A Tea Bagger-Do You Know What it Means??Do They?? It Means MSMT

At first, the June cover of Men's Health seems par for the course for a magazine that aims to stoke male anxieties about physical perfection to sell products to men the same way that the beauty industry has done to women for decades: a half-naked man in ridiculously good shape, staring at the camera with eyes that dare you to look with awe, envy, and not just a little sexual interest. But if you look at the headline, the image becomes shocking. The man with the sort of abs that The Situation would kill for isn't just some male model or athlete, but a Republican congressman from Illinois, Aaron Schock.

It's a choice that suggests that the congressman intends to live up to his name. It seems incongruous for him to pose half-naked – not just because of his office, but because of his track record as an outspoken opponent of gay rights and an enemy of sexual liberation who voted to defund Planned Parenthood. Schock is constantly beating back Beltway rumours that he's gay that spring up every time he shows up half-naked in public or wears turquoise belts with white jeans, a situation that would cause most people to rethink behaving in ways commonly associated with homoeroticism in public spaces.

But that's because we don't hail from rightwing America. For most Americans, there's a tipping point where preening displays of masculinity get so overt and stereotypical that they stop being intimidating and/or boorish and move into the territory of erotically charged camp. In 2011, most Americans get that the members of the Village People were not actually policemen and construction workers. Unfortunately, though, since that announcement wasn't made on "The 700 Club" with Pat Robertson, this kind of basic knowledge hasn't filtered into many corners of conservative America. The results have been embarrassing, such as when early Tea Party activists started calling themselves "teabaggers" – completely unaware that the word was slang for men who enjoy sucking on other men's testicles.

In many irony-devoid rightwing circles, there is no such thing as too outlandish a display of masculinity, and the very idea that such a thing might invite a gaze that sexualises – and therefore feminises – the peacocking man seems to have passed notice. There's an almost touching earnestness to rightwing enthusiasms for big trucks, uniforms and hot, muscular naked men showing off their manly powers.

Or it would be touching if this unquestioned enthusiasm for virility didn't have a darkness to it.

Unfortunately, the right's obsession with masculinity, and the fear that if they aren't constantly shoring it up and attacking the feminine, they might grow soft, has very real effects. Many, maybe most of America's problems go back to this manlier-than-thou attitude on the right. Wars are started. Women's basic human rights are denied. Gays are bashed. The main slurs against Democrats are about how they're feminine, childish or weak for doing things like thinking through important decisions before making them or caring about the environment. Even fights over the budget become masculinity displays, with Paul Ryan casting people who use the social safety net living "lives of complacency and dependency" – all the while, portraying himself as a tough guy with his own hefty workout routine.

Take one of the more amusing-but-horrifying examples of unironic, unself-aware masculinity worship on the right, captured by Right Wing Watch. Christian right ministers and activists Tony Perkins, Rick Joyner, Jerry Boykin, and Frank Turek put out a video where they likened themselves to the ancient Spartans beating off the Persians (in the military sense, not in the probably-going-to-be-double-entrendre-in-Lady-Gaga-lyrics-soon sense). They then announced a coalition of Christian activists called "300", after the recent comic book film that took heavy liberties with actual history, but had enough muscular man-flesh to fill the fantasy life for years of a thoroughly Christian, totally heterosexual rightwing activist. In our eyes, they may be sweater-wearing, soft-handed men who spend most of the day in leather chairs, but under that exterior beats the heart of ancient Greek men who favour hard grounds and camaraderie with other half-dressed naked warriors.

Unsurprisingly, one of the biggest enemies these Christian warriors are mentally undressing and oiling up to fight is the gay rights movement. Perkins even testified in Congress against Elena Kagan's appointment to the US supreme court, invoking her supposed desire to foist "the sexual counter culture" on the military by repealing Don't Ask Don't Tell.

For all the posturing about toughness, the most salient aspect of this rightwing, over-the-top masculinity is how fragile it really is. The list of subversive threats that will topple redblooded American masculinity is mind-bogglingly long – and grows longer every day. A small sample: gay rights, women's rights, reedy college professors teaching your kids non-propagandistic history, religious diversity, Democrats (especially of the non-white male variety) holding high office, responding to international tension with any tool other than invading a Muslim country, a social safety net that's perceived as making it easier for women to avoid dependence on men … the list goes on.

