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2 • OUTLOOK WEEKLY OWNERS AND PUBLISHERS Michael Daniels & Chris Hayes EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / ART DIRECTOR Chris Hayes hayes@outlookmedia.com
SNAPSHOT
PRIDE KICK-OFF WEEKEND WOULDN’T BE COMPLETE WITHOUT SOME GREAT MUSIC IN THE PARKING LOT OF STONEWALL. DISPITE THE 90+ TEMPERATURE THERE WAS A GREAT CROWD ENJOYING THE MUSIC BY JOSH ZUCKERMAN AND THE FABULOUS JOHNSON BROTHERS
ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR / PHOTOS Robert Trautman traut@outlookmedia.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Mette Bach, Danielle Buckius, Wayne R Besen, Chris Crain, Jennifer Vanasco, Tom Moon, Regina Sewell, Leslie Robinson, Gregg Shapiro, Mick Weems, Julianne French, TF Barton, Romeo San Vicente, Jeff Fertig, Simon Sheppard, Tristan Taormino, Dennis Vanke, Mario Pinardi, Rick Kramer, Aaron Drake, Jennie Keplar, Scott Varner, Derrik Chinn, Dan Savage, Felice Newman, Tim Curran, Chris Hughes, Stephen J Fallon, Felice Newman, J. Eric Peters, Crystal Hawkins, Brent Wilder, Matthew Burlingame, Jacob Anderson-Minshall, Matthew Veritas Tsien, Cheri Meyers
BUSINESS & ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Michael Daniels mdaniels@outlookmedia.com NATIONAL ADVERTISING Rivendell Media - 212.242.6863 ADVERTISING DEADLINE Each Wednesday 8 days prior to publication. Call us at 614.268.8525. HOW TO REACH US Outlook Media, Inc. 815 N High St, Suite ii Columbus, OH 43215 614.268.8525 phone 614.261.8200 fax www.outlookweekly.net web www.outlookmedia.com business www.myspace.com/outlookweekly friends www.flickr.com/outlookweekly photos SUBSCRIPTIONS Call 614.268.8525
READERSHIP: 210,000 PEOPLE / MONTH Outlook Weekly is published and distributed by Outlook Media, Inc. every Thursday throughout Ohio. Outlook Weekly is a free publication provided solely for the use of our readers. Any person who willfully or knowingly obtains or exerts unauthorized control over copies of Outlook Weekly with the intent to prevent other individuals from reading it shall be considered guilty of the crime of theft. Violators will be prosecuted. The views expressed in Outlook Weekly are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect the views, policies, or personal, business, or professional practices of Outlook Media, Inc. or its staff, ownership, or management. Outlook Weekly does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness or reliability of any interpretation, advice, opinion, or view presented. Outlook Media, Inc. does not investigate or accept responsibility for claims made in any advertisement. Outlook Media, Inc. assumes no responsibility for claims arising in connection with products and services advertised herein, nor for the content of, or reply to, any advertisement. All material is copyrighted ©2008 by Outlook Media, Inc. All rights reserved.
JUN 12 - JUN 18 2008 VOLUME 12 NUMBER 50
JUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
SNAPSHOT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .........2 ABOUT TOWN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...3, 34 GENERAL GAYETY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .........4 COMMUNITY CORNER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .........6 SPORTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .........8 OUT BUSINESS NEWS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......11 STRAIGHT UP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......13 EARTH TALK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......15 EXAMINED LIFE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......16 FEATURE: WHO’S YOUR DADDY . . .. . . . . . . . . . .18-22 DEEP INSIDE HOLLYWOOD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......24 ARTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......24 INTERVIEW: BOB MOULD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......26 MUSIC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......28 FILM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......28 CLASSIFIEDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......29 PUCKER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......31 SAVAGE LOVE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......33 THE LAST WORD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......35 SCOPES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......35 NEXT WEEK: GAY HISTORY!
OUTLOOK WEEKLY • 3
ABOUT TOWN PRIDE MONTH MADNESS! Are you ready? Get all the Pride month events info on page 6! WEDNESDAY, JUNE 11 IT’S ALL IN WHO YOU KNOW Network Columbus: Out With Our Elected Officials @ Union Bar+Food, 782 N High St, 614.421.CAFE (2233), networkcolumbus.com: This month it’s Out With Our Elected Officials. Mingle with over 25 politicians that support our community. Relaxed business casual atmosphere, lots of prizes and free food. Come and network already! 6p-8p; free. THURSDAY, JUNE 12 THAT WASN’T PLANNED Dramatic Turn @ MadLab, 105 N Grant @ Long St, 614.221.5418, www.madlab.net: For the first time ever, Full Frontal Nudity ventures out of its comfort zone of comedy to the deep, dark realm of drama. We will be presenting our first ever long-form, dramatic, improvised montage. But that’s not all. At the end of the dramatic portion of the show, we will let you, the audience, choose which of our dramatic scenes you would like to see as a comedic, long-form parody. Through June 14. Thu-Sat 8p; $10, $8 students/seniors, $6 mem. THE BIG SCREEN The Capa Summer Movie Series Presents Sabrina @ Ohio Theatre, 39 E State St, 614.469.0939, www.capa.com: As a chauffeur’s daughter among the Long Island rich, Hepburn is the perfect “Cinderella” for Billy Wilder’s stylish romantic comedy. But who is her true Prince Charming - the playboy (Holden) or the tycoon with no time for romance (Bogart)? Tonight & Fri 7:30p; $3.50. FRIDAY, JUNE 13 BECAUSE WHY? I Love You Because @ Mathile Theatre at Schuster Center, 1 W 2nd St, Dayton 937.228.3630, www.ticketcenterstage.com: Presented by Encore Theater Co., this show is “Pride & Prejudice” meets “Friends” romance, humor & lifelong friendships under a Manhattan skyline. The Midwest Premiere of a modern day musical love story. Fri &Sat 8p, Sun 3p; $15. WHO SAYS THERE’S NO FREE LUNCH? Free CD Night @ Axis, 775 N High St, 614.291.4008, columbusnightlife.com: Dance the night away and then take the party home with you. DJ Patrick Finn. Hot jocks in Pump. 10p; $5. NUMBER 245 YOU’RE UP S.G.F. - Single Gay Female Party!! @ Wall Street, 144 N High St, 614.464.2800, www.wallstreetnightclub.com: Wall Street’s newest party for women to meet!! Here’s how it works.. everyone that comes in gets a number and then you can send a video text message to anyone in the club on our big screen! How do you send that message?? Either find the hostess for the night, Candice or come up to the dj booth, get a form, fill it out and we will do the rest! $1.00 Jell-O shots AND don’t forget to pick up your SGF CD! 18 & Over Event. 9p; cover. SATURDAY, JUNE 14 A PLACE TO CALL HOME 2008 BIA Parade of Homes: Mature woods, wetlands and nearby parks highlight this year’s BIA Parade of Homes site at the Village at Hannah Farms in Gahanna. Features seven homes from builders:Fischer Homes, Key Homes, M/I Homes, Manor Homes, OS Homes, Trinity Homebuilders, and Tuckerman
by Chris Hayes
Home Group. Through June 29. URBAN LIVING CityHop @ Various Condos Downtown, 614.221.0227, columbuslandmarks.org, cityhoptour.org: City Hop 2008 celebrating downtown Columbus. Prospective downtown dwellers and curiosity seekers can learn firsthand about the exciting opportunities available for living Downtown. The tour showcases 17 properties, downtown Columbus’ cultural attractions, historic landmarks, restaurants, entertainment venues & green spaces. Ticket stops are Ibiza, 830 N. High Street , Neighborhood Launch (Gay & 4th St) and The Arena Grand Theatre 175 W Nationwide Blvd. 10a-6p; $15 online, $18 day of. SUNDAY, JUNE 15 CALL YOUR DAD!!! Father’s Day @ homes across the USA: Hey it’s Father’s Day, so be a good kid and tell your pop how much you love him or at least that you appreciate he gave you life. Kudos to all the dad’s out there and especially to ours! We love you! DO YOU HAVE A PEN? Leslie Jordan Book Signing @ Barnes & Noble, The Ohio State University Bookstore, 11th & High St, www.ohiostate.bncollege.com: Leslie is the 2006 Emmy Award Winner for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series for his delicious portrayal of Beverly Leslie on Will & Grace. He is currently in production of Sordid Lives: The Series as the popular character Earl ‘Brother Boy’ Ingram. Leslie Jordan will be discussing and signing his latest book My Trip Down The Pink Carpet 5p-7p; free. PRETTY IN PINK Pink Party With Leslie Jordan @ The Center on High Studio One, 1160 N. High St, 614.299.7764, www.stonewallcolumbus.org: Leslie Jordan is in town! Meet him at this special, once-in-a-lifetime Pride Fundraiser at Stonewall Columbus. Wear your favorite Pink Apparel and Pink Accessories and share some laughs with Leslie as he is in town to promote his new book and his stage show. 8p; $25. MONDAY, JUNE 16 HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS A Home Of Your Own Free Homebuyer Education Workshop @ Homes on the Hill CDC, 12 S Terrace Ave, 614.275.4663 x100: Homes on the Hill CDC will hold the homebuyer education course, A Home of Your Own, geared toward first-time homebuyers. The course is open to the public and free of charge. The workshop will cover topics ranging from financial literacy, credit and mortgage loans to how to choose a realtor, home inspections, and the closing process. Guest speakers will include area professionals in the fields of lending, real estate, and housing. This workshop may be a requirement for some down payment assistance programs and first time homebuyer loan programs. Registration is required; please call register. 6p-9p; free. MY COLORS ARE BLUSH AND BASHFUL Lelsie Jordan’s My Trip Down The Pink Carpet @ The Southern Theatre, 21 E Main St, 614.340.1896, www.thelesliejordan.com: Leslie makes its only Ohio stop at the Southern Theatre for one night only tonight. Written and adapted for the stage by Jordan himself, the latest one man laugh fest is a heartfelt autobiographical show that promises to run the gamut from A (amazing) to Z (zany). 8p; $27.50$67.50. JUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
4 • OUTLOOK WEEKLY
The Reader Poll
GENERAL GAYETY by Leslie Robinson
Last week we asked:
HISSING AT KISSING I’m the only person in Seattle who hasn’t weighed in on the Ballpark Kissers. Time for me to step up to the plate. The case of the two lesbians ordered to stop smooching at a Seattle Mariners game has not only engrossed the local media and blogging types, but has popped up in newspapers from Cape Cod to Minneapolis to Phoenix. The nationwide interest in this incident seems to stem from its contrast with Seattle’s gay-friendly reputation. I presume the salacious aspect hasn’t hurt, either. In case you’ve still managed to miss the details, let’s review them. Sirbrina Guerrero, 23, attended a Mariners game at Safeco Field with a date, 21, who’s in the closet. During the third inning, an usher told the two gals to stop kissing. A woman nearby had complained that kids were in the crowd and parents would be forced to explain why two women were locking lips. Accused of necking, Guerrero said later she and her date merely pecked while eating garlic fries. They “were just showing affection,” but a straight couple about seven rows away was making out. First, if Guerrero and her date were eating garlic fries, it’s a good thing they had each other to kiss. Second, it’s ironic that the closeted girlfriend now finds herself nationally referred to, even if anonymously, as a participant in a lesbian smooching furor. Third, considering how disappointing the
Mariners have been this season, they’re lucky to have anybody in the stands. In the days that followed, Dan Savage, sex-advice columnist and editor of a Seattle alternative weekly, called for a kiss-in. Some accused Guerrero, who was a contestant on the MTV reality show “A Shot at Love With Tila Tequila,” of seeking attention. Then the Mariners released the results of an internal review. “We believe that our staff acted appropriately because they were responding to the behavior of the couple involved, not because of the couple’s sexual orientation.” Two staffers described that behavior as “making out,” “fondling,” and “groping.” If that’s true, I guess the gals weren’t really interested in the game. Safeco staffers told the women to “tone it down,” not stop kissing. The two “refused to modify their behavior, began swearing at the seating hosts and complained that they were being singled out for their sexual orientation.” The Mariners bemoaned the accusations of discrimination. And well they should, since non-discrimination is their policy and the city’s law. Moreover, since Seattle has such a large gay population, the organization would be dumber than toast to alienate all those paying customers. To Guerrero, the Mariners’ statement was as palatable as following garlic fries with nachos, sushi, and cotton candy. “What they are saying is so far from the truth,” she told
the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. “It makes me sick.” She said she’s never experienced discrimination - “until now.” What happened at Safeco was “very painful and embarrassing.” So as I write this the situation has come down to he said, she said, oy vey. Whatever the truth, whatever the motivations, this case has raised several important questions. Seattleites are doing some soulsearching on how gay-friendly they really are. It’s never a bad thing for a majority to ponder how it treats a minority. Then there’s the matter of public displays of affection. The same rules that apply to straights should apply to gays. Kissing at the ballpark is fine. Fondling at the ballpark is not. Unless what you’re fondling is the baseball you just caught. Regarding that woman in the crowd who complained to the usher—if the lesbians were being a spectacle, then fine. But if she can’t bear to see any lesbian affection for fear of having to explain it to kids, she’d best plan on never leaving the house. Leslie Robinson has no baseballs to fondle. E-mail her at LesRobinsn@aol.com, and read more columns at www.GeneralGayety.com.
Got something to say? We want to hear from you!
