Matt Barber doesn't want Home Depot to support lgbt families and other Wednesday midday news briefs

WNBA's Mystics say no to 'kiss cam' because it might capture two women kissing - Give me a break, WNBA!

Governor "Terminator" Kills AIDS Program - This ain't good at all.

Top-Down “National March for Equality” Won’t Wash - Enough marches! How about enclaves where we exchange information and resources.

Tenn. State Senator (a typical anti-gay Republican) quit over affair with intern - Me with my hands on my hips and persed lips going "Um hmmm" Finger snaps coming.

Home Depot building a 'le-gay-cy' for children - Oh look. One News Now has taken time from its busy schedule of Obama bashing to print more sleazy lies about the lgbt community courtesy of Matt Barber. How dare Home Depot support lgbt families!

'Christian leader' Micheal Brown answers my blog, plays the evasion game

Michael Brown, director of director of Coalition of Conscience and leader of the protest against Charlotte Pride last weekend, doesn't appreciate what I wrote about him in a yesterday's blog post.

You will remember that I called Mr. Brown to the carpet for talking about how he loved the lgbt community while at the same time repeating some of the ugliest religious right pieces of propaganda.

Most specifically, I pointed out how he claimed that there was a plot by the media to obscure the homosexuality of Frank Lombard, the Duke University official who was recently arrested for molesting his five-year-old black son.

Brown and I had an exchange. And as you can see, his answers leave a lot to be desired:

Michael Brown :

Alvin,

A quick note from Dr. Brown here. First, just a reminder that I'd love to take you for lunch the next time you're in Charlotte. The invitation stands.

Second, I'm quite baffled by your charge of hypocrisy. I've been forthright and consistent in the five years I've been addressing these issues in Charlotte. . .

I have consistently said that the church has often been insensitive to the struggles faced by LGBT individuals, and that we have sinned against you by making homosexuality out to the worst of sins, and I apologized for that (publicly, in 2006, 2008, and 2009).

I have consistently proclaimed God's transforming love to the LGBT community in settings too numerous to mention (most recently at Pride Charlotte).

And I have consistently stood firmly against many of the goals of gay activism.

What has now been revealed that wasn't known before? Where is the hypocrisy? I'm genuinely baffled by the charge.

You can question my love, doubt my sincerity, call me an enemy of your rights, judge me however you choose -- but to charge me with my hypocrisy? Really, Alvin!

Me:

Your statements speak for themselves. And by statements, I mean your original words to the media, especially concerning the Frank Lombard situation.

I wanted to clarify that because I noticed in your long comment to me just now, you did not address what you said regarding the alleged conspiracy by the media to not call out Lombard's sexual orientation.

How convenient of you.

Michael Brown:

Alvin, I do not have the time to interact with your entire post, so I focused on your headline, exposing its falsehood. So, please drop the "how convenient" stuff, OK?

As for my statements, yes, they speak for themselves, loudly and clearly, and so there is no hypocrisy or duplicity, only forthright speech.

As for the Frank Lombard situation, I agree with what Dr. Mike Adams and others have pointed out in their writings on the subject.

Just for the record, a friend asked me to take a minute to respond to your article here after he spotted it, and I was happy to do so, but I don't have time for extended dialog in this setting, especially when your whole premise of "hypocrisy" is false. Talk about headless monsters! How about meaningless headlines?

Me:

Mr. Brown,

You haven't exposed anything but your duplicitous nature. My headline speaks for itself but your evasiveness gives it creedence.

Don't blame Mike Adams or anyone else for what you said regarding the Frank Lombard situation. Again, I notice how you are not willing to talk about the lie you repeated about a media plot.

Your comments were false, totally un-Christian, and by their very nature insults the same sex parents who go far and beyond the call of duty to provide for their children. Furthermore, your continued sad attempts to sidestep your comments reveal not only to me but to everyone else who reads this blog as to how utterly false your declarations of love for the lgbt community are.

Again, how very convenient.

So there you are, dear readers - the words of a man who will not only lie on the lgbt community, a man who will talk about how he loves us while implying about plots to cover up the molesting of children.

And when he is exposed, he doesn't do the Christian thing and apologize. No, he continues to dig that hole deeper.

Michael Brown is not only duplicitious. I now consider him pitiful.

How religious right groups distort legitimate research to demonize the gay community

Chinese general Sun Tzu in The Art of War once said:

It is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles . . .

With that thought in mind, I have tried to educate myself and others on the manipulations of the religious right. You see it's not enough to call them "homophobes" or "haters" anymore than it is not enough for a prosecutor in a trial to point at a defendant and call him guilty.

There must be some proof of the charges.

I have a theory that in this so-called cultural battle, our fight isn't totally with those who have a personal religious belief that homosexuality is a sin. It's not an idea that I prescribe to but I am of the opinion that people with differing beliefs can co-exist up to a point.

Granted there are some people who are rabidly anti-gay, but this piece isn't about them.

My theory and all of my focus have been on the religious right organizations who manipulate people's religious beliefs and personal fears to make the lgbt community the boogeymen or the "big nasty other" in American society.

I've talked in the past about their distortion techniques. Last week, I talked about discredited researcher Paul Cameron and his relation to the religious right as to how these groups continue to use his bad data.

Today, I want to show how these groups have their own ways of distorting credible research.

I have read countless religious right papers and studies and have discovered that in many if not all of them, many of the same studies are being distorted.

It’s as if the Family Research Council, Concerned Women for America, the American Family Association and other affiliate groups have some type of file cabinet with an assortment of legitimate studies that they can pull out and distort. I want to show you just a few. Some you have already seen these before but a refresher course never hurts anyone:

Distortion - Lgbt homes are not ideal homes to raise children because gay supportive researcher Judith Stacey said so in her study:

“A study conducted by Judith Stacey and Timothy Biblarz, sociologists at the University of Southern California, revealed that children raised by homosexual couples ‘seem to grow up to be more open to homoerotic relationships.’ The study showed that 12 percent of girls raised in lesbian homes became active lesbians themselves—increasing the likelihood of lesbianism by more than 400 percent.” - Fast Facts, Gay Adoption, Coral Ridge Ministries

Researcher Judith Stacey thinks that children do well in homosexual homes. She says her study found that girls brought up by lesbians show greater interest in masculine activities and dress and seek non-traditional female jobs. Boys in lesbian homes are more feminine and more nurturing. Children in these homes also become sexually active with same-sex partners. - Children In Homosexual Homes Become Sexually Confused, Traditional Values Coalition

Truth - Judith Stacey had gone on record numerous times decrying how her research in lgbt homes have been distorted. According to respectmyresearch.org:

. . . Stacey and Biblarz noted preliminary evidence of some “modest and interesting” differences between children raised by heterosexual parents and children raised by lesbian and gay parents, but they affirmed that “parental sexual orientation has no measurable effect on the quality of parent-child relationships or on children’s mental health or adjustment.”

