• Viola Davis recently told the New York Times she has some regrets about making the film, The Help, as the story ended up being more about the white characters’ perspective on racism than those of the black characters.
• According to the Congressional Budget Office, the federal budget deficit was $895 billion for the first 11 months of fiscal year 2018, $222 billion more than the shortfall recorded during the same period last year. #SoMuchWinning
• Chris Pine is amused by folks reaction to his full-frontal scene in the new film, Outlaw King:
“What I find very funny is that there’s so much beheading in this, and yet people want to talk about my penis,” Pine told the The Hollywood Reporter. “And I think that says something about our society, where people can get disemboweled, but it’s the man’s junk that is of interest.”
Marriage equality has been the law of the land in England, Scotland and Wales since 2014, and the Republic of Ireland voted for marriage equality via public referendum in 2015.
That leaves Northern Ireland as the only part of Western Europe to not allow LGBT couples to marry. The only legal recognition available for same-sex couples are civil unions thanks to UK-wide legislation passed in 2005.
According to Gay Star News, the Northern Ireland government has been practically non-functional for almost 600 days since rival parties stopped working together.
The list of over two dozen multinational businesses supporting the marriage equality letter to Parliament include Coca-Cola, IBM, Bank of Ireland, Deloitte, Citi Belfast and Pinsent Masons.
The argument for marriage equality isn’t just based on rights and equality, says John O’Doherty, Director of The Rainbow Project and member of the Love Equality consortium.
According to O’Doherty, “There is also an important economic argument for legalizing same-sex marriage.”
“Equality, diversity and inclusion contribute to a happy and productive workforce and can help in attracting global talent to Northern Ireland,” says O’Doherty. “However, without full legal recognition of same-sex marriages retaining and attracting talent can be difficult.”
Petre Sandru, Country Manager for Coca-Cola Ireland, agrees.
“As one of the world’s most inclusive brands, Coca-Cola celebrates diversity, inclusion and equality,” says Sandru. “At Coca-Cola, we know that creating an environment where everyone can reach their full potential, regardless of gender age, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion, ability or socio-economic background, is key to driving businesses forward.”
Corporate support has been shown to be a powerful component in the fight for equal rights.
And in Australia, Coca-Cola, Quantas Airlines and more voiced their support for same-sex marriage as the country readied to vote in a mail-in referendum which eventually led to marriage equality becoming legal ‘down under’ in January of this year.
Henry Cavill and his ‘super’ alter-ego (image via Instagram)
Color me sad as the news arrives that Henry Cavill (and his awesomely furry chest) will not appear as “Superman” in any future Warner Bros. DC films.
Cavill has played “Superman” in three films, including Man of Steel (2013), Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) and Justice League (2017).
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Warners had been after Cavill to make a cameo in the upcoming Shazam flick starring Zachary Levi. But negotiations appear to have fallen apart and as THR writes, “The door is now closing on other potential Superman appearances.”
Several theories are being bandied about as to the shift in “super-strategy.”
While one Warners source told THR that ‘scheduling conflicts’ cause the deal to disintegrate (Cavill recently signed to star in the new Netflix series, The Witcher), another source claims the Witcher offer came after the Warners negotiations.
One studio insider suggested that Warners is merely going for the commonly attempted “reset button” on the DC universe of films after admitting “some parts of the previous movies didn’t work.”
I’ll tell you what DID work – THIS:
(screen capture)
THR also mentions that with so many DC films in the pipeline Warners isn’t likely to produce a stand-alone Superman film anytime in the near future.
Not only is the Jason Momoa Aquaman movie set to arrive this December, but Wonder Woman 1984 is due in theaters November 2019, and openly queer Ezra Miller is scheduled to start shooting a Flash movie in early 2019.
Additional reports say Warners is shifting focus to a Supergirl origin movie.
Comparing the Superman franchise to the James Bond films, a studio source said, “Superman is like James Bond, and after a certain run you have to look at new actors.”
Along that same line of thinking, THR mentions that Oscar winner Ben Affleck is not likely to return as “Batman.”
Cavill fans might be able to hold out some hope, though.
On Twitter this morning, Cavill’s manager tweeted a somewhat cryptic message which read, “Be peaceful, the cape is still in his closet. @wbpictures has been and continues to be our partners as they evolve the DC Universe. Anticipate a WB statement later today.”
Be peaceful, the cape is still in his closet. @wbpictures has been and continues to be our partners as they evolve the DC Universe. Anticipate a WB statement later today.
• The memory of 9/11 has been at the forefront of my mind all day. It was an attack on my home of many years; it was an attack on all Americans. #Remember
• Game of Thrones star Kit Harington wondered to the press at the Toronto International Film Festival why we can’t have an openly gay actor play a Marvel super-hero?
• Chad Griffin, president of the Human Rights Campaign, tells the Washington Post’s Jonathan Capehart, “We’re going to get our country back.” Griffin says he’s never seen such grassroots energy as we approach the midterm elections.
• Remembering Father Mychal Judge, the openly gay priest who was the first official casualty of the horrific 9/11 terror attack.
