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Love the cock ring play!!! Woof!!!

Missy's Letter

Dear Starbucks,

I am writing this letter to you as a loyal customer with concerns.  I know probably 90% of the letters you receive trying to solicit something from you probably start the same way, but this is different. When I say, I am a loyal customer I mean you have had me for the better part of my adult life, hook, line and sinker. I will spend the extra $2.50 for a cup of your coffee. When I worked in Hoboken I would walk an extra three blocks for your coffee, walking past a Dunkin Donuts, Panera, Macdonalds and two bodegas to purchase from you. Every morning I drink my coffee out of one of your ceramic mugs and I have for years. A dozen of them line my shelves, (even the poorly conceived “Father’s Day” argyle mugs from 2005 that have metal bottoms which means I can’t pop it in the microwave to reheat)  I only buy Starbucks for my home consuption. When you roll out a new product, I flock to your nearest location like a moth to a flame.  I mourned the loss of the Chantico and I even rushed out to try that banana mocha abomination (a match made in hell) blindly following your suggestions like a lemming. I know, and speak your “lingo” that grates on me like nails on a chalk board and is sometimes so complicated I feel like I speak a second language. I even, as much as I am ashamed to admit it, buy most of the adult contemporary CDs you peddle in the front of the store. By the time I reach the front of the line somehow the newest James Taylor CD or whatever swing jazz collection you put together seems like something I can no longer live without.  I am your disciple. I am part of the Starbucks machine. I am your dream customer because whatever your company puts into the market, I have and I would have continued to buy.  I never felt bad about my commitment to your chain either because I felt like you were a company that was ethically sound.  Your commitment to free trade, The Starbucks Charitable Foundation, your appearance as a diverse work environment. These are all things that I as a customer felt good about. I felt like I was supporting a company that although huge, I felt you were doing your best to “do good” and leave a positive mark on the world.

That was the case, until yesterday.
Which is why I am writing to you today.
The sentiments above, about me being a loyal customer were not written to solicit anything from you. I do not want free coffee or a refund. I ask, as a loyal customer for the past 15 years that I have your attention. Your time and consideration.

Yesterday when I walked into your  Centereach, Long Island  location  I saw one of the most brazen and unapologetic displays of homophobia I have ever witnessed in my entire life.  What was most concerning about it was it was perpetuated by not one, not two but THREE of your employees and it was directed towards a fourth employee.  I don’t know this man, but I know his name is Jeffrey because the woman (who seemed to be in charge of this circus)  loudly scolded, spoke to in a condescending manner, humiliated, and then let go.  In the middle of your store. Two feet away from my table.  Then when Jeffrey, who was visibly shaken went to the bathroom to collect him self, the women at the table went on a long, ranting homophobic rant that lasted about five minutes. This rant transpired two feet away from my table where I sat with my daughter. A three year old child, with two mothers. I have never, in my entire life seem such a gross and unapologetic display of ignorance and intolerance. The most horrific aspect of it was that it was by someone that your corporation put into a position of power.  I have never, ever in ANY context seen ANYTHING so unprofessional in my entire life.  I was horrified that my daughter was exposed to that.

The whole incident spanned about 15-20 minuets. It looked like it was a sit down discussion about something that had happened in the store, an earlier problem.  What that was, I couldn’t be certain. I do know however, the fact that Jeffery’s sexuality was brought into the conversation (and it obviously was for me to know about it) is inappropriate. The woman (Who I will refer to going forward as the “Manager” although she may have been someone from Human Resources) spoke to him in a sharp condescending manner. She told him that they were not interested in his politics or beliefs and his thoughts were down right offensive to his co-workers. They did not want to hear about his personal life. When Jeffrey pointed out that they ALL talked about their personal lives (during the course of the conversation I learned that the manager had a daughter that went to tennis camp and another one of the women had a birthday coming up so the irony and the hypocrisy of that statement was mind blowing.) That his beliefs were not welcome at Starbucks.  She went on, an on and on talking about leadership building workshops where she learned to “Keep it to herself”  (again I will remind you of tennis camp). She was even so condescending to tell him,

“It might not be today, it might not be tomorrow, but ten years from now you will thank me for this…”

For what? For for letting him go for speaking about his personal life? For learning to put up with bigotry in the work place?

She kept reminding him, “You are not fired but….” as if to say, you are not fired but you are really not welcome here anymore. I assume this was a clever HR move so he would not be able to collect unemployment. He told her that he felt like he was being FORCED to leave because he felt like the “problems” at that location were not being addressed and the workplace had turned into a hostile environment.  She in turn told him that if he was not, “Part of the solution, he was the problem.”and his two weeks notice would not be needed. He asked if he would be marked by the corporation as “un-hireable”

She smugly looked at him and said,

“Well I don’t know. It’s not looking good for you.”

Basically threatening his professional future.

