Philadelphia: Get Your History Straight, and Your Nightlife Gay

Philadelphia initiated a campaign to attract gay tourists to the city back in 2004, with clever advertising like the commercial below. The campaign was so successful, that the city saw a $153 return for every dollar spent on its marketing campaign, according to a 2005 gay tourism survey. Since then, many other cities, as well as companies, are coming up with clever gay tourist campaigns.

With gays in the U.S. spending 600 billion each year, it's no surprise we're starting to get more and more advertisers paying closer attention to us.

Killing in the Name of God

The blood of all gays who have been beaten or murdered cover the hands of conservative Christians. They are as guilty as those who attack and kill gays. This seems harsh, but these clergy, bloggers, and others can't get it through their thick heads that when they tell their congregations or readers that being gay is bad, or sinful, and that gays are going to hell, it spurs those whose characters border on psychotic to go out and hurt gays. Do these priests and bloggers condone gay bashing, of course not (well, they probably do, but won't admit it), but they are nevertheless just as culpable as the perpetrators who attack gays.

Terry Mark Mangum of Cypress, Texas, murdered Kenneth Cummings back in June because he was gay, and last week told the press from his jail cell he did it for God, and that God asked him to carry out a code of retribution by killing a gay man, because "sexual perversion is the worst sin." Of course we have to question Mangum's sanity, but then again, aren't those who attack people usually two feathers short of a boa, anyway?

Like a host letting a drunk drive home after the party, these people deserve to be held accountable for the actions of others they spur on.

Work Bitch! Jonny McGovern's Hot, New Video

Jonny McGovern, AKA the Gay Pimp, recently released a new piece/video "Something for the Fellows." As always, McGovern's music is racy, hot, and sexually charged. Better yet, the hot young guys he features in his video and what they do with Jonny and each other are even hotter. Sexy, sexy, sexy. The words, "work bitch" wonderfully laced throughout. Enjoy!

Remembering Paul Broussard: Murdered for being Gay

Since the time of Cain killing Abel, depicted in the painting above, humans have found many reasons for murder, none so callous as because the victim was "different."

Seven years before the brutal death of Matthew Shepard, a young man named Paul Broussard was horrifically murdered by 10 teenagers. Broussard had been an Eagle Scout and played the clarinet in the school band and the church choir. He graduated with honors; 15th in a class of 469. He paid his own way through college by working two jobs, and graduated from Texas A&M with a degree in finance.

It was two o'clock in the morning on July 4th, when Broussard and two of his friends left Heaven, one of Houston's gay bars in the Montrose neighborhood. Only blocks away from home, their attackers, who had been drinking and doing drugs, pulled their cars up and asked the three for directions to the bar they had just left. When Broussard and his friends told them where it was, the teens got out of their cars and attacked the gay men with fists, steel-toed boots, nail-studded two-by-fours, and a knife wielded by Jon Buice. Broussard's friends escaped down a busy street, but he unfortunately headed down a dead end street, where he was surrounded by the attackers.

The ten young men were cheering and yelling as they attacked Broussard, who suffered abrasions, puncture wounds, a broken rib, bruised testicles, and three stab woulds. As he lay on the ground, almost unconscious, two of his attackers rifled through his pockets and took a comb as a souvenir. The ten young men then drove off, still cheering and yelling.

Broussard was treated by EMS at the scene, and then airlifted to St. Joseph's Hospital in Houston, where he died eight-and-a-half hours later. Broussard would have most likely survived the beating, but what killed him was the stabbing by attacker Jon Buice.

The ten teens were eventually caught, tried, and convicted, and served various terms. However, Buice received a sentence of 45 years behind bars due to his stabbing of Broussard, and is up for parole in October, having already been denied in 2003 and 2005.

Broussard's mother, Nancy Rodriguez, currently lives in Georgia. She has attended more than 20 parole hearings in her efforts to keep her son's assailants in prison. Says Rodriguez, "we have to start somewhere teaching our children to value people and life. That it is not acceptable to use language like fag, queer, fairy. If Paul’s story has touched the life of even one young person and made them stop and think about their actions, then maybe his death will not have been in vain."

Public Bathrooms, Fort Lauderdale, and Gay Hating

You know, there's nothing worse than being deeply offended by someone, and then having them say, "oh, okay, let me apologize," only to have them offend you some more. That's what happened earlier this week with the idiot mayor of Fort Lauderdale, Jim Naugle.

