My high school brush with greatness, the author Aleta Bezzic

A friend of mine from high school, Aleta Bezzic, has written a really fun read that is enticing to those of us who love reading about the stereotypical girl, who usually ends up being best friends with the gay boy, getting her man. In gay colloquillism she is known as a "fag hag," and the stereotype is that she is big boned, has a big heart, fiercely intelligent and a great sense of humor. Well, Aleta Bezzic, has combined these qualities to write an excellent novel, "Longshot," where the fag hag type wins a television reality competition by stealing the heart of a handsome latin marine biologist.

Aleta and I were friends in high school and starred in our high school's production of "Bye Bye Birdie" (posted photo of one of our performances). I'm incapable of surprise anymore by my personal connections, from my little home town of Grove, Oklahoma, to people who have made it on this same level as Aleta. Like me, she has become a world traveler and she currently lives in Dubai. It has seemed to just be part of my destiny for these remarkable brushes with greatness, but I am so proud of her. Get the book. It is highly enjoyable for all of us Mo's who just so happen to dig chick flicks and romance novels told from this unique perspective. You will end up feeling elated after rooting for the stereotypical "fag hag" to score against all the thin, beautiful mean girls and finally get her man!

You can find Aleta on Facebook, as well, and she writes:

Sales are going well, and even better the reviews have been great! After you read LONGSHOT, please feel free to leave a review on Amazon. I'm working on the sequel, EL TANGO. Some readers said they can't wait to see what's in store for Aspen next!

I'm sold on Aleta's character, Aspen Podchechin, and want to read about her future adventures with her handsome latin lover. In fact, I can envision a successful movie being made from the engaging story she tells. Read the rest of this post...

Rick Santorum takes a swipe at Dan Savage

I just appreciate the opportunity to write posts about Santorum, so I can google Santorum and link to Santorum.
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American Heritage Dictionary has a new editor: Steve Kleinedler

Congrats to Steve Kleinedler, on his new job as Editor of American Heritage Dictionary. He knows words. In 2009, Steve wrote a powerful post about the death of his husband, Peter Dubuque, which revealed how "ordinary" same-sex marriage had become in Massachusetts. I've linked to that post many times over the past few years. It really moved me and a lot of other people.

Andrew Harmon wrote an article about Steve's new job at the Advocate, including a link to his post at AMERICAblog:

“The job of dictionaries is primarily to describe how language is used, not to dictate how it should be used,” lexicographer Steve Kleinedler, The American Heritage Dictionary’s new executive editor, wrote in a 2009 op-ed.

The statement is part American Heritage Dictionary ethos, part personal experience. In 2009, Kleinedler’s husband died suddenly, just two months after Kleinedler and fellow editors had revised the definitions of several marriage-related words to reflect the changing culture. The definition of widower, for example, was revised from "a man whose wife has died and who has not remarried" to "a man whose spouse has died and who has not remarried."

“In the shattered aftermath of profound loss, an obsolete or incomplete definition of widower would seem an insignificant detail,” Kleinedler wrote, “but all such trivial details viewed together coalesce into a constant reminder of a two-tiered, unequal system. Therefore, having had the ability to revise the definitions that appear in a major American dictionary took on an important resonance for me.”

Kleinedler ascended to the dictionary’s top editor position Monday after 14 years on staff. He previously served as supervising editor.

Changing words, changing society. Read the rest of this post...

GOP 2012 hopefuls ducking issue of same-sex marriage

From AP:

New Hampshire is among those six states [that have legalized same-sex marriage] and also home to the first Republican primary next winter. According to conservative activists in the state, none of the major GOP presidential candidates has yet taken a public position on the ongoing effort by some Republican legislators to repeal the 2009 state law legalizing same-sex marriage.

Andy Smith, director of the University of New Hampshire Survey Center, predicted that most of the GOP contenders would continue trying to dodge the issue because of lukewarm public support for repeal.

However, David Bates, one of the lawmakers pushing for the repeal, says he and his colleagues intend to put some heat on the GOP contenders by scheduling debate on the repeal bill in the weeks leading up to the primary.

"We will be seeing to it that each candidate addresses it," Bates said. "They will not be able to duck it."

The very fact that the haters have to dog the GOP presidential candidates so they can't "duck" the issue of marriage equality is evidence of huge progress. Read the rest of this post...

IRS removes tax exempt status of anti-gay hate group

So sad.

The IRS has revoked the tax-​exempt status of the certified anti-​gay hate group, Americans For Truth About Homosexuality (AFTAH). President Peter LaBarbera, 47, founded the group in 1996, according to his website, but took it full time in 2006. The action, which is not subject to an appeal, is permanent, and oddly, was made for a lack of proper paperwork filing.

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USAToday profiles NCAVP study on rise in LGBT hate crimes

Two weeks ago, Tim Beauchamp wrote a post about a new report from the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs (NCAVP) about the rise in Hate Crimes against the LGBT community in 2010.

Today, NCAVP's study is profiled in USAToday. And, there's an analysis of why crimes have increased:

This rise is no surprise to Suzanna Walters, professor of gender studies at Indiana University and author of All the Rage: The Story of Gay Visibility in America.

Walters says that ongoing homophobia is hidden because of increased visibility of support for the LGBT community, including New York's legalizing same-sex marriage and the repeal of the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy.

"These positive changes are very real, there is no doubt about it, but the more visible you are as a community the more vulnerable you are, too," she says. "There is a protection in the closet, as awful as that is. Real homophobia with violent outcomes is not a thing of the past and there is much more work to be done."

Yep. More work to be done. Read the rest of this post...

Mormon study looks at gay experience within church

There is a study of 1,000 gays, lesbians, bisexual and transgender Mormons being conducted by Utah State University, and is said to be the first to focus on that particular demographic. One of the gay Mormons featured in this article claims to have given a talk to his congregation as to how the Holy Ghost had been a comforter to him:

Watching television one day with his mother, Clayson said he pointed out that one of the "Survivor" cast members was both gay and Mormon.

"She said, 'You can't be both,'" Clayson said.

It's a dilemma many gays in the church face as they struggle with their identities as both homosexual and religious faithful.

No, that is not true. It depends on one's denomination or theology as to whether or not there is any sustained cognitive dissonance for someone who is gay and a religiously faithful person. The analogy I would make is between being a member of GOProud or Stonewall Democrats, and then making a spurious claim one can't be both gay and politically active. It depends on the policies that group stands for. True, being an active Mormon or Catholic and gay is a stretch, but being a progressive member of the United Church of Christ is not inconsistent in the slightest.

One can make the argument that one is both gay and working within an organization to make it more progressive, but it is self defeating and ridiculous to claim one believes the tenets of an organization that disagrees with your very right to exist. Read the rest of this post...