Drug violence spins Mexico toward 'civil war'

(CNN) -- A shootout in a border city that leaves five alleged drug traffickers sprawled dead on the street and seven police wounded. A police chief and his bodyguards gunned down outside his house in another border city.

Four bridges into the United States shut down by protesters who want the military out of their towns and who officials say are backed by narcotraffickers.

That was Mexico on Tuesday.
What is most remarkable is that it was not much different from Monday or Sunday or any day in the past few years.

Mexico, a country with a nearly 2,000-mile border with the United States, is undergoing a horrifying wave of violence that some are likening to a civil war. Drug traffickers battle fiercely with each other and Mexican authorities. The homicide rate reached a record level in 2008 and indications are that the carnage could be exceeded this year.

Every day, newspapers and the airwaves are filled with stories and images of beheadings and other gruesome killings. Wednesday's front page on Mexico City's La Prensa carried a large banner headline that simply said "Hysteria!" The entire page was devoted to photos of bloody bodies and grim-faced soldiers. One photo shows a man with two young children walking across a street with an army vehicle in the background, with a soldier standing at a turret machine gun.
Larry Birns, director of the Washington-based Council on Hemispheric Affairs, calls it "a sickening vertigo into chaos and plunder." By most accounts, that's not hyperbole.

Complete story and video at source>>>

Fitness Over 40 - Why You Should Take It Seriously

Next week I will be heading into the land of men who are 45 and over. The amazing thing for me about this fact is that I feel better than ever! In the gay community, particularly with men, body image is often over emphasized and people tend to have unrealistic views of what their bodies should look like.

However, what I am learning about my body as I age is that, your body can only give you what you give to your body. And feeling great isn't just about looking good, it is about feeling good about the steps that you take each day to stay healthy.

When I first started producing my event Blatino Oasis in Palm Springs, California in 2007, I learned a serious lesson about losing weight the wrong way. During that time, I only had three months to produce Blatino Oasis because of the deal that I had with the resorts. I also realized that I was carrying 200 pounds (about 10lbs more than normal) on my 5' 11" frame and needed to lose weight soon. I went on a crash diet, lost 20 pounds and nearly passed out.

The lesson: The healthy way to lose weight is gradually and over a realistic period of time.

In 2008, I emerged from the holidays with a few more pounds and began to plan a 120 day- 15 to 20 pound weight loss program. It included cutting out certain types of food, getting more fiber into my diet, and working out at least 5 days per week.

According to a New England Journal of Medicine study, people over 40 years of age must maintain average daily calorie consumption under 2,000…while maximizing the consumption of naturally high fiber food: FRUITS, VEGETABLES, NUTS AND WHOLE GRAINS. The lesson, researchers say, is that people lose weight if they lower calories.

The report goes on to state that "the more fiber one eats daily (up to about 50 grams, or 1.8 ounces), the more weight he or she is likely to lose."

Researchers believe that because fiber—which is found in veggies, fruit and whole grains—creates the sensation of fullness after eating by activating stretch receptors, nerve cells that are probably part of the group of signals sending the “I am full” message to the brain, in the digestive tract; it also slows digestion, extending the time that nutrients are dribbling into the blood stream from the intestine, which may lead to feelings of satiety.

The average person over 40 who refuses to start a regular workout program or give up the eating habits of their youth, will probably face many health related challenges in the future.
We all know that even healthy people develop health problems, but the stonger and healthier your body is, the more likely your body will more effectively fight challenges to your health, increasing chances of a healthy recovery.

As I prepare for another year at Blatino Oasis in Palm Springs, I am always reminded that my journey is not just a superficial one, but one that reminds me that a sexy and healthy body is not just for young people, it is for anyone who seeks to have one.....take the journey to a healthier you.

Joe

Flash Back - Truth Hurts - Addictive feat Rakim

Dream Lover

Sean Penn earns best actor Oscar

Sean Penn, the bad-boy actor turned serious thespian, has been awarded the best actor Oscar for his role as the slain civil rights leader Harvey Milk.

