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Gay Pride: Embroiled In Flag Flap Space Needle Finds Charitable Solution

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Last year, in an historic tribute to gay pride month, Seattle’s iconic Space Needle flew the gay pride flag. This year they declined — and met extreme disappointment and anger. So, they came up with a unique solution. Guest author and Seattle-area resident Stuart Wilber explains.

 

THE RAINBOW FLAG

Last year the Rainbow Flag flew atop the Space Needle on Pride weekend for the first time. It was a significant moment for Seattle, home to what is said to be the second-largest LGBT community in the country. People literally wept, posed for photos with the be-rainbowed Space Needle in the background, and sent hundreds of thank you messages to the corporation that owns it.  And of course, the expected complaints about special treatment for ‘The Gays’ also emerged.

 

THAT WAS LAST YEAR

On June 3, word got out that Seattle Out & Proud (SO&P), the organization responsible for the annual Pride Parade, had accepted the flag to use instead of it being flown atop the Needle. Within minutes a polite petition thanking the Space Needle Corporation (SNC) for flying the flag last year and asking them to re-consider their decision to not fly it again was initiated on change.org, and in eleven days, over 9700 people signed it and members of the City Council and columnists in both the alternative and mainstream media joined the clamor to fly the rainbow flag.

After all, when you see photos of the Eiffel Tower you think Paris, when you see the Needle you think Seattle. The Rainbow Flag flying on our iconic structure was a statement of inclusion and welcome. Not flying it seemed a rejection as hurtful as unrequited love or being turned down by a cutie at last call – it stung!

I confess, I was part of the kerfuffle – I e-mailed, I posted, I re-posted, I tweeted and re-tweeted, I harangued friends and strangers, activists and neighbors to join the fray and sign the petition. For the most part the reaction I received was positive and I am responsible for getting more than a few of those 9700 signatures. But I was also confronted by some stinging remarks. After all, marriage equality, DADT, ENDA, homeless LGBT youth and transgender bashing, not to mention the economy, famine and war, are more important than a piece of colored cloth flying on a corporate structure.

Then the Seattle Gay News (SGN) upped the ante by calling on all local businesses to fly the Pride Flag.  Healio, a local café, offered free pride flags to any business that would fly one. A flag-sewing party was proposed to take place at a counter-protest of the Westboro Church, which will be protesting the Pride Picnic. The image of drag queens dressed as Betsy Ross sewing strips of brightly colored cloth while the Phelps Gang shouts “God Hates Fags!” made it into my dreams last night.

 

A PR NIGHTMARE

Now the Space Needle Corporation had a PR nightmare on their hands. Seattle Gay News reported the Space Needle had committed “to sponsoring a fundraiser on-site in the fall to benefit the community and create the program that would take the flag on tour and use it as an education and inspirational message.”  SO&P had announced the giant flag would be leading the Pride Parade carried by the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, The Abbey of St. Joan who said in a statement to the press, “we are delighted and honored” to march with the flag. “As we carry this beacon of hope through downtown Seattle, we will perpetuate our mission to support and represent our community in all its magnificent glory. The past and future of a particular flag we carry is of less import to us than ensuring that this powerful symbol is present on the parade route.” Even I in my enthusiasm to get that flag atop the Needle know better than to try to take it away from the Sisters.

 

A CORPORATE SOLUTION

SNC came up with a solution that allows the Sisters to carry the flag, SO&P to have their fundraiser and Seattle to see the Pride Flag fly again. Their press release states, “In response to a ground swell of support requesting the Rainbow Flag being raised again on Seattle Pride Weekend, the Space Needle has issued an exciting new fundraising challenge. If the community can raise $50,000 for 4 local charities, the Space Needle will raise the Rainbow Flag on Sunday of Seattle Pride weekend in Seattle. The Space Needle will also kick off the challenge with an inaugural donation of $5000.00.”

“According to Jeff Wright, Chairman of Space Needle LLC, ‘We want to harness the enthusiasm that has built up to raise the flag for the encore performance. Our entire community gets involved in whatever issue is at hand and we think that is what makes us so strong. This challenge can reap great benefits for these worthwhile organizations.’

Four charities have been selected to be the recipients of the fundraising challenge. Greater Seattle Business Association Scholarship Program, Lambda Legal, It Gets Better for The Trevor Project, and Mary’s Place, a homeless shelter for women and children. The $50,000 will be divided equally between the four organizations, SNC states.

 

COMMUNITY REACTION

For those not familiar with Seattle organizations, The GSBA Scholarship Program supports LGBTA students. Often such students, most belonging to a marginalized group, had no family support or financial aid from more traditional sources. Mary’s Place is a shelter that, unlike most, is LGBT welcoming and inclusive. All are worthy causes – ones I personally support. And I believe the challenge will probably be met.

