Team Koko Draft Picks

Baseball season has begun! That mean fantasy baseball is also underway. Of course during my league's draft, I lost many of my favorite players to the other owners who are all bastard people and I hate their ass faces. Still, I'm pretty happy with the lineup and am optimistic about the season. Introducing--in an exciting countdown from last draft pick to first--Team Koko 2013:

#23) Tommy Hanson, Starting Pitcher, Los Angeles Angels
Don't get too attached to Ginger Bear. I'll trade him in a New York minute if need be.

#22) Edwin Jackson, Starting Pitcher, Chicago Cubs
Hey Handsome! I'll be sorry to trade him, but trade him I may because as a pitcher (but only as an MLB pitcher) he's sort of average.

#21) Dexter Fowler, Outfield, Colorado Rockies
He has mad skills, but I still don't really believe his team exists--so it's sort of a draw. The name "Dexter" might tip the scales in favor of keeping him around.

#20) Ryan Vogelsong, Starting Pitcher, San Francisco Giants
I feel like Vogelsong gets overshadowed by Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum on the Giants pitching staff, but I'm really happy to have him on my team. He's solid.

#19) Jason Grilli, Relief Pitcher, Pittsburgh Pirates
First, completely unrelated to the draft of the season, I have to say I love this picture--it's old school like the Pirates. Not much to say about Grilli except that I hope he delivers a lot of saves for me.

#18) Jeremy Hellickson, Starting Pitcher, Tampa Bay Rays
Oops, there seems to be some mistake and I drafted a Little League player and one who plays for a Florida team.
NB: I hate all teams from Florida--not just the Rays and the Marlins but every team in every sport be they professional, college, high school or any other level. I may have to trade him the first week.

#17) Derek Jeter, Short Stop, New York Yankees
That's right. Derek F'ing Jeter is on Team Koko again this year. I really had to resist drafting Jeter in an earlier round. I know he's old and allegedly in decline, but he did me right last year. Plus, I love him in the gay way. It's a win-win all around.

#16) Wade Miley, Starting Pitcher, Arizona Diamondbacks
Um... okay... sure, why not?
Side question: When did MLB bullpens all start looking like one of any number of bars named "The Eagle"?

#15) Miguel Montero, Catcher, Arizona Diamondbacks
I had braced myself for the fact that I probably wasn't going to get Buster Posey for Team Koko's catcher again this year, but I was really upset when my Plan B catcher, Joe Mauer, went early in the draft. I feel bad for Miguel Montero since I picked him out of desperation. I hope it works out between us.
Another side question: Am I the only person who thinks baseball catchers gear is sexy?

#14) Addison Reed, Relief Pitcher, Chicago White SoxHe seems very flexible.

#13) Jonathan Niese, Starting Pitcher, New York Mets
We had sort of an on-again/off-again relationship last year. I'm expecting it to be more of the same this year.

#12) Ike Davis, First Base, New York Mets
The picture says it all, really.

#11) Brandon Morrow, Starting Pitcher, Toronto Blue Jays
Considering I picked him fairly early, you'd think I'd have stronger feelings about him. I think he's, I don't know, fine? I was really stressed out at this point during the draft, so I probably just took him because ESPN had him ranked as the best available player. Panic is a really great way to run a team.

#10) Pablo Sandoval, Third Base, San Francisco Giants
That's right, he loves baseball so much--he put a ring on it! Meet the 2012 World Series MVP and my third baseman, Pablo Sandoval.

#9) Mariano Rivera, Relief Pitcher, New York Yankees
Best. Closer. Ever. Added bonus for being the last active player to wear the greatest number in baseball.

#8) Jonathan Papelbon, Relief Pitcher, Philadelphia Phillies
I have a suspicion that Papelbon is an enormous douchebag, but sometimes in sports (as in life) we must work with terrible people with a lot of talent in order to succeed. I'm not here to make imaginary friends--I'm here to dominate a make-believe sport.

