News: Kucinich, Friedkin, Naugle, Gyllenhaal, Lieberman, McAvoy

A second gay candidate joins race for Mayor Naugle's seat in Fort Lauderdale: "Political newcomer Earl Rynerson, owner of a tile store, joins former City Commissioner Dean Trantalis as an openly gay mayoral hopeful. Rynerson said he wants to polish the city's image, which he said was tarnished by Naugle. Naugle last summer uttered a quote that was heard across gay America: 'I use the word homosexual. Most of them aren't gay; they're unhappy.'"

Jake Gyllenhaal stumbles out in London.

Nigerian bisexual woman faces deportation from Canada, fears persecution: "She fears for her life. If she goes back with her children, she has no one there. Her family has shunned her because she is bisexual. She doesn't have any money and nowhere to go. If she's arrested [her children] will be without a mother. They'll already face extreme discrimination because they were both born out of wedlock, and in fact, Samuel has already endured a lot of harassment while growing up there."

ABBA come together for Mamma Mia premiere in Stockholm for first time in 22 years.

AUSIELLO: Producers on The New Adventures of Old Christine plan to marry off Julia Louis Dreyfus to Wanda Sykes!

The windows to Amy Winehouse's soul.

William Friedkin's The Boys in the Band to get DVD release on November 11.

Planning on picking up an iPhone 3G on Friday? Here's a map of AT&T's 3G coverage in the U.S. According to a Digg commenter, here's the code: BLUE = Full Coverage, RED/ORANGE = Decent Coverage, ORANGE = Meh Coverage, LIGHT ORANGE = Enjoy EDGE.

Church of Ireland may hold gay unions if homosexuality proven to be biologically determined: "If such comes to be shown, it will be necessary to acknowledge the full implications of that new aspect of the truth."

"Dude, look at your pants. Look at your bag. Obviously this is not your kind of place." Homophobic, or just edgy?

Details attempts to atone for past covers with James McAvoy's blue eyes.

MacBecks: Musical planned about David and Victoria Beckham...

Hagee YouTube suppression to rub off on Joe Lieberman?

East London couple turned away from wedding venue owned by Jehovah's Witness: "For the past 13 years I have been with my soul mate, I have never been discriminated against or been judged as they did to us."

Jaws: Australian town on alert after sighting of 22-foot Great White Shark in lake with outlet to the ocean.

Obama to give DNCC address at Invesco Field at Mile High. SF Chronicle on the rise of the Obamacon...

Killer of gay porn producer spilled details, sought legal advice from fellow inmate.

Honed down: Kucinich to bring single article of impeachment against George W. Bush. "Few in the House of Representatives have any intention of doing anything with the last 35 articles of impeachment Kucinich set before them last month, so the former presidential candidate appears to be lightening the load. Kucinich sent a letter to colleagues Tuesday asking them to support a single article of impeachment, to be introduced Thursday, which accuses President Bush of leading the country to war based on lies."

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Gene Robinson Believes 'God Disappointed' with Anglican Archbishop

In an interview to be broadcast on the BBC news program Hardtalk, gay Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson criticizes Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, for failing to confront anti-gay critics in the church, specifically, Nigerian Archbishop Peter Akinola, whose stance against homosexuality has been seen as a major cause of the rift within the church.

"I believe [Dr Williams'] unwillingness to confront Peter Akinola and others like him who've made statements that I think any reasonable person would find over the edge - I believe God is very disappointed in that."

Akinola is seen as a force in perpetuating violence against gays and lesbians. Robinson, who plans to attend events around this summer's Lambeth Conference even though he was not invited, has been speaking out about death threats against him and tells the BBC that he sometimes wears a bulletproof vest at public appearances.

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Gay Nigerian Christian Leader Escapes Angry Death Mob

A gay Nigerian Christian leader was brutally beaten by an angry mob outside a funeral ceremony last week. He suspects that anti-gay efforts within the Anglican church were behind the attack.

