When Ted Olsen teamed up with his former adversary, David Boies, to file a federal lawsuit on behalf of two plaintiffs against Proposition 8 in California, one would have thought that the apocalypse was indeed nigh. Olsen and Boies were on opposite sides in 2000 when they were arguing before the Supreme Court about that little election issue in Florida… I think it was important, but I don’t recall. Anyway, the fact is, they teamed up and brought a lawsuit against the State of California. At the time it was filed, there was reticence and mistrust from the LGBT community. There was a real concern that if Olsen and Boies lost it would be disastrous precedent for future lawsuits to overcome. Lambda Legal was one group who was worried that the timing wasn’t right, and that a loss would be incredibly damaging. Some conspiratorial voices buzzed that Olsen was going to intentionally throw the case. But, no such thing happened, and they actually won, for now. There’s a good chance that this ends in California, though, because California may not pursue the appeal. Governor Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown have declined to pursue it any further, and as they were the defendants named, nobody else would have legal standing to defend Prop 8 before the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. If this happens and the 9th Circuit declares that there’s no standing, the case does not advance. That would be the best scenario for social conservatives, a containment of their loss, because a Circuit-wide defeat of Prop 8 would in effect wipe out any state law or state constitutional amendment that restricts marriages to one man and one woman. Other states would most certainly appeal that to the U.S. Supreme Court and it’s really a toss up at that point, because Judge Vaughn Walker- ahem- a Reagan conservative appointee- wrote a solid ruling that was based in constitutional law and analysis, and not the emotional, irrational whining of the Prop 8 defenders who almost seemed to be throwing their own case intentionally. But, this is not about the ruling in Perry v Schwarzenegger. There is a movement afoot that I have been sensing since this case was first filed.

Conservatives are turning the page on gay issues.

At first it was subtle. Just a little rustling in the wind. In 2004, Vice President Dick Cheney broke ranks with President Bush and declined to support a federal Constitutional amendment that would have forced a nationwide definition of marriage on all 50 states. Not for nothing, but many prominent Republicans at the time also recoiled at the idea of etching such a thing into our founding document. Many who did faced enormous criticism from liberals and conservatives alike. The next wave crested when the State of Massachusetts could not get the required votes to place a ballot initiative that would repeal marriage equality. The State of Iowa became the first state West of the Mississippi to enact same-sex marriage when their state supreme court overruled the ban on same-sex marriage and it’s held for several years now. So, when did conservatives see the writing on the wall and decide that the time was right to make a move? I would say it all began with the campaign and election of Barack Obama.

Barack Obama has, in the past, expressed his support for marriage equality back when he was doing community work in Chicago. Yet, when he ran for the U.S. Senate against the carpetbagger Alan Keyes, he dialed back his support to the fence-sitting position of ‘civil unions’. It was easy to look like the beacon of reason next to the virulently homophobic Alan Keyes, who called Mary Cheney a selfish hedonist and even kicked his own daughter out of the house for being a lesbian. Everyone knew that Obama was being groomed for a run at the presidency even while he was being sworn into the Senate, and on the national stage, the more vague you are, the more people you reach. He tried several times to reach out to socially conservative, religious Black people, first through using ex-gay singer Donnie McClurkin on his campaign tour, and then by inviting Rick Warren, pastor of the Saddleback Church, to give the invocation at Obama’s inauguration. Warren has had his own litany of anti-gay screeds and arguably, the blood of many Africans on his hands thanks to his help in getting condom distribution stopped in countries ravaged by HIV/AIDS. Gay people were frankly livid at Warren got such a prestigious invite. Incidentally, many social conservatives were also livid that Warren accepted. Obama then failed to say anything about Propostion 8. He did not object to his words being used out of context in pro-Prop-8 ads. He did not say much a year later when a voter’s referendum was used to repeal the legislatively enacted same-sex marriage law in Maine, one that was heavily financed by out of state interests, similar to how Prop 8 was pushed. Obama’s justice department filed briefs in two cases, one defending the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act from a Massachusetts lawsuit, and another defending the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy by people who were suing to keep their careers in the United States Military. Both briefs were filled with insulting and demeaning characterizations of gay people. It was becoming clear that Barack Obama was no “fierce advocate” for the LGBT community. By the time Ted Olsen and David Boies filed the lawsuit, a plan was in place.

I have to admit, it’s a good plan.

