1. While on dates, gay men split the bill.  While I am told that men are expected to pick up the tab for their lady, gay men “go dutch.”
2. We will never be able to be abstinent because we can’t get married.  Unless one cares to be an 80 year old virgin or a Roman Catholic priest, abstinence only sex education does not apply to lesbians and gays.
3. We don’t have “normal” sex.  Well, duh!  Gay men have sex with other gay men.  What’s the problem with that?  Please do not go on some biblical tirade.  Sodomy is defined as a sexual act that cannot lead to conception, in the bible this is sometimes construed as “spilling one’s seed.”  Technically, according to Genesis 38: 9-10, the Lord will put you to death for such a crime.  Anyone who has ever participated in fellatio, cunnilingus, masturbation, mutual masturbation, frotage, heavy petting, anilingus, bestiality, dildo practice, or who has used a contraceptive device or medication shalt[sic] be put to death.
4. We do not have the traditional male-female problems to deal with in a relationship.  I got an “F” on a paper because I had difficulty in describing the gender-based struggles between straight husbands and wives.  The gay men in the world would say this, “Women are from Mars, Men have Penis.”
5. Some of us engender our own stereotypes.  It is most certainly true that a large percentage of gay men love pop divas (Cher, Madonna, Liza, etc.) and show tunes while a large portion of straight men “adjust” themselves in public (ghastly).  But did you know that a higher percentage of straight men are pedophiles than gay men?  Stereotypes do not discriminate.

Where does that leave us?  Well, numbers 1 and 4 above seem to be the only major differences between straights and gays.  Numbers 2 and 3 can’t be included because nearly every one of us on this planet practices more than just the missionary position number before we’re married.  Number 5 also can’t be used against us because both sides have their own stereotypes (the fey man versus the macho man).

Since when have people in the LGBT world been so deserving of discrimination in the workplace, at churches, in parks, in Vegas wedding chapels, and in the hearts of those who consider themselves “loving and caring”?  Never.  In fact, many of these loving and caring people who are so altruistic that they want to protect the influences of the fags from the little children are pushing this issue.  Frankly, going dutch and not reading “Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus” is hardly a solid foundation to stand on.

Ignorance, racism, sexism, misogyny, intolerance, blind faith, misguided values, morals, hatred, and bigotry are what we face here.  Please tell your state representative to vote to allow gay marriage.  At a minimum ask them to bar a constitutional amendment from going forward.  While this post has been a little tongue-in-cheek, I hope you see how similar gays and straights really are.  This topic is usually approached from the viewpoint to showing our similarities, but I believe that it is easier to list our differences… which are few, indeed.

I will leave you with a list of the types of men who are allowed to be married in this country.  Is it worse to let loving, caring LGBT individuals marry?

1. The cheating man known for inseminating the country-side can be married.
2. An abusive husband that beats his wife nightly can be married.
3. A man on the “down low” who has unprotected sex with a male prostitute then spreads HIV to his wife can be married.
4. The politician who has sex with men in an airport restroom can be married.
5. A man serving several life sentences for raping then killing women can be married while in prison.
6. The man facing deportation can get married.
7. A female vocalist can get married while drunk and high in Vegas.
8. A male-female couple that met over the Internet can get married, including mail order brides.
9. A straight couple who fell in love can get married after knowing each other for only one day.
10. A woman can marry a man and divorce him the next day just to take his money.

The aide says that he is pro- anti-discrimination and for LGBT rights, including gay marriage, although I would love to officially confirm that off-the-cuff statement.  Due to the current leadership in the state, I questioned him more on state issues than LGBT issues.  Our current governator [sic] is seemingly anti-mental health and pro- Philadelphia and LGBT rights.

The first thing I did was ask him if he would do more to promote PA to businesses.  I especially am concerned with getting businesses to come back to small towns.  I grew up in a small town in Pennsylvania and would love to see more work on that front.  People there need fair paying jobs.  He actually knew of my hometown, Warren, which I found interesting.  It is a great place to hunt, fish, boat, hike, and climb.  It’s also the home of the Kinzua Dam and Reservoir which keeps Pittsburgh, among other places from flooding.

My next line of questioning had to do with state run mental health care.  My mother worked at a state mental institution for 23 years, so I have become concerned with a few issues like the closing down of the state hospitals.  This leaves many people who have serious issues out in the cold.  When a state hospital closes, the patients get placed in group homes where they don’t receive quality care.  They may also end up being taken care of by relatives who don’t want them and do not know how to treat them mentally or physically.  If a patient doesn’t end up in a group home or family home, they will be on the street.  Most of those people will end up in the prison system with terrible/no mental health care.

