LGBTQ news and entertainment
Some news items you might have missed: • GLAAD: A new poll by GLAAD found that 94% of LGBTQ Americans are motivated to vote, with those residing in seven swing states preferring President Joe Biden over Donald Trump by a margin of 57 points. Continue reading “GLAAD Poll: 94% Of LGBTQ Voters Motivated To Vote + More News”
Some news items you might have missed: • Military.com: Amid a growing wave of local anti-LGBTQ laws in conservative-leaning states, where the Army does most of its business, the Army is circulating a draft policy tweak that would specify that soldiers can request to move if they feel state or local laws discriminate against them. Continue reading “Army Soldiers Stationed In Anti-LGBTQ States + More News”
(image via Depositphotos)
Former ‘Bachelor’ star Colton Underwood (screen capture)
According to him, last year, while living in Los Angeles, he secretly visited a spa known for catering to gay clientele. Shortly thereafter, he received an anonymous email, which has been reviewed by Variety, from someone claiming to have taken his nude photos at the venue.
Underwood never saw the alleged photos and explains he was at the spa “just to look,” saying he “should have never been there.” The unidentified sender threatened to “out” him in the press, and in a panic of paranoia, Underwood forwarded the email to his publicist, Alex Spieller, which forced him to finally have an honest conversation about his sexual orientation.
Colton Underwood: “Controlling situations to try to grasp at any part of the straight fantasy that I was trying to live out was so wrong.” https://t.co/gsrAcVPU1P
— Variety (@Variety) May 12, 2021
Jerry Falwell Jr and friend
In a statement released to the conservative Washington Examiner, the virulently anti-LGBTQ Falwell said the affair between his wife Becki and their ‘pool boy’ occurred eight years ago and was short-lived. In May 2019, Reuters reported that a 2015 recording had surfaced between Michael Cohen, Donald Trump’s former attorney, and comedian Tom Arnold wherein Cohen shared Falwell had asked for his help in keeping “a bunch of photographs, personal photographs” from becoming public. In the recording, Cohen admitted to having seen the pics and described them as “terrible.” Falwell Jr. eventually endorsed Donald ‘Grab’em by the p*ssy’ Trump for president in the 2016 election. A year later, in 2017, Politico reported the Falwells had invested $1.8 million in a real estate deal involving their son Trey Falwell and Granda. In his statement to the Examiner, Falwell says he is relieved to have the secret out in the open sharing, “It was like living on a roller coaster.” Granda has publicly denied the allegations of extortion. “The Falwell’s attempt to sandbag me, and the Examiner, with a last-minute story without providing the Examiner clear evidence that this was not simply an ‘affair’ with concocted allegations of extortion reeks desperation,” wrote Granda in an email to the Examiner. “The WHOLE truth will come out.” Granda also reached out to Reuters and shared “emails, text messages and other evidence that he says demonstrate the sexual nature of his relationship with the couple, who have been married since 1987.” “Becki and I developed an intimate relationship and Jerry enjoyed watching from the corner of the room,” Granda told Reuters.
Cohen said someone had compromising photos of Mrs. Falwell in 2015 and he tried to help the Falwells handle the situation. A few months later, Falwell surprisingly endorsed Trump over Cruz, giving him support from a key evangelical leader. https://t.co/EGZ5vEgp17
— Andrew Prokop (@awprokop) August 24, 2020
Pool boy out there laying pipe all over the place. https://t.co/j1HEOuxXLT
— Danny Braggadocious (@danzu72) August 24, 2020
It’s all been pretty well-documented, in Politico and other publications — now that he claims his wife was having an affair with the pool boy it all comes together. I had connected all the dots earlier this month.https://t.co/w9vDo6j9hg
— Michelangelo Signorile, subscribe to my newsletter (@MSignorile) August 24, 2020
(screen capture via WISH TV)
And then…wait for it…she was involved in a car crash with another vehicle on Tuesday morning. The driver of the other car involved in the crash found her unresponsive in her car AND she had a gunshot wound. Witnesses told the local CBS news affiliate they saw Waughfield’s yellow Camaro traveling at a high rate of speed before the car crash. Police refuse to comment as to whether social media played a role in the incident.
In this week’s podcast: • Marriage equality comes to Northern Ireland • A gay conservative student who led a drag queen protest was found dead of suicide just hours later • Blackmail forces a YouTube star to come out • The truth behind rumors of backstage fights at NBC’s ‘Will & Grace’ • And the Oscar nominations are out and pretty much without the gays All that and more in this episode of The Randy Report
More details have come to light about Donald Trump’s unusual phone call wherein he reportedly pressed the president of Ukraine 8 time to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden or Trump would withhold previously promised military aid. From the Washington Post:
When President Trump spoke on the telephone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in late July, the Ukrainians had a lot at stake. They were waiting on millions in stalled military aid from the United States, and Zelensky was seeking a high-priority White House meeting with Trump.
Trump told his Ukrainian counterpart that his country could improve its image if it completed corruption cases that have “inhibited the interaction between Ukraine and the USA,” according to a readout of the call released by Kiev.
