Palo Alto Highschool Peacefully Fights that fucker Phelps.

I blogged about Constance McMillen and her school's cancelling of a her prom all because she wanted to bring her girlfriend and wear a tuxedo. Well, her school and community duped her. They told her there was a prom happening at a local country club and McMillen and date and tuxedo showed up ready to party. Well, they walked in to 7 other prom-goers, 2 of which were mentally handicapped. The only reason I'm including the mentally handicapped thing is because every article I've read includes and I find that hilarious. So they're basically saying, not only are you GAY but you get to party with RETARDS. Let's be real, that's discriminatory and politically incorrect TWICE. Whatever. People can be cruel sometimes. This shows that even being on the Ellen Degeneres show doesn't guarantee you anything. Shit's RAW.

But across the country, at Gunn High school in Palo Alto, CA, something amazing happened. Westboro Baptist Church, The "God hates Fags" people, (p.s. I can't believe I googled that to get the URL and it really is godhatesfags.com. I feel dirty linking you to it, and I can't even bring myself to explore the website because I'm greeted as a"deplorable son or daughter of Adam and Eve.") decided to protest the school because in the past 6 months 4 teens have committed suicide. Apparently, this is god smiting them for their liberal thoughts and the community's acceptance of all people. OMG THAT TOTALLY MAKES SENSE. I know that the events in the past semester at Gunn High school are tragic, but they are not the beginning of the second coming and they have nothing to do with Fred Phelps and his deranged followers. In order to retaliate and show the Westboro Fools that they have no business in the Palo Alto community, the school, lead by administration leaders and teachers, discussed a plan of action. They considered not showing up, so that the Westboro Fools protested a barren school campus; but finally settled on a peaceful display of acceptance and campfire songs. As a soul born into the wrong generation (I should have been a tree hugging hippie who ran way to San Francisco instead of Iowa who still reads Beat Poets and listens to Janis Joplin) I have a soft spot for campfire songs and peaceful demonstrations. Watch the video below to see what I'm talking about:



Daisy Renazco and Noreen Likins you're pretty ok. High Schools need more teachers and principles like you. Teachers with a social conscience. So in a time of cultural set back for Human Rights in Mississippi, we can always count on California (even though I secretly hate Palo Alto because of James Franco) to have their shit together. Now if only they shit can be together in a de jure sense instead of a de facto one.

VIRAL VIDEO GAY FRIEND WEDNESDAY

For the record, I am totally not tipsy-blogging. TOTALLY NOT. And anyway, whatever the fuck if I am - it's my birthday.

Anyway, as someone who has had many, many gay friends in her life (more than admitted so at the time, for sure), I can appreciate the influence and love a "sassy gay friend" can bring to an otherwise dull and meaningless existence. My very own sassy gay friend, Chatty Kathy, shared with me a great video on my wall (KATIE DEE HAS A FACEBOOK, YOU SHOULD BE HER FRIEND) and I will now share it, as well as a video I found through its link (THANKS YOUTUBE), with all of you. You're welcoooome. The videos are a postulation of what would have happened in various literary classics if the heroines had had a "sassy gay friend" to talk them through some of their tougher moments. First, we have the video CK shared with me (of the SGF talking to Hamlet's Ophelia):



And as if that weren't great enough ("Ophelia, he stabbed your dad through a curtain.") we have the SGF talking to Juliet. I love this, because I have always thought Juliet was an idiot (and it's not just her - Romeo's a fickle asshole), and this is everything I ever wanted to say to her.



"I think you're 14, and an idiot. You took a roofie from a priest." SPEAK THE FUCKING TRUTH, SGF!

And on this holiest of days, I wish that all of you have SGF's to help you through all of life's turbulent moments.

In parting, I leave you with a spontaneous song, inspired by my birthday BECAUSE I'M TWENTY FUCKING ONE YEARS OLD:

Happy birthday to me,
I know that I'm great,
I haven't felt this good
Since I turned the big one eight;
Happy birthday to me,
I'm awesome, I know
And now I can buy alcohol
Anywhere the fuck I go!

On this, the national holiday of my birth (and, all credit for this knowledge to a tip a friend gave me, the anniversary of the death of Queen Elizabeth I - RIP RIP), I bid you all a good night, and I wish you would all have a drink in my (and the Queen's!) honor. PIP. PIP.

Side Note From CK: And I was linked to this video by The Stranger in Acadiana! THANKS TSIA!!!

