News: H1N1, Banksy, Drew Gooden, Space Hotel, Justin Bourne

Wisconsin Supreme Court to hear appeal of lawsuit oever same-sex marriage referendum.

Dallas Mavericks Drew Gooden accused of calling fan a "faggot".

Lady Gaga found something else in her closet.

Census data: many similarities between straight married couples and gay married couples.

Gay candidate smeared as child molester in Annapolis election.

Anti-gay sign investigated as hate crime in Maine: "A hand-painted, plywood sign that had a threat directed at homosexuals was found nailed on a tree in the front yard of a Route 156 residence on Friday, police say."

Hypocrite: Rep. Joe Wilson blames Obama administration for vaccine shortage after voting no on funding bill to combat H1N1.

Space hotel to launch in 2012?

A look at Ultimate Fighting, its gay-friendly and not so gay-friendly fighters, and its gay fans: “Any guy involved in grappling is the furthest thing from homophobic in the world. I honestly think it would have no impact whatsoever with not only our fighters or our fan base. The guys in the UFC, everybody is so cool, it’s great sportsmanship, everybody has respect for each other. I honestly, it wouldn’t be a big deal to me and most of the guys I know in this sport, it wouldn’t be a big deal for them either.”

Circus: Kylie Minogue spent Halloween in NYC with Marc Jacobs and Lorenzo Martone.

Miss Gay America crowned in St. Louis.

Minor league hockey player Justin Bourne: End the gay slurs. "In my days as a hockey player, I did nothing but contribute to hockey's culture of homophobia and prejudice against gays. I used gay slurs more times than I'd like to admit. Six months after I left my last professional locker room, I felt a twinge of regret, followed by a full-out, stomach punch of regret. And by the time I finished the first draft of this column, I was disgusted with myself."

Is Precious this year's Slumdog?

Listen: Silverton, Oregon's transgender mayor Stu Rasmussen profiled on WNYC's Radiolab.

Dancing with the Stars' Derek Hough: I'm not gay, but I almost played one on Cougar Town: "It would have been perfect. With all the rumors going around, I thought it would be really funny because it's just not true. But I was like, you know what? If that's what you want to see."

Rihanna discusses assault: "I went to sleep as Rihanna and woke up as Britney Spears."

Banksy commentary on graffiti vandalism covered in graffiti by vandals.

Minnesota pastor quits over Lutheran position on gay clergy.

Mariah Carey nearly takes spill on Jay Leno.

Twitter war erupts after user calls British actor Stephen Fry's Tweets "boring."

Conservative Washington Times highlights Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James T. Conway's opposition to lifting ban on gays in the military: "But Gen. Conway has gone further than others in stating his opposition to a change in policy, according to the former official, who has been privy to private conversations on the matter. "He feels very strongly that [removing the ban] would be disruptive, and he opposes it," said the former official. Gen. Conway's private remarks stand in contrast to public utterances by other service chiefs, who have restricted themselves to repeating a well-rehearsed mantra: If Congress introduces a bill to repeal the ban, they will discuss it with the chain of command. If Congress changes the law, they will follow the law."

Effort to Repeal Oregon Ban on Same-Sex Marriage Kicks Off

There's movement in Oregon to repeal the state's ban on same-sex marriage, the AP reports:

"Gay rights backers kicked off a voter education campaign Monday aimed at eventually overturning Oregon's ban on same-sex marriage....In 2004, Oregon voters passed a constitutional amendment defining marriage as being between a man and a woman. The state's largest gay rights organization, Basic Rights Oregon, thinks next year's election would likely be too soon to take the issue back to Oregon voters. Basic Rights officials said Monday they want to launch a statewide 'conversation' with voters on the issue well in advance of placing something on the ballot, in 2012 or beyond. 'The heat of a campaign is no time to have a calm, heartfelt conversation about why civil marriage is so important' to gays and lesbians, said group's executive director, Jeana Frazzini."

