38 Cities Earn Perfect Score on HRC’s 2014 Municipal Equality Index

[TexasPlaya]

Originally Posted by Dr Nevergold

I've heard everything in the political book. There's plenty stupid Democrats, but stupid Democrats tend to keep quiet when they know they don't know what they're talking about. Most of them, anyway... Today's conservatives tend to be aggressively ignorant and reactionary. Don't know what they're talking about? They don't care, they've got loud mouths and will tell you how to do things anyway.

Don't believe in climate change? Just repeat its a hoax for big government to take over and control your lives. Stop, rewind, repeat in some form or fashion.

Want to teach kids in Texas that the constitution and US government were built on Christianity? Just do it and forget historic dialectic.
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2013/07...ans-will-hate/

Don't like a bill that is over 10 pages, which makes it way too complicated to read? Then just call it too much big government and stand against it.


This is really all that binds the right together: laziness and aggressive ignorance, combined with a little hate toward minority groups who are perceived to be taking over the country since they're now allowed in the debate.

Conservatives spent decades demonizing liberalism, its about time conservatives face some of their own medicine. Afterall, if you polled Americans, how many of them would realize the first President was a self-identified liberal who often spoke about how to implement liberal principles in the new nation to move it forward from old dogma and ways of the old world? Rhetoric from the right has dumbed down political debate in this country. They think just standing for the principle of small government makes them profound followers of the founding fathers, but their problem is that not many have read any material from the people they supposedly follow, or that most of them were liberals fighting to get away from the English tories.

Which is why democrats need to start playing from the republican playbook so they can start winning more. Need to find their balls again and stop relying on losing issues/or manufacture better issues to win on.

[Ch.G, Ch.G]

Originally Posted by TexasPlaya

And you need to get out in the world, and take those generalizations with you about conservatives. You aren't looking any more enlightened from my perspective just because you scream about equality.

From the sound of it, yours is a perspective in which more enlightened people take little stock.

[TexasPlaya]

Originally Posted by Ch.G, Ch.G

From the sound of it, yours is a perspective in which more enlightened people take little stock.

Really? Did I just generalize an entire political party and it's followers... Sounds like you just don't like or understand my perspective or couldn't follow a conservation.

[Dr Nevergold]

Originally Posted by TexasPlaya

Really? Did I just generalize an entire political party and it's followers... Sounds like you just don't like or understand my perspective or couldn't follow a conservation.

Hey now. Only something like 30% or so of the people who are eligible to vote bothered to vote in 2014. Out of that, only 52% of the 30% voted Republican.

To be fair, I'm only talking about maybe 15-16% of the US adult voting population that is totally insane.

[Ch.G, Ch.G]

Originally Posted by Ch.G, Ch.G

From the sound of it, yours is a perspective in which more enlightened people take little stock.

Originally Posted by TexasPlaya

Sounds like you just don't like or understand my perspective or couldn't follow a conservation.

[LouisVanDerWright]

Not really topical, but...

Originally Posted by 10023

Chicago's minority contracting rules are a joke patronage style handout to political allies.

Fixed that for you...

[hauntedheadnc]

Originally Posted by TexasPlaya

I'm sorry, that's a bunch of bullshit that there hasn't been much success in this endeavor. Take that guilt trip somewhere else. Of course there's still racism, which is by no means a white phenomenon, but people just make stupid decisions that keeps them in poverty.

And you need to get out in the world, and take those generalizations with you about conservatives. You aren't looking any more enlightened from my perspective just because you scream about equality.

Really now? So we're all equal now? You can't fire someone because they're gay anymore? Public schools are all receiving equal resources, and there isn't a thinly-disguised fight on to defund them in the name of "choice" (ie, giveaway to unaccountable private schools)? There really was voter fraud on so massive a scale that it needed legislative action that just happens to disenfranchise those most likely to vote some way other than GOP? Women are receiving equal pay for equal work? We aren't killing unarmed Black men anymore, and Black women are able to use the "stand-your-ground" defense just as easily as anyone these days?

Well, thank goodness. That's certainly a load off my mind.

[TexasPlaya]

Originally Posted by hauntedheadnc

Really now? So we're all equal now? You can't fire someone because they're gay anymore? Public schools are all receiving equal resources, and there isn't a thinly-disguised fight on to defund them in the name of "choice" (ie, giveaway to unaccountable private schools)? There really was voter fraud on so massive a scale that it needed legislative action that just happens to disenfranchise those most likely to vote some way other than GOP? Women are receiving equal pay for equal work? We aren't killing unarmed Black men anymore, and Black women are able to use the "stand-your-ground" defense just as easily as anyone these days?

Well, thank goodness. That's certainly a load off my mind.