Comments on the Space Needle Face Book page are mixed — most are hostile. Protests are being threatened. What was a PR Nightmare has become a PR catastrophe. Why didn’t SNC just agree to fly the flag and issue the challenge? There should have been ropes attached to that flag, not strings. I still hope they will change their corporate mind.

 

WHY DOES IT MATTER?

I have been asked why it matters so much if the rainbow flag flies over the Space Needle again this year. My partner reminded me that our domestic partnership is only recognized in a few states and our marriage only in Canada and scolded me, saying I had more important issues to address. Some activist friends complained I should be devoting my time lobbying my senators and representatives as if I couldn’t multi-task. Some told me that the Space Needle is privately owned so the decision to fly the flag is a corporate one and their decision should be respected. But a gift once given becomes more precious when it is taken away.

 

ANOTHER KIND OF ACTIVISM – GENTLE PERSUASION

New media has transformed our ability to make things happen. With just a few clicks of a mouse we can sign a petition, post it to our Facebook page, tweet it and send our message to multiple recipients. The petition to the SNC was appreciative and polite. Some said it was too polite.

But when the Pride Flag flies on June 26 – there is no doubt in my mind that it will – more than 9700 people will see their activism rewarded. And emboldened by this success, they may again sign a petition with a few clicks of a mouse, or call their representatives or even take to the streets when the cause warrants it.

Those of us who live in Seattle and Washington State are fortunate — many of our representatives are supportive of our equality. And when we saw that rainbow flag flying over the iconic Needle, we for a brief time felt included and welcomed — a feeling many of us as LGBTQI folk never get to experience. Many of our youth are homeless and have no access to computers. Others watch the “It Gets Better” videos and wonder, “when?”

Our President and our Governor, the King County Council, the Seattle City Council and our Mayor again proclaim Gay Pride. The flag that flew over the Space Needle last year will lead the parade on June 26. But June 27, no one will remember that flag or those proclamations, but thousands would remember the disappointment of not seeing it fly over the Needle.

This year, when that flag flies over our Needle, everyone who sees it will know that it has already gotten a little better.

 

(image)

Stuart Wilber is a Seattle activist who skipped high school to watch the McCarthy-Army Hearings. Having seen it get better and worse and better again over the years, he continues to hope he will experience equality in his lifetime. The Space Needle Challenge can be accessed at Pride Needle.

 

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Musk Complying With Federal Laws White House Says — Will Not Release Disclosure

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White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt insists President Donald Trump’s Director of the Department of Government Efficiency, Elon Musk, is complying with all federal laws. The Trump administration is under growing pressure to release Musk’s financial disclosure form and any conflict of interest waiver the President may have signed, if there is one.

The New York Times’ Maggie Haberman, who wrote the best-selling book, “Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America,” made a rare appearance inside the White House Press Briefing Room on Wednesday to challenge Musk’s actions.

“You talked about the transparency with DOGE and Elon Musk,” Haberman reminded Leavitt. “There is a conflict of interest law in place that says that people who have personal interests can’t interact with government entities that could touch on those. Has President Trump signed a waiver for Elon Musk, does such a thing and exist, if it does, will you guys release it in the interest of transparency that he’s committed to?”

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“I have not seen the law that you are referring to,” Leavitt was quick to respond. “What I can tell you is that Elon Musk is, I’ve confirmed before, is a special government employee. He is filing the proper financial disclosure. And he is complying with all applicable federal laws.”

“As you also heard, Elon addressed this directly yesterday in the alleged conflict of interest, and he said everything he’s doing is very public, and if you all perceive a conflict of interest, you’re welcome to bring that up.”

“And as the president said, if he feels like Elon is engaging in something that’s a conflict of interest, he will tell Elon not to do that,” she claimed. “Elon also said yesterday that before he moves forward with anything, he consults with the president of the United States. So, um, we’re very confident with the ethics and the guardrails that have been put in place here.”

On Tuesday during his Oval Office press conference, Elon Musk told reporters that there is no conflict of interest.

Musk’s SpaceX reportedly received a $38.8 million contract from NASA this week.

CNN on Tuesday reported that Musk has not filed and will not file a public financial disclosure form.

“Musk, speaking in the Oval Office, sought to underscore his belief that ‘transparency is what builds trust,’ and insisted that all of his team’s efforts were being made public on DOGE’s social media accounts and website,” CNN reported. “But he also seemed to chafe at some of the scrutiny he was receiving, likening it to a ‘daily proctology exam.'”

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“Earlier in the day, a White House official said Musk would not need to file a public financial disclosure, allowing the world’s richest man to skirt public scrutiny of his potential conflicts. Musk’s various companies have billions of dollars in government contracts.”

“As an unpaid special government employee who is not a commission officer, he will file a confidential financial disclosure report per the norm,” a White House official told CNN, the news outlet reported.

