Transit Employee Refuses To Drive Rainbow Bus That Supports A “Radical Sexual Movement”

A bus driver in Calgary is having an absolute meltdown over the city’s new rainbow colored buses promoting this year’s Pride celebration.

Jesse Rau has been a driver for Calgary Transit for about a year now. He says his Christian beliefs forbid him for supporting homosexuality. Therefore, driving the rainbow bus would be a direct violation of his deeply held religious beliefs.

Related: Bus Driver Refuses To Board Bus With Sign Reading “Some People Are Gay. Get Over It!”

“I’m a Christian so, as a Christian, there are things like homosexuality that I just can’t condone,” Rau said during a press conference. “Unfortunately, we live in a culture where if you disagree with someone’s lifestyle, the accusation is that you hate the person.”

Rau insists he’s not the only bus driver who feels this way.

“People are afraid to speak out against this radical sexual movement that’s happening for fear of leaving their job,” he claimed.

Related: Gay Couple Ejected From Chicago Bus For Kissing, Holding Hands

As a result of his stance, Rau says people are already out to get him. He claims a complaint was filed against him alleging that he had been texting while driving on the job, an allegation he refutes.

“I am very careful not to text while driving,” Rau said. “I am aware that public transit is a blessing to many and I always want to keep the people on my bus safe and secure.”

“I am being targeted for speaking out for my faith,” he added.

Related: “No Gays Allowed” Business Owner Learns There Are Consequences To Being A Hateful Bigot

But city manager Jeff Fielding has a different story to tell. He said he hasn’t received any formal complaints about Rau, nor has Rau approached anyone from management about not wanting to drive the rainbow bus.

“Anybody, at any point in time, can write me an email or make an appointment to see me,” Fielding said. “If these were issues of concern to them personally in terms of their own beliefs and practices, I would have dealt with it appropriately.”

Rau refuses to be intimidated by anyone. And he absolutely, positively will not drive the rainbow bus, even if it means getting fired.

“I have a family to support and I am very concerned about losing the job,” he said, “but when it goes against the most important things I stand for, or if I’m asked to compromise in such a big way for what I believe to be right, then I have to lose my job.”

Related: Creepy School Bus Driver Corners Kids, Lectures Them About The Evils Of Homosexuality

Graham Gremore

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Meet Four of The Advocate's Vanguard

The LGBTs at the cutting edge of business, science and technology, and activism.

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Advocate Contributors

www.advocate.com/print-issue/current-issue/2015/09/02/meet-four-advocates-vanguard

Dear American Christians, Kim Davis and your ‘martyrs’ are failing you

Kim Davis is on her way to martyrdom. Today the clerk from Kentucky defied every legal entity extending up through the Supreme Court and again denied marriage licenses to the same-sex couple wanting one.

She did so ‘under God’s authority’.

Her crusade could eventually land her with a year in jail for official misconduct.

The couple she has violated are forgiving. They have asked she only be penalized by fees. That won’t really work well for her agenda.

Kim is one of two clerks in Kentucky, both named Davis, that are the latest in a string of botched martyrs.

Casey Davis, the other clerk, has vowed to fight to the death – even though there is not a single person trying to kill him, who has hinted they’ll kill him, or even thought about killing him.

He is on a bike ride across the state in support of Kim Davis.

‘I cannot let my sister go to jail without my doing something to let others know about her plight,’ he states. (They are not blood related.)

Kim Davis’s quest for her ‘faith’ is at least a little more subtle. She has carried her cross up the stations of the US legal system and now seems eager to dive into her own crucifixion. I sent her a letter trying to persuade to be wary of the Liberty Counsel which is supposedly ‘supporting’ her and really profiting as they push her further down this path.

Even though the Bible does not address same sex marriage at all, and Jesus only comments on the issue of divorce, Kim Davis makes this claim: ‘I never imagined a day like this would come, where I would be asked to violate a central teaching of scripture and of Jesus himself regarding marriage.’

