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For the second time this year, Washington’s Governor Chris Gregoire has had the honor of advancing civil rights with her mighty pen. Governor Gregoire has been a steadfast ally. Here is what she said when the House passed SB 5688, the Domestic Partnership Expansion Bill of 2009:
“I want to thank the legislators who worked tirelessly to get this bill passed in the House. This legislation will expand basic benefits, provide better financial security and ensure equal treatment for domestic partners living in Washington state. Our state is one that thrives on diversity. We have to respect and protect all families that make up our communities.”
Thank you Governor Gregoire, Equal Rights Washington and 92 fair-minded representatives and senators (out of 146) for making this happen! Over 5,300 domestic partnerships had been filed since July, 2007.
The question remains when the bill will take effect. Because Oregonian Gary Randall and & his bumbling Washington operative Larry Stickney are proceeding with their cash cow fools errand of a ReferenDUMB, the law will remain in limbo until they fail to return enough valid signatures by the deadline of July 25th.
And speaking of cash cow, although Gary and Larry have finally announced the new PAC they’ve set up to receive funds dedicated to Referendum 71, Gary the ole pickpocket is STILL encouraging people to give to his personal PAC in his blog posts about Ref. 71. Tsk tsk, Gary. Your actions might lead some to think you’re not on the up and up. Oh, and I checked the Public Disclosure Commission‘s website today. Your PAC balance is at $95.51, the last contribution reported was $20 back on January 29th. Either you’re failing to report monthly as you’re supposed to, or everyone sees through your schtick and refuses to throw their pearls before swine. Which is it, Gary?
One final thing. This is what happens when you put someone like Larry Stickney in charge of, well, anything:
The Protect Marriage Washington online donor system will be functional very soon. Those who would like to donate directly to the Referendum 71 signature gathering campaign are encouraged to do so by mailing a check
So let me get this straight. The system set up to officially receive funds to fight this terrible scourge isn’t ready yet? It’s not like they haven’t been planning for this moment for months. Larry Stickney: FAILURE. Maybe Larry has been too preoccupied with a bigger cash cow to “protect marriage”. He’s John Koster’s campaign manager (yes, the very guy Larry boasts helping lose on his resume!). Larry has already been paid $16,326.38 this year in salary and consulting fees from Koster’s campaign. Follow the money to where Larry’s heart and attentions really are?
Well, that’s what happens when you hand the reigns to a guy who touts campaign FAILURES on his resume. Is it any wonder that “key” member of the Crumbling Coalition of Fanatical Fringe, Cindy Honcoop of the WA Eagle Forum, chose at this pivotal moment to go on vacation?
# Leaving Memphis via Jim Neely’s Interstate Barbecue for one last Memphis rib fest. Going thru stacks of napkins! about 20 hours ago from web
# On Beale Steet in Memphis tonite at BB Kings enjoying blues and barbecue. Ya gotta love Memphis in May! 9:49 PM May 16th from web
# Totally in vacation mode now. At the airport ready to board. 7:15 AM May 15th from web
So stay tuned folks, and drop a few bucks in ERW’s tip jar. Gary’s referenDUMB may be shoddily run and ill-advised given recent polling results in both Washington and the nation, but it can’t be ignored. It takes resources to ensure failure of even a referenDUMB.
13 Comments
photo of the signingcourtesy of The Stranger
Not sure where I saw it..Someone was suggesting not to Decline to Sign, well, not immediately upon being asked. Let them give their spiel, then tell them why you won’t sign.
street tacticsyou’re talking about what to do if you see a signature gatherer. in my opinion, it is completely fine to hear them out, then let them know, in return, what you think. democracy at its most basic. i wonder if we’ll see any petitions circulate in what Larry Stickney refers to as “the Seattle red zone”. I thought red indicated republican, but whatever. I don’t expect him to make sense.
Sammy, don’t pass up the opportunity to click on the Decline 2 Sign graphic and officially sign up as a “decliner” (if you haven’t already). There is power in knowing our numbers. Also, the widget helps you send the message to other Washingtonians who might not be so well tuned in.
What a great photo.Congrats Washington!!!
p.s.Gee just remembered that according to the Washington State Supreme Court, marriage was for procreation…Funny, gay families look like procreation too. DUH.
Sure you’ve thought of this already….Be sure to keep track of, copy, and/or cache the “Endorsements” page on the anti gay Protect Marriage website.
http://protectmarriagewa.com/i…
ProtectMarriage Prop8 took their list down of endorssements within 24 hours of Prop 8 passing and there was no easy record to get at to ck on churches especially who supported rescinding rights. This is different than the contribution data base which is still accessible.
hadn’t thought of that yet actually,so thank you for mentioning it. so far the Gary & Larry show haven’t actually publicly announced their web page. i guess its just too embarrassing to not have everything functional at this very late date? i deduced the page’s existence from the new email addresses in their latest email, which come from the “protectmarriagewa” domain.
More slothful than even I realized.Take a look at the WHOIS info for Larry ‘n Gary’s new Ref 71 website (the one that isn’t public yet because the donation mechanism isn’t functional).
You read that right. Although these, hrm, gentlemen, have been talking up this referendum for months, they only got their sad sack asses in gear last week. Larry, I have to tell you that this is not good for consumer confidence.
Birth certificatesHumm, here’s something I just happened upon…parents listed on birth certificates….In California, both parents in a DP are listed on a birth certificate at the time of birth. Washington state law only allows a “father” to be listed if the couple is married, even straight couples (again its different here in CA).
It appears that even “full” DPs in Washington State will have to second parent adopt their own kid if the child is born to a DP couple. Hope this gets fixed in upcoming legislation.
http://www.examiner.com/examin…
Wish I Was Still in SeattleIt seems there is a slow land-slide coming with more and more States fighting their way towards equality. When some of these laws age a little bit the John Q. Public will realize that “granting” us the basic rights they have automatically is just the right thing to do. Whether you like gay people or not does not mean you should deny freedoms to certain citizens in this great country. We did that a hundred years ago and it did not work out so well then either.
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Maybe, some day, we will have REAL equality in WashingtonAnd not this fake separate-and-inherently-unequal shit.
Yeah, yeah, I recognize that this is still an advance. Instead of walking on the road, we can now get dragged behind the bus. Maybe next year, they will actually let same-sex couples sit in the bus, towards the back.
Patience.The new DP law may not seem like much, but let me put things in context. Until 2006 we were getting NOTHING from the Legislature, despite more than two decades of effort. Then the antidiscrimination bill passed in 2006. The state courts rejected our attempts to overturn the state DOMA. But then the first DP law passed in 2007, the second DP law passed in 2008, and now the third DP law passed this year.
I think we’ve made amazing progress catching up in just a few years. IThere is such a thing as going too far too fast. Exhibit A is California. If we manage to escape a referendum this year, we should hold off on the final piece of marriage equality until we can be fairly confident it will hold up at the ballot box. When we pass marriage equality, I’ll bet a month’s pay that a referendum will qualify for the ballot. I’ve waited decades. I’m patient enough to wait a few more years.
It is frustrating, having to wait for my “basic civil rights” to be acknowledged under the lawThe quoted part of the title comes from the ruling in Loving v. Virginia, where the Court stated flat-out that marriage was one of the basic civil rights of man. When it comes to human rights violations, I am not very patient person.