Friday, February 29, 2008
Barack Obama communicates directly with gay communities
The Obama campaign is lavishing some of its cash advantage on LGBTs with targeted ad buys in Ohio and Texas leading up to the critical March 4 primaries in both states (Rhode Island and Vermont also vote that day). According to Obama LGBT steering committee member Eric Stern, the campaign has just completed an ad buy with queer newspapers in the four largest LGBT markets of those two states -- Columbus, Cleveland, Dallas, and Houston.
Full-page ads will appear starting this Friday in Outlook Weekly of Columbus, the Gay People's Chronicle of Cleveland, the Dallas Voice, and OutSmart, which is Houston-based. Buying a full-page four-color ad that appears one time typically costs anywhere between $1,000 and $2,000 in weekly publications. In the Gay People's Chronicle, for instance, the ad cost about $850, according to the paper's advertising manager; the same ad went for about $1,500 in the Dallas Voice.
The ads were the brainchild of Stampp Corbin, cochair of Senator Obama's National LGBT Leadership Council. Stern called the coordinated buy "the icing on the cake" in terms of the Obama camp's outreach to the gay community in Ohio and Texas. "It's a direct appeal to LGBT voters, asking for their support," he said, adding that the ad includes information about how people can get involved with the campaign. The Obama campaign has actively been trying to cut into the long-standing ties between gays and lesbians and Sen. Hillary Clinton. Stern paraphrased the message of the ad as a "call for the country to come together and unify around creating national progress toward equality for LGBT Americans."
Earlier today the Advocate reported that the Obama campaign was doing targeted ad buys in Ohio and Texas in advance of the primaries there on March 4th. According to the Advocate, "Full page ads will appear starting this Friday in Outlook Weekly of Columbus, the Gay People's Chronicle of Cleveland, the Dallas Voice, and OutSmart, which is Houston based."
"[Obama LGBT steering committee member Eric] Stern called the coordinated buy 'the icing on the cake' in terms of the Obama camp's outreach to the gay community in Ohio and Texas. 'It's a direct appeal to LGBT voters asking for their support,' he said, adding that the ad includes information about how people can get involved with the campaign. The Obama campaign has actively been trying to cut into the longstanding ties between gays and lesbians and Hillary Clinton."
The Ohio and Texas versions, according to Stern, "include specific information on voting in those states and how to get involved with the campaign locally." Stampp Corbin, the Co-Chair of the National LGBT Leadership Council, was the catalyst behind making these ads happen as a part of their efforts to mobilize and energize LGBT voters in Ohio & Texas.
viewed here
Thursday, February 28, 2008
the largest plasm screen for gay movies
The widest Plasma is here to take over your walls. Panasonic's 103 inch siblings are out in market to owe it to 150inch Plasma. It is restricted to only a 10 of them which has better wall mount configuration, improved video processing technology, anti-reflective coating, enhanced wireless presentation capabilities, more versatile media card redability and a dual HDMI board included as a standard feature.
viewed here
Is Daniel Johns gay?
'I'm not gay' ... Daniel Johns shows his true feelings. Picture: Cameron Tandy
FOR the past few years, there's been speculation about Daniel Johns' sexuality. But the Silverchair frontman wants everyone to know - he's not gay. At Monday's Big Day Out in Melbourne, Johns told the crowd in no uncertain terms that he's a red-blooded heterosexual male.
"I'm not f------ gay," he said between songs.
To show he doesn't care what anyone thinks, Johns wore a lacy garter on stage.
The talk about his sexuality has been around for years, but intensified this month when his split from wife Natalie Imbruglia became public.
Bjork throws usual tantrum
SHE'S always had a bad attitude when it comes to dealing with photographers, and Melbourne's Big Day Out was no different for Bjork.
During her performance, the Icelandic pop pixie had a tantrum midway through her first song.
She demanded that all the photographers in the pit in front of the stage be moved to the side because she didn't want to have to look at them.
The quirky songbird is well known for going berserk at photographers at airports around the world, most recently ripping a Kiwi snapper's skivvy in half when he tried to take a shot.
New York state accepts gay couples from elsewhere
A New York appellate court ruled Friday that valid out-of-state marriages of same-sex couples must be legally recognized in New York, just as the law recognizes those of heterosexual couples solemnized elsewhere. Lawyers for both sides said the ruling applied to all public and private employers in the state.
Even though gay couples may not legally marry in New York, the appellate court in Rochester held that a gay couple’s 2004 marriage in Canada must be respected under the state’s longstanding “marriage recognition rule,” and that an employer’s denial of health benefits had discriminated against the couple on the basis of their sexual orientation.
“The Legislature may decide to prohibit the recognition of same-sex marriages solemnized abroad,” a five-judge panel of the Appellate Division of State Supreme Court ruled unanimously in rejecting a 2006 lower court decision. “Until it does so, however, such marriages are entitled to recognition in New York.”
For more than a century, the court noted, New York State has recognized valid out-of-state marriages. Moreover, it said that the Court of Appeals, the state’s highest judicial body, has said the Legislature may enact laws recognizing same-sex marriages. “In our view, the Court of Appeals thereby indicated that the recognition of plaintiff’s marriage is not against the public policy of New York,” the court held.
As a practical matter, the marriages of thousands of gay couples entered into outside the state have been recognized in recent years by many state and local agencies and by private employers for purposes of allowing health and life insurance coverage, child care and other benefits. But others have resisted doing so voluntarily, pending the outcome of numerous cases in the courts.
Friday’s ruling, legal experts said, was the first by an appellate division court, and would make the recognition of valid out-of-state gay marriages mandatory across New York. It was not clear whether Monroe County and Monroe Community College in Rochester, the employer in the case, would appeal.
Daniel DeLaus Jr., the county attorney for Rochester, said his office was reviewing the decision and would decide whether to seek an appeal.
Jeffrey Wicks, a lawyer who represents the plaintiff, Patricia Martinez, said that New York had recognized common-law marriages, even marriages of closely related people that might not be allowed in the state. “There’s a long tradition in New York of recognizing marriages that couldn’t be performed in New York,” he said.
The New York Civil Liberties Union, which represented Ms. Martinez, a word-processing supervisor at the college, hailed the ruling. The union called it “the first known decision in the country to hold that a valid same-sex marriage must be recognized.”
“This is a victory for families, it’s a victory for fairness and it’s a victory for human rights,” said Donna Lieberman, executive director of the N.Y.C.L.U. “Congratulations to all same-sex couples validly married outside of New York State: You are now husband and husband, wife and wife. Now we need to work toward a New York where you don’t have to cross state or country lines to get married.”
The New York City Council speaker, Christine C. Quinn, the first openly gay leader of the Council, also applauded the ruling. “If this is saying companies have to do it, it’s a tremendous step forward in recognizing the diversity of families in New York City.”
New York City already extends marriage benefits to workers in domestic partnerships, and under a law passed in 2002, it provides all city benefits and services to same-sex couples whose unions are recognized by other jurisdictions. But the city has no power to impose such rules on private companies.
In 2004, the Council adopted legislation sponsored by Ms. Quinn that would have required large companies doing business with the city to provide equal job benefits to domestic partners. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg vetoed the bill, and while the Council overrode the veto, the mayor said it violated state and federal laws and would prove costly to taxpayers. He sued successfully to block it in a case decided in 2006 by the Court of Appeals.
Mayor Bloomberg’s office declined to comment on Friday’s ruling, saying it had not seen the decision.
Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo also declined to comment, noting that his office may be involved in an appeal as the traditional defender of state agencies. Monroe Community College is a branch of the State University of New York.
In the past, Mr. Cuomo has said that state law requires that marriages performed in other states, and in Canada, be recognized in New York.
In the case before the appellate division in Rochester, Ms. Martinez and her partner, Lisa Ann Golden, formalized their longstanding relationship in a civil union ceremony in Vermont in 2001, and were married in Ontario on July 5, 2004.
A few days later, Ms. Martinez applied to Monroe Community College for health care benefits for her spouse. In November 2004, the college’s director of human resources, Sherry Ralston, denied the application, contending that the state did not recognize the marriage as a matter of law and public policy.
Ms. Martinez sued in 2006, arguing that her constitutional and civil rights had been violated. A State Supreme Court justice, Harold Galloway, dismissed the lawsuit in August 2006, saying the state did not recognize same-sex marriages. The state, he wrote “currently defines marriage as limited to the union of one man and one woman.”
But the appellate court disagreed, citing the century-old “marriage recognition rule” applying to heterosexual couples and noting that the Court of Appeals had implied that the Legislature could adopt a law legalizing same-sex marriage.
In early 2006, the court said, Monroe Community College had begun extending health-care benefits to Ms. Golden under a new contract provision. However, the judges held, the plaintiff was entitled to unspecified monetary damages for the period during which the benefits were wrongly denied.
Image from Gayclic
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
new sexy swimmers suits
This is Michael Phelps, the American swimmer who won six gold medals at the 2004 Olympics.
And that ridiculous-looking suit he's wearing? He says it's a big reason that he has a chance to put on an even better show in Beijing.
The suit is called the Speedo Lzr Racer, and every American Olympic swimmer is expected to wear it at the 2008 Summer Games. Swimmers from about 50 other countries will wear it as well. (Suits for female and male swimmers are identical.) According to Phelps, who gave Speedo his input in designing the suit, it's the best swimsuit ever made.
"It literally feels like you are a rocket coming off the wall," Phelps said. "The water completely runs off the suit."
If that's the kind of suit you want at your community pool or at the beach, good news: You don't have to be an Olympian to get one, as they're on sale at the Speedo web site for the low, low price of $550.
