News: Martha Stewart, Tel Aviv, Hate Crimes, Oaxaca, Joey Arias

FBI: Anti-gay hate crimes increase 11%.

Joey Arias brings 'Arias with a Twist' to L.A.

Dangerous: Martha Stewart has some strong words for Sarah Palin.

Should PEPFAR money to Uganda be cut off?

Report: 4,000 Anglican priests to join Catholic Church. "Under the Vatican’s initiative, Anglicans, turned off by their own church’s embrace of gay clerics, women priests and blessing of same-sex unions, can join new parishes, called ‘personal ordinariates’, that are headed by former Anglican prelates."

Formed following the passage of Proposition 8, gay rights group celebrates first anniversary in Orange County.

Man attacked after climbing into bear enclosure at zoo in Bern, Switzerland.

Did J Lo fall so people would notice her performance?

Canada border guards seize PG-rated gay films headed for Inside Out Film Festival: "All three movies have been shown in Canada before. Patrik 1.5 is a PG-rated film about a gay couple's foibles adopting a child in Sweden. Clapham Junction is R-rated, but by no means obscene. I Can't Think Straight, the other film seized, is a relatively mainstream movie which had a theatrical release this summer. It stars Lisa Ray."

WATCH: Janet Jackson's new video "Make Me".

Selected entries from National Geographic's International Photography contest.

GLAAD President Jarrett Barrios on former KC Chiefs running back Larry Johnson, anti-gay slurs, and homophobia in professional sports: "I hope the league moves beyond individual suspensions and instead enacts zero-tolerance policies that start to address the danger of homophobia in sports."

Denver evangelical church opens doors to all.

Nude sunbathing initiative led by gay rights activists rejected in UK.

Stonewall Family: World of Warcraft highlights Gay Guild.

Jude Law does his fitness routine for students at NYU.

Male model fix: Nicholas Lemons.

Oaxacan town holds drag festival: "The annual dance and festival of the muxes celebrates a group of homosexual men who don elaborate makeup and traditional dress to dance and crown a queen, all with the support and excitement of the local community. Zapotec Indian culture in the Juchitan area, 277 km south of the Oaxacan capital, treats male homosexuality with openness."

Health care plan to include prayer?

Carrie Prejean's brother on her sex tapes: "If they were put in front of me I'd probably watch it."

Akron and Summit counties in Ohio mull anti-discimination ordinance protecting gays and lesbians.

Geri Halliwell has a revelation: not all hairdressers are gay.

Tel Aviv evicting gays from public park cruising area: "The new policy is divisive even within the LGBT community itself, as some of its leaders sided with city hall. Yaniv Weizmann, founder of the Proud Youth organization and a city council member, told Haaretz that the park's historic role was over. 'The community has matured,' he said. 'We can walk around in broad daylight in Tel Aviv. Something that was relevant when we were a persecuted and oppressed community is no longer relevant today.' Others see establishment leaders like Weizmann as traitors to the cause."

New Claim: Macaulay Culkin the Father of Michael Jackson's Son

UPDATED

Macaulay Culkin is the latest name being tossed about as the biological father to Michael Jackson's son, Blanket.

Via Brit tab The Sun: "Fevered speculation gripped the US after repeated claims that a 'well-known Hollywood actor' donated the sperm for Blanket. Now sources close to Jackson say the Thriller star asked Culkin for the donation to help him complete his 'perfect' family. The source added: 'This isn't just chitter-chatter, even Culkin suspects he's Blanket's father. So many names have been mentioned as prospective dads, and this is probably the wackiest yet. But Jackson and Culkin were best friends. He was one of the few people Jackson really trusted and Mack never let him down. Really, Jackson idolised him - that's why he asked Mack to donate sperm. Deep down, I think he always wished Mack was his son. Creating Blanket was the next best thing.' Culkin - godfather to Jacko's other two children - has told pals he will not comment in public out of loyalty to his late pal."

Can't you just see the resemblance?

UPDATE: Culkin's publicist responds — "The inquiries are too preposterous for us to even acknowledge."

In related news, on Saturday 12, 937 people tried to set the Guinness World Record for largest group dance to Thriller. Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

News: High Line, Martha's Vineyard, Salt Lake City, MRI, Mexico

New Jersey gears up for marriage battle...

New York's High Line Park features a 20-story peep show.

This is why some people hate pop music.

Why did last week's Mad Men come with a warning label? Was it because of this scene?

Two men charged for throwing eggs and yelling homophobic slurs in Manchester UK's gay village: "Peter James Young (23), of Hardman Street, and Phillip Shepherd (25), of Derby Street, have been charged with a public order offence. Young was further accused of common assault."

Magnetic resonance intercourse.

Obamas set for Martha's Vineyard vacation.

Obama sneakers and basketball for sale.

Chace Crawford to Interview: "I’m the biggest believer in not talking. I don’t Twitter or MySpace or Facebook. I want to keep to myself. I don’t want to be out there. You have to keep some kind of control over who you are."

Male model fix: Santiago Peralta.

Peter Staley on Obama's first step toward a national HIV/AIDS strategy.

WoW's James St. James reports from the Ovahness Vogueing Ball.

Mexico decriminalizes drug possession for small amounts: "The maximum amount of marijuana for 'personal use' under the new law is 5 grams — the equivalent of about four joints. The limit is a half gram for cocaine, the equivalent of about 4 'lines.' For other drugs, the limits are 50 milligrams of heroin, 40 milligrams for methamphetamine and 0.015 milligrams for LSD."

