'American Horror Story: Freak Show' Episode 6 Recap: Wheel Of Fortune
*** WARNING: Contains spoilers! Please do not read on unless you’ve seen Episode 6 of “American Horror Story: Freak Show,” titled “Bullseye.” Or if you don’t mind spoilers, go right ahead! ***

The central image of tonight’s episode — the bullseye — is possibly the best symbol to illustrate the main themes of “American Horror Story: Freak Show.” The idea of chance, a simple streak of good luck or bad, can impact your entire existence. The knife can either hit harmlessly between your legs as you’re strapped on the spinning wheel, leaving you scathed but alive, or it can pierce your stomach, leaving you to bleed out slowly. One guess which destiny most of the freaks have suffered (metaphorically, of course).

And this is precisely what Elsa boasts throughout the whole hour: that she saved the freaks from an even worser fate. By bringing them all into the freak show, she has made them her family and protected them from the outside world. To make matters worse, it’s her birthday week, so she’s expecting unconditional adoration (along with swanky gifts) from her “children.” Just before warmly accepting all of the odds-and-ends gifts, she admits in a little monologue (while whipping knives at the bullseye — yes! Jessica Lange throwing knives! fun!) that she’s willing to stop anyone and anything that gets in the way of her hunt for fame.

Seal Boy/Paul, who gets better and better every week, is obviously the brains of the freaks, and has Elsa figured out. He’s sleeping with her in what seems to be a semi-dedicated relationship, though it’s obvious he’s a mere plaything. He’s also sleeping with Meryl Streep, Jr. on the side, in what appears to be a more sincere, real love. (If this is as close as we’re going to get to an “AHS” Meryl Streep monologue on a dimly lit staircase, I’ll take it.) The bullseye is just as representative of love — something exceedingly hard to find and even harder to keep. Elsa and Seal Boy, Seal Boy and Meryl Streep, Jr., Jimmy and Maggie, Dandy and Bette; they’re all cases of love based on deception. Even within the same body (Bette and Dot), love is received and dealt with in completely different ways.

Dandy is repulsive to Dot and an absolute dream to Bette. Even after he blows up playing “Tell Me A Secret” (a terrible game, truth be told), Bette is still in love with him. Dot wants to use him solely for the money to pay for separation surgery. Whether or not Bette and Dot will ever come apart is becoming one of the biggest “will they or won’t they?” questions of the season. As I’ve said before in other recaps, I don’t think they’ll ever be separated, mainly because it means the twins will die. Whatever happens, this is a genius way for “AHS” to advance Bette and Dot’s storyline in a believable manner. Their motivations are so disparate, and both so strong (the desire to be in one’s own body, the desire to be loved), that there’s no way to solve the problem instantaneously or easily. It’s going to get worse before it gets better.

Same goes for whoever Dandy encounters in the near future. His final speech of this episode, delivered to a wide-eyed Gloria after reading Dot’s diary, is some intense, scary acting from Finn Wittrock. When he states “I was never destined to feel love” with flat affect and overflowing eyes, I was right there with him. We’ve all been there on the couch, alone, empty and desperate. Then he lost me when he said that his purpose was to bring death, but overall the effect was there: Dandy has completely and totally gone off his rocker, and instead of combating it, he’s accepting it. He knows he must kill. More chest stabbings on the docket for next week!

Speaking of killings, Stanley doesn’t really seem to be accomplishing much at the freak show. Maggie so obviously has attachments to all of the freaks, so I don’t really understand why he’s assigning her to do it. She (thankfully) wimps out of killing Ma Petite — which we saw anyway thanks to a fake-out scene — and scrambles to get Jimmy to run away with her. Stanley threatens her and tells her he wants the lobster claws. We know that’s not going to happen, but what will? The ideal outcome would be someone finding out about Stanley’s “affliction” (a 13-inch … ahem … appendage) and then mailing him off to the museum. Ten bucks on that happening eventually.

I’m not even sure if Jimmy will make it back to the freak show grounds, because last we saw he was entering the Motts’ house and Dandy’s standing in the foyer with a knife tucked into his pants. Not looking good for Jimmy. Or Elsa, for that matter. By the end of the episode the freaks don’t trust her anymore (even her beloved Ethel), her freak show is failing, her love affair is kaput, her singing career looks very doubtful, and she’s hiding major secrets from everyone around her. She’s also a terrible knife thrower. “I just want to be loved.” Yes, Elsa, so does everybody. But the difference is we don’t sell people to murderers and we don’t throw knives at family.

The freak show is coming apart at the seams, and with Stanley around to pick it apart as it falls loose, things don’t look good for our beloved crew. I only pray the killings stay in black-and-white remain in his mind. Until next week!

Freak Of The Week: Seal Boy/Paul. He has two women (that we know of) calling him “lover boy,” he wears a white tank top nearly 24/7, and he rocks full-body tattoos like no one’s business. Hope he survives.

Random Thoughts:

• Gloria: “I have RC Cola too!”
• Anyone else notice the opium smoke was computer-generated?
• We’re basically seeing all the freaks die in horrific ways and/or be encased for display without actually having them killed off. I can’t decide if it’s a genius move by the showrunners or just a deliberate tease. I almost died myself when Ma Petite was clawing at the side of that jar.
• Speaking of Ma Petite, who wouldn’t love to open a birthday gift box and see her inside, smiling and being adorable?
• My favourite shot of the episode was the twins seated in the middle of the long Mott table. Bette looking adoringly down at Dandy, while Dot suspiciously eyes Gloria. All so well-placed and symmetrical. “AHS” nails it with stuff like this.
• Gloria: “Hindsight is 20/20, dear.”
• Let’s just hope Stanley and Dandy don’t pair up. If they do, no one will get out alive. Methinks Dandy is about to go on a killin’ spree.

“American Horror Story: Freak Show” airs on Wednesday nights at 10 p.m. EST on FX and FX Canada.

Episode 5 Recap
Episode 4 Recap
Episode 3 Recap
Episode 2 Recap
Premiere Recap

www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/13/american-horror-story-freak-show-episode-6-recap_n_6148284.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-voices&ir=Gay+Voices

70% of gay Koreans not out to parents

Study finds only 1 per cent are out to their fathers

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darrenw

www.gaystarnews.com/article/70-gay-koreans-not-out-parents131114

'I'm Not Gay No More'
I’ve seen the video of the gay man being “delivered” in church:

Some find it funny. I think it’s sad. And I don’t blame him, because it’s not his fault. It’s the delusion, deception and power of the church (man). Many gay men have tried to pray the gay away, just not publicly. And when it didn’t happen, some found themselves married to women with hopes of curing it. This time last year I was involved briefly with a married man who believed he had the courage to leave his wife to live his truth, but he’s still locked in a marriage, even posting pictures of himself with his wife on Facebook to continue the illusion that he is happy, and that he isn’t gay. Other gay men still struggling with themselves are drug-addicted, suicidal, addicted to porn, having anonymous sex in a public park or with strangers they meet online because they can’t seem to overcome the untruths about being gay. Then there are those of us who refuse to pretend to be anything other than who we are, who we were created to be. Sexuality is instinctive. It isn’t a choice, nor is it decided. It’s how we’re wired.

www.huffingtonpost.com/craig-stewart/im-not-gay-no-more_b_6142650.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-voices&ir=Gay+Voices

Benjy the gay bull is saved from the slaughterhouse thanks to crowdfunding campaign

Benjy the bull will see out his days in an English animal sanctuary after his Irish owner warned he couldn’t afford to keep him due to his preference for other bulls stopping him from siring calves

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andrewp

www.gaystarnews.com/article/benjy-gay-bull-saved-slaughterhouse-thanks-crowdfunding-campaign131114

U.N. Committee Members Find Use Of Conversion Therapy 'Troubling'

Anthony Costello

www.towleroad.com/2014/11/un-committee-members-find-use-of-conversion-therapy-troubling.html

A Gay Dad's Open Letter to Rose McGowan on Lessons Learned
Rose McGowan’s opinions have been all over social media the past few weeks. She started in an interview with a now-infamous diss alleging that gay men are “as misogynistic as straight men, if not more so.” She then “apologized,” writing on The Huffington Post, “Where does it say that because of a man’s sexual preference, I don’t get to point out character defects? When equal pay for women was voted down by every male Republican there was no LGBT outcry.”

From my perspective, as someone who works with grassroots advocates, I submit that if she truly believes that there have not been huge outcries from gay men over women’s concerns, of which equal pay is just one, then she simply has not been listening.

She continued, “What I want is for gay rights activists to help other disenfranchised groups. These activists are experts while so many other groups flounder. It’s time to share the wealth and knowledge. “

Rather than debate her opinion based on her acquaintances with a few gay men who were apparently derogatory, I would prefer to honor her bigger request. So here you go:

Dear Ms. McGowan,

I am sorry that you have not felt that the outcry against misogyny from gay men has been loud enough. Given your comments about Speedos and Molly, I can only assume that your comments are in part the result of seeing the “gay community” as the buff young men on the party circuit. I can’t really speak for them or their activism. These days, many of us are more PTA than par-tay, and “Speedo-ing” is what I do when I am late picking up my kids.

I am a gay dad raising two sons, both adopted as infants. I know thousands of gay men, and there are none that I would not characterize as feminists. I am raising my sons as feminists, and all the gay dads with daughters especially seem to be empowering their children thoroughly and completely. Pointing that out is not the purpose of this note, though. It is to share the LGBT success experience with you.

The major success factor has been this: coming out. If you want to trace the single greatest secret behind LGBT traction in equal rights, it is that. The vast majority of people who have changed their minds about gay rights have done so after a person close to them came out. They then have to juxtapose values and the real-life person, and they have found their misconceptions usually fall apart.

How does this work with a group that may be disenfranchised but is not really a minority as LGBT people are? Women are, in fact, the majority. In the past elections, even with LGBT people in both political parties, we have been fairly uniform in our voting and advocacy; obviously there are exceptions, but they are pretty fringe. If the “women community” were to do that even one time, the impact would be immediate and have a historic effect never seen before in modern times. If all women voted as a bloc and in their own self-interest, not a single Republican would be elected to office, and specific women-equality standards would be enshrined in such a way that they could never be displaced.

That did not happen. Why not? The answer is pretty clear: The worst enemy, the most misogynistic and unempowering for women, can be… other women. Yes, we have some experience with internalized self-sabotage in the LGBT community as well. I can’t tell you how many articles I have read where a gay man sounds off on “the gay community,” but if you read between the lines, his concept of “the community” is really the last five guys he’s dated.

For women, an example is mom blogger Tara Kennedy-Kline, who recently wrote a piece called “I’m A Mother Of 2 Boys, And I Can’t (And Won’t) Support Feminism.” Where I am raising my boys to be polite and courteous to all, she is “kind of psyched to be raising my boys as gentlemen. … I am raising them to treat the women in their lives like princesses.” Kennedy-Kline equates a girl’s beauty with her “prettiness”; I am teaching my sons a more holistic approach to beauty, to see it within all people regardless of gender.

Kennedy-Kline implies that the wrong dress on a girl makes her “easy” and someone to be avoided by her sons. She also protests a culture that expects boys to act responsibly and respectfully under all circumstances. She protests the “flipping the shame of ‘sluttiness’ from the girls who expose their breasts (and bellies and butt cheeks) to the boys who look at them.” I can only guess that she would seek to shame you for your own choices in public attire.

She claims to want empowerment for women and gender fairness, but she qualifies it by stating, “I do not believe that opposite sexes can ever be completely equal, as there are very specific limitations for each gender. I also believe that there is nothing wrong with many of the gender roles that have been honored throughout history.” Within these roles, she calls on girls to be “maternal, ladylike, demure, and feminine.”

I am not willing to have people like Kennedy-Kline determine my limitations or those of my sons or women in general. I am the maternal nurturer in my family. My sons are not lacking that parental influence in their lives. They, in turn, are not being programmed to only fit into one specific gender role themselves. Likewise, I want women to be able to choose roles ranging from homemaker to board-room member. CEOs are not demure. “Maternal” and “feminine” are not qualities listed in the job descriptions for professional game changers. People need to be able to be who they know themselves to be, not actors fulfilling certain roles others have determined for them.

Kennedy-Kline states, “There will never be a time when I will tell my boys not to treasure, protect and admire the women in their lives because ‘Women don’t need a man to feel valued.'” She leaves the impression that, in fact, women do need such validation to be truly valued. I do not believe that in any way and would be loath to teach any woman to believe that.

Thus, this is not an issue of outcry. There is a bigger issue, and that is an issue of in-cry, of what is being said in our homes. In LGBT homes, our children are being raised to see people as individuals. Femininity and masculinity are embraced and celebrated but are not assumed to be owned by only one gender or the other. We are celebrating the strength in our daughters and helping them envision achievements beyond traditional roles. We are teaching our boys to respect themselves and others equally, and that the rape culture is not acceptable — they own their own impulses and cannot blame some mode of dress as “asking for it.”

Misogyny and homophobia are innately united. They are manifestations of the same bias and societal disease. They kill and ruin lives. They must be removed together. If one exists, it will create the other; neither exists in a vacuum.

I have to be a feminist because I am a dad. I am responsible for two lives that I want to thrive in this society over the next few decades. I am a feminist because I want them to live in a fair and just world. I want them to nurture and be maternal if that is who they are, or be masculine and aggressive if that is their calling.

Ultimately, it may not be the voices of LGBT people who stand on the front lines and win the battles for the feminist movement; it will be our children, and those raised similarly, who were instilled with equality values. Sadly, there won’t be much of a difference in the world if our children still represent a minority. The majority could still come from homes in the “women community” like that of Kennedy-Kline, homes where condescending oppression and subtle misogyny are mistaken for honored tradition.

How do we apply lessons from the LGBT movement to the feminist movement? Unify. Pull together your diverse population, and then come out to your allies. It is no small task, but voices like Kennedy-Klines indicate that you are not there yet. The Republican wave in last week’s election says you are not there yet.

Rather than try to find the right generalizations to use to describe gay men, you might be better served by using your considerable charms on those closer to home: Try to reach the lost women of the sisterhood. Then, to paraphrase Annie Lennox and Aretha, those sisters and gay men can help our straight brothers understand.

www.huffingtonpost.com/rob-watson/a-gay-dads-open-letter-to_3_b_6140684.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-voices&ir=Gay+Voices

Michael Sam Sr.: 'I Love My Son, And I Don't Care What He Do'

John Wright

www.towleroad.com/2014/11/michael-sam-sr-i-love-my-son-i-dont-care-what-he-do-.html

Could Michigan Pass a Gay-Only Nondiscrimination Bill?

The fight for LGBT employment and housing nondiscrimination protections in Michigan just got dirty.

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Sunnivie Brydum

www.advocate.com/politics/2014/11/12/could-michigan-pass-gay-only-nondiscrimination-bill

Letting You In: The Complexities of Post-coital Care as a Queer Person With a Disability
He looked into my eyes and kissed me hard on the mouth. Clothes began flying about the room. Our breaths met. He gently moved me to the bed. We did what two men do best. Then, before sleeping, we spent four hours spooning, simply spending time with one another and relishing this world between fantasy and reality. It was beautiful for what it was, and a moment that I have clung to since it happened a few months back.

When it was all said and done and the light of morning flooded my room, I rolled over to find that I was still next to this beautiful stranger. He was on the bed, asking me how he could be of help. I was puzzled. Usually, at this point, the guy is throwing his clothes on as quickly as he removed them, the novelty of “crip sex” having worn off, and sheepishly heading for the door. Usually, I am waiting on my lover to leave so that I can call my attendant and lie about what I have been up to. But this time was different: This guy actually wanted to see what my wake-up routine consisted of and was selflessly offering a hand.

At this moment, two things were happening simultaneously. On the one hand, I was so excited that someone wanted to stick around to see what living with a disability really means, that he wanted to delve into my reality, not just into the theory of disability. (Also, I can’t lie: If this guy had offered you a shower, you wouldn’t have been able to refuse him either, nor would you have wanted to.) On the other hand, I was terrified of what this meant for me. I have made a point of keeping care and coitus partners separate, and here I was, letting the two worlds crash into each other without a second thought. He led me into the shower, and I showed him my routine of washing and cleaning. Of course, I took full advantage of finally having a naked man in my shower after quite some time. (If you’re reading this and cheering me on — or visualizing it with your pants off — I thank you.) Afterward, he put on my leg bag and helped me dress and get back in my chair. We went for coffee, and he told me how great his night was, and that he wanted to see me again. He then got on the bus back to the city and left. My heart, head and mind were aflutter.

Before we continue, let me just say that in this moment, I was not so naïve as to assume that we would become instant lovers, partners or homosocial friends. I have been around long enough to know a hookup when I see one. The sex was probably among the best I have ever had, but that wasn’t what I will remember. The real intimacy came afterward, when he asked to be let into my world of leg bags, washing and care. He probably thought he was just being polite and helpful, seeing someone who needed a hand and offering it.

I saw the interaction differently. By agreeing to help me with post-coital care and attempting to understand the realities of my disability, he was being more intimate with me than any one-night stand had ever been. And I was showing him my true self, my vulnerabilities and my realness. My disability and all that it encompasses were laid bare without apology or exception. By helping me in this moment, he was telling me (whether he realized it or not) that I could trust him, and that all that I am was valid and OK.

So when he disappeared without a trace (the all-too-common mark of a one-time lover), I was considerably confused. I felt, dare I say, violated. I was hurt that I had let this beautiful stranger in and showed him a part of my world that scares me the most. I had given him the opportunity to know me in my most honest state, not just what I wanted in a sexual context but what I needed as a fellow human but was unable to do on my own, and he squandered it, leaving me to have to start anew the process of hoping someone will delve into my disability and all its parts.

The next time you offer to lend a helping hand (other than the one the night before) to that pretty, palsied PwD you play with, make sure you understand the opportunity you are being given and what it might mean for them to “let you in.”

www.huffingtonpost.com/andrew-morrisongurza/letting-you-in-the-queer-_b_6137138.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-voices&ir=Gay+Voices

Oklahoma Supreme Court rules lesbian seeking to help raise ex-partner's biological children should get hearing

Julie Eldredge has been cut off from the two children after break-up

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gregh

www.gaystarnews.com/article/oklahoma-supreme-court-rules-lesbian-seeking-help-raise-ex-partners-biological-children-shou