Our Man Jake Gyllentaal is Been Keeping Secret Girls from us

(Wonderwall)

• Evenly matched amounts of prettiness do not always add up to compatibility. To wit: Us Weeklyreports that Jake Gyllenhaal recently enjoyed a brief but ultimately unsuccessful romance with Minka Kelly.
  "It was never serious," shrugs a source of the pair's handful of dates, "and it's over now."
  Too bad, because the actor, 31, had apparently been harboring a crush on the dark-haired looker, 32, for a while.
  According to the mag, he asked her out last fall, but she gave him the brush-off because of her on-again, off-again three-year romance with New York Yankees star Derek Jeter.
  "Minka wasn't into Jake when he first pursued her," sums up an insider.

Harvard: Racism Cost Obama 10% of Electorate

 A study by a Harvard doctoral candidate claims that racism cost President Barack Obama an estimated 3 to 5 percent of the national popular vote in 2008, yielding his opponent Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) “the equivalent of a home-state advantage country-wide.” “Quantifying the effects of racial prejudice on voting is notoriously problematic,” Harvard doctoral candidate Seth Stephens-Davidowitz wrote of his study in theNew York Times. “Few people admit bias in surveys. So I used a new tool, Google Insights, which tells researchers how often words are searched in different parts of the United States.” Stephens-Davidowitz analyzed Google searches from 2004 through 2007 and charted how frequently racial epithets like “nigger” were used in various regions. He did not include data after 2007 “to avoid capturing reverse causation, with dislike for Obama causing individuals to use racially charged language on Google.” His study showed that West Virginia was the state with the largest racially charged search rate in the county, while western Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio, upstate New York and southern Mississippi all had high percentages as well.

“Whether many white Americans will not vote for a black presidential candidate is perhaps the most renowned problem complicated by social desirability bias,” Stephens-Davidowitz concludes. “Scholars have long doubted the accuracy of survey results on this sensitive question. Google search query data, this paper shows, offer clear evidence that continuing racial animus in the United States costs a black candidate substantial votes.”

by Ryan J. Reilly is a D.C.-based reporter for TPM. Prior to joining TPM, he worked for a news website covering the Justice Department and was a researcher for Bloomberg News. His email address is ryan(at)talkingpointsmemo.com

