News: Wicked, Cristiano Ronaldo, Mars, Mamma Mia, Ron Paul

The NYT on the potential repeal of the 1913 Massachusetts marriage law.

The Martian landscape revealed...

Cristiano Ronaldo hits L.A. on crutches and doesn't waste any time snubbing Paris Hilton.

Ron Paul's openly gay campaign chair dies of pneumonia at 49, without health insurance: "Snyder, who served as Paul’s campaign chair, died of pneumonia on June 26 after being hospitalized for about two months and after running up medical bills exceeding $400,000, according to friends and family members, who said he did not have health insurance."

A Mamma-Mia cheat sheet.

Moscow authorities ban gay picket of Iranian embassy set for July 19: "About 30 people were due to take part, Moscow gay pride parade organizer Nikolay Alexeyev told the Interfax-Religion. He said the application was submitted last Friday in strict compliance with Russian laws, but the prefecture retorted it could not guarantee the security of those taking part in the picket. 'This is a flagrant violation of the Russian constitution and laws on public actions,' Alexeyev said."

Will the knowledge that Banksy may be bourgeois make his works less valuable?

The L.A. Times profiles Paul Colichman and his growing "gay media empire": "Five years ago, Colichman and his business partner launched Here, television's only premium gay cable network. Now, with an eye toward building their empire, they recently made a $6.5-million deal to buy the popular news magazine the Advocate, style monthly Out and other sister publications. Colichman, who also owns the gay entertainment Internet portal GayWired.com, plans to expand the online presence of his new publications once the acquisition closes. 'People say, 'Why would you buy a print publication when you're really in the television business?'' said Colichman. 'But our point of view is that everything is cross-platformed now -- we are in the content business, and to generate profit you need to be everywhere.'"

Tyson shows off his tatts.

Broadway's Wicked coming to the big screen.

Chris Evans to answer questions at San Diego's Comic-Con.

First openly gay leader of a national labor union elected: "New York based United Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten has been elected to succeed Edward McElroy as President of the American Federation of Teachers...Weingarten served for 10 years as UFT head and under her tenure she negotiated a 43 percent increase in educator salaries and helped organize 28,000 home childcare workers."

Andy Dick in sex and drugs arrest.

North Carolina Family Policy Council supports bullying of LGBT kids in schools...

Pew Poll: 28% say gay marriage will affect their vote. "As it did in October 2004, gay marriage ranks lowest in importance among 16 campaign issues for the average U.S. voter; overall, 28% say gay marriage will be very important to their vote, down slightly from 32% in 2004. Far more Republicans than Democrats (19 points) rate gay marriage as very important. White evangelical Protestants (49%) place the most importance on the issue. Currently, 49% of the public opposes allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry legally, while 38% support gay marriage."

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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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News: Peter Pace, Jellyfish, Oregon, Gilbert Baker, Moscow

Bush awards former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair and homophobe Peter Pace the Congressional Medal of Freedom.

Will Smith superhero movie re-branded by construction worker in London's Leicester Square.

Sick: Brutal trans-bashing by Memphis police officer caught on video. "The video, recorded February 12th, shows Duanna Johnson in the booking area at the Shelby County Criminal Justice Center after an arrest for prostitution. The tape clearly shows a Memphis police officer walk over to Johnson - a transsexual - and hit her in the face several times. 'Actually he was trying to get me to come over to where he was, and I responded by telling him that wasn't my name - that my mother didn't name me a 'faggot' or a 'he-she,' so he got upset and approached me. And that's when it started.'"

Uh oh, there's a new Spears in town.

Gaytona.com: where gay and Nascar meet.

Experts: Mass proliferation of jellyfish a sure sign that environment is out of whack.

Oregon opponents of gay rights laws abandon efforts to repeal them: "Organizers conceded Monday that their initiatives to repeal two Oregon gay rights laws will not make the November ballot. The fact that the initiatives are stalled offers more evidence that opponents are losing support, say gay rights activists, who were also celebrating the legalization of same-sex marriages in California on Monday."