Congratulations to my friends Mathew Riutta, Debra Wilson and all of the other Bay Area people who helped to make this film a success. See Dustin Lance Black's acceptance speech for Best Original Screenplay below.

Director Gus Van Sant's riveting biopic about slain gay rights activist and San Francisco city supervisor Harvey Milk is now on DVD.

‘Madea’ Goes to Town

Madea under lockdown put the smackdown on the weekend box office, once again demonstrating the allure of a man cross-dressing as a big, fat granny. Collectively, all movies playing grossed an estimated $142 million plus, up 29 percent over the comparable timeframe last year and making this the biggest post-President's Day weekend on record.

Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail busted out of the gates with an estimated $41.1 million on approximately 2,800 screens at 2,032 theaters, nearly matching the initial attendance of The Nutty Professor (1996) and beating Norbit's debut among similar movies. The latest adventure of Tyler Perry's popular gun-toting, straight-talking granny character also served up the third biggest-grossing start at less than 2,500 theaters (without factoring inflation).

The last Madea-centered picture, Tyler Perry's Madea's Family Reunion, packed a $30 million opening on this same weekend in 2006 and was the highest-grossing movie of the Tyler Perry franchise with a final tally of $63.3 million. Fat-suit comedy seems to have perennial appeal, at least on opening weekend, from Mrs. Doubtfire to Big Momma's House.

complete story>>>

RuPaul - Cover Girl (Put the Bass in Your Walk)

Hair Weave Saves Girl's Life from Bullet

Increasingly, Gay Men Busted for Prostitution in NYC

New York Times: On an October evening last year, Robert Pinter walked into the adults-only section of an East Village video store. Within minutes, he was approached by a young, handsome stranger.

“He was very charming and cute, and we agreed to leave the store and engage in consensual sex,” said Mr. Pinter, a 53-year-old massage therapist. But on the way out, he said, the man offered Mr. Pinter $50. Mr. Pinter, who is gay, said he found it odd for a younger man to want to pay him for sex.

“Then I got this weird feeling and thought if he continues to offer me money I am going to say, ‘Thanks, but no thanks,’ ” he said.

Outside, Mr. Pinter said, he was put against a chain-link fence by undercover police officers and handcuffed. As he was being led to a van, he was told he was being arrested for “loitering for the purpose of prostitution.”

The arrest of Mr. Pinter, whose narrative differs from the police account, and more than two dozen similar arrests in more than a year have touched a nerve among many gay New Yorkers and raised the concerns of some elected officials.

A recent editorial in Gay City News said the city’s actions were reminiscent of the era of the Stonewall Inn, which was frequented by gay men. A police raid at the bar in 1969 led to protests that are now considered the beginnings of the organized gay and lesbian rights movement in New York City.

“Forty years later, the N.Y.P.D. is still targeting gay men and places we gather,” said William K. Dobbs, an advocate for gay rights. Some of the arrests have been used by the city as evidence in “nuisance abatement” lawsuits, a tactic used for many years to try to shut down businesses where unlawful behavior is taking place. The chief police spokesman, Paul J. Browne, said that the police were not singling out gay men but merely responding to complaints about illegal activities.

In 2008, Mr. Browne said, the city obtained 900 nuisance abatement closings or “stipulations,” settlements in which a business agrees to change its practices.

Many of those cases involved under-age drinking, drug dealing and gambling in clubs. Though the police have been criticized for targeting gay-themed video stores, only 3 of the 100 nuisance cases that involved prostitution last year were at such businesses, Mr. Browne said.
“The impression is being put out there that it is all concentrated on gay Manhattan,” Mr. Browne said. “That is just not true.”

At least 34 men were arrested in 2008 and early 2009 in those types of police operations in sex-themed businesses, according to Mr. Pinter, who started a group called Coalition to Stop the Arrests. Mr. Browne said he could not immediately confirm that figure, but said that there were 1,650 female and 233 male prostitution arrests citywide in 2008.

