38 Sweet Facts About Candy: VIDEO

Be better informed for your trick-or-treaters this Halloween.

Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

Pet Shop Boys Do 'Electric' Interview in L.A.: AUDIO

While in Los Angeles at the close of their North American Tour, the Pet Shop Boys appeared on radio station KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic with Jason Bentley, talking about their career and performing a few songs from their album Electric.

Listen to it all, AFTER THE JUMP...

11-Year-Old Brought Gun to School, Planned to Shoot Classmate for Calling Friend 'Gay': VIDEO

A Vancouver, Washington mother's call to school administrators may have foiled her son's plan to kill a fellow classmate, KPTV reports:

The mother of an 11-year-old boy called school administrators to report her son may have taken kitchen knives to school, and that's what led police to find 400 rounds of ammunition and a gun in his possession, according to court documents released Thursday.

Vancouver police school resource officers detained the boy at Frontier Middle School on Wednesday at 9 a.m. after the mother's phone call. They said they found a .22 caliber handgun in his front pants pocket.

Detectives interviewed school administrators, and were told the boy said a voice in his head was telling him to kill a classmate for calling his friend gay, the court documents said.

In a later interview with police, the boy told detectives he planned to shoot his classmate in the arm, and then shoot himself in the head.

The boy is being held on charges of first-degree attempted assault, unlawful possession of a firearm and possession of a dangerous weapon on school facilities.

Watch KPTV's report, AFTER THE JUMP...

FOX19.com-Cincinnati News, Weather

Right-Wingers Claim Trans Colorado Student is 'Visually Raping' Girls in the Locker Room: VIDEO

A transgender high schooler from Colorado who transitioned two years ago is hearing absurd claims from multiple right-wing groups about the "harassment" she is committing in the locker room at her school. The Pacific Justice Institute (PJI) is leading the charge.

Think Progress reports:

TransAdvocate blogger Cristan Williams has been countering PJI’s claims, and she was able to make contact with the transgender student and her family.

Williams identifies the student as Jane Doe, though her name has been outed by those attempting to villainize her. She spoke with one of Jane’s moms, who provided some new insights into how PJI’s drama has unfolded. Jane transitioned about two years ago, and is now “comfortable with life,” having previously experienced a lot of harassment when she would still use men’s restrooms. Her mom describes her as “shy and timid, “private about everything,”" and also quite afraid of being bullied.

The family only learned about the controversy when the school was bombarded with media requests after some other parents held a poorly attended rally protesting Jane’s use of girls’ facilities. Jane then found PJI’s complaint online, and it caused her anxiety attacks...

As Williams explains, the bigger target behind Jane Doe is California's law protecting transgender children:

The law protecting transgender children, which California Gov. Jerry Brown signed in August, says schools must treat transgender students as equal to cisgender students. A coalition of anti-LGBT groups calling itself “Privacy for All Students” has circulated 200,000 anti-trans petitions throughout California. Their goal is to collect 505,000 valid signatures by November 12, 2013. If they collect those signatures, it will stop the trans equality law from taking effect in January and put the civil rights of trans kids up for popular vote in November 2014.

PJI is still in attack mode despite the obvious distress their statements have caused Jane and her family. In all of his statements, PJI attorney Matthew McReynolds refers to Jane using male pronouns, misgendering and disrespecting her gender identity.

Said McReynolds in a WND interview: "We’ve heard some reports that he’s commented on what girls are wearing or their figure while in the bathroom," adding, "Our students are in a scenario where they’re being told, If you don’t want to be in this situation where this guy walks in while you’re in the bathroom, then you’ve got to confine yourself to one staff bathroom that is very inconvenient..." 

The attack is not confined to PJI, however. Right Wing Watch reported that on his talk show "Pray in Jesus Name," former Navy chaplain Gordon Klingenschmitt accused Jane "of 'raping, at least visually, these teenage girls by sharing a locker room with them." 

Watch the distasteful video, AFTER THE JUMP...

Gay Rep. Mark Takano Teases Documentary Film in New Trailer: VIDEO

Mark Takano was seen as a bit of a long-shot to win a campaign in California's 43rd congressional district, a somewhat conservative, working-class area in San Bernadino County.  But on his third try--after a major redistricting process that spurred Takano to seek a seat in the new 41st congressional district, a much more Democratic area located north of San Diego along the state's borders with Nevada and Arizona--Takano was elected to represent the district during the 2012 election, making history in the process by becoming the U.S. Congress's first openly gay member of color.

During the course of his race, Takano let two documentary filmmakers into his campaign headquarters--and into the halls of power once he had joined the House of Representatives.  The film that came out of that insider access is "How to Get Elected in America," which looks at the ups and downs of political campaigns and the way that Big Data and the changing demography of the United States are changing politics as we know it.

"How to Get Elected in America," directed by Jamie Ruddy and Rupert Russell, is in post-production.  Check out a fun teaser trailer featuring Rep. Takano below, AFTER THE JUMP...

Towleroad Guide to the Tube #1451

LAND ART: "Cuban-American Artist, Jorge Rodríguez-Gerada, has created WISH, a portrait of an anonymous local girl photographed by the artist in the process of making a pure and simple wish for the future. Spanning an 11 acre site in Belfast's Titanic Quarter, the photographic image of this girl - made of topsoil, sand, grass and stones - can be seen from various locations around Belfast. This innovative public artwork pushes boundaries and uses cutting edge technologies, making it one of the most ambitious land art projects in the world."

TECH PORN: The making of Apple's new Mac Pro.

VIDEO STORES: Explained to modern kids.

INTRIGUED CAT: Vs. windshield wipers.

For recent Guides to the Tube, click HERE.