Poll: 54 Percent of Ohioans Support Marriage Equality

Shifting numbers in the Buckeye state on marriage equality, the Columbus Dispatch reports:

..just days before the U.S. Supreme Court considers a pair of landmark gay-marriage cases, a new Saperstein Poll for The Dispatch shows that 54 percent back a proposed new amendment to repeal the 2004 measure and “allow two consenting adults to marry, regardless of their gender.”

Just 40 percent oppose the proposal, which also would allow religious institutions to determine who they will or won’t marry, and protect such institutions that refuse to perform a marriage.

The latter provisions are key because “they ameliorate the concerns that some people may have, like is this going to be forced on me, or forced on my church,” said Martin D. Saperstein, head of the Columbus firm that conducted the poll.

He said Ohio’s electorate has transformed in the past nine years as younger people who favor gay marriage attain voting age.

Anti-gay activists just think the pollsters are being tricky:

Chris Long, president of the Ohio Christian Alliance, acknowledged the political savvy of addressing religious institutions in the same-sex marriage proposal.

“If they would ask the question alone to reverse the 2004 question to allow same-sex marriage, I think it would be different,” he said. “But when people understand clearly what is presented to them, I think Ohioans will again affirm their position on traditional marriage.”

Long said support for gay marriage has grown because “homosexual activists have been successful in a form of indoctrination in the public schools over the past 20 years, pushing that homosexuality is an acceptable lifestyle.”

What say, Congressman Boehner (R-OH)?

News: Steubenville, Brett Ratner, Mugabe Travels, Giorgos Katidis

Oz the Great and Powerful obviously has some friends: it topped the box office for the second weekend in a row and with $142 million in domestic sales, it is now the highest grossing movie of the year so far.

Garbage survey in England asks about sexual orientation.

Teenagers Trent Mays & Ma’Lik Richmond have been found guilty of raping a 16-year old girl during a drunken party in Steubenville, Ohio. They may be incarcerated in juvenile facilities until they're 21.

Get a look at the off-stage antics at last night's GLAAD Media Awards, starring Anderson Cooper and Madonna.

A rehabilitated Brett Ratner, the director who stepped down from the 2012 Oscars and underwent sensitivity training after using the word "fag" during a Q&A in his movie Tower Heist, received the Ally Award at the same event last night. From his speech, "Homophobe. Bigot. Gay-basher. Ignorant frat boy. Fat, Jewish pig. I was called all of these names when I foolishly used a gay slur in a misguided attempt to be funny during an interview. Do I believe what I was called to be true? Aside from the Jewish and fat part? No, absolutely not. But I learned a valuable lesson: a word can matter, whether it's said with malice or a joke."

A young Ryan Gosling gives the Mickey Mouse club a tour of Canada.

Hoping to boost his campaign coffers, comedian-turned-Senator Al Franken's holding a raffle in which supporters can win brunch with Conan O'Brien at Conan's house.

Bad news for female journalists: "For the third year in the row, the number of male bylines and works by male writers reviewed vastly outnumbered those of women almost across the board, and a look at all data from all three years indicated that things haven’t improved over time (in fact, at several publications, the percentage of women represented decreased between 2011 and 2012)."

Despite being banned from traveling into the European Union, tyrannical Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe will cut through Italy on his way to the Vatican, where he'll attend Pope Francis' inauguration.

So much vitriol in 67 words: "In another case in the annals of conservative 'adaptation' to yesterday's liberal innovation, Ohio Republican senator Rob Portman has just announced that he now supports faux marriage. The change was motivated, he said, by his son having come out to him and his wife as a homosexual. Well, it's a good thing his son didn't announce that he was involved in bestiality. Talk about a pandering parent."

Meanwhile: "Greek soccer player Giorgos Katidis has been banned from his national team for life after giving a Nazi salute while celebrating a goal in the topflight league."

Oy. Panama-based Carnival Cruises enjoys a largely unregulated freedom and tax payer-backed Coast Guard rescues.

