Just One Look...#99

Forty Children To Join In Gay Pride Parade

AMSTERDAM - Forty children will take part in Saturday's Gay Pride boat parade through the Amsterdam canals. They are all under the age of 16.
It is the first time a boat especially for children will be included in the annual parade. Danny Hoekzema, a 14-year-old boy, thought up the idea for the children's boat together with gay rights organisation COC.
Hoekzema's announcement of the plan this spring caused considerable commotion. A ban seemed imminent, but Amsterdam Mayor Job Cohen and Emancipation Minister Ronald Plasterk gave permission after COC agreed that the children would be accompanied by their parents. The children would also not be dressed as scantily as many of those taking part on 'regular' boats.
COC announced yesterday that 40 "homosexual children" would be taking part. "They will be encouraged by dozens of youngsters who are not venturesome enough to join in from the boat. About sixteen parents will be on board, wearing T-shirts with the text 'Proud Parent'."
COC's intention is "to show the entire country that there are young homosexuals who are completely normal boys and girls." For COC chairman Frank van Dalen, there is no doubt that children can know that they are homosexual or lesbian. The question is "why there are young people who sometimes know this as young as eleven, but who are denied the right to be happy and to shape their own identity."
from NIS News

Gay Couple Comming To Wisteria Lane

Desperate Housewives fans are getting their spoilers worth already online as the series gears up and tries to snap out of its funk with new and what one would hope would be improved storylines. The first one comes from OK! Magazine. The spoiler - is - don't keep reading if you don't want to know - newlywed Susan Mayer, played by Teri Hatcher, is pregnant!
"The pregnancy is revealed in the very first new-season episode," a show insider tells OK. "Teri was thrilled with the idea when she first learned about it in early July. Her story line is going to be huge."
And Susan has some new neighbors. Creator Marc Cherry announced at the ABC press tour, "We're going to have the first male desperate housewives. They will move into the old Applewhite house and one of the gay men will just have a fractious, hateful relationship with Teri Hatcher.
What originality! A pregnancy and a gay couple. All that is missing is to bring someone back from the dead for the tifecta.
Back to a knocked up Susan Meyer: OK! reveals that Wisteria Lane's hottest single mother and her on-off boyfriend, Mike Delfino, played by James Denton, married in the season finale last May. The story picks up just one month later when the ABC series resumes Sept. 23.
Teri may be delighted by the story line, but not so happy, OK has discovered, are the show's costumers, who consider fake pregnancies a styling nightmare. "The wardrobe people are actually hoping that Teri decides to get pregnant in real life," says the insider. "It would make their lives a lot easer!" In real life, twice-divorced Teri, 42, has a 9 year-old daughter, Emerson Rose, and has found love with director Stephen Kay.
from The National Ledger

Tonsils May Help Transmit HIV During Oral Sex

The tonsils might serve as a passageway through which HIV enters the body, suggests an analysis of cells from the mouth and throat.
Researchers stress that the risk of acquiring HIV through oral sex is far too low to warrant preventive tonsillectomies. But they say the finding might have implications for preventing transmission of the virus from HIV-infected mothers to their children through breastfeeding.
Niki Moutsopoulos at the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research in Bethesda, Maryland, US, and her colleagues examined gum tissues taken from dental patients to make room for dental crowns, and tonsils taken from eight individuals as part of a treatment for sleep apnoea, a breathing disorder. "They were pretty much going to throw them out if I didn't use them for my research," Moutsopoulos says of the tissue samples.
With the help of specially designed antibody molecules, the team was able to determine the level of various proteins within these tissues.
About 12% of the tonsil cells tested positive for the protein CD4, which sits on the surface of immune cells that are particularly vulnerable to infection by the virus. By comparison, less than 4% of the gum cells contained this protein.
Moutsopolous and her teammates also conducted a genetic analysis of the tissue samples, using special probes that bind to specific DNA sequences. This experiment revealed that the CXCR4 gene was 11 times more active in the tonsils than in the gum samples. The gene codes for a protein, also called CXCR4, that also helps HIV infect immune cells.
Condoms protect
The scientists found further evidence that the tonsils are perhaps more susceptible to HIV infection that other oral areas, including the cheek lining and floor of the mouth.
The new findings provide biological data to complement clinical and epidemiological evidence suggesting that HIV can – in exceptional cases – spread through oral sex, according to John Greenspan, director of the AIDS Research Institute at the University of California in San Francisco, US. "It's a further piece of the jigsaw puzzle," he told New Scientist.
But he and others note that while HIV transmission can occur through oral sex, it appears to happen very rarely. Experts have estimated that at most 4 out of every 10,000 oral sex exposures result in infection, compared with 1 out of every 200 to 1000 episodes of genital contact.
For this reason, researchers suggest people should use condoms to protect themselves from acquiring HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases through oral sex. Undergoing a tonsillectomy to remove the tonsils would be too drastic a measure based on current evidence, they add. "I think that would be a stretch," says Moutsopoulos. "We can't go taking out every tissue that HIV could pass through."
Probiotic treatments
She adds, though, that if future studies bear out a link between tonsils and HIV transmission, there could be implications for blocking the spread of the virus from mother to child in parts of the world where infant formula and antiretroviral drugs are in short supply. Scientists have estimated that a child has a 15% chance of acquiring the virus through breastfeeding within the first year of life.
Greenspan notes that some scientists have started investigating whether probiotic treatments – which promote the growth of healthful bacteria – might reduce the transmission of HIV to very young children through the oral cavity and gastrointestinal tract.
Moutsopoulos stresses that the tonsils – which were removed routinely up until the late twentieth century – are now seen as a first line of defence in the immune system, alerting the body to potentially dangerous foreign particles. For this reason, she does not believe there is enough evidence to warrant their removal as part of a prophylactic measure against HIV transmission.
from New Scientist

Gay Porn On Conan O'Brian

Here's an interesting twist on the new public acceptance of porn. We here at CyberBears, LLC were recently made aware that an establishing scene from one of our copyrighted adult DVD titles was used this past week on the Conan O'Brien show. We had not been
informed of this use, or asked for permission to use the clip, so we investigated further.
It appears that, during an interview broadcast on the July 18, 2007 episode of Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Adam Sandler introduced a clip of two men sharing an apple as a scene from his new movie. It was actually a clip of two of our performers, Joe Falconi and Ali, from a copyrighted adult video titled “Feed the Bears,” directed by Ken Slater, and released in 2006 by CyberBears, LLC.
All of our DVD's clearly indicate that they are only licensed and sold for in-home viewing by consenting adults. The notion of broadcasting a portion of one of our adult movies over open network television violates the spirit of the legal and ethical guidelines our company follows to shield our content from inappropriate viewers.
Of course, we are also concerned about protecting our copyrighted materials. We were surprised that neither the performers, the director,nor the company were credited.
We do understand very well the legal notion of fair use as it applies to copyrighted material used for reporting, satire, and public interest media. We believe that NBC's inappropriate use of clearly labeled adult content in violation of the stated terms, their misrepresentation of the content presented, and their failure to credit the actual source, all exceeded their rights.
from Cyber Bears