#7) Jason Kipnis, Second Base, Cleveland Indians
I'll be okay with Kipnis as long as he wears this cap and not the one with the other hateful logo.

#6) Matt Holliday, Outfield, St. Louis Cardinals
Seriously, the MLB is one beer blast away from turning into a bear bar.

#5) Jacoby Ellsbury, Outfield, Boston Red Sox
The draft clearly wasn't going well for me if I sank so low as to take someone from the hateful Red Sox. Still, I like the Fosse moves and jazz hands while running the bases.

#4) Jose Reyes, Shortstop, Toronto Blue Jays
I wish Reyes was still a Met. Oh well... Happy to have him anyway.

#3) Bryce Harper, Outfield, Washington Nationals
I love how my Bryce Harper loves playing baseball. He is really fun to watch. Plus, he seems like what my father would call "a good egg" and his Tweets (@bharper3407) are adorable.

#2) Justin Verlander, Starting Pitcher, Detroit Tigers
Just because it's an obvious pick doesn't mean there's no strategy behind it. I will use Verlander to get inside my opponents heads and make them fear me. Bonus: Verlander is down with the gays.

#1) Joey Votto, First Base, Cincinnati Reds
Sigh...

These 23 men are the foundation of my pretend sports empire this summer. Stay tuned for updates.

Easter

Holy Women at Christ's Tomb by Annibale Carracci c. 1590

Remember it was women who found the Christ's tomb empty.

After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you." So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. –Matthew 28: 1-8

Why were they there? Because as women they had sacred work to do.

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other, "Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?" But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. Don’t be alarmed," he said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.'" Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid. When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. She went and told those who had been with him and who were mourning and weeping. When they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe it. –Mark 16: 1-11 [The earliest manuscripts do not have verses 9-11 which are in italics.]

Of course the boys club of the apostles didn't believe the women because... well, because they were women.

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: 'The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.'" Then they remembered his words. When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles. But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense. Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened. –Luke 24: 1-12

Also, who the heck is Joanna? Why is she suddenly so important?

John, as usual, had a whole different story to tell:

Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!"So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.
Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?"
"They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him." At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.
Thinking he was the gardener, she said, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him."Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means "Teacher").
Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'"
Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: "I have seen the Lord!" And she told them that he had said these things to her. –John 20: 1-18

Two big points:

1. How are we supposed to take the Gospels literally when they literally don't agree on basic details? While the four versions all have the same big picture of women discovering Christ's tomb empty, the stories are really different.

2. Despite the differences, all the Gospel writers agree that Mary Magdalene who was a prostitute and/or an epileptic was the key figure in the revelation of the resurrection.

Speaking of amazing, radical women and Easter... THIS:

Kiki Loves You Baby Jesus

Celebrate Easter weekend with Kiki & Herb as they honor show business martyrs the Singing Nun, Marelene Dietrich, and, of course, the J.C. Superstar.

Disclaimer: I made this video a couple of years ago but I hold no copyright to any of the material. I'm pretty sure it's completely illegal. Oops.

Welcome Home, Boys

40 years ago, on March 29th, 1973, the last American combat troops left Vietnam.

The American flag is furled at a ceremony marking official deactivation of the
Military Assistance Command-Vietnam (MACV) in Saigon,
after more than 11 years in South Vietnam.

Watching the troops come home is the first news I remember watching on TV. In my memory--which is admittedly a bit hazy here--it's just my mother and I watching (was it during the day so Dad was at work and the other kids were at school?) and Mom is crying tears that are a mix of joy, regret, relief, sorrow and vindication. Of course, at age five, I didn't understand the complexities of the Vietnam War, but I knew it was bad and that we were happy to see the troops come home.

It's no coincidence that "Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Old Oak Tree" by Dawn featuring Tony Orlando (not Tony Orlando & Dawn as is commonly thought) was the best selling single of 1973.

You'll Reach Your Destiny

This is probably the second most adorable press conference I've ever seen:

Rob Tisinai at Box Turtle Bulletin expresses beautifully why I cried watching Edie Windsor speak today:

What moved me most was her description of how she’d been closeted for so many years, and how she was so grateful today for the kindness in how the Justices treated her.

