Thursday night’s big literary event is the book party for Sex for America, the Stephen Elliott-edited anthology of fiction and nonfiction melding those two American obsessions, sex and politics.

Reading are Liz Henry and Michelle Richmond — both former bloggers on this site — Charlie Anders, Michelle Tea, Daphne Gottlieb, and Mistress Morgana. Click here for time, place and cost.

When I interviewed Stephen Elliott earlier this month about his Progressive Reading Series and he mentioned the Sex for America party, I asked him if Liz Henry would be reading the same piece about fucking in the Texas State Capitol that she read in 2005 at LitCrawl on the same program as me. He said “Oh my God, Liz’s story is so freaking good. That’s the one.”

SFPD is hiring & shuffling: Capt. Ehrlich heads to Tac Squad, Fong brings in new female “Community” Capt. Bennet , plus scroll for details for potential applicants and those that just want to know more about what the hell is it they actually do:

In a continual game that is SFPD’s version of musical chairs meets Stratego, respected local Capt. John Ehrlich, a 27 year vet, moves into the Special Operations’ “Tac Squad” and Northern Station’s former Community Policing Lieutenant, Theresa “Teri” Barrett becomes the Park station’s new captain. An ironic shift perhaps since Chief Heather Fong has been reluctant to give so-called “community policing” much headway. Ehrlich also seemed content like most others in the dept. to hopefully let the “community policing” issue fade away before officers ever were forced to move around outside their bulletproof squad cars like any of us ordinary citizens must do.

This personnel shuffle seems yet another shift in the department that on one hand is derided as being insular, ineffective, and wishy washy and then on the other hand is accused of being insular, insensitive & overly aggressive.

I mean how could one not put their faith in an organization that issues glowing reports on it’s own recruits like
“San Frasncisco Policec Academy to Gradtue 13 Lateral Officers” as seen in a press release link posted proudly on the SFPD website since September 21, 2007.

It’s never helped that the majority of SFPD officers don’t live in town, and for a long time many seemed to take gleeful pride in bullying those that do. Lately the embarrassing and stubborn refusal of the SFPD to get around to enacting basic community policing reforms has really strained community relations.

It’s simply ridiculous what we spend here per capita on policing, and the ultimately shoddy results we get for that $500 dollars a year per person. According to a recent editorial in the Chronicle SF spends $120 more per citizen than Chicago, and $180 more per citizen than Los Angeles does on police services. Yet from 1999 to 2005, unlike in those towns, arrests were down 35 percent, and homicides went up, up, up and not away. Especially troubling is the unsolved homicide rate, with less than 25% solved these days, a dramatic reduction since the 50% solved rate of the latter 1990′s under other leadership.

More ranting after the jump…
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As a feature film on the life of Harvey Milk starts production in the city, the real-life legacy of Milk and Mayor George Moscone will be commemorated tonight, the 29th anniversary of the assassinations.

The somber march no longer goes from Castro St. to City Hall. Instead, it will go from Harvey Milk Plaza at Castro and Market Streets to the site of Milk’s camera shop. There Holly Near, the Gay Men’s Chorus, and other artists and politicians will perform/speak. The event gets under way at 5:00 pm.

Here’s a good AP article from 2003 on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the assassinations.

The film, directed by Gus Van Zant and starring Sean Penn as Milk and Matt Damon (!) as nutball murderer Dan White, got some early notice this month when the film crew cast extras.
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While “ground zero” in Manhattan will almost certainly feature a Rudy Giuliani sighting and be the focus of much mainstream media attention on September 11th, there will be other distractions and gatherings afoot here on the left coast.

While Megadeth entertains the metal masses at The Warfield, I see that the Alcoholocaust crew have booked a more intimate affair with perennial political punkers M.D.C at Annie’s Social Club that night.

Most popularly known as Millions of Dead Cops, and alternately Multi-Death Corporations, the guys are not without a sense of humor, and have tempered their raging fury at times with humorous odes to preparing tofu spaghetti & respecting the rights of chickens to roam free while doing the “chicken dance”. I believe my fave MDC show was on Divisidero in 1988 at the late Kennel Club ( now The Independent) when the appeared as Mourn Divine Correctly as lead singer Dave donned a beehive wig & ball gown to celebrate the life of the late John Waters’ film starlet.

If drag is your thing, but you take it pretty darn seriously perhaps head over to Club Crash on Sept 11th to attend the the Transgender Law Center’s fifth anniversary. One has to wonder who booked the oddly insensitive named choice for a venue called Club Crash for an Anniversary Party on the typically bleak day of Sept. 11th . Gotta love that sick sense of humor displayed by SF Human Rights Commissioner and Transgender Law Center co-founder Cecilia Chung & crew…

Another Gay themed event occurs at Castro’s Books Inc. store, a release party for a collection of gay erotica edited by Simon Sheppard called Homosex: A Celebration.

The 11th Annual Madcat women’s film festival begins with screenings, and a free Bar BQ plus a performance by musical guests Amber Asylum at The El Rio.

In the East Bay, conspiracy buffs will gather at Oakland’s Grand Lake Theater, the politically purposeful movie palace hosting a 9/11 Truth Film Festival & symposium beginning Sept 10th and running through Tuesday Sept 11th.

Details on these events and links to more info including PowerPoint slides of engineering analysis of the WTC buildings’ collapse after the jump
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What has undoubtedly become an SF institution for many is reaching the end of an era. After a week or so of first, shock, at the rumor that Fag Fridays was ending, came the gossip that it wasn’t ending entirely. But moving to a new location, possibly in the Mission. Now comes the news that Fag Fridays will indeed be resurrected at Pink. (I always enjoyed this space since back in its Liquid days, so it should be interesting.)

For many, Fag Fridays at The End Up defined a generation of club-goers in San Francisco, cranking out ‘signature’ San Francisco deep house. It was my first exposure to that element of the city, so it still does make me instantly nostalgic. Unfortunately, my burnout level/attention span for that beat has always been sporadic, so I’ve never been among the most devoted attendees. Still, I would periodically nag myself that I really should do a pop-in since it is “classic gay San Francisco clubbing”. It has always been a comforting scene for the most part, so I never regretted it.

And ironically, I once facilitated a straight friend’s hook up on the dance floor back in the day. And not surprisingly, a couple of my homo own. [ahem] Interestly, that straight hook up that turned into quite a longterm relationship. Who knew? For a less tawdry look-back, SF Scene has a better, in-depth, gossipier update. Check it out. And fittingly, Juanita MORE! will be hosting its End Up closing night, October 12. And its relaunch the following Friday, the 19th. No doubt both nights will be beyond packed and extra sweaty.

Tonight at the Mint, ( IMHO the only karaoke bar that matters) in addition to the usual karaoke free for all featuring plenty o’ show tunes & a relentless retinue of 70′s 80′s leftovers, there will be a special country fried competition, a karaoke rodeo roundup if you will.

Starting at 8 pm there will be 6 final contestants who were whittled down from previous rounds for the finals of the Buckin’ Idol contest. The winner of this event tonight gets to sing on stage at the International Gay Rodeo circuit’s Bay Area Best Buck In The Bay festivities happening on Saturday the 15th at The Cathedral Hill Hotel. Well Dang Me!

If you can handle the tension and the krazy karaoke cowboy politics, come on down to cheer them on, and get a drink from your most hospitable bartending hostess with mostest, Jane. If you are a real rootin’ tootin’ rodeo fan, consider attending the actual gay rodeo competition at Driscoll Ranch in La Honda.

Below: pic of Buckin’ Idol competitor Nancy in action last month doing some sort of Carrie Underwood thang

Above: the first sidewalk stencil I’ve seen in the Lower Nob in three years, snapped late one night wandering Jones, near the new oh-so-politic bookstore infoshop, Babylon Falling. Because there weren’t enough places in this city to posture radical theory-blah-blah. I’m actually all for radical theory-blah-blah, too. I just can’t deal with Yet Another Anarchist Front that only stocks the books that “angry” white dudes with the cash to blow on them want. What about some shelf space for the messy, dirty, beautiful radical underbelly of the neighborhood itself, of rebel whores and hustlers? Of queers and queens? You know, the people you don’t see around these parts so often these days? You think we could at least embalm them (edit: us) in a little clever window display.

And god, just hating on trust fund kids and hipsters probably just makes it worse. That’s the insidious thing. You’re either part of the problem, part of the solution, or some jack-off stenciling slogans.

[Foolish mortals.] Welcome to a galaxy – and a glitter-dusted crotch – all too close for comfort. (And no Monroe Ficus satellite in sight.)

That was the throwdown Peaches Christ asked tonight’s audience for “Midnight Mass“. As “Miss Thing, The Merciless”, she orchestrated a brilliant radio serial that saw fags, dykes, bears, twinks, radical fairies, sci-fi nerds, satin fetishists, 80′s hags, (and any non-Republican), all unite under one intergalactic rainbow. For the fate of the universe. Against an imperialist despot. Hmm. (Hush child, I’m talking about Dino De Laurentis.)

“Fish Gordon” broadcasted its cliff-hanger glamour, hook, line and sinker for a very receptive, cheerful audience. I’m still wondering why, at 3:07am, I somehow walked out kinda sober. Oh well. There’s always today’s beer bust. See your flashy ass there.

No, the Republican presidential debates haven’t landed in South of Market. Better. The Eagle hosted its annual mud wrestling event this past Saturday. Individuals very secure in their body image grappled and slid their way through smackdowns, headlocks and more than a little hosing down afterwards. At left is retro homo extraordinaire, DJ Bus Station John and a brave extroverted contestant. We both agreed that oddly absent from such an elaborate presentation was, say: an announcer, rounds, winners… Hmm… wait… Could this just be an excuse for ‘the gays’ to get silly, half-naked (or more) and ‘dirty’ in public? I’ll vote for that ticket. And thank God, unlike last year, I managed not to get entirely bystander-splattered in my quest for the best boozy photos.

Speaking of the Dyke March and Flickr, here’s my take of my favorite Pride event. (Apologies to those who may have to log in btw.) A friend of mine hosted his annual DM party at the corner of 18th & Guerrero. Since that’s right near where the parade kicks off, it’s the perfect vantage point to cheer on the women. It’s especially cool because everyone is still in the ‘excitement honeymoon’ phase. So when they look up and see all of us shouting at the top of our lungs with our signs, they go nuts. (I’m always blown away by the looks of sheer joy on those faces below.)
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