MASCULINE MONDAY: Mike from the Real World

So I don't usually watch the Real World but for some reason this season I'm hooked. I think I can place some blame on CK for this one, because she enables me by watching it with me and then talking about it like it's the most fascinating thing that was ever created (let's face it, we enable each other). Anyway most of the people on it are forgettable (there's the musician chick who I hate the more she speaks, the one brunette who's kind of stupid and the one brunette who's super abrasive, the blonde one, the douchebag dude, the douchebag black dude, and Panda) but my favorite by far and the focus of today's Msquared is Mike, the bi/possibly gay guy from Colorado. He is super cute in an Abercrombie sort of way (I think he looks like Matt Damon) and he works with HRC (Human Rights Campaign for the non-gay) and he LOVES his boyfriend Connor (I believe this is his name. I don't pay enough attention. It's not like it's Jersey Shore. AKA something REALLY IMPORTANT). Anyway Mike's been grappling with his sexuality for a few years now and, in my opinion, seems to be pretty together on the show, though his roommates are constantly bugging him about how he's GAY and not BI and they can't deal with him being bi - but he sticks up for himself, and I think is fairly confident in his sexuality. Personally, I don't give a fuck if he's gay or bi, and I don't see why they're pushing it so hard. Just let him be. If he likes boys, cool. If he likes girls, cool. If he wants to make out with me, so be it.

Anyway, the reason I love him particularly today is because CK and I just watched the new episode, in which his family comes to visit and he really comes out to them in a new way - particularly his mom. Apparently his parents had been kind of encouraging Mike to keep quiet about his sexuality, which obviously made him feel like they didn't approve of/understand/accept it. So he brings his mom to meet his boss at HRC and they have lunch and talk about all the issues in the LGBT community (she didn't even know what this meant, which to me was just amusing and shocking because I can't even conceive of not knowing what LGBT means. Again for the non-gay: LGBT = Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender) including marriage and adoption, among other things. It was so sweet how hard she was trying to understand him and his new world-view, especially when they were talking about adoption. He said something about how it was illegal in many states for gay people to adopt, and her response was, "Well I still want grandchildren, so we'd better change some laws." CK and I exploded.

Mike just seems grounded, sure of himself, sweet, thoughtful, and not a character-type like many of his RW peers. PLUS he still is religious, which is not exactly my thing, but you know, he's standing up for what he believes in and isn't sacrificing his sexuality or religion one for the other. Good on you, Mike. I encourage you to make out with as many dudes as will make you (and Jesus) happy. I will watch.

Sidenote: CK- Mike's BF's name is Tanner. I know this because unlike Jersey Shore, this is important.

Arrived in Indiana a girl, left a Woman.

You GAYS! We saw Lady GaGa. We did it. Mission accomplished. Now, to tell you all about it. I don't even know where to begin. We saw her a while ago at the Purdue show she rescheduled. You can read about that disaster here. It's taken me this long to get my shit together because my mind was basically BLOWN. My brain once weighed 3 pounds and was the consistency of tofu, now, my friends, it's mashed potatoes and has lost some weight since I can't find the bits splattered on the floor of Elliot Hall of Music. Lady GaGa is the most dedicated, sincere, weird, creative, ballsy, sexual performer I have ever seen. And little do you know, Cher's first farewell tour (Living Proof.) was my very first concert. (I'm gay.)

Let's start at the very beginning, a very good place to start, when you read you begin with A-B-C, when you sing you being with Do-Re-Mi, when you talk about Lady GaGa you begin with Ro-Ma-Ma. Her opening act was a band called Semi Precious Weapons. Their job was to basically get us "wet with excitement" for Lady GaGa. Yes, that is a direct quote from the lead singer who asked to see tits, then when that didn't work some cunt, then got naked on stage for a costume change. We were berated with demeaning names ("whores," "motherfuckers") we were constantly told to shut up. I LOVED EVERY SECOND OF IT. And the best part is Jason Derulo was in Canada. One more reason Canada is under rated. Here's a picture of the Fairy Queen lead singer who is more of a man than you and more of a man than Katie Dee will ever get and one of the few men I'd probably sleep with.

So then it took her forever to get on stage. I was personally terrified it'd get cancelled again. The first time, it wasn't real until we were in the doors and our tickets weren't fakes we bought off eBay, but the real thing (that we bought off eBay). But this time, I wasn't going to believe it until she was on that stage. The stage is really basic and really industrial. It was so basic and there was so little going on that I didn't know what to expect. There was a scrim hanging in the front of stage area and that was really essential to the show because it all depended on lights and video/art installations. The stage was basically this:
Then, this video turned into this:Yep, that's the pure Lady GaGa with what I interpret as a dark, troubled version of herself straddling that then sticks its fingers down its throat and vomits blue puke on the pure angelic version of Lady GaGa. Thus, the introduction of the theme of inner-torment. I have never been to a show that was so cerebral yet so entertaining at the same time.