Complete story at source>>>

America's Emptiest Cities

According to FORBES magazine, vacancy rates in these spots spell lots of empty neighborhoods.
Call it a modern-day tale of two cities. For decades, Las Vegas, ripe with new construction and economic development, burgeoned into a shimmering urban carnival. Detroit, once the fulcrum of American industry, sagged and rusted under its own weight. These days, it's the worst of times for both. Las Vegas edged Detroit for the title of America's most abandoned city.

Atlanta came in third, followed by Greensboro, N.C., and Dayton, Ohio. Our rankings, a combination of rental and homeowner vacancy rates for the 75 largest metropolitan statistical areas in the country, are based on fourth-quarter data released Feb. 3 by the Census Bureau. Each was ranked on rental vacancies and housing vacancies; the final ranking is an average of the two.
For complete story see source>>>

Flava Works Wins Federal Lawsuit, XXX Shows Continue at Miami Home

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Did Chris Brown Whoop Rihanna's Ass Over Herpes?

The drama around Chris Brown’s beating of Rihanna continues.

Media reports have confirmed earlier reports that Chris Brown did indeed beat Rihanna, but it’s the reason that’s even more bizarre.

Sources allegedly close to Brown allege that the fight leading to the domestic violence incident occurred because Rihanna gave Chris Brown herpes.

And how did Rihanna end up with an STD to begin with? Rumor has it that she picked it up from Jay-Z!

Brown would have found out about the Herpes due to the symptoms: the signs of infection typically appear as one or more blisters on or around the genitals or rectum. The blisters break, leaving tender ulcers (sores) that may take two to four weeks to heal.

While disturbing if true, it doesn’t excuse the beat down Brown gave Rihanna under any circumstances. He should have used a condom...No Glove, No Love!
DAMN! DAMN! DAMN!

TD Jakes's Son Caught Cruising For Trade in Dallas

The son of T.D. Jakes — the Dallas megachurch pastor who’s called homosexuality a “brokenness” and declared that he would never hire a sexually active gay person — was arrested in a gay sex sting in Kiest Park in January, according to Dallas police reports.

Jermaine Donnell Jakes, 29, faces a charge of indecent exposure after allegedly exposing himself in front of two undercover vice detectives shortly after 10 p.m. on Jan. 3. Senior Cpl. Janice Crowther, a DPD spokeswoman, confirmed Thursday, Feb. 12 that the detectives were both male.

According to an arrest affidavit, the detectives were conducting an investigation into citizen complaints of sexual activity when they observed Jakes and several other unknown males park their vehicles in the lot east of the park at 2106 W. Kiest Blvd.

The detectives followed Jakes into a wooded area, where he approached them with his penis exposed through his unzipped pants, the affidavit states. Jakes masturbated for several seconds while making eye contact with one of the detectives.

Jakes made no attempt to conceal his penis despite people walking and jogging on a trail nearby, the affidavit states. According to court records, Jermaine Jakes listed his place of employment as T.D. Jakes Ministries. Jakes was released at the scene after being detained.

T.D. Jakes is the founder of the Potters House, a 30,000-member church in South Dallas. A vocal opponent of same-sex marriage, he’s been criticized by HIV/AIDS activists for undermining prevention of the disease by stigmatizing homosexuality and drug use.

On same-sex marriage, Jakes once told USA Today: “To date, I have not seen scriptural authority that allows me to stand on behalf of God and say I now pronounce you husband and husband, and wife and wife. This is an issue the government is undecided about. The Bible is not.”

Jermaine Jakes’ attorney, Faith Johnson, issued a written statement this week.

“We are aware of potential allegations involving Jermaine Jakes and are undertaking our own investigation of these allegations at this time,” the statement said. “Given an apparent government investigation, we have no further comment at this time.”

Source>>>

Strictly dick? WTF

Is this the future of gay hip hop?
And they all look like babies.

EROTIC JANET