Marriage Equality, LGBTQ, Politics, Homophobia; Cosmos, Creationism; Church and State, Atheism, Francis Effect; Intolerance of Religion, Sex Abuse Scandals; Rape, Sexism, Culture Clash, Abortion and Birth Control

Marriage Equality

• Gay Marriages Continue in Wisconsin—But Trouble Looms
• Methodists fear split over same-sex marriage
• US: Church expels volunteer over gay commitment ceremony
• March To Nowhere: D.C. Anti-Gay Event Was Heavy On Rhetoric But Low On Facts
• Largest US Presbyterian Church Votes to Allow Gay Marriage
• Obama Administration To Extend Family Leave To Same-Sex Couples
• Hillary Jabs At NPR Host Over Gay Marriage
• Scott Walker Refuses To State A Position On Same-Sex Marriage
• Mike Huckabee: Martin Luther King Jr. would agree that gay marriage is like the Holocaust
• Mozilla under fire: Inside the 9-day reign of fallen CEO Brendan Eich
• Slovakia bans gay marriage in constitution
• Luxembourg Approves Same-Sex Marriage Bill

LGBTQ

• On Father's Day, Texas Sen. Chuy Hinojosa Says He Loves His Gay Daughter Unconditionally
• WWE Exec and Hall of Famer Pat Patterson Comes Out as Gay on 'Legends' House'
• AsapTHOUGHT: Coming out twice
• Allstate's "Safe in My Hands" gay pride ad is raw, moving
• Without fanfare, Obama advances transgender rights
• My beef with the (SJW) transgender community
• Denmark ends forced sterilisation for sex changes

Politics

• Oklahoma Candidate Says Gays Should Be Stoned
• House Committee Invites Witness To Go On Anti-Gay Rant, Because Religious Freedom
• Texas Governor Perry compares homosexuality to alcoholism
• CNBC Anchor Confronts Rick Perry About Remark Comparing Gays To Alcoholics
• More Or Less Everyone Agrees That Rick Perry Is a Moron for Comparing Homosexuality to Alcoholism
• Rick Perry Defers To Scientists On Gay Conversion Therapy, Forgets They Already Trashed It
• GOP Rep. Kevin Cramer Skeptical That LGBT Workplace Discrimination Exists
• Obama to Sign Executive Order on LGBT Discrimination
• Alabama appeals court rules state's sodomy law unconstitutional
• Gay candidate Brett Smiley has a very cute campaign ad
• First black, openly gay man confirmed as U.S. federal judge—Make that two.
• Canada: Kathleen Wynne's Liberals win majority government—"The first woman elected premier of Ontario — and Canada's only openly gay first minister ever — Wynne bested Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak, who announced his resignation, and NDP Leader Andrea Horwath."

Homophobia

• Judge: Gay Fathers' Names Cannot Appear On Their Biological Children's Birth Certificates
• UK: 30 schools using textbooks that teach homosexuality is a choice
• U.S. cuts aid to Uganda, cancels military exercise over anti-gay law
• Cop placed on leave after refusing to work at gay pride parade—"The Salt Like City police officer will be the subject of an internal investigation, the department announced." Salon
• Clubber sprayed with concentrated ammonia outside Vauxhall bar in homophobic attack

Cosmos

• "Why is God telling me to stop asking questions?"—Meet the woman behind Neil deGrasse Tyson's "Cosmos" Salon
• Neil deGrasse Tyson vs. the right: "Cosmos," Christians, and the battle for American science—"The real reason conservatives are freaking out about Neil deGrasse Tyson: He's laying bare their worst hypocrisies." Salon
• The 5 most important lessons from Neil deGrasse Tyson's "Cosmos"—"'Cosmos' may be ending on Sunday, but lessons will keep us thinking." Salon
• The Curious Passions of Mr. Cosmos: Neil deGrasse Tyson On Space, Climate, and Why Curiosity Wins Every Time
• Fox News guest says white liberal nerds love Neil deGrasse Tyson so much "he could defecate on them" Salon

Creationism

• Creationist author asks: If evolution is true, "is rape wrong?"—"Darek Isaacs appeared on 'Creation Today' with ridiculous claims about evolution." Salon
• Can This Class Be Saved? Bible Course Teaches That Adam and Eve Were Actual Historical People
• A Decade Later, This is the 500-Page Creationism Book a Public School Biology Teacher Gave His Students
• New creationism museum says Noah brought baby dinosaurs aboard the ark—More likely to believe Gilgamesh did it. Salon
• 4 in 10 Americans Believe God Created Earth 10,000 Years Ago
• UK: Government bans all existing and future Academies and Free Schools from teaching creationism as science
• Creationism Isn't Science, and Shouldn't Be Taught That Way

Church and State

• Faced with Threat of Atheists Speaking at Meetings, Troutman (NC) City Council Caps Invocations at Two Minutes
• A Church-PAC Link Raises Questions in Mississippi—"If a church's resources were used to help Senator Thad Cochran, the church could lose its tax-exempt status." NYT
• U.S. Supreme Court rejects appeal over school graduation in church
• With Eric Cantor Defeat, Congressional Republicans Lose Only Non-Christian
• Dave Brat's Land of Magical Thinking—"The GOP's newest star doesn't believe that Wall Street deserves much of the blame for the financial crisis, that the U.S. should be a lot more like China, and that the fix for American banks is to 'preach the gospel and change hearts and souls.'"
• Bible-waving MN GOP Supreme Court nominee places God above U.S. law
• Kissing Congressman Reconsiders Retirement After Apologizing To God
• Sympathy for the Devils: Scenes From the Social Conservative Collapse—"There was a time when the bigoted, Bible-thumping crowd ran roughshod over D.C. Now, not so much."
• Christian-themed Park Will No Longer Be Getting a $140,000 Boost from Iowan Taxpayers
• Pagan Forbidden from Opening Temple in Beebe, Arkansas Because His God Isn't the Christian God
• UK: Taxpayers' cash should not be used to fund faith schools, say voters—"Labour wants talks on teaching of religion as poll shows 58% of the public urge abolition or axing of state funds."
• Australia: Father wins High Court challenge on federal funding of school chaplains program

Atheism

• Atheism explodes in Saudi Arabia, despite state-enforced ban Salon
• Convicted Heavy Metal 'Christian' Singer Admits Being Atheist, Duped Fans to Sell Music
• Bible Verses That Atheists Love—"We asked prominent atheists what parts of the Bible they find inspiring and beautiful."

