Austin's Gay Bars

Why Obama Just Doesn't Get It...

Read Troy Comics, it's great!

As for President-Elect Barack Obama, I think he needs to be kept on a short leash from the get-go. This guy got my vote, as he seemed to be the least of the evils available to choose from. Don't underestimate any of the shocking things he may do. These things are all intended as public signals of his intent or aquiesence to other political powers. Placing hateful bigots in places of splendid honor does NOT build social bridges or heal cultural cancers!

Gay bar wins right to ban heterosexuals

Personally, I don't know why anyone would want to do this... straight women and their boyfriends are an absolute HOOT to watch in gay bars... ;)

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=269523

(excerpt)

NineMSN Staff - May 28, 2007

A Melbourne gay bar has been granted an exemption from the Equal Opportunity Act in a landmark ruling which will allow security to refuse entry to heterosexuals.

The owners of Collingwood's Peel Hotel, which came under fire in April for promoting a gay Anzac Day party, successfully argued to the state planning tribunal that banning heterosexuals from the club would prevent "sexually based insults and violence".

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,21804872-2,00.html

http://www.worldnewsaustralia.com.au/region.php?id=137316&region=7

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1840688/posts

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10442247

John Amaechi: First Publicly Gay NBA Player

Associated Press: Amaechi will be first publicly gay NBA player

The small, exclusive club of openly gay professional male athletes has a new member.

Former NBA center John Amaechi, who spent five seasons with four teams, on Wednesday became the first NBA player to publicly come out.

His admission comes three years after his playing career ended, making him the sixth professional male athlete from one of the four major U.S. sports � basketball, baseball, football, hockey � to openly discuss his homosexuality.

Amaechi details his life in his autobiography "Man in the Middle," which will be released Feb. 14.

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http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/6450862?MSNHPHCP&GT1=9131

UK Gay rights bill "threatens hotel"

I have added my own smart comments in red to the existing article - The Blogger

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/lancashire/6322075.stm

A hotelier who runs a gay-only guest house has said the government's anti-discrimination bill would be a step backward for gay rights.

The Sexual Orientation Regulations (SORs), which are due to come into effect in April, outlaw discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

Mark Hurst, 47, said the proposed legislation would force him to open his doors to heterosexual guests.

He said that may put off many of his gay guests and put him out of business.

Mr Hurst, who runs Guyz hotel in Blackpool (ooh, sounds *classy*!) with his partner Steve, said: "Rather than improve gay rights, it will make things much worse. We run a gay hotel exclusively for men.

"We feel if we were forced to a situation where we had to accept heterosexual people into our hotel, our gay clientele will not behave as naturally as they would now. I suppose it depends on what these gay guests intend to do among each other!

"Many of them would feel more self-conscious. Many of our guests like to just sit on the settee in the lounge and cuddle up to watch a film.

"They can hold hands and have a little kiss and would behave in a way they may not if they were in a mixed crowd," he said. They can handle a "mixed crowd" of queens and leathermen, but not gay and straights? I've made out with my lover in the company of straights many times. It's no different. Folks peek at each other a little, and folks love to show their passion for their partners to the world.

Gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell said Mr Hurst was making a fuss over nothing.

He said: "I think this is a bit of storm in a teacup.

"Just as there aren't going to be hundreds of gay couples descending on Catholic adoption agencies, I think it's very unlikely there are going to be hundreds of heterosexuals banging on the doors of gay hotels demanding to be let in."

The regulations have applied in Northern Ireland since 1 January and are due to be implemented in England, Wales and Scotland by April.

Castro Organizes Anti-Crime Patrol Following Gay Rapes

A community patrol taking back Castro
Report of 2 rapes spurred group to action

Wyatt Buchanan, Chronicle Staff Writer

Saturday, November 18, 2006

...

Anti-crime volunteers will wear orange uniforms as they patrol the area armed with whistles and flashlights. Castro residents organized the community patrol after two men reported to police that they were raped on the neighborhood's streets, one in July and one in September.

