Confessions of a Formerly Anti-Gay Politician

Perhaps is HBO is looking for a sequel to their Taxicab Confessions series, they might want to turn the camera on California State Senator Roy Ashburn, and tweak the title to say "Confessions of a Formerly Anti-Gay Politician."

Sen. Ashburn's career in the California legislature was in many parts defined by his hardcore opposition to gay rights legislation. Whether it was marriage or Harvey Milk Day, any piece of legislation that came his way dealing with LGBT rights seemed to get a thumbs down.

And then, in March of this year, Sen. Ashburn was pulled over by police in Sacramento on suspicion that he was drunk behind the wheel. He was, with a blood alcohol level of .14%, at that. But that's not entirely what dominated the headlines the next morning. Instead, it was the fact that Sen. Ashburn was leaving a gay bar in Sacramento when he was arrested, and that he had an unidentified male passenger with him.

Immediately, Sen. Ashburn became part of the "Republican Politicians Against Gay Rights Who Eventually Get Caught Doing Very Gay Things." There's former Rep. Mark Foley, former Sen. Larry Craig, and current Rep. Mark Kirk. And that's not to mention all of the right-leaning pastors and religious leaders who've been involved in some salacious male-on-male scandals in the past few years (Ted Haggard, George Alan Rekers, Alan Downing ... the list goes on).

But what might make Sen. Ashburn different from all of these controversial cats is that instead of running away from his scandal, or blaming his scandal on some internal demons, he seems to be opening up to folks by saying that (1) yes, he's is gay, and (2) he was wrong ... really wrong ... to back anti-gay legislation in the past.

This week Sen. Ashburn wrote a column for gaypolitics.com, where he urged fellow lawmakers in the Republican Party to get behind gay rights. His scandal, he says, woke him up to the reality that unless he starts speaking out as a gay Republican, others in his situation will remain in the closet, and his party won't change one iota on one of the leading civil rights issues of our time.

Student attacked by a teacher for wearing a Mexican soccer jersey

One of my friends is running the World Cup bracket at her office, and anyone who follows soccer ("football" to the rest of the world) won't be surprised that none of her co-workers bet on the United States to take it all. I mean, we only tied with England because their goalie dropped the ball. So the World Cup is a good time for Americans to cheer on a team with a bigger stake in the games, maybe get in touch with their heritage and root for the land of their ancestors. If I were more of a sports fan, that would probably leave me backing Italy. If I did, nobody would bat an eye.

But if I happened to be a 12-year-old American-born girl supporting Mexico, I might have to worry about being attacked by my middle school teacher for being illegally in the country, as Prerna Lal writes on Race in America. Coral Avilez, a seventh-grader in California, decided to wear a Mexican soccer jersey in anticipation of the Mexico-South Africa game that day. Reportedly, her teacher asked her if she supported Mexico, then demanded, "Then what are you doing in my country?" The teacher then attacked, "people like you make me pay higher taxes and make my insurance rate go up." Ahem ... "people like you"? American-born citizens, she means?

The 12-year-old ran out of the classroom in tears, as you would expect a child to do.

The Vice President of the local League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) says that this isn't the first such instance of blatant racism and xenophobia in the classroom, but that students are usually to intimidated to complain. The girl was further harassed after the incident by school officials who interrogated her and barred her mother from taking her home until she had signed something (what is unclear). The next week, when Coral didn't want to go to class, she was told she could read in the principal's office or pick up trash with the janitor. She felt so uncomfortable around the principal, she opted for garbage duty.

Sarah Palin went to Canada for health care

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin -- who has gone to great lengths to hype the supposed dangers of a big government takeover of American health care -- admitted over the weekend that she used to get her treatment in Canada's single-payer system.

"We used to hustle over the border for health care we received in Canada," Palin said in her first Canadian appearance since stepping down as governor of Alaska. "And I think now, isn't that ironic?"

The irony, one guesses, is that Palin now views Canada's health care system as revolting: with its government-run administration and 'death-panel'-like rationing. Clearly, however, she and her family once found it more alluring than, at the very least, the coverage available in rural Alaska. Up to the age of six, Palin lived in a remote town near the closest Canadian city, Whitehorse.

Officials at several hospitals in that area declined to give out information on patient visits.

Glenn Beck Is Taking Christian Souls to Hell

Glenn Beck presents a conundrum for the Christian right. They appreciate his bigotry, but are in turn bigoted against his Mormon faith. Sometimes the politics of hate is complicated.

“Internet evangelist” (no, I don’t know what that means) Bill Keller is no longer willing to compromise his Christian principles though. Keller, who warned 2008 primary voters that a vote for the Mormon Mitt Romney was a vote for Satan, has launched a campaign to warn Christians that Glenn Beck is taking their “ignorant souls to hell.” (via Think Progress.)