Gay Teen PSA

And another PSA.
This one is a Norwegian public service announcement for gay teens.
GaribaldiGay

Ron JeremyTells Kids Not To Watch Porn

Industry veteran Ron Jeremy is featured in a new commercial intended to keep children away from pornography. Jeremy plays himself in the minute-long public service announcement for Christian group XXXChurch, telling his sidekick "Pete the Porno Puppet" to stay away from porn.
"Pornography is for consenting adults... not for kids," Jeremy says. "We don't want kids to see our videos."
"We do a public service announcement with me and a puppet saying, 'Don't watch porn 'til you're over 18 years of age. It's for adults only, and it's rated XXX'," Jeremy told AVN. "I say, 'We don't b.s., we don't use record labeling, we don't sneak sex through advertising, we tell you exactly what it is from the very beginning. We're the most honest industry-- you should appreciate us, rather than giving us a hard time.'"
"Pete" was conceptualized in 2003 by XXXChurch.com founder Craig Gross and adult director James "Jimmy D" DiGiorgio, who created the educational spots for cable television.
Gross and Jeremy have toured college campuses, debating the issues that surround pornography.
"We're going on a bus tour starting in August," said Jeremy. "We'll be hitting a bunch of cities by bus; they're shooting it for probably HBO, and we did a wrestling thing where me and Craig Gross, we go into a ring and we flip each other on the ground, we stamp on each other, the religious boy vs. the porn star. It's very funny, we're getting a lot of mileage out of it. It's on YouTube like crazy."
"Through our debates, Ron and I have struck up a sort of friendship," said Gross. "It freaks people out, but even though we have many differences, we have found one thing we agree on, and we're working together on it."
On the subject of Gross, Jeremy told AVN, "He's actually a great guy; he doesn't agree with my profession, and I don't happen to agree with some of his. He's never beaten me in a debate. We've faced 5,000 kids at some of the colleges in America -- he cannot beat me. I hope he reads this. Craig Gross, you cannot beat me in a debate. At best, we'll tie, but you can't beat me. He admits it! On his own website, XXXChurch, he admits that he never beat me in a debate."
"He feels that the business is bad for people, 'cause our girls are not treated fairly, it's a bad thing, it's bad for those who watch it," Jeremy continued. "But he's also against all forms of masturbation. I slam him so bad on that point, that we don't even bring it up, 'cause I don't want an easy victory. 'Cause we're debating in front of college kids -- you tell a college kid that masturbating's not good, he's gonna lose the debate before it starts. I want it to be more fair and square. He tries to avoid asking me that famous question, 'So what if your daughter wanted to do it?' That's the Achilles heel for me. Thank god the people I debate -- I've always said this, it's so funny -- thank god Craig Gross; Susan Cole, a feminist, a graduate of Harvard; and Michael Leahy [of] an organization called Bravehearts for recovering sex addicts; thank god these guys have never seen or heard of Donkey Punch or Pink Eye, or I'd be so screwed. I can defend anal, I would even defend a bukkake. I'll defend double anal. Defending blowing myself, that's a tough one, but I'll be damned if I could defend Donkey Punch or Pink Eye. Who the fuck in porn is alright to shoot that stuff, either, you know?"
"I don't mind what Craig does," Jeremy concluded. "That's why it's an interesting debate. If can get girls in porn who don't want to be in the business, and they want to get out, they want to find a spiritual path, then let him go for it! I have no problem with what he does for a living. There's some girls who do not belong in porn. If Craig Gross weeds them out, and gets them to do other things, then more power to him. If a girl feels bad about what she's doing, McDonald's is better. When he tries to go for those who are perfectly happy and content, and making a ton of money, I think he's wrong. So he has his place, I think, in the industry. He still can't beat me in a debate. Not even close."
XXX Church plans an additional series of PSAs in which Jeremy and "Pete" discuss porn films, set to debut online in August.
from AVN

Talk About 'Up The Ass'

SPAIN - As much as the media likes to cover the goring of individuals at the annual Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, Spain, getting gored isn't all that common of an event. Your chances of getting gored are pretty slim. And the chances of you and your brother getting gored at exactly the same time? Even slimmer. But try telling that two these two American brothers, both of whom were gored by the same bull at the same time.
The bull that broke free from the pack caught brothers Michael (23) and Lawrence Lenahan (26), originally of Westlake, Ohio, in each of its horns on Thursday.
Lawrence was gored in the buttocks, while Michael was gored in the leg. Both were recovering well from surgery over the weekend in the same hospital.
The brothers decided to attend the Running of the Bulls to celebrate Michael Lenahan's defeat of testicular cancer, which had also spread to his abdomen.
Said their father, Larry Lenahan of Westlake: "He decided he wanted to live life to the fullest. He said once a year I'll do something exciting. And he did."
While older brother Lawrence has said he'd run with the bulls again, younger brother Michael Lenahan isn't taking his chances again.
"We will definitely be back again," said Lawrence, "My brother will never run [in the festival] again, but he would like to come back to celebrate."
Lawrence Lenahan currently serves as an Air Force captain and resides in Hermosa Beach, California. Michael Lenahan currently resides in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
from The Cleveland Leader

San Diego City Council Gay Pride Month Vote To Be Protested By Former Gay Activist

SAN DIEGO - Proposed by Mayor Jerry Sanders, Council President Scott Peters, and lesbian council member Toni Atkins, the San Diego City Council is voting on Tuesday to proclaim July 2007 as the official "gay pride" month in the city. Some San Diego citizens have promised to protest this unprecedented lengthy time of government supported homosexual promotion in a US city.
Buried within a 47-page city document, Item 30 encourages the council to adopt the resolution by "Recognizing the many civic contributions of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community in San Diego County, and encouraging all people to share in the pride of our City's diverse citizenry by participating in the 33rd Annual San Diego LGBT Pride community celebration parade, festival, and arts and culture programs." The resolution finishes by, "Proclaiming July 2007, to be "Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Month" in the City of San Diego."
An attached document of back-up material also states that this year's honorees include Bob Lehman and Thomas Felkner. According to James Hartline, the founder of California Christian News, both of these men used to own the Bourbon Street gay bar, an establishment that has a notorious history of gay porn stars coming in to do events and promote pornography. An additional honoree, Mick Rabin, is an active member of "San Diego Scouting for All," an organization that works to force the Boy Scouts to accept homosexuality.
Hartline is organizing a protest at the City Council on Tuesday when the vote takes place. He told LifeSiteNews.com that as a former homosexual activist, "I know what it is doing to people's lives and the culture. This whole event is full of triple-x pornography." Despite this fact, he continued, the city resolution is calling for "all people" to participate in the celebrations.
Two years ago, San Diego "gay pride" organizers received a storm of outrage when it was revealed that a number of registered sex offenders were hired to work in the homosexual celebrations. These workers included "Marty the Clown," who was scheduled to entertain at the San Diego Gay Pride Children's Garden.
Hartline commented, "When they were busted over pedophiles, they had a chance to get rid of the pornography because they're trying to sell themselves as a child friendly group. It would have lessened the accusations against them. But if they got rid of the pornography they wouldn't have sold any tickets."
Such a large and long-lasting celebration is unheard-off for a minority group. According to Hartline's belief, however, the city is trying to "extend the event as long as possible to desensitize people's opposition to homosexuality, so that when the gay marriage issue comes up before the California Supreme court, there will be less opposition to it."
from LifeSite

Will 'The Only Gay In The Village' Travel To America?

