Adam Sunny Flanders

My uncle brought my new RAV4 to Maine from California today. I've been working really hard and saving up for the past 6 months so I could get this car and not have any loans or debt. I'm super happy with it! It's a V6 and has tons of room inside, 5 seats with a huge trunk / storage area (with fold-down seats), and can get up to 31 mpg. Sound system is great and I can attach my iPhone to the audio input. I got it from California so that there wouldn't be any concerns about rust damage, which is common for cars sold in New England. I don't intend to keep it here much longer since I'm planning on leaving Maine in a year or less (my aunt and uncle would like me to move out to southern California), but in any case I know it will last me a long time. Consumer Reports rates it as the best mid-size SUV. I'm right in love with it :D

These are photos from the California dealership's website when the listing was still up. Click on the thumbnails to enlarge:

Next month (June) is LGBT Pride Month, made official by Presidential Proclamation last year. It is fitting that the US Supreme Court will soon be deciding the final outcomes of Prop 8 and DOMA. I expect both of them will be repealed in some form, though how broad the ruling will be is anyone's guess. It could be anything from marriage equality in California and at the Federal level, all the way to full nationwide marriage equality overnight. AFER has a great graphic that explains it better than I can: Prop 8 Potential Outcomes. I think Prop 8 will be overturned, DOMA will be repealed, and thus California, the Federal government, and all states with only civil unions will have full recognition of same-sex marriage. With DOMA out of the way, interstate lawsuits will ensure that same-sex marriage follows in the same footsteps as interracial marriage (see Loving v. Virginia, 1967). Also this week the Boy Scouts will be deciding whether to allow gay youth in their troops and Illinois may become the 13th state to pass marriage equality.

Spring is here and the weather is so nice. I've already been out shooting (archery) and rollerblading. I've been working really hard to save up for a new car - almost there! I've also been conducting some of my own experiments with plants, mostly tissue culture. I'll publish results when I have something interesting. Still working on Pom Rush, the iPhone game I'm developing. It's about two-thirds complete. I'm working on making it more difficult, but all the levels and characters are finished. That's all I'm saying for now. I think I'll have it ready and for sale in the App Store sometime this Summer.

This Summer is going to be exciting in the world of gay rights. As many of you know, Rhode Island just became the 10th state to legalize same-sex marriage. It also means that every state in New England has marriage equality! France also recently passed it, making 11 countries that fully embrace equality. It will not be long before the entire US recognizes same-sex marriage. Next month the Supreme Court will hand down rulings on DOMA and Prop 8, both of which are expected to favor equality. I predict Prop 8 will finally be overturned, adding California to the states where gay couples can wed. I believe that parts of DOMA will also be struck down, paving the way for Federal recognition of same-sex marriages and establishing significant precedent that will qualify sexual orientation for "heightened scrutiny" (protected classification along with race, religion, gender, etc.). Once DOMA is out of the way, same-sex marriage will be free to follow in the footsteps of interracial marriage, specifically Loving v. Virginia - there will be nothing to prevent a same-sex couples married in an equality state, such as Maine, from moving to another state such as Florida, and suing that state for marital recognition. At that point it's a fast track to national recognition in every state. For now, but probably not much longer, DOMA is the only thing standing in our way.

The majority of Americans who support marriage equality continues to climb in number and organizations that previously objected to equality, such as the Boy Scouts, are now reconsidering their position. Even the Republican Party seems to be shifting its stance on several social issues including same-sex marriage. I don't think anything can stop our momentum :D

This is why I love Madonna. She's always been my favorite. She spoke at the GLAAD awards, dressed in a Boy Scout uniform, and called on the BSA to end their discriminatory practices. She presents an award to Anderson Cooper, who recently came out on national TV. She gives a very good speech about the national and international state of prejudice against LGBT people, bullying, and how we cannot accept this as we move forward. She points out that homophobia is no different than a white man hanging a black man before the civil rights movement, or the Taliban shooting a young girl in the head because she blogged about equal education for girls. I totally agree. Homophobia is no different than racism or sexism or any of the past prejudices which have come to fall from popular discourse. Homophobia is on its way out. Please read my February 6th blog about how I used to be a Boy Scout and call on the BSA to end discrimination against LGBT youth, as well as my work in civil rights.

"I don't know about you, but I can't take this shit anymore. And that is why I want to start a revolution."
~Madonna

Madonna Calls on Boy Scouts to Lift Ban on Gays

I went snowboarding with my family yesterday. We had a pretty good time at the start of it, though later in the afternoon I wiped out and my ankle started swelling up so I went to the ER. They discovered that I had fractured my ankle pretty bad, so now I'm on crutches with a boot cast for a while. You can see the X-ray below and the lightning bolt-shaped fracture on the side (the outside ball of my left ankle). The ER was irritated that I didn't come in sooner. At first they were mad at my mom because they thought I was a minor, lol.