Minimal right? Well, the bitch had about 7 costume changes and in between these really intense video installations would play. The show never let up. It never stopped. It was relentless. Even when she wasn't on stage, these video portrait art things were so engaging. You were constantly bombarded with stimulation. Oh, backtrack, the show opened with this trippy projection of this tweaky grid on the scrim and a countdown. It was more exciting than New Year's Eve! There's smoke, there's flashing lights, then there she is. In a light up, skin tight body suit. She's all glowy and outlined in lights. It was fabulous. Oh, and P.S. I have not squeezed my butt cheeks harder or screamed louder at any show in my entire life. I think my flat ass gained a little donk, if you know what I mean. So these video installations were part photography, part video, part fashion show, part story telling, part stop-motion animation. She was real jerky and real weird.

Also, this show is not for children. I mean, yeah Britney and Christina and Justin and N*SYNC and Whitney (BOBBAY) all have shows with sexual themes. But I mean, it's one thing to take your tween to one of those shows and have the sex either go over their head or talk with them about vanilla hetero-sex. But it's a completely different car ride home when you've taken your tween to a Lady GaGa show and you have to explain gender fluidity, queerness, sexual freedom, and the utter loneliness of fame. That's some heavy shit. Most. Awkward. Car ride. Home. Ever.
Pictured above is one of my favorite parts of the show. You can't really see it here, but it was basically a big dagger-like silhouette that engulfed the stage's screens. It was just so cool.

My other favorite was the Monster set:


For such a minimalistic, industrial set, there was quite an intense nature theme throughout the whole thing. Here, her dancers are dressed like crows and you can see the band and she has this great feather thing on. When she sings "he ate my heart, he a-a-ate my heart" the dancers gather around her and her she screams and flips a shit (any excuse for a costume change Lady GaGa) and then emerges in a completely different outfit with a big blood spot on her chest. They literally ate her fucking heart.

Some of my other favorite things about the show were what GaGa was saying. We now quote her in my house all the damn time. You can occasionally hear us yelling from down the street: "Take my picture Purdue, I want to be a star!" or "Do you think I'm sexy? I don't believe you..." or "Sing that Dirty Word Purdue!" or "People say that I have a huge dick. Get your cocks out. I hear there's some huge cock at Purdue." She opened with that line and my immediate reaction was YES! YES I WILL GET MY HUGE COCK OUT. DON'T YOU FUCKING WORRY. I'm sure our boy roommate really appreciates us not letting him watch sports downstairs and constantly yelling dirty things. He's slowly learning what the GaGa is all about. (P.s. it is so weird living with a boy. I'm sure I'll post about that later.)



Anyway. I'm going to pass on the GaGa reviewing to Katie Dee. Get it grrrrl.

I'm still processing the show and will probably build off of Katie Dee's post. What I've mentioned above are the highlights of the show for me. I danced the whole time. I yelled "Oh My GAWD" several times. And my favorite outfit was her red latex bikini with a police hat.

Sidenote: Thanks J BEAR for taking pictures!!!!!!

But it Does...

Alright ladies and that other gender I refuse to acknowledge on the internet, the webseries Anyone But Me that I blogged about in August is back for season 2! Now, today they aired streamed premiered episode 3 and it's taken me this long to blog about the premiere because I was unfortunately underwhelmed by the first 2 episodes. I'm sorry ladies, but I didn't want to badmouth you since we're linked to your press page (we're famous). I mean, the first episodes were a little sketchy. ENOUGH with crazy lesbian fantasies. JENNY SCHECTER IS DEAD. We still don't know by whose hand, mind you, but she's dead. I'm over it. Next thing you know there will be an Anyone But Me reality show.

But episode 3, "Identity Crisis," redeemed everything for me and made me excited for the rest of the season. On to the positives, people!

1. Acting: Upgrade.
2. Production quality: Upgrade.
3. Streaming Free on Hulu.com: Upgrade.
4. Storylines: Upgrade.


Watch the episode via point 3 and you can just see for yourself points 1 and 2. Now to address point 4. The storyline in "Identity Crisis" revolves around Vivian and her childhood friend, Sophie, who just found out she was gay. I won't give away how, because I want you to watch the series. What was so great about this particular episode and what reinvigorated my faith in the series is that it did what it does best and took a very real, often overlooked aspect of teen life and chose to tell that story instead of the omg gay characters! omg black kids in suburbia! omg at some point not even the hot cheerleader fits in! bullshit story lines that I am so tired of seeing told over and over again. It viewed Vivian's coming out through the eyes of Sophie. I've never even thought about coming out in terms of a straight peer. Of it being awkward for them. As an out lesbian, I come out over and over again to different people almost on a daily basis. Believe me, it gets old. Vivian makes that clear and then tells Sophie that it "doesn't change who I am." Sophie brilliantly retorts with "but it does." And I guess it does.

