Jumbie

Ahh, but you see, in my fantasies *I* was the cute turbanned friend. And come on... I only bullied you the one time, when Cartoon Network was showing the Jonny Quest movie. I remember holding the remote hostage and forcing all four of you to watch never mind how much you all complained... Man I had it bad.

aye, but with a name like 'ChristyandJake" I have to wonder if you aren't schizo :-)

Kinda noticing an all male hetero vibe here... nonetheless... IC already knows about my Ryu (streetfighter) obsession. So, that's my number one pick. I had a hell of a crush on Jonny Quest as a kid too.

A review, with lots of good info, of Alan Moore's short story collection: http://www.sfsite.com/12b/vf190.htm

Many many thanks to Alita for the Josh Hartnett pics.

OK, I knew you girls were jealous of Jennifer Aniston, but did you have to go and break em up? Which one of you was it, huh? C'mon, own up.

Since I recieved permission from El Presidente IC The thread was getting boring anyways. Besides, you'd never hear complaints in the hot chick thread if they got a pic of naked lesbians, so why the double standard? :-)

A Cutie Pie

So gay...

Happy Holidays...

No, no. no, no! I hate guys who smoke and I think Eminem is just too dorky looking. This thread needs a makeover, Queer Eye style. I be back soon...

Lots a people said things I'd want to say also, especially Gypsy. But there's one thing you guys are all forgetting about the man: He was a phenomenal actor. I remember When I first saw clark kent on screen I couldn't believe it was actually superman in disguise no matter how much my dad tried to convince me. He put so much skill into creating that critical illusion. And he made superman seem heroic and human and righteous and vulnerable all at the same time. No matter how cheesy the scripts got at the end (and they got plenty stupid by PT 4) he made me buy it I think the Mark Waid said it best in his dedication to Kingdom Come , "For Christopher Reeve, who made us believe that a man could fly."

Oh jesus Christ, first Seijin's bouncing breasts, now Nicks male sodomy. The lab guys are soooo not gonna let me in here from now on. [Though I will say that I think Nick is dodging the bullet by having such a *small* sigpic...]

University Comp Lab Guy: "No I won't turn the anti-porn off." Me: "But I'm not at a porn-site. It's a forum" Lab Guy: "let me see." Me: "See? It's just a place where me and my friends talk about stuff. Politics and religion and things like that. It's only that since one of the threads is 'pornography' the anti-porn keeps shutting down the browser." Lab Guy: "OK, I'll disable it for you." Me: "Thanks, man." [Oppai-Seijin's bouncing breasts sig pic comes on screen. Lab Guy gives me a scornful look and walks away]

You saw wrong IC. Yes, Calvin was indeed kneeling in front of the cross, but he was not worshipping. He was setting the trigger for a water balloon boobytrap.

ALSO, The British group Outrage! who organized protests of Beenie man in the UK, justified it this way: “Securing the cancellation of Beenie Man’s concert is very important. By hitting him in the pocket, it will help pressure Beenie Man and other anti-gay Jamaican singers to abandon their murderous incitements. Once they start losing money, they will soon drop their violent lyrics. Driving homophobia out of Jamaican music will have a huge positive impact on Jamaican culture and attitudes – to the benefit of all lesbian and gay Jamaicans.” “In a free society, Beenie Man has a right to criticize homosexuality. But he does not have a right to advocate the killing of lesbians and gay men. He has over-stepped the mark.” “Free speech does not include the right to encourage the killing of other human beings. Incitement to murder is a criminal offence. We want his concerts axed because he endorses violent hate crimes, not because he insults gay people,” ======================================= Right. Please note: '*Not* because he insults gay people.' I want to point out that it is NOT a violation of his free speech to try and get people to stop buying his music and going to his concerts. 'hitting him in the pocket' is a totally legitimate tactic.

Well, Electric, it's just that Beenie man happens to be holding a concert in Miami soon. I dont know if any of the others you mentioned are. And it's not a matter of 'change the channel'. (Because I do). It's a matter of his lyrics *promoting* an agenda that advocates the murder of gays and it's reaching others out there. I dont want to turn of my TV to avoid this shit and then bump into an army of Beenie's fag-haters at my door.

