Saturday, July 21, 2007

GLBT DIGEST July 21, 2007

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Friday, July 20, 2007

GLBT DIGEST July 20, 2007

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The Sun-Sentinel

sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-flbnaugle0718nbjul18,0,3822077.story

South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
Gay activists ask Fort Lauderdale mayor to resign over comments

By Brittany Wallman
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
July 18, 2007

FORT LAUDERDALE

Gay and lesbian residents asked Mayor Jim Naugle to resign Tuesday, asanger about the mayor's recent comments grows into a civic movement.

About 40 people wearing yellow "Flush Naugle" T-shirts rallied outside CityHall on Tuesday, preface to a much larger rally planned there next week. Inthe skies above, an airplane dragged a banner demanding "Surrender Naugle"and advertising the Web site www.flushnaugle.org.

Naugle, who never was considered gay-friendly, touched off the controversywhen he was quoted in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel this month saying hedoesn't use the term "gay" because "they're unhappy" and claiming that thecity has a problem with men using public restrooms for sex.

Naugle was commenting at the time about the city's plans to buy a $250,000self-cleaning, robotic toilet for the beach. He said an added plus was thatthe toilet wouldn't become a cruising place for "homosexual activity," as hesaid typical multi-stall bathrooms are.

The robo-toilet quickly became a public target, and city commissionersTuesday night voted unanimously to delete it from the proposed budget.

Naugle's comments were just more in a long line of inflammatory rhetoricthat embarrasses Fort Lauderdale, gay activists said Tuesday. They pointedto Naugle's comments last year that housing would be affordable if peopleworked more jobs rather than sitting on the couch drinking beer.

Other leaders in the community sought to let the public know that Naugle'sviews aren't shared by everyone.

Nicki Grossman, president of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Visitor andConvention Bureau, said gay and lesbian tourists spent an estimated $1billion here last year. She said she has responded to about a dozen e-mailsabout Naugle's comments, telling people that Broward does welcome gays andlong ago "rolled out the rainbow carpet" for their tourism business.

Mitch Caesar, chairman of the Broward County Democratic Party, sent Naugle acritical letter asking him to "refrain from such behavior in the future."

"The Democratic Party, to which you technically belong, has a long historyof supporting all groups and your actions as mayor of Fort Lauderdale seeminappropriate," he wrote.

The group that organized Tuesday's rally, Unite Fort Lauderdale, said itwill host a larger protest outside City Hall next Tuesday, and will beginrunning ads today in local newspapers, including the Sun-Sentinel, to alertthe public to its cause. The ads include a litany of mayoral quotes aboutgays, global warming and the Sun-Sentinel.

Former Vice Mayor Dean Trantalis, once a friendly colleague of the mayor's,rebuked him Tuesday for his hurtful comments, which he said "disgraced" theoffice.

Marti Forman, CEO of Cooperative Feeding Program, said she's spent yearsfighting people who have discriminatory thoughts toward others.

"Instead of focusing on how we are different, we need to focus on how we aresimilar," she said.

Upstairs in City Hall, Naugle said no apologies are forthcoming. "Apologizefor what?" he asked.

Naugle is term-limited and will be out of city office in 2009.

"I'm a plain-speaking individual," he said. "People have elected me becauseI tell it like it is. I've been elected eight times."

Soon after the mayor convened Tuesday night's meeting, gay activist MichaelAlbetta stood up and shouted: "Mayor, we ask you, the city of FortLauderdale, to resign!"

"Thank you, I'm not resigning," the mayor calmly responded.

Brittany Wallman can be reached at bwallman@sun-sentinel.com or954-356-4541.



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Go to the website and add your response.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sfl-71807poll,0,7292578,post.poll

Should Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jim Naugle resign for making repeated comments that gay and lesbian residents have found offensive?

Yes. (7059 responses)

53.5%

No. (5950 responses)

45.1%

I'm not sure. (194 responses)

1.5%



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Sun-Sentinel.com

sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-flbdig07204nbjul20,0,7882993.story

South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
Fort Lauderdale: Gay and lesbian center to host oldies event
July 20, 2007

The Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Fort Lauderdale will host a "NameThat Tune" event from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday for gay seniors, theirpartners and friends.

The event will feature cafe-style seating, refreshments, door and floorprizes. Tunes will include classics from the 1940s, '50s and '60s.

Admission is $5. The center is at 1717 N. Andrews Ave.

Call 954-463-9005.



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Sun-Sentinel.com

sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/letters/sfl-brmail940nbjul22,0,4467116.story

South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
Naugle to be applauded for resisting radical activists
July 22, 2007

I am a senior at Florida International University, majoring in theHumanities, with a concentration in the Greco-Roman Classics, minoring inlaw, ethics and society. I wanted to take the time to congratulate FortLauderdale Mayor Jim Naugle for having the moral integrity to resist theradical activism of Fort Lauderdale's gay community.

I am not homophobic in any sense of the word. I count gays and lesbiansamong my closest friends and acquaintances, and respect them no less fortheir sexual orientation.That having been said, there's no reason thegovernment needs to sanction behavior that the vast majority of Americansfind morally reprehensible. That "cruising" in public areas is a problem inthe gay community is well-known, especially among gays. To note that gaysdisproportionately engage in this activity (for whatever reason) is nothomophobic, it's honest. Naugle has every right to his concerns.

As well, there is no reason why citizens' tax dollars should have to go tofund institutions that they find just as reprehensible, namely a libraryfeaturing gay pornography. Such smut not only tarnishes the good name of thecity of Fort Lauderdale, but it also paints the gay community in a badlight, reinforcing the very stereotypes that traditionally accrue to thosewith that orientation.

I find it very hypocritical that in a county as liberal as ours, constantlyextolling the virtues of free speech and open dialogue, that Naugle has beenso maliciously maligned and threatened. He is a rare breed: an honestpolitician. I am not a Democrat (I'm an independent.), but I envy those whocan proudly claim Naugle as their mayor.

Eric Giunta

Pembroke Pines



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Sun-Sentinel.com

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/letters/sfl-brmail936nbjul22,0,7023025.story

South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
Naugle is correct
July 22, 2007

Hurrah for Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jim Naugle for telling it like it is. Themayor is absolutely correct about gay men over taking the public restroomsas they troll for sex and drugs.

Gays having sex in public is becoming an epidemic, not just in Florida butall over the U.S.

Robert Moon



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Sun-Sentinel.com

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-flwmbnb0722nejul22,0,1140948,print.story

South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
Guests of bed-and-breakfast in Wilton Manors may travel on electric golfcarts
By Elizabeth Baier
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
July 22, 2007

Wilton Manors Popular in the 1940s, the woody station wagon is expected tomake a comeback in the city - in the form of electric golf carts designed tolook like the classic favorite.

At least that's what Bruce Block and his partner, Tony Rhodes, hope willhappen when they open Woody's, the Island City's soon-to-be newestbed-and-breakfast.

They recently received unanimous approval from city commissioners to openthe facility at 2308 NE Sixth Ave., one block north of Wilton Drive.

Block and Rhodes plan to offer the electric carts so that guests staying atWoody's can drive around town. They hope the carts will help them to beenvironmentally conscious and innovative, and also to bypass the city'sparking regulations, which would have required eight parking spaces - onefor each of the guest houses and two for the main house. Instead, they willprovide two spaces and an area outside each guest house for the carts.

"We wanted to open a bed-and-breakfast, but there were so many city rulesand regulations for the parking," said Block, a city resident for 15 years.



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Sun-Sentinel.com

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-flinterfaith0722nejul22,0,3412909,print.story

South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
Broward County interfaith service served dual role
War, religious freedom both were on agenda
By Elana Simms
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
July 22, 2007

Christians, Jews and Unitarian Universalists gathered at First
Congregational Church of Fort Lauderdale on July 1 for An Interfaith Servicefor Religious Freedom.

And with the July Fourth holiday just days ahead, a concern for U.S. troopsand the direction of a war-torn nation weighed heavily on the celebration ofreligious unity among Broward County houses of worship.

"I'm concerned not only for peace in our world, peace in our time, but I'malso concerned for our soldiers," church pastor the Rev. Harold "Hal"McSwain Jr. told the 120 people assembled.

McSwain drew participants' attention to pale blue papers lining the walls ofthe church. Each 8-by-11 sheet bears the names of U.S. troops killed sincethe beginning of the war through about two months ago. The list, McSwainsaid, needs updating.