In addition, via this link, she calls Focus on the Family to the carpet for distorting her work.

Distortion - Lesbian and gay relationships are generally violent Part 1:

A study in the Journal of Interpersonal Violence examined conflict and violence in lesbian relationships. The researchers found that 90 percent of the lesbians surveyed had been recipients of one or more acts of verbal aggression from their intimate partners during the year prior to this study, with 31 percent reporting one or more incidents of physical abuse.” - Comparing the Lifestyles of Homosexual Couples to Married Couples, Family Research Council

There is a higher rate of violence in lesbian and homosexual relationships than in married, heterosexual relationships. A study in the Journal of Interpersonal Violence examined conflict and violence in lesbian relationships. The researchers found that 90% of the lesbians surveyed had been recipients of one or more acts of verbal aggression from their intimate partners during the year prior to this study, with 31% reporting one or more incidents of physical abuse. - Same-Sex Parenting is Harmful to Children Says REAL Women of Canada, Lifesite News

Truth - According to the Journal of Interpersonal Violence’s own web page:

The Journal of Interpersonal Violence offers the most up-to-date information on domestic violence, rape, child sexual abuse and other violent crimes . . . Focusing on both victims and perpetrators, the journal examines theoretical links between all types of interpersonal violence, exploring the similarities and differences between these types of crimes.

In other words, the Journal of Interpersonal Violence tracks domestic violence, as well as other violent crimes.

Those surveyed in journal articles are the victims of violence, verbal or otherwise, because this is what the journal is designed to track.

However, what religious right groups are doing here is the equivalent of taking a study of domestic violence in the African-American community published in the Journal of Interpersonal Violence and using it to allege that black relationships are indicative of violent behavior.

Distortion - Lesbian and gay relationships are generally violent Part 2:

Homosexual households are also more prone to domestic violence. For example: “The incidence of domestic violence among gay men is nearly double that in the heterosexual population,” according to D. Island and P. Letellier in Men Who Beat the Men Who Love Them - Gay Marriage is Not Only Wrong, It’s Socially Destructive, Concerned Women for America

"The bottom line is, a man involved in homosexual behavior is 500 times more likely to be the victim of violence, violent assault at the hands of his own homosexual ‘lover’ --a ‘love crime’ -- than he is to be a victim of a so-called ‘hate crime’ committed against him by someone who doesn’t like the fact that he’s involved in that kind of lifestyle,” Glenn says.

Glenn’s data are based on research found in the book Men Who Beat the Men Who Love Them: Battered Gay Men and Domestic Violence - Domestic Assaults, Not Hate Crimes, Pervading Homosexual Community, Agape Press (One News Now) 


Truth - Patrick Letellier said this about the distortion of his work:

Instead of making use of current literature or statistics, Glenn selects two passages from our book, from pages 12 and 50, and links them together (I quote him verbatim here, the mis-use of quotation marks is his):

"Island and Letellier also estimate that 'domestic violence may effect and poison as many as 50 percent of gay couples, while 'we believe [heterosexual domestic abuse] is closer to 20 percent." In fact, as we clearly state in our book, the 50% figure is an estimate provided to us by an anti-violence project, and in the paragraphs following our mention of that figure, Dr. Island and I refute it and come up with what we believe is a more reasonable - and significantly lower - estimate of about 21%.

Sometimes context really is everything. What Glenn also fails to mention is that the estimate of 20% that Dr. Island and I make (regarding heterosexual battering) was a challenge to other researchers who claimed that as many as 80% of heterosexual men batter their partners. Here's the whole quote: "We disagree. No body of data supports their contentions. We believe that far too many husbands in America are violent, but their proportion is closer to 20% than 80%."

Distortion - Homosexuals have a lot of sex partners and their relationships do not last Part 1.

Studies indicate that the average male homosexual has hundreds of sex partners in his lifetime, a lifestyle that is difficult for even "committed" homosexuals to break free of and which is not conducive to a healthy and wholesome atmosphere for the raising of children. A. P. Bell and M. S. Weinberg, in their classic study of male and female homosexuality, found that 43 percent of white male homosexuals had sex with five hundred or more partners, with 28 percent having 1,000 or more sex partners - Homosexuality, Placing Children at Risk, Family Research Council

Point of fact - FRC removed this study from its webpage. A representative of the organization told me that the information contained in the study was outdated. However, as you can see by the link, this message didn’t get to other supporters of FRC

Alan P. Bell and Martin S. Weinberg studied 574 white male homosexuals, 100 percent of whom had already had at least three sexual partners, 97 percent at least ten, 75 percent at least one hundred, and 28 percent at least one thousand. - House Dems Try to Hide Homosexual Agenda on “Bullying” Bill, American Family Association of Michigan

Truth - Bell and Weinberg’s study was compiled in the 1970s. They used the study to write the book Homosexualities: A Study of Diversity among Men and Women. In Homosexualities is this statement:

“. . . given the variety of circumstances which discourage homosexuals from participating in research studies, it is unlikely that any investigator will ever be in a position to say that this or that is true of a given percentage of all homosexuals.”

Distortion - Homosexuals have a lot of sex partners and their relationships do not last Part 2

“Well, what does a homosexual marriage look like? Well the longest term that we have to take a look at it is in the Netherlands. And one sociologist made a study of that and found out that the average marriage between two men lasts 1.5 years. Furthermore, they don’t even believe really in monogamous marriages. On average, the average married homosexual man has 8 other sexual partners per year. So those year and a half marriages involved also sex with 12 other men during that time.” - The late Rev. James Kennedy, Coral Ridge Ministries 


“The journal AIDS reported that in the Netherlands, where “gay marriage” has been legal since 2001, HIV and other diseases are soaring among homosexual men. The study notes that “partnered” homosexuals have “outside” lovers, and are contracting the AIDS virus at alarming rates.” - The Real Costs of Gay Marriage and Civil Unions, Concerned Women for America


Truth - The study referenced in these two examples was conducted by one Maria Xiridou of the Amsterdam Municipal Health Service. Her study did not look at gay marriage but was to "access the relative contribution of steady and casual partnerships to the incidence of HIV infection among homosexual men in Amsterdam and to determine the effect of increasing sexually risky behaviours among both types of partnerships in the era of highly active antiretroviral therapy."

For this study, Dr. Xiridou received her information from the Amsterdam Cohort Study of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and AIDS Among Homosexual Men. To gain this information, researchers studied 1,800 gay men between the years of 1984- 2000. Same sex marriage was legalized in the Netherlands in 2001, thus making the information irrelevant to points about gay marriage. Information for the Amsterdam Cohort Study is found here.

