Milk Opens Today

And the reviews are rapturous. The Dallas Morning News gave it an A. The New York Times said

"'Milk,' which is the best live-action mainstream American movie that I have seen this year. This is not faint praise, by the way, even though 2008 has been a middling year for Hollywood. “Milk” is accessible and instructive, an astute chronicle of big-city politics and the portrait of a warrior whose passion was equaled by his generosity and good humor. Mr. Penn, an actor of unmatched emotional intensity and physical discipline, outdoes himself here, playing a character different from any he has portrayed before."

I'm going today.

FL Gay Adoption Ban Struck Down

A Florida Court found that the state's ban on gay people adopting children was unconstitutional. Florida's law was the nation's strictest as it banned any gays, single or couples, from adopting. The recent Arkansas constitutional amendment, by way of contrast, bans adoption by unmarried couples and doesn't mention sexual orientation. The judge, Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Cindy Lederman, found that there was no legal or scientific reason for sexual orientation alone to prevent anyone from adopting. This is why the courts are best qualified to decide issues of individual rights. At their best, they deal in facts, law, and logic unclouded by emotion and personal bias. Of course, there will be an appeal to the Florida Supreme Court and, if sanity prevails there, the Christianists will certainly try another Arkansas-style constitutional amendment in Florida. They will stop at nothing to have their bigotry masked as religion enshrined in law. Their anti-gay crusade takes prescidence over the welfare of children.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'll be seeing Hugh this weekend, how about you?

Just for fun, here's a shot of Mr. Jackman off duty.

This ought to stop me from getting that second helping of stuffing.

Incredibly sexy shirtless shot from Just Jared.

Monday's Man: Cam Gigandet

This sexy young actor is starring as the bad boy vampire in this weekend's hit Twilight, opposite every tween's dream, Robert Pattinson.
Cam was previously best known for playing the bad boy fighter in the Fight Club meets The Karate Kid opus Never Back Down opposite every tween's other dream Sean Faris.

Hmmm...bad boy vs dream boy...I know which I'd pick.

Barak Machiavelli

I think it's fascinating that Obama chose Arizona governor Janet Napolitano as his Secretary of Homeland Security, particularly a few days after meeting with John McCain. Napolitano was widely regarded as McCain's only real threat to re-election to the Senate in 2010 and early polling has already shown him loosing to her by a substantial margin. Then, after meeting with Obama, McCain made it clear that he's running for re-election. Yesterday, Napolitano was tapped for the cabinet, effectively ending the threat she posed to McCain's future. This must be that "long and deep" stuff Rahm Emanuel was talking about.

I would look for McCain's support on some key legislation in the next year, maybe global climate change.

What's next, Ned Lamont for Secretary of HUD?

I'm a Performer!

Sullivan has turned me on to a great new way to waste time. If you have a blog, go to Typealyzer and find out what kind of blog author you are. Here's what it said about me based on Lazy Circles:

"The entertaining and friendly type. They are especially attuned to pleasure and beauty and like to fill their surroundings with soft fabrics, bright colors and sweet smells. They live in the present moment and don´t like to plan ahead - they are always in risk of exhausting themselves.

The enjoy work that makes them able to help other people in a concrete and visible way. They tend to avoid conflicts and rarely initiate confrontation - qualities that can make it hard for them in management positions."

It included an illustration of a girl with a cocktail. Sounds about right to me. It went on to analyze my brain (seriously!) and found I skew toward Sensing. I could have told them that.

McKey is America's Next Top Model

All right, I'll admit it. I'm one of those queens who watches every episode of America's Next Top Model. I actually had to miss the episode where Sheena got eliminated and I'm still kicking myself.
Anyhoo, McKey Sullivan was crowned last night in a finale that was actually pretty obvious. Once my fave Marjorie got the boot last week (the judges were so mean to her!), they might as well have given McKey the crown. Of the last three, I actually liked AnnaLeigh the best, but, unlike McKey, she didn't have six-foot long legs and she didn't bend herself around and pose like Gumby.
See what I mean? The girl's bendy.
Don't get me wrong, I like McKey, she's gorgeous and "modelesque." She earned it.