Provocation: Right-wing group asks Israeli Supreme Court to ban Gay Pride in Jerusalem: "In a petition to the court, the small National Jewish Front called the event 'a provocation,' while the municipality filed a brief saying it too objected to the parade, scheduled to be held on June 26. 'We are against this parade which harms social relations,' city spokesman Gidi Schemerling told AFP."

Members of the clergy in Albany today rallied to protest Governor David Paterson's decision to recognize same-sex marriages preformed out of state.

An interview with rainbow flag creator Gilbert Baker: "I love going to cities around the world and seeing the rainbow flag, knowing that it's a safe place where I can be myself...In 1978, when I thought of creating a flag for the gay movement there was no other international symbol for us than the pink triangle, which the Nazis used to identify homosexuals in concentration camps. Even though the pink triangle was and still is a powerful symbol, it was very much forced upon us. I almost instantly thought of using the rainbow. To me, it was the only thing that could really express our diversity, beauty and our joy. I was astounded nobody had thought of making a rainbow flag before because it seemed like such an obvious symbol for us."

Mario Lopez is impressed with himself.

Recommend picks from the California Tourism Commission for places to have your wedding or honeymoon.

Mickey Rourke spent his Father's Day with a dude in a thong.

Hockey jock doesn't speak, but carries a big stick (warning: site NSFW)

District Court of Moscow dismisses complaint by activists that gay pride ban was unlawful: " During court hearing, Nikolai Alekseev, principle the organiser of Moscow Pride, said that the Russian legislation does not give the authorities the right to ban any public event if it does not contradict the Constitution. According to the law, he told the court, authorities are obliged to offer an alternative place or time for the conduct of such an event if it is not possible to stage it in the place where planned."

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Strife, Defiance, Conflict Mark Moscow Gay Pride Rally

Gay rights activists took to the streets in Moscow on Sunday, defying a ban by Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov. Predictably, there was conflict, Agence France Presse reports:

"The annual pride demonstration had been outlawed by... Luzhkov, who has dubbed gay pride events "Satan's work," reflecting a strain of Russian society that remains suspicious of liberal values. A police spokesman told AFP 36 people had been arrested at the event at which Russian Orthodox and far-right opponents hurled eggs at gay activists and, in one instance, were seen punching a gay man to the ground. Those arrested were mainly opponents of the pride event rather than gay activists -- suggesting police were keen to minimise trouble rather than strictly enforce the ban. The demonstration started with about 25 people gathering by a statue of 19th century Russian composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky, widely considered to have been gay. 'We came to bow before this great composer in this most symbolic place in the capital,' gay rights leader Nikolai Alexeyev told the demonstrators. 'It is more symbolic than the building where the country's greatest homophobe sits,' said Alexeyev, head of the Gay Russia organisation, referring to the Moscow mayor."

UK Gay News has a small photo gallery of the proceedings.

Below, an activist is attacked, and one of the attackers is led away by police:

A second event occurred when four activists blockaded themselves in an apartment in front of City Hall that read “Rights to gays and lesbians - homophobia of mayor Luzhkov to be prosecuted”. Police spent a great deal of time trying to break into the apartment where the activists were located, and reportedly threatened to plant drugs on them and arrest them when they finally broke in. They eventually forced the door open, arrested the activists and held them in a cell overnight.

The entire incident is liveblogged here. The banner is pictured below:

AFTER THE JUMP: Two clips, one of the demonstrations in front of the Tchaikovsky monument and the other of the banner on the street opposite City Hall.

