If you’re in the UK, there’s a chance that there are some really annoying TV shows that you just can’t get away from – in fact that’s probably true wherever you are! I swear, if I have to see an advert for Desperate Scousewives one more time my TV is going to suffer a fatal incident involving a cup of hot coffee dribbled down the back and a quick flight out of an open window!

But although I find a whole lot of those reality TV shows to be pretty repugnant, the upcoming Playing It Straight has to be one of those that really makes my blood boil.

Now, I have absolutely no doubt that there will be hoards of gay guys watching the show, mainly because it contains a whole lot of camp double entendre’s and a lot of barely clothed young men who are mostly gay but don’t act it. I have no problem with those little aspects of it, it’s the game show style of it that really annoys me.

For those who don’t get it, the set up is that there’s a relatively empty-headed young woman with far too much makeup and a love of all things expensive, trying to work out which of the guys she’s shacked up with is straight. As I understand it, there are eleven guys and Cara, some of the guys are gay, and some are straight (although you have to wonder just how many of those straight guys either lied to get on the show, or are actually bi)

Cara has to work out who is straight and who isn’t, through the use of some very humorous and humiliating games. She votes guys out, and if she picks a straight guy at the end they both win 25k. If she picks a gay guy who managed to “Play it Straight” convincingly enough, he walks away with the whole 50k.

Does all that sound like fun to you?

To me, it reeks of stereotyping, and is actually pretty offensive. The message seems to be that it is better for gay men to conform to masculine stereotypes. If you think I’m overreacting, imagine it in reverse. What if it were called “Playing it Gay” and the straight guys had to convince someone (and the audience) they they are actually gay. Cue camp walks and limp wrists, hours debating Kylie and moments of hasty simulated man sex in random places. Would we accept that as being okay?

I’m gonna climb up on my soapbox here and suggest that this kind of BS is not what people protested for. We’re doing a disservice to people who had absolutely no rights and fought for some semblance of equality by turning our lifestyles into a commodity that can be sold for the sake of some cheap laughs. These guys might have noble thoughts about what they’re taking part in, but in reality they’re selling out. Instead of making sexuality a non-issue (which is how things should be) they’re voluntarily allowing themselves to be bought as entertainment for a largely straight audience to mock and laugh at.

Now, I already have some pretty strong views on the likes of the X-Factor and all the other talent shows that are really nothing more than the public humiliating people who should probably be under the care of some psychology professionals, so it’s possibly not surprising that I find this to be not my cup of tea. But it does surprise me that there is an audience for such rubbish.

Instead of gaining equality for ourselves and getting the respect we deserve in society, some of us are happy to remain the subjects of ridicule, reminding everyone just how “different” gay people are from the rest.

I’ll step down from my soapbox now, and wish you a very Happy New Year! ;)

I love Christmas, and loathe it in equal measure simultaneously. I’m one of those guys from a large family, and every year we have those get-togethers where all the expected happens; someone has a blazing row with their partner about their teenager being given a thimble of wine, uncle George has a lengthy discussion with aunt Doris about the destruction of their local pub during the Blitz and whether it happened on a Tuesday or Saturday, and everyone has a very uncomfortable moment when a secret is revealed and you find out that back in 1942 a long passed-on relative was caught in a compromising position with a sailor… all the while I’m thinking up an excuse to get out to have a drink with a friend.

But, there are things I really love about Christmas too, like seeing some of the friends I’ve missed all year through my lack of FaceBook dedication, the look of joy on a persons face when they open that present and find that first edition book you found for them and they’ve wanted since they were a spotty teenager with greasy hair nodding along to Nirvana in your bedroom, and the rowdy parties where there is bound to be a really hot guy just desperate for someone to date for just a couple of weeks so he won’t have to rely on a previous shag buddy on New Year.

I know you might think I must be really good a buying presents for others now I’ve mentioned that first edition book, right? Well, that’s a rare occurrence, and I maybe get that reaction once over the holiday. Normally I end up buying my friends something pretty predictable and boring.

It’s not my fault I cant stand the shopping trips and increasingly buy everything on the internet. I have a phobia of adults dressed as Santa’s helpers, and all that cheesy Christmas music playing in all the shops really could lead to a strangling spree with tinsel being the weapon of choice!

