News: Batman, Ryan Lochte, Elk, Blue Umbrella, Tennis Men

Colorado town holds vigil for stunning elk shot by police officer.

The real Batman. A Bruce Wayne morph of Adam West, Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, George Clooney, and Christian Bale.

James Franco makes a Justin Bieber video.

Mary J Blige talks to Kevin Sessums, has message for those who say gay marriage is incompatible with her born-again Christianity: "I would say this to those people: I’m not God. God said not to judge anyone lest you be judged. That’s it. Who am I to point my finger? You’ve got to walk in love. To say you do not want people to be happy is so mean, so not me."

Five things Chuck Hagel should do for gay troops.

What Would Ryan Lochte Do? Olympic swimmer gets E! reality series. "The series will 'feature the swimmer partying and training as he prepares for the 2016 Rio Olympics while building his fashion line, making media appearances, dealing with his close-knit and outspoken family and friends and looking for the right girl,' according to Deadline."

Blue Umbrella: Disney/Pixar releases a clip from their new short film.

The AP is now selling its tweets.

Second coroner confirms Amy Winehouse died of alcohol poisoning.

Want of the week: "Controlled by a keyboard or tablet computer, a digital globe can toggle between familiar, static images, like the world’s political boundaries, topography or vegetation. It can animate complex phenomena, like the formation of weather systems, the effect of global warming on wolverine habitats or the annual pulse of sea ice. It can display the surface of the moon, the churning azure cloudscapes of Neptune or the celestial globe — the night sky."

22 of Matt Dallas' hottest photos.

Poachers kill family of 11 elephants in largest slaughter of its kind in Kenya: "A gang of about 10 attackers hacked off the elephants' tusks in Tsavo East National Park on Saturday, officials said - the latest sign of a resurgence of mostly Asian demand for ivory jewellery and ornaments."

Bradley Cooper racking up the awards for Silver Linings Playbook.

Chelsea gets almost neighborhood-wide WiFi network from Google.

K212: The 75 hottest male tennis players of the Open era.

Alabama lawmaker Patricia Todd introduces bill that would repeal the inclusion of anti-gay curriculum in schools: "Under the current curriculum set by the state, teachers are required to teach that homosexuality is an unacceptable, criminal lifestyle. If passed, the legislation would put sex education programs in the hands of the state Department of Education, rather than the state government. Rep. Todd, who is the first openly gay legislator in the state, introduced a similar bill last year, but it did not pass out of committee."

Bette Midler returning to Broadway in John Logan's new play, I'll Eat You Last: A Chat With Sue Mengers: "Appearing on Broadway for the first time in 30 years, Tony and Grammy Award-winning superstar Bette Midler will play the legendary Hollywood agent Sue Mengers (1932-2011) in the new, one-character play."

CNN covers Ashley Broadway, military spouse denied membership to Association of Bragg Officers' Spouses because she's a lesbian: "'I thought, 'Here's a chance to make some close friends who would really understand me,'' Broadway said. 'And I could get very active in events that help other families like mine. I was excited, really excited, to be a part of this group.' But the Bragg spouse club apparently didn't feel the same way. Broadway's married to Lt. Col. Heather Mack."

Army Staff Sergeant Tracy Dice Lost Her Wife to War, and is Being Shut Out of Benefits Due to DOMA: VIDEO

Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Tracy Dice is mourning the loss of her wife, 29-year-old Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Donna Johnson, one of three soldiers killed by a suicide bomber in Afghanistan on October 1.

Watch the Military Times interview with Dice, AFTER THE JUMP...

Dice and Johnson are the first known same-sex married military couple to have suffered a casualty since the repeal of DADT,  according to the Military Times. Dice is being shut out of military benefits because of DOMA, the Military Times reports:

For example, the government pays travel costs of heterosexual spouses to Dover Air Force Base, Del., when fallen troops return to American soil.

Dice was not eligible for those allowances solely through her status as a same-sex widow. But the military did arrange to cover her travel expenses to Dover in the company of the Johnson family — though Dice is unsure how...

