Remember?
During the 1970s, there were many timely bumper stickers. With the death of Rev. Jerry Falwell, I am reminded of my favorite of that era in the Bay Area...” THE MORAL MAJORITY IS NEITHER!”

Jerry Pritikin
Chicago

End Misogyny
It has recently occurred to me, nearly two years after the death of my own mother, who was a very frustrated, angry woman, that it is time for the end of misogynist behavior in our community. I have come to recognize my own behavior, and I look around in our community and see that is still with us. I think the most obvious example is “Drag,” which is usually satire intended to make fun of straight women (our mothers), is really misogynist behavior. It’s time for us to wake up as adults and stop perpetuating the hate of which we, as Gay men, were victims for so many years.

I believe it is the ‘traditional’ repression of women which causes mothers to abuse their children, and quite possibly the root cause for homophobia.

When I first arrived in San Francisco 25 years ago, women were rarely, if ever, seen in the Castro. Because I had personally suffered from the abuse/neglect from my mother, and held resentment and animosity towards women in general, the Castro was a real refuge for me, as it was for gay men from all over the world. I really believe that in those days of age and “looks,” discrimination within our own community (you couldn’t get into certain bars if you weren’t dressed right or were not deemed “pretty enough,” too old, etc.), women were certainly not welcome in the Castro. Anybody else remember it that way?? Now that has all changed and we need to take another step in our conscious evolution.

Over the last few years, I have several times, in the presence of women in the neighborhood, fell into “Gay” affectation mode, saying “girl” to other guys and general “swishy,” stereotypically “effeminate Gay behavior.” I seemed to discern that this was offensive to the women around me. Nothing was ever said, but I believe I felt and saw the distinct expressions of offense, and have tried to correct my behavior. Now, you may want to check with your lesbian girlfriends, but I don’t think I have misunderstood my observations.

Jim Boeger
San Francisco

Halloween: It’s a Drag If You’re The Invisible Man
With Halloween 2007 just less then five months away where is the community meetings? Where’s the so called Blue Ribbon Panel or Task Force assembled to set new guidelines on crowd control. Dream on. It must be the invisible man.

The last time our GLBT community heard anything about Halloween was a possible move to the Port. A move, I guess, for the hetero’s. If the invisible man really thinks that having the S.F. Police block off the Castro for Halloween is actually going to work, dream on invisible man.

Make sure the Keystone Cops are in costume just like last year. When 10 people got shot; by I guess the invisible man. Still have not heard of any arrest of anyone. Have you?

Our LGBT community faces many challenges to our lives daily. With violence throughout our city. The so called move to the Port would just spread the Keystone Cops out to yet another location.

There is no way in HELL that you are going to Stop Halloween in the Castro. See, as a Gay Community we don’t run from a good party. Or a good Drag Show. Halloween is San Francisco’s biggest Drag Show. The invisible man would like us all to live in fear.

If we LGBT people give into the invisible man’s fear, we would never be in drag. We would never have the Castro Street Fair, the Folsom Street Fair or even Pride Parade,
But then again I saw the invisible man at the Pride Parade waving from his car with thousands of people waving back and taking his picture.

Is this not what Halloween is? A big drag for our Community—believe me Halloween will go on in the Castro and living in fear will not. Donn’t sit in salience. Let the invisible man know we won’t give our Community over to fear.

And gays won’t be running from the Castro anytime soon. Now that’s reality.

Gilbert F. Criswell
San Francisco

Who She Is
In response to Keefer’s letter about Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi(“Who Does She Think She Is?” Bay Times Letters, May 10, 2007), first of all a Geography lesson: It was Syria, not Jordan (“a state that was officially being isolated” he called it) that Nancy visited on her trip to the Middle East (a week after some Republicans landed there). Furthermore, the Representative was not “getting what she wants” but, rather what WE want. She is trying to deliver on the mandate we gave her party as a nation during the last election. I am proud that she is my Representative. She has always done well for us, and now she is doing the right thing for the country.

Jonathan Mesinger
San Francisco

Conflict Resolution
I believe that it is our entire community that is in need of conflict resolution so as not to perpetuate the chain of abuse inherent in domestic violence, unhealthy problem solving, conflict, and community deterioration. A harmful emotional reaction to problem solving can affect everyone who is in contact with unhealthy coping skills. The first concern in violent crime and abuse is for victim’s safety and protection. Then Treatment for all survivors of trauma, abuse, and violence so that they can process information, become more self aware, and start to repair the affects. I am offering Seminars, Training and Consultations to anyone who wants to learn Anger Management techniques, conflict resolution skills, communication methodology, has been affected by trauma, wants to address unhealthy relationships, has experienced conflict issues and or domestic violence. These intensive informative trainings address anger management tools.

