Mormon/Boy Scout sexual abuse problem
"Not Equal" Flag Debuted in New York DADT Protest
"Not Guilty, Not Ashamed, and Not Finished"
Anti-gay general's comments infuriate the Dutch
ENDA Sit-ins Result in Arrests in DC and San Francisco
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Featured Reports
Slouching Towards Kampala: Uganda’s Deadly Embrace of Hate
When we first reported on three American anti-gay activists traveling to Kampala for a three-day conference, we had no idea that it would be the first report of a long string of events leading to a proposal to institute the death penalty for LGBT people. But that is exactly what happened. In this report, we review our collection of more than two hundred posts to tell the story of one nation’s embrace of hatred toward gay people. This report will be updated continuously as events continue to unfold. Check here for the latest updates.
David Benkof: Behind the Mask
At first glance, David Benkof appears to be a young gay man who believes that same-sex marriage will damage the institution of marriage, that there are better options for gay couples than marriage, that the community should join him in prioritizing other more pressing issues, and that the marriage discussion is harming the efforts of gay couples in red states to get recognition for their unions. He also claims that he’s a gay columnist, that he speaks for an influential collection of gay thinkers, and that he is part of the gay and lesbian community and that he shares our goals and dreams. But none of that is true.
“Repeat After Me”: The Reparative Therapy Echo Chamber
The April 2008 edition of the pay-to-publish vanity journal Psychological Reports featured a new report from NARTH. Written by NARTH president A. Dean Byrd, past president Joseph Nicolosi, and Richard W. Potts, the report carries the unwieldy but self-descriptive title, “Clients perceptions of how reorientation therapy and self-help can promote changes in sexual orientation.” While the title describes what the authors meant to show — how clients describe the benefits of reparative therapy — the report itself actually illustrates something very different: the ex-gay movement’s remarkable ability to instill an almost robot-like parroting of ex-gay rhetoric among their clients.
Testing the Premise: Is MRSA The New Gay Plague?
The Toronto Star said that a new study “discover[ed] a new strain” of a super-bug “hitting gay men.” Headlines in Britain screamed, “Flesh-eating bug strikes San Francisco’s gay community,” and anti-gay extremists across America spread the alarm that gays were introducing another plague into “the general population.” But there was a small problem with all of this: None of it is true!
Paul Cameron’s World
In 2005, the Southern Poverty Law Center wrote that “[Paul] Cameron’s ‘science’ echoes Nazi Germany.” What the SPLC didn”t know was Cameron doesn’t just “echo” Nazi Germany. He quoted extensively from one of the Final Solution’s architects. This puts his fascination with quarantines, mandatory tattoos, and extermination being a “plausible idea” in a whole new and deeply disturbing light.
From the Inside: Focus on the Family’s “Love Won Out”
On February 10, I attended an all-day “Love Won Out” ex-gay conference in Phoenix, put on by Focus on the Family and Exodus International. In this series of reports, I talk about what I learned there: the people who go to these conferences, the things that they hear, and what this all means for them, their families and for the rest of us.
Prologue: Why I Went To “Love Won Out”
Part 1: What’s Love Got To Do With It?
Part 2: Parents Struggle With “No Exceptions”
Part 3: A Whole New Dialect
Part 4: It Depends On How The Meaning of the Word "Change" Changes
Part 5: A Candid Explanation For "Change"
The Heterosexual Agenda: Exposing The Myths
At last, the truth can now be told.
Using the same research methods employed by most anti-gay political pressure groups, we examine the statistics and the case studies that dispel many of the myths about heterosexuality. Download your copy today!
And don't miss our companion report, How To Write An Anti-Gay Tract In Fifteen Easy Steps.
Testing The Premise: Are Gays A Threat To Our Children?
Anti-gay activists often charge that gay men and women pose a threat to children. In this report, we explore the supposed connection between homosexuality and child sexual abuse, the conclusions reached by the most knowledgeable professionals in the field, and how anti-gay activists continue to ignore their findings. This has tremendous consequences, not just for gay men and women, but more importantly for the safety of all our children.
Straight From The Source: What the “Dutch Study” Really Says About Gay Couples
Anti-gay activists often cite the “Dutch Study” to claim that gay unions last only about 1½ years and that the these men have an average of eight additional partners per year outside of their steady relationship. In this report, we will take you step by step into the study to see whether the claims are true.
