To Our Muslim Brothers And Sisters

It is wonderful that in a country where majority of the citizens are Catholics, the government recognizes the religious holidays of other religions.

We should be reminded that it is everybody's constitutionally protected right to choose, practice, believe, or not believe a religion. We shouldn't judge people on what religion they believe.

Misunderstandings occur because people forget this simple thing. Even I sometimes do. Especially when it comes to the issue of homosexuality. But I keep reminding myself that one's religion should be respected.

I am not Muslim. I used to be Catholic. Now I'm agnostic. But I am expressing solidarity with my Muslim brothers and sisters on their religious holiday, Eid Ul-Fitr. (I don't know the right greeting for this. Is it just like other holidays? Is "Happy Eid Ul-Fitr" okay?)

News Tidbits

The following are links to different articles that interest me. Although some may not be the most recent, I am still sharing them with you.

GAY RELATED NEWS:

Google's Co-Founder & President, Sergey Brin, blogged about their oposition of Proposition 8 in California.

...it is the chilling and discriminatory effect of the proposition on many of our employees that brings Google to publicly oppose Proposition 8. While we respect the strongly-held beliefs that people have on both sides of this argument, we see this fundamentally as an issue of equality.

BAD NEWS:

Bashar, a young gay organizer of safe houses for gays and lesbians in Baghdad has been assasinated. The assassins' identities are unclear. Islamist death squads, who targets gays and lesbians for "sexual cleansing", are suspected.

OTHER NEWS:

Those reusable shopping bags some stores sell or giveaway may not be the most environment-friendly thing after all

"If you don't reuse them, you're actually worse off by taking one of them," says Bob Lilienfeld, author of the Use Less Stuff Report, an online newsletter about waste prevention. And because many of the bags are made from heavier material, they're also likely to sit longer in landfills than their thinner, disposable cousins, according to Ned Thomas, who heads the department of material science and engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

News Tidbits

The following are links to different articles that interest me. Although some may not be the most recent, I am still sharing them with you.

GAY RELATED NEWS:

Steven Spielberg and wife has donated $100,000 in support of Gay Marriage. He is the latest high-profile celebrity to donate after Brad Pitt.

The Independent has articles on the 10 best places to be gay in, the 5 most improved places for gay tolerance, and the 5 least gay tolerant places. So next time you're traveling locally or abroad, checkout the places listed here and see if it's true. Tell us 'Mos about it.

Statistics show that same-sex couples in Germany has doubled in the last decade.

A study shows that Gays and Lesbians are an important resource for children awaiting adoption.

Brazil's President supports the legal recognition of same-sex unions.

A Gay Rights group in Brazil launches a campaign to criminalize homophobia.

George Takei (Star Trek, Heroes) has married his partner of 21 years, Brad Altman. To date, this is the highest profile American wedding between two men.

Lindsay Lohan admits relationship with DJ, Samantha Ronson.

SOME BAD NEWS:

Bosnia's first gay festival disrupted. Some were injured.

Man accused of homosexuality in Iran is condemned to death.

OTHER NEWS:

Check out the phone that may give iPhone a run for its money, the first Google Phone.

What do you think of ice cream made out of human breast milk? Yummy? Yay or Nay? Hehehe.

Want to live in a real-life Jenga tower?

News Tidbits

The following are links to different articles that interest me. Although some may not be the most recent, I am still sharing them with you.

Gold Medalist, Matthew Mitcham, will appear in an Australian postage stamp.

An out singer, Theo Tams, wins Canadian Idol.

In Chicago, there are plans to create a separate high school for GLBT students. It could be like the first all-gay high school that opened in 2003.

After more than 12 years, the curtains are now down for the Broadway run of 'Rent'.

California Episcopal Bishops have issued a statement that opposes the ban on gay marriage.

Short Film: The Best Men

I have recently seen a short film called "The Best Men." It's a very nice and touching story. It pulled my heartstrings.

The film is about two childhood best friends. One is getting married and one is the best man. It is obvious that both have unexpressed feelings for each other. But the groom chooses to get married.

My favorite moment was when the mother of the groom talked to the best man at the end of the film. The mother knows how hurt the best man is and in some ways tries to console him.

The music at the end of the film is also nice. The song is called "Forever Is Mine". Unfortunately, it isn't available in mp3 format. If anyone knows where it's available, please tell me.

Now I am sharing it with you. Hope you like it too. Tell me what you think.

This is part 1:

This is part 2:

News Tidbits

The following are links to some assorted articles. They may not be the most recent and you may already know about it. Still, I think it is interesting to share.

There is still a ban on same-sex marriage in Australia. However, recent moves have been taken to grant at least some rights like that of marriage to same-sex couples.

It is indeed time for the fight against homophobia to take the global stage. It is not just an internal issue for a country. All countries need to deal with.

A Gay Association for Italy's Security Forces will be launched.

Gay cleric in line for Bishop.

I don't know you guys already know this, but there is a transgender contestant in the latest cycle of America's Next Top Model (pictured on the right).