News and views for Wednesday, December 3rd …

[CT, USA] “Testimony began Wednesday in the second murder trial of former Norwalk resident Anthony Rogers, already serving a 71 year sentence for murder, weapons and assault charges. Rogers, 26, is accused of shooting Ricky Lee Blakes, a 23-year-old student at Southern Connecticut University who was known by some in South Norwalk to be a cross-dresser … An affidavit in the case suggests police believe that Rogers’ motive in allegedly shooting Blakes was homophobia. A confidential informant told police Rogers had picked up Blakes after midnight on July 30, 2004, believing he was a woman. When Blakes made sexual advances and it became clear Blakes was a man, Rogers’ allegedly shot Blakes, dumped him out of the car, left the scene and then circled back to shoot into his body three more times, according to the document.” — Murder trial against convicted killer begins

[USA] From GLAAD, “According to the Pulse of Equality telephone survey among 2,008 U.S. adults ages 18 and older, conducted from Nov. 13-17, 2008, Americans support key policy proposals that affect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. Among them … About six in 10 (63%) U.S. adults favor expanding hate crime laws to cover gay and transgender people. (Hate crimes laws cover gay and transgender people in 11 states and the District of Columbia, and an additional – 20 states’ laws cover sexual orientation but not gender identity.) … A slight majority of U.S. adults (51%) favor protecting gay and transgender people under existing laws that prohibit discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations. (Existing non-discrimination laws cover gay and transgender people in only 12 states and the District of Columbia, and eight other states’ laws cover sexual orientation but not gender identity.) … [GLAAD President Neil G.] Giuliano suggested that one of the crucial issues facing LGBT people is that many Americans aren’t aware of the injustices that they face. “Majorities of Americans clearly favor equality for gay and transgender people,” Giuliano added, “but we’ve seen that too many still mistakenly believe that the intolerance and injustices we face are things of the past. So it’s more vital than ever that we tell our stories, illustrate the injustices we face, and remind people of the common ground we share.” — Poll Shows Majorities of U.S. Adults Favor Legal Protections for Gay and Transgender Americans

[Colombia] “Homosexuals can remain in the closet and not be noticed, but that is not an acceptable alternative for transgender people who suffer violence to a greater extent in Colombia, where armed combatants in the conflicts too often turn prejudice into murder. “We are not interested in hiding our sexual preference,” and in this country “killing is easier” than in others, said Diana Navarro, the head of Corporación Opción, an organisation that works for the rights of prostitutes and transgender people, a term used in Colombia to refer to transvestites, transsexuals and cross-dressers … She estimates that the transgender population of Bogotá varies from 1,500 to 3,000, depending on the time of year. Their bold visibility represents “anarchy” in contrast with a “globalisation that would like to make people homogeneous,” so they are the first to be “expelled by the armed groups,” and the foremost victims of killings. Cali, the third largest Colombian city, is known as a death zone for transgender people. Out of 21 LGBT murders there in 2006 and 2007, no less than 16 were of transgender persons, a disproportionate number for that tiny minority, according to Colombia Diversa … Another of Navarro’s forceful views is that Catholicism is at the root of the violence against sexual minorities. The strong influence the Catholic Church retains in Colombia, and its conservative hierarchy, do heighten pressures against LGBT people, other activists agree.” — Colombia: Where Homophobia Totes a Gun

[UK] From The Telegraph, pantomime from A to Z: “Cross-dressing. How to explain this to incoming Americans, who have heard about us weird Brits? Well, guys, there’s the principal boy, who in reality is a gorgeous-looking female, then there’s the dame, who’s a (preferably big and ugly) bloke, and the ugly sisters, also blokes (even bigger and uglier). And in some productions the principal boy (who’s a girl) gets the girl (whose mother is a man, of curse). As for the cow… Dames. The quintessence of panto. Some great names - John Inman, Les Dawson, Jack Tripp, Paul O’Grady and Roy Hudd - have hung up their false bosoms one way or another, but the next generation, including Berwick Kaler, Christopher Biggins, Ken Morley and Clive Rowe are filling their size-nine slingbacks with elan … Fairies. Every good panto needs a fairy. I leave the jokes to you … ” — There’s nothing like a dame…

