[size=xxl] Happy Birthday Lilho!!! [/size]

Have a wonderful day, and get your ass smashed.

NY has become the first state to recognize marriages between US citizens performed in Canada. The decision so far affects only NY-goverenment workers and the availability of spousal pension benefits to gay partners. But, it may lead the way for further recognition of the rights of gay Americans married abroad. Comptroller Alan Hevesi, the trustee of NY State's Pension Plan made the decision backed up by an advisory opinion issued earlier this year by state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer. Of course, the courts, and/or legislature may butt in still and overturn the decision. But it's exciting to live in the state where it's happening, too bad I still can't get in on it (will we ever get that progressive here?).

Almost forgot in all the birthday excitement. (e:tina) 's b-day is today too, shout out and I'll see you tonight for some fun fun fun.

It's (e:southernyankee) 's b-day today. We gonna party on down tonight! Now what to get her for her birthday...that's the question. Maybe you're saying I should have thought of this before the actual day, but I got it off, I gots time. We'll see...

sidenote: It's often said that we are a very litigious society (especially by those on the right who want to limit our ability to use our legal rights, or cap the amount of damages). A new report by Public Citizen shows who's really taking advantage of our legal system. According to the report, U.S.Businesses File Four Times More Lawsuits Than Private Citizens And Are Sanctioned Much More Often for Frivolous Suits. In some samples (which were done in county, state, and national levels) businesses were filing up to six times more lawsuits than individuals.

"Some of the loudest voices for restricting the legal rights of consumers and patients also are the biggest users of the court system. For example, claiming that it is inundated with class action lawsuits, the insurance industry has led the charge for federal legislation that would restrict the rights of consumers to bring such cases.

Yet in Cook County, Ill., insurance companies filed about 8,000 lawsuits in 2002 — 35 times the number of class actions filed there by individuals that year, Public Citizen found. In fact, insurers file so many suits— mostly “subrogation� suits designed to recover the expense of covering their own policy holders — that last year they asked to be exempted from a model lawsuit “reform� law that would limit citizen access to the courts and that they otherwise support."

Ralph Nader and Wesley Smith have a really great book about this subject, called No Contest It gives tons of concrete evidence detailing how much advantage corporations have when it comes to lawsuits versus individuals. When you read of the car company who made a car, knowing that the gastank placed directly in front of the rear bumper was a fire hazard, and calculated the potential cost of lawsuits filed because of this defect (which in effect means how much will we pay out if someone is burned/maimed/killed). There is a memo that actually puts numbers to these figures, in other words dollar signs next to human beings. It's disgusting. Please read.

(e:trisha) and (e:paulnotpaul) tied the knot in a ceremony that brought me close to tears. It went perfect, there wasn't a thing I'dve changed about it. Trisha's face...just beaming out joy to everyone as she marched to meet her groom (no one hampering her to offer her). That image will live in my mind forever. Almsot makes me wanna have a "real" wedding. With pomp and circumstance. But no Jesus, sorry feller. He can watch if he wants though. The dancing was wild. Our own (e:lilho) caught the bouquet, and (e:flacidness) was wrestled to the ground by a ten year old after the garter (who then gave it back once he realized what he had to do with it). We made it back safely, what more can you ask after that kinda partying? (e:springfaerie) came over afterwards for more partying, but we stayed true to ourselves and ended up smoking ourselves into quiet philosophical conversations instead. A good ending for a perfect day.

I love you, trish and paul, I hope you're having yourselves a blast in gorges-ous Ithaca.