Sunday, November 28, 2010
Human rights Profile in courage
Posted by Max Brantley on Sun, Nov 28, 2010 at 7:18 AM
The courageous one would be Brian Muller, a gay Arkansas native, discharged from duties disarming bombs in Afghanistan after his sexual orientation was revealed, as reported in today's Democrat-Gazette.
You supply the adjectives for U.S. Sens. Lame Duck Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor. I'd asked them for positions on repeal of the ban on gay military service last week. Lincoln repeated the same ringing support for the concept that she'd given shortly before joining Pryor as the only two Democrats joining a filibuster against repeal. She still won't say she'll vote for repeal no matter what.
Pryor, who dodged my question entirely, now tells the Democrat-Gazette that he opposes repeal; that he thinks homosexuality is a sin and that he has reservations about housing gay troops with straight troops (as if this hasn't occurred forever). He's been fully indoctrinated by the Religious Right's false arguments — that military chaplains won't be able to continue to preach morally justifiable discrimination; that gays are just lying in wait to assault straight soldiers if only given the cover of open service. Pryor, at his core, is a Religious Righter, so I get it (though why he's fiddled around in coming out until now, I don't know). But what possible reason is there for Lincoln to be hesitant to do right, for once, without the wobble? Take a cue from Brian Muller and woman up, senator.
Speaking of...
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Mark Pryor stands up for inequality
May 17, 2012U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor covered his social conservative flank for 2014 on Wednesday. He voted against extending job benefits to same-sex partners of federal workers. /more/
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Anti-Pryor PAC files first financial report
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The Pin Prick Edition
April 27, 2012A class action lawsuit alleging tampering with lottery scratch-off tickets, how "Girls Gone Wild" founder Joe Francis and Mark Pryor got lumped together, the hot primary contest between state Rep. Fred Allen and incumbent Sen. Joyce Elliott and the end of Occupy Little Rock — all discussed this week. /more/
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UPDATE: Explanation arrives for Pryor intern offer
April 26, 2012I won't try to rehash it all, but the question of whether there was or was not a legitimate charity offer for a chance to be a summer intern for U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor doesn't seem likely to go away any time soon. /more/
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'Girls Gone Wild' no joking matter; Pryor office calls FBI
April 25, 2012Now that Republicans have successfully promoted the "Girls Gone Wild" internship hoax with Sen. Mark Pryor onto the Drudge Report, the Pryor office has gone beyond calling the thing a sham dirty trick and called in the FBI. /more/
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'Girls Gone Wild' claim a hoax, Pryor says
April 25, 2012"Girls Gone Wild" founder Joe Francis put out a news release today that said he'd purchased the opportunity to put an intern on U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor's staff at a charity auction and he intended to offer it as a prize for the winner of his reality series "The Search for the Hottest Girl in America." /more/
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Pryor casts a vote with labor
April 25, 2012There are measurable differences between Sen. Mark Pryor and the Republican Party, as much as the diehard leftwingnuts here want to deny it. /more/
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Will Pryor be Blanched?
April 25, 2012U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor sent a letter to close friends that said he would indeed be on the ballot again, rather than retire, run for governor, go to seminary or any other rumored new careers. His announcement roughly coincided with his vote, alone among Senate Democrats, to support a filibuster on the "Buffett rule," a proposal by President Obama to tap millionaires for higher taxes. /more/
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Meaningful posturing
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Whither Pryor?
April 25, 2012It is generally conceded that President Obama will not carry Arkansas in this year's presidential election. A more difficult question, still vigorously debated, is whether Obama will carry Mark Pryor. /more/
- More »
Comments (42)
Showing 1-42 of 42
We've known about Pryor since his appearance in "Religulous."
Here's what's really ugly about these people. The Southern Poverty Law Center just named the Family Research Council an official "hate group."
Tony Perkins immediately screams for an "apology." But take a look -- all in one place -- at these people's actual statements about gay Americans through the years. Hate?
Doesn't begin to describe what these people are actually about.
Here's one big lump of the FRC's Christian lies and hate. These are the "beliefs" that Lincoln and Pryor support. Their "religiously" justified hate hurts rather than helps the human race.
Hate group? With the rise in gay bashings, murders and suicides over the decades? You bet. And Lincoln and Pryor are part of this hate group, bob and weave with those dead-eyed smiles though they may.
http://www.americablog.com/2010/11/family-…
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David Sr. must be truly disappointed that of the lessons Mark learned at home pandering to the lowest common denominator was more memorable than tolerance and equality.
