Cliffs of Moher, Ireland

Postcard IE-78738 from Ireland shows a sunset view from the Cliffs of Moher or Aillte an Mhothair in Irish, located at the southwestern edge of the Burren region in County Clare, Ireland. According to Wikepedia, those cliffs rise 120 meters or 390 feet above the Atlantic Ocean at Hag's Head, and reach their maximum height of 214 meters or 702 feet just north of O'Brien's Tower, eight kilometers to the north. There is a round stone tower near the midpoint of the cliffs, built in 1835 by Sir Cornelius O'Brien, where visitors can see the Aran Islands in Galway Bay, the Maumturks and Twelve Pins mountain ranges to the north in County Galway, and Loop Head to the south. With almost one million visitors a year, it was one of the most popular tourist sites in Ireland.

A rainbow formed over Dublin in the evening yesterday as people in Ireland voted on a proposed constitutional amendment to legalize same-sex marriage. Final results indicated that 62% of voters and all but one district approved the amendment in a referendum Friday. It shows that support for marriage equality extended well beyond Ireland’s liberal urban centers and deep into its rural heartlands; and that a vote for same-sex marriage in Ireland is not a ‘No’ vote to Catholicism. Just as Prime Minister Enda Kenny proclaimed: “with today’s vote, we have disclosed who we are: a generous, compassionate, bold and joyful people.” Ireland became the first country to legalize same-sex marriage by popular vote in the world, joining 18 other countries (Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Canada, South Africa, Norway, Sweden, Portugal, Iceland, Argentina, Denmark, France, Brazil, Uruguay, New Zealand, Britain, Luxembourg, and Finland) where same-sex couples can marry nationwide.

Rainbow at the end of the canvass,last night North Dublin Suburbs #IrelandSaysYes #IrelandVoteYes #irelandreferendum pic.twitter.com/gzk9UFZVDv

— Simy Frant (@SimyFrant) May 23, 2015

Apúlia, Portugal

Postcard PT-368959 from Portugal shows Apúlia, a town with 4,323 residents and a former civil parish in the municipality of Esposende, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish Apúlia e Fão. It was a municipality by itself until 1834, when it was incorporated into Esposende. Apúlia is known for its dune beaches, as seen on the card, and Roman-style folk costumes, which may indicate its connection to the region of Apulia in Italy where a possible migration was originated during the Roman Empire.

May 17 is the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia. On May 17, 2010, President Aníbal Cavaco Silva ratified a law for legalization of same-sex marriage and became effective on June 5, 2010. Portugal became the sixth country in Europe and the eighth country in the world to allow same-sex marriage nationwide.

Greetings from Nashville, Tennessee

Postcard US-3064194 from Michigan, USA was a "Greetings from Nashville", Tennessee card that highlights its nickname "Music City" with an antique guitar. As the capital of the state of Tennessee, Nashville is located on the Cumberland River in the north-central part of the state, serving as a center for the music, healthcare, publishing, banking and transportation industries. It also has a large number of colleges and universities.

Today, the United States Supreme Court agreed to hear the case Tanco v. Haslam, No. 14-562 from Tennessee challenging state laws barring the recognition of same-sex marriages performed outside the state. It was part of the consolidated cases in which the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit upheld the bans on same-sex marriage in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee. By granting petitions seeking review from plaintiffs challenging those bans in each state, the United States Supreme Court posed to decide once for all whether the Constitution requires states “to license a marriage between two people of the same sex” and whether states must “recognize a marriage between two people of the same sex when their marriage was lawfully licensed and performed out of state.” The Supreme Court's decision is due before the end of June. Governor Bill Haslam of Tennessee, a Republican, did what litigants who have won in the lower court usually do by urging the Supreme Court Justices not to hear the case.

It's Going to be a New Day in Florida

Postcard US-3141369 to USA was a vintage card showing a night scene under the full moon in Florida.

The clock has struck midnight on the East Coast. It marks a new day in Florida as it became the latest of 36 states and Washington D.C. in the U.S. where same-sex couples can now legally marry. Many courthouses in South Florida open overnight to issue marriage licenses and hold wedding ceremonies.