Some days, you get the feeling that the American masculinity worshipped by those on the right could disappear if you blow on it too hard. And frankly, that would probably be for the best. Maybe then, we could move into a future where we look at each other as human beings, instead of gender caricatures.

Amanda Marcotte
Guardian...

http://www.actup.org

GLBT Athletes in Our Localities Finding it Difficult to Come Out

By JIM BRANSFIELD

                                                 Press Correspondent

Photo by outsports.com   Editor’s note: 

Full names are being withheld to protect the students. First names have been changed at the request of some who would only speak on condition of anonymity. Some schools are referred to as area schools to further protect the identity of the students interviewed.

MIDDLETOWN — In an age of progress in the fight for full equality for gay and lesbian citizens, it is not unusual to see openly gay students in high schools.

But for many teenagers, coming out remains a step fraught with worry. This is especially true for student-athletes, and many say the sports culture is the last frontier to be crossed, even in a progressive state like Connecticut.

“I think it’s easier for female student-athletes to come out,” said Trevor Charles, the head coach of girls and boys swimming and Ultimate Frisbee at Middletown High School and the adviser of the school’s 10-year old Gay-Straight Student Alliance. “For boys, there’s that macho-thing about sports and it’s just very tough. Still, I’ve had and I have gay and lesbian kids on all my teams.”

There were gay kids on the teams Charles was on at MHS when he was a student there, he said.

“I’ve had kids come out to me, I’ve had kids that I knew were gay, but it was never openly acknowledged and with some, I honestly knew before they did,” Charles said.

At the professional level, few athletes have come out, although many pro athletes acknowledge that they played with and against gay athletes. Former gay Major League umpire Dave Pallone, in his book “Behind the Mask,” talked of encounters with pro baseball players, but the code of the locker room was not to talk about it.

Studies show that high school students often stay in the closet because of the fear of losing friends or family. Teens who came out to parents have been thrown out, and some have resolved to harming themselves.

In a study done by the Department of Health and Human Services in 1989 under the administration of President George H.W. Bush, it was estimated that 30 percent of teen suicides were gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgendered kids.

Mary*, a 17-year-old Middletown High athlete who self-identified as a lesbian in eighth grade, is out not only to her friends but also to her family and to the school population at large. A star swimmer, she is involved in two sports and plans to swim at college.

“All the girls on the team are really supportive,” she said. “They treat me as they treat any other person and I have all kinds of friends, both straight and gay. My best friend identifies as straight. It’s mostly been a non-issue.”

Mary knows she is not alone. Her current girlfriend is also an athlete at MHS and her former girlfriend is a student at Mercy.

“I know of other gay kids at other schools,” she said. “I went to Edison Magnet School and met kids from other towns. I also am active in True Colors [a statewide youth group] and I’ve met kids through that. I also belonged to the GSA my freshman and sophomore years. Through all that, I’ve met a number of gay kids, some who are athletes and some who aren’t.”

Mary said she has experienced very little real harassment, but also said, “I hear little things here and there. Early this year, one of the other teams was making jokes about my girlfriend, but that issue was taken care of.”

The teaching staff at MHS is essentially “neutral,” she said, but Charles and her freshman science teacher, Richard Pelczar, are very supportive.

“Mr. Pelczar told me he had a lot of respect for me because I was open about who I am,” she said. “But I think a lot depends on what school you go to. If I were to go to a much less diverse school than this one, I suspect it would be difficult.”

She encourages all middle schoolers, regardless of orientation, to come to Middletown High.

“I find it very accepting,” she said.

But not all agree.

Mike*, who self-identifies as gay, is on three teams at MHS and is out to his parents and family. He hears vicious insults frequently, he said.

“I got a lot of garbage last year and at the beginning of this year,” he said. “I’ve been called ‘faggot’ and other things. I went to my coaches and the captains and they were helpful.”

Mike also said he has friends he can go to, who serve as his support system.

“I love being an athlete and I love sports, so I’m willing to put up with the names because I like it so much,” he said. “I’m happy when I’m participating.”

But he thinks he might be happier somewhere else.

“I’d rather be in a different school,” he said. “It’s not very pleasant here for me.”

Mike said he has not gone to school personnel other than his coaches, and expressed reservations about the wisdom of doing so. He said he was unaware of youth support groups such as True Colors or GLSEN — the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, a group made up largely of educators dedicated to making schools safe for GLBT youth.