Okay, it all started a couple of weeks ago, when Naugle got the idea that gays were having way too much sex in public bathrooms near ultra-gay Sebastian Beach, and made an announcement he wanted to spend $250,000 of taxpayers money to buy public toilets whose doors open automatically after a set amount of time, though not enough for a quickie (we suspect the mayor doesn't get enough sex of his own to know about quickies). Naugle, a Democrat, is not new to the gay-hating scene, having once said that homosexuality is "something so nasty and disgusting that it makes God want to vomit." Hopefully, God wouldn't have to hurl for for an extended amount of time, because God knows the bathroom door might automatically open.

Okay, if that weren't bad enough, earlier this week Naugle was going to make a public announcement, apparently to apologize for his gay hating. The gays and press gathered, and here's what the schmuck said, "I want to apologize to the children and parents of our community for not being aware of the problem,'' and then called on residents to inform police if they see gays engaging in sex in public restrooms.

As a regular to Fort Lauderdale, where gays bring in tens of millions of pink dollars each year, I'm not sure if I want to go there now. Well, of course I do, because the mayor isn't a complete reflection of the people of Fort Lauderdale (though one does wonder how this mega-idiot got elected), and the gays who own many of the hotels and other businesses in Fort Lauderdale are what make it such a special gay destination. Nevertheless, tourism to Fort Lauderdale has certainly taken a hit.

Inequities in Civil Unions/Domestic Partners Hurts Both Gay & Straight

Fascinating, isn't it, that because some states have gone the way of civil unions or the lesser domestic partnerships for same-sex couples rather than marriage, gays and straights alike are finding themselves getting the shaft.

Hurting the Gays
A week or so ago we reported how the partners of civil unioned (I hate the term, but use it to underscore how silly-sounding it is) employees of UPS in New Jersey were being denied health benefits. We headlined that story "Don't Blame UPS," because it was the NJ legislature that decided to forgo marriage for the lesser, more demeaning civil union for its same-sex, tax-paying citizens.

UPS claims the inequity is due to a worker's union contract, and that had the NJ legislature given same sex couples marriage, they would have been obligated to give those same-sex spouses the same benefits. UPS offers full benefits to the partners of legally married same-sex couples in Massachusetts, so it's difficult not to believe them when they say they're bound by the workers union contract.

Hurting the Straights
California resident Ron Garber, whose divorced wife moved in with her lady partner, and with whom she not only domestic partnered (sic), but also took her new partner's last name, sued that the alimony payments he was making his ex-wife should end.

Not so says the Orange County judge, who ruled that a registered partnership is merely cohabitation, not marriage, and that Garber must keep writing the checks.

Separate but Equal Didn't Work for Blacks, Nor Will it for Gays
These stories highlight the undeniable fact that despite the attempt by state supreme court judges and state legislators to bring equal rights to same sex couples, by instituting civil unions rather than marriage, they create an institution that they believe is separate but equal, yet remains controversially connected and unequivocally unequal.

Gay Genie

A gay guy was walking along the beach on Fire Island, you know, just in front of the Meat Rack, when he stumbled upon a Genie's lamp. He picked it up and rubbed it, and lo-and-behold, out popped a gay genie.

The Genie said, "Hey girlfriend, wassup?"

The amazed man asked if he got three wishes.

"Nope, just one...due to inflation, constant downsizing, low wages, third-world countries, my new pumps pinching my big toes, and fierce global competition, I can only grant you one wish. So...what'll it be? The complete set of Tyson Cane videos? A copy of the Marilyn Monroe Happy Birthday Mr. President sequined dress in your size with matching shoes?"

The man shook his head 'no', and didn't hesitate. He said, "I want peace in the Middle East. See this map? I want these countries to stop fighting with each other."

The Genie looked at the map and shrieked, "Miss Thaaaaaang, I don't think so, not in this lifetime!! These countries have been at war for thousands of years. I'm good, but not THAT good! I don't think it can be done. Make another wish."

The man thought for a minute and said, "Well, I've never been able to find the right man, you know, one that's considerate and fun, warm and affectionate, gorgeous, is well endowed, only wants sex from me, doesn't do drugs or drink too much, has a great job with a good income, likes to cook and helps with the housecleaning, and gets along with my family, doesn't watch sports all the time, and tells me I always look fabulous, and is great in bed. That's what I wish for... the perfect guy to have as my lover."

The Genie let out a long sigh, clutched his hand to his heart and said, "Oh, Miss Thang...let me see that map again."

