We won’t have nice things in a theocracy. Even one that claims to be “secular.”

Lady Gaga has canceled her June 3 concert in Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation, which calls itself secular, after the hardline fundamentalists  Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) threatened violence and

chaos

if she entered the country, calling Gaga a

devil’s messenger.

The FPI stated they would try to prevent the performer from exiting her plane when it landed, complaining that Gaga performed in

a bra and panties.

Minola Sebayang, lawyer for promoters Big Daddy, told reporters:

This is not only about Lady Gaga’s security, but extends to those who will be watching her.

While the police in Jakarta refused to issue a permit for the concert, Big Daddy president Michael Rusli said:

For the past few days we have communicated with the government and Lady Gaga’s side. The government has given support, but this is not about the permit. The cancellation is really due to concerns over security.

It’s been reported that promoters were trying to work within government guidelines for decency–Beyonce and the Pussycat Dolls were allowed to perform their Indonesian shows in modest stage costumes. But while Rusili said that Gaga was

prepared to adapt to Asian culture,

her manager Troy Carter said the star

would not tone down any of her concerts.

In the past months, Lady Gaga has faced protests from Christian groups at her shows in the Philippines and South Korea, and in the latter country made her shows 18 and over, but refused to compromise her concerts’ content or the integrity of her vision.

Promoters are offering refunds for the 50,000 tickets sold for the concert.

Again, this is why we won’t have nice things in a theocracy. Like Pride tee-shirts. Or certain books. Or more importantly, the freedom to worship, love or do as we please. Because, even though Indonesia is a technically a secular country, 90% of population identifies as Muslim, and some of that 90% is so empowered by being in the majority that they’ve become threatening bullies. Kinda like some Christians here in the US, where 78% of the population identifies as Christian some of whom murder in the name of their faith, which is why it is important that all of us continue to support and maintain the separation of church and state, and refute the establishment of any theocracy, and work to insure that any government favoritism of any faith, by any government arm, even the IRS, is stopped.

There is some very deep symbolism in the Edge of Glory knife sharpener commercial: A credit card is honed to a by the device with title of a Lady Gaga song and slices through a tomato, a slang term for a cute gal.

Yes celebrity-obsessed ladies, be aware that your credit card could become a weapon  used against you! Or something.

Or something.

Lady Gaga bought a top-tier ticket and attended an exclusive Silicon Valley fundraiser at the home of Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg on Sunday night. Wearing a black, sleeveless lace gown and with her hair piled up, Lady Gaga was 2 feet taller than everyone including Obama, thanks to her super high heels and substantial up-do. Her outfit included a black veil. In recent days Gaga has been saddened and angered by the suicide of 14 year old fan Jamey Rodemeyer, and her choice of attire suggests mourning.

Last week Lady Gaga said she would be meeting with POTUS to discuss her concerns about bullying–at one point Gaga tweeted that bullying

must become illegal

USA Today reports from pool reporter Carol Lee of The Wall Street Journal:

POTUS spoke for about 8 minutes, with Lady Gaga sitting front and center. And although he never acknowledged her obvious presence, it seems likely the two crossed paths during greetings inside the house before the dinner.

ABC reports a slightly different scenario from an anonymous source inside the tent. According to their source, Gaga thanked the President for what he has accomplished, then read what she said was a letter from a fan discussing another of her fans who committed suicide over bullying. After which she

thanked Obama for hosting his anti-bullying conference with Michelle Obama, and then made a general plea to everyone in the room, including the president, to do what they can to prevent bullying.

Gaga was spurred to tweet on bullying after Jamey Rodemeyer killed himself over incessant bullying. His final tweet was

@ladygaga bye mother monster, thank you for all you have done, paws up forever

and he was buried in a “Born This Way” shirt. Jeremy had made an It Gets Better video in May, but the bullying at Williamsville North High School in Buffalo, N.Y., and online was ceaseless. New York already has an anti-bullying law, the Dignity for All Students Act, passed in 2010.

The Gay Straight Alliance issued a statement with regards to Gaga’s call for the criminalizing of bullying:

It’s great that Lady Gaga is bringing national attention to this problem, but now we must focus on real solutions. By writing letters, starting and supporting Gay-Straight Alliances, talking to teachers and administrators and mobilizing our communities, we can push schools to enforce existing non-discrimination policies in a way that doesn’t contribute to an environment of fear and punishment, but rather fosters a culture of safety, inclusion, and respect for all students.

Ticket cost for the Obama fundraiser was the standard $35,800 per couple/single seat. Gaga apparently came alone.

Superstars Bonon Edge, Lady Gaga and Usher will celebrate president Bill Clinton’s decade of charty work at the Hollywood Bowl on October 15. Proceeds benefit the William J. Clinton Foundation.