You're moving the goal posts or have little context or knowledge of how things were during the Jim Crow era, not just for blacks but non protestants males. You said we have had little success in this endeavor of promoting equality due to white privilage and I said that was bullshit. I never claimed we live in a world free from discrimination, just that your notion of success is incorrect.

[hauntedheadnc]

Originally Posted by TexasPlaya

You're moving the goal posts or have little context or knowledge of how things were during the Jim Crow era, not just for blacks but non protestants males. You said we have had little success in this endeavor of promoting equality due to white privilage and I said that was bullshit. I never claimed we live in a world free from discrimination, just that your notion of success is incorrect.

I have little context or knowledge of how things were during the Jim Crow era?

Are you sure about that... maybe you'd like to read some of my other posts in this thread, consider my family history, and think about it? Genocide is a large part of American history, but it's an art in the South, and the entire reason I have any Cherokee blood in my veins is because of the Trail of Tears. I have ancestors who bought and sold human beings, and I can show you the receipts. Never presume to lecture me on anything Southern.

Here's the deal: Way back when, things pretty much sucked. Now, thanks to decades of gains and legislation, they suck less -- but they still suck. We no longer have a picnic when we lynch Black men on the courthouse square, because we've moved that activity to the courts and prison system, for example. Prisons tend to frown on picnics as frivolous. The only people who had any power then were rich, white, straight men, and for the most part that has not changed.

[eternallyme]

Originally Posted by Ch.G, Ch.G

They have individual score cards. The sums are entirely based on legal and bureaucratic structures.

Personally, I find their methodology dubious. Domestic partnerships, domestic partnership "registries," civil unions, and marriage are given equal weight, which is, of course, ridiculous. Nearly a thirdof the score seems to be determined by the municipality's policies as an employer (meaning it pertains to only those who work for the city). Whether or not the city has an LGBT "task force" and merely reports hate crime statistics to the FBI determines another fifth of the score. All told, only a third of the score is based on what most people would consider to be fundamental rights (i.e., non-discrimination laws and relationship recognition).

It's also redundant: if, for example, the city/state already bans discrimination in employment, why give a city even more points by reiterating that language in its own hiring policies? And rarely do I see serious rankings include so many opportunities to claim "bonus" points.

Importantly, no consideration is given to actual outcomes. As far as I can tell, the rankings analyze only what's on the books.

They did clearly pour a lot of money into the report, so though it accomplishes very little, it looks good doing it which I guess for HRC means they nailed it.

A municipality cannot pass any marriage legislation though. That is as far as they can go when discussing at the municipal level.

[KB0679]

Originally Posted by hauntedheadnc

I have little context or knowledge of how things were during the Jim Crow era?

Are you sure about that... maybe you'd like to read some of my other posts in this thread, consider my family history, and think about it? Genocide is a large part of American history, but it's an art in the South, and the entire reason I have any Cherokee blood in my veins is because of the Trail of Tears. I have ancestors who bought and sold human beings, and I can show you the receipts. Never presume to lecture me on anything Southern.

Here's the deal: Way back when, things pretty much sucked. Now, thanks to decades of gains and legislation, they suck less -- but they still suck. We no longer have a picnic when we lynch Black men on the courthouse square, because we've moved that activity to the courts and prison system, for example. Prisons tend to frown on picnics as frivolous. The only people who had any power then were rich, white, straight men, and for the most part that has not changed.

Somebody gets it.

[KB0679]

Originally Posted by bobdreamz

Florida Scores :

Orlando | 100
St. Petersburg | 100
Wilton Manors | 100
Miami Beach | 100 (Was left off of their list.)

Other Major Cities:

Tampa | 97
Tallahassee | 81
Ft. Lauderdale | 76
Miami | 53

Then the closer you get to the real South the scores plummet!
Jacksonville | 20

Except Tallahassee is the "real South," and there's Miami's score of 53 (which is surprising).

[dave8721]

Originally Posted by KB0679

Except Tallahassee is the "real South," and there's Miami's score of 53 (which is surprising).

In Miami's case the Miami-Dade County already has ordinances for most of gay rights issues. A city ordnance would be meaningless and redundant but they get points taken off anyway (see Miami-Dade Human Rights Ordinance).

[atlantaguy]

Originally Posted by dave8721

In Miami's case the Miami-Dade County already has ordinances for most of gay rights issues. A city ordnance would be meaningless and redundant but they get points taken off anyway (see Miami-Dade Human Rights Ordinance).

It was still an unnecessary cheap shot.

Rob has mistakenly believed for years that Florida is not part of the South, but you can't change geography and history.

[AviationGuy]

I don't know if The Villages, FL is incorporated yet, but the city of about 100,000 would likely get a big fat zero score. Glad to see that a lot of Florida did well, though.