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Houston, TX's Garden-guy won't mow your gay lawn.

Firm's anti-gay e-mail sparks online fury

NEW YORK, Nov 8 - A U.S. landscaping firm has been inundated with hate mail after an e-mail it sent rejecting a client because he was gay was made public.

Houston-based firm Garden Guy sent an e-mail on October 18 turning down a prospective customer by saying: "I need to tell you that we cannot meet with you because we choose not to work for homosexuals."

The recipient, Michael Lord, forwarded the e-mail to dozens of friends and it spread across the Internet.

Garden Guy's Web site (---.garden-guy.---) makes no secret of the firm's outlook. "The God-ordained institution of marriage is under attack," it says at the bottom of a page offering patios and organic pest control, and asks browsers to go to www.nogaymarriage.com.

The forum on Garden Guy's Web site has received 26 pages of postings since the e-mail was made public, many of them criticizing the owners' stance and urging a boycott. One accused the company of "hate and discrimination."

Garden Guy co-owner Sabrina Farber said her family had also received verbal attacks and murder threats.

"When we sent (the e-mail) we intended it for the client. We did not intend it to be some sweeping political statement for the world. That's it," she said. "We are humbly sorry for the hurt that it caused. We meant no hate."

Farber said she had not anticipated the impact that the e-mail would have. "We felt that it was our right as an American small business to choose who we do business with," she said in a telephone interview.

"Do I want to say that before you send an e-mail you might think about the fact the whole world can see it? I guess I do," she added.

Marc Rotenberg, executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based Electronic Privacy Information Center, said those who send business e-mails should not normally be entitled to expect them to remain private.

He said exceptions that would stand up before communication privacy laws were communications between doctors and patients or lawyers and clients, where confidentiality was expected.

GAY BARS IN AUSTIN, TX

Click the titles or the sidebar on the left for the bar's homepages:

1 'Bout Time, 9601 N. I-35, 512-832-5339

Austin's second-oldest (?) gay bar. Small-town highwayside atmosphere, karaoke night, volleyball (home of Austin's gay volleyball leagues), pool tables, buffets, DJ, HIV testing, WiFi. ** Mixed gay & lesbian **

On map top right.

2 Charlie's, 1301 Lavaca, 512-474-6481

Austin's oldest surviving gay bar; one block from the State Capitol. House/latin music, DJ, dance floor, dinner/buffets, cabaret/drag shows, gogo dancers, strip contests, patio, big Tuesday crowd. Though closest to the University, and in walking distance, this is not where the college crowd goes.

On map top left.

3 Rainbow Cattle Co., 305 West 5th, 512-472-5288

Country/line & Latin music, DJ, dance floor, dance lessons, coat check, karaoke, pool tables. ** Mixed gay & lesbian **

4 Rusty Spurs, 407 E. 7th St, 512-584-4728

Apparently a country theme, but their MySpace page lacks any current information. My god, these people need a real web host pronto!

5 Rain on 4th, 217b West 4th, 512-494-1150

House music, DJ, small dance floor, karaoke, patio, special shows, celebrity appearances, younger crowd (college and clubkid crowd), avoid long lines before 11.

6 Oilcan Harry's, 211 West 4th, 512-320-8823

Gay dance music, DJ, dance floor, pool table, patio, coat check, buffets, gogo dancers, WiFi, very crowded Sat.

7 The Cockpit Club, 113 San Jacinto, 512-457-8010

AKA: "CP - The Alternative". Sigh, I'm tired of updating this one's many names. Formerly: Dick's Deja Disco, The Silver Spur Saloon. Patio, DJ, dance floor, gogo dancers, drag shows, WiFi. This is the place for you if you like corrugated metal roofing for decoration, and trough urinals (but you're not looking for a leather bar).

8 Chain Drive, 504 Willow, 512-480-9017

Leather-levi, bears, patio, DJ.