UK Daily Mail, Andrew Pierce, Adopted,Gay with Partner Opposes Gay Marriage

By Andrew Pierce  Daily Mail

When David Cameron committed the Government to supporting same-sex marriage some months ago, he declared: ‘I don’t support gay marriage despite being a Conservative. I support gay marriage because I’m a Conservative.’ His argument being that the party should support a long-term commitment in any relationship.
The unexpected policy shift caused uproar in the Tory Party in Parliament and across the country. A poll by Catholic Voice of 550 gay men and women suggested only 40 per cent identified the change in marriage as their priority Now, a submission by the Church of England into the Government’s consultation on gay marriage has warned of an historic division between the Church’s canon law — that marriage is between a man and a woman — and Parliament. It suggests the schism could even lead to ‘disestablishment’, a split between the Church and the State, and the removal of the Queen as Supreme Governor of the Church.
Despite the opposition of every major faith group — notably the Catholic Church — Mr Cameron is arrogantly pressing ahead with an issue which excites his chums in the metropolitan elite, but which disregards the sentiments of millions of ordinary people who, as poll after poll has shown, are against it. Even some of the Prime Minister’s admirers concede that the policy has less to do with offering equality to the gay community and more to do with decontaminating the allegedly ‘toxic’ Tory brand.
Perhaps the Prime Minister has calculated that anyone who stands up and argues against his proposals will be branded a homophobe and a bigot. The Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams has called the Government's gay marriage proposals 'completely irrational' Well, Mr Cameron, I am a Conservative and a homosexual, and I oppose gay marriage. Am I a bigot?
And what about Alan Duncan, the first Conservative MP to come out as gay? Mr Duncan, the International Aid Minister who is in a civil partnership, is implacably opposed to gay marriage. So is Dr David Starkey, the celebrated historian, who is openly gay. The Labour MP Ben Bradshaw, meanwhile, who was the first Cabinet minister to enter into a civil partnership, is contemptuous of Mr Cameron’s motive for smashing down centuries of traditional Church teaching in reference to marriage.
 ‘This isn’t a priority for the gay community, which has already won equal rights with civil partnerships,’ says Bradshaw. ‘This is pure politics.’ He’s right. It’s yet another sop to the wretched Lib Dems, even though they number only 57 of the 650 MPs at Westminster. The introduction of same-sex marriage became a policy commitment at the Lib Dem conference two years ago, even though there was no reference to it in their election manifesto, or in their four-page manifesto written for the gay community only six months earlier. At the time, the former Lib Dem MP Dr Evan Harris hailed the policy as ‘creating clear blue water with the Tories’.
Few Conservatives took the idea seriously — until Mr Cameron’s bombshell announcement at the last Tory conference that he backed it, too. In spite of the furore caused by the Church of England’s intervention this week, Downing Street is insisting that Mr Cameron, who has so far performed 34 policy U-turns in power, has no intention of backing down on this issue. Even gay rights campaigners are puzzled by the Prime Minister’s conversion to the cause. Stonewall, a powerful pressure group for gay equality, has not called for gay marriage. While the organisation — of which I’m proud to be a member — supports the idea of gay marriage, its priority remains tackling homophobia in schools after research showed that gay men in the 16-to-24 age group are significantly more likely to have attempted suicide than other young men.
So who — apart from Mr Cameron — is clamouring for gay marriage to be allowed? The Treasury estimates that six per cent of the population, or 3.7 million people, is gay. Yet I understand the Government’s Equalities office, having approached a polling company to test the opinion of the gay community, then decided not to go ahead.
Were the officials worried what the conclusions might be? None of my gay friends want gay marriage to be written into law.
Kieran Bohan and Warren became the first gay couple to be wed in a religious building, but do other want the same? A poll by Catholic Voice of 550 gay men and women suggested only 40 per cent identified the change in marriage as their priority. Certainly, at Westminster yesterday, Tory MPs were appalled by the Prime Minister’s perverse set of priorities. As one senior Tory figure told me: ‘In the week we have been demanding a policy shift to kickstart economic growth. We get instead an entirely predictable row about gay marriage. ‘What sort of message does our preoccupation with fringe issues like gay marriage and Lords reform send to people who are worried about their jobs?’ The Tory Party HQ, I can disclose, has warned the Prime Minister that this issue has triggered the biggest revolt among grassroots members since Tory MPs dumped Margaret Thatcher in 1990.
Literally thousands of the party’s foot soldiers are refusing to renew their subscriptions. Some major donors have closed their cheque books. So Tory rebels will be emboldened by this astonishing warning by the Church of England, which for once is showing clear and principled leadership, that it could be forced to abandon its traditional role of conducting weddings on behalf of the State. Certainly, the Archbishop of Canterbury has dismissed as worthless the assurances of the Prime Minister and the Lib Dem Equalities Minister Lynne Featherstone — nicknamed ‘Featherlight’ by her despairing civil servants — that churches will not be ordered to conduct same-sex marriage ceremonies.
The Tory Party HQ has warned the Prime Minister that this issue has triggered the biggest revolt among grassroots members since Tory MPs dumped Margaret Thatcher in 1990 Mr Cameron seems to have learned nothing from the follies of the Labour government when it comes to imposing an equalities agenda on Britain’s leading faiths.
In 2007, Labour passed legislation which effectively ordered Roman Catholic adoption agencies to place children with same-sex couples.

"Sandusky Victim Screamed from the Basement'

The prosecution's case in Jerry Sandusky's sex abuse trial neared its conclusion on Thursday after just four days of testimony, with three more accusers taking the witness stand, including a young man who said the former Penn State assistant football coach raped him as a teen guest in Sandusky's home.

The eighth accuser to testify told jurors the abuse began with fondling and forced oral sex and led to several instances of rape in the basement of Sandusky's Centre County home, where he spent more than 100 nights and where his muffled screams went unanswered by Sandusky's wife, Dottie, who was upstairs. He said he figured the basement must be soundproof.

"He got real aggressive and just forced me into it," said the young man, now 18 and a recent high school graduate. "And I just went with it — there was no fighting against it."

