BY ARI EZRA WALDMAN

There are voices in the LGBT community that see "fear" and "defeatism" in not going back to the ballot in 2012 to overturn Prop 8. They laud Mainers who are gathering thousands of signatures for their own ballot initiative and seem to admire political activists who "have dusted themselves off after the last defeat and simply gotten back to work." It takes a special kind of out-of-touch leader to try something again and expect a different (or, at least, a permanent) result; it also takes a special kind of uninformed commentator to take a cursory look at all that Perry v. Brown has brought us and then think our preference for a legal strategy is defeatist.

In this second installment of a discussion on the benefits of focusing on the Perry litigation to end California's ban on same-sex marriage, I would like to touch on what Perry has already done for us. Many of us may be legitimately frustrated with the slow pace toward an ultimate conclusion, but in so doing, we miss the victories along the way.

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Find out, AFTER THE JUMP...

(via everynone)

Losers from Everynone on Vimeo.

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Diversity Role Models is a UK non-profit that tackles homophobia through education.

Here's a video of their work, which should frighten the daylights out of anti-gay activists and make you very, very happy:

"The final lesson of a unit on stereotyping, homophobic bullying and different families. This is a year 6 class in a multi-cultural, typical inner-city London school."

Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

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Many of you will recall the anti-gay Tennessee bill passed last year prohibiting local municipalities from enacting their own non-discrimination statues and forcing them to rely on state law. It also voided a Nashville ordinance barring companies that discriminate against gays and lesbians from doing business with the city. The Tennessee Chamber of Commerce was convinced to lobby for the bill, but then withdraw its support after LGBT groups reacted.

Now it has emerged that the chief lobbyist for the anti-gay Tennessee bill went out of his way to actively hide the fact that it would hurt gay people in order to pass it, the Tennessean reports:

Supporters of the state law said it was a pro-business measure aimed at ensuring that companies would not be confronted with conflicting policies from city to city across the state. On Monday, Fowler said the Family Action Council fought for the legislation even though promoting business is not one of the organizations stated purposes because a strong economy is good for traditional Christian families.His emails, however, reveal other concerns.

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NOM has tapped former Canadian sportscaster Damian Goddard as the latest face of its 'Marriage Anti-Defamation Alliance'. He's also its only other named staff member aside from Maggie Gallagher.

You may recall that Goddard was fired from Sportsnet earlier this year over this tweet:

Goddard's tweet was in response to a tweet from Uptown Sports Management, a major hockey agency, in which it condemned New York Ranger Sean Avery for his support of the campaign to pass marriage equality in New York.

Watch Goddard whine about how "traditional marriage" supporters are being oppressed, AFTER THE JUMP...

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A stunning photo of 84-year-old Seattle activist Dorli Rainey, after she was pepper-sprayed by police last night at an Occupy Seattle protest, is making headlines this morning.

The Atlantic writes:

Dorli Rainey is a former school teacher who has been active in local politics since the 1960s. In 2009, she ran for mayor, but eventually dropped out by saying, "I am old and should learn to be old, stay home, watch TV and sit still."

The Seattle Post Intelligencer reports:

An elderly woman, a pregnant woman and a priest were among those who were pepper-sprayed during a protest in support of the Occupy movement on Tuesday.

Tensions mounted until police deployed pepper spray in an attempt to disperse the crowd and get the protesters out of the streets. About a dozen people were hit with the stinging fume.

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Victoria Jackson and three other conservative women have launched a new web talk show called 'Politichicks' in which they discuss how they are oppressed Christians, bullied into submission by marriage equality advocates. The PolitiChicks are former Saturday Night Live alumni and Tea Party favorite Victoria Jackson, pro-life speaker and activist Jennique Stewart, editor and activist Jennie Jones and Ann-Marie Murrell, columnist and host of The Patriot Update video show.

They write: "Finally, Conservative Americans will have an alternative to those other liberal-based talk shows in which women scream over each other and call Conservatives vile names. "

They also spend a good deal of time hating on Muslims.

"Islam says kill gay people that's why I don't get why liberals are pro-Muslim, and pro-gay," says Jackson, adding, "We're lucky that most Muslims are lukewarm or we'd all be dead."

Of liberals, editor Jennie Jones adds: "Have you noticed how they're all always so bitter?

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Copyranter reports that Benetton unveiled several banners featuring prominent leaders engaged in kisses, in a campaign with the tagline "Unhate".

Selectism has more of the images.

The campaigns were unfurled in Milan and Rome, respectively. Another featured French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German chancellor Angela Merkel.

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James Wolk is joining the cast of Happy Endings, they report.

TV Line adds: "TVLine has learned that the sought-after actor will appear in multiple episodes of the buzzy ABC comedy playing Maxs old new boyfriend. Thats right, hes a guy Adam Pallys scene-stealing character used to date and is now dating again.

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Onward Christian perverts:

A teacher at a northwest suburban Christian school has been charged with with sexual exploitation of a child for allegedly masturbating during class, a practice authorities believe may have happened several times in the last decade. Paul A. LaDuke, 75, of the 1000 block of Court-H in Hanover Park, was charged Tuesday for an incident last Friday at Schaumburg Christian School, at 200 N. Roselle Rd. in Schaumburg, where he is a teacher...

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