Legal Issues and Politics 11/1

In Reno, TX, a gay man was beaten, burned and stabbed in a brutal attack that is being categorized as a hate crime. Burke Burnett was at a private party at 1am when four men suddenly attacked him, stabbing him twice with a broken beer bottle before throwing him onto a fire. His attackers yelled things like pussy-ass faggot, gay bitch and cock-sucking punk, before leaving him for dead. Luckily he survived and after getting 130 stiches and treating the second-degree burns on about 30% of his body, he is recovering in the hospital in stable condition.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning adults 40 years of age or older to cut back on black licorice. Eating 2 ounces of the candy a day for at least two weeks may lead to arrhythmia, or irregular heart rhythm, which could possibly land you in the emergency room. A sweetening compound found in black licorice called glycyrrhizin can cause the body's potassium levels to drop, which may lead to abnormal heartbeat and high blood pressure.

While America is lovin’ the McRib, the sandwich has been banned in Europe and Australia because it contains azodicarbonamide. This chemical, which in food is used to bleach flour, is used when making gym mats and the soles of shoes. It is also known to be a “respiratory sensitizer” that contributes to asthma.

In the tiny Central American country of Belize, it is still illegal to be a gay man (10 years in prison) and for “professional homosexuals” to enter the country for any reason. Well, the country’s highest court will be hearing a case that could end all that. Of course several Christian groups here in the US want you to send them money so they can “save the morals and religious beliefs of this great nation.”

Two California high school students became one of the first lesbian couples crowned homecoming king and queen in the nation this weekend. Rebecca Arellano was made the school’s first female homecoming king and her girlfriend was named queen earlier that evening.

The policy advisor for the US Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage wrote an article in their official newspaper stating that Satan made people gay because he knew it would piss off God. So you “might think that you were ‘born this way’ but unless you change your ways, God will never love you.”

Infamously anti-gay North Carolina State Rep. James Forrester has died unexpectedly at the age of 74. He was also a liar claiming false medical credentials on his website and campaign materials. (Well, he has a lot of explaining to do when he meets his maker.)

Scientists have developed a method for genetically modifying mosquitoes so that their offspring die before reaching adulthood. Now, while this sounds like an awesome thing, some people are saying that there could be unintended effects from this modification and that it is probably not a risk worth taking.