Maryland: Gunman Attacks & Kills At Least Four At Capital Gazette Newspaper

Just yesterday, Trump supporter and former senior editor for Breitbart, Milo Yiannopoulos said, “I can’t wait for the vigilante squads to start gunning journalists down on sight."

Today, a shooter guns down journalists in Annapolis, Maryland.

The Baltimore Sun is reporting a shooting has occurred at the Capital Gazette in Anne Arundel County, a paper that is owned by The Baltimore Sun, according to police and Capital Gazette staff.

Anne Arundel County Sheriff says multiple fatalities have occurred, a suspect in custody and the building has been evacuated.

Phil Davis, a reporter for the Capital Gazette, shared the breaking story in a series of tweets:

A single shooter shot multiple people at my office, some of whom are dead.

— Phil Davis (@PhilDavis_CG) June 28, 2018

Gunman shot through the glass door to the office and opened fire on multiple employees. Can't say much more and don't want to declare anyone dead, but it's bad.

— Phil Davis (@PhilDavis_CG) June 28, 2018

There is nothing more terrifying than hearing multiple people get shot while you're under your desk and then hear the gunman reload

— Phil Davis (@PhilDavis_CG) June 28, 2018

As a result of the shooting in Maryland, New York City Police has sent extra protective forces to major media office buildings.

It's worth noting that, on many occasions, Donald Trump has incited anger over the press to his followers. He's tweeted in the past, "The FAKE NEWS media is not my enemy, it is the enemy of the American people. SICK!"

The FAKE NEWS media (failing @nytimes, @NBCNews, @ABC, @CBS, @CNN) is not my enemy, it is the enemy of the American People!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 17, 2017

We don’t know who is responsible for the #Annapolis mass shooting at a press outlet, but it’s horrifying to see Trump supporters claim the shootings are justified because it’s the media and “they deserve it.”

Republicans have fostered that sentiment. And now Americans are dead.

— Kaivan Shroff (@KaivanShroff) June 28, 2018

Maryland Bans So-Called "Ex-Gay" Therapy For Minors

Maryland became the 12th state in the U.S. to ban health professionals from practicing so-called "ex-gay therapy" on minors after Gov. Larry Hogan signed the bill into law today.

Supporters of the ban note the therapy is widely discredited by medical and mental health associations and can lead to depression, lowered self-esteem and in some cases, suicidal thoughts.

The new law will classify the practice as unprofessional conduct.

The practice of "conversion therapy" on minors has also been banned in California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, the District of Columbia, and about three dozen cities and counties.

Podcast: "Will & Grace" Finale; New Documentary On The Life Of Sir Ian McKellen "Playing The Part;" MGM Resorts Releases Gender-Flipped Love Songs

In this week's podcast:

• MGM Resorts released a new collection of wedding songs for LGBTs from Kesha, Bob Dylan and more.

• The finale of Will & Grace aired this week with some surprise couplings.

• A new documentary of the life and legacy of Sir Ian McKellen - Playing The Part.

• Natti Vogel's new music video "Brown Rice" starring Matthew Wilkas explores the pressures of Instagram fame

• Maryland’s state legislature moves closer to banning so-called "conversion therapy."

• Anchorage, Alaska, says “no” to transgender discrimination.

All that and more on this episode of The Randy Report.

If you enjoy catching up on LGBTQ headlines in 15 minutes with The Randy Report podcast, please share it with your friends.

I like to think of my newsmagazine podcast as "the 60 Minutes of gay news" - only shorter.

Maryland Becomes 12th State Plus District Of Columbia In Automatic Voter Registration

(image by Maryland Dexter GF via Flickr)

Maryland has become the 12th state in the U.S. to adopt automatic voter registration.

The new law will automatically register voters when they obtain a driver's license, use state social services or buy insurance on the health exchange.

Automatic voter registration will go into effect in July 2019.

From The Baltimore Sun:

Voters can decline to be registered. But advocates say the automatic voter registration program’s out-opt structure will end up getting more people registered than the current opt-in one.

Already, the Maryland Vehicle Administration and other state agencies offer residents the option of registering to vote. The new law will have state workers informing residents they will be registered to vote unless they decline. It also requires people who electronically file taxes to be offered an opportunity to register to vote.

Oregon was the first to pass automatic registration in 2016 and the result was 270,000 new voters registered and the highest voter participation of any state in the union in the last presidential election.

Anything that encourages eligible voters to take part in the democratic process is a good thing :)

More please.

Currently Alaska, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia and the District of Columbia have adopted automatic voter registration.

p.s. 4 million teens turn 18 before the 2018 election.
p.s.s. 17-year-olds can register to vote if they will be 18 on or before Election Day.

