Twitter Tweets
@LukeVernon my favourite song ever, and its my alarm on phone. Wakes me up in a good mood!1 week ago from Twitter for iPhone
@LukeVernon gimme shelter gives me the urge to watch my favorite film #goodfellas1 week ago from Twitter for Android
Or GLASTONBURY even. Not sure where Galstonbury is, but Im sure it doesn't have the worlds biggest festival. Sounds Texan.1 week ago from txt
In a restaurant in the middle of the US and the song with the best intro ever came on, Gimme Shelter. Which reminded me, in 3 weeks....1 week ago from txt
I shall be seeing one of the greatest live acts of all time, The Rolling Stones, @ THE greatest festival ever, GALSTONBURY! Yes, Im shouting1 week ago from txt
Liberace s ex-lover claims he had six year relationship with Michael Jackson
He said: Liberace introduced me and Michael in the late 1970s. It was right around the time Thriller was coming out and Michael and I became lovers. Our relationship went on for six or seven years.
Michael was very generous too. He treated me well. Liberace and I had both undergone plastic surgery around the same time Michael underwent a nose job because he didn t think he was handsome.
We all healed together at the Liberace compound in Palm Springs. Despite being featured in the Steven Soderbergh-directed film, Thorson was only able to see it after he was bailed out of prison by a brothel owner on Sunday, while he awaits sentencing for burglary charges. Matt Damon did a great job playing me.
And he did a great job in bed with Douglas, too, Thorson joked. I needed to see Jason Bourne on top of Gordon Gekko. Despite joking about the cast, Thorson also said he thought that he was being underpaid for the film.
I didn t make much out of the movie. I own a small percentage of the film, but Hollywood is notorious for padding the bill so its shows no profit, he continued. It has been a big success, all these European companies have picked it up.
So for the filmmakers to say they haven t made a dime would be a big mistake especially with my mouth. Oscar winning film director, Steven Soderbergh, previously said that the film was not scheduled to have a theatrical release because film studios turned it down for being too gay, and it struggled to find funding. Matt Damon recently talked about undertaking an intimate romantic scene with Michael Douglas character in the film, and said that he was a wonderful kisser .
He also said that he never denied rumours of being gay because he didn t want to insult some of his friends.
Discuss this Get the latest LGBT headlines in your inbox with our free daily newsletter!
Sign up
Continue readingPoland: Prime Minister backs down and admits opposition to civil unions is too strong
Despite slowly working towards a measure, disagreements have been many and party factions have not been able to come to a consensus on how to implement it. This week Mr Tusk said civil unions legislation could not be rushed, and expressed concern that the legislation would have to be properly worded, in order to fit with Poland s constitution. The Polish constitution protects opposite-sex marriage, and some have interpreted this as meaning that same-sex unions could not be legalised.
The worst thing that could happen would be a bill that the Constitutional Tribunal found unconstitutional, he said. Today I don t see any chances for a majority to be found in the Sejm over the next 10-15 years that would want radical solutions. I would like to live in a country where all differences enjoy respect expressed in the law, but I have to be responsible for the legal and social effects, he continued.
Last week, Poland s first gay MP Robert Biedron, who was elected to parliament in 2011, was attacked after he had attended the Warsaw Equality Parade on Saturday. Earlier this year the former President of Poland, Lech Walesa, remarked that gay politicians should be made to sit behind a wall in parliament. Mr Biedron is a member of the liberal Palikot Movement, a party which also includes Poland s only transgender MP, Anna Grodzka.
Ms Grodzka told PinkNews.co.uk that she, along with Mr Biedron, was proof that Poland was changing. I was very surprised by how many people voted for me, and that means the general situation in Poland has changed slightly, she said. Discuss this Get the latest LGBT headlines in your inbox with our free daily newsletter!
