The Gay Thread

[Alex]

Judith Light isn't gay, is she? I know she's a huge activist on LGBT issues, but I thought she's straight.

Or is there a joke there I'm not getting?

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Judith Light is an awesome gay ally. She happens to be heterosexual though.

[Disneyphile]

OMG.

Uganda wants to execute gays, and their families and friends face 7 years in prison if they don't disclose them to authorities. (http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gNOsUTPIL6zoTWAGRTzPqmx3__IgD9CFBHJ00)

I have no words. :(

[JWBear]

I have words, but LoT will * them out.

[Alex]

If you watch Rachel Maddow, she's been on that story for a while now Some of the stuff around The Family (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fellowship_%28Christian_organization%29) feels a bit too Dan Brown to me but she's been drawing some interesting connections between that story and some significant American politicians (and also with the Stupak Amendment in the House version of the healthcare bill).

[Nephythys]

Ugh

[Alex]

Apparently the death penalty part is being taken out (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601116&sid=aU6JnNOFJv64#). Still criminalizes homosexuality, though.

Just because it is slightly apropos of a previous conversation it is worth pointing out that this is a Christian country (a coworker here just jumped to the conclusion that its a Muslim country) that was going to pass this before international limelight changed their mind.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Rachel Maddow interviews Richard Cohen on the subject (http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2009/12/08/Maddow_Takes_on_Ex_Gay_Movement/).

[SacTown Chronic]

Just because it is slightly apropos of a previous conversation it is worth pointing out that this is a Christian country (a coworker here just jumped to the conclusion that its a Muslim country) that was going to pass this before international limelight changed their mind.



The legislation has drawn global attention from activists across the spectrum of views on gay issues. The measure was proposed in Uganda following a visit by leaders of U.S. conservative Christian ministries that promote therapy for gays to become heterosexual. However, at least one of those leaders has denounced the bill, as have some other conservative and liberal Christians in the United States.Well no wonder, the Ugandans are hanging with a bad crowd.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

People identify the sexual orientation of strangers as fast as 50 milliseconds (http://scienceblogs.com/cognitivedaily/2009/12/people_identify_the_sexual_ori.php)

[lashbear]

see, that's flawed, I mean, nobody realised I was a Mo when they met me.


......much.

[JWBear]

see, that's flawed, I mean, nobody realised I was a Mo when they met me.


......much.

Oh, please Mary.... Helen Keller would know! ;)

[Disneyphile]

If I didn't already know that Ken is as straight as they get, this morning would have sealed that ideal. I awoke to find him wearing tan pants with a red polo shirt under a slate blue sweatshirt with the collar flaps from the polo shirt pulled out over the sweatshirt.

And, no, I didn't let him leave the house like that. ;)

[Alex]

Since there's some tendency to bash Texas and other parts of the south whenever gay issues are discussed, I thought it worthy of notice that yesterday Houston became the largest city in the United States to elect an openly gay mayor (and a woman too).

[Gemini Cricket]

Since there's some tendency to bash Texas and other parts of the south whenever gay issues are discussed, I thought it worthy of notice that yesterday Houston became the largest city in the United States to elect an openly gay mayor (and a woman too).
I was just talking about gay stuff and Texas last night with some theatre folk I know. A couple of my friends were sitting around saying how they hate everyone/everything in Texas. I told them that I have a hard time saying I hate a whole state, any group of people etc because that's the same ignorance people display when they say they hate all gays, all black people, all politicians etc. This story proves me right. I like being right, it's such a rare happening...
:)

[Chernabog]

I'm STILL willing to go out on a limb and say that all Texan drivers are a$$holes. ;)

[Cadaverous Pallor]

Houston is an island.

[Alex]

Sure, but then so are Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, El Paso, and much of the rural southern tip of the state. All of which are areas when were won by Obama last year.

Sure things aren't all rosy and perfect. But on this message board very broad blanket statements have been made about the south and Texas so I thought it worthy of a highlight, just like when very broad blanket statements have been made about other groups to general consternation.

[SacTown Chronic]

Steers and queers, Texas. Steers and queers.


/broad blanket statement

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Alex, thank you for making us aware of Huston's progressive-minded election news. Please continue to do so in the future.

As much as I applaud the people of Huston for their decision to elect a qualified person who happens to be a lesbian to the position of mayor, I do not think that negates the reputation The South has earned for itself as a region not too keen on mos.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Speaking of progressive actions, the state of Nevada just opened the doors to male prostitution (http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/dec/11/new-era-health-authorities-open-brothels-male-pros/).

[Alex]

And I don't mean to imply that it should negate the reputation of the south as a region unfriendly to the gay cause.

I mean to suggest that that it is worthy of a reminder that not all southerners are unfriendly. And that, in fact, a lot of them are not.

[Gemini Cricket]

I have progressive friends all over the South. Austin is great fun. In fact, in Austin there is a gay bar on the same block as the governor's mansion. I think that's pretty awesome. I watched the series finale of 'Six Feet Under' there with several other queens and a couple of suited gentlemen who I swear were politicians of some sort. They were stuffing dollar bills into the thongs of the hottie male dancers there.

ETA: Sorry, it's on the same block as the State Capitol and the TX Supreme Court not the Gov's mansion. Charlie's Bar. :)

[lashbear]

I went to a Gay bar in Dallas and did line dancing with Santa claus !!! (I got a good kiss offen him too !) Stoat & I weren't aware of any anti gay feeling at all during our whole time in Texas. (that includes the campest swish-through of the Mary Kay museum you ever did see.)

Saddest part was the fairgrounds were closed. No complete-dessert-buffet-deep=fried-on-a-stick for me that year.

[Ghoulish Delight]

Nice ABC. Nice.

Following Adam Lambert's performance at the AMA, he was bumped from a scheduled appearance on Good Morning America. Who replaced him? Chris Brown.

Stay classy, GMA.

[JWBear]

Santas in Speedos Race (http://www.towleroad.com/2009/12/watch-santas-in-speedos-race-through-sf-boston-albany-atlanta.html)

:D

[Kevy Baby]

...Huston's...

...the people of Huston...Is this an intentional misspelling or some meme I am unaware of?

Or am I just calling out your inability to spell a city name?

Or maybe it has something to do with this guy (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001379/) (or his daughter).

[SzczerbiakManiac]

I can't spell and the spell-checker didn't flag it.

<shrug>

[Kevy Baby]

Well then, um... er

sorry

[SzczerbiakManiac]

from The Onion

Gay Teen Worried He Might Be Christian (http://www.theonion.com/content/news/gay_teen_worried_he_might_be)

[Chernabog]

Oh my dear sweet jesus... he is god's gift to gays.

http://www.towleroad.com/2010/01/first-look-cristiano-ronaldo-for-armani.html

(And if anyone here says "eeh he's not my type," I'm not talking to you for a week.)

[Ghoulish Delight]

eeh he's not my type.

[JWBear]

I can't view the images.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Oh you're just saying that cause your beard is watching... ;)

[JWBear]

Oh you're just saying that cause your beard is watching... ;)

My I assume that this was directed at GD, and not me?

[Chernabog]

^^ Hahaha directed at either person, it's sort of a comical statement :p

[SzczerbiakManiac]

You're correct JW. You had the misfortune of posting in between the time I read GD's comment and when I submitted my post. :)

[Gemini Cricket]

Oh my dear sweet jesus... he is god's gift to gays.

http://www.towleroad.com/2010/01/first-look-cristiano-ronaldo-for-armani.html

(And if anyone here says "eeh he's not my type," I'm not talking to you for a week.)
Yes, but is he pro-bacon?

[JWBear]

Home now. Saw the pictures. Too much of a smooth "pretty boy" for my tast. Sorry Joe.

[Betty]

I'll take a smooth pretty boy any day... although I sort of doubt I'm HIS type.

[lashbear]

Oh my dear sweet jesus... he is god's gift to gays.

http://www.towleroad.com/2010/01/first-look-cristiano-ronaldo-for-armani.html

(And if anyone here says "eeh he's not my type," I'm not talking to you for a week.)
Meh.

[Chernabog]

You bears scare me sometimes ;)

[Gemini Cricket]

You bears scare me sometimes ;)
"Lions and tigers and..."
Oh, never mind.
:D

[Alex]

While the muscly types aren't really my type (if I were gay) the problem for me is that as photographed his facial expressions make him look like a moron (this in no way implies he is, but all I have to go on are these photographs).

Stupidity is anti-sexy.

[lashbear]

You bears scare me sometimes ;)
Don't forget sweetie... Old Twinks never die... they just become Bears. :p

[Chernabog]

Don't forget sweetie... Old Twinks never die... they just become Bears. :p

((looks down)) Yes dear, I'm well aware of that. ;) rofl

[JWBear]

You bears scare me sometimes ;)

Don't get me wrong... His build is yummy. I just prefer men who haven't been dipped in Nair and hung out to dry.

[Nephythys]

bwahahaha!

[Chernabog]

Fine ..... then these photos I guess don't do anything for you either:

http://www.towleroad.com/2010/01/cristiano-ronaldo-gets-drenched-in-more-new-armani-photos.html

Jeez you people are sick, sick, sick. ;)

[SzczerbiakManiac]

I'm not sick, but after looking at those pix I do have a fever... :evil:

[JWBear]

Fine ..... then these photos I guess don't do anything for you either:

http://www.towleroad.com/2010/01/cristiano-ronaldo-gets-drenched-in-more-new-armani-photos.html

Jeez you people are sick, sick, sick. ;)

Nope.

[Morrigoon]

Mmmrowr!