She was grateful for their kindness.

Take a moment to realize that for most of her life, this kindness — this civility and dignity and respect — was something she and Thea had no reason to expect. It breaks my heart with regret at what these women had to live through, and it breaks my heart with joy that this heroine has never let it overcome her. Edie Windsor has overcome, no matter what the Court decides.

Edie Windsor & Thea Spyer

I made a (probably completely illegal, copyright-breaking) video two years ago celebrating the arrival of Marriage Equality in New York. I'm posting it again today in honor of Edie Windsor and all the other LGBT people who have found a path from tears and sorrow to love and dignity.

THANK YOU!

Saints Sergius & Bacchus Didn't Have Cellphones

Justice Samuel Alito said this today during the oral arguments in Hollingsworth v. Perry today:

Traditional marriage has been around for thousands of years. Same-sex marriage is very new. I think it was first adopted in the Netherlands in 2000. So there isn't a lot of data about its effect. And it may turn out to be a — a good thing; it may turn out not to be a good thing, as the supporters of Proposition 8 apparently believe. But you want us to step in and render a decision based on an assessment of the effects of this institution which is newer than cellphones or the Internet? I mean, we — we are not — we do not have the ability to see the future.

 Um.... WRONG.

Marriage Equality was part of the LGBT rights movement long before cellphones.
This happened in 1971:

Less than two years after the Stonewall uprising, a group of men and women from the Gay Activists Alliance (GAA) walked into the New York City Marriage License Bureau carrying coffee urns and boxes of cake to hold an engagement party for two male couples and to protest the "slander" of City Clerk Herman Katz, who had threatened legal action against same-sex "holy unions" being performed -- yes, already then, in 1971 -- by the Church of the Beloved Disciple, which had a largely gay congregation.

The best part? Someone filmed it!



Read the whole story and see the other videos at The Atlantic, "The Prehistory of Gay Marriage: Watch a 1971 Protest at NYC's Marriage License Bureau".

Same-sex unions have been around for thousands of years--long, long before the Internet.
This is hardly news. John Boswell's Same-Sex Unions in Pre-Modern Europe was published 18 years ago. "Hell, between the 10th and 12th centuries, Christian churches had little problem performing same sex marriage" ceremonies.

Sergius and Bacchus: Patrons Saints of Gay Marriage?

Even if same-sex marriage were brand new, that would have no impact on whether or not it is a right under the United States Constitution. I'll let Thomas Jefferson make the final argument in regards to Alito's misguided (to put it kindly) comments on the "newness" of same-sex marriage:

I am certainly not an advocate for frequent and untried changes in laws and constitutions. I think moderate imperfections had better be borne with; because, when once known, we accommodate ourselves to them, and find practical means of correcting their ill effects. But I know also, that laws and institutions must go hand in hand with the progress of the human mind. As that becomes more developed, more enlightened, as new discoveries are made, new truths disclosed, and manners and opinions change with the change of circumstances, institutions must advance also, and keep pace with the times. We might as well require a man to wear still the coat which fitted him when a boy, as civilized society to remain ever under the regimen of their barbarous ancestors.

So... Bite me, Alito.

Mr. & Mr. Smith Go To Washington

Image via Maddow Blog

The Supreme Court will hear arguments in Hollingsworth v. Perry on Tuesday, March 26th (tomorrow as I write this--but more likely today as you read this) and in Windsor v United States on Wednesday, March 27th. Just the fact that two Marriage Equality cases are before the SCOTUS is historic. Here are some great resources for following the proceedings:




SCOTUSblog is a great blog for all things related to the Supreme Court.  Their Q&A style post on "How historic Supreme Court gay-marriage cases will unfold" is one of the best overviews I've come across.




The American Foundation for Equal Rights is leading the fight against California's Proposition 8. They will also tell you "Everything You Need to Know: Marriage Equality at the Supreme Court".