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Russia Ends Ban on Gay Blood Donation

A two-year campaign by activists came to a successful end yesterday when the Russian Health Ministry ended a ban on blood donation by gays, according to UK Gay News:

"Tatyana Golikova, the Minister of Health and Social Development signed the decree on April 16, it emerged yesterday. The decree amends the rules on blood donations which were implemented on September 14, 2001. According to the amendments, provisions for absolute ban on blood donations by people from the so called groups of high risk (homosexuals, drug addicts and prostitutes) are being repealed. Activists at GayRussia have been campaigning against the ban since April 2006 when they sent a letter to the Ministry of Health and Social Development as well as to the Russian General Prosecutor asking for the repeal of the ban because it contradicted the Russian Constitution and federal legislation. They repeated their demand a year later. The Ministry responded twice to the activists, saying that the amendments will be implemented, and that the issue is being discussed within the Ministry. A third letter was sent to the Ministry last month. Nikolai Alekseev and Nikolai Baev reminded officials that 'since May 1993 homosexual relations between consenting adults in private are not considered a crime in Russia. Since 1999 Russian psychiatry does not consider homosexuality as a mental illness as it joint international classification of mental illnesses'."

Above, an activist is arrested at a Moscow demonstration I posted about last September.

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Russian Political Gathering Interrupted by Penis Helicopter

This is pretty surreal. A meeting in Moscow of the Other Russia opposition coalition on Saturday was interrupted by a propellor-operated phallus as chess champion Garry Kasparov was speaking.

According to waxy.org, "Kasparov is a leader of the Other Russia movement, a loose coalition of activists opposing Vladamir Putin and the current Russian government. Over 700 people showed up for the event in central Moscow, but Kasparov's speech was interrupted when a large phallus-shaped helicopter started buzzing around the room. The Moscow Times attributed the prank to 'a couple of pro-Kremlin Young Russia activists.'"

According to a translator on the site metafilter, this was Kasparov's reaction:

"Kasparov: 'I think we have to be thankful for the opposition's demonstration of the level of discourse we need to anticipate. Also, apparently most of their arguments are located beneath the belt.' Someone in the audience: 'Finally the political power shows its face!' Kasparov: 'Well, if that's its face...' Everyone laughs.

You can see the uncensored pic here (NSFW).

And make sure not to miss the clip, AFTER THE JUMP...

Somebody needs to get one of these going at a McCain rally.

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Activist Stages Picket, Calls for Prosecution of Moscow Mayor

Activist Nikolai Alekseev staged a one-man picket of Moscow's General Prosecutor on Saturday, calling for the prosecution of Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov for the illegal banning of gay pride activities. Authorities prevented a group picket of the office, saying there was a security threat, so Alekseev went it alone.

Gay Russia reports: "There was no interference from the watching police as he displayed a placard reading saying 'No one repealed Article 149 of the Criminal Code. Mayor Luzhkov’s homophobia should be prosecuted'. Originally, plans were to have a ten-person picket. But the Prefecture of the Central Area of Moscow banned the event for 'security reasons'. The letter from the Prefecture said that the aim of the planned event 'provokes negative reactions of society and the conduct of the event can lead to group violations of public order which creates threats to the security of the participants'. However, not a single protestor against the picket came to the office of General Prosecution yesterday, which, say gay activists, proves that Moscow authorities did not evaluate the threats properly. 'The General Prosecution office is obliged to conduct an investigation on our request and give us a motivated reply,' Mr. Alekseev said last night. 'If the criminal case is not started, we will appeal the decision to courts.'"

Alexseev and other say they will hold gay pride activities at the end of May, even if they are once again banned by the mayor's office.

PReviously
Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov Warns Against Gay May Day Gatherings [tr]
European Mayors Asked to Attend Moscow Gay Pride [tr]
Moscow Gay Pride Activists Request Compensation for Treatment [tr]

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Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov Warns Against Gay May Day Gatherings

In response to word that gay groups planned demonstrations in Moscow on the occasion of the May Day (May 1) holiday, Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov's representative Sergei Tsoi warned that any actions would be halted by the government.