Shame on me for not thinking about the act of coming out this way, but good on you for pointing it out? I'm going to answer my own poorly structured question and say yes. Because I guess it does, in fact, change who you are. I mean all of a sudden just because a person comes out as gay if they before hadn't really enjoyed mustard but then all of a sudden they love it isn't really what I'm talking about. But I think coming out to a peer, or a person of the post-9/11 generation that this web series focuses on, isn't about telling them "hey, I'm what the society major views as a sexual deviant." We're over that. But it's implying a different world view that requires a different set of rules in order to exist and navigate. Viewing the world through queer eyes versus straight eyes is a completely different experience. I get shit all the time for queering everything; however, for me, it's never a stretch. It's my first go-to facet of my argument and is what I naturally see, and how I naturally feel and it is always really difficult for me to understand how other people don't see how incredibly gay the whole entire world is. This is what I think happens when Sophie suggests Vivian put up Twilight (ick) posters in her room and then Aster suggests putting up P!nk posters (yay). Interests are different, the appeal of certain things are different, explanations are different. Sophie says she doesn't have a problem with Vivian's homosexuality and I honestly believe her. I think Sophie is just experiencing gay culture clash. And it's this culture clash that I've never really taken into account when I have to come out to a straight peer. I never realized that, even for a fleeting second, they ask themselves "What is ok or not ok for me to talk about now?"

The acting in this episode really gets my point across much clearer and it's this improvement in the acting that I love so much. Season 1 was great because there were teen lesbians being portrayed as people and not as suicidal depressives. And my goodness that Nicole Pacent (Aster) is one attractive girl. Also, Rachael Hip-Flores (Vivian) and I are real friends. And by real friends I mean twitter friends who I often get @ replies from that support me listening to Ani Difranco over and over again. What else do I need in a friendship? NOTHING.

It'd be really great if this show took the Exes and Oh's fast track from it's original form as a short film to a commercial length cable television series. I wouldn't mind watching the whole ABM story unfold over again during a 30 minute period with regular commercial breaks just to get more of these characters.

Also, I'd like to thank Tina Cesa Ward and Susan Miller for keeping this series free. Since the end of The L Word, lesbian media is nowhere to be found, unless you want them in scrubs. I used to watch We Have to Stop Now, starring Cathy Debuono, Jill Bennett, and Suzanne Westenhoffer. Those are some big names in the lesbian entertainment world. They also apparently like to make money. The series now requires a $25 subscription to watch. I'm sorry. I have to pay rent.

In conclusion, I like this webseries.

Sidenote: I also really like how all of the characters are good at something. Archibald draws, Elisabeth wants to act, Sophie (and Vivian) are into journalism, Jonathan is an athlete, and Aster is just so comfortable in her own skin I don't even know if she has a talent besides her confidence.

Bless God, and Bless the Gays

This kind of stuff makes me purr with pleasure a little bit internally. The above video is Lady Gaga (of WTF outfit and sexually ambiguous video fame) speechin' at a Gay People Rally in Washington D.C. Though Ms. Butterface Crazy Pants usually gets nothing but mockery from me, today I would like to golf clap in her direction. This is because, one, she actually gave a pretty good speech, two, I love seeing her stand up for the gays over and over again, and three, I LOVED her promise to stand up against misogyny and homophobia in the pop industry! Fucking finally! SOMEONE has to! No more rap videos with "vixens" writing in the background unless the rappers are just as hot, naked, and oiled up. And I mean that from the bottom of my heart.

This second video is of Cynthia Nixon, who was always my favorite of the Sex and the City crew (I think we all knew she was a little dyke-ish. I mean, come on, she wore suits with skinny ties) and who solidified her place in my heart today. She does an even better speech, which really gets to the core of the entire issue of gay marriage: it's not about whether or not gays can get married. It's about the fact that treating people as if they deserve less than others sends the message that they are WORTH less than others. Taking away rights dehumanizes people. It makes it ok to hate or hurt them, because they're not as good as you, anyway. If they were, they'd have the same rights as you do, wouldn't they? But they don't. And until we're all equal, our government is supporting the alienation and endangerment of a huge part of our population. This rally is fucking awesome. Bless the fucking gays. Watch the video.

GLEE

OKOKOK. I'm sorry I've been MIA. Turning 21 really puts one behind in responsibilities. But, the one constant during all the shenanigans that tend to be life at The Girl's House (The nickname given by our group of friends to mine, Katie D, et al's abode) has been a little show that you may or may not have heard about. I mean, it's not really that popular, and it's hasn't had that much hype surrounding it at all. So, in case you didn't know, besides Julia Nunes, the new love of my life is GLEE. It comes on every Wednesday at 9/8c on FOX.

