News: Gay Pride Suppression, Hillary Clinton, Russia, JJ Abrams

A gay man in Boynton Beach, Florida, is being accused of trying to start abstract "trouble" after his neighborhood association nixed his pride flag. The man, Dave Armstrong, says his neighbors are just homophobic. "I said, 'Listen, everybody else has an American flag on the front of their property, so why can't I have my pride flag right out here?'"

An Atlanta man is suing Georgia after state rejects his three gay-themed vanity license plates, "4GayLib," "GayPwr" and "GayGuy:" "All three were denied because they were already on a list of more than 10,000 banned tags, the state's 'bad tag list'. 'There are some limits that are proper but none of this makes any sense,' [Attorney Cynthia] Counts said. 'It's completely contrary to any first amendment principals.'"

The Connecticut Senate approved the state's first openly gay Supreme Court justice.

MSNBC panels says Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was "at her very best" during yesterday's Benghazi hearings.

New rules from the Kremlin demand military officers inspect recruits' bodies, including their genitals, for tattoos that may indicate gang or gay affiliation. "The reason for getting tattoos could indicate a low cultural or educational level," the directive reads. "If an influence by external factors is determined, for example, persuasion or direct coercion, this indicates the malleability of the young man, his disposition to submit to another's will."

Scotland Yard says it has arrested three people suspected of being involved in a "Muslim street patrol" that recently assaulted a gay man in London.

More about corporations turning on the Boy Scouts for the Scouts' tenacious homophobia, including a chart on who's giving how much to the organization. (Click on image to expand.)

David Hall, the former Air Force sergeant booted under Don't Ask, Don't Tell, discusses his experience as a "citizen co-chair" during President Obama's second inauguration. "I think he tried to put us all at ease and talk to us as normal people," he said of the commander-in-chief's demeanor.

Rather than joining the momentum that will most likely usher in marriage equality in Rhode Island, and simultaneously going against his party peer, Gov. Lincoln Chafee, Democratic State Sen. Frank A. Ciccone III plans on introducing a bill that will put same-sex unions to a popular vote, rather than allowing lawmakers to decide.

Despite outcry from LGBT students, Chick-fil-A will stay put at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. The school, however, agreed to give them $1,500 to see if they can start an anti-bullying and general awareness campaign on such a small budget.

Stephen Dorff found some relief in the Roosevelt Hotel's bushes.

Here are the president's remarks on the Pentagon lifting the ban on women in combat: "Today, by moving to open more military positions—including ground combat units—to women, our armed forces have taken another historic step toward harnessing the talents and skills of all our citizens..."

Polish lawmakers begin debating civil unions.

Why didn't Sheryl Crow tell the world that former lover Lance Armstrong was doping?

David Beckham in a "fashionable dressing gown."

Is JJ Abrams going to direct the next Star Wars flick?

"Does lightning cause migraines?"

Parliamentary Debate On Marriage Equality In England Set For February 5

The march toward marriage equality in England and Wales took a big step today when Culture Minister Maria Miller introduced a Parliamentary bill legalize unions for same-sex couples today. And now that that's done, a debate date has been set: February 5th.

The BBC has more:

The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill will be debated in Parliament on Tuesday 5 February, the leader of the Commons Andrew Lansley has announced.

The legislation will allow gay marriage, including by religious organisations which want to offer it.

However, the Church of England and Church in Wales will be legally barred from marrying same-sex couples.

News: James Franco, Barbara Walters, Albuquerque, Bird Strikes

A 15-year old boy has been charged with the shooting deaths of two adults and three children in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Police say the teen had at least one assault rifle.

Five people were injured in separate incidents during yesterday's "Gun Appreciation Day."

Vicco, Kentucky, population 344, may be the smallest town in America to ban anti-gay discrimination.

What promises made during his first inaugural speech did President Obama keep?

Can former NYC Mayor Ed Koch's AIDS record be discussed without whispers about his sexuality? "Absent the hostility, a more speculative version of this position is offered in the film by Ethan Geto, a media and political strategist, who says simply that during the epidemic "it would have been so incredibly valuable for a popular mayor of New York to declare he was gay."

Labour MP Paul Flynn is introducing a bill that would allow gay royals to marry and for their children to be potential heirs to the British thrown.

