The end of an era

April 23, 2024

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I’ve exclusively owned Fords since 1985. That ended today. What have I done??

Here’s a look back at 39 years of Fords!

(Not my actual car, but the same model and color)

A 1985 1/2 Ford Escort. I put well over 100,000 miles on this car. A 5 speed, 4 cylinder that I drove to Canada and all over Central California, it was the first new car I ever purchased.

In 1992 I bought my Ranger XLT, and have put over 160,000 miles on it. The Ranger has taken me to Seattle, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Arkansas, and Oklahoma. This was the second vehicle I bought new. (and I’ve still got it – I don’t expect to ever sell it)

In 2007 I bought this 2005 Taurus SEL at the Fresno Car Max. It had 8,700 miles on it. It was previously owned by a Ford dealership in a smaller Central Valley town, and must have been a loaner or used to give folks rides to and from the lot. What ever they did with it, they didn’t put very many miles on it. I fixed that, running to odometer up to about 110,000 miles. This one went as far east as Columbus, Ohio.

In 2020, I went back to Car Max, and bought the Blue_Heretic, a 2019 Ford Fusion SE with “Eco-Boost”. Another low-milage car, it was one year old with 2,600 miles on the odometer. This car has been the one I liked the most of all the cars I’ve owned, and it’s with mixed emotions that I traded it in on my new Honda. Good-bye, Heretic, and thanks for all the (only 35,000) miles!

So now I jump into both the Honda and the hybrid worlds.

My first “foreign” car, a 2024 Honda Accord Hybrid EX-L. Rolling along on the electric motor is taking a bit of getting used to! (but I love it! It’s so quiet)

Trying to come up with a name in the vein of my previous car’s ‘Blue_Heretic’. So far, nothing has presented itself. I’m sure I’ll think of something.

RIP, VTD

December 30, 2023

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Well, it’s finally happened.
My first relationship with the Visalia Times-Delta was as a paperboy in the 1970’s. My route at the time was the largest in the city, which had a population of less than 50,000 back then. I wish I could say that having a paper route taught me how to handle money, but sadly it did not. But that, perhaps, is a story for another blog.
As an adult, I’ve read the paper frequently if not daily, written many letters to the editor, had a couple of my community blog posts appear in the printed edition (Hate in a small town – 9-22/23-2013, and It’s not easy to make SPLC’s hate list – 5-15-2015), and even had them request I write a column (Connecting LGBT community and government – 7-16/17-2016) that appeared in print. They even paid me for that last one.
But that was then, this is now.
Sitting at the computer today, I realized it had been months since I logged into my account at VTD, one I pay for monthly.
I went to the page, logged in, and found the weekend edition online. (I stopped the paper edition a couple of years ago, keeping only the online subscription)
There were exactly two items in the entire paper related to Visalia.
One obituary, and the weather. No other local news. At all. Not even any local sports.
For some time now, the VTD has been fading. It’s a shadow of it’s former self. A shadow on a heavily overcast day. Almost not there.
I cancelled my subscription right then.
I’ve found that the Sun-Gazette and the Valley Voice newspapers have better local coverage than the Times-Delta, and have for some time. I also subscribe to the Fresno Bee‘s online presence.
The Visalia Times Delta has (for some time now) become simply another version of USA TODAY.
RIP VTD

“Shoving it down our throat…”

December 12, 2023

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One of the most common refrains those of us in the queer community hear is something along the lines of, “we don’t care what you do in the bedroom, just don’t shove it down our throats!”

This is usually in response to something innocuous, like a queer couple holding hands in public while walking down Main Street, or perhaps when a rainbow flag is flown from a home or business during June. Proclamations by City Councils or County Board of Supervisors really set some people off.

Oddly, however, that is a one-way outrage street.

Christians love to “shove it down our throat” when they’re proselytizing about their god. Today’s example is courtesy of the Tulare County Board of Supervisors.

During today’s (December 12, 2023) Board meeting, they approved the addition of “IN GOD WE TRUST” to the chambers. Board Chair Dennis Townsend, District 5 (Porterville area), recently proposed adding the phrase to a wall in the chambers, supposedly as a nod to the United States Motto, saying in the November 28th meeting that “… in god we trust is how our nation was founded, and even in that it is not specific” to any particular god.