Ari Ezra Waldman provides excellent and accessible analysis at Towleroad. His most recent post, "Supreme Court Preview: Roberts, Kennedy, and their Court - Some Final Thoughts on Impacts and Outcomes" is a great cheat sheet for the next couple of days.

The really big news is that the Supreme Court will release same-day audio of the arguments on its own website. We will all get a chance to hear these landmark cases almost live.

If you're reading this blog, you are probably already pro Marriage Equality--but here's the amazing Edie Windsor reminding us what the fight is all about:

PS: If that video doesn't bring a tear to your eye, stop reading my blog.

Holy Days

    פסח טוב

 It's time for one of my favorite things on the Internet, "peeps for passover".

צפרדעים

Do yourself a favor and CLICK HERE to check out all ten plagues re-enacted by Peeps.

Blessed Holy Week

This is also the week to enjoy the greatest rock opera of all time, Jesus Christ Superstar.

  

You can watch the whole fabulous 1973 movie online (probably completely illegally). I also highly recommend checking out some of the clips of the lesser known 2000 version of Jesus Christ Superstar. It is, as you can see, way over the top.

And don't even get me started on Godspell....

Compliments of Great Lakes Feed & Grain

In the context of discussing a possible trip to the Quad Cities, a friend suggested we enjoy one of the major attractions there.



Fred Garvin, Male Prostitute reminded me of two things:

1. The original Saturday Night Live Not Ready for Prime Time Players had a real Midwestern sensibility to their humor--which makes sense given their backgrounds.

2. I have more than a few times been told I look like "a young Dan Aykroyd". You be the judge:

Young Dan Aykroyd

Me

Dan, if you ever need someone to play you in a flashback scene, call me.

My Two Favorite Videos Of The Week

One is satire and the other is (sadly) reality.

1. Tina Fey revives her Sarah Palin impression for Inside The Actors Studio:

2. Michele Bachmann literally runs from CNN reporter, Dana Bash:

While I hope Sarah Palin never again holds public office and Michele Bachmann gets voted out in 2014, Is it wrong that I really want the two of them stay in the public eye for years?

Et Tu, Donnie?

So, some of the Osmond family have coordinated with the National Organization for Marriage [sic] and are hosting a big anti-gay shindig.

This is all planned to put pressure on the Supreme Court as they are hearing two landmark cases on Marriage Equality. Of course, the Osmonds are Mormons, so I would expect them to be marching in LGBT Pride parades. However, even the Church of Latter Day Saints is evolving on the issue. As Good As You points out:

As you might know, Marie Osmond has a lesbian daughter. But I guess "My gay niece doesn't deserve equal rights" wasn't as catchy of a subtitle.

Also, anyone who wore this on stage:

...or did this on national television:

...should not be judging the gays. Let's face it, they make The Village People look butch.

PS: In the 70's, Flip Wilson had a variety show. I would so watch the shit out of that today if it were on instead of the Real Housewives of Anywhere.

UPDATE: Not all Osmonds think a like. Marie Osmond took a stand for her lesbian daughter and Marriage Equality.

Thanks

To all those who have marched for civil rights, equality, social justice and peace: I am truly grateful for all you've done and continue to do. Please accept this groovy tribute as a small token of my appreciation.

Eric Andersen sings "Thirsty Boots"

PS: I covet his outfit, but sadly, I don't think I could pull off the scarf.

Dulce et Decorum est

 U.S. Army Master Sgt. Tulsa Tulaga Tuliau was killed when an improvised explosive device
detonated near his Humvee during combat operations near Rustimayah, Iraq on September 26, 2005.
Image By Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

10 years ago, despite wide spread and legitimate protest, the United States invaded Iraq. A veteran of that war says what needs to be said much better than I ever could.

To: George W. Bush and Dick Cheney
From: Tomas Young

I write this letter on the 10th anniversary of the Iraq War on behalf of my fellow Iraq War veterans. I write this letter on behalf of the 4,488 soldiers and Marines who died in Iraq. I write this letter on behalf of the hundreds of thousands of veterans who have been wounded and on behalf of those whose wounds, physical and psychological, have destroyed their lives. I am one of those gravely wounded. I was paralyzed in an insurgent ambush in 2004 in Sadr City. My life is coming to an end. I am living under hospice care.