First, you quietly drop the opposition to same-sex marriage and gays serving in the Armed Forces. Even if you oppose it, just let it go, because eventually these battles will be lost. The second is to have some conservatives actually outflank the President on these issues. Not conservatives who actually have any power, mind you, but a few big names that might open some eyes, like Dick Cheney and Laura Bush. It makes Obama look weak if he can’t even throw a bone to members of his base. Ken Mehlman comes out. GOProud puts on a conservative gay convention and has Ann Coulter speaking, not to mention such sponsors as Tammy Bruce, Grover Norquist, Margaret Hoover, John Hawkins, Lisa DePasquale, Bruce Carroll & John Ciccone, Christopher Barron & Shawn Gardner, Jimmy LaSalvia, Craig Engle, Christopher Taylor & Anthony Cirone, Roy Eappen, and Jessica Lee.  Glenn Beck even takes a few steps back and telling Bill O’Reilly that there’s bigger fish to fry than gay marriage.   The plan is, I believe, in two years, to split the gay vote from two fronts- the first is dropping opposition to or even expressing support for marriage equality, and the second is to use Islamophobia to convince us that compared to Muslims, Christians are downright docile.  Lastly, they get to one-up a president who has had a lot of trouble putting his words of support into any tangible action that benefits gays & lesbians. If the Republicans manage to deliver marriage equality while Obama waffles on it, it’s going to go a very long way in getting new GOP support in 2012.

Some have said that the social conservatives in the GOP won’t stand for it, but I believe that they will endure it, because the thought of four more years of Obama enacting what they believe to be a socialist, communist, non-citizen, Muslim (okay, look, birthers and other people who try and paint Obama as something completely foreign- he’s black.  Deal with it, okay?  Get over yourselves.) agenda is more frightening to them than two dudes and two chicks getting married. So the GOP will downplay their social cons and their theocratic cons, and use the Tea Party movement to recruit gays by one-upping the president and the do-nothing Democrats in Congress. Even though their motives are purely political and have nothing to do with, oh, doing the right thing for LGBT people, they get to wrap themselves in the mantle of acceptance and equality while they evangelize a new batch of gays & lesbians into Republicanism.

I’ve been there. I’m a recovering Republican. I’ve seen what this kind of governance has done for this country and I can’t say I like what I see, and that has nothing to do with marriage equality or LGBT issues. It has more to do with giving away so much power to megalithic, unaccountable corporations who have undermined capitalism and representative democracy,  which as a result, is systematically destroying a once prosperous American middle class, and in this endeavor, Democrats are also complicit.  They have just as much blood on their hands as Republicans.  I am all for diversity of thought and public opinion in the political sphere, I am not one who thinks that all gays should vote Democrat, but I do ask that you think about this sudden shift in opinion and ask yourself why they want your vote so badly that they’re willing to throw 30 years of pandering to Christo-fascists and Moral Majority types under the bus to get it. Perhaps they see that younger generations aren’t quite as hip to the disturbing anti-gay messages of the late Jerry Falwell or the severely aged Pat Robertson. Perhaps they see Islam as a far greater threat to the West than homosexuality.  No doubt we have to keep a watchful eye on crazy radical Muslims, but the degree of fearmongering going on lately is a bit much.  Whatever the reason is, remember, they’re not doing it because they genuinely believe in marriage equality. They want something from us. They need something from us. Our problem is that we’ve forgotten how to be demanding. We’re a cheap date, anyone knows by watching how we fawn over Democrats who make us promises they have no intention of keeping. So let’s stop being such pushovers and start dealing, and make them come to us hat in hand. Democrats too, it’s time that we hold them responsible for broken promises, stalling, and inaction as well. Screw it, while we’re at it, ANYONE who feels that they’re simply being pandered to, stop being so easy and start holding the feet of your elected officials and candidates to the fire. Let’s hold them all accountable for selling out the American Dream while using volatile but meaningless social issues to distract us from how badly we’re being shafted.

~Matti Frost

Successful home gun defense illustrates unfairness of Chicago gun laws

Written by

David Codrea, Gun Rights Examiner

“An off-duty Chicago police officer shot and killed a man who broke into his South Side home Friday morning,” Becky Schlikerman of The Chicago Tribune informs us.

The suspect, we are told, was armed:

“The officer…fired his service weapon several times, killing the intruder…”

Neighbors are supportive:

“They invaded his home, he did what he had to do…”

A core issue behind the McDonald Supreme Court case was so if the neighbors’ homes are invaded, they’ll be able to do what they have to do. That the Daley administration continues to fight recognition of their right to do so every step of the way ought to be all any fair-minded person needs to know…..

More here.

Oath Keeper Sheriff Richard Mack – interview for the movie “Guns and Weed: The Road to Freedom.” Filmed at Wyoming Liberty Fest in Lander, August 21, 2010.

http://www.sheriffmack.com/

http://oathkeepers.org/

THIS FOOTAGE NOT YET COLOR CORRECTED OR AUDIO FLUFFED.

“Guns and Weed: The Road to Freedom”

http://www.gunsandweed.com/

A film by Michael W. Dean and Neema Vedadi. Drops Spring 2011.

