* Social conservatives are losing the battle on condoms: “A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine showed that consistent condom use protects against human papillomavirus, or HPV. It is also a problem for some social conservatives, who have relied on uncertainty about HPV and condoms to disparage the notion of ‘safer sex’ and to promote abstinence until marriage as the only responsible way to prevent sexually transmitted diseases.” [via Slate]

* Why is Oscar-winner Hilary Swank divorcing her husband, Chad Lowe? She didn’t really like it when he was busy getting high all the time.

* Babs in Peril?: “Barbara Streisand may be starting to wish her last ‘farewell tour’ six years ago truly was her swan song. Sales for her upcoming gigs, which begin in October, have been disappointing, according to a top music industry source, who says fans are resisting ticket prices as high as $800, not including service fees. Streisand’s tour manager says those rumors are “bull[youknowwhat].”

* The big gay party in Manhattan that you didn’t get invited to.

* Rush Limbaugh won’t be charged for the illegal bottle of Viagra pills confiscated from his baggage at Palm Beach International Airport. Personally, we think those Viagra pills were very optimistic, wishful thinking. I mean, who would stoop that low?

* Kenneth Lay, the former CEO of Enron, died today of a heart attack at the age of 64. That or Kenny has arranged for somebody who looks like him to be injected with potassium chloride, thereby inducing myocardial infarction, and then hopped a jet for Bora Bora, never to be seen again. You never know with Ken Lay.

* Reggae concert in Britain cancelled due to artist’s homophobic lyrics: “A concert by Jamaican reggae artist Buju Banton has been canceled following protests by the local gay community, the British venue said. Banton, whose lyrics have been described as homophobic, was due to play later on Wednesday at the Concorde 2 venue in the southern English seaside resort of Brighton, considered to be Britain’s “gay capital.”