• Keiynan Lonsdale, star of The Flash and Love, Simon, asked his 837,000 fans on Instagram “Why is it deemed wrong to not wear clothes?” as he posted a nude pic.
The 76-year-old shares much in a frank and direct manner throughout the interview.
One passage that’s garnered a lot of attention was this little story about how ‘close’ he and John Lennon were as young band mates:
“What it was,” he explains after I have prompted him, “was over at John’s house, and it was just a group of us. And instead of just getting roaring drunk and partying—I don’t even know if we were staying over or anything—we were all just in these chairs, and the lights were out, and somebody started masturbating, so we all did.”
There would be about five of them: McCartney, Lennon, and maybe three of Lennon’s friends. As they each concentrated on their mission, anyone in the group was encouraged to shout out a name that would offer relevant inspiration.
“We were just, ‘Brigitte Bardot!’ ‘Whoo!'” McCartney says, “and then everyone would thrash a bit more.”
At least until one of them—the one you would perhaps expect—opted for disruption over stimulation.
“I think it was John sort of said, ‘Winston Churchill!'” McCartney remembers, and acts out the aghast, stymied reactions.
I ask whether this ritual took place often.
“I think it was a one-off,” McCartney replies. “Or maybe it was like a two-off. It wasn’t a big thing. But, you know, it was just the kind of thing you didn’t think much of. It was just a group. Yeah, it’s quite raunchy when you think about it. There’s so many things like that from when you’re a kid that you look back on and you’re, ‘Did we do that?’ But it was good harmless fun. It didn’t hurt anyone. Not even Brigitte Bardot.”
There’s also a quick tale of 17-year-old John Lennon losing his virginity as his band mates listened. Ah, the boys…
Pennsylvania’s Clarks Summit University, a Christian school, has denied a student from finishing the last six hours of his bachelors’s degree because he is gay.
To be clear, the university kicked him to the curb not for having a boyfriend or engaging in a gay “sexual relationship” as the school’s student handbook prohibits.
No, after taking Gary Campbell’s money to take two classes online, the school contacted him after somehow learning he is gay and informed him he’s not welcome as a student since Clarks Summit only believes in “biblical sexuality.”
Campbell attended Clarks Summit University (then known as Baptist Bible College) from 2001 – 2003 earning 109 college credits.
He tells the Citizens Voice that, as a young man, he hoped attending the school would help him overcome his attraction to men.
“Long story short, it didn’t work out that way,” says Campbell. He dropped out and planned on finishing at a community college.
Instead, he enlisted in the Navy.
But, during his stint in the armed forces, he struggled with alcoholism and was discharged after an episode of driving while drunk on base.
Today, 19 months sober, Campbell decided finishing his college degree would be a top priority. He hopes to become a peer counselor to help others with problems with addiction.
After contacting the university this past spring, he was told he only needed two classes to complete his degree. Campbell worked to save his money to pay the tuition and fees, while friends and family chipped in $700 to aid in covering his return to academia.
But near the end of August, the school reached out to him to say they’d (somehow) discovered he is gay and that he would not be able to complete his studies at Clarks Summit University.
The school cites very stringent rules of conduct for their students including being required to attend chapel, being forbidden from any displays of public affection (that includes hand holding), and in fact, students are not allowed to be alone with members of the opposite sex.
None of that behavior would come into play for Campbell, however, as he was enrolling in online classes.
Citizens Voice spoke to a civil rights attorney in Pennsylvania, Barry Dyller, who sees the situation as “complicated.”
Dyller explains that there’s no federal law that prohibits a religious-based school from excluding LGBTQ students. And to attempt to pass such legislation could encroach on First Amendment rights.
According to Citizens Voice, the school issued a statement offering to help any former or prospective student “who does not choose to agree with those faith standards” to find another school in order to finish a degree.
But after exploring other options, Campbell discovered other schools he contacted would only accept about half of the 109 credits he had earned from Baptist Bible College.
Campbell wrote to the university asking them to reconsider their decision.
“One of my top goals being in recovery was to finish my bachelor’s degree. Having a degree is much more to me than a certificate, it’s a culmination of hard work, sweat and tears, and I owe it to myself and to my recovery to accomplish this goal,” he wrote.
“I ask that you not view me only as a homosexual, but as a determined, compassionate, hard-working man who is of good moral character. My goal again is to assist my community and help those who are struggling in the grip of addiction.”
The university denied Campbell’s request.
You have to wonder: a guy is pulling his life together, he has aspirations of helping others with addictions, he just wants to take two classes online, and the university can’t find a way to work with this guy?
Is that what Jesus would want?
After media coverage of Campbell’s story, it appears there could be hope on the horizon.
The president of nearby Lackawanna College, Mark Volk, read about Campbell’s plight and says his school may be able to help.
“For us, it’s about giving people that opportunity, that chance to move forward in their lives and their careers,” Volk said. “When I read it, I thought maybe we could do something. … I sent a note to staff, and there is tremendous excitement about it.”
Lackawanna has worked with students in the past who found themselves just short of attaining their degree.
