Yes. Please. Go.

For once, the Christians have produced an idea I can get behind.

Following my cover-to-cover read, my takeaway is that he wants Christians — by which he means only those who share his conservative sexual ethics (i.e. not you, you moralistic therapeutic deist, you) — to withdraw from society and form cult-like communes for the sole purpose of rejecting queer people and “the toxins of modern secularism” (i.e. me).

I don’t have much to add except a massive yes.

Fuck off already. Separate. Disappear into obscurity. Buy your own island and never build a port.

Read more about The Benedict Opinion here.

-Shiv

“In violation of duties as a Catholic School Trustee”

Patricia Grell, a board member of the Edmonton Catholic School Board, has been at the centre of every Catholic controversy concerning the civil and human rights of queer and trans Albertans. However, it’s for a more palatable reason than usual–she’s the trustee gunning for inclusion and equality. Amidst a climate where the ECSB is hitting the news every other week over spending scandals and self-incriminating lawsuits, Grell has disclosed at great risk to her career an email she received for supporting gay marriage.

Remember, as you read this, these are all employees of the Province’s public education.

Whether I seek re-election or not, I remain dedicated to standing up for social justice in Christ’s example and loving my gay and lesbian neighbours as myself. I am willing to leave other matters such as the superintendents contract or getting to the bottom of why the ACSTA and catholic superintendents are targeting an Academic at the U of A but I will never be silent when it comes to human rights and equal marriage and the love that we must model for our most vulnerable youth. My faith demands nothing less of me.

Here is an email that I received from one of my colleagues February 19th:

From: XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sent: Sunday, February 19, 2017 7:28 PM

Subject: Retweet of support of gay marriage

Dear Trustee Grell,

As per our Organizational Bylaw 13.2(a) this is to notify you of “first contact.”   This pertains to the retweet of your support of gay marriage as attached.

It is my intent to bring this to the attention of the Board  Chair as per Organizational Bylaw  13.2(b) that you are in violation of duties as a Catholic School Trustee (public representative of the Catholic Church) as you are  openly defying teachings of The Catholic Church regarding gay marriage.  Therefore I will be asking the Chair to start the sanction and censure process.

Patricia, it goes without saying, that I am most disappointed in you.  I wish you would keep your personal opinions to yourself until you step down as Catholic school trustee or are removed as a Catholic school trustee.

I am open to discussing this with you.

Sincerely,

Trustee XXXXXXXXXXXX

It seems that ECSB’s management is not only incompetent and likely corrupt, but is actively working to undermine Alberta human rights laws.

The question remains, of course, whether the NDP will do something about it, or let non-government organizations and Patricia Grell take the heat for doing what they won’t.

-Shiv

We’re gonna talk about those missing black girls, right?

The mainstream media has either been silent or only mentioned it as an afterthought, but 14–fourteen–black girls went missing in a very short period of time in Washington D.C. Since the pastey-white-ass media and police seems to be sitting on its thumbs, the black community has been relying on almost entirely social media and smaller outlets. Protect and serve my ass.

So here’s my part: Ezinne Ukoha has summarized the situation. Your part: Signal boost and keep your ears to the ground. The police are apparently taking it easy over coffee, so twat at them, or call their feedback lines. If they don’t have feedback lines, join up with a local BLM. If you’re white, follow their direction.

The Root.

The Mary Sue.

TMZ.

-Shiv

“Yes, we are brainwashing you.”

Hey, remember the last time I posted about the “Troubled Teen” Industry? The Establishment just recently published some fantastic investigative journalism by Aaron Kappel over the Shepherd Hill Academy, another “Christian counselling” wilderness torture camp designed to obliterate the personality and well being of teens under the yoke of wealthy, shithole parents.

Check this out (or don’t, I don’t blame you):

The survivor also claims in his statement to have interrupted a Bible lesson taught by Embry. “[He] raised [his] hand and said, ‘You are brainwashing us.’ Embry smiled and replied, ‘Yes we are! We are brainwashing you in the blood of the lamb!’”

If you have the stomach, read the rest here and here, content warning all the things again. And try not to type anything into the comments that will get you on a watch list, no matter how badly Embry deserves it.

