I have waited to post about this as I wanted to be sure what the real issues were. The violent family’s lawyer has tried hard to muddy the water with attacks on the character of the victim. This was a horrible attack that left the victim badly injured, afraid and from reports blinded all because the family found out that the adult younger son was having a secret sexual affair with the victim. From what I have read prior the family forced the adult son that was having sex with the victim to accompany them to the victim’s home and help them get the victim to let them into his home and then injure, rob, and restrain / detain him. All of this because the parents and older brother couldn’t stand the idea of the younger adult son have male with male sexual relations. This is the results that come from the right-wing hate preaching about gay people, this is the results of don’t say gay talk about the LGBTQ+ are pedophiles that want to rape and sexualize children. This shows clearly how dangerous this talk pushed on the right is.
Members of a Ukrainian refugee family appeared in a South Florida courtroom on Wednesday. That’s where they are facing hate crime and attempted murder charges for an alleged family ambush.
Police say Oleh Makarenko was in a nine-month homosexual relationship, which would end with his lover being beaten so badly by Makarenko’s family that the victim became blind. Authorities allege that Oleh Makarenko, who is also known as Alex, was being forced to marry a woman by his mother.
On Aug. 6, three members of the Makarenko family barged into the victims home, according to police. A police report stated that, “All four of the suspects continued holding him and began punching, kicking, and hitting him all over his face and body.”
According to the arrest documents, 19-year-old Oleh Makarenko and the victim had been romantically involved for about nine months, but the victim said Oleh told him his father was not accepting him as gay.
After a two-week break in the relationship, on Aug. 6, the victim said he remotely opened his community’s gate believing it was a friend when it was actually the Makarenko family. The victim went outside but quickly went back into his apartment.
“There’s no indication that anything was said or done to show that they had specific intent to kill,” said public defender Katherine Lopez. “It seems like, based on my reading, that their probable cause for beating him was because of a relationship with a family member of theirs.”
In the non-embeddable video at the first link, the female fiance of the gay son denies everything because she has an engagement ring.
HATE CRIME CHARGES – Members of a Ukrainian refugee family appeared in a South Florida courtroom on Wednesday to face hate crime and attempted murder charges for the alleged family ambush of a gay man. https://t.co/vSto06xwG7
New details and a possible motive have been released about a brutal beating that left a man blind and landed a family behind bars. https://t.co/pZc4HU9t6A
Evangelical groups in the U.S. have been, for at least a couple of decades, sponsoring immigration of a small subset of Ukraine’s population that is too extreme in its religious viewpoints to get along well with anyone else in Ukraine. They arrive as religious refugees and immediately join with their U.S. evangelical sponsors to try to impose their religious extremism on others. I don’t know if that is this family’s story, but their actions fit the profile. I have friends in Ukraine that I chat with every week, and I have no sense that the evangelical-sponsored religious refugees are at all typical of the Ukrainian population as a whole. In fact, that is why they leave Ukraine, because Ukraine isn’t oppressively religious enough for them.
I can just imagine the family’s defense to this awful crime: “[the victim] was grooming our child.” That should at least earn them pardons from De Santis.
Those are already close to the claims being made by their friends. They would have us believe that the family are falsely accused Christians who pray a lot.
“They are a Christian family, believers in God, members of the church and get together on the weekends to pray in their family circle and community.”
Interestingly, the arguments that their friends use for why they must be innocent, make me more likely to believe they are guilty.
Unfortunately way to many societies around the world are so brainwashed by The CHURCH this shit is far to common. They move to a new country to start a new life and because of their blatant ignorance taught by the CHURCH it all goes up it smoke Wake up Frankie Graham and all you other NUTZ quit spreading the hate
The Christian Right has been importing Christian Righties and their thuggery from Eastern Europe for some time, taking advantage of these programs, then of course projecting that onto Democrats and brown people.
Presumably his parents and his church succeeded in creating such an astounding level of shame and self-loathing about being gay, that he was willing to participate with his family in the attempted murder of his boyfriend. The seething hate that is required to do something like this is so disturbing.
Wow, a women / gay hater who doesn’t understand history or science. I am so stunned at how open these people are about restricting voting to only the people they like or that are like them. They do not seem to understand the term democracy. I worry about the people attracted to this stuff.
“I have to double down on this. They care so much about everybody voting and democracy. And it’s like, if you went back to the founding and the founding fathers would have probably said something like, ‘Women and probably feminine men shouldn’t be allowed to vote because then their chaotic nature would just manifest throughout society.’