Harold Caminker, rabbi at Congregation Etz Chaim in Wilton Manors, stood andrecounted a "political awakening" his daughter experienced outside the gatesof the White House. He said she watched as police arrested a woman coveringherself in ashes in protest of the war.



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Sun-Sentinel.com

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/features/health/sfl-flamedicaid0719nbjul19,0,5554865,print.story

South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
Prescription pad law could create Medicaid chaos
By KEVIN FREKING
The Associated Press
July 19, 2007

WASHINGTON Millions of Medicaid patients and their pharmacists could be infor a nasty surprise Oct. 1.

A tiny provision tucked into a spending bill for Iraq requires thatprescriptions for Medicaid patients be written on "tamper-resistant" pads.But most doctors do not use such pads.

The law is designed to make it harder for patients to obtain controlleddrugs illegally and easier for the government to save money. The quick startdate leaves little time to educate doctors and pharmacists.

"Our members are absolutely flabbergasted that they're going to be put onthe hook for denying prescriptions if something is not on a tamper-proofpad," said Paul Kelly, vice president of government affairs for the NationalAssociation of Chain Drug Stores. "Our biggest fear is the negative impactthis could have on patient care and access to prescriptions."

Pharmacists' groups have asked lawmakers and the Centers for Medicare andMedicaid Services to delay putting the law in place.



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NationalGayNews.com

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/sfl-forum19librarynbjul19,0,6085015,print.story

South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
New facility offers public local resources
July 19, 2007
By Jack Rutland

In recent articles by the Sun-Sentinel and other newspapers, StonewallLibrary & Archives has been referred to as an "adult book collection" and a"gay-themed library".

That is akin to referring to Fort Lauderdale's splendid African-AmericanLibrary and Research Center as "black-themed" or the SmithsonianInstitution's American History Museum a "memorabilia collection." Suchdescriptions trivialize the importance of the collection and continue tominimize and marginalize the role of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender(GLBT) people in American history.

Stonewall Library & Archives is a research facility, and one of the largestand most respected of its kind in the world. Stonewall's significantcollection of books, films, manuscripts, and artifacts document over acentury of GLBT history. The collection includes personal manuscripts of gayrights pioneers like Jack Nichols, Frank Kameny, and Barbara Gettings. Itincludes oral histories by hundreds of men and women who share their storiesof being gay men and lesbians in the early decades of the 20th century. Itincludes AIDS research manuscripts, photographic collections of significantevents in recent GLBT history, and signed first edition books byinternationally acclaimed gay and lesbian authors.

Mayor Jim Naugle has called Stonewall's collection "pornographic," a wordartfully chosen to titillate the public and denigrate our community. Likeany library, Stonewall's collection contains some material that some mayfind objectionable, but we have nothing in our circulating library thatcould not have been purchased at your local bookstore with the exception ofsome of the oldest out-of-print editions. Further, as a research facilityand because of the sensitive nature of the issue of homosexuality, thefacility is not available to children under the age of 18 unless accompaniedby an adult.

As a marginalized community, the historical record of the GLBT community issometimes found in non-traditional materials. As such some of our materialis sexually explicit, but these artifacts are kept in the locked Archivalvaults made available only to researchers and only by appointment. Forexample, some of the titillating titles we have heard the mayor refer to aregay and lesbian pulp novels of the 50's and 60's which were sold in dimestores across the nation. Their plots often served as a coded means ofidentifying gay and lesbian meeting places in Greenwich Village andelsewhere; titillating but hardly pornographic. Similarly, gay men'smagazines in the late 70's and early 80's were one of the only means ofletting the gay community know about AIDS early in the epidemic, long beforethe mainstream press began reporting on the issue. Stonewall acknowledgesthe importance of collecting and preserving these materials as valuablehistorical records of the GLBT community.



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Advocate.com

http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid47576.asp

July 20, 2007
San Diego heightens pride security

After last year's violent gay bashings, San Diego activists are working toincrease security at this weekend's pride events, reports the Los AngelesTimes.

Supported by Mayor Jerry Sanders, the initiative will include both walkingand vehicular patrols of the Hillcrest "gayborhood" and neighboring areas.The number of police officers assigned to patrol the weekend festivitieswill also be increased, a police spokeswoman told the Los Angeles Times.

Last year, six gay men were beaten with bats and chains in two separateattacks. These assaults, coupled with increasing theft reports inneighborhoods with strong gay identities, prompted formation of theStonewall Citizens Patrol. "We want to make sure nothing like last yearhappens again," patrol cofounder Bob Lehman told the Times.

According to the paper, three adult men and a teenager were arrested withinseveral days after last year's beatings. All have since pleaded guilty. (TheAdvocate)



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Advocate.com

http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid47559.asp

July 20, 2007
Speaker of Oklahoma house to intervene in same-sex divorce case

The speaker of the Oklahoma house has filed a motion to intervene in a caseinvolving an appeal of a Tulsa County judge's decision to dismiss a same-sexdivorce decree, reports the Associated Press.

Republican Lance Cargill said in the motion, filed with the state supremecourt, that because Cait O'Darling is challenging the constitutionality of astate law that prohibits same-sex marriage, legislative leaders are allowedto intervene in the case.

O'Darling's appeal challenges an amendment to the Oklahoma constitution,approved by voters in 2004, that defines marriage as the union of one manand one woman; it also seeks to determine whether same-sex marriagesperformed in other countries are valid in Oklahoma.

As reported by AP, the appeal may also question whether a state statuteprohibiting recognition of marriages between people of the same genderperformed in another state can also be applied to marriage performed inCanada.

O'Darling filed for a divorce in July 2006 against her wife, identified incourt documents as S. O'Darling. Records state the pair were married inCanada in 2002.



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The Advocate

http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid47570.asp

July 20, 2007
Study sheds light on domestic violence in LGBT relationships

Contrary to conservative rhetoric, many loving, lifelong partnerships can befound among LGBT people. Unfortunately, some problems plague heterosexualand same-sex relationships alike. A recent report released by the NationalCoalition of Anti-Violence Programs documents over 3,000 cases of domesticviolence between LGBT partners.

Research gathered from 3,534 reported incidents of domestic violence betweenLGBT individuals in 2006 found the problem affecting gay and lesbianrelationships equally. Transgender individuals accounted for 5%-10% of thesecases.

As in heterosexual relationships, the true scope of the problem is obscureddue to the large number of victims who remain silent about violence at home.Among LGBT victims specifically, coming-out fears and shame over sexualorientation keep many from seeking help, according to the study.

In a press release, NCAVP executive director Clarence Patton explained howthe report is vital for shedding light on the subject. "In a changingpolitical climate where issues like hate-violence legislation and the gaymarriage debate are routinely making headlines, we must ensure that thevoices of survivors and victims of violence within our communities areheard. Pressure to keep silent about violence within one's relationship canbe overwhelming, and LGBT-inclusive services are still hard to come by.

"This report is an important step in breaking that silence and contributingto a world where LGBT communities and our allies support each other, notonly in eliminating discrimination against our communities indomestic-violence services, but in eliminating domestic violence itself."(The Advocate)



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The Advocate

http://www.advocate.com/currentstory1_w_ektid47338.asp

Meet Ian Roberts
The Australian rugby star's coming-out was just the beginning of a journeythat has led to Hollywood.
By Michael Rowe

Excerpted from The Advocate August 14, 2007

In a city dedicated to male beauty, former rugby star- turned-actor IanRoberts still manages, at 41, to turn heads as he stands barefoot on thesidewalk outside his West Hollywood digs, waiting to greet me. Dressed inloose jeans and T-shirt, he cuts an imposing figure, his body still that ofa pro rugby player-hard and built for speed, power, and collision.

Inside his sparsely furnished apartment decorated with photographs of hisboyfriend, Daniel, who lives in Sydney, he offers me a Gatorade. It'sliterally all he has in the fridge after being away in New Zealand shootingKiss Me Deadly: A Jacob Keane Assignment, a thriller for Here starringRobert Gant and Shannen Doherty. Roberts plays Frederick, "an intense thug,"according to the film's director, Ron Oliver.

"Roles for someone of my size are rather limited," Roberts says, referringto his 6-foot-5 frame. "I've always been 'the thug,' " he says in regard toa career that has included Australian TV and roles in Superman Returns (asRiley, one of Lex Luthor's henchmen) and Little Fish, alongside CateBlanchett. "I don't mind doing that sort of role either, as long as I work."

