News: Montana, Hugh Jackman, Parasites, Ig Nobels, Tuna

Montana woman files appeal over historic Montana same-sex partner custody ruling.

Where did Charlie go when he was young? Tuna kindergarten.

Interested in what Shrek the Musical sounds like? Download a free tune.

Gold-winning gay Aussie Olympian hires "the man who helped turn Ian Thorpe into a multimillionaire, David Flaskas, to manage his career away from the dive towers." Mitcham has yet to score a major sponsorship - is homophobia to blame?

Canadian candidate who told a high school assembly gays should be executed is banned from future debates.

Senator Larry Craig gives farewell speech to empty chamber. Crapper goes unmentioned in colleague Mike Crapo's good-bye lauding the accomplishments of his retiring colleague : "It has been a privilege for me to serve with Senator Craig during my time in Congress. My wife, Susan, and I wish him and his wife, Suzanne, well as they begin a new chapter in their lives."

Police looking into violent gay bashing outside club in downtown Hamilton, Ontario, Canada: "The victim was treated in hospital. Shortly afterwards a man appeared at hospital with injuries to his hand. Police say the man bragged about his assault at the Embassy Club."

Hugh Jackman lookin' spiffy.

Catholic churches in Michigan town of Hamtramck urge voters to reject town's anti-discrimination that includes protections for sexual orientation: "We have to keep the morals and have the regular families and bring up children according to God's law. Keep it the way it was from the beginning."

Equality Maryland to honor transgender model Isis.

Alien parasites killing sharks off the coast of Oregon. Damn, those things look nasty.

I'm very sorry to report the passing of Rupert, the cutest deer ever.

Facebook censors gay men's retailer Priape: "Michael Ain, Priape's director of marketing and sales, says Facebook is treating Priape differently than it does similar pages aimed at heterosexual audiences."

Duke University to host Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson: "Janie Long, director of the Center for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Life-which organized Robinson's visit-said she hoped his appearance would help to open a campus conversation on faith and identity. 'This is something that I deal with with students quite frequently,' she said. 'And because I very much want students from all kinds of faith backgrounds-it's not students that are Christians, it's really all faith backgrounds-it's a chance for those students to be exposed to someone who I think is really an excellent role model in terms of balancing different parts of identity.'"

Madonna and A-Rod reportedly dine together in NYC.

Out Dartmouth runner Jamal Brown shares his experiences as an openly gay college athlete.

There are two out gay men on this season's Top Chef — meet them.

Broadway's Hairspray to close.

Annual Ig Nobel Prizes awarded.

CBS in trouble for Survivor peen moment that nobody saw.

A new comedy TV series based on the childhood memoirs of Simon Doonan by the writer of Beautiful Thing comes to the BBC: "This glittering and hilarious series delves inside Simon's youthful memories and his desire to escape suburban Reading and live amongst the 'beautiful people' - from his perspective as a window dresser in a New York department store."

CDC: 1 in 5 unaware they are infected with HIV.

Building in Bangkok's gay area collapses: "The collapse happened on Tuesday in Bangkok's Silom Soi 4 at around 4pm local time (10pm NZ time), when the Soi is largely unattended. There are no reports of fatalities or injuries. The four-story building, currently under renovation and operating as Roxy Club, partially fell to the ground, crushing motorcyles and furniture, leaving the street covered in large pieces of concrete and other debris."

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Senator Larry Craig to Tap 'Fund for Justice' to Clear His Name

Senator Larry "not gay" Craig will never give up.

After receiving a "Public Letter of Admonition" from the Senate Ethics Committee in February for using leftover campaign funds to finance the quest to have his guilty plea overturned in the Minneapolis airport gay sex sting case, Craig began the formation of a fund to replace it.

The Idaho Statesman reports: "Sen. Larry Craig says the Senate Ethics Committee has cleared him to form a legal expense fund to back his year-long effort to reverse his guilty plea for misdemeanor disorderly conduct. Craig calls the new fundraising committee the Fund for Justice, according to Congressional Quarterly. Craig told CQ on Thursday that he's soliciting donations. 'I'm working at it now,' said the Idaho Republican who is retiring in January after 28 years in Congress."

Craig is required to file a public report disclosing activity, including names of contributors, to the fund in mid-October.

Continued, AFTER THE JUMP...