“And you would say, ‘No, that’s not right. That’s mean. You’re probably an incel.’ And then the founding father would just say, ‘Oh, well, do you have any evidence from your time to contradict this?’ And you’d just be like, ‘No, not exactly.’ So it would seem that they were actually right.” – Podcaster John Doyle, speaking at an American Populist Union event.
Far right YouTuber John Doyle said the founding fathers “were actually right” to restrict women from voting citing their “chaotic nature.”
Doyle was speaking at an American Populist Union event, a group that has endorsed Kari Lake. pic.twitter.com/ajIhMFC2ZD
At an event for the American Populist Union, far right YouTuber John Doyle said masks are “gay” and being worn by people hiding their lipstick they want to use to kiss men.
If you go to their website APU is only 6 individuals – all of them complete unknowns and all early 20s I would guess. I predict they will bitch flame out in about 1 month
I just have no idea what goes on in the head space of these people? Really the idea that gays are hunting killing preachers in the pulpit is more than nuts, it is trying to claim the very harm hate preachers do from the pulpit to / against gay and LGBTQ+ people.
“They call it ‘Don’t Say Gay’ and it’s not true. It’s not even in there. I’m asking the woman of wisdom here what to do. Because I get fought on every hand if I mention anything. And it’s going to be preachers – we’re not going to be able to preach much longer. Because they’re going to shoot us in the pulpit. They will kill us in our pulpits. You don’t believe me? They’re already doing it.” – Scamvangelist Jim Bakker, on today’s show.
Jim Bakker claims Christian pastors are being murdered for preaching on controversial social issues: "We're not going to be able to preach much longer because they'll shoot us in the pulpits. They will kill us in our pulpits. You don't believe me? They're already doing it." pic.twitter.com/SYF1qeU15w
If you look at the numbers, you will notice that traffic deaths among African-Americans in the year 2020 surged in the month of June. Fatalities among Black drivers in June 2020 were fully 55 percent higher than they were in June of 2019. You never see increases like that. What could have happened?
Well, let’s see. It was in the last week of May of 2020 that a convicted felon called George Floyd died in police custody in Minneapolis and after that, you’ll recall, everything changed.
What changed most of all was how we regard the rule of law. As Russ Martin of the Governors Highway Safety Association put it, Floyd’s death, quote, “accelerated national discussion about equity in transportation.” And that discussion would include, quote, “questions about enforcement.” Oh, there it is, right there. That’s the answer.
Cops across the country were told to stop enforcing traffic laws against Black drivers. No one wanted to be accused of arresting somebody for the crime of, quote, “driving while Black.” So, in the name of equity, the law no longer applied to huge numbers of people. Result? Thousands of Americans died.
Carlson had a point he wanted to make (Black Lives Matter is bad), so he threw some shit together. It doesn’t have to be true or make sense or have any facts behind it. His audience doesn’t care about any of that, only that he tells them what they want to hear (BLM is bad). Remember, Fox New is an entertainment network, not a news network.
Tucker makes shit up again. Actually *general* traffic fatalities went up during the pandemic by a lot because there was a lot more room on the road for people not used to driving very fast to drive too fast. Pointing out this applies to black people too doesn’t mean it somehow has to do with a lack of traffic stops, cause those went *up,* too.
Again the hate is what drives them. They are fundraising off hate. Of course it is lies, and their cult base believes it all. They really do, the more outrages the more they believe it. How do you even talk to these people?
WinRed appeal claims Dems are ‘HELLBENT’ on ‘pushing transgender ideology on young children’
Another Michigan Republican is fundraising off attacks on the LGBTQ+ community and supporters.
A fundraising message sent by state Sen. Tom Barrett (R-Charlotte), who is seeking the Republican nomination for the newly drawn 7th Congressional District, claims, “President Biden is forcing 5-year-olds to learn about gender reassignment surgeries, gender identities, and other radical ideas,”adding that “Every American needs to step up TODAY and stop this sick and twisted ideology from poisoning our children.”
According to a screenshot obtained by the Michigan Advance, Barrett’s original fundraising appeal came via text and appeared to be an appointment confirmation for “Your Child” to receive “Gender Reassignment Surgery Tomorrow at 9 AM.” It then asks, “If you would like to CANCEL this appointment because you do not believe in teaching young children about dangerous transgender ideologies, please sign your name NOW.”
That message has since been replaced with Barrett’s current appeal in which he also claims, “Democrats are HELLBENT on destroying our faith, removing God from the center of our nation, and pushing transgender ideology on young children. Without your immediate support, Pelosi will have all the ammunition she needs to destroy Christian Republicans like Tom Barrett & completely eviscerate our traditional values.”
Barrett has not returned a request for comment.
