Barack Obama and John McCain Comic Books Hit the Stands

Two 28-page comic books telling the lives of presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain hit comic book stands today.

Publisher IDW tells the Guardian that they took the 'superhero' rather than 'graphic novel' approach to the stories:

"... it would have been easy to appeal to more adult readers with a couple of moody graphic novels tackling McCain's incarceration and Obama's young life as the son of a single mother; instead the comics feature the pair in superhero poses against Old Glory rippling in the wind. Whoever wins this four-colour slugfest wins the right to save the world."

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News: Heather Matarazzo, Gay Principal, Costa Rica, Gym Pill

Anti-gay politics continues to drive Donald Wildmon's American Family Association: "According to Wildmon, who has stated that the results from Proposition 8 will determine the outcome of the 'culture wars,' 'If we lose California, if they defeat the marriage amendment, I'm afraid that the culture war is over and Christians have lost. I've never said that publicly until now -- but that's just the reality of the fact.'"

Heather Matarazzo (wiener dog!) to marry her girlfriend Carolyn Murphy. Congrats!

Obama to star in his own comic book.

Brooklyn principal comes out to his students: "'I thought it might fit in with the lesson about paranoia and making assumptions about people just because they are different,' Mr. Michael says of the timing. He had already alerted his staff and invited them to participate in the discussion, which several teachers did. He'd also spoken with Brian Ellner, a senior counselor to Schools Chancellor Joel Klein, and gotten his support. Still, Mr. Michael couldn't help but feel nervous at first."

At Lambeth Conference, gay Nigerian talks of death: "Homosexuality does exist in Africa - it's not a Western thing, as our African bishops would want people to believe."

Tom Cruise and Scientology facing $250 million racketeering lawsuit.

Thousands march against same-sex civil unions in Costa Rica: "The protest march began at 8 a.m. in front of the Hospital San Juan de Dios, and finished around noon in La Sabana park. The march was organized by the Costa Rican Evangelical Alliance, bringing together religious Costa Ricans from around the country. “We’re calling out against the law that the Legislative Assembly is considering, to allow for homosexual civil unions,” explained march participant, Reynaldo Salazar.

Scientists test 'gym pill': "The researchers have shown that four weeks after administering one drug to mice, the animals were able to run 44% farther than untreated mice, despite not exercising. The finding raises the possibility of treatments for muscle-wasting conditions in humans, but also recreational 'gym pills' that confer a performance gain without the pain."

Titty von Tramp comes out against anti-gay Northern Irish politico Iris Robinson: "Titty Von Tramp, Northern Ireland's most famous drag queen, strutted her stuff among SDLP Youth members yesterday at a protest in Belfast against homophobic comments made by the First Minister’s wife, Iris Robinson. The demonstration, held outside the City Hall, was held as part of Gay Pride Week which culminates with a parade through the city centre tomorrow followed by a carnival in Custom House Square."

John Mayer looking pumped.

New Mexico 911 operator files suit against Mesilla Valley Regional Dispatch Authority, saying he was harassed about his sexuality, complained, and then was fired in retaliation: "He had worked as a dispatcher since July 10, 2006, according to the suit. He claims he was subjected to disparaging remarks about his sexuality almost immediately after being hired and in front of his co-workers. The remarks allegedly included a disparaging term for homosexuals."

Prosecutors won't seek hate crime charges in brutal anti-gay Dallas attack because men already face maximum penalty: " Bobby Singleton, 29, and Jonathan Gunter, 31, both of Garland, each face a charge of aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon. The first-degree felony carries a punishment of five to 99 years in prison. The men, who have not yet been indicted, are being held in the July 17 beating and robbery of Jimmy Lee Dean, 42. Mr. Dean was kicked and hit with a handgun about 1 a.m. in the 3900 block of Dickason Avenue, near Oak Lawn Avenue, according to a police report. He was hospitalized with serious injuries and was unable to speak to investigators for at least 24 hours, police said. Witnesses told police one of the suspects shouted gay slurs at Mr. Dean during the attack. Investigators also believe the men targeted Mr. Dean because they thought he was gay, police said.", Gym Pi

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Anti-Gay Comic Book Writer Brent Rinehart Loses Primary

Oklahoma County Commissioner Brent Rinehart, who A href="http://www.towleroad.com/2008/07/ok-county-commi.html">sent out a 16-page comic book to voters that mocked gays as well as his political opponents, came in last in a three-way primary race on Tuesday.