So, this year, I think I have decided that all of my friends are getting adult gifts, toys, from one place. That way I can guarantee to shock everyone, and please them all at the same time. I know that although they might go red and make assertions that they would “never use such a thing”, they’ll be at home that night getting it on with their inanimate object (or, in the case of battery powered devices, very animated!)

I can’t really loose with some adult toys, can I?

For Sally, the almost virginal religious and conservative ex-colleague – a Rampant Rabbit.

For Geoff, the straight gym jock who we all have doubts about – an Aneros with some lube.

For Carl, the party animal who gets far too much sex already (and we’re all secretly jealous of) – some “Delay” cream.

And for Steven, the handsome college boy just exploring his gay side – a years supply of assorted flavored condoms.

Bring on Christmas, and may it be extremely merry for all! ;)

I saw something truly fascinating yesterday, and although it is an emotive discussion, it actually raised questions for me that it seems a lot of others hadn’t really considered. I’ll warn you now, this post might not be easy to read!

So a few weeks ago I brought up the Occupy movement and how it seems that a new wave of civil protest is braking out. This of course started on September 17th (my birthday, coincidentally!) and since then we’ve seen some remarkable events.

Primarily, we’ve seen enormous protests in solidarity all over the world. There have been messages of support back and forth between England, Australia, USA, Spain, Egypt, France, Ireland, Japan and hundreds of capital cities in countries all over the planet. Occupations have arisen in all corners, with hundreds of thousands of people calling for everything from gay rights to the end of banker bonuses. Students are demanding a fair education, mothers are demanding  adequate health care, unions are calling for fair workers rights…

But along with the amazing outpouring of a demand for justice, there have also been some impressive shows of force by those in positions of power. Notably, in the USA, the right to freedom of assembly has been under attack, with some cities allocating time slots for citizens to express themselves, some forcibly evicting protesters and – in the case of Oakland California – brutally crushing the right to protest with the use of weaponry.

That brings me to the crux of this post.

We saw a couple of Marines join the Wall Street protests after the girls were attacked by the NYPD, and they vowed to defend their fellow Americans against the violence. This was, without a doubt, a very noble and moral thing to do.

But, on Tuesday 25th October, we saw things go wonky in Oakland. The Oakland PD (in conjunction with other law enforcement departments from neighboring areas) arrived to enforce an eviction demand enacted by Mayor Jean Quan. Ironically, she came to fame for being an active member of the rights movements previously and was seen as an advocate of Liberal policies. Unfortunately, it seems that the old line of power being a corrupting force has been proven in her case.

When protesters arrived in the evening to reclaim their rightful place in the heart of the city, they were met with brute force. Officers fired tear gas, rubber bullets and “flash bang” grenades at protesters (Oakland Police have denied this, despite these weapons being filmed in use). There are reports that an LRAD weapon (sound cannon) was on scene and ready to be deployed. This is a military grade weapon, illegal for use against American citizens.

In the proceeding violence a young man fell to the ground. His name is Scott Olsen. Other occupiers quickly arrived to assist him – then a grenade was thrown by an officer directly into the crowd, exploding inches from Scott’s head. Police ignored calls for medical assistance from the crowd, and his fellow protesters carried him to safety. Scott was found to have a skull fracture and ended up in a medically induced coma.

While he is now stable and awake, his memory is reportedly impeded and his speech is slurred. There are fears that he may have suffered permanent brain damage.

The following day it became apparent that Scott Olsen is a veteran. He served two tours in Iraq for his country. Yes, the 24 year old served for his country twice in a war zone, came home safely, and was almost killed by the Police of California.

When this came to light, US marine Jay C Gentile posted the following pic -

Almost immediately hundreds of other veterans and serving military joined in with their condemnation, demanding several things including comment from President Obama, the resignations of Mayor Quan and her senior police officers, and calling for larger protests against those restricting the freedom of assembly in every city in America.

But – and this is the hard part – what if Scott hadn’t been a veteran?

I’m all for the sudden outpouring of support and solidarity with the brotherhood, but would we be seeing the same thing if the person who is now in a hospital bed recovering from a critical injury were gay, or black, or a student, or unemployed… Would the military actually care if it was “just another regular American”?