The message follows a fundraising email earlier this week from Barrett’s colleague, Sen. Lana Theis (R-Brighton), accusing three Democratic senators, including Sen. Mallory McMorrow (D-Royal Oak), of being “groomers” that “sexualize” children after they walked out of an invocation she gave in which she claimed children are “under attack” from “forces that desire things for them other than what their parents would have them see and hear and know.”
Theis appeared to be referencing Republicans’ national crackdown on teachings that reference LGBTQ+ issues and America’s history of racism.
In a floor speech response Tuesday, McMorrow said she wondered why Theis had accused her by name of grooming and sexualizing children.
“Then I realized,” said McMorrow. “I’m the biggest threat to your hollow, hateful scheme. Because you can’t claim that you’re targeting marginalized kids in the name of ‘parental rights’ if another parent is standing up and saying no.”
She concluded by saying, “hate will only win if people like me stand by and let it happen,” and that Theis could call her whatever she wanted, but “I know who I am. I know what faith and service means, and what it calls for in this moment. We will not let hate win.”
On Wednesday, McMorrow said that she is acutely aware that rhetoric like that of Theis’ fundraising email can lead to very real consequences, noting the “pizzagate” conspiracy that led to a shooter barging into a pizza shop in Washington, D.C., and preceded the far-reaching QAnon conspiracy.
State Sen. Mallory McMorrow (D-Royal Oak), April 20, 2022 | Laina G. Stebbins
Theis is facing a primary challenge this year from Mike Detmer of Howell, who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump. Detmer has criticized Theis for accepting the results of a Senate Oversight report that found no evidence of widespread fraud in the 2020 presidential election that Trump lost. In February, Detmer told supporters they should “be prepared to lock and load” at the polls.
While Barrett is considered to be the likely winner of the GOP nomination for the 7th District, he is trailing U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly) in fundraising.
Recent figures show Slotkin with a major fundraising advantage over Barrett, raising more than $1.3 million in the first quarter of 2022, with $5.5 million on hand. Barrett reported raising $465,735 with $395,910 on hand during the same period.
Slotkin, meanwhile, has since sent out an email (absent fundraising links) to supporters referencing Barrett’s fundraising pitch.
“Using scare tactics about our children’s well-being to raise money for a political campaign should be off-limits,” said Slotkin. “This is what people hate about politics: the politicians that only want to use fear to further divide us in a time where we should be coming together.”
More performative bullshit. When will anyone start tweeting about religious leaders screwing children? Because that shit is going to happen today, tomorrow and the next day. Random gender reassignment surgery, not a fucking chance.
I never want to hear the argument that ‘we can’t do or say X because the republicans will weaponize it in the media.” The republicans are perfectly happy to make up all the nonsense like this forced gender reassignment idea.
The right / Republicans are sure there is voter fraud and that is because they are the ones doing it. They accuse the Democrats of course because every accusation is a confession for the Republicans.
Voter-list maintenance is one of the dividing lines in American politics. Republicans argue that if voter-registration records are not regularly purged and updated, election fraud can take place. Democrats push back that too many voter-list purges are conducted haphazardly, removing eligible voters who don’t learn they are no longer listed until they show up to vote.
Now it turns out that until last week, Meadows was simultaneously registered to vote in three different states — North Carolina, Virginia and South Carolina — according to state records obtained by The Fact Checker. The overlap lasted about three weeks, and it might have continued if revelations about Meadows’s voting record had not attracted scrutiny in North Carolina. Meadows is still registered in Virginia and South Carolina.
DeathSantis doesn’t care the cost to the people. People mean nothing to the Republican ruling class. DeathSantis is sending a warning shot across the bow of big business, large corporations, support us with money and keep your mouth shut or we hurt you. Even when Disney said they would work to overturn the don’t say gay bill the Republicans did not turn on them. Disney bankrolls a lot of the Republican party in Florida. DeathSantis is sure he is going to be President after the 2024 election. He is raising money like a pirate. But then Disney threatened to withhold the donations they were giving the Republicans. Granted they said the donations they were giving both parties. That is when the Republican shit hit the fan. That is when at the orders of emperor DeathSantis the Republican cult wrote the bill taking away the special district Disney had. That it hurts the public of that area doesn’t matter. What is important is the money must flow.
Dissolving Walt Disney World’s Reedy Creek Improvement District could saddle local taxpayers with about $1 billion in debt and leave local governments scrambling with how to take over vital services for Florida’s top tourist attraction.
What happens next is unclear, but Orange County’s tax collector and other opponents of the bill say ending Reedy Creek could lead to higher taxes for Orange and Osceola residents. The Legislature did not conduct an economic study on the ramifications of dissolving the district.
