Category: Uncategorized

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Netflix Cancels Sci-Fi Series “Sense8”

Dang it.

Netflix has announce there will be no third season of sci-fi drama, “Sense8.”

Via Variety:

“After 23 episodes, 16 cities and 13 countries, the story of the Sense8 cluster is coming to an end,”,” said Cindy Holland, VP of Netflix original content. “It is everything we and the fans dreamed it would be: bold, emotional, stunning, kick ass, and outright unforgettable. Never has there been a more truly global show with an equally diverse and international cast and crew, which is only mirrored by the connected community of deeply passionate fans all around the world. We thank Lana, Lilly, Joe and Grant for their vision, and the entire cast and crew for their craftsmanship and commitment.”

“Sense8” starred Tuppence Middleton, Brian J. Smith, Doona Bae, Aml Ameen, Max Riemelt, Tina Desai, Miguel Ángel Silvestre and Jamie Clayton as eight strangers who become mentally and emotionally linked. Lana Wachowski, Lilly Wachowski, and J. Michael Straczynski created the show for Netflix and executive produced with Grant Hill.

Featuring two same-sex couple storylines with four LGBT characters, a cast of great diversity and created by transgender Wachowski sisters, I loved the show. It was smart, thoughtful and had a terrific message that we are “more” when we work together.

Thank you for being a part of our journey. Sensates forever.A post shared by Sense8 (@sense8) on Jun 1, 2017 at 11:22am PDT

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White House Informs Congress Trump Will Withdraw From Paris Climate Accord

President Donald Trump

We knew this was coming.

The Trump administration has told members of Congress today that the president plans to withdraw from the landmark Paris climate agreement.

From CNN:

In talking points delivered to Trump’s allies, the White House characterized the Paris agreement as a job killer that placed undue burdens on American taxpayers.

“The Paris Accord is a BAD deal for Americans, and the President’s action today is keeping his campaign promise to put American workers first,” the talking points read. “The accord was negotiated poorly by the Obama administration and signed out of desperation. It frontloads costs on the American people to the detriment of our economy.”

Trump and Vice President Mike Pence were calling lawmakers, including House and Senate leaders, in the hours leading up to the announcement to get input on his climate decision, a Republican source said.

In triggering the official withdrawal process, Trump will spark a lengthy process that won’t conclude until November 2020 — the same month he’s up for reelection.

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Martina Navratilova Pens Open Letter Suggesting Name Change For Margaret Court Arena

Martina Navratilova

In a recent radio interview, 74 year-old tennis legend Margaret Court told a Christian radio station that “tennis is full of lesbians” and transgender children are influenced by the Devil and are part of a mind control plot as seen in Nazi Germany.

Having now set the stage, I now yield the floor to the great Martina Navratilova.

Via the Sydney Morning Herald:

Dear Margaret Court Arena, Sporting venues named for athletes, or any place, really, named for whoever, are so named for one reason. That reason is their whole body of work. In other words, it is not just for what this person did on the field, on the court, in politics, arts or science, for instance, but also for who they are as human beings.

When you were named after Margaret Court, it seemed like the right thing to do. After all, Rod Laver already had the big stadium and Court is one of the all-time greats. I had long ago forgiven Court for her headline-grabbing comments in 1990 when she said I was a bad role model because I was a lesbian.

What I did not know about until now were the unabashed racist statements she made in the ’70s about apartheid in South Africa. Saying that South Africa dealt with the “situation” (meaning people of colour) much better than anywhere else in the world, particularly the US: what exactly did she mean by that?

Fast forward to today and Court’s announcement of her boycott of Qantas because of its chief executive’s support of same-sex marriage, which basically means support for the LGBT community in general. That was bad enough. Now she is doubling down with her ridiculous comments about older women luring young girls on the tour to parties to turn them into lesbians. It’s a good thing she didn’t name anyone as I am pretty sure she would be sued for defamation.

It is now clear exactly who Court is: an amazing tennis player, and a racist and a homophobe. Her vitriol is not just an opinion. She is actively trying to keep LGBT people from getting equal rights (note to Court: we are human beings, too). She is demonising trans kids and trans adults everywhere.

And now, linking LGBT to Nazis, communists, the devil? This is not OK. This is in fact sick and it is dangerous. Kids will suffer more because of this continuous bashing and stigmatising of our LGBT community.

How much blood will be on Margaret’s hands because kids will continue to get beaten for being different? This is not OK. Too many will die by suicide because of this kind of intolerance, this kind of bashing and yes, this kind of bullying. This is not OK.

We celebrate free speech, but that doesn’t mean it is free of consequences – not punishment, but consequences. We should not be celebrating this kind of behaviour, this kind of philosophy. The platform people like Margaret Court use needs to be made smaller, not bigger.

Which is why I think it’s time to change your name. And I think the Evonne Goolagong Arena has a great ring to it. Now there is a person we can all celebrate. On every level. Yours, Martina Navratilova.