(pics from The CW)

Samantha was kind of a wild card. She was rarely that good, but kept surviving every week by not being that bad either, sort of like Saleshia who kept bringing up the middle until she won.

The part I loved best about this season, even more than Whitney's Life as a Cover Girl, was Top Models in Action! I loved seeing what some of my girls are doing now, especially Kim Stoltz the smart lesbian, my favorite contestant ever. Here's her piece:


Then there's another fave, Mollie Sue, who's fabulousness eluded the judges who sent her home way too soon. Now, she's living "the glamorous life."


See all the Top Models in Action here.

Cali Supremes Will Hear It

The California Supreme Court has agreed to hear challenges to Prop 8. They declined to allow same sex marriages pending their decision. The hearing is set for March, 2009. The wheels of justice move slowly.

Begich Wins in Alaska

It's official, the next Senator from Alaska will be Democrat Mark Begich. This means that the longest serving Senator, convicted felon Ted Stevens, will be officially unemployed at the end of this term. Don't be sad Ted, you can use the time to work on you appeals and try to keep your ass out of prison.

Begich will become Democrat number 58 with contests in Minnesota and Georgia yet to be decided. This ends all that speculation about Caribou Barbie becoming a Senator.

Focus on the Family's War on Christmas

This is a picture of an actual Christmas decoration being offered for sale by hate group Focus on the Family, not the Klan. For real. Go here and see that I'm not making this up. This burning cross can be yours for a "suggested donation" of only $81.85, "shipping is included!" Perfect for all those unreconstructed Confederates on your Christmas list.

Via Towleroad

The End of HRC?

This past week we have witnessed an amazing grass roots movement spring up in the wake of Prop 8. Two young women in Seattle, Amy Balliett and Willow Witte, took the initiative to organize Join the Impact and it spread like wildfire to become a nation-wide movement. I was one of tens of thousands of people in every city in this nation, yelling that I was mad as hell and wasn't going to take it anymore. In the wake of this, more and more are asking where was HRC or GLAAD or any of our other corporate gay advocacy organizations that constantly ask for money? They were practically invisible on Saturday, certainly not providing the leadership they claim. Where were they on defeating Prop 8? Certainly not effective. Sullivan made an excellent point:

"Here's a simple statistic that might help shake us out of complacency: HRC claims to have spent $3.4 million on No On 8. The Mormon church was able to spend over $20 million, by appealing to its members. Why are non-gay Mormons more capable of organizing and fund-raising on a gay rights measure than the biggest national gay rights group?"

HRC has always been behind the power curve on marriage equality. It wasn't their priority and they have failed us. When two 20-something pissed off dykes with an internet connection can rally the entire nation, HRC's pleas for money seem pretty pointless. Perhaps if they spent less time giving awards to straight celebrities who've done absolutely nothing to advance the cause of gay rights and more time paying attention to what's really going on with gay people in this country, they could become relevant again. Otherwise, they will wither and die as we leave them behind.

Join the Impact in Dallas!

It was a brilliant, crisp day in Dallas and the gay community came out in force to Join the Impact. I was there and I'd estimate the crowd at 700-1000 people who were mad as hell and not going to take it anymore.
One of Dallas' finest giving us an official welcome from the City of Dallas. The DPD was magnificent.
This is the executive director if Bi-Net or North Texas. Who knew we had a Bi-Net? We know it now.
Legendary Dallas activists Louise Young and Vivienne Armstrong. Fighting the good fight for 37 years.
Excellent question.

Bible verses in a gay rights protest? Dallas is the home of the mega church. People here can talk the talk and walk the walk with the best of them.
Palling around with gay rights activists. The cute one in green plaid is my husband-in-Canada-legal-stranger-in-Texas.
Jesse Garcia of the Stonewall Democrats. He stepped up, took charge and kicked ass.
There was a small crowd of counter-protesters. About 8 people gathered across the street to spew the sort of bullshit we've all heard all our lives. The only problem for them was they didn't have a permit and the Dallas police cited them and told them to disperse. Sweet!