I know, it’s a hard thought to have. These people are noble for standing up now, but where were they all when they were watching those girls being maced by the NYPD? Why did that event only illicit a response from a handful of military men when this has gained hundreds of serving and veteran marines? Where were all these heroes during other violent crackdowns on protest in America? Scott is not the first, and he certainly won’t be the last.

Ultimately, it’s a great thing that they have stepped up and vowed to defend their fellow citizens against the brutality of numerous out of control Police establishments and local authorities in America. We all know that things are getting dangerous, and as the violence is stepped up by those in blue, the people will need the boys in camo to defend them. In the last couple of weeks we’ve seen groups being announced including OccupyTeachers, OccupyPolice and OccupyTheBoardRoom – but most importantly, OccupyMarines.

Hundreds of serving and veteran Marines are now signing up to Occupy alongside their fellow Americans. It’s just a shame that it took the attempted murder of a fellow Marine to get them moving to defend their people on home soil.

Susan Sarandon At Occupy Wall Street

If you blinked, you might have missed it on your nightly news, but that’s probably because all major news broadcasters are suspiciously quiet about it.

There’s something going on in Wall Street, and this time it isn’t another too-big-to-fail being given your tax money, or the markets on a slump because of the likelihood of Greece collapsing.

Firstly, I’ll give you a little background info…

On the 17th September, Anonymous (the infamous Internet group responsible for publicly trolling Scientology, taking down several sites in defense of Wikileaks and defacing all of the Syrian government websites – among other things) planned to invade wall street and start their own popular uprising against corporate greed and influence on government. They were ambitions, stating 20k people might be there. Of course, these things don’t quite start like that. So instead there was a gathering of maybe 50 people. This soon turned into a couple of thousand when they marched on Wall Street itself from their base at Liberty Plaza.

I picked up the story on sept 24th when a friend – knowing how I love a good cause to get behind – sent me a link to a video of a group of female protesters being sprayed with MACE at point-blank range by LAPD Officer Tony Bologne (yes, that is his real name!)

Suddenly, word was spreading. Their peaceful protest and uneventful marches were suddenly out there saturating the Internet. The Information Superhighway was seething with anger at the blatant abuse of freedom and rights, resulting in many thousands more joining the cause.

The numbers of those camped out in Liberty Plaza has grown, with supplies and donations from people all around the world who want to see the corporate interests pushed out of government. Similar protests are now being organized for cities all across America, and the world.

Why is this important to us, the gay community?

Apart from us being a part of the wider community that all of this affects, the Occupy Wall Street protesters have gone to great lengths to be inclusive of the LGBT community, often bringing it up in discussion in their videos and live broadcasts, inviting people to come and take part, no matter what your race, religion, sexual orientation or political leaning. On Tuesday the 27th, Michael Moore appeared to show his support and speak to the protesters. I know, sometimes he can be a right pain in the butt, right? But he again brought up the fact that America was changing, and that now over 50% of Americans believe that gay marriage should be legal and recognized. This brought cheers from the crowd around him.

Ultimately, this is everyones fight. This isn’t about whether you support Obama or not. This isn’t about whether you believe in capitalism or not. It’s about whether you are happy to sit back and watch as the corporations control your government. It’s about stopping the 1% who control 90% of the wealth. It’s about making it clear to your government that your rights matter, and that corporations do not have the right to be your rulers by paying off your elected.

Some of us remember the struggle of the LGBT community, and without those brave people we would not have the freedom we now have. Plenty of us are educated enough to know of the struggles other communities have faced to rectify society.

All of those events involved just a section of society, this fight involves all of us.

It should seem obvious, the European Court Of Human Rights (ECHR) is founded on the principal of supporting equality and freedom for all, regardless of race, religion, sexuality…

Of course, those who are staunchly “Godly” see it in a completely different light, with many maintaining their intolerance and bigotry in the face of what their religion supposedly teaches.

While on the one hand there are token expressions of peace, love and tolerance (which is what religion is SUPPOSED to be about) many neglect this aspect entirely. They don’t seem to recognize their own hypocrisy; they claim to wish to maintain the status quo, the “true” word of their God, while selecting the right quotes and passages from a wide array and neglecting the very fundamental message.
They also call this the word of God while neglecting the fact those words have been altered, translated, rewritten and distorted numerous times to suit those in positions of authority, or those who wish to gain authority over followers.