The FRC’s Briefs Are Showing
Tony Perkins’ Family Research Council submitted an Amicus Brief to the Maryland Court of Appeals as that court prepared to consider the issue of gay marriage. We examine just one small section of that brief to reveal the junk science and fraudulent claims of the Family “Research” Council.
Review: The Gay Report
When Karla Jay and Allan Young published The Gay Report in 1979, it quickly a favorite source of statistics for many anti-gay extremists. But before you accepts these statistic at face value, you should examine the inner workings of this survey very carefully. What you learn might surprise you.
Daniel Fetty Doesn’t Count
The FBI’s annual Hate Crime Statistics aren’t as complete as they ought to be, and their report for 2004 was no exception. In fact, their most recent report has quite a few glaring holes. Holes big enough for Daniel Fetty to fall through.
News, analysis and fact-checking of anti-gay rhetoric
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Between the first reporting of a new “cancer” that was appearing in young gay men in 1981 and the discovery of HIV in 1984, there was a lot of speculation about why some men were getting sick and others were not. 
Tracy Hooper
November 20th, 2007 | LINK
It’s not the poppers, they don’t cause AIDS or any other thing. It’s the UNPROTECTED receptive anal sex. Barebacking is the culprit not poppers.
Poppers, alcohol, Viagra, and other substances are not the cause of AIDS — it’s unprotected sex.
Wear a condom!!!
Jim Burroway
November 21st, 2007 | LINK
Yes, it’s the unprotected sex that’s causing AIDS. I don’t think Timothy’s post disputes that.
But there’s cause, and there are relative risks. And there’s been a body of research which shows that there are several factors which can INCREASE the risk of unprotected sex. Being uncircumcised, for example, increases the risk of already risky behavior. And the same, possibly with poppers.
Suricou Raven
November 21st, 2007 | LINK
“Being uncircumcised, for example, increases the risk of already risky behavior.”
Im not so sure of that… I know of two seperate studies that made this claim, but both of them have been heavily criticised on the correlation-not-causation ground.
One just looked at statistics, referenceing circumcision rates and new HIV diagnoses… but the high-circumcision countries also had a high proportion of muslims, and varying degrees of islamic law, which meant very low prostitute populations and little unmarried sex. The low-circumcision populations were much more lax. So, correlation not causation.
Another actually circumcised a lot of men, then monitored how many were infected for a while afterwards compared to a control population – this was the one that was cut short because the results were so amazing, the researchers felt morally obliged to circumcise everyone. But critics quickly pointed out that men who have recently been circumcised are going to be having little if any sex for some time afterwards due to the pain and the time needed to adjust to their newly-shaped bodies without embarassment – and that the researcher’s motivations were called into question, as they prematurely ended the study before enough data was gathered to show how much of the miracle prevention was caused by the temporary reduction in sexual activity.
quo mark II
November 21st, 2007 | LINK
Jim,
‘It’s the unprotected sex that’s causing AIDS.’ I somehow suspect that you don’t literally mean that.
Timothy Kincaid
November 21st, 2007 | LINK
Suricou Raven,
If I recall correctly, the results were in excess of a 60% difference and the length of recovery time wasn’t adequate to explain such a significant drop. And unless I’m mistaken, the only criticism came from anti-circumcision activists and HIV-deniers.
But if there are other criticisms that came from within the AIDS research community I’d be happy to entertain them.
atothek
November 22nd, 2007 | LINK
Poppers causes cancer, unreversable liver- nephritic- and lung-damage and cauterizes your airways. Further it makes your body unresistant against infections of all kinds.
Stay-away of this junkie-shit!!
atothek
November 22nd, 2007 | LINK
I forgot the brain damage, sorry
atothek
November 22nd, 2007 | LINK
.. and it´s genotoxic!
atothek
November 22nd, 2007 | LINK
Isnt it true that inhalation of poppers makes you hight and you don´t longer care about safer sex?
Suricou Raven
November 22nd, 2007 | LINK
I am by no means a professional scientist, so I dont consider myself properly qualified to judge the validity of otherwise of a study. Even so, when scientists mid-way through a trial just abandon it, and then claim that they have found a way to reduce HIV infection rates so easily, I am suspicious.