"On Tuesday, Rinehart was tossed out of office by voters in his district, finishing third in a three-way primary with 1,900 votes, or 21 percent. 'I've been battling and battling for many years, and I believe even though I still had some fight left in me, I don't believe the public had it left in them,' Rinehart said Tuesday night. 'I don't in any way blame them.' Brian Maughan, 31, a political consultant and former county employee, garnered 4,238 votes, or 47 percent. Former Bethany Mayor J.D. Johnston had 2,808 votes, or 32 percent, enough to force an Aug. 26 runoff election with Maughan. The winner of that runoff will face Harrah Democrat Jim Dickinson, who captured 54 percent of the vote in a three-way Democratic primary."

Losing the primary won't mean Rinehart's schedule is empty, though: "Rinehart is scheduled to appear at an Oklahoma County District Court hearing on Thursday in connection with several felony campaign corruption charges he's facing in connection with his previous campaign."

You may have missed...
Brent Rinehart Says He Doesn't Know What 'Homophobic' Means [tr]
OK County Commissioner Brent Rinehart's Homophobic Comic Book [tr]
Oklahoma Politico Preparing Anti-Gay Comic Book for Voters [tr]

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Brent Rinehart Says He Doesn't Know What 'Homophobic' Means

He also says he doesn't care if he knows how to spell.

Oklahoma County Commissioner Brent Rinehart, who created a 16-page anti-gay comic book to send to voters as propaganda in his reelection campaign, was asked on CNN's American Morning if he is homophobic.

Said Rinehart: "Well, I'm not even sure as to what homophobic means, but let's just keep in mind that we are in a cultural war. Not just here in the state of Oklahoma, but nationwide. And I have seen pictures and I have seen viewings of gay pride parades around the nation here and the state of Oklahoma, and that's the very same attire and the very same billboards that you see in these parades. So, the thing about it is, when you're putting out a message it lands on particular people's feet and they don't necessarily like the message, that doesn't mean that the message isn't true."

Watch the full interview, AFTER THE JUMP...

Previously
OK County Commissioner Brent Rinehart's Homophobic Comic Book [tr]
Oklahoma Politico Preparing Anti-Gay Comic Book for Voters [tr]

(via queerty)

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News: AIDS Vaccine, Beijing, Albino Eagle, El Paso, Newlywed Game

Obama will not speak at the Brandenburg Gate, according to Bloomberg, but at the Victory Column just down the road: "A stage will be set up at the column, a 19th-century fluted structure that lies at the opposite end of a tree-lined boulevard from the Brandenburg Gate, the newspaper said. The campaign will announce the plans for July 24 today, it said. An appearance at the Victory Column, capped by its trademark gilded angel, will still give the Illinois senator the Brandenburg Gate as a backdrop in the distance."

Rare albino Golden Eagle discovered in Colorado.

Australia World youth Day pilgrims tell their gay hosts that they will "burn in hell."

K-Fed gets the kids from Britney in Cheeto divorce trial.

Rue McClanahan, Caroline Rhea, Olivia Newton-John, and Leslie Jordan get ready to make LOGO a bit more Sordid...

San Jose City College biology professor sues community college district for firing her over answering question about homosexuality and heredity: " In a lawsuit filed Wednesday in federal court in San Jose, June Sheldon alleges that college officials trampled on academic freedoms and free speech rights by firing her in February. Sheldon is backed in the case by the Arizona-based Alliance Defense Fund, a conservative organization that also has been heavily involved in the legal battles over gay marriage in California and elsewhere. The lawsuit seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages, reinstatement to her teaching job and a court finding that Sheldon's rights were violated."

Proposed George W. Bush Sewage Plant qualifies for ballot in San Francisco.

