Wooden Tranquility clock unites traditional skills and modern design

Looking at recent collections of major furniture retailers, the times of clocks being ignored as pieces of design are well and truly over, with more and more people looking for unique pieces.

Cue the Tranquility Wooden Gear Clock – made entirely from wood, it features traditional mechanics needing to be wound up regularly.

It’s unusual frame, made from either maple or cherry wood, incorporates and highlights the unusual, grasshopper-type escapement, available in maple, cherry or walnut.

Modeled after the famous 1722 design by English clockmaker John Harrison, the escapement’s hinged arms catch and release the escape wheel teeth, turning the clock into an immediate eye catcher.

The grasshopper mechanics offer a stunning insight into traditional clockmaking skills.

Handmade in the USA, the Tranquility clock is available as a ready-to-assemble kit or as a pattern, to be directly applied onto the work piece before being cut out with a scroll saw.

Despite being made from something as sensitive to environmental changes as wood, the clock usually doesn’t require regular maintenance beyond being wound up; it also maintains accuracy to within one minute over the course of several days.

Priced at $174 (€156.48, £111.62) for the full kit and $29 (€26.08, £18.60) for the plans – with other options available, including laser-cut gears – the clock is available directly through Wooden Gear Clocks’ website.

To get an impression of what the Tranquility clock looks like when its mechanics are working, watch the video below:

The post Wooden Tranquility clock unites traditional skills and modern design appeared first on Gay Star News.

Stefanie Gerdes

www.gaystarnews.com/article/wooden-tranquility-clock-unites-traditional-skills-and-modern-design/

Top Five Most Powerful Moments from “I am Cait” Premiere

Last night, people across the country tuned in to watch the premiere of “I am Cait,” E! network’s documentary series on Caitlyn Jenner.
HRC.org

www.hrc.org/blog/entry/top-five-most-powerful-moments-from-i-am-cait-premiere?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Awkward! Guy Hits On 100 Random Guys. How Many Numbers Does He Get?

If a cute guy approached you on the street and asked for your number, would you give it to him?

That’s the question one British YouTuber tackles in his latest social experiment aptly titled “Guy Asks 100 Guys For Their Number.” It’s a ballsy move if nothing else. Over the course of the exercise he approaches men regardless of if he thinks they’re gay or straight.

To be honest, we expected him to strike out completely — who gives their number to a complete stranger with no other context?! But in the end he proves that dating really is a numbers game, scoring a fairly impressive 13 sets of digits.

By comparison, when he did the same experiment with women, he only got five.

Watch below:

Dan Tracer

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Report: School Not At Fault in Banning Gay Valedictorian’s Graduation Speech, Outing Him to Parents

Earlier this year we told you about Evan Young, the 18-year-old valedictorian of Twin Peaks Charter Academy High School in Longmont, Colorado who was banned from giving his graduation speech in which he planned on coming out as gay.

Young was also outed to his parents by school principal BJ Buchmann [right] in the ensuing back-and-fourth between school officials and the Young family (Buchmann later resigned over the controversy).

Openly gay U.S. Rep Jared Polis and Nightly Show host Larry Wilmore were among those who spoke out supporting Young in the ensuing firestorm, prompting the school to hire an outside lawyer to look into what went down.

The lawyer’s investigation has now concluded, with the report saying both the school and Young should take responsibility for the communication breakdown.

Boulder’s Daily Camera reports:

Attorney William Bethke, who was hired by the Twin Peaks board,wrote in his 24-page report that schools can legally “exercise editorial control” over graduation speeches as long as the school’s action is “reasonably related to pedagogical concerns.” Those concerns may include “discipline, courtesy and respect for authority.”

On the issue of outing Young to his parents, Bethke wrote that Buchmann did not violate Young’s privacy because Young intended to publicly disclose that he was gay in his graduation speech.

Bethke wrote that neither Young nor Buchmann appear to have acted out of “malice or ill-will,” but both should “take some ownership” for a breakdown in communication.

The report notes Buchmann was “distinctly uncomfortable” with Young coming out as gay through his speech.

The AP adds:

The Twin Peaks board is sharing the lawyer’s conclusion along with a note decrying opponents for trying to “twist this situation into a politically polarizing gay and lesbian issue.”

Don Young, Evan’s father, acknowledged that the report was “honest and fair” but said he was disappointed in the school board’s letter.

“The board of directors continues to show their ignorance,” he said. “The board has not done anything to show they are going to make changes going forward. Nothing is going to change until they change.”

Read the lawyer’s report and the school board’s letter to the community below:

Twin Peaks Charter Academy investigation report by Matt Sebastian

Twin Peaks Charter Academy letter to the community by Matt Sebastian

The post Report: School Not At Fault in Banning Gay Valedictorian’s Graduation Speech, Outing Him to Parents appeared first on Towleroad.

Kyler Geoffroy

Report: School Not At Fault in Banning Gay Valedictorian’s Graduation Speech, Outing Him to Parents

Satanic Statue Unveiled in Detroit As Christians Protest

Satanists unveiled a statue of Baphomet in a secret ceremony, despite Christian protests.

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Bil Browning

www.advocate.com/religion/2015/07/27/satanic-statue-unveiled-detroit-christians-protest

Rep. David Cicilline: LGBT People Are Entitled To 'Full Equality'

The Equality Act,  an historic, comprehensive LGBT civil rights bill, was introduced in both the Senate and the House last week. The bill will expand the 1964 Civil Rights Act and other laws to include protections against discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. It also marks a 180-degree shift in seeking civil rights protections for LGBT people, following the historic Supreme Court win on marriage equality.

“It was very exciting, we were able to introduce a bill in the House and the Senate that will ensure that LGBT people are not discriminated against in housing, in public accommodations, in employment, in education, federal funding,” the openly gay Rep. David Cicilline, who introduced the bill in the House, told me in an interview on SiriusXM Progress.