What the attitude of our senators brings to my mind is the phrase "the banality of evil." From the book TRIUMPH OF THE MARKET, by Edward S. Herman:
"The concept of the banality of evil came into prominence following the publication of Hannah Arendt's 1963 book Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil, which was based on the trial of Adolph Eichmann in Jerusalem. Arendt's thesis was that people who carry out unspeakable crimes, like Eichmann, a top administrator in the machinery of the Nazi death camps, may not be crazy fanatics at all, but rather ordinary individuals who simply accept the premises of their state and participate in any ongoing enterprise with the energy of good bureaucrats."
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/a…
Yeah, I think Low Pryor tried to down play the religious extremism because he knew the taste it would leave with his Dad and that part of the organization.
Yeah, I think Beebe is conservative, but not a nutcase who surrounds himself with religious fanatics.
Before you know it, Pryor will be trying to replace any mention of Darwin with statues of Adam and Eve.
Yes by all means Ms Lincoln woman up and go out with a bang for a change! Give us something to remember you by after all your replacement doesn't appear to have an equality ball in his arsenal!
For Ms Pryor to far gone for manning up. The religious fanatics have strangled all potential goodness right out of soul! Soul? What soul?
For the religious -- if it wasn't for hating what would sustain them? Oh hell they would find something to keep the coffers full.
Let all real Arkansas Democats resolve to oust Mark Pryor in the next primary. Wes Clark is one name that comes to mind as a replacement. Anyone else care to nominate a candidate?
We've known about Pryor since his appearance in "Religulous." - Norma
Yeup...still cannot believe how he manages to get re-elected. Pryor codifies in real life one of my favorite sayings from the Gumpster - Stupid is as stupid does.
To paraphrase James Carville: Mrs. Lincoln, perhaps Hillary will loan you one of HER balls?
If Jr Pryor were a simple citizen it would be easy to ridicule him or dismiss him altogether as another dumb sick puppy. But the fact is Mark Pryor is both evil and dangerous in the position he now holds. He's into mass murder and torture with endless needless war... gay hating barely qualifies as sport for him. It must be why he has to pray with The Family who hangs out in Africa with folk who simply wanted the legal ability to execute accused gays on the spot. If that truly bothered Mark at all he would have disavowed any and all relationship with The Family long ago.
It's the kind of sickness i wouldn't watch if it were a fictional horror flick... but this monster is real and represents all of us!
". . . you think Beebe is any different??? . . ." Dem4Life
I wonder if that wasn't the same line some used about Earl Warren when Eisenhower appointed him to replace Fred Vinson?
One can not always predict when a politician or public figure may begin to follow the courage of their conviction instead of following the re-election path or current popular wisdom. However, I will give good odds against Blank or Markie Mark ever having any convictions other than ". . . it is better to be a senator than a private citizen . . ." throughout their term . . . lame duck or not.
Whoops. Bad key strokes. I meant to note that Pryor's rumored to run for governor in four years largely due to the fact that his wife hate DC. I understand she lives here full time. This decision will drive away those of us on the left & make this a fairly easy GOP pick up
Miss Blanche's calculus now is whether voting for or against the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell will put more dollars in her pockets once she becomes an 'official' lobbyist come January. One can make a strong case she has been an underpaid unofficial lobbyist for a number of years. That's fixing to change.
Since her reelection crashed and burned, money is now her only concern.
Miss Blanche, I say sell your vote on Don't Ask, Don't Tell to the highest bidder!
As a vet (4-years active duty) I can counsel our young and greatly misguided Mark Pryor that gays in the military is an issue only for those who meddle in such things, not for those of us who wore a uniform. The subject didn't come up a single time during those 1,460 days I served. Not once! Mark needs to borrow one from Hillary too, spunkrat.
Mark sure fell far from the David tree, or perhaps was carried off by certain god-fearing types in his family.
There's too much wrong with our 2 Senators to write about even though pixels are free. When Boozman replaces Blanche it will even be worse. The blame lies with us because we elected these bastards. Because there's so much wrong with the people we send to DC, I can't find any pleasure in knowing I didn't vote for them....and lordy I'm always trying to find something that will make me feel better about our future.
What on earth happened in Mark Pryor's childhood to make him the man he is today? I'm assuming David Pryor was probably never at home, not that I'm trying to lessen his blame for such a son. But something warped little Markie and now we're living with his bad votes and embarrassing statements and his dedication to The Family...who seemed to be more on the order of Tony Alamo's group than anything the Methodists put out.
