I don’t usually quote articles in entirety without comment. However, there’s nothing I can add or take away from this bit of news from San Diego’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, And Transgender Center on the status of California’s proposed Anti-Marriage Amendment:

[Media release after the fold]
Read the rest of this entry »

We lead with three North Carolina stories in the news …

#1 - Could Emily Howard be in the Tar Heel state? (And, as someone who was born, raised and spent half a life in NYC and watches current news, Matt Lucas is a natural there … ) …

Little Britain star David Walliams feels the strong arm of the law, as transvestite Emily Howard is ‘arrested’.

David’s cross-dressing character - famous for her ‘I’m a laydee’ catchphrase - is manhandled by his sidekick Matt Lucas, and a hunky US cop for shoplifting in new pictures from the US version of the show.

The Emmy and Bafta-winning sketch show has been snapped up by American television giants HBO in a big ticket move to US screens.

The award-winning comedy duo are introducing a number of new characters in addition to keeping the old favourites.

Walliams also unleashed a new middle-aged Barbara Woodhouse-style dog trainer character. Last week the pair revealed Lucas’ American schoolgirl Ellie Grace and Walliams as her mother.

While other new characters have yet to be revealed, die-hard fans of the past three series will not be disappointed by the latest.

They can expect to see the return of Dafydd “only gay in the village” Thomas, camp Prime Minister’s aide Sebastian Love and Asbo teen Vicky Pollard.

Walliams and Lucas started filming in North Carolina last month and aer apparently looking for an American film star to play the role of a comedy US president.

Hollywood heartthrob George Clooney is rumoured to be their first choice.

…

It’s a fair cop: Little Britain’s first ‘laydee’ Emily arrested by New York cop Matt Lucas

#2 - Speaking of Obama, as much as I love (and was recently “heartbroken” (You too, ladies) by) the Tar Heels, this doesn’t cut it with me …

Sen. Barack Obama Plays Pickup With Tar Heels

Looks (and from what I heard was) pretty weak to me. You got to take it to the rack, Barrack. If you can’t finish your shots like Hillary, you ain’t got no business in the game.

#3 - The local newspaper, the Asheville Citizen-Times, today featured Holly and Zeke in an article on the community here …

At age 8, Holly Boswell decided she had magic powers.

Her mother had given Holly a Peter Pan book, and she fixated on the character of Tinkerbell. Holly was then a little boy, but she had been questioning her gender identity since age 2 or 3, she said. “I was thinking to myself, What am I — a fairy?”

Only much later did she find another word for herself: Transgendered.

Boswell was one of four transgendered Asheville residents who spoke Tuesday night at an event organizers called “Transcendence.” The 90-minute program of documentary film clips and discussion was held at the Unitarian Universalist Church.

“I think this is the last great prejudice,” said the Rev. David Eck, a member of the advocacy group People of Faith for Just Relationships, which sponsored the evening. “We’ve dealt with racism, women’s issues, and right now, it’s gay and lesbian issues, but no one talks about this.”

The word “transgendered” typically refers to transsexuals, people who identify as the gender opposite to their biological gender. But it may also be used to encompass anyone who expresses nontraditional gender characteristics, including cross-dressers, effeminate men and masculine women.

“Americans like things in neat categories,” Eck said. Transgendered people “challenge the binary between man and woman.”

…

Asheville’s transgender community speaks

Moving on …

#4 - On the subject of hormones and genetics, from the New York Times today (”Some Athletes’ Genes Help Outwit Doping Test“) …

It was, researchers say, a striking demonstration of a genetic discovery. Those 17 men can build muscles with testosterone, they respond normally to the hormone, but they are missing both copies of a gene used to convert the testosterone into a form that dissolves in urine. The result is that they may be able to take testosterone with impunity.

…

Researchers have long known that some men, Asians in particular, seemed to be able to take the drugs without getting caught, although no one had identified the cause of the phenomenon. Without gene testing, there is no way to know whether any athletes have exploited this doping loophole, but Dr. Catlin says he suspects some athletes discovered their invulnerability by accident and took advantage of it.