Monday's Man: Ivri Lider

I haven't posted on my favorite openly gay Israeli rock star in a while and when I found the pic above I decided I was overdue. I don't know what that thing is on his face, but don't really care. My eyes keep focusing further south.

I'm patiently waiting for a US concert tour, but in the meantime, here's a clip of Mr. Hotness talking about his plans for America.

Join the Impact!

Don't forget that tomorrow there will be a nation-wide protest for gay rights. The times are staggered by time zones, so for the first time, a nation of GLBT activists will hit the streets at the same time. Something historic is happening and we can be a part of it. Click here to find the demonstration near you.

It doesn't matter if you're in a small town or a big city, this thing is nation-wide. Check out some of those locations: Dothan, AL, Cape Giradeau, MO, Idaho Falls, ID, Fayetteville, NC. Know Hope!

Graphic totally stolen from Joe.My.God.

The Next Question is for Miss Wasilla...

“Sitting here in these chairs that I’m going to be proposing but in working with these governors who again on the front lines are forced to and it’s our privileged obligation to find solutions to the challenges facing our own states every day being held accountable, not being just one of many just casting votes or voting present every once in a while, we don’t get away with that. We have to balance budgets and we’re dealing with multibillion dollar budgets and tens of thousands of employees in our organizations.”

Actual quote. No wonder she lost. Miss Alaska, I mean.

Protests in New York

There were massive protests against Prop 8 in New York last night. 10,000 to 15,000 people jammed the Morman Temple plaza in Manhattan before taking over Broadway and marching to Columbus Circle. It was peaceful and orderly and included a number of celebrities including Whoopi Goldberg. Joe.My.God has tons of pictures and video from the event here.

Later that night, the amazing Dan Savage faced off with pretty boy Tony Perkins and totally owned him. Watch it:



Don't forget there will be major No on Prop 8 rallies in every major city in the US including Dallas on Saturday. Check it out here.

Begich Takes Lead in Alaska

Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich just may become the 58th Democratic Senator after all. On election day, he was 3,000 votes behind convicted felon Ted Stevens, but as absentee, questioned and early ballots have been counted, he now has a lead of 814 votes. There are still 25,000 absentee ballots and 15,000 questioned ballots to be tallied, but so far they are breaking for Begich. On election day, it appeared that Alaska voting was way down from 2004, bucking the national trend, but it's becoming increasingly obvious that those reports were incorrect and voting was in fact, way up. Begich may actually break the stranglehold that Republicans have had on Alaska politics for years. His election would inch the Democrats toward a 60 vote majority, with Minnesota and Georgia Senate races yet to be decided.

Saddlebacking

Not many people can crack up Stephen Colbert. Watch Dan Savage do it.

Equality in Connecticut Starts Today

In New Haven, Connecticut this morning, Superior Court Judge Jonathan Silbert signed an order formalizing same sex marriages in the state. This was a necessary formality after the state Supreme Court ruled last month that preventing gay couples from marrying violated the state constitution. Connecticut has now joined Massachusetts in allowing full marriage equality. New York and Rhode Island recognize legal same sex marriages from other states don't allow such marriages to be performed.

After the passage of Prop 8, this is welcome news.

Mazel Tov!

78% of Los Angeles Jews voted against Prop 8, the highest proportion of any religious or ethnic group.

Be Careful What You Say

Equality Utah, working with allies in the state House of Representatives, is proposing five new bills to increase gay rights in the home of the Mormon Church. They cite statements from Mormon leaders that the Mormon church is not anti-gay and has no problem with existing rights for gays in California. The statements were made in defense of the church's efforts on behalf of Prop 8. “We are taking the L.D.S. Church at its word,” said Stephanie Pappas, Equality Utah’s chairwoman, according to the New York Times. The proposals include striking out existing language in Utah's own constitutional amendment that prohibits legal recognition of domestic unions, as well as expanded protections for gay couples regarding health care, employment, housing, and inheritance.