Said Tsoi: "The council will act decisively and uncompromisingly to prevent attempts to hold such events because society is overwhelmingly opposed to the gay lifestyle and philosophy. It is a matter of surprise and indignation that gays plan to carry out unsanctioned gatherings in various parts of Moscow during the Festival of Peace and Work. There could be bloodshed and no one wants that."

Activist Nikolai Alexeyev said that gay groups plan to apply to hold five events every day throughout May, despite Luzhkov's warning and prior actions against demonstrators.

Said Alexeyev: "This is not a question of security. It is only a question of the personal hatred of the Moscow mayor towards gay people."

He also said the events would not be characerized by flamboyance or nudity: "If everyone sees that these people are not nude or wearing make-up... there will be many questions about why this event was banned."

Last year's gay rights rally in May turned violent and activists reported that Moscow police arrested not the ultra-nationalists and members of the ultra-Orthodox Russian church who began the violence but the gay rights demonstrators at which it was directed. They included Peter Tatchell,d Right Said Fred singer Richard Fairbrass, Italian MEP Marco Cappato, German MP Volker Beck, the leader of GayRussia, Nikolai Alexeyev, and dozens of other activists.

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European Mayors Asked to Attend Moscow Gay Pride

Moscow Gay Pride organizer Nikolai Alexeyev has asked London mayor Ken Livingstone (pictured, second from right) and openly gay mayors Bertrand Delanoe of Paris (far left), and Klaus Wowereit (far right) of Berlin to attend Moscow's Gay Pride observance, which has been scheduled for May 30 and 31, UK Gay News reports:

"In a letter to the three Mayors, Nikolai Baev and Nikolai Alekseev point out that in Russia gay men and women face enormous difficulties in publicly expressing themselves. 'You always support the fundamental right of homosexual people to openly manifest and to publicly express themselves,' they say in their letter to the city halls. 'All of you also regularly take part in Gay Pride parades in your own cities.' They go on to say that the constitutional right to freedom of assembly has been violated in the previous two years when Gay Pride Parades have been scheduled, only to be banned by Mayor Yuri Luzhkov. 'Taking into account the bans of the public Pride events in the Russian capital in 2006 and 2007, we are not sure that Mayor Luzhkov will permit Gay Pride manifestation this year,' they point out. 'Please take part in our conference and rally,' the organisers ask."

Last year's Gay Pride parade turned bloody and violent. British activist Peter Tatchell and Right Said Fred singer Richard Fairbrass were assaulted on camera. Tatchell and Fairbrass were both then arrested, along with Italian MEP Marco Cappato, German MP Volker Beck, the leader of GayRussia, Nikolai Alexeyev, and dozens of other activists.

The photo of the three mayors above, with Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, was taken at a mayoral summit in London in February 2007.

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Moscow Gay Pride Activists Request Compensation for Treatment

Vowing to "use the compensation for the development of the LGBT movement [lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transsexuals] in Russia," Russian gay activist Nikolai Alexeyev asked the European Court of Human Rights to direct Russian authorities to pay them one million Euros in compensation for their treatment in the crackdown of the last two Gay Pride parades, both of which were banned.

I posted about the violence organizers experienced during the Pride parade last May. British activist Peter Tatchell and Right Said Fred singer Richard Fairbrass were assaulted on camera. Tatchell and Fairbrass were both then arrested, along with Italian MEP Marco Cappato, German MP Volker Beck (who was assaulted at last year's rally), the leader of GayRussia, Nikolai Alexeyev, and dozens of other activists. Thirty people were detained in all at what began as a peaceful demonstration meant to mark the 14th anniversary of the decriminilization of homosexuality in Russia. One of the organizers' goals was to deliver a document to the mayor's office signed by over 40 members of the European Parliament protesting Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov's decision to ban the march. In January, Luzhkov branded the march "satanic".

Said Alexeyev of the appeal to the Court of Human Rights: "I am absolutely certain of our final victory in Strasburg. The Russian authorities arbitrarily deprived us of the right guaranteed by both the Constitution of the Russian Federation and the European Convention (on Human Rights)."