Gay Bankers: Dow Jones to Go Homophobic

You gay bankers and financial sector guys might want to pay close attention to Rupert Murdoch's present attempt to purchase Dow Jones, which publishes The Wall Street Journal. You see, Murdoch already owns the uber-conservative Fox network, as well as the gay-hating New York Post (see July 21st posting below), and a slew of papers and networks nationwide. Fears are, even amongst many WSJ reporters, that Murdoch would inject his own straight, conservative agenda within the publication. Murdoch, on gay marriage, says "I believe it is wrong."

The Bancroft family owns a majority of voting shares of Dow Jones, and they remain split on whether to accept the offer, as they, too, have some degree of fear that the company could be editorially compromised were Murdoch to own the WSJ.

The Dow Jones board has already approved a deal to sell the firm but it is unclear if the Bancrofts, who are the controlling shareholders, will follow suit given that several members have been actively courting alternative bidders.

More to follow, though if Murdoch buys the Dow Jones, we wouldn't rely on it for the details.

Lauding Out Sports Figures

Although there are many closeted professional sports players, both retired or still active, there are still many brave souls who did finally come out at some point. They deserve to be lauded.

Here's a brief, though not complete, history of gays coming out in the professional and competitive sports world.

1920 - Openly gay Bill Tilden wins the men's singles title at Wimbledon, going on to win two more Wimbledon titles, seven U.S. championships, and leads U.S. teams to seven Davis Cup victories.

1968 - Tom Waddell, a 30-year-old Army physician, places sixth in the Olympic decathlon.

1975 - David Kopay, the NFL running back who played for five teams (San Francisco, Detroit, Washington, New Orleans, Green Bay) between 1964-72, becomes the first professional team-sport athlete to come out three years after retiring.

1981 - Billie Jean King is "outed" when ex-lover Marilyn Barnett sues her for "galimony" while she is married to Larry King.

1981 - Martina Navratilova publicly reveals that she is a lesbian.

1982 - The first Gay Olympic Games takes place in San Francisco.

1983 - Bob Paris wins the Mr. America and Mr. Universe bodybuilding titles. In 1989, he reveals his homosexuality to the bodybuilding community during an interview with Ironman magazine.

1987 - Jerry Smith, a tight end with the Washington Redskins from 1965-77, dies of AIDS complications. Smith never acknowledged that he was gay, but in David Kopay's autobiography, Smith was described as his first love.

1988 - Bruce Hayes, an Olympic swimmer who won a gold medal in 1984 as a member of the 800-meter freestyle relay, comes out publicly at the Gay Games and wins seven gold medals in competition.

Martina Navratilova's announcement that she is a lesbian cost her endorsement dollars but won her respect from other players.

1992 - Matthew Hall, a figure skater on the Canadian National Team, comes out.

Roy Simmons, an offensive guard for the New York Giants and later Washington Redskins, reveals he is gay during an appearance on The Phil Donahue Show.

1993 - David Slattery, general manager of the Washington Redskins in the early 1970's, comes out.

Glenn Burke, former outfielder with the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Oakland A's, comes out publicly during an interview. During the same interview in which he admits his homosexuality, Burke says he believes he was traded from the Dodgers because management suspected his was gay.

1994 - Greg Louganis, four-time Olympic gold medalist in diving who becomes HIV-positive, comes out in public at the Gay Games.

Missy Giove, an openly lesbian mountain biker, wins her first world title. Considered the Michael Jordan of her sport, she subsequently wins back-to-back world titles in 1996 and '97.

1995 - Ian Roberts, whose picture you see at the top of this post, is one of Australia's most popular rugby players, poses nude for a gay magazine. In the same issue, Roberts speaks about being "part of a different group ... an outsider." He becomes the first major sports figure in Australia to come out.

1996 - Muffin Spencer-Devlin, an 18-year LPGA veteran, speaks about being a lesbian in the March 18 issue of Sports Illustrated.

Rudy Galindo, the national men's skating champion, discusses being a gay man in the book Inside Edge: A Revealing Journey Into the Secret World of Figure Skating. Doug Mattis, another professional skater, comes out not long afterward.

David Pichler and Patrick Jeffrey, two openly gay U.S. divers, compete in the Atlanta Olympics.

1998 - Michael Muska, a former track-and-field coach at Auburn and Northwestern, is named athletic director at Oberlin College. Muska is the first openly gay man to hold such a position in college sports.

Openly gay Greg Louganis, in a special Goodwill Games edition of New York 1 News' nightly sports program, says that several athletes in professional team sports have asked him for advice about going public with their homosexuality.

2002 -Esera Tuaolo, having retired from sports, announced publicly that he is gay, and lives with his partner, Mitchell Wherley, and their children.

2007 - Former NBA player John Amaechi comes out on ESPN's Outside the Lines program.

