Word on the street is that police in NYC, San Francisco, and Washington D.C. are cracking down on sex workers by declaring certain areas "prostitute free zones," arresting suspected offenders, and then using the fact that a woman is carrying two or more condoms as proof that they're turning tricks.
Since when is carrying a few -- or a hundred -- condoms against the law? And what do these raids do but encourage sex workers to hit the streets without protection in hopes of having one less strike against them should they be arrested -- in a cities where, as Womensrights.change.org points out, there are rampant HIV/AIDS problem?
> President Obama has named a transgender appointee to the Commerce Department: Amanda Simpson, a former test pilot and National Center for Transgender Equality boardmember. The new senior technical advisor and the Democratic party are both a little reluctant to claim she is for sure the first transgender person to hold a federal government appointment, but she's certainly close to it. "I
hope that I will soon be one of hundreds, and that this appointment opens
future opportunities for many others," she said.
> In what was definitely a first, a gay sex scene was shown on daytime TV. One Life to Live characters Kyle and Fish, popularly known by the cutesy mashup "Kish," got down to business Wednesday afternoon.
> Playgirl may not have secured any scandalous Tiger Woods photos but Vanity Fair sure did -- he's lifting weights shirtless on the cover of the forthcoming February issue. The shots -- "raw," as they call it in the industry -- were done by Annie Leibovitz before that whole sex, SUVs, and fire hydrants thing.
It must be said that for all the setbacks and disappointments we face day after day, election after election, year after year, sometimes we actually do manage to score a victory or two. In the last week Texas and Nevada both just gave you some new reasons to head West, young men (and women and people who would rather not/do not conform to either gender): Houston, Texas: City controller -- and lesbian -- Annise Parker (above) beat former city attorney Gene Locke in the city's mayoral race, making Houston the largest city in the United States with a queer person presiding over city hall. “Tonight the voters of Houston have opened the door to
history,” Parker said. “I acknowledge
that. I embrace that. I know what this win means to many of us who
never thought we could achieve high office.” Chuck Wolfe, president of the Victory Fund which backed Parker, added, "This is an important milestone
for our country, but it's equally important to know voters in Houston
chose Annise even after a flurry of antigay campaigns designed to
divide and distract voters. This time the extremists
failed. Houstonians rejected their tactics and voted for the most
experienced and competent candidate to lead this city forward."
Nevada: The Nevada board of health has ruled that brothels in the state are now legally allowed to employ male prostitutes. Under an old law men were prohibited from providing legal sex work because they could not undergo cervical testing for STDs -- a requirement by the state. So, Bobbi Davis, who runs the Shady Lady Ranch, challenged the law in order to add men to her brothel's roster. Women and gay men will be able to visit the Ranch beginning in January to request the services of male prostitutes. The Advocate reports that "George Flint, a lobbyist for the Nevada
Brothel Owners Association, said he 'reluctantly' agreed to the change
because he couldn't oppose regulation for one gender and not the other."
For more information on these stories and more, head to Advocate.com.
George Michael recently opened up to The Guardian for a no holds barred interview. And when we say no holds barred, we mean it. It's like the journalist slipped a jigger of sodium pentothal into the pop star's tea before switching on the tape recorder. We're jealous it wasn't us -- and we love it. Here are the best bits:
On smoking pot: In the bad old days, he reckons he was smoking around 25 spliffs a day,
and was worried he'd do permanent damage to his voice. "I probably do
about seven or eight a day now [he says]."
On what he's working on these days: "I've got some great stuff, and I don't know whether I should
release it or hold on to it. It uses my supposed infamy on my own
terms." Tell me more [asks the Guardian]. "I can't." The tiniest hint? "I can't tell you.
Let's just say my foreseeable future in musical terms is fairly
schizophrenic." What kind of music is it? "Can't tell you."
On being caught slumped behind the wheel: "For all the doctored pictures, every single breathalyser test I've
taken in my life has read 0.0, and I've never failed a sobriety test."
He stops. "I always preface this with, 'I deserved to lose my licence,
I needed to lose my licence.' " Yes, he had taken drugs, but
he was not stoned. "I had a problem with sleeping pills for about a
year and a half, and I fucked up really badly. I got in the car twice
when I'd forgotten I'd already downed something to try to get me to
sleep. It doesn't matter that it wasn't deliberate -- ultimately, I did
it a second time, and I could have killed somebody. But the fact
remains I was never accused of driving under the influence. I got done
for exhaustion and sleeping pills."
