The Face of DADT - The reliably pro-gay NY Times publishes the viewpoint of one Army linguist discharged for being gay. Mr. Gamble fleshes out a couple of issues that other press coverage had failed to detail. For example, when the Army specialist and his boyfriend were discovered together after visiting hours, they were "not found in any embrace." (Earlier stories had suggested they might even have been caught in flagrante delicto.) Gamble also explains what the breach of rules would have meant for straight soldiers -- "10 days of restriction and 10 days of extra duty" -- which he completed. Finally, he claims that he was doing well in his Arabic instruction. That just magnifies the loss to the country caused by this ridiculous policy.

What are you looking at? - It's not every day that Drew Sullivan and Dan Savage cover the same topic in their columns, yet they have both recently decided to discuss how straight men feel about getting hit on by gay men.

Drew has posted selected reader responses to his comment that "The issue that genuinely perplexes me is the fear and panic that many straight men have when they think another man might find them attractive." To be honest, his expressed cluelessness makes him seem much more naïve than I would have expected from a nearly 40-something openly gay man who fancies himself a deep thinker (though perhaps not about psychology). Dan, on the other hand, has some pretty insightful things to say about hitting on "straight" men in his Savage Love columns for November 7th and this week.

Savage may be too much in favor of open seduction, however. Just look at all the trouble grown men will go through to keep their TiVos from calling them gay!

The 3.4 Billion Dollar Man - The 007 juggernaut racks up another box office hit as weekend receipts show Die Another Day enjoyed the biggest opening of any Bond flick in the series' 40-year history. DAD also appears to be somewhat of a critical success, garnering kudos from the NY Times and others. (The WSJ and the Washington Post respectfully disagreed). To what can we attribute the continuing ability of the franchise to flourish? Well, it sure ain't the Madonna cameo.

I thought the movie was decent, even if the Journal got some criticisms right. Getting my nitpicks out of the way first: The badguy's doomsday device was not one of the better ones 007 has foiled. I also agree that, at times, the digital and other special effects were "remarkably tacky." (Isn't there enough room in a $115-145 million budget for top-shelf F/X?) Halle Berry seems to have studied prior Bond women a little too closely. Despite Berry's protests, viewers will find her Jinx character mostly came across like a supermodel trying (and failing) to be butch. She does do somewhat better in the catfight against the villain's henchwoman in the final scene. Overall, however, Jinx is no La Femme Nikita, and rumors of using her as the basis for a Bond spin-off seem premature.

Many pieces of the familiar Bond formula -- the gadgets, the cool cars, the chases and the product placement -- were reassuringly present, but the film also takes a few risks that I find interesting. After his release from a North Korean prison camp, the usually dapper Bond comes out looking so unkempt and bedraggled that he could have been John Walker Lindh's Afghan cellmate. Even after getting cleaned up, Pierce Bronsnan's 007 is something of a throwback to the Sean Connery Bonds of the Sixties. That begs the question, can untrimmed chest hair and a slight paunch be considered sexy under modern rules of Hollywood masculinity? I would personally think so, but the contrast with the hyper-taut Halle Berry is striking. (Past Bond women tended to be more curvy than muscular, which made them a better fit with Connery.) Also, I had fun trying to pick out some of the many other references to earlier Bond movies.

It's getting harder and harder for Hollywood to find enemies for Bond in the modern world. (9/11 notwithstanding, the Islamo-fascists seem to be protected these days by a veil of geopolitical correctness.) The Red Chinese and even the Cubans come across in the film more or less as friendly competitors. One simple solution -- use the Koreans. Because they are divided north-south into good guys and bad guys, you can't associate a race with evil, just the politics. But even in this case, the villian ends up being a traitor to his countrymen, who it seems are working diligently to secure better relations between North Korea and the West. (Back in the real world "friendly" North Koreans are so last week -- but they may be next week too, so who knows?) The script also has our villain making money off conflict diamonds. Hello? How wonkish can you get? How many moviegoers even know what those are?

One other minor complaint: The crappy theater where I saw Die Another Day had the sound volume pumped up about 50% too loud. (God, am I getting that old?) I still managed to enjoy the flick overall. Final rating: B+. (But what did Donald Wildmon think?)

