Amendment XIV - Citizenship rights.

1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. - The US Constitution

Montana High Court Says University System Must Provide Gay Employees with Domestic Partner Benefits

...the Montana Supreme Court ruled today that the state must provide lesbian and gay employees of the University of Montana System with the option of purchasing health insurance and other employee benefits for their domestic partners.

The court, in a four-to-three decision, ruled that the University System's policy of excluding lesbian and gay employees from equal employment benefits violates the state constitution's equal protection guarantees.

The legal precedent now exists to enforce the US Constitution's equal protection clause on behalf of same-gender couples across the country and overturn both federal and state "Defense of Marriage" laws.

Meanwhile, Deep in the Bible-belt...

Arkansas Anti-Gay Foster Care Ban Overturned

December 29, 2004

LITTLE ROCK - - Finding that children are not harmed by living with gay or lesbian parents, an Arkansas court today struck down a state regulation that banned gay people and anyone living in a household with a gay adult from being foster parents in the state. The American Civil Liberties Union brought the lawsuit against the state in 1999 on behalf of three prospective foster parents.

"Throughout this case, the state has relied on ugly stereotypes to deny children in the Arkansas foster care system the chance of having the widest possible pool of foster families available to them," said Rita Sklar, Executive Director of the ACLU of Arkansas. "We’re very pleased that the court saw through these arguments and has recognized that gay and lesbian people can provide homes just as loving and stable as anyone else’s."

Who'd a thunk it. Deep in the bible-belt, in the little state of Arkansas, gay an lesbian folks can now provide foster care for kids abused by their straight parents. Gosh, they can find a loving, nurturing relationship with gay and lesbian couples, that they can't find in their own homes.

Guess that shoots the stereo-type of the ignorant, homophobic bible-belter right in the ass...doncha think? Probably not. The same nasty stereotypes will be throw up by the same ugly minded folks who oppose the very concept of same-gender relationships. These sick sots need to clean their own houses and take stock of their own relationships before they even begin to worry about those of others.

Poll: Most Americans Now Say War Was a Mistake

NEW YORK In a historic shift, a majority of Americans express the view that the U.S. made a mistake in going to war against Iraq, according to a new CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll.

The poll, released on Tuesday, shows that 51% now hold this view, with 48% supporting the decision to go to war. In November those numbers were virtually reversed.

Now that the hype and hoopla of the campaign season has faded, and folks are taking a closer look at what is going on, they're begining to realize that they've been sold a bill of goods. But for all those who have so ardently and slavishly supported Dubbyuh's dirty little war, and still do...I told ya so. Now you own it.

A guilty conscience?

Ohio Republican election officials thumbed their noses at a subpoena Monday, December 27, as Republican Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell refused to appear at a deposition in an election challenge lawsuit filed at the Ohio Supreme Court. Meanwhile John Kerry is reported to have filed a federal legal action aimed at preserving crucial recount evidence, which has been under GOP assault throughout the state.

Richard Congianese, Ohio Assistant Attorney General, is seeking a court order to protect Blackwell from testifying under oath about how the election was run. Blackwell, who administered Ohio's November 2 balloting, served as co-chair of the Bush-Cheney campaign.

Hmmmm...Something's rotten in the State of Ohio. Why is Blackwell worried about testifying under oath? Besides the fact that he was co-chair of Ohio's Bush n' Dick Show...? Besides the fact that he was in political bed with Wally O'Dell, Diebold executive and Major contributor to the Republican machine in Ohio...? And let's not forget that Wally promised to help deliver Ohio's electoral votes to Dubbyuh.

Sounds like a guilty conscience to me. But even if it isn't, even the appearance of impropriety is damning in and of itself. Ken Blackwell can kiss his political career in Ohio "Goodbye!".

Faith

Faith>; noun: (1) : belief and trust in and loyalty to God (2) : belief in the traditional doctrines of a religion (2) : firm belief in something for which there is no proof

The key word in this definition is "belief". Belief is a box that can trap us. It leads us to think we know all we need to know and need explore or question no further. It can lead us to a seemingly inescapable intellectual and epistemological dead-end.

In the ancient Pali texts, wherein the earliest recorded teachings of the Buddha are preserved, "faith" is mentioned frequently. But it is a verb and not...a noun. This frees us from the trap of belief. Faith becomes a dynamic and ongoing process...a path to be traveled, not a box to be trapped within. It becomes a living thing rather than an ossified edifice.

Belief grips you...Faith frees you. - Roshi Phillip Kapleau