I Didn't Say It ...

Pete Buttigieg, former Transportation Secretary, responding to criticism of his recent remarks about trans athletes:

“I see this issue being used to divide. I see it being used to hurt people. It’s especially hurtful for trans people and people with transgender members of their family who witness themselves or people they love being used as a political football. We’re talking about one of the smallest, as well as one of the most vulnerable minorities in this country and in the world. In order to bring people together on this, we also have to take everybody seriously, including parents who have questions. Above all... those questions should be handled by communities and by sports leagues and not by politicians.”

The exchange followed a July NPR Morning Edition interview in which Buttigieg framed the inclusion of transgender girls in sports as a matter of “fairness,” while rejecting blanket federal bans. Some Democrats, Pete supporters and LGBTQ+ advocates criticized his framing as playing into right-wing narratives.

Buttigieg’s clarification comes as the fascist regime enforces executive orders banning transgender women and girls from women's sports teams. Though the policy has national reach, NCAA President Charlie Baker testified last year that fewer than 10 transgender athletes were competing among more than 500,000 college athletes.

All this for ten athletes … focusing on that rather than the hundreds who died in the Texas floods, or the countless victims of Jeffrey Epstein and The Felon, the children shot in schools. Where the fuck are our priorities?

Sidenote: University of Washington endocrinologist Dr. Bradley Anawalt says performance gaps between cisgender and adult transgender women narrow, but don’t entirely disappear, after several years of hormone therapy. Military fitness data showed that trans women’s running times aligned with cisgender women’s after two years, while their push-up scores remained higher for the duration of a four-year study.

photo

Trey Cunningham, American hurdler, on how his performances have improved since coming out as gay in 2024:

“It was for me, just to be one hundred percent authentic, transparent, and not holding back any part of me. My coach was really big on this, like, ‘You have to be totally confident in yourself and whatever that means to you on that track.’ There’s something incredibly powerful in being so authentic. A lot of people have told me that they appreciate me being around because I’m authentic. I’m always going to be truthful, I’m honest. I’m shooting it like it is and I’m being me.”

Cunningham’s huge success as an out gay athlete—rising to a level he’d never been—is an incredible testament to coming out and being out in pro sports.

photo

Chely Wright, country music star, on coming out back in 2010:

“When I came out, I didn’t want to feel like I was having anything taken from me. It was my choice … but, it’s like, I’ll be damned if the world or the industry is going to take something from me that I earned. [But] it’s really hard. You know, from like age four, I was telling everyone in my hometown, ‘I’m gonna be a country music star!’ And then, 35 years later, going on the Today show and realizing I’m gonna [have to] give some of that back—like, give a piece of that fan base and that sweat equity back … I can tell you what I wasn’t solving for in coming out and telling my story: Getting people who didn’t like the idea of a country music singer being gay to be OK with being gay. I knew very clearly I wasn’t solving for that. The outcome that I was going for was telling the world who I was, all the pieces of me—this person of faith who toured in support of the troops and was from the Midwest, who loves the Grand Ole Opry and loves country music and loves Connie Smith and Loretta Lynn, and also happened to be gay. Beyond that, I had to let go of people liking me. …I feel really lucky and grateful and honored to have done what I did when I did it, and I hear so frequently from other people in the industry and new or emerging artists that my story and my coming out gave them a little bit of comfort and insight and maybe community. Of all the things I’ve done in my life, coming out, not just when I did but how I did, I think it’s the thing of which I’m most proud … And every time I see someone come out in country music or in the industry, I feel like that I got to be a tiny drop in this giant wave of change. It’s pretty cool to see.”