None of this is new, of course. But the fight being taken to the ECHR, with renewed support from the Alliance Defense Fund, could see a long fight ahead.

It begins with four cases taken to the ECHR by British individuals who claim that they have been discriminated against through their requirement to serve gay people.
These people presumably believe that gay people are not equal to them. They believe that they are somehow superior. And they wish to challenge a law affecting millions of people because they feel “uncomfortable”.

Lets be clear here, the employment rights of one should not take priority over the fundamental Human Rights of another. Basically, I believe that the rights of religious people to refuse to work with gay people on religious grounds does not take priority over the rights of those gay people to be treated equally.

So why is the Alliance Defense Fund – A right-wing American consortium – becoming involved in the battle? The last time I checked, America was not a European nation. So, it might be fair to ask why a right-wing religious group from Arizona is meddling in the rights of others thousands of miles away. It would be like the English Defense League (widely viewed as a racist, homophobic and highly bigoted far-right group in the UK) deciding to become involved in the US legal system in an attempt to revoke the right to vote from non-white racial groups. Would that be accepted?

So, here’s my take on it all, and it might not be what you expect…

Let them have their way. GIve those four people what they want in respect of refusing to serve gay people. Don’t provide them with any financial gain, but allow them to work without having to meet the legal requirements of their employers. Let them change their working hours so they can avoid a legal requirement, but do not allow their employers to breach equality laws.

Why do I say this? Because those who refuse to bend to social changes become quickly irrelevant. The more they cry and stamp their feet, and the more they demand that the world remain in the dark ages to suit their views, the quicker they will become defunct.
Numbers attending religious services are collapsing, with churches closing every week. Those willing to embrace the modern world will succeed, and those who maintain their bigotry and hateful ways will become extinct.

They are out of touch with the rest of society. They’re like the despot refusing to accept that his power is gone even as the rebels beat at his door. They are the stubborn people who would rather drive into a lake than admit they read the map wrong.

There are thousands of others out there who have managed to reconcile their religious conviction with serving the gay community, and they will grow and grow with support throughout society. Those who want to spend their days screaming about what they think is right and wrong about other people loving each other will become increasingly less relevant to society.

Ultimately, we have already won. All we have to do is sit back and watch them embarrassing themselves and wasting their lives feeling hatred for others. We should pity them, not hate them in return.

I am of course talking about the wave of violence which recently shook Britain – and Philadelphia. Why is that relevant to us? There are plenty out there casting blame and offering excuses, stating disaffection and brutality, racism and injustice. Where were we when we were facing similar? Our very lifestyles were illegal at one time, and yet I don’t recall gangs of queers attacking shops and stealing HD TV’s! Did we miss our chance to do what we liked while blaming everyone else but ourselves? No, it’s not simply about a group of society being routinely under attack from outside forces or being denied a fair existence. That’s far too simple an excuse.

It all began on Thursday 4th August in an anti-gun operation in London, when 29 year old Mark Duggan was shot and killed by Police. It was understood at that time that an exchange of fire had occurred and that the Police had to act. Cases like this are automatically referred to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

Unfortunately, neither the Metropolitan Police nor the IPCC bothered to discuss anything the with the family of the deceased. They were left to deal with their grief without knowing what had happened, and without any assurance that it would be thoroughly investigated. At the very least, as a mark or respect and reassurance, they should have been consulted about the death of Mark Duggan.

On Saturday, anger had increased at the lack of information or even basic respect for the family, a vigil was held in Tottenham outside the local Police station. This then became violent.

Cars were set alight, Police came under attack and the London Fire Service had been called to attend numerous fires in the area as Police struggled to maintain control.

That’s how it started. Like numerous other public disturbances all around the world, an injustice is perceived, and those in positions of authority are deemed to be the enemy.

However, there are a few things that quickly became clear; Mr Mark Duggan had possession of a firearm. Whether he fired it or not is irrelevant prior to the investigation. Police are required to take adequate action to defend themselves and protect others against an armed individual. While the circumstances of the incident do have to be clarified, he was carrying a loaded weapon in a country where such weapons are illegal and deadly force can be used to stop them. In addition, the Duggan family understood that what was happening was not in response to the death of Mark. They were immediately condemning the massive destruction around them and making it clear that it was not related to his death.

