Stressful week

It's the end of what has been a very stressful week for me, and I'm glad to finally see the weekend. The motivation to get out of bed and go to work is more difficult these days. I go in, and everyone is down about one thing or another. I try not to let it get me down, so I concentrate on my work and the task at hand.

I've been going to the gym more. I'm trying to get in half-way decent shape before my trip to the Virgin Islands in a month. I think I will have a blast and I'm starting to get excited about the idea of getting away for awhile. I plan to do a lot of site seeing and taking many pictures - many of which will undoubtedly end up on this web site. I'll probably explore some on my own, but will also take some tours. I'm still doing research on that. This is the first long vacation that I will be taking by myself. Kent will be in Idaho during my trip. I plan to get lots of rest, do only touristy things, and go explore some of the night life on the islands.

Three Bush judicial nominees attacked on gay record. Less than one month after winning Senate confirmation for a federal appeals court judge who compared homosexuality to cockfighting and bestiality, President Bush has nominated three more judges whose views are being criticized by watchdogs as anti-gay.

Bush Defends Senator Over Anti-Gay Remarks. President Bush has come to the defense of a Republican senator who is under fire for his comments about homosexuality. A spokesman for Mr. Bush says the president has confidence in Senator Rick Santorum, calling him an inclusive man and a good senator.
I suppose this is an example of our President's "compassionate conservatism" at work? The more I get to know this President, the less I trust him. He says one thing, and then turns around and back paddles to appear moderate. If this is his idea of his party being "inclusive", I'd hate to see what they would consider discrimination.

Baptist Church threatens expulsion over gay baptism. CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- A local association of Baptist churches is considering expelling a Concord church for the baptism of two gay men. Rev. Steve Ayers of McGill Baptist Church said neither he nor his congregation believed it was appropriate to stop the men's baptism ceremony. A member of the Cabarrus Baptist Association said the group will consider withdrawing the church's membership Monday in a closed meeting.
Well... in my opinion, any soul who can go through the rigors of being gay in a Baptist church deserves anything they can get. I thought the message of Christ was love. I don't get it.

Bill To Ban Gay & Bi Foster Parents Moves Into Texas Committee. (Austin, Texas) A committee of the Texas legislature has begun hearings on a bill that would ban gays from adopting or becoming foster parents. The sponsor of the legislation, Rep. Robert Talton (R Pasadena) told the House State Affairs Committee that putting children in homes with gay or bisexual adults "is child abuse." Children are better off in orphanages than in the homes of lesbian, gay or bisexual foster parents, Talton told the committee, "I don't consider them to be parents," he said of gay and bisexual foster parents.

UN Gay Rights Vote Derailed. GENEVA -- A United Nations resolution that would have condemned the persecution of gay men and lesbians by member states was derailed at the last minute on Thursday by an alliance of disapproving Muslim countries. The UN had been due to vote on the matter for the first time in its 60-year history, but five Muslim countries postponed the vote and then began the coordinated introduction of amendments designed to kill it off. The amendments remove all references to discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, and render the resolution meaningless.

Alabama executes murderer of gay man. A man was executed by injection Thursday for the 1986 stabbing death of a 60-year-old gay man during a robbery. Gary Leon Brown, 44, was executed after Alabama governor Bob Riley denied him clemency on Wednesday. Brown made no final statement, though he appeared to mouth the words "Go with God" and "Forgive them" to his wife, Elizabeth Anne Brown, who was in the witness room with a friend. None of the victim's family attended the execution.

End Run Attempt On Florida Gay Rights. (Tallahassee, Florida) Conservative Republicans and right wing Christian groups in Florida have found a new way of attacking gay rights laws passed by local municipalities: Tack on amendments to bills before the legislature to override the local ordinances. The first attempt at sneaking through such an amendment came as a House committee was examining an otherwise benign civil rights bill.