The person who steps up and out always blazes a trail for others to follow, even in the depths of country music.

photo

Jonathan Hertwig-Odegaard, Norwegian decathlete, on being openly gay:

“I think it’s great that you can be a role model, but at the same time I hope in the long run that it doesn’t have to be necessary, and that it gets so much publicity and attention. I think that being openly gay is not really anything new. I mean, there are no athletes who are heterosexual who need to come out about it. Among athletes, people talk about ‘it’s so brave and tough’ when people come forward. I feel that there is a bit of a wrong focus, that the responsibility should not lie with individuals. I think it is the responsibility of society at large to facilitate that people are comfortable being open about their sexuality, also as athletes. Now I’m proud and happy with who I am, and I don’t think there’s a problem, so if others do, then that’s their problem.”

Wouldn’t it be nice to live in a world where your sexual orientation or gender identity didn’t matter; where you could just be you and it didn’t matter.

I doubt I’ll ever see it, but I can dream …

photo

Sarah McBride, Democrat Representative from Delaware and the first out transgender Congress member, blasted The Felon regime’s ban on trans military members:

“These are Americans who have served with honor, with distinction and with unshakable patriotism; brave, honorable and committed patriots who have also dared to have the courage to say out loud that they are transgender … They have deployed into combat, flown missions overseas and led troops through danger, and now this administration is telling them that despite their qualifications and their exemplary quality of service, that they can no longer serve simply because of how they express their gender. In our state, service isn’t abstract—it’s personal, and we see every single day what honor, discipline, and sacrifice looks like regardless of someone’s gender identity. These [trans] individuals met the same rigorous standards as their peers, the same physical exams, the same screenings, the same background checks, and in many cases, under intense scrutiny, they didn’t just meet those standards—they exceeded them. This decision to remove proven patriots for no justification causes, causes serious weakness to our forces. It turns away proven courage, it wastes billions in taxpayer investment—decades of hard-earned experience—and is a direct blow to readiness, because this decision isn’t about readiness. It’s not about discipline or merit … It’s about exclusion. It’s about using identity as a wedge to divide and distract. It’s a cynical ploy, not sound policy. Some step forward while hiding who they are, forced to choose between their truth and their country. Others served openly when policy briefly aligned with principle. All of them, all of them served with honor. We are not made safer by sidelining qualified patriots. We are not made stronger by narrowing the ranks of who gets to serve. And we are not made freer by telling brave Americans that their truth disqualifies them from service. This ban weakens our military. It betrays our values and it sends the cruelest possible message to some of our most dedicated citizens: that their service is unwelcome and that one identity matters more than what they’ve done, what they’ve sacrificed and what they fight for.”

These are Americans who choose to serve their country and they are treated far worse than a five-time draft dodger who got his daddy’s doctor to write a not that his feet hurt so he couldn’t go to Vietnam.

I’d take one platoon of trans servicemembers over an entire army of Felon draft dodgers and cowards.

photo

I Didn't Say It ...

Pete Buttigieg, out military vet and former Transportation Secretary, on The Felon’s “slash-and-burn” proposal to cut 80,000 employees from the Department of Veterans Affairs [VA]:

Bottom of Form

“How can we not be pissed off when we see them coming after the workers who take care of our veterans, many of whom are veterans themselves? They’re going to slash-and-burn so much of the VA. [But] this could be an empowering moment for so many veterans, so many families and so many Americans .There’s a lot of folks in Congress who are incredibly nervous about this, a lot of congressional Republicans who know better, but … [who can at] least can be pushed, to stand up to this sort of thing.”

The very people who protect us, he wants to punish; the very job he ran from, crying that his feet hurt, he doesn’t think worthy of respect.

He cares about rich white people, Putin and hookers pissing on him; that’s all.

photo

Anthony Mackie, Captain America, on  playing gay roles during his career and how it helped him to be more empathetic toward gay people, including one of his own brothers:

“Growing up in the south in the 90s & 80s, you grew up homophobic, sexist and racist….that’s just a fact. So when I got to school, my roommate was gay, like I didn’t know how to deal with that. Like my brother is gay. So being a man, I used my art to better myself. I played Perry [Brother to Brother] so that I could understand my brother better, so I could understand my friends better. Going to art school, a bunch of my friends were gay. But with me, I needed to figure out what was my hold up, what was my insecurity about that. And once I played that role, I realized everybody deserves to be loved. It’s not my job to say who you love or who should love you, If you’re loved, I’m happy for you … So Perry was more a statement piece for me, with love and admiration for my brother, with the appreciation and respect for my friends, for that culture. I think it made me a better actor because I had to go so far outside the box.”

