Friday, December 15, 2006

Last Call For QOTY

If you haven't added your choice to our Queer Of The Year Readers Poll nominations list, you've got until the end of today (Friday). This weekend, our "cabal of evil judges" will mull, sift, sort, and review the many names submitted. Using a mysterious process known only to them (I'm guessing: arguing) they will return their list of five finalists to me for voting beginning Monday.

HomoQuotable - Japhy Grant

"Like Cinderella in reverse, Mario [Perez Hilton], once a bespectacled cardigan-wearing hipster, has transformed into Perez, who saunters through Hollywood parties in a satin pantsuit with his name embroidered on the back. In a very real way, he's a modern-day Stepin Fetchit, cheerfully describing himself as a "media whore" for hire. The mainstream entertainment press, be it "E.T." or "Good Morning America," is happy to have him until the next bleached-blond, sequined caricature comes along to talk about the sex lives of former American Idols." - Japhy Grant, in a Salon article that eviscerates Hilton while detailing his impact and influence on Hollywood image-peddlers.

(HT to Chris and Bryce for link.)
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Gay Youth Homeless: 500,000+

The National Gay & Lesbian Task Force has released a report titled An Epidemic Of Homelessness which estimates that there are 8400 homeless youth in NYC who are gay, lesbian or transgendered. The report estimates that 42%, more than half a million, of all homeless youth nationwide are LGBT.

From the report:

Family conflict, including conflict over a youth’s sexual orientation or gender identity, is the primary cause for young people becoming homeless. In one study, 50 percent of gay male teens who came out to their parents experienced a negative reaction and 26 percent of them were told they must leave home.

LGBT youth report experiencing discrimination, harassment and violence at shelters and service providers. For example, one facility in Michigan forced youth who identified as or were perceived as being LGBT to wear orange jumpsuits.

LGBT homeless youth are more likely to suffer from mental health issues and substance abuse than are their heterosexual peers, and are more likely to be victimized by sexual predators.


There are a total of 65 beds in homeless shelters devoted to gay youth in NYC.

UPDATE: Please consider making a holiday donation to the Ali Forney Center, a homeless shelter for LGBT youth named for a homeless teen who was murdered on the streets of New York in 1997.

9 Million And All On My Train

(Above: New Amsterdam, 1660) New York City is expected to add another million residents in the next 25 years and among the suggestions for raising revenues presented to the mayor are charging residents by the pound for the trash they throw out, and charging people to drive into Manhattan, south of 59th Street. (London has similar "congestion pricing".) The city is already building another desperately needed subway line on Manhattan's east side. Like Jenny from the block, I'm on the 6 (train), the most traveled line in the city, famously carrying more riders than the combined entire systems of Boston, Chicago and DC, all on my train. Another million people, I can already feeling them pushing.

Morning View - Empire City Iron Works

Empire City Iron Works in Long Island City, Queens, seems to pretty much be a junkyard, but I like their sign.

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Clever Title Using "Wii" In Place Of "We"

I haven't attempted a video game since I last put a quarter into a rickety Donkey Kong machine at the Parliament House, circa 1983, but I'll admit that I'm kinda intrigued by the Wii, despite all the news reports of injuries and remotes crashing through television screens.

Update: Uberblogger Jockohomo just hipped me to the news the Nintendo is offering free stronger replacement straps to anybody that wants one.

Thursday, December 14, 2006

Cut Rated

Yesterday's news of a U.S. study conducted in Africa revealing that male circumcision may cut (ahem) HIV infections by 50% for men who have unprotected sex with women, is interesting. The researchers stopped the study before it was completed, citing ethicial problems with continuing the experiment in the face of early overwhelming evidence that circumcised men had a much lower rate of infection. Apparently, the skin cells that lie under a man's foreskin are especially susceptible to the HIV virus, making it easier for women to pass to virus to their male partners. Other studies of this sort have been done in recent years, but this is the most compelling. All of the men in the study have now been offered circumcision, with 80% agreeing.

What does this mean to gay men? Possibly, not much. Evidence thus far has pointed to the bulk of risk during gay sex being to the receptive partner. Will American doctors now recommend that U.S. gay men also get circumcised? That recommendation would presume a lack of condom usage, and I think some would say it would be a defacto encouragement of barebacking for circumcized tops. Or would it just fall under the umbrella of "harm reduction"? Will this new information presage a lessening of the fetishization of uncut men here?

