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Prophets of the Environmental Apocalypse

By Peter Laarman

…homes and factories with new supplies of electric power that would be “too cheap to meter.” In 1957 Walt Disney even released a movie titled Our Friend, the Atom. Looking back now, it’s quite easy to see why the happy talk from Ike and Walt failed to quell our nuclear nightmares. In somewhat the same way that climate change denialism functions today, the Atoms for Peace campaign merely divided public opinion, allowing some to sleep easy and the mo…

African Religious leaders complain about Obama advocacy for LGBT rights; Ultra-Orthodox Man Stabs Jerusalem Pride Parade Marchers, Again; Struggles over sexuality in Islam, Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican Churches; Global LGBT recap

By Peter Montgomery

…on. The first gay couple has also been married in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Japan: Second municipality to recognize same-sex partnerships Japan Times reports, Tokyo’s Setagaya Ward said it will start issuing certificates recognizing same-sex partnerships as early as November to support the rights of sexual minorities, becoming the second municipal government in Japan to take such a step.” The recognition is not legally binding but aims to assist co…

Happy (Christian) Fourth of July from Hobby Lobby

By Emily Baxter

…has taken out full-page ads in newspapers around the country; by their own numbers, 290 newspapers in 30 states in 2007. The Hobby Lobby name may be more familiar to people this Fourth of July than in the past, of course, due to the Supreme Court’s ruling this past week. Friday’s newspaper message, like similar ones before it, lacks nuance: Emblazoned at the top is an American flag, the words, “In God We Trust” and the Bible verse, “Blessed is the…

Invited by Allah

By Amina Wadud

…to me it would be a very easy to make hajj from there. I bought an airline ticket and was in contact with the family of one of my graduate school friends. They would pick me up from the airport and host me during my stay and the days of ritual. Nice plan. So I went to the embassy to get the visa and was denied because (as an American) I needed proof that I was Muslim. How do I prove I have been a practicing Muslim for a decade? I went to the famou…

Exclusive: Christian Right Bill Mill, Project Blitz, Hasn’t Gone Away, It’s Just Gotten More Secretive

By Frederick Clarkson

…blic library needs to serve them all. Serve everyone in the community.” The 2019 Project The playbook for the 2019-2020 state legislative session was different from its predecessors in that it focused solely on bills related to sexual orientation and gender identity, or “SOGI.” These same bills and supporting materials appear in the previous as well as the current 2020-21 playbooks. Nevertheless, the model bills, talking points and fact sheets pre…

Toni Morrison, Prophet of America’s Demons (1931-2019)

By Ed Simon

America, if it is anything, has always been a land in need of prophets. How could it be otherwise for a place that espouses the loftiest of missions while so often existing in violation of that very same mission? The task of the prophet is to exist in that chasm between a nation’s ideals and its realities; to be a witness against hypocrisy and injustice, but to do so in a manner that doesn’t indulge in that soothing narcotic of cynicism. A prophe…

Struggling With the Legacy of Harold Bloom, Brilliant but Deeply Flawed Critic (1930-2019)

By Ed Simon

In the second act of William Shakespeare’s Henry V, the bawdy barmaid Mistress Quickly delivers a eulogy for one of the playwright’s most immediate, modern, and visceral of characters. Speaking of Sir John Falstaff, who drank, thieved, embellished, and joked across both Henry IV Part 1 and Part II, the proprietor of the Boar’s Head Inn assures us “Nay, sure, he’s not in hell! He’s in Arthur’s bosom, if ever man went to Arthur’s bosom.” Mistress Q…

Pope Denounces Gender Colonization; Indonesian Court Considers Islamist Request To Criminalize Homosexuality; Egypt’s Grand Mufti Says No One Has Right to Harm Homosexuals; Global LGBT Recap

By Peter Montgomery

…But homosexuality was stigmatized after the Communist revolution in 1949, largely because it was associated with western decadence. Japan: Business community ‘tiptoes’ into LGBT issues The Japan Times reported on July 28 that the country’s business community is “increasingly showing support” for LGBT people, as are some local governments. …

Indonesian Clerics Issue Anti-Gay Fatwa; Anti-Civil Union Peruvian Lawmaker Cites Hitler; Is Christianity more ‘un-African’ than Homosexuality?; Global LGBT Recap

By Peter Montgomery

…se gay marriage out of a general sense of panic over traditional marriage. Japanese couples are getting married either later or not at all, resulting in a low birth rate (since few children are born out of wedlock). Marriage as an institution in Japan is fragile, says Masakatsu Kondo, the head of a conservative group which opposes Shibuya’s initiative. He says it would be weakened further if same-sex partnerships were to acquire quasi-legal standi…

LGBT Victories at Olympics, Struggles in Brazil; Catholic Bishops Organizing Anti-Marriage Equality Protests in Mexico; Global LGBT Recap

By Peter Montgomery

…l minorities, including support to expand into this new market.” More from Japan Times: The LGBT market is still largely uncharted territory in Japan, and there is room for companies to explore it through new services or products, institute CEO Takahiko Morinaga said. “In the world of marketing, it’s still only about (straight) men or women, and the presence of LGBT consumers has been forgotten. … Being a gay person myself, I’ve always felt that w…