Now besides the singing, besides the dancing, besides Lea Michele, besides Jane Lynch as the devious coach of the Cheer-ios Sue Sylvester, we need to talk about newcomer Chris Colfer who plays Kurt Hummel. (K...U...R...T...KURT!) Kurt is fabulous. Simply fabulous. Katie D and I text eachother Kurt quotes. I sent this one just now: "My name is Kurt Hummel and I'll be auditioning for the role of kicker." And Colfer's voice is out of control. The first time we met Kurt in the pilot back in May, he held a note long enough to throw in his signiture part-fix to the hair. His delightfully bitchy confidence and fashion sense makes every episode a joy to watch.

Now, before I fall too quickly into the tone of a Good Housekeeping book reviewer, let's talk about the story line began in episode 2: "Acafellas." Mercedes is under the impression that her and Kurt are an item. However, everyone else knows what Mercedes is ignoring and Kurt hasn't admitted to himself or anyone else. Kurt is gay. Here is where the show not only differs from anything on television because there is singing and choreography fit to a plot, not to mention a plot; but, GLEE deals with real issues kids face in Highschool. And the most important one to me is Kurt's coming out.

Being out in Highschool is a completely different experience than coming out later in life. Especially college. In college you are allowed to be crazy (Ahem, birthdays make good excuses...) and you are allowed to experiement and break the mold. That's what it's all about. But in highscool, if you are different, if you break a mold, you are putting yoruself at risk. Why is that? Who fucking knows. And it fucking blows. But if it weren't for shows (ok enough...) like GLEE, these things wouldn't be talked about. I was never out in highschool. My best friends in the whole entire world, my never look back, love you no matter what, support you even if you are wrong until you are 50 and living with 2 cats and a ferret best friends knew. And if anyone else knew, thanks for not telling me sooner so that I could have gotten on with everything already.

But alas, I digress. My point is Kurt's story is one happenning everyday. But GLEE is treating it with respect, with reality, with humility, with class, with humor. And that's why GLEE is the new love of my life and Kurt's Single Ladies number makes me want to spank my ass. And yes, he does do the finger point sneak attack.

Sidenote: GLEE is also a social-networking site for the LGBT community. Who knew? Click the picture to check it out.

Obsessive Much? ABDC!

I know that's not the proper order of the alphabet. That's cuz it's not! It's time for a new season of Randy Jackson presents (yet never actually appears on) America's Best Dance Crew! Get excited for JC's pretentious critiques, Shane Spark's inarticulate awe, and Lil Mama's ghetto fabulous 'tude and lip gloss use. Oh, and Mario Lopez in all his glory sans rhythm or wit... Who knew that such an unrelated group of people could bring to us such an amazing experience known as ABDC!?



You can watch the whole first episode straight from MTV.com by clicking HERE. But, I'm recapping and doing introductions all around below... so if you can bear to watch without Mario, then just keep reading. I've got your back.

This season seems to bring dance crews from all over, with more obvious styles. So basically, they aren't all AZN.

And the one explicitly AZN dance crew is trying really hard not to be THAT crew. Even though they so obviously are. Fr3sh:




There's the rumba-ing, salsa-ing, throw your hips around like no one cares Afroborike.




There's Artistry in Motion. One of the girl groups. 2 Good Things: NOT SLUTTY NOT ANOREXIC. Their whole thing is that they don't look like the stereotypical dancer, but that DON'T MEAN SHIT. And they are all about giving back to the community. They all teach dance to young girls.




Second girl group: We Are Heroes. Their name kind of reminds me of a Will Smith movie.




The Reason This Show is Now Worthy For Dyxieland Coverage: VOGUE EVOLUTION. This is a crew that bring vogueing mainstream. If Shane can love it, you can love it. They not only have a tubby queen, they have a MTF Transgender crew member. And they're black. So basically every minority statisitc that anyone ever wants to talk about (MTF Transgender maybe possible being a small exception...) and these people are FEARLESS. They own it. They work it. I'm just worried they aren't dynamic enough. But I can't wait to keep watching and find out.




STUPIDEST IDEA EVER: Southern Movement. They're lame. This is not how you represent the Durrrty South. I've seen better. Now this is just tacky.




Rhythm City is our Rags to Riches crew. They represent the Bronx, NY and have an immediate ally in Lil Mama. Clean, classy, but not very creative. I hope for some innovation.




Classic B-Boy Crew: Massive Monkees. Entertaining to watch, but we've seen it. Especially on ABDC. Jabawockeez? Anyone? Anyone? Beuller?




Fabulous in Hats: Beat Ya Feet Kings. They do this whole feet beating thing that is apparently the Shit in Washington, DC. Don't worry, I have field correspondents out doing research...





So that's all of the crews. Unfortunately Fr3sh was the first to "walk it out" last Sunday. Vehement denial of being the AZN crew obviously did not pay off.

