Anti-Gay Family Action Council Begins Campaign To Change Tennessee Anti-Bullying Law To Make “Sure It Protects The Religious Liberty And Free Speech Right Of Students” Wanting To Express Views On Homosexuality, Johnny Weir Marries The Stunningly Sexy Victor Voronov, Shirtless Enrique Iglesias Sighting, Joe McGuiness

In Tennessee, during the last legislative session it was the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Now the battle lines are being drawn up over another bill that deals with discussion about homosexuality in schools. The Family Action Council of Tennessee said in a newsletter e-mailed to supporters Tuesday that one of its top priorities for 2012 will be passage of legislation that changes the state’s anti-bullying law “to make sure it protects the religious liberty and free speech rights of students who want to express their views on homosexuality.” The Tennessee Equality Project, a gay rights organization, has already sounded off on the measure, calling it “a ‘license to bully’ that allows them to hide their irrational biases behind an extreme religious belief.” According to The Tennessean, it is not clear yet whether the bill, SB 760/HB 1153, is going anywhere. Last year, it was assigned to subcommittees in each chamber and never discussed again. One of its sponsors, state Senator Jim Tracy (R-Shelbyville) said Friday that he hasn’t given the measure any thought since the legislature adjourned in May. “We’ll look at it when we get there in January,” he said. But the language of the bill suggests plenty of room for fireworks. The measure would explicitly protect the expression of religious, philosophical or political viewpoints, even if they are unpopular with students, teachers and school officials. “Oftentimes, people that express that viewpoint become quote ‘bullied’ by administrators that do not share their views,” said David Fowler, the Family Action Council’s president. The measure also says that anti-bullying curricula and materials should not endorse a viewpoint and that they should focus on the actions of the perpetrator, not the characteristics of the victim. That raises some practical questions. Would schools be allowed to punish students who use slurs but do not actually threaten harm? What about statements in which the slur was included in a religious statement, as in “God hates …”? (Members of a Kansas church frequently use this very phrasing in protest signs. The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld their right to protest near the funerals of service members.) Fowler’s response: Slurs would probably be considered threatening in most cases, but some statements — particularly those that are religious in nature — would be protected. “I think you have to look at the particular circumstances, and it could be yes in some cases,” he said. “In other circumstances, the answer could be no. … That’s where in the law we’re trying to strike the proper balance between words that are truly threatening versus constitutionally protected words that people find offensive and insulting.” Writing on a TEP website, board President Jonathan Cole said supporters of such legislation are “using children as pawns for social, religious and political agendas,” adding that, “We need to be focusing on ways to ensure that Tennessee students receive an education free from bullying, harassment and intimidation. The health and welfare of Tennessee children may depend on it.”

Johnny Weir married his stunningly sexy boyfriend Victor Voronov Saturday. Days earlier, in an interview with Icenetwork.com, Weir said, “I'm getting married on New Year's Eve. His name is Victor, he's kind of everything that I've ever looked for and aspired to be in a relationship with. We've known each other for a long time and we reconnected over the summer, and it's just been a whirlwind. I'm very happy with my personal life and also my professional life, and I thank God I can be exactly where I'm at." Weir added, “He's wonderful. He's totally not in my field at all. He didn't even know I was a figure skater when we first met or even when we reconnected. He is Russian. He worked in [New York City] for a long time, and then he went back to Atlanta to do work for his family, and in a couple of weeks he's moving back up to New York. He's a lawyer. He's in the legal field, completely separate from all of my razzle dazzle.”

A shaved, smooth shirtless Enrique Iglesias spotted aboard a yacht in St. Barts.

More photographs of Joe McGuiness and the band The Wanted at play in Barbados.