My favorite UK hottie, tommytank86 from xtube and dudetube.com has just replaced "Bear 411" as the biggest keyword search on this blog. From the time I began, "Bear 411" has always been #1, but now, it's this hot stud from Birmingham. Congrats TommyTank86!

Obama Resigns From Controversial Church

Isn't this kind of like closing the barn door after the horse got out?


(CNN) -- Sen. Barack Obama's campaign confirmed Saturday that he has resigned from the church where controversial sermons by his former pastor and other ministers created repeated political headaches for the Democratic frontrunner. Sen. Barack Obama's campaign has confirmed his resignation from Trinity United Church of Christ.

The resignation comes days after the Rev. Michael Pfleger, a visiting Catholic priest, mocked Obama's Democratic rival during a sermon at Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, Illinois.
In the video, Pfleger wipes his eyes with a handkerchief and suggests that Sen. Hillary Clinton wept because she thought that as a white person and the wife of a former president, she was entitled to the presidency. "And then, out of nowhere, came 'Hey, I'm Barack Obama,' " Pfleger said "And [Clinton] said, 'Oh, damn, where did you come from? I'm white! I'm entitled! There's a black man stealing my show!' "

Pfleger is a Catholic priest at St. Sabina Roman Catholic Church on Chicago's southwest side. He is also a friend of Trinity's former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, from whom Obama distanced himself in April. Wright, Obama's minister for about 20 years, drew unwanted attention for the campaign when videos of his fiery sermons surfaced.

I was looking at concertedeffort.blogspot.com, and stumbled across the perfect housewarming gift, especially if the house you are warming is your friend's new apartment after breaking up with his boyfriend.
It's a knife holder called "The Ex" and it's available here. You're welcome.

Jesus God would someone please explain to me why so many Americans are so stupid? The Huffington Post is reporting that Dunkin' Donuts is bowing to pressure from conservative groups and pulling an ad featuring Rachael Ray. The reason? The scarf she's wearing looks like she's supporting Arab jihadists and Palestinian terror groups. Oh my God in Heaven. What is it with these people? Has the inbreeding finally rotted their brains so much that they actually believe this shit? There's nothing more scary to me than the thought of Rachael Ray coming at me with a knife in one hand and a latte in the other. No, I'll tell you what's scarier to me. The thought that these inbred idiots have so much power in this country that a major corporation would pull an ad that they spent hundreds of thousands of dollars producing, to appease a bunch of crazies. In any other civilized country in the world, these people would be considered lunatic fringe, and no attention would be paid to them. BTW, the company said the scarf was picked by her stylist. I guarantee you that queen didn't have jihad on his mind when he picked it.

It's Thursday. Yet another beautiful day in the Bay Area. Sunny and mid 60's today. Not dissimilar from yesterday. Or the day before that. Or the day before that.......

Thursday means I start thinking about the weekend. There's a few things going on around here this weekend. Bearacuda's infamous underwear night is Saturday night. Time to show off my new bikini briefs. But honestly, I've really been itching to get out of town this weekend. But where to go? Any suggestions?

Office Chat

donnaXXXX: hey!
fredXXXXXX: hey back at ya
donnaXXXX: when did you close the san jose office?
fredXXXXXX: 6-30-06
donnaXXXX: thanks
donnaXXXX: what you been up to?
fredXXXXXX: not much. been quiet this week.
fredXXXXXX: some guy called me a "fucking San
Francisco Democrat" last night
donnaXXXX: did you thank him?
fredXXXXXX: yeah. it's a badge of honor
fredXXXXXX: wear it next to my american flag lapel pin
donnaXXXX: LOL cya

Well, apparently there are assholes everywhere, including San Francisco.

I had a very unpleasant experience this evening. I worked late, and decided to stop at the Lone Star for a drink on my way home.

While there, I received a call from a friend, and I stepped out on the patio to speak with him. I was the only person on the patio. My friend and I touched on many topics, from silly to serious. As is usually the case, the conversation steered its way to politics and the current state of affairs in the country. Neither of us is happy with the way things are going.

In the meantime, this asshole comes out on the patio and is apparently eavesdropping on my conversation. At one point, I make a comment that something like 90% of the wealth in this country is held by 10% of the people. That's a figure that I didn't pull out of my ass, by the way. I got it from an economics textbook for a class I took a couple of years ago.

