Readership of Bananation

Source: Sitemeter.com

as of 14 February 2008

WWE Wrestlers Storming into Singapore

You saw them fondling each other's muscles on TV. You imagine that you were part of their histronics in the ring. But when the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Superstars performed in Singapore 3 years ago, you missed an orgy of orgling - live.

If you are a die-hard WWEdiot, don't let this chance slips you by again. The larger-than-life wrestlers are back to the Lion City for a one-night performance on 28 July, 2007 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

A check at Sistic which sells the tickets, the SGD45.00 (Cat 6) tickets are sold out. The other SGD45.00 (Cat 5) and the next cheapest ticket SGD65.00 (Cat 4) are still available. If you have a liking for diamonds, get the SGD350.00 Diamond ticket (Cat 1). Whether you are seated at NSEW, the Diamond seats offer you a spectacular view of the Superstars.

For more choices of tickets, visit Sistic. Before you decide if this year's Superstars are your choices of candies, here are the stars scheduled to perform at the [Smack Dowm Summer Slam Tour 2007] in Singapore:

Mel White in Singapore

"God might be bored after creating straight peoples that he created queers"

Rev. Dr. Mel White @ Free Community Church talk

[Thank God I am Queer - a Gay Christian's Journey]

May 24,2007, Thursday

7.08pm - I am waiting by the elevator of Yangtze Building at Outram Road near Chinatown. A man stands at an arm length from me and a woman stands adjacent to me. Both look in their 40s. The man is staring blankly into space while the woman is ogling at the sleazy poster of R(A) movies displayed on the wall. Shortly, the elevator descends to the ground floor. As it doors open, I enter and press the 4th floor button. Neither the man nor the woman select a floor.

When the door opens at 4th floor, we are greeted by a row of shops. This is my first visit to the premise to attend a talk by Rev. Dr. Mel White (inset left) on Christians and homosexuality. I have no idea where Free Community Church (FCC) is. The woman enters a beauty parlor and the man walks the other way. Should I follow him? My instinct tells me 'no'. I turn into a corner and pass by a row of sleazy massage salons. I am verbally harassed by a few female masseurs standing outside their shops (White uses the euphemism "a church near a brothel" to speak of FCC's strategic location.) I walk further up and an entrance welcomes me to another world - the Yangtze Cinema, a haven for lecherous old men into softcore movies. On my right, a sign reads 'Free Community Church'. Phew!

7.16pm - FCC has a very humble entrance. At the reception, I take a phamplet on the church and two booklets titled [My Journey toward Affirming the Gay Community- by Rev Dr Yap Kim Hao] and [The Bible & Homosexuality - by Rev Mona West] - both printed by Safehaven, a ministry of FCC, and make my way down to the 2nd row of chairs. From my back, I hear White introducing himself to two women. I turn around to meet this respected, 67-years old gay rights activist. The lanky, bespectacled man wears a beige, short sleeve shirt and a long white pant. Shortly, he walks to my seat. I stand up to greet him. We chat a little before he moves gracefully to welcome the oncoming people. A few fashionably dressed executives and musclebound men sashay across my eyes - a rare sight in churches.

7.28pm - a Hugo-Boss model lookalike host announces that the talk will begin at 7.45pm to accomodate the late comers. (I am told later that he was expelled from a reputable Singapore church because of his sexual orientation.)

7.45pm - The hall is seated with more than 60 men and women in their early 20s to 50s who are eager to listen to White's gay journey. The host introduces him officially to the audience and leaves the stage after an exchange of hug.

"It's good to be introduced because you get a hug".

White's opening line carries a homosexual innuendo but makes everyone laughs. Tonight is an evangelism not for the conservatives and the fundamentalists, but for gay Christians who are torn between the Bible and homosexuality. White shares true stories of young, gay American Christians who committed suicides under the torment of sexuality. To all gay Christians, he says: "homosexuality is a gift from God".

Doctrinated by conservative Christian teachings in his younger days, White believed that a Demon inside him made him gay. He embarked on a electroconvulsive therapy and exorcism to treat his 'disease'. He recalls that he was shown photographs of men and women and each time he saw a man, he had to shock himself. The treatment didn't work because he developed a crush on his therapist. Devastated that his homosexuality was incurable, he cut his wrist. His attempted suicide effected an amicable divorce with his wife. Today, he is in a 23-years relationship with his partner, Gary Nixon, of whom he co-founded the gay rights organization - soulforce. White's friend - a lecturer at a local instituition also shares his coming out story. His Laos boyfriend of 3-years is beside him as he speaks.