Oliver suggests that Roberts may be underestimating his talent: "Basically,we cast Ian as a heavy, figuring that his rugby fame and sheer physical sizewould be enough for the role. It was a pleasant surprise to discover that hehad created a full living, breathing human being out of what was essentiallyan underwritten, clichéd 'bad guy' part. He's an extremely thoughtful actor,very engaged in his work." Oliver liked Roberts's performance so much, hespiked a fairly gruesome death scene to keep Frederick alive for a possiblesequel.

"People refer to me as 'the gay rugby player,' " Roberts says of the waycasting directors at home in Australia have perceived him since he came outofficially in 1995, becoming the only major international male athlete inteam sports to come out while still playing at the elite level. "But that'sone of the things I have no control over. I've been lucky to have workedprofessionally off and on-mostly on-since I graduated from NIDA [Sydney'sNational Institute of Dramatic Art] in 2004."



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365gay.com

http://365gay.com/Newscon07/07/071907hate.htm

Hate Crimes Bill Stalled
Posted: July 19, 2007 - 5:00 pm ET

(Washington) The hate crimes bill stalled yesterday after Senate MajorityLeader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) withdrew a defense measure to which the hatecrimes bill was attached, reported Southern Voice.

"The Senate obviously devoted all of its attention to the Iraq war," saidBrad Luna, spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign, told the Voice. "Thishad nothing to do with the hate crimes bill."

Democrats were seven votes short of passing the defense bill, which calledfor the removal of U.S. troops from Iraq by spring 2008.

A spokesperson for Reid said it could be a "long time" before the Nevadasenator brings the defense bill back to the floor for a vote, which couldlead to an indefinite hold on the hate crimes bill and dozens of otheramendments that senators were seeking to attach to the defense measure, theVoice said.

The House passed an identical version of the hate crimes measure as afreestanding bill earlier this year.



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365gay.com

http://365gay.com/Newscon07/07/071907romney.htm

Romney Takes Hard Right On Sex Ed
by The Associated Press
Posted: July 19, 2007 - 5:00 pm ET

(Spartanburg, S.C.)Republican Mitt Romney directly appealed to socialconservatives in South Carolina on Thursday, criticizing Democratic rivalBarack Obama for supporting age-appropriate sex education for children asyoung as kindergartners.

"Senator Obama is wrong if he thinks science-based sex education has anyplace in kindergarten," Romney told some 150 people at a restaurant in thenorthern part of the state. "We should be working to clean up the filthywaters our kids are swimming in."

The criticism was part of a broader effort by the Romney campaign toheighten its presence in the early voting state, which holds its primaryFeb. 2.

The leading GOP candidate, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, has beendogged by the bad news about his state campaign chairman, Treasurer ThomasRavenel, who was indicted on federal cocaine distribution charges. Financialwoes and staff shake-ups have hit John McCain's campaign.

Strategists for Romney expect former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson to make aplay for the state's conservative vote should he forge ahead with acandidacy in September. Romney is trying to win them over now.


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NewsAlert from NewsMax.com

The New Normal: Women Blasting Women

By Susan Estrich

Nothing like a good catfight, don't you think?

Mary Mapes, the once-star CBS producer who got taken by an unreliable source selling phony documents about George W. Bush's service record, is making her omeback by trashing Katie Couric.

Mapes has a book out and is trying to promote it, which is fair enough, but why do it on Katie Couric's back? Piling on to the week of Couric-trashing, Mapes described Couric as "someone who looks like they've been kidnapped and drugged and are making a hostage tape. It has nothing to do with her being a male or female, it's just not comfortable to watch."

Story continues





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The Washington Post

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/18/AR2007071802317_pf.html

Dr. Dodgy
A surgeon general nominee does little to quell concern about a paper on gaymen.
Thursday, July 19, 2007; A18

DR. JAMES W. Holsinger Jr. wants to be the next surgeon general of theUnited States. On paper, he's nearly perfect. His distinguished career spansnearly 40 years in Kentucky and Washington, D.C. If confirmed, Dr. Holsingersaid, his three priorities would be combating smoking and childhood obesityand improving how the public health system responds to emergencies --excellent goals. But his prurient 1991 paper for the Methodist Church onwhat he imagined to be the sex lives of gay men has gummed up his effort tobecome the nation's top doc.

The hope was that his confirmation hearing last week would bring someclarity to Dr. Holsinger's views on homosexuality. No such luck. Instead, heexpressed his "deep appreciation for the humanity of everyone, regardless oftheir personal circumstances or their sexual orientation." That's excellent,but it doesn't answer the question.

"Pathophysiology of Male Homosexuality" is a six-page romp through sexualpractices that would be extreme for anyone regardless of sexual orientation.Yet Dr. Holsinger ascribed these practices to all gay men and decreed thatthe practices marked all homosexuals as promiscuous and diseased. The ideathat two people of the same sex could establish a relationship based on lovewas never broached. Instead, he concluded his NC-17 report by saying thehardware store popularity of male and female pipe fittings proves theprimacy of heterosexuality.

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) did his best to show that the scientificunderpinnings of Dr. Holsinger's report were beyond weak. He pointed outthat one physician whose work was featured wrote him to complain of thepaper's "unscientific, biased, and incredibly poor scholarship." Mr. Kennedysaid it "cherry-picks and misuses data"; for instance, much of theinformation was culled from "emergency room and trauma studies" -- hardly arepresentative sample of gay men.

Dr. Holsinger struck a that-was-then-this-is-now pose. "The paper does notrepresent where I am today," he said. Fine. But the question remains: DoesDr. Holsinger still believe that homosexuality is unnatural and unhealthy?If the answer is yes, he should not be confirmed.



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The Washington Post

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/18/AR2007071801288_pf.html

Readers Speak Out About New Sex-Education Curriculum
Thursday, July 19, 2007; GZ12

The Montgomery County Board of Education recently approved Montgomery's newlessons on sexual orientation for all middle and high schools beginning inthe fall. Two 45-minute lessons will introduce homosexuality and genderidentity in health courses in grades 8 and 10, along with a 10th-gradelesson and instructional DVD on the correct use of a condom. Two weeks ago,the Maryland State Board of Education rejected an appeal to overturn thecurriculum.

County educators have been in a pitched legal battle for several years overthe sex-education curriculum. Citizens for a Responsible Curriculum, whichled a consortium of opposition groups, had appealed to the state board toblock the curriculum and had convinced a federal judge in 2005 to halt thefirst revision. Another group, TeachtheFacts.org, organized to support thechanges. Representatives of both groups and others served on the MontgomeryCounty Citizens Advisory Committee, which offered recommendations on whatshould and should not be taught in the lessons.

Montgomery Extra invited readers to comment on the curriculum, and severaldozen people responded. Most favored the new curriculum.

Here are some of the letters. Some have been edited for space and clarity.

Lessons Should Go Further

I have had two students graduate from Montgomery County public schools, andthree years ago started teaching at Magruder High School, where I alsosponsor the gay-straight alliance student organization. In addition, I spenta decade doing volunteer contraceptive counseling for Planned Parenthood. Icompletely support the changes, and I think that in spite of all thediscussion and counter lawsuits, they still do not go far enough to putMontgomery County into the realm of those who deal with sex education in anenlightened manner.



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The Sun-Sentinel

sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/sfl-forum19librarynbjul19,0,6738018.story

South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
New facility offers public local resources
July 19, 2007
By Jack Rutland

In recent articles by the Sun-Sentinel and other newspapers, StonewallLibrary & Archives has been referred to as an "adult book collection" and a"gay-themed library".

That is akin to referring to Fort Lauderdale's splendid African-AmericanLibrary and Research Center as "black-themed" or the SmithsonianInstitution's American History Museum a "memorabilia collection." Suchdescriptions trivialize the importance of the collection and continue tominimize and marginalize the role of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender(GLBT) people in American history.

Stonewall Library & Archives is a research facility, and one of the largestand most respected of its kind in the world. Stonewall's significantcollection of books, films, manuscripts, and artifacts document over acentury of GLBT history. The collection includes personal manuscripts of gayrights pioneers like Jack Nichols, Frank Kameny, and Barbara Gettings. Itincludes oral histories by hundreds of men and women who share their storiesof being gay men and lesbians in the early decades of the 20th century. Itincludes AIDS research manuscripts, photographic collections of significantevents in recent GLBT history, and signed first edition books byinternationally acclaimed gay and lesbian authors.