Know, I am not going to swear by what the original confrontation was. I only heard bits and pieces, but I know that worker was attacked and humiliated on the middle of your shop floor. I don’t care what his offense was, that sort of business should be conducted in a back room. I also know, the “manager” was not willing to listen to him and personally attacked him several times with snide, condescending comments. Telling him, in the subtext of her words that he was “Less than” and his personal belief system was no longer welcome at the shop.

The event got more horrific, when he, who had kept his composure through the entire incident, not once raising his voice despite being attacked, got up from the table to go to the bathroom to cry in private.

Then the three women turned on him like Vultures.

“I’m done. I’m done. Nobody wants to hear it anymore.  I don’t care who he is dating. I don’t want to hear about it.”

“He should not get upset at the things people say to him. He should be used to it. It’s not like he turned gay yesterday.”

“I used to listen to it, now I’m just sick of hearing about it.”

“Nobody does, but it’s over now. You won’t have to hear about it anymore.”

It went on, and on and on.

The focus of their discussion then when he left the table, was not about an incident that occurred in the previous days.  It was about how they were intolerant to his lifestyle, nobody wanted to hear about the fact that he was gay, they didn’t want to be exposed to that.  The focus was not about his poor performance as an employee but their intolerance towards him as a person.  I  sat at there at my  table with the impression that,

This man, this Starbucks employee was losing his job, because he was gay.

Whether that was the case or not.  Whatever Jeffrey’s offense might have been… that is how one of your loyal customers perceived the events as they transpired based on the actions and the statements of your “manager”.  She was bigoted, intolerant, insensitive and no matter how upset she was at Jeffrey, her comments and sentiments should not have been overheard by one of your customers, gay or not.

So I guess the biggest irony is, that nobody in the Starbucks that afternoon wanted to hear her politics, the very thing she was scolding Jeffrey for.

When Jeffrey returned from the bathroom she asked him for his keys. She was pretending to be sensitive and offered him her card if he needed to talk.  Which disgusted me because, she was anything but concerned for his well being.

I followed Jeffery out of the store horrified by what I had just witnessed.
I said to him, “That was unreal. That was “bullshit” and I was so sorry.
He walked away at first, then he approached me and said, “Thank you.”
I hugged him and he said,

“I came to this company because I thought it was supposed to be better. I thought that it was a positive and tolerant work place to work. I was passed over for promotions, they hired from the outside, I fought against their vendetta. I couldn’t take it anymore. I didn’t have a chance here.”

I hugged him again.
Disgusted that something so ugly, so cruel could happen in this day in age in America and that the perpetrator was basically patting herself on the back. Not caring that she had not only destroyed this man’s life, but that she also humiliated him and threatened his future.  She was going to sleep soundly that night. She was going to get away with her gross display of how disgusting one human can be to another if they have a position of power and slap a fake smile across their face.

I walked away from Jeffrey and I started to cry.  At how cruel we can still be to each other. How awful I felt for him. I strapped my daughter into her car seat and I thought about how in this society we are so self congratulating as we scream to the rafters promising our children,

“It gets better!”

I found myself wondering, “Better than what?”
What I saw on that Starbucks floor was pretty awful.

I have had friends tell me, to boycott. I have had other friends tell me that Starbucks is a positive and tolerant corporation. The latter has always been my impression.  I don’t think this is how Starbucks wants themselves represented.  However, I think you should be aware of the people who you currently have representing you and the way they are doing it.  I am hoping by bringing this to your attention, you will do the right thing. As you can tell by the tone of my letter I am not a political activist. I am not militant and I do not have an axe to grind nor am I looking for a soap box. I’m pretty boring to be quite honest with you.  I do not even march in pride parades and I swear I own not a single thing that has a rainbow on it. I don’t celebrate my diversity, That’s simply not the type of person that I am. In fact, I’m more the type to wallow in how mediocre I am.  I am an average American who just so happens to be gay. I live my life, I raise my family and I hope to also leave a mark on this world that is positive.  I do not like seeing anyone hurt, abused and degraded. I know that should go without saying, a sentiment akin to “All babies should be fed.” but after yesterday, and what I witnessed, I feel like it has to be said.

I want to still be able to walk into a Starbucks with my head held high. I want to drink your drinks, speak your code and even buy your newest record releases, even though they make me feel middle aged and unhip… and feel good about it.

I want you to restore my faith that you are the company I always thought you were.
Please don’t let this incident go unnoticed. Do something, anything you can to make this right. Please protect your (former) employee. Take a step, and take action to protect basic human dignity. To protect equal rights and equality. Please do something.  I don’t want you to lose my business forever.

A loyal customer,
Missy Alison
631- xxx-xxxx

Starbucks is investigating an employee termination at its Centereach store after a Springs couple witnessed the "homophobic rant" directed at a gay employee and wrote about it in their blog.

Their account has gone viral.