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Larry Craig Men's Room Sex Case Back in Court Today

Arguments are to be heard today in court in St. Paul, Minnesota regarding the appeal of U.S. Senator Larry Craig's disorderly conduct conviction surrounding his solicitation of an undercover cop for sex in an airport bathroom, the Star Tribune reports:

"The case will be heard in St. Paul by Court of Appeals Judges Thomas Kalitowski, Natalie Hudson and Louise Bjorkman. The judges generally take cases under advisement and issue written rulings within weeks. Craig is asking to withdraw his guilty plea in the case stemming from his arrest in the summer of 2007 in a men's room at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. Hennepin County District Judge Charles Porter already has rejected Craig's request to withdraw the plea."

Wonder how Craig's tell-all book is coming?

Recent Larry Craig news
Mike Jones: Larry Craig 'Ate My Butt' [tr]
Larry Craig: No More Getting Jerked Around by the Gas Nozzle [tr]
Strange Bedfellows [tr]
Larry Craig Writing Tell-All Book About Men's Room Arrest [tr]

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News: Lavender, McCain's Shoes, Barney Frank, Scrabulous

Civics Quiz — Ted Stevens vs Larry Craig: "In Congress which is worse: being corrupt or being gay? Time is up. Pencils down. If you answered being gay, you've been paying attention, class. Of the 10 Commandments, it is much better to break the one about stealing than the one about sex."

John McCain's $520 Ferragamo shoes. The Nation's Christopher Hayes: "If I were a right-wing blogger, and I found out that Barack Obama was wearing Ferragamo loafers that cost $520, I would spend about 50% of my waking hours making sure everyone knew this. I would mock him for being an out-of-touch elitist and make jokes like, 'If you think that’s a lot, you should see how much his purse costs!' I would send the link to Drudge and wait for Instapundit to pick it up, and then watch gleefully as Fox News ran segments about how Barack Obama’s $500 loafers vitiate his entire economic platform."

Guy Ritchie says Hard Candy worse than cocaine: "Sugar kills. Think of the calories in sugar. Fat kills more people than anything else. Sugar is responsible for a lot of deaths, arguably more than crack cocaine."

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad blames West for AIDS.

The skinny on Brideshead Revisited's Matthew Goode.

NYT: Purple ties may be the new neutral but what about lavender pants?.

Catfights underway on Sex and the City sequel.

Sound Advice: "Every Bleeding Breath" — Divide and Create.

Booted from Facebook, makers of Scrabulous launch new 'Wordscraper' game: "Developers Rajat and Jayant Agarwalla launched Wordscraper worldwide less than 48 hours after being forced to take their original creation, Scrabulous, offline in the US and Canada in response to a lawsuit from Hasbro. The brothers voluntarily closed Scrabulous to North American users on Tuesday following a claim of intellectual property infringement by games manufacturer Hasbro, which owns the online rights in the US and Canada. They have now launched Wordscraper, with significant changes to make the game less like Scrabble."

Christina Aguilera hairdo scares the pants off someone.

British men banned from football grounds over homophobic chanting.

Anime fans making pilgrimage to Japanese shrine in drag.

HORROR: One man beheads another on Greyhound bus in Canada.

Barney Frank wants an end to arrests for marijuana possession: "The vast amount of human activity ought to be none of the government's business. I don't think it is the government's business to tell you how to spend your leisure time."

Simon Lee, musical supervisor of the upcoming Toronto production of The Sound of Music fired after alleged assault and imprisonment of 24-year-old man at hotel: "Simon is a very talented person who is extremely important to us. However, on this occasion we felt it was necessary to seek the termination of his engagement on The Sound of Music in Toronto. The alleged events are subject to legal proceedings and, therefore, we can't comment further."

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Mike Jones: Larry Craig 'Ate My Butt'

New pressing details have emerged in the Larry Craig saga you may (or may not) want to hear.

Mike Jones, who as you remember, also said he counted Larry Craig as one of his clients along with Ted Haggard, appeared on Michelangelo Signorile's Sirius show, and Signorile has released a previously unaired version of the show.

Jones: "Well one of the other things he liked to do was, uh, he ate my butt. Yep. I'll tell you what. I think the Statesman knew that but they chose to, they were kind of... He did it first, and then he performed oral sex on me while he got off."

Craig is a proud sponsor of the Marriage Protection Amendment.

Recently
Larry Craig: No More Getting Jerked Around by the Gas Nozzle [tr]
Strange Bedfellows [tr]
Larry Craig Writing Tell-All Book About Men's Room Arrest [tr]

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Larry Craig: No More Getting Jerked Around by the Gas Nozzle

The Senator from Idaho discusses our reliance on foreign oil, AFTER THE JUMP...