He said under cross-examination by Sandusky lawyer Joe Amendola that the attacks sometimes left him bleeding but that he never sought medical attention.

"I just dealt with it," he said.

Another accuser told jurors Sandusky called himself the "tickle monster" before embracing him in a shower.

Also testifying was Anthony Sassano, an investigator with the attorney general's office, who disclosed that the office learned of a key witness, Mike McQueary, after an anonymous letter was sent to Centre County prosecutors.

Judge John Cleland told jurors there would be no court Friday and to return Monday.

The 18-year-old, described as Victim 9 in court records, became known to investigators after Sandusky was first arrested in November and his mother summoned police to their home. He said he didn't want to talk to them at first.

"Who would believe kids?" he said.

A few weeks later Sandusky was charged with two counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and other offenses in his case, among the most serious set of the 52 charges Sandusky has denied and is fighting.

A third accuser, known as Victim 3, was an Army National Guard soldier who testified Thursday that despite being fondled by Sandusky he had viewed him as a father figure and was crushed when he was sent to a group home and Sandusky never contacted him again.

"I would pray he would call me and maybe find a way to get me out of there," he said, "but it never happened."

He testified that he felt uncomfortable when Sandusky touched his genitals in bed and he would roll over to prevent anything else from happening but that he didn't tell Sandusky not to get into bed with him.

"He made me feel like I was a part of something, like a family," the man said. "He gave me things that I hadn't had before."

He said that he loved Sandusky and that Sandusky treated him like he was part of an extended family that made him feel "unconditionally loved."

Sandusky's arrest brought disgrace to Penn State and led to the ouster of both the school's president and its Hall of Fame football coach Joe Paterno.

Sandusky's attorney questioned accusers on Thursday about connections they had with other accusers. The defense has claimed that the accusers have financial motives, although several have said that police contacted them and that they expressed their reluctance to get involved.

Earlier Thursday, an accuser called Victim 6 testified that Sandusky described himself as a "tickle monster" and embraced the then-11-year-old boy in a Penn State shower in 1998, an encounter that prompted an investigation but ended without any charges filed.

Now 25, he told jurors Sandusky embraced him in a locker room shower, lathered up his back and shoulders then lifted him chest-to-chest to a shower head to rinse out his hair.

The man said the shared shower happened after a brief workout at a campus gym, even though he hadn't broken a sweat. His mother went to authorities when she saw her son come home with wet hair, although the inquiry spawned by her report didn't lead to any charges.

The witness, who described himself as a big football fan, testified that Sandusky showed him Penn State football facilities and let him try on players' equipment.

One of the investigators who interviewed the boy and Sandusky at the time, Ronald Schreffler, told the court that he thought charges were warranted but that the district attorney, Ray Gricar, disagreed.

Gricar cannot explain his decision; he disappeared in 2005 and was later declared legally dead.

On cross-examination, the man testified that in recent years he and Sandusky exchanged text messages, sent notes for holidays and special occasions and last summer met for lunch. He also told the court that Sandusky and his wife had supported a mission trip he took to Mexico.

"As I started to go over it in my mind I quickly realized, my perception changed thinking about it as an adult as opposed to an 11-year-old," he said. "That was inappropriate, what happened to me."

Asked whether he was looking for financial benefit from coming forward, the man replied, "Zero."

Sassano, the state investigator, said authorities obtained lists of children who attended events sponsored by Sandusky's charity, The Second Mile, sending investigators across a wide swath of the State College region to talk to participants. They also poured through Sandusky's biography, "Touched," and other documents found in his home and office.

They brainstormed about who else could have been in university buildings during off hours, including janitors and others. Eventually, they issued subpoenas to Penn State.

"Penn State, to be quite frank, was not very quick in getting us our information," he said.

Marylandi Cannibal Had Been Around In Attack and Assault

A Maryland cannibalism suspect faces an attempted murder charge in a different attack at a Baltimore university dorm.

Alexander Kinyua, 21, already faced assault and reckless endangerment charges in the May attack at Morgan State University. But a Baltimore grand jury on Thursday indicted him on the more serious charges of first- and second-degree attempted murder, first- and second-degree assault and a weapons offense. The state's attorney's office declined to comment on the indictment.