Men with the gene deletion still metabolize testosterone, Dr. Schulze says. But, she adds, she does not know where the hormone goes. “We have no idea,” she said. “That’s what we’re trying to find out.”

#5 - If you oftentimes feel, like I do now and then, some positive vibes … get real …

… and get in touch with these folks.

After the Reverend Dr. Jeremiah Wright assailed the media, Vice President Cheney, and Sen. Obama at the National Press Club yesterday, Sen. Obama denounced Rev. Wright this morning:

Obama Outraged By Rev. Wright’s recent comments

“I am outraged by the comments that were made and saddened by the spectacle that we saw yesterday,” Obama told reporters at a news conference.

More from the Associated Press:

Obama stated flatly that he doesn’t share the views of the man who officiated at his wedding, baptized his two daughters and been his pastor for 20 years. The title of Obama’s second book, “The Audacity of Hope,” came from a Wright sermon.

“What became clear to me is that he was presenting a world view that contradicts who I am and what I stand for,” Obama said. “And what I think particularly angered me was his suggestion somehow that my previous denunciation of his remarks were somehow political posturing. Anybody who knows me and anybody who knows what I’m about knows that I am about trying to bridge gaps and I see the commonality in all people.”

…”I have been a member of Trinity United Church of Christ since 1992, and have known Reverend Wright for 20 years,” Obama said. “The person I saw yesterday was not the person that I met 20 years ago.”

The Illinois senator said of Wright’s statements Monday: “All it was was a bunch of rants that aren’t grounded in truth.”

“Obviously, whatever relationship I had with Reverend Wright has changed,” Obama said. “I don’t think he showed much concern for me, more importantly I don’t think he showed much concern for what we’re trying to do in this campaign.”

…“His comments were not only divisive and destructive, I believe they end up giving comfort to those who prey on hate,” Obama said. “I’ll be honest with you, I hadn’t seen it” when reacting initially on Monday, he said.

…“He has done great damage, I do not see that relationship being the same,” said Obama.

It seems to me that this would have been a more powerful message of divorce if he would have delivered this message at some point yesterday; today it sounds like less of a authentic reaction than as a politically motivated calculation based on what many mainstream media pundits have been saying for 24 hours.

Many of you know about San Diego’s Third District City Council race because James Hartline is running for the seat. It’s obvious that I wouldn’t vote for Mr. Hartline, but it hasn’t been obvious who I’m for in the race.

So, who I’m for is Stephen Whitburn.

I became aware of Mr. Whitburn a long time ago specifically because of his support of transgender civil rights issues. Mr. Whitburn, as a member of the San Diego Democratic Club, was there supporting the adding of gender identity protections to San Diego’s Human Dignity Ordinance in 2003.

Since the passage of the HDO amendment, I’m aware he’s attended every major transgender event members have put on at The Center. Let me tell you, it’s not because my community has a lot of resources to dole out to his campaign, or have a large population of volunteers that will rush to his electoral assistance, but just because he genuinely embraces civil rights and human equality as values.

His stands on issues — and his priorities related to those issues — pretty much matches my own. Top among his and my concerns are open government — in line with the spirit of California’s Brown Act — and honest budgeting:

Excerpt:

…My name is Stephen Whitburn. I live in North Park, in council district three, and participate in several community groups.

I’m here to ask you to vote in favor of this item.

We — the citizens — have a right to know about plans to change the city services we receive. We also have a right to participate in the decision-making process.

The right to know is at the core of our state’s Brown Act. It requires that deliberations and actions be conducted openly.

Our city is in financial trouble partly because of discussions and decisions that we – the citizens – weren’t aware of. Now, more than ever, our city leaders should embrace our right to know what’s going on…

He’s also taken a pretty stong stand for marriage equality:

His commitment to equality in general, and marriage equality in specific, isn’t just mere words. He and I both worked on the same shift a few Saturdays ago in the Decline To Sign campaign, which was an attempt to keep the marriage initiative off California’s November ballot.