The world's leading swimwear company Speedo, launched the first space age Olympic swim suit, the Speed LZR Racer. The hologram launch saw the world's fastest swimmer, Michael Phelps (USA) appear in London , New York , Sydney and Tokyo on the same day, the Speedo LZR RACER was revealed to a global media audience.
Celebrating its 80th Anniversary, Speedo unveiled the world’s first fully bonded, ultrasonically welded swim suit to be worn by the Australian Olympic Team when they swim for gold in Beijing.
American super swimmer Michael Phelps appeared in a spectacular Hologram before Australia’s own superstar, swim team captain and two time Olympic 1500m freestyle gold medallist Grant Hackett led a parade of leading Australians, Leisel Jones, Jessicah Schipper, Eamon Sullivan, Stephanie Rice, Bronte Barratt and New Zealand stars Dean Kent and Moss Burmester.
Male LZR RACER BodyskinA fully bonded male performance bodysuit with an ultra low profile zip and silicone gripper at the ankle. Made from Speedo's ultra lightweight LZR Pulse fabric, the suit's LZR panels, core stabiliser and bonded seams all combine to reduce drag. Available in regular and longer body lengths.
Michael Phelps, the champion biography
Name: Michael Phelps
Country: USA
Date of Birth: 30 / 6 / 1985
Place of Birth: Baltimore, Maryland
Stroke: Freestyle & Butterfly
Current Records HeldWorld
200m Freestyle, (L/C), 1:43.86, 27.03.07, Melbourne (AUS)
200m Butterfly, (L/C), 1:52.09, 28.03.2007, Melbourne (AUS)
200m Individual Medley, (L/C), 1:54.98, 29.3.2007, Melbourne (AUS)
400m Individual Medley,(L/C) 4:06.22, 01.04.2007,Melbourne (AUS)
4 x 100m Freestyle Relay, (L/C) 3:12.46, 19.8.2006, Br Columbia (CAN)
4 x 200m Freestyle Relay, (L/C) 7:03.24, 30.3.2007, Melbourne (AUS)
Results (Since 2004)Athens 2004 Olympic Games
1st 100m, Butterfly
1st 200m, Butterfly
1st 200m, Individual Medley
1st 400m, Individual Medley
1st 4 x 200, Freestyle Relay
1st 4 x 100, Medley Relay
3rd 200m, Freestyle
3rd 4 x 100, Freestyle Relay
World Championships
2007
1st 200m, Freestyle
1st 100m, Butterfly
1st 200m, Butterfly
1st 200m, Individual Medley
1st 400m, Individual Medley
1st 4 x 100m, Freestyle Relay
1st 4 x 200m, Freestyle Relay
2005
1st 200m, Freestyle
1st 200m, Individual Medley
1st 4 x 100, Freestyle Relay
1st 4 x 200m, Freestyle Relay
1st 4 x 100m, Medley Relay
In Search of Gay Surfers
Though no openly gay male surfers compete on the professional tour, several out lesbians do, including former world champion Lynne Boyer. Gay gals who surf are also the focus of the Logo reality show Curl Girls. All of which makes one wonder, Is there such a thing as a "curl guy," and if so, where is he? "I know they’re in the water," says L.A.-based Curl Girls star Michelle Fleury. "I look for them, but I haven’t spotted or spoken with anyone admitting to being gay."
Maybe they're in San Francisco, a gay mecca where the surfing scene has exploded over the last decade. "If there was going to be a place where there would be openly gay surfers, this would be it," says Matt Warshaw, the San Francisco–based author of The Encyclopedia of Surfing, "but you just don't see it." Warshaw is straight, but he's been writing about demographic trends in surfing for years and the ongoing invisibility of gay men confounds him. "I’m baffled as to whether it’s a sport that has happily or unhappily closeted surfers," he admits, "or if it's so staunchly hetero that it's like a force-field to keep gays out."
If the latter is true, it's for good reason. Despite its easygoing, enlightened vibe, surfing has a long history of homophobia. When a 1988 magazine article implied that Aussie surf star Cheyne Horan was gay, he lost endorsement deals and friends. A decade later, former top-5 pro Robbins Thompson left the sport in disgust after his sexuality became known and he started hearing taunts in the water and having the word "fag" painted on his car. In 1996, teen surfer Shane Dorian listed "dykes and fags" along with "diseases, the Devil, and flat spells" as things he'd like to rid the world of in Surfer magazine. And just last year, when a statue of a surfer went up in Cardiff near San Diego, surfers criticized it for not looking butch enough and dubbed it "Fairy Mary." So what's the deal?
"The gay guys I know who surf tend to try and keep their sexuality and their surfing separate," says Leslie Smith, a part-time surf enthusiast who works for a nonprofit organization in Manhattan. "They’re not closeted, but they’re not going to necessarily wear freedom rings on the beach." Smith adds that he has encountered homophobia on the beach, but like most surf-related altercations, it was all about turf. "I pulled up to this little cove in Hawaii a couple years ago," he recalls, "and a couple of a guys came over like, 'What are you doing here? Locals only.' They started calling me gay and making effeminate gestures and it became clear that I was going to leave or I was going to get beaten."
viewed here
More uncensored surfers on restoring sex blog
underwear furniture for your home
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PANTS comes in a choice of three sizes: standard, large + extra large. The Standard PANTS is the ideal coffee table for smaller rooms, and also works well as a side table in bigger rooms. The large PANTS makes a perfect centrepiece for rooms of around 5m x 5m, or more. And for really big open-plan spaces, Extra Large PANTS creates a great focal point.
We also offer two types of finish:
- FUNKY LAMINATE. This is like formica, and comes in a huge range of colours and realistic imitation wood effects.
- HIGH-GLOSS POLISHED LACQUER. Available in literally ANY colour and a vast range of real wood veneers.
available at meliadesign
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
mardi gras float sydney
My friend Brenton from aussielicious encourages you to go to the mardi gras float...
Here’s a clue for what to expect from our mardi gras float. No there won’t be any waves, but you’ll love this video anyway. This is why I had so much fun rowing surfboats. It’s an amazing adrenaline rush crashing through a massive surf or flying down the face of a wave. It doesn’t hurt that there are fit guys all around with their speedos up their butts either!
I seriously can’t wait for the parade, its going to be so much fun!
The madness draws nearer
by aussielicious
With just over a week to go before the 30th Anniversary Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade makes it’s way up Oxford Street I thought I’d share this brief history of the parade from Wikipedia with you.
Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras is an annual gay pride parade and festival for the LGBT community in Sydney, Australia, and is one of the largest such events in the world. Despite its name, it is not held on Mardi Gras (Shrove Tuesday) or indeed, on a Tuesday at all. It began on June 24, 1978 as a protest march and commemoration of the Stonewall Riots. Although the organisers had obtained permission, this was revoked, and the march was broken up by the police. Many of the marchers were arrested. Although most charges were eventually dropped, the Sydney Morning Herald published the names of those arrested in full, leading to many people being outed to their friends and places of employment, and many of those arrested lost their jobs as homosexuality was a crime in New South Wales until 1984.
The event was held again in 1979, with the name changed to the “Sydney Gay Mardi Gras”. In 1980 the first post-parade dance party was introduced, and in 1981 the parade was shifted to February. An increasingly large number of people not only participated in the event, but larger numbers of the wider community turned out to watch the parade. In 1988 the parade was renamed the “Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras”.
The parade, whilst featuring many in the gay community with a penchant for exotic costumes and dance music, has always retained a political edge, with often witty visual commentary on their political opponents featuring in the floats. As homosexuality became more and more accepted in the wider community, more gay representatives of community groups and organisations have taken part in the parade, including the police force. The parade features a number of costumed characters that return for many successive years. Dykes on Bikes and Miss New Zealand are perfect examples of regular crowd favourites.
Gay Jamaican cop eyes asylum in Canada
A Jamaican police officer who went public that he is gay is seeking asylum in Canada and told the Toronto Star he is in hiding in fear for his life.
Constable Michael Hayden, 24, went public this month in the Jamaica Star newspaper, and told the Toronto newspaper he has since been repeatedly attacked by fellow officers after making the disclosure.
"I want to stay here and fight," Hayden said in a telephone interview. "But it's not safe for me. My life is in great, great jeopardy."
The four-year veteran of the Jamaican Constabulary Police Force said he had requested leave and was in hiding. Police officials wouldn't comment, the Toronto Star said.
Last month, 30-year-old Jamaican gay activist Gareth Henry fled the country and sought refugee status in Canada. He now lives in Toronto.
Henry claimed in a telephone interview he's lost 13 gay friends in Jamaica since 2004 but police often blame the victims' lovers or other gay men for the homicides, the Star said.
from here
David Beckham half nude in Hawai
David Beckham Offers Hawaii a Peek at the Paradise Under His Shirt
Just as promised, here are the photos of David Beckham giving the crowd some applause at the Pan Pacific Championships in Hawaii. It was David's first trip to Honolulu and here he is, soaking up the sunshine and admiration of the fans (and us) at the Aloha Stadium there yesterday. This applause and shirtlessness came after the L.A. Galaxy's game against Gamba Osaka and I'm guessing that his well-tanned chest was David's way of saying, "Thanks guys. Now, I will very graciously allow you all to feast your eyes on THIS."
Monday, February 25, 2008
Mardi Gras , let's go
If you can go, therefore you must
For anyone visiting for mardi gras for the first time and going to the after party which is officially sold out for the first time in years, this video gives you a good impression of what to expect.
I’ve heard rumours of all sorts of performers, Olivia Newtown-John, Cindy Lauper, George Michael, Scissor Sisters and Bear Force One. Who will actually turn up? Who knows!
from Brenton from aussielicious
For anyone visiting for mardi gras for the first time and going to the after party which is officially sold out for the first time in years, this video gives you a good impression of what to expect.