Joshua Ceasar said Kinyua hit him over the head with a baseball bat wrapped in barbed wire and chains as he walked into Kinyua's campus apartment, knocking him out. Friends who followed a blood trail from the door to a back room told Ceasar they discovered Kinyua standing over him with a knife.

Days later, Ceasar learned Kinyua had told the Harford County Sheriff's investigators that he used a knife to kill and carve up Kujoe Bonsafo Agyei-Kodie, 37, before eating his heart and brain. Agyei-Kodie, a native of Ghana, had been staying at the Kinyua family's home for about six weeks when he disappeared May 25. Kinyua was charged with murder and assault in the killing.

Ceasar has said he believes Kinyua planned the same for him.

Attorney Richard Boucher, who represented Kinyua at a bail hearing in the assault, told the judge that Kinyua acted out of fear for his life when he hit Ceasar. Kinyua had told the attorney that Ceasar had told him he would have a gun the next time he saw him, he said. Ceasar denies this. An attorney now representing Kinyua declined to comment on the indictment.

Some, including Ceasar and his attorney, have raised questions about whether the university should have looked more closely at Kinyua after a December outburst in a computer lab that led to his expulsion from the campus ROTC program and cryptic comments about "blood sacrifice" at a January university forum.

"In light of what happened to the second victim I think it's the appropriate charge," said Ceasar's attorney Steve Silverman, who is exploring a lawsuit and investigating whether the university could have done more before the attack.

School spokesman Clinton Coleman has said the university is doing a "top-to-bottom" review, but so far it appears procedures were followed. Two campus officers visited Kinyua after the December outburst and he was assessed by the counseling center, Coleman said.

In early May, police received a report that a young man matching Kinyua's description was had a machete, but found nothing when they searched him and his room.

By SARAH BRUMFIELD
Associated Press

“The Best I Ever Had Rapper” Had The Hardest Ever Had Punches in The Face

 

Hall/Pena; PacificCoastNews.com; Michael Kovac/Getty Images

Drake may have been at the nightclub when a fight broke out there involving Chris Brown, but the "Best I Ever Had" rapper insists he had nothing do with it.

A rep for Drake told E! News in a statement: "Drake did not participate in any wrongdoing of any kind last night at W.i.P. He was on his way out of the club when the altercation began."

Meanwhile, Brown's publicist gave us the following quote: "Chris, [model] Karrueche [Tran] and his friends were victims of a brutal attack last night at W.i.P. They sustained several injuries. Chris and his party are cooperating with NY authorities who are pursuing this incident further."

 However, a source, who claims to have spoken with a staffer at a local business who was on hand, spoke with E! News, alleging that, per the staffer, Drake supposedly approached Brown outside the club. The source claims that someone then threw a bottle at Breezy, with security jumping in to try to protect him.And this morning, Jim Ruscingno, an eyewitness outside the club, spoke to E! News about what he had seen."I didn't see the fight, but the first person to come out was Chris Brown," he said. "He rushed out of the club and his security guard was bloody. Then Meek Mill came out laughing and joking around. Then Drake came out and he looked heated, like he was looking for someone. At first, everyone outside the club didn't know what was happening."In the aforementioned statement, though, Drake's rep stressed that "[Drake] did not engage in any activity which resulted in injury to person or damage to property.”
 by Sharareh Drury E!

Gay Marriage is No a Longer Loosing Proposition

 Opponents of gay marriage have an unblemished track record in U.S. elections, chalking up 32 victories in 32 public votes.

They've won in blue states and red ones, among the most heavily religious areas and among the least-churched. North Carolina punctuated the winning streak just last month by comfortably approving a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex unions.

Gay marriage supporters are optimistic that they can end their losing ways this year, with four states voting on the issue in November. They're particularly encouraged by the prospects in Washington and Maine. Meanwhile opponents have taken steps to maintain their unflawed record and believe their side will be motivated to hold the status quo.