Francis Effect

• Pope Francis Meeting With Israeli, Palestinian Leaders For Prayer
• Pope Francis Warns The Global Economy Is Near Collapse
• Pope tells super rich, bankers to find some ethics
• Pope Francis: Mafiosi are excommunicated from the church'—"Vatican spokesman Father Ciro Benedettini said the pope's stern words did not constitute a formal over-arching decree of canon (Church) law, regarding excommunication, which is a formal legal process."
• Pope doesn't see the point of having a bullet-proof car at his old age—Uhhhh... is this wise?

Intolerance of Religion

• Rape victims say Bob Jones University told them to repent—"Former students at 'the fortress of faith' who reported sexual abuse say they were told they had sinned."
• Obama Caricature Becomes Urinal Cake at Faith and Freedom Conference
• Religious right looks beyond gay marriage to next battles: 'We are in a war'
• More Mormons facing church scrutiny for online comments
• 10 most un-Christian church signs Salon

Sex Abuse Scandals

• St. Louis Archbishop Carlson claims to be uncertain if he knew sexual abuse was a crime
• Catholic church has 'sociopathic disregard for sex abuse victims'—"Victim of Marist brother speaks out at royal commission after church's counsel tries to discredit him over past drug use."
• Catholic Church: Our Priest Raped Off Duty, You Can't Sue Us
• Christian radio personality from Michigan arrested on sex assault charge involving children
• Jehovah's Witness elders were 'spiritually corrupt and morally bankrupt', court told—""Mark Sewell, 53, has denied 12 sex charges against girls and women across a 10-year period, at Merthyr Crown Court."

Rape

• 'Rape culture wins': Feminist freakout after Miss Nevada dares suggest self defense training for women—Miss Nevada is right.
• Angelina Jolie: Shame the rapist, not the victim Salon
• An OB/GYN's Open Letter To George Will About His Rape Column
• Major Newspaper Dumps George Will, Apologizes For 'Offensive' Rape Column
• George Will's Latest: College Rape Charges Fueled By 'Sea Of Hormones And Alcohol'
• Cleared Oxford Union president says rape accused should not be identified—"Oxford union president Ben Sullivan said identity of those accused should be withheld at least until police carry out a preliminary investigation."
• Long-forgotten rape evidence finally reveals its clues in Northern Virginia lab WaPo
• Congress poised to approve $41 million to help clear backlog of untested rape kits WaPo

Sexism

• Female Your Party member interrupted by sexist heckles—"A member of the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly said Thursday she was hurt by sexist remarks made by male politicians during a session the previous day in which she was ridiculed for being unmarried and lacking children."
• American Apparel boots CEO for being a pervert, stock surges
• Study: Judges with daughters are more likely to rule in favor of women WaPo
• Female prison inmates sterilized illegally, California audit confirms
• Facebook Lifts Ban on Exposed Nipples in Breastfeeding Pictures
• Hurricanes with Female Names Are Deadlier Than Masculine Ones

Culture Clash

• A Fight as U.S. Girls Face Genital Cutting Abroad—"Female genital cutting has been banned in the United States since 1996, and now it is also illegal to transport girls for 'vacation cutting.' But some are concerned that such cutting is on the rise." NYT
• Female genital mutilation exposed in Swedish class—"Some 60 cases of genital mutilation have been discovered in Norrköping in eastern Sweden since March with all 30 girls in one school class found to have undergone the procedure."
• Iranian child bride faces execution for killing the man she was forced to marry—"Iran's judiciary urged to halt Razieh Ebrahimi's execution as international law prohibits execution for crimes by juveniles."
• Pakistani woman: My relatives shot me, threw me in canal for marrying neighbor
• Pakistan: Man murders daughter for wearing makeup
• Pakistani woman raped, hanged
• Sexual assault on student sparks outrage in Egypt
• Tunisia: Man burns daughter to death in suspected honor killing
• YouTube refuses Egypt's request to remove footage of Tahrir Square sexual assault
• UK law banning forced marriage takes effect—"Those found guilty of the largely hidden practice face up to seven years in prison."

Abortion and Birth Control

• Republican: If a Woman Has Right to an Abortion, a Man Should Have Right to Force Himself on a Woman
• Kansas county twice rejects IUD grants, equating the devices to murder
• Louisiana governor signs into law new abortion restrictions
• Florida Gov. Scott Signs Late Term Abortion Bill
• GOP Governors Paying Big Bucks to Controversial Marriage Therapist to Defend New Abortion Laws
• Chris Christie Falsely Claims Democrats Barred Anti-Abortion Speakers From Conventions
• Michigan lawmakers push bill to repeal controversial abortion insurance law
• Utah's Catholic bishop: If you're pro-life, you're pro-Medicaid expansion
• Condom Use Drops Among US Teens—More fodder for MTV.
• Melinda Gates: 'Gates Foundation Has Decided Not to Fund Abortion'

Towel Day, Killer Robots, Universe, Science! SpaceX; Cosmos, Oklahoma

Towel Day

• Pope Francis Says He Would Definitely Baptize Aliens If They Asked Him To
• Aliens Exist And Will Be Found Pretty Soon, Say Scientists
• Aliens? Yes Please. UFOs? No Thanks

Killers Robots

• The struggle to ban killer robots
• Ban killer Robocops before it's too late, rights groups say
• Only five countries actually want to ban killer robots

Universe

• Simulation shows that dark energy and matter can reproduce the Universe—"Takes 350 million light years of space from 12 million to 12 billion years old."
• Binary Supermassive Black Hole System Discovered
• Thanks to budget cuts, we may never know for sure why the universe is expanding WaPo
• Why `is it Dark at Night?
• Jupiter's Great Red Spot turning into little red dot

Science!