Says the unnamed leader: "I am in total shock and living in fear while feeling the pains. I suffered in the hands of a mob group that attacked me at the Service of Songs for Davis’s late sister. While hymn singing was going on a muscular man walked up to me and asked me for a word outside the compound. The next thing I saw was a mob group who were there to attack me. They started slapping and punching me, kicked me on the ground and spat on me. I have never known fear like I knew when they were brutalizing me. I thought they were going to kill me there and then. While beating me they were shouting: ‘You notorious homosexual, you think can run away from us for your notorious group to cause more abomination in our land?’ Those who attacked me were well informed about us so I suspect an insider or one of the leaders of our Anglican church have hands in this attack."

According to Changing Attitude Nigeria, the thugs told him, "We will not rest until we silence you and any who join you to pollute the land with the abominable act of homosexuality. You are perverts who go around corrupting and inducting young people into our evil society. We will kill you and it will be a favour to the country."

According to the group, Archbishop Peter Akinola and the leaders of the Church of Nigeria have encouraged violence against LGBT people in the nation.

Gay Nigeria Christian Leader Narrowly Escapes Death in Brutal Attack [uk gay news]

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Tear Gas Used on Mob Wanting "Instant Justice" for Nigerian Gays

Two weeks ago I posted about a group of 18 Nigerian men who faced death after being arrested in a hotel for alleged sodomy after they had traveled to the northeaster Bauchi state to attend a "gay wedding" there.

They had their day at a Bauchi State Sharia court yesterday, but not before an angry mob "surged forward" demanding that the police release them so the mob could inflict "instant justice". They were throwing stones at the policemen, who then dispersed the crowd with tear gas. In response, the mob reportedly smashed several cars.

The good news is that it looks unlikely that the 18 men will face death as the charges were "amended to idleness and possession of female dressings". The bad news is that that charge apparently carries with it a punishment of "a year jail term and 20 strokes of the cane each" if found guilty.

The judge also greed to release the defendants on bail.

Previously
18 Gay Nigerian Men Face Possible Death by Stoning [tr]

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18 Gay Nigerian Men Face Possible Death by Stoning

Eighteen Nigerian men who were on their way to a "gay wedding" in Bauchi town were reportedly arrested while wearing women's clothes and may face death, the BBC reports:

"The men were arrested in a hotel in north-eastern Bauchi State, which is governed by the Islamic Sharia law. The Sharia punishment for sodomy is death by stoning...Sharia judge Malam Tanimu ordered that the 18 be remanded in prison after they were arraigned before him on Wednesday. More than a dozen Nigerian Muslims have been sentenced to death by stoning and for sexual offences ranging from adultery and homosexuality. But none of these death sentences have actually been carried out as they were either thrown out on appeal or commuted to prison terms as a result of pressure from human rights groups. Many others have been sentenced to flogging by horsewhip for drinking. But there have been two amputations in north-western Zamfara State which pioneered the introduction of the Islamic legal system in the country."

Sounds like a wonderful place.

Gay Nigerians face Sharia death [bbc]

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News: Michael Moore, iPhone, Coral Smith, John Travolta

Coral Smith, former Real World housemate, comes out: "I’m definitely venturing toward my lesbian qualities. It’s been a long time coming. At that time, I was really unsure. That was not the proper venue, the proper platform. To come out to your parents on a fucking reality show, I think that’s just mean, so I didn’t."

Stavros Niarchos: Flying solo.

Dare Odumuye, founder of Nigeria's gay rights organization Alliance Rights Nigeria, has died at 41: "Although details of his death remain hazy, a friend confirmed that he died “after a long illness,” and Odumuye himself had noted that six members of the organisation’s board had died of AIDS between 2000 and 2002. Odumuye, the former manager of an insurance company, founded Alliance Rights on 2 July, 1999 after seeing friends, one of whom was a senior executive of a bank, sacked and harassed for being gay. In 2003, Alliance Rights Nigeria won a Breaker of Silence Award and in 2004 it was among the lesbian and gay organisations which, in a groundbreaking event for this deeply homophobic country, made the first-ever appearance at the country’s fourth national Aids conference in the capital, Abuja."

Blotter: Suicide bomber teams sent to U.S., Europe.

Lesbian blogger Jasmyne Cannick has begun a petition to get Isaiah Washington his job back on Grey's Anatomy, saying his firing was racist. (Petition)

It's coming: iPhone application list.