Well, I’ve even donated money to Stephen Whitburn’s campaign too — I’d only donated to the campaigns of transgender candidates prior to Mr. Whitburn’s run for City Council. And, now that I’m pretty much recovered from my gastric bypass, I’m sure I’ll be volunteering some time to his campaign as well.

Thanks Stephen, for giving me a candidate besides James Hartline to focus on in San Diego’s 3rd City Council District.

Okay, religious right pundits! Take head of this from the New York Times (emphasis added):

ANYONE who pays attention to fashion may want to know that those in charge of deciding these things have pronounced doom on the dress. They, meaning mainly fashion editors and designers, claim the dress is dead. Kaput. Three years of women in dresses is enough.

“The eye is looking for something new, and so is the psyche,” Anne Slowey, the fashion news director of Elle magazine, said last week from the set of “Fashionista,” a new fashion reality show in which she will play herself, a fashion editor, only meaner. “The dress has been done to death,” Ms. Slowey added, “not to sound really cliché.”

Now, Ms. Slowey added — meaning not now, exactly, but months from now, in September — the thing it will be necessary to own in order to appear fashionable will be “the pant.” That is the singular form commonly used in the garment trade to describe what everywhere else is called trousers.

“The first hint of chill in the air, and the full-legged, pleated high- and low-waisted legions will be out in the urban jungle,” said Ms. Slowey, already so adapted to her new television role that she speaks in thought bubbles. The expiration date for the dress, she claimed, “is end of August.”

So when conservative Christians worrying about transgender women in women’s restrooms will need to update their overused “men in dresses“ to misrepresent transgender people to “men in ‘the pant’” to really be up to date with fashion trends.

~~~~~
For your further entertainment — hyper-conservative Christian preaching against women wearing pants:
* PANTS - SUITS and Christian Women; A reasoned consideration based on the Bible
* Women in Pants
* God Drew The Line

Events …

• The National Day of Silence was observed April 25th.

Law and legislation …

• In Montgomery County, Maryland, lawyers “involved in a challenge to the referendum on overturning the county’s new protections for transgender people were in court last week to talk about the scope and timing of the case.”
• Also in Montgomery County, Dan Furmansky of Equality Maryland “said a review of signatures collected to overturn the Montgomery County law has been hastened so it can be completed by month’s end.”
• In Massachusetts, a state legislator filed legislation to block payment for a prisoner’s sex-change operation.
• On the Isle of Mann the government has introduced draft legislation entitled The Gender Recognition Bill 2008. “The main points of the Bill include allowing a transsexual person who has been issued with a full gender recognition certificate to be legally regarded as being of their acquired gender, and that a transsexual will be able to marry a person of the opposite gender to their acquired gender.”
• In Detroit, Michigan, the City Council passed a “gender identity discrimination ordinance.”
• In Florida, “the Pinellas County Commission expanded its human rights ordinance to protect gays, lesbians and bisexuals. Included in the vote was a promise to explore expanding the ordinance to bar discrimination against the transgendered.”
• In Ventura County, California, the attorney representing the teenager accused of murdering Larry King sought to have his client tried as a juvenile. The attorney also broached the possibility of employing a “gay-panic-esque defense“, saying “he believes school administrators supported one student expressing himself and his sexuality — King — and ignored how it affected other kids, despite complaints. Cross-dressing isn’t a normal thing in adult environments, he said, yet 12-, 13- and 14-year-olds were expected to just accept it and go on.”
• In California, a transsexual former inmate settled an abuse case against the Orange County Sheriff’s Department. “The inmate suffered severe bleeding and lost more than 25 pounds after deputies didn’t give him prescribed testosterone shots in October 2004. Instead, jailers harassed the inmate, such as snapping his mug shot, taping it to a glass on which deputies had written “FEMALE” on it, according to court records.”

Employment and education …

• In Texas, a “Houston business has settled a lawsuit filed by a transgender woman who said a job offer was rescinded because the company learned she was born a man.”
• Also in Texas, Gerald Jeanmard “is suing a company he says fired him. The Port Arthur man claims he was removed from his position with KT Maintenance at the Motiva Refinery after KT found out he was becoming a woman.”
• In New York, there was a meeting in Manhattan to discuss the proposed Gender Employment Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA). Regardless of Empire State Pride Agenda “polling data showing that 78 percent of New Yorkers support the legislation,” the prospects of advancing the legislation in the state legislature this year do not seem promising.
• The Human Rights Campaign released its Transgender Inclusion in the Workplace, 2nd Edition. Prof. Jillian Weiss commented on this report in her blog.
• In the UK, The Independent published “Lonely road: Why school is hell for transgender pupils.”

Religion …

• In Texas, United Methodists met to discuss trans people.

Science …

• A research report released last week showed some evidence that how “much a mother eats at the time of conception may influence whether she gives birth to a boy or a girl … ” “The reason food intake may influence the development of one sex of infant rather than another isn’t fully understood. However, in vitro fertilization studies show that high levels of glucose encourage the growth of male embryos while inhibiting female embryos.”

People …

• In California, Victoria Kolakowski is “running for Alameda County Superior Court Judge.”
• The Gateway published a feature on University of Nebraska professor Meridith Bacon, who is the chair of the board of directors for the National Center for Transgender Equality.
• The National Center for Transgender Equality’s Mara Keisling spoke in Ohio. According to the Gay People’s Chronicle, Keisling spoke at length about (non-transgender-inclusive) ENDA and “said members of Congress should be told to reject any attempts to take transgender protection out of ENDA.”
• Between The Lines wrote about Aaron Watkins and Crystal Proxmire (”FTM? Fine by me“).
• Zagria wrote about Virginia Prince at her Gender Variant Biography blog.
• In Arizona, a “ceremony honoring the memory of Amancio Corrales will be observed with a demonstration of unity and support on May 6, the third anniversary of his murder.”
• In television news, Ugly Betty’s Rebecca Romijn and her transsexual character, Alexis Meade, will be fading out.
• In Canada, the Ottawa Sun published “A coming out party” — “In the coming months, you’re going to hear more from Ottawa’s transgendered community as it makes an effort to gain understanding and acceptance” — and accompanying articles, “Coming out the hardest part for cross-dresser,” “Escaping from the ‘fear’,” “The times, they are a changing” and “Ottawa’s one-man health care sector.”
• The New York Times published a feature on Fran and Denise Brunner from New Jersey (”Through Sickness, Health and Sex Change“).