View the pre-trailer (be sure to watch in hi-def mode!):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qo2a1QQDgOk

Keywords:

Sheriff Mack, Richard Mack, Oath Keepers, Oathkeepers, Graham County, Arizona, Libertarian, 10th amendment, constitutionalist, gun rights, Wyoming liberty fest, Sheppard Humphries, Neema Vedadi, Michael w. dean, nullification, guns, weed, legalize marijuana, liberty, Ron Paul, freedom, states’ rights, US Constitution, saving America, Bill of Rights, Richard Mack vs SPLC, Southern Poverty Law Center, tyranny, gun control, gun grabbers, Brady campaign, war on drugs, obamacare, war on guns

I think a lot of libertarians and Republicans tend to not want to “rock the boat.” For instance, I have a Goldwater Republican friend who lives in Phoenix and he hates illegal immigration, is directly affected by it in a negative way, but doesn’t like what the governor’s doing there, because it “causes unrest” and “goes too far.”

Whereas liberal progressives LOVE to yell and demand their “rights.” It’s a problem…..libertarians just basically want to “be left alone”, that’s almost the common DEFINITION of libertarianism. And the definition of progressivism is that they LOVE to screech, tell people what to do and “push the envelope.”

Libertarians should all own and carry guns. Carry a handgun and own a rifle. It reinforces the idea of self-defense, in everything. Guns are not only a physical tool, they are a psychological tool. Carrying one reminds you that libertarianism isn’t just “leave me alone”, it’s “if you push me too far I’ll push back.”

Some may think that “rocks the boat” or “goes to far”, but I’m a peace-lovin’ man and it makes a lot of sense to me.

ZAP: Do not initiate aggression.
ZAP 2.0: Do not initiate, OR ACCEPT, aggression.

–Michael W. Dean

–Michael W. Dean

A film by Michael W. Dean and Neema Vedadi.

Drops Spring 2011.

View the pre-trailer (be sure to watch in hi-def mode!):

Website and mailing list: http://www.gunsandweed.com/

Tell two friends!

We’re making this film because we’re amazed by how many people who love guns also support the War on Drugs, and how many people who love drugs support the War on Guns. They need to know the two wars fuel each other. And most pro-pot people are also into progressive socialism. It doesn’t make sense. If you’re into one freedom, you really should be into ALL freedoms.

For instance, Woody Harrelson is a well-known pot advocate. I agree with Harrelson on the pot issue. But he’s an inveterate Obama licking socialist progressive.

How’s this for justifying lunacy?:

Salon.com: At least at this point, it appears that Obama is pushing onward with the war in Afghanistan. Is he just constrained by geopolitics? Is he simply not free to say, “Look, we’re not going to do this anymore”?

Harrelson: I think there’s a lot of persuasive and powerful people around Obama. For a president to make his own decisions, I think that’s a rarity. Even someone who we think of as our guy — this is a guy with integrity, a guy who cares, for the first time in a long time — in the Oval Office, even with him we don’t really know who’s pulling the strings. I think of every president as being a marionette. Whether he’s any different, I don’t know. Certainly his military advisers all want him to prosecute this war to the end, just as they did in Vietnam with LBJ.

It’s just too depressing, I think we’re going to have to hit the streets. Obama has the chance of becoming JFK or LBJ. I think JFK was one of our last great presidents, although I thought Carter was pretty great too…..

Which just goes to prove my thesis….the Republicans better quit trying to legislate against what people smoke and who they bed, or we’re going to have a permanent majority of people who want to rob from the disarmed producers to support the insolent and indolent parasites.

Not that repubs don’t do that, but lately the dems have been taking it to vast new levels. And while dems don’t care what kind of freaky mammal sex you have, they certainly want to control or eliminate every tiny little other nuance in the world. Coal, oil, commerce, guns, hunting, water, health care, salt, or body fat index and ironically, weed.

Why should the government protect us from ourselves?

If you think they should, then no one should have guns, right? (Except of course, the government, because the government is an all-knowing and perfect loving-yet-stern parent to guide us in our every decision!)

Another issue: PROHIBITION DOES NOT WORK.  The War on Drugs has been unwinnable since the 1930s. It only fuels government waste, bolsters government intrusion, and puts good people in prison. It also fuels the War on Guns. Look how Holder tried to reinstate the Assault Weapon Ban to help the War on Drugs.

Prohibition doesn’t make people quit smoking pot anymore than a total gun ban would make a patriot hang his head in shame and voluntarily hand in all his hardware to the federal smelter.

–Michael Dean

My friend Neema directed this piece (which features me) about the Wyoming Firearms Freedom Act, for the news. This showed in Casper, Cheyenne, Riverton, Lander and throughout most of Wyoming. Yay! It’s also got Anthony Bouchard, from the Wyoming Gun Owners Association.

Neema and I are working on a film together. It’s about liberty.

Here’s part two, Wyoming governor candidates talking about guns:

– Michael W. Dean

Wolverines!