Anyway, this asshole blurts out that I'm full of bullshit, and demands to know my sources. Well, I couldn't exactly cite my sources at the moment. I suggested he could look in any economics textbook, which wasn't good enough for him. Then I told him if he gave me his email address I would be happy to look it up and email it to him. "My email address is my business" he said. Then he said, "you probably have a website of your own, judging by that blue tooth on your ear." Jesus, what is this guy's problem?

Finally, he dropped the bomb. "You're nothing but a fucking San Francisco Democrat." Considering the fact that I have just recently moved here from Texas, I thought that was laughable, and I told him so. And frankly, I consider that a badge of honor. I apologized for bothering him with my conversation and suggested he continue getting high.

That conversation bothered me a lot. And, I like to make sure my facts are straight. So, when I got home, I did a google search for "concentration of wealth in the United States." And I discovered that my figures were off a little, but not by much.

The first item on the list was a University of California paper which stated that 84% of the wealth in this country is held by the top 20% of the people. The second item on the list was a paper by a New York University Economics professor. He stated that 80% of the wealth in this country is held by the top 20%

So, I was off a little. Bottom line is a small percentage of Americans own most of the wealth. And to the asshole at the Lone Star: FUCK YOU RIGHT IN THE MOUTH! And I don't mean that in a good way.

And So It Begins.....

New York's governor has issued an executive order instructing all branches of the New York state government to make preparations to recognize gay marriages performed in other jurisdictions, even though those marriages would not be legal under current New York law.

The move means that gay couples married in Canada, Massachusetts, California, and elsewhere, would be afforded all rights and priviledges bestowed upon hetero married couples in New York.

See the article in the New York Times.

California Same Sex Marriages Begin June 17

June is like Ramadan for faggotry, and I think it's only fitting that same sex marriage will become legal in California during the month of June. Here's the story from the AP:

SAN FRANCISCO - Barring a stay of a historic California Supreme Court ruling, same-sex couples will be able to wed in the state beginning June 17, according to a state directive issued Wednesday.

The state said it chose June 17 because the state Supreme Court has until the day before to decide whether to grant a stay of its May 15 ruling legalizing gay marriage. Gay-rights advocates and some clerks initially thought couples would be able to wed as early as Saturday, June 14. The court's decisions typically take effect 30 days after they are made.

The guidelines from Mark Horton, director of the California Department of Public Health, to the state's 58 county clerks also contained copies of new marriage forms that include lines for "Party A" and "Party B" instead of bride and groom. The gender-neutral nomenclature was developed in consultation with county clerks, according to the letter.

"Effective June 17, 2008, only the enclosed new forms may be issued for the issuance of marriage licenses in California," the directive reads.

A group opposed to gay marriage has asked the court to stay its decision until after the November election, when voters are likely to face a ballot initiative that would once again define marriage as a union between a man and a woman. Passage of the initiative would overrule the Supreme Court.

Under the Supreme Court's regular rules of procedure, justices have until the end of the day June 16 to rule on the stay request, according to the memo sent by e-mail to county clerks. Lawyers involved in the marriage case have said previously the court could grant itself an extra 60 days to consider the stay.

A poll released Wednesday found that for the first time, about half of California voters support same-sex marriage. The Field Poll found that 51 percent of respondents backed legalizing same-sex marriage and 42 percent opposed it. A 2006 poll found that 44 percent supported same-sex marriage and 50 percent objected; in 1977, the first year Field posted the question to California voters, only 28 percent were in favor.

"I would say this is a historic turning point or milestone," poll director Mark DiCamillo said. "We have speculated in the past there would be some time in the future when a majority would support same-sex marriage. Well, the lines have crossed." The survey of 1,052 registered voters was conducted over the phone from May 17 to May 26 and had a sampling error of plus or minus 3.2 percentage points.

The poll's findings conflict with a Los Angeles Times/KTLA poll of 705 voters released last week that found 54 percent backed the proposed gay marriage ban and 35 percent opposed it.
Andrew Pugno, legal adviser for the coalition of religious and social conservative groups sponsoring the measure, said the Times poll is more consistent with his group's internal polling.
"We could acknowledge there has been increasing acceptance of the idea of gay relationships over the last 10 or 20 years, but we think when it comes to marriage there is still a solid majority who want to see it reserved for a man and a woman, and that is all this initiative is about," Pugno said.