News Round-Up: March 13, 2018

Some news items you might have missed:

• How could I pass up sharing a pic of uber-sexy model Stuart Reardon and wine???

• A federal judge in Maryland has ruled that transgender students have the right to use the rest rooms and locker rooms that align with their gender identity.

• Hundreds turn out in support of an out high school football player who was targeted by the hate group Westboro Baptist Church.

St. Louis high school rallies around gay football player @Jakebain10 to counter hate group #LoveWins https://t.co/FZAOED0gtN via @outsports pic.twitter.com/RYCl3iZ7K3

— Outsports (@outsports) March 13, 2018

• A hospital refused the tissue donation from a deceased 24-year-old because he was gay.

• A Republican candidate for office in Maine viciously attacked one of the surviving students of the Parkland gun massacre as "a skinhead lesbian."

• With the new coming-out/coming-of-age gay dramedy Love, Simon opening this week, out director Greg Berlanti spoke candidly to NewNowNext about his own teen years as a closeted young gay:

“I can only imagine what I would be feeling right now if I was a 16-year-old watching people like Adam Rippon and Gus Kenworthy on TV.

"I wasn’t ready to come out in college or high school. I think the fear was similar, and putting on a brave face so people saw me as a happy kid next door. I had family that was close-knit, but that didn’t make me less terrified. I came out in my early 20s, around the dawn of the Internet exploding, which I think made people feel less isolated or alone."

Maryland DJ Refuses To Provide Services For Gay Man's 60th Birthday Party

(Graphic via Washington Post)

Well, this will get interesting.

First we had wedding photographers and bakeries refusing to provide services for same-sex weddings based on "sincerely held religious beliefs." Same-sex marriage was a bridge too far for those folks, and they could not see themselves as "participating" in a same-sex wedding.

Now, however, a Maryland DJ has refused to work at a birthday party being thrown for a 60 year old gay man. No wedding. No unions. Just a party where gay people might be.

And Ultrasound Deejays has a written company policy stating, “we will not be involved in any event involving homosexual celebration or activity. We follow biblical morality.”

More from the Washington Post:

The national debate about how to balance religious conscience protections and gay equality flared in the large, mostly liberal Washington, D.C., suburb of Montgomery County Friday, when Dani Tsakounis tried to help her brother hire Ultrasound Deejays for a party. An owner of the business told Tsakounis he would not provide the DJ because Tsakounis’s brother, a Silver Spring therapist, is married to another man and the birthday party they are hosting is for their 60-year-old roommate, who is also gay.

“I just said, ‘We won’t be able to do it, we’re a Christian organization and it would go against our faith, I’m sorry,’” Michael Lampiris, co-owner of Ultrasound Deejays, said Friday.

Tom Tsakounis, 46, was so upset when his sister told him that he posted the news on his neighborhood listserv, prompting calls of sympathy from neighbors. He also registered a complaint with the Montgomery County Human Rights Commission, which hears cases of alleged discrimination.

Maryland state law has banned discrimination based on sexual orientation in public accommodation — which includes businesses “offering goods, services, entertainment” the law says — since 2001.

The article goes on to say that Lampiris admits that he's turned down bridal parties just because he heard lesbians might be attending.

According to reports, Lampiris didn't sound very concerned about breaking the law, though, stating, “We ought to obey God rather than men.”

Maryland Governor Restores "Gender Identity" To Non-Discrimination Provisions

One day after his inauguration, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan issued an executive order dropping the words "gender identity" from non-discrimination provisions for Medicaid.

Two pro-LGBT organizations - Equality Maryland & FreeState Legal Project - were quick to respond.

As such, Gov. Hogan has re-issued his executive order to include the words "gender identity."

From Equality Maryland:

“We are pleased that Governor Hogan re-issued the Executive Order to reflect current state law that prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Equality Maryland will continue to advocate for the proposed regulation prohibiting discrimination by Medicaid providers to be revived.”

(via Washington Blade)

Maryland Gets Economic Boost From Same-Sex Marriage

NerdWallet.com reports that Maryland's economy banked $52.7 million from same-sex marriage.

In Maryland, where same-sex marriages have occurred since Jan. 1, 2013, the percentage of the population that identifies as LGBT is 3.3 percent from a population of 5,928,814.

An estimated 1,507 same-sex marriages occurred with an average cost of $34,995 spent on weddings bringing a total of $52,720,973 to Maryland’s economy.