Mayor Jim Naugle has called Stonewall's collection "pornographic," a wordartfully chosen to titillate the public and denigrate our community. Likeany library, Stonewall's collection contains some material that some mayfind objectionable, but we have nothing in our circulating library thatcould not have been purchased at your local bookstore with the exception ofsome of the oldest out-of-print editions. Further, as a research facilityand because of the sensitive nature of the issue of homosexuality, thefacility is not available to children under the age of 18 unless accompaniedby an adult.

As a marginalized community, the historical record of the GLBT community issometimes found in non-traditional materials. As such some of our materialis sexually explicit, but these artifacts are kept in the locked Archivalvaults made available only to researchers and only by appointment. Forexample, some of the titillating titles we have heard the mayor refer to aregay and lesbian pulp novels of the 50's and 60's which were sold in dimestores across the nation. Their plots often served as a coded means ofidentifying gay and lesbian meeting places in Greenwich Village andelsewhere; titillating but hardly pornographic. Similarly, gay men'smagazines in the late 70's and early 80's were one of the only means ofletting the gay community know about AIDS early in the epidemic, long beforethe mainstream press began reporting on the issue. Stonewall acknowledgesthe importance of collecting and preserving these materials as valuablehistorical records of the GLBT community.



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The Sun-Sentinel

sun-sentinel.com/news/columnists/sfl-flbmayocol19nbjul19,0,4087832.column

South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
Fort Lauderdale mayor turning into his own worst enemy
Michael Mayo
News Columnist
July 19, 2007

Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jim Naugle has turned out to be a prophet. Manymembers of the local gay community aren't very happy at the moment. Buttheir grumpiness has nothing to do with their sexuality. It has everythingto do with the flippant ignorance of the man who's supposed to be a leader.

A few weeks ago, Naugle made an off-handed remark to my colleague BrittanyWallman that he doesn't call homosexuals "gay" because most "aren't happy."A group of protesters came to City Hall on Tuesday and demanded an apology.

"Apologize for what?" Naugle said in his office.

Defiance might gain the publicity-loving mayor more headlines and airtime,but he should realize it will only lead him and his city deeper intotrouble.

An apology is in order because he crossed the line with a comment he thoughtwas amusing but was just stupid.



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The Sun-Sentinel

sun-sentinel.com/features/lifestyle/sfl-fl20jlharlanpbjul20,0,2224031.story

South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
Greek life can be good
July 20, 2007

Dear Harlan: I read your letter to Queerly Confused and wanted to offer someadditional warning to the gay student contemplating joining a fraternity.Gay or straight, fraternities are not to be taken lightly. This is adecision that should be thoroughly researched, because they all have theirsecrets.

I'm sure there must be some good qualities in the frat system, but I got tosee the ugly side first. Good luck. - Foreboding Teacher

Dear Foreboding: As someone who pledged two fraternities and visitedhundreds of campuses, I know that fraternities can have their ugly side, butI also know that Greek life often opens the door to leadershipopportunities, athletics, academics and a social life where partying is NOTrequired. Greeks fill the majority of student leadership roles on campuseswith strong Greek communities.



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NationalGayNews.com

http://www.courttv.com/news/2007/0717/cuadra_ctv.html?print=yes&page=1

Updated July 17, 2007, 6:25 p.m. ET
On their MySpace page, Harlow Cuadra and Joseph Kerekes maintain theirinnocence in the slaying of porn executive Bryan Kocis.
Gay porn actors charged with killing executive in scheme to work with star
By Mallory Simon
Court TV

Two gay porn actors are facing murder charges for allegedly killing a pornexecutive in a dispute over a coveted actor.

Police believe Harlow Cuadra and Joseph Kerekes went to the Dallas, Pa.,home of Cobra Video boss Bryan Kocis on Jan. 24 and slashed his throat.After he was dead, they stabbed him 28 times and burned his body and home tohide the crime, according to court documents.

Kocis' body was found that night when firefighters responded to the fire.The smoke detectors were disabled and there were no signs of forced entry.Police believe Cuadra and Kerekes gained access to the porn executive's homeby tricking him into thinking Cuadra was a new model who was interested inmaking a movie for Cobra Video.

Cuadra and Kerekes were arrested in May, almost four months after themurder. The pair had been held in the Virginia Beach County Beach Jail whilethey initially fought extradition. They were extradited Tuesday toWilkes-Barre, Pa.

Story continues

Police made the arrests after they found evidence on a computer thatsurvived the fire. E-mails showed that Cuadra, pretending to be a new model,arranged a meeting with Kocis on the night of his murder, according to courtdocuments.



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NationalGayNews.com

sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-myspace0718,0,2366431.story

South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com
MySpace profile that mentions drugs, alcohol could cost Broward teacher hisjob
By Jean-Paul Renaud
Sun-Sentinel.com
12:59 PM EDT, July 18, 2007

A Pompano Beach High School band teacher may be suspended without pay --and eventually fired -- because of his profile on MySpace.com.

Broward schools investigators allege Scott Davis, 31, had a personal Webpage on the social networking site that contained "profanity, inappropriatephotographs and depression/alcohol/drug content," according to anadministrative complaint to be presented to the school board on Tuesday.

"In particular, on his profile, to which students had access before andafter it was made private, Mr. Davis admits to having 'become an alcoholic'and to being on drugs," according to the complaint.

Davis could not be reached for comment.

MySpace users have the option to set their page to "private," which meansthey can choose who can view their account. But the complaint states Davis,who has been working for the school district since 2003, allowed hisstudents to view his page.



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The Advocate

http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid47550.asp

July 19, 2007
Annie Lennox album will feature Madonna

A press release substantiates the rumor that Annie Lennox's upcoming fallalbum Songs of Mass Destruction will feature Madonna on guest vocals.

The disc's 22 other female guest musicians include Pink, CĂ©line Dion, SarahMcLachlan, Bonnie Raitt, and Shakira. (The Advocate)



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The Advocate

http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid47527.asp

July 19, 2007
Obama tries to peel away Clinton backers

Barack Obama says people are sure to love him once they get to know him. Fornow, though, Democrats seem to love Hillary Rodham Clinton more, so Obama istrying to turn heads with select jabs at his chief rival.

Obama's criticisms of the two-term senator and former first lady have beenregular but subtle reminders that for all his campaign money and promises ofhope, he still trails her in most national and early state polls.

And when you're number 2, the only option is to chip away at thefront-runner.

Among his criticisms in recent weeks, Obama has:

-Rejected the notion that she's more prepared for the job. ''The only personwho would probably be prepared to be our president on day one would be BillClinton-not Hillary Clinton,'' he said.



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The Advocate

http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid47538.asp

July 19, 2007
Oprah to host Barack fund-raiser

Oprah Winfrey will host a $2,300-a-person fund-raiser for Democraticpresidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama at her home in Montecito, Calif, onSeptember 8, Variety reports. This marks the first time Winfrey has publiclybacked a candidate.

The event is expected draw enormous donations-those who pledge $25,000 aregiven access to a VIP lounge, while those who pledge $50,000 are treated toa VIP dinner, according to the article.

Winfrey stated her official endorsement for Obama on Larry King Live,saying, "I haven't [publicly backed a candidate] because I haven't felt thatanybody-I didn't know anybody well enough to say, 'I believe in thisperson.' " (The Advocate)



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The Advocate

http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid47536.asp

July 19, 2007
Akron seeks gay tourism dollars

Akron, Ohio, is trying to tap into the $55 billion per year that gays spendon traveling. The city's convention and visitors' bureau will meet withgay-friendly businesses to figure out how to lure LGBT visitors, accordingto the Associated Press.

The chairman of the Akron Area Pride Collective told the AP that gays wouldwant to visit the community, especially to experience west Akron's historicHighland Square neighborhood.

Akron would join a handful of cities that declared or solidified theircommitment to entice LGBT tourists in the past year, including Dallas,Philadelphia, and Chicago. (The Advocate)



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The Advocate

http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid47529.asp

July 19, 2007
Radio ads urge "financially blessed" conservatives to "protect" marriage

The Christian Newswire is reporting that the antigay VoteYesMarriage.comcoalition has begun airing ads on Christian radio stations throughoutCalifornia-in San Diego, Los Angeles, Orange County, San Bernardino, Oxnard,Santa Barbara, Monterey County, San Francisco, Sacramento, Modesto, Fresno,and Bakersfield. They are 60 seconds in length and feature former stateassemblyman Larry Bowler of Elk Grove telling those who are "financiallyblessed" that they "have the means to save marriage."