That's One Secure Homeland - Maybe one of the things Bob Barr can start working on is that pesky Homeland Security Act. Today's Washington Post has a rundown on the litany of new law enforcement powers that made it into the bill signed yesterday. In no particular order, they include:

A provision that shields Internet service providers (ISPs) from customer lawsuits if providers share private subscriber information with law enforcement authorities

An addition [that] makes it easier for law enforcement to trace the location and identity of an Internet user suspected of posing an "imminent threat to national security interests" or perpetrating attacks on "protected computers" -- a term that encompasses both government computers and any system used in "interstate commerce or communication"

A controversial provision [that] allows companies to share information with the government about electronic vulnerabilities -- without having to worry that such disclosures would be publicized. The measure exempts cybersecurity disclosures from the Freedom of Information Act. It also makes it a criminal offense for any government employee to publicize vulnerabilities revealed by companies to government agencies.

It seems that the Senate, in passing Homeland Security, threw in a bunch of free-standing electronic crime provisions which the House had passed separately. For an ISP to escape liability for sharing your data with the Feds, all they need is a "good faith" belief that an "emergency" exists. Also, the Feds won't need a warrant to trap-and-trace ongoing-attacks on a "protected computer." Finally, information about vulnerabilities that is voluntarily submitted to the Feds by operators of "critical infrastructure" systems (power grid, telecom, etc.) would be exempt from FOIA and could not be used against the operator in civil litigation. Sounds like the Microsoft exemption to me.

The thing that stands out to me is how much broader these provisions are than what is necessary for security against terrorism. I would think a lot of these provisions could be deployed against other "crimes" such as transmission of allegedly obscene materials or trading of intellectual property in violation of copyright law. Maybe the day isn't so far away when we all get treated like midshipmen at the Naval Academy.

Whither Bob Barr? - A cush job at the White House? Not even close. The "conservative firebrand" has been hired by the ACLU to lobby Congress on privacy issues next year, according to this article in the Washington Post. Calling it a "a strange-bedfellows collaboration" doesn't begin to express the weirdness of this situation. But we shouldn't be surprised. The ACLU has worked with Nazis before.

Our Friends, the Saudis - (With apologies to James Taranto.) It was nice to read in the Washington Post this morning that senior Bush administration officials feel this way about hate crimes:

"There may be tens of millions of dollars spent to fund terrorism, but there are hundreds of millions of dollars spent to propagate extreme, intolerant religious views that are highly critical of Western values, and that is our most bedeviling problem," a senior U.S. official said. "When money goes to the propagation of uncompromising, unforgiving, hostile views of other faiths, and they broadcast that, it is more likely than not the money is going to be used for violence."

Of course, the speaker was talking about the money funnelled by rich Saudis into promoting their extremist Wahhabi sect of Islam. Maybe they didn't appreciate the irony that the same words could apply to certain faith-based groups in this country. (Are you listening Donald Wildmon?)

"Harvard has a reputation for this sort of thing" - Harvard's student paper The Crimson last week published a lengthy expose of a presidential "star chamber" that hounded gay students out of the university during the 1920's. The two-part article is replete with documentary evidence of the inquisition and "trials" where students were confronted and forced to implicate each other. While it can't be surprising that a gay gang garnered this sort of treatment in the Ivy League of 80 years ago, who can resist such detailed stories of congressmen's sons and Boston sailors cavorting in the dorm halls of Cambridge? (I already had some inkling of what went on at Fair Harvard after reading Andrew Tobias's 1998 article "Gay Like Me" in the college's alumni magazine.) The best line in the Crimson story comes when one of the students expelled for homosexuality writes a scathing letter to the Dean of the College alleging that Harvard was rife with fags: The reputation is "nationwide," he wrote, and "I have heard a most uncomplimentary song Princeton sings of Harvard and along this theme.”

GFN.com has current president Lawrence Summers' belated apology. Not that they have any problem with those queers in Harvard Yard anymore.

The Outlet Memo - A verbatim draft of an internal announcement regarding the Showtime - MTV "gay" network has been leaked to the website InternalMemos.com. Here's the backstory.

Out on Campus - Here's yet another article using the Boston college recruiting event for gays as an angle. But the part of the story I really want to know about is the more subtle marketing aspect that is touched upon in the article. How does a campus sell itself as gay-friendly to a population that may not yet be interested in specific gay-themed programs and services? But maybe my perspective is out of touch with the current realities, as GLSEN and campus Gay-Straight Alliances make it easier for young gays to come out while still in high school.

Party Time! Excellent! - The pornographers at Shane's World have struck again, this time on the campus of Indiana University, AP reports.

Body Conscious Boys - The NY Times looks into the pursuit of the perfect body by teenage boys. Gay body image issues creeping into the overall public? I knew all those beefy 18 year olds on some of my favorite websites couldn't be all natural.