I’ve heard rumours of all sorts of performers, Olivia Newtown-John, Cindy Lauper, George Michael, Scissor Sisters and Bear Force One. Who will actually turn up? Who knows!
from Brenton from aussielicious
runners will run faster
The SPARQ Parachute creates the drag necessary to force athletes to push themselves harder to achieve speed. It is designed for athletes who weigh 170 - 210 lbs. The easy step-in belt allows you to get right to your workout without having to fidget with buckles or adjustments. The Specs include: - Maximum drag = 25 lbs of force. - Belt accommodates waist sizes 32"- 56". - Durable enough for team training. - Floating metal tri-ring reducing belt offers improved chute tracking. - Improved heavy duty webbing lead and 2X coated heavy-duty veil fabric provides excellent durability. - Comes with carry bag.
viewed here
Sunday, February 24, 2008
China launches first anti-AIDS drive for gay men
Men in the bathroom of a department store, which has become a hangout for Shanghai's emerging homosexual population. Chinese authorities have launched their first anti-AIDS programme focused on gay men, amid rising concern that the disease is becoming more prevalent among homosexuals, state press reported Thursday
$65M for gay rights, HIV/AIDS groups
The estate of Ric Weiland, a high school classmate of Microsoft Corp. founders Bill Gates and Paul Allen and one of the first five people to work at the software giant, has left US$65 million to gay rights and HIV/AIDS organizations.
SEATTLE --The estate of Ric Weiland, a high school classmate of Microsoft Corp. founders Bill Gates and Paul Allen and one of the first five people to work at the software giant, has left $65 million to gay rights and HIV/AIDS organizations.
The bequests were announced Sunday by the Pride Foundation of Seattle, where Weiland was a board member for several years. The foundation called it the largest single bequest ever given to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender causes.
Gates and Allen hired Weiland in 1975, the year they founded Microsoft. He worked as a project leader for the Microsoft Works word processing and spreadsheet software, and was a lead programmer and developer for the company's BASIC and COBOL systems, two of the first personal computing interfaces. He left Microsoft in 1988.
Weiland donated tens of millions to various organizations - from gay rights groups to environmental and education organizations - before he died in 2006. He committed suicide at age 53 after a long battle with depression, and survivors include his partner, Mike Schaefer.
The $65 million is among bequests totaling about $160 million - the bulk of Weiland's estate- to various charities and Stanford University, his undergraduate alma mater, according to an estimate provided by the Pride Foundation.
In the latest bequest, the Pride Foundation said Weiland's estate had established a fund at the foundation that would give $46 million over the next eight years to 10 national gay rights and HIV/AIDS groups, including Lambda Legal; the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force; Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays; the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation; and amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research.
His estate also bequeathed $19 million directly to the Pride Foundation for scholarships and grants supporting the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community in the Pacific Northwest.
A gay rights foundation in Seattle, along with 10 related non-profit groups, has been left $65 million by a man who helped create Microsoft.
The Pride Foundation and the 10 other organizations have received the estate bestowal from Ric Weiland, who helped found the technology giant with Bill Gates and Paul Allen, The Seattle Times said Sunday.
That generous donation may mark the largest financial donation to the U.S. gay and lesbian community in history, the newspaper reported.
Altogether, Weiland donated $160 million to charity, including a $60 million donation to Stanford University. Groups focused on scientific research and environmental protection also benefited from Weiland's generosity.
Zan McColloch-Lussier, Pride Foundation director of communications, said the donation from Weiland, who committed suicide in 2006, would help maintain the fight for equal rights for all gays and lesbians.
"It's a gigantic investment in our equal-rights movement," he told the Times. "It will be here long after our kids' kids are gone."
viewed here
Microsoft is scared about the competition
Facing new antitrust investigations in Europe, Microsoft published 30,000 pages of previously secret software code for its ubiquitous Windows operating system on its Web site Thursday, in what the company described as a significant concession toward greater openness and compatibility with competitors. It lost a landmark court case in Europe last autumn and in October abandoned its appeal of the commission's judgment in 2004 that it had abused the dominance of its Windows operating system to gain unfair market advantages. But the legal surrender, coming at the end of almost a decade of litigation, did not end Microsoft's problems in Europe. In January, the commission opened two new investigations into Microsoft's business practices - one related to the interoperability of its Office suite, server and open-document format, and the other into its practice of bundling software applications like its Internet Explorer Web browser into Office.
Barack Obama history regarding gays
Barack Obama -Young, Liberal Presidential Candidate: Barack Obama has thrown his hat into the 2008 presidential race. Barack Obama seems to be getting liberals all fired up because he is young, energetic and represents change. But how does Barack Obama stand on gay and lesbian rights? This profile examines where Barack Obama stands issues of importance to gay and lesbian voters.
Barack Obama's Political Background: Barack Obama was elected to the Illinois State Senate in 1996. He served for eight years and ran for United States Senate in 2004. His speech at the Democratic National Convention that year brought America's attention to this liberal political newcomer. He won the election easily over arch-conservative Alan Keyes.
Barack Obama in the Illinois Senate: Barack Obama was known as a liberal who was not afraid to build bridges across party lines during his term in the Illinois State Senate. He gained a 100% rating from Planned Parenthood for his support of family planning and abortion rights legislation.
Barack Obama and Gay Rights in Illinois: Barack Obama supported gay rights during his Illinois Senate tenure. He sponsored legislation in Illinois that would ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
Barack Obama in the United States Senate: Every two years the Human Rights Campaign, the largest national gay and lesbian organization, issues a scorecard for members of the Senate based on their sponsorship and voting on key issues of importance to gay and lesbian citizens. Barack Obama scored 89 out of 100% in the 2006 scorecard. Here's how HRC rated Barack Obama:
Barack Obama on Hate Crimes: Barack Obama co-sponsored legislation to expand federal hate crimes laws to include crimes perpetrated because of sexual orientation and gender identity.
Employment Non-Discrimination: Barack Obama supports the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and believes it should be expanded to include sexual orientation and gender identity.
Don't Ask, Don't Tell - Gays in the Military: Barack Obama believes we need to repeal the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy and allow gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military. His campaign literature says, "The key test for military service should be patriotism, a sense of duty, and a willingness to serve."
Gay & Lesbian Adoption: Barack Obama believes gays and lesbians should have the same rights to adopt children as heterosexuals.
Barack Obama and Gay Marriage/ Civil Unions: Although Barack Obama has said that he supports civil unions, he is against gay marriage. In an interview with the Chicago Daily Tribune, Obama said, "I'm a Christian. And so, although I try not to have my religious beliefs dominate or determine my political views on this issue, I do believe that tradition, and my religious beliefs say that marriage is something sanctified between a man and a woman."
Barack Obama did vote against a Federal Marriage Amendment and opposed the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996.
He said he would support civil unions between gay and lesbian couples, as well as letting individual states determine if marriage between gay and lesbian couples should be legalized.
"Giving them a set of basic rights would allow them to experience their relationship and live their lives in a way that doesn't cause discrimination," Obama said. "I think it is the right balance to strike in this society."
Sources: Chicago Daily Tribune, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
more here
water cube Beijing
Canada's Alexandre Despatie Troy Dumais, Jevon Tarantino and Christopher Colwill of the U.S, Nicholas Robinson-Baker and Benjamin William Oliver Swain from Britain competed today at the Good Luck Beijing FINA World Cup Diving competition being held at the National Aquatics Centre in Beijing aka The Water Cube. Amazing building!
driving your jeep in jockstrap
the complete uncensored story of the jeep, the jockstrap, and the hairy gay guy on restoring sex blog
Saturday, February 23, 2008
what Barack Obama will do for gays
Barack Obama and Gay Rights in Illinois: Barack Obama supported gay rights during his Illinois Senate tenure. He sponsored legislation in Illinois that would ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
Barack Obama in the United States Senate: Every two years the Human Rights Campaign, the largest national gay and lesbian organization, issues a scorecard for members of the Senate based on their sponsorship and voting on key issues of importance to gay and lesbian citizens. Barack Obama scored 89 out of 100% in the 2006 scorecard. Here's how HRC rated Barack Obama:
Federal Marriage Amendment: Barack Obama voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment (S.J. Res. 1) which would have defined marriage as between a man and a woman and included language which could have prevented recognition of civil unions and domestic partnership benefits. The amendment failed by a vote of 49-48.
Confirmation of Judge William Pryor : HRC opposed the confirmation of Judge William Pryor to Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals because of his opposition to equal rights for gays and lesbians. Barack Ombama voted against Pryor's nomination, but Pryor was nominated in June 2005.
a bed like a house for hot nights
" Hi-Can " means High Fidelity Canopy. Designed by Italian designer Edoardo Carlino the Hi-Can has a built in projection screen and multimedia equipments. From the looks of things it appears has dynamically placed speakers, a projection system all rolled into a cubic structure.
You can listen to music, surf the internet, play games and watch a movie all in your bed. It makes us wonder why the future seems geared toward lethargy.
viewed here
Friday, February 22, 2008
David Beckham love tatoos
David Beckham loves Wentworth Miller!!!
David Beckham proudly shows off his new forearm tattoo, honoring Wentworth Miller’s character on Prison Break, fugitive Michael Scofield.
The needlework design on his right arm, which includes his jersey number 23, links up the angel and clouds he already had on his arm.
In an interview with UK’s The Daily Mail back in April 2006, Wentworth Miller expressed how flattered he was that David Beckham is a fan of Prison Break and his body tattoo.