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News: NYC Sushi, Hannah Montana, New Mexico, Kiefer Sutherland

Prepare for spring violence: Moscow Gay Pride parade set for May.

Anderson Cooper says "no" to Heath Ledger coverage: “For the last two nights we have reported on actor Heath Ledger. His shocking death is clearly a story a lot of people are interested in, but tonight we will not be reporting more on it. The truth is there is not really anything new to report. The full results of the various tests done on Mr. Ledger will not be ready for perhaps a few weeks and there is very little new information. I have no doubt other networks will spend a lot of time tonight discussing his death and the various rumors about what might have caused it, but I am not a fan of speculation, so unless there is something really new to discuss we probably won’t be covering it anymore anytime soon.”

Teen pop terrorist? 16-year-old boy arrested for plans to hijack a commercial airliner and commit suicide by crashing it into a Hannah Montana concert.

Domestic partnership bill approved by House in New Mexico.

Black/gay rivalry in DNC revealed by email evidence in the discrimination/unlawful termination suit filed by former DNC gay outreach director Donald Hitchcock.

Founder of Minnesota's largest gay rights group stepping down after 21 years: "Ann DeGroot started what became OutFront Minnesota in 1987, and her tenure as executive director saw Minnesota amend its Human Rights Act in 1993 to cover gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people. From 2004 to 2006 she also fought a state constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. That effort, along with caring for her partner during a battle with ovarian cancer, made the 52-year-old DeGroot realize she needed to slow down."

1,000 people turn out to meet Hillary Clinton at gay NYC Hiro ballroom event.

New York Times endorses Hillary Clinton and John McCain.

McCain memory shaky about statements on his proficiency in economics.

Gay UK couple claims Stagecoach bus company discriminated against them...twice: "Mark Craig, 20, and Steven Black, 16, from Old Meldrum in Aberdeenshire, claim that when they attempted to catch the last Stagecoach bus from Aberdeen back to Old Meldrum on January 11th, the driver opened the doors, looked at them, and then closed the doors and drove off...Last October Mark and Steven were on the last Stagecoach bus of the night from Aberdeen to Old Meldrum, when the driver suddenly stopped the bus and demanded they get off, supposedly at the request of a fellow passenger, for sitting with their arm around each other." Stagecoach denies homophobia...

I recently mentioned that the New Yorker magazine was having a cover illustration contest for its annual issue featuring its mascot, Eustace Tilley. You can view all the entries here.

David Beckham's carbon footprint: it's huge like the rest of him, however, it's not so pretty.

Kiefer Sutherland was apparently jonesing to shop during his 48 days in jail.

AP highlights frustration of gay activists over Democratic campaign: ''They've merely settled on what the Democrats have staked out as a safe, consensus position, just far enough ahead of where the party was in 2004 to give a sense of progress but not so far as to threaten Middle America. That's not leadership, it's poll-tested and party-approved pandering, pure and simple.''

Extremely high levels of mercury found in sushi in NYC.

Russian gay activist Nikolai Alexeyev honored with "Hero" award at at International Mr. Gay competition: "This is not just my award, it is an award of all those who courageously fight for LGBT rights in Russia, risking to loose their jobs, to be dismissed from studies, to be harassed, beaten and even killed. Despite all that, they continue to go on the streets of Moscow to fight for equality. They are the heroes who move this world forward. For me to be in Los Angeles, in Hollywood, is dream come true. But to receive an award here is beyond explanations."

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Moscow's Crystal Island: SimCity Anyone?

Foster and Partners released new designs recently for their "Crystal Island" project in Moscow, which would reportedly be the largest 'building' ever.

According to Dezeen, "Crystal Island in Moscow will be 450m high, cover an area of almost half a million square metres and contain a total floor area of 2.5 million square metres. The structure will house theatres, exhibition spaces, retail and catering businesses, 3,000 hotel rooms, 900 serviced apartments and a school for 500 students. There will also be two public viewing platforms, one at 150m and another at 300m."