Mental heath care needs to be focused on patient care by trained professionals.  Group homes are mostly hire affordable staff with a low ratio of registered nurses or doctors to patients.  This leaves them with basically little to no quality care.  I propose that we need a standard of care for the mentally ill people who are in group homes.  He found that to be an interesting idea and hopes he takes it to heart.

BUT… politics being politics, at the end of the day getting votes is all about baby kissing!

I remember my first trip here 22 years ago.  My family came down to the ‘burgh for a Pittsburgh Pirates baseball game.  I especially remember driving through the Fort Pitt tunnels and seeing this enormous city come into view.  As a friend of mine in New Jersey put it, “Pittsburgh is the only city in the country with a ‘front door.’”  He was right.  Pittsburgh is a beautiful town which today provides something for everyone. голова болит секс

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We have three major sports teams, a new hundred million dollar casino, the Andy Warhol Museum, a large zoo, history and art museums, three world class universities, two world-famous health care systems, high tech and financial companies, a world-class symphony orchestra, and the list goes on and on.  I’m proud to call Pittsburgh my home and will be staying here for (hopefully) a long time to come.

I didn’t believe it until I heard it on TV, but Pittsburgh still has a nasty, decades old stigma to overcome.  I hope that the 2,600 reporters from around the globe report good things about our city.  The protests were not the story.  People are focusing on them in their blog postings, etcetera, but should have been trying to make our city look good so that we can overcome the folklore of Pittsburgh.  Give Pittsburgh a second chance!

There is some bad news tonight.  Right at this moment, CNN is reporting that Arizona and Florida are banning gay marriage.  California at this point seems to be pointing towards upholding gay marriage, at least from the exit polls.  It looks close but San Francisco and Los Angeles County have not weighed in yet.  I surely hope that the people of the State of California had the decency to give us our rights, as limited as they may be.  Arkansas has apparently banned gay adoption.  Will Obama make this better?  I doubt it.  My heart of hearts believes that Joe Biden is our best advocate for that at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.  We’ll see.

I also hope that Al Franken is elected as a Senator from Minnesota.  From what I’ve seen of him, he seems like he would be sympathetic to our cause.  That race is extremely close as I write this.

Was I a one issue voter this election?  No.  I didn’t like either “package.”  I could have voted for the old John McCain.  Unfortunately, he became John McMean during this election.  I didn’t like Obama either.  The Donny McClurkin incident and inability to give the LGBT community more than 10 minutes of his time since becoming the presumptive presidential nominee is disgusting.  He does NOT have enough experience and everyone running for president wants change.  I voted for Joe Biden, protection of the Supreme Court, and against the social issues plagueing Sarah Palin.  I don’t think either candidate can solve all of our problems.  We need someone with experience, balls, and “bipartisan talent.”

Let’s see how the numbers wrap up tomorrow morning and get ready to go!

Why did Pennsylvania all of a sudden become a battleground state?  I thought Florida and Ohio would cast the deciding votes again.  You see how good of a political strategist I’d make.  Of course, I’m a lifelong Democrat and live in a very important county for John McCain, Allegheny.  Pennsylvania has 67 counties, of which about 4 usually vote democratic, which is enough to carry the whole state.  You can count on Allegheny (Pittsburgh), Philadelphia, Delaware (Philly suburbs), and Dauphin (Harrisburg) Counties voting democrat.  This election we may see Erie, Beaver, Chester, Lehigh (Allentown), Cambria (suprise guess), and Lackawanna (Scranton) Counties heading in that direction also.  Pennsylvania was a big Hillary state and I know a lot of former Hillary Clinton supporters who will be throwing the towel in with Obama.

So, why so many phone calls?  I guess that John McCain believes that if he can get enough Hillary Democrats to vote for him (and his woman) instead of the black that he’ll take PA.  While we in Pennsylvania like our guns and the Pope, we have seen way too many people we know lose loved ones in the Iraq and Afganistan wars.  We have also seen our 401(k)s, 403(b)s, TSPs and Roth IRAs dwindle to nothing as of late mostly due to the failed politics of the last eight years.  We’re hurting.  We don’t want any more of this crap.  Now, I really doubt that an Obama-Biden-Pelosi-Reid administration can pull off miracles.  Let’s see.  We’re in a mess, let’s get out of it.  Things were much better here under Bill Clinton.  We haven’t forgotten that.

