Category: Gender studies

Taxpayer-funded Rainbow-First Retail in Pasadena

by philg

Loyal readers may remember some Pride Month scenes from Park City, Utah in “If Rainbow Flagism is the state religion, why do individuals and businesses need to buy their own rainbow flags?“:

if 2SLGBTQQIA+-ism is our state religion and the trans-enhanced rainbow flag is our sacred symbol, why do private businesses and individuals need to organize worship?

I took a trip to Pasadena, California on July 30, 2023, a month after the official end of Pride. I found a great bank for elites that offers much better interest rates than Bank of America and other banks that serve the peasantry.

They’re supervised by the diversity-crisis-tackling San Francisco Fed, so I’m sure that my money will be “safe as houses.” On the sidewalk in front, one see the result of Californians’ commitment to eliminating inequality:

Pasadena offers a conventional American Rainbow-first Retail experience. The observant Muslim, for example, must pay obeisance to the merchant-displayed rainbow flag if he/she/ze/they wants clothing to wear, shades for his/her/zir/their house, or a car to drive:

In case a merchant forgets, however, just as in Park City, Utah, the city has stepped up with tax dollars. Sidewalks and transformers are painted with the sacred rainbow (this would be contrary to the law in Muslim-governed Hamtramck, Michigan):

If these sacred messages were still up on July 30, 2023, a full month after the nominal end of Pride, when do they get removed?

The city government’s convention center and tourism org explained how the symbols went up in a June 1, 2023 press release: “All Are Welcome in Pasadena” Kicks off June in Pasadena, California”:

The enchanting rose gardens are in full bloom, pride events paint the town, and Visit Pasadena, the city’s official tourism organization, celebrates pride with a citywide Pride campaign with the simple, yet powerful message that “All Are Welcome in Pasadena.”

History is hardly ever tidy, but Pasadena, California has been proudly celebrating all identities since The Boulevard Bar was established over 40 years ago. Today, it remains one of Pasadena’s staples. In 2014, Pasadena was recognized as the “Second Gayest City in America” by The Advocate. This marked a historic moment, when a gay couple exchanged wedding vows on a wedding float during the Tournament of Roses® Rose Parade for the first time ever during live broadcasts around the world.

This year, The City of Pasadena raises the Pride Flag once again at City Hall this June, with a flag designed by non-binary artist Daniel Quasar and made by San Diego-based Pride Flag SD, followed by a series of interactive and family friendly events. In historic Old Pasadena, visitors will experience the district’s powerful “commUNITY” campaign and “All Are Welcome” messaging while enjoying romantic and diverse shopping and dining experiences. In October, SGV Pride will celebrate National Coming Out day with a celebration at Central Park, with the historic Castle Green and the majestic San Gabriel Mountains as a backdrop.

Here’s something unfortunate… the City implies that there is something unhealthful about the 2SLGBTQQIA+ lifestyle that requires additional vaccines, e.g., against Long Monkeypox:

It’s a “family-friendly event” for kids to watch adults get injected?

A few more photos from July 30… (note that some stores have two “all are welcome” rainbow stickers on the front door):

What if you need a bonus hole in your body? That can be done with Pride (sticker lower left):

Here’s a restaurant with three pride stickers (the multi-colored rose is an official City of Pasadena Pride symbol):

Also, it doesn’t have to be the official Pride month for Californians to take pride in wearing masks. A restaurant:

What if you are injured by COVID-19? These billboards across from the Burbank airport offer legal help and healing cannabis:

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PetSmart ready to clothe the White House lizard

by philg

Photos from a July 19, 2023 visit to the local (Palm Beach Gardens) PetSmart. The New York Times said that the temperature outside was up around 125 degrees (see Floridians brave Extreme Danger heat levels), but, thanks to Florida Power and Light and inventor Jennifer Carrier, we were comfortable inside.

I would love to see some senior White House officials get a pet lizard in time for Pride 2024 and garb him/her/zir/them in the above outfits. Imagine the photo below with a fully dressed bearded dragon in a rainbow outfit rather than the simple trans-enhanced rainbow flag:

In case the above gets memory-holed:
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American Eagle eschews Rainbow-first retail in Rotterdam

by philg

May 2023, Manhattan, American Eagle shop windows:

July 2023, Rotterdam (different city), American Eagle (same retailer):

Despite the fact that rainbow flags are almost non-existent in this region, and therefore are sorely needed, American Eagle doesn’t roll out its 2SLGBTQQIA+ message in Rotterdam. If the company is committed to this cause (which they should be), why don’t they promote it in Rotterdam? If the company is not committed to this cause, why do they promote it in New York City?

