Halloween

Damien and I plan to attend the Lamda Legal Halloween party this evening. Rowan had invited us to the do at her sorority, but I had already promised the Lamda organizers that Damien and I would be there. I will go as the Clint Eastwood cowboy-without-a-name and Damien threatens to wear his lame sailor uniform. It is the uniform that is lame, by the way, not the sailor.

Anyway, this should be a great party. It is a sort of joint celebration with HRC and this year there is a lot to celebrate. I suspect some of the legal staff will show up as the ghosts of Prop 8 and other now-dead antigay laws and state constitutional amendments.

Whatever you do, have a great time!

Halloween treats 5

Halloween treats 4

Halloween treats 3

Halloween treats 2

Halloween treats 1

I grew up in a rural Orthodox Jewish household. We didn't believe in the resurrection or the afterlife and so did not believe in ghosts. We did not do the whole trick-or-treating thing because the farms were far apart. But I have come to appreciate bits of this particular tradition, and I like the idea of costumes and treats. So for the next few days, I will share some costumed treats with you. You will have to find your own tricks, however.

Wonder where Faux News gets its "facts"?

Interesting

When I came out to my parents a decade ago, my mother fretted that my niece, who adored me, would be crushed. Instead she wrote me the nicest note telling me how much she loved me. Even better, when she told her friends at school, they said, "Thank God there's someone interesting in your family!"

More Catholic than the pope?

Apparently not ...

Insanity

Insanity is popularly said to be doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

It would seem that the governors of Alaska and Idaho qualify, since they both plan to appeal recent decisions about marriage equality. This is grandstanding and pandering at its worst, made doubly offensive because it wastes the taxpayers' money and the courts' time.

If a body catch a body comin' through the rye ...

Gin a body meet a body
Comin' thro' the rye,
Gin a body kiss a body,
Need a body cry?

...

Gin a body meet a body
Comin' thro' the grain;
Gin a body kiss a body,
The thing's a body's ain.

"Comin' Thro' the Rye" 

Robert Burns

1782

Because hysterical, media-inflamed irrationality never goes out of style

Equality in the United States

But in the real world and not the world of animated gifs, all those dominoes will fall -- despite efforts by reactionary public officials to put them back up.

Progress, not perfection

As was to be expected, the situation with marriage equality remains muddled as the week unfolds. Or perhaps, unravels.

The Supreme Court chose not to take up any of the cases that had been presented to it, and this was widely understood to be a victory for equality. On the other hand, plenty of reactionary governors and attorneys general are still dragging their heels, playing to the fringe and making veiled threats about Civil War. Members of the fringe make outright threats about Civil War, but that is to be expected. Justice Kennedy stayed two states, then lifted one stay. County judges are issuing marriage licenses against the direct orders of their governors and attorneys general. Some states are refusing to follow through on court-ordered equality in a number of areas.


Out of chaos may appear order, but don't expect it too soon. The American legal system has many good points, but neatness, timeliness and humaneness are not always at the top of that list.

Justice wears a blindfold supposedly to remain impartial in weighing evidence. Sometimes I  think it is to hide her tears.

Ted Cruz and the Cruzade Against America

Surprise from the Supreme Court

The Court's decision to let stand the appeals court decisions was a surprise, but at least one of my legal eagle friends had speculated just last week that this might be the fastest way to marriage equality.

It is a decision/nondecision that will please many, anger many and satisfy no one totally. It still leaves the nation as a whole divided and confused, as has already been evident, with people marrying and moving to other jurisdictions where marriage is not recognized.

But it is a huge step forward. So to all our friends in the areas where equality is now the law of the land, congratulations!

It's Yom Kippur -- Have a good fast!

Not yet

After meeting Monday for its first closed-door conference to begin deciding which cases to hear this year, the Supreme Court this morning announced the first round. No same-sex marriage case was among those granted certiorari -- a hearing.

"So to clarify, the Court did not act on any of the same-sex marriage cases," SCOTUSblog's Amy Howe explains. "This could mean a couple of different things. It could mean that the petitions will be denied when the Court issues the rest of the orders from Monday's conference -- probably on Monday morning at 9:30 a.m. It could also mean that the Justices are taking more time to look at the cases: there are seven different petitions, involving a couple of different issues and different stances by state officials. Even if there are four votes to take up the issue, they may need additional time to figure out which case(s) and which question(s). The next conference is scheduled for next Friday, October 10, so if review is not denied on Monday, October 6, we likely would not hear anything until Tuesday, October 14 (because October 13 is a federal holiday)."

In other words, we wait.

The Justices are looking at a same-sex marriage cases in Utah, Oklahoma, Virginia, Indiana and Wisconsin.