However…

Maybe I missed it in the multitude of gods believed in over the years, and the somewhat smaller group with active believers around the world and in Tulare County today, but, as far as I know, only one particular god is referred to as GOD. That’s the Christian god, also known as Yahweh or Jehovah.

So to claim the Christian god is not necessarily the one being referred to when “IN GOD WE TRUST” is prominently displayed is disingenuous. It’s also not the case, in spite of fundamentalist Christians going on otherwise, that this nation was founded as a Christian nation, and with the Bible being a primary source of the nation’s underpinnings.

On June 10, 1797, President John Adams signed the Treaty of Tripoli, after a unanimous vote to approve by the United States Senate. Article 11 of that treaty states, in part, that “As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion…” There are other instances of the founders making it clear they were not Christians and were not basing the new nation on that faith system. Many were deists, and had a belief in a god, but not necessarily the Christian version.

And yet, “IN GOD WE TRUST”.

Kudos to Supervisor Amy Shuklian for her actions which changed the sign from an obvious Christian proselytization to something more in line with the alleged homage to the United States. She proposed, and was successful in adding, “E Pluribus Unum” to the signage. In the final vote Supervisor Shuklian voted against the installation, but was outvoted by the rest of the Board.

If the goal was really to show respect for the founding of the United States, and display something that encompasses that which the nation is really based upon, I think this would have been more appropriate:

But that doesn’t shove anything down anyone’s throat, does it?

Pride Visalia 2023

October 19, 2023

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Me, Executive Director Brian Poth, and Kou

October 14, 2023 was Pride Visalia 2023. Another great year for Pride, with the usual large turnout at Valley Strong Stadium (AKA Rawhide Stadium, AKA Oaks Ballpark, AKA Recreation Park baseball stadium). Here are a few pictures of my time at Pride. See more at http://www.pridevisalia.org

That’s Mariachi Arcoiris, the world’s first and only LGBT mariachi band!

Me, Kou, and David stand in remembrance of Ed Steck and “Free Dad Hugs”.

Reyes, me, and Kou. You’ll always run into friends and family at Pride Visalia!

Check out my Facebook photo album of the event, here.

See you next year!

Hamas attacks Israel

October 8, 2023

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Photo: AP News

The terrorist organization Hamas launched an attack against Israel that has left hundreds, perhaps thousands, dead. Israel has said it had no intelligence that would lead them to believe an attack was being planned.

I don’t buy that.

Mossad is one of the premier intelligence agencies in the world. Their association with the CIA and MI6 makes me think, despite movies that pit each agency against each other for dramatic effect, that they had to have known something was imminent. How could Hamas moved, secured, and kept hidden that many rockets and guns without someone being aware of it and letting Israel know?

Maybe it’s my cynicism in my old age, but I suspect this story will unravel to become one of the most damning conspiracies in recent history. Why do I think that? Well, sit back and let me ‘splain it to you, Lucy.

Here’s my scenario:

It all goes back to Trump and Jared.

We know Trump provided access to secret intelligence documents to unauthorized individuals. Jared (Kushner, son-in-law of President Trump, just in case you didn’t know the name) was “in charge” of the Middle East “peace process”. We know nuclear secrets of one of our allies (presumed to be Israel) was given (you can’t even give it the prestige or precedent of calling it a “leak”) to unknown agents (assumed to be Saudi Arabia). I think it’s safe to assume a lot of other information was included in this incident.

Jared was rewarded with 2 billion dollars.

Saudi Arabia has had several years to infiltrate Gaza with weapons, provide intelligence and support, and plan an assault on Israel.

All of that is bad, but here’s where my inner cynic really gets wound up.

I think Mossad knew Hamas was planning an attack. If they didn’t, they’re incompetent, and the entire upper leadership should not only be sacked, but charged with criminal negligence.

I suspect Netanyahu new there was an attack coming, and let it happen.

Why?

Because that would give him the political power to do what he’s always wanted to do: Destroy the Palestinians.