A favorite saying of mine: when you know better, you do better. And Mackie has learned better.

photo

Sarah McBride, Democratic Delaware Congresswoman and the first out transgender member of Congress, on the GOP being fixated on her gender identity instead of substantive policy issues affecting Americans:

“I appear to live rent-free in the minds of some of my Republican colleagues. I wish that they would spend even a fraction of the time that they spend thinking about me, thinking about how to lower the costs for American families. I wish they would spend a fraction of the time that they spend thinking about me, figuring out how to make government actually work better, rather than making it work worse in order to prove that government can’t work. The Republican Party is obsessed with culture war issues. It is weird, and it is bizarre. And the American people deserve serious legislators, serious elected officials who are focused on bringing people together to deliver real results for the American people. Not to play games, and not to engage in schoolyard taunts. We will not take a lecture on decorum from a party that incited an insurrection.”

Her remarks came just two days after Texas GOP Representative Keith Self, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, repeatedly misgendered her during a hearing,  calling her “Mister McBride.” The exchange prompted an immediate rebuke from Massachusetts Democrat Bill Keating who demanded a correction. Instead of apologizing, Self abruptly adjourned the hearing.

It's what the GOP does when confronted; they run off like rats.

photo

Ben Whishaw, out actor, on juggling very different projects—a spy in Black Doves, voicing Paddington Bear, and rehearsing Samuel Beckett’s "Waiting for Godot”—in an effort to avoid being pigeonholed:

“It was one of the strangest gear switches ever, but it is nice to inhabit so many different worlds. Somewhere in your mind, you have to refuse to be categorized, you have to keep very free. People love to categorize and file you somewhere and you have to really resist that ... This is something I’ve been thinking a lot about. I’m quite fascinated in how much has changed in the 20 years since I started acting. There were not roles like this [playing an openly gay hit man] … there were not depictions of queer people like this. Now you can play someone who’s not straight, and not that it’s irrelevant, but it’s not their defining characteristic—that person might have many other interesting facets. And those people can be the center of a story that appeals to a large audience … that’s new! I remember it was conveyed to me clearly that you should keep it a bit hush-hush that you’re gay and not to make much of a thing about it. Even though I wasn’t hiding it from my friends or the people in my life ... if you wanted to get roles, that was what was required of you. And I think that was it—it was a pretty tiny proportion. I can’t think of anyone who was my age. So I do really want to acknowledge the bravery and brilliance of those people, because it wasn’t nothing that we had them to look up to. And I’m grateful that we’ve moved on from that time, because it felt horrible.”

Whishaw has always marched to the beat of his own drummer, even as an out actor, trying to stay true to himself.

photo

Greg Casar, Democrat Congressman, on what the Democrats need to be doing:

“Today the biggest split among Democrats is between those who want to stand and fight and those who want to play dead. House Democrats united to stand and fight. Too many Senate Democrats played dead. We need more leaders from  the ‘Stand and Fight’ wing of the Democratic party.”

Stand and Fight. You work for us and we demand that you fight … or we will vote you out.

photo

Harvey Fierstein, playwright, actor, out gay man and live performer, on being banned from the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts:

"A few folks have written to ask how I feel about [The Felon]'s takeover of The Kennedy Center. How do you think I feel? The shows I've written are now banned from being performed in our premiere American theater. Those shows, most of which have been performed there in the past, include Kinky Boots, La Cage aux Folles, Torch Song Trilogy, Hairspray, Safe Sex, Casa Valentina, Spookhouse, A Catered Affair, The Sissy Duckling, Bella Bella, and more. I have been in the struggle for our civil rights for more than 50 years only to watch them snatched away by a man who actually couldn't care less. He does this stuff only to placate the religious right, so they'll look the other way as he savages our political system for his own glorification. He attacks free speech. He attacks the free press. He attacks America's allies. His only allegiance is to himself—the golden calf. My fellow Americans I warn you—this is NOT how it begins. This is how freedom ENDS! [The Felon] may have declared 'woke' as dead in America. We must prove him wrong. WAKE THE HELL UP!!!!!"