It has apparently been granted "preliminary planning permission" in Moscow, whatever that means. On the Foster site the project has an inception date of 2006.

The project is reminiscent of the X-Seed 4000 Japanese utopian city project I posted about last August.

(via daily dish)

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Gay Activists Arrested During Homophobia Protest at Russian Elections

Russian gay activist Nikolai Alexeyev (above) and more than a dozen others were arrested while protesting anti-gay Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov during the elections in Russia yesterday.

UK Gay News reports: "We were trying to vote," said Moscow gay pride organiser Nikolai Alexeyev, speaking from the police station where he was detained. "Men from the special services pushed us outside the polling station, put us in a bus and drove us to a police station." The group arrived at the polling station wanting to "protest collectively" against Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov – who was expected at the same polling station an hour later – and against all parties running in the legislative elections by spoiling their voting ballots. There was no direct protest, Mr Alexeyev said. It was simply a matter of "spoiling" their ballot papers by writing "No to Homophobes" across their paper.

During his tenure as mayor, Luzhkov has overseen the crackdown on the right of gays to gather in Moscow and has branded such gatherings "satanic".

The activists were detained for a period of three hours after which they were released, the paper reports.

In related news, election monitors are reporting that the Russian vote has been manipulated to reveal "a sweeping parliamentary election victory" for President Vladimir Putin's United Russia party:

"With ballots from nearly 98 percent of precincts counted, Putin's United Russia party was leading with 64.1 percent of the vote, the Central Election Commission said — which would give it a sweep of 70 percent of seats in parliament. The only opposition party to make it into parliament, the Communists, trailed with just 11.6 percent of the vote, with Kremlin-allied parties claiming the rest of Sunday's vote. The Communists, Liberals and foreign observers criticized the vote as unfair. Opposition leader Garry Kasparov, the ex-chess champion, denounced the vote Monday as 'the most unfair and dirtiest in the whole history of modern Russia.'"

Putin called the results "a sign of trust" on national television: "Russians will never allow the nation to take a destructive path, as happened in some other ex-Soviet nations."

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News: Kylie Minogue, Sydney, Spencer Tunick, Nikolai Alexeyev

In the first nationwide law of its kind in Latin America, Colombia grants health benefits to same-sex couples.

Jury in Princess Diana inquest gets an uncanny look at her final moments, as they too are chased by the paparazzi in Paris: "The coach carrying the Diana inquest jury has reportedly crashed as it traced the Princess's last movements around Paris. In an eerie parallel with the catastrophic accident which killed the Princess, the bus driver was apparently trying to out-manoeuvre paparazzi outside the Ritz. The jury, coroner Lord Justice Scott Baker, and teams of lawyers made British legal history by making a site inspection of the places where the Princess and her lover Dodi Fayed spent their final hours. But within minutes of starting the tour in the Place Vendome, close to the Ritz hotel, their bus knocked a police outrider from his motorcycle. Then seconds later the bus collided with an 18-inch metal bollard."

Britney Spears and sister attacked at sushi restaurant: "Nobody wants you in this neighborhood Britney! MOVE! You are making this neighborhood very unsafe!"

Bush White House has tried to "silence" MSNBC's Chris Matthews, host claims: "They will not silence me!...They’ve finally been caught in their criminality."

Russian gay activist Nikolai Alexeyev gets "solidarity reception" in the Windy City.

Kylie channels Patrick Nagel for new album cover...

Former OUT magazine editor Brendan Lemon and his friend Jerry Wade have started an entertainment-oriented blog called Lemonwade. Lemon has the scoop on Jake Gyllenhaal's rumored trip to the Broadway stage in Farragut North: "Lemonwade has learned that [Mike] Nichols will not be directing the play. For now, the production — with Gyllenhaal or anyone else — is on hold. And with Gyllenhaal’s film schedule filling up (he has just signed on to star in a love-triangle movie called 'Brothers,' with Tobey Maguire and Natalie Portman), I don’t see him on Broadway anytime soon."

