Where Larry Craig got his ideas

You learn the most interesting things from other bloggers.

I was out last night at Hecate's den with racy mind, sittenpretty, and the inimitable Quaker motherfucker NTodd, and of course the conversation -- and flavored vodka (courtesy of sittenpretty) -- flowed in copious amounts.

So racy mind explains that the Larry Craig incident, with its bathroom stall, its foot-tapping, and its attempted note exchange (see, I think that's why Larry was "waving his hand" underneath the stall wall), sounded a lot like something she'd read some years ago. NTodd quotes the relevant passage in his post titled, as only he can, "Does This Cock In My Mouth Make Me Look Gay?"

RM remembered a book--Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Sex But Were Afraid to Ask by Dr. David Reuben--she read when she was a kid that had this valuable information:

The next common variety of homosexual behavior is oral intercourse. This is also known as fellatio, which means the same thing except in another language. In this variation, one man sucks the penis the other. Sometimes they then reverse roles, sometimes not.

Generally the circumstances are far from romantic. According to one homosexual, it goes something like this:

“Whenever I feel like sex, I drive down to the bowling alley. I walk into the men’s room, find an empty cubicle, go in, take down my pants, and sit on the toilet. Then I wait. It never takes very long.

Pretty soon another guy sits down in the next cubicle. I watch his feet. If he’s a gay guy, he’ll slide his foot over and kind of nudge mine. That means he’s ‘cruising.’ If I’m interested, I nudge back. Then we get started.

I always use a piece of toilet paper to write some kind of note—usually I just say ‘Do you suck?’ Sometimes if I have plenty of time I add something else like, ‘How big are you?’ I throw the paper on the floor, he picks it up, comes over into my cubicle, and sucks my penis. That’s how it ends — sometimes I suck his penis but usually I just go home.”

Um ... holy shit. Wow. Why has this not been widely disseminated yet?

People, despite his denials, Larry Craig didn't come up with this routine by himself. It's practically a custom if you want anonymous gay sex. And the problem, of course, is not that he's gay or engages in gay sex. The problem is that he insists he isn't gay, and that he simply has a "wide stance." Larry, a 40-year-old book begs to differ.

Leave it to the "liberal media" to be right on top of this story. So to speak.

Blog Against Theocracy: Emasculating the Establishment Clause

Although there are innumerable reasons to hate what the Bush crime syndicate has done to America over the last six-and-a-half years, I have been affected most personally by their attempts to turn this country into a theocracy. This administration has forced me, a recovering attorney and longtime practicing, church-going Christian, to reevaluate my values and philosophy in light of what the current regime has abetted, if not created: a rhetorical, symbolic war between Christianity and the U.S. Constitution.

Under the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, the government cannot "establish" an official religion. Yet in raising Christianity to a de facto prerequisite for pursuing public office, the Religious Right and their allies in government have essentially done exactly that.

Over at her fine blog last week, Hecate detailed the battle that a hypocritical "Christian" group in Maine is fighting to attack the character and, indeed, the livelihood, of a Democratic official there who happens to be Pagan:

Jason, at the Wild Hunt, has a disturbing story of a Pagan politician being singled-out for harassment and intimidation by a group of Christianists.

Rita Moran is the Chair of the Kennebec County Democratic Committee in Maine. She runs a local bookstore, Apple Valley Books, that sells Pagan books, including books related to Pagan parenting, a popular topic among Pagans, most of whom converted to Paganism as adults and are now having families that they want to raise in their religion. Moran is also a member of the Immanent Grove, a gnostic circle.

A group that goes by what I consider to be the unAmerican name The Christian Civic League has put up a web page with information about Moran's political postition and her religious beliefs, including the terrifying fact that she sells books for Pagan parents. The Christian Civic League helpfully provides lots of contact informaton, including Moran's address, phone numbers, and e-mail addresses. We all know the purpose of that.

Moran reports that: My primary concerns are financial. When this happened, I "zeroed out" the donation total on our county Dems website (http://www.kennebecdems.org). There has not been a single donation since I've been "outed". I'm even more concerned about the loss of business here at our bookshop as Michael Hein's attack turns to even more vicious rumors. I guess what I'd ask from the community is whatever support they can offer. Tranquil energy, book orders, donations to our county committee if you wish to recognize that aspect of my community service. Thanks all..."

Voltaire once said, "Not only is it extremely cruel to persecute in this brief life those who do not think the way we do, but I do not know if it might be too presumptuous to declare their eternal damnation." This was paraphrased a century ago by a Voltaire scholar as "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."

However you say it, the point is that you don't have to be a Pagan, you don't even have to approve of Paganism ... but the Constitution and indeed every canon of ethics and government for centuries require that Pagans -- and every other religion -- be allowed the opportunity, the freedom, to practice their religion and engage in society and, yes, run for office, the same as anyone else.