Gay community center opens its doors in El Paso, Texas: "El Paso's new Gay-Lesbian-Bisexual-Transgendered-Queer Center opened its doors to the public. The center houses non-profit organizations, counselors and even a flower shop. 'We want this place to be the hub of the gay community,' said director Charles Sloane. The facility is the crown jewel of El Paso's emerging gay community; a community that's mobilizing to have their voice heard as never before."

The Watchmen are coming (site not totally sfw).

Same-sex couples ineligible for Game Show Network's new version of The Newlywed Game.

Desperate Housewives gay couple Tuc Watkins and Kevin Rahm will be back in the upcoming flash-forward-five-years season: "...they now have a four-year-old daughter. Cherry said adding them to the show was 'just my commentary on how a gay couple moves in and nothing much happens.'"

VIDEO: A press rehearsal for the 9 to 5 Broadway musical.

Justin Timberlake kisses David Beckham's foot: "‘That's what $250million [£125m] tastes like,’ he told the audience." Maybe Becks can give him some tips on accessorizing.

Going to Beijing and want to know where to find the "gay scene"?

North Carolina anti-bullying bill killed: "The bill was controversial because it listed 'sexual orientation' and other characteristics as reasons schoolchildren might be the targets of bullying. Groups such as the Christian Action League and the N.C. Family Policy Council did not want the term in state law, saying that gay-rights groups would use it to leverage other rights."

Kenneth Cole's brief encounter.

Large U.S. HIV vaccine trial canceled: "...a top federal official said scientists realized that they did not know enough about how H.I.V. vaccines and the immune system interact. The decision is a major setback in an effort to develop an H.I.V. vaccine that began 24 years ago when government health officials promised a marketed vaccine by 1987. Health officials have long contended that such a vaccine would be their best weapon to control the AIDS pandemic."

High school dodgeball player #2 returning to Ugly Betty this season.

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OK County Commissioner Brent Rinehart's Homophobic Comic Book

Earlier today I posted about Oklahoma County Commissioner Brent Rinehart's homophobic 16-page reelection campaign comic book that he's sending out to voters. The comic book features all the horrible things that gays might do and highlights Rinehart's efforts against them.

The pages also target Attorney General Drew Edmondson and his attempts to force the Boy Scouts of America to drop its anti-gay policies adjacent to a drawing of (I suspect) a gay in a toga trying to lure a young boy crying "help" out of the woods.

According to the Oklahoman: "Edmondson filed felony campaign finance charges against Rinehart last year, alleging Rinehart and his former campaign manager illegally funded the 2004 campaign for county commissioner. A trial has been scheduled for September."

I've posted two pages from the masterpiece below (via Reason Magazine), and here's a PDF of the entire book (thanks to commenter znsd). Who knew we would get to take a look at it so soon?

Second page AFTER THE JUMP...

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Oklahoma Politico Preparing Anti-Gay Comic Book for Voters

Oklahoma County Commissioner Brent Rinehart is reportedly preparing to mail out a homophobic comic book to voters featuring stories about how gays and Satan are out to get him, the Oklahoman reports:

"The 16-page comic book makes fun of homosexuals and criticizes Rinehart's political opponents. It features a man and woman admiring Rinehart's often-controversial political career."

Said Keith Gaddie, a political science professor at the University of Oklahoma: "This is one of the strangest things I've ever seen. I've never seen a comic book with the phrase ‘anal sodomy' in it before. That was a new one for me.”

An angel and Satan, as well as "toga-wearing gays, political figures, and trench coat-clad henchmen" figure among the comic book's characters in the odd re-election campaign propaganda:

"In one sequence, Satan says: 'If I can get the kids to believe homosexuality is normal!' The angel replies: 'Hey Satan, not with Brent around you won't!' Rinehart said he doesn't think the depiction is inappropriate and that he is proud of the comic. 'The history of my office is that I do expose the homosexual agenda, and that it does exist in the state of Oklahoma, and my history also would show that I am very much opposed to the homosexual agenda,' Rinehart said. Rinehart said he spent two months writing the comic. He said his friend Shane Suiters did the illustrations. Rinehart wouldn't say who is managing his campaign, and wouldn't say if he's running it himself."