You say you're OK with gay rights in California short of marriage? Fine, you should have no problem with those same rights in Utah. Right? Right?

Very clever, those Equality Utah folks.

Join the Impact

I'm sure you've noticed that there have been protests nightly in California since Prop 8 passed. Those protests are spreading to Utah, New York, and now nationwide. On Saturday November 15, there will be a national day of protest in every state in the union, including Dallas, Austin and Houston right here in Texas. They start at 12:30 central time at City Hall, and you can check here for the details. Find your state and make your voice heard.

Keith Olbermann Made Me Cry Last Night

Watch his defense of marriage equality and see if you don't cry too.

Arnold Speaks Out Against Prop 8

Thanks guy. Now, where the fuck were you two weeks ago?

When it comes to gay rights, Conan is a coward.

Monday's Man: Wilson Cruz

He's hot and he's an activist! Wilson Cruz from Noah's Arc, My So Called Life and Coffee Date was among 12,000 people protesting Prop 8 in the Silver Lake area of LA on Saturday. He's shown here with his handsome Noah's Arc co-star Darryl Stephens, fighting the good fight in a pic from Towleroad.

Wilson was cute and interesting as the gay high school outcast in My So Called Life but today he has transformed himself into a (there's no other word for it) hunk. Check it out.

That's what I call Gay Pride.

Dallas Protest Planned

At First Baptist in protest of Sunday's sermon topic. No further details are available right now. First Baptist Dallas is so narrow that they actually left the Southern Baptist Convention because it's too liberal. Seriously.

Giving must be down and Pastor Jeffress must want a new Mercedes. Time to scare the little old ladies out of their social security checks.

UPDATE: The protest drew about 100 people. Towleroad has a run-down here and you can watch WFAA's coverage here.

Tarheels for Obama

It's official, Obama took North Carolina. He's the first Democrat to do so since Jimmy Carter in 1976. As someone who grew up in that part of the country, it blows my mind, but in a good way.

Prop 8 Not Over

This fight is far from over. First Kate Kendell of the National Center for Lesbian Rights said that there would be no concession until all ballots were counted, including roughly 3 million absentee and provisional ballots. The chances of those ballots making a difference are slim, but when important constitutional rights are involved, every avenue must be explored. Further, several lawsuits have been filed seeking to stop implementation of the amendment. One was from the ACLU, Lambda Legal and the National Center for Lesbian Rights. Another was brought by the Cities of San Francisco, Los Angeles and Santa Clara County, and a third by famous LA attorney Gloria Allred who represented one of the gay couples in the original litigation. They all make the argument that Prop 8 is a Constitutional revision not an amendment and therefore improper. They also ask the court to enjoin implementation of Prop 8 pending the litigation. The bottom line is this issue won't be decided for a very long time. The fight goes on.

Shop 'Till You Drop

In case anyone had any doubt that the McCain campaign intended to lay the blame for their loss squarely at Palin's feet, yesterday saw a barrage of accusations against her. First, unnamed "senior aides" to the McCain campaign said the shopping sprees cost far more than the $150,000 first reported. A wealthy donor agreed to buy a few suits for the governor, but instead she hit Neimans and Saks and bought a fortune in clothes for her entire family including $40,000 worth of menswear for the First Dude. The donor was reportedly "shocked" when he got the bill and another unnamed aide called the Palins "Wasilla hillbillies looting Neiman Marcus from coast to coast." Sounds about right.

Now Fox News has gotten in on the Palin crucifixion, reporting that she thought Africa was a single nation instead of a continent, didn't know the nations in NAFTA, and was very "emotional" and hard to deal with. Watch it:


She really is dumb and she has no political future in the GOP.

The Torch Has Passed

After eight long years, the Bush/Rove era has ended with a commanding victory by Barack Obama. He won both the popular vote and the electoral college decisively. The Republican party looks more and more like a shrinking Dixie rump. It's not even the old Confederacy any more as Virginia and Florida voted for Obama and, although it hasn't been called, North Carolina probably did too. It is truly a new day.

