Queer Town: No Cash, No TV Ads, No Gay Marriage

The No on 8 campaign pressed the panic button yesterday and pleaded for more donations to pay for more TV ads in an effort to defeat Proposition 8, the November ballot measure that bans same sex marriage.

"Our worst nightmares are coming true," wrote Geoff Kors, a member of the No on 8 executive committee, in an email to gay marriage supporters. "Today we learned of the massive $25.4 million our opponents have raised so far. They are using this war chest to broadcast lies: 24/7 and up and down the state of California. And the polls show the lies are working. We need your donation now."

The LA Times also lays out the grim realities of an underfunded No on 8 campaign, which has yet to counter a Yes on 8 TV ad on traditional television. That ad claims churches will lose their tax exemptions, people will be sued for their personal beliefs, and children will be taught about gay marriage in public schools. Kors and his campaign say the ad is filled with "lies."

Right now, according to the No on 8 campaign, same sex marriage supporters are behind in fund raising by almost $10 million. Whether or not gay rights activists have the money to hit back in a timely fashion, absentee voters, who often account for a third of the voting public in California, will start to mail in their ballots next week.

Yes on 8 supporters, in the meantime, continue to dominant the air waves with another ad, hitting again upon the theme that children in public schools will be forced to learn about gay marriage.

Contact Patrick Range McDonald at pmcdonald@laweekly.com.