Two Brothers Beaten -- Attackers Thought They Were Gay

Four attackers may have mistaken two brothers walking arm in arm as gay before using an aluminum baseball bat, a bottle and their feet to beat one of them into critical condition. He died Monday in a hospital in New York City, police said.
One of the attackers used an anti-gay slur when first confronting the brothers, Ecuadorean immigrants who were walking down a Brooklyn street early Sunday after a night of drinking. The assailants also used anti-Hispanic insults, city officials said at a news conference.
“We believe all of this happened simply because of who these individuals are and who these perpetrators perceived them to be,” said City Council Speaker Christine Quinn. “For some reason (they) didn’t like the two men they believed were gay … and felt so emboldened in their hatred that they acted it out in violence.”

Boston Legal Has A Same Sex Marriage -- Can You Guess?

In last night's Boston Legal finale, characters Denny Crane and Alan Shore got married. It was referred to as a same-sex marriage, not a gay marriage, since neither character is gay, but according to the LA. Times' Mary McNamara, "It was a fitting end to the most devoted, and deranged, couple on television."

Illinois Governor Arested

Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich was arrested on criminal charges on Tuesday, including trying to sell the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by fellow Democrat President-elect Barack Obama, federal prosecutors said. Blagojevich was also accused of threatening to withhold substantial state assistance to the Tribune Company in connection with the sale of the Chicago Cubs' baseball home Wrigley Field 'to induce the firing of Chicago Tribune editorial board members sharply critical' of him

Meanwhile, Here in Las Vegas.....

A Las Vegas judge sentenced fallen gridiron great O.J. Simpson to at least 15 years in prison for leading an armed hotel room confrontation over sports memorabilia in 2007. Simpson could become eligible for parole in about nine years. Grimacing, his head cast down, Simpson was escorted from the courtroom in shackles. Judge Jackie Glass gave Simpson a tongue-lashing before passing sentence. “Earlier in this case, at a bail hearing, I said to Mr. Simpson I didn’t know if he was arrogant, ignorant or both,” Glass said. “During the trial and through this proceeding I got the answer, and it was both.” She stressed that the sentence was not “payback for anything else,” apparently referring to Simpson’s acquittal 13 years ago in the slayings of his former wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman. His voice shaking, Simpson had apologized in court and insisted he was merely trying to recover property that had been stolen from his family. He was convicted of leading a group of armed men into a room at Palace Station Hotel and Casino, where they planned to take sports memorabilia from dealers Bruce Fromong and Al Beardsley. “I stand here today sorry, somewhat confused. I feel apologetic to people of state of Nevada,” Simpson began. At times, he appeared to be fighting tears as he spoke. The judge said Simpson’s contrite words in court were not as powerful as his angry words, as caught on tape, during the confrontation. “Everything in this case was on tape,” Glass said. “The evidence in this case was overwhelming.” She continued, “You went to the room. You took guns. You used force. You took property, and in this state, that amounts to robbery with the use of a deadly weapon.”

Public Support Grows For Gay Unions

When voters in California, Florida and Arizona approved measures banning same-sex marriage last month, opponents lamented that the country appeared to be turning increasingly intolerant toward gay and lesbian rights. But the latest NEWSWEEK Poll finds growing public support for gay marriage and civil unions—and strong backing for the granting of certain rights associated with marriage, to same-sex couples.
Americans continue to find civil unions for gays and lesbians more palatable than full-fledged marriage. Fifty-five percent of respondents favored legally sanctioned unions or partnerships, while only 39 percent supported marriage rights. Both figures are notably higher than in 2004, when 40 percent backed the former and 33 percent approved of the latter. When it comes to according legal rights in specific areas to gays, the public is even more supportive. Seventy-four percent back inheritance rights for gay domestic partners (compared to 60 percent in 2004), 73 percent approve of extending health insurance and other employee benefits to them (compared to 60 percent in 2004), 67 percent favor granting them Social Security benefits (compared to 55 percent in 2004) and 86 percent support hospital visitation rights (a question that wasn't asked four years ago).

California Governor Under Fire For Support Of LGBT

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger opposed Proposition 8, has openly hoped that courts will now overturn it and has encouraged opponents to "never give up." In the process, he's ignited a battle within his own party. Christian conservatives are using him as a foil, to claim that they, not the Republican governor, represent the party base.
That Schwarzenegger is "condoning street protests and supporting judicial activist scams to overturn a popularly approved state constitutional amendment approaches advocacy of anarchy," said an action alert from the Family Research Council, which urges conservatives to contact Schwarzenegger's office.
With Republicans out of power in both houses of Congress and the White House, party faithful are focusing on the future of the GOP. It's a position that's pitting some Republican moderates - including Schwarzenegger - against social conservatives.

How About A Kiss?