Romancing the Mouse - The Washington Post examines a new study on online behavior. (Brought to you by RoperASW, the same folks who discovered that 72% of Americans think the government is holding back evidence of UFO's.) The biggest news according to the Post is all the Internet sex - ahem, dating - that's going on. They make it sound like it's the in way to hook up, especially for the younger crowd, since 74% of 18- to 24-year-old computer users know someone who has started a friendship or romantic relationship online. Sounds awful to me -- give me the good ole smoke-filled bars and steamy bathhouses any day.

Photo Finish - Was it wrong of the Chicago Tribune to put this picture of Bushie on page one? It's certainly not the most flattering photograph, but maybe if Karen or Ari had been around, the photo wouldnt have been staged at all. I guess the final question is whether this staged, seated photo is newsworthy enough to be on the front page and I think the answer is no.

Must Retch TV - So, last night's episode of Will & Grace sucked. There were barely any laughs, the on-location shots in New York (with laugh track overlaid) were distracting, and the character interactions were pitiful. No one seemed to be acting like him or herself...I wondered if someone was going wake up from a bad dream. I resented the fact that Will became especially mincing when he learned that Grace had gotten married. He had a right to feel hurt that she acted so impulsively, but seemed like such an immature baby that she was "leaving him" after being "at his side for 15 years." Wait, wasn't Will supposed to have been in a long-term relationship for 7 years before the show began? Grace getting married doesn't destroy the show, but characters whose personalities change every week do. TV Guide has a nice synopsis, acknowledging the episode as a "drawn-out, laughless hour." And what was with the final shot of the episode, pulling away to a wide shot of a CGI earth? The shark has been jumped.

That San Francisco Accent - Nancy Pelosi claims that by tagging her a "San Francisco liberal" Republicans are engaging in gay-baiting. Mark Shields of PBS's NewsHour sees a similar subtext. "Real men and real women are Republicans, and gays and that type are Democrats."

Whatever the GOP mean, or the Democrats infer, equating Frisco with gays always seemed like a logical falacy to me, because it confuses correlation with cause. SFO's liberalness existed before it became Mecca for homosexuals. Gays went there because it was already so liberal. Of course, things just snowballed from there, as gays from all backgrounds and walks of life took up the leftist banner of their neighbors. Someone like San Francisco Supervisor Tom Ammiano gets elected in this majority-straight town not just because he's gay but because he's somewhere to the left of Fidel.

People like to say that that San Francisco is a place apart politically, but for my money its elected leaders tend to be a bit too looney for anyone's good.

In Praise of VPISU (Not!) - NPR contributor Frank Deford's panegyric to "State" colleges and universities is now available at SI Online.

I've always had a soft spot in my heart for State U teams. You know, those schools that are not the University of Somewhere -- like the University of Michigan or the University of Virginia -- but which have a "state" in their name, like Oregon State or Mississippi State.

State colleges invariably were created after the "University of" colleges. Usually, the "University of" colleges are the more hoity-toity places. They like to call themselves "flagships." Oooh. In fact, a lot of state colleges started out as agricultural schools -- "aggies," they were called, as if they were marbles -- so stuck-up fans of the aristocratic universities would all go "Mooo" during games, and holler other nasty barnyard-related remarks.

In the South, the state colleges were the impoverished, predominantly black schools, such as Tennessee State and Kentucky State. Or they started out as teachers' colleges, or, heaven forbid, as colleges for young ladies, like Florida State.

Whatever the original reason, schools with "state" in their name invariably lack the cachet that the "University ofs" have. So, as a lover of underdogs, I always root for the state colleges.

Coming from a man who thinks major league baseball is the apotheosis of sport, I'll take that with a grain of salt. (Why is "Mr. Jefferson" in boldface in reference to The University?) Besides, whatever he might have to say about the Hokies "leaving us in their dust," we never shout "moooo" at them -- we talk about how they come to the game on tractors dressed in over-alls.

Blast from the Past - Ben is too young to remember much about Iran-Contra affair of 1986 (yes, Ben, the one with Ollie North), but here comes his chance for a refresher. John Poindexter was the Navy vice admiral who, as Reagan's National Security Advisor, took the fall for Ronnie by claiming he didn't tell the president about North's arms-for-hostages scheme. (Clearly, Ben, he's no Condi Rice). A somewhat geeky figure with a doctorate in physics, no one would have ever expected him to confidently assert "I'll be back" when he was found guilty of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and the destruction of evidence in 1990. However, the conviction was ultimately overturned, and earlier this year the Pentagon decided to rehabilitate Pointdexter my putting him in charge of an advanced research project called Total Information Awareness. (Read all about it in my buddy Shane's article in GovExec.com).