Legislators spent only two days examining the bill, unveiled on Tuesday, providing little opportunity for public input. Reedy Creek collects about $164 million in property taxes to maintain roads, utilities and other services, which is almost entirely paid by Disney.
One of the biggest myths circulating on the internet is that the end of Reedy Creek will finally force Disney to pay its fair share of taxes, boosting the economies of Florida and the counties its resorts are located in.
Let’s dispel that rumor right now: not only is it wrong, it’s the opposite that will take effect.
Despite zero debate or public comment, and the near-total opposition of Central Florida’s delegation to this maneuver, Orange and Osceola County taxpayers will shoulder the hit alone, leaving both counties staring at financial ruin.
Disney World’s Reedy Creek: What happens next? Will Orange and Osceola county families face $2,200 in additional taxes, as Democrats suggested, to cover the costs? https://t.co/P7dc0oMp1c
Yes, he only cares about his own selfish political ambitions. Fuck the people and businesses of Florida or anyone else. It’s all about him. He is the “new Trump”.
US House hopeful Neil Kumar of Arkansas leaned into the nation’s culture wars hard on Thursday, seeding a fundraising appeal with homophobic attacks and apocalyptic imagery. The “LBGT Groomers Want Your Kids” email blast is straight from the MAGA culture wars playbook, portraying public schools as “psychological torture camps,” pedophilia as the greatest threat humanity has ever faced, and existing politicians as part of a systemic problem.
“Education has been replaced by the promotion of the depraved LGBT agenda, a Satanic attack on God and Nature,” Kumar wrote, adding that “sodomite predators are grooming, brainwashing, and mutilating our vulnerable children.” As for the term LGBT, which refers to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons, Kumar wrote: “I call it LGBTP — the P is for pedophilia.”
The Republican Party of Arkansas’ executive committee announced Tuesday it won’t support Neil Kumar, a Republican, in his bid for the 3rd District congressional seat, adding it won’t endorse or defend “racist, bigoted, sexist or threatening language by any candidate.”
Kumar, 26, of Bentonville, announced in July his plans to challenge U.S. Rep. Steve Womack in the Republican primary for Congress. The primary election is May 24.
“Unlike those corporate-funded clowns, I’m running for Congress to fight for the people of Arkansas — not Walmart, not China, and not the D.C. special interests who are giving away the birthrights of heritage Americans,” he said.
In the video below, Kumar is interviewed on the podcast of the white supremacist group, American Renaissance.
In his Facebook profile photo, Kumar wears a Confederate tie and suspenders.
Once you start a purge of books it never ends. They’ll just keep finding more and more books to get rid of because the extremists will demand it. But, they’re getting away with it because they’re screaming the loudest, and sometimes it’s the only voice that principals and schools boards hear. Just the climate of fear alone will cause teachers, principals, and school boards to act.
For anyone who thinks this is not a religious war against gay people, think again. There shall be no mention or visual of any gayness. Yet through out the book there are men and women touching and draping arms over each other.
Dozens of books were recently taken off Walton County schools library shelves, leading to concern on social media and during the school board meeting Tuesday. District officials confirmed 58 were removed from libraries throughout all schools.
“I did it for just a welfare of all involved, including our constituents, our teachers, and our students. I’ll continue to do those things and perhaps add some,” Walton County School Superintendent A. Russell Hughes [photo] said.
Since its publication in 2001, “Everywhere Babies” — a whimsical, lyrical ode to infancy, illustrated by Caldecott Medal-winning illustrator Marla Frazee — has become a staple of family bookshelves, a common recommendation in new parent groups, and a celebrated title on Best Books lists.
But for the first time in its history, “Everywhere Babies” was featured this week on an entirely different kind of list: The book was among dozens of works recently banned from public school libraries in Walton County, Fla.
A spokesperson for the Florida Department of Education referred questions to Walton County, noting that “individual school districts are responsible for making these decisions,” and did not respond to follow-up questions.
The author of “Everywhere Babies” tells the Washington Post that she believes her book was banned due to a single drawing of a man with his arm on another man’s shoulder. There are no explicitly LGBTQ persons depicted in the book.
“Everywhere Babies” — a whimsical, lyrical ode to infancy — has become a staple of family bookshelves since its publication in 2001.
The book is among dozens of works recently banned from public school libraries in Walton County, Fla. https://t.co/HXGBIVqD57
They’re taking the Russian approach, trying to eliminate anything at all that suggests that LGBT people exist and certainly anything that says we aren’t explicitly bad. The next step after that is criminalization.