And last but certainly not least . . .

Distortion - Gays have a short life span

“In a major Canadian centre, life expectancy at age twenty for gay and bisexual men is eight to twenty years less than for all men. If the same pattern of mortality were to continue, we estimate that nearly half of gay and bisexual men currently aged twenty years will not reach their sixty-fifth birthday. Under even the most liberal assumptions, gay and bisexual men in this urban centre are now experiencing a life expectancy similar to that experienced by all men in Canada in the year 1871.” - Getting it Straight, Family Research Council

One epidemiological study found that “gay” men lose 8-20 years off their lifespan. - Several reasons to oppose same sex marriage, Concerned Women for America

According to a study that appeared in the International Journal of Epidemiology, homosexual behavior risks cutting years off the lives of “gay” men. Examining the homosexual community in Vancouver, Canada, the study said: “In a major Canadian centre, life expectancy at age 20 years for gay and bisexual men is 8 to 20 years less than for all men. . .” - Sexual suicide, The American Family Association

Truth - As I have said numerous times, in 2001, the researchers of this study complained about how it was being misused. They explained what they actually meant and how it is not feasible to use their work to claim that gay men have a "short life span."

Point of fact - In 2008, Matt Barber of the Liberty Counsel addressed the researchers’ complaints by claiming that they were pressured to make this statement. However (surprise, surprise) Barber did not give any further detail as to who pressured them or when this alleged pressure supposedly happened.

The point here is not just to call attention to this misinformation but also spell out what it means.
These inaccurate interpretations of the mentioned studies are not indicative of just one religious right group, they are indicative of a large number if not all religious right groups.

The problematic issue of lgbt rights is bad enough when one debates it on a religious and ethical level, but when science is added, the stakes are higher.

Religious right groups push the idea that lgbt rights are bad not only on a moral level but also that there is "scientific proof" that lgbts rights are bad on a medical level.

But they gain the proof through either intentional or unintentional misreadings of studies and constant repetition of those studies even when their errors are pointed out.

In short, the lgbt community has to do more than just label religious right groups as “haters,” “bigots,” and “homophobes.” This labeling provides transitory visibility and simple cosmetics to a problems that is deeper than anyone can imagine.

The religious right have skillfully crafted a body of inaccuracies about the lgbt community backed by misinterpreted studies. And this body is easily transported to almost every other so-called traditional value groups across state and country lines. It can also be used by legislators who already have anti-gay biases but are looking for "justification" for their prejudices.

Someone standing in front of Congress, state legislatures, school boards, or speaking on talk shows and saying that “Studies done by eminent researchers and physicians have found that homosexuality includes a level of promiscuity, relationship abuse, and a shorter life span and therefore gays should not be allowed to adopt children or have the right to marry, ” has more weight than just espousing a personal religious and moral opinion against homosexuality.

Now someone could easily say “so these studies have been used incorrectly. The theory that homosexuality is a dangerous lifestyle is still sound.”

But if the theory that “homosexuality is a dangerous lifestyle” is true, then why do these religious right groups have to distort data to prove it’s veracity?

Network television plotting with the 'homosexuals,' Santorum adds his voice to the group of fools, and other Tuesday midday newsbriefs

Clear objective: 'Change hearts, minds' re: homosexuality - From the webpage of One News Now - how dare network television show lgbts as normal people! Pay attention to the article because the person interviewed, Colleen Raezler of the Culture and Media Institute, dances around the "gays have a shorter lifespan" lie.

Rick Santorum joins 2M4M - Santorum strikes against. Personally I think that Dan Savage's definition of the word "santorum" fits this guy perfectly.

Resolution upholds city discrimination ban - Good news from El Paso

Marriage commissioners can't discriminate: Saskatchewan court - More good news from Canada

"The Carrie Effect" - Here is something to make you ill, that is if you don't fall out laughing at first.

Charlotte Pride and the hypocrisy of Michael Brown

Last weekend, over 10,000 folks attended Charlotte Pride in North Carolina and for the most part, had a very good time.

This happened despite the fact that over 500 protestors came out to try and spoil their fun. As you can see by the pictures, the red-shirted protestors came out to talk about "God has another way;" no doubt some nonsense about God didn't make people gay and stuff like that.

The leaders, Michael Brown, director of Coalition of Conscience had this to say:

“We’re praying to make them know that god, he loves them, that they’re not cast out, rejected and hated, and that there is a better way than gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender, and that’s found in Jesus,” Brown said.

There is an old saying which goes "beware of Greeks bearing gifts."

Let me amend that to say "beware of religious right figures talking about sharing Christ with lgbts."

Simply because right before that statement of "love" and "sharing," Brown rambles about "boys going to school dressed as girls" and lgbt families intentionally denying children homes with both a mother and a father.

All of the religious right propaganda speech in other words.

In a full statement to the media, Brown lists anecdotes of how the so-called gay agenda is hurting America. You've heard them all before. But one stands out in my mind due to the way that Brown phrased it:

We believe it is outrageous for the media to cover up the gay identity of a sexual predator who repeatedly raped his adopted, five-year-old African American son and offered him for sex through the internet - for fear of making homosexual couples look bad.

This statement is referring to the Frank Lombard situation. For the benefit of those who do not know, Lombard is a gay Duke University official arrested for molesting his five-year-old adopted African-American son and offering him for sex via the internet.

An awful crime. But what's more awful is how members of the religious right and conservative movement have been implying that there was some sort of conspiracy by the media to obscure the fact that Lombard is gay for fear of attacking lgbt couples.

This is a lie. And it is no different than racist David Duke saying that the media covers up an alleged fact that black people supposedly commit more crimes so as to not make African-Americans look bad.

The irony is that members of Brown's protest had to sign a pledge to be nonviolent.

That's all well and good but something should be said for Brown's hypocrisy. He comes to the lgbt community talking about peace and love while repeating religious right anti-gay propaganda and lies designed not to start discussion but to make people fear lgbts

Brown actually makes me miss Fred Phelps and the "God hates fags" crowd. At least they didn't smile in your face while holding the knives behind their backs.

Peter LaBarbera's pictures contradict his ramblings

Last week, it seemed that I had a Paul Cameron fixation.

This week may be shaping up to feature anti-gay figure Peter LaBarbera.

Last night, I talked about how he channeled a Paul Cameron factoid (i.e. lie) about homosexuality being more dangerous than cigarettes.

But what he did today takes the cake. I simply could not pass it by.

LaBarbera is known for going to subcultural leather events, taking pictures of the activities there, and posting them on his webpage in an attempt to generalize about the entire lgbt community.

That's why he is known as "Porno Petey" in some circles.