While stopping terrorists through nifty data mining technologies sounds good on paper, civil libertarians are up in arms and having ole Poindexter in command hasn't exactly calmed nerves. The latest press stories (and expected interest-group reaction) came this week in the wake of DoD briefings detailing TIA for the first time. (See TechNews.com's Filter for meta-coverage.) As blog readers will know, I don't get overly excited about government spooks tracking my activities -- since everyone from the bank to the grocery store pretty much knows all there is to know anyway. On the otherhand, there is something a little creepy about the project's name that conjures up machine self-awareness. I just hope Sarah Connor shows up in case we need her when they turn the damn thing on.

What, No Bodyguards, Madge? - From the UK, proof that even the rich and famous forget their wallets sometimes.

It's not Mangia - But "the deli for the new millenium" Cosi, a New York import to the Washington area, is looking to go public. Cosi recently acquired our own Xando coffeeshops, which Zagat likened to "the set of Friends." (I once saw Chelsea Clinton at the South Dupont location.) Maybe if the IPO is successful the chain will reach Hampton Roads, which having finally gotten on the Starbucks map also recently saw its first Panera openings. However, Cosi is not profitable, and one wonders if massive expansion of an upscale chain eatery, where a sandwich may well cost more than a share of stock, is right for our tough economic times. Makes me wonder how JAM-ba Juice is doing.

Will & Grace - Isn't syndicated television a great thing? Allowing you to go back in time, catch up on any episodes you may have missed and appreciate the growth and changes a show has made over the years. With Will & Grace airing twice daily in many markets now, we've got a quick reminder of how we arrived at the current dismal season.

The melodramatic turns centering around Grace's relationship with Leo have seemed forced (and could Harry Connick Jr. be any more wooden?) Her last serious relationship, with Woody Harrelson's Nathan at least seemed to have some spark and potential for actual humor. Last week's get-drunk-to-meet-the-parents episode was not a high point. And now, Grace is getting engaged and married in one episode? Obviously, she either can't go through with it or Leo needs to join Doctors Without Borders for an extended trip for the titular theme of the show to remain relevant.

On the other hand, I appreciate the acknowledgment that Will is too old to wear an A&F sleeveless tee. (This storyline should be required viewing for aging circuit bois everywhere). I actually do like Jack's new potential storyline and could see him becoming a successful teacher, even whilst giving terrible advice to his students. I especially enjoyed his advice to certain male students to remove their shirts. But the previous week's episode with Gene Wilder was almost painful to watch. So, I guess we'll see on tonight's Very Special extended episode exactly where they intend to carry things for the rest of the season.

The Rise and Fall of Gen X - Speaking of PopMatters, our favorite (if somewhat hit-or-miss) alternative webzine looks in on the Nirvana-nostalgia frenzy and wonders "what ever happened to the slacker revolution?" Apparently, the mass-merchandising machine that is MTV killed it. I'm not sure I disagree with that assessment. Cobain and friends were rebelling against the network's "ceaseless looping of vacuous Winger, Bon Jovi, Michael Bolton and MC Hammer videos" as much as anything, but like a horror movie monster, MTV absorbed their blows, grew stronger on their energy, and moved on. Thill's criticism of MTV's self-congratulation for its role in the (failed) alternative revolution is therefore right on the mark. Not that I have the right to complain -- I have been assimilated.

How Much Is Enough? - This PopMatters article about gay representation on TV jumps to a lot of conclusions without a lot of explanation. Just to name a few points, the author makes the claim that the gay population is 10% without any support. Further, the author mentions that the overall representation would be grimmer if cable TV was included, but fails to note that there are gay characters on cable shows like Six Feet Under, Sex and the City and The Shield. Additionally, I neglect to see how it is a foregone conclusion that the past success of Pyramid will make it a hit once again.

I don't think we need to be lobbying for a Transgendered Eskimo to host a game show in order to fulfill particular quotas. But I do think it's realistic to expect *some* diversity based on the setting and location of a show: black Friends in Manhattan, gays and/or Asians on Presidio Med or Monk, Latinos on CSI: Miami. But even then, write for strong, well-defined characters of any type before creating one-note stereotypes.

Why TV Matters, Part 2 - Following up on a post from the beginning of November, I'm sharing a thoughtful rebuttal that echoes most of my points about television not being the demonic tool many make it out to be.

