Are there limits to protest?

In Thailand hundreds if not thousands of red shirted anti-government protesters are donating their blood in order to collect it in bottles to throw at government buildings as a ritual sacrificial offering. They claim this is a demonstration of love for their country.  Is this a protest too far?

Doing a good job or being true to your conscience?

Is this just another story about a man that cannot deal with his own sexuality? It seems so, for Californian State Senator Roy Ashburn who has come out as gay, who has a voting record that has opposed every social initiative to support gay rights in California.

However, Senator Ashburn says that he did the right thing by supporting the views of his majority conservative constituents. He is quoted here in The Christian Science Monitor as saying: “My votes reflect the wishes of the people in my district,”

Should openly gay soilders be welcomed into the military?

President Obama called for repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy in his State of the Union address last week. Now, the U.S. military’s Adm. Michael  Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a Senate panel that it was wrong to force people to “lie about who they are in order to defend their fellow citizens.”

As the U.S. military prepares for the eventual repeal of its 1993 “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy barring gays from serving openly, this topic has generated a lot of comment.

Admiral Mullen’s predecessors held very different views as this blogger points out.

Is there anything wrong with this?

Adam Lambert, a contestant on American Idol, has refused to apologise for performing a simulated sex act with a male dancer and kissing his male keyboardist live on stage at a music awards ceremony.

On air: Do gay people still need separate events?

On your marks. Get set. Gay!

The World Outgames 2009, a celebration of gay sport and cultural diversity, has kicked off in Copenhagen.  The Games’ website says the 9-day event celebrates “the talents and contributions of homosexual, bi-sexual and transgender men and women from every corner of the globe”. And, in true flamboyant style, its 5500 participants were introduced on a ‘catwalk’ .

Is coming out bad for your career?

This is a discussion that started on Steve and Zk’s Blank Page No.5 at the weekend. ZK suggested the discussion begin with the comments of X-Men 2 actor Alan Cumming. He’s said the media’s attitude towards homosexuality is scaring off gay actors from coming out. It turned in to a far broader discussion about whether gay people fear that coming out will damage their prospects at work. Do you think that’s the case? And they have reason to be concerned?

Talking point 5 May

To run off, or not to run off? While the opposition MDC in Zimbabwe decides whether it will take part in a second round of Presidential voting, the ruling party Zanu PF has said the vote could be delayed by up to a year.  Teachers meanwhile are threatening to go on strike unless government supporters stop attacking its’ members, many of whom worked as polling officers during the election. How much longer can the stalemate continue? Can Zimbabwe sort this out alone, or is intervention the only option? And should Morgan Tsvangirai return to Zimbabwe to fight a run off?