Who is your daddy? This week’s issue is on “daddies.” In any context, who is yours? • Depends. Are you offering? • Traut is my daddy! YUM • Barack he’s the man! • My butch Steph – hey daddy! • Who do you think is the most historically relevant gay person and why?
NEXT WEEK’S QUESTION:
Log on to: www.outlookweekly.net to take this week’s poll.
Email us at editor@outlookmedia.com or logon to www.outlookweekly.net.
25%
ALL TIME LOW
SO U RC
JUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
E : CBS NEWS
CATEGORY
NOV 2 ’04
JUN 9 ’08
DIFFERENCE
AMERICAN DEAD
1,122
4,094
2,972
AMERICAN WOUNDED
8,124
30,333
22,209
IRAQI CIVILIAN DEAD
16,342
92,004
75,662
NATIONAL DEBT
$7,429,629,954,236
$9,407,494,302,847
DAYS ‘TIL 2008 ELECTION
1,463
148
$1,977,864,348,611 (1,315)
OUTLOOK WEEKLY • 5
JUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
6 • OUTLOOK WEEKLY
COMMUNITY CORNER
GLBT Scholarships Awarded by Peg Allemang PFLAG Columbus and the OSU GLBT Alumni Society presented a total of seven scholarship awards May 28th at the annual awards ceremony on the OSU campus. Anthony Weston, a freshman majoring in Biochemistry, received the 2008-2009 Eric Kohring/PFLAG Scholarship. Charlie Runyan, Scholarship Committee Chair of the GLBT Alumni Society presented the Harold A. McIntosh Scholarship Awards to: Janay Gilbert, a transfer student from Virginia Commonwealth pursuing degrees in Radiologic Science and African American Studies; Merideth Lively, a 2006 transfer student from Smith College studying Anthropology, Sexual Studies and Studio Art; Aleah Perry, senior at Tiffin High School who plans to attend OSU in the fall; Matthew Rehfuss, a fourth year student in Nursing and Spanish; and Carlos Taylor, finishing his third year in Finance, International Business and Spanish. J. P. Thompson, a second year student in the OSU School of Music pursuing a degree in Clarinet Performance, received the Mark Moffett Jr. Memorial Scholarship. Emily Fogle, co-president of PFLAG
Columbus, made the presentation to Anthony Weston and eloquently reminded the audience of Eric Kohring’s tireless determination to create and maintain a PFLAG Columbus GLBT scholarship, then the first of its kind in the country. Emily also recognized Josette Bodonyi, a former member of
PFLAG Columbus, for her work along with Eric Kohring and continuing years after his death to make the dream of a scholarship program a reality. Josette will no longer be serving as a selection committee memberat-large where she has served since the inception of the award, because she and her family are moving out of the state. She will be missed. Mindful of Eric Kohring’s goal of providing financial assistance to enable a student to serve more actively in the OSU gay community, the scholarship committee
members were impressed that Anthony was instrumental in starting a gay straight alliance during his senior year in high school. Presently in his freshman year at Ohio State, in addition to being an exemplary student with a 3.66 GPA, Anthony has participated in the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) and was elected Secretary starting next fall. He also participates in OSETM (Out in Science, Engineering, Technology and Math) as well as a new group on campus presently called GLBT First Year Cohort. Anthony’s plans for additional service to the GLBT community include examining further ways to reach out to straight allies on the campus and returning to his former high school to speak with teachers individually about ways to support young GLBT students. He plans to contact the multicultural center for guidance. Anthony will be a guest Sunday, August 24 at our regular PFLAG meeting held at 2:00 p.m. at the Universalist Unitarian Church, 93 W. Weisheimer Rd. Please mark your calendars and join us to welcome him. More information will be forthcoming. Peg Allemang is Advocacy Coordinator for Ohio PFLAG, PFLAG Columus Board Member and served on the Eric Kohring PFLAG/GLBT Alumni Association Scholarship Selection Committee.
Pride Holiday Highlights FORE! PRIDE GOLF OUTING Saturday, June 14 11a – 5p: Raymond Memorial Golf Course, (3860 Trabue Rd) is the place fopr Fore!. Fore! PRIDE 2008 is a 4-person amateur 18-hole golf scramble event. Players of all skill levels are encouraged to play, as this is an event focused on fun and charity to others within the Columbus community. You may sign up individually, or with one or two friends, or as a foursome. Fore! PRIDE Highlights include Dinner by Schmidt’s, Silent Auction, Raffle Prizes, Trophies for Top Teams, Longest Drive, and Nearest to the Pin; and THE BIG NEWS . . . The First Golfer to get a Hole-in-One on the specially designated hole for that day WINS a NEW 2008 HARLEY-DAVIDSON, courtesy of our friends at A.D. Farrow Harley-Davidson! Visit http://store.stonewallcolumbus.org/ products/fore-pride-golf-outing-registration to register or the tournament. Visit http://columbuspride.org/forepride for more information. JUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
PRIDE POKER RUN ◊♣ Saturday, June 14, 2008 11a: Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum, 13515 Yarmouth Dr., Pickerington, Ohio 43147: celebrate Pride Month with a ride on your hog! Join Poker Run Chair Lori Steigerwald at this fun fundraiser. Registration at 11a and then take a complimentary tour of the museum while you wait for the other riders to register! Bikes Leave from Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum at 12p and finish with a cookout at Club Diversity 4p - ?? Riders: $15/Passengers: $10
Then the next night see his show: My Trip Down The Pink Carpet making its only Ohio stop at the Southern Theatre on Monday, June 16 at 8p. Tickets are on sale now at www.ticketmaster.com or the theatre box office at 614.469.0939. Specific information on the show’s tour schedule can be found at www.thelesliejordan.com. SPECIAL DISCOUNT TICKETS AVAILABLE for Monday’s SHOW: Discount Code: “PRIDE”
LESLIE JORDAN MANIA! I wonder if I Pink Party: Sunday, June 15, 8p: @ be Leslie’scan Stonewall Community Center, 1160 N High d a d d y? St, 614.299.7764, www.stonewallcolumbus.org: Leslie Jordan is in town! Meet him at this special, once-in-a-lifetime Pride Fundraiser at Stonewall. Wear your favorite Pink Apparel and Pink Accessories and share some laughs with Leslie as he is in town to promote his new book and his stage show. $25 (free food & drinks)
PRIDE HOLIDAY EVENTS Wednesday, June 11 History Panel: “History of the Transgender Community in Columbus” 7p Stonewall Columbus Center on High FIRST FLOOR Saturday, June 14 Pride Poker Run 11a Registration - Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum, Pickerington www.columbuspride.org/pokerrun Saturday, June 14 Fore! Pride Golf Outing Inaugural Event 11a Shotgun Start - Raymond Memorial Golf Course www.columbuspride.org/forepride
Sunday, June 15 Leslie Jordan “Pink Party” Pride Fundraiser 8p Stonewall Columbus Studio One www.columbuspride.org/pinkparty
Monday, June 16 Leslie Jordan: My Trip Down the Pink Carpet One-Man Show 8p Southern Theatre www.columbuspride.org/pinkpa rty - Has Link to Ticketmaster/Leslie Jordan Page Friday, June 20 Stonewall/In The Kno Diversity Pride Meet and Greet 7:30 p.m. Stonewall Columbus Friday, June 20 CATF “Skate 4 Life” 9p - 2a Skate Zone 71 www.catf.net Fri/Sat, June 20 & 21 Rocket Man Columbus Gay Men’s Chorus 8p Capitol Theatre at the Riffe Center www.cgmc.com Saturday, June 21 Run for Pride 5K Run/Walk 9:30 a.m. Goodale Park www.columbuspride.org/runforpride
Saturday, June 21 Stonewall/In The Kno Diversity Pride Celebration 7:30 p.m. Sobe Lounge 560 South High Street Sunday, June 22 Stonewall/In The Kno Diversity Pride Sunday 9a Advent United Church of Christ 2340 N. Cassady Avenue Brunch Immediately Following Details TBA Thursday, June 26 After Stonewall DVD Showing 7p - 9p Whetstone Branch of Columbus Public Library www.columbuswcw.org Friday, June 27 and Saturday, June 28 8th Annual Rockin’ in The Streets 6p Gate Open - East Village www.rockinginthestreets.com Friday, June 27 and Saturday, June 28 QASIS Pride 2008 189-203 North Fifth Street www.qasispride.com Saturday, June 28 DRAGSTOCK! 7p Axis Nightclub www.columbusnightlife.com Sunday, June 29 Pride Brunch 11a - 1p Westin Great Southern Grand Ballroom www.columbuspride.org/brunch Bat -N - Rouge 3p Afrocentric School www.clgsa.net ; www.cglsa.net/BNR/BNR.html Monday, June 30 Pink Flu . . . Call in Sick!
OUTLOOK WEEKLY • 7
JUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
WEEKLY STANDINGS
8 • OUTLOOK WEEKLY
SPORTS
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STOMPERS Boot scoot and boogie to 1st place Hey did you hear about the 15th Annual IAGLCWDC competition? Even know what that is? Well it’s the The International Association of Gay/Lesbian Country Western Dance Clubs which holds one hell of a ho-down every year to see who can step and who needs to step off. It’s a proud day for our City as the Columbus Stompers brought home a bounty of prizes. The Couples Team won 2nd place, the Group Team won 1st place and The Columbus Stompers took Overall Team Competition (the highest honor). They are the 2008 International Champions. Yeah!!!!
The Columbus Stompers would like to thank their fans and supporters who helped get them to this victory. Special thanks to the following for their contributions to help make this the Coyote Ugly fundraiser and silent auction a success: Score Bar, Outlook Weekly, Changes Salon and Spa, Dairy Queen, Torso, Body Mechanix, David Platts, Ron Skidmore, Haiku, Take Two Apparel, Lucky 13 Salon, Salon Lofts, Spinelli’s Deli, Max and Erma’s, Bahama Tan, Hellin Bedd, Betty Cracker, Paige Passion, and Rose Bedd.
Cologne’s Gay Games organizers announced that Sailing and Field Hockey have been added to the Sports Program for Gay Games VIII Cologne 2010. By placing the sailing regatta in The Netherlands, the 2010 Gay Games will be the first where competition will take place in more than one country. July 31 to August 7, 2010 some 12,000 participants from more than 70 countries will travel to Germany’s Rhine Valley when Cologne hosts the Gay Games VIII Sports & Cultural Festival. Sporting events ranging from soccer and beach volleyball to billiards, dancing, softball and figure skating will take place. Pre-registration for all sports is now open with full registration scheduled to launch July 1, 2008. Both sailing and field hockey have a historic presence in previous Gay Games having been contested in Chicago in 2006 and Sydney in 2002. “There were so many requests for sailing and field hockey that we decided to include them as well,” said Annette Wachter, managing director of Games Cologne.
The sailing regatta will be held in the Netherlands, about an hour’s drive from Cologne. “Sailing will be offered on the Maas Lakes near Roermond, the Netherlands – a world-renowned sailing area where the region’s best crews train and compete,” Wachter said. “There will be a shuttle service bringing the sailors to the Maas Lakes and back to Cologne.” The regatta will conform to international standards, and all results will be official and accredited internationally. Demand for sailing is expected to be high; Chicago’s 2006 sailing regatta was the first sport to fill up. The second new sports event, a field hockey tournament, will take place at Muengersdorf Sportpark in Cologne, directly adjacent to RheinEnergie Stadium. Sixteen teams will face off against one another. Teams from Australia (men) and The Netherlands (women) are defending Gold Medallists from the Sydney 2002 Gay Games. Pre-registration for Gay Games VIII is now open at www.games-cologne.com Full registration will launch July 1, 2008.
Sailing and Field Hockey Added to Gay Games VIII Cologne 2010
OHRG Envy Cup Championship July 6 The Ohio Roller Girls are on there way to the finals. This year the undefeated Take-Outs will battle with the Blackeye Bullies. Can the Take-Outs three-peat or will the cup change hands now that the Bullies are in contention? Come July 6th and JUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
Columbus Lesbian & Gay Softball Association (Week 5) Team Score Tradewinds Grizzlies Switch Hitters (Edward Jones) Axis Otero's Q-Bar Homewreckers (Q-Bar) Village Pet Supply Union / Hard Times Team X (La Forgata) Molly Woo's Planet Score (Planet Smoothie / Score) Stix-n-Chix (Carriage Trade Reality) Somewhere Else / Oz Red Devils (Pierceology) Plugged Nickel Bottom's of the 9th (Q-Bar) Cutters (Creative Foundations) Orange Crush Renegades (Tradewinds) River Rats (Franklinton CTC) Club Diversity Exile Pirates Pyramid II Ford's Fielders Chase New Creation / MCC Metz Mo Money (5/3 Bank)
Division Win Loss Roberts 9 1 Roberts 7 2 Roberts 4 4 Roberts 3 6 Roberts 2 7 Roberts 2 7 8 1 Akers 2 8 2 Akers 2 5 4 Akers 2 4 5 Akers 2 2 7 Akers 2 1 9 Akers 2 Akers 1 5 0 Akers 1 4 1 Akers 1 3 1 Akers 1 3 2 Akers 1 1 2 Akers 1 1 4 Akers 1 1 4 Akers 1 1 4 St. Clair 4 0 St. Clair 4 1 St. Clair 3 1 St. Clair 3 2 St. Clair 2 2 St. Clair 1 3 St. Clair 1 4 St. Clair 0 5
Tie 0 1 2 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
PCT 0.900 0.750 0.500 0.350 0.250 0.250 0.850 0.800 0.550 0.450 0.250 0.100 1.000 0.800 0.750 0.600 0.333 0.200 0.200 0.200 0.900 0.800 0.700 0.600 0.500 0.250 0.200
RS 123 103 103 101 76 78 127 159 133 114 128 46 96 83 51 40 28 38 17 43 59 48 57 62 43 29 29
RA PTS 69 18 82 15 113 10 110 7 96 5 114 5 67 17 76 16 102 11 201 9 133 5 128 2 19 10 26 8 42 6 48 6 47 2 49 2 78 2 87 2 27 9 16 8 40 7 30 6 53 4 42 2 71 2
0.000 4 52 0 CLGSA does not play on the 6/15. Next game 6/22. No games 6/29 or 7/6. Info: www.clgsa.net
Gay Hockey Announces Upcoming Matches
GHO is Ohio’s first GLBT / GLBT-friendly hockey team. It has a diverse group of memsee for yourself. Also, not to be missed...the Grudge bers and fans, varying in ages, skill level and Match for 3rd place with the Band of Brawlers ver- sexual orientation. For more information, you sus the Sprockettes. can visit the web site at gayhockeyohio.com. OHRG Tryouts July 22 & 23. More info: New players, fans, and sponsors are always http://www.ohiorollergirls.com welcome! The team is currently 1-1-1.