Here are five reasons why same-sex marriage proponents have a decent shot at success in 2012:

WASHINGTON: Officials certified a gay marriage referendum on Tuesday, meaning Washingtonians will decide the issue this fall. Voters upheld an "everything but marriage" law in a similar referendum vote three years ago, approving it by a 53-47 margin. That was the first time that a state's voters had agreed to extend relationship rights to same-sex couples. It expanded benefits including the right to use sick leave to care for a domestic partner, and rights related to adoption, child custody and child support. Lawmakers comfortably approved gay marriage earlier this year as political leaders such as Gov. Chris Gregoire talked about how their views on the issue had changed. However gay marriage opponents are not conceding anything yet. National groups have promised time and money to fight Washington's new same-sex marriage law via the referendum, including the Washington, D.C.-based National Organization for Marriage, which was involved in ballot measures that overturned same-sex marriage in California and Maine.

REPUBLICANS: Six Republican lawmakers in Washington voted in favor of the gay marriage legislation, and a leading GOP candidate for attorney general also declared his support. Republican Rep. Maureen Walsh, who represents conservative territory in eastern Washington anchored by Walla Walla, said she believes opinions on the issue are changing even there. "My district is far more receptive to it than they've ever been in the past," she said.

POLLS: A recent poll conducted by consulting firm Strategies 360 found that 54 percent of likely Washington voters think it should be legal for same-sex couples to get married, though the survey didn't specifically ask them how they'll vote on Referendum 74. Public support nationally has also been increasing steadily, though both sides of the gay marriage issue have indicated caution with opinion polls on this issue, noting that some may say one thing in surveys but vote another way on an emotionally charged issue. And same-sex marriage opponents point to their many victories at the ballot box in previous elections.

MAINE: Maine voters rejected gay marriage three years ago by a 53-47 margin, and activists have been working over the past two years to change voter opinions. They believe there are positive trends, especially since several of the states that have legal same-sex marriage are New England neighbors — New Hampshire, New York, Massachusetts, Vermont and Connecticut. The Legislature in New Hampshire, now controlled by Republicans, considered repealing that state's gay marriage law this year but ultimately rejected that effort.

OBAMA: President Barack Obama's recent declaration of support for gay marriage was celebrated as a key endorsement among gay rights groups. He remains comparatively popular in Washington, with 53 percent approving of his work and 43 percent disapproving, according to the Strategies 360 poll. Obama's image and statement has been prominently displayed on the website of those trying to sustain the gay marriage law. David Farmer, who is leading efforts to legalize gay marriage in Maine, said Obama's statement galvanized supporters and also echoed the views of people on the fence. "The way he talked about his evolution is very similar to what we see people talking about when we go to door-to-door," Farmer said. But foes of gay marriage in Washington think the president's support could backfire. Joseph Backholm, with Preserve Marriage Washington, has said Obama's endorsement "will galvanize and energize our folks."

___

Associated Press writer Mike Baker can be reached on Facebook: http://on.fb.me/HiPpEV 

2.6yrs Jail Time, Crime? Posted There ’s No God in FaceBook

Alexander Aan, 32, a Minang civil servant who was arrested for blasphemy after he declared himself an atheist on a social media website, was sentenced to two years and six months’ imprisonment and a Rp 100 million (US$10,600) fine by the Negeri Muaro District Court in West Sumatra on Thursday.

Presiding judge Eka Prasetya Budi Dharma said Alexander had been proven guilty of defaming Islam and insulting the Prophet Muhammad through his Facebook account and a fan page titled Ateis Minang (Minang Atheist).

Prosecutors previously sought 3.5 years’ imprisonment without a fine for Alex.

“We considered he acted deliberately, as he did not delete [the information] after protestors reported it to police; whereas he, as an administrator of the fan page, was able to do that,” Eka said.

The judge cited several sentences deemed defamatory, such as Muhammad tertarik kepada menantunya sendiri (Muhammad was attracted to his own daughter-in-law) and Kisah Nabi Muhammad bersenggama dengan babu istrinya (The story of Prophet Muhammad having sexual intercourse with his wife’s maid).

Eka concluded, therefore, that the defendant had violated Article 28 of the Information and Electronic Transaction Law by spreading racial and religious hatred.

Alex said after the trial that he accepted the judges’ decision, adding that he regretted his actions.

In a written statement in February, Alex said he regretted his behavior and that he prayed for God’s mercy.

However, Alex’s lawyer, Deddi Alparesi, said his client would appeal.

“The fine of Rp 100 million makes no sense because no one suffered any financial loss in this case,” Deddi said, adding that the case should have been handled by the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI).

