From the Los Angeles Times:
The Pentagon has concluded that the military detention center at Guantanamo Bay meets the standards for humane treatment of detainees established in the Geneva Convention accords.In a report for President Obama on conditions at Guantanamo, the Pentagon recommended some changes -- mainly providing some of the most troublesome inmates with more group recreation and opportunities for prayer -- said an administration official who read the report and spoke on condition of anonymity, citing its confidential nature.
The lengthy report was done by a top Navy official, Adm. Patrick M. Walsh, in response to Obama's Jan. 22 executive order to close the U.S. military detention facility in Cuba within a year...
But, has the military always followed the Geneva Convention standards at Gitmo, or is it just a "here and now" answer on Gitmo conditions? We all should know the answer to that question.
Frankly, we need to treat all prisoners of war and "enemy combatants" as humanely as we would want American prisoners of war treated -- at all times. That we haven't done this at all times with "war on terror" detainees leaves me, as a disabled, military veteran, feeling ashamed of my government.
From the Los Angeles Times:
The Pentagon has concluded that the military detention center at Guantanamo Bay meets the standards for humane treatment of detainees established in the Geneva Convention accords.In a report for President Obama on conditions at Guantanamo, the Pentagon recommended some changes -- mainly providing some of the most troublesome inmates with more group recreation and opportunities for prayer -- said an administration official who read the report and spoke on condition of anonymity, citing its confidential nature.
The lengthy report was done by a top Navy official, Adm. Patrick M. Walsh, in response to Obama's Jan. 22 executive order to close the U.S. military detention facility in Cuba within a year...
But, has the military always followed the Geneva Convention standards at Gitmo, or is it just a "here and now" answer on Gitmo conditions? We all should know the answer to that question.
Frankly, we need to treat all prisoners of war and "enemy combatants" as humanely as we would want American prisoners of war treated -- at all times. That we haven't done this at all times with "war on terror" detainees leaves me, as a disabled, military veteran, feeling ashamed of my government.
"I'm certainly hopeful that we can get that done, and we need to set that as a goal," Polis told Dallas Voice on Thursday, Feb. 19. "We should absolutely be holding our elected officials, including President Obama, to their commitments to support those three pieces of legislation - and our elected members of the House and Senate to deliver on those - and I hope that residents of Texas contact their House members and senators to urge them to support those efforts."Polis, a 33-year-old Democrat from Colorado who became the first openly gay man elected as a non-incumbent to Congress in November, will deliver the keynote address at the Texas Stonewall Democrats convention scheduled for Feb. 27 through March 1 in Austin.
Speaking in a telephone interview, Polis didn't offer a specific timeframe for addressing other LGBT-related federal issues, including a repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act and the addition of hate crimes protections. But he said that as a member of the House Rules Committee and co-chair of the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus, he's in a position to push the community's agenda forward.
"Having that human face on the issue for other members of Congress, I think, is critical in helping to get some of these changes made," he said.
"I don't think I'm intolerant, I just don't condone the lifestyle. Your personal lifestyle should be nobody's issue but yours. It's not a civil rights issue, it's a personal choice issue."Of course when Langford, in his capacity as mayor, refused to issue a permit for Birmingham Pride based on his personal issues with the LGBT community in his city, he should have expected to get slapped with a lawsuit. (SoVo):
According to Lambda, which is now representing CAP along with Birmingham attorney David Gespass, Langford also refused to let city workers hang banners for the Pride festival from city light posts, which was allowed for other events.What's ridiculous about Langford's behavior is that he's bucking the city's own history with the parade..."Mayor Larry Langford denied government benefits to Central Alabama Pride solely on the basis of his personal beliefs," Lambda staff attorney Beth Littrell said in a press release. "A government official cannot pick and choose which groups get government benefits or free speech rights."
Central Alabama Pride (CAP) has held a gay pride parade in Birmingham every year since 1989, and its Pride banners have been displayed in accordance with city policy - the same policy that allows the display of banners for a variety of events and organizations, including religious events and organizations.Extra bonus points for the fact that the city is being represented in federal court by Liberty Counsel (home of Bam Bam Barber, where he serves as "Director for Cultural Affairs").
The case is Central Alabama Pride, Inc. v. Larry Langford.
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Some great news from The Magic City, courtesy of Kathy over at Birmingham Blues -- Howard Bayless, the first out gay man elected to public office in Alabama, is running for Birmingham City Council. Kathy:
I'd love to see him go toe to toe in Council meetings with Larry Langford and Joel Montgomery, but with any luck they won't be around after October 2009.
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