So, And Thus...

The Facts About Marriott and California's Proposition 8

Entry from Mr. Marriott’s blog:

The Facts About Marriott and California's Proposition 8

Posted: November 11, 2008 4:17:19 PM

As many of you may know I'm a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Some might conclude given my family's membership in the Mormon Church that our company supported the recent ballot initiative to ban

same sex marriage in California. This is simply untrue. Marriott International is a public company headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, and is not controlled by any one individual or family. Neither I, nor the company, contributed to the campaign to pass Proposition 8.

The Bible that I love teaches me about honesty, integrity and unconditional love for all people. But beyond that, I am very careful about separating my personal faith and beliefs from how we run our business.

I am personally motivated to speak now because Marriott was built on the basic principles of respect and inclusion. My father, who founded this company along with my mother, told everyone who would listen: "Take care of your employees, and they'll take care of your customers, who will come back again and again."

For more than 80 years, our company has grown and changed, but that basic principle still holds up. We embrace all people as our customers, associates, owners and franchisees regardless of race, sex, gender identity or sexual orientation.

Our principle is backed up with a formal diversity program, which we established more than 20 years ago. Our Board of Directors has also focused on this priority and helped us be a leader and a better company. We were among the first in our industry to offer domestic partner benefits, and we've earned a perfect 100% score on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index for two years in a row. Many of our hotels have hosted LGBT community functions and events for years.

I am very proud of all of our associates at Marriott. And I want all our associates and guests, whom we welcome into our hotels, to know that we embrace your talents and thank you for your many contributions and your business.

I'm Bill Marriott, and thanks for helping me keep Marriott on the Move.

Obama Wins!

I'm going to sleep tonight with a profound feeling of peace. I haven't had that in quite a long time.

Just now, Ein Oso and I experience a lifetime event (I've had quite a few of them this year!), one that moved us so deeply, we couldn't help but to cry. Hope has made its way beyond hatred. Unity has replaced division. Truth has finally arrived.

I remember waking up the day after the November 2004 election. The news that President Bush won a second term left me completely numb. For days, I was in a haze of depression. I kept on thinking that people "just didn't get it". After these 8 years, I think people started to catch on.

I'm so excited to have Barack Obama be our President. I'm so grateful to see honesty return to our nation. I'm looking forward to the future.

Apple Opposes Proposition 8

And I though that I couldn't like Apple any more than I already do...

Apple is publicly opposing Proposition 8 and making a donation of $100,000 to the No on 8 campaign. Apple was among the first California companies to offer equal rights and benefits to our employees’ same-sex partners, and we strongly believe that a person’s fundamental rights — including the right to marry — should not be affected by their sexual orientation. Apple views this as a civil rights issue, rather than just a political issue, and is therefore speaking out publicly against Proposition 8.

Yes, it is a civil rights issue. Yes, I have a Mac.

Vote "NO" on Proposition 8

From over at Huffington Post:

Deepak Chopra: Gay Marriage and the Democratic Hazard

The rest of the country is watching to see if a ballot measure in California, Proposition 8, will ban gay marriage in that state. Since June California has legalized same-sex marriage, joining Massachusetts and Connecticut. The court decision that paved the way for this change outraged the usual groups. Social conservatives and various religious groups, including a massive influx of money from the Mormon Church in Utah, are campaigning heavily for Prop 8 to pass. One wonders what business it is of theirs. Marriage has its public side, but given the sharp decline in marriage since the Seventies, what precious institution are they protecting?

If the answer is that a sacrament is at stake, these religious groups have no business interjecting their beliefs into public policy. Various religions traditionally ban the eating of pork, shellfish, and meat on Friday, but we don't allow those strictures to govern policy. As for the condemnation of homosexuality by scripture, many of those same scriptures advocate polygamy. Trying to condemn homosexuality on religious grounds is a ship that has already sailed in every secular society, and the vast bulk of psychological research has already removed homosexual behavior out of the category of pathology.

What gives the anti-gay marriage forces their influence comes down to moral hazard. If you run no risk sticking your nose into someone else's bedroom, some people are weak enough to go ahead and do it. What gives them permission is a toxic tradition, deeply imbedded in the right wing, of shameless intrusion. McCarthyism, the right to life movement, school prayer, anti-immigration, and a string of other rabble-rousing campaigns have been based on harming other people without risk to yourself. What makes these movements immoral is that the whole situation is upside down. In finance, you are supposed to take extra care of other people's money, not less, when you are entrusted with it. In a democracy, majority rule is based on respect for minority rights, the basic idea being that a bond of trust allows minorities to feel safe when they are outnumbered.

What a great argument.