• Bill Nye: "You Can Hate Me, You Can Hate Everything, But Science Education Is What Leads to Innovators"
• Scientists 'freeze' light for an entire minute
• Scientists discover how to turn light into matter after 80-year quest
• What's It Like to Consult for The Big Bang Theory?

SpaceX

• SpaceX injunction dissolved; US can buy Russian rockets for space launches—"Court sides with government, rules purchases don’t violate executive order."
• Russia targets space station project in retaliation for U.S. sanctions
• Russia's New Space Sanctions Mean SpaceX Is About to Get Paid
• GOP Congressman Wants To Block Elon Musk From Competing In Space
• Elon Musk blames bribery for Air Force awarding rocket contract to a competitor
• Elon Musk says he lost a multi-billion-dollar contract when SpaceX didn't hire a public official

Cosmos

• Ken Ham's worst nightmare come true: Why Neil deGrasse Tyson has creationists flipping out—"With each passing episode, 'Cosmos' is cementing its host as Christian fundamentalists' new public enemy No. 1." Salon
• Creationists grow increasingly desperate in feud with Neil deGrasse Tyson—"The 'Cosmos' host continues to put science first -- much to the chagrin of religious fundamentalists." Salon
• Creationists now losing their minds because Neil deGrasse Tyson explained electricity Salon
• WVUE technical glitch interrupts 'Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey' evolution sequence—Pathetic.
• FOX 21 gets slammed for Cosmos broadcast—"Apparently.... multitudes of duplicated commercials interrupted the program multiple times."
• 'Cosmos on Weed' Puts the 'Grass' in 'Neil deGrasse Tyson'

Oklahoma

• Oklahoma to pay $300,000 in legal fees after 'preemptively' banning Sharia law
• Oklahoma school board members met privately with Hobby Lobby president on Bible class
• Oklahoma Judge Denies Motion To Dismiss Atheists' Ten Commandments Lawsuit—One out of three for rational thinking.

Everybody Draw Mohammed Day, Islamic, Church and State, Prayer, Educamation, Creationism, Atheism

Everybody Draw Mohammed Day

• Islamic Extremists Now Crucifying People in Syria—and Tweeting Out the Pictures
• Suffering under ISIL rule: testimonies from al-Raqa—"Syrian residents living under the rule of the al-Qaeda-inspired 'Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant' (ISIL) in al-Raqa suffer "daily oppression" and "crackdown on freedoms"."
• Sudan judge sentences Christian woman to death for apostasy
• Saudi Arabia calls for criticism of religion to be outlawed in Norway
• Deemed "disparaging," anti-Muslim website denied trademark—"Activist claims decision based on fears of reprisal from 'Islamic supremacists.'"

Islamic

• Lloyds Bank accused of religious discrimination over free overdrafts on Islamic accounts
• Subway removes ham and bacon from nearly 200 stores and offers halal meat only after 'strong demand' from Muslims—The (paying) customer is always right?
• Keep Indonesia Secular, Yudhoyono Urges

Prayer

• Town Meetings Can Have Prayer, Justices Decide—"In a 5-4 ruling that split the Supreme Court's liberal and conservative members, the justices said that towns may start their sessions with sectarian prayers." NYT
• Town of Greece v. Galloway: Roanoke, Virginia, already seeing the effects of the Supreme Court prayer decision.
• Prompted by U.S. Supreme Court Ruling, Florida Satanist Wants to Open Meeting With Prayer
• Roanoke County Supervisor Reiterates That Non-Christians Will Be Banned from Delivering Invocations—"The freedom of religion doesn't mean that every religion has to be heard."
• Hindu Prayer Interrupted In Senate By Christians

Church and State

• Here's the First Look at the New Satanic Monument Being Built for Oklahoma's Statehouse
• Iowa GOP Senate Candidates Vow To Block Judges Who Won't Follow 'Biblical' Law
• Occupy Christ? White House hopeful wants state religion, gays off TV, and CEO pay cap
• Watch: Alabama Chief Justice Says Freedom of Religion Should Only Apply to Christians
• Americans Claim to Attend Church Much More Than They Do NYT

Educamation

• 'Trojan horse' teacher breaks into girl's phone—"Parent complains to police over school's action to uncover 'forbidden' relationship with a fellow 16-year-old pupil."
• Public School Superintendent Says No to Graduation Prayers; Now He's Under Fire from the Community
• Teen ejected from prom after dads experience 'impure thoughts'
• Seattle school renames Easter eggs 'Spring Spheres'
• Bryan College losing nearly 25% of faculty after 'Adam and Eve' controversy—"The dispute at Bryan College, named for William Jennings Bryan, began in February when trustees clarified the school's statement of belief to state that Adam and Eve were historical people who were not created from previously existing life forms."