PhoboQuotable - Rev. Vincent Fields

"We curse the spirit that would come to bring about same-sex marriage. We ask you to just look over this place today, cause them to be shaken in their very heart in uprightness, Lord, to do that is right before you." - Rev. Vincent Fields during his fucking invocation at the New Jersey state legislature. Kids, THIS is why the church needs to be taxed.

Give the good Rev a piece of your mind: 609-407-7117.

Morning View - Nothing!

Nothing to see here, move along. Because the THREE YEAR bomb-barrier project around Grand Central Terminal is finally completed. As nerve-wracking as the jackhammers have been for the zillion office drones up here on the umpteenth floors, imagine working in the dozens of the shops and restaurants that line the subterranean level of the terminal, under 42nd and Vanderbilt streets. Of course, now we have to deal the almost equally annoying Salvation Army bell ringers.

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Chopper Vs. Cab

Yesterday, Aaron pointed out to me that the airport helicopter service from downtown NYC is running a holiday special, only $99 to JFK. The new flat taxi fare to JFK is $45 from Manhattan. So a taxi ride (plus toll and tip) will run about $60-65, which makes the chopper ride seem like a really fun and reasonable splurge. Plus, it's only an 8-minute ride, versus 1-2 hours in a cab. Hmmm.

Open Thread Thursday

G'head. Brag a little.
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Wednesday, December 13, 2006

Collaboration

Editor: "Aesthetic" feels clunky in this headline.

Joe: Aesthetic is a perfectly cromulent word.

Editor: Use it in a sentence.

Joe: If aesthetic once, aesthetic a thousand times....

Editor: Get away from my desk.

HomoQuotable- Dan Savage

"Have you gotten a good look at Heather Poe, Mary Cheney's partner of 15 years? My son has two fathers, but Heather Poe's left labial lip is butcher than both of us put together." - Sex advice columnist Dan Savage, responding to critics who claim that Mary Cheney's baby will lack for masculine role models.

Moi$turized

This morning while channel surfing over breakfast, three different news channels mentioned a new study from Consumer Reports which reveals that expensive designer anti-wrinkle creams are out-performed by the cheapest skin creams, with drugstore brand Olay Regenerist, at $19, being shown to be more effective than upscale glop that sells for hundreds of dollars an ounce.

What none of the tv stories reported was the part of the study that reported that NONE of the products actually worked to reduce wrinkles and fine lines more than 10%, "a change barely visible to the naked eye." Consumer Reports: "The tests revealed that, on average, these products made little difference in the skin's appearance."

So essentially, everybody is wasting their time and money and I feel a little bit better about my own skin care regimen, which is this: Sometimes, in the shower, I let the water hit my face.

Great Review For Anthology

R.J. Keefe of Daily Blague has posted a very nice review of From Boys To Men.

Christmas In New York

Sitting in a Times Square fast-food outlet, I'm being coyly flirted with by the Latino trannies sitting across the booth-divider. Yes, I'm doing fine tonight, thanks for asking. The West African staff is serving up traditional Japanese dishes, all of which come with Brooklyn cheesecake or Cuban flan, your choice. German tourists sit hunched over their meals, excitedly showing each other the screens of their digital camera and shouting to be heard over the restaurant's sound system, which is presently pumping out the bossa nova version of We Wish You A Merry Christmas. Occasionally, I can hear the steel drum band out on 42nd Street, Jingle Bells rendered through a Bahamian filter. Behind their drums, a crowd is lined up at the world's busiest movie theatre, waiting to see a movie about Mayan cannibals. I pick up my tray and survey the scene around me one more time. A holiday painting from Norman Rockwell, this is not. Cool.

Morning View - Madison Square

Looking north from just in front of the Flatiron Building at the intersection of 23rd Street and Madison. To the right is Madison Square, the former location of Madison Square Garden, now illogically located 11 blocks uptown, above Penn Station. I took this pic a few weeks ago when there were still leaves on the trees. I've always thought this intersection to be the best in the city for viewing landmarks.

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Tuesday, December 12, 2006

Queer Of The Year Nominations Continue

Nominations continue to roll in for our Queer Of The Year Readers Poll. Above, in no particular order, are some the folks you've nominated so far.

Top row: Talk show host Rosie O'Donnell, Former NJ Governor Jim McGreevey, Human Rights Campaign head Joe Solmonese.
2nd Row: Disgraced televangelical Ted Haggard, philanthropist and political fundraiser Tim Gill, the Vice President's daughter, Mary Cheney.
3rd Row: Haggard outer Mike Jones, Foley outer Lane Hudson, anti-Ex-Gay activist Wayne Besen.
4th Row: Activist/ anti-gay pol outer Mike Rogers, disgraced Rep. Mark Foley, the late Laurel Hester, posthumous winner in benefits battle.