I think his government knew. I think the CIA knew. I think MI6 knew. Maybe not how big the attack was going to be, but they had to know something was cooking and ready to boil over. Netanyahu and his government let it happen to be able to respond with the full force of their US-supplied military.

This weekend’s attack and the (totally justified) Israeli response has set the peace process back at least 50 years.

Let’s hope it doesn’t lead to World War III.

Déjà vu all over again: Liberty Hill, Texas

June 27, 2023

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In 2008, the City Council of Porterville, California became the first and only government body to formally vote to urge residents to support Proposition 8 on the statewide ballot. That proposition would go on to pass, and banned marriage equality (AKA gay marriage) in the state. In 2013, after appeals and rulings, the United States District Court would strike down the initiative as un-Constitutional. (In 2015, the United States Supreme Court would rule that marriage equality bans were a violation of the US Constitution as well, and struck down all bans.)

What has this to do with Liberty Hill, Texas? That’s the déjà vu all over again.

On June 14, 2023, Mayor Liz Branigan of Liberty Hill, Texas, issued a proclamation, designating June as Pride Month.

I’m sure Liberty Hill has, like most communities, a lot of issues for local government to deal with. It takes something like a Pride Proclamation to get the folks of the town to pay attention. They showed up at the city council meeting, most of them not happy. You’d think the Mayor had just imposed ‘wokeness’ on them, and the citizens now have to wear stylish clothes and listen to Drag Queens read them children’s stories.

Here is the text of the entire proclamation:

PRIDE PROCLAMATION
Whereas, Liberty Hill is a Loving, Wholesome and Family-centered community; and
Whereas, Liberty Hill is an inclusive and supportive community; and
Whereas, We value all of our citizens because of the unique and precious nature of all of God’s children; and
Whereas, We oppose hate, abuse, discrimination or bullying of any person,
Now Therefore, I, Liz Branigan, as Mayor, do proclaim the month of June as Pride Month in Liberty Hill, in harmony with the larger community of the United States.
Proclaimed this the 14th day of June 2023.

Mayor Liz Branigan

That’s rather bland, isn’t it? It doesn’t even specifically refer to LGBTQ. That didn’t stop the “loving Christians” from flooding the council chambers and going off on the ‘slippery slope’ the city was forcing on them.

This is almost a replay of the events of June, 2013, in Porterville, California. Porterville is a small city in Central California, smack in the buckle of the state’s very red, very conservative Bible belt of the central valley. Kevin McCarthy is the Congressman for the area, as Devin Nunes was before him.

Here’s a blog I wrote about the Porterville proclamation, before it was issued.

When the proclamation was issued by Porterville’s mayor, all hell broke loose. (Kudos to Liberty Hill for not having a scene anything like Porterville’s.)

It should be noted that up until this proclamation, the process to issue one in Porterville was similar to Liberty Hill’s. The mayor gets an application from someone in the community, they decide if it meets the very basic requirements, and if so it gets placed on the agenda. Someone on city staff prints up the proclamation, it’s slipped into one of those blue folders, the Mayor and, if they desire, the city council members sign it. It’s then presented at a council meeting, usually to the person that initiated the request.

The only person to sign Porterville’s proclamation was the Mayor, Virginia Gurrola. Here’s the Porterville proclamation.

Another one of those “divisive” “gay agenda” things being “rammed down their throats”.

The proclamation did not go over well.

Other city council members decided enact another first in the nation (as far as we can ascertain), and rescind the proclamation in a formal vote. That didn’t work out as first planned, because the council members were in such a rush to undo what the Mayor had done that they didn’t add it to the agenda correctly. Thus began a Keystone Kops caper stretching over the summer as the other council members struggled to get it right. They eventually did, and rescinded the Pride proclamation, and ‘replaced’ it with a proclamation of “A Month of Community Charity and Goodwill to All in Porterville”. Doesn’t that sound like something that was said in the Liberty Hill meeting?

So now Liberty Hill Texas has a choice. Will they wish their LGBT community a happy Pride Month, or will they go the Porterville route, and fight tooth and nail to remove a rather milquetoast proclamation? Will they vilify the mayor?