"We must raise more than $2 million to override the judges and politiciansand fully and permanently protect marriage for one man and one woman. Theonly initiative that will accomplish this is the rock-solidVoteYesMarriage.com amendment," Bowler told the Christian Newswire.

According to the article, VoteYesMarriage.com is the sponsor of California'sVoters' Right to Protect Marriage Initiative, which aims to permanentlyprohibit same-sex marriage by amending the California constitution.

Here's the full text of the ad:

LARRY BOWLER: Have you been financially blessed? Do you believe marriage isfor a man and a woman and that government should stop forcing businesses toundermine marriage?



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The Advocate

http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid47525.asp

July 19, 2007
HIV-positive soldier faces charges regarding unprotected sex

Military and civilian authorities have charged an HIV-positive soldier withassault with a deadly weapon, accusing him of having unprotected sex with apartner he didn't tell about the infection.

Military and civilian prosecutors haven't decided who will prosecute thecase against Pfc. Johnny Lamar Dalton, said Maj. Tom Earnhardt, a spokesmanfor the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg in Fayetteville, N.C..

Dalton, 25, was arrested last week and was being held Tuesday in theCumberland County jail on a $50,000 bond, said sheriff's departmentspokeswoman Debbie Tanna. She said inmates weren't allowed to giveinterviews, and a jailer said the soldier hadn't been appointed an attorney.

Along with the assault count, Dalton faces civilian charges of committing acrime against nature and misdemeanor assault inflicting serious injury.Earnhardt said he faces the same charges in the military's criminal justicesystem.

An arrest warrant filed by county officials accuses Dalton of not tellinghis male partner, an 18-year-old civilian, that he has HIV, the virus thatcauses AIDS. The teen's mother alerted authorities to the relationship afterher son fell ill and told her about it; he has tested positive for HIV.Tanna said she did not know whether Dalton was the source of the teen'sinfection.



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The Advocate

http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid47557.asp

July 19, 2007
Obama competes with Edwards to be anti-poverty candidate

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is challenging John Edwards'claim as the anti-poverty candidate, speaking of his work with theinner-city poor just as Edwards has championed the downtrodden in ruralmountain districts.

The two hit strikingly familiar themes Wednesday in competing speeches on anissue that usually gets little attention in modern presidential politics butDemocrats have pushed to the forefront.

Obama spoke in the Washington neighborhood of Anacostia as Edwards wrappedup an eight-state poverty tour in Wise, Virginia, and Prestonburg, Kentucky,deep in the hardscrabble Appalachian Mountains of the Eastern United States.

Both invoked a Democratic icon of a previous age, Robert F. Kennedy, whodrew attention to the country's poor some four decades ago before he wasassassinated.

Speaking at the Floyd County courthouse, where Kennedy ended his povertytour in 1968, Edwards said he wants ''America to remember what he diddecades ago. I want you to join us to end the work Bobby Kennedy started.''



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The Advocate

http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid47556.asp

July 19, 2007
Clinton campaign employs Internet to court young female voters

Taking a page from MeetUp.com and other online organizing pioneers,supporters of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton will host 400 house parties towatch her square off with her Democratic rivals in Monday's presidentialdebate.

The parties are sponsored by Club44, an effort by the Clinton campaign torecruit younger female supporters.

Ann Lewis, who heads the campaign's women's outreach effort, said the ideacame from California, where Clinton supporters have hosted informaldebate-watching parties throughout the campaign. It's been steered at thenational level by a group of campaign interns, using weekly e-mails toClinton's mailing list. The parties will take place in Washington, D.C., andin most states.

Clinton spoke by conference call to party organizers Wednesday, Lewis said.

Actors Mary Steenburgen and Ted Danson will do a pre-debate warm-up call tothe parties, and other notable Clinton supporters will phone the partiesafterward.

The debate, in Charleston, S.C., is being hosted by CNN and YouTube, theonline video sharing site. (Beth Fouhy, AP)



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The Advocate

http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid47555.asp

July 19, 2007
Bulgaria pushes for repatriation of nurses, doctor jailed in Libyan HIV case

Bulgaria pressed Wednesday for the repatriation of five of its nurses and aPalestinian doctor jailed in Libya after their death sentences on charges ofinfecting children with HIV were commuted to life in prison.

''For us, the case will be closed only after the medics return to Bulgariansoil, and we are working for it to happen as soon as possible,'' PrimeMinister Serge Stanishev told reporters.

Bulgaria's Foreign Ministry announced it will send the official transferrequest to Tripoli on Thursday.

Libya accused the six of deliberately infecting more than 400 Libyanchildren with HIV. The medics, jailed since 1999, deny infecting thechildren and say their confessions were extracted under torture. Their deathsentences were commuted to life imprisonment late Tuesday.

Experts and outside scientific reports said the children were contaminatedby unhygienic conditions at a hospital in the northeastern city of Benghazi.Fifty of the infected children died.



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The Advocate

http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid47554.asp

July 19, 2007
Giuliani: abortion not a litmus test for judges

Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani, a proponent of abortionrights, said Wednesday he would not use a judicial nominee's stand on theissue or the landmark Supreme Court decision as a litmus test.

On a campaign swing through conservative western Iowa, the former New Yorkmayor pledged to appoint judges who would strictly interpret theConstitution on gun rights and other issues. Abortion never came up in hisaddress to about 100 people at a junior high school, but it did during anexchange with reporters.

''Abortion is not a litmus test. Roe v. Wade is not a litmus test. Noparticular case is a litmus test. That's not the way to appoint SupremeCourt justices or any judge,'' Giuliani said.

Roe v. Wade is the 1973 Supreme Court ruling that established aconstitutional right to abortion. Giuliani favors abortion rights though hehas said he personally opposes the procedure, a stand that puts him at oddswith his rivals and the conservative Republicans who hold sway in theprimaries.

In talking to reporters, he said any candidate for federal judgeship wouldrefuse to decide ahead of time on future abortion rulings.



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The Advocate

http://www.advocate.com/print_article_ektid47548.asp

July 19, 2007
Priest accused of molesting Foley settles case with other alleged victim

The Roman Catholic archdiocese of Miami has settled a lawsuit in which aformer altar boy claimed he was sexually abused by the same priest accusedof molestation by former congressman Mark Foley.

The lawsuit was not connected to Foley, who resigned in scandal last year.

The unnamed plaintiff claims the Reverend Anthony Mercieca sexually abusedhim in the 1970s when he was an altar boy at St. James Church in NorthMiami. The accuser, then about 13 years old, said Mercieca molested him inthe church's bell tower after a bicycle ride together.

The lawsuit had sought more than $10 million in damages. Terms of thesettlement were confidential, said the man's attorney, Jeffrey Herman.

Mercieca retired to the European island of Malta. His attorney there, AlfredGrech, declined to comment because he was not aware of the settlement orlawsuit.



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365gay.com

http://www.365gay.com/opinion/besen/besen.htm

Blind at the Holy See
by Wayne Besen

In the wake of sex scandals involving children, the Roman Catholic Churchshould either change its mores or close its doors.

Since 1950, the United States arm of the church has paid an astounding $2billion to settle claims of childhood sexual abuse. Yes, that is billionswith a capital "B" that could have gone towards raising orphans, housing thehomeless and feeding the "foodless." Instead, the church has had to reachdeep inside its pockets, because some priests can't keep their hands out ofthe pants of others.

About a quarter of the fortune paid to the unfortunate victims has come fromthe Los Angeles archdiocese. Its leader, Cardinal Roger Mahony, apologizedSunday to the hundreds of abused who will be compensated, as if you can puta price on the church's vice.

"There really is no way to go back and give them that innocence that wastaken from them. The one thing I wish I could give the victims...I cannot,"he said. "Once again, I apologize to anyone who has been offended, who hasbeen abused. It should not have happened and should not ever happen again."

Of course, it will happen again, since none of the underlying structuralproblems have been addressed. The church simply cannot continue its practiceof recruiting spiritual leaders from a pool of repressed, self-loathing,sexually and emotionally stunted men and not expect a sordid sequel.



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365gay.com

http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/07/071807soldier.htm

HIV+ Soldier Charged For Unprotected Gay Sex
by The Associated Press
Posted: July 18, 2007 - 9 am ET

(Raleigh, N.C.) Military and civilian authorities have charged anHIV-positive soldier with assault with a deadly weapon, accusing him ofhaving unprotected sex with a partner he didn't tell about the infection.