What Would Jesus Drive? - It's a "life-imitates-The Onion" headline, but an evangelical organization really is pushing for cleaner cars with this slogan, according to a story in today's Wall Street Journal. While you ponder image of the Risen One kicking the tires in a car lot, let me summarize the article, available only to subscribers. (The Post did a write-up a couple of weeks ago.) It seems that a group calling itself the Evangelical Environmental Network has decided that Christian Americans don't, in fact, have a God-given right to plunder the Earth as we see fit. Rather, it's kind of sinful. So to promote the higher moral value of fuel efficiency, the EEN will be paying for a campaign (including TV ads in several fly-over and Bible Belt states) urging the virtuous to forego the gas guzzlers. Detroit, which has grown accustomed to its big profit behemoths, is worried about this new attack on an old sore spot, especially as word leaks out that they may be losing ground with their friends in the White House. One wonders what Trent Lott -- perennial backer of the right to SUV's and a favorite among Mississippi-based right-wingnuts -- will do.

Don't Mess with Texas - Pardon me in indulging in a topic on which I'm sure I'll have no feedback or comments, but I wanted to share a few highlights of my trip to Dallas last week for the NSBA Tech+Learning Conference. The first night, I had a truly delicious dinner (sponsored by Apple Computer) at Abacus. It began with a Caesar salad made with baby romaine, held upright by a ring of melted and hardened cheese. This was not one of those cliched, intricately composed dishes, stacked to reach death-defying heights, but rather an interesting reinterpretation of a favorite item that tends to be a boring staple on restaurant menus. Even though I'm tend to avoid seafood, I actually enjoyed the lobster shooters, "six chunks of lobster wrapped in wonton skins and fried, placed in tiny sake cups and topped with luscious red curry coconut cream." Anything fried and slathered in sauce has got to be good.

In between workshop sessions, I also found a little time to go shopping at a new retail/residental center called West Village. Plenty of trendy stores, boutiques and restaurants, but a particular standout was
the Legacy Trading Company, a fabulous retail outlet that unites the gayest aspects of Urban Outfitters and Z Gallerie under one roof.

The last night I was there, I went to the Round Up saloon, where I got to see some gay cowboys two-stepping. I was interested to see the differences between the "old skool" crowd in starched jeans, western shirts, hats and boots and the younger crowd that looked like slightly less twinkish fratboys with facial hair in A&F tshirts. Ah, homogeny.

All About Arnold - Already getting geared up for the 2006 gubernatorial election in California, the Washington Post talks about Arnold's chances, even reiterating my favorite point, that Maria helps to temper his positions on social matters!

"I'm no psychic but I can foresee this" - The Feds have run Miss Cleo out of buisiness. According to this CNN report, the psychic 1-900 line has agreed not to collect $500 million in unpaid bills from callers, the largest settlement ever in FTC history.

Shoutouts Galore - Television Without Pity is in public relations overdrive, with a piece now appearing in the Washington Post following the love poem a few weeks ago from the NYTimes.

But Who Will Play Max? - Following in the footsteps of the oft-rumored gay James Bond pic with Rupert Everett, comes word that Steve Martin is going to produce a new series billed as a gay Hart to Hart. I'm excited for what could be the second gayest hour of television on the air. (The first being The Christopher Lowell Show, natch, which I caught at the hotel today).

NFL Wife - The Advocate does a nice job exploring the other side of Esera Tuaolo's closeted life in the NFL -- that experienced by his husband Mitchell. It's part of their cover package on the ex-lineman's story, which also includes the de riguer "coming out" interview and links to online companion pieces on gays in college sports and teammates fears about showering together. OutSports' Bill Koenigsberg has his own take on the latter issue.

Gay Snipers Redux - In his current column, Signorile takes Jonah Goldberg to task for suggesting in the National Review Online that John Allen Muhammed was a "threefer":

We know the Sniper is a Nation of Islam Muslim (which is to say he belongs to a cult that uses Islamic jargon). We know he’s black. But I’ve got this nagging feeling we might find out that he also practices an alternative lifestyle—I mean besides from all of the murdering. There’s just something about this Batman and Robin act—Malvo is his ‘ward’?—that strikes me as odd, in a specific way. Call it a hunch. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

Now, conservatives were positively gleeful that the profilers used by the "liberal" press were wrong in predicting a lone white male shooter between the ages of 25 and 35. But how did we gays get mixed up in it? This sounds like Goldberg is just using us as another battering ram against the P.C. brigade. And I want to know when conservative gays, some of whom took part in the black Muslim bashing, are gonna come to our rescue.

The Right to Porn - I'm a social liberal, but you can't get me excited in the least about prisoners rights. (I do have qualms about capital punishment, informed by my undergrad modern political theory professor's views, but I see no reason to make life behind bars the least bit pleasant.) I especially don't much approve of giving sexual predators who murder young gay men hardcore homosexual pornography, but apparently courts in England disagree.