~~~~~

All these news items are archived at Transgender News, which you may find here or here.

Closing out Earth Week here in San Diego, we had our Arbor day/Rancho Bernardo post-fire tree planting event at San Diego’s Rancho Bernardo Community Park on Saturday, April 26th.

There are conflicting issues involving tree and plants here in San Diego. Our city was built around it’s over 100 preserved canyons, with their native trees and brush. As the San Diego Union Tribunereported in December:

Maintaining the canyons has long bedeviled politicians, residents, environmentalists and those who study fire. Clear too much of the native vegetation and more flammable, non-native plants might move in. Clear too little and an important firefighting tool is eliminated.

So on April 26th, we planted some native trees at park. Trees within the city limits help filter pollution within the city. And, shade trees save energy.

The amazing part to me is the LGBT connection to this story. San Diego has an Urban Forest Council (appointed by the Mayor and City Council) and an Urban Forestry Section in its Street Division. The city’s Republican mayor, Jerry Sanders is more famous nationally for his position on marriage equality than he is for his urban forestry, but the chair of the Urban Forest Council, who is appointed by the Mayor, is Vicki Estrada — an out transsexual heavily involved in urban landscaping and city planning.

It’s a reminder to me that Vicki was evaluated for her skills when she was appointed to the board, and not rejected because she identifies as transgender and as a transsexual. Passage of legislation like California’s Gender Nondiscrimination Act made a difference in changing the employment climate within California. It matters that a Republican mayor appointed a transgender person to chair an important city commission.