[lashbear]

Fine ..... then these photos I guess don't do anything for you either:

http://www.towleroad.com/2010/01/cristiano-ronaldo-gets-drenched-in-more-new-armani-photos.html (http://www.towleroad.com/2010/01/cristiano-ronaldo-gets-drenched-in-more-new-armani-photos.html)
Yawn. :p

[Gemini Cricket]

I dig the latest Advocate cover:

[Chernabog]

Yup..... I left the Democratic Party early last year :)

[Nephythys]

So-is this the end of DADT? Is it possible that all men and women (http://in.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idINIndia-45789120100128) who want to serve their country will be able to do so and be true and honest about who they are?

If so? About time-:snap:

Did anyone else see Cindy and Meghan McCain's pics for the Prop 8 campaign? Thought (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/20/cindy-mccain-noh8-photo-m_n_430004.html) these were awesome.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Please forgive the cynicism (sorry Coco), but I'll believe it when I see it. We've heard this promise before and look where that got us.

[Gemini Cricket]

So-is this the end of DADT? Is it possible that all men and women (http://in.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idINIndia-45789120100128) who want to serve their country will be able to do so and be true and honest about who they are?

If so? About time-:snap:

Did anyone else see Cindy and Meghan McCain's pics for the Prop 8 campaign? Thought (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/20/cindy-mccain-noh8-photo-m_n_430004.html) these were awesome.
Here's to hoping.
:cheers:

I love those pics!
:)

[alphabassettgrrl]

I sincerely hope so...

[SzczerbiakManiac]

The Daily Show skewers Don't Ask, Don't Tell (http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-february-3-2010/a-few-gay-men---women)

[Morrigoon]

Good news, boys!

About to head home to LA. I'll miss Vancouver and the Games. This two weeks has been like a dream. Starting the next chapter today.

Yep, local boy. Gorgeous figure too.

[JWBear]

Too scrawny for my taste; but he does have a cute face.

[SacTown Chronic]

A gay male figure skater? Now I've seen everything.

[Not Afraid]

Except Evan Lysacek isn't gay.

[SacTown Chronic]

A straight male figure skater? Now I've seen everything.

[Gemini Cricket]

Straights. They're everywhere now. Straight pride. Straight parades. I would be fine with it if they weren't so in your face with their straightness.

[SacTown Chronic]

Hey Brad, smell my finger.

[Gemini Cricket]

Hey Brad, smell my finger.
lol!
:D

[Strangler Lewis]

He's so straight, I bet he married a Playboy model like Jeff Garcia and Mike Piazza did.

Also, since he appears to have a ridiculous lightning bolt tattoo pointing at his privates, I will happily cede him to the gay community.

[innerSpaceman]

And he's not scrawny - - for a figure skater.

[JWBear]

And he's not scrawny - - for a figure skater.

Welcome back! Now go vote for Logan's husband! ;)

[innerSpaceman]

Can I vote for myself? Logan's hot.

(Ok, he's just a sim. But that's one step better than any action I'm currently getting, which is also pretty sim stim.)


******

In better news, the SCOTUS just refused to consider a last-ditch appeal attempt that sought to stop Washington D.C. from issuing same-sex marriage licenses starting tomorrow! W00t!

Gay couples can get married in D.C. as early as this weekend. WooHoo!

[lashbear]

The Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o17_JFax10E) was on last saturday.

[Morrigoon]

He's STRAIGHT???

Straight men in figure skating... what happened to the moral fabric of society? ;-P Next thing you know they'll want to be interior decorators too. Hairdressers, stylists... is nothing sacred?

[blueerica]

Something tells me that this CA state senator just had it coming.

Story here. (http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_14634503?nclick_check=1)


He has said those votes reflected the way constituents in his district wanted him to vote.

Right, that's why.

[Kevy Baby]

It sure would be nice if a representative really was voting "...the way constituents in his district wanted him to vote."

But he is still a schmuck.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

In my best Beverly Leslie, "Well, well, well...!"

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Sassy Gay Friend: Romeo & Juliet (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwnFE_NpMsE)

[SzczerbiakManiac]

You Belong With Me - Original Taylor Swift version (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VuNIsY6JdUw) (for reference)
You Belong With Me - Same-sex crush version (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vAwBWuTqak)
Same-Sex You Belong With Me, a capella live (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkK0bfJhYhw) (the aforementioned video was made to accompany the live performance) be sure to stick around for the zinger at the end

[Gn2Dlnd]

Straights. They're everywhere now. Straight pride. Straight parades. I would be fine with it if they weren't so in your face with their straightness.

Shoving it down your throat, and all.

[JWBear]

The Burkman brothers (http://www.towleroad.com/2010/03/watch-a-visit-with-the-burkman-bros.html)

Seriously drool worthy.

Their site (http://www.burkmanbros.com/homebase.php)

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Calen gets it (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjPgnDT-2Sg).

An interview with the couple Calen was referring to (http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2010/03/10/Kids_Say_the_Darndest_Things/).

[Cadaverous Pallor]

Mississippi school cancels prom because lesbian couple would have attended (http://network.nationalpost.com/NP/blogs/posted/archive/2010/03/11/mississipi-school-board-cancels-prom-over-lesbian-and-her-date.aspx)

John Green of Nerdfighters (http://nerdfighters.ning.com/) just tweeted an offer to begin a fundraiser to throw an inclusive prom for the school. When details come I'll post them.

[JWBear]

Like many high school seniors in the U.S., 18-year-old Constance McMillen had been looking forward to her spring prom.

My advice for her... Finish school and get the HELL out of Mississippi!

[Scrooge McSam]

My advice for her... Finish school and get the HELL out of Mississippi!

Well, you're no fun

Don't you enjoy playing "poke the bigot"? I do... and it's such a target rich environment here.

[innerSpaceman]

This (http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2010/04/15/obama-seeks-hospital-visit-rights-for-gays-lesbians/) just in: Obama orders Dept. of Health and Human services to see to it that hospitals in America not be allowed to deny visitation rights to partners of gay and lesbian patients.


Wow. I was just badmouthing the president earlier today. Maybe I should lay off that for a while.






Or ... do it more often.

[blueerica]

The WSJ article on the same topic... (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304510004575186893862169492.html)

Peter Sprigg, senior fellow at the socially conservative Family Research Council, said his group had no objection to allowing gay and lesbian patients to visit or make decisions for their partners. But he said the order "undermines the definition of marriage." He also said it furthers "a big government federal takeover of even the smallest details of the nation's health care system."

"In its current political context, President Obama's memorandum clearly constitutes pandering to a radical special interest group," he said.

Really?? Radical special interest group. <choke> <cough>

"The concern is they're [the White House] doing this to provide cover for what they're not doing," said John Aravosis, who writes a blog on gay issues. "They have a history of providing very small things to make up for big promises."

Soooo true.

[innerSpaceman]

Yep, I'm cautiously optimistic on this. Obama's big with words, poor with action. This memo, as worded, can only be enforced by the federal government - even if the regulations asked for are actually enacted. That means if a hospital keeps me in the waiting room while my boyfriend chokes to death on his own blood, there's nothing I can do about it.

Plus, oh I such a cynic, Obama's making an appearing Monday here in L.A. to promote Barbara Boxer's reelection campaign - and there's a big protest planned for his inaction on "fierce advocate" gay rights.

With ENDA and DADT before Congress right now, and nothing but words from the president on either so far ... this might just be another Easter Egg roll to mollify the queers.



I will wait and see.


But it's nice, as far as it goes.

[innerSpaceman]

A judge strikes down (http://arkansasnews.com/2010/04/16/judge-strikes-down-adoption-ban/) Arkansas' ban on unmarried (i.e., gay) adoption, ruling it unconstitutional.

Guess we can go back to the experiment of picking up stray orphans like they was puppies in your state, eh Mike Shmuckabee??

[Snowflake]

eh Mike Shmuckabee??

iSm, bwahahaha, I've never heard that before, priceless!

[Gemini Cricket]

Soooo true.
John's a good friend of mine, but I have to disagree with him on this one. Visitation rights is a big thing, imho.
:)

[innerSpaceman]

John's a good friend of mine, but I have to disagree with him on this one. Visitation rights is a big thing, imho.
:)

And yet there's 1137 other things the president could do if, per his word, he pursued the repeal of DOMA.


Meanwhile, he accomplished asking for visitation rights with the stroke of his pen. What took Mr. Fierce Advocate so long? Could timing be an issue?


Will timing be important when it comes time to enforce violations of these as-yet unwritten regulations? Because no one will have standing to enforce them except the federal government. If Hawaii General Hospital wants to keep distraught Mr. Cricket separate from dying Mr. Cricket, there's nothing either Mr. Cricket could do about it.

[Gemini Cricket]

I know enough cops to aid in getting my life partner, Mr. Gyllenhaal, to my death bed.
:D

[innerSpaceman]

Me and my better half Mr. Kwanten (you can call him Ryan) hope it won't come to that, and that you and Jake live a long and happy life together (and will help us decide if Steve Kwanten or Ryan Zlick sounds better, or if we should hyphenate).

[Kevy Baby]

(and will help us decide if Steve Kwanten or Ryan Zlick sounds better, or if we should hyphenate).Kwanlick?

[Gemini Cricket]

Kwanlick?
Perfect!
:snap:

[JWBear]

Kwanlick?

It's better than Zliten!

[Bornieo: Fully Loaded]

Interesting: Archie Comics 1st Gay character debut

http://www.bleedingcool.com/2010/04/22/archies-first-gay-character-to-debut/

[SzczerbiakManiac]

To me, the bigger surprise was that Archie is still being produced. Nonetheless, good for them!

[innerSpaceman]

Heheh, that was my reaction, too. But good on them, and Kevin's a cutie.


(of course, less than fantastically attractive gay characters are decades away, but it's nice that there are more and more gay characters everywhere - including comics that peaked 6 decades ago.)