On smoking crack: Is he smoking crack? "No." Has he ever? "No!" He starts again.
"I mean, I've done different things at different times that I shouldn't
have done, once or twice, you know." I say I'd hate to think of him on
crack. "Of course. Of course. Nobody wants to regularly smoke
crack." I'm feeling more parental by the second. It's hard not to worry
about Michael – for all his paranoia, recklessness and self-absorption,
he exudes intelligence, warmth and generosity. "Look me in the eye,"
I say. "Were you smoking crack?"
"Was I? On that occasion? Yeah."
"When was the last time you smoked it?"
"I'm
not going to tell you that. But I am going to tell you, whatever I do,
I did 105 really good performances, and none of my musicians can ever
say they've seen me wasted."
On cruising: "The handful of times a year it's bloody warm enough, I'll do it. I'll
do it on a nice summer even–ing. Quite often there are campfires up
there. It's a much nicer place to get some quick and honest sex than
standing in a bar, E'd off your tits shouting at somebody and hoping
they want the same thing as you do in bed. DyaknowhatImean?"
To read the full interview -- and trust us, you want to -- head here.
George Michael's new live DVD, George Michael: Live in London, is in stores tomorrow.
Remember the 90s? Remember that barking German band Rammstein? They had that crunchy, metallic hit single called “Du Hast?” (see above). Seemed kinda homo and horny in that “latex bodysuit night at the gay bar” way? Not ringing a bell? Well, let’s just say that you do remember them. Even fondly. You’ll be happy to know that they didn’t disband after that one taste of American success. They just went back to Germany and got even nastier. And “Liebe Ist Fur Alle Da,” their forthcoming CD, will available in an attractive limited edition metal box set, one that features a pair of handcuffs, some lube and six pink dildos molded on the band members’ own Euro-penises (sizes vary). There’s also some music in there somewhere.
The never-making-it-through-airport-security holiday gift is both a happy shout-out to what we think of when backroom-bar-having cities like Berlin come to mind and a nod to rock history’s favorite cheerleader, Cynthia Plaster Caster, the artist who made a career out of arousing rock stars like Jimi Hendrix by any means necessary and immortalizing the resulting boners as sculpture.
Sometimes there's nothing like a little soft-core porn to brighten up a rainy Wednesday afternoon. Even if it's not raining wherever you are, you can still enjoy our new slideshow of images from Craig Seymour's photo-travelogue, American Boys, which chronicles the
writer/photographer's adventures in gay strip clubs
across the country from 2006 to 2009. The book features adult film stars
including Brent Corrigan, Blake Riley, Cameron Marshall, and Austin
Wilde shot in clubs like XL (Providence, RI), Nob Hill (San Francisco,
CA), Splash (New York, NY), Mr. Black (New York, NY), and Spin
(Chicago, IL).
Don’t be fooled. While those looking for men in skivvies won’t be disappointed, there’s a lot more to this artful, minimal blog. A showcase for photos pilfered from all over the place, the site presents images without text.
Context or no, the images -- whether they are candid shots of straight boys mooning guests at a party, a boxer weighing in naked before a fight, or a photo of the gay hanky code as posted in an S.F. leather shop circa 1979 -- are all compelling in their ability to amuse, arouse, remind, or inspire.
The best part? A new set (admittedly one or two often repeat) appears every time you refresh. Bookmark this time waster now.
My grandfather, God bless his soul, used to complain that our society had become so filthy it was no longer safe for him to leave his home. He'd stay in his La-Z-Boy recliner and watch old spaghetti Westerns where the most action he could possibly encounter was maybe a cowboy smooching his horse.
I thought of my grandpa today when I read an article on Metro.co.uk about a British man who is outraged that his children have been subjected to a "pornographic" candy wrapper. It seems Haribo's MAOAM packaging features a lemon and a lime "locked" in what Mr. Simpkins of Pontefract, West Yorkshire, refers to as "a carnal
encounter." He added, "The lime, who I assume to be the gentleman in this coupling, has a particularly lurid expression on his face." Don't be so quick to throw around genders, Simpy -- that lemon has got a hell of a lot of stubble on its face.
The father of two claims his wife was so distressed (undersexed?) that upon seeing the wrapper she had to sit down in the car park. Haribo responded to the complaint by saying the "fun" packaging was introduced in Germany in 2002 and countered that "The jovial MAOAM man is very popular with fans, both young and old." And you can add Popnography to that list -- we love fruit. And fruit engaging in lewd acts? All the better.
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The post-gay coming out interview