reaction gave me hope for the next time. And here we are!
With fair winds and following seas, we'll be the ones celebrating in November, 2012. And unlike last time, it'll be a victory of love over hate.
P.S. Gerald has more details over at Dirigo Blue, including the proposed language for the ballot question. If that wording sticks, I like our chances.
Cheers and Jeers starts below the fold... [Swoosh!!] RIGHTNOW! [Gong!!]
Note: This commie blog needs more bunting.
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By the Numbers:
Days 'til the Iowa Caucus: 187
Days `til the 9th annual NYC Musical Saw Festival in Queens: 16
Minimum number of crop harvesters that Georgia farmers need to hire because of the state's new legislative crackdown on immigrants: 11,000
Number of people in America who are murdered each day: 35
Number of children or teens who die from gun violence each day: 8
(Source: Time)
Number of the last seven Illinois governors who have been convicted of felonies: 4
Amount of the federal subsidies vacuumed up by Michele Bachmann for her family farm since 2001: $154,755
(Source: Harper's Index)
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Your Thursday Molly Ivins Moment:
I feel that Iraq is also a "no takesie-backsie." It is a putrid human, social and political disaster, and getting worse, not better. The people who got us into this should not be forgiven---they should not even get a "bounce" from it. There is only one thing I want from them---to get us and our Army out of there, instead of cavalierly announcing that will be left to "future presidents."
---June, 2006
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Puppy Pic of the Day: Joplin, Missouri Adopt-a-thon attracts 5,700 people: "I felt confident we would have a good turnout, but this was beyond anything I would have ever imagined." (More pics here.)
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CHEERS to President Dad. During yesterday's press conference (his first since March), Barack Obama told the Republican Party-of-No that they better start doing the people's business or else he's gonna stop the car and really give 'em something to cry about. After two years of tolerating their obstructionist bullshit, he dumbed down his words so even the Rand Pauls and Peter Kings could understand:
“You know, Malia and Sasha generally finish their homework a day ahead of time. Malia is 13 and Sasha is 10. It is impressive. They don’t wait until the night before. They’re not pulling all-nighters,” he said to laughter from the assembled press corps. “They’re 13 and 10. You know, Congress can do the same thing. If you know you’ve got to do something, just do it.”
When they heard about his comments, Eric Cantor, John Boehner and Mitch McConnell immediately sent a text un-inviting him to their slumber party. :(
CHEERS to signing here...aaaand here...aaand here...and here and here and here and here. Holy schmoley!!! In my home state of Ohio (Go, Mount Vernon Fighting Yellow Jackets!!!), petition-gatherers needed 231,000 signatures to force a repeal vote on SB5, which would blow a hole in the state's collective bargaining obligations. Yesterday they delivered 1.3 million of 'em---five times more than they needed. It's a blow to the governor and his billionaire cronies unlike any the state has ever seen. Governor Kasich, however, vowed to fight on...just as soon as doctors says it's okay to remove the icepack from his crotch.
JEERS to the third EZ-Bake oven from the sun. New data from the National Climatic Data Center re-re-re-re-confirm that greenhouse gases bode well for America's air-conditioner distributors:
Because the 30-year moving averages overlap, the small change in temperature in the new data suggests the last decade was substantially warmer than the 1970s, said Kevin Trenberth, a senior scientist in the climate analysis section at the National Center for Atmospheric Research. "It means a lot of global warming is built into the new normals," Trenberth said.
Democrats responded: "Ignore this data at your peril." Republicans responded: "Ignore this data at your leisure."
CHEERS to fun with math. Einstein's theory of relativity was presented 106 years ago today. His words:
"Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. That's relativity."
Obviously he never spent an hour with Michele Bachmann. That'd be relatively interminable.
JEERS to undercover cowards. Sneaky---al Qaeda goons in Afghanistan are running so scared these days (I hear they pee their pants anytime they hear a faint buzzing sound overhead) that they've started dressing up as women in Burkhas. It's helped some of them to walk around unnoticed. On the other hand, it gets a little awkward when a Taliban thug complains about their teeny breasts while raping them.
CHEERS to star power. Thirteen United States Senators took time out of their busy schedules to produce an entry for Dan Savage's "It Gets Better" campaign. Gold stars to…
Chris Coons (D-Del.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Mark Udall (D-Colo.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.).
Click and watch it here. Not to be outdone, zero Republican senators took time out of their busy schedules to produce anything at all. Gotta hand it to 'em…they're really good at that.
JEERS to he who is laughing last. On June 30, 1520, Montezuma II was murdered as Spanish conquistadors fled the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan. Today he gets his "revenge" by inflicting diarrhea on tourists who visit Mexico and drink the water. Which reminds me:
'When you're slidin' into first and you feel something burst---Diarrhea! Diarrhea! When you're slidin' into third and you lay a juicy turd---Diarrhea! Diarrhea! When you're slidin' into home and your shorts are filled with foam---Diarrhea! Diarrhea! When you're sitting in your Chevy and your shorts are wet and heavy---Diarrhea! Diarrhea!"
History, sports and biology. In C&J, school's always in session. (There will be a quiz.)
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Six years ago in C&J: June 30, 2005
CHEERS to blogs in the press. Newsweek singles out MyDD and Americablog in this week's Blogwatch column. And the Associated Press covers yesterday's FEC hearings starring, among others, Kos and Atrios. Meanwhile C&J got bumped from the Topeka Coupon Clipper because of a last-minute ad buy from the National Aluminum Council. Foiled again.
CHEERS to the gay takeover of the world. First Canada...now Spain has approved same-sex marriage. Said Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero Conchita Alonzos: "We were not the first, but I am sure we will not be the last." A distinction for which the U.S. is, sadly, still in the running.
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And just one more…
CHEERS to a good deed well done. We called him out on his bullshit, patiently but loudly correcting every falsehood that appeared on his prop blackboard. We exposed his paranoid delusions for what they were and are---an act, a carnival freak show preying on America's most gullible who believe that death-panel-loving Mexican Sharia monsters are hiding under their beds. We plucked his sponsors---Pluck! Pluck! Pluck!---one by one, until there were none left who would associate themselves with his brand of crazy. We mocked his raging paranoia---oh, we mocked it good and deservedly so. We laughed at his fake tears. And, in the titanic battle between Glenn Beck and us, Glenn Beck lost, having become so toxic that not even Roger Ailes---Yes, Jabba himself!---could justify his existence on the Fox GOP Propaganda Channel stage. Today is Glenn's last day on the air. And being the classy guy that I am, I will bid him a simple…adieu. Because I know in my heart that French words make his skin peel.
Have a nice Thursday. I'm taking the rest of this month off. Woo-hoo!!! Floor's open...What are you cheering and jeering about today?
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Today's Shameless C&J Testimonial:
"You know, if somebody had said 'Swoosh! Gong!' when I was a kid growing up, they would say, 'Let’s call 911 and take you to Bellevue.' That’s how crazy this idea of Cheers and Jeers is."
---Bill Donohue, Catholic League
6/28/11
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