Creationism

• Science wins: Religious language struck from South Carolina state fossil bill—Fossilized thinking in the Palmetto State.
• Pat Robertson says Young Earth Creationists are "deaf, dumb and blind"—"The televangelist also says the belief that Earth is only 6,000 years old makes fundamentalists 'look silly.'" Ken Ham reacts.
• Leading GOP Senate Candidate: Creationism Should Be Taught in Public Schools—"Inside Montana Rep. Steve Daines' curious ties with creationism—and dinosaur museums."

Atheism

• Christianity's faith-based freakout: Why atheism makes believers so uncomfortable—"Rather than respecting the right of atheists to disbelieve, christians are constantly forcing them to fake it." Salon
• Atheist TV: Coming soon to a television near you WaPo
• Ken Ham Is Furious That My Book Will Be Handed Out to High School Students in Kentucky

420, Medical Marijuana, War on Drugs, Law and Disorder, Prison, Mexico; Easter, Church and State, Creationism, Islamists

420

• How 420 became code for marijuana
• Colorado legalized marijuana tax revs ahead of expectations: Moody's—"Colorado, the first state to tax legalized recreational marijuana sales, expects to bring in an estimated $98 million in revenue this year, exceeding the state's original expectations by 40 percent."
• 3 Months Later, Here's What Denver Looks Like Since Legalizing Marijuana

Medical Marijuana

• Uruguay Considers Using Medical Marijuana To Treat Cocaine Addicts In Prison
• Nurse practitioners added to list of those who can prescribe medical marijuana
• Weed Eases Anxiety, Says the Federal Government
• Corbett wouldn't legalize pot even if toddler grandson needed it
• Boston Mayor Walsh says he aims to block dispensaries—"Urges state to reject applications with errors."
• Pro-pot group files to recall Arizona senator—"A pro-marijuana group is trying to recall Arizona Sen. Kimberly Yee after she refused to hear a bill that would have helped fund research into the effects of medical marijuana on post-traumatic stress disorder."
• Missouri Rep Tells Marijuana Patient To "Get A Job And Get Off Dope"

War on Drugs

• Jesus would end the war on drugs—"Christian leaders issue Easter statement denouncing drug war and mass incarceration of minorities."
• Let's Just Get Rid of the DEA Already—"America's drug cops are determined to keep weed illegal just to maintain their jobs."
• Legalized pot 'makes us fight harder,' top DEA official tells Congressional committee
• DEA raids woman's Shorewood home after she shops at garden center
• Shocking police overreach haunts Southern city: Racial profiling, quotas and secret "conviction bonuses"—"How a federal grant incentivized a police department to go nuts on drug arrests -- and terrorize its community." Salon
• Utah cops warrantlessly search prescription drug records of 480 emergency personnel—"When searching for morphine thief, Utah cops have almost carte blanche powers to search database."
• Law professors demand cannabis legalization—"Over 120 German professors of criminal law are supporting an initiative to legalize cannabis. They have called on the Bundestag to discuss the issue. Merkel's coalition is skeptical."
• Maryland Decriminalizes Marijuana Possession

Law and Disorder

• Matt Taibbi: U.S. Should Be Ashamed It Treats Pot Smokers Worse Than Wall St. Criminals
• Remember when legal marijuana was going to send crime skyrocketing?
• LAPD officer gets community service, probation for lying under oath—"A Los Angeles police officer was sentenced Wednesday to community labor and three years' probation for falsely testifying about the details of a 2008 drug arrest."
• Dashcam from traffic stop of driver from legalized marijuana state—"Roseen believes he was profiled by the trooper because he had a Washington driver's license, Colorado license plates and had just crossed into Idaho from Oregon. All three of the other states have some form of legalized marijuana."
• "Free Jeff Mizanskey" Efforts Continue with Billboards and 360,000 Signatures
• 5 Accused of Trafficking Drugs, Using Day Care as Cover
• Woman, unhappy with pot purchase, calls cops

Prison

• Feds to Reconsider Harsh Prison Terms for Drug Offenders
• US Panel Votes to Reduce Drug-Dealing Sentences
• California Governor Jerry Brown Grants Dozens Of Drug Pardons
• Louisianan Given 13-Year Prison Sentence for Possession of Two Marijuana Cigarettes

Mexico

• Tracing the U.S. heroin surge back south of the border as Mexican cannabis output falls WaPo
• The Grisly Reality Behind Soaring Lime Prices—"Mexican cartels are making the citrus more expensive in the United States."
• Mexican drug lord's insider notes may set him free after 10 years—"Vicente Zambada, son of Sinaloa kingpin, struck deal with US to inform on cartels in exchange for reduced sentence."
• Mexico catches No. 2 in once-powerful Beltran Leyva drug cartel
• Mexico prepares first illegal drug financing blacklist—Is HSBC on that list?
• Two drug tunnels, with rail systems, found at U.S.-Mexico border

Easter

• Yes Candida, Christians Did Steal Easter—People like Candida push ignorance to hide the truth.
• Spanish village called 'kill Jews' mulls name change
• There Are No Errors in the Bible, Says Christian Pastor Who Clearly Hasn't Read the Bible
• Papyrus fragment put to test—"None of the testing has produced any evidence that the [Gospel of Jesus' Wife] fragment is a modern fabrication or forgery."