In January, Alex, then a civil servant in the Dharmasraya regency of West Sumatra, was arrested for blasphemy after creating the Facebook fan page, which was “liked” by more than 1,000 Facebook users. On the fan page, Alex, who acknowledges Islam as his religion on his identity card, said that he was an atheist of Minang descent from Padang, West Sumatra, which is a Muslim stronghold.

Alexander also declared that he did not believe in angels, devils, heaven and hell or other “myths”. (swd)

Debout Mormon, Married, Never Been With a Man, Gay

A homosexual, devout Mormon who is married to a woman and has three children has outed himself via a blog post.

Josh Weed from Auburn, Washington, wrote a detailed post last Thursday on The Weed, his blog, which explored his life as a closeted gay man.

Although Lolly Weed, his wife, knew of his secret for some years prior to their marriage, the post revealed his sexuality to many of the couple's friends and family for the first time.

The post, which aims to answer questions that he and his wife preempt those close to them will have, goes into detail about Mr Weed's love for his wife and their sexual relationship.

'Lolly and I have an extremely healthy and robust sex life,' he wrote last week, as the couple were celebrating their ten year anniversary.

  

Mr Weed, a family and marriage specialist, has never had sex with a man but claimed he is certainly homosexual and not bisexual.

He wrote: 'Some might assume that because I'm married to a woman, I must be bisexual. Sexual orientation is defined by attraction, not by experience. In my case, I am attracted sexually to men. Period. I've never been turned on by a Victoria's Secret commercial in my entire life.'

Happily married: Josh and Lolly Weed have been happily married for ten years despite his sexual orientation

The blog post, which is in part written by Lolly, explores everything from when Mr Weed discovered he was gay - he was '11 or 12' - to why he wants to 'grow old' with his wife.

He added that despite his love and attraction to his wife, he is gay and will never become a bisexual.

'I have many, many years of experience which confirm this to be true, but it’s really as simple as what a girl asked me in junior high,' he wrote. '"If everyone in this room took off their clothes, would you be turned on by the girls or the guys?” My answer, which I didn't say out loud, was unquestionably the guys.'

Mr Weed told his wife that he was gay when the couple went on their first date; Mr Weed was just 16.

He assured his readers early in the post that his words were 'written from the standpoint of a devout, believing Mormon'.

He admitted that he was forced to reveal his secret after he began sharing personal information with his work clients.

'My clinical work as a therapist is taking me in the direction of helping clients who struggle to reconcile their sexual orientation with their religious beliefs,' he wrote. 'I have decided to be open with these clients about my own homosexuality, and in doing so have opened the door to people finding out about this in ways I can’t control.'

Mrs Weed revealed that the pair met as 'small children' living on the same street in Utah.

She wrote in one of the blog's most moving paragraphs: 'I knew that I loved Josh... I wanted to marry Josh Weed because I loved the man that he was. I loved everything that made him him. I didn’t want anyone else. I knew that we had the kind of relationship that could work through hard trials and circumstances. I did not choose to marry someone who is gay. I have never regretted it.'

Pentagon To Recognize Gay Troops and Diversity in the Military

Last summer, gays in the military dared not admit their sexual orientation. This summer, the Pentagon will salute them, marking June as gay pride month just as it has marked other celebrations honoring racial or ethnic groups.

In the latest remarkable sign of change since the military repealed the "don't ask, don't tell" policy, the Defense Department will soon hold its first event to recognize gay and lesbian troops. It comes nine months after repeal of the policy that had banned gay troops from serving openly and forced more than 13,500 service members out of the armed forces.

Details are still being worked out, but officials say Defense Secretary Leon Panetta wants to honor the contributions of gay service members.

"Now that we've repealed 'don't ask, don't tell,' he feels it's important to find a way this month to recognize the service and professionalism of gay and lesbian troops," said Navy Capt. John Kirby, a spokesman.

This month's event will follow a long tradition in the Pentagon of recognizing diversity in America's armed forces. Hallway displays and activities, for example, have marked Black History Month and Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month.

Although some feared repeal of the ban on serving openly would cause problems in the ranks, officials and gay advocacy groups say no big issues have materialized — aside from what advocacy groups criticize as slow implementation of some changes, such as benefit entitlements to troops in same-sex marriages.