Middletown High has a Diversity Week each year and a number of teachers have gay-friendly rainbow stickers in their classrooms. But aside from the Gay-Straight Alliance, there is no ongoing program of assistance for GLBT youth.

“I don’t know of any other gay students in school,” Mike said. “And I don’t know of any on any teams.”

While Mike feels uncomfortable and alone at MHS, star swimmer Clayton Curran said he thinks the school and its students are very accepting.

“I have — we have — no problems at all, especially on the swim team,” said Curran, who identifies as straight. “We’re a family. Sure, I know we have had gay kids on the team, but no one cares.”

Curran was genuinely surprised to hear of the harassment suffered by Mike.

“That wouldn’t happen on the swim team,” he said.

Because of the negative effects some students’ experiences, others wait until high school is over before coming out.

Bob*, a recent graduate of an area high school and a key member of a highly successful team, said he first came out to his friends, then to his family. The experience was successful, he said, and he has support from both friends and family.

But his concerns transcended school. He predated his coming out by refusing to attend church services. He said he was tired of hearing about how he wasn’t welcome. Another former area student-athlete, now in his 40s, said, “I stopped going a long time ago. It’s clear they don’t want me.”

Tom* graduated from MHS back in the Tiger days. Now 46 and with a partner since 2000, he was a baseball player in John DeNunzio’s program.

“I’m a lot more comfortable in my own skin now than I was in high school,” he said. “Then I was confused about my sexuality, but as I reflect back on it, there was no doubt I was gay.”

Being on the baseball team and going to gym class were sometimes difficult, he said.

“There were a lot of cute guys,” Tom said. “I didn’t know how to deal with it, and I really couldn’t figure it out. As I look back on it, there were no role models, no one to learn from, no one to go to. I had to live my own life and figure it out by myself.”

He tells the story of how he and his best friend, an athlete who went to Xavier, met each other at their part-time jobs at the local Caldor department store.

“We became very good friends, but I wasn’t out to him or anyone else,” Tom said. “Then, in my senior year we were at a party at a friend’s house whose parents were away — that kind of party happened all the time — and after a couple of drinks, I came out to him. And right then, he came out to me. I didn’t know and he didn’t know. It was one of those ‘Oh My God’ moments. That’s what it was like back then.”

Another student-athlete was a big-time track star at his school in the mid-1990s. More than that, he was a school leader, and was elected to leadership positions of several major school organizations. Afraid to come out, he instead wrote an anonymous letter to his school newspaper. In it, he wrote that he “might be your teammate, I might be your class officer, I might be sitting next to you in class, I might be your friend, so be careful of what you say, you never know who you are hurting.”

After high school, he came out to his parents and had a very difficult time, he said.

Another student at an area high school reported that he has relatives who “refuse to believe me” and another who “asks me questions all the time.”

Another, now in his 50s, said that when he was a football player on one of Bill Montanile’s football teams at Woodrow Wilson High, the pressure to be straight was so powerful that he dated a girl and ended up making her pregnant. His daughter became a very good and popular student, and dad and his partner attended her graduation from high school.

“She is cool with everything,” he said. “But in high school? No way back then.”

And while Middletown High School today is more accepting of gays and transgenders, there are schools in the state for which not much has changed since the 1980s.

“There are places where it is not smart to come out,” said Amanda, a 30-year-old lesbian speaker from the Stonewall Speakers’ Bureau, a group of GLBT speakers and their allies who sent speakers to MHS for Diversity Week. “I was called all kinds of names, and there was no place for me to go.”

MHS basketball coach Dave Sytulek said he has had to address the issue of name calling in the past.

“Several years ago, we had a male cheerleader and the guys on my basketball team said things,” Sytulek said. “I stopped that immediately. I talked to them about respect for differences and acceptance.”

And acceptance is what Charles, along with his wife Nicole who teaches social studies at the school, are trying to teach.

“We have zero tolerance for that kind of stuff on my teams,” Charles said. “Maybe we’ve had bigoted kids — and I know there are some here — but I don’t hear it. Occasionally I’ll hear the line ‘That’s so gay,’ but that gets a quick turn of the head from me and that’s the end of that.”

http://middletownpress.com

George Michael: "I've let gay kids down"

George Michael has started work on a new album featuring young, unknown gay and gay-friendly artists, which he says it to make amends for his behaviour.