Far be it from him to disappoint us this year. He has just posted pictures from what is called "Up Your Alley," a street fair in San Francisco. LaBarbera made a point to post lots of pictures of naked folks and others engaged in lewd acts.

And included is his commentary about those "nasty homosexuals." This is a supposed acount of acts from a Americans For Truth volunteer who took pictures at the Fair:

As with previous sadistic street fairs, police non-enforcement was so lax that deviant, homosexual sex acts were allowed to go on in the streets as fair attendees passed on by. In his 50-minute stint, Ron photographed two oral sex acts at Up Your Alley - one in which a man “serviced” two men in uniforms, and the other involving two men engaged in fellatio directly in front of a booth. No action by either the police or a private “Folsom Security” staffer was taken against the law-breakers . . .

There is just one problem as I see it. Amidst the pictures is one that stands out - a naked heterosexual couple (don't click on this link if you have a low tolerance for grossness).

So why is this significant? Well to me, it underlines LaBarbera's anti-gay bias.

Look, I am by no means defending how folks behave at these street fairs but as I understand it, this event includes more than gay men walking around nude. As the picture I mentioned demonstrates, there were obviously some heterosexuals there acting unprincipled.

But yet instead of making a possible good point about lewdness in general, LaBarbera's commentary omits the heterosexual couple and goes straight for the gay jugular.

I've never been to one of these events and don't plan to go anytime soon. But fair is fair. And LaBarbera's attempts to attack gays for their behavior while giving heterosexuals a pass for the possible same behavior says more about him than it does about the people whose pictures are posted on his webpage.

P

More influence of Paul Cameron's influence, trouble in Uganda and other Monday midday news briefs

More proof of Paul Cameron's influence - For those who would minimize the role of discredited researcher Paul Cameron on the lgbt struggle for equality, check out this clip featuring an elected official (with voting power) repeating Cameronesque lies:



Big hat tip to Jeremy from Goodasyou.org for pointing this out.

Uganda Parliament To Take Up Bill Banning LGBT Free Speech - And you thought things were bad around here.

Finally, Action on Gay Soldiers - It's about time.

Groups challenge domestic partnerships as unconstitutional - Oh they just want to "protect marriage" and that's it. Riiiight.

Maine court upholds IBM heir’s adoption of lover - I am kind of on the fence about this one.

Take note, black community - THIS is what supporting your own looks like

From this weekend's Washington Post, a profile an lgbt-supportive black church and pastor:

Inner Light Ministries in the District's H Street corridor might seem like a traditional black church, with fiery sermons, electric gospel music, a soulful choir and a congregation that sways and claps in rhythm. But it is hardly that.

For 16 years, it has served as a sanctuary for a small community of black gays and lesbians who say they feel shunned from all directions -- by black men and women who give them cutting looks of disapproval, by mainstream black ministers who condemn homosexuality, and by white gays who make them feel unwelcome in subtle ways, such as switching from hip-hop to country music in a club when too many black men hit the dance floor.

At Inner Light, members say they can be themselves. In the pews on a recent Sunday, a woman adoringly placed an arm around the shoulders of her girlfriend. A man with a linebacker's strong build sat near the front wearing mascara. And condoms sat in a basket near the door in case any worshipers wanted to grab some on their way out.

If you ask me, we need more churches like this and less megachurches.

Huge hat tip to Pams House Blend for first featuring the article.

Peter LaBarbera repeats Paul Cameron lie about homosexuality and cigarettes

Yet more proof regarding what I said last week about the religious right and their links to discredited researcher Paul Cameron has come about via our friend (and I use that as an extreme euphemism) Peter LaBarbera and his phony Christian group American for Truth:

LaBarbera Calls for Federal Studies on the Health Risks of Homosexual Behavior

More Dangerous than Smoking? Men who have had sex with men since 1977 have an HIV prevalence 60 times higher than the general population and 800 times higher than first time blood donors, the FDA reports. When it comes to combating cigarettes, the government not only restricts, taxes and bans smoking, it also funds and encourages anti-smoking messages and advertisements. Given the immense health risks of male homosexual sex, shouldn’t the federal government do a comprehensive study on the matter, tax sodomitic establishments, and educate the public and especially young people about the dangers of “gay” sex?

Speaking Friday at the annual Reclaiming Oklahoma for Christ conference in Edmond, OK, Americans For Truth about Homosexuality (AFTAH) President Peter LaBarbera called for government study on the heath risks of homosexual behavior.

LaBarbera read from a Food & Drug Administration (FDA) report explaining why “men who have sex with men” (MSM) cannot donate blood due to the high incidence of sexually transmitted diseases linked to MSM. He noted that since government agencies and politicians are active in confronting the health risks of smoking (using taxpayer dollars), they should do the same for homosexual sex — especially between men — which appears to be as dangerous or more so than smoking cigarettes.

LaBarbera is linking badly. No study done by any medical group has said that homosexuality is as dangerous as smoking cigarettes. No legitimate researcher or physician has ever said this either.

But Paul Cameron has.

Unless I am inaccurate, it was Cameron who first espoused this lie in 2005.

Of course Cameron's claim was disputed by folks who have actual expertise in the area but he continued to persist with his charade.

Now in all honesty, some folks may dispute my links claiming that since they are "pro-gay" sources, they are biased.

Well another source here from the rightwing Free Republic bear up my contention that Cameron was the first to push the lie that "homosexuality is as dangerous as cigarette smoking:"


Studies have shown that years of smoking shortens the lifespan of the smoker from 1 to 7 years. But analysis of the age of death in Norway and Denmark for gays who are legally married suggests that engaging in homosexual behavior reduces the lifespan by 24 years!

So reported Drs. Paul and Kirk Cameron at the annual convention of the Eastern Psychological Association on March 23.

"What justification is there for condemning smoking and endorsing homosexuality?" asked Dr. Paul Cameron, of the Family Research Institute, a Colorado-based think tank. "Today, all across the Western world, school children are being taught the acceptability of homosexuality and the wrongness of smoking.

So the question here is not whether or not there should be research regarding the supposed health risks of homosexuality.

The question here is why would LaBarbera, who is supposed to be a Christian man, stoop to channeling the research of a total fraud?

But here is the most important thing to remember - While Paul Cameron's name may fall back on the dungheap of ridicule, his lies will always plague the lgbt community unless we call them out every time they pop up.

Repost: Something guaranteed to piss you off

I ran into something a while back that I have been itching to show on this site.

This 1986 comic was created by a man named Dick Hafer and it is a vile representation of some of the most evil anti-gay lies out there.

This is for the many young folks who don't remember what it was like in the 1980s when the AIDS crisis was in full bloom, ignorance was all around and Paul Cameron was a credible name.