LONDON - British sketch comedy stars Matt Lucas and David Walliams are planning to adapt their hit series "Little Britain" for U.S. television, a spokesman for the actors said on Friday.
The two, whose outrageously embellished stereotypes have had Britons roaring with laughter and sometimes horrified for four years, will appear in six half-hour episodes on HBO, the channel which promoted "The Sopranos" and fellow Briton Ali G.
They have a wealth of characters to choose from, including proudly gay Welshman Dafydd who is outraged whenever his status as the "only gay in the village" is threatened and teenage delinquent mother Vicky Pollard, whose truculent reply to authority has become part of the modern British lexicon.
"Yeah, but no, but yeah, but..."
Whether nicking stuff from the supermarket or swapping her baby for a Westlife CD, Vicky reacts to any accusation with indignant outrage, while filling you in on 'this fing wot you know nuffin about', reads the description of Vicky's character on the BBC Web site.
"We're very keen to take Little Britain to as wide an audience as possible, so we're looking forward to working in the States," Walliams said.
The U.S. series will be executive produced by Simon Fuller, who was behind the Spice Girls and "Pop Idol" and described the new series as "something original and definitive".
"The show is an absolute smash everywhere it is seen and I am certain it is going to be loved by a U.S. TV audience as well," Fuller said.
"Little Britain" started on BBC radio before transferring to BBC television in 2003.
But it remains to be seen whether U.S. audiences will take to characters which could also include a ruthless fake invalid, a middle-aged matron who projectile vomits when her conservative values are offended, a bumbling and unscrupulous hypnotist as well as a grown man whose mother still breastfeeds him.
from Reuters

Photos Of Lance's Boyfriend Pedro Andrade

Bob Allen Insists He's Innocent Of Blow Job

FLORIDA - State Rep. Bob Allen emphatically declared his innocence Thursday of charges that he offered to perform a sex act on an undercover police officer. "I am vigorously going to fight this," said Allen, R-Merritt Island. "I am not resigning my office."
In a sometimes-emotional statement delivered at a news conference, Allen added, "This is an ugly and unpleasant situation that has been thrust upon me and my family."
The seven-year legislator, a Florida co-chairman of U.S. Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign, urged his constituents not to jump to conclusions about the Wednesday afternoon arrest. However, he did not directly address what happened.
"I have to follow the legal process because I have been put into a legal process," he said.
His attorney, Philip Lupo, said Allen would plead not guilty to solicitation of prostitution. The charge is a second-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in the county jail and a $500 fine.
Allen was arrested outside the men's restroom at a Titusville park after offering to perform a sex act on a plainclothes police officer, authorities said. He was later released after posting $500 bail.
Titusville Officer Danny Kavanaugh, who was staking out a nearby condo hoping to catch a burglar, said Allen approached him in the men's bathroom at Veterans Memorial Park about 3:30 p.m. Wednesday.
In an arrest affidavit, Kavanaugh said he had washed his hands and, finding the sink's paper-towel dispenser empty, had walked into a stall for the disabled to dry his hands. Allen first peeked over the door and then stepped inside, he said.
Allen proposed the two go across a nearby bridge because "it's quiet over there" and he would perform a sex act on the officer for $20, the affidavit said. They walked to Allen's car, where the officer identified himself and arrested Allen.
Reaction among Allen's fellow Republicans was cautious.
Rep. Mitch Needelman, R-Melbourne, said the allegations held "severe moral implications."
"For the foreseeable future, Rep. Allen needs to put his political career on hold," Needelman said. "I have concerns for his family."
House Speaker Marco Rubio said in a statement that, "The charge against Rep. Allen is serious." But because it's a misdemeanor, he added, a guilty verdict would not require Allen to resign. Asked in Miami about the arrest, Gov. Charlie Crist said, "It just seems sad and tragic."
Allen entered the Legislature in 2000 and is best known for promoting economic development along the Space Coast. This year, he was chairman of the House energy committee.
He also sponsored legislation that toughened penalties for lewd or lascivious conduct and created a new provision that allows some sexual predators to receive life prison sentences for their offenses. Allen had dubbed the bill the "Sexual Predator Elimination Act."
Before his 2006 re-election, Allen had received a 92 percent rating from the Christian Coalition of Florida.
Allen, 48, listed his $30,996 salary from his part-time service in the House as his top source of income last year, supplemented by $15,000 from a marketing company he runs.
from The South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Surgeon General Nominee Defends Himself

WASHINGTON — President Bush's candidate for surgeon general, facing an uphill struggle to win confirmation, told the Senate on Thursday that he's committed to science and would resign if pressured to slant his recommendations for ideological reasons.
"I would use the science to attempt to educate the policymakers," said Dr. James W. Holsinger Jr., a prominent Kentucky physician, medical educator and former government official. "Quite candidly, if I were unable to do that and I was being overridden … I would resign."
Still, no Democrats indicated they would support him, and fewer than half the members of the Senate panel holding the hearing on his nomination attended.
Holsinger's nomination is opposed by major gay and lesbian groups and others concerned about views he expressed in a 1991 paper suggesting that homosexuality is abnormal.
Separately, concerns that ideology has trumped medical science in the Bush administration were heightened this week after former Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona told Congress that his professional advice was censored to conform to political and religious views.
Holsinger struck some independent notes Thursday before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. He said he supported an advertising ban on prescription drugs. He underscored his advocacy for higher tobacco taxes. And he said that using condoms was important for preventing pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, and suggested condoms were appropriate for teens.
Those stands could put him at odds with administration positions.
But Holsinger also indicated support for the president's restrictions on federal funding for stem cell research — putting him at odds with a majority of lawmakers in Congress and many in the scientific community.
If confirmed as surgeon general, Holsinger has vowed to launch a national crusade against childhood obesity.
After more than two hours of answering questions from senators, it was unclear if he convinced any skeptics.
Holsinger's difficulties initially stemmed from a paper he wrote in 1991 arguing that sex between men was contrary to nature's design and was associated with infectious diseases and cancer. The paper was prepared for a committee of the United Methodist Church, in which Holsinger has served as a high-ranking lay official. The church has been embroiled in a contentious debate over policies toward gays.
The paper has been taken out of context and "does not represent where I am today … who I am today," Holsinger said. But he did not spell out his current views, and the controversy has lingered.
"Many of us are concerned about aspects of Dr. Holsinger's record that indicate that Dr. Holsinger has let his ideological beliefs cloud his scientific judgment," said Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), the committee chairman. "These concerns are serious at any time, but all the more so in light of Dr. Carmona's alarming testimony."
Kennedy also cited a letter he recently received from a group of leading AIDS physicians, concluding that "Dr. Holsinger's paper is not based on science, but rather is ideology with a veneer of science." One of the letter's authors, Dr. William F. Owen of San Francisco, was cited as a source by Holsinger in his 1991 paper.
"The paper implicitly attempts to show that there is a scientific consensus for the proposition that homosexuality is abnormal, when in fact the scientific consensus in 1991 was much more strongly in favor of the concept that homosexuality is not abnormal and is not a disorder," the letter said. "That consensus has only strengthened over time."
Holsinger said that if confirmed as surgeon general, he would be an advocate for the health of all Americans, regardless of sexual orientation. As the top state health official in Kentucky, he said, he made sure the needs of lesbians were addressed in a major conference on women's health in 2002, despite strong political opposition from some state legislators.
"Everyone who is a [medical] practitioner needs to understand the health needs of our gay and lesbian community," he said.
Holsinger has received support from former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop and former Health and Human Services Secretary Louis W. Sullivan. But the nonpartisan American Public Health Assn. has called on the Senate to reject his nomination because of his writing on gays.
from The Los Angeles Times

