August 19, 2007 at 10:08 am (- by Gina, Humor, LGBT, Movies & TV)
In my continued efforts to follow Mitt the Flip Romney’s advice to “lighten up a bit,” here’s a laugh from American Dad. How to spot a gay:
Pants!!! I guess they were right about Hillary.
I found this on a blog I recently discovered, Bloggernista, who has the great tagline, “what happens when a gay stops being polite and starts getting real.”
August 18, 2007 at 11:41 am (- by Gina, Darren Hayes, Music)
Arjan Writes has up a stream of Annie Lennox’s new single from her upcoming album, Songs of Mass Destruction, out in October. The only thing more beautiful than Annie is her voice. I’m looking forward to this CD.
Another album I don’t have to wait as long for is Darren Hayes’ This Delicate Thing We Made, available this week. I already linked to the fab video for the first single, “On the Verge of Something Wonderful.” Here’s another video, for “Who Would Have Thought”:
This is going to be a great CD.
August 17, 2007 at 5:34 pm (- by Gina, 2008 Election, Bill O'Reilly, LGBT, LGBT rights, Marriage Equality, Politics)
Bill O’Reilly claims his show is a “no-spin” zone.
But what do you call it when you take a research finding that says “28% of Floridians say they are less likely…” and change it to “Most Americans won’t…”
28%=most?
Most?
That’s not just spinning the facts. It’s outright lying about them. I don’t know anyone who would claim that less than a third is most.
Why did Bill lie?
August 16, 2007 at 11:20 am (- by Gina, Danny Tidwell, Movies & TV, So You Think You Can Dance)
My posts have been a little heavy this week, so let’s switch it up with something joyous and beautiful.
That would be Danny Tidwell.
I spent 2 hours last night voting for him on the So You Think You Can Dance finale. His solo was glorious. First of all, I freaking love “We Are the Champions,” and it was the perfect song for this moment, and he danced it with joy and abandon. This was finally his night. In addition to the breathtaking solo, he gave us a gorgeous waltz, and his princely clapping in Neil’s face was priceless. I don’t know if he can win, but we were happy to see him have his moment.
Go to Rickey.org to view videos of his performances, if you were unfortunate enough to miss them.
August 15, 2007 at 1:16 pm (- by Gina, LGBT, LGBT rights, Movies & TV, Politics)
I’m not sure how intentional it was, but I applaud Logo for airing the documentary, Small Town Gay Bar, immediately before the HRC/Logo Visible Vote 08 Forum. Going into this discussion of the realities of LGBT American life, it was a good reminder of the reality of who LGBT Americans are.
The Forum showed us Joe Solomnese, Melissa Etheridge, and a studio full of A-List gays, not a huge leap from the common picture of LGBT America in the public imagination: wealthy, fashionable, educated gays sipping cocktails in tastefully decorated urban lofts before heading out to a Broadway musical.
Malcolm Ingram’s Small Town Gay Bar reminds America that there are LGBT people in every town and county in this country. We’re not just in New York and San Francisco, but everywhere from Maine to Alabama to Idaho. We live in rural parts of blue states and the suburbs in red states.
Ingram shows us the reality of gay life for many LGBT Americans that is nothing like what you see on programs like The L Word, Queer as Folk, or Will & Grace by taking his camera into rural communities in Mississippi. He smashes stereotypes of both the rural south and of LGBT people by reminding us that sometimes Bubba is a bear, and the old man living in the trailor was someone’s mother.
August 13, 2007 at 2:18 pm (- by Gina, LGBT, Movies & TV)
I’ve had this review half-written for weeks now and forgot that I never posted it. It follows Screened Out, Pt. 2: Tea and Sympathy.
1961’s The Children’s Hour, based on Lillian Hellman’s 1934 play, is the perfect counterpoint to Tea and Sympathy with a similar plot surrounding rumors of sexual orientation. In this case, it concerns two young women, Karen (Audrey Hepburn) and Martha (Shirley MacLaine). They are old college chums who have opened a school for girls together. It’s an idyllic life, the two of them fulfilling their dreams, teaching and living in a big old house in the country.
