Bob Barr obviously believes in selective memory.

The Libertarian presidential nominee told voters last week that he opposes the Defense of Marriage Act, a piece of legislation he wrote while the Republican Governor of Georgia. The turnaround garnered him some praise and gave Libertarian voters hope that their candidate would fight for their free-wheeling, states rights values. Too bad Barr doesn’t really buy what he’s selling.
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Mike Gravel may have some competition! The presidential candidate, who yesterday ditched the Democrats for the Libertarian party, will now have to face off against former Congressman Bob Barr.

Georgian-based Barr told voters that he’s “very seriously considering” throwing his name into the ring: There’s been a tremendous expressed to me both directly and indirectly on the Internet. I take that support very seriously, and I think it also reflects a great deal of dissatisfaction with the current candidates and the current two-party system. So it is something, to be honest with you, that I’m looking very seriously at. The move’s a bit of a queer decision for former Republican Barr…
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Lesbian mother Elizabeth Hadaway will not face contempt of court charges for refusing to turn her child over to children’s services. Hadaway was ordered to hand over her tot after her lesbianism cost her custody. A Georgia judge ruled yesterday, however, that the charges should be dropped. Ain’t it all heartwarming and shit? [365 Gay]

A teenager in Athens, Georgia successfully fought of a trio of anti-gay peers. The thugs reportedly punched the teen in the head after calling him some homophobic epithets. They also tried to steal his “purse,” but the kid held onto it until the danger passed. Ain’t no separating some boys from their bags! [Athens Banner-Herald]

• Everything you’ve ever wanted to know about your prostrate, cowboy.

• Graham Norton doesn’t see children in his future. Said the queer chatter box, “I don’t think I could do children. They’re hard work, and what if you fuck them up?” Oh, please! Nannies take care of the children - let them worry about fucking them up. Norton also says he wants to find his “other half”.

• Georgian politicians are mulling a hate crimes revival. But will they include the gays?

• It’ll be a happy new year in New Hampshire and Oregon. The states’ respective civil unions and domestic partnership laws go into effect January 1st.
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Gay politicians are nothing new. Gay Republican politicos? Well, they’re a little more rare. No surprise, then, that Georgia’s Brian Bates deserves a little attention. Though he lost a previous bid for Doraville’s City Council, the 36-year old politico won this go-round by a tidy 58%.

The landslide, some say, represents a real watershed for southern politics: Georgia Equality, the state’s largest organization supporting gay rights, says he’s the first openly gay Republican to win a race in the Deep South.
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“When you are talking about local elections, it’s about finding the most qualified candidate,” said Kyle Bailey, political director for Georgia Equality. “This is a sign of progress of the LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender] community showing that we are your neighbors.

“Number one, Bates is representing the people of Doraville. But he also provides an important voice to the Republican Party and he could help the Republican Party in Georgia to move to a place where it’s welcoming to LGBT.” What a wonderful world that would be…
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Talk about dirty politics! A Riverdale, Georgia mayoral race got ugly this week when a website took aim at transgender city council woman Michelle Bruce. After posting a fairly unflattering picture of Bruce, the anonymous writer calls Bruce an “embarrassment” and repeatedly calls her a him:

The man…tricked us last election. He used an alias and fooled everyone into thinking he was a women! Michele Bruce was the name he used on the ballot and we all thought this was a woman. Just recently Mr. Bruce had to answer to the State Board of Elections for forging names on a recall petition for the Mayor in 04/05. This is the kind of constant harassment that … Continued…

20-year old Pako Tabatadze made history when he became the first Georgian national to come out on national television. Unfortunately, the show’s producers weren’t feeling celebratory. A contestant on GeoBar, a Georgian reality TV show, was expelled after saying on the first episode that he was gay.

Koba Davarashvili, the general director of Rustavi 2 TV, which broadcasts the highly popular show, confirmed on October 14 that the decision to expel Pako Tabatadze, 20, had been taken because of his on-air candor.

“GeoBar is a project, which first and foremost, should show young people’s relationships and their drive for victory from a positive angle,” Davarashvili said. And gay relationships are definitely not positive. In fact, our love … Continued…

Above you see a pyrograph from Georgia-based gay artist Robert Sherer. For those of you not up on your Christian mythology, Sherer’s using martyr St. Sebastian as an allegory for the gay adolescent experience. Apparently Sebastian came up a lot in Sherer’s youth:
I remember several times when my friends and I tied guys to trees and shot them with rubber suction-tipped arrows…we always chose the most beautiful guys for this faux martyrdom. Who wouldn’t?

See more of Sherer’s work here!

Need to fresher your news digest on yesterday’s court ruling? Read this.

• If you weren’t able to attend the Empire State Pride Agenda rally yesterday to protest the New York State Appellate Court’s gay marriage ban decision, this new thing called “Internet video” lets you pretend like you were one of the sign-waving advocates in the crowd. [Good As You]

• The New York Times‘ displeasure with the court’s ruling was all that could be expected. The lede says it all: “New York’s highest court has harmed both the constitutional guarantee of equal protection and its reputation as a guardian of individual liberties by denying same-sex couples … Continued…

No, it’s not what you think. Elton John was not called “fag” at a rest stop or anything. Rather the tax authorities in the state of Georgia have allegedly overvalued his Atlanta penthouse condo by $900,000, resulting in an extra $16,000 per year in tax payments for the music legend.

Pardon us, Elton, but isn’t $16K like pennies for someone with as much money as you have? We think Georgia would put the funds to better use than buying sparkly Versace blazers.

Elton sues US tax authorities over house [Digital Spy]

• The creepy basement guy from Desperate Housewives was canned for being a creepy flasher guy on set. He insists he’s no longer on the show due to the buy out of his contract not because of improper conduct. Hmmm. You lose a lot of credibility once you start whipping your dick out to your co-coworkers.

• Oddly worded pro-gay billboards that read, “I sit next to you. And…I am a lesbian. We are your neighbors” are popping up all over Georgia. The others must say things like “take me to your leader” and “we come in peace.”

• Canadians elected openly gay Andre Boisclair to be leader of the Parti Quebecois and … Continued…