Gay fearing Byron Butler provides a great segue into another kooky, confused old man: John McCain! The Republican presidential candidate's currently on day four of his "Service To America" tour, an attempt to prove his hawkish, conservative chops to a wobbly electoral base. He's walking a fine line, however, by supporting the war and keeping a distance from President Bush, who started the Iraqi disaster.

Such comparisons have long dogged Senator McCain, and yesterday he unequivocally rejected any equation between him and George W. Bush: "I'm not running on the Bush presidency. I'm running on my own service and my vision for the future."

McCain must need glasses, because we see a man who's largely in step with Bush, particularly with regard to us gays.

CONTINUED »

Conservative leader James Dobson had a change of heart yesterday.

Dobson told Fox News' Sean Hannity & Alan Colmes that he will vote this election, which he previously threatened to boycott:

Let me just say that I will certainly vote. I think we have a God-given responsibility to vote, and there are all of the candidates and the issues down the ballot that we have an obligation to weigh in on and let our voices be heard.

No, he didn't endorse John McCain, whom he publicly rejected. Of course, one can't expect Dobson to vote for either Democratic hopeful. Endorsing a woman or a black man simply wouldn't be Right.

On a related note, Hannity reportedly told Dobson that McCain promised to take a hard line on marriage, which doesn't bode well for the gay vote.

Denver-based musician James Roy and his pals have some serious balls.

The gay activists took a tour of Focus on The Family's "Welcome" Center last weekend in hopes of starting a dialogue with the anti-gay group and its evil leader, James Dobson.

In a personal letter to Dobson, James Roy wrote about his own commitment to being a positive impact in the lives of others. "I think it benefits us to reflect on what we have in common….I am here today to take a tour to better understand you and invite you to the possibility of dialogue."

In the spirit of the nonviolent teachings of Gandhi and King, each participant left a single yellow rose for Dobson to symbolize their desire for dialogue.

Unfortunately, the kids didn't know that James Dobson sucks the life out of everything around him and used the roses to recharge his black heart. They did learn, however, that Dobson likes James Brown, a known black man. Madness!

Watch the groups video take here.

Looking for a positively frightful Halloween costume? Perhaps Part Two of The 20 Most Frightful Anti-Gay Activists can be of assistance…

Be warned, however, these folks aren't for the faint of heart…

CONTINUED »

Focus on the Family founder James Dobson made clear that he will not be supporting Republican Fred Thompson's bid for the White House. It seems Thompson's simply a little too gay friendly for old Jimmy's taste.

The evangelical leader wrote in a "private" email:

Isn't Thompson the candidate who is opposed to a Constitutional amendment to protect marriage, believes there should be 50 different definitions of marriage in the U.S., favors McCain-Feingold, won't talk at all about what he believes, and can't speak his way out of a paper bag on the campaign trail?
…
He has no passion, no zeal, and no apparent 'want to.' And yet he is apparently the Great Hope that burns in the breasts of many conservative Christians? Well, not for me, my brothers. Not for me!

That's fine by us. The more division in the Republican ranks, the better.

Mike Huckabee must be thrilled.

Things aren't looking good for anti-gay crusaders Focus on The Family:

Focus on the Family is laying off 30 employees and reassigning 15 others, due in part to a drop in projected revenue and to growth in technology.

Most of the layoffs are in the department that answers mail and telephone requests, while the reassignments were prompted by growth in e-mail and Internet-based communications, said Gary Schneeberger, vice president of communications for the conservative Christian ministry.

Schneeberger says the group came in about $8 million short of its $150 million budget. Head honcho James Dobson says donations have fallen in recent months.

Tear, tear…

• James Dobson and his GOP-backing not an infringement of Focus on the Family's non-profit status, says IRS.

• Worst opening to a Larry Craig story ever?

If nothing else, Sen. Larry Craig defies our impulsive hetero stereotype of gay men as frail, prissy little things flitting around like butterflies on a hydrangea bush.

That's quite a specific stereotype.

• There's something rotten in the state of YouTube: the mega site's apparently censoring gay kissing, but allows videos of gay bashing. WTF?!

CONTINUED »

Online dating site eHarmony has finally landed a date with a jury. Lesbian Linda Carlson's lawyer filed the suit yesterday with the Los Angeles Superior Court and alleges the virtual breeding pool denied her because she's gay. Though this may be the first lawsuit of it's kind launched against the company, it's hardly the first time they've come under fire for their anti-gay ways.

Rival dating company, Chemistry.com, recently launched an ad campaign deriding eHarmony's discriminatory policies. Among the mud slinging clips, one will find one of a gay man wondering if his dick digging disqualified him from the site. eHarmony has since filed a lawsuit against Chemistry.com's parent company, Match.com.

eHarmony's homophobic stance shouldn't be surprising. Founder Dr. Neil Clark Warren once peddled his relationship building "skills" on Focus on the Family's James Dobson's radio program. The organizations dissolved their official relationship when eHarmony went public, but many claim Warren kept the Christian inclinations. eHarmony's defended its actions in the past, claiming that they're marriage oriented site and since gays can't marry, they can't cater to the queens. They've also asserted that their extensive compatibility questionnaire - the one that helps them set up "soul mates" - has been designed for heterosexual couples and thus they can't guarantee its gay effectiveness. We can (almost) guarantee that's bullshit.