Maryland House of Delegates passes transgender rights bill

Today the Maryland House of Delegates passed SB 212: Fairness for All Marylanders Act with a vote of 82-57. The bill, previously passed by the Senate in an overwhelming 32-15 vote, will extend employment, housing, and public accommodations protections to transgender people in Maryland.

The Human Rights Campaign's Chad Griffin issued this statement:

"Today, the Maryland legislature brought this country one step closer to the promise of its founding documents by recognizing that everyone should be treated equally, including transgender Marylanders. Being free from discrimination on the job is one of the things that makes our economy thrive and our nation succeed. It's long past time for these essential workplace protections to extend from coast to coast and everywhere in between."

Gov. Martin O'Malley has stated he intends to sign the bill into law.

(source)

Maryland state Senate approves ban on transgender discrimination

By a vote of 32-15, the Maryland state Senate has approved a bill that would put in ban discrimination of transgender people in the state.

From the Washington Blade:

“I just hope people realize this is a fairness issue,” said state Sen. Allan Kittleman (R-Howard County).

“It is not our job to discriminate,” added state Sen. Delores Kelly (D-Balitmore County) before the vote. “The bill is carefully crafted. The definitions are clear”

State Sen. Rich Madaleno (D-Montgomery County), who introduced SB 212, applauded its passage.

“Today marks a historic milestone in the continued fight to advance equal rights for all Marylanders,” he said in a statement. “The Senate’s passage of the Fairness for All Marylanders Act sends a reaffirming message throughout our state that regardless of whom you are, prejudice and discrimination will no longer be tolerated or exempted from law. With these new anti-discrimination protections for transgender persons one step closer to full passage.”

The bill now moves to the Maryland House of Delegates which approved similar legislation in 2011.

Shooting at Maryland Mall

Police confirm 3 killed in Md. mall shooting. http://t.co/TUUV9ilzyR
— Washington Post (@washingtonpost) January 25, 2014

The shopping mall is located in a Baltimore suburb.

Police believe one of the dead found was the shooter. The gun found near the suspected shooter was a shotgun.

Maryland: State legislature votes to repeal death penalty

The Associated Press is reporting the Maryland General Assembly has approved a measure to repeal the death penalty.

The House of Delegates voted 82 to 56 Friday to pass a bill already approved by the Senate.

Gov. Martin O'Malley is expected to sign it the bill into law.

Maryland would become the 18th state to abolish the death penalty.

Maryland delegate Don Dwyer: Drinking "exploded" because of gay marriage

Don Dwyer, Maryland state delegate, last August was involved in a boating accident while alledgedly over the legal alcohol limit.  The accident ed to a five-year-old girl's skull being fractured.

He now says his problem with alcohol is due to same-sex marriage

The Advocate writes, "Dwyer claims the August 2012 crash was not his fault, even though alcohol was found on his boat and his alcohol limit was three times the legal limit at the time. The politician claims his casual drinking exploded after he separated from his wife of 31 years and after what he called "betrayal" over his stance against same-sex marriage. Two Republicans who he believed would help him stand in the way of marriage equality legislation ended up changing their vote and supporting the bill, which passed (Maryland voters reaffirmed the vote at the ballot in November).

"That betrayal really affected me," he said. "I was physically ill. You pour your heart into an issue like that and it’s devastating."

Maryland celebrates first same-sex marriages!

Maryland is now the ninth state where marriage equality is official, and it's the first below the Mason-Dixon line.

James Scales and William Tasker were the first couple married at City Hall in Baltimore today, and the ceremony was presided over by none other than Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake.

"There is no human institution more sacred than that of the one that you are about to form," the mayor said. "True marriage, true marriage, is the dearest of all earthly relationships."

Prior to the ceremony, Scales, a 68-year old employee at the mayor's office, marveled at finally achieving his dream, telling the AP, "It's just so hard to believe it's happening." And there's no turning back!

Maryland: Marriage equality begins at midnight

When the clock strikes midnight tonight, it will mark more than simply the start of a new year for some couples in Maryland — it’s also when Maryland’s new marriage equality law officially takes effect. Some same-sex weddings are already planned for the first moments of 2013.

Since New Year’s Day is a government holiday, courthouses across Maryland are closed. But that didn’t stop Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake (D) from taking steps to ensure that same-sex couples won’t have to wait any longer for marriage equality. Rawlings-Blake will open Baltimore’s city hall tonight to allow at least seven same-sex couples to get married, and the mayor plans to serve as an official witness for the wedding ceremonies:

“New Years Day will have a new meaning for the hundreds — if not thousands — of couples who will finally have the right to marry the person they love,” said Mayor Rawlings-Blake.
“It is a remarkable achievement for Maryland, and we are excited to open City Hall to host some of the first wedding ceremonies in our great state. Newly married couples will stand before their friends and family to profess their love and commitment to each other. This is what we worked for, and I am looking forward to take part in this historic and jubilant day.”

