Divine Providence/Divina Providencia and/or Practical Promises needed in Guatemala--UPDATE--GENERAL PEREZ MOLINA WINS!

General Otto Perez Molina, ¨Mano Dura¨

TODAY IS ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL DAY IN GUATEMALA (which is a very beautiful country) AND IT´S ALSO THE DAY IN GUATEMALA FOR A RUN-OFF ELECTION BETWEEN THE TWO REMAINING CANDIDATES FOR PRESIDENT, Dr. Manuel Antonio Baldizón Méndez and retired General Otto Pérez Molina.

Guatemala is a country that is desperate for strong ¨executive¨ leadership as the current government and it´s agencies/accomplices has had a near complete melt down and lawlessness and corruption are running rampant as well as a ¨worker slowdown¨ within Government that is a disgrace (and these government workers are getting paid well in a economy where many outsiders have no jobs at all)!

Retired General Otto Pérez Molina promises ¨Mano Dura¨ (a hard hand) if elected today--potential support amongst many folk in the campo (and amongst the wealthy old families in Guatemala City) make his election look possible...we will see...often in Guatemala ¨things¨ aren´t what they seem to be but a ¨hard hand¨ is urgently needed to heal ¨hard times.¨

Otto Pérez Molina

El general retirado Otto Pérez Molina, candidato del derechista Partido Patriota (PP), de ganar las elecciones de este domingo se convertiría en el primer Presidente militar de Guatemala desde que se instauró la era democrática, en 1986.

Pérez Molina, quien ofrece gobernar con mano dura este país, que apenas hace 11 años concluyó una sangrienta guerra civil.
 
Manuel Antonio Baldizón Méndez

Dr. Manuel Antonio Baldizón Méndez, ¨Bono 15¨ 

Manuel Antonio Baldizón Méndez (born 6 May 1970) is a Guatemalan politician, lawyer, and hotel entrepreneur. He is the leader of the Renewed Democratic Liberty (LIDER) party, and a candidate in the 2011 presidential election.
 
Diputado del Congreso. Fue elegido miembro del Congreso de Guatemala por el Partido Avanzada Nacional (PAN) en 2003, pero se unió a la Unidad Nacional de la Esperanza (UNE) de Álvaro Colom en el año 2006. Baldizón fue reelegido como miembro del Congreso en 2007. En el 2008 se desintegró del partido UNE y fundó el partido LIDER.

ALL IS QUIET AT THE MOMENT -- RESULTS EXPECTED LATE TONIGHT!

The Muslim LGBT Inclusion Project: LGBT Muslims are dealing with many of the same kinds of questions that LGBT Christians have been dealing with for decades

Image by lewishamdreamer via Flickr

¨Just as the Arab spring has upended conventional understanding of Arab and Muslim societies, so a new report on the issues faced by LGBT Muslims challenges the stereotype of Muslim communities in the U.S. and abroad as monolithically closed to conversations about sexuality.

The report, the “Muslim LGBT Inclusion Project,” was just published by Intersections International — New York-based nonprofit whose mandate, says founding director Rev. Robert Chase, is to bring together people who differ, honor those differences, and find ways to work together for reconciliation, justice, and peace...¨ read it all, HERE

·  Thanks to LGBT Asylum News, sidebar
·  Thanks to Peter Montgomery
·  Thanks to  Religion Dispatches

ATTN BISHOP DIBO THOMAS-BABYNTON ELANGOY -- HELP NEEDED IN CAMEROON: Roger Jean Claude Mbede convicted of ¨homosexuality¨ with no evidence of criminal conduct, please help him

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Roger Jean Claude Mbede needs our prayers and help!

¨In April 28, Roger Jean Claude Mbede, a 29 year old student from Cameroon, was sentenced to three years in jail for homosexuality and attempted homosexuality. His appeal of that judgment will be heard this Monday, Nov 7.

