Uganda is considering a new law that would impose the death penalty for some gays and sentence family members to up to seven years in jail if they fail to report gay relatives to authorities. The law would even jail landlords for accepting gays as tenants.
Even landlords could be imprisoned for renting to gay tenants. The law focuses on homosexuals living with HIV or in cases of same-sex rape. “Serial offenders” also could face capital punishment, but the legislation does not define the term. Anyone convicted of a homosexual act faces life imprisonment.
The law says that “anyone who “aids, abets, counsels or procures another to engage of acts of homosexuality” faces seven years in prison if convicted. Landlords who rent rooms or homes to homosexuals also could get seven years and anyone with “religious, political, economic or social authority” who fails to report anyone violating the act faces three years.
Critics are pointing to U.S. evangelicals for encouraging a crackdown. The law was proposed after a conference with U.S. religious leaders on how to combat homosexuality. While they did not advocate criminal penalties, they were seen as prodding the government to be active in the deterrence of homosexuality.
Uganda’s ethics minister, James Nsaba Buturo, said the law was necessary to counter foreign influence because homosexuality “is not natural in Uganda.”
In Nigeria, homosexuality is already punishable by death and it is illegal in Burundi and Kenya.
The Americans included author Don Schmierer, “sexual reorientation coach” Caleb Lee Brundidge, and Scott Lively, preacher and author of “The Pink Swastika.” Lively insists that he wanted the Ugandans to “discourage” homosexuality not execute homosexuals. However, he stressed that “[s]ociety should actively discourage all sex outside of marriage and that includes homosexuality … The family is under threat . . . [with gays] parading around the streets.” Well, they will be safely buried under ground in Uganda, Mr. Lively.
For the full story, click here.
Well I guess the RCC can’t hide them here anymore oh wait, they just were pedophiles and didn’t know it was wrong.
Well you are aware that they keep the area clean in the Happy Neighborhoods. Property values are usually controlled so that they can control who lives amongst them. Sorry for the pun, same concept different execution…
Yet another country with “God” on their branding acting badly, childrens.
Coincidence?
I’ll turn this scree over to the Dearly Departed Brother of the Order of Lumpy Gravy, Fr. Frank Zappa . . . his homily today is entitled, “Dumb All Over”.
(Thank you, Father Buddha) [sounds of shuffling]
Whoever we are, wherever we’re from, we shoulda noticed by now our behaviour is dumb
And if our chances expect to improve it’s gonna take a lot more than tryin’ to remove the other race or the other whatever from the face of the planet altogether
They call it “The Earth” which is a dumb kinda name but they named it right ’cause we behave the same
We are dumb all over
Dumb all over, yes we are, dumb all over, near and far, dumb all over, black ‘n white, people, we is not wrapped tight
And nerds on the left, nerds on the right
Religious fanatics on the air every night, sayin’ the bible tells the story and makes the details sound real gory about what to do if the geeks over there don’t believe in the book we got over here
You can’t run a race without no feet
And pretty soon there won’t be no street for dummies to jog on or doggies to dog on
Religious fanatics can make it be all gone
I mean it won’t blow up and disappear, it’ll just look ugly for a thousand years
You can’t run a country by a book of religion
Not by a heap or a lump or a smidgeon of foolish rules of ancient date, designed to make you all feel great while you fold, spindle and mutilate those unbelievers from a neighbouring state
To arms, to arms
Hooray! That’s great, two legs ain’t bad
Unless there’s a crate they ship the parts to mama in
For souvenirs: two ears (Get down)
Not his, not hers but what the hey
The good book says, “It’s gotta be that way”
But their book says, “Revenge the crusades”
With whips ‘n chains and hand grenades
Two arms, two arms
Have another and another
Our Cod says, “There ain’t no other”
Our Cod says, “It’s all ok”
Our god says “This is the way”
It says in the book, “Burn and destroy”
And repent and redeem and revenge and deploy and rumble thee forth to the land of the unbelieving scum on the other side
‘Cause they don’t go for what’s in the book and that makes ‘em bad
So verily we must choppeth them up and stompeth them down
Or rent a nice French bomb to poof them out of existence while leaving their real estate just where we need it to use again for temples in which to praise our god, ’cause he can really take care of business
And when his humble TV servant with humble white hair and humble glasses and a nice brown suit and maybe a blonde wife who takes phone calls, tells us our god says it’s ok to do this stuff, then we gotta do it
‘Cause if we don’t do it we ain’t “Gwine up to hebbin”
Depending on which book you’re using at the time
Can’t use theirs, it don’t work, it’s all lies, gotta use mine
Ain’t that right?