The couple, Missy and Dana Alison, who live in East Hampton Town, say they were running errands with their 3-year-old daughter Lily on Sunday afternoon in Centereach, about 60 miles from their home, when they witnessed a manager in the Starbucks store on Middle Country Road scold the employee in front of his peers.

In an open letter to Starbucks, which was posted on Dana's blog, Missy wrote, "I saw one of the most brazen and unapologetic displays of homophobia I have ever witnessed in my entire life."

The post recounts the manager reproaching Jeffery for doing things like talking about his politics or partners while he is in the store, a discussion that ended with Jeffery leaving the store being forced out of his a job. The post has gone viral on Facebook and Twitter, and has been read more than 15,000 times.

Starbucks said Jeffrey was not fired, but rather voluntarily turned in his keys.

In response to the account, Starbucks has publicly said in its own corporate blog that it will investigate the incident.

"We are disheartened by the allegations reported in an East Coast Starbucks store and are taking immediate measures to investigate and take any steps necessary to make this right. The actions reported do not correspond with our values, who we are as a company or the beliefs we try to instill in our partners," the company said.

"They are taking this seriously," Missy said.

In the end, all Missy said she wanted was for Starbucks to be aware there was a problem.

"I just want this made right. If nothing else, I want to know that there's not a black mark on Jeffrey's work record."

She said she was a bit overwhelmed by the attention her letter has received. "We're really average," she said with a laugh about her and her wife. "We're not on a soap box, we don't really attend rallies, we don't have a rainbow-anything," she said.

She's not confrontational about their lifestyle, she said. "Maybe it's a lesson. You don't have to be aggressive to be in their faces to change their minds about things."

Dana said she's proud of her wife's actions. "We just did what anybody should have done, and what I hope someone else would do if it were my wife or my daughter in Jeffrey's seat that day.  People need to look out for each other," she said.

"I am just amazed at the reactions and attention this has gotten," Dana said. "The power of the internet is amazing; it holds everyone accountable for their actions."

As for Jeffrey, according to a post on Dana’s blog Wednesday morning, he’s planning to take legal action against the company.

By Dan Wiessner

ALBANY, June 15 (Reuters) - The New York state Assembly approved same-sex marriage on Wednesday and the bill is likely to face a vote in the Senate on Friday, where it only needs support from one more senator to pass.

The Democrat-dominated Assembly voted 80 to 63 in favor of the marriage equality bill introduced by Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat in his first year in office.

The state-by-state battle over gay marriage has become one of the most contentious U.S. social issues ahead of the 2012 presidential and congressional elections.

"Only second-class states have second-class citizens," said Assemblyman Charles Lavine, a Democrat who voted in favor of legalizing gay marriage.

Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and the District of Columbia allow same-sex marriage, and several other states allow civil unions. The first legal same-sex marriages in the United States took place in Massachusetts in 2004.

New York's Assembly has easily passed a bill legalizing same-sex marriage several times in recent years. But the move was rejected the first time it was voted on by the then Democrat-led Senate in December 2009.

The Senate is now controlled by Republicans and currently 31 of the 62 senators have publicly indicated support.

Senator Ruben Diaz, a Pentecostal minister, is the only Democrat out of the party's 30 senators who does not support same-sex marriage, while Republican senators Jim Alesi and Roy McDonald, have said they will vote in favor of it.

On Tuesday "Sex and the City" actress Cynthia Nixon and New York Ranger ice hockey player Sean Avery lobbied lawmakers in Albany to legalize gay marriage. Nixon has been engaged for two years to a woman and wants to get married in her home state.

Rev. Duane Motley, a Christian lobbyist, said in Albany on Wednesday that legalizing gay marriage would "undermine the stability of our society" because he said a child of a gay couple could only have one biological parent.

If the bill passes, same-sex couples could start marrying in New York 30 days later. The bill does not compel any member of the clergy to conduct a same-sex marriages.

A recent Siena poll found 58 percent of New Yorkers support same-sex marriage. (Writing by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Greg McCune)

EXCLUSIVE: Tracy Morgan was genuinely devastated when he learned that he had hurt people with the anti-gay jokes in his comedy routine in Nashville, Russell Simmons tells PopEater. The hip-hop mogul and equal rights activist was one of the first people the comedian opened up to following the fall-out from his offensive standup. Simmons had immediately called Morgan to tell him how upset he was and what he thought Tracy should do about making amends.

"He was so happy to hear my voice. He had been crying. He was really devastated," Simmons tells us. "He spilled his guts to me."

When he heard about Tracy's joke saying that if his son was gay he'd "stab him", Simmons felt it was his job as a pro-gay marriage supporter to set him straight (no pun intended).

"The sad truth is that sometimes artists and rappers say what people in their community are thinking. I knew that Tracy was a person who wants to make people laugh and that he said what he said because in the communities he plays to there is homophobia. It is prevalent," Simmons said.