UPDATE: Sorry the videos are all cut off. If you don't like it you can go and embed all that code again yourself. Thanks!

Sweetest. Thing. Ever.

So, as you may know by now, I don't have many soft spots. My one weakness is triumph over adversity. So, every freaking Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, I cry.

Well. This soppy romantic little gem of goodness caused me to tear up. In the library. While analyzing Modernism and the role of the Harlem Renaissance within that movement. Obviously, I needed a break.

I only hope someone loves me as fearlessly as these two clearly love each other. Bare with it for the first minute, the wind lightens up.






Let's face it. Only two lesbians could pull off something that cute and thoughtful and meaningful in 10 minutes and have it not be cheesy. That proposal was NOT cheesy! If it was some dude, people (and by people I mean "I") would shrug it off as gross and silly. But this just melts my heart.

It's public. It's fearless. It's what needs to happen in the gay community. My favorite part is the acceptance. The proposee gets on her knees and they hug and she accepts her ring from the proposer already on her bended knee in old fashioned hetero proposal style. I love that a traditional image was flipped on it's head and they created their own. And the hugging, my GOD the hugging. Quality right there.

Thanks.

Oh Colbert

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
The Colbert Coalition's Anti-Gay Marriage Ad
colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Gay Marriage Commercial

That "Gathering Storm" vid is all the news this week. The Funny or Die spoof was good, but being a Daily Show/Colbert Report kid myself, I also really like his take on it. Watch out for lightning. Oh, and just because I love Neil Patrick Harris and this is an excuse to post this video, remember this gem from the Prop 8 debacle? NBH and Jack Black are brill!

"Prop 8 - The Musical" starring Jack Black, John C. Reilly, and many more... from Jack Black

See ya lata, sinners!

UPGRADE: A Gathering Storm

Original:




UPGRADE:

A Gaythering Storm from Jane Lynch

First off, I love Jane Lynch in this. But who doesn't love Jane Lynch to begin with. I think we all need a pocket Joyce Wischnia.


Second off, I'm a hard working student in Iowa whose family is threatened by the gays. My drinking time is being taken away by worrying about these same sex marriages. And I have a midterm... Gay Army RUINATION.



Side Note by Katie D.:
Being a curious cat, I typed in www.giantgayrepellentumbrella.com and guess what? It exists! Paid for by God and doctors, sponsored by - who else? - Fox News. Also, I could not love Lance Bass more.

Iowa is for lovers... No Really. It is.

So my first post on this was erratic with typos and paragraph breaks where one should never put a paragraph break. I apologize. I just had to put the news on the interwebs. I'm still a little shocked that there isn't as much news coverage as California got, but maybe that's because our Iowa gays like to fly a little low. We don't have a West Hollywood, if you know what I mean.

But the rally was amazing. It was long. It was chilly. But it didn't really matter. Iowa was a little gayer on Friday than I've ever seen it.

There were books to sign to support the supreme court, and some of the speakers said that they wanted to make them part of Iowa's permanent historical records and on dispaly in Des Moines. I signed it, as did all of my friends. And I can't wait to come back with my family in 10 years and see my signature.

My roommate and I were standing there and we just looked at eachother and couldn't beleive it. She said somehting I hadn't even thought about. History books. There were cameras everywhere, taking pictures all over the place. These are going to be in American history books. So, when juniors in highschool suffer through APUSH, we might be in those photos.

I was just thinking on a much personal level. After every semester, I print off photos I pool from friends and my own and put them in really nice photo albums. All I could think about was how I couldn't wait to put those in there.

So, here they are. Because the spectacle speaks more for itself than anything I could come up with. I know that I claim I'm a writer, but this is one thing that leaves me wordless.

Click to make them bigger... they're prettier that way.

This is also Mauro Heck's Flickr feed of the event. Friends and I are also all over this...

Hell Yeah Iowa

Well who's proud to be in Iowa now? That would be me. After Tennessee disappointed me a while back by voting to make gay marriage unconstitutional (hey, you know, they'll get there. 1 in 4 people voted to not make it unconstitutional - and for TN, that's a fucking lot. Just give it time) I was a tidge ashamed, but I'm liking the place I'm living now!

Not only did the Supreme Court make gay marriage constitutional, but the ruling was unanimous. UNANIMOUS. And that's cause they went about it the smart way: by leaving religion at the door. This is a decision about CIVIL marriage, and according to Iowa justices, there is no constitutional reason to limit civil marriages to hetero couples (Um, duh, but yay anyway). They granted that it was up to each church to decide whether or not they would allow gays to participate in religious marriage ceremonies, which is, you know, the way shit is supposed to be - with the church and the state not interfering with the other's business!