That’s what they say
Every night, everyday
Hey, we can’t really be dumb if we’re just following god’s orders
Well let’s get serious, god knows what he’s doin’
He wrote this book here and the book says, “He made us all to be just like him”
So, if we’re dumb, then god is dumb and maybe even a little ugly on the side
Dumb all over, a little ugly on the side
Dumb all over, a little ugly on the side
Dumb all over, a little ugly on the side
Dumb all over, a little ugly on the side
Buddha,
Do you not know that beer helps ugly:
http://www.dpciwholesale.com/images/pi_1835.jpeg
Just think how Ben Franklin would have handled this:
“Beer is living proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” –
— Benjamin Franklin
Although this is attributed to him it cannot be verified. He was more of a wine drinker. He did say one thing about rum though and it goes something like this: “He who spills rum loses just that, he drinks rum spills the rum and himself.
It must have been some attack on the british I am sure as he lived in France for 9 some odd years….
AY,
I fear liver failure might occur before enough is consumed to make us prettier as a species. One can drink a 5 into a 9, but we’re starting from a negative number here.
That being said a mojito doesn’t sound half bad after this week in news of the world. I may pick up some mint on the way home tonight.
@ Buddah
BIL–
The mojito is my specialty! A bartender up in Vermont who had once worked in the tropics somewhere showed me how to make them a few years ago. I try to keep fresh mint on hand at all times. My husband is already 9…in so many ways. I don’t practice purposeful drinking. I just love the taste of mojitos.
Elaine,
I’m a rare drinker now after being married to an alcoholic, but I have a deep abiding affection for Hemmingway’s favorite drink although I never drink more than a couple and then not very often. It’s a taste I acquired in college. A buddy (who later became a history prof.) was studying Caribbean and Central American cultures and he used to travel for it quite a bit. As a result, he became a small batch rum aficionado. He’d come back every time with stuff made on a hillside somewhere by Manuel as taught by his father’s father father and packed in a recycled bottle that usually tasted much better than any commercial rums. By a long shot. We’d usually start with a straight shot or two but the night always ended in mojitos as they were his wife’s favorite mixed drink (she is just not a shot kinda gal). They quickly became one of my favorites too. Very gentile and smooth but with all the punch of a sledgehammer. It’s an iron fist in a velvet glove. It’s not too hard to picture me liking a drink like that . . . and it goes good with the ether as I roam about this bat infested land during the waning days of liberty.
I read on another blog a few days ago that one or a few of the C street folks, “the family”, are also quite involved encouraging this legislation. I believe it’s Sen. Inhofe.
Can anyone confirm?
BF,
It was on Maddow’s show. This blog has the video attached.
http://lincmad.blogspot.com/2009/11/c-street-and-ugandas-homosexual-death.html
Check this out. The Family uses your tax dollars for the above:
“Jeff Sharlet, author of The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power, revealed in a radio interview yesterday that The Family, an infamous and influential cadre of religious fundamentalist politicians in Washington D.C., has been funding and influencing many of the major proponents of Uganda’s anti-homosexuality bill.”
I’ll have to put the link in the next box because my computer won’t work at this time.
http://www.independent.co.ug/index.php/component/content/article/106-myblog/2176-all-in-the-family-interview-reveals-american-influence-behind-anti-gay-act
Jill,
tools, internet options, delete browsing, delete all, check additional pop-up box- delete all files added by add-ons, then reboot.
well this is an interesting story. I would be interested to know if any “family” members that may be reading this blog would care to speak to this issue?
I would be interested to know if this is actually true and if it is how do you go about defending something like this?
Byron,
You can read Jeff’s story and book. He has the documents. They followed the financial trail. Look it up!
Check out Maddow doing a Greenwald-like smackdown on one of the US evangelicals who encourages this behavior: http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2009/12/09/maddow/index.html
Jill:
I would need to see more than one book for something like this. If a US Senator is at all involved he should be on his way to jail. If a US pastor is at all involved he should be stripped of his DD and on his way to jail.
I don’t even believe books by Ann Coulter and Glen Beck. I actually only read one of her books, she makes a compelling argument for being a mother f . . . ng lunatic. As to Glen Beck, I haven’t yet read one of his.
It is hard to know if this guy is an Ann Coulter or a serious investigator. The left is as guilty of obfuscation and deceit as the right.
Byron,
The documents are available through the book and the articles’ footnotes. You can read them for yourself. Coulter and Beck don’t provide documents, they provide their opinions. The book and several articles aren’t opinion pieces, they are scholarship. Scholarship requires that one document what one says. You will have to do some reading of the original documents, but it would be worth your effort. And of course they should go to jail.
Ah, BIL… I should have know you were a fellow Zappa fan. Dumb All Over is one of his best, and it’s as true now as it was when he wrote it way back in 1980.
That’s right, you heard right, the Secret Word for tonight is Mud Shark! And of course with the Mud Shark Secret Word is the Mud Shark Arpeggio . . . a marvelous little arpeggio, and now the mating call of the adult male Mud Shark . . .
Mud Sh-sh-shark
BIL–
This one’s for you:
To Frank and Elaine,
Thank you both for the lovely gifts. Just in time for the holidays!
Bob,
All groupies must bow down
In the sacred presence of the Latex Solar Beef
Some people have a way with the English language, some people have not whey. That Frank sure had weigh. Truly one of God’s own prototypes.