Now Simmons says Tracy must use his platform to eradicate homophobia. Simmons, who takes activism very, very seriously, told us that he genuinely believes that Morgan will take this on as his personal cause.

"He said to me, 'I ain't got s–t to do and I want a cause.' He says he wants to work for GLAAD and that he has found a calling and a cause and I believe he is sincere," Simmons said. "People have to learn and be educated and Tracy is a guy who comes from a community that is homophobic which is why he can be so helpful."

Also on PopEater: Why No Outrage for Sexist Rant During Same Routine? | Chris Rock Backtracks

Morgan told Simmons that he wants to attend a gay marriage rally.

"I believe everyone deserves the right to be happy and marry who they want to; gay, white, black, male or female. Let me know where the rally's at Russ. I'm there!," Morgan said according to a transcript of their talk which appears at Simmons' Hip-Pop website, Global Grind.

Next week, Morgan is traveling to Tennessee with GLAAD and Simmons to meet with those offended by what he said and make a public statement of support for the LGBT community.

In a somewhat more unorthodox strategy, Morgan also wants to scream GAY from his car windows until someone engages him in a dialogue down there, Simmons tells us.

It's going to be fascinating to see just how this one turns out and whether or not Tracy will be more or less effective in his campaign for gay rights.

The debate about what makes people gay has been raging for decades. Now scientists aim to settle it for good, says Jeremy Laurance

"Sexual orientation is not a matter of choice, it is primarily neurobiological at birth." So said Jerome Goldstein, director of the San Francisco Clinical Research Centre, addressing 3,000 neurologists from around the world at the 21st meeting of the European Neurological Society (ENS) in Lisbon last month.

In doing so he was attempting to settle a debate that has raged for decades: are gays born or made? It is a puzzle because homosexuality poses a biological conundrum. There is no obvious evolutionary advantage to same-sex relationships. So why are some people attracted to others of the same sex? Sexual attraction provides the drive to reproduction – sex is a means to an end not, in Darwinian terms, an end in itself. From an evolutionary perspective, same-sex relationships should be selected out.

Despite this, they are common in the animal kingdom. Birds do it, bees probably do it and fleas may do it, too. Among the many examples are penguins, who have been known to form lifelong same-sex bonds, dolphins and bonobos, which are fully bisexual apes. Various explanations have been advanced for the evolutionary advantage that such relationships might confer. For example, female Laysan albatrosses form same-sex pairs, which are more successful at rearing chicks than single females. Homosexuality may also help social bonding or ease conflict among males where there is a shortage of females. Gay couples will not preserve their own genes but they may help preserve those of the group to which they belong.

The existence of homosexuality in the animal kingdom has been cited to demonstrate that it is not a sin against nature. The American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from its list of recognised mental disorders almost 40 years ago in 1973 and the World Health Organisation followed suit in 1992. The UK Royal College of Psychiatrists does not produce its own list of disorders but tends to follow the WHO.

Yet as recently as February 2010, the college felt compelled to issue a statement to "clarify that homsexuality is not a psychiatric disorder," adding: "There is no sound scientific evidence that sexual orientation can be changed. Furthermore, so-called treatments of homosexuality create a setting in which prejudice and discrimination flourish."

The move was prompted by a survey of 1,400 psychiatrists and therapists, which found more than one in six had offered to help turn gays straight, or reduce their gay or lesbian feelings. Moreover, the cases were not concentrated in the past, but spread across the decades up to the present.

Professor Michael King, of the University College Medical School, who led the study published in BMC Psychiatry, said at the time: "We didn't expect it to be happening at this rate and we are really rather concerned… It is distressing and harmful and there is absolutely no evidence it works."

One puzzle was that far fewer therapists said they would attempt to change someone's sexual orientation if asked to do so – one in 25 – than admitted having actually done so. They seemed uncomfortable with giving treatment, or admitting to it. Pressure from clients demanding help because of bullying or discrimination may have pushed the therapists into delivering it.

Professor King said: "If the therapist is not wise enough to say that this is a part of them and there is nothing pathological about it, they may get seduced into trying to change them. Instead, the therapist should be saying that it is very unfortunate they are being bullied and that they can try to help them come to terms with their situation."

Research in neurobiology, cited by Jerome Goldstein in Lisbon last month, has served to reinforce this view. If it can be shown that the brains of gay people are physiologically different from heterosexual people, the idea that they are "aberrant" and may be changed is harder to sustain.

Twin studies have revealed a probable genetic link with sexual orientation and Dr Goldstone plans to examine the brains of identical twins using MRI scanners for differences.

Researchers from the Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, using MRI scanners measuring blood flow to the brain have already found differences in the size of the amygdala in the brain, which plays a key role in emotional responses. The brains of homosexual men resembled those of heterosexual women and those of homosexual women resembled those of heterosexual men.