MO/PEACE
Ginger Martin
San Francisco

Quality of Life at Library
The Main Libray is a definite quality of life issue. It’s is a homeless drop in center. It’s not so much the body odor that drives me nuts as homeless women threatening and harassing me and homeless men constantly coming on to me. I just avoid the whole libary and make a branch my main library. Why is the main libray an unofficial homeless drop in?

Denise Jameson
San Francisco

Facism Rising
Every time a Taliban, Hamas or Al Quada leader is killed (along with “collateral” deaths). How gleefully we count their passing. We soon forget that these supposed enemies just happen to have been created by our arrogant, selfish and greedy exploitation of lands and people to succor the few in our supposed Western Democracies.

Oh, the horrendous cost of lives, resources and lands made uninhabitable with our weapons of mass destruction. Fear is the culprit and we embrace it at our peril. The black boots are on the march again.

Denise D’Anne
San Francisco

Crying Wolf
Remember the lonely shepherd boy, out in a distant pasture, who cried “WOLF!”, to make people visit him? And how they learned to ignore his cries — even when a real wolf attacked him??

In modern California, hateniks play the role of a very clever wolf. Repeatedly crying “Boy!, they force the shepherd to cry “Wolf!” again and again. Then nothing happens. Apparently they hope to undermine his credibility.

In less fabulous terms, they repeatedly threaten to put a hate amendment on the California state ballot. Such a amendment would change the state constitution, to prohibit California from allowing same-gender marriages. They’ve announced initiative drives several times since the 2004 “Winter of Love”, but they’ve never actually put such an amendment on the ballot.

California will have three (3!) statewide elections during calendar year 2008 — in February, in June, and in November. In theory, the hate amendment could go on any one of those ballots. In practice, the hardcore homophobes don’t have enough money, by themselves, to place it on the ballot and then to win a majority YES vote.

To win, extreme hateniks must depend on richer (and generally saner) Republican millionaires. And those “fat cats”, if they allow it to appear in 2008, will probably time it to bring conservatives to the polls just when turnout is most vital. Not at the presidential primary in February. Not at the state primary in June. Most likely at the general election in November.

California queers, freedomseekers, and allies MUST defeat the California hate amendment, whenever it disgraces our state ballot.
 Senior Unlimited Nudes  San Francisco

Mirkarimi’s Out of Touch
Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi has balked at D.A. Kamala Harris’s request for a budget increase to pay for more Ass’t D.A.s to prosecute misdemeanor crimes in SF. Mirkarimi made his position known in an e-mail to Cheryl Brodie, the president of the Haight Ashbury Improvement Association (HAIA). In his e-mail, Mirkarimi says the D.A.’s staff is already twice that of the Public Defender’s. He also questions the effectiveness of Kamala Harris’s prosecution of quality-of-life crimes, compared to the record of her predecessor (Terence Hallinan).

Mirkarimi’s objections are misguided. Everyone who deals with the practical realities of life in SF knows that the cops, prosecutors, and judges are overwhelmed with crime here, both minor and major. In addition, there has been a significant increase in killings in the city in recent years. District Five (which Mirkarimi represents) is now competing with Bay View-Hunters Point in terms of the rate of violent deaths.

As to lesser crimes, breaks-in of cars and armed robberies on the street, conducted with impunity, have become a norm of life here. Every arrested person gets competent representation by the Public Defender’s Office. But only a small percentage of the perpetrators are ever caught, tried, and sentenced.

As to quality-of-life crimes, former D.A. Terence Hallinan had a pilot program of sending Ass’t D.A.s to traffic court, which hears cases involving the homeless. He canned the program and gutted the funds for it from his budget, under pressure from the Coalition on Homelessness. The District Attorney’s inability to fully prosecute misdemeanors and infractions, due to budget constraints, has created an environment in the city that is conducive to the rise and spread of more serious crime. It has pushed marginal neighborhoods ever closer to disintegration and collapse.

D.A. Kamala Harris’s request for an increased budget reflects the realities of life in SF. Our neighborhoods deserve to be more than Petri dishes for encouraging the growth of destructive predilections. Ross Mirkarimi’s letter shows that he is out of touch with these realities. He should be in the forefront of waging the battle to protect our neighborhoods, not a foot-dragger.

Arthur Evans
San Francisco