(Information courtesy The Advocate and ESPN)

Gays Invented Sunday Brunch

Sunday mornings are made for sleeping in and hanging out in bed. That's why we gays invented Sunday brunch, so's we can stay in bed as long as we can. So, today's post is a pictorial of, well, Sunday mornings and guys staying in bed. Your only decision now is where you'll do brunch later.

New York Post: Gay Hating Rag

The New York Post once again proves it's a gay-hating rag. A week or two ago it ran a cartoon by gay-hater Sean Delonas (not his first anti-gay cartoon, mind you). The cartoon depicted openly gay former New Jersey Governor Jim McGreevey, envisioning himself to be "the rightful Miss N.J." and blackmailing the current scandalized holder of the title, Amy Polumbo. Clad in a bikini, high-heels, crown, and sash, McGreevey stands in a room holding a threat letter while a man waiting in bed is spotlighted in the background.

Now, the NY Post is a paper usually read by under-educated, boorish troglodytes who still tote bumperstickers declaring "Bush in 2004," so it's no surprise this rag panders to this group with things like anti-gay cartoons (God knows they only look at the pictures anyway). During New Jersey's debate on gay marriage, a Delonas cartoon depicted a man at a New Jesey marriage license window with a sheep under his arm.

We're pretty sure Delonas wouldn't indulge in the insulting stereotyping of blacks, Jews, hispanics, or other minorities in his cartoons (well, he probably would, but why end his career, not that he's the best cartoonist or anything). So, like the playground bully we had to deal with when we were kids, we now must deal with this bully.
The Gay Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) has the story and the cartoons at their website, just Click Here.

So, go ahead and contact the following, and tell them what gay-hating idiots they are:

Mr. Jesse Angelo, Managing Editor jangelo@nypost.com

Sean Delonas, Cartoonist
General Line: 212-930-8000
seandelonas@gmail.com

Letters to the Editor
letters@nypost.com

Dear Anita

Dear Anita -

Hey, girlfriend! Just wanted to drop you a note, letting you know that we gays have made a lot of headway in gaining our rights. True, you were successful back in the late 70s in fooling people in Florida that your "Save the Children" campaign was based on what Wikipedia quotes you as saying was "Christian beliefs regarding the sinfulness of homosexuality and the perceived threat of homosexual recruitment of children and child molestation."

We've come a long way, and it took a lot of effort on our part to prove how wrong you were. Many Christian denominations now fully accept being gay as just another part of God's schematic layout, and that "homosexuality" is also apparent in the animal kingdom.

As to recruitment, we've been able to convince many of your former supporters using the argument that how can people be recruited to be gay, when we gays grew up within straight families, living in straight neighborhoods, and had no contact with anyone gay. Nobody converted us, Anita, but it would have been helpful having a few mentors to show us as young people that we were not destine to be the decrepit demons you said we would be.

As to child molestation, honey, please! It's been shown that gays, based on percentages, are no less likely than straights to be child molesters, and therefore, as we are a minority within the general public, more straights are child molesters than gays.

Why you would ruin your career by getting involved in such a ploy as "Save the Children" is beyond most of us. However, the gay-hating you seeded and nurtured in our country, the deep-seated fear you caused innocent straight people, the damage you caused us that took a generation to overcome, and the lives you attempted to ruin, gives us great satisfaction in recalling the final undoing of your own. Well, that's about all for now.

Best, David

P.S. The Florida Orange Growers' Association sends their regards!

In Search of Gay Bars: Islands of Gaydom

When travelling by yourself to more remote places on business, pleasure, or because you just plain have to, don't take for granted the possibility that your destination might have a local gay watering hole.

For instance, this post comes to you from beautiful dowtown Glens Falls, NY. Not the biggest of cities, and certainly not the most liberal part of the Empire State, however I've found this little oasis called The Bar (right on South Street for you uninformed locals), that offers local and visiting gays in the Lake George area a chance to hang with our own kind.

Just because you're travelling in some remote area, don't be missled into thinking the gays are all in hiding and have no local hangout, do a Google search for "gay bar" with the name of your destination, and you might be surprised to find it has a hole in the wall just for you.

Two Guys Kissing

There is something preciously sweet seeing two guys kiss. There exists this wonderful juxtaposition between their masculinity and the gentle and endearing qualities of the very act itself. As Eve Glicksman once said, "ancient lovers believed a kiss would literally unite their souls," and we tend to agree. Here's a wonderful gay video of guys kissing for your voyeuristic pleasures...enjoy!