Ick. "Lawrence Reed, the man accused of killing [Marco McMillian], appears to be laying the groundwork for a so-called "gay panic" defense, and he might just get away with it, highlighting the justice system’s troubled relationship with cases in which sexual orientation is clearly a factor."

Aww. Pug pups get baths.

News: 'Functional Cure,' Odawa, Winston-Salem, Marc

At least 7 Cincinnati City Council members pulled out of city's St. Patrick's Day parade because of the parade's decision to ban the gay education group GLSEN.

South, a 1959 ITV teleplay about a Polish soldier sent to the American south during the Civil War and starring tv star Peter Wyngarde, may be the first television program to feature an open discussion of gay attraction. "[Does he love] the plantation owner's angry niece, Miss Regina, or the tall, blond, rugged officer who arrives suddenly – a handsome man called Eric MacClure."

Awesome: "A church in Winston-Salem has announced it will stop performing all marriages until United Methodist pastors are allowed to officiate at marriages for same-sex couples."

The Odawa Indian tribe in Michigan legalized same-sex marriage and celebrated by uniting two men, Tim LaCroix and Gene Barfield, in marital bliss. The federal government, of course, will not recognize this lovely union or its historic significance.

"At CPAC, gay marriage on back burner"

Kitty knows how to keep warm.

"Faux fur" jackets Marc Jacobs' label sells at Century 21 are actually made of dog fur.

Kathy Bates joins the cast of American Horror Story season 3, which concerns witches and will officially be called American Horror Story: Coven. Expect to see plenty of scenes featuring Bates and Jessica Lange "going at it," says creator Ryan Murphy.

Justin Bieber will do whatever it takes to be butch.

New Games of Thrones season 3 international trailer features some new footage for those of you who need a fresh fix.

A run down of some of the politicians and other notable public figures who have reversed course and come out in favor of marriage equality.

The Boston Phoenix, an alt-weekly paper that has published since 1966, announced that it will close its doors. Susan Orlean, the New Yorker writer who got her start at the Boston Phoenix, told the Boston Globe, "It's like finding out your college has gone bankrupt and is gone. I am a child of the alt-weekly world and I feel like it has played such an important role in journalism as we know it today."

Here's a Facebook page encouraging you to change your Facebook profile picture to show you support marriage equality.

Research into how revive extinct creatures continues. So what will happen to the phrase "go the way of the dodo?"

Is fact action the key to slowing HIV's devastation? "Treating people with HIV rapidly after they have become infected with the virus that causes Aids may be enough to achieve a 'functional cure' in a small proportion of patients diagnosed early, according to research."

GOP Senator Rob Portman Comes Out for Marriage Equality After His Son Comes Out as Gay: VIDEO

Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) on Thursday became the first sitting GOP senator to back same-sex marriage, explaining his decision to do so in a sit-down interview with CNN's Dana Bash.

"I'm announcing today a change of heart on an issue a lot of people feel strongly about. It has to do with gay couples' opportunity to marry. During my career in the House and also the last few years in the Senate I've taken a position against gay marriage rooted in part in my faith and my faith tradition..

"I had a very personal experience which is my son came to Jane, my wife and I, told us he was gay and that it was not a choice, that's just part of who he is and that he had been that way since he could remember."

Watch clips of the interview, AFTER THE JUMP...

CNN adds:

Portman says his son, now a junior in college, helped him work through his decision to announce his change in position on gay marriage and blessed the idea of publicly announcing Will Portman's sexuality.

"I think he's happy and, you know, proud that we've come to this point, but he let it be my decision just as you know, it's going to be his decision as to the role he plays going forward in this whole issue," said Portman.

Until now, this was a secret to most people in politics, but not everyone.

Last year, when Romney was vetting Portman to be his running mate, the Ohio Republican informed both Romney and his top campaign advisers that he has a gay son.

"I told Mitt Romney everything," said Portman with a laugh. "That process is, intrusive would be one way to put it. But, no, yeah, I told him everything."

Portman also wrote an op-ed in the Columbus Dispatch, which reads, in part:

One way to look at it is that gay couples’ desire to marry doesn't amount to a threat but rather a tribute to marriage, and a potential source of renewed strength for the institution....