This is horrific and graphic but definitely something you should pay attention to: video of a CVS manager strangling a homeless shoplifter to death while pedestrians hold the man down. No criminal charges are pending.

Daniel Radcliffe is already tired and "weirded out" by all the questions about the gay sex in his new film, Kill Your Darlings. "What weirded me out the most last night was people were asking me all these questions about the gay sex scenes. I was like: 'You know I did Equus?'. Some people are asking me questions like this is a more shocking subject, which is so strange," he said.

A review of James Franco's Interior Leather Bar, an homage to the graphic gay sex cut from the controversial gay classic Cruisin': "Interior Leather Bar does contain one very graphic sex scene - a tender encounter between two men we are told are a real-life couple, which seems to be entirely against the film's idea of re-queering gay sex. And in general it's much more about talking about sex than actually showing it, which also makes its claims toward provocation a little weaker."

Did you see Jennifer Lawrence host Saturday Night Live?

ABC News' Barbara Walters was hospitalized after falling and hitting her head at an inauguration party.

Loneliness is bad for your health: "[A new study] reveals that people who are lonely experience more reactivation of latent viruses in their systems than the well-connected. Lonely people also are more likely than others to produce inflammatory compounds in response to stress, a factor implicated in heart disease and other chronic disorders."

More on American anti-gay crusader Brian Brown's efforts to block marriage equality in France.

Want to stop bird strikes? Turn up the bass.

Jared Padalecki's a hot daddy.

Justin Bieber shared his butt with the world.

When Florence Welch met A$AP Rocky.

Hundreds of activists gathered to say adieu as Steven Goldstein prepares to step down as Garden State Equality's executive director.

Committed Student Skis to the Library When Buses are Canceled: VIDEO

When it snows a little in England things start to get interesting.

Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

(via reddit)

British Catholic Priests Say Marriage Equality Bigger Threat Than 16th Century Reformation

Who should be more offended here, gays or protestants?

1,054 Catholic priests, 13 Bishops and assorted Catholic abbots have signed a massive open letter claiming that legalizing marriage equality in England is a greater threat to religious freedom in general, and Catholicism specifically, since the Reformation, the 16th Century split that led to the rise of Protestantism.

Here's a sample of the letter, via The Daily Mail:

After centuries of persecution, Catholics have, in recent times, been able to be members of the professions and participate fully in the life of this country.

Legislation for same-sex marriage, should it be enacted, will have many legal consequences, severely restricting the ability of Catholics to teach the truth about marriage in their schools, charitable institutions or places of worship.

It is meaningless to argue that Catholics and others may still teach their beliefs about marriage in schools and other arenas if they are also expected to uphold the opposite view at the same time.

It is germane to point out here that Martin Luther, John Calvin and the other 16th Century Reformers were protesting what they found to be a corrupt, archaic Catholic church. Their efforts were clearly successful, greatly reducing number of Catholics in England (Yes, Henry VIII played a role in the church's erosion of power by erecting the Anglican Church of England, but for far different reasons, though around the same time.)

So, now we have the modern - well, as modern as it can be - Catholic Church claiming that allowing fellow human beings to marry the people they love will somehow destroy their religion. It seems to be that the only thing destroying their religion is their consistent refusal to adapt to the times.

Gay Senegalese Man Fears for Life Over Britain Deportation Threats

An ongoing case in which Britain is telling a Senegalese man he must prove he's gay or be deported back to his home country where he faces violence highlights "the injustices faced by those seeking asylum," according to a UK National Union of Students leader.

The Guardian reports:

Serigne Tacko Mbengue, who studies at Newham College in east London, and is a LGBT campaigner for the NUS, fled to the UK in 2008 to escape homophobic persecution. But the 26-year-old is still going through the appeal process four years later because the Home Office doesn't believe he is gay.

Around 40 supporters turned up outside his hearing in London on Wednesday, only for the case to be adjourned for the second time in three months. It was rescheduled due to new evidence revealing physical and emotional scars from two attacks he suffered in Senegal because of his sexuality.

The west African state remains a dangerous place for homosexuals — anyone caught will face a prison sentence of up to five years.

Mbengue says: "I'm a very outspoken gay man. I'm not going back to Senegal. If I do, I will be a dead body."