[SzczerbiakManiac]

less than fantastically attractive gay characters are decades awayAllow me to introduce you to Brian & Steve (http://www.zap2it.com/media/photo/2007-10/33025946.jpg) on The Sarah Silverman Program.
http://www.zap2it.com/media/photo/2007-10/33025946.jpg

[innerSpaceman]

Wow, we're clearly further along in 2010 than I'd hoped!

[Kevy Baby]

...and Kevin's a cutie.Why, thank you!

[Bornieo: Fully Loaded]

To me, the bigger surprise was that Archie is still being produced. Nonetheless, good for them!

Actually Archie is known to sell more than most major comic titles. In the direct market, the Archie title sells around 35,000 copies - that's not counting the thousands sold at supermarket checkout's and newstands.

[Tref]

Gay Dog Refused Entry to Restaurant

A RESTAURANT in a northwest suburb of Adelaide that refused a blind man entry because it thought his guide dog was "gay" was ordered by the Equal Opportunity Tribunal to pay him $1500. The (Adelaide) Sunday Mail said Ian Jolly, 57, was barred from dining at the Thai Spice restaurant in May 2009 after a staff member mistook his guide dog Nudge for a "gay dog," a tribunal heard this week.
A statement given by restaurant owners Hong Hoa Thi To and Anh Hoang Le said one of the restaurant's waiters said that Mr Jolly's partner Ms Chris Lawrence stated "she wanted to bring a gay dog into the restaurant."

To read the story, click here (http://www.heraldsun.com.au/lifestyle/the-other-side/gay-dogs-not-welcome-diner-in-south-australia-told/story-e6frfhk6-1225857878565)


http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z1/Tref_foto/idunnolol.jpg

[Tref]

Interesting: Archie Comics 1st Gay character debut


The comic was just released ...

http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z1/Tref_foto/ARCHIE8f27f418_thumb.jpg

[Kevy Baby]

Wow - those comics are still only $0.12?!?

[Gemini Cricket]

http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z1/Tref_foto/idunnolol.jpg
My caption for this picture would have been "Dyno-mite!"
:D

[innerSpaceman]

Seems that Riverdale High is where the gay action is nowadays.

Or rather, it's high schools across the South that have become the center of the gay rights movement this graduation season.



There's the lesbian who wanted to take her girlfriend to their Mississippi prom. The school didn't have any basis to ban them from attending - so they cancelled the prom!. The girl sued, and a judge found the school acted improperly - but didn't award any damages because a private prom was being arranged, which the girls were invited to.

Little did they know that the private prom was a ruse and a trick. When the girls got there, it turned out to be a short-bus prom with only 7 other unpopular and special-ed kids in attendance, while the rest of the senior class had a SECRET private prom that same night at an undisclosed location.



A week or so later, a gay guy in (Tennessee or Alabama? - I forget) wanted to take his date to the prom, and the school said "sure." Wow, what a difference. Oh, except his parents kicked him out of the house for being gay (or rather for getting so much publicity about being gay), and now he's homeless. Nice.


Yesterday, again in Mississippi, a school removed all mention of a graduating lesbian student from their yearbook. She wore a tuxedo in the school picture. They said they would not run the photo because it violated their dress code, but they went further and removed all mention of her in the yearbook - despite that she's an honor's student involved in a ton of activities and teams. Meanwhile, kids who have been found guilty of drug offenses and kids who have dropped out & aren't even graduating remain in the yearbook.


These incidents have riled the gay activist community. We don't like it when kids are picked on. Gay kids have a vastly higher suicide rate than straight kids, so we don't take bullying lightly - and we don't take school discrimination well at all.


:mad:




Pfft, we should have let the Confederacy go their own way when we had the chance. I'm sure there are millions of nice people there, and the South has a well-deserved reputation for politeness and charm. It also has a well-deserved reputation for bigotry and backwardness. I hope every gay kid unfortunate enough to grow up there finds a way to get the hell out.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Funny or Die takes on DADT with puppets in No Strings Attached (http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/8b2e5aed1f/no-strings-attached).

[Gemini Cricket]

Well, this is as good a place as any to post this. 'Cuz I ain't posting this on FB.

And now for today's episode of "TMI, GC!"

My friends in the theatre community are getting geared up for the "Pirates 4" casting calls that are going on here. They are looking for "pirate-types" who are good at swordplay. One of my good friends is teaching pirate classes at a local theatre here to get guys boned up on their fencing skills. I just got hold of some of the rehearsal pics. All I can say is: HOT HOT HOT! And when one of them (all straight, dammit) said they would faux battle for my hand in marriage, I just about pitched a tent.

Lordy, I gots da vapors.

:D

[JWBear]

I just got hold of some of the rehearsal pics. All I can say is: HOT HOT HOT!

And you're not sharing with your friends... Because?

[innerSpaceman]

One of my good friends is teaching pirate classes at a local theatre here to get guys boned up on their fencing skills. I just got hold of some of the rehearsal pics.

So, are you enrolled? Looks like everyone's gonna get boned up, so your tent won't stand out ... well, er, won't make you different from everybody else.

[Gemini Cricket]

And you're not sharing with your friends... Because?
Hee hee. Well, maybe I'll try and snag a pic for ya...
:D
So, are you enrolled? Looks like everyone's gonna get boned up, so your tent won't stand out ... well, er, won't make you different from everybody else.
I did not enroll, but I spread the word about the class.
The good news is that they can all fight for my hand without me paying for the class.

[Gemini Cricket]

;)
Here are some of the guys...
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b268/braddoc310/15022_10150177240450713_735225712_1.jpg

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b268/braddoc310/15022_10150177242525713_735225712_1.jpg

[Ghoulish Delight]

Say hello to Sparrow Men (http://www.boingboing.net/2010/04/28/male-fairies-enter-p.html).

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Here are some of the guys...http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b268/braddoc310/15022_10150177242525713_735225712_1.jpgI'll take the one in the rear*.

Interpret that anyway you like. :evil:



*tan glove guy is also quite yummy

[innerSpaceman]

Yep, I don't usually go for bearded guys, but he's got some look about him.

How does he look without the rapier, I wonder.

[JWBear]

Here we go again! (http://joemygod.blogspot.com/2010/05/anti-gay-christian-narth-leader-and-gay.html)

NARTH member and vigorous gay adoption opponent Dr. George Rekers was caught by the Miami New Times as he returned from a ten-day vacation with a young male prostitute that he hired on Rentboy.com.

Are there any of these guys who aren't in the closet?!




ETA: Joe has a couple of updates...

Rekers claims he was "counseling" the young man. (http://joemygod.blogspot.com/2010/05/dr-george-rekers-patron-of-male.html)

If you talk with my travel assistant that the story called “Lucien,” you will find I spent a great deal of time sharing scientific information on the desirability of abandoning homosexual intercourse, and I shared the Gospel of Jesus Christ with him in great detail.

I just bet you did....

And the "travel assistant" himself (http://joemygod.blogspot.com/2010/05/meet-geo-male-prostitute-hired-by-narth.html)

[innerSpaceman]

"Counseling" is a much better and well-thought-out excuse than the original one, which was that the young twink was hired to handle Rekers' luggage following a back injury. That failed to fly when he gave it straightfaced within moments of him being photographed bustling with his own bags all through customs.

Much more believable that's he's been counseling the young man on his gay conversion science in an effort to redeem the lad from the evils of homosexual attraction, and has been counseling him for the last 10 days. In Spain.


(A lot of comments on that linked site are puzzled by Reckers' attraction to this waif of a boy - which has led to the fortunate christening of the best hypocrite euphemism I've heard since "Hiking the Appalachian Trail" - namely, "Whatever Lifts Your Luggage."


Bwahaahaha. :D

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Colbert made Rekers his Alpha Dog of the Week (http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/308752/may-05-2010/alpha-dog-of-the-week---george-rekers)

Leno got in a few jabs Tuesday night (http://www.hulu.com/watch/146898/the-tonight-show-with-jay-leno-tue-may-4-2010) (just after the seven minute mark)

Towle Road's full coverage (http://www.towleroad.com/george-alan-rekers/)

Watching an evangelical fall is better than eating Reese's Peanut Butter Cups while getting a blow job.

[innerSpaceman]

Yep, was just gonna post that the rent-boy, Jo-Vanni speaks out (http://www.towleroad.com/2010/05/rent-boy-george-alan-rekers-is-a-homosexual-who-enjoys-body-rubs-in-the-nude.html#comments).


This story just keeps getting better and better. Click the link there (also to Towleroad) to read about the details of Rekers', ahem, preferences. Nothing to do with lifting luggage. Well, except that I'll be calling my junk my luggage from now on, so maybe Rekers was just a self-fulfilling prophet.


Bill McCullum, a candidate for governor of Florida, has had his campaign facebook page shut down because it was flooded with demands for answers and accountability over his payment to Rekers of $87,000 for testimony against gay adoption.

And lest we forget that Rekers recently adopted a 16-year old boy. In this one case, I tend to believe Rekers' testimony that teen boys adopted by gay parents face risk of molestation. Methinks he knows himself pretty well. <<shudder>>




Oh, and Jo-Vanni's a total cutie. I'm glad he came forward and did the right thing. I think I'll farm all my household chores out to kind folks at rentboy.com.

;)

[JWBear]

He adopted the 16 year old 4 years ago. The son is now 20 - the same age as Reker's boy-toy. To me, that makes it even more tawdry and increases the ick factor.

[innerSpaceman]

Rekers continues a fine tradition.

Top Ten Outed Right-Wing Homophobes (http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/2010/05/unless_youve_spent_the_last.php).

[innerSpaceman]

The Rekers story has given me an ear-to-ear smile for many days, but some inevitably sad aspects are surfacing.