And just to press the point, they were granted full rights to civil MARRIAGE. Not a civil union; gays are allowed to be married, not united. Language matters, people. There's something symbolic about saying that you are allowed to be "married" rather than just allowed to sign some papers. Good fucking job Iowa.

Oh, and on the celebrity side (because I have to): Ashton Kutcher (Iowa native) tweeted about the decision this morning. He said: "Ia was the 1st state 2 allow inter-racial marriages. Lets hope gay marraige(sic) sticks aswell(sic) & we don't over ride w/ a state const. ammendment(sic)." Soon after this, he responded to a friend who asked, "What makes you so passionate about this?" by saying "I have many gay friends and think the deserve equal rights." So good fucking job Ashton as well, I guess. Rally tonight to celebrate; where's my "Love is Love" rainbow-colored t-shirt??

The Game of Life.

You gays.

Get excited. Hasbro's online version of The Game of Life now gives it's players the option to play as a same-sex family. Woohoo!

I realize it's only a board game. And at my age, only one I play when slightly (or heavily) intoxicated. And little kids play it. Will they be able to understand what it means? NO! And that's the best part. Because same-sex families aren't being labeled as something foreign. Cartoons and board games for little kids is how our society integrates it's constant and changing values from generation to generation. So now that our kids can see the gays aren't weird and are apart of a life everyone is trying to live, the stigma will lessen and hopefully just go the hell away. So get to playing and living LIFE!

Rachel Maddow is SO GAY.

First off, this is our 101st post!!!!!!!! BADASS.

Now to business. My girl, Rachel Maddow, was on the Jimmy Fallon show last night and she couldn't have looked more gay, been more charming, or spilled more gin. She can make me a Bijou any day.

Prop 8 hearings in San Francisco

We could be referencing the case Strauss et al. v. Horton (Hollingsworth et al., Interveners)
(and two other cases, S168066 Tyler et al. v. State of California et al. in the papers we write in senior year government classes. A whole AP test question might be all about what happens today in California Courts. These are the San Francisco hearings challenging Prop 8. Hit up the streaming video. It doesn't work on my computer, but hopefully it will on yours. I'll post the results soon. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. GAY IS OK!





We'll know the results in 90 days or so. But with our government, you know there is always some way to make it longer than the 90 days. This is one instance when I don't approve of taking advantage of loopholes.

(S)He's Just Not That Into You.

So the gay is blogging about a movie called He’s Just Not That Into You. Yeah, I know why. Thanks. But no really. It was so good. I really, really enjoyed it. And EVERYONE was in this movie. EVERYONE. Who put this cast together? The star power is insane. I never thought I'd see the day where Jennifer Aniston and Jennifer Connelly were on screen together. Glorious.

But my gay observatory skills came in handy because the gays were everywhere in this movie! Almost every scene had some rainbow action in it. Mary’s (Drew Barrymore) office had a gay mug that was specifically in shots, not to mention the gay men, and the publication she worked for/advertised for was targeted at gay Baltimore. In the coffee shop scene, QUEER BALTIMORE screamed at you from the back of the newspaper. But my point here is subtle highlights of rainbows.

They continue into Anna’s (Scarlett Johansson) room when a terrible thing happens, there is a ribbon on her bureau. I know I’m being nit picky here, but it proves a great point. That if you subtlety integrate gay life in day-to-day society, it becomes unnoticed and the “othering” quality that the gay community endures compared to the majority slowly diminishes.

Because in He’s Just Not That Into You, yes the gays were there for humor, but also as a viable real estate market. And in hetero terms, especially today, if you are proven economically viable, you are validated in society. Tap into the gay money, tap into economic stability. Those gay men need to make money to keep up the lifestyle they are reputed to live. Hello. That makes sense.

And, in the audience, I’m sure no one else noticed these things and that’s good because even though it isn’t in the forefront, at least it’s there and is being washed over the masses. The more it washes, the more normal it becomes, the less people are creeped out by the gays. PEOPLE ARE PEOPLE, PEOPLE.

And my gay observatory skills noticed something else:

I couldn't find the picture I wanted, so you will just have to go see the movie to see The Red Slip. You won't regret it, I promise.


Don't Forget to Nominate us! It ends MONDAY.

Aw! Public Displays of Gay Affection!

I love that gay couples are popping up on things like commercials and game shows! Commercials are supposed to tell us what's "normal" (which is why I get so annoyed that every ad for a cleaning product stars a woman. Hello, men wash dishes too.) and if we never see gay couples, it's kind of a subliminal "that's not ok." Game shows don't exactly tell us what's normal, but they are on during the day time, and lots of old people (like the ones who voted Yes on Prop 8 in California - blacks didn't kill gay marriage, old people did, don't believe the hype.) watch game shows. My point? It's becoming less taboo to be queer. Which means that marriage equality is coming, folks. Above is Wheel of Fortune with some engaged dudes, below is a Chemistry.com commercial catering to 1/10 of the world's population.