Hank Wilson
November 23rd, 2007 | LINK
Poppers can be a compound risk:
1. immunosuppressive – increasing susceptibility of infection if exposed to HIV
2. disinhibiting – increasing the likelihood of riskier unprotected sex
3. dilating blood vessels – increasing the likelihood of HIV entering the body
hppc://www.poppers.cfsites.org
has a bibilographies of published research for your evaluation.
More research is needed and warranted by the high prevalence of poppers use An education campaign is needed to counter balance the ongoing disinformation and promotion campaign by the poppers industry.
Hank Wilson
Tracy Hooper
December 3rd, 2007 | LINK
Most research claiming poppers were dangerous was done by zealots with an agenda against poppers, or with other personal agendas, and the studies they performed were all flawed (http://www.virusmythpoppersmyth.org/hank_wilson_references/)
But, when some of those same researchers actually controlled the dosage in their studies, there was no harm whatsoever. (http://www.virusmythpoppersmyth.org/aids_researchers_disgust_/)
Leading AIDS experts have said over and over “Poppers are not the cause of AIDS”, or KS: http://www.virusmythpoppersmyth.org/cause_of_aids/
What’s most telling is that after 200 years of this stuff being around, and after almost a half century of people (gay and straight — this is not a purely gay drug) sniffing poppers to enhance sex, there have been no credible research results to prove they’re dangerous if inhaled.
There’s no basis in fact to make the claim poppers are immunosuppressive. They simply do not increase susceptibility of infection if exposed to HIV. Studies have shown they do not.
Poppers don’t disinhibit anyone to the extent they’re going to do anything they weren’t already going to do. The studies have consistently shown that those who engage in risky sex are prone to do it no matter what they are doing. Not using poppers would have no effect on their decision-making. Using alcohol, meth, marijuana or other substances may, however.
As for dilating blood vessels which then lets the HIV enter the body, that makes no sense. The size of the AIDS virus is very small. It enters the body mainly via unprotected anal sex, where the skin has been rubbed raw. The size of blood vessels is irrelevant. This kind of misinformation is what confuses people. When they read it or hear it, they’re turned off by the message and dispute anything else they may hear. Information should be credible. We’re smart enough to listen and make decisions, but if the info is goofy, it’s discredited.
The bibliographies Mr. Wilson mentions have been disputed and discredited over and over. Here’s one example: http://www.virusmythpoppersmyth.org/hank_wilson_references/
Mr. Wilson may want more research, but poppers have been studied to no end with the same results: no harm.
Having said that, education is a good thing. But it needs to come from credible sources with accurate information. One needs only to look at the Wikipedia page on poppers (see the discussion page) to see that Mr. Wilson is a virulent anti-popper zealot who is, himself, the source of much disinformation. I’m not sure where the popper ‘promotion campaign by the poppers industry’ is going on, but Mr. Wilson has waged a huge anti-popper war on Wikipedia for years. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poppers)
To stop the spread of the HIV virus you must rubber up!! Wear a condom if you’re going to engage in anal sex! It’s that simple.
In fact, for most people who use poppers, they enhance the sexual experience so much that they can even enhance sex with condoms, making condoms more acceptable to some who resist wearing one because they think that sex feels less satisfying with one on.
TH
gary mills
November 8th, 2008 | LINK
Tonight I used poppers just for fun. It was the 5th time over a 10 day period. About 2 hours after using it- i tried to go to bed as it was late. When I tried to lie down I could not breathe- my lungs seemed to be be getting only 1/4th of the air it needed. I expereienced severe anxiety attacks and could not breath fast enough. Then, the coughing began. Non-stop coughing. Poppers are evil. It messes up the lungs and I am scared to death. If I do not get better within a few hours I will be going to the emergency room for relief.
beth johnson
January 20th, 2009 | LINK
I was introduced to poppers for the first time early yesterday morning. I had not even heard of it. I was sooo drunk outta my mind. The guy i was hanging out with just pulled it out and started sniffing this small bottle at first i thought he was crazy and then I sniffed and kep sniffing. I guess i didn’t sleep very long but i have felt bad all day and we did use protection. Ever since i have been researching this poppers side effects and when i seen sudden death it made me call poison control. My head is still hurting pretty bad and i keep sneezing. I have been drinking water cause im way past hungover but i feel a tad better not much more. Will this horrible feeling ever go away?
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