Ex-Gay Watch

The Augusta Free Press in Virginia profiles Greater Hope exgay activist Jeff Watros, who says he doesn’t understand why he’s perceived as a loud, pushy street-corner solicitor.

But the Free Press quickly explains it to him: He has chosen to affiliate with Exodus, the antigay political advocacy network.

All in all, the story nicely portrays the human journey of Watros while contrasting the self-perceived innocence of local exgay advocates with their self-defeating choice of political sponsorships. The views of Watros and Exodus lobbyist Randy Thomas are balanced with those of gay author Wayne Besen and Staunton, Va.-area equality activist Linda Czyzyk.

From Google News via Colleen Keating….

Whatever alterations those poor Manitobans are undergoing, it sounds painful.

The following radio program was postponed; a new air date is to be announced.

From Cole Wakefield at Christian Dissent Live, a progressive Christian radio show based near Nashville, Tennessee:

This week Christian Dissent Live will feature the controversial Dr. Warren Throckmorton. Dr. Throckmorton is an Associate Professor of Psychology and Fellow for Psychology and Public Policy at Grove City (PA) College. His work and writings on the flexibility of sexuality are often used by right-wing groups to justify their Ex-Gay programs. Please join us for what is sure to be an interesting conversation.

The program will air live Jan. 21, and can be heard each Sunday from 6 to 8 a.m. Central Standard Time via PLS streamed audio feed from Radio Free Nashville, WRFN 98.9 FM.

As previously discussed on XGW, Exodus Youth has a Myspace profile. Using Myspace one is able to easily send out mass emails to other users on one’s “friends list.” However Exodus Youth has declined my attempts to add them and thus I am unable to monitor any messages they may be disseminating. Ex-Gay Watch readers who are more stealthy than myself are encouraged to add Exodus Youth’s Myspace profile and forward relevant information to me should they ever do something noteworthy.

Here’s a note solely of interest to other weblog or web site operators:

XGW does not block trackbacks, except from likely spammers. If you encounter difficulties in sending trackbacks to XGW, please contact me. Thanks.

A post at ex-gay pastor D.L. Foster’s blog, apparently by Nigerian Pastor Kingsley Nwafor (the attribution is implied by a double quote preceding and following 600-some words of the piece) decries gay civil rights in South Africa. He credits gays with “diverting and destroying the purposes and destinies of men and nations.”

He takes comfort in his Nigerian homeland, though:

Thank God for the law in Nigeria prohibiting same-sex marriage or any related same-sex relationships. Thank God for the five years jail sentence. But there was a time in the whole of America, that homosexual strugglers were being arrested, beaten up,and even ostracised in some cases. Is that the case now in the whole of America? Why? The church and the Nigerian society have a vital role to play in order to offer the kind of solution needed.

Related discussion: NakedWriting.com

I’m quite late in addressing a finding published in July in Psychological Bulletin. As I was unable to find access to the original report, my sources linked here are second hand.

Psychology Today reports that Dr. Kenneth Zucker of the University of Toronto has found that gay men and women are more likely to be left-handed than the general public at large.

The findings, reported in the Psychological Bulletin, lesbians have a 91 percent greater chance of being left-handed or ambidextrous than straight women, while gay men are 34 percent more likely than straight men to not be right-handed.

Read more…

Daniel Gonzales commented on the lighter side of antigay preacher Ken Hutcherson — his choice of operating systems to boycott — here.

But there’s a dark side to Hutcherson’s national boycott of every company that supports Washington state’s new gay civil rights bill: The boycott does not really exist.
Read more…

From Greg McCandless, via e-mail:

I’m only a recent visitor to your website but found that you had recently addressed Gary Schneeberger’s column on the Focus on the Family’s website regarding his recent revelation that he had been acting “morally superior” since viewing “Brokeback Mountain.”

I too was blown away by the smugness of his message, but also felt compelled to take him up on his offer of truly wanting to understand why this film is such a “watershed moment for these people and their movement.” I also wanted to help counteract the negative audience experience he witnessed during his screening (and apparently has received reports of similar experiences around the country). So I e-mailed him the following letter and encouraged all my friends to e-mail him with their experiences while watching the film in order to help him better understand. I would encourage you to do the same with everyone who reads your blog. It’s a great opportunity to take him up on his own offer!

Below is a copy of the e-mail I sent my friends and family as well as my letter. Best of luck and keep up the good work!

Best,

Greg McCandless

The letters follow:
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Andrew Seely ministers to youth at a Presbyterian church in California. His review of Brokeback Mountain was published at RelevantMagazine.com, a Christian publication by and for young adults.

Titled “Finding God on Brokeback Mountain,” Seely opens with:

Please do not boil this movie down to homosexuality. Please do not pass judgment without even seeing it. See the fact that there are great performances. See the gift of storytelling. View the beauty of God’s creation. Relate to people who have lives that are complicated. Remember that God’s love is far greater than any of us deserve.

Read more…