Here's one for my ex, who despises turned up collars pretty much more than anything. He's been known to walk up to guys and turn their collar down. Personally, I don't share his hatred of the turned up collar. It neither offends me nor attracts me. But, in all honesty, this guy took it a bit far. When you stare at this guy's popped up collar, it becomes quite hypnotic. After awhile, it begins to look like the folds on a woman's pudenda. EEEEEWWWWW. Thanks hotchickswithdouchebags.com for the pic, btw.

A Crazy Day In The Bay Area

Those of us who work in the news media live for days like today. Wildfires broke out overnight in the Santa Cruz Mountains, just south of San Jose. The fires were pretty spectacular, and, at least in California, captured the news interest all day. Here are some pictures taken from one of our aircraft covering the story:

High winds in the Bay Area didn't help matters. By mid-day, the fires had grown to over 3,000 acres. There were some estimates that the could grow to over 10,000 acres overnight, but winds are supposed to die down later, so hopefully they can get a handle on it.

I spend so much of my time working on stupid reports and paperwork for corporate. Today was one of those rare days when I could drop everything and actually work at covering the news. I love days like today.

Memorial Day Weekend In San Francisco

I've been trying to figure out what to do for Memorial Day weekend. As it turns out, the Bay Area is the best place to be, so I'll be staying put. There's so much shit going on this weekend. It's almost like an unofficial Bear Run. Here's a list of some of the events:

Friday

The weekend kicks of with Gay Day at Great America Friday evening. The one and only time I went to a gay day at an amusement park, it was at Six Flags in Dallas/Ft. Worth. How fucking lame. The theme was something like "let's have all these fags in for the day and hope no one notices." There was no way in hell you would have even known it was gay day. Not so with Great America. They've been advertising it on radio and tv. There are all kinds of shows and entertainment geared for the gay crowd. There is no way you can be at Great America and NOT know it's gay day.

The other event of note on Friday is Planet Big at the Stud. Now, I've been disappointed in Planet Big since they moved it to Friday nights. But, it's usually pretty fun when there's an event going on, or it's a holiday weekend.

Saturday

Steamworks presents its' monthly bear party, Bears, Bath, and Beyond, on Saturday afternoon. Well, what can I say about this? It's a bunch of bears fucking at the baths. The only time I went to one of these, the rooms filled up fast, and stayed filled until the end of the day. So, I recommend you go early if you want a room. Say about 12:30. That's when I would show up if I were you.

Once you're done with your Saturday afternoon fucking and sucking, head over to the Lone Star for their traditional Saturday afternoon beer bust. I actually prefer the Saturday one to the one on Sunday. It's much more relaxed and less crowded.

Sunday

Sunday is going to be a crazy day with 3, count 'em, 3 events going on.

First stop is the grandaddy of all bear beer busts at the Lone Star. This thing is always crazy and packed to the gills. In fact, there's usually a line down the block to get in.

Across the bay, the Bench and Bar is holding their Sunday afternoon bear party, B-Unit. Now, I went to this once and it was pretty lame. Hard to compete with the Lone Star on Sunday afternoons. But, I've been promised by one of the organizers that it will be kick ass. So, I'll be stopping by to see.

When they changed Planet Big to Friday nights, a buddy of mine started a chub dance thing in San Jose on Sunday nights. I'm ashamed to say, I've never gone, mainly because it's in San Jose on Sunday nights. Hey, it's a 40 mile drive. But, this weekend is a 3 day weekend. No work on Monday. No 8:30 conference call. So I'm going to check this baby out. I was thinking of maybe renting a room for the night so I wouldn't have to drive. Or, better yet, stopping by the Watergarden to sleep it off.

Monday

On Monday, the Lone Star will have a special edition beer bust to bring the Memorial Day weekend to a close. All in all, it sounds like a fun weekend with lots of shit to do. I'll probably need to take a couple of days off to recover from my time off.

I don't like Hillary Clinton. I really wanted to. But, I can't. I would have supported her even though I had my doubts about her. Early on, I hoped for a Hillary/Obama ticket. But things haven't gone her way. And, her actions since things haven't gone her way have proven to me that my gut feel about her was exactly on target: she's a manipulative, conniving, bitch.