Gay-Hating Gay Hypocrites: History Repeats Itself

The Republican Party has quite a few closeted queens. They might consider themselves straight, they're married with children, but at the same time they seem to like dick, and I don't mean Cheney. Now, whether they're gay or bisexual doesn't matter, what does matter is that while they'll back home telling their constituents they're against gay marriage, they're pro-family, and that they're all for any anti-gay legislation, they're out at nights in the Capital looking for a quick sexual encounter with another guy.

You remember Republican Congressmen Mark Foley of Florida, when last year his provocative, evocative, instant messages to a young male page were disclosed, and found to contain very sexual language. Naturally, these homoerotic IMs caused his downfall.

Just last week, Republican State Representative Bob Allen, a foe of LGBT rights in Florida, was charged with offering a cop $20 for oral sex in a washroom at Veteran's Memorial Park in Titusville. The fact that he's a co-chair of John McCain's presidential campaign in Florida is a salient piece of information. Again, another gay-hating gay down for the count.

"Out" of the Beltway, and on a local level, who can forget Jim West, the Republican Mayor of Spokane (Washington), who was caught IMing and trying to pick up a 17 year-old guy online. Again, even though he was very anti-gay in his dealings as mayor, like proposing a ban on gays from working in Washington's schools, he was caught.

The fact is Foley, Allen, and West are gay-haters who, themselves, are "somehow" gay. They've contributed to making laws that are anti-gay, but think nothing of going out in search of a little hook-up with some guy. Further, they give fodder to those gay-haters who think all gay men are out for is nothing more than picking up some young hottie and having sex with them.

These gay-hating gays are not the first to get caught, there will be more, as there has been in the past, going back to when men first started making laws against homosexuality.

Take for instance John Atherton (1598-1640). Atherton came from a wealthy family in England, went to Oxford, and then became a priest in the Anglican church. Rumor has it he'd been fooling around with other guys since his school days. Atherton left England to move to Ireland, where he became Lord Bishop of Waterford and Lismore in 1636. In his role as Lord Bishop, he successfully campaigned for the passage of an act that instituted the death penalty for the vice of buggery, you know, anal sex. Well, within four years, Atherton became one of the first men accused under this statute, and was subsequently hanged for the very gay-hating law he himself had enacted.

Let this be a lesson to those closeted Uncle Toms of the gays who work to undermine gay equal rights; you will be found, caught, and your lives ruined. Either come out of the closet, or stop your anti-gay politics; being versatile doesn't always mean having it both ways.

Gay Humor: Giving Head

A dumb, blond twink goes to the counter of a drug store and asked the clerk, "What can I do to get rid of my boyfriend's dandruff?"

"Simple," replied the clerk, "give him some Head & Shoulders."

The twink raised an eyebrow, "how do you give shoulders?"

Rita Booke: Sodom, Gomorrah, and the Gays

Resident drag queen and answerer-of-all-questions Rita Booke is asked:

Hi, Rita -
I've heard that the story of Sodom and Gomorrah is not really about homosexuality, but something to do with hospitality. I'd love to use this in an argument with some of my homophobic family members who refer to it, but need elaboration. Can you help?

Honey, this story in the Bible has been used against us time and again. The cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed not because the inhabitants were gay, but because they were inhospitable to Lot's visitors at a time when it was usual practice to help out travelers and strangers. In the time of Lot, if you had a long journey, people in other towns or cities would easily take you into their house, feed you, even let you sleep the night if need be. This goes back to, "do onto others as you would have others do unto you." It was considered the right thing to do. Not being welcoming to Lot's guests, who were actually angels in disguise, and being downright inhospitable to them, was what did Sodom and Gomorrah in.

Secondly, babycakes, many people make the mistake of believing that whenever the bible says "to know" someone that it means to have sex. Our Puritanical history is such that although many ultra-conservative religious folk have this disgust towards this wonderful thing God has given us, at the same time they have this unnatural fascination with it, especially gay sex. Therefore, any time they see in the Bible sentences like, "and they wanted to know them," they think it means "and they wanted to have sex with them."

Most Biblical authorities believe this is not the case, and that in most instances, when you see the bible saying, "to know," it means just that. So, when the men of Sodom asked Lot to bring out his friends so that they can know them, they were really just wanting to get acquainted with them, and to make sure they weren't spies from some other city-state in the area. However, this doesn't excuse them, and they were still a mob that was being mobbish, inhospitable, and acting very aggressively towards Lot and his guests.