Your Nozzle or Mine? [talking points memo]

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News: Howard Dean, iPhone, Lance Armstrong, Reggae, Ryan Gosling

Russian gay activists to picket Iranian Embassy in Moscow. Nikolai Alexeyev: "We need to continuously remind the state authorities that the death penalty must be abolished."

Line forms a week early for 3G iPhone...

Ryan Gosling makes an excellent case for the white T-shirt.

Larry Craig's bathroom stall to return to spotlight: "Thousands of members of the international media will have to walk past it when they land at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport for the Republican National Convention in St. Paul at the end of the summer. Many will feel obligated to stop and file a story. For the party that bills itself as stronger on family values than the Democrats, it likely will prove an unwelcome distraction."

UK Study: employees who are "out" at work perform better.

Half Blood Prince: First look at new Harry Potter film.

Lance Armstrong gets a beard.

Signorile on Arthur Finkelstein, the gay Republican behind Jesse Helms: "Conservative, then-closeted, Republican political operative Arthur Finkelstein helped engineer Helms' racist campaign against African-American Charlotte Mayor Harvey Gantt in 1990, as Helms was vilifying gay sexuality, blocking AIDS funding, stalling prevention and attacking queer artists. (See the ad below that was aired at the height of the campaign and which resulted in Gantt going from a a lead in the polls to defeat on Election Day). Had Jesse Helms not had the handiwork of Finkelstein, who worked for Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan and various right-wing senators, he might have lost that race. Instead, we had another decade of his antigay grip on the Republican Party, as he blocked HIV prevention measures and thousands more died."

SALON: Transgender man delivered a baby, but failed to deliver respect.

Nicole Kidman gives birth to a Sunday on a Monday.

Obama campaign plane makes emergency stop due to mechanical problems.

"No Homo" the latest catchphrase to sweep NFL locker rooms: "LenDale White says to Vince Young: 'Vince, you’ve got great nips. No homo.' Did you catch the subtle twist there? LenDale has said something that on any other day might be considered gay, but, and this is key, he’s inoculated his heterosexuality by appending, no homo at the end. No homo also works at the front of the phrase but then it’s much less enjoyable because the other party has been keyed into the homosexuality of the statement that’s to follow. Hence, 'No homo. Vince you’ve got great nips.' No dice there."

Reggae music label plans "Straight Pride Parade" in Brooklyn to protest ban of gay murder music artist Stapler.

Howard Dean holds holiday fundraiser in Provincetown: "From a small podium Dean spoke of the enormous progress that has been made in terms of civil rights — for instance, the number of states that have had referendums on gay marriage — despite eight years under 'one of most oppressive presidents' the country has ever known and a Supreme Court he characterized as 'a disgrace. It’s interesting,' he said. 'Sometimes you have to just sit back and look. The grassroots have changed dramatically.'"

NBC to buy The Weather Channel for $3.5 billion. Hurricane Bertha forms in the Atlantic...

Matt Damon checks into the Green Zone.

Michael Ausiello: Hit TV show planning big gay twist.

Getting away with it: Kylie Minogue breaks royal protocol as she is bestowed with the Order of the British Empire...

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Strange Bedfellows

The two Senate sponsors of the federal Marriage Protection Amendment—whoremonger (literally) David Vitter and restless-leg sin drone Larry Craig—are skewered in mock ads over at Patriot Boy. Vitter is AFTER THE JUMP.

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News: Larry Craig, Big Bird, Al Sharpton, Gun Ruling, Vogue

No joke: Larry Craig and David Vitter key sponsors of Marriage Protection Amendment.

Never-before-seen photos of David Bowie revealed.

Guy "Richie" stands to gain $100 million:
No pre-nup in Madonna marriage.

Al Sharpton told Gay City News that his statement about sin to Anderson Cooper earlier this week was not aimed at Anderson but was hypothetical: "I have no idea of his sexuality. I was not talking about him as an individual anyway. It could have been anybody...I support same-sex marriage and have been lambasted by the right for it."

HIV cases "skyrocket" among young gay men: "A new report from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found that between 2001 and 2006 gay male sex was the largest HIV transmission category in the U.S. and also the only one which recorded an increasing number of HIV/AIDS diagnoses. The most affected are gay boys and men between the ages of 13 and 24 years, with minorities even more. The findings were released in this week's issue of the CDC journal Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Other factors such as genital herpes could actually double a person’s risk for contracting HIV."