Sign up
Continue readingGay former police officer accuses the Met of institutional racism and homophobia
Most of the findings were upheld on appeal. One officer talked of gay men taking it up the arse , and the tribunal found that another officer described a man in a photograph as being as gay as a gay in a gay tea shop. The tribunal also found that a Met employee had leaked details about Mr Maxwell to The Sun, which he said endangered his safety.
Mr Maxwell yesterday delivered his documents about the case to the House of Commons. He claims Scotland Yard tried to destroy him and that his experiences showed the force had failed to learn lessons since the murder of Stephen Lawrence in 1993. The Macpherson Report of 1998 concluded that the Met had been institutionally racist in the way it had investigated the death of the 18-year-old.
I should have been what they have been banging on about for the last 20 years, Mr Maxwell told The Independent. I am meant to be the future. I ticked all of those diversity boxes.
Where did they go wrong? Is there still institutional racism and homophobia? Yes, without a doubt.
The 35-year-old joined Greater Manchester Police aged 23, and in October 2008 joined the Met, winning a posting to its elite counter-terrorism command, SO15, stationed at Heathrow Airport. Mr Maxwell first complained in July 2009 about racist and homophobic abuse. He believes that the force tried to discredit and intimidate him into silence, which resulted in him suffering from chronic depression.
Discuss this
Continue readingAustralian Senator Cory Bernardi: I was right to warn that equal marriage could lead to polygamy
Is having three people that love each other should they be able to enter into a permanent union endorsed by society, or four people? he said at the time. There are even some creepy people out there, who say that it s ok to have consensual sexual relations between humans and animals.
Will that be a future step? Speaking to The Age on Monday, Mr Bernardi said: If we go back to what I suggested in the Parliament when the same-sex marriage debate came up, there is actually now a petition being put together for the Parliament by green activists to recognise multi-member unions, he said. Now I said that would happen.
It s happening. We haven t even taken the first step. I think there should be alarm.
If you re going to redefine a word to satisfy demands of a minority then you are going to face continuing demands in that space. The petition he refers to, from the Polyaction Amory Lobby, reportedly has about 25 signatures. Mr Bernardi admitted linking same-sex marriage to bestiality was extreme but said the Greens agenda endorsed the abhorrent and disgusting act.
Whether people agree with it or want to interpret it incorrectly, what I said was correct. It may have offended some people and it wasn t intended to offend people but people drew inferences from it that they should never have done, he said. Australia s Green Party has described Mr Bernardi s remarks as disgusting .
Mr Bernardi also attacked Australia s former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd for changing his position on equal marriage, saying he was a conviction politician of convenience who used to deliver doorstep interviews outside a church. The current Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, remains opposed to equal marriage. In April, Australia s Liberal Party leader, Tony Abbott, said he opposed proposals to hold a public vote on equal marriage during September s federal election.
Discuss this
Continue readingUS: Illinois equal marriage group pledges $500,000 effort to promote same-sex marriage
Equality Illinois also said that an organisation opposed to equal marriage had pledged $250,000 ( 160,000) to oppose lawmakers, in particular Republicans, who supported equal marriage. Earlier this month, opponents to equal marriage in the US state of Illinois celebrated the fact that the bill to legalise same-sex unions never went to a vote a week ago. The bill s sponsor Greg Harris wept as he announced that, due to a lack of support, the bill would not be voted on.
Mr Harris said he planned to lobby for the bill before the next legislative session in the autumn. Opponents to the bill may be calling victory prematurely however, as Mike Madigan, House Speaker extended the deadline for the bill to August 31, allowing it a new potential lease of life, if its advocates can gather support before then. Lawmakers in the US state of Illinois also wrote an open letter apologising to advocates of equal marriage in the state as the bill failed to be called for a vote, despite passing in the Senate on Valentine s Day.
Nine US states, and Washington DC currently allow equal marriage, and it will become law in Rhode Island, Delaware and Minnesota in the summer. The US state of Maryland in November 2012 became the first state to legalise equal marriage by means of a popular vote back in 2012. The law came into effect on 1 January 2013.