The research builds on other studies of neurological differences between gay and straight men and women. A study led by Qazi Rahman at Queen Mary, University of London, found gay men and heterosexual women share a poor sense of direction and are more likely to navigate using landmarks or by asking someone. It is heterosexual men who stick stubbornly to the map.

The right-hand side of the brain dominates spatial capabilities, so may be slightly more developed in heterosexual men and lesbians. An earlier study found gay men and heterosexual women outperformed lesbians and heterosexual men in verbal fluency.

These studies hark back to those by Simon LeVay, a gay neuroscientist at the Salk Institute in San Diego, California, who claimed to have found structural differences in the brains of homosexual and heterosexual men. Post-mortems studied by LeVay revealed that a region of the brain called the interstitial nuclei of the anterior hypothalamus is two or three times bigger in heterosexual men than it is in women. In gay men, however, this region is about the same size as in women.

This supported the notion that the brains of gay men were in some ways a bit like women. But LeVay acknowledged that it was impossible to say whether this made people gay or whether the differences in their brains were a consequence of being gay. To make a compelling case, it would be necessary to show that the neurological differences existed early in life and that it was possible to predict future sexual orientation from them.

But he was captivated by the idea that, if gays were "born that way" it could undermine the morality of homosexual discrimination. He believed that a lifestyle based on an innate propensity rather than a conscious choice is far more difficult to condemn.

Jerome Goldstein agrees. "We must continue to bring forward data that show the differences or similarities between the brains of homosexuals, heterosexuals, bisexuals, and transgender persons." He added: "The neurobiology of sexual orientation and the gay brain, matched with other hormonal, genetic, and structural studies, has far-reaching consequences beyond sexual orientation."

'Curing' homosexuality

The idea that homosexuality can be cured has a long and dubious history. For most of the last century it was thought to be an aberration from the norm that could be "corrected", rather than a natural state. Everyone was thought to be basically heterosexual and homosexuality was regarded as a deviation, the result of "faulty learning" in childhood.

During the 1950s and 1960s, when belief in psychological behaviourism was at its height, aversion therapy was used to "cure" homosexuals. Male patients were given a slide show which included pictures of sexually attractive men and women and a lever that allowed them to change the slides. If they lingered too long over the pictures of the men, and did not move on swiftly enough to the pictures of the women, they received an electric shock. A variation of this treatment involved a drug that would make them vomit.

Aversion therapy, famously employed in Anthony Burgess's novel A Clockwork Orange to cure Alex of his obsession with violence, was used up to the 1980s, but has since been discredited.

Other treatments included advice to masturbate to a homosexual fantasy and then switch to a heterosexual one near orgasm. Covert sensitisation required patients to counter homosexual thoughts with shameful fantasies of arrest by the police or discovery by their family.

Although not uncommon, these treatments never became mainstream in Britain. In the US, however, the idea that homosexuality can be cured retains wide support.

Lady Gaga Advocates Gay Rights, Sings 'Born This Way' At Rome Rally In Circus Maximus

ROME – Lady Gaga sang a few bars of her smash hit "Born This Way" and demanded the end of discrimination against gays as she proclaimed herself a "child of diversity" at a gay pride rally Saturday night in the ancient Circus Maximus.

The star, whose "Born This Way" album recently topped 1 million sales in a week, delighted tens of thousands of people at a brief concert in the vast field where the ancient Roman masses would gather for spectacles.

Wearing a green wig, she played the piano and sang a few numbers. But she devoted much of her appearance after an annual European gay pride parade to denounce intolerance and discrimination against gays and transgender people. Among the places she cited was the Middle East, Poland, Russia and Lithuania.

Lady Gaga told the crowd she is often asked "How gay are you, Lady Gaga?"

"My answer is: 'I am a child of diversity.'"

She also proudly cited her Italian roots – saying she was really named Stefania Giovanna Angelina Germanotta.

And she told fans her costume – a sleek black top with one bare shoulder and billowing plaid skirt – were from the last collection of Gianni Versace.

Decrying intolerance of homosexuality, Lady Gaga lamented that young people who are gay are susceptible to "suicide, self-loathing, isolation."

Many in the crowd had participated in an hours-long parade of colorful floats and brightly costumed marchers through Rome's historic center before the rally. The events were part of the annual Europride day to encourage gay rights on the continent.

Lady Gaga praised her audience for its "great courage" which she says inspires her.

Europride organizers hope the event will draw attention to discrimination gays face in many parts of the world. The U.S. ambassador was among those who invited Lady Gaga to Rome.

"I am so honored to be here," Lady Gaga said, recalling how, earlier in the day, she lay naked in silk sheets in her hotel room and enjoyed the din of adoring fans and packs of photographers in the street below.

Organizers said Rome was a significant choice of venue, since it is home to the Vatican, which staunchly opposes legislation that would recognize same-sex marriage or adoption by gay couples.

