News: Turkey, Robert Pattinson, Mexico City, Hanky Code, The Family

For the ultimate Susan Boyle fan.

The Hanky Code: There's an ass app for that. (site nsfw)

A heartwarming tale of a mother's love.

Sign a Thanksgiving card to a pro-equality Democrat.

Mexico City lawmaker proposes same-sex marriage law: "Mexico's Roman Catholic Church opposes the proposal. The church defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman, as does current law. Lawmaker David Razu says the changes he is proposing would give same-sex couples the same rights heterosexual couples have regarding social security and other benefits. The local legislature sent the measure to committees for consideration Tuesday. No date was set for a vote."

Obama pardons his first turkey.

UK college welcomes Islamist preacher who endorses killing of gays. "In 2007, the Channel 4 programme, Undercover Mosque, recorded Mr Usamah saying: 'Do you practise homosexuality with men? Take that homosexual man and throw him off the mountain.'"

Pager intercepts from 9/11 published: "From 3AM on Wednesday November 25, 2009, until 3AM the following day (US east coast time), WikiLeaks is releasing over half a million US national text pager intercepts. The intercepts cover a 24 hour period surrounding the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York and Washington."

Matt Rettenmund at Boy Culture reviews A Single Man.

Porno Pete LaBarbera files first FCC complaint against Adam Lambert.

$50 million verdict returned against NYC gay sex club owner...

Robert Pattinson uses his man scent to ward off the paparazzi. "He's smart, because if he doesn't change his clothes and the paparazzi get pictures of him in the same outfit all the time, then they can't sell the pictures."

Rolling Stone prods Taylor Lautner about gay rumors: "In a bold move, the mag also raised another question with the young actor – asking if Taylor was still figuring out his sexuality. 'Another possibility is that maybe you’re just sort of discovering yourself,' Rolling Stone asked. 'OK,' Taylor said.' …As a young person trying to figure out his sexual identity in the world,' the mag continued. 'OK. I see where you’re going,' he said during the interview. 'Interesting choice.' 'It is a possibility,' the mag said. 'There’s a lot of rumors out there,' Taylor said."

John Mayer covers Details.

UK police officers disciplined for homophobic emails to officers in the force choir: "They were just nasty attacks. They sent messages to staff in the Gay Police Association, slagging them off, and the police choir, basically implying they were gay because of that. This was homophobic abuse."

Ensign, Stupak, and Pitts: Investigative journalist Jeff Sharlet talks to NPR about "The Family".

Howard K. Stern settles lawsuit with Rita Cosby: "Stern was seeking big bucks for several blockbuster allegations in Cosby's Blonde Ambition: The Untold Story Behind Anna Nicole Smith's Death that he insisted were outright lies. Cosby falsely claimed Stern engaged in sexual romps with Smith's baby daddy Larry Birkhead and also suggested the former paternity foes hatched a secret deal in which Stern agreed to support Birkhead's eventually successful bid to gain custody over Dannielynn in exchange for the celebrity photographer backing Stern to remain as executor of the late Playmate's estate."

News: Tallest Man, The Moon, Net Neutrality, Mexico City, DOMA

National Equality March releases preliminary schedule of events.

Department of Justice lawyers again defend same-sex marriage ban: "Consistent with the rule of law, however, the Department of Justice has long followed the practice of defending federal statutes as long as reasonable arguments can be made in support of their constitutionality, even if the department disagrees with a particular statute as a policy matter, as it does here."

8'1": 27-year-old Turkish man named world's tallest.

Wockner: Campaign to undo Prop 8 kicks off in San Diego. "The campaign's first main task is to collect 694,354 valid voter signatures to put an initiative on the 2010 ballot to remove Prop 8 from the California Constitution. It is generally believed that about 1 million total signatures need to be collected to get the required number of valid ones."

NASA reveals crater at the moon's south pole where it will crash a satellite on October 9. It's the coldest known place in the solar system.

Pierre Trudeau, Mark Tewksbury inducted into Candian Queer Hall of Fame.

