"The Hard Sell: Taboo In Advertising": Headless Hornmen

Although the message of this AIDS awareness ad is blunt, it's not as obviously clear. At first glance, I thought it meant that HIV and AIDS are faceless. But apparently the message is not to be headless when in the heat of passion. Makes sense. "Verstecken ist ansteckend" means "to forget is contagious". As for creativity, of course chopping off people's heads and showing gay sex are gonna get people's attention. Because of the overzealous attempt at shock value, the ad doesn't come off as thought provoking or genius, but it does what it intends to do--makes people look.

"The Hard Sell: Taboo In Advertising": Mounted

Now this is just funny. And genius. The travel ad done by Scholz & Friends in Germany (for queer-travel.de) humorously points out the excitement to be had in America for the gays looking for vacation. The inscription reads "the other side of America" and shows what the backside of Mount Rushmore might look like. Seeing our forefathers in an assuming bent over position is so wrong, making it feel oh so right.

Happy Pride NYC!

With the legalization of gay marriage and Pride happening the same weekend, this is bound to be the most rambunctious, wild, crazy celebration ever!

News Spotlight: Tracy Morgan's Rant

It's officially not okay to make gay jokes. This is evident based on the call for Tracy Morgan's head for his Nashville stand-up routine in which he went on a rant about homosexuals. Of all entertainers, comedians usually get a pass to go as far as they want and to say as many fucked up things as they want without causing an uproar. There are the occasional outrages, but not many. The fact people booed him and walked out is a very clear sign that intolerant joking is not accepted anymore. I love my stand-up comedy filthy, but I also believe in gay rights so I would have to see it for myself to formulate an opinion on whether Morgan went too far.

From ABC News: "Comedian and "30 Rock" actor Tracy Morgan reportedly went on a vicious tirade against gay people during a standup show in Nashville.

Audience member Kevin Rogers, who is gay, wrote on his Facebook page called "Why I No Longer 'Like' Tracy Morgan, stating, "I figured at some point the gay jokes would fly and I'm well prepared for a good ribbing of straight gay humor. I have very thick skin when it comes to humor; I can dish and I can take."

He continued: "What I can't take is when Mr. Morgan took it upon himself to mention about how he feels all this gay s**t was crazy and that women are a gift from God and that 'Born this Way' is bulls**t, gay is a choice, and the reason he knows this is exactly because 'God don't make no mistakes.' Morgan's raunchy lewd statements also included how he'd stab his son to death if he said he was gay."

The Ryman Auditorium responded in a statement regarding Morgan's statements made in the June 3, 201 appearance, saying the theater "regrets that people were offended by statements" Morgan made, adding that it "does not control the content presented by people appearing on its stage, nor does it endorse any of the views of, or statements made by, such persons."

Morgan's rep issued a statement to gay rights Web site Unicorn Booty saying, "There is no comment. Thank you."

Calls to Morgan's rep by ABC News were not immediately returned.

This is not the first time that Morgan has been accused of homophobic slurs. In a 2009 Carnegie Hall standup show, audience members walked out within the first 30 minutes after Morgan again stated that homosexuality was a choice. An audience member told the New York Daily News, "There was a continuous flow of people getting up and leaving throughout the show. Middle-aged women were the most flabbergasted when he started mimicking explicit sex acts on stage.""

And I Quote...

"If you removed all of the homosexuals and homosexual influence from what is generally regarded as American culture, you would pretty much be left with "Let's Make a Deal.” --Fran Lebowitz

Tolerance is Key

Great video and concept by Marsha Ambrosius. Another addition to the recent explosion of gay rights activism and messages. Keep 'em coming.

News Spotlight: LGBT Youth Punished Harsher that Straight Peers

Here is some more disheartening news in the LGBT youth arena. A new study has been released that gay youth are punished harsher than their straight peers in all facets of society. The only only positive about the sudden influx of these studies and statistics is the fact that LGBT youth issues are coming to light. The more we know, the sooner things can change.

