Walker pushes workplace discrimination/the firing of gay employees based on religious freedom and the conscience clause.

Make no mistake about it Scott Walker has a backup plan to allow gay discrimination to flourish if he had his way.

In February 25, 1082, Republican governor Lee Dreyfus signed the nations first Gay Rights Law. The reason? 

Dreyfus: “(The) fundamental Republican principle that government should have a very restricted involvement in people's private and personal lives.”

Not so principled now, it’s just a law that could and will be repealed or weakened at any time, especially by Walker. In this Meet the Press exchange, Chuck Todd asked Walker if he believes gay workers could be fired. Here it comes, the old "That means you have to have that balance" BS. You know, firing gay people because of your religious liberties and conscience represents a "balance:"



Todd could have followed up Walker's answer with a whole slew of questions, like what would gay workers do if they're in a state that doesn't have a law protecting them from from getting fired? Will Walker suggest they move? Acquiesce to being a second class citizen? Yes.

Guys like Walker have a blind spot when it comes to religious freedom, how one person could infringe on the religious freedoms of another. It's an easy concept to grasp.

But Walker's best chance to discriminate is in the state Constitution; the “conscience clause,” and he knows it:

Walker: "The Wisconsin constitution explicitly protects the rights of conscience of our citizens … the government will not coerce you to act against your religious beliefs. I call on the president and all governors to join me in reassuring millions of Americans that the government will not force them to participate in activities that violate their deeply held religious beliefs. No one wants to live in a country where the government coerces people to act in opposition to their conscience."

And if that doesn't work? Well, like all conservative politicians, they have no problem promising to pass a constitutional amendment that, for the first time, would limit freedoms and take rights away:

Walker: "We will need a conservative president who will appoint men and women to the Court who will faithfully interpret the Constitution and laws … to support an amendment to the U.S. Constitution to reaffirm the ability of the states to continue to define marriage."

Indiana and Arkansas Republicans push Religious Freedom to bypass Constitution.

These supposed "religious freedom" laws, allowing discrimination against sexual orientation, are an offshoot of the Hobby Lobby decision.

Conservative states that don't have protections for gay individuals are now passing "religious freedom" laws, a slight twist on the long sought after Republican backed "conscience clause," where a person could use religion to deny others their guaranteed freedoms. This all plays a part in the religious rights goal of two separate nations, one living under the constitution, and another living under the Christian religion (taxpayer supported vouchers go overwhelmingly to religious schools, another slippery slope where government ends up endorsing religion legally by giving the money directly to parents and not the schools).

Despite the national outrage, Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson is about to sign a similar "religious freedom" law. Crazy right? Hutchinson is another Republican extremist who's even more obvious about his political intentions:

Sexual orientation and gender identity are not included in Arkansas' anti-discrimination protections. Last month, Hutchinson allowed a measure to go into law that prevented local governments from including such protections in their anti-discrimination ordinances.

Hutchinson has delayed the signing until supposedly some changes are made that won't discriminate. Bullshit. It will be entertaining to see what the changes will look like.

The natural follow-up:

AP: Arkansas legislators passed a similar measure, despite criticism that it is a thinly disguised attempt to permit discrimination against gays. The Arkansas proposal now goes to Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who has said he will sign it.

Not even their paymasters, big business, have a say anymore, because this has been a core value of the Republican Party for decades.

Gov. Mike Pence was inadvertently as obvious about his intentions to discriminate against the LGBT community when he was asked that dangerous "follow-up" question by George Stephanopoulos:



Other's have also sent a strong message to Indiana:

Parks and Recreation actor Nick Offerman announced on Tuesday that he’s canceling the Indianapolis stop on his 2015 summer tour, but will perform on Wednesday at a scheduled show at Indiana University. (Offerman will donate his shows earning to) HRC, the Human Rights Campaign, one of the country’s most prominent LGBT rights groups. Check out Offerman here and here. 

The list continued to grow. Perhaps Arkansas will see a similar backlash?

Other organizations that are pulling their economic support from the state or boycotting travel to Indiana include Angie’s List — which halted work on a new operation in Indianapolis, the cloud computing company Salesforce, and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, which canceled its 2015 women’s convention in Indianapolis.

The Americana band Wilco announced that it is canceling its Indiana tour stops, as well.

Connecticut’s Gov. Dannel Malloy said that Pence can deny the law’s anti-LGBT thrust all he wants to. It is clear to anyone who is paying attention what the RFRA is about.

“The governor’s not a stupid man, but he’s done stupid things,” said Malloy to Mika Brzezinski, “and signing this law, and, quite frankly, promoting this law, knowing exactly what it was going to do, was an incredibly stupid thing for him to do.” Pence, Malloy said, “knew exactly what he was doing, and when you see a bigot, you have to call them on it. We cannot sit idly by and do nothing while laws are enacted that will turn back the clock,” Malloy said, saying that he “won’t allow any of our citizens in Connecticut to face discrimination in other states, at least without a fight.”

If you had any questions about the move to the religious right....

The hosts of Fox & Friends on Tuesday set up an interview with Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) by noting that he was a follower of the “law of the Bible” Steve Doocy agreed. “The political left is in a frenzy over this right now. But they’re missing the point. 

Who didn't see this coming..."Sodomite Suppression Act" allows gays and lesbians to be "put to death by bullets to the head."

Is America becoming a radicalized right wing despotic country? Yes, with a little ISIS envy thrown in. Here's what attorney Matthew Gregory McLaughlin thought California, heck, the country needs to keep God on our side:

A group of California legislators has filed a complaint against a lawyer who is proposing a statewide ballot initiative that would allow gays and lesbians to be "put to death by bullets to the head."