What neither government said publicly at the time was that Trump went even further — specifically pressing Ukraine’s president to reopen a corruption investigation involving former vice president Joe Biden’s son, according to two people familiar with the call, which is now the subject of an explosive whistleblower complaint.
Trump, of course, took to Twitter to denounce what he now calls the ‘Ukraine Witch Hunt.’
….story about me and a perfectly fine and routine conversation I had with the new President of the Ukraine. Nothing was said that was in any way wrong, but Biden’s demand, on the other hand, was a complete and total disaster. The Fake News knows this but doesn’t want to report!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 21, 2019
Now that the Democrats and the Fake News Media have gone “bust” on every other of their Witch Hunt schemes, they are trying to start one just as ridiculous as the others, call it the Ukraine Witch Hunt, while at the same time trying to protect Sleepy Joe Biden. Will fail again!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 21, 2019
What part of pressuring a foreign government to attack our elections don’t you get? This should be the show stopper, for crying out loud.
— Walter Shaub (@waltshaub) September 21, 2019
Trump welcomed foreign interference in 2016 and tried to cover it up. He’s using the presidency for financial gain and obstructing Congress. Now he’s asking another foreign government to interfere in 2020. Each day we don’t impeach him, he grows bolder. We have to act.
— David Cicilline (@davidcicilline) September 21, 2019
In a candid video message shared via social media, rugby legend Gareth Thomas (above) has revealed that he is HIV-positive. Thomas, who came out publicly as gay in 2009 and retired from the sport in 2011, made the announcement Saturday in a video posted on Twitter. As part of his message, he shared he was making the announcement now because he was ‘being blackmailed’ over his status. “I want to share my secret with you,” the former Wales rugby star shares in the video message. “Why? Because it’s mine to tell you. Not the evils that make my life hell by threatening to tell you before I do. And because I believe in you and I trust you.” After pausing for a moment, the 45-year-old athlete continued, “I’m living with HIV.” “Now you have that information, that makes me extremely vulnerable, but it does not make me weak,” he added. “Now, even though I’ve been forced to tell you this, I choose to fight to educate and break the stigma around this subject. And that begins today.” “Everyone lives in fear of people’s reactions and opinions to something about them, but that doesn’t mean we should have to hide,” concluded the rugby icon. “But to do this I really, really need your support.”
— Gareth Thomas (@gareththomas14) September 14, 2019
Courageous as ever – legend on the pitch and legend off it. You have our support Gareth. W https://t.co/WXGof2N3j8
— Kensington Palace (@KensingtonRoyal) September 15, 2019
So much respect for your strength and courage. Wishing you all the best @gareththomas14. https://t.co/IckMwggu0N
— British & Irish Lions (@lionsofficial) September 15, 2019
Gareth Thomas has again shown enormous strength in declaring himself HIV positive. A role model challenging stigma and prejudice. His example offers hope and resolve to others. Solidarity, @gareththomas14. https://t.co/kpJPbWgBoB
— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) September 14, 2019
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| Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos (image via Flickr/JD Lasica) |
Last night, Amazon CEO and founder Jeff Bezos took to Medium to tell the world that the parent company for the National Enquirer, American Media Inc., had threatened to blackmail him by releasing embarrassing photos and text messages of Bezos.
Not only did he address the alleged threat head on, he published the threatening emails in full.
Just a taste from Bezos via Medium:
Something unusual happened to me yesterday. Actually, for me it wasn’t just unusual — it was a first. I was made an offer I couldn’t refuse. Or at least that’s what the top people at the National Enquirer thought. I’m glad they thought that, because it emboldened them to put it all in writing. Rather than capitulate to extortion and blackmail, I’ve decided to publish exactly what they sent me, despite the personal cost and embarrassment they threaten.
Any personal embarrassment AMI could cause me takes a back seat because there’s a much more important matter involved here. If in my position I can’t stand up to this kind of extortion, how many people can? (On that point, numerous people have contacted our investigation team about their similar experiences with AMI, and how they needed to capitulate because, for example, their livelihoods were at stake.)
In the AMI letters I’m making public, you will see the precise details of their extortionate proposal: They will publish the personal photos unless Gavin de Becker and I make the specific false public statement to the press that we “have no knowledge or basis for suggesting that AMI’s coverage was politically motivated or influenced by political forces.”
One of the photos listed in the threats is described as “a shirtless Mr. Bezos holding his phone in his left hand — while wearing his wedding ring.”
It goes on to mention that the wealthiest man in the world is “wearing either tight black cargo pants or shorts — and his semi-erect manhood is penetrating the zipper of said garment.”
AMI says it ‘acted lawfully’ but will investigate the issue.
Right.
Of course, AMI has admitted to paying one of Donald Trump’s mistresses for her story in a ‘catch and kill’ move to make sure it never saw the light of day as the CEO of AMI, David Pecker, is a longtime fan of the Donald who hates Bezos.
Go read the entire post by Bezos. It’s worth the read.