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Justices refuse to hear Texas case on sex toys Outlawing sales of phallic devices unconstitutional, complaint says Associated Press WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court refused Monday to consider whether a Texas law making it a crime to promote sex toys shaped like sexual organs is unconstitutional. An adult bookstore employee in El Paso sued the state after his arrest for showing two undercover officers a device shaped like a penis. The employee, Ignacio Sergio Acosta, says a Texas law outlawing the manufacture, marketing or dissemination of devices shaped like sex organs is unconstitutional because it prevents individuals from using such devices, viol…

World Questions Arise About Pedophile Priest From Pope's Old Diocese Dana Kennedy Contributor AOL News (March 12) -- The fallout from the growing Catholic sex abuse scandals finally reached as far as the pope Friday when it was revealed that Benedict XVI knew a priest was a pedophile in 1980 but approved a stint in therapy that allowed him to continue in the ministry, where he remains today. Benedict was an archbishop in Germany when the case began in 1980. The priest was accused of forcing an 11-year-old boy to perform oral sex on him, the German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported Friday night. Benedict approved a decision moving the priest, identi…

How one night in Montreal changed the life of Marlene Dietrich MOISE'S APPLES John Banks recalls meeting the gay icon backstage at Montreal's Her Majesty's Theatre in 1960 Richard Burnett / Montreal / Monday, March 01, 2010 Xtra.ca http://www.xtra.ca/public/Montreal/How_one_night_in_Montreal_changed_the_life_of_Marlene_Dietrich-8310.aspx I adore Dietrich: her gaze, her husky voice, not to mention her participation in one of the greatest barroom brawls ever filmed, in Destry Rides Again. But it's Morocco I treasure most. Dietrich plays a bisexual cabaret singer who gives everything up for the man she loves, a Foreign Legionnaire (a gorgeous Gary Cooper), whom she f…

Looking back at Quebec queer life since the 17th century MOISE'S APPLES Centuries of religious, political and police oppression -- and they've never apologized for it Richard Burnett / Montreal / Tuesday, December 15, 2009 Xtra.ca http://www.xtra.ca/public/Montreal/Looking_back_at_Quebec_queer_life_since_the_17th_century-7984.aspx Imagine a cool breeze running through your hair as you're having hot sex with your lover in a grassy field far from home. Then imagine being caught by the local authorities and sentenced to death. It happened in Montreal in 1648, when the city was but a tiny outpost of the French empire, surrounded by valleys and fields as far as the eye…

Playboy Model: Tiger Woods Never Used Condoms ... According to tweets from listeners and attendees, Jungers claimed that Woods was well endowed. "Tiger's wood was nine inches," she evidently said. Former Playboy model Loredana Jolie, meanwhile, claimed Woods was "bigger and better" than Michael Jordan. Both Grubbs and Jungers said that Woods never used condoms when sleeping with them, which echoes previous reports. Jungers reiterated that she slept with Woods the night his father died. ... For full article see: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/10/jamie-jungers-wins-tiger_n_493341.html

Corey Haim Dies At 38 http://omg.yahoo.com/news/corey-haim-dies-at-38/37186?nc LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Actor Corey Haim has died at age 38, Access Hollywood has confirmed. The Los Angeles County Coroner's office confirmed the actor died at 2:15 AM on Wednesday at St. Joseph's Medical Center in Burbank, Calif. The Los Angeles Police Department said they received a call from the hospital before 4 AM confirming the actor's death. He was transported from the home he shared with his mother, Judy, in Toluca Hills, Calif. to the hospital. Ed Winter, LA County Coroner's Office Assistant Chief, told reporters that Haim's mother had called paramedics when her son collapsed …

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Following the major earthquake in Haiti, the massive one in Chile and today a lesser one in the south of Taiwan, we can be forgiven for thinking something is wrong with the planet. At least we can no longer blame George W. Bush But with all this seismic activity, I wonder if the big one is about to hit Tokyo? The city with a conurbation of around 35 million sits atop not 2 but 3 tectonic plates, all pushing against each other. Worse, Japanese researchers recently discovered that the fault line is only 4 kilometers beneath parts of the city. Whilst the city experiences minor quakes every few weeks, the 'big ones' are reckoned to hit every 70 years or so. Since the l…

You were kind enough/smart enough to remember my name and I could not remember yours.I wish i was better at fessing up when this happens-and I do not know why I don't just say "what is your name/handle again?"but I tend to just try and cover it up.I apologize. Your companion was VERY cute BTW! This also made me nostalgic for the fun dinners we used to have at the now closed Numbers.I miss those days. If you see me out and about again shake me to try and loosen some of my memory cells out of slumber mode.

One of the most elusive tricks of HIV is its ability to "hide out" in the body even after being reduced to undetectable levels. Researchers have been frustrated for decades by their failure to pin down how and where the virus was managing to escape from ever more powerful treatments. Score another one for the good guys; all those billions spent on research are finally beginning to pay off. AIDS hiding place found

We all know that a significant portion of the price we pay for an air ticket gets nowhere near the airlines. The New York Times recently reviewed these extra charges and who gets them. If you fly from London to New York return or vice versa, by the end of this year just one of these taxes - the Air Passenger Duty - will have risen to approx. US$180 for coach and a whopping US$360 if you sit in business or first! And that's before departure taxes, fuel surcharges, landing fees and a host of others. "A recent search for a flight from New York to London turned up an eye-catching fare: $229 each way on several airlines. But nine government taxes and fees added $162 — m…