Basic changes have come rapidly since repeal — the biggest that gay and lesbian soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines no longer have to hide their sexuality in order to serve. They can put photos on their office desk without fear of being outed, attend social events with their partners and openly join advocacy groups looking out for their interests.

OurServe, a once-clandestine professional association for gay service members, has nearly doubled in size to more than 5,500 members. It held its first national convention of gay service members in Las Vegas last fall, then a conference on family issues this year in Washington.

At West Point, the alumni gay advocacy group Knights Out was able to hold the first installment in March of what is intended to be an annual dinner in recognition of gay and lesbian graduates and Army cadets. Gay students at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis were able to take same-sex dates to the academy's Ring Dance for third-year midshipmen.

Panetta said last month that military leaders had concluded that repeal had not affected morale or readiness. A report to Panetta with assessments from the individual military service branches said that as of May 1 they had seen no ill effects.

"I don't think it's just moving along smoothly, I think it's accelerating faster than we even thought the military would as far as progress goes," said Air Force 1st Lt. Josh Seefried, a finance officer and co-director of OutServe.

He said acceptance has been broad among straight service members and has put a spotlight on unequal treatment that gays continue to receive in some areas. "We are seeing such tremendous progress in how much the military is accepting us, but not only that — in how much the rank and file is now understanding the inequality that's existing right now," he said.

That's a reference to the fact that same-sex couples aren't afforded spousal health care, assignments to the same location when they transfer to another job, and other benefits. There was no immediate change to eligibility standards for military benefits in September. All service members already were entitled to certain things, such as designating a partner as one's life insurance beneficiary or as designated caregiver in the Wounded Warrior program.

As for other benefits still not approved, the department began a review after repeal with an eye toward possibly extending eligibility, consistent with the federal Defense of Marriage Act and other applicable laws, to the same-sex partners of military personnel.

"The department is carefully and deliberately reviewing the benefits from a policy, fiscal, legal, and feasibility perspective," Eileen Lainez, a Pentagon spokeswoman said Thursday.

Gay marriage has been perhaps the most difficult issue.

Though chaplains on bases in some states are allowed to hold what the Pentagon officials call "private services" — they don't use the words wedding or marriage — such unions do not garner marriages benefits because the Defense of Marriage Act says marriage is between a man and a woman.

The policy known as "don't ask, don't tell" was in force for 18 years, and its repeal was a slow and deliberate process.

President Barack Obama on Dec. 22, 2010, signed legislation repealing it. Framing the issue as a matter of civil rights long denied, Obama said that "we are a nation that welcomes the service of every patriot ... a nation that believes that all men and women are created equal."

The military then did an assessment for several months to certify that the forces were prepared to implement it in a way that would not hurt military readiness. And it held training for its 2.25 million-person force to inform everyone of the coming change and what was expected.

GOP extreme Conservative Billionaire is Making Changes thru $ in favor of Gay Marriage

 Over the past year, the main story line in the push for marriage equality has been the ardor and success with which leading Democratic politicians have taken up the fight. 

The Democratic governors of New York, Maryland, Washington all promoted and signed same-sex marriage laws, for which President Obama expressed his support last month. 

But the progress within Republican ranks has also been pivotal, not to mention fascinating. And a compelling character in that subplot just added a new twist to the narrative, one that suggests the rapidly changing political dynamics of this issue and its potential import to a party dogged by an image of being culturally out of touch.

That character is Paul E. Singer, 67, a billionaire hedge-fund manager who is among the most important Republican donors nationwide. In just one Manhattan fundraiser last month, he helped to collect more than $5 million for Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign.

He steadfastly supports conservative candidates. He also steadfastly supports gay rights in general and marriage equality in particular. Along with a few other leading Wall Street financiers, he contributed and helped drum up the majority of the money — more than $1 million — that fueled the campaign for same-sex marriage in New York.

He has given nearly $10 million of his own money to gay-rights initiatives, including the same-sex marriage efforts not only in New York but also in New Hampshire and New Jersey. And that figure doesn’t include his assistance in tapping a broad network of donors for individual candidates. He was pivotal in rounding up about $250,000 apiece for the Republican state senators in New York whose votes for same-sex marriage provided its margin of victory in the Legislature.