Upcoming Mayhem games: June 15 – 4:40p vs. The Rox @ Chiller Dublin 1 June 22 – 7:30p vs. Net Jets @ Chiller North 2 June 29 – 5:10p vs. Perpetual Motion @ Chiller Dublin 2
OUTLOOK WEEKLY • 9
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10 • OUTLOOK WEEKLY
JUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
OUTLOOK WEEKLY • 11
OUT BUSINESS NEWS
Ohio Soybean Council Promotes Soy Oil to Health-Conscious Consumers As Americans continue to look for healthier food alternatives, the Ohio Soybean Council (OSC) wants to remind consumers about the health benefits of soy oil. Lately, there has been concern about the amount of trans fats in the American diet. Cooking oil has been at the forefront of this concern as some varieties contain high levels of trans fats. Trans fats occur when the oil has been partially hydrogenated. Hydrogenation helps the oil to avoid deterioration or going rancid over a longer period of time. Processed foods typically use partially hydrogenated oil so they have a longer shelf life. Because of the growing health concern around cooking oil, OSC has taken a leadership role in the development and implementation of soybean varieties whose oil does not need to be hydrogenated and therefore significantly reducing or eliminating trans fats. Low-linolenic soybeans are one such soybean because this variety has a low level of linolenic fatty acid while it maintains the low saturated fat content all soybeans offer. Low levels of linolenic fatty acid means this soybean variety produces oil that does not need to be hydrogenated. Today, oil produced from lowlinolenic soybeans is used primarily in food manufacturing and restaurants. Ohio, which ranks sixth in the nation for soybean production, produces over 4 million acres of soybeans each year which equates to nearly 200 million bushels of soybeans. On average, 18 percent of a soybean is made up of oil and 87 percent of all soybean oil is used as food. As a matter of fact, most vegetable oils are composed only of soybean oil. Taking a closer look at low-linolenic soybeans, over 250,000 acres of this variety were planted in Ohio in 2007 with more expected this year. There are currently four processing facilities across Ohio that process lowlinolenic soybeans. In an effort to heighten awareness of the health benefits of soy oil, OSC and the soybean checkoff have launched Soy Oil OhioTM, a multifaceted campaign to promote the health benefits of soybean oil, beginning with low-linolenic soybean oil. “Our research shows that consumers need more information about healthy types of cooking oil so they can make educated purchasing decisions and select products that do not contain trans fats,” said John Lumpe, Ohio Soybean Council Executive Director. “The Soy Oil Ohio campaign is designed to inform the consumer of the health benefits of products made from soybean varieties, such as the lowlinolenic soybean, while at the same time informing food manufacturers about the health benefits of this soybean oil in food products.”
NLGJA & Witeck-Combs Launch OutNewsWire The National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association (NLGJA) in partnership with WiteckCombs Communications today announced the creation of OutNewsWire, a web-based news distribution service dedicated to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. OutNewsWire was launched to serve all news organizations and media professionals interested in receiving information, announcements and event updates of specific interest to LGBT audiences. OutNewsWire may be accessed online 24/7 and 365 days a year at www.outnewswire.com (or alternatively at www.nlgja.org/outnewswire/). News releases, upon receipt by OutNewsWire, will be distributed between 9 am and 5 pm ET Monday through Friday (except for holidays), though special arrangements can be made for distribution outside those customary business hours. “We recognized a need to ensure that news and information about the LGBT community got to the journalists most interested in these topics,” said David Barre, NLGJA Executive Director. “We see this as a way to both help our members stay on top of the latest LGBT news and to provide affordable access to those organizations who want to reach the LGBT community.” “Distributed upon launch to more than 150 journalists with a growing number of subscribing news organizations and mainstream media contacts at regional and national publications and Web sites, we aspire to make this the most trusted, cost-effective and efficient press release distribution service serving LGBT audiences,” added Bob Witeck, CEO of WiteckCombs Communications and NLGJA Life Member and past NLGJA board leader. OutNewsWire is presented jointly by NLGJA and Witeck-Combs Communications, and a portion of all proceeds generated will support NLGJA’s mission and programs. There is no cost to receive new releases distributed by OutNewsWire and all recipients must opt in to do so. However, akin to using other news release services, there is a fee for the distribution of each news release, with a substantially discounted fee for non-profit organizations. Journalists, freelancers and bloggers who wish to receive news updates from OutNewsWire may e-mail subscribe@outnewswire.com and include their name, professional title and affiliation, and preferred e-mail address. City and preferred telephone number also are helpful, though optional.
GLBT Real Estate Benefits Mark Optimistic Progress with Recent Court Ruling To practice real estate in the USA means to first go to real estate school, where much of the curriculum is devoted to studying - and learning how to abide by - Federal Fair Housing Law. The Architectural Barriers Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Age Discrimination Act, and half a dozen Presidential Executive Orders all provide various kinds of protection and legal rights that fall under the broad category of Fair Housing Law. Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 - the Fair Housing Act - for instance, prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of dwellings, and in other housing-related transactions, based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, and familial status. The familial coverage is extended and interpreted to include children under the age of 18 living with parents of legal custodians, pregnant women, and people securing custody of children under the age of 18. But nowhere in any of these important pieces of civil rights related legislation does sexual orientation come into play. That is, of course, unless you are in the dominant default demographic of heterosexuals who can get a marriage license anywhere in the country to automatically enjoy special protections, tax breaks, and ownership rights related to real estate. Countless GLBT couples have been subjected to both overt and covert discrimination when it comes to the practice of real estate and the business of mortgage lending. Some have been told they cannot rent together. Others have been told that they cannot both put their names on a homeowner’s insurance policy. GLBT couples have been taxed at a much higher rate than married couples, for example, who almost always receive preferential treatment when filling IRS tax forms. That is especially true when it pertains to the tax advantages of real estate such as capital gains tax breaks. Things are changing, however, and the momentum for progressive legislation is gaining power and traction thanks to a landmark decision handed down on May 15th by the California Supreme Court. The court struck down two California laws that had limited marriages to only being valid when between a man and a woman. In doing so they decided that samesex couples have a constitutional right to marry. The legal premise for the California decision was based in part on a court case that was settled 60 years ago and determined that interracial marriage should be legalized. Back then California again made history because it was the first state in the USA to legalize interracial marriage. Unless the court grants a stay, the law will
go into effect in time for many June brides to take full advantage of it. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said in a statement to the press that he respected the ruling and did not support a constitutional amendment to overturn it. So it is predicted that the ruling will indeed stand - and it should have a powerful proactive influence upon similar future judicial cases across the USA. Other state high courts in New York, New Jersey and Washington ruled on same-sex marriage in recent years and their decisions were narrowly divided. That means that these states will likely be the first to reconsider the issue in the wake of the groundbreaking California change. The Connecticut Supreme Court is also expected to weigh in on same-sex marriage, perhaps before the end of the year. Evidence that others will follow suit came quickly. Just two weeks after the California ruling, Governor David Paterson of New York sent an official memo to his state agencies instructing them to recognize same-sex marriages performed in states and countries where they are legal. The agencies were told to revise existing policies and regulations as needed to comply with the new mandate. According to census data more than 100,000 same-sex couples live in California. The state already had the benefit of a domestic partnership law that confers almost all of the benefits that are afforded to their married counterparts. But speaking for the majority in his written option, California Chief Justice Ronald M. George basically said that the domestic partnership law was not sufficient and that gays deserved more. “In view of the substance and significance of the fundamental constitutional right to form a family relationship,” he wrote, “the California Constitution properly must be interpreted to guarantee this basic civil right to all Californians, whether gay or heterosexual, and to same-sex couples as well as to opposite-sex couples.” The 4-to-3 decision made California the second state to allow same-sex marriages, following a similar ruling in the state Massachusetts. Back in 2004 thousands of gay couples who had rushed to get married under a temporary law saw their marriages nullified by a court decision, so this time the higher court ruling was cause for exuberant celebrations outside San Francisco City Hall. For quality real estate experts serving the GLBT community, visit www.gayrealestate.com or call toll Free phone number 1888.420.MOVE (6683). Their agents value your input and take pride in meeting your needs and expectations when you buy or sell a home.
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12 • OUTLOOK WEEKLY
JUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
OUTLOOK WEEKLY • 13
STRAIGHT UP by Adam Lippe
The Art of Conversion, part 1 Editor’s note: This is the first installment in a two-part series on Christian reorientation therapy. The next installment will appear in two weeks. It will deal with Adam’s specific dealings with the group leader and his testimony, the application process, and Adam’s email and phone communications with the only member of the group who would admit to struggling with “same sex attraction.” There’s a very funny sketch from the TV show The Kids in Hall, wherein a group of males sit inside a men’s public bathroom and hold a meeting, a support group to make sure they are not giving in to the “tyranny of our bladders.” The leader of the group has each member discuss how the week was for them, i.e., did they cave and actually pee? Each one slowly admits that he gave in to his “demons,” including one guy who claims that when, after a night of drinking, he found himself passed out in a puddle of urine, that it may not be his, his theory being that “some guy, you know, broke into my trailer, squirreled his way in through the window, went all over me, and left.” If there was ever a more apt analogy for attending an ex-gay meeting, I’m not sure what it is. Recently, under the guise of a man struggling with “same sex attraction,” I went undercover to try to figure out how this seemingly ridiculous process works. Sure, I’ve heard about the process of reorientation before (where men and, less often, women, try to convince themselves that their homosexuality is wrong, and they will try to repress their feelings and change which sex they are attracted to in order to honor “the Lord”). From what I understood, they would read stories, and hear some personal accounts. But I’d never actually seen how it worked, and I was curious to learn - if one were not already indoctrinated into the hardcore Christian world - how it might appear to an outsider. You might imagine that anyone attending these meetings is probably a gullible sap, likely to believe anything that people preaching the supposed “word of God” might say. And you might also assume that, upon entering said meeting, you would be assaulted with a mix of heavy prayer and hellfire guilt trips. Unfortunately, it is far more insidious than that. It’s more like The O’Reilly Factor. Like leaving the show running in the background, and occasionally perking up to hear a sentence or two when Bill starts yelling at something or someone. Without listening to the words and the context, the smarmy , overbearing style could be theoretically overwhelming, and get you chanting along with the talking points. Unfortunately, all anyone with a modicum of focus or intelligence has to do is listen to about five minutes of it before realizing, “wow, this is completely condescending fearmongering and the only kind of logic being used here is circular.”
