In the UK this week two men went to jail for five years for an attempt to blackmail a member of the royal family. The pair, Ian Strachan of Chelsea and Sean McGuigan of
Battersea, had attempted to sell back a sex tape where a male royal
is seen having oral sex with a male member of the royal household.
Fox News' Live Desk has revealed the name of the royal at the
center of the gay sex scandal as Viscount David Linley, the Queen's
nephew. Sorry chaps, it's neither Prince William nor Prince Harry as
you might have hoped.
Royal gay sex scandals aside, The
United Kingdom does have one up on us: Openly serving gays &
lesbians in the military. Yet in America gay activists and
conservative groups are sensing a change in the political climate and gearing up for a fight.
For
one, Democratic Presidential hopeful Senator Barack Obama recently told
The Advocate that he favors repeal of “Don't Ask, Don't Tell”--
originally “Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue.”
The policy was instituted by the Clinton administration. “Don't
Ask” was conceived to be a compromise of sorts allowing gays &
lesbians to serve in the Armed Forces. But the policy does not allow
gays to serve openly and any member who is discovered to be
homosexual must be removed. Gay activists argue that 12,000 men and
women have been unfairly dismissed under the policy since 1993.
Conservative groups contend that the policy is necessary for morale.
Anti-gay groups come in many different
stripes, offering many countering arguments against any societal
acceptance of homosexuality. It is then understandable that most
parents would rather have their offspring be heterosexual. But some
dads do manage to find the joy in having a gay son. On
the PFLAG blog dads have been sharing their stories of pride in
response to a Details Magazine article which claimed that progressive
fathers accepting of gays would be uncomfortable with a gay son. In
the first post, PFLAG president John R. Cepek writes, “This father
knows best: Having a gay son is great!” Would make any gay son
proud.
Here's a picture representative of my response to these anti-gay groups.
While it's not marriage equality,
Australia has inched a bit further in that direction this week.
Australia will alter about 100 laws to remove discrimination against gay couples. The changes include equality on issues such as
taxation, pensions, and welfare payments.
Greeks want lesbian back! Greeks from the island of Lesbos have taken a gay group to court over the term 'lesbian'. The suit asks the court to bar gay groups from using
lesbian to describe gay women. Ok, kinda out of the bag now, don't
you think?
It was our own Gay Entertainment Report that brought me news that XXY is finally reaching
theater screens. The film is an emotional love story that asks important questions about gender and love.
A group of us has left the office early
and headed to Piece on North Ave. The group includes John and Bill,
who share the office across from mine, myself, and Michelle, my
secretary. John and Bill are sharing a pitcher of Piece's own
Worryin Ale, while Michelle is nursing a glass of Sauvignon Blanc.
Someone, I'm not sure who, probably Michelle, brought me a latte from
Starbucks. I've not slept for days. Life has turned into a bad
dream; I walk about in a malaise – my eyes painful from lack of
sleep, my heart aching for some unknown resolution. At
night I have the same dream: Me in a car, pinned down in the backseat,
the unmanned vehicle hurling me towards certain disaster in the dark.
More recently, the car has been speaking to me; it says, “All your
life,” in a deep Vincent Price voice. Once I answered the car,
“Take it,” but the car just gave me the same ghoulish laugh found
in Michael Jackson's Thriller. And I think I might be
depressed and worry that I'll need to travel to Mexico or Canada for
anti-depressant drugs, or a high school playground. This morning on
The Today Show, Meredith Vieira was swimming with a shark, or
being eaten by a shark. John and Bill are comparing notes about
their wives again. Michelle, who is not a lesbian, is intently
interested in their conversation.
“Likes to cook”
“Still a hardbody”
“Wants more children”
“Makes Diana look like a snob”
“What about the sex?” Michelle
asks.
“Tight”
“Sweet”
“Like a warm cherry pie”
Last night I had left the milk out and
this morning when I noticed this I didn't care to return it to the
refrigerator. There is a half-eaten sandwich still sitting on my bed
from Tuesday (or was it Sunday) and a small pile of dirty dishes in
the sink. I'm not certain, but I think I'm wearing the same clothes
as yesterday. Michelle, speaking loudly over the bar noise, reminds
me to call Todd Stevens. I nod in agreement.
Did I mention I've not slept for days?
Walter Weeks is a writer for On Top
Magazine and can be reached at ww@ontopmag.com.
The Gay Slant pops-in most Saturdays at On Top Magazine
(www.ontopmag.com).