At some point, the mob becomes so unruly, that Lot actually offers his daughter as a sex-toy to them, to save his guests from harm (women were considered property and sex-toys anyway). So, here's your best argument: if Lot had lived in this city for so long, one would think he would have known they were all gay, so why the hell would he offer his daughter to them? Remind your relatives this was the same daughter who he later had sex with...ahem!

Of course, your evil family members will come up with arguments like gays can convert, so it's possible to have sex with a women, but tell them that argument is not good enough, and demand again, if Lot knew he was in a city full of homosexuals, why would he offer them his own daughter? My stars, even Jesus knew it was a story of inhospitality, cited in the Bible when he told his disciples, "If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town. I tell you the truth, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town." Also remember that not once in the Bible did Jesus ever mention anything about homosexuality.

Remember, though, that people like this are never convinced, but at least you may have gotten them to think. As each of us has our own personal religious beliefs, tell them to believe what they want, but that you believe the story of Sodom and Gomorrah is about people who are inhospitable, unwelcoming, and not accepting of others to the table of God, and then ask these relatives which neighborhood in Sodom they're originally from.

Good luck, sweetie, you're going to need it!

Rita

Gay Cops Have an Agenda, and a GOAL

It was a Fall evening in 1981, when a retired NYPD detective and an NYPD sergeant got together for dinner. The detective, Sam Ciccone, presented sergeant Charles Cochrane with the idea for creating a gay fraternal organization within the NYPD. The name of the organization would be Gay Officers Action League, and would represent gay and lesbian members of police service and would receive the same recognition, rights, benefits and privileges accorded to the more traditional fraternal groups. These groups had for many years influenced and dominated criminal justice agencies across the country. Lesbians and gays in the department had no such advocates.

A month later on November 21, 1981, Sergeant Cochrane, a 14 year veteran of the NYPD, created shock waves by testifying before a City Council hearing in favor of a gay rights bill. Following on the testimony of a Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association Vice President who denounced the bill and declared he didn’t know of any homosexual police officers, Cochrane stunned those present by announcing, “I am very proud of being a New York City Police Officer, and I am equally proud of being gay.” There was no turning back.

On April 19, 1982 Cochrane and Ciccone proudly signed their names to the legal and public documents that incorporated GOAL. By this action the Gay Officers Action League, Inc. became the first official police fraternal society in the world to represent lesbian and gay people within the criminal justice system.

It was not an easy start, and through the 1980s and into the 90s, GOAL continued to push for recognition and support of LGBT officers, sometimes having to bring lawsuits against the the PBA and city. Their efforts paid off, and GOAL attained full recognition as a true fraternal NYPD organization.

Since then, GOAL chapters have been created in every section of the United States. For more information on GOAL NYPD, Click Here. For a list of Gay/Lesbian Criminal Justice organizations, including GOAL chapters, Click Here.

(As much of this text is derived from NYPD GAOL's website, it remains Copyrighted 2006 - Gay Officers Action League)

Reparative Therapy: Psycho, Psicko, Psychiatrists

You know how they say what comes around goes around? Well, in an interesting development, the American Psychological Association next week will discuss "Reparative Therapy," you know, the therapy that allegedly makes gay people straight (read "back in the closet"). What's ironically beautiful here is that there was a time when any attempt to turn gays straight was accepted by the APA. That changed, though, in 1973, when the APA finally agreed that being gay was merely another aspect of human sexuality--basically saying, "if you're gay, you're not a psycho."

In 2000, the APA Assembly and Board approved a statement saying they were concerned about the use of reparative therapy on gays and lesbians. However, the statement being discussed next week would directly confirm that reparative therapy is misleading, damages young gays and lesbians, aggravates internalized homophobia, and depresses those in therapy, pushing them deeper into states of self-loathing. So, now we come full circle, in that the APA will be discussing the idea that so-called psychiatrists who apply reparative therapy are, themselves, the psychos, and not the gays they're attempting to "cure."

Of course, the gay-hating religious organizations like Focus on the Family are declaring this as an anti-Christian ploy by the pro-homosexual lobby, and that Christianity is being unfairly targeted. Again, what comes around goes around, and it's delightfully delicious to have these right-wing, Bible-thumping, gay-haters on the defensive. There is a God.

Rowing: Don't Neglect that Machine

In your gym, and almost always neglected by you gym bunnies, is the rowing machine. You know, there's a reason why we sigh, gasp, and ogle after those guys who belong to a crew, because their bodies are usually very cut, hot, and sexy! On top of working many of your core muscles, the cardio alone is a major benefit, burning about 800 calories an hour. You'll find few machines in the gym that have such a unique combination of cardio and muscle training, working arm, back, shoulder, and abdomen muscles. A few tips:

• Keep your grip loose.
• Bend forward at the hips.
• Don't risk injury by overarching your back.