Keller states, “Beck likes to call out people for their lies and deception, yet he portrays himself daily as a Christian. The fact is, the beliefs of the satanic Mormon cult are totally inconsistent with Biblical Christianity. He uses the words “god” and “jesus,” yet the god and jesus of the Mormon cult are NOT the God and Jesus of the Bible!”

Keller continues, “The ‘god’ of the Mormon cult used to be a human who rose to god-like status, just like Beck and all Mormons believe they will too after their death. The ‘jesus’ of the Mormon cult is the natural offspring of their ‘god’ Elohim who had sex with Mary, meaning their jesus is a created being and NOT a deity as the Bible teaches, and is the brother of Lucifer.”

Keller concludes, “I could care less what Beck chooses to believe, but I do care that he lies to people by stating he is a Christian when a person who believes in the lies of the Mormon cult is no more a Christian than a Muslim is. Most appalling are prominent Christians who have sold out the faith to associate with Beck, more worried about what financial gain they will get from that association than helping him lead ignorant souls to hell for following his cult’s beliefs.”

This is completely awful, of course. The Church of LDS is not Satanic and it’s not a cult. It’s certainly weird and fucked up, but no more, no less than other Christian denominations that have a conservative bent.

In fact, right-wing Mormons are a perfect ideological match for right-wing Evangelicals, so it’s pretty funny that totally unwarranted bias and mistrust has maintained a rift between the two. And, it’s surprising that this hasn’t been a bigger problem for Beck in the past. Will his Christian listeners be turned off if Keller’s attention-grabbing ploy takes off?

In other Christian Right vs. Mormons News: The Christian right is demonstrating its relevance to young people by attacking the insanely popular young-adult Twilight series, even though the books’ Mormon author has pumped them full of abstinence-only themes that should make anti-sex Christian crusaders pretty happy. The reason? Vampires make bad role models. (h/t Steve Benen)

Roberta Combs, president of the Christian Coalition of America, which called for a ban on the Potter series, says she’s considering a similar campaign against Twilight because even though it’s pro-abstinence, it’s also pro-vampires.

She says vampires are definitely not good role models, and she blames Hollywood.

“We can let our voices be heard, and anytime you do that you have an effect one way or another,” Combs says. “These Twilight books are very disturbing books for family values. Teen marriage is not the standard, but the part that is more troubling is the vampire. It’s just not normal for young people to idolize a vampire.”

House Majority leader Kevin Garn admits to being nude in a hot tub with a 15 year old girl when he was 28 and married.

Ironically, Mr. Garn was responsible for ethics legislation in Utah. He had also been a Mormon Bishop.

Garn should have been added to the sex offenders list, and he certainly should not have served as a Mormon Bishop a few years after this crime.

Garn was also arrested for a DUI while serving as a Bishop. He used his influence to also keep this quiet. He continued as a Bishop.

Maher said Garn was her LDS Sunday School teacher when she was in the fourth grade, several years before the hot tub incident.

This should trouble Mormons about the inspiration of callings.
The classic out for Mormons has been, "The church is perfect - the people are not."
That out does not seem to work too well here. Garn became a Bishop by the 'inspiration" of senior Mormon officials - Mormon General Authorities.
Mormons should not trust their lives to untrained and uninspired Mormon leaders. Too many tragedies have resulted.

Garn and his wife also paid off the young women with $150,000 for her silence and this was done in a Mormon Bishop's office.
The Mormon church officially helped to hush the activities of this pedophile via a local Bishop. This is just another example of how the Mormon church is more concerned about its image than protecting children and vulnerable teenagers.

The Utah Legislature gave Garn a standing ovation after his disclosure.

News reference: kevin-garn-confession-uta_n_496323.html

Mormons & Boy Scout Pedophilia

This is from the Idaho Falls Post Register: http://www.postregister.com/scouts_ho….Paid professionals at the Grand Teton Council hired a child molester to work at Camp Little Lemhi even though they, the national Boy Scout office and troop sponsors in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were warned about Brad Stowell.

Court records, which the Boy Scouts’ lawyers fought to hide from public view, show the warnings might have been sufficient to disqualify Stowell from Scouting six years before he was finally arrested.

But Stowell might never have had the chance to prey on Scout campers if his mother, who knew he had a problem, had steered him away from youth programs.

Stowell’s mother, the family’s LDS bishop and at least one Blackfoot police officer knew as early as 1988 that he had molested a child…..

Multiple Warnings: 1998-2005

1988 Brad Stowell, 16, admits to Blackfoot police, his mother and his LDS bishop that he molested a 6-year-old neighbor. He is sent to LDS Social Services counseling.

