I love my driver’s license. It gives me the ability to get in a car and go just about anywhere in the United States. It’s gotten me on board aircrafts to virtually every state in this great country. I’ve seen the big sky of Montana and the roaring waters of Niagara, in large part, thanks to my driver’s license.

My driver’s license has a state seal on it, bearing the markings of the State of Texas and it has a 10 year old picture of me on it (shh, don’t tell the DMV!).

Last month, a U.S. District Judge dismissed the lawsuit filed by Arthur Smelt and Christopher Hammer seeking to find the Defense of Marriage Act (“DOMA”) unconstitutional. That dismissal was a logistics issue, not a dismissal because the allegations against DOMA were unfounded. In the Smelt case, the Judge found that the suit “should have” been filed in federal court, not state court.

The Wisconsin Attorney General, J. B. Van Hollen, has stated that he will not defend the legislatures domestic partnership law in filings seeking to overturn it. The republican Attorney General feels the legislation, which provides hospital visitation and inheritance protections to same-sex couples, is a violation of the Wisconsin Constitution which holds that no relationship between same-sex couples can be recognized in Wisconsin which is “similar to” marriage.

Utah Newspaper Rejects Gay Wedding Announcement – Tyler Barrick and Spencer Jones live in San Francisco and were married June 17, 2008. Mr. Jones is originally from Utah and wanted the announcement printed in his hometown paper – prior to a family party there. The clerk at The Spectrum initially accepted the announcement information along with the payment – then later the announcement was decined. The Spectrum had been on GLAAD’s list of inclusive newspapers – and GLAAD did try to help but without success. The announcement has since been published in The Salt Lake Tribune – another local paper.
Tennessee Schools Agree to Remove Anti-LGBT Filter – In April 2009 the ACLU sent a letter to the Nashville school district. The district had set up filters on school computers – blocking access to LGBT friendly websites. Students were having to out themselves to their teachers to try to gain access.

It’s easy to see why so much attention is being given to the lawsuit filed by the Massachusetts Attorney General, Martha Coakley, is getting so much attention. Massachusetts was the first of the now six states to provide marriage equality to its citizens. It now seems Massachusetts will lead the way as the State challenges the unconstitutional Defense of Marriage Act (“DOMA”).

But before the wahoos in Texas and other jurisdictions get their Bibles all up in people’s faces, the challenge presented by Massachusetts doesn’t challenge Section 2 of DOMA which allows states not to recognize unions performed in other jurisdictions, but instead challenges Section 3 which defines marriage on the Federal level as being between one man and one woman.

Do you remember the pre-President Obama? He would stand before a crowd of say, 20 people at a community center talking about the American Dream and living it. At that time, and currently, he had a “wife” that he loved, someone he could turn to while speaking and say, “Thank you to my beautiful ‘wife’ for helping me live this dream.”

Well Mr. President, I have a dream too. I dream that someday I can stand before a crowd of people and say, “Thank you to my beautiful ‘husband’ for helping me live this dream.”

Reports are circulating about the Obama Administration’s recent comments in their “Memorandum of Points and Authorities in Support of Defendant United State’s of America’s Motion to Dismiss” filed in the Smelt case [Case 8:09-CV-00286-DOC-MLG in the United States District Court, Central District of California, Southern Division]. Some blogs are already reporting that the administration equates gay marriage to “incest and child marriage.”

Rodger McFarlane was a gay activist who set up the first AIDS hotline in 1981, using his own home phone and an answering machine. He went on to establish many other organizations and services to help those with AIDS. In addition to being an activist, Mr. McFarlane was a very lively man and made seven over-ice expeditions to the North Pole. Mark Thompson, a Los Angeles author, said, “He was one of those fantastically energetic, self-possessed visionary people who knew what had to be done.” In 2002 Mr. McFarlane broke his back in an Eco-Challenge race and his health had been deteriorating since then.

CA School Agrees to Settlement – A high school in the Vallejo Unified School District has agreed to pay a former student named Rochelle $25,000, and adopt new policies regarding bullying and prohibiting discrimination.

Even straight people who support gay rights can struggle with what to tell their children about gay relationships. We’re barely comfortable talking about straight relationships. And for many straight people, sex is front and center, covering up the real person.

Let me tell you about my friend at work. Last fall, there was a movement to send postcards to Obama, asking him to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, DOMA. I bought forty postcards, addressed and stamped them, then sent an email to folks at work that I knew support gay rights. This is a dear friend. She comes to me and says “Tomorrow I will let you know how many postcards I need.” Ok.

First, I’m going to talk about the comment, “It’s about homosexuals obtaining a privilege that nobody else is allowed to have.” As a long time resident of Texas, USA, Earth, I know with certainty that no one has ever been allowed to marry except the homosexual. In the United States, homosexuals already receive numerous privileges that are denied to everyone else, like marriage, adoption rights, 401K benefits from a spouse, Social security death benefits, etc…etc…etc… Those privileges are provided gladly by our government to homosexuals, but no one else… they are exclusive to us. (Note the sarcasm?).