Volk believes his school may be able to accept most of Campbell’s college credits and apply them toward a Lackawanna College degree.
Clearly, the environment at Lackawanna College is very different from Campbell’s old school.
“We look at the whole person,” Volk said. “Maybe we can do something here to help him out.”
As the world observes the 17th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks on the United States, Donald Trump began the day not with uplifting prose for the nation he’s charged with leading, but by tweeting out yet another rant about the ongoing investigation by Special Counsel Robert Mueller into Russian interference in our 2016 election.
“We have found nothing to show collusion between President Trump & Russia, absolutely zero, but every day we get more documentation showing collusion between the FBI & DOJ, the Hillary campaign, foreign spies & Russians, incredible,” wrote the Trumpster.
“We have found nothing to show collusion between President Trump & Russia, absolutely zero, but every day we get more documentation showing collusion between the FBI & DOJ, the Hillary campaign, foreign spies & Russians, incredible.” @SaraCarterDC@LouDobbs
New Strzok-Page texts reveal “Media Leak Strategy.” @FoxNews So terrible, and NOTHING is being done at DOJ or FBI – but the world is watching, and they get it completely.
According to reports, Trump and First Lady Melania Trump will attend a memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where United flight 93 went down after passengers stood up to the terrorists.
Vice President Mike Pence attended a ceremony with Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis and Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Paul Selva at the Pentagon where another plane crashed and killed 184 in the deadly attack.
This past summer, I reported on the story of Seth Owen, a high school student who became homeless after his father did a deep dive into his cell phone and discovered Seth was gay.
The intrusion into Seth’s personal life began a series of events that led to a year of being subjected to so-called ‘conversion therapy,’ forced to attend a church that was virulently anti-gay, and eventually being thrown out of his home.
However, homelessness would not deter Seth.
Incredibly, while coach-surfing throughout his senior year of high school, he maintained a 4.16 GPA and graduated as co-valedictorian of his class.
Even as he celebrated his amazing achievement, Seth learned after he was accepted to prestigious Georgetown University that his parents reneged on any financial support leaving him far short of the funds to attend his first semester this fall.
One of Seth’s teachers who recognized his strength and burgeoning potential launched a GoFundMe campaign to help him cover the shortfall. Seth’s story and the campaign went viral exceeding all expectations by raising over $141,000.
Thanks to the LGBT media covering the story, Georgetown University took another look at Seth’s situation and granted him a full ride to the school.
This week Ellen DeGeneres welcomed Seth to her show to celebrate him and his amazing fortitude in the face of so many obstacles.
Ellen DeGeneres welcomes Seth Owen to her show
Chatting on the show, Seth gave credit to Ellen for his becoming co-valedictorian saying many late nights he would look up her videos for uplift and inspiration. “There were so many times, so many times that you really pulled me through,” said Seth. “I really do appreciate that.”
He also shared the story of how his dad invaded his privacy searching through his phone which led to ‘ex-gay therapy’ treatment.
“The dangerous part about that is that, as a patient, I believed this healthcare professional was doing what was best for me,” Seth explained. “I didn’t see any progress, so it’s very depressing.”
But after his incredible journey to college, Seth gushes about his first two weeks at Georgetown saying, “I love it – It’s amazing. I would not want to be anywhere else but Georgetown.”
The 18-year-old also mentioned that the school’s staff has been very supportive.
“As a Jesuit university, we have residential ministers on our floors, and she told me that she was here to support me,” said Seth. “As someone who’s been through something like this with religion, it meant the world to me to hear from a spiritual advisor to say they have my back.”
Asked about the amazing GoFundMe campaign, Seth explained that after college he’ll use leftover funds to establish a scholarship program for LGBTQ youth who find themselves in a similar situation heading to university.
Following that news, Ellen stunned Seth announcing that she and Cheerios would be donating $25,000 to help begin Seth’s scholarship program.
A 1 train pulls into the World Trade Center subway station for first time since terror attacks
As the world recognizes the 17th anniversary of the 9/11 attack on the United States, a 1 train has pulled into the subway station located directly underneath the World Trade Center for the first time since the horrific day of terror.
Costing over $158 million, the reconstruction took so long because New York City primarily focused energies on rebuilding above ground where the twin towers had stood.
For years now, the Metropolitan Transit Authority has ferried commuters via bus shuttle to South Ferry instead of Cortlandt Street.
The new station features 1,200 feet of new track and tunnel as well as a white marble mosaic by artist Ann Hamilton that incorporates raised lettering utilizing the text from the Declaration of Independence and the 1948 United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Titled “CHORUS,” commuters can experience the artwork not only visually but through touch as well.
Additional improvements New Yorkers will appreciate – the subway station is air-conditioned and features digital, state of the art real-time train schedules.
MTA Chairman Joseph Lhota called the moment “a major milestone in the recovery and growth of downtown Manhattan,” telling the Gothamist, “WTC Cortlandt is more than a new subway station. It is symbolic of New Yorkers’ resolve in restoring and substantially improving the entire World Trade Center site.”