I have decided it is time to address, not them – been there, done that – but their followers.

Dear American Christian nation,

I am not addressing all Americans or even all Christian Americans. I am addressing those of you for which there is no separation of church and state in your mind. Those who ostracize all who you believe do not fit into your vision of a Christian nation.

We have an election going on, temporarily eclipsing even the Presidential. The bid to be seen as the biggest ‘Christian’ martyr, ready to ruin one’s life for God. It is time to scrutinize the candidates.

Every one is failing to uphold the very foundations this Christian nation is founded on.

The only requirement to be a candidate: Be extremely homophobic and seek to expel LGBTI people from anything resembling a decent, responsible life.

First we had the baker, the florist and the pizza maker.

The pizza maker’s martyrdom did not last long. They had insulted invisible people for a non-existent event. And they became instant millionaires – which disqualified them as martyrs.

The baker fell into a similar conundrum. They thought they had martyr’s pain over a $135,000 (€120,000) judgment against them, but then they got four times that amount in fundraising.

As riches filled their homophobic coffers, they cried ‘let them eat cake,’ and sent out free confections to all the people whose weddings for which they would have refused to bake.

If you can’t figure out when to bake or when not to bake, and you earned a big payoff, you’re not a martyr.

The florist’s quest for martyrdom wilted for lack of damage. She claimed loss of a vocation, home and all she held dear. The truth was a $2,000 (€1,770) fine and a finger wagging.

Those who don’t really get punished aren’t martyrs. They are drama queens.

There was also the Idaho wedding chapel guy who told everyone he was going to prison. He barely makes it on this list since nobody wanted to patronize him, no authorities questioned his action, no ordinances were violated, and no issues raised on how he was doing business.

If you have to beg to be harassed, you are not a martyr.

Then we have Kim and Casey Davis…

American Christian Nation, it is time to take a hard look at your players. They are not serving you well.

No one is being inspired to Christ due to their actions. No one is relating to some grand principle. All they see is cruelty to innocent people who want nothing more than to love who they love, and to be able to start their families with dignity.

Your martyrs are becoming objects of financial opportunism of a giant Hate Industry. This is not about following God, it is about following the money. Every year billions are used to attack other families so you can feel self-righteous.

Here is the really sad part. That money is only feeding your need to get at people you don’t know and don’t understand.

You are bankrolling this campaign of oppression that your grandchildren will come to mock and deride. They will, in years to come, wonder how anyone could have been so stupid.

It is mind-boggling to think what you could do if you focused on things Christ does care about. Like helping the sick, the unfortunate, the homeless and hurt.

It would change this from the age of the Wanna-be Martyr, to the age of Christian Miracles.

These are the choices God leaves up to you.

The post Dear American Christians, Kim Davis and your ‘martyrs’ are failing you appeared first on Gay Star News.

Rob Watson

www.gaystarnews.com/article/dear-american-christians-kim-davis-and-your-martyrs-are-failing-you/

First gay film to show in China theaters

Seek McCartney will become the first gay film to show in Chinese theaters later this year.

The Chinese/French co-production, starring popular singer Han Geng and award-winning actor Jérémie Elkaïm, passed censored in its entirety after a year of deliberation.

Director Wang Chao hailed the decision as ‘a small step for the regulator and a big step for filmmakers.’

‘It was not easy, but was delightful,’ he wrote on Weibo.

Another 2015 film, The Dead End, features a passionate kiss between two male actors and passed censors earlier this year.

But Film critic Cheng Qiusong said Seek McCartney was ‘China’s first film about a gay relationship in the true sense.’

Other LGBTI films such as Brokeback Mountain, although banned from cinemas, are available on video-streaming sites.

China’s media watchdog removed homosexuality from its list of pornographic and vulgar content in 2010.

The post First gay film to show in China theaters appeared first on Gay Star News.