Washington and Maine also legalised equal marriage in referendums in those states on the same day.
The US Supreme Court is expected to rule on two cases surround equal marriage, in the next two weeks, potentially making a groundbreaking ruling for equal marriage in the state of California, and the whole of the US.
Discuss this
Continue readingStudy: US media outlets more likely to feature pro-equal marriage viewpoints
44 % had a mixture of both pro and anti equal marriage viewpoints. For the purpose of the study, a story is classified as primarily in support of or opposition to equal marriage, if views presented for one side outnumbered the opposing side 2-to-1. Other stories were classified as neutral or mixed.
The three major US cable news networks, CNN, Fox News and MSNBC, all featured stories which featured significantly more , pro-equal marriage statements than those against. This news media focus on support held true whether the stories were reported news articles or opinion pieces, and was also the case across nearly all media sectors studied, wrote the study s authors. The study found that MSNBC had 30% mixed stories, 64% were primarily in support and 6% primarily opposed to equal marriage.
Fox News had 63% mixed, 29% supporting and 8% opposed, and CNN had 57% mixed, 39% in support and 4% in opposition to equal marriage. The research also looked at postings on Twitter, and found that opinions both for and against equal marriage were closely aligned with public opinion on the issue. The most common argument for same-sex marriage in news stories was that it is a civil rights issue.
Arguments against equal marriage varies, and 18% of those included that it would hurt society. The findings show how same-sex marriage supporters have had a clear message and succeeded in getting that message across all sectors of mainstream media, wrote the authors. Discuss this Get the latest LGBT headlines in your inbox with our free daily newsletter!
Sign up
Continue readingEx-Telegraph editor Charles Moore: Chief Rabbi wrong not to vote again equal marriage
In an article for The Spectator entitled Opposing gay marriage now is as brave as being openly gay was in 1970 , Mr Moore, Lady Thatcher s official biographer, wrote: Since one s attitude to homosexual acts is now considered the main way of judging whether a person is civilised, one must salute those in public life who defy this. To oppose gay equality today is roughly as brave as it was to be publicly homosexual in, say, 1970: your position is not absolutely illegal, but it is perilous. Given how wobbly many Anglicans are on the issue, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of London should be commended for their courage in the House of Lords debate.
The Chief Rabbi, Lords Sacks, should be reproved. Orthodox Judaism is absolutely clear on this issue, but Lord Sacks absented himself. Perhaps he feels that Jews should not intervene in secular society.
But if such a key social institution as marriage is beyond his responsibility, why did he agree to become a legislator? Last year, in its official response to the government s consultation on equal marriage for England and Wales, the office of the Chief Rabbi stated that Jewish Law prohibited the practice of homosexuality, and it argued against all same-sex unions, and same-sex marriages. The Movement for Reform Judaism and Liberal Judaism officially support equal marriage.
Speaking to the broadcaster and journalist Sir David Frost last month, Lord Sacks, rejected a suggestion that he had come out strongly against same-sex unions. He said: I ve not come out strongly, I ve simply said that in Judaism we don t do it. Discuss this Get the latest LGBT headlines in your inbox with our free daily newsletter!
Sign up
Continue readingIsrael: Justice Minister tables bill to allow same-sex civil unions
It is expected to be broadly supported from the coalition, with members of the committee from Yesh Atid, Yisrael Beytenu and Likud, having expressed support for same-sex civil unions, reports the Times of Israel. It has already been met with opposition from the Orthodox Jewish Home party, however, which has asserted that it will exercise its veto right to attempt to stop the bill from passing. The party said that it wanted to examine the issues raised by the bill before bringing it to parliament for a vote.
