The announcement raises mixed emotions for me. I have known Ken since we were both law students and he worked for me at the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy (HJLPP)…

I have no personal knowledge about his sexual orientation, but whether or not he is gay, he has ridden to success on the coattails of a candidate who betrayed the core principles that we both stood for as young political activists. (emphasis added)

On November 26, 2004, 20/20 will air a piece that promised 'new information and facts' about Matt's beating and subsequent death. Dennis and I reviewed an advance copy of the show and were dismayed and saddened by the tabloid nature of the show, its lack of serious reporting of facts in evidence, and the amateurish nature of asking leading questions to the people who were interviewed.

Surely Mehlman can't complain now that people are talking about his marital status and how he lives—right? Last week, the blogs were abuzz with stories about Mehlman, who refused to tell the Washington Blade when asked several weeks ago if he or others who worked in prominent positions in the campaign are gay.

* * *

Both Blogactive.com and Rawstory.com ran stories claiming that Gurley, whom both sites said oversaw antigay mailings that went out from the RNC, was seeking...sex online with other men. Both sites have a track record on outing, and have made an impact in recent months outing closeted members of Congress and RNC staff.

* * *

Needing a small diversion from work, I took a look at the coverboys up for votes and of 47 candidates area only two had expressed a career in making the world a better place through a commitment to non profit work. Well, I ask: What's more attractive than a man who cares about the planet?! Men like Jonathan M. deserve our support.

Here's a bit of his profile:

A graduate of Yale with a degree in psychology and philosophy, the 23-year-old currently works as a paralegal for a law firm and is hoping to one day be an attorney with a focus on environmental crisis management. "We now have zero forests that have not been touched," he says, somewhat glumly.

Coming off an election in which many voters cited "morals" as a top concern, Bush may use that mandate to promote responsible fatherhood, abstinence-only sex education, and "healthy marriages" in the reauthorization of welfare reform.

Bush made campaign pledges to triple federal funds for abstinence programs in schools and community-based programs. (emphasis added)

For those of you unfamiliar with the abbreviations in the Chat Bio Line, above, this profile explains that the person lives on Capitol Hill, has pictures and his stats listed in his online profile (you can see the entire profile here.) Dan is looking to host others at his home. "bb" is the abbreviation for "barebacking" which is the term used by gay men who wish to engage in anal intercourse without a condom. R/t means "real time," or that the person is looking to meet in person. The line ends with the request to only send a private message if you have a picture to share.

UPDATE: Folks have asked me, "what is that graphic I am looking at?" When a user enters the gay.com chat room, a list of users is displayed. when you highlight one of the names, in this case, DGCapitol, the small picture appears along with a one line description which in this case is exaplained above.

Now, for a quick peek under the cover...
Endowment/Dimensions: Above average, 8+ cut (not an internet 8, either)
I prefer to be: Switch/Versatile, I'll be whatever you want me to be!
I like to have sex...: 3-5 times a week, I'm usually ready...and available
Body Hair: Arms, Chest, Pits, Tummy, Legs, I shave occasionally, all over
In my own words: Just looking for good sex, whether with one or several. Always versatile and love to fool around. Race is not a factor, just be purportional [sic] and bring some personality with you.
Things I'm into: Anal sex, Body contact, Groups, Kissing, One-on-one, Oral sex, Porn

Particularly in the Bay Area, supporters argue that outing is a reasonable tactic because it can be effective but doesn't necessarily end careers and lives, as it used to. The practice is unstoppable anyway, they said, because the Internet and the country's culture of disclosure has turned privacy into a quaint anachronism.

* * *

"If someone was African American and passing as white, what would be so shocking about saying, 'Excuse me, you're black and you're supporting George Wallace?' " [activist Robin] Tyler said. "I think outing is terrific -- especially of prominent politicians. What are we protecting? Their right to discriminate?"

* * *

Rogers said he sticks to outing people whom he believes are hurting gays and lesbians, although he tends to interpret "hurting" somewhat more loosely than some peers. Rogers received some angry e-mails after outing a Republican who had never cast a vote against gay rights. Rogers said she was outing- worthy because she campaigned for a politician with an anti-gay record and accepted his help during her own campaign for a judgeship.

Abby The Action Cat
Protecting blogACTive research from CATastrophe!

In the vitriolic world of political Web logs, two polar extremes are Eschaton (atrios.blogspot.com), a liberal, often anti-Bush site with a passionate following, and Instapundit (www.instapundit.com), where an equally fervent readership goes for hearty praise of the administration.

It would seem unlikely that the two blogs' authors could see eye-to-eye about anything. Yet Eschaton's Duncan Black (known as Atrios) and Instapundit's Glenn Reynolds have both taken part in a growing practice: turning over a blog on Friday to cat photographs.

Abby, whose full name is Abigal Adams Morgan Muchacha von Holland, is a two year old calico. We met when her old owners put an ad up on Craigslist.org. Abby is an important member of the blogACTIVE.com team. I'll present a picture of Abby hard at work for blogACTIVe every Friday.

Hi speed or DSL?

Now, I have no idea whether Ken Mehlman is gay, bi or straight. But therein lies the problem. In the face of longtime rumors, this 37 year old single man has, oddly, refused to answer questions about his sexual orientation. I can't recall many, if any, straight men who refuse to acknowledge that they're straight - if anything, most are a bit too obvious about it - and that ultimately leads to speculation, caused by Mehlman's own failure to respond to a direct question posed by a reporter.

America is in the throes of a culture war, nurtured by groups like the RNC and people like Ken Mehlman. Americans have a right to know which side of the culture war Ken Mehlman is on, and whether, as RNC chair, he's would be a fifth columnist for those very forces that the RNC tells us are out to steal America's Bibles and jam homosexual sex down its throats and the throats of its children.

Since the presidential election, accounts of voter fraud and malfunctioning voting machines have flooded into local newspapers, to public-interest groups, to universities, and to weblogs.

This letter is an overview of those reports. The stories are summarized here, with links to the original publications. After seeing this evidence - and there is more still to be rounded up - you will most probably suspect that Bush did not win the election. Many accounts of election tampering are included, but a broad search has still to be done. The following is only what has been learned in the few days since the election. Clearly, an investigation is needed.

The following is a compilation of the initial research of one group of concerned journalists. It seems that there is enough evidence in the following to suggest that the electorate may have actually chosen Kerry for President. It cannot be known for sure unless...

I think its time to expand the outing campaign -- celebrities should be fair game. They effect the culture of self-hate. And what's even worse is that openly gay agents, managers and publicists encourage this.

The next group is the "moral values" crowd.

It's obvious that this will have to become more aggressive. The media is obviously not going to cover outings. So its going to have to be flyers on peoples windshields and ads in their newspapers.

George Bush ... is so bad on gay issues that even the Log Cabin Republicans are actively trying to undercut his re-election. If Log Cabin can't tolerate this man, the rest of you have no excuse.