Related:

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Reparations for the 2SLGBTQQIA+?

by philg

Unless they’re complete hypocrites, taxpayers in California and some other states will soon be paying reparations to descendants of slaves, i.e., people whose ancestors were mistreated ($5 million per victim is the fair price, according to San Francisco’s experts). Why not extend the idea to other victimhood groups whose ancestors were mistreated or, even better, to victims who were personally mistreated? A group that is currently almost universally celebrated but that was once, we are constantly reminded, subject to prejudice, is the 2SLGBTQQIA+. If we take June 2023 when Joe Biden revealed the trans-enhanced rainbow flag at the White House as the beginning of Rainbow Flagism as the U.S. state religion, we as a society owe reparations to anyone who identified as 2SLGBTQQIA+ prior to June 2023.

How much should a 2SLGBTQQIA+ American get? How much for the child of a 2SLGBTQQIA+ American? And how do people prove that they were members of this discriminated-against class prior to June 2023?

Loosely related, some lawn signs of justice in Brookline, Maskachusetts last month:

Note the failure to display the Biden-approved official trans-enhanced Rainbow Flag in some cases. Also from Brookline, a bagel shop in which employees demonstrate every variant of surgical masking to block out an aerosol virus. Over-mouth-and-nose, under-nose, and chip diaper:

(The manager, not shown in the above image, was wearing a Fauci-approved cloth mask.)

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If Rainbow Flagism is the state religion, why do individuals and businesses need to buy their own rainbow flags?

by philg

In Rainbow-first Retail (examples from Bozeman, Montana), I displayed photos of retail shops whose owners invested time and money to ensure that consumers wouldn’t be able to enter without paying obeisance to America’s state religion. But if 2SLGBTQQIA+-ism is our state religion and the trans-enhanced rainbow flag is our sacred symbol, why do private businesses and individuals need to organize worship?

Park City, Utah provides an answer to this question: “they don’t.” Here are some photos from last month in which we can see the city’s 100+ trans-enhanced rainbow flags, enough to adorn every lamppost in town:

Who agrees with me that it would be simpler for the government to handle annual and permanent Pride observance duties?

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Should a local TV station go all-rainbow-all-the-time?

by philg

Here’s what the Twitter feed of a Miami TV station looked like back in Pride Month:

Is this appropriate 2SLGBTQQIA+ promotion? The sacred Rainbow appears next to an article about Jose Salvador Hernandez, whose alleged actions are nothing to be proud of:

Deputies were later called to a house for a burglary in progress and arrived to find two witnesses struggling with Hernandez, who had broken into the home, grabbed the teen, held her down, told her “just be quiet” and lifted up her shirt “with the intent to commit sexual battery,” the report states.

As of Tuesday morning, Hernandez was being held without bond in the BSO Main Jail on charges of sexual battery, false imprisonment, burglary with assault or battery and leaving the scene of a crash.

Local news tends to cover the worst side of human nature. Should local TV stations refrain from changing their Twitter icons to rainbows?

Here’s another less-than-inspiring story (about Kathianna Jean-Louis) next to the symbol of America’s official religion:

And finally, a story that doesn’t seem to fit under the Love Wins rubric:

Detectives accused Ramirez, who is a migrant from Guatemala, of raping the teenage girl early Sunday morning in Homestead, according to the police arrest form.

Here’s how it looks next to the rainbow flag:

Separately, when is Elon going to give us reactions other than “love”. I seriously doubt that 6 people actually “love” this story about Sarvelio Gabriel Ramirez.

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Salt Lake City Public Library Kids’ Section

by philg

For British Readers: Happy Traitorous Rebellion Day. For Americans: Happy Great Patriotic Revolution Day.

