23/6 posted a bunch of hilarious "loyalty oaths" for those switching from supporting Hillary to John McCain. Below is the one for the gays:

photo courtesy of AP

AP is reporting that researchers at the New England Historic Genealogical Society have discovered that not only is Barack Obama a distant cousin of Brad Pitt, but that Hillary Clinton is related to Angelina Jolie. The Society was obviously working into overtime, giving a whole bunch of fun tidbits (Clinton is also related to Alanis Morrissette and Madonna; Obama to George W.). And in a not as distant relation (Im assuming aforementioned ones are like 10,000+ removed), John McCain is Laura Bush's sixth cousin!

This interview with the rapper in XXL magazine totally blows my mind.

XXL: Are you following the presidential race?

It's all a fuckin' setup. It's all a setup. All fuckin' bullshit. All bullshit. I don't give a fuck about none of that.

A few days ago I posted a video of an at-the-time-anonymous Oklahoma lawmaker saying a wide range of horrible things. Since then, the video made the rounds of the web and the "human" behind that voice has been revealed as Sally Kern.

Numerous developments have occurred since (including Oklahoma Republicans essential praise of Kern's beyond-frightening words), and I figured I'd update. First, a letter written to Kern from Victory Fund (who posted the video in the first place) president Chuck Wolfe from a few days back that pretty much voices everything that's wrong with what's going on:

What you said is not okay, but that's not because most sensible people disagree with it. It's because your words give aid and comfort to those who would hurt, maim and even kill people who are different from you. Comparing gays and lesbians to cancer and terrorism and saying they are the "biggest threat to America," gives license to others to treat us that way, especially given the leadership position you hold in your community.

Then, the situation got a bit juicier. Allegations arose that Kern and her Baptist minister husband had and hid a gay son. Despite much evidence to the contrary, Kern issued a loaded and manipulative statement shooting down those "rumors":

Our son is not gay. We would still love him if he was, but that would not change the fact that homosexuality is a chosen life style and that we would pray for our son to have a change of heart. My heart goes out to the many parents who have lost sons to AIDs [sic] and other STDs. Those kinds of deaths are tragic because they could have been avoided.

THEN the Oklahoma Bureau of Investigation began going through Kern's emails after she said she had been receiving numerous death threats, only to find bitch is also a liar.

And finally, today Ellen deGeneres made her second step into having a gay voice after her touching speech about Lawrence King a few weeks ago. Up until recently I had figured Ellen's contract obligated her not to go into the gay talk, but now that she's secured a place amongst the daytime talk powerhouses, she's using that power for good, and gave some light and quite funny, but definitely point-across words about Kern (even trying to call her) and the absurdity of her statement:

The Victory Fund, a equal rights org trying to "elect fair minded individuals across the nation," found quite the opposite in an unnamed Oklahoma lawmaker. Their site posted a very disturbing clip of a voice recording from an apparently closed meeting. The lawmaker (they don't release her name so that she doesn't become "a 'cause celeb' for the other side"), was unaware someone was taping, or she probably wouldn't have gone all Fred Phelps. To shame: Not everybody's lifestyle is equal, just like not all religions are equal.

Take a look at the clip and go to The Victory Fund's website to put your name against it (Its American-only, so doubly do it for me).

Speaking of the Canadian film industry, it seems the wrath of a conservative government might soon be having its day. The Globe and Mail is reporting that the Harper government has drafted guidelines that would allow it to pull financial aid for any film or television show that it deems offensive or not in the public's best interest - even if government agencies have invested in them.

Says The Globe:

The proposed changes to the Income Tax Act would allow the Heritage Minister to deny tax credits to projects deemed offensive, effectively killing the productions. Representatives from Heritage and the Department of Justice will determine which shows or films pass the test.

Game and talk shows, news, sports, reality television and pornography are already excluded from access to the tax credits. The proposed prohibition would cover a sweeping range of material, such as anything of an explicit sexual nature, that denigrates a group or is excessively violent without an educational value.

A "sweeping range"? This is not good. We might seem innocent, but Canadians have built their film industry on explorations of violence and sexuality (David Cronenberg, anyone? Do you think Crash would have made it through these censors? Or Exotica? And Bruce La Bruce better kiss his tax credits goodbye.)