From The Washington Post: "Gay and lesbian teens in the United States are about 40 percent more likely than their straight peers to be punished by schools, police and the courts, according to a study published Monday, which finds that girls are especially at risk for unequal treatment.

The research, described as the first national look at sexual orientation and teen punishment, comes as a spate of high-profile bullying and suicide cases across the country have focused attention on the sometimes hidden cruelties of teen life.

The study, from Yale University, adds another layer, finding substantial disparities between gay and straight teens in school expulsions, arrests, convictions and police stops. The harsher approach is not explained by differences in misconduct, the study says.

"The most striking difference was for lesbian and bisexual girls, and they were two to three times as likely as girls with similar behavior to be punished," said Kathryn Himmelstein, lead author of the study, published in the journal Pediatrics.

Why the punishment gap exists is less clear.

It could be that lesbian, gay and bisexual teens who got in trouble didn't get the same breaks as other teens - say, for youthful age or self-defense, Himmelstein said. Or it could be that girls in particular were punished more often because of discomfort with or bias toward some who don't fit stereotypes of femininity.

"It's definitely troubling to see such a disparity," Himmelstein said.

"It may very well be not intentional," she said. "I think most people who work with youth want to do the best they can for young people and treat them fairly, but our findings show that's not happening.""

News Spotlight: Paladino Not Backing Down

New York's Republican gubernatorial candidate Carl P. Paladino had some strong words on homosexuality yesterday and he is not apologizing for it one bit. Actually, he is doing the opposite and keeps adding more comments that further show his disdain for the gay community. Not sure how this is going to pay out for him, but I have a hunch that even with the outrage, more people agree with him than most would like to believe.

From The New York Times: "The day after making remarks denouncing homosexuality, Carl P. Paladino defended his opinion during television interviews on Monday and said that children should not attend gay pride parades because they featured skimpily dressed men “grinding at each other and doing these gyrations.”

“It’s disgusting,” Mr. Paladino, the Republican candidate for governor, said on the “Today” show.
Mr. Paladino, who also appeared on “Good Morning America,” sought to defend controversial remarks about gays he made on Sunday to Jewish leaders in Brooklyn, including arguing that children should not be “brainwashed” into accepting homosexuality as acceptable.

Mr. Paladino said he did not regret those remarks and did not believe they made him a bigot. He also said that discrimination against gays was “horrible” and should not be tolerated.

“My feelings on homosexuality are unequivocal,” said Mr. Paladino said on the “Today” show. “I have absolutely no problem with it whatsoever. My only reservation is marriage.”

He added, “I have a lot of homosexuals working in my organization,” referring to his real estate business.

But Mr. Paladino reiterated that he thought it was wrong for Andrew M. Cuomo, his Democratic opponent, to have taken his daughters to a gay pride parade, saying that such events were inappropriate for children.

“Young children should not be exposed to that at a young age. They don’t understand, it’s a very difficult thing,” said Mr. Paladino. “And exposing them to homosexuality, especially at a gay pride parade — and I don’t know if you have ever been to one, but they wear these little Speedos and they grind against each other and it’s just a terrible thing.”

Mr. Paladino elaborated on those remarks during his interview on “Good Morning America,” saying that he and his wife had “stumbled on” a gay pride parade once during a trip to Toronto.
“It wasn’t pretty,” Mr. Paladino said. “It was a bunch of very extreme-type people in bikini-type outfits grinding at each other and doing these gyrations, and I certainly wouldn’t let my young children see that.”

Supporters of gay rights lashed out at Mr. Paladino’s comments saying they make him unsuitable to be New York’s governor.

“Out of touch, out of his mind, should be out of the race,” said Brian Ellner, a senior strategist for the Human Rights Campaign for New York Marriage."

