OPEN FORUM FRIDAYS

A few stories that caught my eye this week: “Mosques Vandalized in CA, NY”From sea to shining sea: Mosques are being vandalized across the country, with the latest incidents at mosques in Queens and Fresno, California on Wednesday. Read: <a href="http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheat-sheet/item/mosques-vandalized-across-country/islamophobia/?cid=cs:headline3http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheat-sheet/item/mos… />2. Pres. Bush’s 2004 campaign manager and one-time RNC chairman Ken Mehlman Comes Out the Closet”….says he regrets not coming out sooner. “…now in private life, he wants to become an advocate for gay marriage and anticipated that questions would arise about his participation in a late-September fundraiser for the American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER), the group that supported the legal challenge to California’s ballot initiative against gay marriage, Proposition 8.”Read: <a href="http://www.pamshouseblend.com/diary/17164/the-advocate-interviews-ken-mehlman-what-is-the-political-path-forwardhttp://www.pamshouseblend.com/diary/17164/the-adv… />The truth is, while some gay-rights advocates welcome this news, primarily because of his access to power within the GOP, Many gays and lesbians are quite Angry about his decision to come “Out” now AFTER he’s no longer in a position of power and the role he played while in power. As one political journalist put it: “He was part of a machine that denigrated the families and relationships of gay men and lesbians across the country. He was there when the GOP used the same-sex marriage issue to whip up the conservative base and conservative votes to keep Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) out of the White House. Mehlman stood by while our rights and dignity — his rights and dignity, too, it turns out — were being abridged.”3. It now appears that Carmelo Anthony really does want OUT of Denver. Report: “Carmelo Anthony Wants Out of Denver”Sources insist it's no longer a matter of if the Nuggets trade Anthony, but when, where and for whom he's traded for," Wojnarowski wrote.Read: <a href="http://nba.fanhouse.com/2010/08/26/report-carmelo-anthony-wants-out-of-denver/?icid=main%7Cmain%7Cdl3%7Csec3_lnk1%7C166418http://nba.fanhouse.com/2010/08/26/report-carmelo… />HAPPY TGIF!