We also have to look at what happened next, after the initial protest turned violent in Tottenham. While the buildings burned and over 20 local people were forced to flee from their homes as they watched their possessions go up in flames, the looting started. Kids and young adults attacked their own local businesses. It was no longer about an injustice, it was now about selfish greed and a complete lack of respect for any other Human.

Personally, I think the Police made a fatal error on this night (and subsequent nights). They stood back and watched the community be torn apart by gangs of roaming young thugs who value Nike footwear more than Human life. It was clear from everyone in the country that they should have been acting to prevent it from spreading. But, fearful of making things worse and turning it back into a race issue, they stood back and allowed it to happen.

This spread the message across the country that the Police were unable or unwilling to act, and it showed gangs of kids that they have strength in numbers. We have seen governments fall through the sheer swell of Human will, and we know that when the people of a nation come together they can outnumber and outmanoeuvre any authority.

In this case, however, it wasn’t about an unjust government, or even an unfair social system. It was about sheer greed and consumerism, arrogance and selfish attitude, violence and the glorification of criminality.

What many do not know about the Riots in the UK is that it didn’t just happen in London, Birmingham, Bristol, Liverpool and Manchester. It happened everywhere. Numerous smaller towns and cities saw flash looting as kids in all areas decided that they could get away with it too. It might have been on a smaller scale, but it was happening all over the country.

Now we have the inevitable mess afterwards, where pundits and talking heads all vie for their camera time and people who elected themselves as “spokespeople” for communities try to excuse the actions of their young thugs. We’re hearing people talk about lack of opportunity, disaffection, government cuts and racism, all offering some kind of explanation other than “they’re just criminal thugs”.

I’m very liberal, I believe that people should be able to do as they wish as long as they don’t harm others. But I do not subscribe to the idea that we need to look further than their immediate families and friends to understand why this happened. Their exposure to Police and government is not as consistent as their exposure to their family, friends and environment. If we want to place blame anywhere, it should be placed at the feet of the single mother who gets wasted every weekend and leaves her kids with others, or the parents who don’t bother to ask where their 16 year old is a midnight, the absent father and the mother who can’t be bothered to sit with their kids to help them with their homework, or the family who places value on material gain while not offering their kids any tools to improve their lives and actually achieve something.

We only need to look at the words and responses of the parents of these kids as they rush from the courts after standing before a judge. They yell abuse at the press, they feel like the victims, they demand respect while refusing to offer it back. These are the people who are raising these kids, and once you see how their parents act, it’s no surprise that these kids have become the animals they now are.

However, although I do not often subscribe the theory of media influence (I didn’t when it was Manson blamed for Columbine, for example), I do accept that much of the culture we are looking at reinforces the “I DEMAND!” attitude. It’s like a perfect storm, we have a youth across the country who have very low moral values through pathetic parental example, while they have music surrounding them telling them that if they can’t afford something they should take it through any means. They’re told that they deserve things, and that they don’t have to work like the rest of us to get them. They’re bombarded with advertising and media placing value on status and property. They’re encouraged to believe that they live in a survivalist society where anything is justified as long as they get what they want – not what they need.

So, what do we do now? As the businesses rebuild and the lives lost remembered and mourned, as people gather together to help those who have lost their homes, we need to do several things to fix this society, and none of them involve providing excuses to mindless thugs who DO know better and chose to follow their culturally induced greed instead…

We need the Police to act with reasonable force in the right circumstances. It’s not hard. We saw them charge at protesters in London at the student protests, and that was without mass destruction, looting and fire-bombing. During the first night they should have used force to stop it, and if it continued the following night baton rounds and tear gas should have been used. Because they didn’t act, it emboldened kids up and down the country to do the same.

We can all recognize the difference between a political protest and a violent riot. Why was it that students and those protesting events such as the G20 are treated to such overwhelming Police control, and yet violent looters destroying businesses and homes with no political opinion at all are allowed to continue? There is something deeply suspicious about this. Are we to believe that the Police were too scared to act? All of a sudden? I don’t think so. This needs to be clarified for the future, with specific events and actions leading to an immediate escalation of Police response. For example, if more than ten people are involved and a business is looted, the officers are then given authority to use baton rounds.