Others hoped the turnout would send a message to Premier Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian leader dogged by a sex scandal involving an alleged 17-year-old Moroccan prostitute. The billionaire media mogul triggered outrage from gay rights groups last fall when he contended during a public appearance that it was "better to be passionate about a beautiful girl than a gay."

Berlusconi's equal opportunity minister, a woman, defended the premier, saying he had just been joking and had no intention of offending gays. A government undersecretary further provoked protests when she said she was sure "all Italian parents hope to have heterosexual children."

The premier, who is on trial in Milan for allegedly paying the teenager for sex and then using his office to try to cover it up, has denied any wrongdoing.

Yeah what notquiteme said…................  :true:

By Adelle M. Banks
c. 2011 Religion News Service

WASHINGTON (RNS) Significant majorities of Americans say it is possible to disagree with their religion's teachings on abortion and homosexuality and still remain in good standing with their faith.

The findings, released Thursday (June 9) in a detailed survey by Public Religion Research Institute, held true for major religious groups, including Catholics and white evangelical Protestants.

The findings reflect the complicated tasks faced by Catholic bishops to discipline politicians who stray from church teaching, or evangelical groups that try to toe a traditional line as cultural values shift around them.

In fact, the survey found that six in 10 Americans chafe at the idea of religious leaders publicly pressuring politicians on the issue of abortion, as has happened to several high-profile Catholic Democrats in recent years.

Overall, 72 percent of Americans say it's permissible to disagree with church teaching on abortion, and 63 percent say the same for homosexuality.

Catholics closely mirror the general population's position on abortion and church teaching, but are more progressive than the general population on the issue of homosexuality and church teaching.

Two-thirds of evangelicals (67 percent) said they could differ with church teaching on abortion, and slightly less than a majority (47 percent) said the same about homosexuality.

The report focused on the views of millennials (people ages 18-29) and found that they are more supportive than their parents of gay marriage. Their views on abortion closely mirror their parents, however, with six in 10 saying abortion should be legal in all or most cases.

Also, most millennials – 68 percent -- think at least some health care professionals in their community should provide legal abortions.

"Millennials are actually more likely to say that abortion should be available in their local community than say it should be legal," said Robert P. Jones, CEO of the Washington-based research firm, whichannounced its results at the Brookings Institution.

Abortion services by local health care professionals is also supported by majorities of white mainline Protestants (72 percent), the religiously unaffiliated (71 percent), white Catholics (58 percent), and black Protestants (56 percent). Minorities of Latino Catholics (38 percent) and white evangelicals (37 percent) supported such availability.

The report also found a religious divide on the sinfulness of having an abortion, with more than 60 percent of white evangelicals, black Protestants and Latino Catholics seeing it as sinful. White Catholics, meanwhile, were evenly divided (46 percent each), and white mainline Protestants were the sole major religious group where a majority (55 percent) did not believe it is sinful.

Researchers found a link between biblical interpretation and opposition to abortion: almost six in 10 Americans who say the Bible is the literal word of God believe abortion should be illegal in all or most cases.

More than 80 percent of people who don't see the Bible as the word of God but rather a book written by men think abortion should be legal in all or most circumstances.

The overall survey, based on telephone interviews with 3,000 people between April 22 and May 8, had a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points. The sample of 431 millennials had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points.

Among other findings:

Significant majorities of mainline Protestants (85 percent), Catholics (78 percent), black Protestants (74 percent) and evangelicals (62 percent) support public schools teaching comprehensive sex education.

With the exception of white evangelicals, majorities of major religious groups say "pro-life" and "pro-choice" are both labels that describe them at least somewhat well.

Majorities of Americans who attend church at least once or twice a week hear clergy talk about abortion and homosexuality, with most hearing those issues are morally wrong and few hearing they are morally acceptable.

The following is excerpted from the Archbishop Desmond Tutu's new book, 'God Is Not A Christian: And Other Provocations'.

Archbishop Tutu dissents from the official policies of most of the world's Anglican churches, which hold that gays and lesbians should be celibate; and in the years since his retirement as archbishop of Cape Town he has become one of the world's most prominent figures pleading for a change in the attitudes of religious institutions toward human sexuality.

Tutu's position is reflected in excerpts from a newspaper article and a sermon preached in Southwark Cathedral, London, in 2004.

A student once asked me, If I could have one wish granted to reverse an injustice, what would it be? I had to ask for two. One is for world leaders to forgive the debts of developing nations which hold them in such thrall. The other is for the world to end the persecution of people because of their sexual orientation, which is every bit as unjust as that crime against humanity, apartheid.

This is a matter of ordinary justice. We struggled against apartheid in South Africa, supported by people the world over, because black people were being blamed and made to suffer for something we could do nothing about – our very skin. It is the same with sexual orientation. It is a given. I could not have fought against the discrimination of apartheid and not also fight against the discrimination that homosexuals endure, even in our churches and faith groups.
I am proud that in South Africa, when we won the chance to build our own new constitution, the human rights of all have been explicitly enshrined in our laws. My hope is that one day this will be the case all over the world, and that all will have equal rights. For me this struggle is a seamless robe. Opposing apartheid was a matter of justice. Opposing discrimination against women is a matter of justice. Opposing discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is a matter of justice.