...Dice is also shut out of Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, a Veterans Affairs Department program that pays $1,215 a month to heterosexual spouses of service members who die on active duty. She’s also left out of other notable benefits, such as the Survivor Benefit Plan and VA education benefits.

In the long term, she won’t receive Tricare health coverage as other widows do, although, as a National Guardsman, she is eligible for the premium-based Tricare Reserve Select program. She’ll continue to receive other benefits, such as commissary, exchange and other base privileges, by virtue of her own National Guard status.

Watch the Military Times interview with Dice, AFTER THE JUMP...

Read the full article HERE (behind paywall).

Freedom to Marry and Outserve-SLDN launched a joint campaign last year focused on highlighting how DOMA hurts gay military families.

Alex Jones Follows Up Insane Piers Morgan Attack Interview with Paranoid YouTube Clip: VIDEO

Alex Jones, the 9/11 Truther and gun advocate who attacked Piers Morgan on CNN last night believes he's being stalked by armed mafia put on to him by Mayor Bloomberg.

Says Jones in a video posted to YouTube after the interview: "If you don’t know that Bloomberg is total mafia, you’re on another planet....They’re thugs. I know what they are....If something happens to us, or we’re killed by crackheads, it was the NYPD or mafia they hired."

Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

(via mediaite)

Silvio Berlusconi, Marriage Equality Advocate?

Is the former Italian Prime Minister an advocate of equal marriage? LGBT groups are suspicious.

Gay Star News:

Last Monday Berlusconi said:

‘I’m in favor of granting legal status to couples who live together, including gays, if there is a majority that makes it possible to change the civil code’.

But Italy’s gay groups are expressing concern and ‘disillusion’.

Fabrizio Marrazzo, Gay Center’s leader, said: 'The three governments Berlusconi led between 1994 and 2011 did nothing for LGBT people. Concrete proposals are certainly necessary.'

Leading LGBT association Arcigay’s president Flavio Romani said: 'I have legitimate suspicions about such a sudden change of course. Berlusconi should put his pledge in black and white.'

Enrico Oliari, president of a right-wing LGBT association, welcomed Berlusconi’s remarks: ‘Berlusconi’s opening-up over the recognition of gay couples is a piece of news you cannot fail to take account of.’

Gallaudet University Reinstates Diversity Officer Placed on Leave for Signing Petition to Put Marriage Equality on the Ballot

Angela McCaskill, the Gallaudet University associate provost of diversity and inclusion who was placed on leave in October after it was revealed that she signed a petition to put Maryland's marriage equality law on the ballot (Question 6), and subsequently appeared in an ad from the anti-gay Maryland Marriage Alliance opposing Question 6, has been reinstated by the university, the AP reports:

University president T. Alan Hurwitz announced the reinstatement of Angela McCaskill in an email to the campus community on Monday. The statement doesn’t elaborate on the reasons for the reinstatement, and university officials declined further comment.

The Washington Blade adds:

In his email message on Monday, Hurwitz didn’t say whether the reinstatement was based on any conditions. At the time he placed McCaskill on leave, Hurwitz hinted that he was sympathetic to concerns raised by gay and lesbian students on campus that it was inappropriate for the campus diversity officer to push for a ballot measure seeking to deny gays and lesbians the right to marry.

...

“During the past three months a large number of you have taken the initiative to communicate with me,” Hurwitz said in his email. “This has been a period of reflection for all of us. I am deeply appreciative of the time you have taken to communicate your views, of the clearly heartfelt manner in which you have expressed those thoughts, and of the overall maturity you have shown in your willingness to consider the differing views others may hold.”

He added, “The work of the University’s Office of diversity and Inclusion is vital and must continue in an active and vibrant way. I personally look forward to working with Dr. McCaskill on the work of that office.”

Neil Patrick Harris Has Dream Envy: VIDEO

In the new episode of Neil's Puppet Dreams, Neil Patrick Harris wonders why his dreams are so barren while his partner David Burtka's are so much fun. Even Joe Manganiello agrees.

Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...