Sorry you feel that way Tuc. I know lots of guys who are just like Cam and lots of guys who are just like Mitch. We can’t be expected to represent every gay person. We can only represent these two people. Also, Mitch is basically a version of me…so I never know how to take it when people say that he is stereotypical. And in defense of Cam, I still can’t figure out how a clown & football coach who also happens to be gay is a stereotype. When all is said and done, it’s a family sitcom. I feel our writers do a fantastic job of servicing 11 characters each week in just 22 minutes. I am incredibly proud to play Mitch and I have a lot of pride in our show. As a closeted kid of the ’80s I would have loved to have had a show like Modern Family to watch with my parents. It would have meant a lot to me to see who I secretly was reflected on television. TV has come a long way and it continues to forge new ground. I am thrilled with the work that you did on Desperate Housewives. It opened the door for shows like ours and hopefully we can hold that door open for many more shows to follow us. At the end of the day we can’t please everyone..and we shouldn’t try to. Kinda just like life, right? Take care. Jesse Tyler Ferguson.”

The Mormon church published a statement on its website Friday — under the category “Mormons 101” and the heading “Gays and the Church” — referencing its support for an LGBT-inclusive nondiscrimination ordinance in Salt Lake City five years ago. Here’s the full statement: 

“Church leaders recognize the existence and difficulty of same gender attraction and acknowledge the difference between having same-sex attraction and acting on it. They censure only the latter, and leaders strongly advocate for understanding, inclusion, and kindness toward people of all gender orientations. The Church website mormonsandgays.org details sincere outreach by the Church within the gay community, including support in Utah for nondiscrimination protections of employment and housing. There is room for compassion, common ground, and shared humanity among people who disagree, and Church leaders eagerly pursue these ideals, both inside and outside the Church.”

Friday’s post has led some to declare that the Mormon church now supports a statewide law prohibiting discrimination against LGBT people in employment and housing. However, an alternative reading of the informational post might conclude that it merely contains a reference to the church’s previous support for one nondiscrimination ordinance — in Salt Lake City.

Indeed, on the website mentioned in the statement, MormonsAndGays.com, I found a link to a statement from the church in which it makes clear that its support for the nondiscrimination ordinance in Salt Lake City was specific: 

It’s worth noting that the city nondiscrimination ordinances in Utah, as well as the proposed state legislation, have contained broad exemptions for religious groups. It’s also worth nothing that there’s a major difference between the municipal ordinances — punishable by fines of up to $1,000, although none has ever been levied — and a statewide law, which would allow alleged victims of discrimination to file lawsuits. Utah.Politico.Hub summarized the difference as folllows: 

Although discrimination is prohibited under the municipal ordinances, the remedies are extraordinarily limited, and the decision to take judicial action is left to the discretion of the  municipal attorney. Under SB100, the full remedies available under the Utah Anti-Discrimination Act and the Utah Fair Housing Act – including a private right of action and damages – would be available to persons asserting a sexual orientation or gender identity claim, making the application of the law to discriminating employers and landlords potentially significantly more severe.

Having spent a session covering the Utah Legislature, I’d say the bottom line is that until the church clearly states its support for a specific piece of legislation to ban anti-LGBT discrimination statewide — which it has never done, despite plenty of opportunities — it’s doubtful that predominantly Mormon state lawmakers will have the political will to pass such a law.

End Times fruitcake radio host Rick Wiles is worried that come the apocalypse, god will forsake America because “we’ve become a nation of homosexuals and atheists and lesbians and God-haters,” reports Right Wing Watch.

Speaking on his out there radio show “Truenews”, he said that Vladimir Putin is likely to attack the U.S. because Western nations have imposed sanctions on Russia over its extreme anti-gay laws.

However, the U.S is out of luck when Putin starts World War III because the country no longer has “divine protection.”

You can also forget about praying to your “gay god” because he won’t save you.

Listen to Wiles go on – and on – AFTER THE JUMP…

Wiles recently said that an ebola outbreak would be a good thing because it could help purge the U.S. of “atheism, homosexuality, sexual promiscuity, pornography and abortion.”  Last year, he claimed that Miley Cyrus sold her soul to Satan and had sex with a demon.

Next spring Texas is getting its first geek convention geared towards lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender gamers, nerds, and comic book enthusiasts. HavenCon, as its name suggests, is meant to be equal parts geek gathering and safe space for queer-identified people of all ages. HavenCon founder Shane Brown first began organizing Texas-based LGBTQA fantasy and sci-fi enthusiasts in 2012 when he founded Gay Austin Geeks, an online social network.

“Even within the gay community, we often exist within our smaller segmented groups,” Brown explained in a press release. “But comic and gaming conventions are all about the melding of geeks, gamers and nerds of every size, race, age and gender identity.”

“With HavenCon, we’re creating a safe, entertaining and diversity-welcoming environment for people that enjoy comic books, video games, science fiction and more,” said HavenCon founder Shane Brown. “We’ll have a cosplay contest, gaming tournaments, industry panelists, local artists and writers—all of it while celebrating what makes us both different and special.”

Money raised from HavenCon ticket sales will go to OutYouth, an Austin-based outreach center for LGBT youth. HavenCon is set to begin the weekend of April 4 at the Holiday Inn Midtown in Austin, Texas. Tickets for the convention are on sale at HavenCon’s website.

Watch a promo for HavenCon, AFTER THE JUMP…