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No Proclamation For Pride Month From President Trump

I’m not looking for a presidential proclamation for Pride Month to land in my in-box anytime soon.

Bill Clinton began the tradition in 1999, and issued a second in his last year in office.

And President Obama issued proclamations recognizing the month of June as LGBT Pride Month every year of his presidency, along with hosting LGBT festivities inside the White House.

But President Trump seems to have ended all that.

The Trump White House released a several Proclamations today celebrating June as “National Ocean Month”, “African-American Music Appreciation Month,” “National Homeownership Month”, and “Great Outdoors Month” – but nada for LGBT Pride Month.

But, we do have the Democrats.

Issued today from Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez:

“From Stonewall to the Supreme Court, our nation has made great strides in LGBTQ rights. LGBTQ Pride Month is an opportunity to celebrate that progress, to appreciate the cultural achievements of LGBTQ Americans, and to recommit ourselves to the fight for global LGBTQ equality.

“Under the leadership of Barack Obama, America has advanced LGBTQ rights in ways unthinkable just a few years ago. This month, we celebrate the second anniversary of nationwide marriage equality. We ended Don’t Ask Don’t Tell and guaranteed transgender veterans the care they earned serving our nation. Today, hospitals receiving Medicare or Medicaid funds must extend visitation rights to LGBTQ patients. Across the country, violence against LGBTQ individuals can be prosecuted as federal hate crimes. These were hard-fought victories, but there is still much progress to be made.

“From bathrooms to boardrooms, too many LGBTQ Americans are denied the full equality they deserve. In some states, conservative lawmakers continue to advance legislation intended to discriminate against the LGBTQ community. Despite their promises, the Trump administration is hell-bent on rolling back progress, starting with Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ decision to end protections for transgender students. Democrats will fight those these efforts to erode the rights of LGBTQ people and continue to push for LGBTQ equality at home and abroad.

“Internationally, equality is also a long way away. According to the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association, people in 72 countries can still be prosecuted for who they love. That is unacceptable. President Trump must use the full influence of the United States to pressure our neighbors to recognize the rights of LGBTQ people.

“However, there also are many reasons to be hopeful this Pride Month. Last Wednesday, Taiwan’s constitutional court ruled in favor of same-sex marriage, paving the way for Taiwan to become the first Asian country to legalize gay marriage. Hopefully, Taiwan’s landmark court decision is the beginning of LGBTQ equality across Asia.

“This month, we must redouble our efforts to fight for the rights of our LGBTQ family, friends, and neighbors around the world, especially those under threat from their own governments.”

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Putin: “Patriotically Minded” Private Russian Hackers Could Have Interfered In U.S. Election

Russian President Vladimir Putin admits “patriotically minded” private Russian hackers could have been involved in U.S. election interference.

Via the New York Times:

Raising the possibility of attacks by what he portrayed as free-spirited Russian patriots, Mr. Putin said that hackers “are like artists” who choose their targets depending how they feel “when they wake up in the morning.”

“If they are patriotically minded, they start making their contributions — which are right, from their point of view — to the fight against those who say bad things about Russia,” he added.

His remarks echoed ones by Mr. Trump, who has dismissed accusations of Russian meddling and said that the person responsible for the attack on the Democratic National Committee “could be somebody sitting on their bed that weighs 400 pounds.”

The firing of James B. Comey as director of the F.B.I. has led several lawmakers to call for an independent investigator or commission on top of the current investigations into potential links between Russia and the Trump campaign.

All the same, Mr. Putin stuck firmly to earlier denials that Russian state bodies or employees had been involved, an accusation leveled by United States intelligence agencies. They concluded in January that Mr. Putin himself had directed a Russian “influence campaign” involving cyberattacks and disinformation intended to tilt the November election in Mr. Trump’s favor.

Putin also theorizes that “someone” could be creating a fake trail back to Russia with today’s technology.

Riiiiiight.

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Hillary Clinton: I Thought Covfefe Was A Hidden Message To The Russians

Speaking at the 2017 CodeCon Tech Conference, Hillary Clinton was asked about Donald Trump’s late night tweets, in particular last night’s lulu: “Despite the constant negative press covfefe.”

Hillary took a guess wondering aloud, “I thought it was a hidden message to the Russians.”

When it was pointed out that Sean Spicer had said that only Trump and a small number of people knew the meaning of the word, Hillary immediately understood the scenario. “Ah, the small group explanation,” Clinton said. “You don’t have a high enough classification to know what covfefe means.”

An audience member asked what Hillary might know about the Trumpster since she attended his wedding, she said, “I was never even a social friend. It was kind of a lark to attend his third wedding…” (sly emphasis on the word “third” was hers).

All quite light-hearted, and then she became a bit more serious about citizens getting more involved in politics and more voices pushing back against the lies and “alternative facts” being inserted into the public arena.

(h/t JoeMyGod)