Apparently David Beckham is interested in copying your tattoo. Would you advise it? I’ve heard he’s getting my tattoo. Isn’t that wild? It never occurs to me that celebrities or sports people or actors are watching my show. I only think of my friends and family tuning in. I think his idea to join up his tattoos will work quite nicely, but I don’t envy him having it done. That’s a lot of work and a lot of pain for a tattoo that size.
Beckham, 31, was seen rolling up his sleeves and watching the Spanish League soccer match between Real Madrid and Osasuna at Santiago Bernabeu stadium on Sunday in Madrid, Spain. Real Madrid beat Osasuna 2-0.
Becks also wore a keffiyeh (typical Arab headdress) around his neck while showing off his new tattoo.
Calories you burn during sex
Calories Burned During Sex:
REMOVING HIS CLOTHES:
With his consent.....................................12 Calories
Without his consent............................2,187 Calories
SLIPPING OFF HIS BOXERS:
With both hands.................................. 8 Calories
With one hand...................................12 Calories
With your teeth.................................485 Calories
PUTTING ON A CONDOM:
With an erection......................................6 Calories
Without an erection...........................3,315 Calories
POSITIONS:
Missionary............................................12 Calories
69 lying down......................................78 Calories
69 standing up...................................812 Calories
Wheelbarrow.....................................216 Calories
Doggy Style......................................326 Calories
Italian chandelier..........................2,912 Calories
ORGASMS:
Real.............................................112 Calories
Fake..........................................1,315 Calories
POST ORGASM:
Lying in bed hugging.............................18 Calories
Getting up immediately..........................36 Calories
Explaining why you got out of bed immediately...816 Calories
GETTING A SECOND ERECTION:
If you are:
20-29 years.......................................36 Calories
30-39 years.......................................80 Calories
40-49 years......................................124 Calories
50-59 years...................................1,972 Calories
60-69 years...................................7,916 Calories
70 and over........................Results are still pending
DRESSING AFTERWARDS
Calmly..........................................32 Calories
In a hurry.......................................98 Calories
With his father knocking at the door..........5,218 Calories
With your partner knocking at the door..........13,521 Calories
Thursday, February 21, 2008
barack obama - his plans
I learned the power of ordinary people coming together as a community organizer on the South Side of Chicago.
I worked side-by-side with people who had been laid off from steel plants that were moved overseas. These were people who needed new jobs to rebuild their lives, and their political leaders were ignoring them.
But even though the odds were stacked against them, they discovered that by coming together with one voice, they could no longer be ignored.
When we launched this campaign, we knew we were up against similar odds. We knew we'd be running against a massive political machine with deep ties to the Washington establishment.
We knew it wouldn't be easy.
But if we can do this, we're not just going to win an election. We're going to change our country.
Thank you so much,
Barack
Russian army refuse a gay cruise
Gay Cruise in stand-off with Russian Army
Gavin Knight takes a river cruise with some of Moscow's defiant gay community and encounters the Russian army
There was an atmosphere of defiance in the air as members of Moscow’s gay community boarded the crowded gangplank for a gay river cruise. The rumour going round was that the boat was going to be torpedoed by the Russian Navy.
Party-goers passed through a cordon of heavy-set OMON commandoes (whose cyrillic letters spelt out OMOH) under the lights of Kievskaya Bridge. They joked that Luzhkov had personally given the order to the navy to blow the ship up. The cruise was reviving a tradition that dated back to the USSR prior to Stalin’s criminalisation of homosexuality. It was organised by gay members of the press, owners of shops and restaurants and had major sponsors including Pepsi.
Those paying 1,000 rubles (about £20) to get on board, talked excitedly about a rumoured outings on NTV of an anti-gay nationalist MP. There were several planned stops along the river until it’s 4.30am finish for people to come on and off. Little did we know that at one port we would find encounter hostility. On May 27th gay rights activist Peter Tatchell was attacked, beaten up and then arrested by Moscow riot police on a gay pride rally outside City Hall on the main street Tverskaya.
For now the only sign of trouble was when our photographer friend’s camera was confiscated at the door and had to be retrieved later by stealth. “Face control” was in operation here and like any Moscow club the aim was to gain entry to the ever more exclusive VIP areas.
So we left the riff raff larging it en masse on the lower deck and ascended a metal ladder to the top VIP deck. Midnight is too early to club in Moscow, and the top deck was fairly thinly populated. Someone pointed out how the barman in his sailor suit looked like young Vladimir Putin. He gave us our complimentary vodka shot but made us pay through the nose for a syprupy apricot mixer.
Yuri, an impossibly tall transvestite swayed around in a green dress. Sacha, a camp window cleaner from the suburb of Kalchuga asked us if we were on television. No, we said, we’re just foreign. He jumped with excitement and clapped his hands. It was as if Jack McFarland (from Will & Grace) had just met Patti Lupone.
You could not blame Sacha for jumping. "Moscow is one of the biggest gay communities in the world," Val, a Russian who works in TV, explained to me. "If you are gay in Kalchuga, where do you go? Moscow!" Val had been able to marry his English expat boyfriend in a civil partnership and joked how his partner was taking on his Russian name.
Sacha’s situation in the provinces was worse even than the Little Britain’s sketch “the only gay in the village”. In his provincial town, and in most outer regions of Moscow, he was likely to be beaten up for being openly gay. Until the 1980s gays in Russia were committed to hospitals for treatment by psycotropic drugs, with homosexuality only being taken off the list of mental disorders in 1999.
More revellers now climbed onto the top deck as Russian pop pounded out like the thud of a paddlesteamer. The overhead metal bars became an acrobatic dance aid, as men hoisted themselves up, performed rhythmic gymnastics on their partners with a knee clamp followed by a tumbling dismount. After a few vodka and red bulls this move became less Olga Korbut than Ronnie Corbett.
Val had also noticed that we were not in the most exclusive part of the boat. An even smaller VVIP area at the bow of tables cordoned was off by a knee-high perimeter of curtain cord patrolled by three stony-faced men in black suits. Beyond them VVIPs, indistinguishable from everyone else, sat formally at their tables, not dancing. We soon discovered, like Kate Winslet in the Titanic movie, that by far the liveliest partying was to be had down in steerage.
Blonde lipstick lesbians snogged with nervous giggles. A quiffed chapstick lesbian with aviator glasses pumped her arms infront of the mirrored pillar to an electro synth number. Eighties-style dancing was very much in evidence as everyone let off steam. The floor-filler of the night was a club mix of Rhianna’s Umbrella. Then as we passed the Kremlin’s walls, lit up from below, couples rushed out to photograph themselves on their mobiles kissing against the backdrop of the towering red walls.
Driving the good humour and party atmosphere was the sense of a community used to being under attack. A year before the Tatchell beating, activists had similarly been arrested and attacked by nationalists. Gay clubs had been blockaded. Moscow still boasts vibrant cruising areas near the centre in China Town (Kitay Gorod) and numerous clubs like 3 Monkeys. However many have now changed to straight clubs.
In January Moscow's Mayor Luzhkov called the gay pride march “satanic” and later in June The Russian Supreme Court upheld his decision to ban the march. So the pictures of men kissing on camera-phones were not just due to the magical, romantic background of the Kremlin, but more to stick it to the symbol of Lushkov’s authoritarian regime.
Then the atmosphere changed. The boat came in to dock at the second stopping points to find a jetty lined by paramilitary police. Rumours spread that they were not letting anyone on or off the boat. I pointed out how grim-faced the officers looked peering out from under their visors. “You would also not be smiling if you were paid the same as the soldiers in our army” someone said. A few heated exchanges with an officer ensued.
A short-haired woman - who looked like Rosa Klebb out of From Russia with Love - patrolled the side of the boat, her hand on her holster.
In the end the tension subsided and the boat moved on. Perhaps they were there to protect the boat from a boarding party of nationalists. It seemed unlikely. It also seemed absurd that a supposed European democracy like Russian was using its armed forces to police a peaceful cruise down the river.
Where were these troops being diverted from – guarding a missile silo, patrolling the Chinese border?
The day after the cruise religious Orthodox extremists took an iron-clad ship down the Moscow river to “cleanse it of the filth”.
viewed here
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
The biggest diamond in the world for you
A diamond of more than 100 carats soon auction
The largest colorless diamond offered at auction for twenty years will be put up for sale in May in Hong Kong. This was officially announced during his presentation in London Tuesday, February 19.
The largest colorless diamond of 101.27 carats
The 101.27 carat stone, which will be sold next May 28 by the Hong Kong branch of Christie's, the auction house British may well exceed the six million dollars (four million euros).
"Only three colorless diamond of more than 100 carats have never appeared at an auction, and all were sold to Geneva," said Francois Curiel, head of the jewelry department at Christie's. "Asia is a very dynamic market, it is fitting that this outstanding gem (...) is offered to the growing number of collectors in this region," he added.
The diamond was found in the first diamond mine in South Africa, and marketed by a European company that specializes in the diamond trade. In 1990, Mouawad Splendor, a diamond pear 101.84 carats, was sold for $ 12.7 million.
Until it goes under the hammer, precious stones can be the eyes devoured by the public, still in London, from 23 to 27 February.
Barack Obama - what winning today means
Today, the people of Wisconsin voted overwhelmingly in favor of a new kind of politics.
They rejected an onslaught of negative attacks and attempts to distract them from the common concerns we all have about the direction of our country.
No doubt we'll hear much more of these attacks and distractions in the days to come.
But the noise of these tired, old political games will not drown out the voices of millions calling for change.
Now is the time to join us -- add your voice to our movement by making your first donation right now. By giving through our matching program, your donation will be doubled by a previous donor who has promised to match your gift.