The Hollywood Bowl “Decade of Difference” concert will stream live on Yahoo! at 10pm Easter/7pm Pacific for free ,while tickets–ranging from $50 to $250–go on sale Monday September 19. (Yahoo!’s page says Sept 12, but Ticketaster who’s selling them sets the date for next Monday)  Unless you have an American Express card, in which case you can score the billets on Thursday the 15. The prices are very reasonable. There are also special packages ranging from $250,000 to $6,500 which include seats at Clinton’s 65th birthday party the night before. $250,000 gets you golf with Bill.

The William J Clinton Foundation focuses on treating global HIV/AIDS, creating sustainable farming in both Africa and Souht America, combatting climate change and childhood obesity, and creating  job opportunities through a series of initiatives. According to the foundation’s website, since its inception:

9,000 American schools are providing kids with healthy food choices in an effort to eradicate childhood obesity; 4,300 African farmers have imporoved their crops to feed 30,000 people; 14 cities around the world are implementing energy efficiency projects to eliminate 75,000 tons of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere each year; $20 million is being invested in small- and medium-sized businesses in Colombia; and 2.6 million people have benefited from lifesaving HIV/AIDS medications.

photo: creative commons  edenpictures

 

Marcus Bachmann, what’s in your closet?

For the second time, a horde of gay barbarians descended on Marcus Bachmann’s psychology clinic. Today the clinic was ready for the sexy savages, locking the doors and leaving the barbarians at the gate. Last time the heathen mob encroached, the clinic waiting room was sprinkled with glitter. Oh teh horror! Teh horror!

The  flash mob was suddenly met by a dapper gray-haired man in a suit who swinging a whip as he feebly attempted to discipline the glitter-bombing barbarians. Then overcome by his feelings–a strange stirring in his loins, a love that dare not speak its name, maybe he was born this way?–the Marcus Bachmann impersonator fell to his knees mid-exorcism, ecstatically receiving a sparkling glitter baptism before rising, then dancing to Lady Gaga with his new-found friends, free at last from the shackles of denial.

Carl Atiya Swanson, the actor who played Bachmann in Thursday’s street theater piece told City Pages:

I think [Marcus] and Michele sort of exemplify a great tragedy in the American ethos, which is that they believe in freedom but only in the ways they want to be free. That’s my main problem with their politics. It extends, obviously, to Marcus specifically for his use of ‘reparative’ and ex-gay therapy, which is a farce that ends in tragedy

Nick Espinosa, the piece’s organizer said:

It was a response to Marcus and Michele Bach’s continual dodging of questions relating to the therapy that’s happening at their clinic. Until they stop stonewalling and come clean with the American people about what’s happening at that clinic they can continue to expect people to keep standing up against what they’re doing.

No matter gay, straight, or bi,
Lesbian, transgendered life
I’m on the right track baby
I was born to survive

One could argue time restraints on GMA caused the singer to shorten the tune. But Glee? Really?! Mmmm.

Meanwhile, two months ago in Malaysia, Born This Way was edited to remove the same verse for radio airplay. NME reports

Chiefs for Malaysia’s top private radio operator AMP Radio Networks made a statement about their edit. They explained that the edit had been commissioned as there are government restrictions against songs that might violate “good taste or decency or are offensive to public feeling”.

The statement continued: “The particular lyrics in ‘Born This Way’ may be considered as offensive when viewed against Malaysia’s social and religious observances. The issue of being gay, lesbian or bisexual is still considered as a ‘taboo’ by general Malaysians.”

And Wednesday from the Philippines:

Why is Channel V Philippines censoring the lyrics of Lady Gaga’s pro-gay song “Born This Way?”

The music channel removed the controversial line “No matter gay, straight or bi, lesbian, transgendered life, I’m on the right track, baby” from the Lady Gaga music video.

Lady Gaga, in her official Twitter account, said last week that the point with ‘Born This Way ‘is to “fight for something that not everyone believes in. To overcome adversity with a message.”

Before Lady Gaga agreed to allow Target to release an exclusive edition of her  forthcoming album, Born This Way,  featuring cool remixes plus a trio of additional studio cuts, the multiplatinum-selling LGBT-rights advocate sat down with the mega-chain’s executives and told them to make amends for some very anti-LGBT behavior on their part in supporting conservative Minnesota candidates in the Novemeber 2010 elections. Gaga’s current #1 single “Born This Way” is the first chart-topping tune to feature the word “transgendered” in the lyrics. It’s also Billboard Magazine’s 1,000th #1 single.

Last July we reported news from TheAWL.com–and thank you all for spreading the word via Facebook and Twitter–that Target CEO Gregg Steinhafel and his wife donated $5,000 each — the maximum allowable — to Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann’s campaign, and Target itself donated $150,000 to MN Forward, a PAC which is supported Tom Emmer’s (failed) run for governor of Minnesota. In response to the news, who knows how many thousands stopped shopping at Target and launched email and video campaigns protesting Target’s actions as well as staging flashmobs and picket demonstrations.