The first couple to be married at City Hall will be a longtime aide to the mayor and his partner of 35 years. And even though the courthouses in other Maryland cities may not be open, the early marriage licenses that some same-sex couples in the state were able to begin applying for in December will become official at midnight tonight.

Being on West Coast time, trust and believe that at 9pm my time I'll raise a glass to the fabulous couples who waited so long but won the right to marry the person they love.  That alone will make my New Year's Eve fabulous.

In advance of all the celebrations, I want to congratulate all the newlyweds.  Enjoy, take it all in and celebrate!

Forward!

(source)

Maryland: Same-sex couples can marry Jan. 1, 2013

Maryland Attorney General Doug Gansler said on Thursday same-sex couples can begin to marry in the state on Jan. 1.

He wrote in a 19-page opinion that clerks can begin to issue marriage licenses to gays and lesbians as soon as Dec. 6, as long as they don’t take effect until the same-sex marriage law takes effect at the start of the new year. A 1999 law states a marriage license is not valid until 6 a.m. on the second calendar day after a clerk issues it.

Gansler concluded this requirement does not “expressly prohibit licenses becoming effective after that time.”

“Although there is a legal reason why same-sex couples cannot be licensed to marry before midnight on Jan. 1, 2013…, there is no such legal reason why they should not be licensed to marry at any time after the moment the law takes effect,” he wrote.
 
The same-sex marriage law voters approved by a 52-48 percent margin earlier this month is scheduled to take effect on a legal holiday when clerks’ offices are typically closed. It was previously believed the earliest a same-sex couple would have been able to legally marry under Maryland law was 6 a.m. on Jan. 4.

(via Washington Blade)

States to reap income windfall from marriage equality

JoeMyGod points out an Associated Press report on the three states about a boom in business due to same-sex weddings:

Add the coast of Maine, the banks of the Chesapeake Bay and the shores of Lake Washington to gay wedding destinations.

Next month and in January, laws go into effect in Maine, Maryland and Washington that allow same-sex marriage. They're the first states where voters approved such laws, rather than legislators or courts. Nearly 18,000 same-sex couples in those states will exchange vows in the first three years after the new laws are in effect, estimated The Williams Institute, a national think tank at the UCLA School of Law, and the laws should generate at least $166 million in wedding spending in the three states over the next three years from in-state couples alone, boosting tax revenues and creating new jobs.

Wedding-related spending for in-state couples is projected be about $16 million in Maine, $63 million in Maryland and $89 million in Washington. The numbers go up when figuring in out-of-staters who travel to those states to be wed.

When marriage equality begins in Washington, Maryland and Maine

Thanks to the American Foundation for Equal Rights, here is the timeline for implementing the recently passed marriage equality initiatives:

• Maine: December 6 at the earliest. This date may change. The initiative goes into effect 30 days after the governor makes a “public proclamation of the result of the vote,” within 10 days after the result has been determined.
• Maryland: January 1, 2013. This date was included in the original legislation passed by the state’s General Assembly, which was approved by voters.
• Washington: December 6. All referendums that are approved by voters in the Evergreen State go into effect 30 days after the election.

A response from the US Supreme Court on Prop 8 and DOMA challenges is expected November 26th.

Yes! Marriage equality passes in Maryland!

Marriage equality has won in Maryland, with the Question 6 ballot measure succeeding!

With 92.7% Reporting - 51.7% approved the measure and 48.3% opposed it.

Voters approved Question 6, the Civil Marriage Protection Act, paving the way for gay and lesbian couples to receive a marriage license beginning in January.

Tonight is the first time in history any state has voted on and passed marriage equality on the ballot. Fairness and equality under the law won tonight,” said Josh Levin, campaign manager for Marylanders for Marriage Equality. “We’re sure to feel the ripples of this monumental victory across the country for years to come.”

Question 6 protects religious freedom of churches and clergy. No church or clergy member will have to perform any marriage they don’t want to. Legislatures and courts have legalized marriage equality in six states and the District of Columbia.

Maryland is the first state to legalize same-sex marriage through a vote of the people. “This victory would not have been possible without the unparalleled leadership of Governor O’Malley, resolve of the LGBT Caucus in the legislature, and the full-court press by the Human Rights Campaign, which has been here day in and day out for more than a year working for full equality.”

Reminder: Maine, Maryland, Minnesota and Washington