We are very close to reaching our goal of 500,000 people giving to this campaign in 2008. Help push us over the top by making a matched donation right now:
https://donate.barackobama.com/match
We won't know until late tonight the results of today's Hawaii caucus, but we'll let you know how that turns out tomorrow.
If we win in Hawaii, it will be ten straight victories -- a streak no one thought possible, and the best position we can be in when Ohio, Texas, Rhode Island, and Vermont vote on March 4th.
The Noah's Arc movie is for soon
It's official: The Noah's Arc movie is on its way
A little bird who nests at Logo (AfterElton's parent company) just gave us word that the gay network has officially greenlit a movie based on the fan-favorite gay show Noah's Arc, which told the story of a group of gay African-American friends navigating life and love in the city. Despite being a groundbreaking show for visibility of gay men (and further, gay men of color), the show was canceled after two seasons, leaving its fans unsure of what happened with the boys. Looks like we're going to find out!
The film's working title is Noah's Arc: Jumping the Broom (I guess a shark was too dangerous?) and we're told it is a wedding-themed film (they won't tell us whose wedding...) that will pick up where the series left off at the cliffhanger season finale. Production begins in March and newly-out lead Darryl Stephens (Noah), Doug Spearman (Chance), Rodney Chester (Alex) and Christian Vincent (Ricky) are set to return, with other casting to be announced soon.
Series creator Patrik-Ian Polk had this to say about the announcement:
"I'm thrilled to have this opportunity to take this cult hit TV show to the big screen. With the exception of the many 70's hit shows to get the film treatment, very few television series get to make the move to movie theatres. It's a bold experiment, but I've come to expect nothing less from the MTV Networks/Logo brand. And I look forward to continuing the funny and dramatic sagas of Noah and his friends as we pick up where we left off in the dramatic second season cliffhanger. It's been a little wait for the fans, but I promise they won't be disappointed. 'Jumping The Broom' definitely takes this story to the next level in a big way.”
Logo President Brian Graden had this to say:
"We're proud that our first flagship series will now be Logo's first original movie. Logo and the show’s fans have been with Noah and his friends from the beginning and we're excited to see that Patrik-Ian Polk will be continuing their stories on the big screen."
But that's not all: Polk and Stephens also wanted to deliver the news in person via a special video message just for AfterElton.com readers. Check it out below!
Aretha Franklin is still the queen
Memo to Beyonce and her father: Yes, Tina Turner is one of the greats, but Aretha Franklin is still the queen -- of soul and more. A full house of loyal subjects agreed during the first of two nights Thursday at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, giving her all the R-E-S-P-E-C-T she deserves.
Coming off a week of Grammy and NAACP honors, the Valentine's Day show was a lovefest between the legend and fans, with plenty of standing ovations, cheers and shouts for the all-time favorite numbers. Franklin wore a pink gown and matching wrap for the occasion, leading off with a jubilant version of Jackie Wilson's "Higher and Higher" followed by an appropriate "My Funny Valentine," given a torch-to-R&B bluster treatment.
With five backing vocalists and a large orchestra that included a horn section, the arrangements at times were too busy and, yes, over the top, as on "A House Is Not a Home." The performance also was somewhat old-fashioned; the star was led out as the band vamped on jazz and R&B, and she later went offstage while the band played on its own again, then returned.
Although her voice isn't quite the powerhouse it was a couple decades back, it's still an amazing instrument -- combined with technique. That's what contemporary stars, from Beyonce to Mariah and so on, don't comprehend: It's not about showboat note-holding and bending around the lyric. It's all in the delivery, and Franklin can still belt like nobody's business, yet she also knows how to hold back.
The classics were winning as ever, such as "Think" and later "Chain of Fools," which was kicked off by her son Teddy on guitar. Seated at the piano -- and still quite the ivory tickler herself -- she took Simon & Garfunkel's already-spiritual "Bridge Over Troubled Water" right into church.
Of course, her signature song, the Otis Redding-penned "Respect," brought the crowd ranging from seniors down to college-age kids to its feet, as did a final gospel climax that included a white-robed choir.
Some songs were MIA: Surprisingly, no "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" or the 1980s hits "Jump to It" and "Freeway of Love." But during numbers like "Ain't No Way," dating back to her 1968 "Lady Soul" album, she showed that she's indeed still the Queen, and while the kingdom is no longer the same, she's not quite ready to step down from that throne yet.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
frozen new-york
great flash mob
On a cold Saturday morning in January, a flash mob of Improv Everywhere Agents descended on New York City’s Grand Central train station and left the entire concourse in a state of complete confusion.
Flash Mob - a large group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place, perform an unusual action for a brief period of time, then quickly disperse.
What did they do that had everyone so confused? This flash mob of 200+ people suddenly froze in place at the exact same second for 5 minutes in the Main Concourse of Grand Central Station. The frozen poses ranged from people tying their shoes and eating to someone who just dropped a stack of papers. Everyone from tourists to cops stopped in amazement to try to figure out what was happening around them.
On a cold Saturday in New York City, the world’s largest train station came to a sudden halt. Over 200 Improv Everywhere Agents froze in place at the exact same second for five minutes in the Main Concourse of Grand Central Station. Over 500,000 people rush through Grand Central every day, but today, things slowed down just a bit as commuters and tourists alike stopped to notice what was happening around them. Enjoy the video first and then go behind the scenes with our mission report and photos.
The complete story
The Main Concourse before we arrive
Back in 2006 we had around 200 people shop in slow motion at a Manhattan Home Depot. For part two of that mission everyone froze in place. As it turned out the slow motion was subtle, but the freezing in place was absolutely striking. I wanted to recreate the frozen idea, but this time in a larger, more open space. Home Depot had many aisles and multiple floors so you could never see more than a handful of frozen people at a time. At Grand Central’s enormous Main Concourse, we would be able to see everyone simultaneously.
We met in nearby Bryant Park and synchronized our watches. We would freeze at exactly 2:30 PM. A nice mix of people of all ages and races showed up, so we would look like any random sample of New Yorkers before we froze.
The room starts to fill up moments before go time
The clock strikes 2:30
Another thing we learned at the Home Depot mission is that it’s really tough to convey this idea through photographs. Everyone is frozen in place in a photo. Our chief photographer Chad Nicholson toyed with his exposure a bit to help compensate. Those not frozen are blurry.
At one point a guy driving some type of maintenance cart entered the concourse and was stopped in his tracks by our frozen agents. Fortunately there were just a few seconds left in the mission. We unfroze before he got too frustrated.
We got great reactions from the folks who encountered us. Strangers started talking to each other, trying to figure out what was going on. With wireless microphones hidden in our shirts, a few agents and I struck up conversations with folks. I convinced one guy to grab a cell phone from a frozen woman’s hand. He did it, laughing uncontrollably as he gently put it back in her hand. My favorite reaction was from a female cop who witnessed the whole thing from behind her NYPD recruitment booth:
It was fun to see all the different choices people made for their frozen moment. I didn’t give any instructions in advance. I just told everyone to be doing something realistic and not jokey. One guy dropped an entire briefcase full of papers the second before he froze, leaving his papers scattered before him for five minutes. Many froze midway through eating or drinking. A few froze while taking off a jacket. One couple froze kissing.
I’ve put together some animations of a few of my favorite moments. It’s fun to watch each one through multiple times, focusing on different parts of the image. You can try to figure out how many people in each image are actually frozen. Agent Nicholson was not shooting from a tripod, so on some of these the image shifts slightly from frame to frame. I’ve spaced them out so you can focus on one at a time.
On a cold Saturday morning in January, a flash mob of Improv Everywhere Agents descended on New York City’s Grand Central train station and left the entire concourse in a state of complete confusion.
Flash Mob - a large group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place, perform an unusual action for a brief period of time, then quickly disperse.
What did they do that had everyone so confused? This flash mob of 200+ people suddenly froze in place at the exact same second for 5 minutes in the Main Concourse of Grand Central Station. The frozen poses ranged from people tying their shoes and eating to someone who just dropped a stack of papers. Everyone from tourists to cops stopped in amazement to try to figure out what was happening around them.
On a cold Saturday in New York City, the world’s largest train station came to a sudden halt. Over 200 Improv Everywhere Agents froze in place at the exact same second for five minutes in the Main Concourse of Grand Central Station. Over 500,000 people rush through Grand Central every day, but today, things slowed down just a bit as commuters and tourists alike stopped to notice what was happening around them. Enjoy the video first and then go behind the scenes with our mission report and photos.
The complete story
The Main Concourse before we arrive
Back in 2006 we had around 200 people shop in slow motion at a Manhattan Home Depot. For part two of that mission everyone froze in place. As it turned out the slow motion was subtle, but the freezing in place was absolutely striking. I wanted to recreate the frozen idea, but this time in a larger, more open space. Home Depot had many aisles and multiple floors so you could never see more than a handful of frozen people at a time. At Grand Central’s enormous Main Concourse, we would be able to see everyone simultaneously.
We met in nearby Bryant Park and synchronized our watches. We would freeze at exactly 2:30 PM. A nice mix of people of all ages and races showed up, so we would look like any random sample of New Yorkers before we froze.
The room starts to fill up moments before go time
The clock strikes 2:30
Another thing we learned at the Home Depot mission is that it’s really tough to convey this idea through photographs. Everyone is frozen in place in a photo. Our chief photographer Chad Nicholson toyed with his exposure a bit to help compensate. Those not frozen are blurry.
At one point a guy driving some type of maintenance cart entered the concourse and was stopped in his tracks by our frozen agents. Fortunately there were just a few seconds left in the mission. We unfroze before he got too frustrated.