Prince William Nude?

Photoshop or not, it's a nice picture! GaribaldiGay

Lance Bass's New Boyfriend

As he gets ready to hit the Great White Way, Lance Bass says calling model Pedro Andrade his “boyfriend” might be a bit premature.
“He's just a friend,” Bass, 28, told Usmagazine.com during a party in his Hollywood Hills home on July 7. “We are just friends now. I guess you can say we're dating because we've been on multiple dates, but it's nothing exclusive. I'm freshly out of a relationship.”
Freshly? Bass, who begins his role as Corny Collins in the Broadway production of Hairspray on August 14, has been broken up with former Amazing Race winner Reichen Lehmkuhl for over four months. “But I've never dated in my adult gay life,” he points out. “I need to do that. Mainly I don't want to date anyone right now because I'm so focused on my career, which I haven't been for the last four years.”
His career includes a show he’s developing for Logo, MTV’s gay network, as well as a role as a wedding singer in Adam Sandler’s new movie I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry. “When Adam Sandler calls and asks, ‘Will you play the wedding singer?’ you kinda have to say yes.”
And he’s excited to take on his first Broadway role. “I think it's every actor and musician's dream to do Broadway,” he says. “It the hardest job in show business—definitely the most demanding.” Still he’s quick to admit that the fact that Pedro, who is also an actor in Brazil, lives in New York, where he will be living for the next six months “so that will be convenient. He's the sweetest person ever.”
from Us Magazine

No Gay On Facebook

You're allowed to be Hitler, but don't even try being Gay on social networking site Facebook.
It's been revealed that the popular website - which boasts it has more than 30 million members from around the world - does not allow people with the common Anglo Saxon surname Gay to join, assuming it is not a legitimate name.
After a story in New Zealand's Dominion Post about 30-year-old Rowena Gay, who was denied entry to site because of her last name, smh.com.au undertook a test and found a person with the last name Gay was indeed not allowed to join.
"Please enter a legitimate name,'' the website stated during our attempt. And while the website refused Gay, it had no problem allowing us to join with the last name Hitler.
Thousands of people across Australia share the surname.
Duncan Gay, the NSW leader of the Nationals in the NSW upper house and Deputy Opposition Leader in the upper house, is the state's most prominent citizen with the name.
While initially he wasn't clear what Facebook was, once it was explained to him, Mr Gay said he was "bothered" by the decision.
"That's a bit tough, it's pretty ordinary ... it bothers me to the extent that quite often when you give your name you get a twitter. People looking and smirking. This is a continuation of that."
The last name had been a burden for his children through school, Mr Gay said.
"While it wasn't tough for me, particularly for my son going through school, with the name ... if they're removing Gay from [Facebook] it becomes a problem for my family.
"I'm not ruling out protesting vigorously about this," Mr Gay quipped.
The New Zealand Ms Gay eventually signed up to Facebook substituting her middle name, Janette, for her actual surname.
She told the Post her father had faced problems with the surname when he moved to Britain to teach in 2003.
"The school asked him to consider changing his name to Mr Gray because the kids here are ruthless," she said.
Comment is being sought from Facebook.
from The Sydney Morning Herald

Just One Look...#98

Protests At Ballgame Were Unsportsmanlike

Members of a gay-pride group were simply trying to enjoy themselves at Petco Park in San Diego, but a few people made an issue of it.
A voice inside my head is telling me to just let the whole thing drop, but I am weak.
So, here goes.
The issue is the "Out at the Park" night last Sunday at Petco Park in San Diego, home of the Padres.
A large and well-known gay advocacy group known as San Diego Pride scarfed up 1,100 tickets for volunteers and supporters and headed out to watch the Padres play the Braves in what became known in shorthand as Pride Night.
The group announced the outing (yes, a play on words) on its website, knowing it would give its opponents a chance to plan countermeasures.
Which they did, in two different but odd ways. At least, odd to me. Maybe it'll make perfect sense to you.
First off, a group of about 40 ballpark concessionaires provided by Set Free Ministries in El Cajon didn't show up for work as a silent protest.
The ministry, which focuses on helping some of society's most hard-luck cases, had notified its contractors well in advance of its intentions, says Set Free official J.D. Loveland. He was careful to say the action wasn't a walkout or a boycott — as had been reported leading up to the game — and also made it clear when we talked Monday that he didn't want to talk about it anymore.
Loveland had said quite a bit in Monday's San Diego Union-Tribune, however. "Homosexuality is a sin, and promoting it with a Pride Night, when thousands of kids are also going to be [at the ballpark], is wrong," he said. "So, we took a moral stand."
Why he suddenly wanted to go mum when we talked the day after the game wasn't made clear, but a Pride official theorizes it's because Set Free Ministries gets federal housing funds.
The second prong of the protest came from about 75 people, not connected to Set Free Ministries, who met fans outside the gates before the game and, according to the Union-Tribune, tried to dissuade them from attending. The newspaper reported that it was hard to judge the success of their efforts, other than noting attendance was listed at 41,026, about 1,600 under capacity.
Here's my translation of the protest: How dare people other than heterosexuals show up for a baseball game.
Bear in mind the Pride contingent didn't make speeches, didn't hand out leaflets and, as far as I know, didn't start the wave.
They didn't even pick someone to throw out the first pitch.
What they did was go to a baseball game. And saw the group's name flashed on the scoreboard, as the Padres do for other large groups.
We've played this game before, of course. Any time a Pride-like group rears its head in public, someone takes a shot at it.
Gay marriage is a fair subject for debate. So, too, I suppose, are gay support groups in the schools. I'll hear people out on gay adoptions.
But bashing gays for going to a baseball game?
Yes, I know, it's the sin, not the sinner. And whatever you do, don't serve them a hot dog and Coke.
By the way, the next time someone tells you it's the sin and not the sinner, ask them if they have any gay friends. If they do, have them ask those friends if they grasp that distinction.
The Union-Tribune reported that the director of the protest was Christian activist James Hartline. His website directs viewers to the "amazing life and death struggle James Hartline fought to leave the homosexual lifestyle."
The site suggests a $10 donation for the 23-page booklet. Hell hath no fury like the reformed zealot.
I couldn't track down Hartline on Monday for his day-after assessment. But in an earlier blog posting, he lamented that no other pastors would join his protest.
"The greatest pain in my Christian walk," he wrote, "is the refusal by San Diego pastors to join with me at any of my events when I am fighting for our kids. I have sent out dozens and dozens of requests to San Diego pastors and, so far, none have agreed to come and join the rally."
Hmm.
That would lead an introspective person to some fairly obvious conclusions. I'll leave it to local San Diego pastors to e-mail those conclusions to Hart-line.
I did reach Ron deHarte, the executive director of San Diego Pride. He said the Petco evening was fun, except for the protests. Disappointing, he called them. San Diego Pride's annual parade and festival are later this month, and deHarte knows those will also draw protests.
But Sunday night was about baseball.
And it was kicked off in fine fashion, he said, with a stirring rendition of the national anthem.
Sung on that night by the Gay Men's Chorus of San Diego.
Oh, brother. I can just hear Hartline and Loveland muttering, And they call this our national pastime?
from The Los Angles Times / Dana Parsons