In The O’Reilly Factor, even Bill doesn’t believe what he’s saying. He’ll admit to being just an entertainer. But to those who cling to every one of his theories without actually thinking about it, they go right along with whatever he and his writers dream up. This is virtually a facsimile of what occurs at an exgay meeting. When I arrived, I expected a small group; which would thereby be easier for its leader to influence and convert their fear into selfloathing. However, there were about 60 people there, and right before the opening lecture, there was calm conversation among the leaders and their parishioners, jovial joking and a very relaxed tone. The crowd was mostly 40 and above, though there were a handful of younger folks. The older men were generally unattractive, clearly this inner-hatred thing isn’t good for your skin. The younger men were average looking, ranging from trendy yuppie to buff model types. Everyone there was white. There were pamphlets, books, and large binders available for sale on the way in, which would help you follow along with the lecture, ranging in price from $2-$25. The course was organized to occur, weekly, over a several year period, covering various subjects, which would never be repeated. The subject that week was abuse, and the speaker, one of the leaders of the group (but never proclaimed that he was a pastor), was a heavyset man who had the tone and looks of writer/director/Silent Bob/slacker hero Kevin Smith, minus the constant profanity but maintaining the self-deprecation. Behind him were two, clearly expensive widescreen projection TVs, spaced out so everyone could see his slick Powerpoint presentation. One of the first things he said was, that in that audience, 2/3 of us had been abused when we were children. Now he never said sexually, but the coding resembled the way a “leaked” White House press release might suggest Valerie Plame is a CIA agent, without actually uttering the words. In true Fox News fashion, he followed up that statement by qualifying it, so it was just a suggestion, and couched in careful passive language, “most of you would say you were abused; not all, mind you.” He knew what we would take from what was he saying; especially because he followed that with example after example of various ways people abuse each other, whether it be emotional or not. Each explanation that followed was curious and bizarre. But I suppose if you were already eating the Soylent Green, you wouldn’t take notice. • For instance, sexual abuse, which comprised the longest portion of the lecture, could be defined as when a parent talks to their child about their “sexual brokenness” (being gay). Again, it was implied, but never uttered, that there seems to be no age when you could do that to your child (so don’t be gay!). It was considered emotional incest if you confided in
your child at all about any problems you might have (how can they be pure if they are burdened?!). • He buddied up to us by revealing his pent-up anger, which occasionally resulted in him screaming in the car or being mean to his wife. This was his version of emotional abuse. • Spiritual abuse was defined as the way churches may take advantage of their “tribe” by convincing them of “ungodly messages.” But there were far more hints about priests diddling little boys. • Surprisingly, Internet abuse did not refer to watching a lot of porn - he actually specified this. It simply meant when people are mean to each other on the Internet, be it using instant messenger or bulletin boards. There were some words about guys who stalk little boys, but again, nothing overt about homosexuality. The only thing said about gays at all was that it was a form of sexual addiction, and obviously you were there to heal or cure your addiction. Luckily, despite detailing virtually every item on the list, which was about 20, corpse abuse was never defined. If Internet abuse isn’t watching porn, then corpse abuse probably wasn’t necrophilia. I hate to think what it actually was. This 75- minute lecture was intended to be extremely accessible. A large portion of it was defining words and concepts that everyone, if they passed the 8th grade, already understood. It seemed to be the way that they were sneaking in the subtext. If people already understood what was being said in a normally “boring” style lecture, they might think they were smarter than they actually are because they can follow the “expert.” It gets heads nodding and Kool-Aid drunk. After the lecture, because I was new, I was handed a schedule, an application and a CD of the head of the branch of the organization’s testimony (all of which I will discuss in the second part of this article in a couple weeks). After they asked me my age, I was led to the 18-30 group. Everyone of the 14 men there looked uneasy, despite apparently having been in the group for months, if not years. No one said anything to me, even though they knew I was new to this. I asked a few questions before the meeting started, but was met with smiles and half-answers. Finally, the head of the branch joined us and led us in a prayer. He then laid out the ground rules: talk about your week, the struggles you may have had, and how God helped you through them. I was not ready for the insignificance of the
magnetized banality that followed… For the next three hours… The first guy, looking seemingly well-adjusted, talked about his dealings with his wife and stepchild, and how he didn’t like the fact that he realized that he loved his biological children with her more than he loved his stepchild. What would seem like a simple psychological solution - he doesn’t feel complete love for the stepchild because it isn’t his, and there’s a nagging feeling about the fact that he wasn’t his wife’s first - was ignored in favor of the leader of the group rambling and repeating himself for more than 15 minutes, with the only clear message being that he should pray to God to forgive his sins. The next guy was much more vague; there was a running theme of people not really explaining their situations. You would think this would interfere with the nature of group therapy, but it made perfect sense once I realized how this particular version of therapy ran. After a few people spoke, it became clear that this only resembled therapy. It was actually moral and spiritual dictation. The member would semi-explain his problem, and the group leader would speak for often as long as 30 minutes, telling him how he should handle it. The group made no suggestions while he talked (and said the same thing over and over about repenting and trying not to be sexually broken or a sexual sinner). Afterward, some people would timidly try to help, but it was half-hearted and after it quickly petered out, we would move on. It is important to note that most people were not there to cure their gaiety; they were clearly miserable, but putting up a façade of righteousness. At least 10 members of the group were confessing solely to their horrible and repeated sin of… masturbation. The most baffling moment was later when one man confessed to cheating on his wife… with his wife. There was no explanation, and the implication with him, and most of the others, was that they had frequent private conversations with the group leader on the phone, via email, or after therapy, and they wouldn’t dare divulge their problems in front of all of us. At that point, the meeting had been mostly depressing, because these people were beating themselves up for having natural desires. It verged on comical, but the fact that no one there appeared to be actively stupid made it all the more disturbing. I hadn’t said a thing to that point, and I was wholly unprepared for what was to follow. Continued in two weeks.
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14 • OUTLOOK WEEKLY
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OUTLOOK WEEKLY • 15
EARTH TALK From the Editors of E
Dear EarthTalk:
Dear EarthTalk:
Is it true that the DEET used in most mosquito repellents is toxic? If so what problems does it cause? And what are some non-toxic alternatives for keeping mosquitoes at bay?
I want to offer my employees a 401(k) plan that is socially and environmentally responsible. Are there such plans and, if so, where do I look?
Tom Pollack
CJ Hughes
DEET is commonly known as the king of mosquito repellents, though not everyone is keen to slather it on their skin. A study conducted in the late 1980s on Everglades National Park employees to determine the effects of DEET found that a full one-quarter of the subjects studied experienced negative health effects that they blamed on exposure to the chemical. Effects included rashes, skin irritation, numb or burning lips, nausea, headaches, dizziness and difficulty concentrating. Duke University pharmacologist Mohamed Abou-Donia, in studies on rats, found that frequent and prolonged DEET exposure led to diffuse brain cell death and behavioral changes, and concluded that humans should stay away from products containing it. But other studies have shown that while a few people have sensitivity to DEET applications, most are unaffected when they use DEET products on a sporadic basis according to the instructions on the label. The upside of DEET is that it is very effective. A 2002 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that DEET-based repellents provided the most complete and longest lasting protection against mosquitoes. Researchers found that a formulation containing 23.8 percent DEET completely protected study participants for upwards of 300 minutes, while a soybean-oil-based product only worked for 95 minutes. The effectiveness of several other botanical-based repellents lasted less than 20 minutes. But a number of new concentrations of botanical repellents that have hit the market since are reportedly better than ever. In 2005, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) granted approval to two healthier alternatives to DEET - pi-
caridin and oil of lemon eucalyptus - for protection from mosquitoes. Picaridin, long used to repel mosquitoes in other parts of the world, is now available in the U.S. under the Cutter Advanced brand name. Oil of lemon eucalyptus, which is derived from eucalyptus leaves and is the only plant-based active ingredient for insect repellents approved by the CDC, is available in several different forms, including Repel Lemon Eucalyptus, OFF! Botanicals, and Fight Bite Plant-Based Insect Repellent. Some other good choices, according to the nonprofit National Coalition against the Misuse of Pesticides, include products containing geraniol (MosquitoGuard or Bite Stop), citronella (Natrapel), herbal extracts (Beat It Bug Buster) or essential oils (All Terrain). The group also gives high marks to oil of lemon eucalyptus, such as that found in Repel’s Lemon Eucalyptus Insect Repellent. Another leading nonprofit, Pesticide Action Network North America (PANNA), likes Herbal Armor, Buzz Away and Green Ban, each containing citronella and peppermint as well as various essential oils (cedar wood, lemongrass, etc.). PANNA also lauds Bite Blocker, a blend of soybeans and coconut oils that provides four to eight hours of protection and, unlike many other brands, is safe to use on kids.
Even though socially responsible investing (SRI) has been around for decades, only recently have some companies begun to offer their employees greener options for 401(k) retirement investment accounts. According to Rona Fried of SustainableBusiness.com, SRI options for retirement plans are still only offered to about 20 percent of employees, but that’s changing fast. One survey found that more than two-thirds of employees want such choices. And a 2007 survey by the Social Investment Forum found that 60 percent of benefit plan sponsors polled plan to include SRI options for retirement funds by 2010. Retirement accounts are big business in the U.S.: Some 50 million Americans have invested $2.5 trillion in 401(k) plans to date. With so few SRI options out there now and employees eager to make their savings work for the environment, greener 401(k) plans are sure to take a bigger and bigger slice of the pie moving forward. “It’s a matter of simple supply and demand,” says Paul Hilton of Calvert Funds, which currently offers one SRI retirement fund option but plans to add two more within the next couple of years. “Corporations are responding to the increasing desire of Americans to invest with their values.” Right now health care and government agencies are those most likely to include an SRI option for employees’ retirement accounts, but a handful of large companies have gotten in on the act as well. For instance, chipmaker Intel began offering its employees an SRI retirement plan option eight years ago. “In 2000, we were trying to create a culture of corporate social responsibility and it made
sense for us to practice what we preach by including this option in our retirement plan,” says Dave Stangis, Intel’s director of corporate responsibility. “In addition, Intel itself is a top holding in many SRI mutual funds and we wanted to reinforce that with our employees. It’s a way for us to be a role model.” Still, most plans give employees only a limited number of funds to choose from, often from Calvert and another SRI mutual fund leader, Domini. Both firms ply the three main tenets of SRI: (1) rigorous research to assess the social and environmental integrity of companies being considered for inclusion in an investment portfolio; (2) using investors’ positions as stockholders (i.e. owners) of companies invested in to advocate for good corporate citizenship (often through the introduction of corporate resolutions); and (3) channeling affordable credit to needy communities ill-served by traditional lenders to rebuild neighborhoods and create jobs. SRI funds are also increasingly making “early stage” investments in new companies on the cutting edge of environmental progress, such as alternative energy companies. In order to help diversify the marketplace for SRI retirement plans, consultant Rob Thomas started Social(k) in 2005 to offer companies a full array of SRI options for their 401(k) plans. Social(k) offers 140 different SRI funds from which employees at participating companies can choose. Thomas’s goal is to offer as many funds as possible and become the one-stop shop for retirement investing. Companies can offer either Social(k) alone, or as a secondary option alongside an existing 401(k) plan.
CONTACTS: “Comparative Efficacy of Insect Repellents against Mosquito Bites,” http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/347/1/13; National Coalition Against the Misuse of Pesticides (NCAMP), www.beyondpesticides.org; Pesticide Action Network North America, www.panna.org. SustainableBusiness.com, www.sustainablebusiness.com; Calvert Funds, www.calvert.com; Domini Social Investments, www.domini.com; Social(k), www.socialk.com. GOT AN ENVIRONMENTAL QUESTION? E-mail: earthtalk@emagazine.com.
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16 • OUTLOOK WEEKLY
THE EXAMINED LIFE by Tom Moon, MFT
Nonviolent Communication In my work with (mostly gay male) couples I’ve often notice that the “substantive issue” turns out to be how the couple communicates about the substantive issues. It’s not uncommon for even the most loving of couples to resort to harsh, hostile, and aggressive language when conflict arises. That is one of the reasons why I’m so interested in the work of clinical psychologist. Marshall Rosenberg, who developed a communication process called Nonviolent Communication (NVC). Raised in the mean streets of Detroit, he grew up surrounded by anti-Semitism, racism, and violence, and early in life made a commitment to find a better way. He writes: “Believing that it is in our nature to enjoy giving and receiving in a compassionate manner, I have been preoccupied most of my life with two questions. What happens to disconnect us from our compassionate nature, leading us to behave violently and exploitatively? And conversely, what allows some people to stay connected to their compassionate nature even under the most trying circumstances?” He believes he has found some answers to both questions. One answer he offers to the first question is that we have all been socialized into styles of life-alienating communication, such as making moralistic judgments of others. It’s important here to distinguish between value judgments and moralistic judgJUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
ments. We all make value judgments about the qualities we desire in life – we may value honesty, freedom, or kindness, for instance. But when we make moralistic judgments, our attention is focused on classifying, analyzing, and determining the levels of wrongness in others. Our attention is diverted from what we and others need and focuses instead on blaming and attacking. When we do this we communicate in an impersonal and defensive way that doesn’t really reveal what’s going on inside of ourselves. So, for example, if my partner wants more affection than I’m giving him, he’s “needy and dependent.” But if I want more affection than he’s giving me, then he’s “aloof and insensitive.” When I communicate in this way, any potentially productive discussion of how we might have a more mutually fulfilling relationship gets lost in the distraction of dueling judgments. Rosenberg cites evidence which suggests that there is considerably less violence in cultures where people think in terms of human needs than in cultures where people label one another as “good” and “bad” and believe that the “bad” ones deserve to be punished. NVC focuses on three values: self-empathy, honest self-expression, and empathy for others. It offers a four-step model for self-expression which brings the discussion out of the realm of judgments and re-focuses it on communicating needs and feelings. This model is
very simple to understand, but requires sustained commitment to learn to practice. The four steps are: 1. To make observations uncontaminated by judgment, analysis, or blame, of the concrete actions that are affecting our well-being. 2. Describe how we feel in response to what we are observing. 3. Identify the needs, connected to these feelings, and to evaluate which needs aren’t being (yet) met instead of evaluating actions as “right” or “wrong.” 4. Express requests clearly, in positive language, as to how the other person could enrich one’s life. Essential in nonviolent communication is that the other person is to be left free to honor or deny the request. To give a concrete example of this process in action, compare these two statements: 1. “You’re a homophobic asshole.” 2. “When you refer to me by that name I feel sad and unsafe. I know that we both believe that we all deserve to live in safety and to feel respected. Would you be willing to discuss your differences with me without using that word?” Which statement is more likely to perpetuate, and which to help bridge, division? The most common criticism of this form of communication is that it’s hopelessly unrealistic and unsuited for the harsh world in which we all actually live. Many people, when they are first exposed to it, fear that practicing it
would leave them vulnerable and exposed to attack. In fact, however, the process has been tested and found practical in some of the most violent environments on the planet. Through his Center for Nonviolent Communication (CNVC), Rosenberg has initiated peace programs in Rwanda, Burundi, Nigeria, Malaysia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, the Middle East, Serbia, Croatia, and Ireland. NVC has also been found to be effective in prisons, schools, and corporations, as well as in couple counseling. The CNVC has grown into an international nonprofit organization which provides training in 30 countries. For those who would like to learn more about NVC, Rosenberg’s book, Nonviolent Communication: a Language of Life, is an excellent introduction. We humans are all probably to some extent hard-wired, when in conflict, to revert to tribalism – to divide the world between the good “us” and the evil, alien “other.” But NVC shows that we also have some choice in the matter; that it’s possible for us to practice another way of dealing with conflict, in which the delusional division between “us” and “them” dissolves in the understanding that we’re all “us.” Next time: Nonviolent Communication and Anger Tom Moon is a psychotherapist in San Francisco. His website is tommoon.net.