It’s also a reminder to me that when it comes to politics, we need to look at people that fill executive offices — such as Governor and Mayor — as individuals. Mayor Sanders should be a reminder to us that not every Democrat is our friend, and not every Republican is our enemy.

But, the important parts of the story is that on Saturday, in San Diego, we planted some trees, and the Mayor and my friend Vicki played important roles as to why we planted trees in an part of San Diego devistated by last year’s Witch Fire.

~~~~~Update~~~~~

Images:

L-to-R: Mayor Jerry Sanders, Councilman Brian Maienscheim, And Urban Forestry Commissioner Vicki Estrada

L-to-R: Commissioner Vicki Estrada And Autumn Sandeen

A round up of interesting news — well, at least it’s news I find interesting.

* Now here’s a quality protest event! Bay Area College Republicans Revolt — over beer tax proposal…

A group of Bay Area College Republicans took to the streets of San Jose Friday evening to protest a subject near and dear to them - beer.

More to the point, they wanted to rant about a state lawmaker’s proposed tax on beer manufacturers that would add nearly $2 to the price of a six-pack as a way to help the state plug its giant budget deficit.

…At the afternoon protest outside the office of Assemblyman Jim Beall, D-San Jose, about 50 students stood at a busy downtown intersection waving signs that read “Students Opposed to Unjust Taxation!” and “No Taxe$” as one student on a bullhorn chanted “No taxation on intoxication!”

That’s keeping priorities in perspective.

* The Los Angeles Times is reporting that Obama is picking up support and calories.

Waffles for breakfast and cheesesteaks for lunch, it’s all about eating as Barack Obama chows down to show his regular-guy credentials on the campaign trail.

PHILADELPHIA — The presidential candidate known for his eloquence on the stump was savoring a huge cheesesteak here when he looked up at the battery of photographers surrounding his table and reported: “I’m working through this sucker pretty good.”

Not the most poetic line from Barack Obama, but it captured the campaign’s central activity in the walk-up to this week’s Pennsylvania primary: Eating…

* From the San Francisco Chronicle: Anti-war Cindy Sheehan files to take on Pelosi. She’s made good on her threat to run against Pelosi if Pelosi didn’t start impeachment proceedings against President Bush.

Peace activist Cindy Sheehan wants to snatch House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s congressional seat from her in November, but first she’s going to need the help - and signatures - of 10,198 friends and supporters.

Sheehan was at San Francisco City Hall on Friday to take out papers for her independent run for Congress, but without those signatures from voters in the district, her name won’t show up on the ballot.

“It’s an uphill battle,” said Sheehan, who vowed to run against Pelosi in July after the speaker refused to start impeachment proceedings against President George Bush. “But I’m excited about the signature-gathering process. It’s going to be an opportunity to talk to people about our campaign.”

* From the New York Times‘ Soldier Sues Army, Saying His Atheism Led to Threats:

When Specialist Jeremy Hall held a meeting last July for atheists and freethinkers at Camp Speicher in Iraq, he was excited, he said, to see an officer attending.

But minutes into the talk, the officer, Maj. Freddy J. Welborn, began to berate Specialist Hall and another soldier about atheism, Specialist Hall wrote in a sworn statement. “People like you are not holding up the Constitution and are going against what the founding fathers, who were Christians, wanted for America!” Major Welborn said, according to the statement.

Major Welborn told the soldiers he might bar them from re-enlistment and bring charges against them, according to the statement.

Last month, Specialist Hall and the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, an advocacy group, filed suit in federal court in Kansas, alleging that Specialist Hall’s right to be free from state endorsement of religion under the First Amendment had been violated and that he had faced retaliation for his views. In November, he was sent home early from Iraq because of threats from fellow soldiers.

As we’ve seen this past week regarding protests against Day Of Silence participation, free speech and freedom of religion are often perceived by conservative Christians as only applying to them, — not to those who don’t share their views.

[After the fold, The Peter wants an FMA for civil unions too; a shark attack off a San Diego County beach; plagiarism in the pulpit; and penis thievery.]