Today’s Presidential Masterdebation was the final straw.  Obama was an ass and McCain actually looked better.  That’s coming from a life-long Democrat.  Yes, both lied more than told the truth, but it’s all about image. Both of these guys are so far out of touch with “Joe 6 pack” that it ain’t funny.  At least Bill Clinton knew how to talk to ordinary folk because he was an ordinary guy with a hell of a mind.  He also had a libido, heaven forbid!  I’d rather watch Al Gore’s Keynote slide-show 5 consecutive times than watch these two try to follow debate rules.

Senators Barack Obama and John McCain are two fools who don’t belong running this country.  If you can’t directly answer a question, you should not be able to be the President of the United States.  This is a basic human leadership skill that BOTH are failing over and over again.  Feel free to disagree but I am frankly just tired and done with this system.  Also, some PLEASE disband the Commission on Presidential Debates.  Their system is flawed and the constrained debate format was a joke.  Tom Brokaw had little control and the questioners could not get straight-forward answers.  I do think Tom did the best job that he could in controlling the “debate.”

To back up my position, look up the word “entitlement” in the dictionary.  If I pay 7.65% of my salary towards Social Security and Medicare and my employer pays the same, how do you consider it an entitlement?  If you pay for something, you own it.  Are they saying that I am not entitled to my own money?  A legal alien can at any time withdraw their entire Social Security paid-in benefits.  A citizen cannot.  To me, the term “entitled” sounds like that because we are citizens we are “marked” to receive these benefits.  Can’t we use a term that says that we OWN our own slice because we paid for it?

Oh, by the way, the economy tanked this week and last.  What’s the solution from either one of these guys?  None.  I didn’t see one solid answer on the economy that had a snowball’s chance in hell of working.  4 trillion US dollars have been lost in the US stock markets in the last week.  Neither one of these men could say how to get us out of this situation.  It’s quite shameful.

I have one magical question for each candidate: “You said that you are against gay marriage with grants full civil and equal rights to gay and lesbian couples.  Why do you hate people in the LGBT community?”

McPalin or O’Biden?  You choose.

My big question is this: what is one to do who grew up in rural Pennsylvania at their upcoming 10 year class reunion?  Do I go? Should I come out and proud?  With the wonders of the Internet I am comfortable coming out to all those who knew I was gay before I did.

What have YOU done?  I’d like to hear.

These are real issues that people are afraid to address.  Let’s put it this way: put on your red sequin shows and pretend.  What if there was a gay white man running against a straight white man in the Democratic primaries (to make things “even”).  Would you as a gay male blindly vote for the gay male candidate?  Would you vote for him if you didn’t agree with him on an issue such as gay marriage?  Right now you would say, “Of course not!”  Well, think again.  How good would you feel voting for the first gay man.  I’d feel pretty good.  I felt great voting (again) for my woman Hillary.  It is somehow fulfilling to vote for someone so much like you.  I hated voting for John Kerry, but had to to combat Bush (how well did that work?).

Barack Obama is black so he gets the black vote.  How stupid does that make Americans look?  The world must be looking at us and laughing at our naivete that we don’t look at the issues before casting our votes.  Think about it!

I personally don’t believe that Obama is electable.  He does well with blacks and the well-to-do.  Hillary does wonderful with the elderly, non-black rural and suburban voters, and blue collar workers.  The blue collar, elderly, and gay voters that make up the “Hill-dawg’s” constituents are what I call real Americans.  I say “real Americans” because they are the ones that matter in early November.

 There are still violent racists in this country and it’s not time for him.  She’s got more experience and while polarizing, we are much more ready for a woman in the White House.  I’m your traditional moderate Democrat from a blue collar family in rural Pennsylvania that looks to her to solve my problems.  She will.  Unfortunately, I have major doubts as to whether she will be nominated by the DNC.  If that does not happen, I will help the community with its due diligence in choosing the more gay-friendly candidate.  I don’t know who that is yet.

Fine, call me racist.  Luckily I spent 6 years living in the New York metro area, thereby having to face my fears of people from various ethnic backgrounds and worked hard to purge those prejudices.  The news media looks at African-American populations while determining the electability of Obama.  How wrong is that?  How dumb does that make us ALL look?