First, the story of the family that Rekers tried to break up with his $87,000 paid testimony against the 10-years that saved these boys lives. Rekers said the boys would get over being ripped apart from their dads within a year. My friend Rob Tisinai has posted a relevant tale from the trial transcripts here (http://wakingupnow.com/blog/the-evil-of-george-rekers) on his blog. Bring a hankie.


Then, some snippets from a very recent telephone conversation between Rekers and his rent boy, Jo-Vanni. The kid is clearly distressed and in over his head, and Rekers is clearly a disgusting manipulator, out to save his own ass at all costs, and admits he's done this kind of thing before. Perhaps instead of Baptist preacher/fraudulent ex-gay therapist, he should have chosen Roman Catholic priest as his career if he was so set on ruining the lives of young men while ensconced in a self-loathing closet. Check it out here (http://www.towleroad.com/2010/05/over-speakerphone-george-rekers-tries-to-silence-rent-boy-.html), at Towleroad.

Wow .... and just wow.

[Betty]

Wow. He's just evil!

[innerSpaceman]

And, inevitably, /second male prostitute (http://www.towleroad.com/2010/05/second-rent-boy-comes-forward-claims-sex-with-rekers.html) comes forward to say he'd been hired by Rekers in the past. D'uh.

[Scrooge McSam]

White House transmittal of Defense Budget to Congress Does Not Include Repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (http://www.sldn.org/news/archives/sldn-white-house-transmittal-of-defense-budget-to-congress-does-not-in/)

Sadly, this is no surprise.

Nearly two weeks ago, on the evening of Friday, April 30, the Obama Administration shot a simultaneous salvo – from the Pentagon and the White House -- against advocates fighting for repeal this year. In a letter to the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, Defense Secretary Robert Gates came out against lifting the ban before the Pentagon's Working Group finishes its DADT study in December. Hours later, the White House issued a statement deferring to Gates. In doing so, President Obama appeared to reverse on the commitment he made during his State of the Union Address when he said: “This year, I will work with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country they love because of who they are. It's the right thing to do.”

I eagerly anticipate President Fierce Advocate's next text message to supporters. I have a salvo or two for him.

[Ghoulish Delight]

I feel ya' Scrooge. But I'm finding it harder and harder to get worked up about these "set backs". I'm starting to come to the conclusion that honesty and straight forwardness in this process is an impossibility. It sucks, it's miserable, and the anger at it is justified. But I really believe that the truth of the matter is that if Obama tomorrow signed the necessary executive order, the path to integration would actually become that much harder.

Even if every top military official were on board, the fact is that there remains a lot of things that need to be addressed before it happens. There will be resistance, it will be ugly. The military does NOT deal in chaos. They are not going to just open the door and see what happens. They want to have a plan, they want to be ready to absorb the backlash, and adjust the "culture" on their terms.

And so the charade goes on. I can get myself no more worked up about it than I get about anything regarding the military. It is what it is. I truly believe that privately and internally they are preparing for the inevitability. But until they're ready to go, it's a matter of the devil they know vs. the devil they don't know. I'm convinced that their thinking is, "We're going to have to put a lot of time and effort into successfully integrating gays into the military. We'd much rather spend as much of that time and effort in a status-quo mode. We've been dealing with the "Repeal DATD!" anger for years and can continue it for a little longer. We do not want to try to plan for the major changes we foresee AND deal with a whole new form of anger, from within and without." And as soon as anything concrete happens, like legislation passing, that shift is going to happen. They're going to have to deal with unrest from the ranks, from veterans, and unrest from a different segment of civilian population.

I'm not happy that this is the situation. I certainly wish honesty would work, that the country could just be fvcking adults about it. And perhaps Obama should catch sine flack for promising something he can't publicly admit to working towards. But, I do believe progress is being made, and I don't feel like my anger, protests, letters are going to alter the course any at this point.

[innerSpaceman]

The country is surprisingly "adult," about it, GD. 70% in support of repealing DADT. Um, I don't think there's been 70% support of anything in this nation's history, except maybe abolishing the IRS. ;)

[SzczerbiakManiac]

I am not a Democrat.

I found this amusing:
Dear Democrats: We need to talk
—The Gays
http://towleroad.typepad.com/.a/6a00d8341c730253ef01348120afec970c-pi (http://www.couragecampaign.org/page/s/DearDemocrats)Dear Democrats,

We need to talk.

This may be a hard letter to read, but I need to figure out if this relationship is still healthy for me.

For the longest time, I thought we had something special. Remember how much fun we used to have back when we were young, and control of the Congress and the presidency was just a crazy dream? You always used to ask me for help, and you knew I'd never turn you down.

You were so adorable when we were courting. Sure, you never really understood me, but I liked that you seemed to try. The White House cocktail parties were totally fun, and that Easter Egg Roll is something I'll always cherish. Or remember the time you let me march in the Inaugural parade! Other than that whole Rick Warren thing, I really thought we had a connection.

I know you kept telling me that you weren't ready for marriage, but I was willing to wait since you had promised so much else in the meantime.

But now, I've kind of had it. I'm just not getting what I need out of this relationship. You rarely call me anymore, and when you do it's to ask for money. We talked about joining the military together—but now it seems like you are flaking on that commitment. You promised to protect me from the homophobes at work, but you don't seem to be in a hurry to actually do it. And—that Department of Justice brief thing was just cruel. I'll never understand why you did that.

It almost seems like you're embarrassed by me in public. I know not everyone in your family approves of us, but before you got your new job, it seemed like you didn't care what they thought and were always ready to fight for me. Now, it's like you're a different person.

Please don't take this the wrong way. I still think we have a future. I want us to have a future. But I need this relationship to be healthy for both of us. And I just can't get excited anymore by your empty promises and half-gestures.

I need you to take a real step. You know what I'm talking about—the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and repealing Don't Ask Don't Tell.

I still worry every day that I can be fired in 28 states just because I'm gay. And my friend who is transgender can be fired in 38 states. I know you can do it. You've helped protect people from employment discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion, disability and many other characteristics. Each time me and my friend have been left behind. It's our turn. ENDA's time has come.

It's our turn to be welcomed into the military as well. I want to serve my country openly and proudly. I was so excited when you promised you would repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell this year after 17 long years of putting up with it.

Now, I can't even get you to talk about DADT.

You promised to change. I know that you can. But why should I stand by your side when you can't keep your promises to me?

I get that you're scared. But I'm scared too -- scared of losing you. You need to prove to me that you really care. You need to finally give me the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and repeal Don't Ask Don't Tell, like you promised.

I have enough disappointments in my life. I need you to not be one of them.

Love,
The Gays

[innerSpaceman]

Tomorrow, Saturday, May 22 - is California's First Official HARVEY MILK Day.


Yes, it's now a legal holiday in California, in honor of the famed, slain civil rights leader.

http://img256.imageshack.us/img256/7259/harveymilkdayla.jpg



So, if you'd like to join in the inaugural celebration, come on out to Olvera Street* for a wonderful Coming Out Party. Completely in the spirit of Harvey Milk, we'd like everyone to Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are.

Special Guests, a Robust Rally, Everyone Comes Out, and a march to the nearby Federal Building. What could be more Harvey Milkery??





The actual location is Father Serra Park, between Olvera Street and Union Station.

[Alex]

Congratulations and in the spirit of equality gays so certainly deserve I will treat this day as I do all days in honor of specific individuals.

[Snowflake]

Wish I were in LA for this holiday, SF's plan are surprisingly lame (http://blogs.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/2010/05/harvey_milk_day_san_francisco.php).

[innerSpaceman]

Eh, events in L.A. were toned down as well. I got involved with this effort because no one else was planning anything (and mostly got un-involved when even the thrown-together plans got too dry).


If I hadn't been quasi-involved with the early states of the effort, I would never have heard of it. So I hope some people have, and show up.

[Cadaverous Pallor]

In the OC, there's an AIDS Walk (http://www.eqcaevents.org/calendar/events/index.php?com=detail&eID=97) on Saturday (worthy cause, but not exciting) and a Milk-style Canvass (http://www.eqcaevents.org/calendar/events/index.php?com=detail&eID=103) on Sunday. I do dig the idea of canvassing on Milk day in hostile territory, same way he did. It's what Dustin Lance Black, screenwriter on Milk, advocates (http://www.eqca.org/site/pp.asp?c=kuLRJ9MRKrH&b=5948243), so I'm sure at least a few people will be out there knocking on American flag-laden doorways.

As much as I'd like to participate, I'm not sure if a straight person is the right one to do the knocking - the whole point is to show them that gay people are normal human beings.

We're also rather busy this weekend. Totally didn't know it was Milk day.

[innerSpaceman]

There's a hostile-territory canvass in L.A., too - with all those people coming to the rally afterwards. Should be very Milkian.

[Kevy Baby]

In the OC, there's an AIDS Walk (http://www.eqcaevents.org/calendar/events/index.php?com=detail&eID=97) on Saturday...Saturday is a busy day: the Orange County Spring Regional Games for Special Olympics (http://www.sosc.org/Page.aspx?pid=237&cgid=1&ceid=80&cerid=0&cdt=5%2f22%2f2010) is also that day. That's where I will be.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

I love Glee (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRSbuW_fjig)!

[innerSpaceman]

I've never seen it. And I'm in no rush to see Sex and the City 2.


Am I even still gay?

[Gemini Cricket]

Repealing DADT gets a thumbs up from a Senate committee and the House today. :)

[JWBear]

I've never seen it. And I'm in no rush to see Sex and the City 2.


Am I even still gay?

If you aren't, then neither am I.

[innerSpaceman]

oh, ok ... whew. You're pretty darn gay, after all.