Beckham blogs about bulge.

NewNowNext covers New York's HX Awards.

Prince Harry discovers source of global warming at County Fair.

Miami lesbian suing South Florida hospital because she wasn't allowed to see her partner who had suffered a stroke. Her partner later died: "Janice Langbehn, Lisa Marie Pond and three of their four children planned a cruise in February 2007 to celebrate the couple's 18 years together. But Pond suffered a massive stroke before the ship left port and was taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital. Hospital workers refused to let Langbehn into Pond's hospital room - even after a power of attorney was faxed to the hospital -- because they were not legally related. Langbehn filed a federal lawsuit in Miami on Wednesday charging hospital employees with negligence and "intentional infliction of emotional distress." The suit seeks damages in excess of $75,000. Pond was pronounced dead of a brain aneurysm about 18 hours after being admitted to the trauma center. Langbehn said she was only allowed in to see her partner for a few minutes when a priest gave Pond the last rites."

Bishop Gene Robinson and Sir Ian McKellen to make joint appearance at screening of For the Bible Tells Me So in London...

Gay creator of Big Bird costume, Kermit Love, dies at 91.

More from the set of Gossip Girl...

Log Cabin Republicans applaud Supreme Court gun ruling.

Juice: The background on bigot Bolthouse and Bolthouse farms.

London police hunt "thug" after homophobic attack: "Sahin Rahman is one of four thugs sentenced this week following the attack at Hackney-road, Bethnal Green, in London's East End, two years ago. Police say Rahman (pictured), who had been living in Mckenzie-road in Holloway, north London, is currently at large after failing to appear at Snaresbrook crown court on June 16 and remains wanted. His accomplices, all from Holloway, have appeared in court."

Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi will reportedly be married at Palm Springs' Riviera Resort and Spa in October.

Real Vogue interns tell New York magazine that their internships were nothing like New York Ranger Sean Avery's: "Sean Avery eats enormous lunches in the cafeteria and gets away with spilling them on people. Elizabeth: 'I never got lunch. I didn't get lunch breaks. We had to eat in the closet.' Ashley: 'I was able to get lunch. It was like, very quick, go down get your lunch, eat it, and come back up. There was a sense of having to get permission for a lot of things. I don't remember if we had to tell them we were going to the bathroom, but that could've been possible.'"

Self-described YouTube superstar Tricia Walsh-Smith and estranged husband Phillip Smith meet in court: "I will cut your balls off and have them for breakfast."

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News: Gay Films, Paraguay, Harvey Dent, The Rock, Atlantic City

Gay panic: Trial to begin for Cesar Israel Villazano in Florida. He shot a man wearing a mini-skirt and high heels in the back of the head for making a sexual advance: "Villazano told police he was embarrassed because he isn't gay."

Hollywood Reporter: Gay indie films more plentiful than ever, but suffering critically and at box office. "Strand Releasing's 22 films in theaters last year (most with GLBT themes) grossed just $462,000. Killer Films has shifted its focus from queer-themed features to true crime dramas and other films, with tepid critical and financial success. Rotten Tomatoes says that gay- and lesbian-themed films averaged a 51.5% rating in 2006 and 2007 (well below its under-60% "rotten" threshold), while projects like the 2005 Toronto fest's best Canadian feature winner, "C.R.A.Z.Y.," can't secure U.S. theatrical distribution."

Openly gay journalist David Self who took part in one of Britain's first civil partnership ceremonies, has died at the age of 67.

Man makes love to Cheeto...really.

UK Vicar Dudley has no regrets over performing marriage of two priests: "Amazing flowers, fabulous music, a ceremony both solemn and oddly homely, familiar words reordered and reconfigured, carrying new meanings. Nothing jarred, nothing felt even vaguely inappropriate. New and untried but not wrong."

Harvey Dent: viral video for The Dark Knight unleashed...

Couple jailed in Paraguay for same-sex wedding is freed after one of them is discovered to be a hermaphrodite.

Anti-gay "pro-family" bigot Paul Cameron takes his diatribe to Russia.

What does gay look like?

Larry Craig and Dave Karsnia wed in quaint bathroom ceremony: "The private ceremony was held in a quaint public bathroom on the third floor at San Francisco City Hall. In an interview after the ceremony, Craig said, in his highly oratorical and completely off-putting voice, 'We wanted all of the heat to die down before we went forward with this. Well ... not all the heat.'"