It is also a matter of love. Every human being is precious. We are all -- all of us -- part of God's family. We all must be allowed to love each other with honor. Yet all over the world, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people are persecuted. We treat them as pariahs and push them outside our communities. We make them doubt that they too are children of God. This must be nearly the ultimate blasphemy. We blame them for what they are.

Churches say that the expression of love in a heterosexual monogamous relationship includes the physical -- the touching, embracing, kissing, the genital act; the totality of our love makes each of us grow to become increasingly godlike and compassionate. If this is so for the heterosexual, what earthly reasons have we to say that it is not the case with the homosexual?
The Jesus I worship is not likely to collaborate with those who vilify and persecute an already oppressed minority. I myself could not have opposed the injustice of penalizing people for something about which they could do nothing -- their race -- and then have kept quiet as women were being penalized for something they could do nothing about -- their gender; hence my support for the ordination of women to the priesthood and the episcopate.

Equally, I cannot keep quiet while people are being penalized for something about which they can do nothing -- their sexuality. To discriminate against our sisters and brothers who are lesbian or gay on grounds of their sexual orientation for me is as totally unacceptable and unjust as apartheid ever was.

:crazy2:

:crazy2:

  leatherbear

UPDATE: Morgan Apologizes

UPDATE: Tracy Morgan issued a statement to The Huffington Post through his representative:

“I want to apologize to my fans and the gay & lesbian community for my choice of words at my recent stand-up act in Nashville. I’m not a hateful person and don’t condone any kind of violence against others. While I am an equal opportunity jokester, and my friends know what is in my heart, even in a comedy club this clearly went too far and was not funny in any context.”

PREVIOUSLY: Tracy Morgan's latest standup set is no laughing matter.

Kevin Rogers attended Morgan's standup show last Friday and reported on his Facebook page that Morgan let loose a viciously homophobic rant that, as far as he could tell, was a dead serious attack on gay men and women. Rogers, who is gay, wrote:

I figured at some point the gay jokes would fly and I'm well prepared for a good ribbing of straight gay humor. I have very thick skin when it comes to humor; I can dish and I can take. What I can't take is when Mr. Morgan took it upon himself to mention about how he feels all this gay sit was crazy and that women are a gift from God and that "Born this Way" is bullsit, gay is a choice, and the reason he knows this is exactly because "God don't make no mistakes" (referring to God not making someone gay cause that would be a mistake).

Perhaps most strikingly, Rogers wrote that Morgan said:

He said if his son that was gay he better come home and talk to him like a man and not [he mimicked a gay, high pitched voice] or he would pull out a knife and stab that little N (one word I refuse to use) to death.

Rogers continued to describe the rant, which we've excerpted:

He took time to visit the bullsit of this bullying stuff and informed us that the gays needed to quit being pussies and not be whining about something as insignificant as bullying. He mentioned that gay was something kids learn from the media and programming, and that bullied kids should just bust some ass and beat those other little fckers that bully them, not whine about it.

After making comments about President Obama, Rogers wrote that Morgan finished his rant defiantly:

Tracy then said he didn't fcking care if he pissed off some gays, because if they can take a fcking dick up their ass… they can take a f*cking joke.

As it stands, Morgan's reps refused to comment to gay issues site Unicornbooty.com, writing, "There is no comment, thank you for your inquiry."

The Ryman Auditorium issued a statement to The Hollywood Reporter about the alleged outburst, saying, "The Ryman Auditorium regrets that people were offended by statements made by Tracy Morgan during his June 3 appearance. The Ryman does not control the content presented by people appearing on its stage, nor does it endorse any of the views of, or statements made by, such persons."

Morgan has a history of homophobic tirades on stage, saying that being gay was a choice, among other things, at a 2009 standup performance at New York's Carnegie Hall.

In his acting career, however, Morgan has often played gay or at least sexually ambiguous. He played a transvestite inmate in the Adam Sandler comedy, "The Longest Yard," and many of his "Saturday Night Live" characters were of questionable sexuality, including the sophomoric zookeeper Brian Fellows.

The Huffington Post has reached out to his representative for comment, and will update if any statement is given.

It's past the expiration date, but your food still smells fine. Does that mean it's okay to eat? Here are the food safety essentials that will help you avoid food-borne illnesses and digestive problems.

If your food looks fine, it must be good enough to eat, right? Not necessarily: Being unaware of how long you’ve been storing food in your pantry or the back of your refrigerator can make you one of the 48 million people estimated to get digestive problems from food-borne illness each year.