Which queer person do you think most advanced the state of gay rights in 2006, either willingly or unwillingly? If you haven't made your nomination yet, please do so. The judges will evaluate the submissions after nominations close at midnight on Friday and voting on their five finalists will begin on Monday.

AHF Hard On Viagra

AIDS Healthcare Foundation launches an anti-Pfizer campaign tomorrow, claiming that Pfizer, the maker of Viagra, is encouraging "recreational use" with its advertising and enabling the spread of HIV. Aside from my quibble over the usage of the word "recreational" (only hookers and porn stars use it for work), I too have always contended that the crystal epidemic only really exploded when Viagra came upon the scene in early '98. By the end of that year, almost everybody I knew was doing crystal. That said, I think the AHF is wasting its breath. The Viagra ads don't seem to speak to gay men at all and I know they've never advertised in gay press. I understand why they are singling out Viagra, it's the first, biggest, and best known of the ED drugs, but ads for Cialis and Levitra seem fairly indistinguishable from those of Viagra.

Monday, December 11, 2006

Because Bald Men Will Never Be Topped By Bodybuilders In An Interracial Threeway In The Fire Island Meatrack

This ridiculous ad for Blair Hair Replacement comes courtesy of this week's HX Magazine. Note how the "dick" literally runs away from the bald guy, screaming, "Ewww! God, he looks like my Dad!" Also, notice how the hairweave transforms him from a decorated capri-wearing troll into a square-cut stud. Good thing we've got that tattoo to go by, or we'd never believe it was the same guy! So.Much.Wrong.Here. I can't summon the energy. You do it. Go crazy.

HomoQuotable - Paul Barnes

"I can't tell you the number of nights I have cried myself to sleep, begging God to take this away." - Paul Barnes, yet another Colorado megachurch pastor who resigned today after being threatened with outing. Barnes' wife claimed to have had no idea of her husband's homosexuality, but added, "The poppers I kept finding should have tipped me off."

He's Not Going, OK?



Last week's Hudson/Holliday hype spurs to me to hip y'all again to he-diva and YouTube star Luv4Buddha (aka Madanna), who once again proves that inside of every gay white boy is a black woman.

Previously on JMG: I Got Luv4Buddha.

PSB Vs. Madonna

Pet Shop Boys received two Grammy nominations last week, Best Electronic/Dance Album, for Fundamental, and Best Dance Recording, for the single I'm With Stupid, which is curiously running against Madonna's Get Together, which came out in 2005. Dixie Chick's blistering anti-Bush tirade Not Ready To Make Nice is nominated for Record Of the Year, a lost cause againt Gnarls Barkley's Crazy. Hilariously, Black-Eyed Peas My Humps is nominated for Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group. Yes, you read that right.

Morning View - Met Life Entrance

These escalators connect the Met Life Building to Grand Central Terminal. They are commonly used by filmmakers who often speed up the film to emphasize New York as crazily crowded place.

Sunday, December 10, 2006

North Pole Dancers

Scores, the NYC titty-bar landmark, has raised thousands of dollars it wishes to donate to those in need this holiday season, but has been turned away by dozens of charities. Scores is well-known to Gotham homos, as it is a neighbor of Chelsea's NYC Eagle, and even hosted a Folsom Street East t-dance. Hey, how about some well-connected Gay out there putting Scores together with a deserving pediatric AIDS service? Seriously!

Mi Pequeño

Yesterday, Nonblogger Ken, the Farmboyz, Aaron and I spent the day in interesting Newark, New Jersey, the ancestral homeland of my parents and grandparents. We had lunch at a fantastic Mexican place in Newark's Ironbound District, where we communicated to the staff primarily with pointing and waving arms. We were especially charmed by the restaurant's large statue of the BVM poised in the window, clutching a fistful of money, prompting Aaron to say, "One thing I like about Our Lady of Guadeloupe is that she is all about the Benjamins."

It felt oddly good to be back in the Motherland. I shall return again one day and pay proper tribute to my ancestors, donning the colorful costume and performing the native ritual dance, which, for utmost authenticity, must be performed in a drunken stagger, preferably near a dumpster in the rear of a liquor store. Luckily, there are many, many places in Newark in which this can be accomplished.