That kiss that Dwayne Johnson had with Steve Carell must have really affected him. He's still talking about what a man he was to do it: "It was like -- you know, you ever had, like a warm apple pie with that cold ice cream, too? And you find that balance, where you're like [utters disgusting sound]. Hey, it was great, it was great."

Atlantic City holds first-ever "Gay Day at the Beach". ORganizer: "There isn't a gay area in Atlantic City. "We decided to pick Flag Day as a way to stake out our claim for an area. We're trying not to be political, but there's so much to be political about."

The 70's are back: Robbie Williams flashes his chest rug.

Former NY Governor Eliot Spitzer to be named the "Ultimate Sugar Daddy". "He'll win a pound of sugar, a year's worth of free lap dances from strippers at the VIP Men's Club in Chelsea and an unlimited supply of testosterone pills."

Ireland's Catholic Bishops restate opposition to gay marriage: “In view of the current debate in our society about the nature of marriage, sometimes promoted by individuals or institutions who claim support from Christian ideals, the bishops reiterated that marriage presupposes the mutuality and complementarity of the sexes."

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Feeding Frenzy for Larry Craig 'Bobble-foot' Giveaways

You may remember that last weekend the minor league St. Paul Saints baseball team handed out Larry Craig "Bobble-foot" giveaways. CNN sent Jeanne Moos to cover it. People were apparently lined up at 10am for a 7pm game so they could get one of these things.

I've clipped the segment, AFTER THE JUMP...

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Larry Craig Writing Tell-All Book About Men's Room Arrest

Wait, hasn't that already been published?

The AP reports: "Craig, 62, is retiring in January after 18 years in the Senate and a decade in the House. He told KTVB-TV in Boise, Idaho, the book will focus on "the state of politics" in Washington, but also will review his career, including his arrest by an undercover officer in a men's room at the Minneapolis airport. 'There will be a bit of what's happened in the last year and the way it evolved,' Craig said. 'I think that's important for Idaho and those outside Idaho who are interested to know.'"

Don't forget the movie adaptation!

Recently
Minneapolis Baseball Team Hands Out Larry Craig 'Bobblefoot' [tr]

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Minneapolis Baseball Team Hands Out Larry Craig 'Bobblefoot'

The Minnesota minor league baseball team The St. Paul Saints is doing away with traditional "bobblehead" giveaways this weekend and handing out an homage to Idaho Senator Larry Craig, who as you well know was arrested in a local airport for tapping under the stall at an undercover cop.

The team is handing out "bobblefoot" knickknacks featuring a bathroom stall with a pair of feet, one of which is springloaded and 'taps'. The baseball team's press release claims that the item honors "National Tap Dance Day".

According to the Star-Tribune, "The team also takes pains to note: 'It doesn't matter if your tapping style is done with a 'wide stance' or is used as some sort of code.'"

Saints promotion: Not quite a bobblehead [star tribune via boing boing]

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The Towleroad / NewNowNext Video News Moment Award

As I mentioned briefly last week, Towleroad has partnered with LOGO's NewNowNext awards to present a prize for the most impactful video news moment of the year. We went through all the clips we've posted in the last year and chose the five that we felt were most hard hitting as gay video news moments.

Our category does tend toward the serious. While Chris Crocker's "Leave Britney Alone" moment certainly inspired plenty of disgust and cultural fodder, we decided moments like those didn't fall into the news category - as much as CNN may want them to.

So here are the five clips we chose as finalists — video moments which had an impact on gay lives. While one of our choices (Sally Kern's rant) is purely audio, there's no doubt that the medium by which its message was spread was YouTube. So, here they are. You can use the following widget to cast your vote, and links to the clips are provided below, for your review.

FOR YOUR REVIEW:

Al Gore voices his support for marriage equality. WATCH.

Ellen Degeneres speaks out about Lawrence King. WATCH.

GOP San Diego mayor Jerry Sanders reverses opinion on same-sex marriage. WATCH.

Larry Craig declares he is not gay and has never been gay. WATCH.

Sally Kern compares says gays worse than terrorists. WATCH.

For more information and to vote for the rest of the NewNowNext Awards, click here.

