Separated at Birth?

Here we have Kristen Wiig as the "special" fourth singing sister on SNL's parody of the Lawrence Welk Show.






And here we have Meg Whitman, Republican gubernatorial hopeful in California, who called a press conference and then proceeded to refuse to answer questions, block cameras, and escort the press out of the room.




Coincidence? I think not.

Considering whom to please.

The Redwoods

Mountains are moving, rivers
are hurrying. But we
are still.

We have the thoughts of giants--
clouds, and at night the stars.

And we have names-- guttural, grotesque--
Hamet, Og-- names with no syllables.

And perish, one by one, our roots
gnawed by the mice. And fall.

And are too slow for death, and change
to stone. Or else too quick,

like candles in a fire. Giants
are lonely. We have waited long

for someone. By our waiting, surely
there must be someone at whose touch

our boughs would bend; and hands
to gather us; a spirit

to whom we are light as the hawthorn tree.
O if there is a poet

let him come now! We stand at the Pacific
like great unmarried girls,

turning in our heads the stars and clouds,
considering whom to please.

-- Louis Simpson

The silence of the lesbians.

California's "Proposition 8", which would seek to strip gay and lesbian Californians of their right to marry, will be on the ballot on November 4. It's already been one of the most hotly contested state initiatives in American history, and has been the focus of many high-dollar donations from prominent right-wingers. The "Yes on 8" camp, which would prefer to see the initiative pass and therefore prohibit gay and lesbian marriage equality, has been aided by donations from the likes of the mormon church, the catholic church, James Dobson's "Focus on the Family", and L.A. Dodgers second baseman Jeff Kent. Copious donations against this discriminatory initiative have been received by the "No on 8" camp from all over the country... small amounts from those who can barely afford it, and other larger amounts from those who can. The national outpouring of support for the efforts to defeat this initiative has been one of the more exciting examples of national GLBT activism that I've seen in a while.

The fact that this is happening in California might make one assume that gay and lesbian celebrities, with their prominent medial profiles and deep pockets, would be clamoring to donate to the efforts to ensure that this squalid initiative does not pass. Some, like Ellen DeGeneres and T.R. Knight, have indeed done so.

But one prominent and well-paid celebrity has not been so magnanimous. Rosie O'Donnell, the former talk show host and comedienne, got married in San Francisco in a highly-publicized civil ceremony. She and her wife have beautiful children and are raising a family. They own a well-known business that caters to GLBT family vacationers. O'Donnell has supported GLBT causes for many years, and has always been outspoken in her support for GLBT equality. So why the silence on this issue?

O'Donnell's own blog posts reveal a disturbing selfishness and hostility that is difficult to understand. GoodAsYou has collected a bewildering sample of her own responses to fan inquiries on the subject, all of which are either cryptic, dismissive, or downright rude. Why would O'Donnell, who took advantage of the California laws when she got married herself, be so dismissive of calls for her support? From where does this self-centered attitude originate?

I don't quote the Bible often, but the gospel according to Luke tells us that "to whom much is given, much will be required". I can't imagine anyone who fits the description of one to whom much has been given more perfectly than Rosie O'Donnell. No, she may not live in California. Yes, she has done much charity work in the past and continues to do so. And yes, she may support any cause she likes. But in a watershed moment like the Proposition 8 struggle, I must admit that I expect GLBT celebrities to give their full-throated and full-pocketed support... publicly and copiously.

Anything else would be shameful. Wouldn't it?