Uruguay Gay Adoption in Question Over Vague Language

Celebration over Uruguay's so-called legalization of gay adoption has been short-lived:

"With the law awaiting President Tabare Vazquez's signature, gay rights groups have been celebrating the prospect that Uruguay could become the first country in Latin America to give gay and lesbian couples the opportunity to adopt. But nowhere in the law does it specifically say that homosexual couples have a right to adopt. And in some places, it suggests otherwise — for example by specifying how the child should take a mother and father's surnames. Lawyers, judges and even the law's own authors now have doubts about how the law will be applied."

"Deputy Margarita Percovich, who wrote the law, acknowledged that it doesn't directly mention same-sex adoptions, but said it would enable them because gays and lesbians already can legally form civil unions, and 'the law enables couples in civil unions to adopt children without impediment.' But Attorney Juan A. Ramirez, an expert in civil rights law, told the leading newspaper El Pais that judges still won't be able to approve same-sex adoptions, because this intent isn't explicitly described in the law. 'Any objective interpretation of the law would conclude that either they forgot to mention that gay couples can adopt, or they didn't want to mention it. They didn't want to take the bull by the horns and resolve it clearly — they left it undefined,' he said."

The judges association says it is planning to meet to figure out how to resove the doubts. Stay tuned...

Uruguay Makes it Official: Adoption by Gays and Lesbians Approved

The Senate in Uruguay yesterday approved a bill passed by the Chamber of Representatives in late August legalizing adoption by gays and lesbians:

"Members of Congress said the law made Uruguay the first Latin American country to permit gay couples to adopt. The measure, which will now go to President Tabaré Vázquez for his signature, will also for the first time allow unmarried couples to adopt....Gay people are allowed to adopt under Uruguayan law, but only as individuals rather than jointly as a couple. Gay marriage remains illegal. The Parliament in Uruguay, a small South American nation with a secular state structure, passed a law in late 2007 to permit gay couples to have civil unions, which grant similar rights as marriage. Earlier this year the center-left government also lifted a ban on gay people serving in the armed forces."

Church leaders in the mostly Roman Catholic nation spewed the usual bigoted crap about families and society being destroyed.

Uruguay Set to Legalize Gay Adoption

Uruguay may soon be the first South American nation to allow adoption by gay and lesbian couples. One chamber of its government approved a bill yesterday:

"Despite opposition from Uruguay's Roman Catholic Church and some of the political opposition, the 99-seat Chamber or Representatives on Thursday passed the bill 40-13, with the remaining members absent. It goes next to the Senate, which approved an earlier version of the bill in July but must now vote again on modifications. If it becomes law, Uruguay would be the first country in Latin American to allow adoption by gay and lesbian couples."

AFP reports: "Uruguay, a nation of some 3.5 million people, now moves another step away from its more conservative neighbors after having already authorized civil unions for homosexuals last year...The ruling leftist Frente Amplio coalition has a majority in parliament and had been expected to push the measure through. Tabare Vazquez, the first leftist president in Uruguayan history, already opened access for homosexuals to military schools in May...The senate was due to vote on the measure before September 15, the end of a legislative period which was brought forward ahead of presidential elections in October. Lawmakers said it would be approved before the deadline."

News: Gwen Araujo, Uruguay, Anton Yelchin, Madonna, New Zealand

Neil Patrick Harris to host Tony Awards.

Court upholds convictions in Gwen Araujo murder case.

Madonna gets frisky at MET gala.

One of People's Sexiest Men Alive 2003 tag-teamed by a gay escort and a dominatrix?

Pro-gay judge Carlos Moreno added to Obama Supreme Court justice shortlist.

Uruguay to lift military gay ban: "The defense ministry confirms that Minister Jose Bayardi has signed a decree lifting the ban imposed by the 1973-85 military dictatorship. The army said Wednesday it has received the decree, which has yet to be signed by President Tabare Vazquez."

Court: Florida must recognize adoptions by same-sex couples granted in other states.

Bill O'Reilly on same-sex marriage in 2002: "Look, I couldn't care less, to tell you the truth.... You want to get married? Knock yourself out. Go to Vegas. Have a good time. If you can get that changed, I'm not going to jump up and down and say I think it's wrong, because I don't."

NOM telling its minions to vote "no" on New Jersey lawmaker's marriage equality poll. Vote yes.

Star Trek's new Pavel Chekov gets a Vman profile.

Equality California opens Inland-area office: "Equality California is also adding field-organizing offices in Fresno, San Diego, Orange County and Sacramento, and hopes to open one in Palm Springs. It now has locations only in San Francisco and Los Angeles, along with a legislative office in Sacramento. The number of staff members who will focus entirely or primarily on marriage-related issues will skyrocket from 2 to 25 people."

British Apprentice contestants rebrand seaside town of Margate into gay resort destination.

Man saves kangaroo from shark-infested ocean. Surgeon saves frog from lawn mower!

Auckland, New Zealand police looking for man deliberately infecting young men with HIV: "He targets young and vulnerable guys. He makes them feel special and tells them that he loves them. They feel they love him. They become besotted with him. He develops a grip on them. He cuts them off from their family and friends." 