However, if you're lucky enough to live in a major city, there's a good chance there's a gay rowing club in your city, and during the summer months get outside, and do the real thing. For more information, check out the Gay and Lesbian Rowing Federation, or Gaycrawler's list of gay rowing clubs by Clicking Here.

Don't Blame UPS, Blame New Jersey Assembly

Okay, so UPS isn't offering its gay unioned couples the same benefits they offer straight married employees, and by unioned we mean those who belong to a "workers" union, though of course they would still be required to be "civil" unioned by the state of New Jersey. See how confusing things are when state assemblies choose civil unions over marriage when it comes to same sex couples?

Actually, UPS offers its non-unioned unioned employees more benefits than you can imagine. According to a UPS statement, these include "health care, medical leave, pension rights, funeral leave, relocation and transfer benefits." According to the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), UPS does a pretty good job at equality for gays.

On October 25, 2006 The Supreme Court of New Jersey gave New Jersey lawmakers 180 days to rewrite the state's marriage laws to include same-sex marriage, or create a new system of civil unions for them. Sadly, they chose the latter, and thereby set confusion, and inequity, into motion.

Tonight: Gay Animation - Rick and Steve

Rick and Steve are allegedly the "happiest gay couple in the world," which to premise an animated show is hysterical from the get-go. The American gay channel Logo's new show, aptly titled "Rick and Steve," debuts tonight (10pm EST), and is a must-see.

With twinks and daddies, lesbians and gays, the show looks to be off to a good start. Look for Rick and Steve's discussion about doing a three-some, and who they'd want to be the third (and it ain't Brad Pitt). Laugh as their conversations about their cat "Pussy" include loads of double entendres.

Puppets with sassy, gay dialogue is fun, but add the list of actors doing the voices, and it's even more fun. From Peter Paige (Queer as Folk), to Margaret Cho (herself), to Wilson Cruz (My So-Called Life), to Alan Cummings (himself), the cast is strong, funny, and very gay! For a preview, click the arrow below. Enjoy!

Gays, San Diego Padres, and the Lord

Religious groups in San Diego have their panties in a bunch, as the Padres hosted an LGBT day at PETCO Park. It was also a day that free hats were being given to children under 14 years of age. Some of their outright stupid, idiotic remarks include the following, as always, with comments from My Small Gay World:

According to the California Catholic Daily, Richard Thompson, president and chief counsel of the Thomas More Law Center commented, “In my opinion, this confluence of events is not a mistake. The Padres are playing the part of the Pied Pieper leading unsuspecting children into accepting the homosexual lifestyle as normal. Children should not be subjected to the ‘in-your-face’ antics of these radical groups. The Thomas More Law Center wants unsuspecting parents that hope to get their children a free hat and maybe allow their children to run the bases at PETCO to know that they are also walking into a modern day scene of Sodom and Gomorrah.”
What a gay-hating schmuck. Again, right-wing, conservative religious folk erroneously connect gays to "converting" children to being gay. Further, Sodom and Gomorrah was a story in the Bible not about homosexuality, but intolerance and inhospitality, a biblical message Richard Thomson needs to learn.

Thomas More's director of communications, Brian Rooney, stated, “These so-called ‘gay pride’ events are often debauched affairs of gross and inappropriate displays of public affection.
Right, Brian, baby, it's okay for two straights to walk hand-in-hand in public, but God forbid two loving, partnered gays should do the same. Maybe you need to join the 21st, century, and realize times and attitudes change, or, as Thomas More himself once said, "To be educated, a person doesn't have to know much or be informed, but he or she does have to have been exposed vulnerably to the transformative events of an engaged human life."

J.D. Loveland, development director of Set Free Ministries, an El Cajon-based Christian organization had this to say, as reported by signonsandiego.com, "Homosexuality is a sin, and promoting it with a Pride Night when thousands of kids are also going to be (at the ballpark) is wrong. So we took a moral stand. We're not anti-gay. We're anti-anti-Christian.” What a twit! As we've warned readers before, the minute you hear "we're not anti-gay," you can bet your pink, bottom dollar that they are. What bothers us the most is that she first says homosexuality is a sin, and then suggests that our very existence is anti-Christian (why else would she feel the need to qualify herself as "anti-anti-Christian?). Right, she's not a gay-hater at all!

Although these religious nuts tried to have a boycott, even standing at the gates warning people as they went in about the "evils" that lurked inside, official attendance for the game was 41,026, just short of a capacity crowd for the 42,685-seat ballpark.