According to a news release by three Cameroonian groups, Mdebe had met the man through a teacher. He had feelings for him and sent him a text message to tell him so. However, the man alerted the police and, when Mdebe came to meet him on March 2, he was arrested.

At the trial, Mbede was represented by Alice Nkom, 66, a noted lawyer and LGBT rights activist who has been defending LGBT clients for over 10 years despite threats of arrest and violence. In recognition of her activism, she was named the Grand Marshall of Montreal's gay pride parade in August.

Mdebe was convicted even though there was no evidence of criminal conduct, according to a Human Rights Watch release on Aug. 17.

Alternatives-Cameroun, who visited Mbede in the infamous Kondengui Central Prison in Yaoundé this summer, said that he was suffering from lack of food and was in deplorable mental health. with an untreated condition affecting his left eye. He had to sleep on the floor of his cell, and had been abandoned by most of his family members, who regard him as a wizard...¨ please read the facts, HERE

·  Thanks to Alternatives-Cameroun
·  Thanks to Alice Nkom
·  Thanks to LGBT Asylum News

KNOW THE ABUSERS: When you’re harassed, “get a sense of humor” is the almost inevitable response of the harasser!

¨Reporting harassment can make the workplace worse than experiencing the harassment¨

¨As a woman who has spent much of her life in male dominated industries, “Get a sense of humor” and “Lighten up” were phrases I avoided like the plague. How did I avoid them? By laughing. I laughed when my boss invited me to a sex party. I laughed when I had a bad day and a couple of the guys told me I needed to get laid, and offered their assistance. I laughed when they commented on the tightness of my top or the thinness of my bra. I laughed at their racist or homophobic jokes, which made me uncomfortable even though I was not the target. I brushed off their actual sexual advances as though they never happened.

Why did I laugh it all off? We live in a litigious society, right? To hear the right frame it, I should have been heading to a lawyer at the first nipple joke. Well, as any victim of harassment, sexual or otherwise, will tell you, it just ain’t that easy. I had a fairly decent job. I made a nice middle class income. I was moving up the ranks, albeit more slowly than my male counterparts. I wasn’t about to risk it, plus, maybe it was just me...¨ read it all, by Wendy Gittleson, HERE

Why does this seem familiar to me? 

Bullying, exploiting, harrassing/harming, killing innocents is initiated by ¨protected¨ bigots, blowhards and bullies at work, church, school or amongst families and friends and must end...offenders being ¨accepted¨ by society/church/industry who are presumed to have ¨righteous/heterosexual values¨ must be held accountable for the smears and loathsome acts/sins of omission and abuse toward others, ready or not, sexual or not, that are generated.  We, individually, are called to be personally responsible in all of our affairs.

We must stop the liars, moral deadbeats/blamers/shamers and thieves of other peoples personal integrity in our everyday lives by speaking out against them...the creepy boy/girl-clubbers must be held personally responsible and accountable to start dealing with truth, their own truth and the reality of others.

The responsibility for living in truth must include the every action of Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury as well as the rest of the pompus anti-heterosexual women and LGBT Christian exclusion clubbers at all levels of Churchlife at the Anglican Communion. 

The whole bunch of feckless rotted apples, evangelical religious or not, anglo-Catholic or not, who polute decency and good will with faux integrity must be called on their self-purified lies and malicious manipulative actions as they abuse other human beings.  It is the shifty and protected religious righteous ¨pretenders¨ who demoralize society.  Slandering others with ugly/dressed-up pretenses that deny truth/real and twist reality/encourage fear and hate in the world around them as they attempt to make themselves look good/holy, right, just and ¨fair.¨  Honorable as they torment, harrass and abuse innocents in the name of a false God of ignorance, prejudice, exploitation and flat out deceit!

Hypocrites repent, Bishop Rowan, resign! Leonardo Ricardo

·  Thanks to Addicting Info, sidebar
·  Thanks to Wendy Gittleson, HERE

Archbishop Rowan Williams and his ¨punitive¨ Anglican Covenant:  Innocents beware of deceit and pretend!