OUTLOOK WEEKLY • 17
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18 • OUTLOOK WEEKLY
FEATURE STORY by Mickey Weems
Some older Gay men don’t bother much with hydrating lotions, herbal masks, and hair dyes. They wear their rugged features with casual pride. Such a man is your typical daddy. There are some daddies out there who are irresistibly hot DILFs. Something about their masculine confidence makes us want to be with them, to be them, and to do them. When going on daddy-safari, be aware that there is more than one kind of animal out there. Here is a list of the primary species (sports daddy, sugar daddy, leather daddy, papi, and natural daddy), along with hunting tips and what to expect when you’ve caught him.
Sports Daddy
Let’s say your idea of a good time is sitting around with a bunch of older ultra-macho guys, drinking beer and watching professional sports. If you fantasize about having postgame locker room sex with one of them afterwards, then you are just the boy for a sports daddy. Sports daddies like to think of themselves as ordinary guys who just happen to suck dick. You’ll see them driving pickup trucks (no pansy SUVs for them unless it’s a Hum-Vee) to the local Gay bar. They love power tools, listen to country or hard rock, and may vote Republican. They do not know the words to Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive.” Their wardrobe has lots of sports gear from their favorite teams. Most of the boys who graduated from high school with you will end up looking and acting just like them. Well, except that sports daddies play for our team. This is probably why you are attracted to JUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
sports daddies. They are the kind of men that surrounded you when you grew up. If you were a jock in high school, no doubt you worshipped your coach and would have done anything to please him. And maybe you did. There is something highly erotic about everyday, crotch-adjusting, snuff-dipping men who can’t hold a conversation without saying “fuck,” “shit,” “damn” or “Yepper!” On the surface, tackling a sports daddy is easy. Go to a Gay bar (or Straight bar if you’re bold) that regularly has its TVs tuned to ESPN, and pick one. Many of them were athletes (or wish they were), so admiration from a younger man is a turn-on for them. It brings out their coaching instinct. When you go home with him, make sure to wear a jock strap underneath your sweat pants instead of underwear. And don’t be too surprised if he is a “catcher” rather than a “pitcher” under the sheets. But what if you are attracted to the sports daddy without giving a damn about sports? What if you accidentally yell “Go Braves!” while watching the Kansas City Chiefs? It is hard to fake being a fan when the only reason you watch the Superbowl is the halftime show. If you are not into sports, you can usually pretend to be interested in whatever boring game is on, at least long enough to score a one-night stand. Just keep quiet and let him do all the talking. If you have to say something, feel free to throw in an occasional “Hell, yeah!” when appropriate.
Sugar Daddy
An older man who pays your bills is your sugar daddy. In most cases, sugar daddies are not terribly sexy. He wins your affections with
his Platinum card, not his looks. Sugar daddies usually like their boys young, painfully cute, and clueless. The reason for the relationship is strictly business: he pays for your rent/car/drug habit, and you massage his ego/cock. How do you score a sugar daddy? Go to the strip joints and look for the older men who are really, really popular with the strippers. Don’t approach your target yet - too much competition. Wait until you see him at a trendy nondick-dancer bar, and make your move. Most likely, he will have a fondness for chicken (young boys), so do your best to look finger-licking good. Shave your chest. Make sure your pants are at least up to your hips and leave the bling at home; if he’s into gangsta, he wouldn’t be at the trendy bar. In conversation, don’t bring up anything more sophisticated than the latest American Idol. Be prepared for shameless come-ons from his friends. In their eyes, you are a “boy toy” (which is, in reality, what you are), and they want to pay-for-play too. This, of course, could be supplemental income, assuming that Sugar Daddy #1 doesn’t find out. Being a kept boy does not mean that you cannot have outside interests. Your sugar daddy understands that you’ve got to get your freak on with somebody that you find attractive. He knows that you need an occasional hottie who isn’t twice (or three times) your own age. Just don’t be obvious about it. Remember that you are his accessory, like a nice Porsche. He wouldn’t want to see anyone else driving it. You have the upper hand in the relationship if you don’t get greedy. Without his money, you would not be caught dead with him, and he knows it. Never forget, however, who pays the bills. It will be much easier for him to replace
you than for you to replace him. Since an affair with a sugar daddy is usually a devil’s bargain, it may not last very long. Sooner or later, you will spend too much of his money, he will find a cuter and younger guy, or you will get tired of attending stuffy HRC dinners with him. There are some sugar daddies with hearts of gold. What starts as simple lust for your youthfulness can blossom into genuine concern for your happiness, and you might find that you have fallen for the “daddy” and not the “sugar.” It is rare, but there are some beautiful couples out there that started out that way.
Leather Daddy
If you are into hairy chests, harnesses, and male musk, then you should check out the local Leather community. You will find a dazzling variety of menfolk in every age and size. Leather daddies include big cuddly bears with beer bellies, stone built musclemen who make you wanna say “Woof!” and everything in between. All kinds of men attract Leather daddies; you can be a hairless “boy,” a hairy and slender “otter,” a full-figured and furry “cub,” or another Leather daddy. Many Leather daddies are part-time. They are doctors, lawyers, interior decorators, etc. who put on their bovine-skinned outfits for a weekend or two each year. Others are cigar chomping, flannel-and-jeans-men’s-men 24/7, complete with handlebar mustache, dungeon in the basement, and a collection of Tom of Finland erotic picture books. If you want a fullfledged Leather daddy, you must be diligent and discern whether your target is really into
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the scene or just dabbling. Scoring a Leather daddy is easy if you are willing to dive into Leather culture. Get the schedule for local “Leather runs” (gatherings of their tribe). Buy appropriate gear such as a harness, chaps, and dog collar. Discover for yourself the pleasures of a butt-plug. Memorize the “hanky code” basics: blue handkerchief for anal sex, red for fisting, black for S&M, yellow for water sports, brown for scat (look it up). The hanky is placed in the right back pocket if you’re a bottom, left back pocket if you’re a top. Leave your designer jeans at home. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT splash on a “fun” fruitysmelling cologne before going out. It is possible to have a Leather daddy as a sexual mentor to teach you the ropes (so to speak) of Sado-Masochism. Have some idea of what turns you on and what boundaries you do not want crossed. Remember that the Leather world is no place for the timid. Giving and receiving pain is regarded as an erotic art form. Dominance and submission are spices in the recipe for steamy sex. Dungeon sessions with multiple partners are commonplace. If your kink goes that way, and if you are willing to play role games where you surrender yourself, physically and mentally, to your daddy, then go for it. If your idea of hot sex is limited to vanilla, it’s best you look elsewhere. And as always, do not compromise on safer sex procedures for anyone. Don’t expect for your Leather daddy to shave every day or wax his back. Deodorant may not be his thing, either. He probably enjoys the raw smell of a man, and you should too. Fashion may not be important to him, so don’t expect Gucci shoes for Christmas. In the highly ritualized Leather world, there are rules and regulations that allow you to safely explore the full spectrum of pain-pleaJUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
sure with a trusted guide. You can play out your most intimate fantasies with your daddy, and, if he is willing, with his friends. Just make sure beforehand that those involved are as much concerned with your pleasure, safety, and dignity as they are with their own.
PAPI Spanish for “daddy”, papi is used by Hispanic Gay men for an attractive man who radiates machismo. He is masculine in his actions and serene in his confidence. “¡Ai, Papi!” is a statement of admiration for such a man. A papi carries himself with dignity. He may or may not be the rugged, unshaven type. Rarely would he be into extremes. He may never go to Leather bars. Although the papi is the “prettiest” type of daddy (his medicine cabinet will probably be stocked with expensive skin care products), effeminate behavior is not for him. Flamboyant behavior turns him off; he would not be caught dead trying so hard. He is not afraid of fashion; a papi would be totally comfortable carrying a Louis Vuitton shoulder bag. A true papi, however, is not a fashion victim. He makes trendy clothing look good, not the other way around. Papis have presence. Arrogance from papis is accepted in some circles as appropriate behavior. A papi chulo will inspire squeals of delight from more nelly observers. If he reacts negatively and scowls, it only confirms just how macho he is and increases the admiration (and squeals). His display of distain only feeds appreciation. If you want a papi, become one yourself. Like Narcissus, papis easily fall for their own reflection. Rid yourself of all possible physical imperfections. Go to the gym. Push your hair-
style to new heights of perfection. Wear sunglasses that cost a month’s rent. Cultivate an air of reserve; don’t gush. Try not to scream like a thirteen-year-old girl whenever Madonna is on the TV unless he does. If all else fails, wait until you are old enough (or rich enough) to become a sugar daddy. Papis are high maintenance. Don’t expect for him to be ready to go out without at least two hours prep time. He will cringe if you prepare a “special dinner” for him that does not live up to his strict dietary requirements. If you dine out, choose a chic place (so he can be seen) that serves healthy (i.e. pretty but tasteless) food. Never, ever interfere with his workout routine. Make sure that your papi has a good-paying job. Beauty doesn’t come cheap, and you don’t want to be the one footing the bill. Praise him for his looks, but not too often. Be quick to tell him when he has a booger hanging out of his nose; he will thank you for it. His masculinity is his weak spot. If he really pisses you off, call him “Girlfriend,” or, if you’re really angry, Señorita Cosa. Let him know that he deserves your complete admiration only when he behaves beautifully. Above all, expect him to treat you as if you are the most beautiful man in the world. Otherwise, he will not respect you.
Natural Daddy
Some men are daddies, but not because they wear sports gear/Leather gear, flash lots of money, flex big muscles, or act macho. They may even be nelly. There is just something about them, a sense of maturity that lets you know they’re in charge without them having to
say a word. This is the natural daddy, the protector, the one who is calm when everyone else is losing their cool. He leads by example. The natural daddy is the rarest and choicest type of daddy. He is also the hardest to catch. He sees through bullshit as if he had x-ray vision. If you want a natural daddy, you’d best be at the top of your game. Read some books pornography doesn’t count. Watch CNN. Join an LGBTQ organization. Put in time and effort on behalf of the community. Make him lighten up, and then turn him on. Be silly around him. Go with him to the gym and take him out dancing (think of it as foreplay). Natural daddies may be so busy thinking about everyone else that they forget about themselves.
Conclusion: The Combo Daddy Many daddies are combinations of these five types. It is possible to have three and even four daddies in the same man. This is an added bonus, kind of like having three or four boyfriends! Don’t forget that he has his own expectations from you. If he is a combo daddy (and even if he is not), you should be more than one fantasy boy for him. A little bit of rebellion is OK in a boy, even desirable. But don’t push your daddy too far. If you have the hots for a daddy, it means that you like him to take charge of you, to guide you, and to scold you. If you get upset whenever he does these things, then you don’t need a daddy anymore.
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FEATURE STORY by Robbie Daniels Photo: Andrea Haley, Devyne Productions
To Sir, with love When it comes down to it, we all have Daddies. Daddies are those in our lives that guide us, mentor us, pick us up when we fall, and nurture us to be the best we can be. In college, we find that professor that inspired us to asked questions, who pushed to give our own answers and not what we found in a textbook or what we thought he wanted to hear. He encouraged us to question the norm, to push conformity. If we’re lucky, we land the boss that seems to have it all. Success, the car, house, and still finds time to give constructive criticism to ensure our success. The keys to the kingdom are in your grasp, solely because the interest is in you. But what happens when you fail? They pick you up, dust you off, tell you the ugly truth and inspire you to improve on mistakes. There are as many views on what Daddies are as there are people who want them. Some see them as checkbooks paying for sex in a way that is just this side of legal. Others see this man in a leather harness and chaps shoving various devices in a slinged-up guy whether the bottom refuses or not. Maybe both are true. I can only speak for myself as to what a Daddy should be. The ones mentioned may be right for some… but not me. Throughout my life, and others will relate, I have had a series of bad relationships. Since day one. Growing up being witness to how relationships and people shouldn’t act, it was difficult for me to be a productive member of society. Very few people around me interacted well, had any glimpse of social grace, or were able to find any reason that responsibility wasn’t theirs. Being a child in this environment, turning an adult, I was like a twink without club bass ringing in my ears. I had no sense of responsibility. No sense of decorum. I was short of being raised by wolves. Somewhere I came across the whole “leather scene.” I started testing it out. I knew I needed another man to guide, nurture, and mentor me, and to be some one I could just break down emotionally with. In this journey, I realized I couldn’t find this in a boyfriend – or rather, in someone who was strictly a boyfriend. It’s too much responsibility, and believe me with my personality, I attracted more boys than Daddies. But in this journey, I was coming across a lot more Sirs and Masters. This is another general (and my own) definitions of Sirs and Masters. To me, they were people who wanted complete and unrestricted control of their sub. They wanted you to submit you’re entire being to them, telling you what to do, when to do it, and how to do it. And face dire punishment if you fuck up. After times of searching for that right perJUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
son to be my “Dom” my “Top,” I was finding mostly abusive relationships. Not because the tops were abusive, but because I was looking for the wrong person. These tops I met made their boys happy. I though I was the one screwed up because, that particular top wasn’t what I was looking for. So I thought this lifestyle was cut and dry – that if you are a sub, you give over complete control and have no opinion. Then I met my Daddy. For me this was the man I was looking for. He is intelligent, wise, firm, nurturing, and imperfect. In my everyday, he allows me to be who I want to be, but makes sure to point out when I’m inappropriate. He teaches me honor and respect. He doesn’t allow me to submit to past mistakes or torments allowing them to bring me down, but to overcome them and face them head on. He sees to it that I am taking my meds, not having manic attacks and redirecting them when I do. My Daddy, understands when my Crohn’s disease flares up, that it’s he who might have to do the dishes, walk the dog, or whatever I don’t have the energy to do. His hand holds the back of my neck when I cry, squeezes me tight when I want to run. He calls me out when I am not being honest with myself. He pushes me to think when all I want is to give are simple answers. You might think, this is what you should expect in any partner you have. Being a Daddy is having the balls to do actually do all of that. To take the responsibility of the well being of some one and assuring them they have everything under control, and not just when you think that oversized dildo just ripped you and you’re bleeding all over the floor, but provide that gentle hand when you feel down, and that firm hand when his boy needs encouraged or redirected. Being with my Daddy, I know I can’t do any wrong; I just simply have to be myself and take responsibility for my actions. After all, I gave him the control – all I have to do is be who I promised I would be. He is the one that has taught me to be a man, while allowing me to be the spoiled brat I am. A Daddy doesn’t have to be an asshole. He just has to know what his boy needs and provide it. It’s that simple. Of course, there are things that boys do for their Daddies… but that’s another article. So for me, a Daddy is exactly who mine should be. Despite my psychosis, chronic illness, and just simply being me, I know Daddy has me covered and protected, and most of all loves me. So in that, I am more than willing to take care of him. That said…. When is Boy’s Day?