Maybe Sally Kern is running it!

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News: Dark Knight, Gay Youth, Ravello, Ian McKellen, Uganda

Here's a list of the groups that are lobbying the Senate to remove the HIV travel ban.

The Dark Knight has its premiere and it's a big night for Christian Bale. But it was an even bigger night for the late Heath Ledger. His family paid him tribute as did his co-stars.

Reese Witherspoon cuts Jake Gyllenhaal off from his normal habit of swearing like a sailor: "Some of (the things she insists on) are run-of-the-mill. He has to take off his shoes when he’s in the house; trash must be taken out when the can is three-quarters full; and no feet on the coffee table."

PBS debates airing full-frontal Ian McKellen in broadcast of Royal Shakespeare Company's King Lear next year.

Some San Franciscans are objecting to a plan by the Presidential Memorial Commission of San Francisco that would rename the Oceanside Water Pollution Control Plant as the George W. Bush Sewage Plant: "What we didn’t expect was that most of the opposition was coming from people who didn’t want to name anything. They just wanted to forget about the past eight years and move on or they felt that this is a facility that does something really quite useful and it would be inappropriate to put his name on it. […] If you get to the point where people are defending the sewage plant, that’s a sign that things have not gone so well."

Brad Blog: Alabama Attorney General Troy King, who last week was the subject of rumors that he was to resign in the wake of a gay sex scandal, was the client of gay GOP consultant Ralph Gonzalez, who was killed in a double-murder suicide last year.

The Washington Post on the coming out process and its emergence at earlier and earlier ages: "He has grown so used to the stares and laughter of strangers that their insults slip off his 118-pound frame like an oversize shirt. 'I think I've dealt with it so much my whole life that it really doesn't bother me anymore, not as much as it used to,' Saro says. 'If you have a birthmark on your leg for so long, you don't even notice it.' Saro, who first said he liked boys to a classmate in sixth grade, is like many of today's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youths who openly discuss their sexual orientation and identity with friends, and sometimes family, before entering high school."

Whoopi Goldberg to join cast of Xanadu on Broadway.

Britney shoots video for Madonna tour.

Uganda's State Minister for Ethics and Integrity Dr James Nsaba Buturo says that opponents of gays should not be afraid of retribution because God will protect them: "It's true gays are rough people but men of God should not fear their intimidation. Ugandans should strengthen their mobilisation against the gay movement because the government is also committed to support them."

Gore Vidal home in Ravello, Italy to open as luxury hotel next spring.

FIRST LOOK: Project Runway designers enter the workroom.

Miss USA Crystle Stewart discusses her fall at the Miss Universe pageant: "I think I'm going to have to take some walking classes. I would never have thought in a million years that I would fall down at the Miss Universe pageant _ right after Miss USA fell last year. I always wondered: My God, if that happened to me, what would I do? Things happen. I'm perfectly fine. I'm going to move back to New York and get on with my life." Watch it.

Ruminations on a gay and straight brother...

The schedule for this year's Comic-Con in San Diego has been released.

Politics of Fear: Cartoonists respond to the Barack and Michelle Obama New Yorker cover, and Salon asks if the Bush era has killed a lot of liberals' sense of humor.

Philosopher Mark Vernon: I was a gay priest.

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News: Bush Lyme Disease, Timbaland, Brad Womack, Zac Efron

Minneapolis bridge hero turns down photo-op with Bush: “He was just, like, ‘Nope.’ ”

Meet TV's newest Bachelor Brad Womack.

Recently-out Australian Idol contestant Anthony Callea dreaded interviews with the gay press when he was in the closet: "...it wasn't just me dreading it, it was the record company and management as well. I found out down the line a lot of the gay-press requests to do interviews were rejected before they ever got to me. Obviously they were being protective. I did an interview with a gay mag at the start of the year and the first question was "Are you gay?" It was funny because I'd done a day of media training two days before that. The woman doing the training said: 'That will never be asked as the first question.' I phoned her and said 'You were wrong. How much did we pay you?'"