600 people to pose nude for Spencer Tunick at Sagamore Hotel in Miami Beach: "It's about fantasy and leisure. It's a stereotype, but it's true. You're going to have a good time if you come to Miami Beach. I'm going to have 100 to 200 women in pink rafts. We're going to have people on the balcony posing very much like the Tower of Babel meets Logan's Run. We're going to buy some champagne, 500 bottles, and were going to make a giant explosion for the climax of the installation from the balcony."

Violent anti-gay crimes in Sydney prompt unusual political visit to Oxford Street: "As partygoers looked on, Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore, Police Minister David Campbell, Labor candidate for Wentworth George Newhouse and local drag queen Maxi Shield wandered the clubs and back alleys of Oxford Street to gauge the impact of homophobic violence."

Gay nightlife "targeted" in Birmingham, England.

B'gosh! Gay and lesbian support group forms in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

Movie theater lobby contains hidden erotic message.

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Russian Orthodox Leader: Gays are Like Kleptomaniacs

Patriarch Alexy II, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, offered his opinion of gay pride to the Council of Europe, where he was speaking Tuesday. The Council of Europe has 47 member countries and seeks to "develop throughout Europe common and democratic principles based on the European Convention on Human Rights and other reference texts on the protection of individuals."

Interfax reports:

"'When persistent attempts were made to hold a homosexual parade in Moscow, we believed that that meant propaganda and advertisement of sin,' Alexy told a session of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) in Strasbourg, France. Attempts are made to justify homosexuality by calling it a disease, the patriarch said. Yet kleptomania can also be considered a disease, he argued. 'Why then no one advertises kleptomania while homosexuality gets advertised via gay parades?' he said. 'It is advertisement that is being forced on people who are a very long way from it,' Alexy said. The patriarch also said the church commiserated with all sinners, including homosexuals, 'sinners whom we love while we hate their sin...But at the same time, we Orthodox Christians cannot depart from what is taught by th Bible and by the apostolic tradition of the church,' Alexy said. 'Somebody may think otherwise, and nobody must be discredited on the basis of the character of their private lives,' he said. 'In the same way, nobody must try to force me or my brothers and sisters in faith to be silent and [to prevent us from] using the word sin for something that is called sin in God's Word,' the patriarch said. It is the right of religious believers to question the acceptability of legal and political support for a feature of society, he said."

And apparently to beat the crap out of gays and lesbians at the parade.

Speaking of kleptomaniacs, Queen Padme called. She wants her look back.

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Activists Arrested at Moscow Demonstration Over Gay Blood

Ten people, including the leader of Moscow's Gay Pride movement, Nikolai Alekseyev, demonstrated outside the Ministry of Health and Social Development building in Moscow late last week, and seven were arrested.

The activists were protesting Russia's law prohibiting the donation of blood by gay men, a policy echoed by various governments around the world, including the United States.

Russia Today reports: "Mr Alekseyev says its unfair to compare gay men to drug users and sex workers, pointing out that there is no law preventing gay women from giving blood. He added that the health service is desperately short of blood, yet it is 'stopping people giving blood for reasons that are incomprehensible.'...Mr Alekseyev questioned the legality of the arrests, saying there was no trouble at the demonstration and that the protesters 'didn't interfere with anyone.' Alekseyev added that the protest was in no way connected to politics or the inflammatory Gay Pride parade, which takes place in Moscow every summer. He insisted Friday's action was meant only to show the discriminatory nature of the law."

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Moscow Homophobia a "Litmus Test" for Broader Ultranationalism [tr]
Notes from a Gay Moscow Party Cruise [tr]
Russian Activists Detained at Demonstration Against Moscow Mayor [tr]

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Moscow Homophobia a "Litmus Test" for Broader Ultranationalism

The NYT today reports on the anti-gay patrols that recently began around the chapel in Moscow's Ilyinsky Park that I posted about back in mid-June. The chapel and the park around it have a reputation as gay meeting places.