Resist.

Speak up.

Stand up.

Vote.

photo

I Didn't Say It ...

Pete Buttigieg, the outgoing Secretary of Transportation and the first out Cabinet secretary in U.S. history, had some advice, self-criticism, and a couple of mild rebukes for his political opponents in an interview with Rolling Stone:

“There’s a lot to be learned from Sarah McBride’s masterful handling of this on her way into Congress because what she said was: What the speaker’s doing is wrong. But I didn’t come here to fight over that. I came here to make life easier for people in Delaware who elected me. It immediately demonstrated [that Republicans] should be dealing with issues of utmost world-historical importance [rather than where] colleagues get to go to the bathroom.”

It’s not about bathrooms just like it wasn’t about drinking fountains or where you sat on a bus. It’s hate and fear used to keep people down and send fear out into the political landscape.

photo

Sarah McBride, the first out transgender member of the US Congress, in her farewell speech to her Delaware Senate colleagues:

"This body is the engine of public policy for Delaware. It's looked out for the unseen and the unheard, it has fought for working families, it's protected children, and it's supported our retirees; with compassion and courage, we have proven time and time again that small states can do big things [and] as I head out and head to Washington, D.C., I take with me all the lessons that I have learned here. I take with me the hope that I have found here that despite the rancor and the toxicity that we too often see in our politics, that we do genuinely have more in common than what divides us; that we can and that we must have conversations across disagreement; that we can have a politics of grace and not grandstanding, a politics of progress not pettiness."

She isn’t stooping to fighting about bathrooms, she’s standing tall and taking ion the old GOP bigoted guard on the issues facing her state and its people , and in doing so is giving a bright new face of what transgender looks like to America.

photo

João Lucas Reis da Silva, acknowledging he was gay when he wished his boyfriend happy birthday last week on Instagram, and thus becoming the first out active pro player on the ATP Tour, the highest level of men’s tennis:

“I didn’t think about it… I just wanted to post a picture with him … When I tried to love myself, that was something different. It changed my life, changed everything, the relationship with my parents, with my coaches. It was so normal for me that I didn’t think about it. Maybe if I had had someone playing saying, ‘I’m gay, I’m here, I’m competing for the big tournaments,’ it would have been easier for me to accept myself and to love myself. People have told me that. People told me that they admire me. That I inspire people. So it’s a big deal for me and them.”

Welcome out and using love to do it.

And welcome out you hot nugget!

photo

Tim Bagley, on being an out gay actor for many years in Hollywood who, remarkably, never hid his sexual orientation:

“I'll be honest with you, I've been just rolling up my sleeves and going about my business. I've been out since the beginning, and I always wanted someone to write about me, like anyone else would, but I just figured it wasn’t going to happen, and you know, I’ll just continue to do my job, and be happy that I’m still a working actor after all these years. That’s enough for me. I was advised not to do gay roles; at the time, my agent warned me that I might be limiting myself, that I wouldn't be eligible for the bigger, straight roles. It was common knowledge that they weren’t going to hire an out gay man [and] there were so many opportunities I never got a shot at. But I just kept building a career, making the most of the roles that did come my way, whether they were gay or straight. I’ve been lucky to play everything from a murderous postal worker on Grimm to comedic roles in Southland and Monk, still, many people associate me with my gay characters, and I’ve never backed away from them, unless I felt they were too stereotypical. I was never one to let fear guide my decisions. I felt it was more important to live authentically. I remember being so proud [of playing one half of the gay couple Larry and Joe on Will & Grace, whose characters got married as the fight for equality revved u] It showed people that there was nothing to fear about two men getting married. I’m living proof that you can be who you are and still have a career. I’m proud of what I’ve done, and I hope that in some small way, I’ve helped open doors for others."