Timbaland talks about his recent collaborations with Madonna: "There's this one song, we taking it back to 'You must be my luck-eee starrrr!' ... Remember 'Ugly' by Bubba Sparxxx? I got a beat similar to that. The hook is no words. It's saying stuff named after coffee — all these different names for coffee — is the hook. ... The name of the song is 'La, La.' Pharrell did a hot one for her too called 'Candy Shop.' She's off the chain."

Watching the new Watchmen movie: "The story primarily takes place at the end of the Cold War, the late 80s, but also looks back at the history of its alternate universe to see how superheroes would have changed our history. One of the caped crusaders we meet during those flashbacks is Hooded Justice, one of the first masked men to arrive on the scene who, it turns out, was also gay. So far, Hooded Justice hasn't been cast and hasn't been mentioned in discussion of the film. I hope that doesn't mean he won't appear in the movie. While Hooded Justice isn't one of Watchmen's essential characters, he plays a key role in establishing the bigotry and violent tendencies of another character, The Comedian."

Milo Ventimiglia's break-out-of-something role.

White House reveals Bush was treated for Lyme Disease a year ago.

Woman goes into labor during American Idol audition: "This Tuesday, at the show's Dallas tryouts, one hopeful contestant sang her way straight from the stage to the hospital. Antoria Gillon tells Usmagazine.com, 'I went up to sing a 702 song called Get it Together in the middle of Texas Stadium in front of producers. And then I started to go into labor.' But the determined Texan didn't let the contractions get to her. Gillon, who had been waiting in line since 2 a.m. the night before explains, 'I kept singing. One of the judges gave me her seat! I told her I had been there all day, and nothing was going to stop me from singing. I hadn't been there all day for nothing!' After she completed the song, Gillon was taken to the nearby Medical Center at Lancaster, where she gave birth to a son."

Gay or Zac Efron? (warning: site NSFW)

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News: Boxer Briefs, Barry Manilow's Hip, Moustaches

Hundreds took to the streets on Friday night in San Diego's Hillcrest neighborhood to rally against the hateful attacks that took place near Balboa Park over Gay Pride weekend.

Remember the 14-year-old gay Iraqi boy murdered on his doorstep? Evidence shows increase in Iraqi Shia death squad executions of homosexuals: "There is growing evidence that Shia militias have been killing men suspected of being gay and children who have been sold to criminal gangs to be sexually abused. The threat has led to a rapid increase in the numbers of Iraqi homosexuals now seeking asylum in the UK because it has become impossible for them to live safely in their own country."

Hugh Jackman's lucky charm: a pair of ten-year-old boxer briefs.

Marvel Comics Editor in Chief says that due to "ridiculous" pressure from "pro-family" groups like Traditional Values Coalition, the company will not be publishing titles with gay and lesbian characters without an "explicit content" label: "The last thing we want to do is have everybody come down on the entire comic book industry."

Barry Manilow to undergo hip surgery.

What your facial hair says about you: “You’ve got some who are hairy and do nothing about it, some who are almost obsessive about being clean-shaven, and some who just keep their facial hair neatly trimmed—and what goes on up top is usually a good indication of what goes on below."

World's first gay motor show set to start its engines in Cardiff, UK.

Western Australia National Party passes motion supporting gay and lesbian civil unions: "This move by the National Party shows that there is an increasing level of support within the party to secure fairness and certainty for same-sex couples and their families, especially those in rural and regional Western Australia."

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Peter Parker Revealed: Spider-man is Gay Too

Forget about those pesky Superman rumors.

When Spider-Man is unmasked for the first time in his 44-year history, readers may draw some new conclusions about Peter Parker:

The hair perfectly coiffed (and highlighted), the eyebrows plucked with Metcalfe-ian precision, the lips shining with gloss, and the skin mystic-tanned to a luscious, caramel-honey shade.

Gay or just gay vague? You be the judge.

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The Real Justice League

Tired of all the objectification of female breasts that goes on in the comic book industry? This blogger has decided it's time justice was served.

(via boingboing)

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