Just Saying…On Guns, Gays and Normal Families
If a young guy wears a plaid shirt with contrasting plaid shorts, he is heralded as fashionably hip. If an older man wears a plaid shirt with plaid pants, he’s called doddering. Just saying…
New research on anxiety suggests that heterosexual males are more depressed and suffer greater levels of stress than do openly homosexual and bisexual men. The Canadian study, published in The Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine, found that straight guys register a third-higher on systematic stress than do their queer counterparts. Not that the study results should come as a surprise. Why do you think we’ve been referred to as “gay” for so long? Just saying…
Lots of LGBT folks are talking about the Boy Scouts’ now delayed plan to permit local Scouting affiliates to decide whether they will allow gay people to participate. I suppose the still being discussed policy represents some progress. But to me it sounds like the way many Republicans are now arguing that gay marriage should be a matter for each state to decide. It’s really a tactic to duck the issue and continue allowing those who want to discriminate the opportunity to do so. Just saying…
To those who believe the Second Amendment protects all gun ownership so that citizens can rise up against a theoretically corrupt government: Sorry, but the Founding Fathers weren’t suicidal, folks. There is no language whatsoever in the Constitution that licenses or allows for armed rebellion. And, as for restricting specific types of weapons, Justice Antonin Scalia stated in District of Columbia v. Heller (which upheld the right to own a handgun): “Like most rights, the right secured by the Second Amendment is not unlimited. ... [The] right was not a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in any manner whatsoever and for whatever purpose.” Otherwise, we would all be allowed to own our own tanks, fighter jets, and personal nukes, which would be about the only reasonable defense against a villainous government in this day and age. Just saying…
Speaking of Justice Scalia, next month would be a wonderful time for him to begin a well-deserved sabbatical—or to retire. If President Obama could appoint just one more member to the Supreme Court before it hears the cases on same-sex marital rights, victory would be a near certainty. Hey, isn’t there a rule that a Justice who speaks only a handful of words from the bench during the last seven years of arguments must step down? Just saying, Mr. Thomas…
For John’s 60th birthday, we went out to dinner and feasted on spectacular lemongrass grouper with new potatoes. Then, last night we cooked up some tasty pork chops and onions at home. This morning, I added a banana to my oat bran cereal… Oh, wait, sorry. This isn’t Facebook…
Speaking of food, the Fabulous Beekman Boys, whose cable series of the same name I praised when it aired for two seasons, pulled off an exciting come-from-behind finish to win the million-dollar prize on the latest edition of network TV’s finest reality show The Amazing Race. Now the Boys are expanding their mercantile line of hand-crafted cheeses, soaps, and cookbooks as they continue to tend to their goats, llama and other farm critters in rural Sharon Springs, New York. They’re also hoping that the Food Channel, which has been airing reruns of their original series, picks up its option for a third season. I hope they get the go-ahead because there is something remarkably endearing about Josh and Brent and their menagerie. Besides, now that the Boys are millionaires, Food Channel can probably get them cheap. Just saying…
As endearing goes, TV characters don’t come any more so than the cast of NBC’s The New Normal. The chemistry between soon-to-be gay dads Bryan (Andrew Rannells) and David (Justin Bartha) is as credible as the delicious writing. Show creator Ryan Murphy (Glee, Nip/Tuck) is fearless in going where sitcoms have never ventured, addressing concerns as varied as bullying of same-sex parents in an infant-wear boutique, the futility of gay marriage until the federal government embraces it, even male breast feeding. Surrogate mom Goldie (Georgia King), her embittered mother Jane (Ellen Barkin) and sassy Rocky (Nene Leakes) all add to the frictional fun. But the standout performer is young Bebe Wood as Goldie’s precocious daughter, Shania. She is often wiser than any of the adults who must learn their lessons as they go. I have long been a fan of Modern Family, but The New Normal is even stronger in its depiction of the complexities of contemporary gay family life. If you disagree with me, it’s okay. I’m just saying…
If you’re a fan of Andrew Rannells, be sure to check out his other recurring series role. He’s been playing Elijah, the gay but bi-curious roommate of Hannah (Lena Dunham), on HBO’s sexually charged and funny hit Girls. And, in grand HBO tradition, on Girls we get to see a lot more of Andrew. Just saying…
Bluesy singer Beth Hart blew a lot of minds, mine among them, with her performance of “I’d Rather Go Blind” during the Buddy Guy tribute at the recent Kennedy Center Honors. Like most of you, I’d never heard of her, even though she’s been recording and touring for years. I immediately invested in her CD Don’t Explain (with guitarist Joe Bonamassa), and it’s a tour de force. (The title track from her upcoming album Bang Bang Boom Boom is also hot, hot, hot.) Hart has a voice that propels like Janis Joplin’s with subtle undertones of Billie Holliday. When John and I play “Don’t Explain” in our gift and card shop, customers clamor to buy it. Unfortunately, we don’t sell CDs anymore now that most people download their music onto handheld devices with sound quality not much superior to an old-fashioned transistor radio. Still, as we expose more and more people to Beth’s musical genius, it would be nice if she’d send us a teensy little royalty check every now and then. Just saying…
This column marks the beginning of Bill Sievert’s 15th year writing CAMPtalk for Letters. His incessant chattering can be viewed on Facebook. Email Bill Sievert