News Spotlight: Tyler Clementi Sex Tape Leakers May Face Steeper Charges

The suicide of Tyler Clementi is awful. A lot more needs to be done to protect people in this country who feel they cannot be themselves because of ridiculous social standards that have little relevance in this day in age. Because this case is getting so much publicity, the two students who released the taped sexual encounter will not doubt get the book thrown at them and be charged with every possible crime. Already, the "off with their heads" sentiment is brewing. And sympathy is gonna be hard to come by for these two.

From CBS News: NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (CBS/WCBS) The two students accused of broadcasting Rutgers University freshman Tyler Clementi's sexual encounter on the Internet could face additional charges, according to prosecutors.

Middlesex County Prosecutor Bruce J. Kaplan said Thursday that more charges were possible under New Jersey's hate-crimes law.

"We will be making every effort to assess whether bias played a role in the incident, and, if so, we will bring appropriate charges," he said in a statement.

Dharun Ravi and fellow Rutgers freshman Molly Wei, both 18, have been charged with invading Clementi's privacy. Middlesex County prosecutors say the pair used a webcam to surreptitiously transmit a live image of Clementi having sex with a man on Sept. 19 and that Ravi tried to webcast a second encounter on Sept. 21, the day before Clementi's suicide.

On Thursday, authorities officially identified Clementi as the man recovered Wednesday afternoon in the Hudson River just north of the George Washington Bridge. Spokeswoman Grace Burgess says he drowned and had impact injuries on his torso.

WCBS reports that police have received at least one call from a gay rights group requesting that the charges against the students be upgraded, but one legal expert said upping the charges might be problematic.

"There would have to be specific evidence of knowledge by the actors that the victim, this boy, was vulnerable, had emotional problems, would likely and foreseeably react in the way he did," lawyer Gerald Lefcourt told the station.

Additionally, there is the question of motive.

A person can be found guilty of a bias crime in New Jersey if the jury agrees that he or she committed a crime because of a belief that the victim is a member of a protected group, such as a racial minority or gay.

Gay rights groups say Clementi's suicide makes him a national example of a problem they are increasingly working to combat: young people who kill themselves after being tormented over their sexuality.

Collecting or viewing sexual images without consent is a fourth-degree crime. Transmitting them is a third-degree crime with a maximum prison term of five years."

News Spotlight: Prop 8 No More

The battle may keep raging on, but yesterday's overturning of Proposition 8 was a great step forward nonetheless. Go Cali!

More Celeb Bashing with Blog King

Perez Hilton has been bombarding his Twitter with news of the release of his new book, "True Bloggywood Stories: The Glamorous Life of Beating, Cheating, and Overdosing." It is already a bestseller on Amazon before its December 1 release date. He is offering to autograph any of the first copies that are mailed back to him. Hilton is no doubt both hated and loved. And for the hate part, most hated people are avoided or ignored. He is the one person who forces even those who hate him to listen to him because his opinion is THAT important. As for us, we side with loving him because anyone who can become so powerful with words and has the balls to trash celebrities is worth loving in our book.

"Sexpot of the Week" -- Aubrey O'Day

If you're not a fan of overt sexuality and like subtle sexiness, Aubrey O'Day is not gonna do it for you. She's smutty. Slutty. And puts it all out there. While I understand the lure of subtlety, I like plenty of overtly sexual chicks in the media. I'm amused by breast exposure, dirty words coming out of a pretty girl's mouth, and political uncorrectedness.

Fortunately, Aubrey has accomplished all three. And if that's not enough I respect her balls (albeit hidden) to repeatedly mouth off to/battle P. Diddy and to conveniently claim to be bisexual. She has taboo covered and pardon me, but I like my smut.

Ben & Jerry, Not Ben & Mary

Ben & Jerry's has changed its classic "Chubby Hubby" ice cream flavor to "Hubby Hubby" in support of gay marriage and as a celebration to Vermont's decision to allow it. I think they have balls and I love when companies have balls! Go get a tub to show support--the new label is only on shelves for a limited time. Click here to read more.