Returning the favor...

To whom? Who is Obama returning the favor to by inviting the Evangelical right-wing pastor Rick Warren from Saddleback Church (does this conjure images of leather and gay men for anyone else…?) to administer the invocation at his inauguration? The same man who compared gay marriage to pedophilia and incest? Umm… ok. Those are totally the same. You win. Or, The millions of Americans who turned out to vote for a President standing for change in the extremely important election this year? Who deserves a return of favor more? WHO??? Oh yeah, that pastor who invited you to speak at his church. Once. A few years ago. Clearly that makes sense. Who needs to return the favor to Americans? Clearly not our president-elect. Some claim this as an attempt at being "inclusive." Is it really? Or does it just alienate everyone who voted? Obama, are you stupid? Or high? Please… at least be high. That’s legitimate.

Last night, while watching the gayest episode of the Rachel Maddow Show to date, a small fact that I try so hard to forget was brought back to my attention. Besides the obvious being Obama’s skin color, the small issue that Obama is anti-gay marriage. Yet FOR equality for gays and lesbians. Wait. What? Those aren’t the same? Or at least related? This video from big gay homo bear icon Anderson Cooper’s show on CNN covers all the bases.



It also brings to my attention that if the gays are not the same as everyone else and are actually less than a person here in America, why do you care so much what we think!?!?!? Oh right, because you can’t tell the difference between gay money and straight money, it’s money all the same. People also seem to watch what they say when addressing the issue of gay equality, probably because they don’t want to piss off the gays. Because if you piss off a gay, we aren’t afraid to call you out on the fact that you are denying an American citizen American rights. I would like some state, but hold the church please. Thanks.

LET ME FINISH!

In the battle of the century, Melissa Etheridge and Elisabeth Hasslebitch tackle Prop H8. Since we all know Etheridge is the shit, we all saw the defeat of Hasslebitch coming. But it was just great to watch her squirm under the condescending eye of Etheridge, who was “disappointed” in Hasselbitch. DISAPPOINTED?!?! That’s all you are?!?! Come on Melissa. At this point with Hasselbitch, I’m beyond being politically correct. Even though I’m so over being politically correct in general.

Let’s just address The View and all the trouble those ladies stir up. I mean, when you get a group of “diverse” women together, there’s bound to be disagreements and little cat fights. Even though the underlying agreement is that they’re all Jewish liberals, because in order to get a ticket on the Hollywood train they check for traces of Manischewitz in your blood stream, since those people directly inject that shit into their veins. So this diversity is all just an act. I personally don’t watch The View, I just wait to read about whoever disagreed with Hasslebitch and lived to tell the tale the next day. These batty old broads are worse than my grandmother and her card playing ladies. I’m surprised they don’t also talk about the upkeep of their bodies and which doctor they have to go see today, all while wearing their arch-supporting SAS old people shoes in a variety of colors; black or beige.

But, leave it to Etheridge to be able to intelligently talk about the issues of the gay community. Because (SHOCKER) this woman is a lesbian, one of those politically correct, activist lesbians who carry around a guitar and a message who make me feel lazy because when the Prop H8 rally in November happened in Iowa City, I was too hung over to get up and go. But with the passage of Prop H8, her family is at risk, her way of life is in jeopardy. She brings up a good point that it’s about the children. Isn’t it always about the children, Melissa? If you tell anyone that, there is no way they can argue with you, since clearly, if it’s not about the children you are a cold, heartless, shell of a human being. Dementor threshold reached. Here’s the video and Etheridge performs with her 12-string Ovation.



Did anyone else notice Obama's campaign logo on Etheridge's guitar strap? Yeah, she’s that much of a badass.


But with this whole gay marriage thing such an issue right now, I think we need to work on changing the culture before we tackle the laws. For example, TLC is only perpetuating the stereotype of what everyone thinks is a successful family with shows like Jon and Kate Plus 8 (minus Maddy equals better show). Why not have a non-traditional family that is successful and loving and using up the kids we already have instead of making more that all look the same (damn Gosselin kids)?
I mean, I can’t say no to the Holiday marathons of Jon and Kate plus 8 (minus Maddy equals better show) but the intelligent, analytical part of me wants to see something different, something new, something borrowed, something blue so that everyone can see that a family means love. Like Stitch said, Mahalo means family and family means no one gets left behind. Instead, I have to rent some edgy documentary about a gay couple going through the adoption process to even see what a non-traditional family looks like.


This is getting preachy, so I’ll end on the O’Donnell/Hasselbitch epic battle of ’07.




Side Note: I love how Joy turns into political moderator. Who died and turned her into Gwen Ifill? I also LOVE the split screen action around 3:26.