Michael, who came out in 1998 after being arrested in a public toilet in California, has often been the subject of tabloid fodder over his brushes with the law. He was accused of engaging in a sexual act in public in 2006, has been repeatedly arrested for possession of cannabis and last year crashed into a shop front.

In announcing a new tour and his plans for a gay collective album Michael said: "I have a serious problem with the fact that every time I made a mistake and every time I let myself down that I was letting young gay kids down."

He added "Because they would then witness the homophobia that was thrown me and the language that we use in this country.

"I like to think that life is a balance whenever there is something bad, there is something good you can do with it. I have some plans to do things to help gay children."

http://www.gaynz.com

“Prophet Of God” Beheads Woman In Tenerife Supermarket

 by Bridgette P. LaVictoire

It was reported yesterday that a man beheaded a woman at a supermarket after swiping a knife and stabbing her. He then ran out of the store carrying the head before dropping the head and being stopped by security. The victim, who was in her sixties, has not been identified, and her murderer, Deyan Valentinov, was well known to the police in Tenerife which is part of the Canary Islands.

Valentinov was 28, homeless, and apparently mentally unstable.

One witness told a local radio station “I parked my car and saw a man running out with something bloody in his hands and a security guard chasing him. He threw it to the ground, it almost hit me and what he had been carrying was a woman’s head.”

Reports in Spanish media are that Valentinov has spent time in a psychiatric hospital and that he believed himself to be a “prophet of God.” Valentinov was known for harassing people in the street, and in one case, knocking out a man’s teeth. One of the people in the area, one Christina Perez, stated “Everybody is shocked. It’s a very safe area. You can usually go anywhere you want in the day or at night. This is really not normal.”

Daily News picture

http://lezgetreal.com/

Bloomberg & Republican Donors Pour Money Into Gay Marriage

Via Shield's flickr

As part of the renewed push to legalize same-sex marriage in New York, the money that is flowing to the cause is coming from an unexpected source: Republicans. The Times reports that close to $1 million in support that has been received in recent weeks "represent some of New York's wealthiest and most politically active figures," including hedge fund manager and heavy GOP donor Paul Singer, and Mayor Bloomberg, who has already given $100,000 and traveled to Albany to make the case.

This support represents a "sea change" within the Republican party on the issue of gay rights. Some Republican donors are framing it as "an issue of basic freedom," and a spokesman for the mayor says that Bloomberg sees "Freedom" as the state's "competitive advantage." For others, such as Singer, who is the head of the staunchly conservative Manhattan Institute,the topic is a personal one: Singer's son is gay and is legally married to his partner is Massachusetts. We're still waiting for Dick Cheney to get out his checkbook.

Given that donations from Republicans represent "roughly two-thirds of the same-sex marriage coalition's fundraising," this should make it much easier to twist the necessary GOP arms in the Senate and as Governor Cuomo says, "get the votes" for the bill to pass. Next up: convincing half of New York's citizens...but don't expect any miracles convincingArchbishop Dolan.

http://gothamist.com

Lebanon: The International Day Against Homophobia

By Gaytheist, Beirut   The International Day Against Homophobia is a yearly occasion to remind the world that the fight for gay rights is not over yet. Discrimination still exists; Homosexuals fired from work, rejected by family or  beaten to death are just a few examples of what gay undergo. There has been certainly some great progress in the past few years but more is yet to be achieved. IDAHO is celebrated around the world, and Lebanon is no exception. The country might not seem like the perfect environment for gay activism, but recently there has been a lot of related buzz. A coalition of Lebanese activists have started an inspiring blog where homosexuals and their friends can share stories about how homophobia affects their daily lives. The stories are beautifully written and accompanied by creative banners crafted by local artists.  Additionally, a coalition of gay rights advocates have put up flyers in some areas of Beirut. It aimed to question people’s perception of homosexuality and get them to notice the damage caused by homophobia. The messages ranged from discrimination at the workplace, to death threats by family members and the current state of Lebanese law that criminalizes homosexuality under claims of ‘unnatural intercourse’. The campaign was well received, attracting public attention and interest on the blogsphere. Helem, a Lebanese LGBT rights NGO, is organizing an event for the occasion on the 22nd of May. It will include documentary screening and panel discussions. The main theme for this year’s event is the rejection of all forms of discrimination against LGBT individuals. Not to forget the Lebanese Laique Pride on May the 15th where a presence of gay rights activists is expected. Links:  The Lebanon IDAHO blog : http://lebidaho.wordpress.com/   Coverage of the street campaign: http://lord-gaytheist.blogspot.com/2011/05/streets-of-beirut-speaking-loud-against.html http://guymeetsworld.wordpress.com/2011/05/08/were-going-to-the-streets/   Helem's event page: http://helem.net/node/126