Mandatory psychological testing is the best way to safeguard our future. Of course if instituted, it would probably clear out not only the folks we've sent to Congress, but most of the Arkansas legislature too. Like most comedians are found to have had a troubled childhood, there's something from childhood that causes people to run for office...and a quick view of history would show whatever that something was or is.....it makes for a twisted human who resembles no one I know in real life.
Something good Congress could do for us in the next session is put the machinery in place that would allow us to recall our Senators when they go off the rails. A batshit crazy Mark Pryor for 6 long years can do too much damage. Life is too short to waste 6 years being represented by someone with bad judgment. But it's never too early to start rousting Mark Pryor out of office. Here's 4 votes for someone else reporting for duty!
We can't do anything to Blanche to make her vote right. She left us years ago and flew to the loving arms of the Fortune 500....who certainly don't want to pay benefits to gay spouses....it's the money....it's always the money. We may have dumped Blanche, but Blanche's corporate sponsors still own her ass and she'll continue to vote as they tell her to her last vote.
Gay rights will win out eventually, but not with the help of the numbnuts Arkansas sends to DC. The enlightened parts of Arkansas are still dwarfed by the McCance faction and the best way to win an Arkansas election is by waving yer Bible at the crowd at every opportunity. Time marches on in other places, but not here.....which allows corporate whores and C Street worshipers to do evil in our name. What a shame.
Is Mike any different than Mark...hell yea! I actualy think there are some positive notes in these events. So, Mark reveals, clearly, his Blue Dog biasis, which unfortunately for him, now marks him as a Republican light (this, most recently, has proven to be fatal in Arkansas politics). So Max, have you asked Bill Halter what his position is on DADT?
When Mark comes up again he must choose to run for senator or governor. I think Bill Halter has already left himself well positioned to take on the upcoming senatorial race and is the most likely choice for the Democratic party of Arkansas (although Gen. Clark is another possibility but would have to crank up the machinery again). On the other hand, in my opinion (as little as it is worth), Mike would be the perfect opponent for a senator like Boozman coming off his first term (likely with little to show for his time in office). Governor Beebe would have a record of 8 years of success at governing under difficult economic times and guiding the state back to safe waters, while senator Boozman would have....well I really can't think of anything meaningful to say here!
Then who is the Democratic nomiinee for governor? Well we have a revered, recently retired, US representative that almost every Republican in the state is affraid to run against and is looking for a job that will let him go home at night to his wife and kids in Little Rock......can anyone say Dr. Vic?
I can't get through the DG toll gate to read about Brian Muller, but what else do you need to know beyond the fact that he is a trained bomb disarmer? Could anything exemplify service more? Muller was SAVING lives of his fellow soldiers and civilians from the deadliest, most random enemy this war has – hidden IEDs that kill, maim or leave soldiers with invisible percussive brain injuries.
SHAME on the Pentagon! SHAME on the joint chiefs! SHAME on the president AND the Congress who hesitate ridiculously to support our troops - ALL our troops not just the straight ones. It's UN-AMERICAN in the EXTREME.
After Pearl Harbor, my grandfather, although he was too old, went to Little Rock to an induction center to volunteer. The story goes that they stripped everyone, questioned them, then ran them bare-assed naked down a long hall sorting them into pens like cattle. My very short grandfather was sorted into a "pen" with just one other guy, a tall man. After waiting and waiting, the two embarrassed, uncomfortable men tried to reason out why they had been sorted together. One was short; one tall. One was older than the other. They were not from the same county. Their last names did not start with the same letter. They did not have the same occupations. The two could not figure out what their similarities might be that they would be sequestered together when others were in groups of 5 or 10.
Finally, as they excused my grandfather from induction due to his age and marital status, they discovered the commonality. Both of them had college degrees.
What if one of them had been gay? What would have shown on the outside as they waited in their pen to be moved down the line? Same thing: NOTHING. They were two citizens willing to serve their country at the risk of their own lives.
Our troops just became LESS safe with the expulsion of Brian Muller and our country's principles that much more eroded. And we don't even have ONE VOTE in our Congressional delegation to repeal DADT. Blanche's weasel words mean nothing. I will fall dead in a faint if she were to vote for repeal but then she'll leave office before being put to the test.
Here's the real heartbreaker: for those gay people who serve, service is more important than their civil rights as gay people. They are sacrificing their own individual rights; their partners are sacrificing without benefits or recognition and must hide those sacrifices as well. There will be no mass action such as every gay service member coming out to demand the repeal. They'd RATHER SERVE!