It is a representation of how far we have come and how far we have to go. You will recognize how some of the same arguments are still being used, although not as explicitly. Check out the comic's list of supporters shown on the last graphic. One of them is Beverly LaHaye, the founder of Concerned Women for America - a religious right organization that continues to fight against lgbt equality.

The next time you hear one of their representatives whining about "intolerant gays," bring this comic to his or her attention.

You can click on the pictures to get a better view of the pages - more are at the bottom (even though I don't think it's work safe). And if you want to see the entire comic (God help you) go here.

Editor's note - The webpage featuring this comic is not anti-gay. It's a site that looks at "problem-based comics" from the past.

Know your lgbt history - Norman, Is That You?

First of all, my prayers and kind thoughts go out to the family of African-American gay author E. Lynn Harris who died today at age 54. The cause of death has not been determined.



I bet a lot of you never heard of this 1976 movie starring star of Sanford and Son Redd Foxx and Pearl Bailey.

Be glad you didn't because nothing can prepare you for how strange it is.

Foxx has just found out that his wife, Bailey, has left him for his brother. So he goes to Los Angeles to tell his son, played by Michael Warren.

But what he doesn't know is that his son is in a same-sex relationship with a white man, Garson (Dennis Dugan). And Garson is highly, highly flamboyant. Needless to say that Foxx is not at all pleased to find out that his son is gay.

And to complicate matters, his wife pays a visit after leaving his brother.

All I can say is that they tried. Too bad that the following preview didn't include the most surreal scene of the movie where Foxx has a nightmare that he is getting an award for being the most homosexual person or something or another. The vision of Foxx with a Liberace wig and speaking with a lisp is something that I never want to see again.

(Editor's note - A reader just sent me a clip of the scene which I have just spoken of. The link is in the comments section. View it with barf bag in hand.)

Past Know Your LGBT History postings:

Know your lgbt history - The 'Exotic' Adrian Street

Know your lgbt history - The Choirboys

Know your lgbt history - Eddie Murphy

Know your lgbt history - The Killing of Sister George

Know your lgbt history - Hanna-Barbera cartoons pushes the 'gay agenda'

Know your lgbt history - Cruising

Know your lgbt history - Foxy Brown and Cleopatra Jones

Know your lgbt history - I Got Da Hook Up

Know your lgbt history - Fright Night

Know your lgbt history - Flowers of Evil

The Jeffersons and the transgender community

Arrest in murder of gay navyman, Carrie Prejean, and other Friday midday news briefs

Sailor charged in Camp Pendleton shooting death of seaman - This is a first step to some good news in this awful situation.

Ex-Miss California Carrie Prejean heading to Florida to help Republicans - Oh God, why do we have to continue to deal with this woman.

Landmark D.C. law grants parental status to two mothers - Here is some good news for today.

Equality Florida: AAA South to recognize married gay couples in policies - More good news never hurts.

The more things change... - A little history on the lies of Maggie Gallagher courtesy of Goodasyour.org

Peter LaBarbera throws public tantrum, flaunts his irrelevance

Last month, our anti-gay buddy Peter LaBarbera and a few assorted (be nice, Alvin) had held a press conference in Chicago to speak against President Obama's supposed "radical homosexual appointments and overall “gay” agenda."

Religious right figures such as Matt Barber, Oklahoma legislator Sally Kern, and Diane Gramley appeared.

Well the press conference came and went, but we heard nothing about it. I couldn't find any articles about it. And Peter never mentioned it on the Americans for Truth webpage.

That is until today. Apparently, even though several religious right "dignitaries" showed up at Peter's press conference, the media took a serious rain check.

Peter alluded to this fact in a piece that I guess was supposed to make fun of the recent protest by lgbts against the San Diego Mormon Temple.

Lgbts and heterosexual allies held a "kiss-in" at the temple this week to support a gay couple cited for trespassing after they shared a kiss on temple grounds.

Apparently according to Peter, since only 30 people showed up to protest, and the media almost outnumbered the protestors (his words), then the protest was a flop.

In comparison, no media showed up at his press conference last month, and Peter was mad over that:

What is over-the-top, however, is the liberal (”mainstream”) media treating every “queer” protest and event as important news. (Meanwhile, Associated Press and all national media skipped our coalition press conference in Chicago against President Barack Obama’s “gay” agenda — held on the very day that Obama was capitulating to the “Gay” Lobby by signing an Executive Order supporting “domestic partners.”) If homosexual activists do succeed in destroying the influence of the church and ushering in the oxymoronic notion of government-supported homosexual “marriage,” the woefully biased American media will be able to claim major credit.

Twenty-five members of the media showing up at a press conference means success. No media showing up your press conference means failure, Peter.

It's one thing to be irrelevant, but it's another to flaunt your irrelevancy.

Lgbts have long suspected that no one longer cares for your ramblings, Peter. Thank you for proving our point.

And for putting a smile on my face this Friday morning.

Illinois Family Institute drops Paul Cameron-cited piece

From Goodasyou.org some interesting news.

In March of this year, the Illinois Family Institute raised holy hell because Southern Poverty Law Center declared it an official hate group.

Apparently the group had a Paul Cameron-cited article on its webpage and refused to remove it, thereby causing the SPLC to give them the designation.

The SPLC also considers Cameron's group, the Family Research Institute, as a hate group because it Cameron's tendency to outright lie about the lgbt community.

Well according to Goodasyou.org, the Illinois Family Institute has removed the article, thereby causing SPLC to remove them from the hate group status.

Two questions:

1. Why didn't the Illinois Family Institute just remove the article from the get-go?

2. Will these other groups follow IFI's example and remove Cameron's work from their webpages?

Oklahoma Republican embarrassed by Sally Kern, Janet Porter meets someone nuttier than her and other Thursday midday news briefs

A top OKC PR firm owner emails GOP chairman re: Kern’s ‘judgmental rhetoric on morality’ - Oklahoma Republican embarrassed by homophobe Sally Kern. What took her so long?

Can Someone Be Too Crazy For Janet Porter? Yes and No - Uh oh. The religious right gets in bed with a racist. Now there is a nasty picture.

Oxnard teen to stand trial in gay classmate's killing - Lawrence King's murderer will be tried as an adult. That is good news indeed.


Gay T-Shirts In Windows A Problem For American Apparel - Damn there goes the mind control plot via hypnotic t-shirts

Why we should care about Paul Cameron

In the past days, I have talked about discredited researcher Paul Cameron.

In case you want a long recap, go here and here.

But if you want a short recap:

Paul Cameron is the head of the Family Research Institute, an organization declared an official hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. He has been censured, rebuked, and called the carpet on numerous occasions by people on the left and the right for his tendency to use bad research techniques as well as manipulate data to claim that lgbts are leeches on society.

