Catholics Persecuted over Gay Adoption in Illinois? Not Even Close.

Once again, the Roman Catholic Church is giving out misinformation instead of facing the truth.

Catholic Charities, an Illinois adoption agency, had to close its doors because it lost funding from the state. According to attorney Peter Breen, the state is breaking the plain language of the law and violating the will of the citizens:

"The Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act only passed after specific assurances that the law would not impact the work of religious social service agencies. Specific protections for these agencies were written into the law, but unfortunately, Illinois officials refused to abide by those protections. This stands as a stark lesson to the rest of the nation that legislators promising 'religious protection' in same sex marriage and civil union laws may not be able to deliver on those promises."

Gosh, that sounds awful, doesn't it?

But this is nothing more than a smokescreen to hide the real truth. They lost on Constitutional principles that had nothing to do with the Illinois Civil Union Act.

The simple fact is that the Catholic Charities can continue to provide

Herman Cain Happy to Usurp States on Abortion, Marriage

What ever happened to honest conservatives? You know, the ones that believed in minimal government, states rights and individual freedom?

It seems they're turning those tasks over to the liberals. When it comes to abortion, marriage, gay rights and religion, the Republicans are showing their true colors: the conservatives are one hundred percent in favor of taking away individual liberties and states' rights.

CBN (the Christian Broadcasting Network) got an exclusive interview with Herman Cain that perfectly illustrates how Republicans are advocating a federal takeover.

"Yes I feel that strongly about [a pro-life Constitutional amendment banning abortion]. If we can get the necessary support and it comes to my desk I’ll sign it. That’s all I can do. I will sign it. ... I think marriage should be protected at the federal level also. I used to believe that it could be just handled by the states but there’s a movement going on to basically take the teeth out of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act ... we do need some protection at the federal level ... I would support legislation that would say that it’s between a man and a woman.

I just don't get how Republicans can talk out of both sides of their mouths with such ease. One minute

Bachmann, Romney and Cain: Religious Rights Trump Gay Rights

What do you do when two groups' civil rights come into direct conflict?

Three of the front-running Republican presidential candidates (Bachmann, Romney and Cain) say that religious rights trump gay rights when the government is giving out our tax dollars. And a fourth, Texas Governor Perry, almost certainly would have said the same thing if he'd been able to stay for the debate (he had to return to Texas because of the wildfires).

This shows a stunning misunderstanding of the United States Constitution and the very meaning of civil rights.

The question they were responding to was about gay couples adopting children. Many of the adoption agencies in this country are run by Christian churches, particularly the Catholic Church. And these same agencies get a lot of funding from the federal government. It shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone that Catholic adoption agencies don't want to let same-sex couples adopt children. The Catholic Church claims it violates their right to religious freedom.

Many Americans don't realize that outside of employment and housing, it's perfectly legal for an ordinary citizen to discriminate against anyone for any reason. If I were a racist, it would be perfectly legal for me to

Catholics Ban Girl Scout Membership

Pity the poor Girl Scouts of America (GSA). They've been criticized heavily for discriminating against atheists, agnostics, humanists, Muslims, Buddhists and other non-monotheistic girls. But unlike the Boy Scouts, who have stuck to their old discriminatory habits, the GSA modified its pledge to allow girls of all faiths ... as long as they have some faith (atheists are still not allowed).

But now they're getting hammered by Christian groups! Who would have expected that? Christians are banning their young girls from joining GSA, and the ringleader of this is the Roman Catholic Church itself.

The reason should be obvious: GSA has ties to Planned Parenthood, which provides resources on sex education to teens around the world. Yes, it's true. Girl Scouts of America is educating teen girls about their bodies! Can you imagine?

I should at least give the Roman Catholic Church credit for consistency. Their stance on abortion is unbending, and Planned Parenthood does provide abortions. I may vehemently disagree with the Church's moral position on abortion, but I can't blame them for enforcing it.

But other Christian groups are really going nuts. They have all sorts of crazy>

Military Chaplains Tell Court: Repeal Don't-Ask-Don't Tell

For the past five years, a group of active-duty military Chaplains have been working undercover getting ready to repeal the anti-gay Don't-Ask-Don't-Tell (DADT) policy of the U.S. Military. It's sad that even Chaplains have to work in secret when it comes to gay issues.

But last month, their secrecy ended. The Chaplains filed an amicus brief in support of the repeal of DADT, thus thrusting themselves into the limelight. It was a courageous act, but more importantly, it's an amazing document. Rather than commenting on it, I'm just going to quote some of the better parts, because these Chaplains said it far better than I could.

Here is the link to the full brief if you want to see the original.

Westboro Baptist: A Tribute to Elizabeth Taylor

"No RIP Elizabeth Taylor who spent her life in adultery and enabling proud f-gs. They cuss her in hell today. #Westboro will picket funeral!" That was the tweet sent out by the ultra homophobic gay-bashing Westboro Baptist church according to MSNBC.

If Westboro Baptist is protesting Elizabeth Taylor, it should remind all of us what a goo friend she was to the LGBT community. She used her celebrity status to fight for gay rights and all human rights. She was a relentless fundraiser for HIV/AIDS and raised millions. She also was a huge influence in raising awareness of AIDS and the rights of AIDS victims.

Westboro Baptist is now reviled by just about everyone from the