Glad I'm safe. For a minute there, I was wondering if your current cowboy avatar would continue to give me the vapors.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

I have never seen a full episode of SatC nor either film nor do I have any real desire to do so.

I'm fairly sure I'm still gay, but it's been a while, so who knows....

[innerSpaceman]

Oh, see, I loved the series, but the first movie left me 'meh' (and I didn't rush out to see it in theaters ... I'll likely Netflix this one also - - - once I'm used to seeing something on TV, I think that's where I like it).

As for Glee, I hear the second season went downhill - but it might be one of those series I check out on DVD sometime in the future.

[Alex]

I know what you meant since the lengthy middle break is becoming more common, but Glee is still in its first season.

[innerSpaceman]

Huh? I don't watch the show, but I've heard so many complaints from people who do that the second season is not as good as the first. And since I seem to remember people watching the first season well over a year ago, whatever break that was - was, assuming my recollection of time is correct (quite the hefty assumption) - means this is the de facto second season no matter what they're calling it.


Either way, I'm not yet convinced it's worth my time.

[Ghoulish Delight]

The pilot aired May of last year...but then the series didn't start airing again until September. There was a break between January and April, then the final episode of season 1 will air June 8.

[Alex]

And since I seem to remember people watching the first season well over a year ago, whatever break that was - was, assuming my recollection of time is correct (quite the hefty assumption) - means this is the de facto second season no matter what they're calling it.

Except for the pilot which aired at the end of last season as a teaser the entire first season has aired in the traditional September-May window (except for the last episode in the first week of June). The break was just that rather than doing reruns they did a bunch of new episodes in a row, took time off, then did the rest in a row.

It's a borderline show so far as I'm concerned. The soap opera aspects interest me not at all (though the most horrible plotline of the first half of the season seems to have gone away entirely which is good) but I enjoy about half the musical numbers so I drop in on it every once in a while.

[Ghoulish Delight]

Except for the pilot which aired at the end of last season To clarify, by "the end of last season" Alex means "the end of the previous Sept-May network television season" not "the end of the previous season of Glee" because there was no previous season of glee.

[innerSpaceman]

ok, well, a rose by any other name. Its comeback was advertised by Fox (around the corner from me) as they would a new series or new season, and everyone I know who watches the show is calling it that. So whatever.

I kinda shy away from gay "must-see" stuff. I hear the pandering gay wedding that opens Sex in the City 2 is a tone-deaf mess. The one scene I've seen from Glee (a dad over-the-top defending his gay son against a careless insult by a high school friend) was so After-School-Special that I'm not inspired to check out more - no matter how many stunt gay-icon music casting coups they score.

[JWBear]

You're pretty darn gay, after all.

Why thank you.

[lashbear]

We just saw "Another Gay Movie" :eek:

[innerSpaceman]

Is that code for Sex and the City 2, or is there an actual film with that title?

[lashbear]

Another Gay Movie (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0443431/) - Caution: movie NSFW and NSFS (Not Safe For Straights)

[Chernabog]

That movie is cute and silly, and I'd imagine it to be a good movie if you were a) stoned or b) coming down off of something.

[innerSpaceman]

Wow, I didn't expect this AWESOME news to result from this tragic story:

Malawai President Bingu wa Mutharika has officially pardoned Steven Monjeza and Tiwonge Chimbalanga, the gay couple who had been sentenced earlier this month to 14 years of hard labor under sodomy and indecency laws. You may remember that they were originally arrested after holding a public wedding ceremony in December.

President wa Mutharika clearly bowed to mounting pressure. His statement, according to the Daily Telegraph:

"These boys committed a crime against our culture, our religion and our laws, however, as the head of state I hereby pardon them and therefore ask for their immediate release with no conditions. I have done this on humanitarian grounds but this does not mean that I support this."

Update

White House Presidential press secretary Robert Gibbs has just released a statement about today's pardon:

"The White House is pleased to learn of President Bingu wa Mutharika's pardon of Tiwonge Chimbalanga and Steven Monjeza. These individuals were not criminals and their struggle is not unique. We must all recommit ourselves to ending the persecution and criminalization of sexual orientation and gender identity. We hope that President Mutharika's pardon marks the beginning of a new dialogue which reflects the country's history of tolerance and a new day for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender rights in Malawi and around the globe."

:) :) :)

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Gay McDonald's ad in France (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBuKuA9nHsw)

[keith - SuPeR K!]

We just saw "Another Gay Movie" :eek:

Another Gay Movie and Another Gay Sequel were amusing...

[innerSpaceman]

Gay McDonald's ad in France (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBuKuA9nHsw)
WTF?

[SzczerbiakManiac]

What do you mean iSm?

According to TowleRoad (http://www.towleroad.com/2010/06/watch-mcdonalds-france-serves-up-some-young-gay-love.html), "The theme for the ad campaign is "Come As You Are" as the restaurant chain seeks to emphasize that their customers are free to be themselves." I thought it was pretty cool of McD's to show that. Can you imagine the fundie shïtstorm that would arise if that were shown in the US?

[Alex]

"McDonald's: Come as you are but stay closeted with your dad."

[SzczerbiakManiac]

I see how one could interpret it that way, but that's not the message I got.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

from Radio Netherlands Worldwide (http://www.rnw.nl/international-justice/bulletin/gay-klm-stewards-want-avoid-iran)Gay KLM stewards want to avoid Iran

Trouble is brewing at Dutch airline KLM, where a number of homosexual stewards want to be excused from flying to Iran. Iran is one of the most intolerant countries in the world when it comes to homosexuality, and the stewards--who have to spend the night there because of their work--do not feel safe.

Dutch newspaper AD reports that they asked KLM for alternative destinations but were turned down.

KLM has already allowed a number of stewardesses not to serve on flights to Iran because "unpleasant things happened to them there", but the company says it cannot make any more exceptions. No further changes will be made unless it becomes really unsafe for personnel.

The FNV trade union confederation is aware of the dispute but says finding a solution is complicated. Female cabin crew personnel who work on flights to Iran have to wear headscarves on arrival. According to the union, they regard this as unpleasant.I completely sympathize with gay male flight attendants who don't want to spend time in Iran, but I also see the pickle this puts KLM in. If they allow female and gay male FAs to not take those shifts, what will they have left? I'm not suggesting KLM has no heterosexual male FAs, but I wonder if they have enough of them to maintain Iranian flights.

[Cadaverous Pallor]

I see how one could interpret it that way, but that's not the message I got.It seemed really sad to me. "McDonalds: You might never be able to tell your dad, but our restaurant booths would never judge you."

[innerSpaceman]

Sorry, SM, but I got the exact same message as Alex. A kid who's afraid to come out to his dad. Bad message.

What the frell does "come as you are" have to do with McDonald's? What, did they discriminate against gays in the past? Has anyone, anywhere on the world ever felt for a split second that they could not go into a freaking McDonald's? That message makes No Sense Whatsoever ... so I'm left with the actual events of the ad, which shows a gay boy who happens to be eating at McDonald's resisting yet another opportunity to come out of the closet to one of his parents.

Great stuff. Closeted gays make me so hungry for french fries. So, I repeat - WTF???

[innerSpaceman]

As for the Iranian issue, KLM should outright HALT fights to anyplace where it is a threat to the lives of their employees for them to spend a layover.

(though perhaps that's a poor choice of words when discussing gay flight attendants.)

[Gn2Dlnd]

from Radio Netherlands Worldwide (http://www.rnw.nl/international-justice/bulletin/gay-klm-stewards-want-avoid-iran)I completely sympathize with gay male flight attendants who don't want to spend time in Iran, but I also see the pickle this puts KLM in. If they allow female and gay male FAs to not take those shifts, what will they have left? I'm not suggesting KLM has no heterosexual male FAs, but I wonder if they have enough of them to maintain Iranian flights.

Maybe, just maybe, they could stop flying to Iran. Every business decision does not have to be based on money.

On a side note, though, kudos to KLM for speaking in matter-of-fact terms about their gay employees.

[Alex]

Have there been any incidents of violence, intimidation, or other mistreatment of gay flight attendants in Iran or it is a more general fear knowing that homosexuality it criminalized (in which case Iran should not be unique).

I can understand from KLMs persepctive why making such exceptions is difficult. Maybe they can find a market solution. Put routes up for auction with the flight attenandants. The more who want a route the lower the pay for the route so the non-stop to St. Thomas is worked minimum wage but a premium is paid for Novosibirsk (and, presumably Tehran)

[JWBear]

Every business decision does not have to be based on money.

Heresy! Are you some kind of un-American communist?!

[alphabassettgrrl]

I can totally understand why they wouldn't want that particular route...

And I agree that every decision need not be based on money. I suspect that Iran is more than happy not to have gay flight attendants on the flights from/to their country. I wonder if they'd be happy to see KLM stop flying there.

[Gn2Dlnd]

How dare you impugn my patriotism! My soul is a red as the waxy coat on a delicious New York Gouda, as white as a beautiful Vermont Cheddar, and as blue as an artisanal blue cheese from Wisconsin.

That said, there are some people with whom I won't do business. I suppose it's different when your company is "owned" by soulless computers doing stock trades in increments of minutes.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Out singer Matt Zarley's new video "Had I Known (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLapaBw624o)"

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Gay McDonald's ad in France (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBuKuA9nHsw)Bill O'Reilly comments on the ad (http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2010/06/03/OReilly_on_Gay_McDonalds_Ad_alQueda_Next/) (via The Advocate)

[Alex]

No big fan of O'Reilly but I don't think he was comparing gays to al Qaeda. I think it was a very specific play on the comment immediately prior that the ad was part of a larger campaign showing all kinds of people going to McDonald's with the tagline "come as you are" and him riffing on whether they really want everybody to go to McDonald's and express who they are.