Here's a good example of the kinda thing I'm talking about Nick: http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/Northeast/08/27...reut/index.html The protests and complaints got the name changed. Will Arab bashing continue? Of course. But one source of public humiliation has been done away with.

IN ADDITION: It's sometimes been claimed that these anti- gay phrasings aren't meant to be taken seriously or literally. Well, they're nevertheless creating an atmosphere that makes not just violence but all kinds of other descrimination possible. "We respectfully suggest that he use other metaphors." - Heddy Pena The executive director of the Miami-based gay-rights group SAVE Dade's helpful reply to Beenie Man's PR spokesperson Clyde McKenzie's statement: "In many instances the lyrics of dancehall artists are metaphorical."

I can see why you're disturbed by the parallel between the argument for anti gay music and those who say violent games etc promote violence in kids. But there is a very specific distinction when that violence is targetted at a group. And I can see how even that argument can seem weak after the whole 'Copkiller'/ Ice T blowout. But I live here in the caribbean. I see the homophobia in my students and in my friends. And when I call them on it all they respond with is Jamaican lyrics. Dancehall is the most popular music here and in Jamaica. It's freaky how much their thinking is framed by that specific culture.. AND THEY NEVER HEAR AN OPPOSING VOICE. SO I think this protesting can serve that role. Those who go to the concert may never have considered that what they're listening to was wrong or hurtful.

Why are people protesting the Republican Convention Nick? Why do people protest corporations who're discriminatory? It's all about 1) forcing change at an institutional level. Remember these guys are supported by million dollar concert promoters and huge record companies like Virgin and Sony. If those support elements realize they're creating money from others' suffering they'll think twice. maybe... 2) Making Society take notice of how wrong sometihng is and consider/ reconsider where they stand on the issue. I know a lot of protesting is basically 'wankerism', but there's a strong legitimate case for highlighting and embarrasing those who promote hate. Look at how Louis Farahkahn got hammered and had to publicly tone down his anti-jewish rhetoric. He was a rising voice in black america at the time and could have had a very negative impact on how black youths viewed jews. I know that this type of argument is a whole lot of 'coulds' and 'what ifs' since there's no way to test it, but think of how things might have turned out if there had been a larger public outcry when Hitler published his Mein Kampf... Bottom line: It can never hurt to (LEGALLY) take away a bigot's ability to reach a large audience

Here's one for the road...

Voila! OK, it's a shitty pic but it's all I got right now.

Free Speech. Right. Just imagine a song that advocates killing Jews, or Blacks... advocating violence to a group is NOT protected under free speech laws. You can check that if you don't believe me. But let's leave that alone for a while. Of *course* BeenieMan has that free speech right. We're not discussing a *ban* here, just a protest. The point of a protest is to let the guy know what he does is wrong (even if it isn't illegal). The MAIN point of a protest is to draw attention to the problem. You want to make the news - make people talk about the protest and the issue. Make people aware. Look at this post, for instance: 2 people already now know a lot more about how bad this shit is. Imagine how many more are gonna know when CHannel 6 is talking about it. We *Want* Beenie man to sing about killing all the gays he wants. We just want to affect how many people are comfortable listening to his crap. ----------------------------------------------- As For the EMinem thing. Well, he has been protested and criticized by human rights groups. THing is that he's so popular and there's so much $$$ in him, that it's hard to get people to listen. If I was to suggest to all of you here that you boycott Eminem over his antigay lyrics you'd tell me no. In fact, I remained a big fan of Buju Banton when his anti gay song about killing gay people came out even though I was 13 at the time and ahd a pretty fair idea I was attracted to other guys. Sometimes it's hard to give up something you really like. The second thing is the effect the music has. THere are frequent attacks and even murders of gay men in Jamaica because of this. WHen I debated gay marriage this year, there was a rastafarian who threatened me with a stick. WHether the music is a source or a symptom of this homophobia is not the issue. The music feeds the homophobia and in turn feeds off it. Knocking down the music will break the loop. ===================================== Anyways, thanks to those who've expressed an interest so far. I'll look up the protest arrangements. You guys get your markers and cardboard for making signs! :gay: :taz: :shoot: :gay:

(First some news then I ask for a favor) Hey, CNN reports that Beenie Man's appearance for MTV in SOuth Florida got cancelled. I can't get the Link to work cuz of the CNN website so here's the text: =========================================== Beenie Man barred from MTV concert Wednesday, August 25, 2004 MIAMI, Florida (AP) -- Dancehall star Beenie Man, who has recorded anti-gay songs in the past, was yanked from a concert associated with the MTV Video Music Awards this weekend after gay groups planned a protest, the network said Wednesday. MTV pulled the Jamaican singer from the roster Tuesday after South Florida gay activists announced plans to protest Saturday's concert in Miami over some of his past lyrics, including "I'm dreaming of a new Jamaica, come to execute all the gays" and "Queers must be killed." "We don't want anything to overshadow what will be a great weekend of music events for South Floridians," MTV spokeswoman Marnie Black said Wednesday. She declined further comment. The awards show is Sunday at the bayfront AmericanAirlines Arena in Miami, the first time in the glam-filled event's 21-year history that it will take place outside New York and Los Angeles. Beenie Man has had his concerts canceled in Europe over the last few weeks after angry gay groups protested. Although he has previously defended his lyrics, earlier this month, Beenie Man issued an apology for his previous songs, including "Bad Man Chi Chi Man (Bad Man, Queer Man)." "Certain lyrics and recordings I have made in the past may have caused distress and outrage among people whose identities and lifestyles are different from my own. ... I offer my sincerest apologies to those who might have been offended, threatened or hurt by my songs." Other stars of dancehall, a sensuous, more contemporary form of reggae, have also recorded anti-gay songs and have been targeted by gay groups because of their lyrics, including Buju Banton. Beenie Man's manager, Clyde McKenzie, said "in many instances the lyrics of dancehall artists are metaphorical." "He has made it clear that he doesn't want to incite violence," he said of Beenie Man. He said he understood MTV's actions. "If their organization is being pressured they may not want anything to be distracting from their event," he said. Heddy Pena, executive director of the Miami-based gay-rights group SAVE Dade, said: "We respectfully suggest that he use other metaphors." Her group had been organizing the protest. "It's disappointing to see artists use their talents as a tool for hatred and bigotry," she said. Beenie Man told The Miami Herald on Sunday that "I just smile, because I don't know what they're fussing about." "I'm not here to cuss people. I make music. But at the same time I just want to teach people -- my sons and my daughters -- the right way of life," he said. Beenie Man was not available for comment Wednesday, his publicist said. Beenie Man, born Anthony Moses Davis, is on a world tour promoting his new album, "Back to Basics." His songs include his recent hit, "Dude," "Girls Dem Sugar" and "Who Am I?" His album "Art and Life" won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album in 2001. He ends his tour in Miami on November 8. ===================================================== I don't know how many of you listen to reggae/dancehall, though I remember quite a bit of it made the air when I was living in Miami. Dancehall music has always had a mean streak about us gay people and the lyrics are often undecipherable to Americans making it hard to realize that Elephant Man, Beenie Man, TOK and lots of others are actually calling for an extermination of homosexuals. I'm glad that Beenie's appearance got shut down. There was a protest planned if it wasn't. HOWEVER, Beenie Man is currently on a world tour (lots of appearances in Europe have been cancelled over this issue which gay activist there have been making very visible). HIS WORLD TOUR ENDS IN MIAMI, where most of us Hondonians live. I'm sure there will be protests if the concert doesn't get cancelled. I can't make it over to Miami, but I was wondering if a few of you more political types as well as any militant music lovers (since he *is* debasing the institution of music) would be interested in joining in. Any takers? Lemme know here. If I get a response I;ll get info on the groups organzing protests, dates, times etc. Hell, we could make it a Hondos Event with chips and beer if enough people want in...