One of the freedoms for which we ostensibly rebelled and that would not have been available had we stayed part of the British Empire is enshrined in our First Amendment. We are informed by the New York Times that, apparently contrary to the Constitution, books have been banned in Utah and that residents of the state no longer have “freedom to read”. “Book Bans Rising Rapidly in the U.S., Free Speech Groups Find” (April 2023):

Seven states, including Florida, Tennessee, Oklahoma and Utah, passed laws last year that impose limits on material in libraries, according to analysis done by EveryLibrary, a political action committee for libraries. This year, the group is tracking 113 bills across the country that it says would negatively impact libraries or curtail people’s freedom to read.

Florida was already covered here (see Palm Beach County Library Kids’ Section). Below are some photos from a June 15, 2023 visit to the public library in Salt Lake City, Utah (designed by Moshe Safdie). The atrium is inspiring, but the roof deck sadly closed for repairs in November 2022. A librarian explained that the repairs won’t begin until August 2023 and “it’s a government project so who knows how long it will take.”

The first thing that a family sees on entering the kids’ section, which is downstairs, is a “picture book” cabinet with a “Celebrate Pride Month” sign on top.

The books featured include Different Kinds of Fruit (a sixth grader learns that her father is trans), Donovan’s Big Day (“Donovan’s two moms are getting married”), They She He Me: Free to Be! (a book about gender identity that Amazon customers are using with 4-year-olds), and A Kids Book About Gender (“it’s meant to help kids and grownups understand gender and create an open and safe environment for kids to question, experiment, and discover their authentic selves.”).

A child of perhaps 3 wears a mask and is joined by a librarian (far left of second image):

How about the Teen section? It is impossible to enter without first paying obeisance to Rainbow Flagism:

Once inside, the teen is invited to join 2SLGBTQQIA+ clubs and download 2SLGBTQQIA+ apps.

On the same floor (featured in the center), but not within the teen lounge per se:

Teens are reminded on this floor that adults are raging hypocrites (admitting that they stole the land from the Native Americans, but refusing to give it back or at least pay rent):

(If you were Elizabeth Warren or some other Native American would you rather have white invaders “learn and respect” or have the white devils pay you in gold?)

What about for adults? On the ground floor, just as you enter the library:

Upstairs, but not on the teen floor:

Whether adult, teen, or child, if you were to use a computer to search the catalog you’d have to first pay obeisance to Rainbow Flagism. The home screen through which you are required to pass:

(See also Rainbow-first Retail (examples from Bozeman, Montana))

The public web site has the Pride message, but as one of a set of messages that scroll:

Readers: In terms of freedom to read would we have been better off staying under the British umbrella and/or waiting for a peaceful separation as the Canadians did? Who currently has more freedom to read, Canadians or Americans?

(Speaking of Canadians and Utah, Senior Management covered our kids in so much zinc oxide during this recent trip that they looked like Justin Trudeau‘s cousins from a parallel universe.)

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Say goodbye to Pride month with a Bud Light Clamato?

by philg

Here’s a suggestion for showing your passion for all things 2SLGBTQQIA+: drink a few Bud Light Clamatos. From Bryce Canyon earlier this month…

Separately, have Bud Light sales recovered yet? At least in Florida, folks didn’t seem to be holding the company’s excursion into transgender advocacy against the brand. More than half of the customers at the New York, New York Tiki Bar in Titusville, FL (perfect spot for watching SpaceX launches) were drinking the elixir and the bartender reported no slowdown in sales. Photo from May 21, 2023:

Note that Bud Light has been a transgender brand since at least 1987. Spuds Mackenzie was assigned female at birth, but identified as a male party animal.

(As it happens, I have been boycotting Bud Light for more than three decades. If I ever do start drinking beer, I don’t think it will be one mixed with clamato.)

Don’t drink alcohol? Perhaps you’d prefer to spend 5 cents on a frosty Coca-Cola ($15 adjusted for Bidenflation?). Recent photos from the Coke store in Orlando, Florida:

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Frontiers of English: “this Pride” like “this Christmas”

by philg

Email received this month from Marriott’s W Hotels division:

Not “this Pride Month”, but simply “this Pride” as in “this Thanksgiving” or “this Christmas”.

If you’ve been wondering why we celebrate the state religion just one month per year, the folks at Marriott promise “W Bangkok continues Pride year round, with programs scheduled through 2023.”

Readers: will saying “this Pride” stick as an English idiom?

Some more examples… from a California state senator:

From a physician in the UK:

From a newspaper in Portland, Oregon:

From the Village Voice (NYC):

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