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."

Star Jones and hubby head out for a Hamptons birthday bash.

Michael Moore's Sicko pirated. Shows up on YouTube, others...

Scientologist John Travolta thinks he has the answer to what's behind Virginia Tech, Columbine, and all the other maniacal school shootings: "I still think that if you analyze most of the school shootings, it is not gun control. It is [psychotropic] drugs at the bottom of it."

Bush administration trying to muzzle hurricane director after he makes unfavorable comments about where the federal government's money is going.

Artist Eve Mosher is drawing a chalk line around New York City to bring awareness to the effect global warming could have on the city: "The chalk demarcates a point 10 feet above sea level, a boundary now used by federal and state agencies and insurance companies to show where waters could rise after a major storm. Relying partly on research conducted by NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies at Columbia University, Ms. Mosher is trying to draw attention to projections that the chance of flooding up to or beyond her line could increase significantly as a result of global warming." (video)

Hillary Clinton has chosen Celine Dion's "You and I" as her campaign song.

British teacher who had mother-approved affair with underage male pupil is given a year in jail. Judge: "It is perfectly apparent that the boy was already a person who was attracted to you. Indeed, much that occurred was at his instigation. Sadly, though, this case is a classic example of a substantial and serious breach of trust."

346 same-sex couples have registered partnerships in the Czech Republic since they were legalized last July.

OMG Blog ripped off by Yahoo!

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News: Brandon Flowers, Yale Tennis, Grant Show, Nigeria

Yale tennis team under fire for alleged initiation activites: "During dinner on Nov. 10, team members wearing women’s underwear and fishnet stockings posed as members of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity and entered several residential college dining halls, where they sang and danced on tabletops, students who saw the incident said. The witnesses said the team’s initiates had signs on their backs that read, 'I’m a fa**ot. Insert Here.' The captain of the men’s tennis team could not be reached for comment last night, but Director of Athletics Thomas Beckett said his department is investigating the incident."

Brandon Flowers wants to read your mind!

Gay man jailed in Nigeria for wanting sex with a man; tells court: "It is the work of Satan but I promise that I will not do it again."

Jonathan Plummer, the ex-husband of author Terry McMillan, says he plans to write a tell-all about the couple's bitter marriage and divorce. Said McMillan: "He is like a f***ing Duracell, and I want him out of my f***ing life, and he won't let me out of his life. I can't live like this."

Isn't it time gay people were part of the marriage discussion?

Scientology leaders have reportedly dubbed Tom Cruise the religious sect's "Christ" figure: "Tom has been told he is Scientology’s Christ-like figure. Like Christ, he’s been criticised for his views. But future generations will realise he was right."

Pop phenom Mika ships in Freddie Mercury's piano for acoustic recording of "Grace Kelly": "He felt totally inspired. He felt the spirit of Freddie surround him and Mika said he felt more creative than he ever had."

Former Melrose Place hunk Grant Show offers another dude his services on Dirt...

Lance and Reichen on the outs? Malkin: "The latest from the slopes of Sundance has it that they've called it quits. This is not the first time that the lovebirds of eight months have broken up. This time around, Bass showed up solo at last night's Blender Sessions party at Tao. Later on, a source spotted him sulking at a party at the Village at the Lift's Heineken Lounge. Bass left the bash around midnight after hanging there for a measly twenty minutes, the party-goer says. Another source reports that Lemkuhl is still in Park City, but has told friends he is cutting his trip short. He says he wants to get on the earliest flight out tomorrow morning."

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News, Montana, Anderson Cooper, MLK Parade, Lutherans

LGBT marchers battered with insults at Atlanta MLK day parade: "Y’all gay? OK, alright," one man shouted before backing away and turning around. "You can look at them and tell [they’re gay], they don’t need no signs."

Go west: gays buying up property in Red Lodge, Montana.

Nigeria is about to have a major crackdown on gays: "Though presented as a simple ban on marriage, the long-winded 'Prohibition of Relationships Between Persons of the Same Sex, Celebration of Marriage by Them, and for Other Matters Connected Therewith' will bar all expressions and endorsements of homosexuality."