Church and State

• Louisiana Lawmakers Vote to Make the Bible the State Book
• Oklahoma School's 'Hobby Lobby Bible Curriculum' Raises Bias Concerns
• Atheist Witch Hunt: South Carolina Lawmakers Spar Over Appointed Official’s Supposed 'Godlessness'
• Warren mayor says atheist can't put up 'reason station' inside city hall
• After Being Denied "8THEIST" License Plate, New Jersey Woman is Suing State's Motor Vehicle Commission
• Media, rights groups urge court to revisit takedown of anti-Muslim YouTube video—"Media says decision allows subjects of news events to control coverage."
• Pastafarians rejoice as Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster is granted permission to register as a religion in Poland

Creationism

• Bill Nye says he underestimated debate's impact
• The Real Darwin Fish—"Why creationists hate Tiktaalik."
• FunnyOrDie: Creationist Cosmos

Islamists

• Islamist plot: six schools face Ofsted special measures—"Six schools implicated in the so-called 'Trojan Horse' plot by extremists to 'Islamise' secular state education face being placed in special measures."
• State schools isolate non-Muslims—"Schools in Birmingham discrimate against non-Muslim students and restrict GCSE teaching to fit in with Islamic beliefs, according to official report."
• 'Sinful': Video of British Muslims dancing to Pharrell Williams's hit Happy comes under attack
• Poster dictates music haram in UK school
• 1,000 Christian, Hindu girls forced to convert to Islam every year in Pakistan: report
• China official says Islamists seek to ban laughter and crying

Marriage Equality, Christianists, Mozilla, Same-Sex Spouses; Politics, Educamation, LGBT; Religion, Creationism; Abortion and Birth Control, Rape, Culture Clash; Sexism, Equal Pay, Gender Identity

Marriage Equality

• Supreme Court declines free speech, gay marriage case—"The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to consider whether a New Mexico photography company had free speech grounds to refuse to shoot the commitment ceremony of a same-sex couple."
• Ohio will have to recognize gay marriages, judge says
• Michigan lesbian who gave post-wedding TV interview is attacked
• Legal fight over dead gay man's estate: his mom, 75, vs. his husband
• Lesbians' baby baptized by Catholic Church in Argentina
• Alabama House approves call to put same-sex marriage ban in U.S. Constitution
• Oregon GOP governor candidate links gay marriage and murder, suggests return to mid-century lawbooks

Christianists

• Welby: backing gay marriage could be 'catastrophic' for Christians
• "Anti-Christian religious bigotry" is apparently what conservatives are now calling LGBTQ rights—"NOM president Brian Brown is seeing a rise in 'anti-Christian' bigotry, which is just a rise in LGBTQ rights." Uh, take that log out of your eyes. Salon
• Head of Anglican church: We must discriminate against gays lest someone think we're gay and bash us

Mozilla

• Brendan Eich resigns as Mozilla Corporation CEO—Can't see how someone who advocates discrimination could have stayed in a company that "believes both in equality and freedom of speech." How would he have treated employees in same-sex marriages?
• After Eich resigns, conservatives slam Mozilla—and call for boycott—Turnabout is fair play?
• No, Andrew Sullivan, Calling Out Bigotry is Not 'Intolerance'
• OkCupid's CEO Donated to an Anti-Gay Campaign Once, Too —What's the diff?
• Just a Reminder: The Campaign for Prop 8 Was Unprecedentedly Cruel

Same-Sex Spouses

• Obama Administration Opens Medicare To Same-Sex Married Couples
• Same-Sex Spouses Can Amend Past Tax Returns for a Bigger Refund
• Same-sex retirement benefits retroactive to June 2013, IRS rules

Politics

• Fox News Hails Doctor Who Said Gay Rights Lead to Child Molestation—"Meet the right's new anti-Obamacare hero."
• LGBT housing non-discrimination bill killed by Louisiana lawmakers
• Mississippi Passes Watered-Down Version Of Arizona's Anti-Gay Bill
• Russian Court Declares Ban on LGBT Rights Protests Illegal
• Gay conversion therapy should have no place in NHS, says health minister
• Beware the Gay Mafia—"Why are conservatives afraid of LGBTQ activists?"

Educamation

• Nun Reportedly Tells Catholic School Kids That Masturbation Makes Guys Gay
• Mississippi's Sex-Ed Classes Teach Kids That Homosexuality Is Illegal, Even Though It Isn't
• South Carolina Senator Convinces University To Cancel Play, Says It Was 'Recruiting' Lesbians
• Transgender substitute teacher upsets Lumberton ISD parents
• Parent Requests Gay Book Pulled from Fauquier High School's Library

LGBT

• 'Gay of Thrones' Is Also Back, With a Vengeance
• Gay male seeks straight guy—"A new study sheds light on the allure of same-sex encounters with heterosexual men." Salon
• Match.Com Will No Longer Make Bi Users Pay For Two Separate Profiles

Religion

• How the Internet Is Taking Away America's Religion—"Using the Internet can destroy your faith. That's the conclusion of a study showing that the dramatic drop in religious affiliation in the U.S. since 1990 is closely mirrored by the increase in Internet use."
• How evangelicals won a culture war and lost a generation
• Congressman Who Campaigned on "Faith, Family, and Hard Work" Caught Kissing Staffer on Tape—Hypocrite.
• Megachurch pastor resigns, citing 'moral failing'
• New Policy in Italy: Catholic Bishops Are Not Obligated to Report Child Sexual Abuse
• Judge slams church over paedophile priest secrets—"A priest who allegedly witnessed predatory pedophile Gerald Ridsdale raping a young girl 40 years ago has been slammed by a judge, but the clergyman’s identity has been withheld from the public."
• Saudi Arabia Doubles Down on Atheism; New Laws Declares It Equivalent to Terrorism
• 'Islamic takeover plot' in Birmingham schools investigated
• France's Le Pen: ban non-pork meals in schools—"Leader of France's far-Right party says schools should not pander to Jewish and Muslim children by offering non-Pork alternatives for lunch."
• Book critical of Scientology, banned from America for 27 years, now goes on sale in US
• Who's Behind Newsweek?—"Pastor David Jang hopes that media companies will 'rain down blessings' on his Christian sect."