1988 Stowell is hired to teach first aid at Camp Little Lemhi. He has testified he started preying on campers that summer.

1989 Brad Stowell is hired as a waterfront instructor at Camp Little Lemhi.

1990 Brad Stowell is rehired at Camp Little Lemhi.

1991 Camp director Richard Snow hires Stowell as assistant aquatics director.

1991 Richard J. Scarborough reports to the national Boy Scouts of America that a child molester has been hired to work at Camp Little Lemhi.

1992/93 The LDS church sends Stowell on a mission to Alaska, where, he now admits, he molested at least one child.

1993 Judith Stowell, mother of Brad Stowell, joins Grand Teton Council Executive Board after 14 years as a Cub Scout leader.

January 1994 Richard Scarborough writes to the LDS church president, complaining that local church leaders are ignoring his warning about the pedophile in the LDS Scout troop.

January 1995 Carol Scarborough tells Camp Little Lemhi program director Jim Summers that Brad Stowell molested a neighbor boy.

1995 Camp Little Lemhi director Richard Snow hires Stowell as aquatics director.

1995 Office of Elder Vaughan Featherstone of the LDS church First Quorum of the Seventy forwards a tip about Stowell to the Boy Scouts of America’s official church liaison, C. Hart Bullock. Bullock orders the Grand Teton Council to check it out.

June 1995 Grand Teton Council executive Brad Allen calls Stowell’s bishop, who confirms Stowell was sent to counseling after the 1988 incident. When asked, Stowell tells Allen there was an “incident” but says he is over it.

1996 Camp Little Lemhi director Robert Fawcett promotes Stowell to camp program director.

June 1996 Fawcett admonishes Stowell to stop breaking Scout rules against being alone with campers and touching them too much.

1997 Little Lemhi director Elias Lopez rehires Stowell as program director.

June 1997 Lopez admonishes Stowell to stop breaking Scout rules against being alone with campers.

July 11, 1997 Stowell is arrested at Camp Little Lemhi for child sex abuse.

Dec. 3, 1997 Stowell is sentenced to five months in jail, plus 15 years probation.

January 2001 A court refuses victim’s request to open files in the negligence case against the Boy Scouts.

2001, 2004 Negligence cases are settled.

2005 Court records in one of the negligence cases are opened.

Sources: Sworn testimony and exhibits from Bonneville County civil case CV-99-3416

Sex Scandals in Salt Lake City, Utah

Salt Lake City has always loved a good sex scandal. Here are seven stunners that run the gamut from elected officials to pro athletes to two Utah teachers allegedly tag-teaming the same kid.

7. Congressman Caught Up in Sex Sting

On June 13, 1976, U.S. Rep. Allan Howe, D-Utah, was arrested in Salt Lake City on charges of soliciting two policewomen posing as prostitutes, according to washingtonpost.com. See Congressional Sex Scandals in History


6. Senator shot by mistress, oh my!

In December 1906, former U.S. Sen. Arthur Brown, R-Utah, was shot and killed by an angry mistress. See The Shooting of Arthur Brown, Ex-Senator From Utah

5. The Brysons' Sex Tape Scandal

Round about 2004, state Rep. Katherine Bryson, R-Orem, accused her husband, Utah County Attorney Kay Bryson, of illegally spying on her after he reportedly captured video footage of his wife with another man. Read the sordid details in Kay Bryson won't be charged.

4. Andrei Kirilenko's Booty-Call Benefits

In 2006, Utah Jazz star Andrei Kirilenko's wife publicly stated he had her permission to bang one random fan per year. Masha's remarkably generous gesture earned her acclaim as Best Pro-Athlete Spouse in City Weekly's Best of Utah that year.

3. Two Utah Teachers Accused of Sex with Same Student

Near the end of 2009, The Salt Lake Tribune reported that two Bountiful Junior High School teachers had been accused of sexual relations with the same 13-year-old boy. Both teachers were women. Simply stunning. See the Trib's student sex scandal story.

2. Elizabeth Smart's Abduction and Abuse

I was somewhat reluctant to include the Elizabeth Smart story in this list of sex scandals. It's not really right that a girl of her age should be so widely known for being sexually abused. But I decided to put it here as a chance to raise the question: Is the media overly obsessed with sexy headlines.

Here is an excellent article that examines that topic from Slate writer Jack Shafer:
Smart Bombed: How much coverage of Elizabeth Smart's kidnapping is too much?

1. LDS Women: 58% Admit Premarital Sex

This scandalous headline in the Aug. 9, 1991, edition of The Salt Lake Tribune must have been a blast of scalding hot water to the face of every man, woman and child in Utah. Not for the number alone. But for the simple fact that if 58 percent of Mormon women admitted to premarital sex, the actual percentage has to be significantly higher.