I write this letter on behalf of husbands and wives who have lost spouses, on behalf of children who have lost a parent, on behalf of the fathers and mothers who have lost sons and daughters and on behalf of those who care for the many thousands of my fellow veterans who have brain injuries. I write this letter on behalf of those veterans whose trauma and self-revulsion for what they have witnessed, endured and done in Iraq have led to suicide and on behalf of the active-duty soldiers and Marines who commit, on average, a suicide a day. I write this letter on behalf of the some 1 million Iraqi dead and on behalf of the countless Iraqi wounded. I write this letter on behalf of us all—the human detritus your war has left behind, those who will spend their lives in unending pain and grief.

I write this letter, my last letter, to you, Mr. Bush and Mr. Cheney. I write not because I think you grasp the terrible human and moral consequences of your lies, manipulation and thirst for wealth and power. I write this letter because, before my own death, I want to make it clear that I, and hundreds of thousands of my fellow veterans, along with millions of my fellow citizens, along with hundreds of millions more in Iraq and the Middle East, know fully who you are and what you have done. You may evade justice but in our eyes you are each guilty of egregious war crimes, of plunder and, finally, of murder, including the murder of thousands of young Americans—my fellow veterans—whose future you stole.

Your positions of authority, your millions of dollars of personal wealth, your public relations consultants, your privilege and your power cannot mask the hollowness of your character. You sent us to fight and die in Iraq after you, Mr. Cheney, dodged the draft in Vietnam, and you, Mr. Bush, went AWOL from your National Guard unit. Your cowardice and selfishness were established decades ago. You were not willing to risk yourselves for our nation but you sent hundreds of thousands of young men and women to be sacrificed in a senseless war with no more thought than it takes to put out the garbage.

I joined the Army two days after the 9/11 attacks. I joined the Army because our country had been attacked. I wanted to strike back at those who had killed some 3,000 of my fellow citizens. I did not join the Army to go to Iraq, a country that had no part in the September 2001 attacks and did not pose a threat to its neighbors, much less to the United States. I did not join the Army to “liberate” Iraqis or to shut down mythical weapons-of-mass-destruction facilities or to implant what you cynically called “democracy” in Baghdad and the Middle East. I did not join the Army to rebuild Iraq, which at the time you told us could be paid for by Iraq’s oil revenues. Instead, this war has cost the United States over $3 trillion. I especially did not join the Army to carry out pre-emptive war. Pre-emptive war is illegal under international law. And as a soldier in Iraq I was, I now know, abetting your idiocy and your crimes. The Iraq War is the largest strategic blunder in U.S. history. It obliterated the balance of power in the Middle East. It installed a corrupt and brutal pro-Iranian government in Baghdad, one cemented in power through the use of torture, death squads and terror. And it has left Iran as the dominant force in the region. On every level—moral, strategic, military and economic—Iraq was a failure. And it was you, Mr. Bush and Mr. Cheney, who started this war. It is you who should pay the consequences.

I would not be writing this letter if I had been wounded fighting in Afghanistan against those forces that carried out the attacks of 9/11. Had I been wounded there I would still be miserable because of my physical deterioration and imminent death, but I would at least have the comfort of knowing that my injuries were a consequence of my own decision to defend the country I love. I would not have to lie in my bed, my body filled with painkillers, my life ebbing away, and deal with the fact that hundreds of thousands of human beings, including children, including myself, were sacrificed by you for little more than the greed of oil companies, for your alliance with the oil sheiks in Saudi Arabia, and your insane visions of empire.