8.45pm - the finale is a Question & Answer session. Several questions on gay promiscuity, masturbation, monogamous vs open relationship are raised. White discusses them with personal examples. I am against stereotyping of gay men being promiscuous and this is a chance to be heard. I raise my hand. When White sees me, he says "oh cute". I hear laughters from every corner. Two guys who sit in front of me turn around to look. I blush. White invites me to stand and speak. I don't like being watch from my back and so I walk up to the front to deliver my views. I am happy to win several approving nods from the audience.

9.05pm - The talk ends with a prayer by White.

''Thank God I am queer".

(left: Young Mel White)

-------------------------------------------

My notes:

Scientifically, homosexuality is no longer a mental disorder and hence requires no cure. The American Psychiatric Association removed it from its list of personality disorders in 1973. Religiously and socially, homosexuality remains an unspeakable sin and an immorality. Regardless if the Bible's views on homosexuality have been misinterpreted or indeed God created queers, pretending to be who we are not and fighting against who we really are, is a self-destructive effort. Is Ted Haggard really straight now after 3 intensive week of counselling? I doubt so.

The Year Sickest Online Game

This is not a game review for PS3 (Play Station 3) or Xbox. This is an outright condemnation of the online game [V-Tech Rampage] devilishly created by an amateur, a 21-year old Australian, Ryan Lambourn (inset bottom). The game was based on the mass shooting at Virginia Polytechnic Institute on April 16, 2007. The creator said he made the game "because it's funny," the Sydney Morning Herald reported. Bananation finds neither the incident nor the game funny at all.

The website, Googumproduce.com which hosted the game has been suspended since the public uproar over the Year sickest online game. However, it can still be played at a popular game portal site which allows homemade games to be uploaded (like youtube). So far, the game has been played 50,000 times. Apparently, Ryan is very proud of his offensive creation.

"I've done offensive things before but they're not usually this popular", said the self-taught animator who goes by the screen name, Master PiGPEN when he uploaded the game. (inset left: PiGPEN's pic from his profile).

His game became a heated discussion in the media and forums. Some supported him in the name of freedom of speech and action while others are digusted by the motive behind the game. The most disheartening is, however, not his creation. It is the absence of remorsefulness in the aftermath of the incident. He challenged the angry community by demanding USD2,000 to remove the game from his site and an additional USD1,000 to apologise.

It is pathetic that Ryan draws attention to himself by piggybacking on the mass publicity of a tragedy. As reported by Earth Times, an Australian Communications Minister Senator, Helen Coonan described the youth's endeavor as "very poor taste and the person concerned may want to consider getting some professional help." Indeed, the kid needs help.

Ryan stayed in the US till he was 14 before returning to Sydney. He dropped out of 8th grade after being bullied and abused at several schools. According to him, "no one listens until you do something sensational." By creating [V-Tech Rampage], he immortalised himself as the Korean-born gunman Cho Seung-hui - the lonely student from Virginia Tech. The kid is obviously misguided in his understanding of recognition.

Bananation suggests that the Australian government pays for all the professional help he needs and grooms him to become an ambassador for the online game community. In this way, he can bask in the limelight positively.

"Ryan, put your talent to good use.
Create healthy games, create healthy gamers"

Bananation






Bananation's tribute to the victims of the Virginia Tech

Madonna's new song - Hey You

Song for Charity

"Hey You, what's you looking at?" Not so fast, Madonna's fans. This ain't your sequeal to [Vogue].

[Hey You] is the Diva's latest digital release for the charity campaign "Live Earth" to create an awareness for our climate. You can do your part by dowloading the song at MSN.com for FREE!!! (1st million downloads only). For every download, Microsoft is pledging to donate 25 cents to the Alliance for Climate Protection.

Written by her Madgesty and produced with Pharrell Williams, the song [Hey You] beckons you to save our Mother Earth indirectly by loving and saving one another. Don't expect any confession on the dancefloor. Think of Enya, marching in parade.