[International] “It’s not just women who buy products that promise to tuck, tighten and conceal their guts, butts and blemishes. Men have become the latest targets of marketers eager to sell merchandise that purports to improve and enhance everything from their abs to their skin to the shine of their hair … The man vanity craze is even spreading globally — bras made for cross-dressing men are flying off the shelves in Japan. But as strange as these products may seem at first glance, fashion experts say that with men becoming increasingly conscious of their appearance, it was only a matter of time before clothing makers caught on to an untapped source of revenue. [Men's fashion and grooming expert at About.com, Daniel] Billett said he’s recently seen an influx of makeup lines for men, male girdles and even underwear with butt padding.” — Marketers Aim to Man-Up Men: Bras, Tummy-Tucking Tanks Target Male Consumers

From horrible reality:

Denver Post: Transgender victim referred to as “it”:

Allen Ray Andrade never referred to his alleged victim as a she or he. Just “it.”

That alone speaks to the brutality of the crime committed against 21-year-old Angie Zapata, said a group that has been speaking for Zapata’s family.

“You get the sense that maybe he wasn’t seeing Angie as a person,” said Crystal Middlestadt, director of Training and Education for the Colorado Anti-Violence Program. “Then you get an idea of the violence behind this act.”

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From GLAAD’s Media Reference Guide:

DEFAMATORY TERMINOLOGY

…Defamatory: “she-male,” “he-she,” “it,” “trannie,” “tranny,” “gender-bender”

These words only serve to dehumanize transgender people and should not be used.

To horrible press coverage:

UK’s Metro: Duped lover kills transsexual with fire extinguisher:

A furious dupe has been accused of murder with a fire extinguisher after discovering a woman who gave him oral sex was born a man.

Allen Ray Andrade allegedly battered Justin Zapata to death in a fury after discovering the truth.

He had believed the partner he picked up online was a woman known as Angie Zapata.

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From GLAAD’s Media Reference Guide:

DEFAMATORY TERMINOLOGY

Defamatory: “deceptive,” “fooling,” “pretending,” “posing,” or “masquerading”

Gender identity is an integral part of a person’s identity. Please do not characterize transgender people as “deceptive,” as “fooling” other people, or as “pretending” to be, “posing” or “masquerading” as a man or a woman. Such descriptions are extremely insulting.

With regards to Angie Zapata’s killing, there’s just not much to add to the GLAAD Media Guide’s indirect commentary on the alleged killer’s dehumanization of Angie Zapata, and the Metro’s insulting coverage.

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Related:
* Arrest In Killing Of Angie Zapata
* Murder in Colorado

… that I’m disappointed again that the “deception” “discovery” defense has credibility with anyone. Levi Gunderson? Did he punt this case? “Yah, you betcha.”

Levi’s got way less (nevermind “fewer”) balls than Marge … not that, speaking personally, I think there’s anything wrong with that … but just don’t not have them in the judicial sense.

Do we have any math majors here? Can 85% of 8 3/4 years really only be not much more than seven years for this … ?

The alleged murderer in the 2005 slaying of a gay man pleaded guilty Tuesday to attempted manslaughter in agreement with prosecutors.

Ruben Solorio Valenzuela faces a prison sentence of 8-3/4 years if the agreement is accepted by Yuma County Superior Court Judge Andrew Gould.

Although Gould was not able to attend Tuesday, the plea agreement was presided over by Superior Court Judge Mark Wayne Reeves.

Reeves also said the suspect will be required to serve 85 percent of his sentence before being eligible for release.

Prosecutor Levi Gunderson acknowledged that Solorio Valenzuela did not plan the alleged murder but acted suddenly, in the heat of passion resulting from the rage and humiliation he felt when he discovered Corrales was actually a man.

Corrales, a 23-year-old gay man, was a cosmetologist who also performed as a female impersonator known as Dalila, impersonating celebrity singers.

Corrales was dressed as a woman the night he and Solorio Valenzuela met. After several attempts to fondle Corrales, Solorio Valenzuela realized his mistake and then allegedly stabbed Corrales.

Corrales’ body was discovered on May 6, 2005, floating 500 feet west of Paradise Cove, just west of Joe Henry Park, with multiple stab wounds. He died from what authorities called “violent trauma.”

Yuma County sheriff’s deputies arrested Valenzuela on May 23, 2007, at Express Lube, 1900 S. 4th Ave., where he had been working. An anonymous written tip led to his arrest.