I have, like many other disabled veterans, suffered from the inadequate and often inept care provided by the Veterans Administration. I have, like many other disabled veterans, come to realize that our mental and physical wounds are of no interest to you, perhaps of no interest to any politician. We were used. We were betrayed. And we have been abandoned. You, Mr. Bush, make much pretense of being a Christian. But isn’t lying a sin? Isn’t murder a sin? Aren’t theft and selfish ambition sins? I am not a Christian. But I believe in the Christian ideal. I believe that what you do to the least of your brothers you finally do to yourself, to your own soul.

My day of reckoning is upon me. Yours will come. I hope you will be put on trial. But mostly I hope, for your sakes, that you find the moral courage to face what you have done to me and to many, many others who deserved to live. I hope that before your time on earth ends, as mine is now ending, you will find the strength of character to stand before the American public and the world, and in particular the Iraqi people, and beg for forgiveness.

—Tomas Young

If love was a train but love ain't a train

The L&N don't stop here any more, but apparently it does stop in Crazy Town. Michelle Shocked went on a homophobic rant during her concert in San Francisco last night. I highly recommend Chris Willman's very fair account of the event on the Stop The Presses! music blog.

...After an intermission, Shocked hadn't even gotten to any music when she started talking first about the importance of social media to carry on a dialogue with her fans off-stage, and then about Proposition 8. She started reading some tweets from the stream and having a dialogue about people's impressions, talking about how she was feeling brave at this point and that she was doing the right thing. Then the tone of the conversation became extremely religious and she began talking about the two things most important to her being Jesus Christ and freedom. Then she talked about how she had just come from a prayer meeting the night before, and the people in her prayer meeting were really worried because these are the end times, and they’re the end times because Prop. 8 is going to lead to ministers marrying gay people with a rifle to the head. At which people got a little riled up; then there started to be some call and response from the crowd about what she meant. She started exhorting the crowd very specifically to go ahead and tweet or write and say that Michelle Shocked says God hates f--s, and some other references to the Bible denouncing homosexuality as sinful and abhorrent.

Read the whole thing here.

As you can imagine the blogs--especially the LGBT ones--are all over this.

The Bay Area Reporter had a reporter at the concert:

After the performance Shocked was off the stage and talking with three fans. The B.A.R. asked her to clarify her comments. She seemed interested but a reporter heard one of her fans tell her, "It's a gay paper." Shocked again said, "God bless us everyone." She thanked her fans, began sobbing, and ran from the stage.

 Joe.My.God points out why so many people are so surprised:

The music press has often identified Shocked as lesbian herself, mistakenly it now appears, unless she's gone "ex-gay." Last night her Wikipedia page was changed to read "Michelle Shocked (born Karen Michelle Johnston, February 24, 1962) is a BIGOTED lesbian singer/songwriter." That notation has since been removed.

Queerty also provides a little Shocked's history with gay issues:

“I am a believer. I am a devout practicing Christian,” she told Edge on the Net in 2008. “I don’t like the ring of that because I know so many people who profess the faith, and I look at their social conscious, and I can’t see how they reconcile their faith with their politics.” In that same 2008 interview she confessed to some “inconvenient truths,” like how the Bible teaches homosexuality is immoral. “But homosexuality is no more less a sin than fornication,” she said. “And I’m a fornicator with a capital F.” That’s not the F-word we’re concerned with, Michelle.

I think Jezebel summed up many people's reaction:

Beyond the fact that WHAT THE FUCK, MICHELLE, I honestly just don't understand how human beings can justify wasting their time on shit like "who that dude from spin class wants to marry." And I certainly don't understand how anyone with basic critical thinking skills can characterize those views—that one person wanting to make out with another person has some grave, cosmic, supernatural consequence for the universe—as ANYTHING but mindless-indoctrination-bordering-on-brainwashing. There is no logic here. Even Biblical scholars will tell you that there is no logic here.

Me, I'm mostly just sad. Short, Sharp, Shocked was part of the sound track of my college years. I listened to it pretty much non-stop when it first came out, and it's an album that I often go back to. I really love it.



It feels like I lost touch with a dear college friend only to find out they had joined a cult because, well, that's pretty much what has happened. Thank God I can still count on Tracy Chapman for my leftist, feminist folk music fix.