We need to name and shame those families who have done such a thoroughly disgusting job of raising their kids. I was born in North London, we were a poor family with two working parents, and we would never have even remotely considered behaving like this. We weren’t raised to value material gain above moral decency. But even if that were not the case, we would have been too ashamed to disappoint our parents! We’ve lost the social responsibility that is encouraged by shame. If people were antisocial back when I was a child, people knew about it. Parents didn’t want to be the outcasts in their society because of the actions of their kids, and that helped to keep them in line. Parents are no longer scared of being seen as failures, because their identities are often protected from the press. They should not be protected, they should be publicly humiliated.

We need to send those responsible for violence and destruction to prison, for reasonable sentences. We need those who are too young or those found to have taken part in a minor way to face community service, visible to all those they hurt and visible to all those kids out there who think they have a right to act in this way and without consequences.

And, perhaps as a concession to all those extreme liberal “hug a hoodie” people out there who would like to blame society, the Police, the government (basically anyone but the individual committing the crime), we should explore methods to get these kids into programs that further their education. Quite simply, we should perhaps look at doing the job their parents should have done and try to save the next group of kids from being raised in the same way. Those kids should be forced to work for their benefits. Whether it’s cleaning up graffiti or replacing the windows they’ve smashed, rebuilding the Reeves furniture store or working on the Police patrol vehicles, they need to be put to work and they need to start realizing that claiming benefits is not an acceptable career.

For now, the chaos in the UK is over. But unless we learn the lessons from this and take action to show that it will not be tolerated, it will happen again. We need to show these criminals that society is not going to be their victim, and that doesn’t mean giving them more money or more state resources – it means forcing individuals and families to be decent members of society, with consequences if they refuse.

I have no doubt that you’ve heard the news already. Of course, something like this travels fast across the tangled web of the Internet. Twitter lights up with fans expressing their grief, Facebook goes into overdrive with fan pages and memorials, bloggers start tapping away with gushing emotion… And I join the outpouring.

I hope you like metaphorical posts, because that’s the way I plan to do this.

I was a little late to the Winehouse party. A good friend of mine who knows I love house parties invited me along, suggesting that the music was something a little different, and that people really loved it.

So while I don’t normally like that kind of popular music, I was actually really impressed to hear it when I got there. It was a great mix of blues, soul and jazz with a modern twist, and I found myself dancing along to it. It was a really great house, quite beautiful. The whole place was packed with original style and the owner seemed to have a lot of pride in the place.

It was packed with all kinds of people, old and young, alternative and mainstream. I guess I was having a great time for the first hour or so, meeting new people and checking the place out. But then I started to look around and realized that something wasn’t quite right.

There were a couple of kids throwing up on the balcony. When I went to the bathroom I squeezed past a stumbling young guy to get in and there was a sheen of white powder across the wash basin. In the hall a couple were getting far too friendly while others walked around them. Outside the front door a young couple were screaming at each other, yelling obscenities and slapping each other while the neighbors looked on in disgust.

Then something happened to the CD player, and the music started to jump. It sounded so terrible and everyone who had been dancing and having a great time gave up and took a seat. A few people tried to fix it, but after another hour it was obvious that whatever they were doing was just making it worse. It was really bad, you couldn’t understand the lyrics and although the music seemed to make sense, the energy had gone.

People started to leave. Every time another bottle smashed or another person fell unconscious the numbers thinned out. But a few stuck around and kept on listening to the stereo even though the music was impossible to appreciate. I guess they’d never heard such music before and were not quite ready to let it go just yet.

That’s when I left. I had the music playing in my head, and I really didn’t want to ruin what had otherwise been a good night. It was so sad to see the house being trashed in front of me and hear that music becoming nothing more than a horrid noise.

What had been a beautiful home had become little more than a crack house. There were a few people who were trying to stop the destruction, but it seemed futile. As I walked out the door I knew the party would be raided and closed down pretty soon, and I didn’t want to be there. Plenty of people I talked to as we were leaving thought the house might even be totally destroyed; it was so out of control it was more like a riot than a party.