Military and civilian prosecutors haven't decided who will prosecute thecase against Pfc. Johnny Lamar Dalton, said Maj. Tom Earnhardt, a spokesmanfor the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg.

Dalton, 25, was arrested last week and was being held Tuesday in theCumberland County jail on a $50,000 bond, said sheriff's departmentspokeswoman Debbie Tanna. She said inmates weren't allowed to giveinterviews, and a jailer said the soldier hadn't been appointed an attorney.

Along with the assault count, Dalton faces civilian charges of committing acrime against nature and misdemeanor assault inflicting serious injury.Earnhardt said he faces the same charges in the military's criminal justicesystem.

An arrest warrant filed by county officials accuses Dalton of not tellinghis male partner, an 18-year-old civilian, that he has HIV, the virus thatcauses AIDS. The teen's mother alerted authorities to the relationship afterher son fell ill and told her about it; he has tested positive for HIV.Tanna said she did not know whether Dalton was the source of the teen'sinfection.



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365gay.com

http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/07/071807abstinence.htm

Congress to Vote On Abstinence-Only Bill
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: July 18, 2007 - 2:00 pm ET

(Washington) This week, the House of Representatives is set to vote on anappropriations bill that includes $141 million forabstinence-only-until-marriage programs-a $27.8 million increase.

"Abstinence-only programs are not only ineffective; they are actuallyharmful in the messages they convey to youth," said Marjorie J. Hill, chiefexecutive officer of Gay Men's Health Crisis.

"Programs that call for abstinence until marriage promote sexistgender-based stereotypes about women and men and their roles in sex andrelationships. They also promote an anti-gay bias, insisting that the onlyproper place for sex is within the context of heterosexual marriage, andthat AIDS is the inevitable result of homosexuality. We urge the House tosupport public health that protects the health of our nation's youth and toreject bigotry and ignorance," Hill said.

Since 1996, the federal government has spent over a half a billion taxpayerdollars on abstinence-only programs, despite federal, state and independentevaluations showing the programs to be counterproductive and fiscallywasteful.

A 2006 study by the independent Society for Adolescent Medicine called theprograms "scientifically and ethically flawed" and found that the "efficacyof abstinence-only interventions may approach zero."



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365gay.com

http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/07/071807Redmond.htm

Redmond May Extend Benefits To Same-Sex Partners
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: July 18, 2007 - 2:00 pm ET

(Redmond, WA)- The City of Redmond may join other neighboring communities byoffering family benefits to employees with same-sex domestic partners.

The city council last night unanimously approved a benefits plan forsame-sex couples, under the state's new domestic-partnership law, anddirected staff to prepare a plan for a vote at the Aug. 21 council meeting.Families of non-union employees may have coverage as soon as the followingday.

Lambda Legal had threatened the city with legal action on behalf of twoveteran city police officers, Cmdr. Kristi Wilson and Lt. Betsy Lawrence. Ina strongly worded letter to the city on June 19, the organization called oncity leaders to heed years of requests on the part of both employees andseveral unions, and grant equal benefits to all employees.

Wilson and Lawrence have been requesting benefits since 2002; the situationbecame more urgent recently when Wilson was diagnosed with breast cancer.

"We are pleased that Redmond has joined its municipal neighbors and othermainstream employers by adopting an equal family benefits plan for its gayand lesbian employees," said Lambda Legal Staff Attorney Tara Borelli.



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Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org

http://www.guardian.co.uk/gayrights/story/0,,2128843,00.html

UK
Ordination spurned in gay row
Stephen Bates, religious affairs correspondent
Wednesday July 18, 2007

The Guardian

A Church of England curate is refusing to be ordained by his diocesanbishop because he objects to the bishop's support for a group campaigningfor equal rights for homosexuals within the church. A parish websitequotes the church's 39 articles, written in the 16th century, to describethe bishop as "evil".

Richard Wood, a church worker in Dagenham, east London, should have beenordained as a curate by the Rt Rev John Gladwin, Bishop of Chelmsford,earlier this month, but said he would refuse to take communion from himbecause the bishop is patron of a group called Changing Attitude, whichwants to reform church thinking on homosexuality. A statement written bythe Rev Mike Reith, vicar of Dagenham, on the parish website described thebishop as "a lovely bloke" but then quoted the 26th article, approved in1571, which states: "Sometimes the evil have chief authority in theministration of the word and sacraments."


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Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kirk-snyder/corporate-america-the-ne_b_56499.html

The Huffington Post
Corporate America: The New Gay Activists
Posted July 16, 2007 | 10:34 PM (EST)

In a recent study by Gallup, almost ninety percent of Americans said theybelieve gay people should have equal rights in the workplace. Interestingly,only forty-seven percent of these same people believe that being gay is"morally acceptable." So what has convinced nearly nine out of ten peopleacross the country that gays and lesbians deserve equality at work even whenthey don't believe gay is OK? Charting a course unplanned but neverthelesssuccessful, Corporate America is shaping up to be the most persuasive gayactivists of the decade.

How are they doing it? With a simple three-step formula: credibility +education + action. It's a winning combination that actually fuels progresstoward achieving equality in other arenas including politically chargedtopics like same-sex marriage. Having recently returned from a speaking tourthat included stops at some of the most historically conservative firms inthe country, I found that Corporate America's message supporting the rightsof their gay employees is transcending political, economic and evenreligious barriers.

Here's how their formula works:



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A link to a You-Tube video of this interview with the PLOP's AhmadJibril is at the bottom of this post.

Thursday, July 12, 2007 by Israel Today Staff Writer
http://www.israeltoday.co.il/default.aspx?tabid=178&nid=13412

Arafat died of AIDS, confirms Palestinian leader

A leading Palestinian "resistance" figure has confirmed what manysuspected all along: Yasser Arafat died of AIDS.

In an interview with Hizballah's Al-Manar TV earlier this month, AhmadJibril, founder and leader of the Damascus-based Popular Front for theLiberation of Palestine-General Command, revealed a shocking conversation herecently had with Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and hisstaff.

Said Jibril: "When [Abbas] came to Damascus with his team, I askedthem: 'What happened to the investigation into the death of [Arafat]? Is itconceivable that when [former Lebanese prime minister] Rafiq Hariri waskilled, all hell broke loose, but the death of Yasser Arafat, is notinvestigate?"

Jibril, like many Palestinians, readily accepted the notion thatIsrael had assassinated Arafat, and wanted the Palestinian Authority toconduct an official investigation concluding as much. The response fromAbbas' aides changed in an instant Jibril's view of his deceased mentor.

"They were silent, and then one of them said to me: 'To be honest, theFrench gave us the medical report, that stated that the cause of [Arafat's]death was AIDS.'"

Arafat eventually died in a Paris hospital after being airlifted outof Ramallah. Many speculated that the Palestinian leader, who was said tohave had numerous homosexual relationships, had in fact contracted AIDS.

A clearly angered Jibril said that Abbas and every other member ofArafat's Fatah faction "should be happy that we got rid of the plague, whichhad been imposed upon them and upon the Palestinian people. The Fatahmovement now has an opportunity to renew itself."

WATCH THE AHMAD JABRIL INTERVIEW ON YOU-TUBE at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExRVgH-8l8g



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Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org

July 18, 2007
For Immediate Release
Media Contact: Hossein Alizadeh, 212-430-6016, halizadeh@iglhrc.org

(New York, July 18, 2007) - Despite a widely publicized outcry two years agowhen Iranian authorities executed two young men in the northeastern city ofMashhed, the government continues to target, arrest, prosecute, and executeindividuals under its sodomy law. The International Gay and Lesbian HumanRights Commission (IGLHRC) condemns Iran's violations of human rights lawand asks that human rights groups around the world work to support thosetargeted by the government.

Two years ago, on July 19, 2005, two teenage boys, Mahmoud Asgari and AyazMarhoni, were hanged in public for their alleged involvement in sodomy andrape. Both teenagers were juveniles at the time of the offense, and one wasbelieved to have been a juvenile at the time of his execution. TheConvention on the Rights of the Child, of which Iran is a signatory, forbidsthe execution of juveniles.

Despite public responses from lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT)and human rights groups, the Iranian government has continued to arrest,prosecute, and even execute people on sodomy charges. Just weeks after theabove executions, two young men in the northern city of Gorgan were executedfor allegedly engaging in same-sex sexual conduct in violation of Iran'ssodomy law. On November 16, 2006, the Iran's State-run news agency (IRNA)published a story about the public execution of man convicted of sodomy inthe western city of Kermanshah.