9 Kiss and Fly, 404 Colorado, 512-476-7799

Formerly: Vicci, Polly Esther's, Area 52, Club 404. "Austin's only gay nightclub" (WTF?), dance floor, patio, DJ, bottle service. This fantastic 13,000 square-foot multi-level club space has gone through a lot of different hands, and IMHO is one of the best in town. It's been a straight (but "gay friendly") club for a couple of incarnations, and now it's straight owners are opening the doors for us Fabulous Folk once again! The bad news is, they seem to be doing the big-city thing of rejecting people at the door for looking wrong, and there seems to be some concern that there is a plot afoot to put OCH and Rain out of business. Good thing we love drama, huh?

PERMANENTLY CLOSED: Fabric, 1920's Club, Boyz/Girlz Cellar, Sidekicks/eXtreme, The Forum, The Cuff, M&M Club, Splash.

18+ nights: Oilcan Harry�s-Thu (after 10:00 PM), Cockpit-Fri($10 cover if under 21), Charlie�s-Sat.
Dress codes: None of Austin's gay bars currently have dress codes.
Smoking: Smoking is illegal inside Austin bars and restaurants. Keep 15 feet from entrances.
Cover charges: Only during charity events and for patrons age 18-20 at the Cockpit on Fri.
Best nights: Crowds are good on Thu, light on Fri & Sun, and all houses are packed on Sat.

Updated (manually!) and Copyright (c) November 2009.

Email me at updates@austingaybars.cjb.net if you have updates, suggestions or additional information.

Looking Haggard

This expression will now be known as "The Haggard Hee-Haw".

First, Ted Haggard didn't do anything wrong, then he resigned, then he merely bought meth from the homosexuals (once a month for three years) but didn't ever smoke it, then "just" got massages from that gay prostitute (at $200/pop once a month for three years). http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5115903,00.html

"Haggard drew a silent stare from his wife when he told the gathered reporters that he received a massage from Jones." W/video goodness ("Raw Interview" link) http://www.kktv.com/breakingnews/4557411.html

Lil Doogie's all grown up, and OUT!

OMFG, he was always so adorable, even though he had a mullet and looked like jailbait...

I think he's still attractive as an adult.

Anyone who says he looks like Sting must die!

Actor Neil Patrick Harris Says He Is Gay
http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory?id=2628231&CMP=OTC-RSSFeeds0312

Actor Neil Patrick Harris Discloses His Sexuality, Says He Is 'A Very Content Gay Man'

LOS ANGELES Nov 4, 2006 (AP)� Neil Patrick Harris is gay and wants to quell any rumors to the contrary. "(I) am quite proud to say that I am a very content gay man living my life to the fullest," Harris tells People magazine's Web site.

The 33-year-old actor said he was motivated to disclose his sexuality because of recent "speculation and interest in my private life and relationships."

Harris stars on the CBS comedy "How I Met Your Mother." He started on TV as a teen, playing the namesake doctor on the series "Doogie Howser, M.D."

EXCLUSIVE: Neil Patrick Harris Tells PEOPLE He Is Gay
http://people.aol.com/people/article/0,26334,1554852,00.html
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 03, 2006 06:55PM EST

Neil Patrick Harris is gay � and wants to quell recent reports that he had denied it. The actor tells PEOPLE exclusively:

"The public eye has always been kind to me, and until recently I have been able to live a pretty normal life. Now it seems there is speculation and interest in my private life and relationships.

"So, rather than ignore those who choose to publish their opinions without actually talking to me, I am happy to dispel any rumors or misconceptions and am quite proud to say that I am a very content gay man living my life to the fullest and feel most fortunate to be working with wonderful people in the business I love."

Harris, 33, currently stars in the CBS comedy How I Met Your Mother. He shot to fame in 1989 at age 16 when he played a teen-prodigy doctor on the hit Doogie Howser, M.D. "It was a very fast but wonderful education," he told PEOPLE in 1998.