And he's not sorry, it's human nature...

Glasgow Gallery of Modern Art accused of censoring gay-themed art exhibit: "The reaction of GoMA and the council is exactly the same that is happening to these individuals, making it hard to talk about coming out, about being gay, about disclosing their HIV status."

Live Nation sponsoring national tour of Jamaican murder music singer Buju Banton.

Salt Lake City to consider anti-discrimination bill: "The current language of the bill would ban discrimination based on race, sex, age, disability, sexual orientation and gender identity (trangender protections) in the areas of employment, public accommodations and housing. Religious organizations and state agencies would be exempt from the law." Provo paper blasts effort...

News: Dwan Prince, Puerto Vallarta, Attack Dogs, Brian Boitano

Former Republican staffer Jason Wetherington, who boasted about sleeping with Florida governor Charlie Crist, charged with grand larceny, dealing in stolen property, and false verification of ownership after theft of engagement and wedding rings from pastor's daughter.

It would be very cool to witness the annual sardine migration in the Philippines.

Candy Bra: Loco Mama has a hit on her hands..

Dwan Prince, victim of brutal 2005 anti-gay assault in NYC, claims changed sexual orientation and writes letter to attacker in prison, taking blame for the attack.

Gay bashing case in Utah delayed after victims fail to show in court...

Brian Boitano does not want to be perceived as gay.

Marietta, Georgia columnist suggests setting attack dogs on men cruising in public parks: "With a little instruction, dogs could be taught to severely dislike the gay lovers in Burruss and Wildwood and bite them in the fanny and do what City Council should have done years ago - chase them off to Atlanta where they belong."

NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg tweets.

Jennifer Hudson is a mother.

Teen claims gay panic in Puerto Vallarta murder: "According to published reports in the Mexican media, the body of the victim, Sergio Daniel Baltasar Guerra, was found  early Sunday morning, August 9, near the seahorse statue, on Los Muertos beach, just south of the gay Blue Chairs section of that beach.  The victim was between 25-30 years old and had been a manager at a local supermarket."

Brokeback Mountain shirts featured in Western pop culture exhibit at L.A. Autry museum.

News flash: gaydar tougher to use than you think.

Closet still familiar to many in the Philippines and Malta.

CIRCUS: Crazy claims she's the mother of all three of Michael Jackson's children, and that she and MJ are the biological parents of Tom Cruise's child, Connor Cruise.

Milo Ventimiglia is in a jam.

Despite resolution from the American Psychological Association, "ex-gay" therapy continues in El Paso, Texas.

Facial asymmetry in men linked to greater risk for dementia?

Portland Mayor Sam Adams recall campaign faces challenge: "With another 56 days to go, they’ll have to gather 786 signatures per day in order to meet their goal of 50,000. So far, they've been operating with an average of 176 signatures a day, according to our calculations. They now need to increase their rate of collection by a whopping 345 percent to meet the deadline."

Justin Timberlake to release his own scent.

ACLU reaches settlement with Yulee High School in Florida over Gay-Straight Alliance: "Earlier this year, the ACLU filed the lawsuit on behalf of a student who was denied a request to form the GSA at Yulee Middle School and Yulee High School the following year. As part of the agreement, the district must prohibit any discrimination against the club and the students and faculty members associated with it.The district must also allow the club to meet on campus and to use the name Gay-Straight Alliance.The district has also been ordered to pay $40,000 in court costs associated with the case."

Mexican 'Drag Queens' Sought in Murder of 'Midget' Wrestlers

[Quotes in headline are terminology of Australia's Telegraph]

Authorities in Mexico City are seeking two people in the deaths of Alberto and Alejandro Jimenez, known as Parkita and Espectrito II, two well-known "Mini" wrestlers in Mexico:

"Police say that this M.O. matches that of a prostitute ring called "The Filtracion" (The Leak) who proposition men and then spike their drinks and then rob the men, but the spiked drinks usually don't kill (probably because of their size, it killed them)."

Australia's Telegraph now reports that a pair of "drag queens" are responsible for the death of the "midgets": "They believe they may have assumed their male identities and gone into hiding."

Here's a gallery of news photos with regard to the death of the wrestling twins.

(via joemygod)

Gay West Texas Mayor Quits, Chooses Foreign Partner Over His Job

J.W. Lown, Mayor of San Angelo, Texas, resigned yesterday, after deciding that the relationship he had with a man from Mexico was more important to him than his job:

"Lown said in a telephone call late Wednesday afternoon from Mexico that he has started a relationship with someone who does not have legal status in the United States. Lown said he did not want to take the oath of office knowing he was 'aiding and assisting' someone who was not a citizen. 'I made the final decision when I knew it was the right decision to make for me and my partner and our future — and for the community,' he said. The mayor declined to identify the person. 'I don’t want to give his name,' Lown said. ... Lown said the man came to the United States five years ago. He attended Angelo State University. Lown said the relationship started after March. Lown and the man are in Mexico awaiting a visa to come back legally."

Lown was scheduled to be sworn in for his fourth term as the town's mayor (a job that pays $600 annually?) on Tuesday after a landslide election 10 days ago.

Lown's statement to the public, AFTER THE JUMP...