He has been caught making up tales about gay men castrating children in restrooms, and called out on his claims that gays have a "short life span," molest children at a high rate, and engage in extremely deviant sexual practices (including those involving feces and gerbils).

In 1983, he was dismissed from the American Psychological Association after refusing to cooperate in an investigation brought about by member complaints of his work.

Since I’ve written this series I have been disappointed with the reaction of some in the lgbt community.

"Who cares."

"This isn’t a big deal."

"Paul Cameron is just a crackpot."

"You are wasting your time talking about him."

It's a mistake to dismiss Cameron as a mere crackpot when one looks at his connection to so-called legitimate religious right groups.

He has been and still continues to be the go-to guy (although covertly at times) by them when it comes to pushing bad theories about lgbts.

In the past, they relied on Cameron heavily.

In 1991, a Colorado amendment was created to ban gay-rights ordinances. Backers of this amendment, Amendment 2, used Cameron’s data in their position statement. Also, the week before the 1992 vote over 100,000 copies of one of his pamphlets, What Homosexuals Do, went across Colorado. Not surprisingly, the amendment passed. (It was later overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court.)

In 1992 during the anti-gay referendum campaign in Colorado, Cameron was the “chief scientific consultant” for organizations for the referendum.

In 1994, when gays and lesbians challenged the validity of Amendment 2, state Attorney General Gail Norton paid Cameron $15,000 for his research and wanted to use him as an “expert witness.” When informed of his reputation, Norton used neither him nor his research.

Anti-gay spokesperson Robert Knight (formerly of Concerned Women for America and the Family Research Council), in 1994, cited Cameron's work in testimony in front of Congress opposing the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA).

Since that time, Cameron's work was cited here and there but his effectiveness lessened due to his dubious reputation.

However, he did enjoy a short resurgence when George Bush was re-elected president in 2004.

In May 2005, Cameron announced the completion of another study that supposedly proved that homosexuality is more dangerous than cigarette smoking and being overweight.

What he did was take over 10,000 obituaries from the gay newspaper the Washington Blade and compare them to a CDC report entitled AIDS Cases in Adolescents and Adults, by Age—United States, 1994-2000.

He claimed that this supported his gay life span study. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said otherwise.

Ronald Valdiserri, deputy director of the CDC’s National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention, said Cameron uses bad methodology.

He also said:

“[The CDC] does not collect statistics on the life span of gay men. While gay men continue to be severely impacted by HIV and AIDS, AIDS-related death data cannot be used to indicate that homosexual men live shorter lives than heterosexual men overall.”

In June 2005, when Texas Governor Rick Perry signed a “defense of marriage” bill, accompanying him was televangelist Ron Parsley. Parsley had this to say about homosexuality:

“Gay sex is a veritable breeding ground for disease. Only one percent of the homosexual population in America will die of old age. The average life expectancy for a homosexual in the United States discounting AIDS is forty-two years of age . . . A lesbian can only expect to live to be forty - five years of age . ."

Parsley now heads the Center for Moral Clarity, an organization dedicated to "Christian grassroots organization that advocates for public policies based on biblical principles."

Cameron’s claim that homosexuality is more dangerous than cigarette smoking even made its way to the lower echelons of the Bush Administration.

In July 2005, U.S. Senator Arlen Specter asked that the national Health and Human Services look at a certain web site because it allegedly showed inaccurate information about homosexuality and contraception.

The web site, 4parents.gov, received information from an organization called the National Physicians Center for Family Resources. The chairman of the National Physicians Center for Family Resources board, John Whiffen, said the organization was correct regarding what it had printed about homosexuality.

“It’s fairly well-accepted that smoking is not a good idea. It takes seven years off of your life. It appears that male homosexuality takes more than that off your life."

That's the trouble with some "crackpots." If you leave them alone to cause mischief, they will.

The lgbt community should care about Paul Cameron for a multitude of reasons. He is masquerading as a legitimate researcher and his mess continues to hurt the us.

But for me, it mostly comes down to this:

We reacted because the police kept harassing us as Stonewall,

We reacted because Anita Bryant told those lies about us in the 70's,

We reacted because of the AIDS crisis,

We reacted because of the Proposition 8 vote.

Our history seems to be a pattern of reacting.

When you react, you lash out and are on the defensive. You are not in control of the situation because you are trying to rally yourself from whatever calamity that has been thrust upon you.

And that has been our problem.

We are constantly trying to rally ourselves after being slapped. We wait until we have been wronged before we act and then we try to take care of the situation with a rushed public display of anger.

I hate to say it but let’s take a tip from those people who claim that Obama was not born in the United States.

The only reason why the "birthers" have gotten so much attention is because they have been insistent in pushing their point. They have been on the offensive from the beginning.

And we certainly have a more legitimate case than the "birthers." Paul Cameron has made a career out of lying about the lgbt community. He couldn’t be believed if his blood was replaced with truth serum.

Yet the right continues to cite him either overtly or covertly.

But we are just sitting by and letting it happen without challenge.

We are wasting a valuable opportunity to not only put the religious right on the defensive but bring attention to the fact that they are neither religious in their tactics nor right in their claims.

Sometimes winning the fight is not reacting after being kicked but doing the kicking yourself.

With that in mind, please be aware of the following:

According to the webpage Box Turtle Bulletin, Cameron's work continues to be cited in the following pieces, which are still present and available on each corresponding group's webpage:

Publications:

Journal of Biosocial Science

Psychological Reports

American Family Association:

Targeting Children, Part Four: Access to children: Homosexuality and Molestation — Ed Vitagliano, June 2001.

Targeting Children, Part Three: Activists Encouraging Experimentation — Ed Vitagliano, May 2001.

Homosexuality in America: Exposing the Myths (PDF: 299 KB/24 pages) — Robert G. Howe, 1994.

Americans For Truth:

Study Shows “Gay Married” Lifespans Average 24 Years Shorter than Hetero Marrieds in Norway, Denmark — Peter LaBarbera, April 5, 2007.

Canadian Research Suggests only 1.4% of Adults Homosexual — Peter LaBarera, March 27, 2007.

Stanford Nurse Details Lethal Consequences of Engaging in Promiscuous Anal Intercourse — Kathleen Melonakos, Dec 2, 2006.

Courage:

Living In Truth: Unsure Of Your Sexuality? — unsigned, 2000

Concerned Women For America:

Indianapolis Rejects Domestic Partner Benefit — Robert H. Knight, Aug 2, 2002

‘Sexual Orientation’ and American Culture — Robert H. Knight, July 10, 2002

Rosie and the Docs Peddle Bad Medicine (PDF: 62 KB/7 pages) — Robert H. Knight, May 2002.