After the show went off the air in 1993, he shook off his teen image with roles in the musicals Rent and Assassins and a wild turn as an unhinged version himself in the 2004 movie Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle.

"I'm enjoying my 30s," he told PEOPLE in 2004. "I feel like I know where I'm going. And I like where I'm going."

AMBUSH Magazine of New Orleans and Austin

http://www.ambushmag.com/

A lot of people don't realize that (one of) Austin's sister cities is New Orleans!

I'm not sure what happened to our local newspaper, The Texas Triangle, but we also used to have The Fag Rag and one or two others...

The Ambush Magazine has taken up the slack (a few years back) and contains gay community and bar news for the Austin metro area as well as cities throughout Louisiana. This includes hosting our local gay columnists and galleries of various bar patrons and local fests, parades, fundraisers, etc. They have their own map of gay bars in Austin (mine is nicer! ) and accept advertisements from all local merchants. You can find their halfpage-format newspaper in the entrances to most local bars and hip venues, or check them out online.

The web page is kind of old-school and isn't easy to navigate. They're apparently publishing-format snobs, so they don't present content in HTML, just Adobe .pdf files.

Check them out every other week or so, and use them to research venues in advance of your next vacation to Waterworld.

The Show with ZeFrank

http://www.zefrank.com/theshow/

Pronounced "zay", he's a comedian with a brilliant ability to analogise politics.

He's adorable and he LOVES DUCKIES!

Is he gay? I don't know or care. I suspect he'd whip out Wee Ze just for a laugh, though.

Check out his VIDEO podcast every weekday!

No, he does not blink.

Andymatic Gay Podcast

He's adorable, insightful, passionate and funny. Too bad he's taken.

He's actually kind of abandoned his namesake podcast lately, but still blogs at least a couple times a week. Check him out on a regular basis:

http://www.andymatic.com/

Where are all of the Gay Geeks?!?!

http://www.gaygeeks.org/

Gay geeks need a place of their own!

Internet Relay Chat (IRC) used to require enough technical savvy to get onto, that most people in #gay chat rooms were mostly computer science students, grad students (experts at using the internet for research), and employees of tech companies. Brains! Now days just about any Bruce or Sally can get into chat rooms embedded in web sites like www.gay.com and www.outinaustin.com and type "heelo evryone! I'm new to teh intarwebs, tee-hee!". Ugh.

You might ask "what is wrong with that; after all, the more, the merrier?"

Well, now that geeks are no longer the majority online, it's become difficult to find people we can relate to again. Our exclusive oasis has flooded over.

It's high time we took back a piece of our native environment and made it look like home again!

Thanks GayGeeks.org!

Fake Gay News

Here's a little site i've been visiting every week or so for a good laugh:

http://www.fakegaynews.com/

Austin Smoking Ban "Unconsitutionally Vague".

Smoking ban battle reignites

Judge snuffs out part of ban; if bar owners take necessary steps, the onus is now on smokers.

Kate Alexander, Isadora Vail, - Thursday, October 05, 2006
http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/10/05/5smoking.html

A federal judge on Wednesday struck down part of Austin's smoking ban and found that some of its enforcement provisions were "unconstitutionally vague."

The decision by U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks did not overturn the smoking ban, enacted by voters in May 2005. But Sparks did clarify what steps a business owner must take to be in compliance with the ordinance. Sparks was presiding over a lawsuit filed last year by a group of bar owners.

Sparks said the businesses must post "no smoking" signs and remove ashtrays and other smoking accoutrements. However, the owner can no longer be held liable for not taking additional steps if patrons continue to smoke, Sparks ruled.

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[Some text removed from this blog entry, click link above for full version]

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Additional material from staff writer Sarah Coppola.

What it all means

For smokers:

It's still illegal to smoke in restaurants and bars.

For bar owners:

They must post 'no smoking' signs and remove ashtrays. They are not required to take any additional steps to keep patrons from smoking.

The city:

Officials can cite individual smokers but can't charge bar owners who take the two required steps to curb smoking.