Now, Singer says, he’s providing $1 million to start a new super PAC with several Republican compatriots. Named American Unity PAC, its sole mission will be to encourage Republican candidates to support same-sex marriage, in part by helping them to feel financially shielded from any blowback from well-funded groups that oppose it.

In an interview on Tuesday, he said  that he’s confident that in congressional races, which would most likely be the super PAC’s initial focus, there are more than a few Republicans “who could be on the verge of support” or are “harboring and hiding their views.”

“And this kind of effort could be catalytic in generating some more movement,” he said.

Singer doesn’t court a high news-media profile. His willingness to meet at the midtown Manhattan offices of his hedge fund, Elliott Management, and talk about marriage equality reflects the strength of his commitment to the cause. Although he is straight, he has a gay son and son-in-law who were married in Massachusetts, which legalized same-sex marriage in 2004.

Our conversation also reflected a growing awareness among prominent Republicans that embracing marriage equality could broaden the party’s base and soften the party’s image in crucial ways. Many swing voters who find elements of Republicans’ limited-government message appealing and have doubts about Obama’s economic stewardship are nonetheless given serious pause by the party’s stances on abortion, birth control, immigration and homosexuality.

“There’s a feeling among some people that the Republican party is harsh on some things,” acknowledged Singer. Referring to opposition to same-sex marriage, he added: “Atmospherically and tonally, it’s part of the landscape of so-called harshness.”

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In the face of an irrefutable trajectory of increasing support for same-sex marriage among Americans, especially younger ones. In a CNN/ORC International poll released Wednesday, a whopping 73 percent of respondents between the ages of 18 and 34 said they favored marriage equality. That’s the clear future of this issue, and Republicans are keenly aware that while the party’s formal opposition to abortion rights, for example, doesn’t contradict the prevailing sentiments of a majority of Americans or buck voter trends, opposition to same-sex marriage does.
Ken Mehlman, the former Republican National Committee chairman who came out as gay two years ago and has since pressed the case for marriage equality, said   “A political party that ignores demography or ignores broader cultural trends does so at
its own peril.”  
  But even apart from that, Mehlman, Chad H. Griffin and many other Republicans say that marriage equality, which in fact gets the government out of the business of controlling and casting judgment on people’s private lives, is consistent with conservative principles.

Singer said that it “very well fits within my framework of freedom,” adding that it promotes “family stability” and is a tribute to an institution in need of one.

“Obviously, the institution of marriage in America has utterly collapsed,” he said. That gay and lesbian couples nonetheless want to wed “is kind of a lovely thing and a cool thing and a wonderful thing,” he added.

The shifting Republican reality was underscored when 119 Republicans joined 92 Democrats in the New Hampshire House of Representatives three months ago in a vote to keep same-sex marriage legal in the state. Just three years ago, when it was legalized, only nine Republicans supported it.

In Massachusetts, Richard Tisei, a gay congressional candidate who supports marriage equality, was recently anointed one of the National Republican Congressional Committee’s “Young Guns,” signifying Republican leaders’ especially strong investment in his bid.

“I feel comfortable in the party,” he told me Friday.

Tisei is one type of candidate who might draw financial help from Singer’s super PAC, which, according 

 Singer, will soon have a budget “of a few million dollars,” factoring in expected support from collaborators and friends.Chad H. GriffinSinger said that more than a half-dozen Republicans who back same-sex marriage, who are contemplating it or who seem nudge-able have already attracted the super PAC’s attention.

Chad H. Griffin a progressive Democrat who heads the Human Rights Campaign, a leading advocacy group for gays and lesbians, was asked what he made of Singer’s work on marriage equality.

“It’s absolutely necessary,” said Griffin. “We will never win marriage equality without bipartisan support.”

One Republican who unequivocally opposes marriage equality is the man Singer backs for president: Mitt Romney. Does that trouble Singer?

“I feel very strongly that Obama needs to be fired, and that the Republicans are right on most things,” he said, adding that with continued work on marriage equality, he expects to persuade more Republicans of its rightness, too.

“I think it would be naive of me to take this issue and just upend everything else I believe,” he said. “Because I think we’re making progress.”

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