I imagine many doors opened for actors who came after Bagley. He stood up and out and proud and open and made people see him for who he is, not “what” he is.

Bravo!

photo

Kristin Chenoweth, the original Galinda from Wicked, on those One Million Moms who call Wicked 'woke' and loathe the gay undertones of the film:

"Everyone knows the 'one million Moms' are a mere few hundred. Maybe. [Wicked] is entertainment. Artistry. I am a Christian woman [who] originated the role of Glinda and all the silliness that these women spew out of hate. No no no. I can’t help it : I try to love 'em anyways. For they don’t get it. For anyone who wants to see girl power, then go so WICKED. Onstage or in a movie theater."

One hundred Moms doesn’t have the power, so they lie about their numbers. Good on Galinda, er, Kristin, for taking them on.

photo

Adam Kinzinger, true patriot, on The Felon’s idea of punishing the people who investigated his many crimes:

“I was in the legislative branch. We were investigating, as per the request from Congress to do that. We obviously came up with answers that embarrassed [him]. He was embarrassed by it. It showed that he was completely complicit for 187 minutes while violence happened. He frankly wanted his vice president to be—to have violence against him. And that was embarrassing for the president. Sorry to embarrass you, Donald, but that’s what we were tasked with, was the truth. And history books will record this as the truth. You wanna threaten to throw us in jail for that? It just shows how small of a person you really are. I’m not intimidated. The person that intimidates me the least of anybody in this country is [The Felon].”

He's a tiny, well, not so tiny, gelatinous gasbag of lies and hate; he is not to be feared or revered., but to be mocked and laughed at and called a rapist, and a traitor, and a racist, and a sexual predator because that’s who and what he is.

photo

This Time I Did Say It ...

I was sad and discouraged on Wednesday; stunned, shocked, though I guess not surprised. I thought America had evolved from racist and misogynistic tropes and could elect a woman, and a woman of color, but men, who clearly vote with their dicks, couldn’t handle it; couldn’t handle the idea of a woman, with ideas, and plans, and hopes for the future being president.

So, they chose a rapist … I guess if he didn’t rape your wife or daughter he’s okay.

They chose a racist who has denied housing to Black Americans, who has called people like my husband drug dealers, murderers and rapist; who has called an entire country garbage by not standing up against the jackass who said it; who said Haitians eat dogs even after he was proven to be a liar; who says children are being forced to undergo gender reassignment surgeries in elementary school.

Liar.

They chose a traitor who praised Putin over his own country. They’re scared little men who chose a scared little man and I will not sit by and not speak up.

A “friend”—I put the word in quotes because I’m evaluating friendship in this case—and here’s a bit of what he said to me:

“If you want the country to be diverse, as it was intended, you have to understand diversity of people brings a diversity of beliefs and values. Agree to disagree and love each other. Also, just because you vote one way, doesn’t mean you support everything that party believes. I’m a gay marriage supporting, gun loving, marijuana legalizing, women’s choice (to a certain point), low tax and small government type of guy.”

He supports same-sex marriage but voted for a party that is intent on ending marriage equality, so um, yeah, Michael, you are not so gay-friendly.

But it’s not just same-sex marriage … annulling present marriages and prohibiting new ones. They will come for trans rights and deny healthcare to trans Americans;  and then it’s the drag queens. Eventually, they’ll get around to simply eliminating all equal rights for LGBTQ+ Americans in housing, employment, anywhere they choose. Now, of course, not everyone will abide by these ideals but the fact is this new regime will legitimize hate and discrimination.

He supports women’s choice “up to a point,” he says, and I wonder, and, as my Mom would say, excuse my French, “Who the fuck are you to decide which point?” You do not support a women’s right to choose and add a caveat to the statement; you either support women in every choice they make because it’s their body and their choice, or you do not support women at all.