Bright Lights, Big City - I returned Saturday from NYC where I was attending the annual institute that attracts the top talent in my field (and plebes like me). Ever since my first year after graduation, regular trips to the City have been enjoyable perquisites of my career. Unfortunately, the downturn in the market has meant far fewer trips since mid-2000, so thank goodness for this program. With the boss along to pay for dinner, it is still a very nice junket.

The night after I arrived in town on Wednesday, Will and his wife had tickets to see The Producers, even though Nathan Lane is long gone and the role of David Broderick's dad is now played by Steven Weber. (He can sing? Scary.) They were in a rush to grab a pre-theatre meal but I still managed to join them at Barbetta. One of the oldest family-owned restaurants in Manhattan, this northern Italian eatery has great traditional food but the setting, a stuffy brownstone furnished like your great-grandma's parlor, leaves something to be desired. After dropping off the bossman at St. James' Theatre, I walked over to the Virgin megastore in Times Square, where I spent an hour on the hunt for hard-to-find imports. Then it was back to the conference hotel for the night. (Oh, I remember the good ole days of the 90s Boom, when the PLI institute was held at the Waldorf.)

Waking on Thursday I turned on CNN's American Morning to see what traffic was like on 6th Avenue outside, but I couldn't get excited enough to walk down the block to stare at Paula Zahn through the studio window. After a rousing session of securities law minutiae, Will and I broke from lunch at Mangia -- a rather upscale Italian-inspired cafeteria on West 57th that was inexplicably operated almost exclusively by Russians. The highlight of the meal was when an attractive 40-something woman with the dress and demeanor of an aging supermodel pulled Will aside and told him (and thus me) to share her table. She really was a fascinating personage, claiming to be a designer and author with a line of jewelry at Tiffany (and another deal in the works with Target) who dropped names like they were going out of style. Apparently her lawyer also represents Billy Joel, and she goes to weddings with Marc Anthony. Once she found out we were securities lawyers, she was very interested in knowing whether we thought it was the end of the road for her friend Martha. (Although jail was too good for that evil Sam Waksal!) After bending our ear for nearly forty minutes we bid our goodbyes to return to the afternoon conference session, scratching our heads over whether the person we had just met could be the real thing or not. It was truly an Ab Fab "Lunch with Lulu" moment.

I was especially looking forward to dinner on Thursday night, since Will had reservations for the three of us at the Mercer Kitchen. (Another French-Asian restaurant from the same chef that brought us Midtown's Vong.) Located in the basement of the swank Mercer Hotel, this establishment is definitely one of the trendier places to be spotted dining. As it was, I met my friend Michael out for drinks beforehand, so I had to rush to get to dinner and found myself without a chair at their table when I arrived. Well, for my money if you can't arrive late and make a scene being accomodated then why go out at all? Dinner was good, especially the butternut squash soup, but the atmosphere is the thing. Great scenery at the bar and surrounding tables. It also made me feel pretty tragically hip to recognize the CD playing as one from my own collection.

I made it out to no other trendy restaurants before I came home on Saturday. (Friday night's stop at L'Express doesn't count, even though it is next to Sushi Samba -- where Samantha threw her drink in Richard's face on SATC.) All in all, though, the business portion of my trip was most pleasurable. Tune in later for my review of the time I spent playing in Lower Manhattan's gay bars and the SoHo shopping district in a separate post.

No Escape - There's no escaping Starbucks, coming soon to a Target near you.

Gay Linguists - Courtesy of Drew comes this article from The New Republic about the discharge from the military of several Arabic linguists who happen to be gay. I'm interested in further details about whether gays have a greater aptitude for languages. I don't think that the "Northern California location" on the Monterey Peninsula can entirely explain why there seems to be a relatively large number of gays at the DLI.

Patrick Dempsey Didn't Work Out - The speculation on TVGuide.com is that Will Truman's significant other will be played by a well-known star who may have fallen off the A-(and B-)list. While the prospects proposed by TV Guide leave a lot of be desired, I think that one of their nominees is actually dead on: Scott Baio. First of all, he's the right age. We know that he's experienced with the sitcom format. He's pretty recognizable and he was regarded as hot, in his day. Finally, after dating Pamela Anderson, playing gay could only help his reputation.

By the way, last week's episode, I was quite pleased to see Will finally hooking up, with the little cutie played by Jason Mardsen. Yes, he may be younger than Will and he's definitely significantly shorter than Will, but I'm glad to see that didn't necessarily mean that Will overlooked him entirely (like the video store assistant manager from last season).

