National Geographic

"I was before her time, but Sally Kern is here for such a time as this. I am grateful for her life and her friendship. Reading The Stoning of Sally Kern was at times like déjà vu, reminding me of my stand in Dade County in 1977. I can highly recommend this book to anyone who loves God, their family, and their country. It is a must-read for any believing woman or man who wants to make a difference in these perilous times. Those soldiers who have counted the cost of character assassination or endured other losses yet are willing to take a stand in truth and love for the glory of God, our children, and future generations will especially enjoy this inspiring book." - Anita Bryant, from a blurb on the cover of fellow homophobe Sally Kern's autobiography.

Courtesy of the publisher, today's Swag Tuesday prize is the new autobiography from punk pioneer turned openly gay nightlife kingpin, Bob Mould. See A Little Light: The Trail Of Rage And Melody is available nationwide now on multiple formats.

From the start, Mould wanted to make Hüsker Dü the greatest band in the world - faster and louder than the hardcore standard, but with melody and emotional depth. In SEE A LITTLE LIGHT, Mould finally tells the story of how the anger and passion of the early hardcore scene blended with his own formidable musicianship and irrepressible drive to produce some of the most important and influential music of the late 20th century. For the first time, Mould tells his dramatic story, opening up to describe life inside that furnace and beyond. Revealing the struggles with his own homosexuality, the complexities of his intimate relationships, as well as his own drug and alcohol addiction, Mould takes us on a whirlwind ride through achieving sobriety, his acclaimed solo career, creating the hit band Sugar, a surprising detour into the world of pro wrestling, and most of all, finally finding his place in the world. A classic story of individualism and persistence, Mould's autobiography is an open account of the rich history of one of the most revered figures of punk, whose driving force altered the shape of American music.

Enter to win a copy of See A Little Light by commenting on this post. Only enter once and please remember to leave your email address in the text of your entry. Entries close at midnight on Thursday, west coast time. Publicists: If you'd like to take part in Swag Tuesday on JMG, please email me.

RELATED: This Thursday, Bob Mould will appear at the 92nd Street Y in Manhattan for special combined evening of readings from his book and performances from his lengthy catalog.

Christopher Hitchens eviscerates the new book by recently revealed douchebag David Mamet.

This is an extraordinarily irritating book, written by one of those people who smugly believe that, having lost their faith, they must ipso facto have found their reason. In order to be persuaded by it, you would have to be open to propositions like this: “Part of the left’s savage animus against Sarah Palin is attributable to her status not as a woman, neither as a Conservative, but as a Worker.” Or this: “America is a Christian country. Its Constitution is the distillation of the wisdom and experience of Christian men, in a tradition whose codification is the Bible.” [Snip] Propagandistic writing of this kind can be even more boring than it is irritating.

What childhood book most influenced your tastes in reading today?

So says a new book being flogged by World Net Daily.

Just when liberal-leftists thought it was finally "their time" to lead center-right America, kicking and screaming, into a stifling socialist "utopia," a veteran psychiatrist is making a powerful case that the "hope-and-change" ideology motivating them is actually a mental disorder. For more than 40 years, Rossiter has diagnosed and treated over 1,500 patients as a board-certified clinical psychiatrist and examined more than 2,700 civil and criminal cases, both state and federal, as a board-certified forensic psychiatrist retained by numerous public offices, courts and private attorneys. He received his medical and psychiatric training at the University of Chicago. Rossiter explains with great clarity why the kind of liberalism being displayed by Barack Obama can only be understood as a psychological disorder. "Based on strikingly irrational beliefs and emotions, modern liberals relentlessly undermine the most important principles on which our freedoms were founded," says Rossiter. "Like spoiled, angry children, they rebel against the normal responsibilities of adulthood and demand that a parental government meet their needs from cradle to grave."

Rev. Mario Bergner also says that Jeebus cured his AIDS: "At twenty-three I was hospitalized with eleven symptoms of AIDS. From my bed, I questioned the Lord about homosexuality and Christianity. Jesus appeared saying, 'I want to heal your whole person, not just your sexuality. Choose.' Not understanding what 'choose' meant I just chose him. I recovered and years later tested HIV negative."

UPDATE: Video has been pulled.

Nick Krieger's book about his transition, Nina Here Or There: My Journey Beyond Gender, launches today.

A sample verse: "The cats nestle close to their kittens now. The lambs have laid down with the sheep. You're cozy and warm in your bed, my dear. Please go the fuck to sleep."

This fall Levi Johnston will release Deer in the Headlights: My Life in Sarah Palin's Crosshairs, a tell-all book of his time with Mama Grizzly.

"I want to tell the truth about my close relationship with the Palins," Johnston, 20, says in a statement released by his publisher. "My sense of Sarah and my perplexing fall from grace – how I feel and what I've learned." Johnston adds: "I'm doing this for me, for my boy Tripp and for the country.

The timing of the book's release should prove amusing, as Palin may be officially launching her 2012 campaign by then.

(Source)

San Francisco's A Different Light bookstore is said to be going out of business.