Mariah Carey as a frump.

Christopher Hitchens on Wanda Sykes' White House Correspondents Dinner performance: "The president should be squirming in his seat. Not smiling. The black dyke got it wrong. No one told her the rules."

Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation unveils gay-inclusive ad campaign: “Dear guys who like guys and girls who like girls ... We’re into that in Philly. In fact, we have a place affectionately referred to as the Gayborhood. Heck, our street signs even shout, ‘We love everyone — gay, straight and not exactly sure.’ So come hang out with us and bring your favorite guy or girl. It’ll be fabulous.”

$10,000: Carson Kressley unfairly targeted for appearance fee at Australian bushfire charity event?

EW: Ryan Seacrest, end your gay-baiting banter. "This season, however, has been mercifully light on ''Ewww! You're a homo!'' back-and-forth. That is, until (Tuesday) night, when during a discussion of Danny Gokey's boogie moves, Ryan tried to score a laugh by declaring, 'I love it when Simon criticizes dancing. Randy, we've seen [Simon] dance in Vegas in those heels he wears. Not really a lot of rhythm.' Really, Ryan? In 2009, you're still courting Emmy nominations as Best Reality-Show host by using tired cross-dressing barbs"

Gay Wedding in Uruguay a First for Latin America

On Thursday, Adrian Figuera, 38, and actor and theater director Juan Carlos Moretti, 67, were married in Montevideo, Uruguay in Latin America's first same-sex wedding.

Agence France Presse reports: "Moretti later told AFP that after living together for 14 years, he and Figuera thought their marriage was 'a matter of justice and a step forward for Uruguayan society.' The so-called 'cohabitation union law' went into effect on January 1, allowing heterosexual and homosexual couples living together for at least five years to receive the same legal rights and benefits that traditional marriage bestows."

Last December, Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez signed Latin America's first nationwide same-sex civil union law. It went into effect on January 1.

News: Newark, Spencer Pratt, Chicago, Charlie Crist, Uruguay

Following the murders of two gay black men on Chicago's south side in the past month, authorities are wondering if a serial killer may be responsible: "On November 17, 24-year-old Larry Bland was shot to death in his Englewood home. Bland, a security guard at Northwestern Hospital was shot more than once after struggling with a man who had entered the house through an unlocked basement door. Then on December 23, 47-year-old Donald Young, the choir director at Trinity United Church of Christ, was shot multiple times in his South Side apartment. His roommate found his body."

Spencer Pratt of The Hills turns down offer from Michael Lucas to appear in gay porn movie. Lucas: "He was born to be in a gay-porn blockbuster. Lucas Entertainment would do anything to be able to center our next major all-male production on Spencer Pratt."

Will Smith apologizes for Hitler remarks.

Harassment of gay teen prompts uproar, petition, review of policies at Pennsylvania high school: "Few days went by without his being punched, kicked or tripped by classmates at Susquehanna Twp. High School in Dauphin County. The teenager, an openly gay boy described by friends as kind and compassionate, said he was constantly harassed, though he never reported it to anyone, not even his friends. Finally, when classmates told him to 'go kill himself' to "make the world a better place," the teen decided he'd had enough. He said he left school in the middle of his senior year because he could no longer bear the torment."

GREEN: Times Square New Year's Eve ball converted to energy-saving LEDs.

Thomas Morgan III, former president of the National Association of Black Journalists and reporter and editor at the New York Times, dies at 56 of AIDS-related complications.

Madonna to make directorial debut with Filth and Wisdom at the Berlin International Film Festival in February.

Southwest Airlines makes attempt to land in gay market, misses runway?

Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez signs first nationwide same-sex civil union law in Latin America.

Florida Governor Charlie Crist "not moved" to support Florida marriage amendment. Perhaps too much "moving" might rattle a few skeletons out of the closet.

"Homosexuality is a human condition": Mayor of Rome criticizes Catholic political leader Dr. Paola Binetti for resisting legislation that would bar discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

Do you believe: Chastity Bono and Cher developing reality show to help gays come out of the closet.

Mr. Cellophane: turns out that the reason Michael Jackson was so bandaged up the other week was because his five-year-old son accidentally smacked him in the face and his (plastic) upper lip collapsed.

Newark, New Jersey gay voguing balls finding a new place in the city's culture: " The city's gay ball subculture -- in which men and women compete in rituals of posing and runway walking, sometimes as the opposite gender -- is earning a place for itself in civic life, with outreach efforts and charity drives. And nowhere is that more surprising than in Newark, a city with no openly gay nightlife, where the 4-year-old murder of 15-year-old lesbian Sakia Gunn, killed for rejecting a man's advances, is still invoked as a symbol of intolerance. The houses, which have a combined membership of more than 100, are now touted by politicians as a significant force in the fight against AIDS and discrimination."

Hilton sisters get lump of coal from grandpa.

Oregon's same-sex couples eagerly await the new year and its new benefits.

David Beckham flattered: "I'm very honoured to have the tag of gay icon. Maybe it's things like (the fact) I like to look after myself, I like to look smart and presentable most of the time."