It was a drawn-out battle since the same-sex marriage ban, part of the State Constitution Amendment 2, passed with a 62% voter approval in 2008. In the end, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi's many appeals, a bogus legal advice from a private law firm to clerks, and the last minute attempts from a conservative legal group Liberty Counsel, can not turn back tide.

Yes, I DO

It is the 26th Anniversary of National Come Out Day (NCOD) on October, 11, 2014. An annual celebration for being who you are in the LGBT community, and in support of those who are coming out, NCOD this year coincides with a turning point when marriage is open to all  in Nevada for the first time. Seven same-sex couples were married at the NCOD Family Festival in Alexis Park All Suite Resort tonight.

The High Roller Ferris Wheel in the background, sporting rainbow-colored lights, looked like a giant wedding ring.

Postcard US-2722698 to Michigan shows a wedding decoration in a store front on the Las Vegas Strip.

Marriage for All in Nevada

Mere one day after the U.S. Supreme Court decided not to hear appeals against lower courts' rulings that declared banning same-sex marriage were unconstitutional in Oklahoma, Utah, Indiana, Virgina, and Wisconsin, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Idaho and Nevada’s bans on same-sex marriage violated equal protection rights on October 7, 2014. The court's decision also covers Alaska, Arizona and Montana.

Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval and State Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto announced this Tuesday evening that they would not appeal the ruling. The Marriage Bureau in Clark County, located at 201 Clark Avenue in the Regional Justice Center, will start to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples at 2 p.m. Wednesday October 8, 2014. Now, Las Vegas can truly claim itself as the wedding capital of the world.

Postcard US-1864037 to Germany shows the Little Church of the West Wedding Chapel on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. Built out of California redwood as part of the Last Frontier Hotel in 1942, it is the oldest building on the Las Vegas Strip. It had since moved several times until it was relocated to the current location in 1996. The wedding chapel was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 14, 1992. It is known for the 1964 movie Viva Las Vegas filmed at the Little Church of the West, where Lucky Jackson (played by Elvis Presley) and Rusty Martin (played by Ann-Margret) recited their vows.

Update: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy put the Ninth Ciruit Court's order on hold after Idaho filed an emergency request for a stay on October 8, 2014.

Update 2: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy Justice Kennedy revised his order in the afternoon on October 8, 2014,  removing Nevada (case No. 12-17668) from the hold.

Update 3: Nevada started to issue same-sex marriage licenses on October 9, 2014.

Love is a Force of Nature

I got this Brokeback Mountain movie promotional card during its Ft. Lauderdale International Film Festival premiere at Cinema Paradiso in 2005. The movie told a powerful story of two young men, a ranch hand and a rodeo cowboy, who sheepherded in the Wyoming mountains in the summer of 1963 and formed a life-long bond with love and conflicts.

Sixteen years ago today on October 6, 1998, Matthew Shepard, a student at the University of Wyoming, was beaten, tortured and left to die near Laramie, Wyoming. He was targeted and attacked by two men because he was gay. His death from severe head injuries six days later brought national and international attention to hate crime legislation. However, it wasn't until October 2009 that the United States Congress passed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. President Barack Obama signed the "Matthew Shepard Act" into law on October 28, 2009.

Today on October 6, 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review those cases where state laws banning same-sex marriage were overturned by federal appeals courts, which resulted immediate recognition of same-sex marriage in Indiana, Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin. Wyoming could see same-sex marriages recognized by the end of this year as it was covered by the same circuit appeals courts as Utah and Oklahoma. Five additional states: North Carolina, South Carolina, West Virginia, Colorado, and Kansas, are also covered.

The card was sent in to obtain a first-day-of-issue postmark on a Harvey Milk Forever Stamp on July 21, 2014, along with other first-day-of-issue postmark and digital color postmarks. It took two months for the fulfilled order to be returned on September 23, 2014.

Be One

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco began to hear oral arguments in challenges to same-sex marriage bans in Idaho, Nevada and Hawaii today on September 8, 2014. A three-judge panel had tough questions for marriage equality opponents and seemed ready to say for the second time that same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry.

Meanwhile, as state officials in Nevada decided not to defend the bans, the same-sex marriages might become a reality quickly in Nevada if the court rulings overturn the bans. County clerks are making new marriage license forms that list “party 1” and “party 2” instead of “bride” and “groom”.