We got great reactions from the folks who encountered us. Strangers started talking to each other, trying to figure out what was going on. With wireless microphones hidden in our shirts, a few agents and I struck up conversations with folks. I convinced one guy to grab a cell phone from a frozen woman’s hand. He did it, laughing uncontrollably as he gently put it back in her hand. My favorite reaction was from a female cop who witnessed the whole thing from behind her NYPD recruitment booth:
It was fun to see all the different choices people made for their frozen moment. I didn’t give any instructions in advance. I just told everyone to be doing something realistic and not jokey. One guy dropped an entire briefcase full of papers the second before he froze, leaving his papers scattered before him for five minutes. Many froze midway through eating or drinking. A few froze while taking off a jacket. One couple froze kissing.
I’ve put together some animations of a few of my favorite moments. It’s fun to watch each one through multiple times, focusing on different parts of the image. You can try to figure out how many people in each image are actually frozen. Agent Nicholson was not shooting from a tripod, so on some of these the image shifts slightly from frame to frame. I’ve spaced them out so you can focus on one at a time.
Outings at the church
A member of one of the largest Black churches in Washington, D.C., outed more than 100 gay choir members last month, telling the pastor that she was leaving because they had ushered in “sin” and “sexual spirits,” a local gay activist told BET.com.
In an email to Bishop Alfred Owens, pastor of the 7,000-member Greater Mount Calvary Baptist Church in northeast D.C., an angry woman on the choir put 45 members of one of the church’s several choirs on blast in late December; then on Jan. 2, she sent another email, identifying 62 other choir members as gay, Brian Watson, a local gay activist told BET.com
Watson, who said a friend showed him one of the emails, said it reads as follows: “The following people I am asking you to monitor very closely and my prayer is that you will sit them down from their ministries because they are ushering in the presence of sin, lies, a spirit of homosexuality and sexual spirits.”
The unidentified woman wrote that 80 percent of the tenors are gay and act more like females in choir rehearsal than she does, according to Watson, a member of the National Black Justice Coalition, an African-American group that advocates for the rights of gays and lesbians.
"It's the talk of the community," Watson said, noting that a lot of the church members "shut it down" when the topic is brought up. He said that the coalition is not taking any stand on the issue because "we have publicly [stated] that Bishop Owens and Greater Mount Calvary is homophobic, yet members who are gay continuously worship there."
"They actually have an ex-gay ministry at the church, which is listed on their Web site, to turn gay members straight," Watson said.
Neither Owens or officials from the church returned BET.com’s calls.
This is not the first time the church has been rocked by a scandal involving gay members.
During a Sunday morning sermon in 2006, Owens used the word "faggot" in referring to homosexuals.
“It takes real men to confess Jesus as Lord and Savior,” Owens said in the sermon, which was recorded by the church on Palm Sunday. “I’m not talking about no faggot or no sissy. Let the real men come down here and take a bow — all the real men. I’m talking about straight men … praise God that you’re straight.”
Is the church living up to its motto, "The church in the hood that will do you good?" Click “Discuss Now” to post your comment.
viewed here
Monday, February 18, 2008
A nature themed park for wet hot adventures
Finnish artist Ilkka Halso believes that, once we're done depleting the ozone, destroying the rainforests, and using up all arable land, nature will be on view in amusement parks, kinda like zoo animals--glorified yet completely devoid of purpose. Below are more images of nature amusement parks from the future.
At the rate we are going, natural rain forests and open spaces will be a thing of the past. The only way we will be able to tell the future generations about them will be through nature-base amusement parks. Finnish artist Ilkka Halso also believes in this theory and feels nature will be on view in amusement parks only. Hit on jump to catch a few more glimpses on what our future theme parks will be like.
Swimming nude under waterfalls?
Making love in the river?
Getting tanned in tight underwear?
Watching hot gay guys kissing each other in giant trees?
viewed here
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Jumper the synopsis
The science fiction thriller leaps into a new realm with JUMPER, which begins the epic adventures of a man who discovers that he possesses the exhilarating ability to instantly teleport anywhere in the world he can imagine. From New York to Tokyo, from the ruins of Rome to the heart of the Saharan Desert, anywhere is possible for David Rice, until he begins to see that his freedom is not total, that he’s not alone . . . but part of an ongoing, global war that threatens the very survival of his rare and extraordinary kind.
David Rice has grown up with a mysterious power of which many have dreamed. He is completely and utterly mobile, able to zap through wormholes in the space-time fabric to any city, any building, any place at all that his mind desires. In the blink of an eye, he can “jump” from one side of the earth to the other and back again – he can tour twenty different sunsets in one night, he can have breakfast on the Egyptian Sphinx, spend the day surfing in Australia, then pop over to Paris for dinner and enjoy dessert in Japan. He can pass through walls and locked bank safes and enter the most forbidden chambers. So far, he has used his powers to run away from his past, to take advantage of unlimited wealth, to remain fiercely independent. He’s never known limits or boundaries or consequences. Or true connection. Until now.
But when David discovers another young man like himself, a fiery, globetrotting rebel named Griffin, the truth of his existence begins to dawn. He is not just a lone freak of nature, but part of a long line of genetic anomalies known as Jumpers, none of whom are safe. Now, David has now been identified by the secret organization sworn to kill him and all Jumpers. And he is about to be relentlessly pursued in a chase that will literally bound around the planet – as he becomes a key player in an unseen battle that has been raging, invisible to most of humanity, through the ages.
Genre: Action / Adventure
UK release date: 15/02/2008
Starring: Hayden Christensen, Rachel Bilson, Jamie Bell
Directed by: Doug Liman
jumping from the eiffel tower in underwear
you should visit the eiffel tower if you are in paris
:)
hot guys in underwear there
too sexy Jumper
"Jumper," the action thriller about a young man who teleports himself from place to place, leaped to the No. 1 spot internationally over the weekend, grossing an estimated $28.2 million from about 2,800 screens in 30 markets.
The 20th Century Fox International release, which also opened No. 1 domestically, finished first in at least 11 of its opening territories, including the U.K., where it bolted to an estimated $6.3 million from 410 playdates, for a rousing per-screen average of $15,366.
Adapted from a Steven Gould novel and directed by Doug Liman, "Jumper" scored $4.8 million in South Korea from 343 situations for a $13,994 per-screen average. Fox said it was its fifth biggest opening weekend in the market and the biggest February film debut in Korea from any studio.
Paul Hanneman, Fox International's co-president, declared the opening international numbers "excellent," especially since "Jumper's" 30-market debut covered only seven top territories. "We've got a considerable amount of business to go" as the action title moves into bigger markets over the next month, he said. "We still have most of Europe to go."
The weekend in general was solid; the top five films grossed about 15% more than the top five of last year's comparable frame.
Paramount opened overseas "The Spiderwick Chronicles," which premiered No. 3 domestically. The family-oriented fantasy adaptation grossed an estimated $1.5 million from the Philippines and South Korea, with the latter territory providing $1.2 million from 150 screens. Warners' "Fool's Gold," the weekend's No. 4 domestic title, played 250 screens in four markets for an estimated $1.4 million for an overseas cume of $4 million.
Finishing in second place on the weekend was Disney's "National Treasure: Book of Secrets," which grabbed an estimated $12.4 million from 2,864 screens in 44 markets, hoisting its overseas gross total to $201 million (worldwide, $414 million). The Jerry Bruckheimer production starring Nicolas Cage is the 26th Disney title to cross the $200-million mark internationally, and is the best-grossing Cage topliner ever overseas.
Propelling "Treasure" were No. 1 openings in France (an estimated $5.7 million from 600 screens) and in Finland, plus a solid second weekend in the U.K., with an estimated $3.2 million from 491 screens, down just 35% from the opening frame. The 10-day cume in the U.K. is $11.3 million.
Finishing third is Pathe Distribution's "Asterix at the Olympic Games," which placed No. 1 internationally for the last two weekends. The comedy dropped 48% to the No. 3 spot in its home market of France, where it snagged an estimated $5.3 million from 1,078 screens. Overall, "Asterix" came up with an estimated $11 million from about 2,500 screens in seven markets. This estimate does not include results from several other territories playing "Asterix" for which Pathe is not providing figures.
Tied for the No. 4 spot are Paramount's "Cloverfield" and Fox's "27 Dresses," each with weekend estimates of $7 million. The sci-fi thriller played 3,071 screens in 52 territories and raised its overseas cume to $68 million. "Dresses," a romantic comedy, played 1,700 screens in 25 markets for a Fox cume of $23.5 million.
Fifth place went to DreamWorks/Warner's "Sweeney Todd," which scored a tuneful $6.8 million from about 2,300 screens in 48 territories, lifting its foreign total to $70 million. Fox's sleeper hit "Juno" pulled an estimated $6.3 million from 1,111 screens in 15 markets, hoisting its Fox cume to $28.1 million.
A $1.2 million U.K. opening at 280 spots helped Warner's "Bucket List" push its weekend tally to $4.1 million from 1,677 screens in 20 markets for a cume of $26.3 million. Paramount's "No Country For Old Men" snared $4 million from 1,386 spots in 25 markets for an overseas cume of $30.5 million.
Tied with an estimated $3.8 million each on the weekend were Universal's "Charlie Wilson's War" playing 1,580 screens in 38 markets for a cume of $32.6 million; and Sony's "The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep," which played 1,855 sites in 29 territories for a cume of $22.4 million. Warner's "I Am Legend" pulled $3.7 million from 2,700 spots in 53 markets for a mighty cume of $323.2 million.
Best-picture Oscar nominee "There Will Be Blood" drew an estimated $3.4 million from just 570 screens in 17 markets, lifting its overseas cume to $4.6 million. Universal's "Definitely, Maybe," which ranked No. 5 domestically on the weekend, grabbed an estimated $3 million from 571 screens in three markets for a cume of $5.8 million.
