“While I have never denied my sexuality, I haven’t publicly acknowledged it either, until now. So let me be clear: I’m proud to be gay, and I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me. Being gay has given me a deeper understanding of what it means to be in the minority and provided a window into …

Via ABC News: This is why some people love him … and some people hate him. N.J. Gov. Chris Christie, appearing along the Jersey Shore to mark the second anniversary of Superstorm Sandy, got heckled by a local activist and former councilman. So Christie did what he does — fire back. “I’m glad you had your day to show off, …

A 25 year-old man died yesterday after an apparent drug overdose in the multimillion dollar penthouse of developer Ian Reisner (left), who in 2012 opened the posh Out NYC hotel and nightclub complex near Times Square. Sean Verdi, of Bay Ridge, was rushed from 230 Central Park South to Saint Luke’s Hospital after Reisner called 911 about 8:20 a.m., police …

UPDATE: JMG reader Kned sends us a photo from the celebration in the Castro. UPDATE II: Another Kned photo, this time from the Mission.

Orlando’s Watermark has the transcript: “I am Edith S. Windsor, the plaintiff in Windsor v. United States, the case that won federal recognition of marriages for same-sex couples. The two extremely positive decisions in favor of marriage equality were Justice Jacobs’ decision in the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals and Justice Kennedy’s decision in the Supreme Court, both self-described conservatives. …

Via the Straits Times: The highest court in Singapore has upheld Section 377A of the Penal Code, the law that criminalises sex between men, rejecting arguments that the provision contravenes the Constitution. In ruling that the provision is constitutional, the three-judge Court of Appeal on Wedesday rejected two separate challenges to strike down the law. Gay couple Gary Lim, 46, …

You knew this one was coming. Dear Joe, Verizon has a new commercial where the whole ad is based on the slogan “half-fast” internet. This double entendre is repeated over and over again. The entire commercial’s dialogue has various people, mostly families, including a mother in front of her child, saying half-fast instead of half-a$$ed. Verizon should be more responsible …

Via The Hill: England-based company JDI Dating and its owner, Mark Thomas, were the target of the $616,165 fines. The settlement forbids the company from misrepresenting facts about the service or its cancellation policy in the future. “JDI Dating used fake profiles to make people think they were hearing from real love interests and to trick them into upgrading to …

I didn’t catch Matt Barber’s response to Right Wing Watch this morning, but he certainly ignored all of yesterday’s tweets from the flying monkeys who pointed out that his newest columnist has called for executing homosexuals. Barber deleted that post, but here’s an excerpt from how Right Wing Watch writer Peter Montgomery has responded to the above tweet: Here are …

In three new campaign ads, the US House bid of Louisiana’s Zach “My Platform Begins With God” Dasher is endorsed by Phil Robertson (Dasher’s uncle), and Sen. Ted Cruz, who’s apparently OK with vertical cellphone video ads. Via NOLA.com: Fifth Congressional District candidate Zach Dasher’s new ad says he believes in guns, and he’s just unloaded the biggest gun he …

The New York Court of Appeals has unanimously ruled that the marriage between a woman and her half-uncle is no more incestuous than marriages between first cousins, which are allowed in many states including New York. The case reached the appeals court after an immigration judge tried to have the woman deported to Vietnam on the grounds that her marriage …

At an In-N-Out Burger in California, a man carrying a bible had been holding the door open for customers all day. Because reasons. When the staff declined to thank him for this strange behavior, the man had a screaming meltdown that was caught on a customer’s cell phone. Via Raw Story: When a manager asked the man to leave, he …

After yesterday’s disaster in Virgina, all eyes were on Cape Canaveral this afternoon as an Atlas V rocket successfully launched.  The rocket carries an Air Force GPS satellite. Allegedly. Today’s was the 50th successful Atlas launch.

Via the Houston Chronicle: The City of Houston will withdraw its controversial subpoenas of five pastors tied to a lawsuit over the city’s equal rights ordinance, Mayor Annise Parker announced at a news conference Wednesday. The announcement came amid a national firestorm about the subpoenas, which have prompted outrage among Christian conservatives. Parker said two meetings yesterday, one with local …

From Montana’s Great Falls Tribune: One after another, federal appeals courts, including the 9th Circuit that covers Montana, have thrown out gay marriage bans in other states, and Montana’s position will be overturned. Why? Because that stance discriminates against gays, lesbians and others. It is unfair to these folks, regardless of some Americans who disapprove of their sexual orientation. The …

Gus Caims reports at AIDS Map: In an extraordinary development, a second European scientific trial of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has had its randomised phase closed early due to high effectiveness, just two weeks after the UK PROUD trial did exactly the same thing. The investigators of the IPERGAY trial, which has six sites in France and one in Canada, announced …

“The question here is whether the crime was solely a function of the homophobic hatred of two strangers who beat up and brutally murdered someone merely because he was gay. That’s the official line of the Matthew Shepard Foundation and the Human Rights Campaign. Of course these motives could also have been involved. I’m arguing that meth can explain all …

In an American accent.