By Gary Barlow

Coming out of the bathroom
I’m all for coming out and, really, I’m open to the fact that people have to do it in the way that they’re most comfortable. Still, I have to admit that I just don’t get the “Republican politician comes out in a bathroom” trend this year.
Nonetheless, yet another one, Florida state Rep. Bob Allen, was legally outed last week when a Florida court convicted him of soliciting sex in a public restroom, a misdemeanor.
It could have been worse, you know, if a certain Florida legislator had been successful earlier this year when he tried and failed to pass a bill that would have made Allen’s crime a felony.
Oh, yeah…that was Allen who sponsored that bill.
Anyway, Allen, who is married (yes—to a woman), said he was just afraid and was going along with whatever the undercover policeman in the bathroom seemed to want, including, I suppose, following the officer into a stall, telling him he hoped he wanted a blowjob and warning him that they had to be careful because cops “come here sometimes, too.”
Anyway, I wonder how long it’s going to be before the Republicans start having a hard time recruiting white married men to run for office because they’re afraid being a white married Republican politician might automatically lead people to assume they’re on the down low.

Political trends we like
Meanwhile, an Australian politician is trying to start a much more pleasant political trend, deciding to recruit “climate hunks” to help her win gay votes.
Dani Ecuyer is running for a legislative seat in a Tasmania district that features voters concerned about the local environment and climate change. The district also includes a large number of gay voters, so Ecuyer decided to make campaign appearances flanked by a couple of hot gay men in their 20s who she’s billing as “climate hunks.”
“They’re mascots who will engage a different sector of the community which potentially, because they’re hunks, could appeal to the gay community,” Ecuyer told GenerationQ.net. “It’s cool to be young, hunky and engaged in the climate issue.”
Well, it sure beats going negative, doesn’t it? Maybe it’s a trend that could catch on here. I’m sure there are a few hunky guys in Boystown who’d be happy to stand there, smile and shake it a bit during campaign appearances by our own state Reps. Sara Feigenholtz and Greg Harris. “CTA funding hunks,” anyone?

Mount O’Reilly blows again
Ol’ Blowhard Bill O’Reilly went off the deep end over an item we reported last week—the story about students at suburban Waukegan High School voting a lesbian couple as the school’s “cutest couple” recently.
Now, one, isn’t Blowhard Bill a bit old to be getting all wound up about a high school popularity contest? Just wondering…
Anyway, after O’Reilly blabbered on about “private behavior” belonging “in private settings,” his guest, Northwestern University psychiatry professor Laura Berman, asked if he’d be OK with the kids voting a heterosexual couple as “cutest couple.”
“I would be, because that is the norm of society,” Blowhard replied.
The good doctor then proceeded to talk circles around O’Reilly, who struggled to explain how a teenage lesbian couple, just by existing, I guess, is allowing “sexuality to intrude in your high school yearbook.”
The more the doctor talked him down, the more frustrated Blowhard Bill got, finally declaring, “You know, you don’t have to take out posters and put them on your front lawn.”
Um, OK, Bill…it’s alright, really…wanna go play some shuffleboard now?

Cultural trends we like
Hopefully Bill won’t be trekking up to Edmonton later this month.
If, however, you’re looking for something a little different, head on up to Alberta’s capital city Nov. 23-Dec. 1 for the first Exposure: Edmonton’s Queer Arts and Culture Festival.
The fest aims to become the largest of its kind in Canada, featuring music, photography, exhibits, theater, literature and films by gays and lesbians from across the country.
There’s the Loud ‘N’ Queer Cabaret; Queer Territories, an art exhibit; films such as “Desert Hearts,” “Wars We Dress Up For” and “533 Statements”; Ivan Coyote; Alberta Beef Overexposed and more, capped off by Rouge: A Masquerade Ball.
To quote the organizers, “Exposure questions and inspires, celebrates and expands the spectrum of queer expression.”
Well, it beats telling your friends, “We went to Saugatuck again,” doesn’t it? Get more info at www.exposurefestival.ca.