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Kenneth.Sherrill@hunter.cuny.edu
kenslist@groups.queernet.org

[euro-queer] Sperm donor wins court fight to keep lesbian couple'sinfant in Ireland

Sperm donor wins court fight to keep lesbian couple's infant in Ireland

2007-07-19 18:46:28 -
http://www.pr-inside.com/sperm-donor-wins-court-fight-to-r177959.htm

DUBLIN, Ireland (AP) - A man who donated his sperm for a lesbian couple tohave a child won a legal fight Thursday to keep his biological son inIreland.

The Supreme Court judgment was a legal first in Ireland, a predominantlyRoman Catholic country where gay unions are not recognized in family law. Itmeant that the couple, who were wed in a civil union ceremony in England,cannot resettle in Australia with their 14-month-old boy as they had hoped,but can only vacation there for a maximum six weeks.

Two judges, Justices Susan Denham and Joseph Finnegan, ruled that thetoddler's best interests required him to stay in Ireland in proximity to hisbiological father. The third judge on Ireland's highest court, Justice NialFennelly, dissented, arguing that the man's legal team had offered noevidence that the boy's welfare would be harmed by leaving Ireland.

The verdict set the stage for a second unprecedented courtroom battlebetween the man and the couple _ as to whether he should enjoy joint custodyof the toddler.



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http://www.campuspride.org

For Immediate Release
July 19, 2007

Contact:
Shane Windmeyer
Executive Director, Campus Pride
Phone: 704-277-6710
Email: info@campuspride.org

Campus Pride Summer Leadership Camp starts July 24-29, 2007
Over 40 Student Leaders to Attend First-Ever College "Gay Camp" forGrassroots Change

Charlotte, NC - Over 40 student leaders from colleges and universitiesacross the United States will participate in the first-ever camp forlesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) and ally college students. Thefive day long leadership camp from July 24-29, 2007 is affectionatelyreferred to as "Gay Camp" and will be hosted by the Queer Student Union onthe campus of Towson University in Towson, Maryland.

Keynote highlights include Neil G. Giuliano, Executive Director of the Gay &Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD); Sabrina Sojourner, the FirstOpen Lesbian Elected to the United States Congress, Kevin Naff, the Editorof the Washington Blade and Vernon Wall, National Activist, Social JusticeEducator & Author. Artists and entertainers are booked for each night ofcamp and will feature riotously outrageous international sensation VidurKapur, the sketch comedy troupe GayCo, national slam master and authorEmanuel Xavier and acclaimed singer/songwriter Randi Driscoll among others.



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http://select.nytimes.com/mem/tnt.html?emc=tnt&tntget=2007/07/18/us/18cnd-se
x.html&tntemail0=y

July 18, 2007
Study Finds Men Who Download Porn Are Likely to Commit Abuse
By JULIAN SHER AND BENEDICT CAREY

Men convicted of downloading sexually explicit images of children generallyreceive lighter sentences than child molesters and they are on parole forshorter periods. But a new government study has found that a high percentageof convicted Internet offenders - more than 8 in 10 - have also committedacts of sexual abuse against minors.

The study, which has not yet been published, is stirring a vehement debateamong psychologists, law enforcement officers and prison officials, whocannot agree on how the findings should be presented or interpreted.

The research, carried out by psychologists at the federal Bureau of Prisons,is the first in-depth survey of such online offenders' sexual behavior doneby prison therapists who were actively performing treatment. Its findingshave circulated privately among experts, who say they could have enormousimplications for public safety and law enforcement.



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http://www.seattleweekly.com/2007-07-18/news/the-worst-internal-scandal-in-nsa-history-was-blamed-on-cold-war-defectors-homosexuality.php

The Worst Internal Scandal in NSA History Was Blamed on Cold War Defectors'Homosexuality
But what if they weren't gay?

By Rick Anderson

To some of his detractors, William Hamilton Martin was something of anamusing figure on the streets of Washington, D.C., in the 1960s, a bookishmathematician with a crew cut who walked with a Groucho Marx-like waddle.But what others remembered most was that lean, blue-eyed "Ham" Martin, aUniversity of Washington graduate and the son of an Ellensburg meatpacker,was a meticulous dresser, spoke "slightly effeminately," and may have had athing for a Stanford grad named Bernon Mitchell. Furthermore, the beliefamong some officials, politicians, and the press was that because Martin andMitchell might be homosexual, they did the unthinkable: In the midst of theCold War, the two National Security Agency code breakers defected to Russiaand went to work for the Soviet government.

On June 25, 1960, after four years as trusted employees of America's largestspy agency, Martin, then 29, and Mitchell, then 31, flew out of Washington,D.C., with one-way tickets to Mexico City. From there, they quietly slippedoff to Havana and took a Russian freighter to the Soviet Union, following aplan that had evolved over a year. The case stunned politicians andintelligence officials alike. Looking back, some of the defectors' neighborsand co-workers told investigators that if they'd been more vigilant aboutthe pair's sexual proclivities, maybe they'd have been more suspicious oftheir patriotism.



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The Pope Versus Gay Rights
By Dale Hurd

CBN News

http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/195745.aspx?option=print
July 16, 2007

CBNNews.com - The gay rights agenda has won the day in most Europeannations.

In fact, just calling homosexuality abnormal can now be considered hatespeech.

But in Italy, the battle for gay rights is still raging, and it's turninginto a showdown between the government and the Pope.

Hundreds of thousands of Italians packed a Rome piazza in May to protest agovernment bill that would give many legal rights to unmarried couples,including homosexual partners.

For more on this story, watch Pat Robertson's interview with LetiziaMoratti, the mayor of Milan, Italy.

Prime Minister Romano Prodi's government proposed allowing the civil unions.But the planned law, which would also give unmarried heterosexual coupleslegal standing, has run into strong opposition from conservatives andpro-family Catholics in parliament.



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Sperm donor wins court fight to keep lesbian couple's infant in Ireland

2007-07-19 18:46:28 -
http://www.pr-inside.com/sperm-donor-wins-court-fight-to-r177959.htm

DUBLIN, Ireland (AP) - A man who donated his sperm for a lesbian couple tohave a child won a legal fight Thursday to keep his biological son inIreland.

The Supreme Court judgment was a legal first in Ireland, a predominantlyRoman Catholic country where gay unions are not recognized in family law. Itmeant that the couple, who were wed in a civil union ceremony in England,cannot resettle in Australia with their 14-month-old boy as they had hoped,but can only vacation there for a maximum six weeks.

Two judges, Justices Susan Denham and Joseph Finnegan, ruled that thetoddler's best interests required him to stay in Ireland in proximity to hisbiological father. The third judge on Ireland's highest court, Justice NialFennelly, dissented, arguing that the man's legal team had offered noevidence that the boy's welfare would be harmed by leaving Ireland.



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The New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/11/world/middleeast/11iran.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

By NAZILA FATHI
Published: July 11, 2007
TEHRAN, July 10 - The Iranian government confirmed Tuesday that a man was executed by stoning last week for committing adultery, and said that 20 more men would be executed in the coming days on morality violations.

A judiciary spokesman, Alireza Jamshidi, told reporters on Tuesday that a death sentence by stoning had been carried out last week near the city of Takestan, west of Tehran, despite an order by the chief of the judiciary, Ayatollah Mahmoud Shahroudi, not to permit such executions.

"The verdict was final, and so it was carried out for the man but not for the woman," the ISNA news agency quoted Mr. Jamshidi as saying.

He said the 20 additional executions were for such things as "rape, insulting religious sanctities and laws, and homosexuality." Most executions in Iran are hangings, often in public and at the scenes of the alleged crimes.

The police arrested about 1,000 people in May during a so-called morality crackdown. Mr. Jamshidi said 15 more men were being tried on similar chargesand could receive death sentences.



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IndiaNews.com

http://www.indiaenews.com/nepal/20070715/60791.htm

Nepal Sunday, July 15, 2007
Nepal police assault youths for carrying condoms
Kathmandu, Nepal, 03:02 PM IST

On the day Nepal's MPs and rights activists were to interact with the gay community and discuss the inclusion of their rights in a new constitution, the police assaulted and stripped five young men in a park here because they were carrying condoms.

'Five men, whose ages are between 19 and 25, were sitting in Ratna Park (Saturday) evening when they were accosted by four policemen led by a sub-inspector,' said Sunil Pant, president of Blue Diamond Society (BDS), Nepal's only gay rights organisation.