I was reading an article in the Houston Chronicle today where she was warning the DNC about "dire consequences" if Florida and Michigan aren't seated at the convention. She basically suggested that Florida and Michigan Democrats should vote for John McCain if their delegates are not seated at the convention. She said, "why should Florida and Michigan voters trust the Democratic Party to look out for you when they won't even listen to you." She's also threatened to take the fight all the way to the convention floor.

I totally oppose seating Michigan and Florida. They broke the rules. All the candidates agreed that those two states would be punished for their actions, but now Hillary wants to change the rules again because she sees some advantage for herself in doing so. I guarantee if Obama was suggesting Florida and Michigan count because it would help him, Hillary would be fighting it tooth and nail.

The ironic thing is, the reason those states moved their primaries was because they thought it would be all over before their turn. They wanted to have more clout in the primary system. If we give in to Hillary's maneuverings, Florida and Michigan would be rewarded for breaking the rules. I'm against it.

Hillary, it's over bitch. You can't catch Obama even with Florida and Michigan. Go lick your wounds and be done with it. Show us that you care more about this country than your own personal gain.

Hot Stuff

This hottie is my new fave Internet fantasy. He's been showing up a lot on dudetube.com, where they post his x-tube.com videos.

He goes by the name TommyTank86 on x-tube. He's from Birmingham, UK. He doesn't do just the typical JO videos. His are very creative, with high energy dance music and great editing. I really get a kick of of them. And he's fucking gorgeous. Definitely my favorite of all the guys I've seen on the Internet.

If you want to get a closer look, check out the site here

Memorial Day weekend is coming up, and I haven't the slightest idea of what to do, if anything.

One of the bad things about living in San Francisco is that it's pretty isolated from the rest of the world. I loathe flying these days, so it's the car for me for my weekend getaways. Unfortunately, there's not a lot within driving distance that appeals to me.

Oh there's plenty to do for most people. There are beautiful b&b's up in the Russian River area, but I'm not really into "gay rustic." There's the Napa Valley area with all its resorts, and of course the beautiful city of Monterey is close by. But, I'm all about "bright lights, big city." That's the kind of weekend getaway I like. And unfortunately, there aren't many places like that within driving distance.

The closest is LA. Been there, done that. Frankly, I haven't been all that impressed with LA anyway. Palm Springs is great, but it's an 8 hour drive. A little too far for a quick weekend getaway. Same thing for Las Vegas. It's about a 9 hour drive. I've always wanted to go to Portland, but it's 600 miles away. And Seattle is 800.

So, it looks like I'll be stuck in Sodom by the Sea for the weekend. I guess there are worse places, since many people will be coming here for their weekend getaway. I guess I'll be like the old lady from Boston who, when asked why she doesn't travel, replied "Why should I travel when I'm already there?"

For some reason lately, I really haven't been much in the mood to do anything on the weekend, except veg around the house. That's kind of what happened again this weekend.

But, it ended on a high note. I went to Flashdance SF Sunday night. It was an 80's dance party with the benefits going to Under One Roof. It was a lot of fun. Great music. Woofy cubs and chasers. Plenty of shirtless bears if you like them.

I have been wearing a leg brace for the past few weeks due to a knee injury. This isn't one of those "bought at Walgreens" things. It's a heavy duty black metal and leather orthopedic brace that covers most of my leg. For some reason, the guys think it's really hot. I almost hate the thought of giving it up in a few months because it is definitely a chaser magnet. So, for the dance, I decided to accessorize, and I pulled my harness out of the closet. Between the harness, the brace, and my leather wrist band, I thought I looked like a Borg, but the look was definitely well received.

The best part for me was the location. It was held at the old Trocadero Transfer, which was THE gay dance bar back in the glory days. The fact that Sylvester used to perform there live is reason enough to make it a shrine.

California Supreme Court Legalizes Gay Marriage

Read the opinion here

Oh Canada!

I admit I've always had the hots for Shawn Ashmore. And his twin brother Aaron. Oh, the fantasies they could fulfill for me, eh? So I came across this pic on Dudetube.com today, and all I can say is WOOOOOF!