Acid Blinding by Iran Court Postponed After International Outcry

Ameneh Bahrami holds a photo showing herself before she was blinded with acid by Majid Movahedi. Photograph: Lluis Gene/AFP/Getty Images

Iran has postponed blinding a man with acid following an international outcry over the retributive punishment imposed after he was found guilty of doing the same to a woman who refused to marry him.

In a literal application of the sharia law of an eye for an eye, Majid Movahedi was scheduled to be rendered unconscious in Tehran's judiciary hospital today while his victim, Ameneh Bahrami, dropped acid in both his eyes.

But Iran's semi-official ISNA news agency reported that officials had postponed the sentence on Friday night and not indicated when the punishment might be carried out in future.

Bahrami, who had asked for an eye-for-an-eye retribution in a criminal court in Tehran, was not informed of the postponement.

In a highly publicised dossier in November 2008 the court ordered qisas(retribution) on Movahedi after he admitted throwing a jar of acid in his victim's face while she was returning home from work in 2004.

Bahrami, who was left blind and disfigured by the attack, told the court in 2008: "He was holding a red container in his hand. He looked into my eyes for a second and threw the contents of the red container into my face."

Movahedi was required to pay compensation. Bahrami refused to accept the "blood money" and told the court: "Inflict the same life on him that he inflicted on me."

Iranian officials have endorsed the sentence in the hope of halting an increase in the rate of acid attacks. But human rights activists have warned against an "inhumane" sentence.

"It is unbelievable that the Iranian authorities would consider implementing such a punishment," said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, deputy director of Amnesty International's Middle East and North Africa Programme.

"Regardless of how horrific the crime suffered by Ameneh Bahrami, being blinded with acid is a cruel and inhuman punishment amounting to torture and the Iranian authorities have a responsibility under international law to ensure it does not go ahead."

Since the attack Bahrami has undergone 17 operations, including an unsuccessful attempt to reconstruct her face in Spain. Her injuries led to the loss of one eye and although she recovered 40% of her sight in the remaining eye an infection in 2007 left her totally blind.

Bahrami has consistently demanded retribution for her injuries and has insisted that the punishment be carried out.

Saeed Kamali Dehghan

http://www.guardian.co.uk

Pathetic Demise of a Birther

 BY JUSTIN ELLIOTT

•  

AP

Terry Lakin

If the release of President Obama's birth certificate last month was the denouement of the birther saga, the release of Terrence Lakin from prison will be its bizarre coda.

Lakin is the veteran Army doctor who refused orders to redeploy to Afghanistan because he believed Obama was born abroad, not a legitimate president, and therefore that military orders were invalid.

Last December, Lakin, a lieutenant colonel, was dismissed from the Army and sentenced to six months in prison after, in the words of his supporters, inviting"his own court martial with the hopes that the normal processes of legal discovery would provide some answers." (The plan didn't work.)

http://www.salon.com

A new ‘Star Trek’ TV Series with Gay Characters Might Be Coming

Fan site Trek Web has picked up on rumors of a new ‘Star Trek’ TV series featuring gay characters among the intrepid Enterprisestarship crew.

The concept for the show includes two gay characters – one male principal character and another secondary female. But so far, the show’s creator at 1947 Entertainment have yet to pitch the project to CBS – the network in possession of rights to the iconic ‘Star Trek’ franchise.

If picked up, the latest series revival would attempt to recapture a style more akin to director J.J. Abrams’ approach in the most recent ‘Star Trek’ film – one that lends an edgier, more complex and fast paced feel to the series originally pioneered by creator Gene Roddenberry and starring William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy.

While the new series has both unofficial approval from Roddenberry’s estate and public endorsement from several seasoned ‘Star Trek’ alums, 1947 Entertainment is still hoping to sign an executive producer with adequate ‘Trek’ clout before pitching to CBS.

Stay tuned, LGBT trekkies! And of course…live long and prosper

Posted by LGBT Weekly