The paper talks to Igor S. Kon, a Russian sociologist, who says that the patrols, whose activities have expanded in recent weeks to being ethnic minorities under their hateful umbrella, are a "litmus test" for a broader ultranationist trend in Russia.

They report: "To the patrol’s supporters, the gay men who frequent the park are the aggressors. 'The sexual minorities have occupied territory,' said Larisa O. Pavlova, a member of a local parents’ association. She suggested that the area around the monument had become a site not only for gay cruising, but also for prostitution and drug dealing. 'The place where our kids used to stroll is now home to all kinds of vulgar acts,' she said. The Orthodox youth group has disavowed using force to remove gay men from the park, and claims to be the victim of several violent attacks near the monument. In one incident, someone fired on the patrol group with an air gun, hitting a person in the neck, several witnesses said. Though the police refused to comment, several members of the patrol accused gay people of organizing an intimidation campaign. Whatever the truth of the accusations, more outspoken groups have set up an unofficial protection service for the Georgiyevtsy, and on most nights, young men with shaved heads and army boots now greatly outnumber the patrol’s founders. As their movement grows, so does the specter of more violence."

It's certainly a ticking time bomb, one which Moscow authorities don't appear to have any interest in defusing.

A Clash of Cultures at a Square in Moscow [nyt]

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Notes from a Gay Moscow Party Cruise

The anti-gay atmosphere permeating Moscow's government seems to have done little to dampen the will of its gay community to enjoy themselves. Gavin Knight of the New Statesman took a ride aboard a late night river cruise "organised by gay members of the press, owners of shops and restaurants [with] major sponsors including Pepsi" and found it to be charged with a party energy much like such cruises in more tolerant ports of the world, until they pulled in somewhere and were reminded they were very much in a city that in a time of danger might care little for their protection:

"Then the atmosphere changed. The boat came in to dock at the second stopping points to find a jetty lined by paramilitary police. Rumours spread that they were not letting anyone on or off the boat. I pointed out how grim-faced the officers looked peering out from under their visors. 'You would also not be smiling if you were paid the same as the soldiers in our army' someone said. A few heated exchanges with an officer ensued. A short-haired woman - who looked like Rosa Klebb out of From Russia with Love - patrolled the side of the boat, her hand on her holster. In the end the tension subsided and the boat moved on. Perhaps they were there to protect the boat from a boarding party of nationalists. It seemed unlikely. It also seemed absurd that a supposed European democracy like Russian was using its armed forces to police a peaceful cruise down the river."

And one final note: Rihanna's "Umbrella" seems to be the inescapable pop anthem of the summer, even in Moscow.

Gay Cruise in stand-off with Russian Army [new statesman]

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Russian Activists Detained at Demonstration Against Moscow Mayor

Two dozen gay activists who received permission from the city to hold a demonstration outside the European Union's office in Moscow were blocked from doing so by police Wednesday.

They were assembling to call on the European Union to impose a travel ban on Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov over the human rights violations he has committed against gays and lesbians.

According to the Associated Press, "Although the planned demonstration had been sanctioned, police said they decided to block it because it would interfere with construction taking place nearby...Demonstrators tried to unfurl a banner, but police dispersed them, grabbing [activist Alexey] Davydov and another demonstrator and forcing them into a police bus. A group of gay rights opponents stood nearby, but did not interfere."

Said Davydov: "Authorities in Moscow have broken the law again by not allowing our picket."

Davydov and one other activist were detained. Fairly roughly, from the looks of it.

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Religious groups hoping to "reclaim" a Moscow park from gay men who use it as a meeting place, say they were beaten up: "Interfax news agency has reported that late on Saturday night five young men went to the police to report an attack on them carried out by up by eight men."

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