Unfortunately, it's a bittersweet day. The damnable constitutional amendments to ban gay people from getting married passed in Florida and Arizona and, although it hasn't been called, it looks bad in California. What's more, a hateful amendment to ban gay adoption passed in Arkansas.

There were bright spots for Gays. Openly lesbian Lupe Valdez was re-elected as Dallas County Sheriff in a hotly contested race. Connecticut voters rejected a constitutional convention that could have jeopardized marriage equality there. Openly gay Jarod Polis was elected to Congress from Colorado while Colorado's Queen of Hate Marilyn Musgrave, who staked her career on a federal constitutional amendment to keep gays from getting married, has been defeated by Democrat Betsy Markey.

Election Day!

The longest, most expensive presidential election in history is drawing to a close today. If you haven't voted, go do it! Now! Don't forget about the down-ballot elections. If you live in Georgia, Minnesota, Mississippi, Kentucky, North Carolina, Virginia or Alaska, your vote can help increase the Democratic majority in the Senate and maybe achieve a filibuster proof majority.

I still have hopes for a Noriega upset over Cornyn for the Senate from Texas, but realistically, those chances are slim. As of October 23, Cornyn had a 9 point lead, although that's the most recent polling data I've found. Another disappointment is Nebraska, where hunky Democrat Scott Kleeb is trailing Republican Mike Johanns by a wide margin.

If you live in California, get out and vote NO on Prop 8 and tell all your friends to do the same. The polling is still razor thin and it could go either way. If you live in Arizona, vote NO on Prop. 102 and if you live in Florida, vote NO on Amendment 2. Both are proposed constitutional amendments to make marriage equality for gay people doubly illegal. It's tight in Arizona and looking better in Florida, but every vote counts.

Tonight, when the polls start closing in Eastern Standard Time, look for results from Virginia, North Carolina and Pennsylvania. If Obama wins either of the two southern states, it's very good news indeed (remember that Florida stretches into Central Time). If he wins Penn, then it's really the end of McCain. There's no realistic path to the presidency for McCain if he looses in Penn. If Obama picks up Georgia, which is a possibility, look for a massive landslide. This morning on the Today Show, political director Chuck Todd even talked about a possible Obama upset in South Carolina. That would be huge and if it happens, pop the champagne corks because it's over. The polling doesn't support a SC victory, but I suspect we'll see some surprises tonight as large numbers of new voters turn out. I don't believe the polls have accurately taken into account all the previous non voters who are now enthusiastic for Obama. It's going to be an interesting and exciting night.

Madelyn Payne Dunham: 1922-2008

Madelyn Dunham, Barak Obama's grandmother, has died at the age of 86, one day before the election that will certainly elevate her grandson to the presidency. A native Kansan, she married Stanley Dunham in 1940 and attended college at the University of Washington and UC Berkeley. Her most famous role may have been helping to raise her grandson, but she was an accomplished professional woman in her own right. She began working at the Bank of Hawaii in an entry level position in 1960 and worked her way up to become one of it's first female vice presidents.

Sarah Palin Pranked

This is the funniest think I've heard in a while. Two comedians from Montreal called Sarah Palin, pretending to be French President Sarkozy, and actually got through. You've got to hear it to believe it. The woman really is dumb. Confident but dumb.





Naturally, she doesn't know who the prime minister of Canada is.

Monday's Man: Barak Obama!

In honor of the last day of this endless election, I bring you the next President of the United States! I suppose it's a bit irreverent to post a hot pic of this inspirational, transformative, man, but damn, he's looking good. How many other presidential candidates could come splashing out of the surf looking like that. Would you want to see John McCain in his Catalina swimwear? Maybe 40 years ago, but not today. Rudy Giuliani? Huckabee? Yikes! Halloween was last week. So, forget about those Republicans, get inspired by Obama and VOTE!