Lisa Lampanelli Vs. Westboro

Over the weekend comedian Lisa Lampanelli vowed to donate $1000 to the Gay Men's Health Crisis for every Westboro protester that show up at her Topeka, Kansas show.

Quote Of The Day - Donna Lippoldt

"They just sought out some people to run for office, and they ran for office and won. And they actually ran, saying before they got elected, 'We are going to revoke this ordinance.' This just shows you when the body of Christ finally does get alerted, they need to see that they really can make a difference -- and they did make a difference in the election that took place on April 5th." - Kansas Family Policy Council spokesbigot Donna Lippoldt, revealing that a coalition of local pastors worked to install anti-gay Christianists on the Manhattan, Kansas city council, which on Wednesday repealed LGBT anti-discrimination laws.

KANSAS: Bigots Force Rights Repeal

A few month ago, I made a big deal of the news that Manhattan, Kansas had voted to become only the second town in the state with LGBT anti-discrimination protections. Not so fast.

The Manhattan City Commission has voted to repeal a controversial ordinance that added sexual orientation and a new definition of gender identity to its anti-discrimination policy. The vote Tuesday was 3-2 and a second reading must be approved before the ordinance is officially repealed. The previous commission had passed the ordinance in February, making Manhattan the second city in the state to protect people from discrimination based on sexual orientation. But new council members were elected in April and opponents of the ordinance continued to push for its repeal.

KANSAS: Lawmakers Call For Continued Criminalization Of LGBT Residents

Even though in 2003 the U.S. Supreme Court struck down all anti-sodomy laws in its landmark Lawrence vs. Texas ruling, two state legislators in Kansas are fighting to keep their now unconstitutional laws on the books. The Kansas Equality Coalition reports:

State Representatives Jan Pauls (D, Hutchinson), and Lance Kinzer (R, Olathe) said yesterday that being gay or lesbian should remain a crime in Kansas. Pauls made, with Kinzer’s support, the successful motion in the Kansas Legislature’s Corrections and Juvenile Justice Committee to keep the criminalization of gay and lesbian relationships on the books. Their action removed key language from HB2321, proposed by the Kansas Judicial Council, which would have resolved inconsistencies in Kansas criminal code, as well as remove unconstitutional laws. “Jan Pauls was trusted to be a judge before becoming a state representative, and should know better than to support unconstitutional laws, breaking her oath to defend the Constitution,” said Jon Powell, Chair of the Hutchinson Area chapter of the Kansas Equality Coalition. “We are fed up with her obvious support of harassment of gays and lesbians. We will not be bullied.”

Equality-minded Kansans are encourage to join a March 17th demonstration calling for Rep. Paul's removal as chairwoman of the Kansas House Judiciary Committee.

KANSAS: "Little Apple" Gets LGBT Rights

With the backing of Kansas State University, the city commission of the small town of Manhattan, Kansas, known locally as the "Little Apple," has narrowly approved a sweeping LGBT rights ordinance by a vote of 3-2. The vote was hotly followed across major anti-gay websites as a possible harbinger of the continued march for equality out of the big cities and into the heartland.

The American Family Association laments:

In Manhattan, Kansas, city commissioners have passed a controversial "anti-discrimination" ordinance creating a special protected class for the sexually confused. The move has many Christian leaders dismayed at the direction of their rural Kansas town. Kansas Family Policy Council director Donna Lippoldt attended the meeting. She shares her reaction to the vote. "I don't think that the rest of the people in the state have any idea that they're sending their children to a university that has [endorsed] the gay agenda -- and [that] they just want more and more people to come who have this lifestyle," laments the family advocate. "It was very, very disappointing."

The virulently anti-gay Canada Free Press weighs in:

If you are simply shaking your head and giving thanks this debacle is not taking place in your town, be ready for a scary surprise in your morning paper. In April of 2010 Manhattan, Kansas, deep within the Bible Belt of the heartland, had its first gay pride parade. Then, by political fiat, the month of June was name by the Manhattan mayor pro tem as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month. Now in December, three out of five liberal politicians, on behalf of a minority group with a political agenda, are about to create a liberal city ordinance more extreme than anything seen in San Francisco. This new ordinance will be used as a civil hammer to beat traditional values into submission, and the shock waves will be felt around the country. Toto, we are in a big fix, because Kansas is about to be no longer in Kansas anymore.

Welcome out of the woods, Little Apple.
IMPORTANT UPDATE: Readers from Manhattan, Kansas point out that the above celebration may be premature as the bill must undergo a "second reading" next month before it becomes law. Fingers crossed, everybody!

