LA Times: Is O’Reilly a Moderate?

There’s a great post in the LA Times entertainment section (rightfully placed) which talks about the conservative, biased and unfair FOX and their band of entertainers. This particular post raises a very interesting question. In the time of political turmoil, is Bill O’Reilly a moderate?

According to the post:

The top-rated cable talk-show host has always been a contrarian, a self-described culture warrior who touts traditionalism while also favoring gay adoption and some gun-control measures. But in recent months, as the country’s political discourse has curdled, O’Reilly’s independent streak has become even more pronounced — particularly in contrast to Fox News’ newest star, Glenn Beck, who has rallied both passionate fans and detractors with his apocalyptic rhetoric about the Obama administration.

O’Reilly urged a national conference of conservatives to refrain from personal attacks on President Obama. He noted that employing fear in politics is a “double-edged sword” that “can lead to violence and heartbreak.” And he declared that he did not believe the president was a socialist, drawing mockery from radio host Rush Limbaugh. “Name-calling gets us nowhere,” O’Reilly replied mildly.

Read the rest here!

Anti-Discrimination Bill Revived in House

A bill that would end discrimination against gay and lesbian couples seeking to adopt children has been reintroduced into the U.S. House.

The Every Child Deserves a Family Act was previously introduced last year by its sponsor, Representative Pete Stark (D-CA) but is being reintroduced with modified language.

On top of introducing the legislation, Stark is planning to lead a congressional briefing panel that will feature dialogue from experts on LGBT adoption, with the intended purpose of educating lawmakers on the bill’s importance. The discussions are set to begin March 11th.

The legislation is similar to the previously introduced bill, but it has been modified to allow for new educational programs aimed at helping children find homes.

The executive director of the Family Equality Council, Jennifer Chrisler stated:

“This bill added some language around training and education to help people understand what it is that they can and should do when it comes to looking for potential parents,”

The previous legislation found the support of 14 co-sponsors and that support is expected to carry over to the newer version.

Three states, including Florida, currently have a ban on adoption by gay and lesbian couples, and this law would circumvent any state level bans on gay adoption. Laws in many other states remain unclear about whether same-sex couples may adopt jointly.

Currently an estimated one million children are homeless in the U.S.

Florida City Supports Repeal of Gay Adoption Ban

Lake Worth officials are hoping a resolution they passed Tuesday night will help change state adoption laws.”Being that our state representative Mary Brandenburg is bringing it up this year in the House, I thought it would be good if we showed that the city of Lake Worth supports the efforts to end the ban on gay adoption,” Commissioner Cara Jennings told WPBF 25 News on Wednesday. City commissioners voted unanimously to support the repeal of gay adoption laws. “I’ve done a lot of research and it seems like we’re the first city to pass a resolution of this kind,” Jennings said.

More at: WPBF.com!

Let’s Talk About Prop 8 – Really, Let’s Talk!

What’s your agenda?  Wednesday nights a great night to let it be known!  Join yours truly along with Lyndon Evans of Focus On The Rainbow and special guest on gayagenda.com’s Blog Talk Radio show which airs live from 8-9 pm Eastern time!

This week’s guest was Mr. Chris Fowler, a California attorney who was married to his partner during the short window of opportunity when lesbian and gay couples were allowed to wed in California.

According to TWIT.com:

Gay, newlywed and a new father, Christopher C. Fowler—attorney at Los Angeles-based business law firm Rutter Hobbs & Davidoff Incorporated—is personally and deeply invested in the current case’s outcome. Fowler and his husband were one of 18,000 couples to wed within the six-month window when same-sex marriage was legal in California. Then, on Nov. 4, 2008—the same day Proposition 8 passed—while out campaigning against the ballot measure, Fowler learned that they’d been matched with the birthparents of their future son.

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“I am cautiously optimistic that Judge Walker will decide that Proposition 8 was unconstitutional, that its creators sponsored the ballot measure out of animus to the LGBT community. Under several important United States Supreme Court cases, Prop. 8 is in violation of U.S. constitutional law, withholding a basic, fundamental, legal right to which every American is entitled—gay or straight.”

- Christopher C. Fowler, attorney, Rutter Hobbs & Davidoff

Chris gave us a great inside perspective on Prop 8 and the challenges is presents for gay & lesbian couples.  Missed the show?  No worries, listen on the player below…but make sure you listen live next Wednesday night at 8 pm EST…Let your agenda be known!

Mr. Chris Fowler

Gay Couple Wins Ruling on Son’s Birth Certificate

From Courthouse News Service:

The Louisiana registrar must issue a birth certificate listing a gay couple as the parents of an adopted son born in Shreveport, the 5th Circuit ruled.

The adoptive parents, Oren Adar and Mickey Ray Smith, were living in Connecticut when they obtained an emergency adoption decree in New York state court.

The couple then applied for a new birth certificate listing them as the parents of their adopted son, who was born in Louisiana.
Louisiana registrar Darlene W. Smith refused to issue the certificate, citing state laws barring unmarried couples from adopting children in Louisiana.

But the district court ordered Smith to issue the certificate, saying Louisiana owes “full faith and credit” to the New York adoption decree.
The New Orleans-based appeals court agreed.

“Adar and Smith are the ‘adoptive parents’” under Louisiana law, Judge Jacques Wiener Jr. wrote, and the state “owes full faith and credit to the New York adoption decree that declares [the infant] to be the adopted child of Adar and Smith.”

Wiener added that Louisiana law “does not vest the Registrar with the discretion to refuse to make a new, correct birth certificate for a Louisiana-born child” when the New York adoption decree “indisputably satisfies” Louisiana requirements.
The court also rejected the registrar’s attack on the couple’s standing, saying their adopted son has the “right to an accurate birth certificate.”

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