Perhaps, for every gay person drummed out of the military, a straight one should be drafted to replace him. Preferrably from the right, as they'd be fulfilling two of their sworn duties: no gays in the military and then also serving. They'd love that, wouldn't they?
Geez, Markie is a tool of the top grade. Wonder what dad thinks of his spawn? Hope the lil twit comes home and runs for governor. At least it gets him out of Washington.
Considering that he never served in the military (best I can tell) and the DOD recommends repeal, what gives this little shithead the moral standing to vote against it?
Now that I think about it, I don't really care if Lesser Pryor feels homosexuality is a sin. I think taking the name of the Lord in vain is a sin, but i sure as hell support the civil rights of those who say God Damn it!
Well, look at it this way....Mrs. Mark Pryor lives back here in Arkansas and Mark is hanging out alone at C Street with a bunch of men. Is there a clue here? Self loathing, perhaps?
Norma Bates is right--Pryor's appearance in Religulous tells you all you need to know about him. From his belief in a talking snake to his malapropisms ("literacy" instead of "literality" and "indiguously" instead of, well, something), the guy's an idiot in a nice suit who was elected to the senate on the strength of little more than his last name. And on top of being an idiotic recipient of nepotism's gifts, he's now revealed himself to be a rank bigot.
Tony Perkins and THE AGENDA.
Anyone realize what can come from bankruptcy proceedings? Interesting findings when the money path is followed.
Just a mere 14 years ago Tony Perkins was campaign manager for Republic Senatorial candidate in LA by the name of "Woody" Jenkins. Perkins paid Grand Wizard of Ku Klux Klan, David Duke, $82,000 to use their mailing list. Then to avoid connection-exposure they ran the payments thru a media company.
During David Duke's bankruptcy proceedings in 1999 Perkins payments for the Klan list came to light and the Woody Jenkins campaign was fined $3000 for hiding the payments.
Before our resident wingnuts and black apologists get on here and say there is nothing a person can do about being born of a certain race..blah...blah..how they don't condone racism...blah...blah...blah,
there's a pretty clear line between white supremacists and homophobia. That's the AGENDA.
Conquer via fear. It's worked well for despots thru the ages. Homophobia is no different than white Negrophobia of the 1960s and 1970s.
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“Pryor . . . [told] the Democrat-Gazette that he opposes repeal . . .”
Indeed he did, but I have to wonder about the context in which he was speaking, since he also said this: “I want to give the military the time to do what they’re doing.”
So, when he says he’ll vote against any bill that includes a repeal policy, does he mean he’ll vote against any such bill BEFORE the military’s report is in, or that he’ll vote against repeal, no matter what?
I wonder, because Pryor also said this to the ArkD-G reporter:
“Society has changed a lot, and over time, this policy will change . . . we live in a society where we accept other people’s lifestyles, so I don’t want to be judgmental.”
We can surmise, but there’s no way to know, really, how this marshmallow of a senator will vote until he actually does. But that Pryor thinks homosexuality is a “sin” is an indication to me that his IQ barely exceeds his age.
March 28, 1949: The three service secretaries testify before the Fahy Committee. ... Secretary of the Army Kenneth Royall argues in favor of maintaining (racial) segregation, saying that the Army "was not an instrument for social evolution."
November 2010: Tony Perkins, President of the Family Resource Council, says that repeal of DADT is "using the military to advance a social agenda."
Memo to Messrs Royall and Perkins: When the military *discriminates,* it is "advancing a social agenda."
It's just the agenda you like.
Good catch Durango.
Mark is what...what....confounded? Nah, Mark is straddling.
Pandering to Tony Perkins and the Family Council while pretending to defer to military
leadership and the inevitability of social evolution. But not Mark. He embraces Jesus who only changes when the schemes available to sell Jesus changes. Like Jesus, Mark is many things to many people. How lucky are we to have a man akin to Jesus in our Senate office!
I understand market straddles wherein a speculator attempts to gain while covering possible losses.
But for Mark of K Street it's called playing his Joker card.
I'm afraid there is no good view of Mark's comments, Durango.
First, the (already leaked) report favoring repeal is now due Tuesday -- surely before any vote takes place.
Second, the repeal legislation under consideration won't end DADT the day the president signs it. It involves study and confirmation by military officials before it is implemented.
Giving the military time is not a valid excuse.