UPDATE 1: There are rumors and speculation about Michelle Shocked has a history of mental illness, and if that is the case, as seems very likely, I hope she finds a path to wellness and love. Any anger I have is for the homophobic church leaders that got their claws into a vulnerable person and twisted her up to use her as a mouthpiece for their bigotry.

UPDATE 2:  Janis Ian speaks out:

It is sad when a talented person chooses to use that talent in the service of their own misplaced rage, and their disappointment in their own life. I often wonder if people like this die and meet God, who will smack them upside the head and say 'Did I really LOOK like I needed your help?!

It looks like Michelle Shocked will have time to battle whatever demons are chasing her. Not surprisingly, venues are now cancelling Michelle Shocked's shows.

Ambiguously Gay Dads

Is it just me, or are there a lot of possibly gay dads in commercials these days?

Exhibit A: Volkswagen Passat, Toss

Although the term "throwing like a girl" isn't officially slang for gay, it might as well be.

Exhibit B: Tide & Downy, The Princess Dress

As Jezebel pointed out: "When Stereotypical American Clown Father appears in a commercial for some housekeeping chemical, it's usually to demonstrate his utter incompetence (dads don't clean, silly! they spill rib juice all over the couch as they slip into a meat stupor over the course of a lazy Sunday afternoon) and promptly exit stage right, a freshly chastised goon." So it is great to see a dad who is not just a competent parent and housekeeper but also one who loves playing with his daughter. Maybe it's the fact that he embraces both the sheriff and princess roles his daughter plays that makes seem possibly be a little bit cowboy and a little bit queen himself.

Exhibit C: Subaru, Cut The Cord

This is the least obvious. There are no specific gay signifiers in the commercial. Still... Well, it pings my gaydar.

Am I reading too much into these? Am I just so used to seeing the TV trope of the heterosexual fathers being bumbling idiots that if a father shows a modicum of competence, I think he must be gay? That would be a sad statement. Maybe it's the absence of wives/mothers in the commercials that raises makes me look twice at them; however, there are like a million commercials of moms and there kids with no dad in the immediate picture, and I don't read them as lesbians. Perhaps the fact that same-sex couples raising children have been so much in the news because of the recent advances in Marriage Equality that I'm beginning to see them in the broader culture.

Finally, I'd just like to say to each of these three dads: If you're single and looking for a co-parent for your adorable child, call me, maybe?

It's a Hard Life

Thank you Nanci Griffith for one of my favorite lyrics ever:

Now, I am the backseat driver from America
I am not at the wheel of control
I am guilty, I am war, I am the root of all evil
Lord, and I can't drive on the left side of the road.

Beannachtaí na Féile Pádraig oraibh

I like drinking beer and whiskey as much as (perhaps even more than) the next person; however, I won't be participating in amateur night on Sunday. I try on Saint Patrick's Day to honor my Irish heritage and celebrate our history and culture.

 

In The Rare Ould Times

In that spirit, I'd like to recommend my two favorite novels set during the Easter Rising and the Irish Civil War. They are both challenging reads, but well worth the work.

A Star Called Henry

by Roddy Doyle  

- Ah there, I said - There’s killing and there’s killing.
- What d’you mean?
- Well, there’s killing and getting caught and there’s killing and not getting caught. And there’s killing the fellas who are paid to catch you.
- The peelers?
- Yep.
- Why would we want to kill them? They’re not so bad.
- Go home.
- I was only saying.
- Go home, I said. - You’re not ready for the fight.

At Swim, Two Boys

by Jamie O'Neill 

It was true what Jim said, this wasn’t the end but the beginning. But the wars would end one day and Jim would come then, to the island they would share. One day surely the wars would end, and Jim would come home, if only to lie broken in MacMurrough’s arms, he would come to his island home. And MacMurrough would have it built for him, brick by brick, washed by the rain and the reckless sea. In the living stream they’d swim a season. For maybe it was true that no man is an island: but he believed that two very well might be.