Virginia Wins! DC may have lost the Olympics, but the Old Dominion won the sniper sweepstakes, as John Ashcroft awarded us first dibs at trying, convicting and sentencing the bandit duo. Virginia lagged much of the race against Maryland, where the suspects were being held and which seems to have suffered the most incidents during the Muhammed-Malvo crime spree. Indeed, just earlier this week Fairfax Country hadn't even filed charges yet in the Home Depot shooting. Credit the Commonwealth's come-from-behind victory on our progressive death penalty laws, which allow us to send minors to the lethal injection table and which generally permit fewer chances at reviewing evidence or hearing pleas for clemency. I know Michaels arts-and-crafts stores will be first in line for vengeance.

Journeys With George - Tune in tonight to HBO's presentation of a behind-the-scenes look at the Bush campaign. Then, log onto this blog tomorrow for John's commentary and criticisms on Alexandra Pelosi's documentary.

Why TV Matters - I had strong reactions to this Newsweek op/ed from a parent who does not allow her child to watch television. Immediately, I wondered why she would rob her children of something with potential benefit? Sure, "kids who watch more than 10 hours of TV each week are more likely to be overweight, aggressive and slow to learn in school." But her kids won't be in that demographic. From the sound of things, she keeps them on a tight leash and will be able to monitor and approve of what they watch. She would also be able to ensure that the amount of viewing is kept within reasonable limits and would not have a detrimental effect on their health. I understand her concerns about raising active, engaged individuals, but by even expressing that concern, it seems unlikely to me that she would ever leave her children with the television serving as the "other parent."

While her children are currently ages 6 and 3 it is possible to enforce the edict against television, at any time, in any location. But forbidding anything absolutely only arouses more curiousity. Why not demystify TV and allow your kids to watch an hour of Sesame Street, so that they aren't sneaking around when they're older to watch TRL. Rebellion is a natural reaction.

It's not just a matter of being cool, and being able to hold up playground conversations about TV shows. I also think there's an important distinction between watching the news or sporting events and watching entertainment programming. Of course every person's viewing tolerances are different, in the example of football games mentioned in the article, television is a way for people who would not otherwise be able to attend a game on Thanksgiving Day to see the action firsthand. Only later in the commentary does she acknowledge that it's inevitable that they'll allow the kids to view the World Series or rhythmic gymnastics competitions someday.

Finally, Jazzy??

Eye on L.A. - The LA Times rewards us with a rich history on the classic local television program designed around ratings stunts, Eye on LA. A precursor to Hard Copy and its ilk, Eye on LA was the non-thinking man's Evening Magazine (or PM Magazine depending upon your local market designation). And, in the second Simpsons reference from me in as many days, Eye on LA was the inspiration for the hilarious Kent Brockman knockoff, Eye on Springfield.

In the Littoral Sense - Ben, choose your dream beach house property now at the website for the California Coastal Records Project. For more on this unique environmentalist project, check out this story in today's Wash Post.

Bio Lesson - A study shows differences in the brains of male sheep who pair with other male sheep. If the researchers are one day able to apply similar research to humans, will that mean that homosexuality can be explained as a "preventable problem"? The potential implications offer all sorts of complicated questions, don't you think John?

Monorail - Any story that references the classic "Marge vs. the Monorail" episode of The Simpsons deserves to be blogged, but especially since it also deals with urban transportation issues -- a favorite topic of Beaverhausen readers.

Gay Away! - I don't normally read the Weekly World News, so I was astonished to find this story reasonably well-written and amusing. True, it doesn't expect as much savvy from the reader -- for example by making up a mythical gay rights group Gay Equality Now based in (where else?) San Francisco, rather than using a legitimate reference. Yet the story was clearly intended as comedy not fuel for the gullible. Now I'm looking at WWN in a new light, as an Onion for the ignorant but not necessarily humor-impaired masses.

Real People - Just a quick one, but a reminder that the cosmopolitan, high-tech demographic of readers for this blog are as far away from the mainstream as are Appalachian hillbillies, as Advertising Age notes that there are more American homes with outhouses than with TiVos.

Megan gets serious - The Washington Post reports that actress who portrays the namesake of this blog is branching out into melodrama, courtesy of Lifetime. While I'm a sucker for a good TV movie (as long as it stars Tori Spelling), I prefer campy Mother, May I Sleep With Danger? fare to serious issue plots. Judging by the publicity photos, I think it's clear that the movie is going to try to test the theory that small hair=serious actress.

Mardis Gras on Steroids - To mollify Ben, I'm linking to the Gay Games VI, the international gay and lesbian amateur sports and cultural festival that just kicked off in Sydney, Australia (the San Francisco of the western Pacific Rim). Jamie had considered attending with a U.S. rugby contingent but the Renegades failed to enthusiastically back the pricey and logistically complicated trip. Unsurprisingly in the world of gay mega-events, the big news in advance of the opening ceremonies was money woes.