Darren Wee

www.gaystarnews.com/article/first-gay-film-to-show-in-china-theaters/

'Old Redneck Hillbilly' Husband of Kim Davis Has a Warning for Nosey People

He may be her fourth husband but Joe Davis is the first in line to defend the antigay Kentucky Clerk. And for Davis, the number top of mind these days, is the number 2, as in the Second Amendment.

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Dawn Ennis

www.advocate.com/marriage-equality/2015/09/02/old-redneck-hillbilly-husband-kim-davis-has-warning-nosey-people

Singapore lifts ban on HIV positive visitors

Singapore has lifted its 20-year ban on HIV positive visitors but will limit their stay to three months.

The ban was lifted on 1 April but only made public on Monday (31 August).

‘Given the current context with more than 5,000 Singapore residents living with HIV and the availability of effective treatment for the disease,’ a health ministry spokesperson said.

‘The policy on the repatriation and permanent blacklisting of HIV positive foreigners was recommended in the late 1980s when the disease was new, fatal and no effective treatment was available.’

The three-month restriction is meant to prevent foreigners with HIV from taking up residence in the Lion city.

The spokesperson said a short-term visit ‘poses very low additional risk of HIV transmission to the local population.

‘However, the public health risk posed by long-stayers is not insignificant, hence the restriction on long-term visits has been retained.’

He added that Australia and New Zealand have similar restrictions on long-term visitors with HIV.

According to Deutsche AIDS-Hilfe, 30 countries still force HIV positive foreigners to leave.

The post Singapore lifts ban on HIV positive visitors appeared first on Gay Star News.

Darren Wee

www.gaystarnews.com/article/singapore-lifts-ban-on-hiv-positive-visitors/

We’re Living For Christina Applegate’s Terrible Meryl Streep Impressions

Below, Funny or Die brings you the trailer for a Lifetime version of the one-and-only Meryl Streep’s illustrious career, from Kramer vs. Kramer all the way to Mamma Mia!

We’d definitely sit through a full-length version of this if the right drinking game were there to accompany it. A shot for every Oscar nomination? Maybe that’s too extreme.

Critics agree: Christina Applegate was the wrong choice to play Meryl Streep.

Watch below:

Dan Tracer

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France's Version of Kentucky Clerk Faces Discrimination Charge

Sabrina Hout avoided marrying a same-sex couple when she was a deputy mayor of Marseille.

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Trudy Ring

www.advocate.com/marriage-equality/2015/09/01/frances-version-kentucky-clerk-faces-discrimination-charge

Ahead Of Pope's U.S. Visit, Survey Finds Many Catholics Disagree With Church On LGBT Families

Just weeks ahead of Pope Francis’ visit to the United States for the World Meeting of Families, a major international Catholic festival that kicks off Sept. 21 in Philadelphia, a new survey shows that many Catholics are widely more accepting than church hierarchy of families led by parents who are gay, unmarried, single or divorced.

Nine in 10 Catholic Americans say that a family led by a mother and a father is an “ideal situation,” according to the Pew Research Center’s report, which was released Wednesday. At the same time, nearly half of Catholics say that children being raised by an unmarried couple is “acceptable and as good as any other arrangement,” while more than 4 in 10 Catholics say the same of gay and lesbian couples who raise kids.

Francis, who will address an estimated 1.5 million people during a World Meeting of Families Mass in Philadelphia, is expected to speak frequently about Catholic views of the importance of the family during Masses, speeches and high-level meetings that also will take him to Washington, D.C., and New York.

While the pope has made several friendly gestures toward LGBT people, including his famous “who am I to judge” remarks on gay priests, he has also spoken out against efforts to “redefine the very institution of marriage” and has warned of “ideological colonization that tries to destroy the family.” In October, Francis and high-level bishops will gather at the Vatican for the church’s synod on the family, which will likely address divorce and LGBT Catholics.

Speaking at the annual conference of the Religion Newswriters Association in Philadelphia, where Pew revealed the survey results, Pew Associate Director of Research Greg Smith said Saturday that he was “struck by the high level of dissent” from church teachings by self-identified Catholics, who are “very accepting of nontraditional families.”