Pediatrics Academy Joins Crusade for ‘Gay Parenting’ — Robert H. Knight, Feb 7, 2002

Ears To Hear:

Myths, Facts, and Consequences of the Homosexual Lifestyle — unsigned, April 30, 2007.

Evergreen International:

Gay Identity and the Gay Rights Movement — Jason Park, 1996.

Behavior (FAQ) — Jason Park, 1996.

Why Am I Attracted to Men? — Jason Park, 1996.

Lifesite News:

Canadian Research Suggests only 1.4% of Adults Homosexual — Unsigned, March 27, 2007.

Expert Research Finds Homosexuality More Dangerous Than Smoking — Unsigned, April 3, 2007.

US Sexuality Survey Shows Gays 107% More Likely To Engage In Criminal Activities — “JJ,” June 13, 2005.

Yet Another Study Confirms Gay Life Expectancy 20 Years Shorter — “JJ,” June 6, 2005.

Same-Sex Parenting is Harmful to Children Says REAL Women of Canada — Unsigned, March 2004.

The Case Against Same-Sex Marriage (Originally published in Crisis magazine) — Tim Leslie, January 2004.

Homosexuals Declare War On Boy Scouts — Unsigned, August 23, 2000
.
National Association for the Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH):

Joseph Nicolosi e Linda Ames Nicolosi, Omosessualità. Una Guida per i Genitori, (PDF: 174 KB/5 pages) (Italian: Joseph Nicolosi and Linda Ames Nicolosi. Homosexuality. A Guide for Parents) — Roberto Marchesini, October 2005.

Conversion Therapy Revisited: Parameters and Rationale for Ethical Care — Christopher H. Rosik, Spring 2001.

Revisión de la Terapia Teparativa: Parámetros y Fundamento Para el Cuidado Ético (PDF: 280 KB/18 pages) (Spanish: Conversion Therapy Revisited: Parameters and Rationale for Ethical Care ) — Christopher H. Rosik, Spring 2001.

Pediatrician Says Childhood Gender Identity Disorder Requires Treatment, Not Sex-Change Surgery — Ross Olson, undated (updated April 20, 2006).

Father-son Relationships and Male Sexual Development — Gregory Dickson, undated (Updated Sept 30, 2002).

Renew America:

Attorney, Group Blast Bishops Over Sex Ed — Matt C. Abbott, August 21, 2005.

Sometimes, Where There’s Smoke, There’s the Fired — Selwyn Duke, February 11, 2005

Virtue Online:

Expert Research Finds Homosexuality More Dangerous Than Smoking — “David Virtue,” April 4, 2007.

1.4% of Adults Homosexual? — “David Virtue,” March 23, 2007.

Sites like Box Turtle Bulletin should be commended for their diligent work in cataloguing all of this nonsense.

But the question needs to be asked - why have we let this go on for so long without raising hell about it?

The only reason why the religious right gets away with citing Cameron is because no one calls them on it.

Isn't time for us to do a little calling out?

Other HB/HM articles on Paul Cameron:

More homophobic lies from the Paul Cameron Poland tour

Homophobic 'researcher' Paul Cameron in all of his repulsive glory

What's Morally Wrong with Homosexuality?

I was in a ROTTEN mood when I got home today.

But thanks to John Corvino, I'm better. So I want to return the favor and show you the video that got me smiling. It's the trailer to a lecture he did called What's Morally Wrong with Homosexuality?

I'm in agreement with him on every point but damn it's still good to watch. It should be required viewing for everyone, gay or straight:



John Corvino is a writer, speaker, and philosophy professor at Wayne State University in Detroit. For more about his work, go to http://www.johncorvino.com

Lawrence King's killer, NOM gets a 'supporter', and other Wednesday news briefs.

Lawrence King’s Killer Motivated By Neo-Nazi Beliefs - Tell me AGAIN how it was Lawrence King's fault that he was murdered.

Terrell Carter Explains His Absence: "Been Working on My New Album" - Maybe he can tell us where Tevin Campbell is (shut up, Alvin)

The shutout was funny. The 3 attendees might be more telling - Oh look. NOM has someone who will support them on Facebook.

Hate Crimes could be on the path to enactment, finally - BOOM!

Dethroned Miss California Carrie Prejean lands right-wing book deal - Apparently I'm going about this book thing all wrong.

Hip-hop shows why some in the black community fear lgbts

I am an old school man. I remember when rap music first came out. I remember the Sugar Hill Gang, the first female rap group called Sequence, and I definitely remmber when Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five came out with the first socially conscious rap song called The Message.

Since that time, I have tuned out and with good reason. Rap music and the genre that it helped to spawn, hip-hop, has done some incredible things lyrically but rap stars give me a huge pause.

Like the one called Cam'ron.

I don't know Cam'ron and I have never heard of his music, but he seems to have started something ugly regarding lgbts. It's gotten so extreme that a Fox News contributor (of all people) has stepped in to speak against it:

Fox News political contributor Dr. Marc Lamont Hill wants to put an end to the pop culture catchphrase "no homo."

"No homo" was originated by rap star Cam'ron, who had an affinity for wearing anything pink but didn't want it to be perceived as gay.

Since being made popular by Cam'ron and his Dipset hip-hop crew, the expression has evolved into a ubiquitous slang term used to chase any phrase, action or idea that could be perceived as gay.

Apparently, the article says, anything that is perceived as gay is perceived as weak.

Now I know some people are going to start bashing, but let's not as of yet. Rock music has a stereotype of being vulgar and country music has a stereotype of being to the political right of Genghis Khan (remember what happened to the Dixie Chicks).

Personally, I think this "No Homo" nonsense hits on something about the black community that very few people want to realize.

We hear that the black community opposes homosexuality because of religious beliefs.

That's a dodge.

There are too many folks in the black community who break other Biblical commandments without pause. There is too much sex before marriage, too many illegitimate births, and too many off-the-shoulder dresses, fake hair, and fake nails at black gospel awards shows for so-called sanctified people to start pointing fingers at lgbts.

There are also too many gays and lesbians in the church and the pulpit for homosexuality to be considered the so-called sin of the ages. Everyone knows it but as long as no one "names it," no one has to "claim it."

Some in the black community feel that homosexuality is a threat because it threatens the gender roles that many in the black community have staked out for our men and women.

You know what I'm talking about. The strong brother who is supposed "to help the sista out." Or the hot and sexy black woman who "is fixing her hair to go out and scope at the club for a man."

This perceived idea is ridiculous. It reduces the black man and woman to plastic objects or commodities. Lgbts in the black community are considered a threat because by our very existence we question these ridiculous roles. We make some in the black community question themselves. And apparently they don't like what they see.

But this isn't our fault.

And to a measure, it's not the fault of hip-hop. By it's stark directness, hip-hop is merely bringing that problem to the forefront.