The Castro’s A Different Light Bookstore, one of the few remaining LGBT bookstores in the United States, is apparently closing. This comes on the heels of the closure of the Mission's Modern Times, another independent progressive bookstore. “Everything must go” signs were spotted in the store Saturday. Dismantled shelving sat in a pile in the back of the store. Neighborhood chatter is that doors will close for good this spring. A Different Light has been the gathering place for the Bay Area’s gay literati for decades – the company was first established in 1979. Local authors like Armistead Maupin would often pack the store full of eager readers when launching their latest titles.

Washington DC's Lambda Rising closed early last year. Oscar Wilde Books in the West Village and A Different Light's WeHo outlet both closed in 2009. What's left?

Arch homophobe Dr. Michael Brown promotes his new book, A Queer Thing Happened To America, which already has dozens of fawning reviews on Amazon. You've got to see the repulsive skit this clip opens with.

"I apologize that this situation has been created. It was a systemic oversight, in which ‘gay’ was on a list of filtered words. Certainly it makes absolute sense for you to include this word in your review. This is a no-brainer for us." - Walmart spokesman Ravi Jariwala, responding to JMG reader and It Gets Better contributor Mark King, who on Monday had his book review flagged as "profane" because he included the word "gay."

King notes that Walmart has also issued the below statement.

Recently it was brought to our attention that Mark King was unable to complete a review of the book “It Gets Better” on Walmart.com. We regret that a filter did not allow his review of the book to post and we quickly worked to resolve this technical issue. We reached out to Mark directly to discuss the issue and, as an extra measure, we have reviewed the system to ensure that it will allow the use of all appropriate words related to sexual orientation and gender identity.

Mark King concludes: "There is probably no national retail chain with as problematic a reputation as Walmart, and I can only imagine the topics that other advocates would have wanted me to broach with these corporate representatives. But I had one issue, one specific complaint that I asked to be addressed. And on this day, on this issue, Walmart did right by the LGBT community. Now, everybody go buy It Gets Better."

Well done, Mark! And thanks to all the JMG readers who also reached out to Walmart.

JMG reader Mark S. King reports that Walmart's website refused his review of the It Gets Better book until he removed the word "gay." King, who contributed to the book with his openly gay brother, writes us: "My submission was nixed because I used the word 'gay,' which the site explained was 'profanity.' I felt properly chastised and removed the offensive word from my review, which remains 'under review.' The most socially accepted term for my sexuality is profane! I guess uttering 'homosexual' or 'queer' would have produced a total meltdown." King say he's hasn't yet received a response from his complaint to Walmart's corporate office. Visit his personal website for his review as well as an amusing video with his brother.

What are you reading?

According to a coming book by historian Robert Beachy, the genesis of the modern gay rights movement came in 19th century Germany.

Modern conceptions of homosexuality began, ironically, with an anti-sodomy law. When the German empire was unified in 1871, the Imperial Criminal Code included a law prohibiting sexual penetration of one man by another. Questions about what types of activity should fall under the law spurred a sustained public inquiry into the nature of same-sex eroticism and sexuality in general. [snip] This new view of same-sex love was pioneered by German doctors who published early case studies of homosexuals in the 1850s. German psychiatrist Richard von Krafft-Ebing released the first edition of his hugely influential Psychopathia Sexualis in 1886, which included multiple case studies of homosexuals that supported this new position. Through his work, Krafft-Ebing became a vocal opponent of the German anti-sodomy law, stating that homosexuality "should not be viewed as a psychic depravity or even sickness."

Beachy claims the world's first gay rights group, the Wissenschaftlich-humanitäres Komitee (Scientific-Humanitarian Committee) came into being at that time to gather petition signatures to repeal the anti-sodomy law. His book, The German Invention Of Homosexuality, is due out next year.

Oklahoma state GOP Rep. Sally "Gays Are Worse Than Terrorists" Kern has self-published a book about her horrible treatment at the hands of those awful, awful homofascists. From the Amazon description of The Stoning Of Sally Kern:

In January 2008, the pastor’s wife and former high school teacher gave a speech to a Republican club in Oklahoma City explaining that the founding fathers believed Christian principles would lead to a civilized society, individual self-government, good citizens, the elevation of learning, and a cohesive value system. While explaining the fifth benefit, a cohesive value system, she told of a group of wealthy homosexual activists who threatened the nation’s moral fabric by attempting to unseat seventy conservative politicians who opposed their agenda. Clips from the speech later were posted on YouTube, generating more than 2 million hits and leading to what she describes as a media “stoning.” That didn’t stop her from winning re-election or from continuing her calls for America to return to the conservative principles that made it great. In this book she warns that there is danger ahead if social conservatives don’t preserve the nation’s foundations of morality, truth, and tolerance. She issues a cry for conservatives to stand for their freedom now before they no longer have the right to do so.

Kern's book has already been tagged with some fun labels. Add your own reviews.



(Via - Good As You)

JMG reader Alex writes from Vancouver to share a peek at the It Gets Better book, which features his story in both English and Spanish. Advance copies are going out to the book's contributors right now and it goes on sale across North America on March 22nd. Proceeds benefit the Trevor Project and the Gay & Lesbian Straight Education Network. Order yours here.