“We wouldn’t let him” have a conflict of interest or a lack of transparency, President Trump assured reporters Tuesday.

But The New York Times on Tuesday reported that the White House had not responded to its request “for a copy of the waiver, a document that is required under federal law to be released. Ethics waivers are typically drafted based on conflicts identified through a financial disclosure filing, so it is possible that no waiver has been prepared yet.”

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‘Demolition Plan’: Dems Warn DOGE Guts Government to Empower Billionaires, Harm Americans

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During Wednesday’s DOGE Subcommittee Hearing on Government Waste, House Democrats slammed President Donald Trump’s Director of the Department of Government Efficiency, Elon Musk, and DOGE, which they accused of being a “demolition plan” for the federal government designed to empower billionaires while harming everyday Americans, and especially those who rely on social safety net programs like Social Security and Medicare.

In a damning display, U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia detailed what he said were Musk’s plans to launch a “power grab” inside the federal government, hurt “the American social safety net” and destroy “our institutions.” The California Democrat also made a few mocking remarks about the billionaire he called “President Musk.”

“I find it ironic, of course, that our chairwoman, Congresswoman Greene, is in charge of running this committee,” Rep. Garcia said of far-right Republican U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. “Now, in the last Congress, Chairwoman Greene literally showed a dick pic in our oversight congressional hearing, so I thought I’d bring one as well.”

“Now, this, of course, we know is President Elon Musk,” Garcia joked, as a staffer put up a huge photo of the billionaire in white tie and tails, to laughter from the gallery. “He’s also the world’s richest man. He was the biggest political donor in the last election. He has billions of dollars in conflicts of interest, and we know that he is leading a power grab, also abided by and encouraged by Donald Trump and of course, the chairwoman, Congresswoman Greene.”

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Garcia pointed to a large board listing several federal agencies he suggested DOGE is trying to destroy.

He called DOGE “a demolition plan that’s going to run through our government,” and said that “DOGE is trying to abolish the Department of Education. That means opportunities denied to kids. It means you’re ripping away opportunities for children with disabilities, who are dependent on this money.”

“You’re also halting medical research, which is also critical, which we have to also stop. The idea that we are going to eliminate or destroy the National Institutes of Health, the NIH, is crazy.”

“Let’s talk about the Department of Labor. We’re talking about protections for working people across this country, where people can actually complain about abuses their companies are making against them and their coworkers. Workers are now going to be in danger,” he warned.

“And let’s also talk about the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Another huge issue for us. Think about the scammers and fraudsters that’ll be empowered across this country, because Elon Musk,” he alleged, “wants — essentially, these companies [to] have more power over consumers and over people across this country.”

“Look at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services,” Garcia continued. “That is actually what’s being discussed partly today. Healthcare, we’re talking about being denied to millions of poor people, working-class people across this country. And now, of course, they’re onto their largest target: The U.S. Social Security Administration. We’re talking about this the destruction of the actual social safety net in this country. We know that one in five Americans collect Social Security — seniors, disabled people. This entire plan is about hurting the American social safety net and destroying our institutions.”

The California Democrat continued to attack DOGE.

“This committee wants to empower the richest person in the world to hurt people so they can take all of this money that they so-call want to save and then give it to themselves, their companies, and their billionaire friends,” he charged. “That is the attack that is happening in this committee and across this country, and it’s important that we call it out.”

“We also know, of course, that Elon Musk is sending his unqualified DOGE staff to carry out this agenda across all these agencies. And in some cases, actually teenage staffers. No accountability, no experience, and problematic records. They’re trying to rob you and they’re probably a minor.”

U.S. Rep. Greg Casar also attacked Musk and President Trump, for firing numerous Inspectors General while ignoring what he says is the $8 million per day the federal government gives to Musk and his companies.

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“Five Inspector Generals that were looking into Elon Musk’s companies were fired by the Trump-Musk administration,” the Democrat from Texas charged. “TheseInspector Generals who are independent, protected by law, they are the people that find the waste, fraud, and abuse and found many of the cases of waste, fraud, and abuse that have been brought up today — fired because they were looking into Elon Musk at the NLRB, the National Labor Relations Board, which is supposed to protect workers from getting their unions busted by folks like Elon Musk — made functionally broken by the so-called Department of Government Efficiency that really is the Department of Government Efficiency for Elon Musk, not for you.”

“They are trying to shut down the Department of Education, the Department of Labor,” he continued. “You know what he doesn’t seem to be looking into? His own contracts.”

“Just last year, Elon Musk was promised three billion from close to 100 contracts with the federal government,” Casar alleged.

He also said that “the average person in this country who survives on Social Security, one of our seniors who’s worked their entire life,” gets $65 a day from Social Security.