LETTER: Student's claim of teachers' anti-gay harassment was retaliation, according to six other students.

Are you lookin' at Kellan Lutz?

In case you missed it: Parks & Recreation's gay penguin episode.

In anticipation of its introduction, New Jersey Catholic bishops step up attacks on marriage equality bill.

Mexico City gay bar patrons warned of homophobic crimes.

Is D.C.'s police chief dismantling the department's Gay & Lesbian Liaison Unit?

Barney Frank not interested in Kennedy Senate seat.

Robert Pinter, who was arrested by the NYPD in a porn shop sting, has taken his case to federal court: "The actions taken against the Plaintiff in targeting him, entrapping him, arresting him, taking him into custody, and otherwise detaining him and prosecuting him were taken for collateral objectives other than the legitimate objectives associated with an arrest and prosecution."

Male model fix: Brian Shimansky.

Adam Lambert steps out to Pink concert with boyfriend Drake LaBry.

Nathaniel Rogers from Film Experience talks about his trip to the Oprah show.

Mike Huckabee wins Values Voter Summit straw poll for 2012 presidential candidate: "Abortion was key for the activists in their voting, with more than 40 percent saying it was the most important issue in determining their choice of candidate to support. Protection of religious liberty was next with more than 18 percent of the vote; gay marriage was third with more than seven percent of the vote."

The only gay bar in Cairns, Australia is going straight.

A Single Man: How Tom Ford found his big screen style.

FCC to oppose telecoms in a bid for net neutrality: "The rules will escalate a fight over how much control the government should have over Internet commerce. The Obama administration is taking the side of Google, Amazon.com Inc. and an array of smaller businesses that want to profit from offering consumers streaming video, graphics-rich games, movie and music downloads and other services."

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...

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)

News: YouTube Porn, Atlanta, Francis Bacon, Illinois, Cher

Illinois to pass civil unions next week?

Congressman Howard Berman, who said earlier this week that he expected action soon on LGBT issues within the State Department, suggests that more is to come from the White House in June: "I think the White House is preparing to make an announcement on a number of issues. I’m predicting here, not informing, that by the Stonewall anniversary we will have a very clear picture of what the administration is doing.

Tim Gunn makes leap to comic books.

Cher and Christina Aguilera to star in film together?

Openly gay activist and lobbyist Pat Steadman wins Colorado state senate race: "The special election was open only to members of the Colorado Democratic Party. The vacancy came after openly lesbian Senator Jennifer Veiga resigned the seat to move to Australia with her partner and her partner's family. Veiga was the first openly gay member elected to the Colorado General Assembly, and Steadman is now the first openly gay man to serve in the Colorado State Senate."

Tom Cruise and son appear in public together.

Bordeaux: short film features 15,000 still images of Zachary Quinto.

Prominent Canadian architect Arthur Erickson has died at 84. He came out in 2006 in this profile.

Dead finback whale washes ashore in Provincetown.

New Hampshire marriage equality all about compromise: "Rep. Jim Splaine, prime sponsor of the main gay marriage bill, said Thursday that advocates will use the next two weeks to educate lawmakers about the religious protections Lynch wants. 'The governor's made it clear he wants to stick to the core principles he's offered,' said Splaine, D-Portsmouth. 'We can do this.'"

Mariah Carey announces the name of her new album on Twitter.

Retrospective: If paintings had voices Francis Bacon's would shriek. "Bacon specialized in blur and atmosphere; he captured the tumult of homosexual sex in motion by borrowing from photographs, film stills or images of other art, conveying a sense of athleticism and sweat, violence and tenderness, furtiveness and shame. Homosexual sex was a criminal act in Britain, where he lived most of his life, well into the 1960s."

ABC News picks up story of Miss California Carrie Prejean's lesbian mom.

Gay rights group says Catholic Diocese of Maine is violating tax laws by funding anti-gay campaign.

YouTube hit by porn attack: "Video-sharing website YouTube has removed hundreds of pornographic videos which were uploaded in what is believed to be a planned attack. The material was uploaded under names of famous teenage celebrities such as Hannah Montana and Jonas Brothers. Many started with footage of children's videos before groups of adults performing graphic sex acts appeared on screen. YouTube owner Google said it was aware and addressing the problem."