Outgoing postcard US-2967646 to Canada shows the 2012 Gap advertising campaign in San Francisco, featuring a same-sex couple.

Southernmost Point in USA

Postcard US-1777075 from Florida shows the Southernmost point, a painted concrete buoy at the corner of South Street and Whitehead Street in Key West. Established by the city to mark one of the extreme points of the United States in 1983, it is one of the most visited and photographed attractions in Key West, Florida.

However, according to Wikipedia, the buoy was actually an old sewer junction that was dug up in the area and found too heavy and too large to move. Also, the official southernmost point in the contiguous United States is Ballast Key, a privately owned island south and west of Key West, which prohibits unauthorized visitors. On the Key West island, its true southernmost point, 270 m or 900 ft farther south to the buoy, is located on the Truman Annex property, a U.S. Navy installation inaccessible to the public. The southernmost part of Key West Island accessible to the public is located at Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park, 150 m or 500 ft farther south than the buoy. In addition, the claim on the buoy stating "90 miles to Cuba" is a rounded number, since Cuba, at its closest point is 94 statute miles or 81 nautical miles due south.

In the news today, a South Florida judge declares state's ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional. Although the ruling only applies to Monroe County, the most LGBT-friendly county that covers Key West, and expects an appeal, it highlights the ban violates the 14th Amendment of the U.S. constitution, which guarantees equal protection under the law.

Pride + Joy: One Year After Historic Supreme Court Ruling

One year ago, the U.S. Supreme Court issued two landmark rulings on June 26, 2013: one striking down part of the the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) that denied federal recognition to same-sex marriages and the other allowing same-sex couples to marry legally in California.

Since then, huge advances for the same-sex marriage have brought pride and joy to many couples who could not marry before. Before the rulings, same sex couples could marry in only 10 states and the District of Columbia; today, that number has almost doubled to 19 states and the District of Columbia, covering near 44% population of the country.

Most recently on Wednesday June 25, 2014, a federal judge struck down same-sex marriage ban in Indiana. Meanwhile, a 2-1 decision from the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, the first issued at the level of the federal appellate courts, ruled that the same-sex marriage ban in Utah was unconstitutional. Marriage-equality lawsuits are now pending in all 31 states where same-sex couples are still barred from marrying.

Postcard US-2333973 to Indiana, which was sent on July 25, 2013 and has since expired, was made out of a hand fan distributed by Macy's during the 2012 Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Pride Parade in San Francisco. The 2014 Parade, themed "Color Our World with Pride," will start at Market & Beale and end at Market & 8th Street in downtown San Francisco at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday June 29, 2014.

Same-sex Marriages Started in Wisconsin

U.S. District Judge Barbara Crabb declared the gay marriage ban in Wisconsin unconstitutional Friday, June 6, 2014. Same-sex couples began getting married in Madison and Milwaukee shortly after the ruling, in spite of confusion over the effect of the ruling. Republican Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen's vowed to appeal the ruling and to seek an emergency order in federal court to stop the wedding.

Wisconsin is the latest of the 15 consecutive lower court cases won for the same-sex marriages since a landmark Supreme Court ruling in June, 2013, although many of those rulings are still being appealed.

Postcard US-2576413 shows the Wisconsin State Capitol Building in Madison.

International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia

The International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHO) is celebrated every year on May 17. According to Wikipedia, "the day aims to coordinate international events that raise awareness of LGBT rights violations and stimulate interest in LGBT rights work worldwide."

The date of May 17 was chosen to commemorate the decision to remove homosexuality from the International Classification of Diseases of the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1990.

Coincidentally, Massachusetts became the first state in the U.S. to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples on May 17, 2004. Since then, more states have followed suit, and public awareness and support has increased. Nationwide, same-sex marriage is now legal in 17 states and the District of Columbia. Bans have been struck down in Michigan, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and most recently, Arkansas and Idaho, pending appeals.

Locally, the Las Vegas steering committee of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) is celebrating its Ninth Annual Gala Dinner with Golden-Globe and Emmy Award-Winning actor John Lithgow at Wynn on May 17, 2014. Celebrity appearances by screenwriter of the HBO “Big Love,” Dustin Lance Black; the cast members of Le Rêve, Melody Sweets of Absinthe, TV personality Chris Saldaña are expected with red carpet at 4:30 p.m. and the gala at 6 p.m.