Is Kelly Ripa A Hypocrite?

Kelly Ripa made a stink several months back when Clay Aiken co-hosted Live with Regis & Kelly and (in a failed attempt to be funny) covered her mouth with his hand.
“I don’t know where that hand has been,” shouted Ripa to the Gayken.
Her comments drew much controversy, and she eventually called in to The View to defend herself, saying that she has three kids and was concerned about germs.
Interesting thing happened, though.
On Monday, July 9th’s episode race car driver Jeff Gordon was the co-host.
He accidentally drinks from her cup and apologizes. Her response? “Oh, that’s ok,” as she takes a sip.
So Gayken’s hand is too germy, but Jeff Gordon’s spit is just fine?
Seems like a double standard to us.
Rosie was right!
from PerezHilton.com

Advocate To Be Mailed Uncovered

The Advocate, the national gay magazine, is kicking off the covers. That is, the magazine is starting to do away with the extra cover that is placed on the magazine before it is sealed in a plastic wrapper, concealing its identity during shipment.
Its July 3 issue, which features on its cover a gay Marine who is a war veteran, was mailed to most subscribers with a standard address label in the lower left-hand corner, looking like any other magazine delivered by the Postal Service.
Michael Phelps, the publisher of The Advocate, said the new policy of openness came about after the magazine polled its readers in April, asking them if they wanted to continue to receive the magazine in the wrapper or not.
“The majority no longer wanted the covering,” said Mr. Phelps, who was promoted to publisher of the magazine just a few weeks ago. “For some, they said they were environmentally conscious and wanted to cut down on waste. For others, it was more of an out-and-proud issue.”
And what about those who do not like the idea of the mail carrier knowing their business? “Those readers will still have the option to continue to get the magazine in the bag,” Mr. Phelps said.
Keith Boykin, a frequent commentator on CNN who is openly gay, said he was not surprised about the new policy. “People who subscribe to The Advocate tend to be more politically conscious,” he said, “and as society moves forward, more and more gay people want to be visible.”
The Advocate is owned by PlanetOut, and the company is planning to change the way it mails out other magazines it publishes, too, including Out magazine.
Bob Witeck, the chief executive of Witeck-Combs Communications, a market research firm with a focus on the gay market, said the development gives publishers a chance to gauge their market. “I’m very excited about this because, pardon the cliché, The Advocate is coming out of the closet,” he said. “It’s a test of whether its readership has matured and can embrace the magazine in public.”
He also wondered whether other publishers would follow suit.
Raymonde C. Green, the editor in chief of Uneq, a magazine primarily for the urban gay market that is nearly a year old and is mailed to subscribers in a wrapper, said, “We are a fairly new magazine, so we are still trying to gain the trust of our readers.”
from The New York Times

Just One Look...#97

What Kind Of Penis Do You Have?

The Excedrin Penis: Its tthhhhiiiiiiissss big.
The Snickers Penis: It satisfies you.
The Magnavox Penis: Smart. Very Smart.
The Life Call Penis: Its fallen and it cant get up.
The American Express Penis: Dont leave home without it.
The Tootsie Roll Pop Penis: How many licks DOES it take...?
The M&M Penis: It melts in your mouth, not in your hand.
The Lucky Charms Penis: It's magically delicious.
The Energizer Penis: It keeps going and going and going.
The Right Guard Penis: Anything less is uncivilized.
The Campbell's Soup Penis: Mmm, Mmm good.
The Kix Penis: Kid tested, mother approved.
The McDonalds Penis: Over 8 billion served.
The Tombstone Penis: What would you like on your penis?
The Ragu Penis: Comes out chunkier than the rest.
The Cobain Penis: It blows itself away.
The All State Penis: You're in good hands.
The 7-Up Penis: The UN-penis.
The Barqs Penis: The one with bite.
The Beef Penis: Its whats for dinner.
The Bud Lite Penis: Great taste, less filling.
The Transformers Penis: Its more than meets the eye.
The Twizzler Penis: It makes mouths happy.
The Sega Penis: PENIS
The Starburst Penis: The juice is loose.
The Timex Penis: Takes a lickin and keeps on tickin.
The Burger King Penis: It takes two hands to handle a whopper.
The Flintstones Vitamins Penis: 10 million strong and growing.
The Wendys Penis: Wheres the beef?
The Lays Penis: Betcha cant eat just one.
The Matthew Sweet Penis: 100% fun.
The Little Caesars Penis: Penis Penis
The Mortal Combat Penis: Nothing can prepare you.
The Bounty Penis: The quicker picker-upper.
The Street Fighter II Penis: Matt, stop, you're too good at this.
The Dominos Pizza Penis: delivers in 30 min. or less.
The Monty Python Penis: Is'nt it awfully nice to have a penis?
The Monty Python Penis II: Every sperm is sacred....
The Rice Krispies Penis: What does your penis say to you?
The Extra Penis: Lasts an extra, extra, extra long time.
The Charmin Penis: Don't squeeze the penis
The Beatles Penis: Now a quarter smaller than it used to be.
The Oasis Penis: Thinks its the Beatles penis.
The Windows 95Penis: If you ask it to do too much, it'll crash.
The Virginia Slims Penis: You've come a long way, baby.
The Secret Penis: Strong enough for a man, ph balanced for a woman.
The Micro Machines Penis: A whole world, in the palm of your hand.
The Maxwell House Penis: Good to the last drop.
The Payday Penis: Its almost totally nuts
The Yellow Pages Penis: Let your fingers do the walkin.
The Reeses Penis: How do you eat your penis?
The Beavis Penis: Look It's changing color
The Sustecal Penis : More protein, less fat
The Downey Penis: Come on Downey.
The Just For Men Penis: A sure thing for a natural look?
The Milk Penis: It does a body good
The Taco Bell Penis: It runs for the border.
The Cinnamon Toast Crunch Penis: It's the adult thing to do?
The AOL Penis: Its so easy to use, no wonder its #1?
The Pontiac Penis: Built for kicks, Built for Keeps
The Psychic Penis: It knows you are coming before you do.