Subsequent investigation disclosed Solorio Valenzuela had confessed to family members soon after the murder. The day of the killing, he fled to Guadalajara, Mexico, for three months, according to court records.

Maribel Corrales, the victim’s mother, briefly addressed the court Tuesday while trying to hold back sobs. Speaking through an interpreter, she said, “He didn’t kill a person but a whole family. I don’t agree (with the plea). It is not fair.”

Solorio Valenzuela had been booked into Yuma County Jail on one count of second-degree murder, but a grand jury later indicted him on a charges of manslaughter and abandoning a body.

In exchange for the plea, the state suspends the original count. Solorio Valenzuela could be ordered to pay restitution of $150,000 as well as an additional 80 percent of that amount at his sentencing, Gunderson said.

Like Marge, I’m not amused.

This stinks.

My heart goes out to Maribel Corrales, who got it right …

“[This] is not fair.”

OneNewsNow quotes Dr. David Stevens, the Chief Executive Officer of the Christian Medical & Dental Associations (CMDA) in their piece Transgenderism — purely psychological?, where he makes a patently false statement about what the Bible says about altering the shape of one’s genitalia. He makes his false statement in a call for not treating transgender people with “immoral” treatments:

“Well, the Bible does tell us very clearly that mutilation of the body is wrong, and it’s sad that these people have this psychological disorder — but it should be treated from a psychological perspective,” Stevens contends.

The “psychological perspective” that Dr. Stevens is referring to is obviously conversion therapy, because he’s rejects the American Medical Association’s house of delegates approval of a resolution in June that supports removing barriers to treat and care for transgender people, as apparently he also rejects the Harry Benjamin Standard Of Care (HBSOC) [of which the purpose of the HBSOC is to articulate WPATH’s consensus about the psychiatric, psychological, medical, and surgical management of gender identity disorders (GID)].

Here’s what Dr. Stevens does say about treatment for trans people in the OneNewsNow:

The CMDA spokesman has taken a look at the recent [AMA] resolution. “They’re calling on insurance companies to provide treatment for gender-identity disorder, which actually is a sex-change operation. Those are very expensive and obviously treat something in a way that really isn’t going to solve the problem, just perpetuate it. [It is] sad that this has happened, but we’re increasingly seeing this happen at the American Medical Association and other professional organizations across the country,” Stevens explains

Lovely.

But hey, back to the headline: The real difficulty I have with Dr. Stevens comments on “mutilation” is that he’s either ignorant of what the Bible says — specifically in a quote attributed to Jesus — regarding changing the shape of one’s genitalia, or he’s lying about it. The quote from Jesus that Dr. Stevens should have been aware of:

For there are eunuchs who were born that way from their mother’s womb; and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men; and there are also eunuchs who made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to accept this, let him accept it.

The Geneva Study Bible states this about that verse quoted above — Matthew 19:12 — on how one becomes a eunuch:

A man can become a eunuch in one of two ways: the first is by castration or emasculation, and the other by natural causes, such as a rupture.

There were no genital reassignment surgeries besides castration available at the time the New Testament was written.

For Dr. Stevens to indicate he knows what the Christ and the Bible says about genital mutilation when he obviously doesn’t — well, it takes the underpinning out from his and his organization’s stated beliefs. He’s either intentionally lying about what the Bible says about changing one’s genitalia, or he’s completely ignorant about what Jesus said about changing one’s genitalia.

Either way, Dr. Stevens looks a lot more like an ignoramus than a man with such an advanced medical degree should probably look. It certainly speaks loudly to how little knowledge the Christian Medical & Dental Associations must have even on basic scriptural references to changing one’s genitalia if their spokesperson is Dr. Stevens.

And hey, if some peewee, conservative Christian, medical association — with “Christian” boldy included in its name — doesn’t even know what the Bible states about an issue their commenting on, one can only wonder what this peewee, conservative Christian, association — with “Medical” boldy included in its name — doesn’t know about the medical side of issues it comments on.

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Further Reading:
* John Wesley’s Explanatory Notes, Isaiah 56:3-8

Focus On The Family’s CitizenLink has a warning out about men-in-dresses predators - a new group of predators who will lurk menacingly in Colorado’s elementary school restrooms and women’s locker rooms of public gyms if Gov. Bill Ritter signs Senate Bill 200.