The argument relating to chaplains is particulary discouraging. So tens of thousands(?) of soldiers and sailors -- pilots and bomb disarmers and linguists and medics and infantry and transportation specialists and engineers and etc., etc. -- who volunteer to go in harm's way must risk mandatory discharge under an Act of Congress so *chaplains* won't get it in their heads that they are impeded in doing their duty?
Really? Old Folks had a saying when I was growing up: "How you can fix your mouth to say that?"
As usual, the AD-G uses the term "Homosexual" for gay--in *every* instance in that story. Not exactly kosher per modern-day style guidelines .
http://www.glaad.org/page.aspx?pid=380
Pryor, Jr is a disgrace to Arkansas, the US Senate, and the Democratic Party of Arkansas.
I concur, Tap: Giving the military time is not a valid excuse. In fact, there is no legitimate excuse. Period. As eLwood suggests, Pryor is straddling. And I think he’s a likely “No” vote, despite saying that society is changing and that DADT will eventually be repealed. But you know me — always looking for a glimmer of hope; or something — ANYTHING — that could be classified as a positive. Even with the likes of Pryor.
“As usual, the AD-G uses the term "Homosexual" for gay--in *every* instance in that story.”
LinCo_Progressive, you must have missed it, but the subhead in the ArkD-G story is “Senate to discuss gay ban again”
And the story’s first sentence includes, “nobody worried . . . he was gay.”
And, later, this: “After revealing that he was gay, Muller . . .”
Actually, the word “gay” appears several more times throughout Alex Daniels’ story about Muller.
I must have missed seeing the word "gay" the first time reading the body (not headline) of the article. Upon a word count, the word "gay" appeared in the AD-G article a staggering three times to the usage "homosexual and/or homosexuals" which totaled twelve. However of the three times "gay", two of them were early in the artlcle.
My word count shows a total of 7 gays (2 in the subheads and 5 in the article) and 13 homosexuals. There’s even a “gay” in the next-to-last sentence. I’m not fussing with you, LinCo, but simply trying to make you feel better about the paper’s word usage of “gay.” I’m gonna move on before people think (or confirm) that we’re both nutcases suffering from extremely early toilet training, lol!
For whatever reason, little Marky Mark seems to have killed his future in politics. even if he feels that way, he doesnt have to share it with us.
I've read the scriptures about homosexuality in Leviticus too, but I dont remember there being one single mention in the whole thing about keeping gay people out of the military. The Bible may have been agin being gay, when that was written, but apparently it didn't occur to whoever wrote Leviticus to go ahead on and say that God sure didn't like homosexual people in the military, did it?
Mark Pryor and his wife seem to have a handy geographic divorce. Didnt they say it had to do with not wanting to take their chirren out of their (churchy I think) school here and uproot them and all that? Now I dont know that they dont want to live together, but if he does plan to run for governor on a family values program, it seems to me that when he comes back to little rock they'll have no choice. I cant believe any kid of david pryor's is associated with those nutcases.
I wish Blanche would spend her lame-duck time doing something valuable but i guess she can't afford to make any of her potential lobbyist companies - i dont even know how to say that, maybe blanche will send me some money so I can go to a political language class in little rock sometime??
Tap, I like what the older folks said when you were a kid. almost seems like people had more damn sense then, doesnt it?
poor Hillary would have a long, long line of people wanting to borrow a ball from her.
What part of the Establishment Clause does Mr. Pryor not get? The Christianists continue to assert that they have some exclusive (though non-existent) right to redefine the Constitution.
Dunking. That will expose the truth about Mark Pryor, for good or ill. Dunking. One of my all-time favorite Church-sanctioned determinants.
Craig O'Neill will MC anything and Jane can sell commemorative figurines. I'm pre-ordering a dozen.
Strap Mark in, lower the chair from the Big Dam Bridge into the river, hold him under the onrushing water.
If he drowns, he was innocent and good.
If he survives, he's evil and executed on the spot.
Win-win either way.
PremisedPerfect, I believe the "Christianists" you refer to *do* understand the Establishment Clause -- which is why they offer bizzaro theories like repeal of DADT will lead to rape of sleeping soldiers who will then fear to report it; gay officers will spare their lovers dangerous missions (and, ummm, so if the relationship is a *secret,* this won't happen?), and chaplains may be forced to counsel with sinners (there presently being no fornicators, for example, in the armed services) or give up their careers.
The theories are so lame because the truth is that these folk want to impress their religious ideas on the rest of the country.
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