-Shiv

Silver-lining-in-genocide Senator Lynn Beyak strikes again

Apparently not satisfied with the concentration of garbage water that is her existence, Lynn Beyak decided to one-up her prior remarks about calling on the survivors of colonial genocide to seek out the silver lining from their circumstances, by insisting the LGBT Community wouldn’t have to suffer discrimination if only we stuffed ourselves back in the closet.

During a debate over a trans human rights law.

Last week, Beyak, during a debate on C-16, the transgender rights bill, went on a bizarre rant bemoaning that the radicals of the gay movement expect “all of Canada to be their closet.”

I–what? What? I can’t.

She continued to pine for a happier time when folks like her simply didn’t have to acknowledge the uncomfortable truth that gay people exist because they weren’t flaunting their homosexuality in her face.

“By living in quiet dignity, they have never had to face any kind of discrimination or uncomfortable feelings,” she said, without a hint of irony. “I would assert that is how the vast majority of the LGBT community feels.”

“Quiet dignity.” That’s some real good Christian doublespeak you’ve got going there.

Fuck me. When did we start importing neanderthals from Texas? Get this lady all the chairs so she can sit the fuck down.

-Shiv

Good news Thursday: Bats!

Hurray! Local biologists discovered the hibernation location of an endangered cutie-patootie Albertan bat species (undisclosed, obviously). The team that discovered the location say that this will help them pre-empt aid for the bat colony should it be infected with white nose disease, which wakes up bats during their hibernation and results in their starvation before spring.

The discovery of a large population of hibernating bats in a cave in Alberta’s boreal forest is a breakthrough for biologists, says one of the people who discovered the cave.

The cave — in an undisclosed location — is home to the largest hibernating bat colony discovered in Alberta outside of the Rockies.

“It demonstrates that this kind of bat habitat may well exist in other non-mountainous areas throughout the boreal forest,” said David Critchley, co-coordinator of Wildlife Conservation Society Canada’s BatCaver program in the province.

The cave is home to more than 200 endangered little brown myotis bats, Critchley told CBC’s Radio Active on Monday.

While First Nations people and Alberta Environment officials have known about the narrow, muddy cave for decades, it was never visited in winter until a four-member crew entered it last month to check for bats.

The crew collected DNA and guano samples and placed monitors to record temperature and humidity and bat vocalizations.

Finding hibernation spots has become urgent in Western Canada since the discovery in Washington State last year of white-nose syndrome.

The fungal infection awakens the bats during hibernation, forcing them to burn through their stored winter fat long before the return of insect season.

The disease spreads through hibernation sites and can kill more than 90 per cent of resident bats.

Critchley said understanding where Alberta’s bat species are living is crucial in protecting habitats and preventing the spread of white-nose syndrome.

“If they end up having white-nose syndrome, which they don’t at this stage in Alberta, then we need to know where they are,” he said.

Kill the skeeters, you adorable flying rat things!

-Shiv

Jason Kenney is official

It’s official: My all-time best friend and favourite politician ever Jason “I don’t get caught up in the details” Kenney has been elected as the leader of Alberta’s currently defunct Progressive Conservative party. Now, in case you need a refresher for what this might mean for Texas North, here’s a list of Jason Kenney’s votes and political positions in no particular order:

And many, many more!

How many crimes can he commit before the police finally get off their arse? Who knows! Do any of the Albertan conservatives care that their messiah is an addled mess of corruption? Probably not! Will the PCs have a single rally without at least one jackass chanting “lock her up” referring to Premier Rachel Notley? I wouldn’t bet my boots on it!

Trump has officially come to Alberta.

-Shiv

I’m not the only one who notices this shit, right?

Ralph Shortey.

Political positions: Forced birther, pro-Christian theocracy, “family values.”

Latest headline: Sex, drug allegations part of investigation of Oklahoma Sen. Ralph Shortey

MOORE — An Oklahoma state senator offered money to a teenage boy for “sexual stuff” and was found with him in a hotel room that reeked of “raw marijuana,” authorities said.

Surely this must be a space on Republican bingo or something.

-Shiv