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DEEP INSIDE HOLLYWOOD by Romeo San Vicente
KIDMAN DOES DUSTY The planned Dusty Springfield biopic enters its next phase: the weird “definitely maybe” land of casting announcements. Not long ago, Pushing Daisies regular Kristin Chenoweth was the subject of much Dusty speculation, then came confirmation, then negation. And now it’s Nicole Kidman’s turn. Gay novelist/screenwriter Michael Cunningham, who wrote The Hours, the source material for Nicole Kidman’s Oscar-winning performance, is working on the untitled Springfield script, and says that Kidman will be taking the lead as the troubled 1960s bisexual pop star. Now all that has to happen is for Kidman to finish the other two films on her plate, Nine and Need, Cunningham’s script to be written and then re-written, more casting, deals to be hammered out in that official, easily broken, Hollywood way, a production start date, and on and on. These things do take time.
SIGOURNEY WEAVER SAYS PRAYERS Sigourney Weaver’s next film project could have wound up in indie film purgatory, a place where few people outside of art-house theater audiences and cable subscribers to the Sundance Channel would see what is clearly intended as a movie for the masses. Weaver will co-produce and star in the Lifetime TV movie Prayers for Bobby, based on the book by Leroy Aaron. The true story revolves around devout Evangelical Christian Mary Griffith, who rejected her son Bobby’s attempts to come out as gay. His subsequent depression eventually resulted in suicide, causing Griffith to reach out to the gay community and, in time, become a gay-rights activist. The film will be Weaver’s first made-for-TV movie, and is scheduled to air in February of 2009.
A GAY PRIMETIME HERO If the X-Men can be gay metaphors and make their creators tons of money, then couldn’t a non-metaphoric gay superhero accomplish the same thing? If it sounds like an old plotline from Queer as Folk, that’s because it’s not far from it: Hero, the young adult novel from writer Perry Moore (who also happens to be an exec at Walden Media and co-producer of the Narnia films), may soon find a home on TV. Negotiations are on, Moore has network offers, and he’s begun talking to the press about it. Initial reports are that Moore’s vision for the show will be unlike what audiences expect from current fictional representations of gays. In other words, it will be complex and noncamp-oriented, a shake-up of the dominant queer paradigm. He’s even got Spider-Man’s co-creator Stan Lee on his side. Sounds super-powerful already.
JUDY GARLAND TO BE RE-BORN You can run, but you can’t hide: Judy Garland is going to get you. For young gay audiences, the legendary gay icon of the mid-20th century may seem to have no relationship to the post-queer present. But that’s because most of them probably haven’t seen George Cukor’s 1954 A Star Is Born - until now. Warner Bros. Motion Picture Imaging has undertaken a major digital restoration of the film at 6K (which refers to the amount of picture information, measured in pixels, the current standard of which is 2K). If it all sounds too tech-geek to understand, just think of it in these terms: preservation, legacy, and more color and detail than anyone’s ever seen in this movie before, coming soon to an HD home theater or an iPhone or - if you’re lucky - possibly a one-off screening at an old-fashioned movie theater near you.
Romeo San Vicente is often referred to as “the man that got away.” He can be reached care of this publication or at DeepInsideHollywood@qsyndicate.com.
ARTS by Sara Mills Bacha
CATCO Celebrates Golf Season With The Foursome 18 holes of hilarity on stage May 30-June 22 Spring in central Ohio is the perfect time for a round of golf. Celebrate it outside, as well as inside with the Contemporary American Theatre Company, which will present the hilarious golf comedy, The Foursome, by Norm Foster May 30 through June 22, 2008, at the Vern Riffe Center, 77 S High St. The Foursome is the story of four buddies, who have reconnected at their college reunion years later over a game of golf. But instead of sharing wistful nostalgia about the past, the four friends are soon competing with each other just as hard as they ever did in college – no holds barred. As the four guys – Cameron, Rick, Donnie and Ted – make their way from tee to tee, the stakes get higher, the claims get wilder and secrets get juicier. By the 18th hole, nothing is sacred. “This is the only play I know of that takes place on a golf course – eighteen tees of a country club golf course. The challenge was to find enough variety in the visual composition of each scene to keep it from being redundant. I think we’ve done that,” said Jonathan PutJUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
nam, CATCO’s Associate Artistic Director and director of The Foursome. “It’s definitely a ‘guys’ play,’ but you don’t have to know anything about golf to appreciate it. It’s male bonding that uses golf as a metaphor,” he said. Foster, a Canadian, began writing plays after a 25-year career in radio. In 1980, he had his first exposure to theatre when he attended an audition with a friend and ended up with a part. He had never attended a play before. Since then he was written nearly 40 scripts most of them comedies. His works include: Sinners, The Melville Boys, The Affections of May, Looking and The Love List. The Foursome, which has been widely produced in Canada, has received rave reviews: “Its hilarious series of hole-in-one one-liners is a straight drive down the fairway,” said The Hamilton Spectator. “For any women who really want a glimpse of how men act and talk when they are together, The Foursome offers an insider’s look that is as entertaining as it is accurate,” said the Kitchener Waterloo Record.
There are two previews for The Foursome, Friday, May 30, and Saturday, May 31, at 8p. Tickets are $32.50 for the main level (rows AM) and $20.50 for the balcony. Tickets for two $11@11 matinee performances June 4 and June 11 are $11.50 ($11 plus a 50-cent restoration fee); tickets for a $20@2 matinee performance Saturday, June 21, are $20.50 ($20 plus a 50-cen restoration fee). All remaining tickets for regularly scheduled performances are $40 for the main level (rows
A-M) and $25 for the balcony. Visit www.catco.org for more show details. All tickets can be purchased at the box office at 41 E State St., next to the Ohio Theatre, by calling 614.469.0939 or by calling or visiting any central Ohio Ticketmaster location. Sarah Mills Bacha is Marketing Consultant for CATCO, a member organization of the Columbus Arts Marketing Association. For more information, visit www.camaonline.org.
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INTERVIEW by Robert Trautman
Bob Mould, singer/songwriter/guitarist for was a member of one of the most influential American punk bands of the ‘80s, Husker Du. After the band’s breakup, Mould started his solo career by signing a deal with Virgin Records in 1988. In the ‘90s Mould turned into an indi rock god with the formation of the band Sugar. But Bob Mould has continued to release over a half-dozen uncompromising solo albums, each with a wide spectrum of inspirations. Mould stays busy with writing a weekly columbus called, “Ask Bob,” for Washington City Paper, DJing the 9:30 Club in D.C. as well as the Blowoff party he co-hosts with Richard Morel every month in New York. So, Mr Mould... Robert Trautman: Were you ‘Outed’ against your will? (So many pseudo celebs like Perez always try to out other celebs.) Bob Mould: In 1994, SPIN approached my then-record company about doing a large article, and part of it was to focus on my sexuality. I wouldn’t say I was outed against my will, but I was in a position to either talk about it, or have it happen without participation. It was an awkward time, but I laugh about it now! RT: Do you feel that is an invasion of privacy? BM: If I had been a singer promoting an antigay agenda, then I could see the logic in having my sexuality made public dialogue. RT: Do you think your music or yourself were more effected by your coming out? BM: Personally, totally affected. Musically, not as directly. RT: Have you had any major issues with the music industry since coming out? BM: There have been some anti-gay comments JUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
made here and there, and once I was out, certain radio stations would not play my music. It might have been a music thing (the not playing the music), but the timing was a bit suspect. For the most part, I haven’t noticed major issues. RT: You’ve been sober for quite some time now. Have you found this harder to deal with being in the GLBT community? BM: Not at all. I don’t miss drinking at all! RT: You don’t produce particularly ‘gay’ music. But do you think coming out has increased your gay following? BM: I think it has put my name on the gay music fans’ radar. Some folks are new fans because of that exposure, and my music might not be for others. I think that is the case no matter if the audience is primarily straight or gay. RT: We have a large amount of GLBT musicians here in Columbus and Ohio. Often new artists that come out as ‘gay’ sometimes get pigeonholed despite their sounds/talent. Do you have any suggestions for gay artists that are already out, or that plan to come out, to try not to be pigeonholed by the industry? BM: If you are true to your vision and music, you will connect with the right audience. It’s hard for young musicians to be heard, or find places to play. Just be true to yourself, and don’t let people pigeonhole you for your music or your sexuality. RT: You are always evolving your music from your days in Husker Du and Sugar to the level you’re at now with your solo work. Do you feel you’ll evolve back into having a band or stay in the solo realm for a while?
BM: I enjoy working with other musicians on occasion. As I get older and more settled into my life, the idea of keeping a full time band is difficult. I think the albums will likely be released under my name, and I will tour either solo or, as I have this year, with a full rock band. RT: Your recent solo albums have had more on an electronic/dance sound to them. And now you’re doing the Blowoff parties more and more often. Do you think you will ever fully leave the guitar rock sound behind and pursue the electronic music full time? BM: I tried abandoning the guitar with the modulate album in 2002. It was a challenge to compose with samples and synths, and I learned a lot from it. I enjoy both ways of working, and it’s fun when I combine the two approaches and come up with something fresh and unexpected. The BLOWOFF album turned out really well, and our DJ nights are super fun dance party nights.
most 20 years. I enjoy writing in the confessional style, and I wouldn’t be surprised if I choose to revisit that style in the near future. RT: How would you describe your writing process for your albums? BM: I try to write something every day, even if it’s just a beat or a few words. It starts to add up over time, then a handful of big songs get written. Once that happens, it’s fairly easy to finish off the album by going through the loose ideas and fitting them into place. RT: One last question: What is the story behind the song “good idea”? BM: It’s a fictional horror story. Musically, it is homage to the Pixies! RT: Thank you very much for your time. BM: You’re welcome, thanks for the questions. See you in Columbus soon, I hope.