Creationism

• Two Christian SC Senators Block Third Grader's State Fossil Proposal Because Jesus —One of them wants to give God credit.
• This GOP House Candidate Is Running for Office So His Daughter Won't Have to Learn About Evolution
• PBS vs. Creationists: A Fight Over Our Fishy Ancestors—"A PBS series aims to show how humans evolved from creatures of the deep. But creationists have denounced it as an attempt to 'package unconditional blind faith in evolution as scientific literacy in an effort to create interest in science.'"
• Lawrence Krauss: I Have No Idea How I Ended Up in That Stupid Geocentrism Documentary
• "Star Trek" actress denounces creationist movie she narrated—"Kate Mulgrew distances herself from geocentrism documentary, and creator's ultra-conservative, anti-Semitic views." Oh Janeway. Salon

Abortion and Birth Control

• The Return Of The Back-Alley Abortion
• Court Keeps New Arizona Abortion Rules On Hold
• Why Antonin Scalia's 'Abortifacient' Confusion is Dangerous—Ignorantly believes contraception induces abortion.
• Murder charges dismissed against Mississippi woman on trial for giving birth to a stillborn—"The murder charge against Rennie Gibbs has been dismissed, but the state plans to re-present the case." Salon
• Wait, Did An Oklahoma Hospital Try to Ban Birth Control Prescriptions For An Entire Town?
• Is '16 And Pregnant' An Effective Form Of Birth Control?—"A study released Monday suggests that the MTV show 16 and Pregnant has contributed to a decline in the nation's teen birthrate. The researchers looked at teen births, Nielsen ratings, Google searches and tweets, and attribute one-third of the decline to the TV show."
• Sengalese girl, 10, raped, now pregnant, denied abortion—"Authorities have ruled she must carry to term. Senegal gives a 10-year sentence to a woman guilty of having an abortion."
• Philippines Supreme Court declares reproductive health law constitutional—"The Court however strikes down some provisions."

Rape

• Dear Harvard: You Win—Anonymous victim laments university's lack of action, but it looks like the school now is responding to the allegation.
• 3 get death sentence in India gang rapes
• This Guy Is Using 'Good Looks' as a Rape Defense—"This guy is using 'good looks' as a rape defense."

Culture Clash

• Afghan girl married at six to cover her father's debt
• Iraq ready to legalise childhood marriage—"Children under nine years old could be legally married and wives forced to comply with sexual demands under newly tabled legislation described by critics as a setback for women's rights."
• Islamophobia in action? 'Honor Diaries' screening shut down by CAIR
• The Pink Gang in India: Victims No More—In other news, the Gulabi Gang gets shut down by Komen for choosing pink. (Not really... but stranger things have happened.)

Sexism

• Staffer Who Was Caught Kissing Vance McAllister Resigns, While Congressman Keeps His Job
• Conservative Pundit Wonders Why Women Voters 'Are So Easily Fooled And Manipulated'
• 'Dirty Old Man' Judge Wants To Tell Women Lawyers What To Wear
• Princeton Mom Is Everything That's Wrong With Everything
• Thousands protest in support of breastfeeding 'tramp'

Equal Pay

• Hillary Clinton: For women, 'Double standard is alive and well'
• Republican Slams Dems' Equal Pay Push As 'Condescending' To Women
• Senate Republicans Block Bill on Equal Pay—"A Democratic-sponsored bill meant to close the pay gap between men and women failed in the Senate, framing an election-year fight over whose policies are friendlier to female voters." NYT
• Republicans kiss votes from women goodbye WaPo
• Mikulski Tears Into Stereotype That Women Are 'Too Emotional'
• Obama Actions Test Workplace Ideas—"Obama will sign an executive order Tuesday barring federal contractors from retaliating against employees who discuss their pay with each other." Check out GlassDoor.

Gender Identity

• The Problem With Your Problem With Pink
• Girl and boy toys: Childhood preferences for gendered toys are not innate
• I will let my son play with Barbies

The Francis Effect, Sex Abuse Scandal; Cosmos, Science Under Siege; Church vs. State, Abortion and Birth Control, Marriage Equality, Homophobia; Islam and Islamophobia, Fervor Pitch; History, Gotta Have Faith

The Francis Effect

• One year of Pope Francis: A priest reflects
• Report: Benedict Critiqued Pope Francis' Interview On Gay Marriage, Abortion
• The World's 50 Greatest Leaders—He's #1.
• Pope Francis denounces 'evil, blood-stained' mafia
• Catholicism and women: The winds of change

Sex Abuse Scandal

• Pope hits out at criticism of Church over sexual abuse
• Pope appoints former child victim to church group on sex abuse—"Pope Francis on Saturday named a woman molested by a priest as a child to be part of a core group to help the Catholic Church fight the clerical sexual abuse of minors that has haunted it for over two decades."
• Former Roman Catholic Diocese of Scranton priest who was named as a child abuser now is a vicar general in Paraguay

Cosmos

• Cosmos Squashes Creationism Under the Weight of Evidence—And science deniers are freaking out.
• Oklahoma TV station censors evolution talk on Cosmos reboot—They claim it was unintended, unlike what happened before.
• Neil deGrasse Tyson Is Really Starting To Scare Conservatives
• Creationists Demand Airtime On 'Cosmos' For The Sake Of Balance—Genesis is not a documentary.