What I find odd is his absolute certainty that no ad like this would ever run in the U.S. I assume he means because it is gay-themed. If he's right, I hope it is because it is just a stupid ad (regardless of the gay theme).

[innerSpaceman]

I agree that, for once, O'Reilly wasn't gaybashing with his al Qaeda remark. He most definitely was, however, saying the ad would never play in the U.S. because of its gay theme. In that, he was gaybashing. And I'm sure he would, despite his purported business-freedom-uber-alis philosophy, bash McDonald's if it ever deemed it salesworthy to run such a gay-themed ad in these here united states.

[Strangler Lewis]

I'm not getting the overall positiveness of the ad. Is the father affirming in an understated way that he knows his son is gay and is encouraging him to tom around?

As for O'Reilly, he may not directly be comparing gays to al Qaeda, but it seems like these things don't get taken to such extremes except when gay or other minority issues are being promoted.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Would a mod be kind enough to put a "]" before "Bill" on post 424 please? The edit window has passed and I can't fix it myself.

[JWBear]

So... I turned on the TV this afternoon, and guess what came on?


The Women!!!

I came in right when Mary "yanked the scalp off that Allen woman in the fitting room". :D

[Chernabog]

I have another gay attorney working at my office and he still hasn't been on the train to Reno. I must let him borrow my DVD.

[Gemini Cricket]

Oh yeah! Good for you! I was afraid you were a wet firecracker, sister. Shake!

[SzczerbiakManiac]

NY Times article on increasing gay acceptance (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/05/opinion/05blow.html?src=mv)

Quoting the whole article because NY Times articles tend to sneak behind pay walls
Spoilering only because it's longGay? Whatever, Dude
By Charles M. Blow
Published: June 4, 2010

Last week, while many of us were distracted by the oil belching forth from the gulf floor and the president's ham-handed attempts to demonstrate that he was sufficiently engaged and enraged, Gallup released a stunning, and little noticed, report on Americans' evolving views of homosexuality (http://www.gallup.com/poll/135764/Americans-Acceptance-Gay-Relations-Crosses-Threshold.aspx). Allow me to enlighten:

1. For the first time, the percentage of Americans who perceive "gay and lesbian relations" as morally acceptable has crossed the 50 percent mark. (You have to love the fact that they still use the word "relations." So quaint.)

2. Also for the first time, the percentage of men who hold that view is greater than the percentage of women who do.

3. This new alignment is being led by a dramatic change in attitudes among younger men, but older men's perceptions also have eclipsed older women's. While women's views have stayed about the same over the past four years, the percentage of men ages 18 to 49 who perceived these "relations" as morally acceptable rose by 48 percent, and among men over 50, it rose by 26 percent.

I warned you: stunning.

There is no way to know for sure what's driving such a radical change in men's views on this issue because Gallup didn't ask, but that doesn't mean that we can't speculate. To help me do so, I called Dr. Michael Kimmel (http://creativepromotionsagency.com/mk/biography.htm), a professor of sociology at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and the author or editor of more than 20 books on men and masculinity, and Professor Ritch Savin-Williams (http://www.human.cornell.edu/bio.cfm?netid=rsw36), the chairman of human development at Cornell University and the author of seven books, most of which deal with adolescent development and same-sex attraction.

Here are three theories:

1. The contact hypothesis. As more men openly acknowledge that they are gay, it becomes harder for men who are not gay to discriminate against them. And as that group of openly gay men becomes more varied—including athletes, celebrities and soldiers—many of the old, derisive stereotypes lose their purchase. To that point, a Gallup poll released last May (http://www.gallup.com/poll/118931/Knowing-Someone-Gay-Lesbian-Affects-Views-Gay-Issues.aspx) found that people who said they personally knew someone who was gay or lesbian were more likely to be accepting of gay men and lesbians in general and more supportive of their issues.

2. Men may be becoming more egalitarian in general. As Dr. Kimmel put it: "Men have gotten increasingly comfortable with the presence of, and relative equality of, ‘the other,' and we're becoming more accustomed to it. And most men are finding that it has not been a disaster." The expanding sense of acceptance likely began with the feminist and civil rights movements and is now being extended to the gay rights movement. Dr. Kimmel continued, "The dire predictions for diversity have not only not come true, but, in fact, they've been proved the other way."

3. Virulent homophobes are increasingly being exposed for engaging in homosexuality. Think Ted Haggard, the once fervent antigay preacher (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6rSjrBhUIA) and former leader of the National Association of Evangelicals, and his male prostitute. (This week, Haggard announced that he was starting a new "inclusive" church (http://tpmlivewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/06/ted-haggard-starting-new-church-gay-people-welcome-gay-marriages-not-so-much.php) open to "gay, straight, bi, tall, short," but no same-sex marriages. Not "God's ideal." Sorry.) Or George Rekers, the founding member of the Family Research Council, and his rent boy/luggage handler. Last week, the council claimed that repealing "don't ask, don't tell" would lead to an explosion of "homosexual assaults" in which sleeping soldiers would be the victims of fondling and fellatio by gay predators. In fact, there is a growing body of research that supports the notion that homophobia in some men could be a reaction to their own homosexual impulses. Many heterosexual men see this, and they don't want to be associated with it. It's like being antigay is becoming the old gay. Not cool.

These sound plausible, but why aren't women seeing the same enlightening effects as men? Professor Savin-Williams suggests that there may be a "ceiling effect," that men are simply catching up to women, and there may be a level at which views top out. Interesting.

All of this is great news, but it doesn't mean that all measures relating to acceptance of gay men and lesbians have changed to the same degree. People's comfort with the "gay and lesbian" part of the equation is still greater than their comfort with the "relations" part—the idea versus the act—particularly when it comes to pairings of men.

As Professor Savin-Williams told me, there is still a higher aversive reaction to same-sex sexuality among men than among women.

For instance, in a February New York Times/CBS News poll, half of the respondents were asked if they favored letting "gay men and lesbians" serve in the military (which is still more than 85 percent male), and the other half were asked if they favored letting "homosexuals" serve. Those who got the "homosexual" question favored it at a rate that was 11 percentage points lower than those who got the "gay men and lesbians" question.

Part of the difference may be that "homosexual" is a bigger, more clinical word freighted with a lot of historical baggage. But just as likely is that the inclusion of the root word "sex" still raises an aversive response to the idea of, how shall I say, the architectural issues between two men. It is the point at which support for basic human rights cleaves from endorsement of behavior.

As for the aversion among men, it may be softening a bit. Professor Savin-Williams says that his current research reveals that the fastest-growing group along the sexuality continuum are men who self-identify as "mostly straight" as opposed to labels like "straight," "gay" or "bisexual." They acknowledge some level of attraction to other men even as they say that they probably wouldn't act on it, but ... the right guy, the right day, a few beers and who knows. As the professor points out, you would never have heard that in years past.

All together now: stunning.

(I now return you to Day 46 of the oil spill where they finally may be making some progress.)

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Gay McDonald's ad in France (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBuKuA9nHsw)and now the parody (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcdB1jN8LCQ)

[Cadaverous Pallor]

Come as you are...betch. :D

[innerSpaceman]

ok, I'm not finding that particularly funny - except for the burrito part where he tells he bf on the phone that he was just thinking of him. Wishing he were that girthy, perhaps.

[Kevy Baby]

http://graphjam.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/129187543189281185.png

[Kevy Baby]

http://hackedirl.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/129146166687682463.jpg

[SzczerbiakManiac]

GMCLA (http://www.gmcla.org/) does The Cellblock Tango (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4se7auC-6bo)

[JWBear]

I'll take the bald one.

[JWBear]

These two just need to fvck and get over it! (http://www.towleroad.com/2010/06/photo-gareth-thomas-and-nick-youngquest.html)




(And send me the video...)

[JWBear]

Check out what young Rep. Aaron Schock (R) - who insists he's not gay - wore to a White House BBQ (http://gawker.com/5561462/congressmans-outfit-making-gay-staffer-rounds-on-capitol-hill).

One of the comments says it best:

Holy Judy Garland's ghost, that is the gayest belt ever made.

http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/7/2010/06/0611_schocking.jpg

[Chernabog]

That really is one of the gayest ensembles in recent memory. And yes, the fact that I was at GAY PRIDE LOS ANGELES today is included in that.

[Not Afraid]

Gaydar going off!

[SzczerbiakManiac]

A documentary called Stonewall Uprising, about the event that sparked the modern Gay Rights movement, just opened into limited release. I can't wait to see it.
Trailer (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZUZKtko4R0)
Official Site (http://firstrunfeatures.com/stonewalluprising.html)
Advocate interview with one of the filmmakers (http://www.advocate.com/Arts_and_Entertainment/Film/Stonewall_Riot_Girl/)

[Chernabog]

Oh and another movie (speaking of gay) that was AWESOME is the documentary about Joan Rivers that was released last week. It was playing at the Arclight:Hollywood, but may have been released to more theatres this weekend.

[innerSpaceman]

Bah, no time to see any movies. I need alerts when these things are Netflixable, not when released to theaters. Pfft, theaters are so 20th Century.


In other gay news ... was it my imagination or prejudice, but didn't the sum-up of the Prop 8 federal case yesterday demonstrate the other side has, um, NOTHING???

[SzczerbiakManiac]

It doesn't matter if the enemies of equality have nothing or everything. This case and all like it will be decided on the belief system(s) of the people making the decisions. That could mean this one judge or nine judges in DC.

[Kevy Baby]

... or nine judges in DC.I believe that this is inevitable.

[JWBear]

or nine judges in DC.

I believe that this is inevitable.

Yes. And unfortunately it appears that the confirmation of Kagen will tip the SC even more to the right in regards to gay rights.