At that time Target had a 100% rating from the Human Rights Campaign for the their workplace environment and support of LGBT causes and–importantly for many consumers focused on budget style–the chain featured some great designers  like Alexander McQueen, Jean-Paul Gaultier and Zac Posen.

All of you who boycotted Target, emailed them and raised awareness of Target’s bad behavior made a difference, and Lady Gaga was beyond the icing on that cake. Earlier this week the Washington Blade reported:

Target Corp. has made changes to its political giving policy following controversy over contributions the retail chain made to a conservative political action committee in the 2010 election…[a] new policy committee will determine whether Target will make political contributions directly to candidates, political parties or to other groups such as 527 or 501(c)(4) committees…One source familiar with the changes, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed that Target consulted with some LGBT rights advocates on the change.

A spokesperson for Target told the Washington Blade:

These changes are really reflective of that perspective that we gained over the 2010 election cycle.

Perspectives gained from your actions and subsequent bad PR. Perspectives gained when Lady Gaga laid down what would be necessary for her to proceed with the deal. (And if Bruce Springsteen had been as aware regarding his 2008 greatest hits collection he wouldn’t have had to issue a mea culpa regarding the record’s release at Wal-Mart).

According to Target’s website:

During and immediately following the 2010 U.S. election cycle, the Corporate Responsibility Committee of our Board of Directors conducted a thorough review of Target’s policies and practices regarding public policy engagement. This review culminated in a clear and transparent framework for Target’s public policy engagement that was approved by our Board of Directors and is outlined below. Importantly, this framework has reaffirmed Target’s commitment to:

• Align our public policy activities and business interests;
• Employ a decision-making process to support ongoing compliance with our alignment objective; and
• Maintain transparency to our guests, team members, shareholders and other stakeholders.

Target VP of communications Dustee Jenkins told Billboard Magazine:

she “didn’t think” Gaga’s feedback had resulted in direct policy change, but that she was one of many voices Target had considered in order to better understand issues concerning the LGBT community.

One of the many voices, including yours. OURS!

[HT: The Advocate]

[photo: Creative Commons, Naomi Lir]

As the Senate vote to repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell approaches (2:15pm Tuesday, September 21 Eastern), Lady Gaga, a staunch supporter of LGBT rights and the DADT repeal, sent out a tweet to let her millions of fans know that she is heading for Maine today, Monday for a Reepal DADTrally at 4pm.

Maine’s GOP Senators Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe potentially hold the key to heading off the anticipated John McCain-led filibuster. The pop superstar will be joined by veterans and members of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network at Deering Park, near University of Southern Maine campus on in Portland, Maine .

Lady Gaga also let John McCain know that her “little monsters” are on call and filled her fans on on what a filibuster is.

To @SenJohnMcCain and everyone on Twitter I received an overwhelming amount of videos responding to DADT, please watch: http://bit.ly/cWAITv

All hands on deck Lil Monsters: Key senate vote this Tues. on #DADT repeal. We need 60 senators. Call your senator now: http://bit.ly/aBZMSJ

A Filibuster is a way to obstruct the Senate Floor from discussing or voting on a given LAW, + is essentially a tactic to hijack our debate.

SENATOR JOHN MCCAIN is attempting to stop the DON’T ASK DON’T TELL repeal vote this tuesday, with a filibuster.

You can use Twitter hashtag #4the14k (“For the 14,000–a reference to the serivcemembers who have left the military under DADT) to follow along. And while you’re at it, give your senator a call at (202) 224-3121.

photo: Amalia Adina , creative commons

On Sunday Lady Gaga went to the Video Music Awards with former members of the armed service who left/were discharged over Don’t Ask Don’t Tell and who are part of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network.

Today Lady Gaga tweeted her nearly 7 million followers and asked them to call Harry Reid and schedule a Senate vote on the repeal of DADT. Reid must have gotten the messages. He responded via Twitter:

And now, for your Late Night pleasure, Christopher Walken interprets Lady Gaga:

Earlier this week, Governor Jim Gibbons of Nevada cited chart topping sensation Lady GaGa as his inspiration to [wrongheadly] propose "budget cuts" and "astronomical tuition increases" for higher education. The Nevada Sagebrush reports the governor defended his decision, saying it was influenced by Lady GaGa:

I heard a song on the radio and it just made so much sense for the times that we are in. ‘Poker Face’ by international pop star, Lady GaGa. It’s really catchy with some realistic undertones. I heard a song on the radio and it just made so much sense for the times that we are in.

The governor couldn’t have picked a stranger inspiration, especially because Lady Gaga is auctioning off a pair of tickets and a meet-and-greet for any show on her Fame Ball tour in the U.S. or Canada to raise money for Odyssey Charter School, and elementary school in Los Angeles affected by budget cuts. Bidding began Tuesday on eBay for what’s described as a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet Lady GaGa while positively impacting children’s educational needs. The auction closes February 26, 2009.