“Catholic opinions look an awful lot like U.S. opinions as a whole” on issues such as sexuality and marriage, Smith said.

At the same time, he said, Catholics are “also quite loyal to the church despite any misgivings” about its positions on hot-button issues. Seven in 10 said they could never leave the church, “no matter what.” Close to 6 in 10 also said abortion is a sin. Greater than half said that devotion to Mary and receiving sacraments, such as communion, are “essential” to being Catholic.

There are “major differences between Catholics who attend Mass regularly and those who do not,” Smith said. Catholics who attend Mass at least once a week are much more likely to agree with church positions on sexuality, marriage and other controversial issues.

Pew’s report on the survey noted that although it was conducted before the Vatican’s June 18 release of the pope’s encyclical on human ecology and climate change — a topic he’s expected to highlight during speeches to Congress and the United Nations — “Pope Francis may have a difficult time persuading Catholics in the U.S. to adopt his philosophy about excess and his focus on the environment.”

Six in 10 Catholics told the organization that helping the poor is essential to being Catholic, yet just half gave the same response regarding combating climate change.

“Catholics are divided on the question of whether it is sinful to spend money on luxuries without also giving to the poor, but large majorities say it is not a sin to live in a house larger than needed or to use energy without concern for the impact on the environment,” the report said.

The survey, which asked questions of 5,122 adult Americans, including 1,016 Catholics, was conducted between May 5 and June 7 with a 3.5 percentage point margin of error among Catholics.

Also On HuffPost:

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Rand Paul: Kim Davis’ Protest Against Gay Marriage is ‘Part of the American Way’

Republican presidential candidate Rand Paul appeared on Boston Herald Radio this morning and was asked about Rowan County, Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis and her decision to defy the U.S. Supreme Court and refuse to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

Said Paul:

“You know I think one way to get around the whole idea of what the Supreme Court is forcing on the states is for states to just get out of the business of giving out licenses. Alabama has already voted to do this…anybody can make a contract and then if you want a marriage contract you go to a church. And so, I’ve often said we could have got around all of this, also, in the sense that I do believe everybody has the right to a contract. There never should have been any limitations on people of the same sex having contracts. But I do object to the state putting its imprimatur to the specialness of marriage, on something that’s different than most people defined as marriage for most of history. So one way is just getting the state out completely. I think that’s what we’re heading towards, actually. Whether or not people who still work for the state can do it without the legislature changing it, is something I’m going to leave up to the courts exactly how to do it. But I think people who do stand up and are making a stand to say they do believe in something is part of the American way.”

Listen:

Davis made national headlines again this morning when she again denied same-sex couples who had come to her office to get a marriage license.

READ all of Towleroad’s Kim Davis coverage HERE.

Supporters for and against Davis assembled outside the Rowan County clerk’s office and the police were called to disperse the crowds. A crowd of people made it inside Davis’s office and began chanting at the bigoted clerk, “Do your job.” The chant inspired an internet meme and Davis began trending on Twitter.

Davis told a gay couple who had come to apply for a marriage license that she was willing to accept the consequences for defying the Supreme Court and declared that ‘you all’ (e.g., gays) must also be willing to face ‘the consequences’:

“I’m willing to face my consequences as you all will face your consequences when it comes time for judgment.”

A motion to hold Davis in contempt of court was filed by two gay couples and a U.S. District Judge set a hearing for September 3 at 11 am. Read the filing here.

Davis released a statement that the question of allowing same-sex marriage “is a Heaven or Hell decision” that centers on her “religious freedom”.

Read it HERE.

The post Rand Paul: Kim Davis’ Protest Against Gay Marriage is ‘Part of the American Way’ appeared first on Towleroad.

Andy Towle

Rand Paul: Kim Davis’ Protest Against Gay Marriage is ‘Part of the American Way’