I Didn't Say It ...

Laverne Cox, on her rather historic year:

“So much of the year I’ve had is historic, but this is a moment that is bigger than me. I meet people who say that my role has given them the courage to say, ‘This is who I am’ and ‘I can transition and be successful and to be out as a trans person. … We have this internal compass of the truth inside of us. And that is our job, really, to quiet all this noise around us and listen to that.”

It’s that inner voice that guides you, but, as Laverne says, sometimes the outside noises drown it out.

Bernie Sanders, Democratic Senator from Vermont, on making Election Day a national holiday:

"Election Day should be a national holiday so that everyone has the time and opportunity to vote. While this would not be a cure-all, it would indicate a national commitment to create a more vibrant democracy. We should not be satisfied with a ‘democracy’ in which more than 60 percent of our people don't vote and some 80 percent of young people and low-income Americans fail to vote. We can and must do better than that."

Gee, how I wonder how the GOP feels about having more people vote?

Uh huh.

Anthony Mundine, Australian aboriginal boxer, on his thoughts about gay being a choice:

“I told you I speak the truth, I got nothing against homosexuality, if you’re gay, be gay, that’s your choice, that’s your right in this day and age. But don’t exploit it on prime time when there’s kids watching and having sons come towards you and going ‘dad is that alright, for a man to kiss a man?”

He has nothing against The Gays; he just doesn’t want to see us anywhere, especially on the TV.

Mundine goes on to say that he has a lot of homosexual friends though I find that hard to believe.

Rand Paul, Teabagging wingnut, on Hillary Clinton running for President:

"I think all the polls show if she does run, she’ll win the Democrat nomination. But I don’t think it’s for certain. It’s a very taxing undertaking to go through. It’s a rigorous physical ordeal, I think, to be able to campaign for the presidency."

Really, Rand? At least she doesn’t wear some kind of muskrat on her head and call it hair. At least she has more than two brain cells to rub together.

Even Rand’s own people — i.e. Fox News — denounced his attack on Clinton's age.

Jon Stewart, on Fox News:

"I think that Roger Ailers’ [sic] great gift was mainstreaming that nativist, paranoid streak in American politics and putting it on television in a much prettier, shinier box. What they did was change the inflection point. AM talk radio is, ‘We are being robbed by communists and progressives that are destroying this country. They are a cancer and treasonous!’ Fox News does it like, [sweet, cheery voice] ‘Are we being run by communists? Is it treason what they’re doing? Let’s have the discussion.’”

Funny that it takes a comic to point out the lack of newsworthiness of Fox.

Tony Perkins, of the Family Research Center hate group, on Apple CEO Tim Cook coming out as gay:

"When companies get involved in cultural battles, every consumer is forced to take part. As conservatives we aren’t looking for businesses to take our side - we just want them to be neutral. Of course, Tim Cook has the right to express his views but consumers have rights too, including the right to respond. As Christians we’re called to be good stewards of god’s money...and apps like 2nd Vote and Faith-Driven Consumer help shoppers do exactly that. Let’s face it, money talks and corporate America is listening.”

God’s money? GOD’S money? I didn’t see Her down at my job punching the time clock!

I Didn't Say It

Greg Berlanti, Arrow creator, on his relationship with soccer star Robbie Rogers:

“I’m absolutely crazy in love with him so I don’t think too much about all that stuff. I just try to live my life and I know he does too, like two people who are really happy and healthy and a relationship that we both feel really blessed about."

It’s really that simple, for any couple, gay or straight.

Bryan Cranston, accepting his Emmy for Breaking Bad, on how he came to acting:

“I would like to dedicate this award to all the Sneaky Petes of the world, who thought that settling for mediocrity was a good idea, because it was safe. Don’t do it. Take a chance. Take a risk. Find that passion. Rekindle it. Fall in love all over again. It’s really worth it.”

True words. Live a little; try something new.

Laverne Cox, on being harassed in the street for being gay or transgender … someone perceived as being different:

"I feel so often that our oppressors are in a lot of pain. When someone needs to call someone else out for who they are and make fun of them, it's because they don't feel comfortable with who they are. And so, if anyone ever has a problem with someone else, I ask you to look at yourselves first — what is it about you that you have a problem with?"

You gotta love her. 

People filled with so much hate have to be in pain, it just makes sense.

Michelangelo Signorile, on the news that Burger King might be moving to Canada to avoid US taxes:

“The fact that Burger King so publicly supports LGBT rights shouldn't matter. We should be past the point of being giddy over a nice wrapper. Corporations that dodge paying U.S. taxes while making billions from American consumers are wreaking havoc. We should all be sending a message to the fast-food giant that it is hurting America — gay America, straight America, all of America.”

American companies that try to dodge paying American taxes hurt all Americans, so when you hear of a company attempting this, let them know it’s unacceptable. And un-American.

Billy Crystal, on Robin Williams at the 2014 Emmy Awards:

"He made us laugh. Hard. Every time you saw him. On television and in movies, nightclubs, arenas, hospitals, homeless shelters, for our troops overseas and even in a dying girl's living room, to honor her last wish. He made us laugh.

"I spent many happy hours onstage with Robin. His brilliance was stunning; the relentless energy breathtaking. I felt like if I could throw a saddle on him and stay on for eight seconds, I was doing great.

"Robin, Whoopi, and I were in the broadcast booth on Comic Relief day at a New York Mets game with the great Tim McCarver. Robin knew nothing about baseball. I asked him who his favorite team was, and he said, 'The San Franciscos.'

"He was a little lost in the conversation, so I got an idea, turned to him and said, 'We have a Russian baseball player with us.' His eyes got all bright; his ears perked up. It was like he was a little dog that was inside all day and the master came and said, 'Hey, do you want to go for a walk?' I said, 'What's baseball like in Russia?' Without missing a beat, he said, 'We only have one team: The Reds.'

"The ball came screaming at us; we ducked down, it went screaming into the wall. The ball bounced back into Robin's hands. He yelled, 'I love America! I'm going to defect.'

"He could be funny anywhere. Often at my family functions, he would sit with my older immigrant relatives like he was one of the guys, and he would tell them about his journey from his little village in Poland to America. One uncle of mine said he came to America after World War II and hitchhiked. Robin said, 'I waited until there was a 747 and a kosher meal.'

"As genius as he was on stage, he was the greatest friend you could ever imagine: supportive, protective, loving. It's very hard to talk about him in the past because he was so present in our lives. For almost 40 years, he was the brightest star in the comedy galaxy. But while some of the brightest of celestial bodies are actually extinct, their molten energy long since cooled, miraculously, because they float in the heavens so far away from us now, their beautiful light will shine on us forever. And the glow will be so bright, it will warm your heart and make your eyes glisten, and you'll think to yourselves: Robin Williams… what a concept."

What a concept indeed.