Matthew Gregory McLaughlin, an Orange County attorney, filed the so-called Sodomite Suppression Act on Feb. 24 with the state's Office of the Attorney General. McLaughlin's proposed law would also ban gays — whom he refers to as "sodomites" — from holding public office. Under his proposed law, people found guilty of spreading "sodomite propaganda" would be fined $1 million or see jail time.

McLaughlin faces an uphill task … The initiative must gather the number of signatures equal to 5 percent of those who voted in the last election for governor — or about 366,000 valid names. 

Glenn Grothman supports Locking Gay Ugandans up for Life!

State Sen. Glenn Grothman wants your vote for him as your next Congressman because he hates America and homosexuals. Summing it up, he said:

"Now America, supposed to be the light of the world, instead we’re the light going in the opposite direction.”

Grothman is talking about the U.S.'s sick embrace of the gay life style. In this Cap Times Steve Elbow piece, Grothman would rather have gay Ugandans locked up for life than help change their policies, as Sec. John Kerry suggested:  

State Sen. Glenn Grothman, R-West Bend, has a message for U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry: Send missionaries to Africa, not scientists to tell leaders “how normal homosexuality is.”

In February, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni signed a bill that could put people in prison for life for committing “aggravated homosexuality.” Museveni said he was prompted to sign the law after a report by Ugandan scientists concluded that homosexuality has no genetic basis. Kerry called the law “tragic” and later said he would send scientists to Uganda to help them understand homosexuality.

Grothman wants everyone to know just how he'll handle things if he were sent to congress:

“I mean, what must God think of our country if now … rather than sending people to Uganda to explain better agricultural techniques, sending missionaries to Africa, educating people on Christianity, we send scientists to Africa to say how wonderful the homosexual lifestyle is?” Grothman told Voice of Christian Youth America. “It is just unbelievable what has become of our country.”

Grothman has made headlines in the past for, among other things, saying single parenthood is equivalent to child abuse, calling Kwanzaa a “fake holiday,” opposing Martin Luther King Jr. Day and calling for a roll-back on restrictions to a seven-day work week.

U.S. slowly catching up to other civilized nations on same sex marriage.

Here's part of the story and recent chart from Nate Silver at the New York Times:

The availability of same-sex marriage is increasing almost as rapidly on a global scale. It was legalized in Brazil and France earlier this year and will become legal in Uruguay and New Zealand by August.

A decision last month by a Brazilian judicial panel that is generally seen as legalizing same-sex marriage, but could be subject to appeal, is especially important to this math. Brazil has a population of about 194 million — more than the combined 169 million in the nine countries in Europe where same-sex marriage is now legal. The most recent decision followed court rulings that had authorized same-sex marriage in more than a dozen Brazilian states.

Earlier this year, France, with a population of about 64 million, became the largest European country to legalize same-sex marriage, and the largest in the world to do so by legislative action.

By August, there will be about 585 million people living in countries or jurisdictions where same-sex marriage is legal. 

Gay Pride Parade in Wausau? Bigoted Fringe group, Wisconsin Family Voice’s President Julaine Appling, would deny Constitutional freedoms if she could for Backers.

Did you ever get the feeling the biggest defenders of the constitution are the ones over compensating for their lack of belief in it? Follow your gut on this one.

The only thing missing is a KKK like uniform for these authoritarian bigoted religious zealots. Of course they have every right, every freedom, to show the ugliest side of human nature. They are also carrying on an old tradition of using Christianity to prosecute and destroy people’s lives.

Grand Inquisitor Julaine Appling continues to spread her disease to every part of Wisconsin:

Wausau's plans to host its first gay pride parade are sparking complaints from a conservative family group, as well as at least one city alderman.

The plans were announced in the spring … a city committee in April signed off on a permit for the June 22 parade, and gay groups in the region said they planned to participate.

That didn't sit well with Wisconsin Family Voice, whose president, Julaine Appling, said last month in a blog post that pride parades are "nothing more than a display of immorality and propaganda."

Appling is such a good Christian role model. WAOW takes a look at the homophobe rantings of Ald. David Nutting: 

Ald. David Nutting echoed those sentiments Tuesday when he said at a City Council meeting that the parade is inappropriate and shouldn't be hosted, WAOW-TV reported.

"I ask that all residents stay away from the parade, or if you do go, stand with your back to the parade of deviant behaving individuals," Nutting said at the meeting.

County Board Member Jim Rosenberg, a former City Council president, called such a reaction "a big mistake.""We should be a big enough community to embrace all of the people that want to be a part of it, and that includes people that are gay," Rosenberg told the TV station.

UPS will no longer donate to Boy Scouts until anti-gay policy changes.

I often boycott businesses that support stark raving bigotry, racism and tea party lunacy.

But I'm happy to announce my support of UPS, who are calling for an end to the ban on gay Scouts and leaders everywhere.

One interesting note: Since Republicans want to do away with the U.S. Postal Service and leave mail delivery up to UPS and Fed Ex, and UPS takes a stand against anti-gay organizations, does that present a huge problem? Does it expose a big problem with our possible reliance on the private sector to serve all Americans? Not all businesses are conservative extensions of greedy CEO's hell bent on destroying the middle class.

Jezebel: UPS Not Donating to the Boy Scouts of America Because of Ban on Gay Scouts and Leaders

According to GLAAD, UPS released the following statement:The UPS Foundation seeks to support organizations that are in alignment with our focus areas, guidelines, and non-discrimination policy. UPS and The UPS Foundation do not discriminate against any person or organization with regard to categories protected by applicable law, as well as other categories protected by UPS and The UPS Foundation in our own policies. These include, but are not limited to race, gender, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran or military status, pregnancy, age and religion.

GLAAD has called for the Boy Scouts of America to end their ban on gay scouts and scout leaders since April 2012.