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Senator Larry Craig Offers Support to Senator David Vitter

Republican Louisiana Senator David Vitter, who has been called on to testify in the D.C. Madam case, is being urged by Idaho Senator Larry Craig not to resign, but to continue to operate by going into an obscene state of denial if he happens to see himself on the television news:

Said Craig: "First and foremost, in these kinds of issues, it’s the state and the relationship you have with your state that really determines where you ought to go. That was certainly my case. The Senate itself wasn’t going to judge me. I would allow the citizens of my state to do so. And there is still strong support there...My story became a situation where my wife and I watched it almost as if it were caricatures out there being talked about. It certainly wasn’t me, but that was quite typical in a 24/7 news cycle like we have today."

The Louisiana Democratic party has called for Vitter's resignation, but Vitter himself has chosen to remain quite silent on his connection with the prostitution ring.

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Larry Craig Will Be First in Line When This Hits Boise

A new film called Tearoom that screened recently at the Whitney Biennial reflects on the Larry Craigs of the 1960's:

"For two weeks in the summer of 1962, using a two-way mirror, police in the central Ohio town of Mansfield secretly filmed the activity in a public men's room in the town square. The surveillance recorded dozens of men having sex, resulting in more than 30 prosecutions for sodomy, with at least a year in prison time for each. Decades later, acclaimed filmmaker William E. Jones -- his Massillon is an autobiographical documentary about growing up in a nearby town -- acquired the Mansfield footage while working on another project. The images so fascinated him that he's been screening it, unaltered by further editing, as the 56-minute Tearoom. Shot without sound, in grainy color 16 mm, it's a stunning document. The men range in age from their 20s to their 60s. They are white and black, fat and thin, in a banker's suit or name-patched mechanic's uniform. Faces humorless, eyes on the door, they masturbate, give handjobs and blowjobs, and perform anal sex; a few exchange money. Michael Sicinski, in Cinema Scope magazine, called Tearoom 'one of the most soberingly revelatory political films of recent years' and "a cinematic document of vital importance to the history of gay culture in the United States."

And in a roundabout way, of the U.S. Senate.

There's a book available as well.

Tearoom [pittsburgh city paper]
Tearoom [william e jones]
Tearoom [book]

related
A Holiday Visit to the Larry Craig Men's Room [tr]

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'Pro Life' Running for Larry Craig's Seat in Idaho

A Senate candidate running for Larry Craig's seat in Idaho is so adamant about his anti-abortion stance that he legally changed his name to "Pro Life" and will appear on the ballot that way, the AP reports:

"As Marvin Pro-Life Richardson, the organic strawberry farmer from Letha, 30 miles northwest of Boise, was denied the use of his middle name when he ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2006 because the state's policy bars the use of slogans on the ballot. Now, though, officials in the Idaho secretary of state's office say they have no choice because Pro-Life is his full and only name. He says he will run for the highest state office on the ballot every two years for the rest of his life, advocating murder charges for doctors who perform abortions and for women who obtain the procedure. 'I think it's just and I think it's proper to have Pro-Life on the ballot,' he told the Idaho Press-Tribune of Nampa. 'If I save one baby's life, it's worth it.'"

Craig is, of course, not running for reelection following his Minneapolis men's room arrest. He could, I suppose, legally change his name to 'I'm Not Gay' and run as that person.

AFTER THE JUMP, an older news clip on Pro Life...

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Do you Have What it Takes to be a Larry Craig Intern?

Find out, AFTER THE JUMP...

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News: Sinead O'Connor, Chris Dodd, Kickboxing, William F. Buckley

American conservative standard-bearer William F. Buckley, Jr. is dead at 82.

Yesterday, Robbie showed us a snippet of Mariah Carey's new "Touch My Body" video. Here's the whole thing.

Madonna names new record Hard Candy: "She loves candy. It's about the juxtaposition of tough and sweetness, or as Madonna so eloquently expressed: 'I'm gonna kick your ass, but it's going to make you feel good.'"

UK hit by 5.2 earthquake, biggest since 1984: "Student David Bates, 19, suffered a suspected broken pelvis when he was hit by a falling piece of chimney in his attic bedroom in Wombwell, South Yorkshire, his father, Paul, said. Paul Bates said he was woken by a deep rumble which was followed by shouts from his son upstairs. He said David was hit by a piece of masonry about 2ft square, which had fallen from the chimney stack. 'This massive piece of stone had landed on his hip and he was just shouting that he thought it was broken and I called an ambulance,' he said. 'You just don't expect it. Of all the things that can happen - an earthquake.'"

Santa Clara, California Board of Supervisors votes to formally oppose FDA ban on gay blood donation.