MADONNA - “HEY YOU” LYRICS

Hey you, don’t you give up

It’s not so bad

There’s still the chance for us

Hey you, just be yourself

Don’t be so shy

There’s reasons why it’s hard

[Chorus 1]

Keep it together, we’ll* make it alright

Our celebration is going on tonight

Poets and prophets would** envy what we do

This could be good, hey you

(*The first time it’s sung, it’s “you’ll”)

(** The third time it’s sung, it’s “will”)

Hey you, open your heart

It’s not so strange

You’ve got to change this time

Hey you, remember this

None of it’s real including the way you feel

[Chorus 1]

Save your soul, little sister

Save your soul, little brother

Hey you, save yourself

Don’t rely on anyone else

[Chorus 2]

First love yourself

Then you can love someone else

If you can change someone else

Then you have saved someone else

But you must first love yourself

Then you can love someone else

If you can change someone else

Then you have saved someone else

But you must first

Hey you, there on the fence

You’ve got a choice

One day, it will make sense

Hey you, first love yourself

Or if you can’t

Try to love someone else
[Chorus 1, Chorus 2]

Shrinking sucks!

A new job is all it takes to strip 11 lbs from my weight. Although I did not shrink to where I used to be - scrawny and flat-chested, I am not feeling big. I suffer from bigorexia - a disorder which is the opposite of anorexia. Instead of feeling not skinny enough, I feel not big enough. Now, I don't feel big at all. It is a red alert to me!

Everyone who have seen my physique transformation tells me that I should just maintain my mass and not be any bigger. The reason being I do not have the height to carry a broader frame. I stand at 5.5 feet. When I was at the tip of my mass (gaining 33 lbs), many commented that enough is enough. Don't become a 'crab', a non-derogatory term for muscular men who can't close their wings and walk like a gorilla.

Genetically, I'm an ectomorph - a body type that is the hardest to gain mass. I took 5 years to become muscular. Most bodybuilders advise 7 meals a day which I follow closely until 6 months ago. I am eating lesser of egg whites, chicken breast meat, weight gainer and whey proteins. My gym routine reduces from thrice to twice weekly. Creatine and volumiser tablets are completely off my diet. Now, I eat only 3 meals daily. The effect was damaging. I feel small although I am not really small. My gun and chest are still very defined. But I'm disturbed by my weight loss. I want my 11lbs back!!!

So this morning, I bought chicken breast meat, potaotes and eggs at the supermarket. I'm aiming for a bigger me. This is what I am going to do from today:

1) Eat a lot of meat, especially chicken breast.
2) Eat 5 meals daily on weekdays, 7 meals over weekends.
3) Eat baked potatoes and egg white on alternate days.
4) Eat a lot of bananas.
5) Take weight gainer daily.
6) Retake creatine and follow the loading phase strictly.
7) Visit the gym thrice weekly.
8) Sleep 8-hours daily.
9) Drink plenty of water.
10) Do all the above and still have time for my other hobbies.

I can imagine the weighing scale and mirror smiling at me after a month.

--------------------------------------------------------
Related writings on physique and vanity by me:

Son's muscular body worried parents.The menace of bigorexia

I can't go to the gym when I die, can I?

While the ladies adore the letter "S', men chase after the letter "M"

Driving to Jail

First, it was Paris Hilton. Then it was our own Christopher Lee. Both sentenced to jail for offences related to reckless driving. Was Christopher's case untimely? Bananation has only one word to say to Lee - "suay" (a Hokkien term to mean unlucky).

The 26- year old heiress to the Hilton Hotel fortune violated her probation and knowingly drove with a suspended licence. By June 5, Hiltion will have to report to a women's jail in suburban Lynwood or face 90-days behind bar, double the sentence she received. Lee, 35, an A-list actor with Mediacorp was convicted on a hit-and-run reckless driving. Lee's fate is still unknown as he will be appealing the 4-weeks jail sentence. If he fails, he will be reprising his role as a jailbird in the movie [The Best Bet] (left inset).

Lee is not the first Mediacorp celebrity to be charged with reckless driving, but he is the first to be slapped with jail term. 2 Indian riders were thrown off the motocycle after a collision with Lee's black Mercede-Benz. The fact that he desserted the injured after the accident is a selfish act that disregards the life and death of others. Have a police officer not apphrended him as he fled the scene, we would still be deceived by the veneer of his public charisma when in fact, guilt lures behind the mask.

If Paris, an AAA-list celebrity is going to jail, why not Lee, whose offence is more serious to warrant a jail term? Lee's sentence is a calculated judgement which rides on the publicity of Hilton's case in sending a strong signal to our celebrities: don't think that you will be treated differently because of who you are; if you flaut the laws, you pay the price accordingly. Ex-TV host, Benedict Goh, is probably keeping his fingers crossed on his judgement day. The 37-years old hunk from the 1994 Manhunt competition was charged for alleged drink-driving and lying to the police on May 9. However, one contributor to forum (ST, May 12) was flummoxed why Goh went scot free 3 years ago for the same alledged offence? FYI, Paris was sentenced on May 4.

If Lee, an ah-ge (an established male actor) goes to jail, other A-listers will think twice about driving while inebriated.

The basic rule applies: alcohol, taxis or jail.

Janice Dickinson's Pink Venture

I like this bitch. This is the only time I call someone a bitch but yet adore her. Janice Dickinson,the 70's Supermodel is the latest reality TV star on the "JD Modelling Agency" show. I have watched the show since its debut, from how single-handedly she started her own modelling agency with no model to a handful of eye candies. Her business direction was towards the cilenteles of Vogue, GQ alike but not Maxim. Baring of boobs is not her taste, but baring of pecs and abs seems to be her liking. Naturally. In fact, the show has sublimely become a pink venture just like her signature pinkish brand 'JD'.

Last night show on the 2(x)ist men underwears was an avalanche of adrenalin. If the show was extended beyond its 1/2 hr to 1 hr, many gay men would have died of cardio arrest. Don't believe? See the reaction of these two guys who were at the showcase in New York.















This TV-show is the gayiest that was ever telecast in Singapore. You can catch last night show and more skin flicks from JDMA below:





Pictures

How to be fabulousy Gay?

Get personal with Sorin Mihalache, the Romanian model

Videos

The 2(x)ist showcase at New York (video)

Sorin underwear audition for 2(x)ist

Aussie Bum open call with 3 gay judges. (not shown in Singapore yet)

More Aussie Bum audition (not shown in Singapore yet)

Catch them fast before the links are dead.

Homozila.
Do Homosexuals Destroy Cities?

On the issue of homosexuality in Singapore, many have aired their views. Differences are expected because we live in a socially diversified ecosystem. Differences are also to be respected, albeit with arguments. Be assertive but not aggressive.

Last week, 2 persons wrote to The Straits Times against the decriminalization of gay sex law, Section 377A - Johanthan Cheng Hern Sinn's letter, "MM's comments have me and family worried." on May 1 and Yvonne C.L Lee's article, "Decriminalising homosexual acts would be an error." on May 4. I am upset over the former but am very concern about the latter. Yvonne is an Assistant Professor at the National University of Singapore. With all the hullabaloos against decriminalising s377A, I wonder how much the pro-s377A community knows about homosexuals who live among them. Hopefully, not from hearsay.

To understand us, first let me define [homophobia]. I pick the key words that explain the term across 4 online dictionaries and string them to form a concise definition:

An irrational fear of, aversion to, prejudice or
discrimination against homosexuality or homosexuals.

Any form of phobia has a specific object or situation which causes the fear. So excuse us. What makes homosexuals or homosexuality so scary from heterosexuals or heterosexuality? Friends and colleagues enjoy my company; family and relatives call me a responisble son. Some pro-s377A may argue that for Pete's sake, these people are nice to me because they didn't know I am gay. They could be right but I can attest for everyone who knows me that they will never forsake me in the name of homophobia. That is, however, not the point that I am making. In the same context that leopards never change their spots, I am still the Mr Nice regardless of my sexual orientation and so do other gay men. Sadly, the cold fact remains that our positive sides are overshadowed once the pro-s377A know we are homosexuals. We are judged by what they didn't see.

I can understand the concern of the pro-s377A community on the extension of homosexual rights to other aspects of our lifestyle should gay sex be legalised. However, I strongly disagree that it will pose a threat to our society morals and public health. To those who see homosexuals as thorns in the flesh, let us know what are your problems with us and we will see if we agree with you.

The recent media frenzy has defocused the pro-s377A, homosexuals and gay-friendly citizen from the essence of s377A. Le'ts recap the stand of the Law Society of Singapore on this issue:

"The majority of the Council considered that the retention of s.377A in its present form cannot be justified. This does not entail any view that homosexuality is morally acceptable, but follows instead from the separation of law and morals and the philosophy that the criminal law’s proper function is to protect others from harm by punishing harmful conduct. Private consensual homosexual conduct between adults does not cause harm recogniseable by the criminal law. Thus, regardless of one’s personal view of the morality or otherwise of such conduct, it should not be made a criminal offence."

Reinforcing on the Council's assertion that criminal laws protect others from harm by punishing harmful conduct, who are we protecting consensual homosexual sex from? Our sons, brothers, boyfriends, fiances, husbands, fathers or grandfathers?

Whether gay gene exists or not, people do not become homosexuals overnight. As we all know, the development of homosexual inclination is the by-product of several complicated factors over a period of time. Homosexuals are already homosexuals. This may sound duh to you but it is the bigger picture that the pro-s377A miss. With or without s377A, homosexuals will continue to have sex with one another in their rooms. Liberalising gay sex will never infect the heterosexual heartland: we have no interest in breaking up families or brainwash straight people to be gay. If there is already a homosexual(s) living in your family, we can't infect them further. Even when gay sex is legalised, it does not mean rice bowls will be broken. Homosexuals are already working in many private and civil servcies, and the straight workers still have their jobs. To say that alternative media and entertainment will be mainstreamed into the society after decriminalisation of s377A is akin to living in a stone age. If homosexuals in Singapore have to look up to MDA on approving what are approriate for our consumption, we would already be the frogs in the well and manipulated by the conservatives and fundamentalists. To complicate the issue, the pro-s377A still think that they are justified in claiming sex between men carries a higher risk of HIV infection than sex between men and women in Singapore. Tell me that I misinterpreted these data from the Ministry of Health from 1985 to 2006. If MSM (men who have sex with men) are percieved to be lethal carriers of HIV virus, victimising homosexuals under s377A creates a bottleneck in the combat against AIDS and other sexual transmitted diseases. When homosexuals stay in the dark, safe sex education will only see a shimmer at the end of its tunnel.

When we preach that Singapore is a multiracial, multicultural and multireligious society, we must also advocate harmony among the various diversified communities in our country. All the crossfire in the debate over social consequences of decentralising gay sex will only turn the deaf ears of the pro-377A to our outcrys - homosexuals are not godzillas that destory cities.

Letters to Forum Editor: Issue of Homosexuality

I am upset over forum contributor, Mr Jonathan Cheng Hern Sinn's letter "MM's comments have me and family worried." (ST, May 1).

I shall not deliver a harangue to dispel Mr Cheng's homophobia. That will only invite lampoons from the like-minded community. Instead, allow me to share my story.

I had dated girls in the past; today, I am a homosexual man in a long distance relationship with an American. If we generalise that "homosexuals lead a promiscuous and hedonistic lifestyle", I must be an outcast in my community. You won't find me at gay pubs, saunas and chatrooms; surfing pornography is the only activity that makes me bohemian. You can interview my close friends (straight and gay), and they will tell you how much I live like you and me. I do not cruise for sex. I go to the gym or catch up with friends after work. I stay at home most weekends to read books, watch DVDs or play the piano. I do have my indulgence in shopping - not on fashion but on books and music. When time and finances allow, I travel to meet my boyfriend, overseas friends, or on my own. I take care of my aged parents well and pay my bills on time. Bearing in my mind that I am a homosexual, do any of these activities appear immoral to you? Anyone can be promiscuous and hedonistic - male, female, gay or straight. Let be broad-minded and not hurt anyone by our own views. I am not the only homosexual who leads a responsible and healthy lifesytle. We can't see air but it exists.

Next, I would like to share my view on the decriminalization of Section 377A. Unavoidably, I have to cite Mr Cheng's again. He said in his letter:

"Singapore today faces the challenge of a declining birth rate and families are breaking down at the same time. To legalise homosexuality will compound these problems, given that homosexual couples do not reproduce."

His statement raises my eyebrows. Everyone knows that homosexuals are unable to make babies between them. More of us means lesser of the heterosexuals, which may contribute to lesser babies. We can't help it. If the doctors that Mentor Minister, Lee Kuan Yew consulted have advised that homosexuals are genetically born, medical professionals would agree that it is wiser to focus on heterosexual couples to increase birth rate. I do agree that liberalising gay sex law may throw in new problems to the society. However, for Mr Cheng to remark that "we do not make it easier to be a homosexual by legalising their activities", he has detracted from the sincerity of his concern for the issue. What will Singapore - our home, our country, benefit by making the life of homosexual citizens difficult? Even if Section 377A is successfully repealed, being a homosexual is still not easy for many. Our challenges are more than the ordinary can embrace.

Singapore is a wholesome country. Let's not forget that we homosexuals help in building it too.

*************************
More views by netizens on Mr Cheng's letter

A Trip into my Head - A step forward, a giant leap backwards