[innerSpaceman]

Oh, I have no doubt in my mind the Supremes will rule against, but little doubt that Walker will rule in favor --- and I'm just gonna be amused at the furor.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Sam Seder on the recent upholding of the gay blood ban (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NInft_D7i2U).
Occasionally uses the word "bullshït".

[Chernabog]

About the gay blood ban, I was reading somewhere that apparently you cannot donate your OWN gay blood, for your own use. Is this true?

[SzczerbiakManiac]

I donated my own blood before I had my surgery 21 years ago.

[Chernabog]

I found the quote on that, it was from someone on towleroad:

"What's so bad is we can't even donate blood for our OWN use. I had to have a minor surgery recently, and just in case I donated blood for my personal use during the surgery. I've done this before and it has never been an issue. Go in early, donate the blood, and if I need it it's there. No chance of rejection, it's the right type, and no strain on the blood supply. This time though, I was told that those rules applied even if I was donating for myself. So, basically, blood I donated for personal use was a danger to myself because I have had sex with a man in my lifetime. Medical morons."

Very odd.

[innerSpaceman]

Yeah, I read that, too - and was astounded. So just be sure to lie if you want to save your own life.


This is so stupid. They screen all blood anyway. Yes, gay men CAN give blood. Just deny having slept with a man. They take your word for it. Even if you're wearing a powder blue belt. ;)

[Gemini Cricket]

If they don't want my blood, fine. But they better hand over someone else's when I need it. Snap snap! That's how they want things to be... fine! And while you're at it, fight for my country for me. Thanks!
:D

[Chernabog]

Yes, gay men CAN give blood. Just deny having slept with a man. They take your word for it. Even if you're wearing a powder blue belt. ;)

Yeah, but I have ethical issues with lying. Even though it's a discriminatory rule.

[Alex]

In recognition of this horrible policy Jehovah's Witnesses have announced an act of solidarity and will reject all blood transfusions, regardless of the risk to themselves, at least until such time as gay men (or once drunk straight men) are allowed to donate blood.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

I'm copying the entire article because the page it's on is a gay porn site. I have attempted to included all the formatting and links, including the one you don't want to click on at work.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Mostly Straight/A Little Gay: A Sexual Boundary’s Slow Erosion (http://www.nightcharm.com/2010/06/18/mostly-straighta-little-gay-a-sexual-boundarys-slow-erosion/#jump) (VERY NSFW!!!)
by Shawn Baker

I've never needed enemies.

The Right truly craves monsters—Black Gestapos, Feminist Valkyries, Mexican Marauders, and Homo Hoydens—that it can rail against and use as foils to define itself. Good must have an Evil flipside, otherwise everything becomes confoundingly relative. If it can't find antagonists, it just conjures them up and insists it's being lied to by a world that can't be twisted and shaped to meet its needs.

Personally, I can live just fine without an antipode to define myself, and I'd argue that the gay community by and large is happy to be without them, too. When our families prove to be draining on us and remain obdurate to the realities of our lives, we walk away. I'd wager most of us who work in mixed work places are careful how much we reveal about ourselves for fear of running afoul of someone who's going to make it their personal mission to run us out. If every fire and brimstone televangelist, fat shock jock, and blonde values whore went extinct tomorrow, there would be no retroactive falsification that would kick in and cause us to admit that they weren't so bad to have around.

They were, and it sucked.

Despite the efforts of the Vatican, NOM, and every other organization with the words "American," "Family," "Values," or "Truth" in their title, the Gay—despite its supposed onslaught upon every good and true American institution—is seeming that much less monstrous as of late when encountered outside the pulpit and the voting booth. The reason? Charles M. Blow's New York Times op-ed on the eroding (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/05/opinion/05blow.html) of anti-gay sentiment comes down to one salient and unifying factor: visibility. Gays are no longer the creepy, leering pervs of '50s scare films or the deluded married men busted in vice stings on the evening news; they're parents, classmates, siblings, neighbors, and co-workers. Just as vital is the simultaneously hilarious/stomach-turning revolving gamut of Conservative outings that now play like flailing, high-camp '60s French comedies of manners.

The spectacular fall of George Rekers absolutely thunders with fallout, reverberating out as it not only decimated his career as a burly straightener-out of sissy boys, but also pulled down the curtain on the Prop 8 defense, whose cadre of "experts" are astonishingly credential-free (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/13/opinion/13rich.html).

If men like Rekers—who either cynically marketed clinical snake oil all these years or just couldn't make his own program work for himself—are outright fronting to the world, why should anyone bother to take their product seriously? How many Republicans have to pratfall out of the closet before the public at large starts to see being gay as something that can't be undone by tossing a football around? Will people finally get wise to the fact that there are no ex-gays, only celibate eunuchs? It took all of five seconds for the phrase "lift his luggage"—shades (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/28/AR2007082801664.html) of "wide stance"—to become instant code for closeted sex-trolling, and that's exemplary of how transparent and self-deluded these types have become.

Representation is key here; it's the shame of invisibility that breeds the worst contempt. It's harder to marginalize someone who isn't a faceless boogeyman, and with increased presence in media in particular, a legitimacy ensues. Consider one of the most problematic of gay figures for hetero culture: the sissy. Mike Albo's The Twinkle Takeover from New York Magazine rechristens the nancy boy and redefines (http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2010/06/the_twinkle_take-over_gay_and.html#comments) him as as a "Twinkle" not so inclined to have his stars dimmed:...it seems that, in our world of niche-entertainment marketing, gay boys are becoming a viable demographic, up there with tween girls and security moms. Call them Twinkles: preteen boys who may not know they are gay yet, or may not want to say they are gay yet, but who have a gleam in their eye and a definite sensibility. Twinkles proudly prance, unashamedly emote, high-kick, jazz-hand, belt out "Paparazzi" with piano—everything a gay kid used to do in his bedroom with the door shut.Little things I'm noticing are heartening if-not-sweeping in this regard. Not every gay son is destined for the scrap heap when his family throws him way. Some high schools are abiding by popular votes and crowning (http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2010/06/09/gay-students-crowned-prom-king-and-queen-at-school-that-blocked-gay-prom-queen-just-two-year-ago) gay prom kings and queens. Gay teen bloggers are taking overreaching librarians (http://janettrumble.wordpress.com/2010/06/15/gay-teen-bloggerbook-reviewer-takes-librarians-to-task-over-lgbt-lit/) with aversions to gay lit to task in forums they didn't always have. Even something as innocuous as boys co-opting (http://www.towleroad.com/2010/04/tween-gender-warriors-force-disney-to-create-male-fairy.html) a girl-marketed site like Disney's Pixie Hollow that allows them to build their own fairy composite is telling; the boys cobbled together enough gender-neutral characteristics to create their own male avatars, and Disney, sensing it had stumbled upon an untapped consumer base—money's a helluva equalizer—began adding male variations with a more concrete masculine air.

It's youth that's integral in spurring a shift away from the prejudices of yore. Wizened, obsolete members of our population are the most concerned with maintaining "definitions" (code for "boundaries"), and it's to them I inquire: did you really need separate dining establishments in order to have a stable self-definition? Does using a restroom really have to be a privilege that you lord over someone else so you can feel secure? As younger members of the military seem over the whole DADT debate already, their commanders are the ones hand-wringing over how to implement change. How else do you do it other than implement it? It's like talking about swimming. At stake here is the Gay/Straight divide itself, and all classist fears essentially come down to the same dread: that established barriers will dissipate if people are allowed to become too familiar (notice how gay sex for Conservatives is always a "slip" à la going off a diet for a tempting dessert). Mark Simpson predicts (http://www.marksimpson.com/blog/2010/06/11/the-end-of-heterosexuality-as-weve-known-it/) accordingly:"After all, it's the end of the road for that holiest American institution of all: Heterosexuality. Not cross-sex attraction, of course, or reproduction – but that system of compulsory, full-time, always-asserted straightness for men which straying from momentarily, or even just failing to show sufficient respect towards in the past could cost you your cojones. What, you a FAG?? If metrosexuality is based on vanity, retrosexuality, it needs to be pointed out, was based partly on self-loathing. 'Real men' were supposed to be repulsed by their own bodies at least as much as they were repulsed by other men's."Young straight men in particular are seeming gayer to me than they did even five years ago, and that goes beyond them mirroring our style and cribbing our sex acts. They seem to truly pine for a quasi-flirtatious, rambunctiously touchy contact with each other—one they love to photographically document—and I can say I find it appealing though often infantile. Truth be told, I get the intense urge to wrestle or rough-house with a man who attracts me—wanting it to lead to something sexual—and perhaps that's where the line overlaps. I'm positing lately that there's a distinct magnetism between men that can manifest as crude horseplay (http://www.nightcharm.com/2008/03/11/fine-young-manimals-crytpo-queers-run-wild/) [link NSFW] (it's an element in any Bromance (http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=bromance)) and now that men are more cognizant of their bodies as arousing, I think they get off on being objectified and exploited—even at the hands of other men.

A few months ago I was in the back of a car stopped at a light. Some (obviously straight) hot pieces were loitering around the curb, and just for the hell of it, I rolled down the window, pulled out a few bills, and said "Hey! Fifty bucks for the little one!". The other guys in the car with me looked at me like I was crazy, and I was ready to duck back in if things got physical, but instead the loiterers started laughing, and better yet, began lifting their tanks and arching their asses at me the more I goaded them on and flashed more green. What should've led to an all-out tussle between opposing factions culminated with my side driving away and laughing hysterically while the sidewalk studs flexed and teased us in the rear-view.

If Simpson is on to something, then our spectrum of human sexuality may be organically broadening through close contact, with self-identifiers like "mostly straight," and conversely, "a little gay," slowly beginning to blur the Great Divide as men become a bit more inclined to cross it without feeling as if they've leapt over a point of no return.