Rachael Maddow broke this story on nation wide TV over several night AND drew all the bright lines back to The Family & Rick Warren AND interviewed some Family members AND put them on the spot by asking why they weren’t condemning this law as well as using their considerable influence directly with the Ugandans to get it repealed. The guests were shamed into action to do so and those in Congress she called out but didn’t appear on her show were also shamed into taking action. She was magnificent. The story isn’t over, the death penalty is off the table but other odious parts of the new law are left standing.
She also wanted to know (as did a couple of bloggers I read) why officials from the State Department weren’t doing everything they could to let the Ugandans know that the Congressmen associated with The Family that had developed the 20 year long relationship, built on their faith as as the foundation, were NOT relaying the US governments policy and did not speak for the U S.
If there is an Emmy for reporting she should get it for this, continuing story. If you can find the clips of these shows (‘uganda gay, maddow’ as a YT search will probably do it) on YouTube they are worth a watch. Her show has become the highlight of my TV viewing of late.
The Dumb All Over Video begins with Frank Zappa Sings Meridian 12-11-07 but he died in 93.
Byron–
Jeff Sharlet did his homework when he wrote THE FAMILY. He includes tons of notes in the back matter of his book.
I read the THE FAMILY some time ago–but as best I can recall, Sharlett lived at Ivanwald–another “Family” residence for a time. I believe the “Family” was also instrumental in establishing the National Prayer Breakfast.
Rachel Maddow is one of the only people who has really fixed a spotlight on this group. She also did an exceptional job of interviewing Richard Cohen, the “conversion therapist” who wrote COMING OUT STRAIGHT, earlier this week. Caught the man lying more than once.
Elaine:
Evangelical Christians are a threat to liberty, no doubt about that. I would say even more so than liberal/progressives or conservatives.
This is brilliant–as brilliant as Hitler, that is! This would be really funny had it been in a B-movie…
1) “Uganda’s ethics minister, James Nsaba Buturo, said the law was necessary to counter foreign influence because homosexuality “is not natural in Uganda.””
Well, they plagiarized Mugabe here. Several years ago, Mugabe was also bemoaning homosexuality in Zimbabwe, saying, “Even animals don’t engage in these acts.”
Upon hearing this stupidity, the Zimbabwean LGBT community responded with a video compilation of Congo’s bonobo chimps engaging in various imaginable sexual acts–including homosexual erotic activities!
2) “In Nigeria, homosexuality is already punishable by death and it is illegal in Burundi and Kenya.”
I need to qualify the statement about Nigeria. Nigeria is a federal republic with a split judicial system: the northern part of the country, which is muslim, has the Islamic sharia (those are the people flogging criminals for petty offenses, or stoning to death women for adultery–though the federal Supreme Court has so far overturned these death sentences); and the southern parts, Christian and animist, that are under the Anglo-Saxon judicial system.
There are two countries that weren’t mentioned here: Somalia (the part of the country under the control of the Al Qaeda-affiliated Al Shabaad); Senegal, with a Muslim majority, where people go to jail on suspicion of homosexuality; and Cameroon, where, about 2 years, investigative journalists outed prominent gay personalities–some of whom got lynched, lost their jobs, or committed suicide.
Kenya is an interesting case. There, gays “operate” openly, despite the law. There are even well-known hangouts for gays in Nairobi, though there are no gay bars…
And in Kenya, rapes of women used to be accepted as the right of men. I remember, while watching CNN with my daughter several years ago, the newscast got to the segment about this violent incident in Kenya. There were two boarding schools next to each other: one for girls and the other for boys. Tradition had it that on a certain date, the boys would just get drunk, then break into the girls’ boarding school and rape at will. Well, as things turned out that year, the boys messed with the wrong girl. Her family retaliated, burned the boys’ school to the ground, and killed a dozen boys!
What traumatized my daughter was the statement of the principal of the boys’ school to CNN: “All the boys wanted to do was just rape!… And now, look at this tragedy!”
The only progressive country in Africa is the Republic of South Africa (RSA), which has enshrined in its Constitution the rights of gays to be gays and to marry! Furthermore, the South African Constitution bans the death penalty. And, for good measure, polygamy is also legal (man, I need to move back to Africa!)… Jacob Zuma, the South African president, has three official wives–with three unofficial common law wives (Good morning, Tiger Woods!)…
Maddow has broken an incredible number of substantial stories on her show. Her research staff is phenomenal in their dedication to “getting it right” and very quick to correct any errors. She can be “talked down” but only if the argument is sound and the reasoning clear.
“The Dumb All Over Video begins with Frank Zappa Sings Meridian 12-11-07 but he died in 93.”
Bdaman: True talent lives beyond the grave. Frank’s son Dweezil has been touring a band/show called “Zappa Plays Zappa” for a few years now. For a few portions of the show Dweezil and his live band play with previous videos of Frank singing and playing from when he was alive and performing.
So there.
Bryon,
I guess Assimilated Evangelical Christians are the threat.