Mold and rot are sure signs that food is past its prime, but an item can be unsafe to eat even before you notice such obvious signs. If you’re guilty of occasionally ignoring food expiration dates, brush up on food safety guidelines and rethink what you’re willing to eat so you can avoid digestive problems.

Expired or Not?

Knowing exactly how long food products can keep without spoiling is not easy because the stamped food expiration date is only one part of food safety. The temperature at which you store and prepare food can affect your risk for food-borne illness, and so does the handling of food at the store before it even reaches your kitchen.

Here’s how to decide whether the food product you’re looking at — or sniffing or tasting — is safe to eat:

Know your foods. Get a basic understanding of what is in the food you eat. “Generally, foods higher in protein will deteriorate faster than foods high in sugar or sodium. That is why those products are used in food preservation techniques — they bind the moisture or water in the food,” says food safety expert Catherine Strohbehn, PhD, RD, adjunct associate professor at Iowa State University in Ames.
    Follow food safety temperature guidelines. At room temperature, bacteria grow quickly, causing food to spoil faster. “Bacteria need food — protein or carbohydrates — to grow and reproduce, along with water,” says Strohbehn. That’s why you should keep your refrigerator set below 41° F and heat foods to temperatures above 140° F. These extremes of cold and heat prevent bacteria from multiplying. Frozen foods should be kept at 32° F or below.
    Heed your nose. Most people can smell spoiling or rotting food, especially if there is an excess of bacteria or mold. Trust your sense of smell as your personal food safety expert. But don’t trust too much — even food that still smells okay can be spoiled.
    Take a look. If you see obvious discoloration in rotting food, such as green meat or blue spots on bread, throw out that food. Changes in texture are also a sign of spoilage, such as clumpy milk. Other warning signs are packaging with obvious openings or bulges, and cans that are dented, leaking though unopened, bulging, or showing rust along any seam.
    Keep all food areas clean. Regularly clean and sanitize surfaces where food is stored and prepared.

It’s a Date: Know Food Storage Limits

Follow these storage tips for staple food items. Use a marker or sticky labels to date food as you store it:

Eggs. Keep them refrigerated in their original carton and use within three weeks. Throw out those that are broken or cracked.
    Seafood. Refrigerate immediately if you plan to use it within two days, otherwise freeze it until you plan to use it.
    Ground meat. Store one to two days in the refrigerator, three to four months in the freezer.
    Steaks, chops, and roasts. Store three to five days in the refrigerator, four to six (chops), 6 to 12 (steaks) and 4 to 12 (roasts) months in the freezer.
    Fresh poultry. Store one to two days in the refrigerator, nine months to one year in the freezer.
    Cooked meat or poultry. Store three to four days in the refrigerator, two to six months in the freezer.
    Fruits and vegetables. It’s hard to tell exactly how long a fresh fruit or vegetable will last, as this can depend a lot on how they were handled before you brought them home. Keep fruits and vegetables fresh longer by storing them in the refrigerator; many freeze well for future use. Always wash fruits and vegetables before eating or serving. Do not eat if they look or smell rotten.
    Dairy. Always choose pasteurized dairy products to cut down on food-borne illness. Pay attention to expiration dates. Storing milk at temperatures below 40° F might allow you to consume it a few days past expiration, but you can rely on taste and smell to figure out if the milk has spoiled.
    Leftovers. If you don’t want fresh food to go to waste, one option is to cook it for future use. Leftovers can stay in the fridge for three to four days or in the freezer for two or more months. Remember to reheat leftovers thoroughly.
    Canned foods. Store in a cool, dry place. Never store canned goods under the sink, over the stove, in a damp basement or garage, or anywhere else that may have high and low temperature fluctuations. Canned foods with high acidic content, like tomatoes and other fruits, can be stored for up to 18 months. Low-acid foods, like vegetables and meats, can be kept for two to five years.

Dealing With Digestive Problems and Food-Borne Illness

Although the above guidelines are important, you can follow all of this advice and still occasionally get sick because of bacteria that you can’t see or sense.

The symptoms of food-borne illness depend on the bacteria in the food and may include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, cramping, and fever. Symptoms can start almost as soon as you are done with your meal or as long as 72 hours later. You might not make the connection between a digestive problem and a food you ate three days ago, and many bouts of food-borne illness pass without a visit to the doctor. Most people write their misery off as a temporary “flu bug,” says Strohbehn.

As many as one in four people might be at increased risk of digestive problems, with some more likely to be affected by food-borne illness than others. “People in at-risk groups are those with lower immune systems — such as children and elderly people — those with a chronic disease, and pregnant women. Their bodies can't fight off the infection as easily as healthy folks,” explains Strohbehn. In these situations, you must pay special attention to food safety to reduce the risk of illness.

Cleanliness and awareness are the keys to good food safety. You will be able to reduce your risk for digestive problems from food-borne illness if you pay attention to how long your food products have been in your house and how they look, smell, and taste when you want to eat them.

:cheers:

:cheers: