Teen Sentenced To Two Months In Jail For Part In Stonewall Inn Bathroom Gay Bashing, Washington State Governor Gregoire To Announce Support For Same Sex Marriage Wednesday, Colorado Republican Group Supports Same Sex Civil Unions, Hartford Connecticut Catholic Archdiocese Plans To Offer Pro-Abstinence Groups For Gays And Lesbians Outraging Gay Activists, David Beckham’s Package Continues To Dazzle, Andrew Luck

A teenager involved in an anti-gay attack at a landmark New York City gay bar was sentenced for two months in jail. The Associated Press reports that Christopher Orlando did not speak at his sentencing Tuesday. Defense lawyer John Rapawy says the 18-year-old "just wants to put this behind him." Orlando pleaded guilty in September to charges including assault as a hate crime. Co-defendant Matthew Francis was accused of beating a man in the Stonewall Inn's bathroom after using an anti-gay slur. Prosecutors say Orlando tackled the man and held him down. Francis also pleaded guilty. He is serving two years in prison. His lawyer has said Francis was high on drugs during the attack.

Washington States Governor Chris Gregoire is expected to announce her support for same sex marriage at a news conference Wednesday morning, according to sources close to the discussions. According to The Seattle Times, the governor's office won't comment except to say there will be an 11:00 am. news conference on Wednesday to discuss "marriage equality." Leaders of Washington United for Marriage, a coalition of gay-rights, civil-liberties, labor and religious groups, announced in November they plan to pressure the Legislature this coming session to pass a marriage equality law in 2012. Gregoire has supported giving gay and lesbian partners the same rights that married couples have today, but has never publicly endorsed same sex marriage. The Legislature is scheduled to go into session on Monday and wrap up by March 8. In addition to debating gay marriage, lawmakers have a $1.5 billion hole to fill in the state budget.

Jefferson County attorney Mario Nicolais bills himself as "a hard-core partisan Republican," which comes as no surprise to any Democrat who saw his recent work on a commission redrawing legislative boundaries. But Nicolais also serves as the spokesman for a new GOP group called Coloradans for Freedom, formed to serve as a resource for the passage of civil unions. The Denver Post reports that their message is: Being gay and forming a civil union is a matter of personal freedom consistent with the Republican philosophy of individual liberty. "The point is not to create conflict within the Republican Party," Nicolais said. "It's to provide resources to people interested in the conservative argument for civil unions." Coloradans for Freedom is holding a "conservative cocktail reception" Thursday night at a Denver home. A bill allowing civil unions in Colorado passed last year in the state Senate but died in a state House committee, with every Republican voting "no" and every Democrat voting "yes." A similar bill will be introduced in the 2012 session, which begins January 11. Civil unions offer same sex couples the legal benefits, protections and responsibilities granted under state law to traditional couples. They do not allow for same sex marriage, which Colorado voters made unconstitutional in 2006. Some gay couples oppose civil unions for that very reason, saying that if they are approved, there won't be an incentive to overturn the constitutional amendment outlawing same sex marriage. Coloradans for Freedom includes business leaders, political activists, lobbyists and former and current lawmakers. Most are straight, but several are gay. At least three members have ties to the Starboard Group, a powerful political consulting firm that has raised millions of dollars for Republicans, including U.S. Reps. Mike Coffman of Aurora and Cory Gardner of Yuma. The keynote speaker at Thursday's event is former state Representative Rob Witwer of Genesee, a lawyer and father of four. "In my mind, there's nothing inconsistent with being a Republican and supporting the rights of gay people to live as they choose," Witwer said. "I would like gay people who believe in limited government and fiscal responsibility to know they still have a home in the Republican Party." Senator Kevin Lundberg (R-Berthoud) who led the fight in the Senate against last year's civil-unions bill, said he will fight this year's effort too. "It's not just a freedom issue," said Lundberg, who spearheaded the 2006 effort to outlaw same sex marriage. "It's an issue of what is the definition of marriage in Colorado. That's absolutely the core point. Are we going to change the practice of marriage from one man, one woman to any gender at any time?" Democrats, including House Minority Leader Mark Ferrandino of Denver, are thrilled at the organized GOP support for civil unions. "I'm glad to see a group of leaders on the right coming out and saying, 'If we are for limited government, we should be for civil unions,' " said Ferrandino, who is gay and who co-sponsored last year's bill. "It can't do anything but help the chances of a civil-unions bill passing this year." Last year's measure allowed unmarried adults, regardless of gender, to apply to a county clerk for a civil-union license. Civil unions allow same sex couples the ability to file a claim based on wrongful death, eligibility for family- leave benefits and the responsibility for decisions relating to medical care and treatment. This year's civil-unions measure will again be introduced by Senator Pat Steadman (D-Denver) who is gay. But neither Ferrandino nor any other House Democrat is co-sponsoring the measure at this point, preferring to wait to see whether a House Republican will sign on. "We have Republicans who say they will support the bill if it gets to the House floor, but nobody's made the leap yet to serve as sponsor," Steadman said. Thursday's reception is at the home of former House Speaker Chuck Berry, president of the Colorado Association of Commerce and Industry, and his wife, influential lobbyist Maria Garcia Berry. In 1992, she served as the treasurer for a group opposing Amendment 2, which prohibited laws protecting gays from discrimination. Voters approved the measure, but it was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1996. "I've heard people say that civil unions threaten marriage," Witwer said. "I've been married 16 years. They don't threaten my marriage."

The Hartford, Connecticut Archdiocese wants gays and lesbians to practice abstinence in the new year. On Tuesday, the archdiocese announced it was launching a local chapter of a national ministry called Courage "to support men and women who struggle with homosexual tendencies and to motivate them to live chaste and fruitful lives in accordance with Catholic Church teachings." The Hartford Courant reports that in a press release, the archdiocese stated that its Office of Diaconate director, Robert Pallotti, had been working to establish an area program for more than four years. The Courage ministry is based in Norwalk, led by the Rev. Paul Check of the Bridgeport Diocese, and claims to have more than 100 chapters around the country. "Through support and spiritual intervention, we can help people with same-sex attraction lead moral and fulfilling lives," Pallotti said. "These people are hurting and so are their families. Doing nothing would be a lack of compassion." Linda Estabrook, executive director of the Hartford Gay & Lesbian Health Collective, took offense. Thousands in the state receive services each year from the health organization, whose motto is "Be well. Be yourself." The ministry implies that many of them "are not moral and are not leading fulfilling lives, and that is not true," Estabrook said. Among those who walk through the collective's doors are people of faith who feel rejected by the Church, Estabrook added. "Even with the progress society has made and the progress in Connecticut, things can still be difficult." True Colors Executive Director Robin McHaelen argued Tuesday that the Catholic Church is "trying to have it both ways — keeping the same hostile interpretation of a small number of biblical passages while pretending they are not homophobic." "I can't tell you how many kids I work with who have been spiritually wounded by this and similar religious perspectives," McHaelen said. True Colors, a non-profit agency based in Hartford, offers help to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender teens, some of whom have been kicked out of religious households."In my opinion, that's the abomination," McHaelen said. Sharon Groves, director of the religion and faith program at the Human Rights Campaign, the gay rights advocacy group in Washington, D.C., also criticized the Courage ministry for "calling on people to be inauthentic. … God did not ask us to have to lie about who we are." Establishing the Hartford area chapter proved difficult and triggered disagreement among deacons in the archdiocese, according to Pallotti. Some deacons believed Courage — founded in 1980 with help from former New York Archbishop Terence James Cooke — condoned same-sex acts. Since then, deacons have attended workshops on human sexuality and pastoral ministry, often with their wives, the archdiocese stated. "This has been an incredible journey for many of us," Pallotti said. "Several deacons have told me that they have been changed by the experience. They see things differently and are anxious to offer help to those who want it." Check, the ministry's director, said Courage intends to help people "who have a unique struggle, an often difficult and vexing one, and who want to know that the grace of Christ and his cross is available to them in concrete and practical ways." The archdiocese did not indicate when Courage meetings would begin, or where, but promised confidentiality and stated that those interested can call 860-761-7446.

David Beckham is back, as is his ample package, modelling boxerbriefs in a new editorial campaign for H&M.

Andrew Luck (seen celebrating after completing a touchdown pass in the third quarter of The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl with David DeCastro, who also sports a very healthy bulge) suffered a heartbreaking loss in his final college game, Luck’s Stanford Cardinals defeated by the Oklahoma State Cowboys 41-38 in overtime.