News: Mr. Blackwell, Iran, Jesse Metcalfe, Wii, Dykes on Bikes

Iran claims video of aggressive action toward American ships is U.S. fabrication: "The US has released grainy footage, apparently showing small boats speeding near the American warships. In an audio recording, an Iranian radio operator appears to say 'I am coming at you; you will explode'. The Iranian parliamentary speaker has dismissed the affair as being part of a US propaganda campaign against Tehran."

NSA report confirms Vietnam "Gulf of Tonkin" episode never happened. (via americablog)

Mr. Blackwell releases annual worst-dressed list. The winner? "Forget the fashion spice - wearing a skirt would suffice! In one skinny-mini monstrosity after another, pouty posh can really wreck-em." See who else made it.

Out writer Josh Kilmer-Purcell starts "Phags for Phelps" site after striking up email correspondence with Shirley Phelps-Roper: "I've long believed that the more chances America gets to see blatantly ugly homophobia in action, the better it is for the GLBT community. To quote Supreme Court Justice Brandeis: 'Sunshine is the best disinfectant.' Half humorously, half seriously, (as in everything I do) I suggested in my recent OUT column that gays and lesbians start a 'Phags 4 Phelps Dephense Phund.' Fred Phelps, if you don't know who he is, is the patriarch of a one-family-band of hate called the 'Westboro Baptist Church.'..I honestly think that the more America sees this ugly hatred, the more they shy away from it. So I suggested starting the "Phags 4 Phelps Dephense Phund" to keep them away from bankruptcy and out on the streets where they belong."

Parkinson's Disease linked to exposure to common solvent.

Madonna, Guy tour the slums of Mumbai.

Youths arrested for alleged anti-gay attack on December 5 on the Washington Metro say they targeted victim because he was drunk, not because of his sexuality.

Queen Elizabeth loves Wii bowling: "A Palace source told The People: 'When she saw William playing a game after lunch at Sandringham she thought the Nintendo looked tremendous fun and begged to join in. She played a simple ten-pin bowling game and by all accounts was a natural. It was hilarious. William was in fits of laughter. He was enormously impressed at having such a cool gran. And although she is 81 the Queen's hand-eye co-ordination was as good as somebody half her age.'"

Jesse Metcalfe's Hollywood hair-cut.

Anti-gay Pastor Ken Hutcherson has reportedly initiated the Microsoft stock-buying scheme I posted about in November: "It's unclear what effect, if any, the initiative could have on the stock price. It would be difficult to influence company direction -- just to gain a 1 percent stake in Microsoft, about 31 million people would each have to spend $104 to buy three shares. Microsoft has about 9.36 billion outstanding shares, and its largest holder is Chairman Bill Gates, with 858 million shares, or 9 percent of the total. Capital Research and Management Co. follows with nearly 557 million shares, or 6 percent."

Scientists float new global warming weapon: super-hairy soya plants.

Court rules that "Dykes on Bikes" can keep their name.

Genre takes on the cheekbones of Michael Lucas: "I am very proud that Genre chose me to be on their cover, as national consumer magazines—even if they are gay—tend to shy away from putting members of the adult community front and center."

Wonkette has a chat with former Gawker editor Choire Sicha about the New Hampshire primaries and which Romneys might be worth molesting: "Josh. Josh is the hottest thing since bacon was invented."

Kentucky gay rights groups thumb noses at one another: "The general advisory council of the Kentucky Equality Federation has approved a resolution not to be aligned with the Kentucky Fairness Alliance. Jordan Palmer, president of the federation, released a copy of his group's resolution noting the break. It said the group 'has received many reports from federation management and affiliated organizations about difficulties in working with current leadership of the Kentucky Fairness Alliance and particularly its chief spokeswoman, Christina Gilgor.' It added, 'It is obvious that the Kentucky Fairness Alliance, through its current executive director, is alienating many members of the Kentucky Equality Federation and its affiliated organizations and thus becoming less of an effective force in lobbying and working for improvement of gay rights in the Commonwealth of Kentucky.'"

Simon Cowell sheds some of his moobs.

News: Burma Monks, Ryan Idol, Bloc Party, Swastika, Janet Reno

Study: Lack of sleep doubles heart disease death risk.

Flower power: cache of new species discovered in "Green Corridor" of Vietnam. "Scientists have discovered 11 new species of plants and animals in Vietnam, including a snake, two butterflies and five orchid varieties, the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF) said Wednesday."

Protest turns violent as Buddhist monks take to the streets in Burma.

Bravo's Andy Cohen checks in with porn legend Ryan Idol, who is about to take the stage as a bathhouse patron in Terrence McNally's The Ritz on Broadway: "I'm focusing on my career right now. I'm 41 and I have that deep desire to have genuine affections for people, whether male or female. Love has different degrees, from genuine affection to the unattainable thing we aspire to of absolute love. It doesn't come often but if you don't have other elements in your life in place you can't have love, so that's why I am focusing on my career. Don't go looking for it, I always say, it will find you when you least expect it."

Fury at Colorado State University over F**k Bush editorial.

Bloc Party frontman Kele Okereke says the band's next record will be more introspective: "I think with this third record, its very much going to be a record about interior spaces. If 'Weekend In the City' was me complaining about going out and getting f***ed up, I think this is going to be a very intimate record about staying in and discovering aspects of yourself. And not in a grown-up, Coldplay/Snow Patrol way. "[It's to be about] human relationships, on a real kind of primal level. What it means to feel desire and what it means to actually feel close to someone, or what it feels to feel lament -- the passing of closeness between people. It's very much going to be a record about internal relationships."

Swastika discovered in New Jersey cornfield: "Investigators found that the most recent swastika appeared to have been hand-cut and covered an area of several acres. 'This should be in the past, and we should have learned from our mistakes, and to bring up something that brings back such awful memories, I think, is disgusting,' said Joe Pica, whose property is one of many that border the fields."

The big H's take the Big Apple: Jennifer Hudson arrives on set for Sex and the City movie. Whitney Houston hails a comeback...

Kevin Spacey meets with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez: "Neither Spacey...nor Chavez spoke to the press after the nearly three-hour encounter in the presidential palace in Caracas. They shook hands warmly on the red carpet as Spacey left after a dinner with Chavez...Chavez has said Venezuela hopes to produce its own films as an alternative to the "cultural imperialism" of Hollywood. Yet, Chavez speaks highly of some Hollywood films. He has also hosted recent visits by stars including Sean Penn and Danny Glover." (video)

New York City comptroller William Thompson tests the gay waters at mayoral fundraiser.

Janet Reno executive producer on three-disc anthology of music hailing America's history.

Bush Ends Vietnam Trip with Harry Potter Pageant

Late last week, using the site of America's last failed war as a backdrop, George Bush referred to the war in Iraq adopting Henry Kissinger's well-known posture about the U.S. war with Vietnam, saying "We’ll succeed unless we quit."

Unfortunately, Kissinger declared an Iraq military victory impossible in an interview on Sunday, thus inspiring Bush to persuade world leaders to dress up as wizards in hopes that a spell might magically turn things around.

Actually, the dress-up day is a tradition for the APEC summit, where world leaders don traditional garb from the host country, in this case the ao dai, normally reserved for wedding dresses and schoolgirl uniforms.

Still, our dear leader appears a bit flummoxed by the pageant choreography. Of course, "playing well with others" has never been one of Mr. Bush's strong points.