Openly gay kickboxer Rod Llaneza discusses his champion status: "Llaneza is passionate when conversation turns to kickboxing, no doubt rekindling the desire that helped him defend the USA Amateur Champion belt from the Professional Karate Commission, a sanctioning body for kickboxing and karate, for four years until he retired in 2004 with a 19-2 record. When talk is of kickboxing, Llaneza displays a confident, passionate and even cocky side that served him well in the ring for kickboxing or boxing, where he captured a Golden Gloves title for Georgia. 'I love to perform and go out into the ring. I don’t really care about winning and losing. It’s all about the performing. I pride myself on being sharp. You’ll never be bored watching my fight,' he says."

Serve: Larry Craig looking for summer interns.

Senator Chris Dodd endorses Obama.

Sinead O'Connor unleashes on Kylie Minogue: "I know Australian fans might want to shoot me for saying this, but that would be a far better option than to listen to one of her albums."

Straight Australian Idol Guy Sebastian dogged by anti-gay taunts: "In September 2006, the original Australian Idol winner revealed he was on the verge of quitting the industry after his Palm Beach house was pelted with eggs and the word 'faggot' spray-painted on his car. But Sebastian, who recently became engaged to his long-term girlfriend Julie Egan, believes he has finally built up the necessary tolerance to handle the slander. 'I used to think it was just a part of being in the public eye, but really that kind of behaviour is just not on - that line shouldn't be crossed,' he said."

Gay grandson of Al Capone speaks.

British scientists explain how world will end: "The sun will slowly expand into a red giant, pushing the Earth farther out into space, but not far enough. Our home planet will be snagged by the sun's outer atmosphere, gradually plunging to its doom inside the fiery stellar furnace."

Christian foster parents in the UK denied application to parent because of their views on homosexuality: " The devastated couple withdrew an application to their council to continue as foster carers after being told they must condone homosexuality to adhere to gay rights laws. The Equality Act (Sexual Orientation), which came into force last April, makes it illegal for any business or organisation providing a public service to discriminate against anyone because of their sexuality. The council says its fostering panel felt it would not be following the regulations if it placed a child with a couple who could not comply with the Act."

Justin Timberlake begins work on Open Road movie.

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GOP Montana Lawmaker Plays 'Gay Prank' on Fellow Legislator

The Montana Human Rights Network and the Western Montana Gay and Lesbian Community Center are calling on Montana Rep. Denny Rehberg (R) to apologize for a childish prank he played on Idaho lawmaker Mike Simpson:

"On a congressional trip to the Middle East last month, Rehberg left an 'Idaho Travel Package' on the airplane seat of Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho. The contents included a stuffed sheep with gloves attached to it, a Village People CD, books on cross-dressing and sign language and a T-shirt that reads, 'My senator may not be gay, but my governor is Butch.' The shirt referred to Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, who was caught in a men's airport bathroom sex sting, and Idaho Gov. C.L. 'Butch' Otter. Rehberg's travel bag was first reported by The Hill newspaper, which covers Congress. It said Rehberg was proud of the gift bag and quoted him as boasting, 'I spent a bit of time putting the things together.' It said Simpson was amused but not surprised at Rehberg's action."

Said Montana state senator and director of the Human Rights Network Christine Kaufmann: "It's bad enough that Congressman Rehberg consistently votes against equality for gay and lesbian people; we've kind of come to expect that. But when he uses his gay and lesbian constituents as the subject of pranks, it's beyond the pale."

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Senate Issues Letter of Admonition to Larry Craig

The Senate Ethics Committee released a 'Public Letter of Admonition' today to Idaho Senator Larry Craig with regard to Craig's conduct following his arrest last June in a men's room at the Minneapolis airport.

The letter scolds Craig for his statement to the arresting officer regarding his position in the Senate (Craig told asked the arresting officer, "What do you think about that?") and also for his attempt to withdraw his guilty plea, about which it says this: "Your claims to the court, through counsel, to the effect that your guilty plea resulted from improper pressure or coercion, or that you did not, as a legal matter, know what you were doing when you pled guilty, do not appear credible."

The letter, signed by committee Chairwoman Barbara Boxer (D-CA), John Cornyn (R-TX), Mark Pryor (D-AR), Pat Roberts (R-KS), Ken Salazar (D-CO), and Johnny Isakson (R-GA), also takes Craig to task for using campaign funds to pay his legal bills without prior approval from the committee.

Talking Points Memo has the letter.