It all comes tumbling down when one of their students, an evil little child called Mary Tilford, who resents Karen and Martha for disciplining her for her many misdeeds, makes up a story to tell her grandmother so that she’ll let her quit the school. The story is that Karen and Martha have an “unnatural” relationship. Grandma spreads the word and within a day all the students have been withdrawn from the school. Karen and Martha sue for slander, lose in a notorious case, and are ruined. Read the rest of this entry »
August 12, 2007 at 10:16 am (- by Gina, Family Values, LGBT, LGBT rights, Religion)
Following up on the story of the mega-church that refused to bury Cecil Sinclair, a war veteran, because he was gay, here’s the mega-pastor’s explanation:
The pastor said that he could imagine a similar situation involving a different sin. Perhaps a mother who is a member of the church loses a son who is a thief or murderer, Mr. Simons said. The church would surely volunteer to hold a service, he said.
“But I don’t think the mother would submit photos of her son murdering someone,” he said. “That’s a red light going off.”
The best he could do to show that he’s not a bigot is to compare a veteran who risked his life for his country, and who fell in love with another man, to a thief and a murderer? If this is his idea of not being bigoted, I’d hate to hear what he has to say when he goes all out hating on people.
August 11, 2007 at 6:53 pm (- by Gina, Homophobia, LGBT, LGBT rights, Religion)
I’ve always figured that the best way to deal with homophobic assholes who get in your face is to ignore them. I’m not sure whether I do that out of fear or simply not wanting to give the attention they so crave, but I usually try to pretend I don’t see or hear them no matter how I may feel on the inside.
But I’ve always admired those who take them on in creative and humorous ways, whether it’s the dykes on bikes revving their motors to drown out protesters at a parade, or that Australian reporter who flirted with Fred Phelps Jr. to hilarious results.
Today I came across this picture on someone’s MySpace, and it’s my new favorite.
August 11, 2007 at 10:55 am (- by Gina, Family Values, Homophobia, LGBT, LGBT rights, Religion)
Church Cancels Funeral After Discovering Decorated Vet Was Gay
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff (Dallas, Texas)
A mega-church in Arlington, Texas has reportedly cancelled at the last minute a funeral service for a Navy veteran who died while awaiting a heart transplant after learning he was gay. Cecil Sinclair died on Monday. He was 46. A native of Fort Worth, Sinclair was a Navy veteran who served in Desert Storm helping rescuers find downed pilots.
See, this is what happens when you let gays in the military. Before you know it, they’re going around saving people’s lives.
Most recently he had been in failing health. Six years ago he developed a heart condition and was on a list for a transplant. On Monday he died of complications following surgery intended to keep him alive until a new heart became available.
Sinclair was not a member of any church. His brother was a member of High Point Church and when Sinclair’s health began to fail members of the congregation prayed for him.
I bet they want a refund on their prayers now.
The nondenominational church is led by the Rev. Gary Simons, the brother-in-law of televangelist Joel Osteen.
When Sinclair died High Point offered to host a funeral.
But the offer suddenly and at the last minute was rescinded, the Dallas Morning News reports, when the church discovered Sinclair was gay.
August 5, 2007 at 3:01 pm (- by Gina, 2008 Election, John Edwards, Marriage Equality, Politics)
I had a call from John Edwards’ campaign yesterday, asking for money, which reminded me that I never finished this series on the top 3 excuses Democrats use to deny marriage equality. In the previous two, I’ve quoted Clinton on the states’ rights argument and Obama on religion. The voice of the final, third excuse is Edwards’ famous quote, “I’m not there yet.”
I suspect that this is the real reason behind the other two, that religion and states’ rights are just used as a less personal justification for Edwards’ painfully honest confession, “I’m not there yet.”
Part of me respects Edwards for his frankness, for talking about the internal struggle he has with overcoming his upbringing, his religion, his culture to come to grips with something that he seems to recognize is not only inevitable but right.
Part of me wants to say, “Get over yourself.” Or, “So you’re personally not there yet. So what?”