For over 20 years, advocates in Washington sought only a narrow employment bill — the Employment Non-Discrimination Act — with a broad religious exemption. But Cicilline said that with the rapid shift in public opinion in recent years, it was time to demand full equality with no broad exemptions.

“The idea of approaching this in a piecemeal way, which is sort of the way we’d been thinking about it in the past, is no longer something people are willing to accept nor, should they be,” he said. “[M]embers of our community are entitled to full equality. And fully equality means you do not discriminate based someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity.”

Cicilline acknowledges it will be a tough slog moving such an expansive bill in a Republican-controlled Congress that has been hostile to LGBT rights, but said there’s no other choice but to make the case and move forward.

“It’s very exciting,” he exclaimed. “Now the hard work begins to persuade the rest of our colleagues to become co-sponsors and support passage.”

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Boy Scouts Now Okay With Gay Troop Leaders–And Churches That Ban Them

In the end, the demise of the Boy Scouts of America’s ban on gay troop leaders seemed inevitable.

The ban always relied upon the canard that gay men are pedophiles and that scouting was incompatible with anything gay. And a policy based on lies cannot be maintained forever.

Once the BSA admitted gay scouts in 2013, troop leaders were bound to follow, particularly when everyone from the President on down hammers you endlessly for the ban–and your only supporters are among the most loathed factions in American politics.

Ending the Boy Scout ban neatly parallels the fight for marriage equality, right down to the timeline. The struggle to lift the Scouts’ antigay ban began in earnest in the early 1990s, with some key court cases, and really picked up steam in the 2000s.

Like marriage equality, the first major victory was partial, followed two years later by complete victory. And like marriage equality, religious right figures see the end of the BSA ban as the end of the world, with headline proclaiming the “moral collapse” of the Scouts.

There’s one big difference, and it’s not a good one. The new regulations have a religious liberty exemption baked into them. Because so many troops are sponsored by churches–particularly Mormon and Catholic–the BSA decided to let the troop sponsors set their own rules about troop leaders.

Which of course means that in many troops, nothing will change. Of course, some churches severed their ties with the Scouts two years ago for allowing gay youth to join. But in many remaining church-sponsored troops, the ban will remain in effect.

No doubt, the BSA hopes to put decades’ worth of bad press and years’ worth of declining corporate sponsorship behind them. Scout numbers have been falling like a rock in large part because BSA turned itself into an adjunct of the religious right. The question ahead is whether the change has come too late and with too many strings to change the decline.

If it hasn’t, the religious right will be quick to pin the blame on the change itself, not the damage that the ban had done to the organization and to so many good people.

JohnGallagher

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8-City ‘Faith Family Freedom Tour’ Across Texas Promises Plenty Of Hilarious Anti-Gay Bigotry

Last week, we mentioned how Texas anti-LGBT leaders are planning an anti-gay hatefest at a church whose pastor is also a state representative.

That announcement came on the heels of the launch of a new anti-LGBT coalition in Dallas.

Now, if you’re still keeping track, many of the same bigots are planning an eight-city “Faith Family Freedom” tour in August, September and October:

“ENOUGH IS ENOUGH,” states an email announcing the tour from Houston anti-LGBT activist Jared Woodfill. “It’s time for us to stand up and fight to take back our government from the godless Secular Humanists, Pro-Abortionists and Political Homosexual Movement. We will trust God! We will take action! We will fight to restore our Constitutional liberties based upon Biblical truth!”

The rallies will be held in Houston, Fort Worth, Dallas, San Antonio, Tyler, Lubbock, Corpus Christi and Waco.

The tour is sponsored by 17 people, including:

• Former Congressman Tom Delay (right), who recently suggested the U.S. Department of Justice wants to legalize sex with animals and little boys.

• Pastor Rick Scarborough, who pledged to set himself on fire if the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage, then changed his mind, saying he only planned to do so because he loves gay people.

• Dr. Steve Hotze of the Conservative Republicans of Texas, who said at the anti-LGBT coalition’s recent Dallas launch that the SCOTUS ruling will mean teachers encouraging kindergarteners to try anal sex.

• Cathie Adams (right with Sen. Ted Cruz) of the Texas Eagle Forum, who recently said same-sex marriage would lead to the end of America if the state Legislature didn’t act to undermine SCOTUS’ ruling.

• David Barton of WallBuilders, who said the SCOTUS ruling will force churches to hire pedophiles to run day care centers.

All in all, this tour — which seems more like a last-gasp fundraising scheme — promises plenty of great entertainment.

More from the announcement:

“Enough is Enough!” One need only look around and see that our country is being radically changed by the left. It is time to stand-up, speak-up, and refuse to give up when it comes to our principles, value and beliefs! We must stand on our faith and boldly defend our religious liberties, our Constitutional freedoms, and our Judeo Christian heritage. We have a duty to protect our children and our grandchildren from a political movement that stands for abortion, redefines marriage and removes God from the public arena.

Leaders of the conservative organizations listed above will be speaking in the cities listed on key issues threatening Christian values and on the nuts and bolts of politics, so that we can take back our government. These events will give you the knowledge and tools you need to have in order to make your voice heard and to make a difference for your children and grandchildren. You will be receiving emails as locations are confirmed in each city. Save the date and make a plan to attend in the city nearest to you. I look forward to seeing you at one of the locations identified above.

The post 8-City ‘Faith Family Freedom Tour’ Across Texas Promises Plenty Of Hilarious Anti-Gay Bigotry appeared first on Towleroad.

John Wright

8-City ‘Faith Family Freedom Tour’ Across Texas Promises Plenty Of Hilarious Anti-Gay Bigotry