do gays have an obligation to be 'out'?

I saw this on Logo and it got me thinking.... do gays have an obligation to be out?

State Secrets

So I get a call at my office. I pick up and it's one of our company's support personnel.

"Good Morning Kevin, what's up?"

"Mornin Tom. Listen, i'm going to need you to stop telling people about Firefox."

"um, excuse me?"

"Yea, we've had several calls about getting Firefox installed on people's machines and we can't just install it for everyone. I need you to stop telling people it's better."

Of all the stupid phone calls and requests I've received this has to be a new low in stupidity.

First of all... I've never told anyone "use firefox". I've demo'd sites and used firefox. People have asked what i use and I told them. Anyone i've told specifically to look at a page in fireox, i've installed it on their machine personally and told them not to call support about any questions they might have.

As an support professional, you should WANT to install firefox because there's a much better chance that browsing *WON'T* infect the computers for which you are responsible.

I understand the concept of corporate standards and "herding the chickens" and all, but rather than try to gag another person, why not say something like "that's not something my manager will allow me to spend time on, but you're more than welcome to install it yourself.

Welcome to corporate America.

best line from the sopranos finale

Meadow: "{I became a lawyer because] the state crushes the individual."
Tony: "New Jersey?"

Kathy Griffin season 3

So the world depresses me. Especially lately. The constant loss of life of our troops and the insipid pop culture that passes for news. And then there's someone who reminds us just how superficial and one-dimensional the world really is and laugh at it. Thank you Cathy Griffin for making me laugh and, what's more, laugh at myself. I can't tell you how good it feels. You are my Goddess.

cured

They wish to cure us, but I say we are the cure.
-Magneto in X-Men 3

my new lover

Ruby, you are so sexy.

booty cake

Today's my roommate, Edward's birthday. On the way to work I called and ordered a chocolate chip cookie (his favorite) from publix with balloons on it and a nice "happy birthday" message written in green and white icing. I pick it up on the way home, and when I walk in the door, nobody's home. But there's a strong smell of sugar throughout the house. I put the cookie on the dining room table and went into the kitchen and there was this clearly hand-made cake with candles and everything. I thought, oh, nice, his mother stopped by and made him a cake. He's prolly out to dinner with her.

Several hours later he gets home and I'm like... can I have some cake.... did your mom make it? He blushes.

"A trick made it."

I'm like ... what?

Apparently a trick from 3 years ago brought him the cake hoping to get/give a little sumptin' sumptin' this morning after I had left for work. "He called earlier this week and we talked and I let it slip today way my b-day."

..."so you had a good morning?"

"er... no. Nice guy, but he's like a clingy little puppy. For some reason he keeps calling, but I'm trying to be polite."

"So you let the puppy hump your leg then put him outside when he piddles on the floor.... you don't turn him away when he brings you baked goods."

Slicing the cake and eating a piece... i'm like... "Poor guy... gives you a cake and you don't even put out. And it's pretty good cake too..." I sigh... "Desperation is yummy."

My roommate was having none of it and was embarrassed it was in the house.

I wish he would have put out.... Then maybe next year, we'd get ice cream too. I do love cake and ice cream.

creator/destroyer

Gimme that old time religion
That old time religion
Gimme that old time religion; it's good enough for me

It was good for my grandma
It was good for my grandpa
It was good for my mom and it's good enough for me

The Hindu god Shiva is known as the creator/destroyer. He is the Hindu version of the Egyptian Pheonix. He destroys and creates from that which is destroyed. Christianity has the story of Noah and the arc... how God destroyed the world with a flood and then brought species back from extinction from two of every unclean and 7 of every clean animal stored in Noah's arc... I believe Cathy Lee Gifford was headlining that particular cruise with a show of Broadway favorites which may have acutally BROUGHT ABOUT the apocalypse. I could be mistaken.

Shiva smears the ashes of his destruction over his body and from his phallus springs the seed of a new creation. Noah's arc, beached on the side of Mt. Ararat opens the doors to a world to start over. The Phoenix rises from the ashes to fly the skies and bring healing to the earth.

I'm tired of destruction. I'm weary of our soldiers being killed; I'm over hearing every day how hundreds of people are killed in a market somewhere in western Asia. Though some people would lay this problem at the feat of our President, I do not. I don't believe he initiated destruction. Only that he created a crucible for the forces behind the conflict to engage. I lay this conflict at the feet of a confrontation that has continued throughout history. The conflict between that which is new and that which is old.

As I write, secular forces of the Lebonese security force battle with Al Queda/Hezbollah forces for the soul of Lebanon. Christian fascists, yes I said it, fascists in this country believe that they and only they are the arbiters of the Christian religion and will this week picket the Funeral of another of their faith because he wasn't "Christian Enough."

When will this blood war in Iraq be over? How many people have to die in Lebanon before they can conduct their goverment without interference from fascist militant Muslims? When will the destruction of what currently constitutes the Christian church be complete so that the rest of us can go back to focusing on worshiping God? I hear the song "That Old Time Religion" and I wonder how many people are slaves to their religion and miss out on a relationship with God...??? I wonder how many more horrible movies will Lindsay Lohan be in before she's banished to Celebrity Fit Club 12?

When I look around me, It's difficult to believe that a Phoenix will rise from this destruction. It's hard to believe that the God who destroys will create again, be he christian, muslim or hindu. It's easier to believe, with Tony Kushner, that God has somehow left us to deal with an imperfect creation on our own and that everything is somehow "cycling down" into oblivion.