Other overseas cume updates: Warner's "L Change the World," $13.6 million (thanks to a No. 1 Japan weekend tally of $3 million from 398 screens); Universal's "American Gangster," $128.5 million; Fox's "Alien vs. Predator: Requiem," $86.2 million; New Line's "The Golden Compass," $256 million; Fox's "The Darjeeling Limited," $12.8 million; Sony's "CJ7," $16.5 million; Fox's "Alvin and the Chipmunks," $124 million; Universal's "Elizabeth: The Golden Age," $49.2 million; Fox's "Hitman," $50.5 million; Disney's "Enchanted," $180.5 million ($305.5 million worldwide); Universal's "Die Rota Zora," $4.1 million; DreamWorks/Paramount's "The Kite Runner," $21.8 million; and Universal's "Atonement," $66.5 million.
david beckham 's car
David Beckham is off to the USA, having accepted an offer of around $1m a week from Major League Soccer team Los Angeles Galaxy - so it's high time to look at David Beckham's gargantuan car collection.
David & Victoria Beckham at the wheel of their BentleyHe has so many cars that apparently when the chairman of Ferrari offered him one of their cars early in 2005 he actually turned the offer down. Beckham owns over seven cars, including a custom built Ferrari, a Porsche 911, a Range Rover, a Jaguar, a Bentley, and a Rolls-Royce Phantom. One of his first notable cars was a 1996 BMW M3, which he owned back when we has a moderately well-known rising star of the Manchester United squad. This car was later sold for a whopping £90,000 on eBay. The same model, not owned by Beckham, recently sold for only £11,000 and you could probably purchase a brand new BMW M3 for well under the weekly wage of your average globe-trotting Galactico.
Top 10: David Beckham cars
David Beckham driving an Audi Q7 on Thursday after a training session in MadridThe star likes to park his fleet in restricted, valeted parking bays. One of his more recent acquisitions was a £110,000 Lamborghini Gallardo. He does keep a few sensible cars though, including a Mercedes S500 and a Bentley Arnage, which he used to pick up his OBE from the Queen at Buckingham Palace in 2004. The car comes complete with leather baby-seats. Neither David nor his wife Victoria want the children to be left out, and for Christmas last year their son Brooklyn, five, was given a £22,000 Hummer H2 car for Christmas. They snapped up a scaled-down version of the vast US 4x4 owned by his father, apparently because the boy loves to imitate his dad.
What do you think of David Beckham's car collection? Has he got it right or could you do better? Let us know on our message boards
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David Beckham and family with entourage and Bentley in July 2006Beckham bought a £55,000 H2 only recently, and added £18,000 of luxury extras. Victoria apparently spotted the scaled-down version while Christmas shopping in Harrods and thought it would be perfect for the five-year-old. A source said: "Brooklyn loves being like his dad. If David gets a new haircut he wants the same style. And having the same car is another way to be as cool as dad. He gets really excited when his dad buys a new car and always wants to copy him. David and Victoria love treating the boys. As soon as Victoria saw the Hummer she knew it would be the perfect gift for Brooklyn." The scaled-down H2 joins a scaled-down BMW Z4, Ferrari and a Porsche in Brooklyn’s bedroom. He has had his fair share of car trouble too; following a reputed kidnap attempt, he purchased an armoured BMW X5 SUV in Madrid, but it was promptly stolen. He bought another one, and it was nicked as well; it was recovered recently in Macedonia, apparently being driven by Bulgarian people-traffickers; he'll certainly be hoping his motoring goes more smoothly out in LA.
taking chances new album from celine dion
Celine dion calling her new album Taking Chances? That's like a Zac Efron musical called Making Cops Shit Their Pants, or a Lil Wayne mix tape titled Bumming Bus Fare From My Mom. Celine's shtick is as safe a bet as there is in the music biz, coming a mere six months after her last album, the Canadian chart-topper D'Elles. Alas, her cat-strangling whine is still a remarkably ugly sound, no matter what she's singing. The days are gone when she had her pick of material, ruining perfectly nice pop-trash ballads from Diane Warren or Jim Steinman — no songs here by either of them, and Linda Perry's "New Dawn" is a Nineties leftover. She interprets Ne-Yo ("I Got Nothin' Left") and the Dream ("Skies of L.A.") with awful results. She goes back to Eighties schlockmeister Aldo Nova for "Can't Fight This Feelin'," which is unfortunately not an REO Speedwagon cover. But that's nothing compared to Dion shrieking the ten millionth version of Heart's "Alone" (mad pitchy, dog!), produced by ex-Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody — Amy Lee, meet the fugliest bullet you ever dodged.
Celine Dion lowers her lean frame into an overstuffed hotel suite couch and describes her dream.
"I had a vision. I was in the front row at the Academy Awards with my mother, husband and son, and I won an Oscar for my role as Maria Callas," says Dion, 39, conjuring up the ill-fated Greek opera diva whose story haunts the Canadian siren.
REVIEW: 'Chances' takes Dion to broader musical territory
MORE: Stage fright for Dion? Only in front of her son
"First, I speak English to thank the academy. Then I speak grec, Greek. Then some French to thank the people at home." She pauses. All Dion's pauses are dramatic. Silence as punctuation mark, followed by declarative sentences in staccato bursts. "The faces of my mom, my husband, my son. Priceless. It is my best achievement as an artist."
The genesis of this disclosure could be the hour — creeping toward 1 a.m., after a full day of being photographed by the Japanese press — or perhaps the peach-colored Bellini bubbling away in a champagne flute that Dion holds like a rose.
Words of the song
Don't know much about your life
Don't know much about your world, but
Don't want to be alone tonight
On this planet they call earth
You don't know about my past, and
I don't have a future figured out
And maybe this is going too fast
And maybe it's not meant to last
Chorus :
But what do you say to taking chances
What do you say to jumping off the edge?
Never knowing if there's solid ground below
Or hand to hold, or hell to pay
What do you say ?
What do you say ?
I just wanna start again
And maybe you could show me how to try
Maybe you could take me in
Somewhere underneath your skin
Chorus
And I had my heart beating down
But I always come back for more, yeah
There's nothing like love to pull you up
When you're lying down on the floor there
So talk to me, talk to me
Like lovers do
Yeah walk with me, walk with me
Like lovers do
Like lovers do
Chorus
Don't know much about your life
And I don't know much about your world
Special oil to turn on your lover
Lover's Cocktail Warming Oil Details
Cocktail Lotions for Intoxicating Fun!
Heat things up after hours with these flavored warming massage lotions! Cupid’s Cosmo (pink), Purple Passion (purple) and Apple Martini (green) come in playful plastic 5.4- oz. “Martini Glass” bottles (turn them over to open). Rub the slick, soothing oil on your lover and it gets warm… blow on it and it gets hotter!
Saturday, February 16, 2008
A coll outdoor home theater for gay movies in summer nights
We have seen some cool home theater installations in the past but this one is undoubtedly the best. Just short being a drive-in, the 5,800-square-foot Skyline residence Hollywood and downtown LA. Its proud owner is architect Hagy Belzberg, a Harvard graduate (1991) who interned in Frank Gehry’s office.
Glass walls, clean lines, uninterrupted space, uncluttered rooms, expensive detailing — the hallmarks of a modern, upscale classic are all present in this stylish residence. Why anyone in possession of such an amazing home with such breathtaking views, would want to watch movies at home, is beyond us, but let’s just say that we wouldn’t mind being invited to a screening or two. The terraces, patios and the 65-foot infinity pool and spa will keep cinematically uninterested guests entertained as well. And we’ll all stay at the separate guest house, of course.
from here
Filth and Wisdom madonna new movie released in berlin
Pinch me, I must be dreaming -- Madonna directed a movie?! And it will receive its world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival?! Will wonders never cease? The Associated Press is reporting that Filth and Wisdom "will screen in the Panorama section, outside the main competition." A check of the festival web site turns up this press release, which confirms the news: "Music star Madonna will give her directorial debut alongside the works of underground star Bruce LaBruce and TEDDY winner 2007, Zero Chou from Taiwan."
Madonna was rumored to be directing a film entitled Blade to the Heat, inspired by a 1959 boxing match which resulted in the death of one of the combatants after he slurred the other's sexuality. That project may still be mired in development. Filth and Wisdom apparently stars Stephen Graham, Richard E. Grant and Eugene Hutz. Her official site says that she directed a television ad earlier this year, so she may be gearing up for more projects to come. Production on Filth and Wisdom, described as a low budget, 30-minute comedy possibly based on some of Madonna's own life experiences, began in May.
The IMDb page lists Tim Maurice-Jones as cinematographer; he previously worked with Madonna's hubby Guy Ritchie on Revolver and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. Dan Cadan is listed as the writer; he's also worked with Ritchie for years, steadily moving his way up the production chain.
In general, Madonna has not been well served on the big screen, though I have a soft spot for her role in Desperately Seeking Susan. I'm very curious to see how Filth and Wisdom turns out. Will Madonna become a director to reckon with? The Berlin Film Festival runs from February 7-17.
Well, it had to happen. Madonna has been a terrible actor in many, many films and now - fiercely aspirational as ever - she has graduated to being a terrible director. She has made a movie so incredibly bad that Berlin festivalgoers were staggering around yesterday in a state of clinical shock, deathly pale and mewing like maltreated kittens. She is also the producer and co-author of the script. If she'd done the location catering as well, they'd have had a Jonestown situation on their hands.