The Visalia Times Delta published a blog post I wrote about the entire situation in the September 21-22, 2013 print edition of the Opinion page. You can read it here.

It’ll be interesting to see what Liberty Hill decides to do.

Like I said, déjà vu all over again.

I’ve figured out who turned me gay…

March 17, 2023

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The right-wing loons have for a while now been going ballistic about drag queens “grooming” children. They claim that children will be ‘seduced’ (or something) into the LGBTQ lifestyle if they have a “man in a dress” read stories to them. It always seemed like nonsense to me, but I’ve been thinking recently about an event in my life when I was about 5 years old that may hold the key to my homosexuality. It all dates back to a home-made soft drink.

It is, apparently, very easy to turn someone gay. A rainbow flag, a drag queen reading a children’s story, gay characters on television. Franklin Graham thinks inviting gay children into your home won’t turn them straight, but will turn your kids gay.

Graham said, “I was talking to some Christians and they were talking about how they invited these gay children to come into their home and to come to church and that they were wanting to influence them.

“And I thought to myself, they’re not going to influence those kids, those kids are going to influence those parent’s children.”

The power of “the gay” is so much greater than the allegedly default heterosexual orientation.

This explains why I’m gay.

My parents were both straight. My sisters are straight. My grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, neighbors, and most (if not all) of my teachers were straight. I don’t recall seeing homosexuals on television or in the movies unless they were depicted as criminal, insane, predatory, molesters, or suicidal. Certainly nothing in the general media I ever saw was positive. So how did I end up gay?

Well, I think I may have been slipped a gay mickey when I was five.

One evening my parents took me and my younger sister with them to visit a friend of theirs. I remember being uneasy at his house, uncomfortable around him. Now this could just have been my natural shyness, but I’ve always had this memory of that man being somewhat effeminate. I could be mis-remembering that, however. (It was sixty years ago, after all!)

This gentleman had a bar set up in his home. (a popular thing in the 60’s was to have a small bar in the den or family room) He mixed up some drinks for my parents, and offered to make me one. I was not comfortable with the idea. In my 5 year old mind it seemed strange that a grown-up would be offering to mix me up a drink. I didn’t say anything, but my parents said it was OK.

He grabbed a glass, and began mixing up a drink, handing it to me when he was done. My parents told me to go ahead and drink it. I took a cautious sip, and was very surprised. “It’s a Pepsi!” I exclaimed. The adults laughed at me a bit, not in a mean way, and I continued to drink my soda.

Well, that must have been it. Along with the caramel coloring, flavoring, and soda water, he must have slipped the “gay mickey” in there as well. It’s obviously tasteless, because even at 5 years old I was very discerning in my soda consumption.

Acknowledging gay kids in school or church, having drag queens read children stories, and flying the rainbow flag “grooms” kids to be gay. I suppose the mickies aren’t needed any more, since those things are so much more powerful than “normal” orientation.

So here’s to being ‘seduced’ into gayness by a spiked soft drink. It only took another thirty years to come into full effect.

Disclaimer: I do NOT really believe I was turned gay by a spiked soda. There’s no such thing. Drag queens don’t “groom” kids, gay kids can’t turn other kids gay, and a rainbow flag can’t flap the gayness right into someone.

What I do believe is that the right-wing loons are simply haters who will do or say anything to disseminate their hatred of the LGBTQ community. Well, as the old saying goes, “we’re here, we’re queer, get used to it!”

Anyone want a soda? I’ve got this great recipe. 😉

I see you…

February 14, 2023

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So. Yesterday and today have seen a few someone’s really checking out my postings. I always wonder what’s going on when this happens. Did you just discover my blog, and you can’t get enough? Did you run across my TikTok and want more?

So many views, but no comments or likes. Not even a rude or insulting comment.

It all makes me wonder. I hope you at least enjoyed the visit. See you next time. Subscribe so you don’t miss out!

Still here!

January 18, 2023

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Still around, just haven’t been in a writing mood recently. Maybe soon?

Happy Pride 2022!

June 1, 2022

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Happy Pride! Make it a good month. Here in California, it’s going to be a hot one… and the weather will be on the warm side, too.

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