Free Republic

An underground gay group in the military wants recruiters to reach out to the gay community in the same way they target blacks, Hispanics and women. The Pentagon’s ban on openly gays members is due to be lifted Sept. 20, meaning avowed gay people can sign up, those in the ranks can come out of the closet and the military will no longer discharge personnel because of sexual preference. What is unclear is the number of post-ban policies that might be adopted to meet the demands of gays and ease integration of different sexual identities. The group OutServe, which claims...

Very soon, the United States military will progress like much of the country already has. At the end of September, the military's discriminatory ban on gays serving openly will end. With the official abolishment of "don't ask, don't tell," gay service members will no longer be forced to lie in order to serve the country.

Willow Creek Community Church is no longer an affiliate of Exodus International, ending a relationship that spanned across several decades. Willow Creek spokespersons say they just wanted to rethink the South Barrington megachurch's affiliations, but Christianity Today reports that Exodus President Alan Chambers believes the church split from his organization to avoid public criticism. "The choice to end our partnership is definitely something that shines a light on a disappointing trend within parts of the Christian community," Chambers told the publication, "which is that there are Christians who believe like one another who aren't willing to stand with one another,...

Very short notice, but per Woofie, no info as to the subject matter, but he will be in the Briefing Room.

Friday night on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees, the lead story was on a counseling clinic owned by presidential candidate Michele Bachmann (R-MN) and her husband. Cooper spoke of "allegations that the clinic engages in so-called reparative therapy," described by Cooper as "based on the theory that gay people can be turned into heterosexuals through a combination of prayer and willpower." The host's use of "so-called" set the stage for CNN political analyst Paul Begala to fulminate. Using the word "crackpot" to characterize reparative therapy no fewer than nine times, Begala insisted Mrs. Bachmann should be interrogated: BEGALA: She should...

SAN DIEGO (AP) -- More than 200 active duty troops and war veterans waving small American flags alongside rainbow banners are marching in San Diego's gay pride parade. It's believed to be the first time an identifiable group of active duty troops has participated in such an event in the U.S.

The media are at it once again with a real vendetta towing a hypocritical line. Enter CNN and HLN. Wolf Blitzer. Anderson Cooper. Dr. Phil and Dr. Drew, just to name a few. What has these networks and individuals – along with homosexual extremists and liberals – so fuming mad? Michele and Marcus Bachmann. If you haven't noticed lately, Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann is one of the fastest rising superstars in today's political arena – a Republican frontrunner in the race for the 2012 office of the president of the United States. Bachmann is Christian and conservative. She has a...

Former Dallas Cowboys great Michael Irvin appears shirtless on the cover of this month's gay men's magazine Out and discusses his passion for equality issues. Irvin publicly acknowledges that the impetus for taking a stand comes from his relationship with his gay brother, Vaughn, who died of stomach cancer in 2006. Irvin had not spoken publicly about his brother previously, according to the magazine.

Now that same-sex marriage has been legalized in New York, at least a few large companies are requiring their employees to tie the knot if they want their partners to qualify for health insurance. Should companies require gay employees to marry if they want health coverage for their same-sex partners? Corning, I.B.M. and Raytheon all provide domestic partner benefits to employees with same-sex partners in states where they cannot marry. But now that they can legally wed in New York, five other states and the District of Columbia, they will be required to do so if they want their partner...

Hate crime and battery charges have been filed against three teens accused of hurling anti-gay insults at a man and threatening him with a knife in a confrontation that began in a bathroom at Chicago’s Millennium station. Mack Heard, 17, and Kendrick L. Towner, 18, both of Richton Park, were ordered held in lieu of $50,000 bail each when they appeared today before Judge Maria Kuriakos Ciesil on a felony hate crime charge and a misdemeanor count of aggravated battery in a public place.

As a son of Georgetown University, I laughed at the pathetic Irish of Notre Dame when they made news for putting on their board Roxanne Martino, who gave a measly $27,000 to EMILY’s List, a group that works to elect pro-abortion politicians. That’s a trifle by Georgetown’s standards.

My eyes just about bugged out of my head when I saw a post about this on AmericaBlog. Of course they popped out when Anderson Cooper and Matt Drudge made the list in years past. Maybe since the word "gay" isn't in the official top 50 list, they can't get sued? But then, the truth is a defense in a libel case, and telling the truth really can't be defamation either, right? And I'd have to think that Out Magazine must be pretty sure about the orientation of the people they picked. And Shepard placed sixth! Welcome to the club,...

SAME-SEX WEDLOCK became lawful in New York last week after the state legislature passed a bill recognizing "otherwise-valid marriages without regard to whether the parties are of the same or different sex." Governor Andrew Cuomo, a fervent proponent of gay marriage, signed the bill into law Friday night. No one was a fervent proponent of gay marriage 44 years ago this month when the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that laws barring whites and blacks from marrying were unconstitutional. Same-sex marriage wasn't even a fringe issue on June 12, 1967, the day the court handed down its landmark decision in Loving...

<p>SPRINGFIELD, Mass.—Nine people, ages 12 to 19, are facing hate crime charges in connection with the beating of an openly gay man in Springfield.</p> <p>Sgt. John Delaney said the beating occurred shortly after 3 a.m. Tuesday as the 30-year-old victim walked down a Springfield street.</p>

CHICAGO (CBS) — Was the vandalism of 51 floats for the Gay Pride Parade this past weekend a hate crime? Police say they are not investigating it as such. But the parade organizer and the owner of the floats both said they believe it was. The Pride Parade went on as always in the Boystown neighborhood, with appearances by Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Gov. Pat Quinn, among other dignitaries. Hundreds of thousands of people gathered along Halsted Street, Broadway and Diversey Parkway, high-fiving and embracing strangers and wishing them, “Happy pride!” But the tire-slashing put a damper on the event...

President Barack Obama spoke to LGBT supporters (and generous contributors) at a gala fundraising event in New York City Thursday night. Because of the event's location and timing -- smack in the middle of the New York state legislature's debate on gay marriage -- the president was under intense scrutiny; some same-sex marriage backers hoped (despite warnings to the contrary) that the president might finally offer them his unequivocal support. They were almost universally disappointed. "Instead of discussing his stand on the issue -- one on which his aides have said he’s 'evolving' -- the president described the battle underway...

SAN DIEGO -- History will be made at this year's San Diego Pride Parade when active-duty military members will march openly through the heart of Hillcrest. "To my knowledge [it is] the first time in the history of Pride in the United States, ever, that we have said, 'Active duty, you are welcome,'" organizer Sean Sala said. "We want you to be there without fear of repercussions, because we love you." Sala, an active-duty sailor, said he was bothered to see that police and firefighters were represented in the Pride parade, but not the people who serve this country. "I...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama's "evolving" stance on gay marriage was headed for a high-profile test Thursday as he prepared for his first-ever fundraiser for gay donors just as New York lawmakers maneuvered toward a historic vote legalizing gay nuptials. The outcome of the negotiations in Albany, the state capital, remained uncertain, but the vote could occur just hours before Obama's event Thursday evening in New York City.

TORONTO, ON – A new study by psychologists at the University of Toronto and Tufts University shows that a woman can more accurately identify a man's sexual orientation when looking at his face, when she is closest to her time of peak ovulation. Further, having romantic thoughts or a mating goal heightens a woman's ability to discriminate between straight and gay men. "This effect is not apparent when a woman is judging another female's orientation," says Professor Nicholas Rule of the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto, lead author of a new study published in Psychological Science. "This...

The Cubs are sending a message of support to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth, becoming only the second professional sports team in the country to join the anti-bullying "It Gets Better" campaign.