Rupert Everett Hates Gay Obsession With Youth

Rupert Everett hates the gay world's "obsession with youth" - but admits he'll still be partying well into old age. The 48-year-old star doesn't plan to ditch his current lifestyle, and has vowed to stay on the gay scene regardless of his increasing years.
He says, "Gay culture is youth obsessed. I don't want to be the old guy w**king in the corner at the bath house while all the young people have sex. But I probably will be. Or I'll be the 70-year-old in the tie-dye t-shirt taking Ecstasy in the nightclub, while being wheeled out in a trolley."
from Starpulse

Lance Bass Joins 'Hairspray' On Broadway

Lance Bass never made it to outer space, but he will travel back in time -- to 1962, when the musical "Hairspray" is set.
The one-time 'N Sync singer joins the cast of the Broadway tuner on Aug. 14 as TV show host Corny Collins, host of a popular "American Bandstand"-style program. The musical celebrates its five-year anniversary on Broadway the next night.
Bass' Broadway bow follows that of another 'N Sync performer, Joey Fatone, who previously appeared in "Rent" and "Little Shop of Horrors." Bass will remain with "Hairspray" through Jan. 6, 2008.
Bass and his boy band pals, including Justin Timberlake, sold thousands of albums in the 1990s. With his inclusion, the Broadway cast of "Hairspray" will include four chart-topping singers: '60s singer Darlene Love, R&B smoothie Tevin Campbell and one-time O-Town lead Ashley Parker Angel.
"X-Men" actor James Marsden plays Corny Collins in the new film version of "Hairspray," opening July 20 and starring Great Neck native Nikki Blonsky as Tracy Turnblad.
from Newsday

Just One Look...#96

Gays More Likely To Drink And Use Drugs

Gay, lesbian and bisexual people are higher users of drugs and alcohol than heterosexuals, research shows.
Massey University researchers analysed data from the New Zealand Health Behaviours Surveys commissioned by the Ministry of Health.
Researchers found 42.7 per cent of gay, lesbian and bisexual groups had regularly smoked cigarettes in the last year compared to 27.7 per cent of heterosexuals.
Over the last year they were also more than twice as likely to have used marijuana, nearly four times as likely to have used amphetamines on a regular basis, more than four times as likely to have used LSD and more than three times as likely to have regularly used Ecstasy.
Gay, lesbian, and bisexual populations were only slightly more likely to use alcohol.
Lead researcher Frank Pega said the public health policy on substance use needed to address the issue by including gay, lesbian and bisexual communities as priority populations.
"The findings also highlight a need for health promotion initiatives and substance use interventions targeted specifically at gay, lesbian and bisexual populations to be established."
Mr Pega, who will present the findings to the Public Health Association conference this week, said it was the first comprehensive evidence from a general population survey that showed differences existed between the groups.
"Other research has already established that gay, lesbian and bisexual people's substance use is related to their exposure to personal, institutional and societal discrimination and to social stress arising from this experience of marginalisation."
The researchers also compared sub-groups, finding that in particular disparities were elevated for lesbian and bisexual women with regards to illicit drug use, and for gay and bisexual men with regards to alcohol and tobacco use.
The Health Behaviours Surveys on drug use interviewed 15,000 people by telephone in 2003 and 2004.
from The New Zealand Herald

Robotic Toilet May Put A Stop To Gay Sex In Public Restrooms

FORT LAUDERDALE - Mayor Jim Naugle has never been shy about voicing his beliefs.
He's called some environmentalists "wackos" and said people complaining about high home prices were lazy, beer drinking "schlocks."
Now the mayor has shifted his attention to a robotic toilet, saying the invention could have a special edge over a traditional restroom in preventing the "homosexual activity" that he said plagues other public restrooms.
The robo-john the city might buy for $250,000 or more allows occupants to stay inside for only a short time before the door opens. Probably not enough time for "illegal sex," Naugle figures.
The restroom, already in use in Atlanta, Seattle and New York, also plays music and cleans the seat automatically.
"We're trying to provide a family environment where people can take their children who need to use the bathroom," he said, "without having to worry about a couple of men in there engaged in a sex act."
Though police say sex in restrooms is no longer a hot crime, the mayor thinks it is. He talked about the illicit sex recently in public meetings, in an interview and in e-mails to residents.
Naugle, not a stranger to public controversy, particularly on the issue of gays, said public restrooms are pickup places for "homosexuals. ... They're engaging in sex, anonymous sex, illegal sex."
The proposed location for the city's experimental automated toilet is the parking lot at Sebastian Street, at what many locals call the "gay beach." Naugle told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel that the intelligent commode's security features are vital at this location, which he called "the rainbow parking lot."
"The homosexual newspaper said it's the 'gay parking lot.' That's not me saying that," Naugle said in the interview, "that's what they said. I don't use the word 'gay.' I use the word 'homosexual.' Most of them aren't gay. They're unhappy."
Naugle has been outspoken as a Christian and a social and political conservative.
When the Christian outreach event Beachfest came to town in 2003, he said anyone who had a problem with the city's official embrace of the religious festival "can move to Iraq."
He angered middle class residents last year when he said housing prices would be affordable if people worked more hours instead of sitting on the couch drinking beer. Earlier this year, he refused to sign a mayor's pact to reduce greenhouse gases. Naugle said global warming is not caused by humans and that the pact contained "hate-America stuff that the environmental wackos want in."
His latest comments about gays thus didn't come as much of a surprise to some.
"Excuse me?" said Marc Hansen, a leader among local gay residents. "Thank God this is his last term."
Dean Trantalis, the openly gay lawyer who sat on the Commission with Naugle for three years, laughed when told of the comments. Trantalis said he's proud the beach welcomes gay families and continues to attract gay visitors.
The beach needs more toilets, he said, and the decision shouldn't be made on whether people will use them for sex. And they still might, he said, even in the short time-frame.
"I'm not an expert on public toilet sex," said Trantalis, "but there are those who would say one minute would be enough. Or 30 seconds."
The City Commission still has to vote to buy it, and would use property tax funds from the beach Community Redevelopment Agency, money that cannot be used for police or lifeguards, officials said.
Police officials said male sex in restrooms is actually not a problem, anymore.
"There's no evidence, no reports or arrests made for any men having sex in any restrooms," said Sgt. Frank Sousa.
from The South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Mayoral Candidate Criticized For Anti-Gay Banner