But I do believe in a God who is actively creating the future of this universe. I believe in beauty and new creation in this world. It is an act of faith, but I do believe.

Apple and Sun need each other....

I've read several articles of late that talk about how cozy the relationship is between Sun Microsystems and Apple. Considering the fact that apple's making money hand over fist, it would be a natural assumption that apple is in the market to BUY Sun. There are a a lot of reasons why this makes sense.

First, Solaris. Apple and Sun's OS are like Quarter pounder and Big Mac... Very similar and with common ancestry, that being Berkley BSD Unix. They could easily ( I say easily because I don't have to do it :-) ) be "merged" into a single product hosting Sun's Server software and recristened the new Mac OS X Server. I would double Mac OS X's share of the server market overnight... maybe triple. I work for a company with Sun web servers and I gotta tell you... all of the utilities in the Solaris OS are several releases behind linux and OS X. It would be the best thing to happen to solaris since the x86 recompile.

Second, Java. Apple loves java. Java loves Apple. Two-ish years ago, Apple integrated java into xCode and you can create pure java right in apple's development environment. Java can access all the cocoa methods that you have at your disposal with Objective C. The apple core programming team has taken great pains to make the experience of java on the mac first rate, and in my estimation, succeeded.

Third, Sun is dying. Yea, I said it. This star has flared and is now a red dwarf. There are just too many competing technologies. Their flagship product, Solaris, is getting very long in the tooth. Java never caught on like they hoped it would and javaFX ain't gonna get you there. Every effort they make seems mired in a tangle of programmer's jargon standing opposed to the clean consistant message of a resurgant apple. In marketing speak, there's no consistant message. They're a company that markets producuts aimed at professionals and most professionals think of them as the "java guys who also make REALLY expensive servers." They need Apple's gravitas. They need apple's marketing saavy. They need apple's sales base. They need Steve's reality distorion field encompasing their product line. And apple needs partners in their war against The Dark Lord.

Steve, if you're listening, which most likely you are not, Go have a chai latte and a vegan cranberry scone at Barnes and Noble with Scott McNealey and work this out. You'll get some really kewl professional products and Apple will become a playa in the pro web development market and nothing would make me giddier... like a school girl on christmas morning.

There but for the grace of God.....

My heart and praryers go out to the people of Greensburg, KS. Photo Credit: Jaime Oppenheimer/The Wichita Eagle

Vagina Power

Falwell Challenges God on Gay Marriage Issue

Simply Hysterical. You must read. Happy Easter.....

great cover of one of my 80's fav's

So how long before we hear this at georgies?...

words fail me... she's brilliant

Nadine Smith on the Stanton Firing

Hate and Irony in Polk County

The body of the 25-year-old Winter Haven man was found on a rural road in Wahneta early Wednesday morning, said Polk County Sheriff's spokeswoman Donna Wood. He had been stabbed about 20 times, she said.
A witness came forward and said Skipper was killed because he made an advance toward Brown, Wood said.
Authorities are treating the killing as a hate crime, according to a sheriff's office statement.
Skipper was driving around Wahneta on Tuesday and offered Bearden a ride around midnight, the statement said. The two went back to Skipper's house, where they smoked marijuana and discussed using Skipper's computer to copy checks, the report said.
The two left Skipper's house and went to another home where they met Brown and they all left in Skipper's car, officials said. Once at the remote location, Brown and Bearden allegedly attacked Skipper in his own vehicle, stabbing him and leaving him along the roadside, Wood said.
The suspects allegedly attempted to clean the bloody vehicle and later drove Skipper's car around and bragged to friends, Wood said.
Skipper's car was later found abandoned on a dock near Lake Pansy in Winter Haven

from the St. Petersburg Times Story Is it just me or is this story simultaneously sad and ironic? You commit a hate crime and then leave the car by Lake Pansy?

300

Just saw 300 at the IMAX theatre at Channelside. i recommend that you see this movie in IMAX. Great visuals. Good story. I find it fascinating that Iranians are outraged by it as they believe it was produced by the government as a justification for going to war with Iran.

My esteemed Islamic colleagues in Iran, First let me make 2 points. The current situation in Iraq makes it clear that this government needs no reason, justification or public support to go to war with any country. Second, this movie, in the states is targeted at 15 year old boys who, unfortunately, do not associate the word "persian" with Iran ( the word "IRAN" doesn't appear in the movie) and, in point of fact, most people under the age of 30 in this country do not watch the news and unless they have a friend from that area of the world, most believe that you're arabs. Believe me, if we go to war with Iran, it won't be because of a movie.

Tim Gill is doing the Lord's work

long week

it's been a long week and I really have nothing to say or report. Steve Stanton is still fired and Rhonda Storms and the Largo Commission Cunts still have jobs. We still can't adopt or marry. Both Battlestar Galactica and Lost continue to suck wind. And I'm going to lose an hour of sleep tonight because of the Daylight Savings change.

I have to admit to bit of world-weariness.

I'm headed to my mom's wedding this weekend. It will be an awkward affair and I can't wait for it to be over. I can't wait for wedding season to be over. I love my mom and wish her well, but I'm so freekin over weddings.

Encouraging Survey

In the wake of the firing of Largo City Manager Steve Stanton, A Survey by the St. Petersburg Times shows encouraging changing attitudes toward GLBTQ Minorities. Now if we can just impress on the five members of the Largo County Commission the injustice they dealt the City Manager Stanton when they began proceedings to fire him tuesday night. Politicans have to realize that their bigotry has a ripple effect across the community.