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Larry Craig Has Resumed Senate Life as if Nothing Ever Happened

Politico reports that the spotlight has shifted away from Larry Craig: "Five months after reports emerged that he was arrested for lewd conduct in a Minneapolis airport bathroom and his 27-year congressional résumé was forever damaged, Craig has resumed his life in the Senate as if none of it ever happened."

Craig still does get leers and snickers, however, though he lets them roll off his back: "Craig hears the comments when they do come. But he never seems to flinch, even as heads turn and fingers point. He’s used to it, he said. Craig is the first to admit that there was some awkwardness upon his return, including 'ack of eye contact' and whispering from some of his colleagues. But, for the most part, he said, 'I think my colleagues are giving me the benefit of the doubt that I have given my colleagues...They’re reciprocating.'"

Which, of course, is more than he got from Officer Dave Karsnia.

In any case, Craig's indiscretions may have been replaced by other worries in the Senate, but network TV, as recently as last week, was still tapping away...

Spotlight Fades for Craig [politico]

(video via GoodAsYou)

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ACLU Defends Larry Craig's Right to Have Private Bathroom Sex

The ACLU filed a brief yesterday in support of Idaho Senator Larry Craig, arguing that those engaging in sexual conduct in restroom stalls should be able to expect privacy.

The AP reports: "[The ACLU] cited a Minnesota Supreme Court ruling 38 years ago that found that people who have sex in closed stalls in public restrooms 'have a reasonable expectation of privacy.' That means the state cannot prove Craig was inviting an undercover officer to have sex in public, the ACLU wrote...The ACLU argued that even if Craig was inviting the officer to have sex, his actions wouldn't be illegal. 'The government cannot prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Senator Craig was inviting the undercover officer to engage in anything other than sexual intimacy that would not have called attention to itself in a closed stall in the public restroom,' the ACLU wrote in its brief. The ACLU also noted that Craig was originally charged with interference with privacy, which it said was an admission by the state that people in the bathroom stall expect privacy."

Aside from the sheer absurdity of it, I'm not sure exactly how this argument would help Craig, since he has denied engaging in any sexual conduct.

Last week Craig filed a 27-page brief with the Minnesota Court of Appeals in an ongoing attempt to withdraw his guilty plea.

Previously
Larry Craig Files Appeal in Ongoing Quest to Withdraw Guilty Plea [tr]
A Holiday Visit to the Larry Craig Men's Room [tr]
Idaho Paper Out to Disprove Larry Craig's "I'm not gay" Claims [tr]

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Larry Craig Files Appeal in Ongoing Quest to Withdraw Guilty Plea

The man doesn't give up. Larry Craig filed a 27-page brief with the Minnesota Court of Appeals on Tuesday in a continued attempt to withdraw the guilty plea over his disorderly conduct conviction in June.

CNN reports: "Lawyers for Sen. Larry Craig asked a Minnesota appeals court Tuesday to allow him to withdraw his guilty plea stemming from his June arrest in a public bathroom sex sting, citing a 'grave procedural flaw.' The Idaho Republican argues that a state law related to his misdemeanor conviction is unconstitutional and that it's 'manifestly unjust' not to allow him to be given another chance to prove his innocence."

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports on some of the details in the brief:

"In the 27-page brief, the lawyers note that one element of disorderly conduct requires that 'the conduct at issue have a tendency to alarm or anger others.' The brief noted the specific use of the plural 'others.' The senator was arrested during a layover between flights on June 11 by undercover officer Sgt. Dave Karsnia. He claimed the senator's toe-tapping and hand motion in a men's room stall were indications he wanted to have sex. Craig said he was picking up a piece of tissue on the floor and the gestures were misunderstood. Craig's plea also fails to support the legal requirement that the conduct be 'offensive, obscene, abusive, boisterous or noisy,' the brief said. The legal brief said that Karsnia could not be offended by the conduct because he invited it. The brief noted that in Karsnia's own statement, he said Craig tapped his foot, then 'Karsnia tapped his own foot in response.' In the complaint against Craig, Karsnia noted that tapping feet is 'a signal often used by persons communicating a desire to engage in sexual conduct,' the brief said. 'Thus Sergeant Karsnia undoubtedly intended that tapping his own foot be such a signal,' the brief said."

The paper adds: "Craig initially claimed he was pressured to plead guilty because of an investigation by the Idaho Statesman into his sexual orientation. The newspaper has since published the names of four men who claim to have had encounters of varying intimacy with the senator. Craig has declined to comment."

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A Holiday Visit to the Larry Craig Men's Room [tr]
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