Rouhani noted that Western banking restrictions are unlikely to affect Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, saying the 80-year-old leader of the Islamic Revolution isn’t getting rich off of Western bank accounts. Imposing sanctions on Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif doesn’t equate with Trump’s stated willingness to negotiate without preconditions, Rouhani added.
“You sanction the foreign minister simultaneously with a request for talks” he would lead, Rouhani said. “The White House is afflicted by mental retardation and does not know what to do.”
The sanctions, issued less than a week after Iran shot down a U.S. drone, will block transactions involving any property or other assets Iran’s leaders hold in the USA, the White House said.
Former U.S. Ambassador and Congressional candidate Rufus Gifford shared this performance by a young woman named Lavender at his local Pride event in Fitchburg, Massachusetts.
Lavender performs “Part of Your World” from the Disney classic, The Little Mermaid.
A young woman comes on stage in Fitchburg. Introduces herself as Lavender. She tells us that she’s blind and autistic and wants to sing a song in honor of LGBT pride month. And then she blows us all away and brings us to tears…
Wait… you are not prepared.
A young woman comes on stage today in Fitchburg. Introduces herself as Lavender. Tells us that she blind and autistic and wants to sing a song in honor of LGBT Pride.
We’ve seen special moments at Pride events across the country – marriage proposals at Pride events, straight ‘country boy’ allies in Oklahoma show up for us, and more.
What I love about this video, and the story behind it, is how Pride events, large and small, can remind us of our better selves; that we celebrate the fabulousness of how different we all are and that diversity makes us better people.
Lavender not only delivers a powerful performance, but a powerful Pride message with the lyrics of “Part of Your World.”
Lavender has been singing in her local church group for years, thanks to her dads, Wil Darcangelo and Jamie Cormier.
Darcangelo founded a youth music group called the Tribe Music Mentorship Project that offers kids and young people, many from challenging backgrounds, opportunities to create music, books, art and more.
What I do know is even if Lavender weren’t blind, or autistic, she would be just as awesome for wanting to share her considerable gifts with the LGBTQ crowd.
With so much coming at us from many directions these days, let’s celebrate Lavender and the message she sends.
Massachusetts Senator and presidential hopeful Elizabeth Warren has proposed a plan to allow married same-sex couples to possibly recoup some of the taxes they paid before the federal government recognized marriage equality.
Warren recently re-introduced her proposal, titled ‘The Refund Equality Act,’ in the U.S. Senate.
Originally introduced by Warren in 2017, the goal of the legislation would be to allow same-sex couples to file amended tax returns in order to collect funds they paid when they were legally married but not allowed to file as married couples.
Current law allows Americans to file amended returns reaching back as far as three years, but Warren’s proposal would give same-sex married couples the right to re-file returns for the entire period the couple has been married.
In a statement, Warren said, “The federal government forced legally married same-sex couples in Massachusetts to file as individuals and pay more in taxes for almost a decade.”
It wasn’t until marriage equality became law that gay & lesbian couples could jointly file tax returns—so they paid more in taxes. Our government owes them more than $50M for the years our discriminatory tax code left them out. We must right these wrongs. https://t.co/OZQcfVilSs
In 2004, Warren’s state of Massachusetts became the first in the nation to recognize same-sex marriage.
But it wasn’t until the 2013 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. v. Windsor, that the federal government (including the Internal Revenue Service) allowed LGBTQ married couples to access some of the tax advantages of being married.
For instance, I married my husband in 2003 in Toronto, Canada. While it was a beautiful, emotional day in my life, once we returned to the U.S. it was (in legal terms) largely ceremonial as it wasn’t recognized at home.
Michael and I getting married in Toronto in 2003
Living in California at the time, other than my using the actual term ‘husband’ to refer to my guy, it didn’t count for much in terms of legal standing until the state Supreme Court ordered same-sex marriages recognized in 2008.
Proposition 8 interfered with that, but after a long back and forth, we were allowed to keep our legal status. But, that’s another story…
But, as our marriage wasn’t recognized by the federal government, we continued to file our tax returns as “Single.”
Until – the Windsor decision.
Our accountant did take advantage of the new filing status, and I can tell you it made a BIG difference in our taxes.
CNBC reports that “married couples have access to higher standard deductions: $24,400 for joint filers in 2019, compared to $12,200 for singles.”
Additionally, couples who file jointly enjoy wider income tax brackets compared to singles.