Accused Westboro Stalker Released

Iraq war veteran and double-amputee Ryan Newell has been released from jail in Topeka, Kansas after police arrested him last week for stalking members of the Westboro Baptist Church in a car laden with several guns and almost 100 rounds of ammo.

Ryan Newell, 26, of Marion, had been held on $500,000 bond since his arrest last week after Sedgwick County officers said they saw him following members of Westboro Baptist Church leaving a protest in Mulvane. Officers said they found numerous firearms in his vehicle. On Tuesday, Judge Ben Burgess allowed Newell to leave jail on his own recognizance, on the condition that he report to a VA hospital. KSNW-TV reported Newell appeared in good spirits as he walked out of jail with his attorney.

Veterans groups from around the nation have reached out to Newell with offers of psychological help and fundraisers for his legal defense.

KANSAS: Disabled Iraq Vet Arrested For Stalking Westboro Church Members

An 26 year-old veteran who lost both his legs in Iraq has been charged with stalking members of the Westboro Baptist Church after police found him following the Westboro family van in a car stocked with handguns, a rifle, and dozens of rounds of ammunition.

Sedgwick County sheriff's detectives arrested Newell mid-morning Tuesday in the Wichita City Hall parking lot after a detective saw him following a van that carried Westboro church members. The church members were meeting in City Hall with police officials. Detectives found Newell in a vehicle backed into a parking space. In the vehicle, investigators found two handguns, a rifle and more than 90 rounds of ammunition, sources have said. The stalking charge accuses Newell of actions targeted at Westboro members and putting them in fear for their safety. The weapons charges accuse him of unlawfully carrying and concealing or possessing with "intent to use" an M4 rifle, .45-caliber Glock handgun and .38-caliber Smith and Wesson handgun.

At Newell's arraignment several lawyers arrived to offer pro bono defense services, prompting the judge to quip, "The more, the merrier." Reportedly "many other lawyers" have contacted him with the same offer. Newell, who uses a wheelchair due to difficulties adjusting to Army-supplied prosthetic legs, pleaded not guilty via a video link from his cell. He is being held on $500,000 bond on one felony and several misdemeanor charges. Other charges may be filed pending the result of an FBI search of his home.



Westboro's Megan Phelps comments on Twitter: "Peacefully protesting institutionalized sin on public sidewalks =\= loading up your car with weapons & lying in wait to commit murder. But somehow, in the totally backward minds of many of you, the former (loving our neighbor) is worse than the latter (planning murder)! Wtf?" Phelps claims that Newell was planning to murder her parents and the 26 children in the Westboro clan.



A defense fund has been set up for Newell via several popular conservative websites. Late this afternoon the Facebook page "Let Ryan Newell Go" was established. Westboro will continue with their planned Hanukkah picket of a Harvard student Jewish group tomorrow.



UPDATE: Shirley Phelps-Roper weighs in.

Westboro spokeswoman Shirley Phelps-Roper said today: "Here is what I expect to happen: This guy is going to be called a hero, he may get a parade." People "will line up to sing his praises, to pay his legal fees and to get him a lawyer," she said. "Then he will be permitted to plead to some nothing charges." Phelps-Roper also said, "We've had communication about a federal investigation" involving Newell.

Anti-Sam Brownback Ad Notes His Connection To Uganda's "Kill Gays" Bill

Photo Of The Day - Football Weather

My alma mater UCF is facing some wild weather at their game against Kansas State today. More amazing photos here.

KANSAS: Death Threats For Gay Democratic Candidate For State Legislature

The Kansas Equality Coalition writes us today to report that Dan Manning, a Democratic candidate for the state legislature, has had death threats posted to the front door of his home.

As many of you know, one of our Equality Coalition members, Dan Manning, is running for Kansas House of Representatives in Wichita. Originally from southern Georgia, Dan is a West Point graduate who served for 8 years in the US Army before being discharged under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” Dan has since made Kansas his home and directed his passion for serving our nation in to a campaign to serve in the state Legislature.

Dan’s opponent is long-time incumbent Brenda Landwehr. Landwehr, a notorious far-right conservative, has been a vocal opponent of equal rights for gay, lesbian and transgendered Kansans. Since February, she has used Dan’s sexual orientation to stir up her constituent. She has gone so far as to use language that Dan was told was “too offensive” to repeat. This weekend, the homophobia and name-calling took a dangerous and criminal turn. Dan arrived home from work on Saturday to find a death threat attached to his front door. Crudely cut from newspaper headlines was a crass note that read: “DISTRICT 91 Democrat Dan N. Manning, 29, production supervisor, manningforkansas.com” “2010 State House Election” “Will DIE” “FaGIT” "Kill” “HOMO” “MURDER” “Head OFF”

Read the Kansas Equality Coalition's complete report, including their link to the death threat notes.