Science Under Siege

• How Did Creationists Respond to Yesterday's Big News in Support of the Big Bang Theory?—With a river in Egypt.
• From creationism to ESP: Why believers ignore science—"A journalist's investigation of strange beliefs and the people who hold them leaves him questioning himself." Salon
• Jewish school redacts exam to remove evolution questions

Church vs. State

• 5 disturbing ways the religious right is trying to rewrite American history—"Disregarding the separation of church and state is just the beginning..." Salon
• Republican Files Bill to Make the Bible Louisiana's Official State Book—Korans need not apply.
• Object to biased resolution condemning only Christian persecution
• Buddhist Student, Religious Liberty Prevail In Louisiana
• Israel ends ultra-Orthodox military service exemptions

Abortion and Birth Control

• If Hobby Lobby Wins, It Will Be Even Worse For Birth Control Access Than You Think
• My Employer Shamed Me for Using Birth Control
• A Young Mother In Mississippi Could Face Life In Prison For Giving Birth To A Stillborn Child
• GOP Senate Candidate Drops Strict Anti-Abortion Position—"This was a bad idea driven by good intentions. I was not right. I can't support personhood now. I can't support personhood going forward. To do it again would be a mistake."
• Why Can’t the FDA Fix Outdated Birth Control Labels?—"Contraceptives like Plan B don’t prevent fertilized eggs from implanting in a woman’s body. But their labels still say they do—and they’ve become a tool for conservative activists."
• Life-sized fetus causes cafeteria controversy at Connecticut school—Was it because she had a modest proposal to share?
• Faced With Rising STD Rates, Louisiana Lawmaker Says Lack Of Sex Ed Is 'Really A Form Of Child Abuse'
• My Neighborhood Makes It Easier to Get Pregnant Than To Go To College

Marriage Equality

• Federal judge strikes down Michigan's gay marriage ban—Along with it a fake anti-gay research strategy bankrolled by the religious right. Regnerus' testimony was "entirely unbelievable and not worthy of serious consideration." Some couples were able to get married before the temporary stay was issued.
• Wave of Appeals Expected to Turn the Tide on Same-Sex Marriage Bans—"Legal experts predict that several of the circuit courts, which hold sway over a group of states, will rule that state laws limiting marriage to a man and a woman are unconstitutional." NYT
• The Religious Right's Failed Gay-Marriage Backlash—"In states like Arizona, social conservatives hoped to push back against the rising gay-rights tide, but lawmakers and the public sided against them."

Homophobia

• Founder of Westboro Baptist Church, Rev. Fred Phelps Sr. dies—Maddow says his hatred backfired.
• Wyoming GOP lawmaker: Promiscuous gays weaponizing AIDS for a 'national suicide'
• Parents threaten to sink Elyria Schools renewal—"The creation of a gay and straight group for students at Elyria High School has outraged a couple of longtime supporters who are now encouraging their friends to reject a must-needed renewal levy on the May ballot."

Islam and Islamophobia

• Parents fury as pork sausages are banned from the school menu and replaced with halal meat
• Islamic law is adopted by British legal chiefs—"Solicitors told how to draw up Sharia-style wills penalising widows and non-believers."
• Saudi Arabia bans 50 'blasphemous' and 'inappropriate' children's names—"The list of names contradicting the Kingdom’s 'religious and cultural norms' includes several foreign names."
• Shock for critics: Muslim judge's non-sharia ruling—"New Jersey Superior Court Judge Sohail Mohammed ruled in favor of the mother, and last week, his precedent-setting written opinion was released. That the Muslim judge sided with a woman in a case with a gender dispute might come as a surprise to some of his previous critics."
• ABC Family Pulls Plug on 'Alice in Arabia' After Muslim Org Backlash—"The show's premise centered on an American teen kidnapped by her Saudi Arabian family after tragedy befalls her parents." And here I thought it was a continuation of
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland.
• Legoland closes resort hotel following threats—"[A] private fun day organised by the Muslim Research and Development Foundation" was cancelled due to "threats from far right organisations".
• Lawsuit filed after praying family escorted from Empire State Building

Fervor Pitch

• Nigeria: Attacks on Christians Kill at Least 100
• Hindu temple set on fire in Pakistan over blasphemy
• Woman branded witch, mercilessly killed in Chhattisgarh
• Catholic Leader: I Wasn't Saying That I 'Literally' Wanted Liberal Professors Shot

History

• Nine unopened Dead Sea Scrolls found—Contents to be added to the Dead Sea Scroll digital archive.
• Vatican Library to digitise archives with Japanese support
• Russell Crowe film 'Noah' edited to appease Christians upset by 'historical inaccuracies'

Gotta Have Faith

• Church spent $200K to put pastor's book on bestseller list
• Nun Rocks It On Italy's 'The Voice' Singing Competition And No One Can Believe It: Sister Cristina Scuccia Wows
• 8 Ancient Beliefs Now Backed By Modern Science

Marriage Equality, Religion, LGBT, Michael Sam, Trans*, Intolerance; Church and State, Extremists, Porn and Sex, Abortion and Birth Control, Women; Science Under Siege, Creationism, Atheism, Bible Studies

Marriage Equality

• Yep, SCOTUS Lit A Slow Fuse To End Marriage Bans Across The USA
• It's Over: Gay Marriage Can’t Lose in the Courts
• Attorneys general switching sides on gay marriage
• Federal Judge: Virginia Gay Marriage Unconstitutional
• Wisconsin Democrats Introduce Bill To Repeal Gay Marriage Ban
• Gay Marriage Ban Push Suffers Big Setback in Indiana—Read about one state senator's meltdown on Twitter.
• Social conservatives: lawsuit fighting gay-marriage ban is like Bull Connor fighting civil rights—"With Florida's gay-marriage ban threatened in Miami court, social conservatives launched a counteroffensive Friday, accusing same-sex union proponents of opposing civil rights."
• How Alabama Tried To 'Erase' This Gay Man's Marriage
• Ted Cruz Introduces Anti-Gay Marriage Bill—Despicable action, but expect more to come.