That’s not to say every couple would benefit financially from refiling their returns.
Known as the “marriage penalty,” two spouses who have similar incomes might end up in a higher tax bracket.
But in the case of married couples where one spouse makes more/less than the other, the joint tax bill could be lower.
The Joint Committee on Taxation reported last week that perhaps $57 million could be reclaimed under Warren’s legislation.
Rep. Judy Chu (D-CA) has introduced the companion bill in the House as well.
Having come out with his earlier release, “Can’t Fight It,” the follow-up single from Rayvon Owen, “Volume,” revealed the artist in full-on authentic mode.
Owen says the process of writing “Volume” was healing for him as it became an anthem of self-encouragement and reminded him “to stay true to who I was.”
“Like most everyone, I have experienced many highs and lows this past year.
“While I feel I have come a long way, I still sometimes fall short and don’t always believe in myself in the way I should. Coming out and accepting myself for who I am was one of the most liberating and life-changing experiences for me. While my confidence has grown, I am still human and am still learning to love the person I am — flaws and all — more and more every day.”
Growing up in the conservative South, the top-four American Idol finalist found it difficult to do just that when the time came to come out.
“I was so afraid, being from the South and being black and coming from a more conservative area and growing up in an environment that is not very conducive to being gay or even questioning your sexuality,” says Owen.
Nevertheless, the outpouring of support from his fans was overwhelming – “I would get a message from someone who would say this helped me come out to my parents, or saved me from taking my life. And it’s just like- ok, this is worth it.”
In addition to making beautiful music, Owen also spends time working with LGBT organisations like The Trevor Project, Human Rights Campaign and POINT Foundation.
With his silky smooth, effortless vocals paired with a penchant for raw emotion, he’s definitely someone to keep your eye (and ear) on. I’m sent new music every day and “Volume” is one of the first in a long time I hit repeat several times on first listen.
Check out “Volume” below, and you can find more of Rayvon’s music on SoundCloud.
GLAAD, the world’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) media advocacy organization, today announced the findings of its fifth annual Accelerating Acceptance Index, a national survey among U.S. adults conducted on GLAAD’s behalf by The Harris Poll.
The Index measures American attitudes toward LGBTQ people.
The percentage of non-LGBTQ adults reporting being ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ comfortable with LGBTQ people across seven scenarios remained stable (49%) after a significant decline last year (49% ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ comfortable in the 2018 report versus 53% in the 2017 report).
However, this year’s Index found the number of young Americans ages 18-34 who are comfortable across all seven scenarios dropped from 53% to 45%, the second consecutive year that this age group has shown a drop.
This reflects a continued erosion in comfort among this age group over the past two years. This year, the significant erosion is being driven by females ages 18-34, where comfort levels fell from 64% last year to 52% this year.
The seven scenarios were: learning a family member is LGBT, learning my doctor is LGBT, having LGBT members at my place of worship, seeing a LGBT co-worker’s wedding picture, having my child placed in a class with a LGBT teacher, seeing a same-sex couple holding hands, and learning my child has a lesson on LGBT history in school.
Also from the report:
• Reported hate crimes in America rose 17 percent last year, the third consecutive year that such crimes increased, according to data released by the FBI in 2018.
• The majority of non-LGBTQ Americans (80%) support equal rights for the LGBTQ community. This particular statistic has been consistent since 2016.
Crowdfunding company GoFundMe has said, “No dough for you!” to sacked homophobic rugby star Israel Folau.
Over the weekend, GoFundMe shut down the crowdfunding campaign launched by Folau to pay for his legal defense citing violations in their terms of service.
“As a company, we are absolutely committed to the fight for equality for LGBTIQ+ people and fostering an environment of inclusivity,” said GoFundMe spokesperson Nicola Britton in a statement. “While we welcome GoFundMes engaging in diverse civil debate, we do not tolerate the promotion of discrimination or exclusion.”
Britton noted that GoFundMe would be refunding all donations made to Folau’s campaign.
The campaign had raised AUS$700,000 before being terminated.
The former full-back had set a goal of AUS$3 million as he prepares to sue Rugby Australia for stripping him of his four-year contract reported to be worth AUS$5 million.
The action was a result of homophobic social media posts. Folau is a fundamentalist Christian, and on April 10 he posted a graphic on his Instagram telling homosexuals (among other people) “Hell Awaits You.”