In conclusion, the party started great. But soon it became clear that it was out of control. I think we all knew that it would end in a mess, we just hoped that maybe it would calm down and could carry on.

Ultimately, Amy Winehouse was an adult, capable of making her own decisions and responsible for her own health. While it is probably right to feel sad that such talent was lost, do we celebrate recklessness and addiction in any other aspect of life? I believe we should mourn, but with a certain perspective – just as we mourned the death of Kurt Cobain, River Phoenix or Marilyn Monroe.

R.I.P. Amy.

Yeah, he is pretty isn’t he? I have to admit I am a sucker for a handsome face and a confident attitude. And, being a gay guy who divides his time between sleeping, gym, the clubs and the Internet (that’s pretty much my life, and I love it) I am a big fan of the English Lads site. I’m sure you know why, given that their tag line is “Uncut Amateurs – Just That Little Bit Hotter”.

I like plenty of the guys there. In fact, I like them so much that I became involved in some fan blogs for a couple of the guys, featuring their content and promoting them a little. It’s a fun thing to do when I have a little time to do it.

Model Josh Peters was actually on my list of guys to promote too, with his hot muscled bod and all that attitude in his pics. Unfortunately, that attitude seems to extend beyond his on-camera image.

You see, one of the blogs I enjoy reading (Queerty) had featured the sexy young man on their site a while ago, showing their appreciation for his modeling work and sporting career.

But before I get into the whole story, let me give you a little background info.

Josh Peters is an MMA Fighter. For those not “in the know” MMA is a combat sport combining various aspects of several styles of martial arts. So now you know where he developed that athletic body. That just makes him a little hotter, am I right? Yeah, that’s what I thought too.

Next up, the guy is a professional male model, I believe he’s signed to a UK agency. And still he gets a little hotter, yes?

Our friends over at Queerty added a little content featuring the young hunk, which is a great thing to do and can really do wonders for a young guys career. You know that any post on a blog can really thrust a person into the limelight and if the content is good there’s a real chance of getting something more out of it too. It can really make a career.

So, you’d think that perhaps, if the young man in question happened to stumble across the post, he might send them a message saying thanks. A nice post featuring you is good thing, no?

Unfortunately, Queerty reports that the response they got from this young man when he saw it was anything but appreciative.

Subject: Remove me now

I am getting Sick of finding myself on these stupid gay sites. - Josh Peters

Wow. A guy who wants to be a male model, and poses pretty much nude but for a carefully placed hand, decides to piss off his primary fan base. I guess no one told him that the money in modeling is in high fashion, and that Gay men have a disposable income and an interest in fashion that rivals the likes of your average female pop superstar.

The conversation could have ended there, but after the guys on the site replied pointing out that he might be supporting the stereotype that models have a less than average IQ (of course, they did it in the nicest possible way) he came back with a retort that would make the English fellows of Oxford or Cambridge proud:

I guess you have to be a bumboy to find what you put on that site funny. - Josh Peters

Someone call in a PR rep, stat!

So what is a guy with this kind of attitude supposed to do? Yeah, that’s right, become a gay porn star of course! What else could he do but submit to what he found so offensive to begin with?

But it doesn’t end there folks. Not only is the previously homophobic lad getting naked and having fun on camera for the “bumboy’s” to enjoy, he’s letting other guys “do stuff” for him.

Perhaps he found a PR rep after all?

Oh, the random Right Wingnuts are at it again, this time in Hazard, Kentucky. Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water… (that will make sense in a couple of minutes, I swear!)

The drama unfolded in the city of Hazard when two developmentally challenged young men began larking about at the side of the pool. Apparently, they did something so disgusting! Yes, one sat on the others knee! Oh the abhorrence, Gods eyes must have bled!

They attended the pool with a group called Mending Hearts Inc, a charitable organization connecting individuals and providing services to the Intellectually and developmentally challenged. Organizations like Mending Hearts Inc provide invaluable services, offering respite and support to parents, carers and families, and disabled individuals with a vitally important path into the community.

So what happened when this apparent abhorrent behavior was spotted? In rushed a gaggle of staff who seemingly happen to be religious (these people must be trained by Ninjas, always creeping about just waiting for their homophobic moment, and then, Shark Attack! – UK readers might understand that joke more than others).