This could be on the cover of "Mall Ninja Monthly" magazine

Check out our new Yugo AK-47. Yup, believe it or not, the AK commonly said by experts to be the best AK is made in Yugoslavia by the same company, Zestava / Zestava Arms, that made the YUGO automobile. (The cop ridden in the movie “Dragnet” by Dan Aykroyd and Tom Hanks. In the movie, Dan Aykroyd calls the car “The cutting edge of Serbo-Croatian technology.”)

It’s an M-70 AB2, the very best AK you can get, and we’ve got one! yay! You’re not a real libertarian if you don’t own a rifle (and know how to use it), so get your Yugo AK-47 here.  Be sure to pick up some commie cold-war ammo too.

Sgt. Joe Friday (Dan Aykroyd) narrating: “After losing the two previous vehicles we had been issued, the only car the department would release to us at this point was an unmarked 1987 Yugo…a Yugoslavian import donated as a test vehicle by the government of that country and reflecting the cutting edge of Serbo-Croatian technology.”

It’s a great Schumer-hits-the-fan gun to keep zombies at bay. And it’s NOT LEGAL IN CALIFORNIA. (The best things aren’t.)

Never forget what they say,

AK-47 Magacin koji prihvataju članov familije 7,62 x 39 je istovetan.

Punjenje Puške automatske M70 AB2 vrši se iz odvoivog magacina (okvira) kapaciteta 30 metaka. Moguće je korišćenje i specialnog magacina kapaciteta 75metaka, a koji se isporučuje na zahtev kupca.

–Michael W. Dean

This is my friend Neema Vedadi’s song “I Own Me.” It kicks ass.

He’s my buddy, we hang out a lot and go shooting and are making music together and are working on a film together. (He’s a TV Newscaster on the Wyoming ABC affiliate, K2 News.)

Buy the MP3 on iTunes

Buy the MP3 on Amazon

Dig the video:

Here are the lyrics:

Its gettin thicker than dreadlocks/
they treat us like we’re dread scott/
don’t wanna see the feds pop/
or be the one that they’d stopped/
or get in trouble cause I talked shit to their mascot/
frickin’ busybodies need to go and buy an ascot/
tellin’ me you own me then makin sho’ i’m taxed out/
maxed out, deep in-debted from the easy credit/
that the fed imbedded then they betted it all be copacetic/
if they were the medic but forget it/
the people are gettin’ pissed/
blowin up like some unleaded/
they want control unfettered/
but ya’ll know that smells fetid/
like the craphole that we’re headed/
to if they don’t let me do me/
and you do you/
and all the guns in the gunverment /
won’t amount to a twenty-two /
if they keep on stompin’ on amendment number two/
and we don’t even need you/
take your welfare and your brainwashing free-school/
and ya’ll are so see through; easy to see you is evil/

chorus:
Nobody owns me/
ya’ll haters don’t/
I own me /
so back the fuck off/
(x 2)
I make my own rules/
take my own tools/
you ain’t in my shoes/
no you ain’t get to choose/
I ain’t pay you dues./
I pay ‘em for my self/
don’t expect shit from me/
and I ain’t need your help/

and in case you didn’t know/
this song is for the parasites/
the feeders that bleed us and treat us/
like they’re the hand and we’re the dice/
no utopian paradise to be had from any plan/
the world’s too complex for any man to comprehend/
all the supply and again all the demand/
when the few control the view/
their mistakes are multiplied /
the decisions should be ours/
like our bodies. Let’s take back our lives/
Only a slave if you submit/
and ya’ll know I got some fight!/
and this ain’t racist /
its for blacks, whites and asians/
middle eastern people, latinos/
and everyone who wants to be free, so/
we’ll even let it slide if you’re emo/
I never signed no social contract/
I’m about to have to repo/
myself, for my health/
and my wealth/
put your bills back on the shelf/
capitol hill can go to hell/
we should put them punks in jail/
we could live our lives ourselves…./

chorus

So who’s to say Barack Hussein/
knows what’s best for me?/
I knock the man and not the name/
cause in my family tree/
could be husseins so I take aim/
at tyranny times three/
branches that act just/
like geriatric babysitters/
poonannies./
but really you’ll get beat-up/
if you don’t follow their edicts/
there’s a law against living /
year its worse than shariah./
but where can I go if this/
whole world is socialist/
though we know that it failed for the soviets./
Its 1984 people please notice this./
Fuck a tax feeder time to overthrow them tics/
its in the declaration Jefferson wrote the shit/
So choose to be a free man /
governments we’re over it/
governments we’re over it!/

I’m on Facebook. Yikes!
Add me here.

Like some comedienne said about those “classmate finder” websites, “There’s a REASON I haven’t talked to those people in twenty years!”

lol…

– Michael W. Dean