Speaking in a radio interview, Livni referred to the Law of Return, which determines automatic citizenship rights, which allows some people to be recognised as Jewish for immigration rights, who are unable to marry under the state-run rabbinate s rules. We want to find a solution for the people who came here under the Law of Return and who find themselves unable to marry. We are talking about some 300,000 people, Livni said, speaking to Army Radio on Sunday morning.
The bill will make it possible for them to marry and be recognized by the state, she continued. It s an appropriate solution that has been a long time in the making, and has been floated many times, but has previously been met with strong opposition from the ultra-Orthodox parties. As well as allowing same-sex civil unions, the bill would offer civil marriage for couples unable to meet religious criteria.
Currently citizens who aren t registered as belonging to an organised religion are forced to marry abroad, or live with a lack of options in Israel.
Those who convert to Judaism are only recognised if they undergo Orthodox conversion.
Discuss this
Continue readingUK: Muslim group seeks mosques for all sexualities
UK co-ordinator Tamsila Tauqir said: We want to offer Muslims an alternative space in which they can pray and meet. We will not discriminate against anyone, they can be Sunni or Shia, straight or gay, people with families and people without. She added: In some people s view it is controversial.
For us what we are trying to do is to create a space that is welcoming. We want to show the mainstream community that we are not all extremists, we are a variety of people. Imam Adnan Rashid, from the London-based Islamic think-tank The Hittin Institute, opposed the goals of IMI.
He said: The orthodox values of Islam are very clear. Muslims already believe in things that have been established for them for centuries and they are not going change. The Koran is not going to change, the prophetic position is not going to change.
Muslim thinking and practices are not going to change. So I don t know what the point of this mosque is. At a mosque in Blackburn, Lancashire, attendee Shazad Khan said: I don t think homosexuals should be allowed in to the mosque, they are not Muslims.
How can they go for prayers? Another worshipper, Ali Noor, said: I think it s a good idea, it promotes equal opportunities especially for the disabled. Provision should have been made for them a long time ago but it hasn t.
A member of IMI in London, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of repercussions, said: We have issues with patriarchy in the mosques, whereby even if women are allowed in they are not given any representation. They have to speak through a male figure which I don t think is Islamic or fair. Last year Europe s first gay-friendly mosque opened in Paris, but was condemned by Islamic leaders.
Discuss this
Continue readingGibraltar LGBT activist awarded OBE in Queen s Birthday Honours list
End of human strife! Let s spread some love! Imagine there s no Heaven!
He added that Despite reservations with regard to the current criteria of the Honours system, but for which I m hopeful that change may be on its way, I cannot fail but recognise the affection and love which people at many levels and from different walks of life have expressed in their support and nomination. And which, as a person, I can t help but enjoy after years of difficult times; nor indeed, the importance for a community in all sectors which has for so long had to endure less than first class citizenship. It s not the struggle for being a great Gibraltarian that matters, it s the much more difficult-to-achieve (and perhaps unattainable) goal of being the littlest human being and Gibraltarian that makes a real difference.
Nothing in this award will deter me from, at least, continuing to try for that honour. Sir Adrian Johns, the Governor of Gibraltar, said: Since founding Gibraltar Gay Rights in 2000, which later became the Equality Rights Group, Felix Alvarez has been at the forefront of the campaign to raise awareness and the profile of equality and human rights. During this time important advances have been made, for example, in the rights of sexual minorities, immigrants, and in the protection of minors.
He has built bridges across the community and has made an exceptional personal contribution to the promotion of equality and human rights in Gibraltar. In recent years Gibraltar has seen LGBT issues including the unequal the age of consent for gay men, and a court case involving a lesbian couple who were refused a joint tenancy in government housing. Lesbian broadcaster and journalist Clare Balding was also awarded an OBE while Edward Leigh, the Conservative MP for Gainsborough, one of the fiercest critics of equal rights for lesbian and gay people, was given a knighthood.
Discuss this Get the latest LGBT headlines in your inbox with our free daily newsletter!
Sign up
Continue reading