Boy George Convicted

A jury convicted pop singer Boy George Friday of falsely imprisoning a male escort. Norwegian Audun Carlsen had alleged he was restrained with handcuffs by the musician at the singer's London apartment on April 28, 2007.
Carlsen, 29, also accused the former Culture Club frontman of swinging a metal chain at him as he fled the singer's flat after a naked photo shoot.
Boy George, who was tried under his real name George O'Dowd, admitted he handcuffed Carlsen while he investigated alleged tampering with his home computer. The singer said he believed Carlsen had removed photos of himself that were taken by the singer when the two met previously.
Jurors saw photos of welts on Carlsen's head and injuries to his arm, which he said had been inflicted by O'Dowd, 46. O'Dowd said he couldn't account for the injuries.
The '80s icon was released on bail following the verdict. He is due to be sentenced Jan. 16.

Firefighter Gets Settlement From Gay Bashing

New York City firefighter, critically injured when a colleague hit him with a metal chair during a firehouse fight, has reached a $3.75 million settlement with the city.
Robert Walsh, who was attacked by Michael Silvestri, testified at his federal lawsuit trial that the attack on New Year’s Eve in 2003 was the culmination of nearly two years of anti-gay slurs from his fellow firefighter.
Spokeswoman Kate Ahlers says the city’s law department is pleased that the matter has been resolved.
Walsh’s lawyer did not return calls for comment, but his co-counsel also confirmed the settlement.
Former firefighter Michael Silvestri pleaded guilty to assault in 2006 after hitting Walsh, and served a year in jail. He previously told the New York Post, “I am not a gay basher. I have plenty of gay friends - I’m the most liberal guy you’d ever meet.”

Journalist Jailed For Story On Homosexuality

International media watchdog groups called Wednesday for the release of a freelance journalist jailed in northern Iraq for violating a public decency law by writing a story about homosexuality.
Adel Hussein was sentenced Nov. 24 to six months in jail by a court in Irbil, capital of the Kurdish-ruled region of northern Iraq, according to the Committee To Protect Journalists and Reporters Without Borders.
Hussein also was ordered to pay a fine of about $106, the organizations said. He is being held at Mahata prison in Irbil, about 220 miles north of Baghdad.
"We are astonished to learn that a press case has been tried under the criminal code. What was the point of adopting -- and then liberalizing -- a press code in the Kurdistan region if people who contribute to the news media are still be tried under more repressive laws," Reporters Without Borders said in a statement.
The case centers on an April 2007 article Hussein wrote for the independent weekly Hawlati that detailed the physical effects of homosexual sex, the organizations said.
The sentence handed down by the Kurdish court was based on an outdated 1969 Iraqi penal code, said Luqman Malazadah, Hussein's lawyer. Malazadah told CPJ he has appealed the court decision.

Undesirable = Risky Behavior?

Gay men who are not considered sexually desirable are more likely to engage in risky sexual behavior, according to researchers at the University of Toronto. They may also develop psychological problems as a consequence of feeling undesirable, the study said.
Adam Isaiah Green, Assistant Professor of Sociology at U of T, interviewed dozens of gay men in Toronto to determine what qualities made some men more sexually desirable than others, and what the consequences of being undesirable might be on mental and physical health.
The study appears in the December issue of the Journal of Health and Social Behavior.
“I found that young, white, middle-class men are considered much more sexually desirable than men who are racial minorities, over 40 and poor,” Green said.
“I also learned that for gay men, being considered sexually undesirable can have serious health consequences ranging from psychological issues to risky sexual behavior.”
The study – among the first to examine the link between sex and mental health – found that undesirable gay men face stigmatization, avoidance and outright rejection, which can lead to depression, anxiety and alcohol abuse.
It also highlighted cases in which undesirable gay men will forego safe-sex discussion and, in some cases, condom use, in the context of sex with a more attractive partner.

Will Obama Have A Gay Cabinet Member?

The Wall Street Journal reports on Obama's possible pick for Labor Secretary, Mary Beth Maxwell. For the rainbow cabinet of the nation's first African American president, Mary Beth Maxwell is the perfect labor secretary you've probably never heard of: a gay woman, community organizer and labor leader with an adopted African American son. And this founding executive director of American Rights at Work is about to get the full-court press.
Maxwell already had the strong backing of former Rep. David Bonior, who despite repeated attempts to get his name removed from consideration continues to be on the short list of potential labor secretaries. Bonior, 63 years old, says it is time for his generation to turn over power to a new generation, and Maxwell, whose labor-backed organization pushes for expanded collective bargaining rights, is his pick.