Six Feet Under's Lauren Ambrose is the proud mother to a baby boy.

Jim McGreevey's wife is "eager to counter the version of events the ex-governor offered in his own memoir" according to the New York Daily News. Dina McGreevey: "I've had a lot of requests for interviews and appearances, but thought it best for my daughter and myself to stay out of the public maelstrom. But two years have passed and still I am the subject of much speculation as to the nature of my relationship with my husband. Enough is enough."

Just an itty bitty correction: David Beckham's L.A. Galaxy contract is worth $50 million, and not $250 million as first reported.

Because he announced he has found a lifelong male partner, openly gay Rev. Bradley Schmeling must face trial by a Lutheran committee who may defrock him: "The ELCA maintains it is simply following its own rules, which bar unmarried clergy — whether gay or straight — from having sex. The denomination believes that sex is reserved for marriage and marriage for heterosexual couples. Still, many Lutheran churches support ordaining partnered gays and perform same-sex blessing ceremonies despite the policy."

REPORT: Anderson Cooper renews his contract with CNN for more than $4 million a year.

Britney Spears has been busy checking out the gay nightlife in L.A. and Vegas.

Liza Minnelli and David Gest are finally ready to divorce...in Tennessee: "Before filing for divorce, Gest sued Minnelli for $10 million for assault, claiming that his wife had beaten him so badly during alcoholic rages that she caused him nerve damage and caused him to be hospitalized for five days. Minnelli countersued, claiming that Gest had stolen at least $2 million she earned while performing in shows he had produced. Lorraine Nadel, Gest's lawyer in the assault lawsuit and in the Minnelli countersuit, confirmed that legal battle was over. She said the settlement terms were confidential and would not say whether either paid the other any money."

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News: Borat Frat Boys, Palm Springs, Heroes Closet Case, Nigeria

Nigeria may pass legislation banning any form of association between gay people, including dining together at a restaurant: "Other activities prohibited under the proposed law include belonging to gay clubs or reading books, watching films or accessing Internet sites that 'promote' homosexuality." Opposition is scant because of fear of reprisal from the government and religious groups.

Just who is the hottest Brazilian of 2006?

New York Film Critics name United 93 best picture...

Palm Springs considers branding itself a "hate-free" city: "'Not in Our Town' is the name of a campaign the commission hopes will help the public learn to support people who are gay, lesbian, transgender or bisexual; of another race or ethnicity; of another religion or gender; or have a physical or mental disability."

Andy Roddick: card shark.

South Australian police create gay liaison positions within force: "SAPOL's acting director of Human Resources, John Bruhn, says the initiative is directed at better policing of gay hate crimes. 'Those sort of crimes are generally under reported and that's one of the key drivers in us setting up this network,' he said. 'So we can do better at helping and supporting the gay community in dealing with those things.'"

Same-sex shenanigans from the Toronto set of Hairspray: "a certain young male Hairspray star has left one local lad heartbroken. Sources say the two met midway through production and ended up spending many quiet nights together in the actor’s Minto Yorkville suite. Promises to stay in touch were reportedly made but since filming ended the teen star hasn’t called or e-mailed his Canuck lover."

Did NBC send its gay character Zach from Heroes back into the closet? "Two scenarios seem the mostly likely: for unknown reasons, NBC suddenly shied away from the idea of a gay character. Or Dekker's management wanted Zach to be straight."

Civil Partnerships prepare to celebrate first anniversary in Britain: "Civil partnerships have quickly and seamlessly become a feature of British national life. The statistics are compelling: more than 15,500 couples registered civil partnerships in the period from last December to September this year, suggesting that government predictions of 22,000 partnerships by 2010 are a huge underestimate. But perhaps more significant is that among the 15,500 pledging their union were a cabinet member - Ben Bradshaw, the Fisheries minister - and among those planning to tie the knot are Adam and Ian from The Archers, which, lest we forget, is 'an everyday story of country folk'."

Judge rejects request from "duped" frat boys to remove scene and halt sale of Borat DVD.

Matthew McConaughey's leisure suit chic.

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