[Morrigoon]

Bravo, what a piece! Err... essay

[Alex]

Regardless of the sentiment in the whole essay that penultimate paragraph is really quite sad and indicates I probably wouldn't care for the author in person.

[Ghoulish Delight]

The headline of this blog post (http://jaysays.com/2010/06/texas-gop-official-platform-calls-for-imprisonment-of-homosexuals-and-supportive-heterosexuals/) overstates by a smidgen the heinousness of the official Texas GOP platform...but ONLY by a smidgen.

[JWBear]

Ugh.

[Chernabog]

Yeah the Texas GOP basically wants a Theocracy. I've been saying it for years -- if they want to secede from the Union, then more power to 'em! Honestly, I think they'd even view someone like Reagan as a dirty commie liberal.

[Kevy Baby]

Yeah the Texas GOP basically wants a Theocracy.Sheesh. The kid's barely five months old - give him a little time.

[JWBear]

A five month old running the place really couldn't do much worse of a job than the current government.

[Chernabog]

LOL! I heart u guys.

[Cadaverous Pallor]

A Theo-cracy wouldn't be too bad. Milk and fresh diapers for all, state-mandated Peek-a-boo sessions twice a day, and the ABCs would be the national anthem.

[JWBear]

A Theo-cracy wouldn't be too bad. Milk and fresh diapers for all, state-mandated Peek-a-boo sessions twice a day, and the ABCs would be the national anthem.

I could live with that. (Except the diaper thing. 'Cause... Ewww.)

[Ghoulish Delight]

Okay fine, no fresh diapers for you.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Check out this video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wD5mFQkenqI) of an ""ex-gay"" (in double quotes because of its overwhelming redonkulousness) talking about the "sin" of homosexuality.

Where to begin.... Okay Mary, that gold lamé scarf thing isn't helping you in your quest to come off as straight.
You might want to work on your hand gesturing. Try to be a little less mincing.
Girrrrl, the only way you could look gayer was if there was a penis in your mouth.(S)he ends the speech with the words, "It's so obvious, it's so clear." Yes honey, it's clearly obvious you're still a big old nancy who is (poorly) repressing your nature. In addition to my revulsion, I feel sorry for you and hope you'll be able to overcome your religion damage and lead the happy gay life you so desperately want to have.

Unless it's a parody and I missed the joke....

[Chernabog]

I am pretty sure it is a parody. It's gotta be.

The reason for the confusion of whether it is or isn't a parody is good ol' Poe's Law. (http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Poe%27s_Law) If it isn't a parody (and there is evidence that it isn't one too, check out the guy's web site, which is pretty elaborate if it is just a parody), then he's a pretty sick cookie. Like, "Carrie's Mother" crazy. I can see your dirty pillows!

I like the title that Towleroad put on this one, something along the lines of "Does my Gold-Flecked Ascot Make Me Look Ex-Gay?"

[SzczerbiakManiac]

But look at the site it "advertises". That looks pretty legit.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

A Field Guide To Bears: Your Guide to the Wild Life of San Francisco
http://images0.thebolditalic.com/article_images/2477/images/two_column/bears.jpg (http://thebolditalic.com/blog_posts/306-a-field-guide-to-bears-poster-available-now)

[Chernabog]

Something possessed BJ to shave his chest two days ago, so he's more of a porcupine. Blech!

[alphabassettgrrl]

He could wax.

[Kevy Baby]

... so he's more of a porcupine.And now I have Neil Diamond's Porcupine Pie running in my head.

Porcupine Pie, Porcupine Pie, Porcupine Pie
Vanilla Soup, a double scoop please.... No

Maybe I won't, maybe I will, maybe I'll have
the tutti fruit, with fruity blue cheese

Ah but Porcupine Pie, Porcupine Pie, Porcupine Pie
don't let it get on your jeans

And though it sounds a little strange but
you gotta eat it with gloves or your hands will turn green

Ah but porcupine pie, porcupine pie, porcupine pie
weaves its way through my dreams

I do believe I'm gonna try some and
leave enough room for dessert, the chicken ripple ice cream.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

another gay French ad (http://en.yagg.com/2010/06/24/orangina-gay-a/)
This time it's a gay cougar using Orangina as aftershave.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Help me understand this GLAAD Call to Action (http://www.glaad.org/page.aspx?pid=1538):On the June 22 broadcast of ABC's daytime talk show "The View," host Sherri Shepherd and guest host D.L. Hughley perpetuated dangerous myths about African American gay and bisexual men.

While discussing the FDA's ban that prevents gay and bisexual men from donating blood, Shepherd and Hughley communicated misinformation about the causes of increased HIV rates among African American women and used the phrase "down low" to describe men who have sex with men but publicly identify as heterosexual. I get that they're wanting a correction about the misinformation about AIDS infection rates. What I don't understand is the objection to "down low". What's the problem there? Is "down low" now a pejorative?

[innerSpaceman]

I think it's just poor wording on the part of the GLAAD. There's nothing to evidence The View used "down low" in any other way but descriptively.

[Cadaverous Pallor]

Help me understand this GLAAD Call to Action (http://www.glaad.org/page.aspx?pid=1538):I get that they're wanting a correction about the misinformation about AIDS infection rates. What I don't understand is the objection to "down low". What's the problem there? Is "down low" now a pejorative?I think GLAAD wants everyone to be honest about their sexuality. Keeping it in the closet shouldn't be considered just "the down low". I tend to agree but I'm not up in arms about it.

[Ghoulish Delight]

I THINK they don't mean that "down low" is itself offensive, I THINK they are just trying to explain that "men who secretly have sex with men" is what Hughley meant by "on the down low" in the offending quote. Because what he says is not immediately clear.

A better way of saying it would have been, "...communicated misinformation about the spread of AIDS, placing blame on men who have sex with men but publicly identify as heterosexual, which Hughley referred to as 'on the down low'."

ETA: Hmm, I read a little further...Shepherd went one step further and said, "Down low is black men who've been going out." In that regard, that's a pretty sh*tty use of the term "down low" and is rightfully pointed out. I don't think the phrase was PREVIOUSLY offensive, but if Sheperd wants to define it that way, then yeah, that use of it is offensive.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't that exactly what "down low" is? I thought it was Black men* who identify as straight but secretly have sex with men without telling their wives/girlfriends.


*While they don't necessarily have to be Black, in general practice this phenomenon is most common in that community.

[Alex]

Hey, I learned what "down low" is from an episode of Law & Order: SVU years ago. Did GLAAD protest then? If not then I'm in the camp of thinking their wording was unclear over exactly what they're upset about.

[Morrigoon]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure "on the down low" is the phrase used by (African American) men who claim to be straight, but secretly fool around with men. Learned that one from The Starter Wife ;)

[Ghoulish Delight]

Ummm, and here I thought all this time I was just telling people to be discrete with the pipe. I seem to have been using that phrase very very incorrectly.

I was 100% unaware that, as you seem to be indicating, there was common use of it as a euphemism specifically for that. I had always heard and used it as a generic idiom to indicate doing anything discretely.

Knowing that bit of information...I star to agree with GLAAD, it comes across as derogatory to me. Maybe people "in the know" do use it in non-derogatory ways, but coming out of the mouths people who are clearly trying to ignorantly paint those "on the down low" as the primary problem in the fight against AIDS, it crosses a line.

Although I do agree that if that is what they're on about, while I might agree on principle, I do think it's not high on the priority list of things to criticize the idiots about. They could use the nicest, most flowery terms they damn well please, it wouldn't change the fact that they're trying to blame AIDS on closeted black homosexuals.

[BarTopDancer]

Hey, I learned what "down low" is from an episode of Law & Order: SVU years ago.

I learned that on the same episode!

I had always heard and used it as a generic idiom to indicate doing anything discretely.

Prior to that L&O I had heard and [still] use it this way too. I think it's contextual.

[Alex]

Yes, "keep it on the down low" is a phrase that predates this usage. And I don't really see how it is any more derogatory than "closeted", "in the closet," "secretly bisexual", or "married bisexual men who don't tell their wives" would have been.

[alphabassettgrrl]

Yes, "keep it on the down low" is a phrase that predates this usage. And I don't really see how it is any more derogatory than "closeted", "in the closet," "secretly bisexual", or "married bisexual men who don't tell their wives" would have been.

I think the tv people somehow think saying it makes them feel cool. Like they're somehow hip.

[Alex]

Maybe Elizabeth Hasselback, but I don't really think D.L. Hughley would fall into that category.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Sassy Gay Friend: Eve (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQhkzYVlLl8)

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Tobacco use high in lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community (http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700044561/Tobacco-use-high-in-LGBT-community.html)

The only thing I find surprising about this article is that the rates aren't higher. Almost all of my LGBTQQI...LMNOP acquaintances smoke.

[innerSpaceman]

I think gay men like to have something cylindrical in their mouths.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

What about the Ls?

[Alex]

They like it too, it is just they have fewer options so it is more likely to be cigarettes.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

London Olympics Selling Gay Pride Pin (http://shop.london2012.com/London-2012-Olympic-rainbow-pride-pin-badge/30016710,default,pd.html)

The Story (http://www.pressassociation.com/component/pafeeds/2010/07/02/london_2012_will_sell_badges_to_gay_community_2?ca mefrom=regional)

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Louis CK Poker scene which discusses use of the word "faggot". (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-55wC5dEnc)
contains NWS language

[Alex]

Haven't seen the details but apparently a Massachusetts court has ruled part of DOMA unconstitutional.

[innerSpaceman]

Actually, there have - as I understand it - been two federal court rulings against DOMA today.

[alphabassettgrrl]

Good. DOMA needs to go away.