McClellan for Obama

Read about this last night:

AP News | Culpeper Star-Exponent

NEW YORK (AP) -- Scott McClellan, President Bush's former press secretary who angered old colleagues with a tell-all book earlier this year, said Thursday he is backing Barack Obama for president.

McClellan is the second former administration official to back the Democratic candidate this week. Former Secretary of State Colin Powell came out Sunday for Obama.

Do you feel like you're watching a movie where the evil empire had dominated the world for a while and were hurting puppy-dogs and something happened where the good guys started winning and the evil people started changing their ways? You know?!

New Government

Democrat majority "in the hooooooooooooouse":

The-Review.com

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A rush of Republican retirements has positioned Democrats to pick up 20 or more seats in the House and transform what might otherwise be a march to modest gains on Election Day into a wave to a lopsided majority.

Across the country, GOP departures - many in districts the party has controlled for decades - have made an extraordinarily grim election year even tougher for Republicans.

If Democrats can capture a substantial number of the GOP's 29 so-called open seats, they will have a stronger hand in the new Congress at moving an agenda that includes raising taxes on the wealthy and cutting them for the middle class, steering more federal benefits to low-income families and expanding health care coverage.

They also might solidify what could be a long-lasting House majority by gaining footholds in areas that have been off-limits to Democrats for a decade or longer. Democrats now enjoy a 235-199 majority in the House, with one vacancy. While no one envisions them building that to a veto-proof 270-seat majority this election, the closer they approach it the better chances their agenda will have, even should Republican John McCain win the White House.

This would be great news. No more caving in to get things passed.

Al-Qaida-linked Web site backs McCain as president - Yahoo! News

The message, posted Monday on the password-protected al-Hesbah Web site, said if al-Qaida wants to exhaust the United States militarily and economically, "impetuous" Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain is the better choice because he is more likely to continue the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"This requires presence of an impetuous American leader such as McCain, who pledged to continue the war till the last American soldier," the message said. "Then, al-Qaida will have to support McCain in the coming elections so that he continues the failing march of his predecessor, Bush."

Al-Qaida-linked Web site backs McCain as president - Yahoo! News

Saw this over at AmericaBlog.

So Al-Qaida want McCain to be president. What an endorsement!

Dubstar Is Back!

Dubstar have reformed! The trio, featuring lead singer Sarah Blackwood (recently of Client) are recording an album with Stephen Hague. It has the working title of United States Of Being.

XO's Middle Eight

Thanks for the info, xolondon!

I've been on this Dubstar kick for the past two weeks. How funny that this comes out. Even the other day, I told Ein Oso that Dubstar's first US release is among my top 20 albums of all-time.

I'm glad Sarah Blackwood decided to work with Dubstar again (and with the same great producer!). Though I did enjoy a handfull of songs that Client did, I found most of it too basic. I was spoild from the highly melodic songs Dubstar delivered. And Sarah's lyrics were sometimes so twisted!

Not sure what this means for Client. I see from the official Dubstar website that they started recording in August. I also see a new single and video out for Client. Is Sarah leaving Client or just doing the Dubstar project on the side? Hummmm. Perhaps she is manic now.

That was fast: Madonna & Ritchie Settle

Report: Madonna & Guy Ritchie's $60M Divorce Settlement - omg! news on Yahoo!

LONDON, U.K. -- Guy Ritchie and Madonna have settled their divorce, according to the U.K. publication, The Sun.

The "RocknRolla" director will reportedly walk away with assets totaling around $60 million, including a 1,200-acre country estate, a London pub, and a cash settlement.

Madonna will hold on to her New York and Los Angeles homes and most of her considerable fortune, The Sun reported.

"The negotiations were relatively painless," The Sun quoted a source as saying. "Guy knew what he wanted and Madonna knew what she was keen to keep. There was a spell when Guy was in a mood to dig his heels in, but he decided this arrangement seemed reasonable and a long battle over money would make life unbearable."

Wow, for someone who likes drama, this was so uneventful for her.

Manhunt Saw Record Traffic As Dow Dropped

But we received a tip that Manhunt, the most popular online "dating" resource in NYC for men looking for a hookup, saw record membership numbers the day of the stock market crash. So we got on the phone with Ken Herron, chief of marketing, and Tim Feeley, head of product development, to discuss the numbers that spiked when the Dow dropped.

Herron claims that guys were probably "reaching out to connect with friends, whether they were going to have sex or not. They want to reach out and talk." We didn't realize that people were using the sex site as an actual "social networking" site similar to Facebook.

Gay Sex Site Manhunt Saw Record Traffic As Dow Dropped

I think they were all Republicans who needed comfort after the debates.