Religion

• Methodists in crisis over gay marriage, church law
• Mormons, Evangelicals, And Catholics: Opposing Marriage Equality Isn't Anti-Gay—Keep digging.
• Church offers prayers after same-sex weddings – but bans gay priests from marrying—"Church of England draws up guidelines for ‘new reality’ of gay marriage but liberal campaigners dismiss arrangements as 'dog's breakfast.'"

LGBT

• Gay Republican House candidate features partner in ad [H/T Hector]
• Male sexual orientation influenced by genes, study shows—"Genes examined in study are not sufficient or necessary to make men gay but do play some role in sexuality, say US researchers."
• Homophobic Note on Birthday Invite a Hoax, Radio Hosts Say

Michael Sam

• Retired NFL Receiver Destroys Argument Against Gay Players
• Michael Sam's father denies remarks—"The father of Michael Sam told the Galveston (Texas) Daily News he was 'terribly misquoted' by The New York Times in a recent article about the reaction to his son's announcement that he is gay."
• Sam Wheeler, Kent State Wrestler, Suspended For Anti-Gay Tweets About Michael Sam

Trans*

• Polish Catholic Church declares war on 'gender theory'
• Transgender woman Avery Edison moved to women's jail after outcry online
• Facebook is no longer for males and females only—"Facebook is finally on the road to trans*, androgynous, cis-, and beyond."
• Transgender, Schlumpy and Human—"We finally have transgender characters in movies and TV. But what about transgender actors?" NYT
• How a transgender "foreign hope" is challenging the pro StarCraft world

Intolerance

• Kansas House passes bill allowing service refusal to gay couples—Andrew Sullivan asks: What the hell just happened in Kansas? Even the Kansas clergy has called this bill "a license for bigotry." Update: Probable backtracking in the works by the Kansas Senate?
• Idaho bill would protect business owners from denying services to gays
• Tennessee Lawmaker Introduces 'Turn the Gays Away' Bill Allowing Religion-Based Discrimination
• Arizona GOP Advances Wide-Sweeping Religious License To Discriminate Against Gays Bill
• Bobby Jindal: Anti-discrimination laws are a 'Silent War on Religious Liberty'—Religious liberty has become an oxymoron.
• Ugandan President To Sign Anti-Homosexuality Bill
• Russia Expands Adoption Ban—"Targets single people of any orientation in countries where gay marriage is legal."

Church and State

• Religious conservatives behind push to rewrite U.S. Constitution using obscure maneuver
• The 19 most religious states all voted for Mitt Romney in 2012 WaPo
• India a religious country, but too much corruption: Dalai Lama
• Sex, Lies and Hinduism: Why A Hindu Activist Targeted Wendy Doniger's Book—"Dinanath Batra has arm-twisted publisher Penguin India into recalling and destroying American scholar Wendy Doniger's book, The Hindus: An Alternative History. Here's why he has a problem with it."
• Denmark outlaws Jewish and Muslim ritual slaughter as of next week

Extremists

• Wielding Whip and a Hard New Law, Nigeria Tries to 'Sanitize' Itself of Gays—The bigots are out in force. NYT
• Syrian girl stoned to death for using Facebook account
• Destruction of the Idols
• Embrace Islam or die!

Porn and Sex

• Strong Religious Beliefs May Drive Self-Perception of Being Addicted to Online Pornography
• Porn Site Claims 1/3 Of Its Amateur Videos Are Created in Bible Belt
• Tennessee Republican Lawmakers Freak Out Because Adults Want to Talk About Sex With Other Adults
• Canada: Let's end the world's oldest debate—"Isn't it time we call an erotic massage parlour a brothel? Why not stop the hypocrisy and legalize prostitution once and for all."

Abortion and Birth Control

• Federal court rules North Carolina 'Choose Life' license plate unconstitutional
• Virginia Senate votes to repeal forced ultrasound law
• Houston abortion clinic shut down by state
• America's Plan B problem: The contraception misinformation epidemic Salon

Women

• Overlooked consequences of organized religion can be harmful to women
• A Catholic School Just Fired a Teacher for Getting Pregnant. That Actually Happens All the Time.—Would a father with a child out of wedlock been fired as well?
• France's tough stance on female genital mutilation is working, say campaigners—"Parents and 'cutters' have been jailed in France but concerns remain that parents go abroad – including to UK – for FGM."
• #StripForJackie Campaign Gains Momentum

Science Under Siege

• 1 In 4 Americans Thinks The Sun Goes Around The Earth, Survey
• Bill Nye tells Bill Maher: America can't afford a generation of 'scientifically illiterate' children
• Naturalist Sir David Attenborough Loses His Patience With Bible Literalists

Creationism

• The Cruelty of Creationism—"A new documentary shows how biblical fundamentalism imprisons the mind."
• Right-wing pastor: Pat Robertson committed 'blasphemy' by mocking creationism
• State Sen. Mike Fair Blocks Evolution From South Carolina Science Standards
• Unprecedented Attack On Evolution 'Indoctrination' Mounted In Missouri
• Al Jazeera Arabic Calls The Theory Of Evolution A Myth and Praises Creationism and Allah

Atheism

• High School Administrator in North Carolina Blocks Formation of Atheist Club Because It Wouldn’t 'Fit In'
• Hospital Apologizes For Telling Patient That Atheists Shouldn't Be Allowed to Procreate, But Stonewalls Inquiry
• Satirical spaghetti monster image banned by London South Bank University as 'religiously offensive'—The studient union has apologized. How can they disprove that Pastafarianism is a religion. ;)

Bible Studies

• Appearance of camels in Genesis called sign of authors' distance from history—"New carbon dating evidence shows animals not domesticated until centuries later."
• The Truth About Numbers
• The Holy Bible, King Toike Edition