(Of course, that hottie you see above is none other than gay former San Diego Padres player Billy Bean. Click Here for more on Bean's wonderful story.)

Four Gay Sons

Four men went golfing together one day; three headed to the first tee and one went into the club house to take care of the bill. The three men started talking, bragging about their sons. The first man told the others, "My son is a home builder and he's so successful that he gave a friend a new home - for free."

The second man said, "My son was a car salesman and now he owns a multi-line dealership. He's so successful that he gave a friend two Cadillacs."

The third man, not wanting to be outdone bragged, "My son is a stock broker and he's doing so well that he gave his friend an entire stock portfolio."

The fourth man joined them on the tee after a few minutes of taking care of business. The first man mentioned, "We were just talking about our sons. How is yours doing?" The fourth man replied, "Well, you know my son is gay, and although I'm not totally thrilled about it, his last three boyfriends gave him a house, two cars, and a stock portfolio."

A Love Story: The War Hero and the Prince

It was a love blessed by God. Their souls were bound together, and they loved, and lived, and laughed, and cried together. One was a war hero who had proved himself again and again in battle, and the other was a young prince, ready and willing to ascend his father's throne.

However, the prince's father didn't take too well to his son's partner, not because they were gay, but because the great war hero, his son's partner, was getting more attention than the king.

The king arranged for one of his daughters to marry the war hero, and told the hero, "I guess this makes me your father in law twice," referring, of course, to his son, the war hero's "other" spouse.

Still not happy, the miserable king forces the hero into exile with a bounty on his head, and gets so pissed off at the prince, his son, that he calls him a faggot in a brilliant rage.

The war hero and prince secretly meet, however, and love each other, and promise they will always love each other to the very end. And they did.

This story is brought to you courtesy of the Bible, and tells the story of the love between David and Jonathan. For more information about this biblical, same sex love story, Click Here.

Thank God for Fridays...and Eye Candy!

Okay, it's Friday, and so let's get down and boogie with a little eye candy, and gear up for a fabulous weekend! Just click the arrow below.

Gay Cowboys and Washington D.C.

Rugged, butch, and riding, gay cowboys have gotten a lot of attention since Brokeback Mountain was introduced in movie theaters two years ago.

Though there are gay rodeos annually throughout the United States and Canada, and all under the auspices of the International Gay Rodeo Association (IGRA), one in particular takes place right in Washington D.C.

The Atlantic States Gay Rodeo Association's (ASGRA) annual Atlantic Stampede, held this year September 7-9, is sure to entice those with even the most modest interest in cowboys, country western music, or just plain having fun, and "fun" is the active verb.

"First, you do not have to be a cowboy to come to the rodeo," says Patrick Hunter, ASGRA's PR Chairman, "because although the participants might be gay cowboys and cowgirls, most of the people in the stands are there to take in the excitement." People come from as far north as up-state New York, and as far south as Atlanta, Georgia to ASGRA's rodeo, and participants come from even farther. Events include your regular rough-and-tumble bull riding, calf roping, and barrel racing, but there are also "camp" events, like Goat Dressing, were two teams race to put a pair of undies on, you got it, a goat.

Hunter says that even though the rodeo is the center event, running on Saturday and Sunday, the parties and "saloons" that take place during the weekend's nights are tons of fun, with two-step dancing, camp-performers, Rodeo Royalty, and hundreds of boot-wearing, tight-denim baring broncos, all out to have a great time.

Hunter tells us, "the night events are a lot of fun, and people within the D.C. area, even though they may not make it to the rodeo itself, come to these parties." These events include Friday night's Stampede Saloon, and Saturday's not-to-be-missed Harvest Moon Ball.

You gay parents, uncles, and aunts might want to introduce your kids to rodeo at ASGRA's Stampede, because the event is not only "Family" friendly, it's family friendly, including a number of newly added children's rodeo events; the Stick Horse Race, where kids race around the arena on stick horses and the Piggy Back Flag Race, where an adult piggy backs a kid; retrieves a flag from a bucket and tries to place the flag in another bucket accross the arena in the best time. Winners in each event will receive $25.

"This year, we want to get some of those folks who bring their youngins not only watching the rodeo but also involved as well." Hunter says. "Both these events are a fun safe way to give them the opportunity to really be part of the rodeo excitement inside the arena."

The rodeo's host hotel is the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill, and ASGRA has worked a discount room rate for those rodeo-goers who want to take in the full weekend. For more information on the Stampede gay rodeo, Click Here!

Photos copyrighted by and courtesy of
Adam Kirkpatrick.