RT: What was the draw to write for the WCW? Are you a fan or was it just for the experience? BM: I was a lifelong fan, had friends in the business, and a job opened up during a quiet time in my professional life. I was so happy to be able to spend 7 months with WCW, it was a dream come true. RT: Your album Workbook is by far one of my favorites. Do you ever plan on revisiting the style of songwriting and music from that album ?Was your creative process different on that album than others? BM: Yes. “Walls In Time”, the last song on District Line, is a song that was originally written for Workbook. It was nice to revive it after al-
New album out now on ANTI-Records
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MUSIC by Suziemuzic This won’t be one of those lengthy reviews that takes you song by song. It is after all just my opinion & I’d rather write an overview of what I think this CD is all about. FERRON & BITCH! Is there a disconnect here?? I think not, & I couldn’t be prouder of Bitch for pulling off a magnificent Generation Bender CD! We have Bitch’s generation, many of whom haven’t really experienced Ferron’s music which moved you with her special gift of weaving words. But you probably thought she’s just another “girl with guitar” from the early Lesbian music circuit. Then we have Ferron’s generation, many of whom have heard of Bitch & seem to have this yin/yang admiration/disgust for her. It seems much like parents have for their teens music. You know, they want to connect & like it; but they can’t let go, so it drives them crazy! “She’s the one that does that pussy song!” Some can’t handle the raw honesty of her words as she weaves her political creations. They don’t understand that she calls herself Bitch to reclaim it as a positive; perhaps because they have trouble letting go of what was ingrained in them. Others totally get it & love her! I hope this CD connects the two generations in a way that I think both will find great inspiration in. Will they hear the words, feel it, groove to it, claim it, cherish it, & most importantly pass it on? It’s a gift of connections crossing many paths. It’s a journey then & now & both together. Sit back & listen! It’s raw, hip, spiritual, groovy, plain & very special. From a Ferron song the following definitely applies to her: “I did my
FERRON’s New CD Boulder Produced by Bitch
ADULT CONNECTIONS best to follow the calling of my soul” & “I’ve been waiting for you to remember me”. Bitch has taken someone who thought no one wanted to hear her anymore & enlisted the talents of many amazing artists to whom Ferron was/is an inspiration. You’ll hear them singing backup & playing their instruments as they add special layers to those amazing poetic words of Ferron. What an accomplishment for Bitch to be able to take one of her heroes & put her music out there for the older generations to enjoy again, & for the newer generations to really experience for the 1st time. Is it still girl with guitar? Yes & no. Many are slow, but Bitch has added some great musical layers to one of the best wordsmiths of our lives. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Ferron, her writing has often been described as the Bob Dylan of the lesbian circuit. Pretty lofty honor! But it doesn’t stop with her writing as she also has a very cool, deep, sexy voice that sends shivers through your body giving the songs an even deeper connection. The selected songs go back to 1978 up to the present, but they are timeless! I dare say you might not even notice that one of the songs is written by Bitch. Are the generations really that different? Different ways yes, but the talent & creative genius is there in both of them. There are many talents Bitch asked to contribute to this CD. As I listened I would be thinking “ I know that voice” in that song - yes, it’s Ani; oh that’s gotta be Tina G(from Goddess & She). Yes I know that guitar work; it’s Emily Sailers. That electric violin & bass; yes it’s Lyndell
Montgomery. That’s the talented Julie Wolf on piano & accordion. Yes, Amy Ray playing mandolin... plus the fine, fine licks woven in by Bitch on bass, violin, viola, fiddle, cello, & back up vocals. I remember Lyndell telling me she didn’t understand why Bitch was asking her to play on It Won’t Take Long. After all, she & Bitch play the same instruments. Bitch told her she was stuck & needed a different perspective on the song - it works beautifully. I love the way the CD starts & ends. My biggest disappointment is Misty Mountain. Not because this version isn’t moving because it is, but I long for Ferron’s voice singing that old timeless song! Oops, I said I wasn’t going to give my opinion! The last song, In The Meantime, has a groovin, wonderful variation of J.D. Sampson’s(Le Tigre) beats with Bitch & Tina’s voices that leave you wanting more! Hear them Live performing many of these songs together. They’re very funny trading quips. There is a definite respect, admiration, & connection between them; not a oneupwomanship. They are both great artists whose combined talents create a magical CD that hopefully will transcend to their respective generations & beyond. The magic is absolutely there in their live performance! If you missed the fantastic June 6th Stonewall Columbus Pride Kick off festival you can catch them gracing the main stage at Cleveland’s Pride Festival June 21st (www.clevelandpride.org). Don’t pick one or the other; go to both. See them every chance you get. Their live shows are one of the best around!
FILM
MARGARET by Adam Lippe One of the downsides of the disintegration of the theatrical release of independent films and the dissolving of the indie arms of major studios, such as Picturehouse and Warner Independent, and the shutting down of daring studios like New Line is that the low-mid-budget films have no shot in the market. The reason for that is that it simply doesn’t pay for the studios to bother. If a film costs $20 million, but the average cost of prints and marketing is $50-65 million, it would be much cheaper to simply bury it, rather than take a chance. On $200 million films, the decision is obvious, because the loss would be too great. One of the casualties of this fairly prevalent way of thinking is Kenneth Lonergan’s Margaret. Originally shot in 2005 and packed with stars like Anna Paquin, Matt Damon, Matthew Broderick, Mark Ruffalo, Alison Janney, and Jean Reno, Lonergan’s film has never had an official release date, Fox Searchlight told me that the film is still TBD (to be determined), which has been true since the original guestimate release, November of 2006. The reason this is more depressing than say, when Alec Baldwin’s directorial debut, The Devil and Daniel Webster, sat, JUN 12 - JUN 18 2008
CLASSIFIEDS
unfinished for 6 years, is because I happened to be at one of the test screenings for Margaret, way back in June 2006. Supposedly, this particular screening was not authorized by the director, he didn’t think the film was ready at that point, and at 3 hours, it was certainly unwieldy. Lonergan was not at the screening, but the producers were. One of these producers was Sydney Pollack, famed director, and even better producer, who died last week. Will this help the progress of the release or will it hinder it? My understanding is that the cards for the screening were extremely low, but let me tell you, this film is a masterpiece. Maybe not at the 3 hour length, somewhere around 2 hours and 20 minutes would cut out the unneeded excess. Challenging, direct and with the amazingly naturalistic dialogue that Lonergan also showed in his You Can Count on Me, Margaret would have been a perfect release in 2006, with its perfectly realized dealings with 9/11, as opposed to the hokey uplift of recent films like Reign Over Me and World Trade Center. At this point I’m not sure it wouldn’t seem a bit dated, but the career-best performances for nearly all involved, especially Lonergan’s wife J. Smith-Cameron (who gives the frankest and best depiction of a New York Jew that I’ve ever seen, and I say that as one of those easily caricatured stereotypes) deserve to be seen, reactions of the easily insulted laymen be damned. Whether it ends up in an Oscar race or more likely, buried in the worst theaters in the world, is a mystery. Feel free to contact Fox Searchlight, but don’t tell them I sent you.
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SPEED RACER by Briggs Speed Racer lives up to its title delivering 3+ action packed races at speeds that make the Mach 5 the envy of fans of fast cars everywhere. Speed Racer seeks purpose to his life on the racetracks of a slightly futuristic, psychedelically colored world, where mega-corporations destroy small family businesses and rig highly popular auto races to manipulate world markets. Just as you catch your breath, the plot speeds up into another acid trip of a race. Souped up with gravity-defying action, the Wachowski Brothers pair innovative filming techniques with stylized acting to create an intensely stimulating, campy world reminiscent of the animated original. A sprinkle of slapstick tomfoolery, a touch of teenage romance, not to mention a couple of hot boys are sure to appeal to a wide audience, and the extended victory montage sets a new standard for the metaphoric on-screen orgasm. Go, go see Speed Racer, go!
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OUTLOOK WEEKLY • 29
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OUTLOOK WEEKLY • 31
PUCKER UP by Tristan Taormino
The Princess Submits:
The Training of O Turns the Tables on a Well-Known Domme Recently, I wrote about Brian Lilla’s independent film, A Tale of Two Bondage Models, which profiled BDSM performers Lorelei Lee and Princess Donna. The latter has been webmistress for WiredPussy.com (part of the Kink.com network of sites) for almost four years, and has directed and appeared in about 300 scenes that have featured extreme bondage, Violet Wands, single- tail whips, cattle prods, and the gleeful (and consensual) torture of gorgeous, naked women; in most scenes, Donna’s the top, but occasionally she’ll bottom. In December, she announced plans to shoot for another Kink.com site: TheTrainingofO.com. She’s worked on the site before, but this time she wouldn’t be a trainer: She planned to appear as a submissive. Taking its name from famed novel The Story of O, the site follows the week-long instruction of female slaves: Masters, both alone and with help from other dominants, evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of their trainees, set goals and assign homework, subject them to difficult tasks and tests, and orchestrate long, rigorous scenes. It’s considered one of the more intense sites in the industry, since the shoot itself goes on for four days, combines advanced BDSM with hardcore sex, and usually involves a lot of edgy physical and psychological play. For example, the most recent entry on the site is for day three of Amber Rayne’s training: “This masochistic fuck-slut is here to serve, or so she says. Recommendations: Put her to the test while reinforcing the training goals: self-worth, relinquish control, and eroticize pain. Put her ass on display in a tight bent-over bondage position and use her to practice whipping and cropping techniques. As a reward, slide a hard cock in her ass and tease her to near-orgasm before releasing her and ordering her into strict military-posture training. Plug her slave asshole and drill her on posture and stress positions, liberally applying the whip and crop. Reward her by allowing her to fuck herself for our pleasure while reciting the reasons she is here . . . Cover her face in hot cum and send her to the slave quarters for the night with more assignments to complete before her final day of training.” Scenes are chock-full of things like predicament bondage and water torture; there’s even a locked, wooden “head box” that will cure anyone of claustrophobia. Yeah, they’re pretty serious. Part of what makes Kink.com so successful is the personalities behind the various sites and the level of authenticity they bring to their scenes. Having established her persona as a pervy domme, Princess Donna decided to push her own limits and boundaries in a very public way; because she’s so well known for dishing it
out, it’s not surprising that lots of people are ready to see if she can take it, too. “I was so interested in being a part of that rigorous program,” she says. “I love seeing how far I can push my body, and reaching that point of total mental and physical exhaustion is so exciting.” Many of Kink’s regular models switch roles, but Donna is the first webmaster of a site to undertake the training program. Upon her announcement, the Kink.com message boards lit up with discussion. Frequent performers made pleas on tape to get in on the action; there was a poll to see who should help train her. Some fans anticipated watching several of the women she’s topped over the years taking their revenge on her, while others did not: “The focus should be on who best can give Donna an experience that will push her to the edge and test her limits,” one poster wrote. Through all the talk, Donna had her own plans in mind: In addition to taking on the opposite BDSM role she’s known for, she decided she would fuck men for the first time on camera. She identifies as queer (“My sexuality lies outside the dominant culture of vanilla heteronormativity. I’m everything but straight. I like girls, I like boys, I like transgender boys and girls”), and has bottomed to men in her fetish-modeling career, but she’s never sexually submitted to a guy for all the world (or at least Kink.com subscribers) to see: “The Training of O was the first site that combined enough serious BDSM with boy/girl sex to make me curious about trying it,” she says. “I’m a very kinky person, so I wanted to try my hand at a new kind of kinky sex on camera.” The site’s director, James Mogul, took charge of her training, which included wearing a chunk of concrete chained to her neck, enduring stockade-like bondage, and, of course, being “trained to service cock.” Princess Donna shot her scenes last month: “I was nervous about how it would go. I found that I loved it, and I felt very free when we were shooting. I was able to fully express a side of my sexuality that was never revealed on camera before, and that was exciting!” For her, it was an opportunity to shed her role and responsibilities, and explore her own kinks and desires: “It was wonderful to be tied up and submissive for a couple days. I think I have the classic ‘Businessman Syndrome,’ where being in control all the time and having to make decisions all the time makes you crave someone else’s control. For me, it was very freeing to know that my only obligation was to please someone else. The first of four episodes will debut on TheTrainingofO.com. Visit puckerup.com.