...The process of citizens persuading fellow citizens is how consensus is built and enduring change is forged. That’s why I believe change should come about through the democratic process in the states. Judicial intervention from Washington would circumvent that process as it’s moving in the direction of recognizing marriage for same-sex couples. An expansive court ruling would run the risk of deepening divisions rather than resolving them.

I’ve thought a great deal about this issue, and like millions of Americans in recent years, I’ve changed my mind on the question of marriage for same-sex couples. As we strive as a nation to form a more perfect union, I believe all of our sons and daughters ought to have the same opportunity to experience the joy and stability of marriage.

Ohio Catholic School Administrator Fired for Pro-Gay Marriage Blog Post Speaks Out: VIDEO

Earlier this week I posted about Mike Moroski, a former administrator at Purcell Marian High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, who was fired by the Archdiocese of Cincinnati after telling him to either recant or lose his job.

ABC News reports:

In order to keep his job, Moroski would also have to create an "action plan" for himself detailing how he planned to live with morality, he said.

"I really, really believe in my conscience and the morals I've developed in my lifetime in the Catholic Church," he said. "I knew from the get-go I wasn't going to take [the post] down."

On Monday he received a phone call telling him he was terminated.

"I definitely never thought I would lose my job over something like this," Moroski said. "I have experienced God more in the past week than my entire life. I feel like I'm on the right track."

Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

Ohio Catholic High School Principal Fired for Blog Post Supporting Gay Marriage

Mike Morioski, the principal of Purcell Marian High School in Cincinnati, was fired by the Archdiocese of Cincinnati over a blog post he wrote called "Choose Your Battles" supporting gay marriage.

Wrote Moroski:

“I unabashedly believe that gay people SHOULD be allowed to marry. Ethically, morally and legally I believe this. I spend a lot of my life trying to live as a Christian example of love for others, and my formation at Catholic grade school, high school, 3 Catholic Universities and employment at 2 Catholic high schools has informed my conscience to believe that gay marriage is NOT something of which to be afraid.”

The AP reports:

Moroski had anticipated the move after refusing to take down the blog post and hiring an attorney. Moroski did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday, but he told The Cincinnati Enquirer last week that he was following his conscience when he wrote about his support of gay marriage. He said he knew he the post violated the social media policy but doesn’t feel that he violated the teachings of the church.

“I put it up there because I really truly honestly believe it,” he said. “I’m absolutely willing to lose my job over this. The only difficult thing for me now is the students.”

Moroski released a statement on his blog today:

On Monday, February 4, the Archdiocese of Cincinnati gave me an ultimatum after I expressed my personal opinion in support of freedom to marry for gay and lesbian couples. I was asked to resign as assistant principal at Purcell Marian High School, or keep my job until June by signing documents recanting my statements. I was given this ultimatum after I wrote a blog on my personal web page, http://mikemoroski.com entitled, “Choosing Your Battles.” I could not in good conscience recant my statements. The Archdiocese of Cincinnati has now put me on administrative leave with a pending termination.

As a proud Catholic, I’m heartbroken that my belief that all committed, loving couples should be able to make a public pledge to take responsibility for each other for a lifetime has led to this ultimatum. The expressions of solidarity I have already received from Catholic priests, sisters and justice leaders in the community strengthen my faith during this difficult time. Due to my formation in Catholic grade school, high school and three Catholic universities – not to mention my marriage to the best Catholic I know, my relationship with numerous clergy and a devout Catholic family – I have firmly rooted my life in the Gospel principles of love and justice.

After twelve years of working with teenagers whose respect I have earned, I simply can’t teach them the wrong lesson now and deny my convictions. I would not be able to look them in the eye. I have tried to instill a sense of faith and fortitude in all of them regarding issues of justice for my entire adult life. I did not turn down the Archdiocese’s terms in spite of my faith. I turned them down because of my faith.

Moroski had worked at the school for two years after teaching at Moeller High School for 10 years.