Iran's Mehdi P., from Tabriz; Moshen G., from Shiraz; and Nemat Safavi, from Ardebil, are all awaiting execution for allegedly having gay sex — when they were under 18. Guilty of "lavat" (i.e. sexual conduct between two men, regardless of penetration), the three boys do not yet have dates set for their state-sponsored murders, but one attorney fears it could happen any day, according to Human Rights Watch. Lavat is "punishable by death so long as both the active and passive partners are mature, of sound mind, and have acted of free will" — something that not only conflicts with the boys' age at the time of the alleged "offenses," but also a gross violation of international law, which forbids, under any circumstance, the executive of juvenile offenders. Continued »

It took months of pleading and Halloween costume dress-up, but Ellen DeGeneres has finally scored her dream: co-starring on the cover of O magazine with Oprah. Continued »

As if shopping at Wal-Mart didn't already require the suspension of a certain set of morals, here's a whole new reason to loathe the retail giant: After falsely accusing two gay dads of stealing, and detaining their two children in the store, and allegedly harassing them, and manufacturing a situation that had the dads handcuffed and in the back of a police car, Wal-Mart has banned the family from its stores "for life" — and stuck them with a bill asking for ten times the value of the supposedly stolen items. And what did this family allegedly rob Wal-Mart of? Bic lighters. Continued »

Ya know what we love about YouTube? Gay feuds played out for all the world to see! Know what we hate about YouTube? When people post videos without realizing they are too close to the freakin' camera. Hello, Maggie Gallagher! Continued »

ON OUR GAYDAR — News, notes, clicks, and quips from around the web.

→ Playgirl consultant Daniel Nardicio on Levi Johnston's shoot: "I don’t think it’s appropriate [to ask about penis size]. I ask models [for a look], but they’re not famous. When they’re famous, I’m not going to worry about it. We wouldn’t turn away Levi if he had a small penis.” Also: Johnston has yet to sign the contract.
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SOUNDBITES — "We had given Question 1 about a 70 percent chance of being defeated based on a combination of an analysis of the polling and a statistical model. I don't know how much time I'm supposed to spend defending being on the wrong side of a 70:30 bet — we build in a hedge for a reason — but here comes a little self-reflection. As for the polling, I think we have to seriously consider whether there is some sort of a Bradley Effect in the polling on gay rights issues, although one of the pollsters (PPP, which had a very bad night in NY-23) got it exactly right. Continued »

How do you know Barack Obama has done wondrous things for this country? Because the rest of the world hates us less! Or rather, they love him more than Bush. Welcome to Andrew Sullivan's litmus test. Continued »

Ted Haggard, the adorable former anti-gay preacher and male prostitute enthusiast, is returning to the pulpit! At his house! Continued »

Queer-obsessed television host Joy Behar cannot help herself whenever something gay pops up on her radar. Like Carrie Prejean! And Maine marriage! Luckily, she had a few folks on her television show who sort of know about these topics. Continued »

Remember when DNC asked the gays to donate cash at a June fundraiser? And we handed them a reported (but not verified) $1 million? Some of us remained supportive of the DNC, while others criticized it for, like the White House, refusing to forcefully act on LGBT legislation. And then just this week, the DNC, once again, failed to live up to its commitment to LGBTs when it purposefully omitted any mention of Maine's Question 1 from a series of email blasts to supporters. To make matters worse, not only has the DNC so obviously been turning its back on queers, but now it's been caught lying about it. Continued »

THE SHOT — As Carrie Prejean does with Scripture, some creative license (and Carrie movie inspiration) was taken in reformatting Carrie Prejean's new book Still Standing, released Monday. Continued »

So this is Adam Lambert's new romance? Ferras Alqaisi, who last year released an album with the word "rainbows" in the title, is being shopped around by the gossips as Lambert's post-Drake LaBry beau. Or, you know, they could just be friends, given Ferras worked with Lambert on For Your Entertainment and, as LA gays go, they probably run in the same circles now. Continued »

Word to would-be assailants: Don't scream anti-gay epithets at your assailants, or you're on the hook for a hate crime. We're talking to you Robert Bellamy Jr. (and your two accomplices), who's suspected of attacking two men on Halloween. Continued »

Hahahaha. Judy Weider, the former Advocate editor-in-chief who went on a rampage against the magazine, accidentally posted a draft version of her hatchet job on Regent Media, she reveals in an updated post. She is v. v. sorry! We don't have the line-by-line changes handy, but it sounds like she read our response and updated accordingly. Continued »

Unfortunately we have a date with Ugly Betty, otherwise we might be tempted to take up Manworks.com's offer to stop by tonight's "live male erotic massage demonstration in a New York City store window." Continued »

Larry Johnson, the Kansas City Chiefs running back suspended for just one gay that cost him $300k for using the F-word on Twitter, isn't just an enemy of the gays. He's an enemy of regular old Chiefs fans. Continued »

For HIV-negative men, purposefully not having sex with other dudes carrying the virus sounds like a reasonable strategy to prevent contracting HIV. If you know a potential sex partner is HIV-positive, steering clear brings your risk level down to zero percent, since you're not exposing yourself to the virus. (And yes, this includes sex with condoms.) For HIV-positive men, there's also, seemingly, an advantage to avoiding sex with other poz guys: No risk of exposure to another strain of HIV that could further damage your immune system and complicate your drug regimen. Except now we're being told this technique — of keeping your pee-pee away from anyone carrying the virus — is "bankrupt in terms of actual risk reduction"? Continued »

Just how offensive was South Park's "The F Word" episode this week? Well, they used the "fag" word a lot, which means it's offensive enough for GLAAD to get upset about it! Continued »

Having put together the National Equality March in just a few months, Cleve Jones didn't have time to get around to creating bylaws or an official budget for umbrella group Equality Across America. Which means now that the march is over, and EAA's coffers have some $90,000 left over — thanks to cost reduction and fundraising — it's unclear what's going to happen to it. Continued »

With news arriving that Referendum 71 is officially a go, Keyboard Cat put together this little ditty for you to enjoy. Continued »