Read the rest of this entry »

From a Reuters news report earlier this week concerning “penis theft panic” in the Democratic Republic of Congo …

Police in Congo have arrested 13 suspected sorcerers accused of using black magic to steal or shrink men’s penises … Purported victims, 14 of whom were also detained by police, claimed that sorcerers simply touched them to make their genitals shrink or disappear …

Though it doesn’t sound like the locals were exactly rhapsodizing like this about “the magic touch” …

… and though the Congo may not be quite ready yet to challenge Thailand’s title, the authorities there need to catch on to their “chop-less” advantage and the rich possibilities in medical tourism and more affordable medical care for GID sufferers in these difficult economic times.

No doubt we need Pres. Bush back in Africa for a lengthy discussion of these health care issues with the Congolese.

Hills in the hometown, a Guy on dresses and … whatever …

We have hills in Asheville.

I was out running today. Most days I run. I’m no spring chicken anymore though. Weather’s getting warmer, I got out later in the day today, pushed the mileage. The motor’s still working. I’m not complaining. But …

We have Hills in Asheville …

I have enough years on the odometer that, as I commented here not long ago, I’m not particularly keen on any of the Presidential candidates remaining in this contest. But, Hills was here the other day, wooing and maybe wowing some folks in what has been a generally conservative CD (and first-term Democrat, Rep. Heath Shuler is a Republican in Dem drag, for what it’s worth) …

Sen. Hillary Clinton told a raucous and inspired Asheville crowd Thursday that as commander in chief she would end the war in Iraq while enacting universal health care and reviving a faltering economy.

This is not a comment about isolationism, global disengagement or any of that serious stuff, but, apropos of the setting (Thomas Wolfe Auditorium), America needs an Angel (whatever gender) to Look Homeward now.

Not leaving Hillary entirely behind as you’ll see, but off to the subject of fashion (There used to be, some years back, by the way, a group of local women from Asheville performing musically as “Crimes of Fashion.”) … where I’ll leave it to you, dear readers, to make your own political and fashion sense out of this …

Borrowing from the male wardrobe is hardly new …

the prevalence of mannish jackets represents a real shift from the girly dresses dominating runways in recent seasons - and may be a sartorial signal of something more. Judging from fashion history, masculine styles often signal a moment when women are looking for clothes that assert authority.

Designer Peter Som says he was thinking of Hillary Clinton …

The ‘boyfriend jacket’ comes on strong

… and …

Just look, Hil. All those pants.

It’s not exactly a state secret — the U.S. senator and presidential hopeful is pro-trouser. And why not? She looks good in them. (Better than those drab dresses …

Who’s wearing the pants here?

… and from a Guy’s perspective …

“The eye is looking for something new, and so is the psyche,” Anne Slowey, the fashion news director of Elle magazine, said last week from the set of “Fashionista,” a new fashion reality show in which she will play herself, a fashion editor, only meaner. “The dress has been done to death,” Ms. Slowey added, “not to sound really cliché.”

…

This prediction will come as a surprise, perhaps, to retail analysts like the folks at NPD Group, who not long ago termed 2007 the year of the dress, pointing to sales of more than $5 billion in the 12 months that ended last April, and a rate of growth in dress sales fully 30 percent higher than the year before.

“The first hint of chill in the air, and the full-legged, pleated high- and low-waisted legions will be out in the urban jungle,” said Ms. Slowey, already so adapted to her new television role that she speaks in thought bubbles. The expiration date for the dress, she claimed, “is end of August.”

This prediction will come as a surprise, perhaps, to retail analysts like the folks at NPD Group, who not long ago termed 2007 the year of the dress, pointing to sales of more than $5 billion in the 12 months that ended last April, and a rate of growth in dress sales fully 30 percent higher than the year before.

It may also come as unwelcome news to the female members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, whose wildly anachronistic Laura Ingalls Wilder frocks, Skechers and wave-pool hairdos have become as much an obsession in certain Manhattan circles as their polygamist habits and 416 children.

It is also, for what it’s worth, unwelcome news to me.