Her first feature may have been made relatively under the radar -- at least for a woman of her stature -- but iconic actress/author and all around uber pop star, now turned filmmaker, Madonna nevertheless made quite a splash in Berlin today. She landed on the cover of local tabloids ahead of the world premiere of her directorial debut Filth & Wisdom at the Berlinale tonight and huge crowds gathered wherever she went in public, from throngs of journalists at a press conference, a mob around the big screen TV broadcasting the live Q &A, a sea of fans outside the Berlin fest headquarters and later at the Zoo Palast theater. indieWIRE spent some quieter moments with Madonna during one of the few one-on-one interviews she gave earlier today.
Set in London, the film, which Madonna said was originally envisioned as a short, ultimately evolved into an 85-minute movie. It revolves around three friends desperate to better their lot in life, who must duel with the reality of their circumstances. While causing a stir at the Berlinale, the film is screening in the fest's more artsy and understated Panorama section, alongside many other films from first-timers. Early word after today's press screening seemed positive among those who caught the showing, with some saying that it exceeded their expectations.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Mardi gras celebrates 30 years of gay fun
It’s the largest gay party in the world, with extraordinary performances, costumes, sports events and festivals, and this weekend, the 30th anniversary of Sydney’s Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras kicked off with a bang. The theme this year is Brave New World, chosen to represent the struggles and achievements this legendary event has had to endure over the past three decades.
In the summer of 1978, homosexuality was still a crime in most parts of Australia. Just participating in homosexual activities or congregating with other members of the community could be grounds for discrimination in employment, housing, and healthcare, and the community at large was reaching it’s boiling point.
A decade earlier, the Stonewall riots in New York had sparked a monumental shift in the gay movement, and although the riots were violent in nature, they acted as a catalyst for gay people across the world to stand up and demand equal treatment and equal rights.
On Saturday, June 24th, 1978, as a showing of gay solidarity with the men and women at Stonewall, a group of 2,000 Australian gays and lesbians took to the street for a peaceful protest march that had been permitted by the government. Half way through this first crude parade that was lead by pick up trucks and PA systems, the permit was revoked and police began to harass participants resulting in fights and the eventual arrest of over 50 marchers.
The names of those arrested were released in the Sydney Herald and many men and women lost their jobs and friends because of the public outing.
The following year, the Parliament of New South Wales passed a Public Assemblies Act which allowed the public to demonstrate peacefully without a government permit, and the gay marchers came back for a second event that was much more successful. After that, the organizers added a post parade party, and each year the event steadily grew with more participants and more events contributing to a now world-renowned celebration.
With over 500,00 participants by the end of the '80s, Sydney Mardi Gras had become a gay Mecca and was covered by mainstream news outlets and broadcast media. The event did have some struggles in the early part of the new millennium after tourism dropped following the 9/11 bombings, but the organizers are determined to get the event back on track.
Now the festivities have been moved to February, and the whole month is jammed packed with fundraisers, sports events, parties and performances.
Along with having a great time and partying with some of the hottest men and women from around the world, Mardi Gras 2008 is hoping to spread a message of global consciousness, and the organizers are trying to further the occasion beyond just a big celebration.
At the launch event, co-hosted by Geoff Field and Julie McCrossin, a $5,000 donation to Centennial Parklands Foundation was made to purchase shrubs and trees to offset carbon emissions from the parade and other events during the ceremony. A commemorative tree was planted at the end of the parade route as a reminder of the struggle to succeed and to represent the growth that the gay community has made over the past few decades. Also, the event's new partnership with Myspace is being used to promote a social network for gay men and women all over the world and is designed to bring them together in solidarity.
They have created a forum where members of the community can go to share their dreams and hopes for the future, and where the can share their stories of coming out and self acceptance in order to send a positive message to younger generations.
Over the next three weeks, Gay Mardi Gras will welcome performers like Cyndi Lauper, Margaret Cho and Kathy Griffin to various parties around the city. World famous DJ’s will help provide atmosphere to lavish pool parties and a Queer Film Festival will highlight some of the best examples of gay cinema. There is also a Fair Day where last year over 60,000 gay men and women came to participate in a plethora of arts, sports and cultural festivities, and to experience great food and shopping while interacting with other members of the community.
All of the events lead up to the legendary Parade, which will take place on March 1st, and hundreds of street performers, dancers and floats will delight audiences with their inspired performances.
What started out as a small protest has expanded into one of the biggest pride celebrations in the world. Partnered with some of the biggest brand named companies like Ikea, Atlantis, Virgin Blue and 42 Below Vodka, the success of Mardi Gras shows that gay people are making great strides toward acceptance, and the celebrations offer hope for further successes in the future.
blood donations from gay men
Santa Clara County should oppose FDA ban on blood donations from gay men
Should the county oppose FDA policy on blood donations from gay men?
Santa Clara County should formally oppose the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's ban on blood donations from gay men, a board of supervisors' committee agreed today.
Since 1983, the FDA has banned blood donations from any man who has had sex with another man since 1977, arguing that such donors are 60 percent more likely to have HIV-infected blood than the rest of the population.
But the Red Cross and other blood-donation groups argue that blood testing is now so advanced that donations can be screened for HIV, and that other people who are at risk of HIV infection are not banned for life from giving blood. The groups have recommended allowing blood donations from men who have not had sex with another man for at least 12 months.
Several student and nurses groups across the country recently issued resolutions in opposition to the FDA's lifetime ban. The president of San Jose State University recently banned blood drives on campus, saying the FDA rule violates its non-discrimination policies.
Vincent Yalon, administrative director of Stanford Blood Center, told committee members that while he agreed the FDA's policy is "overly restrictive," banning blood drives unfairly penalizes those who need blood.
He said already only 38 percent of the population is eligible to give blood, and of those, only 3 percent do so.
The county committee, made up of two members from the five-member board of supervisors, did not seek to ban blood drives
gym in your private spa
AquaFit 19 Dual Temp. Coming from Dimension One Spas, it allows users to have a full, underwater cardiovascular workout by using the included rower, tricep pull-down and simulated jogger or swimming facilities. It features two different temperature-controlled areas, each with its own filtration system. On the fitness side, you can swim stationary laps for a full-body workout, row to build your upper body and arms, or run or jog underwater in place for a cardiovascular workout. On the hydrotherapy side, you can relax your muscles pre or post workout. Ouch its hurts to realise that all this is only for the uber rich folks. I think I’ll log off now and go for a dip in the pool followed by a steaming seesion in the local club.
viewed here
Floating home for wet hot guys
Global warming takes a new look on the beaches of Holland. Holland may soon evolve an over-water wonder with the grace of Dutch Architects. As it is already, 20 percent below sea level and the threat keeps on rising day by day, a home building company known as “Waterstudio” displays the next generation of eco-friendly and water-disaster proof houses. These houses are floatable buildings with airtight foundations, and with slack built into electricity and water cables feeding it. It also features a bob-upwards hovering floor in case of water level rise or floods. It is yet a concept but is soon foreseen a certainty on the waters of Holland
viewed here
Thursday, February 14, 2008
The best love posts by the best gay bloggers has been released
They have chosen their own best post regarding gay love.
Their vision of gay love life!
Only on the best gay bloggers blog
Choose the boy you prefer
among the best male models in their swimwear suit.
THey are half nude, so it will be easy to choose the one you prefer
THey are half nude, so it will be easy to choose the one you prefer
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Gays in Space: It’s Probably Already Happened
There has never yet been an openly gay astronaut, but that doesn’t mean that there has never been a gay man or woman in space.
An article posted Jan. 31 at blog.wired.com speculates that, given a total of more than 450 individuals who have gone into Earth orbit or beyond, the statistical likelihood is high that some of those adventurers were probably gay or lesbian.
However, the general public has not heard about any gays in space because of the military background of most astronauts and the fact that NASA is institutionally more conservative than not. (The article also points out that U.S. astronauts reside in Texas, a state where laws against sodomy were on the books as recently as 2003.)
Elsewhere in the world--Russia, for example--gays are even less accepted, so it’s no great surprise that word of high-flying gays and lesbians has not, as yet, found its way to the culture at large.
On the other hand, a long-standing urban myth about straight astronauts and cosmonauts exploring the mechanics of micro-gravity sex has piqued public interest for years.
However, according to an earlier Wired article posted last Dec. 5, that myth is nothing more than wishful thinking: Wired reported that the deputy leader of Russia’s Biomedical Problems Institute, Valery Bogomolov, told the UK newspaper The Guardian, "Russian space medicine has not raised this problem so far."
Added Bogomolov, "Cosmonauts are, of course, humans, but this has not been an issue throughout the history of space flights."
As for NASA’s response to similar rumors regarding American space explorers, Wired reported that the American agency "branded [as] a hoax" claims of sex in space. And that was between straight people.
It may be a while yet before GLBT culture can lay claim to its own real live space hero. In the meantime, as the Wired article pointed out, we have Star Trek’s George Takei (he played Sulu in the Original Series) and prospective "commercial astronaut" Lance Bass.
The Clues in Heath Ledger's Death
Residents of New York City's SoHo district are used to crossing paths with celebrities. But on Wednesday they grieved for one. Neighbors and fans erected a makeshift memorial outside the apartment building in which Heath Ledger was found dead on Tuesday afternoon. Among about a dozen bouquets of flowers, handwritten notes and flickering candles stood a hand-drawn portrait of the square-jawed actor, a cigarette jutting from his lips, reminiscent of James Dean, a Hollywood legend who also died young and famous. Ledger was at a point in his career where he had graduated from heartthrob (A Knight's Tale) to serious screen actor (Brokeback Mountain) when a housekeeper came across his naked body in his Manhattan loft at 421 Broome Street. A day after that discovery, from across the street, passers-by gazed up at the building's gray windows and