SALUTING OUR ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY: ¨The No Anglican Covenant¨ Coalition

¨A year ago today, the No Anglican Covenant announced that it had come on the scene to defeat adoption of the Anglican Covenant. The date of November 3 was chosen because it is the day that Anglicans remember Richard Hooker, that quintessential Anglican theologian who, we believed, would be appalled at the direction the Anglican Communion seemed to be headed.

As the Coalition celebrates its first birthday, there is cause for both optimism and concern. The program to impose a repressive covenant on worldwide Anglicanism has lost momentum. Few churches have adopted it, and some of those that have have framed their actions in ways that undermine the intent of the proposed agreement. The GAFCON churches have largely rejected the Covenant as inadequate, and many Western churches are expected to reject it as too intrusive. The Covenant is not dead, but it is severely wounded...¨ please read it all, by Lionel Deimel, HERE

¨A year ago today the No Anglican Covenant Coalition was born. We have tried to articulate clearly the arguments for an against the Anglican Covenant and to explain our deep concerns about signing a document that seeks to relegate faithful brothers and sisters to second class Anglicans.¨ please read it all, by Lesley+ HERE

¨We say that we are saved by grace, not by law, and yet it is so easy to act as if the opposite is true. What did Jesus say about such things?¨ please read it all, by Mark Bennett, HERE

THE FEAST OF RICHARD HOOKER

¨A year ago, a small dedicated group of Anglicans from around the world, began a campaign against a conspiracy. We set out, 23 bloggers of the NO Anglican Covenant Coalition, to defeat an entire hierarchy.

We have a secret weapon - the Covenant. The document is indefensible, and its proponents know it. In fact, one reason it is failing is that when anyone right or left questions the document, its defenders talk or write about something else. In a sense they have to do that, the proposed Covenant is that bad.

None-the-less, errors are not defeated without effort. The Coalition has organized and focused that effort, and I am proud of our work. We are far from done, but in a year, I think we have made a good beginning!  from Jim B, HERE

INSIDE THE GAY CURE MINISTRIES: ¨Converting Gays creates damaged people¨

Escaping from the ¨damage¨

¨Exorcisms, hugging, behavioural management and marriage are among the methods used by a Christian ministry to "heal" homosexuals in Queensland, according to a former leader who now wants to see the practice stamped out.¨

¨A psychologist and one-time Exodus* counsellor has told the Brisbane Times HERE, Australia, has denounced the ex-gay movement, saying he walked away 25 years ago because it forced gay men into “living an even greater lie” that hurt themselves and their families.

Paul Martin, now an equal rights activist and head of the Centre for Human Potential in Brisbane, spoke out after Australia’s Community Services Minister, Fiona Simpson, was criticized for her ex-gay views. The politician had lent public support to Exodus in 2002, praising the organization for giving homosexuals “the freedom to grow into homosexuality over time.” HERE

·  Thanks to The Brisbane Times
·  Thanks to Katherine Feeney
·  Thanks to Dr.Paul Martin, former *Exodus counsellor HERE
·  Thanks to Ex-Gay Watch, sidebar

GATHERING TO HONOR THE DEAD WITH THE LIVING: All Saints Day, celebrated on October 31 and November 1, with unique traditions throughout Guatemala

The Giant Kites of Sumpango carry messages to the heavens

All Saints Day, celebrated on November 1, is celebrated with unique traditions throughout Guatemala. Giant kites are flown in the cemeteries of Santiago Sacatepéquez and Sumpango near Antiqua Guatemala.

Remembering dear friend and loved one Jose Luis A.R., 1997, R.I.P.

Each October 31 and November 1, families all over central America gather to honor their dead in family cemeteries. Plots are cleared of debris, flowers are placed, and candles are lit. It is a day of celebration, of remembering and honoring those who came before.