Which brings me to low-tax and small government. How small  can government be when they are putting their hands all over a woman’s body, as a pussy-groper likes to do, and telling her what she can do with it? And when did The Felon say he was lowering taxes on anyone other than billionaires?

I want government to tell Michael that he has to have a vasectomy until he gets married and at that point he can have it reversed. That’s one way to prevent an unwanted pregnancy Mike … snip, snip. But that’s invasive on you, isn’t it?

I hope I am proven wrong, but please spare me your heterosexual “It’s not so bad” line. Everything is up for change unless you are a straight white Christian Nationalist male … and this will be felt for a very long time. I feel we are headed back to a very dark time in our history and when you think about how long it took us to even try digging out of it back then, think how hard it will be now. You don’t know just yet what you’ve done with your vote.

And Democrats; oh democrats. How many of you stayed home, again, because a woman was running? How many of you stayed home because of her laugh or the way she spoke, and figured other people would carry the party to victory. You clearly learned nothing from 2016 and so when times change and it gets dark in America and you come to me to complain  about this new regime. Forgive for saying:

“What the actual fuck did you do to change it?”

You chose the price of eggs over democracy; you male Democrats chose your fragile ego over freedoms for all; you ignored the woman who laid out plans for the middle-class, for small businesses, for women’s rights, for a bloated gasbag who admitted, admitted, that he has no plans, just the concept of a plan. You fucked America so kindly step aside and keep your mouth shut.

And so did the media. Oh, not Fox News because they’ve admitted in court they are not a news organization, but a  low brow, low intellect, conspiracy spreading gossip machine. But don’t you nod CNN, because you aren’t much better.

You let The Felon get away with saying whatever he wanted on your network without so much as a fact-check; you call his stories disinformation or misinformation which are big words for lies; lies. You never called him out on a lie, you never questioned his behavior. But god forbid Joe Biden take a pause in a sentence and the demented line pops up; the too old to be president line.

Sure, Joe stumbled and mumbled, but when The Felon turns a rally into a 39-minute dance break, or when he performs fellatio on a microphone stand or talks about the penis size of a dead golfer or cannot open a door on a dump truck you say nothing about his mental capacity.

Was that because the man in charge at CNN was a Felon supporter or because he was news, not for intellect, not for any redeeming value, but for being a pompous blowhard and you saw your ratings go up so you never questioned him, never called him out, never reported that what he said was a lie.

You’ve lost whatever credibility you ever had over your reporting of Demented DonOLD. But let’s move on … let’s look forward ….

As Kamala Harris said on Wednesday:

“The fight for freedom, for opportunity, for fairness and the dignity of all people, a fight for the ideals at the heart of our nation, the ideals that reflect America at our best—that is a fight I will never give up.”

And I won’t either. I ask for new Democratic leaders who speak truth to power, who call out the blatant lies of a criminal, of the far right, of that news entertainment show; I ask Democrats to show us better and give us better.

I need more Democrats like Pete Buttigieg and Hakeem Jeffries to speak up louder and longer; I see hope in Sarah McBride, the newly elected, first openly transgender member of Congress after winning Delaware’s only House seat: I see hope in Maryland’s Angela Alsobrooks, that state’s first Black senator; hope in Lisa Blunt Rochester, the first Black and first female senator from Delaware; hope in Emily Randall, the first out LGBTQ+ person elected to Congress from Washington State; hope in Yassamin Ansari, the first Iranian American woman to represent Arizona in Congress:  hope in Julie Fedorchak, the first woman to represent North Dakota in the House of Representatives;  hope in Julie Johnson, the first out LGBTQ person elected to Congress from Texas; hope in Jeffrey Graham, a local politician in Camden who has been elected to the Senate of South Carolina as a Democrat running on a platform of women’s right to make their own healthcare decisions.

I see hope there; I see change there; I see Democrats who will fight for equality and diversity and women and the people of color and Indigenous peoples and the LGBTQW+ community, and children in schools, and immigrants who many on the right forget built this country.

I need us to fight.

I need us to win.

I need us together.