The government provides refundable tax credits to productions that are certified as having Canadian content. Producers shoot the film or TV show, finish post-production, pay their bills and then file a corporate tax return. The tax credit is included in the production company's tax refund.

Toronto lawyer David Zitzerman of Goodmans LLP says the government's plans smack of "closet censorship." He tells the Globe:

The proposed new initiative, if not properly crafted, could potentially violate the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and lead to possible legal challenges against the Minister of Canadian Heritage," Mr. Zitzerman said Wednesday. "Such a provision could potentially lead to the government acting as 'morality police.' The existing definitions of pornography and obscenity in the Criminal Code should be sufficient for the government's purposes.

If you want to send a message to the Minister of Culture, Josee Verner, you may do so here.

Watch Charles Barkley take a not-so-poignant but certainly ballsy and enjoyable stance against the Republicans on CNN, calling conservatives "fake Christians" and not-so-subtly announcing his pro-gay marriage stance. Pussyboy Wolf Blizter warns Charles that his statements might get him some serious flak from conservatives, to which Barkley (who also announced his plans to run for governor of Alabama in 2014) quipped: "They can't do anything to me; I don't work for them".

The Onion makes the case against Obama in light of President Freeman's Deep Impact snafus:

Have we learned nothing from the tragic events of 1998, when, under the watch of President Morgan Freeman, this nation was plunged into chaos, and hundreds of millions of people died at the hands of the deadly Wolf-Beiderman space rock? The mere fact that this country is even considering putting another black man, Barack Obama, in the Oval Office proves that we have not.

Check the whole hilarious thing out here

I'm not watching the Grammys.. mainly because I dont have a TV in an effort to write my thesis (though the internet seems to have just doubled in use as a result) but also because they are usually a boring 3 hours with a few small moments of entertainment. However, I did take a look see at the grammy's website to see what has won in those seemingly thousands of categories they don't announce during the telecast. Besides some welcome Amy Winehouse love, one notable category popped out:

Category 79

Things I Overheard While Talking To Myself
Alan Alda
[Random House Audio]

Barack beat two former presidents (including his wife's first lady rival), Hawkeye and freakin' Maya Angelou. If that ain't momentum..

They heckled Mike Huckabee!

At a rally in San Francisco, the non-profit left group got a chance to let Fuckabee have whats coming to him.. Why would he even bother going to San Francisco??

Alan Keyes' lovely website, RenewAmerica.us, featured a review of New Hampshire loser Barack Obama by Maine pastor Grant Swank

Obama’s pretty face is going to get America into a lot of trouble. He’s smooth and liberal. He’s young and liberal. He’s clever and liberal.

Obama will install sodomy as every homosexual’s right. He will ensconce killing womb babies, including partial-birth abortion, as the daily poster child in-your-face.

Isn't sodomy already "installed" as every homosexual's right in 40 states? And ever since Lawrence v. Texas in 2003, haven't those last 10 square states been pretty much halting any enforcement. Gotta love "womb babies" though.

Read the whole disaster here, if only to see Swank's swanky head shot because he's just so hot.

In light of yesterday's Huckabee-Obama surprise Iowa win, Vulture posted a hilarious piece endorsing Mike Huckabee:

We usually leave the politics to our sister blog, Daily Intel, but after last night's shocking results in Iowa, we cannot stop ourselves from throwing our weight behind Mike Huckabee. Why? It's simple. Sure, he was funnier than Jay Leno on Jay Leno's first post-strike show, but how hard is that? No, it's because of Huckabee's well-publicized endorsement from Vulture hero Chuck Norris, whose enormous, gleaming choppers were on full display in the background last night as the candidate thanked his supporters. It's because the two cut this ad, in which Chuck Norris recites facts about Mike Huckabee, while Huckabee quotes "facts" about Norris. It's because if Huckabee is elected, he certainly will appoint Norris to a Cabinet position — Defense would be the logical choice, as long as they change the title to Secretary of Offense.

Mike Huckabee for President of Earth!

Meanwhile, John Heilemann wrote a much less funny but nonetheless interesting article for the blog's host, New York magazine, on whether Mr. Obama can "withstand the weight of unparalleled expectations and the Clinton hit machine" in light of his new frontrunner status. Check the full article out here,

Certainly not jumping up and down to help the aforeblogged John Kerry in his semi-quest to help HIV+ folk visit the United States, Ol' Mr. Huckabee was in the news today.. well, actually his son was. Details of his son's hanging of a dog at Boy Scout camp came out, and Dubya's Spot better watch out.