Meanwhile, businesses are taking notes and have been increasingly embracing LGBT friendly approaches. The advertising card from the Tropicana Las Vegas promotes the hotel as a transformed LGBT friendly destination and boasts a score 90 out of 100 on the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) 2013 Corporate Equality Index on their website. The Tropicana has also been hosting Xposed!, a new weekly LGBTQ beach party at at Tropicana Beach Club, on Saturdays since March 29, 2014.

Hawaii, the Aloha State

Postcard US-2413163 to Japan shows a beautiful map of Hawaii, the only state in the U.S. made up entirely of islands. Hawaii, joined the Union on August 21, 1959, is the most recent of the 50 U.S. states.

The Aloha State made the headlines today by leapfrogging Illinois to become the 15th state to recognize same-sex marriages after Governor Neil Abercrombie signed the marriage equality bill into law during a ceremony at 10:00 am local time. Before signing, Abercrombie stated that “those who have been invisible will now be visible to themselves and the whole world.” 

Neil Abercrombie signs the marriage equality bill

Same-sex ceremonies are set to begin December, 2, 2013, boasting Hawaii's claim as a wedding destination.

From Greenwich Village to Golden Gate: a Journey of 44 Years

Today is the 44th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots that members of gay community protested against police raids at the Stonewall Inn in the Greenwich Village, New York City, in the early morning of June 28, 1969, It marked the beginning of the modern fight for LGBT rights in the United States.

Same-sex marriage resumed today in California after a federal appeals court lifted a hold on the lower-court ruling that struck down the state’s Proposition 8 ban on gay marriage, followed a US Supreme Court decision two days earlier.

This rainbow fist postcard symbolizes a 44-year's journey of struggle with determination, highlighted by the above bookend-like events. The postcard was purchased at Zazzle.com.

Still a Long Way to Equality

In spite of Supreme Court rulings on DOMA and Proposition 8 that advanced LGBT equality yesterday on June 26, 2013, there are only 30% population (95 million) of the country living in states where same-sex marriage is legal by August 2013.  Thirty five states explicitly prohibit same-sex marriage in their constitutions or state laws while three of those and one another state allow civil unions. In essence, it highlights that a divided America where people in one part of the country are still allowed to be discriminated against. 

CNN has an article on What's Next for the Gay Rights Movements. There is still a long way to go and much to do to achieve a true equality. 

My traveling postcard US-2277033 shows a Human Right Campaigns (HRC) logo. HRC is the largest LGBT equality-rights advocacy group and political lobbying organization in the United States.

More Rainbows

Hoover Dam

I need to clarify that when I mentioned in my last post rainbows were rare seen in Las Vegas, I meant those meteorological rainbows. In fact, rainbows are easily to find in and around Las Vegas thanks to many water features and fountains. My traveling postcard sent to Turkey US-2283223 shows a rainbow formed over the mist from the Hoover Dam spillway. I have a video showing a rainbow over the famous Bellagio music fountains taken by a GoPro cam.

I generated a HTML5 WordCloud with my blog feeds. The result was interesting.

Also if you type in any text string that contains "gay" in Google's search box today, the search box will be surrounded by rainbows. It marks two separate rulings from the U.S. Supreme Court that struck down portion of the Federal Defense of Marriage Act and cleared the way for same-sex marriages banned under the Proposition 8 to resume in California.

The Latter Days

Thirty five years ago, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) opens its priesthood to "all worthy men" on June 9, 1978, ending a 148-year-old policy of excluding black men. A line in the lyrics of "the Book of Mormon" alluded above event: "I believe that in 1978 God changed his mind about black people..."

I realized that I still had a couple of the advertising cards of the movie "Latter Days" from its screening at the Gateway Theatre in Fort Lauderdale on February 20, 2004. According to IMDB, the movie is about a promiscuous gay party animal who falls for a young Mormon missionary, leading to crisis, cliché, and catastrophe. You can watch Latter Days' official trailer on Youtube.