That is because, unlike Ms. Slowey, I am not eager for women to become “a little more hard-core, a little more androgynous, a little more butch.” Yes, gender play is fun, and trousers are a useful wardrobe default for the woman in business. But unless you are Thomas McGuane and find nothing sexier than a woman with crow’s feet, tight Wranglers and suede chaps, you will have to concede that, for flattering a woman’s body, nothing is quite like a dress.

Irwin Shaw covered all this is in his classic story “The Girls in Their Summer Dresses,” the tale that secured him a permanent place in anthologies if not exactly a perch on literary Olympus. And for all the creakiness of this warhorse about the fragile dynamics of love and desire, there remains in Shaw’s descriptions of the women on the streets of Manhattan, in their ripe young multitudes, something unexpectedly fresh and also recognizable.

Shaw wrote the story decades ago, in the era that directly preceded the feminist one that first killed off the dress, a time when women wore them all the time and not with irony …

Long Live the Dress (for Now)

… and then this comment on Guy’s piece …

Might as well throw some heterosexism in there too. And women wearing pants is “gender play”? I didn’t realize trousers were still a “man’s” piece of clothing.

…

The sad thing about this piece is that it won’t do anything but discourage women from wearing dresses this summer, despite some women’s love to wear them. (Ahem.) I guess they didn’t get the message that women wear their clothes for comfort and fashion, not someone else’s fancy.

NYT makes me never want to wear a dress again

(Before Vanessa’s time this. And though we probably should Goethe off this subject, there’s more … )

… and …

In today’s “Styles” section, Guy Trebay devotes a whole article to proving why Elle’s fashion-news director, Anne Slowey, could be wrong about the dress going out of style come September. Wishful thinking, he says, gathering quotes from trend forecasters, the fashion director of Barneys, and random dress-clad women on the street to make his case for the dress. And we must say he did so as compellingly as one can when covering such a topic, though it was kind of unfair he didn’t quote anyone who agreed with Slowey. Anyway, it felt like the perfect opportunity for the Cut’s first-ever point-counterpoint debate!

…

Is Anne Slowey Right About the Fate of Dresses?

And, not to neglect the guys, there’s this …

A few weeks ago, we told you about “Booty Pop Panties,” the padded underwear that makes your ass look bigger. Well, Kelly Ripa went nuts over them on Live With Regis and Kelly the other day so, not to be out-assed, Regis found a version of the undergarment for men called “Bottoms Up” and bandied them about on air today. Unlike the Booty Pop Panties, these appear to come with a padded back and a padded front. Here’s a product description:

• A defining centre back seam separates our butt pads creating an anatomically correct bottom for a more natural look.
• Our contoured front pouch, allows for comfort, style and support from the double layer of fabric…
• For first time optimum effect we suggest you put your jeans or pants on BEFORE you look in the mirror.
• The weight and fit of your pants compresses the pads — the most natural look is achieved with you pants on.

You can even purchase extra pads in “Quarterback,” “Halfback,” and “Fullback” sizes. Is this supposed to appeal to women? Because we think a nice cologne is a better route than sub-pant bulges.

Men Can Pad Their Nether Regions, Too

Moving on … from the Washington Blade today …

Equality Maryland is intensifying its efforts to protect a transgender rights law that may be in jeopardy.

Dan Furmansky, the organization’s executive director, said a review of signatures collected to overturn the Montgomery County law has been hastened so it can be completed by month’s end.

…

Legal battle over trans law intensifies in Montgomery Co.

… and, finally, from the Southern Voice …

On Friday, students at 6,000 schools around the country, including 130 here in Georgia, took part in the National Day of Silence — keeping quiet for all or part of the school day to protest the silence forced on gay people every day. One of those schools was my alma mater, Columbus High School.

Not too long ago, whenever someone asked me where my hometown of Columbus, Ga., is located, I would answer that it is “about 100 miles and 100 years south of Atlanta.”

It’s exciting to know that through the efforts of brave young people like those who joined in the Day of Silence, even towns like Columbus are changing for the better. And it’s amazing to think that some of the Columbus High students participating in the protest today were not even born in 1991, the year I graduated.