Be sure to tune in to the dedicated OutSports coverage for the latest news and hottest photos. Twink fans should be on the lookout for Genre cover model Mike Crosby, competing in water polo for the Americans. Also, for an unusual angle on the perennial Olympic saga of national identity in the face of comradely competition, check out this NY Times perspectives piece.

Natural Hazards - Does the confluence of a quake in Alaska, another in Italy and a volcanic eruption in El Salvador all in the span of a few days hold any sign of future plate movement? I'll be keeping a close watch of any news put out by my friends at the CalTech laboratories.

Love and Bullets - A columnist for the Richmond Times-Dispatch is the first mainstream media personality I've seen who has put into print speculation about an amorous relationship between snipers John Allen Muhammed and John Lee Malvo. Yes, what seems like a story worthy of the National Enquirer has broken into more "respectable" quarters. (Or not.)

Certainly, the 41-year-old failed father and the 17-year-old immigrant drifter had an unusual relationship. Still, the facts are relatively clear as to how they became acquainted, and there lots of unremarkable reasons why a hardluck kid might look up to and emulate an older man -- and want to be with him -- besides sexual urges. To call the gangster pair gay at this stage in the investigation is rank speculation motivated by bias or the desire to drum up readership. As the court cases proceed, we're sure to hear more of the evidence, confessions and otherwise, which will help us understand the truth. In the meantime, let's keep the gay-baiting out of it.

Counting on the pity vote - Now San Franciscans can understand how Washingtonians felt, as NYC edges them out of Olympic consideration. The NY Times reports that the Big Apple has been selected over SFO as the sole American nominee to host the 2012 games. In addition to the sympathy vote, one wonders whether the dotcom doldrums haven't also tarnished the Bay Area's once shining world image. As recently as this summer handicappers were discounting the New York bid because of the extreme cost of hosting the Olympics there. C'est la vie, n'est pas, Ben?

The road to the future goes through... Norfolk? - Yes! Through a quirk of our legal system, one of the most popular jurisdictions for patent lawsuits is the Eastern District of Virginia. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is in northern Virginia, and the Federal courts here have something known as the "rocket docket" -- a strictly enforced set of local scheduling rules to keep a case moving along. (The same rules that handled John Walker Lindh with dispatch and which Zacarias Moussaoui finds so distasteful.) While most litigants would probably prefer to use the Alexandria division, outside of Washington, there are too many cases for the judges there to handle, and Richmond and Norfolk get the overflow. Overflow like this eBay patent lawsuit which could determine the shape of online auctioning in years to come. And Californians think they can safely ignore us! On the contrary -- we hold your technological future in our hands. Bwahahaha! Ahem.

Inside Track - Microsoft wins! Quelle suprise. The only slightly interesting angle to this story I've come across is this report that enterprising Internet geeks discovered U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly's ruling before it was announced. Savvy (but legal) investigation of the court's website revealed unprotected files uploaded more than an hour before the official release, and some 4,000 people were able to read it while the trading desks were still open. (If the decision had gone the other way, the non-public information would have been much more valuable, methinks.) But wouldn't it have been cool if Kollar-Kottelly had posted a fake opinion to trick speculators, like CBS did on its Survivor website in 2000?

Rum, sodomy and the lash - Courtesy of Adam, we hear the BBC has exposed "how gay panic gripped 1960s Royal Navy." We always knew "In the Navy" wasn't just an American anthem, and we're so glad the homos and the admirals are getting along so swimmingly these days.

To the Moon, Alice, to the Moon! - NASA has come to the rescue of Buzz Aldrin. Earlier this year, the septegenarian Moon walker was accosted by one of those conspiracy nuts who believe fervantly that the government made up the whole Apollo program and filmed the landings on a Hollywood sound stage. Bart Winfield Sibrel, who fancies himself a freelance documentarian, ambushed Buzz, shoved a microphone in his face, and asked him to swear on a stack of Bibles that he had in fact made the 480,000 mile roundtrip. Aldrin did us all a favor -- as the website BadAstronomy.com put it, he "told Mr. Sibrel to go away repeatedly, and even asked for the police. When Mr. Sibrel physically blocked his path, Mr. Aldrin (who is 72, 5'10" and 160 pounds) punched Mr. Sibrel (37, 6"2" and 250 pounds) in the face." Now NASA has taken a higher road, by paying an expert to refute the space hoaxers, according to a report in Thursday's Miami Herald. Now can they do something about Area 51?