Gotta Watch Those Christians

Cincinnati Christian University’s chief financial officer entered a written plea of not guilty Monday after he was arrested Saturday in Mount Airy Forest and charged with sexual imposition.
Robert Williams, 52, of Independence, was arrested at 9:23 a.m., accused of getting into a man’s car and touching his genitals. The man was an undercover officer.
The university placed Williams on administrative leave while officials there assess the facts of the case, according to a statement from the university.“We are shocked and dismayed by the news,” Cincinnati Christian University President David Faust said in the statement. “This is a personal tragedy for him and for his family, and we lift them up in our prayers.”

Franco Uncomfortable With Penn's Choice

James Franco’s kiss with Sean Penn in Harvey Milk biopic Milk left him feeling uncomfortable - because his co-star wanted to act out a full-on love scene. Franco, who plays San Francisco politician Milk’s gay lover Scott Smith in the Gus Van Sant film, knew he’d have to pucker-up with Penn - but was shocked when the director told him Penn wanted to take it further.
He tells Elle magazine, “In the original script I read, there was only one real kissing scene.
“A month after Gus asked me to do it, they sent me another script, and on Page 5 there was a full-on love scene. And I was like, ‘Gus, what the heck?’ He says, ‘Well, it was Sean’s idea’.”

Obama Pledges Increased HIV/AIDS Fight

President-elect Barack Obama said Monday he would continue outgoing President Bush's international HIV/AIDS strategy and expand domestic efforts to fight the virus.
"We must also recommit ourselves to addressing the AIDS crisis here in the United States, with a strong national strategy of education, prevention, and treatment, focusing on those communities at greatest risk," Obama said in a video address to the Saddleback Civil Forum on Global Health. "This strategy must be based on the best available science, and built on the foundation of a strong health care system."
The Obama administration plans to implement national strategies to decrease the rate of HIV transmission, including establishing a universal health care system, targeting minority communities, and supporting the Ryan White CARE Act. The plan also calls for comprehensive, age-appropriate sexual education, in contrast to Bush policies that withdrew funding from organizations that did not teach abstinence-only education.

Lesbian Vindicated in Sexual Harrassment Case

A lesbian soldier who was subjected to long-term harassment from a sergeant who wanted her to have sex with him has been awarded nearly $380,000 by a British employment tribunal.
The amount was half of what Lance Bombardier Kerry Fletcher, 32, had sought, but is still one of the biggest payouts imposed by a workers’ rights board.
Fletcher testified that after the military did nothing to stop the harassment when the man and his army friends attempted to destroy her career and health.
Her car was vandalized, she was belittled at work and she received threatening phone calls.
Text messages from the sergeant to the woman were entered into evidence. In one he told her: “Look I might be able to convert you. You don’t know what you are missing.”
Her tormentor denied he had discriminated against her, claiming he was only legitimately enforcing discipline. The Ministry of Defense denied it had swept Fletcher’s complaints under the carpet.
Nevertheless, the tribunal ruled in January that Fletcher had been the victim of “direct sex discrimination and harassment,” allowing her claim for monetary damages to move forward.

Today is World AIDS Day

The 1st of December, World AIDS Day, is the day when individuals and organisations from around the world come together to bring attention to the global AIDS epidemic. 2008 marks the 20th anniversary of World AIDS Day.

Born Gay? Of Course!!!

Compared with straight men, gay men are more likely to be left-handed, to be the younger siblings of older brothers, and to have hair that whorls in a counterclockwise direction.
Researchers are finding common biological traits among gay men, feeding a growing consensus that sexual orientation is an inborn combination of genetic and environmental factors that largely decide a person's sexual attractions before they are born.
Such findings — including a highly anticipated study this winter — would further inform the debate over whether homosexuality is innate or a choice, an undercurrent of the recent Proposition 8 campaign in which television commercials warned that "schools would begin teaching second-graders that boys could marry boys," suggesting homosexuality would then spread.
Some scientists say the political and moral debate over same-sex marriage frequently strayed from established scientific evidence, including comments by vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin that homosexuality is "a choice" and "a decision."
Until 2007, CNN polls had found that a majority of Americans believed gay people could change their sexual orientation if they chose to; it was only last year that a majority for the first time said homosexuality was an inborn trait.

Massachusetts Judge To Retire

Supreme Judicial Court Justice John Greaney retires tomorrow after 19 years on the state's highest court, unfazed by criticism of its landmark decision legalizing gay marriage.
The 69-year-old Greaney wrote a concurring opinion in the 4-3 ruling in 2003, arguing that simple decency required allowing gays to marry.
He knows many disagree with the ruling, and point to it as an example of judges making rules from the bench that are best left to lawmakers and voters.
But he said the other side of the argument is that if judges don't act on critical issues, they're holding back progress in society.
Greaney was appointed to the bench in 1989 by former Gov. Michael Dukakis. He was known for his distinctive dress -- sometime all black in tribute to Johnny Cash, and frank, direct questions from the bench.
He's leaving the SJC to join the faculty at Suffolk University Law School.