…

Would you have joined the Day of Silence?

According to the St. Petersburg Times this evening, Pinellas County Commissioner Calvin Harris said …

“I don’t even know what a transgender is.”

According to the SPT, there was no “searing acrimony” involved in the 4-2 vote “to outlaw discrimination based on sexual orientation” and Susan Stanton said about Mr. Harris’ statement …

“I think that’s a very legitimate … very honest statement,” Stanton said. “These are all really good people, and I know none of them would want to discriminate, but they also have to be sensitive to the needs of other people in the workplace.”

Be that as it may, I share and appreciate the sentiments of Equality Florida’s Brian Winfield …

“We were disappointed that the Pinellas County commissioners weren’t able to summon the courage that it would take to provide the strongest protections to the entire gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered community,” said Brian Winfield, a spokesman for Equality Florida. “But we are hopeful that in six weeks time that they will come back.”

So, I think it would helpful to let Commisssioner Harris, at least, know how you feel about transgender civil rights. The Pinellas Commissioners can be contacted here.

We’ve posted a number of stories at Transgender News in recent years about Jin Xing (such as Der Spiegel’s “The Odyssey of Jin Xing” and “A new beginning in Europe” back in 2006). Her story is (as Der Spiegel aptly referred to it then) …

… a one-of-a-kind biography: born as a boy, he advanced to the rank of colonel in the Chinese army. Then came the sex change and the staggering career as a world-class prima ballerina.

Jin Xing will be performing (her dance company’s only U.S. appearance) and participating in various events at Stanford University on April 26 and April 27. This is from the Stanford media release …

Stanford Lively Arts concludes its 2007-08 season with the U.S. debut of China’s Jin Xing Dance Theatre, presented in partnership with the Stanford Pan-Asian Music Festival, on Saturday, April 26 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, April 27 at 2:30 p.m. at Memorial Auditorium.

With a thrilling and sensual dance vocabulary, Jin Xing leads her company’s only appearance in this country with a lavish, pageant-like presentation of Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana, featuring the Stanford Symphony Orchestra conducted by Jindong Cai and the Stanford Symphonic Chorus under the direction of Stephen M. Sano.

The path of Jin Xing is one of struggle, discovery, and metamorphosis. A former colonel in the
People’s Liberation army, who after a sex change was the first transwoman officially recognized by the Chinese government, Jin Xing is China’s most admired contemporary choreographer and has been hailed by Die Zeit as “probably the world’s best dancer.” She established her Shanghai-based 18-member company in 1999 and has performed to sold-out houses and critical acclaim throughout Europe and Asia.

Here’s a brief promo clip from the UK’s Dance Umbrella for Jin’s appearance there last winter …

All of which brought to mind Jackson Brown’s “For A Dancer” …

Let your prayers go drifting into space
You never know what will be coming down
Perhaps a better world is drawing near
And just as easily it could all disappear
Along with whatever meaning you might have found
Dont let the uncertainty turn you around
Go on and make a joyful sound
Into a dancer you have grown

No, I’m not making a comment there about the overwhelming majority of Americans who no longer support President Bush or his chosen course of action regarding Iraq. (But, with relatively so few Americans serving in this military “mission,” with no pay-as-you-go tax increases to pay for it, and with the — until recently — feel-good, housing-boom economy … I suppose that it was easy to give Bush and company a free ride … kind of like Tony Blair here … but us commoners’ indignation can swell when things go sour, no doubt, as evidenced by those polls.)

No, what I was referring to was this item in Variety today …

Economists are citing some dire portents of a recession these days, but they’ve missed one indicator I find especially disturbing: The porn business has suddenly gone flaccid.

…

At a time when “gonzo” is fading, “limp” is in. What does that say about the mood of the country?

It means (for a while at least … as those poll numbers suggest) the country’s ready to take a new (with no comment about the remaining U.S. presidential aspirants intended), “limp” direction.