Former spokesman for Portland Mayor Sam Adams talks about why he left.

Disney World to feature animatronic Obama.

A lusty gallery of Kellan Lutz photos.

Zona Rosa: Gays find acceptance in Mexico City. "It's really hard to be gay in the smaller, more conservative states within Mexico. I moved to Zona Rosa not just for my career but also for a chance to finally try and be accepted within my community."

Picking up dog crap makes George W. Bush realize he's a real person again.

Atlanta mayoral candidates speak to LGBT voters: "The candidates gathered for a forum of about 150 people held at the Amsterdam Cafe in Midtown. Mayor Shirley Franklin, a two-term incumbent, is prohibited from running for a third consecutive term. Several candidates stressed their past achievements and support for the city’s gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. One out of every seven Atlantans is gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender, community advocates say. The community has become an influential force in city politics, particularly in neighborhoods near downtown."

News: Singapore, Sam Adams, Cubs, Matthew Mitcham, GI Joe

Singapore women's group AWARE votes out anti-gay fundamentalist leaders in dramatic seven hour stand-off. Background.

Britain's former top cop and London mayoral candidate Brian Paddick to front campaign encouraging same-sex couples to hold hands in public: "The photos are being used to create a same-sex love map of the world. David Watkins, the group's founder, said: 'Hand holding is a simple, liberating gesture that is essential to our communities' health, visibility, and respect.'" Site: A Day in Hand.

Thousands of Cubs fans go deaf at Wrigley Field.

Log Cabin Republicans making gains in NY assembly on marriage equality.

Matthew Mitcham exits Mexico City as swine flu escalates.

El Salvador in last minute gay rights ban: "After weeks of public debate and protest, El Salvador’s Legislative Assembly approved an amendment to the constitution to ban marriage between same-sex couples and same-sex couples’ ability to adopt a child.  This amendment was proposed in the final hours of the current Legislative Assembly session, which ends April 30th."

L.A. Times: Same-sex marriages gradually gaining legal ground.

Eiffel Tower destroyed in trailer for G.I. Joe: The Movie with Channing Tatum, Dennis Quaid.

Loving: this self-portrait of Provincetown resident and filmmaker John Waters at Ptown's McMillan Wharf.

Marc Jacobs to marry in Provincetown.

Dog food vs paté? No difference, much of the time.

The Oregonian calls on Portland Mayor Sam Adams to resign in wake of recent investigations: "An investigation by The Oregonian's Ryan Frank and Brent Walth raised the questions, in a story published Friday, of whether the encounter took place earlier in the year and what it really amounted to. Whether that is the center of the AG's investigation remains to be seen, as does whether any of the conduct described, implied or suspected adds up to criminality." Phone calls...

Male model fix: Joey Kirchner.

Ed Westwick works up a sweat.

Missouri state senator Jolie Justus weds her partner in Iowa.

Manohla Dargis memo to Hollywood: "Enough with the gay slurs, the gay baiting, imitating, limp-wristing, so-not-funny lisping — in other words, enough with the hating...Try this simple test: Every time you feel the need to mock or denigrate gay men or lesbians, replace that joke with an equally vicious dig about African-Americans or Jews. Doesn’t sound so funny anymore, does it?"

Last week in holy crimes...

Miss California: Redefining breasts for the rest of us.

Obama appoints lesbian to become Assistant Secretary, Administration on Aging, at HHS.

AKA accidental wood.

Sweeps warning issued to cottagers: "Sweeps is the time local media often finds itself in bed with the cops to carry out sting operations of men cruising for sex. Just last week we got a report from a Bakersfield, California location where one customer saw not just cop cars and a cop van parked outside, but also a news van for a local television station. I'm sure it was a joint sting in which the media gets to film and photograph those men cops arrest. In fact, I would not be surprised to learn a reporter instigated the whole thing, asking the police to come along so they could get some good footage."