“We’re not looking into Elon Musk’s eight million dollars a day. This subcommittee, chaired by Marjorie Taylor Greene and the House Republicans, is looking into your grandmother’s $65 a day.”

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Image via Reuters

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‘Trumpflation’: Blaming Biden, Trump Slammed for Breaking ‘Day One’ Promise as Prices Jump

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President Donald Trump is blaming his predecessor, President Joe Biden, after inflation jumped far more than expected.

“Biden inflation up!” Trump wrote on social media Wednesday, taking no responsibility for breaking his campaign promise to lower prices “on day one.”

On Wednesday the U.S. Department of Labor reported inflation jumped to levels not seen since last June, and Americans are being forced to pay far higher prices at the supermarket, especially for basic staples like eggs.

“Consumer prices roared higher in January, driving inflation up to 3%,” CNN reported, calling it “the fastest monthly pace since September 2023.” Economists had expected inflation to come in at an annual rate of 2.9%.

“Egg prices shot up 15.2% from December to January, the fastest increase that index has seen since 2015, according to the report,” CNN added. “They’re up 53% year over year.”

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The jump in inflation makes it far less likely the Federal Reserve will lower interest rates, which remain high as they try to battle inflation. The Associated Press reported on Wednesday, “the cost of groceries, gasoline and rents rose, a disappointment for families and businesses struggling with higher costs and likely underscoring the Federal Reserve’s resolve to delay further interest rate cuts.”

“Grocery prices have skyrocketed,” candidate Trump said back in August on the campaign trail. Trump has bragged that he won the election on his promise to lower the cost of “groceries.”

“When I win, I will immediately bring prices down, starting on day one,” Trump said, as multiple news outlets, including The New York Post and CNN, have reported.

After the election, Trump acknowledged his pledge to reduce the price of groceries.

“I won on groceries,” Trump told NBC News’ Kristen Welker in December.“Very simple word, groceries. Like almost — you know, who uses the word? I started using the word — the groceries. When you buy apples, when you buy bacon, when you buy eggs, they would double and triple the price over a short period of time, and I won an election based on that. We’re going to bring those prices way down.”

But Trump appears to have done little to even try to bring down prices, including the cost of food.

“Now, maybe Americans did send Trump back to the White House to lower prices,” MSNBC‘s Jen Psaki wrote late last month, “but during his first week in office — a period of time when presidents typically use their power to make clear what their priorities are — he focused on anything but.

The one step he did appear to take to lower prices was to sign an executive order telling agencies in the executive branch to “take actions that lower prices.”

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“President Trump, who while campaigning vowed to end the ‘inflation nightmare,'” CBS News reported last month, on Inauguration Day “signaled his focus on the high cost of living in the U.S. by signing an executive order that requires ‘all executive departments and agencies to deliver emergency price relief’ to Americans.”

“It is critical to restore purchasing power to the American family and improve our quality of life,” the executive order stated.

“To accomplish that, Mr. Trump is ordering the departments and agencies that fall under the executive branch, including the departments of Commerce, Health and Human Services, Labor, and Energy, to take actions that lower prices for everything from housing and health costs to food and fuel,” CBS added. It is unclear what steps they were supposed to take, or if any did.

Meanwhile, consumers appear to be growing angry, and Wednesday’s inflation news — coupled with Trump’s imposition of a new tariff on all aluminum and steel coming into the United States — is not making it easier for average Americans.

On social media, critics were quick to blame and blast the President.

“Meat prices up 0.6 percent in January, egg prices up 15.2 percent. Too bad Trump is so busy doing corrupt deals with Musk and planning to take over Greenland and Gaza that he can’t pay attention to food prices,” remarked Dean Baker, senior economist at the Center for Economic and Policy Research.

Former Biden White House Senior Deputy Press Secretary Andrew Bates posted video of Trump’s interview with NBC’s Welker.

“The thing is,” Democratic strategist and Kamala Harris alum Mike Nellis wrote, “Trump didn’t just promise to cool inflation—he said prices would go down. And they aren’t. His tariff threats are already driving prices up everywhere, from groceries to housing, cars, and appliances.”

“Trump took office and inflation immediately went UP. But instead of fixing the economy, he spent his time banning DEI, renaming water, going to the Super Bowl and trying to put hotels on the Gaza strip,” observed frequent commentator Alex Cole, who has nearly 275,000 followers on X.

“They’re calling it TRUMPFLATION. Beautiful word, maybe the best word. The most luxurious inflation—nobody does inflation better than me!” Cole also wrote, mocking Trump and his speaking style.

“Wow,” remarked Democratic strategist Sawyer Hackett. “Inflation in the US rose 3% in January, higher than experts predicted for Trump’s first month report.”

After noting increases in the cost of groceries, energy, and eggs, he snarked, “Renaming the Gulf of America should help…”

Watch the videos above or at this link.

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