MIAMI BEACH - Driving down Alton Road, one might notice a large banner in front of a home that some have called homophobic and offensive. It reads: "God created Adam + Eve, not Adam + Steve." The occupant of that house raised it as part of his campaign to become the next mayor of Miami Beach, a city that has a large population of gay and lesbian residents.
"I promise you, when I become mayor, we're going to clean up all this funny business going on down there," mayoral candidate Bill Smatt said about the large presence of gay and lesbians who find South Beach a welcoming place to live, work and party.
Smatt wishes they didn't, and the sign in front of his house confirms it.
"What's wrong with it?" Smatt asked Local 10's Michael Putney in an interview Monday.
For one, the sign offends Save Dade and other gay-rights groups. Some of Smatt's neighbors are also offended.
"I don't think it should be up there because it offends a certain part of our community and I really think that it should be taken down," neighbor Rosie Menendez said. "It's not right."
The 76-year-old native of Jamaica sees himself as a moral crusader.
"I am bringing back Miami Beach for the families," he said.
But Miami Beach officials see him as a nuisance and a code violator.
"We have a code of laws in the city of Miami Beach," Assistant City Manager Hilda Fernandez said. "They regulate what we can and cannot do in single-family residential neighborhoods. He is permitted to have a sign of a certain size. He's not allowed to have a banner."
Smatt's campaign controversy comes during gay and lesbian pride month. To honor the occasion, city hall has an art exhibition on display, including an autographed photograph that reads, "Love you, Tiffany Hilton."
"Miami Beach is communism," Smatt said.
When pressed as to whether he meant Miami Beach is a communist city, he replied, "Sure it is."
A spokesman for Save Dade said Smatt is not representative of Miami Beach residents and that his views are "bigoted and despicable." Smatt said he is merely willing to say publicly what others say or think privately.
from WPLG

Study Shows Homosexuals Smoke More

Smoking is more common in the California gay community than in the state's general population, but researchers say more study is needed.
Lead researcher Elisabeth Gruskin, a scientist at Kaiser Permanente Northern California, compared results from a 2003-2004 tobacco-use survey of 1,950 self-identified gay, lesbian or bisexual residents with a general population survey from 2002.
"It is important to know the prevalence and reasons for smoking because we would like to have tailored prevention and cessation interventions that are appropriate for lesbians, gays or bisexuals," Gruskin said in a statement. "If stress is a huge issue, then you would want stress management as part of an intervention. If glamor is a big reason, you want to contradict that in the media."
Twelve percent of women in the general population were current smokers, compared with approximately 29 percent of lesbians and nearly 27 percent of bisexual women. Among women who have sex with women but do not identify themselves as lesbian or bisexual, 44 percent were smokers, according to the study published in the August issue of the American Journal of Public Health.
Among men, 20 percent in the general population smoked, compared with about 27 percent of gay men, the study said.
from United Press International

Bill Gates Invests In Gay.com & PlanetOut

Bill Gates, operating through his Cascade Investment arm, is among the investors participating in the $26.2 million funding of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender online community PlanetOut.
PlanetOut, which trades on the Nasdaq under the ticker LGBT and also operates the Web site Gay.com, went public at $9 per share in October 2004.
But since that time, the stock has been in free fall. It closed today at $1.59, up 15 percent.
Last year, PlanetOut reported revenue of $68.6 million --up 93 percent over 2005. But it also reported a net loss of $3.7 million last year.
Gates is not really known for investing in money-losing Internet companies, with some of the Microsoft co-founder's bets including companies such as Six Flags, Four Seasons Hotels, Pacific Ethanol and others.
from The Seattle Post-Intelligencer

'Hairspray' Not A Gay Movie

John Travolta has denied 'Hairspray' is a "gay movie". The staunch Scientologist has enraged gay-rights campaigners by taking on the role of Edna Turnblad in the remake of the cult film - the role played by late drag queen Divine in the 1988 original.
Travolta said: "There is nothing gay in this movie. I'm not playing a gay man."
The 'Saturday Night Fever' star also denies Scientology is in any way homophobic, despite many reports of the religion's attempts to "cure" homosexuality.
He said: "Scientology is not homophobic in any way. In fact it's one of the more tolerant faiths. Anyone's accepted."
Travolta also spoke of his frustration regarding the delays to the movie remake of cult 80s TV show 'Dallas', in which he is to star as Texas tycoon J.R. Ewing.
The 53-year-old said: "They've paid me for 'Dallas,' so I'm contracted, but they have had five scripts, none of which has worked."
"There's another attempt being worked on, which I hope will be possible."
Jennifer Lopez allegedly quit the part of J.R.'s wife Sue-Ellen amid reports she did not get on with Travolta.
from All Headline News

Site Photos July

Internet Dating 101

When I first discovered online dating, I felt like I had won the lottery. As a young gay man who grew up in a small conservative town, I found it hard to meet potential love interests by bumping into them at Barnes & Noble or waiting in line at the DMV. Online, there are tons of prospects-but the sheer quantity came with its own problems. How could I separate the guys I’d really like from those who weren’t my speed? Sure, there were photos and write-ups explaining who they were and what they were looking for, but I soon realized that these profiles didn’t always match the person once I met him face to face. Some guys would say they were looking for a long-term relationship when they were really out for no-strings-attached sex; others weren’t entirely out of the closet, which brought its own set of complications. These experiences made me wonder: Is there a way to check out someone’s profile and get to the truth of whether they’d be a great match? To find the answer, I consulted a dating expert for tips on reading between the lines. The advice below has helped me immensely, as I hope it’ll work for anyone else in search of the right man among many.
A picture is worth a thousand words...
Photos, of course, are an easy way to gauge how attracted you are to someone. But there are other messages you can glean from the kind of pics they post. Photos that are a little too good - he’s bare-chested, giving his most fetching glance at the camera, or wearing tight jeans that hint that he’s well-endowed - could indicate he’s out for some no-strings-attached fun rather than a relationship. Why? Because anyone who makes his sexuality his key selling point is probably more interested in what you have to offer in the bedroom versus out of it, says psychotherapist Joe Kort, author of the forthcoming book 10 Smart Things Gay Men Can Do To Find Real Love. And while posting a few photos indicates a desire to give viewers a sense of who a guy is, posting a plethora (like more than 10) could mean he loves the way he looks a little too much and is as vain as a peacock.
...And having no pics says even more
And what if a profile shows no photos at all or promises to email you one if you get in touch? It could mean he’s not out of the closet. “If someone doesn’t show photos or if he shows photos just of his body without his face, chances are he’s not comfortable with certain people knowing he’s gay,” says Kort. That doesn’t necessarily mean he’s ashamed of who he is; it might just mean that he’s worried that certain people in his life - relatives, coworkers - might react badly to the news. So before you initiate contact, make sure you’re fine using some discretion in your relationship.
Spot the scene queen...
Certain gay guys live to party and dance all night at clubs. Want to know who they are so you can join them-or steer clear and find a more mellow relationship? Look for ads that mention “keeping up with me” or “no drama!” More often than not, they are drama, so be prepared for one really intense time with them. Another dead giveaway? Hip spellings of certain words like “boi” for boy. Encounter a string of slang like “Hot boi ISO a VGL str8 acting guy 4 LTR or NSA fun,” and you don’t need your decoder ring to tell that this guy is probably a veteran online dater (how else would he know all that lingo?) who’s most likely trolling for a good time. If that’s your thing, go for it-but if your idea of a great date is dinner and a movie, don’t expect this “boi” to jump on board. (Incidentally, the shorthand above translates as “Hot boy in search of a very good-looking straight-acting guy for long-term relationship or no-strings-attached fun.”)
Know if he’s just up for a one-night stand...
When surfing profiles you’ll probably encounter the phrase “Fun and possible LTR” (LTR stands for long-term relationship). And while this might lead you to believe that this guy truly wants to settle down once he finds Mr. Right, don’t be fooled, says Kort: People who want “fun and possible LTR” are probably more into fun, less into the LTR. They merely want to avoid scaring away the more relationship-minded men who are attracted to their profile. Keep in mind, they may not be intentionally trying to deceive you, they may truly think they’re open to long-term commitment. But any emphasis on “fun” should be noted as a “caution ahead” signal by anyone whose priority is to settle down for the long haul.
…Or if he truly wants a relationship So how do you separate the guys who say they want a commitment from those who truly want one? For starters, there probably won’t be anything strongly sexual mentioned in their profile, says Kort. He may even go so far as to say “friends first, relationship later” to ward off the guys who are just looking for action. And since he’s probably not spending his days sleeping off last night’s outing, he’ll probably list lots of hobbies or activities he enjoys.
He also won’t give a laundry list of things he doesn’t want in a mate, like “no fats/fems” or “one-man gay pride parades need not apply.” This could indicate he’s burned out on dating, or that he’s just a negative person, or that he harbors a strict, fantasy-like image of who he wants to be with-three signs he’s probably not ready for the less-than-perfect reality of a relationship.
from The New York Post / Nick Burns