So, I hope some day the LDS church will recognize LGBT members are belong to "all worthy men", not someones who have mental diseases to be cured. Indeed, changes are in the air. Stephanie Mencimer from MotherJones had a pair articles on Mormon Church Abandons Its Crusade Against Gay Marriage, and How the Mormons Ensured Victory for Gay Marriage. Recently, LDS Church accepted new Boy Scout policy on gay members.

I bought a copy of the Latter Days movie when it was out in DVDs. I feel It still resonate with anyone who has ever fallen in love when I watched it again after all these years. Now you can own a copy in Blu-ray from Amazon. 

Eiffel Tower, and the Replicas

Eiffel Tower, Paris, France

I have been sending off quite a few Eiffel Tower postcards since I joined the PostCrossing, although they were of the replica in front of Paris Hotel in Las Vegas. Naturally, I was quite excited when I received a postcard (FR-287501) of the Eiffel Tower from Paris, France yesterday.

Paris Las Vegas Hotel, Las Vegas, NV

Coincidentally, France celebrates its first gay marriage yesterday, becoming the 14th country to legalize gay marriage,  after President François Hollande signed the country’s “Marriage for All” act into law on May 18, 2013.

More coincidentally, when Paris Hotel's owner Harrah's focused on marketing its properties to specific segments of the population to counter the 2008-2009 economic downturn, Paris was being marketed heavily towards gay and lesbian travelers, according to a Las Vegas Review Journal article "Executive Wants To Ensure Hotel Guests Get Social Cachet For Their Cash" posted on February 22, 2009.

In the United States, only Washington, D.C., and 12 states have legalized same-sex marriage. If we are proud that we have at least 10 Eiffel Tower replicas in the United States, will we be prouder when some day the same-sex marriage is recognized in all 50 states in the United States, following France's lead?

Here are a few more postcards of the Las Vegas Eiffel Tower at Paris Las Vegas Hotel:

US-2209904

Eiffel Tower at Paris Las Vegas Hotel under a Full Moon

You can find postcards of the Las Vegas Eiffel Tower from many gift shops in Las Vegas. You can purchase a copy of the Eiffel Tower at Paris Las Vegas under a Full Moon from Zazzle.com.

If you have a postcard or a photo of the Eiffel Tower or one of the replicas around the world, can you send me a copy? I will return a postcard to you from Las Vegas and feature your card here.

Eiffel Tower replicas in the US:

• Eiffel Tower, Kings Island Amusement Park, Mason, Ohio, 101 m  (332 ft), 1:3 scale
• Eiffel Tower, Kings Dominion Amusement Park, Doswell, Virginia, 101 m (332 ft), 1:3 scale
• Bordeaux Tower, Fayetteville, North Carolina, 45 m (148 ft), 1:6 scale
• Eiffel Tower. EPCOT, Disney World, Orlando, Florida, 23 m (76 ft), 1:14 scale
• Paris-Texas Eiffel Tower,  Paris, Texas, 20 m (66 ft), 1:16 scale
• Paris-Tennessee Eiffel Tower, Paris, Tennessee.  18 m (60 ft), 1:20 scale
• Meccano model, SciTrek Technology Museum, Atlanta, Georgia, 11 m (36 ft)
• Dreyfus Eiffel Tower, Austin, Texas, 7.5 m (25 ft), 1:45 scale
• Paris-Michigan Eiffel Tower, Paris, Michigan, 3 m (10 ft), 1:110 scale

One Year Later: Obama and Same Sex Marriage

LGBT Supporters with Bill Clinton for Obama Re-Election in 2012 

This postcard is made to mark the anniversary of President Obama's endorsement for same-sex marriage on May 9, 2012. On the postcard, a "LGBT for Obama" banner was held high when former President Bill Clinton spoke during a rally at the the Springs Preserve in Las Vegas on October 9, 2012.

Jonathan Capehart had a blog on "Obama and gay marriage: one fabulous year" at Washington Post that documented major related events in the year following Obama's announcement. (updated on May 10, 2013: he had a new blog titled "Minnesota, Clinton and Obama: More gay firsts" following a 75 to 49 vote on May 9, 2013 in the Minnesota State House to legalize same-sex marriage.)

The postcard can be purchased at Zazzle.com