From the article Colorado Legislation ‘Tramples Religious Freedoms’ comes an ominous, audio warning to Coloradans:

Focus On The Family/Citizenlink: Men In Dresses A New Type Of Coloradan Predator

It doesn’t seem to matter to Focus On The Family/CitizenLink that it has no documentation to back its “predator presupposition” regarding “men in dresses.” And yet, Focus On The Family/CitizenLink has no apprehension in claiming that “men in dresses” are going to be “a new type of predator” should Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter sign Senate Bill 200.

* sigh * I don’t believe anyone or any organization has ever studied whether states or municipalities that have passed sexual orientation and/or gender identity and expression inclusive public accommodation laws have experienced any change in the number of predatory actions by crossdressed men. I wish some LGBT organization would fund that study as I’m so tired of hearing this same religious right man-in-a-dress bathroom predator argument over and over again.

Oh…and if the audio wasn’t enough — From the print article:

“With SB 200, we no longer have two ’sexes,’ ” said Bruce Hausknecht, judicial analyst for Focus on the Family Action. “We enter a brave new world with a myriad of ’sexual orientations.’ This bill, unfortunately, is in keeping with a national effort by ‘transgender’ advocacy organizations to accomplish an open-bathroom policy.”

Hausknecht said sexual predators can be expected to use this law as “cover” as they search for their next victims — in any public bathroom they come across.

“SB 200 threatens public safety and tramples religious freedoms,” he said. “This bill needs to be vetoed and sent back to the Legislature with instructions to come back next session with something that all Coloradans can be proud of.”

Per the subheader of the article, apparently the “myriad of ’sexual orientations’” mentioned by Bruce Hausknecht that would replace the two sexes would be some sort of five sexes plan, as all public accommodations apparently would include restrooms that…

…would be opened to men, women, bisexuals, transsexuals and transgendered individuals.

Bisexuals? Huh?

This Focus On The Family/CitizenLink article (and accompanying audio) seems to be fear mongering at it’s near worst — We can only hope the Colorado governor ignores FOTF’s rabid propaganda.

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Related:
* When It Comes To Transgender People & Civil Rights, It Really Is Always About The Bathroom

Happily, in these cases of “deception,” wasps don’t “panic” and orchidphobic violence is not a result …

Orchids that mimic female wasps may not only waste the time of the male wasps they lure into spreading their pollen — they also seduce them into wasting valuable sperm, Australian researchers reported on Wednesday.

And the flowers benefit twice — getting help in their own reproduction, and perhaps indirectly producing more male pollinators in the process.

Some of the most exotic orchids are known to have evolved their convoluted shapes to attract insects, who unwittingly collect and transfer pollen as they try to mate with the flowers.

“The effect of deception on pollinators has been considered negligible, but we show that pollinators may suffer considerable costs,” Anne Gaskett of Macquarie University in Sydney and colleagues reported.

“Insects pollinating Australian tongue orchids (Cryptostylis species) frequently ejaculate and waste copious sperm,” they wrote in a report in The American Naturalist.

It is not harmless to the wasps, who may suffer more than an inconvenience. “Male pollinators can prefer orchids to real females, prematurely end a copulation with a real female to visit an orchid, or be unable to find real female mates among false orchid signals,” the researchers wrote.

“Unquestionably, producing sperm, ejaculate, or seminal fluids is costly for many animals. The energetic demands of sperm production can result in reduced body mass, a shortened life span, or limited lifetime sperm production,” they added.

But this arms race of sexual trickery works in more than one way for the flower. “We also show that orchid species provoking such extreme pollinator behavior have the highest pollination success,” they added.

“How can deception persist, given the costs to pollinators?”

They found that the wasps who frequent these flowers are haplodiploid species. Like bees, ants and similar species, offspring produced by sexual unions are female, while females can also produce males asexually.

“Therefore, female insects deprived of matings by orchid deception could still produce male offspring, which may even enhance orchid pollination,” the researchers wrote.

Gaskett’s team examined flowers after wasps visited them and found the hoodwinked males did eventually learn their lesson.

“With experience, male Lissopimpla excelsa wasps become less likely to copulate with and pollinate sexually deceptive Cryptostylis orchids,” they wrote.

Sexy orchids do more than embarrass wasps?

The orchid, by the way, gets its name from the Greek όρχις orchis, meaning “testicle.”