Also care of Queerty, and also after the jump.

People are always quite surprised to find out that the U.S. of A is one of the very few nations that do not allow HIV positive people to ENTER the country. Not immigrate or obtain visas, but even visit for an hour.

Well, John Kerry and Oregon, gasp, Republican, Gordon Smith want to help change that, says Queerty after the jump.

Looking more and more like the GOP's presidential candidate, Kevin Spacey lookalike Mike Huckabee said some lovely things about the gays back in 1992 as exposed in this AP story. My favourite quote:

"I feel homosexuality is an aberrant, unnatural, and sinful lifestyle, and we now know it can pose a dangerous public health risk."

Here he defends his remarks like a true gentleman:

Another Republican Homosex Scandal? And its freaking Trent Lott?

I'm skeptical that the party is going for a homosexual hat trick in 2007, but many sources disagree.

I swear to God, if Rick Santorum is next...

On the same day that STD rates were announced as skyrocketing, President Bush vetoed a spending measure for health and education programs prized by congressional Democrats.

Bush said, according to AP:

"The Congress now sitting in Washington holds this philosophy," Bush told an audience of business and community leaders. "The majority was elected on a pledge of fiscal responsibility, but so far it's acting like a teenager with a new credit card."

The Canadian version of Veteran's Day (sort of), today marks Remembrance Day, a pseudo-holiday (banks are closed, but thats about it) meant to bring respect to those lost in wars past. Heather Menzies wrote an op-ed in The Ottawa Citizen yesterday that I felt was an appropriate holiday-themed post. Its essentially an edited version of the speech she gave at Concordia University's fall convocation.. and its as poignant a call for inner peace as they come. The entire article after the jump...

Though as a Canadian I'm already enjoying such benefits, yesterday was, in a way, a big day for the gays of the U.S.A. (though not the trans-folk, who apparently are fit to be discriminated). The House of Representatives passed a piece of legislation meant to protect American homosexuals from discrimination. Though the senate hasn't voted on the bill, the scary part now is even if they pass it, Mr. Bush, sweet man that he is, has promised to veto the measure.

Can a persona really be president, anyway? Nice try, though, Colbert...

In her opening monologue for the 79th Annual Academy Awards, host Ellen deGeneres quipped:

"Its fun to be the host, and especially of all years to be the host - this is a really big year because this is the most international Oscars ever which is a huge deal, I think."

Though statistically her statement is actually false (2001's 10 nominations for Tawianese production Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon actually helped bring more "international" nominees overall), DeGeneres is likely referring specifically to the more visible acting categories. She goes on to point out examples of this milestone in the audience:

"Look at Penelope Cruz! We have record nominations for Mexico which is a huge deal [applause]. Spain is in the house [applause]. Japan is representin'... Look at all of you. I mean look at Djimon Hounsou. Such a diverse group of people. Amazing! Adriana Barazza, Rinko Kikuchi, Steve Carrell [laughter]: Such diverse people! I mean really think about that what a wonderful night this is. Such diversity in the room in a year when so many negative things have been said about people's race, religion, and sexual orientation, and I wanna put this out there: If there were no Blacks, Jews and Gays there would be no Oscars [applause]."

Though deGeneres herself later apologized for accidentally suggesting that Penelope Cruz is Mexican (she is Spanish), her error falls in line with the Academy's history of ignorance regarding diversity. While it is certainly true that "Blacks, Jews and Gays" have been instrumental in bringing the Oscars to their current prominence in contemporary culture, the Oscars themselves have not exactly given back wholeheartedly (though this is much less true regarding Jews). And when they do "give back", it often comes across more as a political opportunity than a rewarding of cinematic talent.

Gayer than even Dumbledore, Sir Ian McKellan showed some balls in a recent visit to the country Singapore. Obviously annoyed by the fact that homosexuality is illegal in the country, McKellan shot out on a television interview there last week. Some soundbyte highlights:

"I didn't realise, as a gay man, that I'd be a criminal once I arrived - because it's illegal for a man to make love to another man in Singapore.

"I looked at the playback of the programme afterwards and I've never seen the credits come up (on the screen) so quickly."