Portland Mayor Sam Adams Safe from Recall, at Least for Now

An effort to recall Portland Mayor Sam Adams fell short yesterday, as the 'Community to Recall Sam Adams' failed to turn in the required 32,000 signatures to place a recall on the ballot. They're not stopping, however:

"They said they planned to use what they have so far to create a database for the next campaign, rather than submitting them to elections officials. Jasun Wurster started the recall campaign after Adams admitted to lying about his sexual relationship with a former legislative intern who was a teenager at the time...After failing to collect enough signatures for a recall, Wurster on Monday said a political action committee called Portland Future PAC has been formed with promises from some business leaders for about $150,000 to pay for a new recall campaign. 'It should be only a week or two to secure those commitments and get them filed with the state, and get those checks entered into our bank account,' Wurster said. 'Then we will launch the new recall.' Wurster declined to say who was contributing until the checks are cashed, partly 'so Adams doesn’t have a chance to go back behind and undermine commitments.'"

Methodist Minister Comes Out to His Congregation as Transgender

Reverend David Weekley of the Epworth United Methodist Church in southeast Portland, Oregon, took a big step on Sunday:

"Just months after telling his own children that he was not their biological father, Weekley, who is in his late-50s, came out to his congregation of 221 members. Standing behind his pulpit, Weekley began his usual worship service. About halfway through, he paused to share a personal message he called 'My Book Report.' He told them that in 1984, just nine years after undergoing extensive sex-reassignment surgeries, he was ordained by the Methodist Church without telling anyone of his original gender at birth. Following his story, the congregation, who had remained silent throughout his talk, broke into thunderous applause. Church members then proclaimed their support for their pastor.' It doesn’t change him; he’s still Reverend David, and that’s what counts,' says congregation member Robbie Tsuboi, who has been attending Epworth since 1964."

Weekley has been married to his wife Deborah for 13 years and has served as a clergyman for 27.

Oregon Transgender Mayor Stu Rasmussen Censured for Mini-Skirt

Silverton, Oregon's transgender mayor Stu Rasmussen was censured by the City Council 4-3 for wearing a mini-skirt while speaking to a group of children.

On Friday, I posted a segment from FOX News commentator Bill O'Reilly's take on this story.

It was a rare criticism of the highly popular mayor, which came after a parent of one of the children filed a complaint: "The City Council found the public complaint to be founded and publicly reprimanded the mayor by censuring him, which basically means they officially disapproved of his outfit."

Watch coverage from local station KATU, AFTER THE JUMP...

Lesbian Couple Encounters Discrimination at Oregon Catfish Derby

Note: above photo for illustration purposes only, via Daily Mail.

A lesbian couple attending a catfish derby in Huntington Oregon says the local Lions Club violated anti-discrimination laws when it wouldn't charge them a couples discount, Lambda Legal reports:

"On May 22, Angela and Tina Corriere-Gooch attended [the] derby with their family. As the group approached the registration area that evening, a club representative explained that the event pricing included a discount for couples and added, 'but none of this boy-boy, girl-girl couples crap.' When another man in the room suggested that Angela and Tina should be given the discount if they could document their relationship status, the club representative stated that this is how the club has "always done it," and that the club had no intention of changing its policy. Adding insult to injury, the Corriere-Gooches’ young nieces and their boyfriends were given the "couples" discount, while Angela and Tina both were charged the full admission price. 'It’s insulting and degrading that the club treated us like strangers, instead of recognizing our committed relationship,' said Tina Corriere-Gooch."

According to the Baker City Herald, "Mike Raney of Huntington, a Lions Club member and chairman of the catfish derby, said his decision to deny the $1 couples discount to the Corriere-Gooches had nothing to do with their sexual orientation. 'I wasn’t making any statement against lesbians, I’ll tell you that right now,' Raney said Friday morning. 'I have nothing against them at all. I was just trying to run a catfish derby.' Raney said he refused to give the couple the discount because he figured that if he did so he would have to extend the same offer to other pairs of anglers of the same gender, regardless of their sexual orientation. Raney said he will write an apology letter to the Corriere-Gooches. "