Tis the Season to be Wary...

Whose Salvation?

Unfortunately, Thanksgiving came early this year forcing us all to endure an extra week of the season to be jolly. I'm not a grinch or a scrooge, just a naturally critical California Buddhist, Jew, atheist with a strong vein of analytical doubt running through my belief system. Lights are pretty, trees are nice, crafts fairs can be fun, creches a bit much but the overtone of rampant materialism is more than a bit nauseating.

It is important to note as well that many organizations that are part and parcel of this holiday season are not what they seem. The Salvation Army with its bell-ringing and donation kettles is a blatantly homophobic organization. Here is an article from Huffington Post where a Salvation Army spokesman sounds off in favor of the death penalty for LGBT folks because that is "in scripture." It is imperative to consider how your money will be used if and when you make the decision to donate it.

Traditionally, the Xmas season is one that non-Christians recognize as the most difficult of the year. It is a time when the predominant culture runs roughshod over all non or different believers in the name of peace on earth and goodwill towards men. Here it is only late November and I have already been wished a Merry Christmas by a good-hearted but somewhat limited soul.

In short, I do wish I could put myself in a state of suspended animation until December 26th but instead I will brace myself for this seasonal onslaught of pseudo-merriment and try to keep in mind that the balance of power in this country has shifted and the straight, white, male, upper-crust Christians are not necessarily winning!

Newsflash! Lesbians are Women

In this day and age the title of this post seems ridiculous to have to justify. Of course lesbians are women. You would think this bit of information is quite obvious but, reading the articles about women and their/our issues, this point gets lost. It would be impossible to itemize the deluge of writing about "women's issues," that pours out from keyboard across the country, which excludes queer women, placing us outside their purview.

As a current example, examine the sections of that ever-popular leftist online news source, The Huffington Post which, quite recently, added the section, "Gay Voices." They had a "Women" category but everybody knows that "women's issues" involve men: dating them, marrying them, making babies with them, looking attractive for them, conversing with them, you get my drift. Articles about females very rarely include any references to those of that gender who are queer. In "Gay Voices" finally we see some articles about lesbians specifically. We take it for granted that those could never be applicable to any kind of universal human condition. After all what could we possibly extrapolate from a bunch of queers about life in the USA?

Alternet approaches the situation a bit differently. Under their Rights category they have separate sections for Civil Liberties and Gender. Queer rights pieces can and do occupy either of these classifications. But when the article is specifically about "women" the issues of lesbians are not dealt with. Smaller online news sites don't have categories at all. But that decision, which, depending on how it's approached, can be viewed either as a glaring absence or a window onto a less discriminatory future, doesn't seem to help much with inclusivity.

The film industry has a similar take. In "Women's Films," that particular genre that feature a group of women, the writers will sometimes install a token dyke, much in the same way they insert a woman of color. But you can be assured that the lesbian's character development and personal issues will get short shrift compared to the other characters in these movies.

What the world has yet to come to terms with is that lesbians are women. Perhaps the fear of the queer that was instilled in my generation will be carried within each member until death. But, on the bright side, there are girls being born every minute. Hopefully they will grow up in a society with fewer limitations on all their decisions including those regarding gender.

Romney/Ryan and the Republican Reichstag

An Earlier Convention

The video clips I saw from the Republican Convention were absolutely terrifying. Well, Clint Eastwood interviewing an empty chair was laden with unintentional humor and pathos, but nonetheless the speeches and the audience comprised a scene reminiscent of Germany in 1933. 

Yes, the Democrats are hypocrites too and are unapologetically leading this country into financial ruin (witness Jerry Brown's recent "pension reform" proposal), but the gathering storm of Fascism in the Republican repertoire is absolutely appalling. To hear them champion equality and freedom while trumpeting the "sanctity" of marriage made every Jewish hair on my body vibrate with racial memory. 

How far would a Romney/Ryan administration go to remove the civil rights of LGBT folks? Make same-sex marriage illegal, ensure job and housing discrimination in the name of "religious freedom?" Possibly work toward re-criminalizing same sex pairings altogether? 

We know about the economic consequences of an administration that wants to remove medicare, social security, pensions and all other Roosevelt-era protections of our feeble "safety net." Yes, and also rescind a woman's right to decide what happens to her body. These are all grave and serious concerns. Still these genuine threats pale in the face of the open advocacy of dehumanizing a minority faction of the population. Economic devastation creates the perfect environment for the bacteria of hatred to thrive.

So, hang on to your seats because here we go on to Charlotte with the Democrats. Yes, that's North Carolina, a state which, by a sweeping vote in May of this year, made same-gender marriage and partnership illegal. Could you imagine the Democrats holding their convention in Alabama or Mississippi in the early sixties, before the Civil Rights Act abolished the Jim Crow laws?

Neither can I.