The adrenaline rushes when I get ready for a trip to Brazil. I have tons of thoughts rushing in my head. I wonder if I’ll meet up with my favorite from years gone by. I wonder if I’ll meet the guy of my dreams. I wonder if I’ll find the guy that will finally make me settle down. I wonder how long I’ll go before I have to have one of those wonderful little chocolate balls at the best little chocolate store on earth. I wonder how many people I’ll meet from this site and if I’ll be able to make some new friends with common interests or just sit in the sauna waiting for the next diva to walk in. Like so many other trips I must fly this long a distance first class to be …

I am now in Brazil for a bit and having a great stay. I have lots of friends here that I have made on previous journeys and have a few side trips planned outside of my usual Sao Paulo and Rio stays. I am going with some friends to Porto Alegre later this month for a weekend. I was unable to get a reservation at the hotel I wanted to stay at down there for a few months but my current hotel pulled some strings and was able to get me in. I am also taking some Portuguese classes to try to learn the language. I hired a lady to come to my hotel daily for 3 hours to help me on this quest. At my lesson today in Portuguese, I learned a few things that will he…

This more properly belongs in the Beyond Vanilla forum. But more will see it here... Shitterton: The village that dare not speak its name ...This isn't the only place in Britain proudly to wear the Shit– prefix – an unholy trinity is formed with Shittlehope and Shitlington Crags, both in the North-east of England – but Shitterton is the only one of the three actually to be named after excrement. According to the mathematician Keith Briggs, who keeps an informative website on this burning topic, the name is probably derived from a river called Shiter, "a brook used as a privy". As I pass over Shitterton Bridge, I note that the stream that bisects the village…

Some people that read the forums miss some of the gem threads that are in the other forums as they only read the first 2. How would it be if we allowed all postings in the first 2 threads and then the moderators moved them down after a week or so to the appropriate forum? Is this a good idea or just messing things up?

VATICAN CITY - One of Pope Benedict

I have used this service and it was reliable and very worth the experience. The prices are reasonable and it helps you to relieve yourself of extra baggage. http://www.luggagefree.com/ From their site: Luggage Free is a specialty service offering you the ability to ship luggage ahead to any destination worldwide, so you can avoid the inconvenience of carrying, checking and claiming bags – even going through customs. Our luggage shipping service is guaranteed, allowing you to avoid unnecessary aggravation, and save time – safely and in style. Luggage shipping with Luggage Free is perfect for business, leisure and family travelers looking for an enhanced travel experi…

VATICAN CITY - One of Pope Benedict’s ceremonial ushers and a member of an elite choir in St Peter’s Basilica have been implicated in a gay prostitution ring, in the latest sexual scandal to taint the Vatican. Ghinedu Ehiem, a Nigerian, was dismissed by the Vatican on Wednesday from the Giulia Choir after his name appeared in transcripts of police wiretaps, published by an Italian newspaper, in an unrelated Italian investigation. The wiretaps were carried out in connection with a probe into corruption in contracts to build public works, including the planned venue in Sardinia of last year’s G8 summit. The summit was eventually moved to the Abruzzo region as part of effo…

I came across this vintage war poster. Just could not resist sharing it with all you other wannabe seamen. Must have been some gay illustrator who designed this one. Nothing subtle about this message!

D.C. Gay Marriages To Start Tomorrow After Supreme Court Refuses To Block Law JESSE J. HOLLAND | 03/ 2/10 06:55 PM | http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/02/dc-gay-marriages-to-start_n_483129.html WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to block the District of Columbia's gay marriage law, freeing the city to issue its first marriage licenses to same-sex couples the following day. Opponents of gay marriage in the nation's capital had asked Chief Justice John Roberts to stop the city from issuing the licenses on Wednesday while they appealed. They argued that D.C. voters should have been allowed to vote on the issue. Local courts have rejected the opponent…

I got this a few days back from Starwood. It was too late as I tried to book a 2 months stay with them in Porto Alegre and the sticking point was they wanted to charge crazy fees for the Internet. Has this been on the table then, they would have had an extra customer. From Starwood: Enjoy complimentary in-room Internet access. Introducing our newest exclusive SPG® Platinum benefit*: complimentary Internet access in your guest room. You can now stay connected — on us — in the comfort of your room at any of our more than 940 unique hotels worldwide. It's one more way we're showing how much we value your travels with us.

I got this today from Continental: We’ll soon be offering a new option for customers during check-in and wanted to advise Elite members of our plans. On March 17, 2010, we will begin offering customers the choice to purchase seat assignments for unreserved, Economy Class seats that feature extra legroom. As an Elite member, you will continue to have the same ability to pre-assign seats without paying additional fees, for yourself and any traveling companions in your reservation, including these seats offering extra legroom. This new offer will allow customers to purchase extra legroom seats when checking in at continental.com or at an airport kiosk during the normal …

I had a great time tonight seeing the majestic Dame Edna and the charming Michael Feinstein on the stage of the Shubert Theater. It's a hilarious show that is still in previews and will open officially on March 18th. I can highly recommend it, two thumbs up ! read more Another classic and favorite of mine starts previewing next week on Broadway: "The Addams Family". Get out there !

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HIV Still Plagues the U.S.: Some Areas Have Higher Rates Than Africa By Jaime Cunningham http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/thehumancondition/archive/2010/02/26/hiv-still-plagues-the-usa-some-areas-have-higher-rates-than-africa.aspx In December, NEWSWEEK argued that new signs of life were showing in the AIDS activism movement. Let's hope so. Recent research published in The New England Journal of Medicine shows that within certain populations in America, the prevalence of HIV-infected people is higher than in certain parts of Africa: More than 1 in 30 adults in Washington, D.C., are HIV-infected—a prevalence higher than that reported in Ethiopia, Nigeria, or Rwanda. Cer…