'Though the men were metis (transgenders who prefer to dress as women), they were not in drag but dressed in jeans and T-shirts,' Pant said.

'However, the policemen made them strip naked and searched their bags. When they found condoms in the bags, they first abused the men, accused them of being sex workers and began beating them up with batons,' he added.

One of the five managed to run out of the park and call a BDS official, who was also roughed up when he tried to intervene.



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Participants of Pride March Attacked in Hungary

Statement of NGOs on police negligence

We, the undersigned organisations are appalled at the fact that the police failed to protect the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) march with appropriate force and methods. We demand that those responsible be called to account and measures be taken to prevent further similar cases.

The police violated the Act on assembly when they did not dissolve the counter demonstration against the LGBT march after it became obvious that the counter demonstration arrived armed with bottles and Molotov cocktails. Under the Act on assembly the police must dissolve an event when the participants arrive armed. "Any object fit to cause death or physical harm and [used] with the aim of violence or threat" is considered a weapon under the Act, thus the bottles and Molotov cocktails that the participants of the July 7 LGBT march were attacked with were weapons. The Act on assembly leaves no room for consideration for the police with regard to armed assemblies, thus the police proceeded in an illegal way when they did not dissolve the counter demonstration. This provision of the Act on assembly is aimed exactly to prevent such attacks as happened at this year's pride march. With this breach of the law the police left the peaceful demonstrators exposed to the extremist groups.



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Gay art show cancelled in Milan; organizers cite censorship

Catholic World News
http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=52399

Milan, Jul. 16, 2007 (CWNews.com) - Sponsors of a controversial art exhibitin Milan have cancelled the show after the city's mayor demanded the removalof several offensive works, the ANSA news agency reports.

The show, entitled "Art and Homosexuality," had become the center of a fierypublic debate even before its scheduled opening on July 17. Organizers hadagreed to pull two particularly controversial works, including one sculpturethat portrayed a man resembling Pope Benedict XVI (bio - news) in drag. Butthey balked when Mayor Letizia Moratti demanded the removal of 10 morepieces from the exhibit. The mayor had argued that the 10 works in question,along with the 2 already removed, were offensive to the sensibilities ofCatholics and inappropriate for viewing by children. Several of the worksinvolved young people or made references to religious figures.



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IRELAND - EVENING ECHO

http://www.eveningecho.ie/news/bstory.asp?j=225384852&p=zz5385558&n=225385612

Full equality for same sex couples - pledge by Ahern
16/07/2007 - 5:45:07 PM

The Government will pass laws as soon as possible toallow gay couples to marry, Taoiseach Bertie Ahernsaid today.

Mr Ahern insisted that the current Coalition wascommitted to providing full equality to same-sexcouples in society.

The Taoiseach was speaking as he reopened therefurbished Outhouse community centre in centralDublin, which has survived two arson attacks.

"This Government is committed to providing a moresupportive and secure legal environment for same-sexcouples," he said.



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Gibraltar court to rule on anti-gay discrimination
Chief Minister refuses to allow same-sex joint tenancies
Lesbian couple will go to European Court if necessary
Gibraltar and London - 12 July 2007

A lesbian couple who have been in love for 19 years are seeking ajudicial review of the Gibraltar government's decision to refuse themjoint tenancy of their rented apartment.

"It is shocking that this lesbian couple has to go to court to seek ajudicial review of the government's decision to deny them jointtenancy of a government-owned flat. This is clear evidence ofstate-sanctioned homophobic discrimination. It brings shame to thegovernment of The Rock.," said human rights campaigner Peter Tatchellof the London-based gay rights group OutRage!

"Nadine Rodriguez has applied to the Gibraltar High Court for ajudicial review of the non-inclusion of her partner in her tenancyagreement.



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70 Years After Nazi Pogrom, Hamburg Celebrates Gay Pride

Deutsche Welle
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2679727,00.html
12.07.2007

Gay men were forced to wear a pink triangle in concentration campsGay menwere forced to wear a pink triangle in concentration camps

July is gay pride month in Germany, overshadowed this year by the 70thanniversary of the gay pogrom in Germany. New documents reveal that almost55,000 gay men met their deaths in Nazi Germany.

Thousands of marchers will take part in the Christopher Street Day paradeoutside a landmark department store in downtown Hamburg in late July --celebrating the fact that in 2007, Hamburg has a gay mayor and same-sexcouples can form legally recognized unions.

But few of these marchers will be aware of newly released documentsrevealing that the Gestapo staged a lightning raid on this very departmentstore 70 years ago this summer, hauling off about 40 store employees onsuspicion of being homosexually oriented. Many of those detainees ended upin concentration camps.



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The Miami Herald

http://www.miamiherald.com/578/story/150298.html

June 25, 2007
LEBANON
Beirut an enclave for gay tolerance
Despite the country's political instability, gay men and women find a degree of tolerance, if not outright acceptance.
BY RAED RAFEI
Los Angeles Times Service

BEIRUT --
The Lebanese soldiers at the checkpoint peered through the barbed wire.Across the street from these men in their fatigues and combat gear, another group of men had arrived -- revelers in hip-hugging pants and tight shirts on their way to Acid, an openly gay nightclub in east Beirut.

The soldiers barely reacted.

In Lebanon, homosexuality is becoming less of a taboo. It is discussed with much greater candor on television and radio talk shows.

New gay bars have opened, joining mainstays such as Acid, creating a flourishing nightlife that is attracting locals and foreign tourists alike.



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Estonian police advises that gay parade organizers find a place away fromTallinn's historical center

http://www.interfax-religion.com/?act=news&div=3305

Tallinn, July 10, Interfax - Estonian police is against the gay paradeplanned to be held on August 11 at the center of the city.

The press service of the Estonian Northern Police Prefecture has informedInterfax that 'considering the experience of the last years and possiblethreats involved in holding the event, the prefecture has advised that theorganizers should find a place more suitable for it'.

'Since the participants in the parade are many, holding it may disturb theconstitutional rights of other citizens to walk the narrow streets of theOld City', the police believe.

The organizers of the sexual minorities parade asked the city authorities toprovide central streets for their march. Last year they were allowed tocarry rainbow flags through the Old City and the City Hall Square, butindignant citizens threw stones and eggs at the marchers.



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Ebar.com

http://ebar.com/news/article.php?sec=news&article=201

Vigil to recall executions
July 19, 2007
Bay Area Reporter
By Heather Cassell

Two young men who were executed in Iran two years ago will be remembered at City Hall today (Thursday, July 19) with a candlelight vigil.

Supervisors Ross Mirkarimi and Bevan Dufty, along with community activists, will light candles in room 244 at City Hall at noon to remember Mahmoud Asgari and Ayaz Marhoni, who were hung in 2005 for allegedly being gay and charged with raping a 13-year-old boy, according to Ariel Herrera, director of Outfront, the LGBT human rights arm of Amnesty International USA.

Mirkarimi, an Iranian American, told the Bay Area Reporter that the execution of the young men was "prehistoric and unacceptable" and that they "should not go unnoticed."

The vigil follows news reports last week in the International Herald Tribune that a man was executed earlier this month and that 20 more executions were cheduled within "coming days" based on "morality violations." Morality violations include "rape, insulting religious sanctities and laws, and homosexuality," and are punishable by death, the article stated. The article further confirmed Iran's morality crackdown by reporting the arrests of about 1,000 individuals in May and public executions being carried out.

The vigil, organized by gay activist and blogger Michael Petrelis, will be in conjunction with similar events in Cologne, Germany; Moscow; and Warsaw, Poland, Petrelis said.

"[If] people want to come we welcome their participating," said Petrelis.



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Serbianna.com

Attacker on Croatia Gay Parade charged for hate

July 12, 2007 1:09 PM
http://www.serbianna.com/news/2007/02004.shtml

ZAGREB, Croatia-A 25-year-old man was arrested and charged with hate crimefor alledegly attempting to throw Molotov cocktails at the Gay Parade inZagreb last weekend, police said Thursday.

The man, identified only as Josip. S., is accused of preparing Molotovcocktails at home, bottles containing gasoline, and planning to throw themat the participants of the Gay Parade, entitled here "Gay Pride", at theZagreb's main square last Sunday.

Police troops, among 500 that provided security for about 300 participants
of the parade, spotted the man and he fled the scene. Two of his aides, whowere armed with eggs and tomatoes, were arrested on the spot, while the manwas tracked down later.


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