A post shared by Israel Folau (@izzyfolau) on Apr 10, 2019 at 1:18am PDT
After his contract was terminated, he challenged the decision and asked for a ‘code of conduct’ panel to decide.
“Rugby Australia and the New South Wales Rugby Union have made repeated attempts to contact Israel both directly and via his representatives since 6.30pm on Wednesday, and at this point he has failed to communicate directly with either organisation,” said Rugby Australia at the time.
“Whilst Israel is entitled to his religious beliefs, the way in which he has expressed these beliefs is inconsistent with the values of the sport,” the statement continued. “We want to make it clear that he does not speak for the game with his recent social media posts.”
The Sydney Morning Herald reports the former rugby star has filed a complaint with Australia’s Fair Work Commission against Rugby Australia and Waratahs Rugby Pty Ltd. saying “his employment was unlawfully terminated because of his religion.”
He is reportedly looking for AUS$10 million in damages.
Rugby Australia responded saying, “He was bound by a code of conduct for all professional player in Australia that spells out clear guidelines and obligations regarding player behavior, including respectful use of social media.”
After the crowdfunding campaign was shut down, Folau’s former teammate Drew Mitchell tweeted, “YOU are in fight that YOU chose to be in after YOU broke the terms of YOUR contract, the kids below are in a fight they NEVER wanted to be in & yet YOU think YOU deserve donations more than they do???!!”
Mitchell added, “It’s not longer about religion, it’s about YOU and YOUR greed.”
According to TheAustralian.com, Folau owns 8 homes worth over $5 million.
He also apparently owns a $500k Lamborghini. So, why can’t he pay his own legal bills.
Mitchell may be right on that point – “greed.”
YOU are in a fight that YOU chose to be in after YOU broke the terms of YOUR contract, the kids below are in a fight they NEVER wanted to be in & yet YOU think YOU deserve donations more than they do??!!
The set, released via Interscope Records on June 14, launches with 95,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending June 20, according to Nielsen Music. Of that sum, 90,000 were in album sales.
The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption as measured in equivalent album units. Units are comprised of traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). The new June 29-dated chart, where Madame X bows at No. 1, will be posted in full on Billboard’s websites on June 25.
Overall, Madame X’s debut sum of 95,000 equivalent album units is comprised of 90,000 in album sales, 1,000 in TEA units and 4,000 in SEA units.
Madame X grants Madonna her ninth leader on the Billboard 200. She last led the list in 2012, with MDNA. Here’s a look at all of Madonna’s No. 1 albums: Madame X, MDNA, Hard Candy (2008), Confessions on a Dance Floor (2005), American Life (2003), Music (2000), Like a Prayer (1989), True Blue (1986) and Like a Virgin (1985).
Madonna continues to have the second-most No. 1 albums among female artists, trailing only Barbra Streisand, who has 11. Among all acts, The Beatles have the most No. 1s, with 19. They are followed by Jay-Z (14), Streisand and Bruce Springsteen (both with 11), Elvis Presley (10), Eminem, Garth Brooks, Madonna and The Rolling Stones (all with nine).
Madge also scored a #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Song chart.
The Queen of Pop has landed at the top of Billboard’s chart more than any artist in history, snatching up 163 number one positions across all charts including Billboard 200, Hot 100 (singles), Dance and more.
Since 2017, Jamie Hannah has been working with Benny D, an award winning producer who has worked with artists including Stormzy and Kylie Minogue, to produce his debut E.P which will be released this year.
Brought into the project by Benny D, Boy George has been consistently impressed with Jamie Hannah’s voice, even going as far as saying that he’s never heard a voice like his.
The first single, “Sound of My Youth,” showcases his unforgettably smooth tone as the lyrics share the story of a past relationship that you just can’t seem to forget about, and the memories that continue to haunt you.
Jamie Hannah’s pure and emotive voice perfectly encapsulates the nostalgia and melancholy of the song while the lyrics document the singer’s feelings of ‘drowning’ and loss in a truly emotional way.
Hannah’s classical training at the Royal College of Music is self-evident on the track demonstrating real complexity and sophistication.
The track begins simply with a collection of dreamy, laidback synths before it’s quickly kicked up a notch by the addition of a weighty and pulsating drum beat and Hannah’s commanding vocals.
The track recently hit Top 5 on Music Week’s Commercial Pop chart.
