For you types who are into beachboys ( not the singing group ) The Wall Street Journal ( 5-16-01 ) notes the dilemma of a Mr. Coulombe of Lewiston, Maine, who runs an old family distillery, wanting to come up with a new product targeted at women. His marketing firm designed ads for a new fruit-flavored rums that they christened "Cabana Boys." Mr. Coulombe's daughter's boyfriend posed for one of the ads. Guess who likes it even better than women? Guess why the company can't use the website www.cabanaboy.com? ( Hint: can you spell "porn"? ) Guess whose boyfriend isn't bothered by the attention he's getting, saying " [ it ] doesn't bother me at all. A lot of guys hit on me."
PlanetOut.com reported on Anthony Romero, the first Latino gay person to head the ACLU, although their story needed a little editing. They reported Romero's parents were "Puerto Rican immigrants" when, of course, Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens and coming to the mainland is not immigration at all.
PlanetOut also revealed that a long hidden arrest of Sir Alec Guinness for engaging in a "homosexual act" has come to light. Guiness ( Lawrence of Arabia, Star Wars ) used a false name—Herbert Pocket —a character in Dickens' Great Expectations. Guiness was about to play the part of Pocket in a David Lean film.
From the "There-ought-to-be-a-gay-angle-here Department": The Chicago Tribune ( 5-18-01 ) reports how a tattoo removal program has turned some troubled young people's lives around. But we've all seen some beautiful lesbigay folk with questionable ( in taste, size, and location ) tattoos. One wonders what they'll do if: 1 ) they find a compatible but non-tattooish partner, or 2 ) they get an extremely visible and dignified job, or 3 ) they get fat ( and have decided the gym bunny routine is for twenty-somethings ) .
The Chicago Reader ( 5-11-01 ) gives a mini review of a book some of one's friends might find interesting, When Someone You Love Is Kinky by Dossie Easton and Catharine A Liszt. The book encourages openness re all sorts of sexual differences—"sadomasochists, foot fetishists, scarification fans ... ."
A number of letters to The New York Times ( 5-10-01 ) comment on an earlier story "Study Says Gays Can Shift Sexual Identity" ( 5-9-01 ) . Among the points the letter writers make: 1 ) Could the reverse be done? Could straights be made gay?; 2 ) Has the study forgotten the already existing concept of bisexuality?; 3. ) Possibly being able to change one's sexuality neglects the price paid—left-handed people used to be forced to write right handed, but what did that do to them?
The Boston Globe ( 5-13-01 ) comments on the same study by Dr. Robert L. Spritzer in changing sexuality. The Spritzer study is contrasted with one by Dr. Ariel Shidlo and Michael Schroeder which suggests that trying to change one's behavior from gay to straight not only does not work but is "potentially harmful." The same story covered the Rev. Jerry Falwell and Elizabeth Birch of the Human Rights Campaign who "squared off" on CNN about this issue.