India Looking For "Mr Condom"

NEW DELHI - India, struggling to promote greater condom use among its population, is looking to hire its own "condom man" to follow the example of a former Thai cabinet minister who successfully pushed for safer sex.
National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) chief Sujatha Rao said that India needed to find someone like Mechai Viravaidya, famous for getting Thais to talk about sex, condoms and AIDS.
"We are serious about finding India's very own Mr Condom," Rao was quoted as saying after visiting Thailand to study its dramatic increase in condom us+ over the past decade, which contributed to a sharp fall in new HIV infections.
"He has to feel passionately about the cause as Mechai does ... have a dynamic personality to change both government policy and public perceptions about HIV/AIDS, sex and condoms," Rao was quoted in The Times of India as saying.
Mechai became famous in Thailand as the "Condom King" for actions such as taking condoms to World Bank talks as well as for the name of his Bangkok restaurant "Cabbages and Condoms," where condoms are a major part of the decor.
Authorities in India, where many people are hesitant to talk about sex and condoms openly, are trying to push condom use through television, radio and newspapers and by targeting high-risk groups.
India has millions of people who are HIV-positive and many of them face discrimination and prejudice. The government plans to announce a new $2.8-billion plan next month to fight HIV, heavily focusing on promotion of condoms.
Britain's Department for International Development said on Friday it would provide 102 million pounds for the five-year plan, doubling its funding despite a new survey indicating India's HIV caseload of 5.7 million -- the world's largest -- could be a big overestimate.
Total donations are expected to touch about $900 million (450 million pounds), including from the World Bank and USAID.
In Thailand, Viravaidya's organisation -- the Population and Community Development Association of Thailand -- won the $1 million Gates Award for Global Health this year that is awarded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
from Reuters

Just One Look...#95

Sexual Orientation Only Natural

Except for my bare-knuckled politics, I am not a lefty. I was born and bred right-handed and have never strayed. On the other hand, I harbor no ill will for those whom nature was not so accommodating.
Some of my best friends are southpaws. So was my first wife. Through the ages, all over the planet, being left-handed has not been naturally good. It's sometimes called Cain's hand and has been associated with Satan and evil in the Christian world, while offering a left for a handshake greeting is a serious personal insult in Arab society. It even has its own think tank to strategize about keeping the left-handed from being left out: Indiana University's Handedness Research Institute.
After all these centuries, lefties are still facing discrimination. It's a right-handed world.
In an effort to correct their handedness, small children are still abused for using their hand of choice instead of their right. Some lefty police and soldiers still find themselves at risk because their gun holsters hang right, making it a challenge for them to be quick on the draw. Spiral notebooks, three-ring binders, even pencil sharpeners are still user-unfriendly for the left-handed. So are most classroom desks, with an arm rest designed to support the right elbow. The few left-handed desks available are typically placed in the back of the classroom, reports the institute, which also quotes on its Web site lefties who claim not being hired because of wrong-handedness, or report that a left hand was tied behind the back to force a fit to the norm.
Nobody knows how many of the estimated 13 percent of the world's lefties have been turned out through such dedicated efforts to make them right. Nor does anyone know why they were born using that other hand to begin with.
Nor does anyone know why some people are born gay. We do know, however, that statistically speaking, there are about the same number of gays in this world as there are lefties.
And we should know that the biggest difference between the left-handed and the gay -- if we follow the American Family Association and its founder and chairman, the Rev. Donald E. Wildmon -- is a matter of agenda. Left-handers have none. Gays have an insidious one. They're ''intent on molding American culture in their own image,'' according to Wildmon and his organization, which he claims numbers more than 3 million.
A couple of weeks ago, the Association and its leaders launched an action alert on a bill in Congress that they assert would make pastors and other Christians subject to huge fines and prison terms if they say hateful things about homosexuality.
''The proposed law could make it a crime to preach on Romans Chapter 1 or I Corinthians Chapter 6. Or even to discuss them in a Sunday School class. If churches and individuals want to keep the government from telling them what they can and cannot preach and teach about homosexuality, they better get involved now!'' the association advised.
Never mind that Snopes, the urban legends Web site, has determined the association's claim about the bill is false. The radical right religious organization remains steadfast in insisting that if this bill passes, ''liberal judges will rush to make it a federal crime to publicly criticize the homosexual lifestyle.''
And never mind that more than half of America is not so quick to curse or condemn. A CNN opinion poll last week reported that 56 percent of Americans believe that gays and lesbians could not change their sexual orientation even if they wanted to. In the poll, 42 percent of respondents also said they believe homosexuality results from upbringing and environment, while 39 percent said they believe it is something a person is born with -- a close call that echoes the national debate over nurture vs. nature.
Our sexual orientations, in reality, are no different from the rest of the animal world. Zoologists are discovering that, within and throughout the animal kingdom, homosexual and bisexual activity is a familiar occurrence.
So, if it's hands-down quantitatively natural, what makes some believe it's not?
from The Chicago Sun-Times / Monroe Anderson