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SAVAGE LOVE by Dan Savage
I’m a 23-year-old guy and I have been dating my 21-year-old girlfriend for about two years. We did the long-distance thing for a year, and after she graduated she moved from the East Coast to the Midwest to be with me while I finish my degree. Everything was great until she moved in with me. She has a 9-to-5 job and pays her bills. After work, though, all she wants to do is get high, drink, and watch TV. I want to study, talk, or go do things. I find myself cooking every meal, cleaning up after her, and doing all the laundry. On top of this, a very mean side of her has emerged. I love this girl, or at least I loved her before we moved in together. I know that we all have our shitty qualities and that I am a complete shitbag for thinking this stuff, let alone writing to you about it, but what should I do? If I stay with her, then I’m neglecting my own future happiness. But if I dump her, then I break her heart, which is something I don’t want to do. Plus, she moved halfway across the country for me. Shitty Boyfriend In The Midwest This is inelegantly put, I realize, but it came to mind when I read your letter and my particular blend of dyslexia and Tourette’s requires me to put it in print: If not break her heart now, SBITM, then when? And if not you, SBITM, then who? Some guy she isn’t treating like shit? Look, darlin’, people get dumped all the time. With the exception of the 12-year-old “brides” of creepy “fundamentalist” Mormon fucksticks, a little getting dumped into each life must fall. And you know what? Most of us require dumping in our 20s; getting dumped is good for us. Yeah, yeah: hearts break. But very few run-of-the-mill dumps at 21 cause hearts to break irreparably. She will get over it. Which is another way of saying that one day, believe it or not, she will get over you. Now, here’s why being dumped is often good for us: After a person is done wallowing in a pain that no one else has ever experienced or can possibly comprehend - although others’ inability to comprehend never seems to stop a dumped person from yammering on and on the person begins to examine the failed relationship for clues. Why did it end? Whose fault was it? If the dumped person determines that fault lies with the asshole ex, the dumped person resolves to be on the lookout for telltale signs of assholery in the future. Thus does being dumped inspire a person to date smarter and more defensively. But often a little voice in the back of the dumped person’s head tells the dumped person that the fault is theirs - that she, in this
instance, was a stoned, drunk, inconsiderate, mean-spirited sack of shit - and the dumped person resolves to change or date only people attracted to stoners and drunks and slobs. So dump her, SBITM, and tell her why. Then, while she packs and verbally lashes out and fucks your friends, remind yourself that dumping her was the right thing to do for her and for you. There is no other option - unless, of course, you’re willing to spend the next seven decades cleaning up after this inconsiderate piece of shit because she moved to the Midwest. I’m writing to you not for advice, but to open up a discussion. For five years I had a famous partner and eventually lost him to groupies. I was aware that he might one day be tempted to explore this side effect of his career, to get it out of his system (for good I hope), so I wasn’t too surprised when he finally made the decision to “go there.” However, I am left with some unsettling thoughts, apart from the heartache. To him, this is a harmless and fun chapter in his life, but I see a darker side. I find it hard to come to terms with seeing the man I loved and who respected me as an equal engaging in sexual relations with girls who, by looking up to him, place themselves beneath him. His relationships now feature a misbalance of power. I feel a healthy adult seeks sex with equals. To me, groupies act like unpaid prostitutes, and my ex has decided it’s okay to use girls who adore him without giving much in return. I can’t see how this can be of benefit to either the girls or to him. He’s learning that it’s okay to receive without having to give, and they learn that it’s okay to be used. I worry that these experiences help form permanent negative patterns. Harmless fun? I don’t think so. Any thoughts? Worried Ex Just one, WE: How is this any of your business? Yes, groupies are like unpaid prostitutes but they are compensated, WE, with refracted fame, the dubious perks of being “with the band,” and the human papapapineapple virus (or whatever it’s called). So I hardly see these assignations as necessarily one-way exchanges. The use is mutual. Your ex may be permanently damaged by this kind of attention or he may tire of cheap, meaningless sex and come crawling back to you one day. Or, hell, he may one day star in a squalid and depressing reality show in which he deludes himself into believing that the women who surround him
desire his paunchy old body and his surgeonbattered face and not a shot at reality-show fame, such as it is. But, again, what business is it of yours? He’s your ex and the women he’s sleeping with are, ostensibly, consenting adults. We can tuttut and conclude that your ex is using these women and that these women are no better than hookers… and so what? You’ll still be his ex, he’ll still be banging groupies, and groupies will go on chasing rock stars long after your ex is playing the casino circuit. In your last column, you said Bi Bi Bridie’s fiancé issued an “irrational ultimatum” because he didn’t want his partner to sleep with another female. He made it clear before they were together that that was his preference. She agreed to those terms. Yet in a column three weeks ago, you told Confused In Canada, a guy in a long-distance relationship whose woman wanted an open relationship, that his reluctance to open up their relationship didn’t mean he was jealous, just monogamous. Maybe I’m missing something, but it sounds like both of these guys know what they want and stated their intentions clearly. Why is the first guy irrational for stating his intentions and the second guy “just monogamous”? A Bit Confused Because I said so, ABC. Because, unlike CIC’s girlfriend, BBB is bi and, yes, that detail makes a difference. And, most importantly, because I said so. BBB shouldn’t make a commitment that she’s already proven herself to be incapable of honoring; that’s just setting her marriage up for failure. But BBB’s fiancé shouldn’t extract a commitment from his girlfriend that he knows she will either be incapable of honoring or will quickly come to resent him greatly for having to honor. He can say, “You can have me or you can have this very important part of your sexuality,” to his fiancé, but by doing so he’s setting his marriage up for failure. That makes his ultimatum irrational. More letters about last week’s column at www.thestranger.com/savage/bbb. Download the Savage Lovecast (my weekly podcast) every Tuesday at www.thestranger.com/savage. mail@savagelove.net
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HE’S A ROCKET MAN! CGMC Season Finale Crocodile Rocks June 20-21 The Columbus Gay Men’s Chorus wraps up its 18th season with a spectacular tribute to the music of Sir Elton John. No keyboard, sunglasses, or costume change will be safe when we pull out all the stops in this musical extravaganza! Sir Elton John is one of the most recognizable musicians of all time, and we in CGMC are proud to showcase his masterful works. Join CGMC for Elton John favorites like Candle in the Wind, Philadelphia Freedom, I’m Still Standing, and of course Rocket Man, among so many other classics. For those who haven’t had their fill of Rocket
Man after the show, CGMC will be recording selections from the concert for the production of its latest CD, which will be available this summer. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to kick off Pride Week in Columbus with this phenomenal tribute! When: Friday, June 20 and Saturday, June 21 at 8p. Where: Capitol Theatre at the Vern Riffe Center, 77 S. High Street, Columbus Tickets: Ticket prices: $27-$29. For more information, contact us at 614.228.CGMC or cgmc@cgmc.com.
THE NORTH MARKET’S GRILLMASTERS FESTIVAL IS A SIZZLING GOOD TIME
On Saturday, June 21st, the North Market will celebrate our favorite method of summer cooking - grilling - with the third annual Grillmasters Festival. The day will include an amateur barbeque sauce contest, grilling demonstrations and sampling, a chef cookoff, live music and kids’ activities. The farmers’ market will be in full swing and augmented by special vendors including Urban Chefs, Chuck Evans’ Montezuma Brand and Buckeye Mustard. John Hard of CaJohn’s Fiery Foods is organizing the grilling demonstrations and promises a host of flavorful grilling recipes. You are invited to watch as recipes are prepared, taste what the presenters have created and take tips to go home and try on your own grill. “One of the reasons I love my job is the
amazing variety of foods I can take home to throw on the grill after work!” Says David Wible, Executive Director of the North Market. “I have so many options including fresh seafood from the Fish Guys, savory chicken skewers or a marinated spatchcock from North Market Poultry or if I’m feeling adventurous a leg of goat from Bluescreek Farm Meats. A stroll through the farmers’ market for the area’s freshest produce and I’ve got the makings of a fabulous outdoor feast!” Customers are invited to demonstrate their BBQ prowess in an amateur barbeque sauce contest that will be judged by local BBQ sauce makers. First prize is $50 in North Market gift certificates. Returning in the “professional” category this year is the popular, “Thrilla at the Grilla.” We give two chefs their own hibachis and charcoal and let them use their imagination as far as what they whip up on the grill. Our discerning judges will choose a champion and the public can taste their creations. The winner will take home the title of “Barbeque Baron” and $200 in North Market gift certificates.
Scheduled Grillmasters Festival activities include: 8a, Farmers Market opens 9a – 12p, music by Jorge Polo and the Gadabouts 10a – 1p, Mark Wood’s Cowboy Fun Show 10a, Amateur BBQ Sauce Contest 11a, Cooking demonstration, TBD 11a – 4p, Face Painting by Fantasy Faces 11a- 1p, Columbus Dog Connection foster parents with adoptable dogs 12 – 2p, music by Cowboy Hillbilly Hippy Folks 12p, Thrilla at the Grilla, two chefs face off for the title 1p, Cooking demonstration, TBD 1:45p, Cooking demonstration, TBD 2:30p – 4p, music TBD 3:15p, Cooking demonstration, TBD 4:00p, Cooking demonstration, TBD The North Market Grillmasters Festival begins at 9a and is a free event. For more information or to enter the cooking contests, please call the North Market at 614.463.9664 or visit www.northmarket.com.
COLUMBUS NEXT MEETING: JULY 9, 6P-8P; LOCATION: OHIO ART LEAGUE : ART & WINE EVENT - 954 NORTH HIGH ST
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WWW.NETWORKCOLUMBUS.COM
OUTLOOK WEEKLY • 35
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THE LAST WORD by Chris Crain
Gay marriage is a battlefield Turn away from the shiny bauble that Is the Obama-McCain contest, or you’ll miss the mother of all gay rights battles. The battle over same-sex marriage is about to go nuclear. Not because it may impact this year’s presidential race, as some have worried. But because the landmark ruling in California will result in all sorts of skirmishes across the country that will decide whether civil marriage comes to the rest of America sooner or much, much later. Much of the early speculation about the impact of the California marriage ruling has focused on its possible impact on the presidential contest between John McCain and Barack Obama. Democrats remember all too well how in 2004, George Bush and Karl Rove used the Massachusetts marriage victory as a “wedge” to galvanize conservatives in swing states like Ohio. The possibility for a repeat exists, of course, since a gay marriage ban is already slated for the November ballot in Florida, a hugely important swing state, and in California itself, possibly even putting that reliably Democratic state in play. A replay of 2004 is unlikely, however, since California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a Republican himself, is putting his muscle against the ban. The same is true in Florida, where Republican Gov. Charlie Crist opposes the marriage amendment and even backs civil unions. Obama’s candidacy is also likely to
draw to the polls younger Californians, who back gay marriage almost two-to-one according to a recent Field Poll. So it’s important for gay activists and gay groups to turn away from shiny bauble that is the Obama-McCain contest and focus on the battle in California itself, as well as the brushfires it’s already sparking across the country. The impact from California will dwarf that of Massachusetts primarily because marriage laws in the two states are different in one key aspect: A 1913 law in the Bay State prohibits non-residents from marrying there if their union would be illegal in their home state. The same Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court that struck down hetero-only marriage laws in 2003 upheld the 1913 law. As a result, Massachusetts marriage extended only to those residing there and in a few other states - Rhode Island and New Mexico among them - that certified they met the 1913 law’s restriction. Not so in California. Non-resident gay couples can marry without restriction, and then go home and ask that their marriages be recognized in any number of contexts. New York Gov. David Paterson has already ordered state agencies there to recognize marriage licenses issued to gay couples in California, Massa-
chusetts, Canada or the four other countries where it’s legal. Gay-friendly governors elsewhere may quickly follow suit, especially after the November election cushions the possible blowback and (hopefully) cements marriage equality in California. As gay newlyweds return from California with marriage license in hand, they will eventually raise recognition issues that challenge not just the state constitutionality of marriage bans back home but also the holy grail: the constitutionality of the federal Defense of Marriage Act. That infamous 1996 law, renounced by its own author Bob Barr now that he’s the Libertarian nominee for president, purports to allow each state the right to refuse recognition of gay marriages from other states. The U.S. Constitution has something to say on that matter, however, since the “Full Faith & Credit Clause” generally requires that states recognize marriages performed in other states. That rule is pockmarked with exceptions from over 200 years of litigation, but that won’t save DOMA. Since the FF&C will require states to recognize gay marriages from other states in at least some circumstances, the blanket exception in DOMA is clearly unconstitutional. And if DOMA should fall by judicial fiat, as it should, expect calls for a federal constitutional
amendment to ensue. Much will depend on the unpredictable circumstances of gay couples asking home state judges to recognized their California marriage. Couples who travel to the Golden State from states with marriage bans written into their constitutions will likely find their new licenses worthless, since states have the power under the FF&C to prevent citizens from escaping local marriage laws by crossing state lines and wedding elsewhere. On the other end of the spectrum, judicial rulings from California that recognize a gay marriage for child custody purposes or for the right to sue for a spouse’s injury or death should be accepted back at home, even in the most hostile anti-gay states. That’s because the U.S. Constitution’s FF&C clause trumps DOMA and a state’s marriage ban. qIf you’ve followed me this far, you at least see the tremendous variety of ways the detonation of the California marriage bomb will scatter shrapnel throughout the union. For that reason, preserving the victory there ought to be priority No. 1 for all gay rights donors and political organizations. Chris Crain is former editor of the Washington Blade and five other gay publications and now edits GayNewsWatch.com. He can be reached via his blog at www.citizencrain.com.
HOROSCOPES by Jack Fertig
ARIES (Mar 20 - Apr 19): Your ambitions can get the better of you. Be careful of where and how loudly you promote yourself. Helping friends to reconcile their differences will allow you to see how best to project yourself.
CANCER (Jun 21 - Jul 22): Opportunities to start a new relationship or improve an existing one will take work and deeper selfawareness. How does your relationship fit in with your career goals? Balancing love and work is possible, but not easy. Choosing romance over success leads to resentments later.
LIBRA (Sep 23 - Oct 22): Even if you and your partner are both from the same background, love can be something of a crosscultural adventure. To strengthen your ties, let your baby pick the entertainments, and try to make them your own.
CAPRICORN (Dec 21 - Jan 19): You can achieve nearly anything, and welcome the challenge. Getting the support of colleagues and family is easy. Getting yourself in sync with the team is the challenge. Your goals may need more clarity in articulation and even in your own mind.
TAURUS (Apr 20 - May 20): New adven tures can prove costly. Meditate on whether they’re worth it. Exploring ideas and reassessing personal values may be the real adventures. The increased self-awareness and integrity that result could lead to a smaller, but better circle of friends.
LEO (Jul 23 - Aug 22): You are such a hot dish now, you could claim the drag name Bella DeBalle. You could even harness all your fabulosity and charisma to maximize the work opportunities coming up. Your friends are eager to help, if only you’d ask them!
SCORPIO (Oct 23 - Nov 21): By choosing your words very carefully, you can have a huge impact on office politics. If you’re less cautious, you could blow everyone out of the water to no good effect beyond discordant amusement. Your twisted thrills will be better enjoyed in the bedroom.
AQUARIUS (Jan 20 - Feb 18): Your playful banter becomes a bit too aggressive. Some essential aesthetic truth is nagging at you, needing clarification and expression. Meditation and artistic efforts lead to better clarity than arguments do. The truth is not out there; it’s in there.
GEMINI (May 21 - Jun 20): Erotic opportunities are opening up for you, but may conflict with more platonic social obligations. Accommodating both can be a challenge. When you have to choose between friendship and sex, friendships will serve you better in the long run.
VIRGO (Aug 23 - Sep 22): How “out” are you? Perhaps more than you think. Your efforts at sports, art, or a hobby can get you attention that you’re not entirely comfortable with. Being out and proud will help, even if that’s not really the issue.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov 22 - Dec 20): As the song says, “If you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with!” Frolic together like there’s nobody else in the world. A transient affair will help clarify your sense of what you really want.
PISCES (Feb 19 - Mar 19): Clashes with friends can help in the long run, offering better understanding of your priorities and role in the community. The people who really matter are not the ones who share your interests, but those who share your values!
Jack Fertig, a professional astrologer since 1977, is a founding member of the Association for Astrological Networking. He can be reached for consultations at 415.864.8302, www.starjack.com, and by e-mail at QScopes@qsyndicate.com.
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