The Cemetery at Sumpango, Sacatapequez, Guatemala

Photos thanks to Juan Carlos C.F.

LATINOBAROMETRO´S BEST ´LEADER´ IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE: BARACK OBAMA HAS HIGHEST APPROVAL RATING!

Barack Obama, President of the United States of North America

SANTIAGO, Chile — ¨Latin Americans give U.S. President Barack Obama the highest approval rating for any leader in the region.

Obama is rated 6.3 on a scale of one to 10 in the survey conducted by the Chile-based Latinobarometro polling organization. He is closely followed by Brazilian President Dilma Rouseff at 6.

Latinobarometro polled 20,000 people in 18 Latin American countries. The leader with the worst mark is former Cuban President Fidel Castro at 4.1. Next lowest are Venezuela's Hugo Chavez and Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega, who tied at 4.4.

Bolivian President Evo Morales has 4.9 and Chilean leader Sebastian Pinera got 5.1. HERE

·  Thanks to Towleroad, sidebar
·  Thanks to Latin America´s Latinobarometro

A NOTE TO DEMEANERS OF LGBT PEOPLE: Please stop living in a world of your own pretend/faking and grief-for-others making.

It´s TRUE, we´ve always been right here next to you!

Dear Heterosexual co-beings,

It´s time! It´s time again that we get something cleared up between us. Just you and me or maybe even we and some of you that make life difficult for LGBT people. If you are troubled by ¨Gay¨ people in your life it may be time to settle down, take a deep breath and stop living in a world of your own pretend/faking and grief-for-others making. We are part of your very own,  personally related, worldwide family of brothers and sisters, friends, coworkers and  we are your everyday loved ones and equal ¨beings¨ who make up your life.  Hark!  We´re here, you´re here and that will never change because nothing has changed except we´re all attempting to live in a world of  responsible reality instead of denial.  No muss, no fuss, relax, we are like you...always have been.

Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury practices his sometimes harmless, sometime not, well skilled art of pretend. 

LGBT CITIZENS ARE FIGHTING FOR
AUTHENTIC/RESPONSIBLE LIVES

¨BE STRONG, for those who are not. BE VISIBLE, for those who cannot. BE, for yourself and us all. Yes, we are fighting for the right of civil marriage, but it is far more than that. We are also fighting so that the next generation does not have to grow up in shame and live in fear.¨ Fr. Geoff Farrow HERE

· Thanks to Gay Spirit Diary, sidebar
· Thanks to Father Geoff Farrow, sidebar
· Thanks to Josh Thomas, Stonewall ¨Everything Changed¨ Blog entry HERE.

PLEASE MEET BEVAN DUFTY: Candidate for San Francisco Mayor

Bevan Dufty, Board of Supervisors, San Francisco, California

Electing LGBT Leaders to Change America´s Politics

¨Bevan Dufty just completed two terms on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors representing the same district Harvey Milk represented in the late 1970’s. But his record of service to San Francisco and the LGBT community in the Bay Area goes back to the moment he first arrived in his beloved city, when he served as a staffer at city hall and then Director of Neighborhood Services.

Now Bevan is ready to lead this remarkable city as mayor, and the Victory Fund is proud to endorse this outstanding public servant.

“I want to lead a dynamic, responsive and effective City government for all San Franciscans. My goal is for people to love their government the way they love their city,” said Bevan.

Bevan is particularly passionate about bringing new job opportunities for all San Franciscans, especially in the fields of biotechnology, clean and green technology and digital media. He wants to continue to reduce street homelessness, boost education infrastructure citywide and manage the city’s budget in a way that serves vulnerable populations while still attracting business investment in the city.

Please support Bevan’s campaign and help elect an outstanding openly LGBT leader mayor of one of the world’s great cities.¨ HERE

·  Thanks to Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund
·  Thanks to Bevan Dufty, Supervisor, San Francisco