So maybe in talking about how the black community perceives homosexuality, we have been moving in the wrong direction. I don't know.

But I do know that there is a lot to be discussed regarding gender roles and sexual orientation in the black community if only someone would have the guts to initiate the conversation.

A clip of discredited researcher Paul Cameron making a fool of himself on the Donahue show

Anti-gay spokesperson Robert Knight once told me that I was obsessed with discredited researcher Paul Cameron. I found, and still find his comments to be ironic seeing that Knight has on occasion freely cited Cameron statistics even after he knew of the man's dubious history.

However, in viewing my behavior these few days, I see that Knight may have had a point. I've been on a tear about Cameron. However, it's only because I feel that the lgbt community don't know as much about him.

A short recap is in order. Paul Cameron is the man I consider directly responsible for a vast majority of religious right discredited studies about the lgbt community. When the AIDS crisis began, he made a career out of creating bad studies accusing the lgbt community of things like molesting children at a high rate, eating feces, and using gerbils as sex toys.

He has been discredited on numerous occasions but his work still continues to haunt the lgbt community via contemporaries like The Traditional Values Coalition, Americans for Truth, Concerned Women for America, and other religious right groups.

As I understand it, Cameron allowed Sascha Baron Cohen to make a fool out of him in the new movie Bruno. I haven't seen it yet but I hear it's good.

However, as the following clip from a past episode of Donahue demonstrates, Cameron needs no one's help in being made a fool.

His comments just defy description and would be funny if it weren't for all of those who took him seriously and caused the lgbt community so much harm:



Other HB/HM articles on Paul Cameron in Poland:

More homophobic lies from the Paul Cameron Poland tour

Homophobic 'researcher' Paul Cameron in all of his repulsive glory

Mixed bag for hate crimes legislation, Oklahoma Baptists try to put one over on everyone, and other Tuesday news briefs

Senate voted to strike funding for F-22 - Double hot damn! The one thing that could cause hate crimes legislation problems is gone!

Senate adopts amendments to hate crimes measure - Then again, the poison pills seem to be in effect.

Anti-gay Clue: It's fellow conservatives' support of Mike Heath that's the real mystery - A gay man accidentally kills another and the wolves feast. Of course they don't want to do anything considered "un-Christian," such as encouraging prayer for the parties involved.

Baptists apologize to Okla. governor for error - This is funny. They talk about morality then falsely pushes the idea that the Governor signed it.

Gay night draws 2,100 to Nats' game - Funny. I remember when the religious right used to flip out over stuff like this.

More homophobic lies from the Paul Cameron Poland tour

"Whereas two-thirds of the population are worker bees . . . generally those who engage in homosexuality belong to the other third, the third that so to speak exploits society." - Paul Cameron

Discredited researcher Paul Cameron (and one of the co-stars of the movie Bruno) seems to have gotten a lot of attention during his tour of Poland in May of this year.

Yesterday's clips of an interview with him was disturbing enough but today's clip is even more disturbing. He seems to be lecturing to a full auditorium and no one is challenging him when he says vicious inaccuracies like the statement at the beginning of this post.

And if anyone did want to challenge him, they would definitely have a lot of material to work with. From viewing the clip, I found things that were basically inaccurate.



The bulk of the clip is Cameron making the inaccurate claim that gays and lesbians molest children at a high rate. As proof of this, he cites two studies (funny how he didn't cite his own work) that according to him comes from the "homosexuals themselves."

One study he cites is the Bell and Weinberg that formed the basis of the book Homosexualities published in 1978. Homosexualities was produced by the Kinsey Institute. Cameron considers this to be a study conducted by gays since according to him, Alfred Kinsey was a gay man.

But the authors of the study, Alan Bell and David Weinberg, said their work could not be used to generalize about the entire gay community:

“. . . given the variety of circumstances which discourage homosexuals from participating in research studies, it is unlikely that any investigator will ever be in a position to say that this or that is true of a given percentage of all homosexuals.”

Cameron then claims that "around the same time" (his words), researchers Karla Jay and Alan Young sent out questionnaires around the country regarding sexual habits of gays and lesbians.

Now the answers to these questionnaires formed the basis of the 1979 book The Gay Report.

According to one of the best online sites when it comes to debunking Paul Cameron's lies, Box Turtle Bulletin:

The Gay Report was modeled after many other informal sex surveys which were popular in the 1970s and 1980s. Magazines like Cosmopolitan, Redbook, and Playboy often conducted reader surveys.

Twenty-five hundred responses came from a gay magazine questionnaire. The magazine, Blue Boy, was a softcore porn magazine. Because of this, said Box Turtle Bulletin, the authors of The Gay Report:

. . . have virtually guaranteed an exceptionally heavy biased towards the opinions and experiences of those who are much more sexually experienced.

In other words, it is the equivalent of claiming that those who respond to a sex survey in an issue of Hustler magazine are indicative of the American heterosexual population.

Even the authors of The Gay Report said:

We agreed at the outset not to pretend that these percentages represented the practices and views of all gay people—they reflected only our respondents.

And according Box Turtle Bulletin, the number of respondees in proportion to how many questionnaires sent out is too low:

To prepare for this study, the authors distributed “hundreds of thousands” of 16-page surveys across the country, with an abridged version printed in the adult magazine Blueboy, which is sort of a gay equivalent to Playboy or Penthouse. Out of this massive distribution, they received only 5,400 responses. While that may seem like a sizeable response, it is quite low when you consider the response rate. The authors estimate that 400,000 gay men and 100,000 lesbians saw at least one form of the questionnaire.5 That means the response rate for this survey is barely 1%. A negligible response rate like this would render any survey statistically meaningless.

I should point out that these two studies (both conducted over 30 years ago) was the only proof Cameron gave to justify his claim about the lgbt community and child molestation.

Pointing out the errors in Cameron's tour is important for two reasons:

1. I've seen these references to Homosexualities and The Gay Report in work by other religious right groups. I've had to debunk the Bell and Weinberg distortion on this site more times than I can count. So while it's safe to say that many religious right groups no longer cite Cameron by name, there is enough evidence to see that they are still using his distortions.

2. It bothers me that Cameron is able to go to a foreign country that is totally ignorant of his dubious history and pass his lies off for truth. It amazes me that a man who has been dismisssed from so many medical groups, who has faced censured so many times can still attain any type of credibility anywhere. This will no doubt have ugly repercussions for the worldwide lgbt community.

The reason why not enough people are aware of just how influential and dangerous Paul Cameron is has to do with those who have the power to expose him not doing their job. We have got to get on the ball with this one.

Other HB/HM articles on Paul Cameron in Poland:

Homophobic 'researcher' Paul Cameron in all of his repulsive glory