Afternoon Edition - 10/19/05

WILMA!
A category five hurricane that packs over 175 mph winds, Wilma has broken all records; it’s the most intense Atlantic storm in recorded history. Wilma is expected to deposit over 25 inches of rain in Cuba and over 15 inches to neighboring Cayman Islands and Jamaica. Florida is considered her first U.S. target. The strongest storm to hit the U.S. prior to Wilma was Gilbert in 1988. Florida has suffered over $20 billion in damages and 150 deaths this year from hurricanes. Wilma is not expected to touch the Gulf Coast devastated by Rita and Katrina a couple of months ago. Wilma is the 12th hurricane, tying this year with that of 1969 for the most hurricanes for one season.

Don’t Ride the Pony
On July 2, James Tait and his roommate, who share a farmhouse, were visited by a friend from Seattle. It was in the neighbor’s barn that the three engaged in a bestiality session with a horse that left the Seattle man dead. The King County Medical Examiner says the Seattle man died of acute peritonitis due to perforation of the colon – to put it bluntly, he was screwed to death by the horse (don’t ask!). Now the Kings County prosecutor in Washington State is charging Tait with criminal-trespassing – the most serious offense in this case. Washington State does not outlaw bestiality – only a dozen states do. “There is no evidence of injury to the animal to support animal-cruelty charges," said Dan Satterberg, the county prosecutor's chief of staff. "This is the only crime we can charge."

I Ain’t Sayin’
New Zealand is not the pulse of the American legal system, but it has set an important precedent when it ruled that Justin Dalley, 36, an HIV positive man, was not required to tell his female sexual partner about his infection if he wore a condom to protect her. Under New Zealand law you are not required to disclose any STD or HIV infection to your sexual partners if you do not endanger your partner. Judge Susan Thomas said Dalley’s legal duty was to take reasonable precautions to avoid transmitting the virus and he had done so by wearing a condom. Dalley and the alleged victim met on the internet.

Long Story Short
The long-awaited Logo Channel series, Noah’s Arc, airs tonight at 10 p.m. and 11 p.m. It will air again at a reasonable hour on Friday at midnight. Noah’s Arc explores the life of four black gay men in Los Angeles. Since the Logo Channel is not a pay channel ala Showtime, HBO, etc. chances are this show will not be as steamy as say, Queer As Folk or Oz. To read more about the show or meet the attractive cast, go to http://www.logoonline.com/shows/dyn/noahs_arc/series.jhtml
Our dear friend Frankie H. will have his life support machines turned off tomorrow. Frankie’s family believes there is no point in having him remain in this state with his kidneys and liver failing. Carlos C. is home from the hospital and fixing dinner for the masses. Carlos had his sisters over for dinner last night for a Spanish food medley. Tomorrow we will have our first Manners Mutha Fuka column. The spot will detail pet peeve issues that we can share with each other to help us understand annoying, rude and sometimes inconsiderate traits that can be changed for the better of all – we can all use a little brush-up. I’ll be heading out to the shining star of the Caribbean on Saturday, November 19. Freaking Rican will be in Puerto Rico at the same time, so I’m sure we’ll do plenty of hanging out.

On Blast
Is there an age when we should consider “growing up” and ceasing to participate or partake of certain activities, such as clubbing, tattoos, piercing, etc.? Is age simply a number or do we need to set a cut-off age?

Keep passin’ the open windows…