These staff obviously had nothing better to do than to upset a group of people already struggling with equality and life in general, telling them all that they had to leave. Apparently, God doesn’t like gay people swimming in his pool in Hazard Kentucky.

I kid you not, the staff member quoted the Bible and suggested that he had the right to remove them based on that. Forget law, forget the inalienable rights to Freedom and Liberty, the Bible apparently ignores all of that (as is too often the case in the translation of some) and advises that the local pool in Hazard Kentucky is not to be used by disabled gay people. I must have missed that section because I don’t recall any mention of swimming pools and recreation centers the last time I read through it.

And this is the part that really upsets me; the two young men left in tears, humiliated and simply not understanding what they had done wrong. As if the world doesn’t already seem like a baffling and unfriendly place to them, they’re humiliated and embarrassed by complete strangers and made to feel even more like outcasts on a day when fun and inclusion should have been key.

Mending Hearts Inc did what any sensible person or group facing disgusting homophobia and discrimination should, they filed a formal complaint with their local gay rights group, in this case the Kentucky Equality Federation, and in partnership they requested an apology and that the employee who removed them be transferred to another department of the STATE RUN recreation center. They also planned a protest outside of the facility to highlight the issue.

As you’d expect, this minor skirmish has brought the truly religiously insane out of the woodwork, with Jordan Palmer (President of the Kentucky Equality Federation) receiving death threats if their planned protest outside of the facility were to go ahead.

In steps the Mayor of Hazard, Kentucky, Nan Gorman, 83. And how does she pour oil on turbulent water? By being the equivalent of that racist guy who says “some of my friends are black”, stating that the Pool once hired a gay lifeguard.

Insert.Face.Palm.Here

Oh they did? Well that’s fine then, all is forgiven. There cannot possibly be anything wrong if the Center was once so open and equal as to hire one gay Lifeguard! Move along, nothing to see here after all.

When asked, Charlotte Sizemore, executive director of the recreation center, declined to comment on the incident directly because she hadn’t witnessed it. But forgive my naiveté, as head of the facility you don’t need to witness every footfall and intolerant uttering to have an opinion and issue a sensible statement. But it appears that she let slip that although she holds such a position, others have authority, stating “They don’t want us to talk about it”. Hmm, intriguing. Gagged huh? By whom?

Charlotte Sizemore added:

“We are getting all kinds of phone calls,” she said. “We’re sorry it happened. We’re just fair to everybody. … We never have any trouble here, period.”

One of those phone calls was allegedly from a blogger (NewProgressiveMuckraker) who had the balls to call Ms. Sizemore for a direct comment. Nice to offer a chance for both sides of the story, far more professional than me. But it seems the executive director had been having a very tough day, and with the words “You don’t fucking know, Fuck you!” she hung up.

Yep, them Hazard Pavilion folks are real professionals, such a classy way to hold such a coveted position in the community.

Well, clearly her more sensible statements are not correct. I may be being unfair, but saying you’re sorry it happened is not the same as saying sorry to the two guys who were humiliated and left feeling less Human than when they arrived. Stating “we’re just fair to everybody” is clearly not true, otherwise the employee would have been moved already and a public statement would have been issued clarifying the cock-up. And finally, they obviously do have “trouble” there, this story is testament to that.

I don’t know if the protest went ahead, unfortunately. I can’t find mention of it since the initial incident. I sincerely hope they get the apology they so desperately deserve, and the fact that it has been so long in coming is evidence of the lunacy and true opinions of all involved. Forget the initial incident for just a moment, because the silence since then is deafening.

Moral of the story is, reconsider who are the ones truly “developmentally challenged”.

Second moral of the story is, don’t go to Hazard Pavilion if you’re gay, disabled, or moral, nice, decent… just don’t go.

We get some crazy pics sent in to us via email sometimes to post on our site and this one just tops the list. We just had to post this pic of what has been named “Toilet Boy” who looks like hes half octopus or something. How on earth did he get his body inside a toilet and then what or who is underneath him with hands? I am not sure if we should have saved this for Halloween but it wins our crazy pic of the Month award for May!