Joshua Cactus

Before homosexuality was legalized in Israel, before shiny drag queens danced on fancy trucks, before gyms were the new temples, before color photos... And look at that Shofar on the right!

The visit of the Iranian mongrel president to New York is not over yet. Using the podium at Columbia university he declared to the world that there are no gays in Iran. Having met some flamboyant ex-Persians in the raunchier bars of this fair city I went looking for some counter-evidence. Well CBC Canada has done it already and here is the brave piece they put together. Eye opener indeed. Watch and learn Mr President because this is what happens to gay men and women in your country. Like these two young men in the photo (no, it's not a BDSM flick, it's the real horror) who were whipped 100 lashes when caught snuggling at home. See below the YouTube version or click here for better quality video on CBC.CA site . There are gays in Iran and some of them are real heroes . Would I have the guts to stand up in public and face such danger for the potential to be happy? Would you? Video Part 2 Video Part 3

Traffic jams everywhere. Police and dogs and hunky guys in shades talking to tiny mikes embedded in their ears. The UN general assembly is in town! And among those 160 world leaders stands apart the evil baron of Iran. Only 20 blocks from my apartment he is spewing his garbage. Yuck. A short counter-video attached.

She was born a boy. Well, a very feminine one but still a dong-holding-XY genotype short skinny boy from a small hood where life is not milk and honey. Then she was a hooker, then a dim dark clubs freak show and then she blew the glass ceiling and became the first transgender to sing in the Eurovision. Sticking to her filthy-mouth-best-intentions trademark she became a mega star. Performed at all the great venues of Israel and Europe, sold CD's to the Arab world and brought pride to many closeted boyz and galz across the world. The tranny that became a queen. Then there was silence, a few years of eclipse, and now she is back and it's a titanic comeback. To you Hebrew readers here is a link to her latest interview . To the more gentile audience here is another fab clip by the one and only Dana International (the Wikipedia page!!) . The man turned sexy woman who united homos and hardcore football fans at the city square one unforgettable night in Tel Aviv 1998 .

The last official weekend of summer. My friend A invited me ( finally !) to join him for a weekend at Fire Island. A little stretch of sand off the shore of Long Island. An hour on the train, then a fab ferry ride and I reached paradise. Large houses on the beach, hot tubs for a late nite soak, a long and clean sandy stretch. And the village where I was staying has all gay population. Cute boys in minimal wear roam the wooden trails winding among the bushes. The housemates were great, the atmosphere relaxed, the waves cool and the wind breezy. It is a sort of Chelsea on the water but much less attitude and a whole lot more drugs. The energy and the vibe cleansed a tough week in the city. Try it for yourself.

They’re here, they’re queer - be proud of Israel By Bradley Burston JERUSALEM - I’m proud of the State of Israel. It may have more faults per capita than any nation in the world, faults which are duly broadcast, rerun, critiqued, and condemned as nowhere else. It may have more critics per capita than anywhere else in the world, in particular among its majority population of restive, instinctively kvetching, eternally disappointed Jews. I know every criticism by heart. I’ll see your every damning denunciation, and raise you 10. But I am proud of this country, and the gay pride parade in Jerusalem goes a long way toward explaining why. I am proud of a country which - under the burden of a 24/7 threat of Islamic Jihad terrorism, under a daily Hamas barrage of Qassam missiles on a small town in the Negev, under an explicit Iranian threat of erasure in the future and client militia brushfire wars in the near present - deploys 8,000 police, nearly half of its entire active-duty force, to ...

Take thousands of men, eager, fit and ready, put them in one fantasy enclave for a long weekend, and you are in Gay Days. The turnpike to Orlando took us from the real world, where people have kids and beer bellies and schedules to a place where abs and shiny white smiles are the norm. Beautiful men of all shapes and colors roamed the parks and the hotel halls. Four days of non stop parties, sun and music. It was my first time in Disney and the first major circuit party. Our group became close and connected, each found his mate/s and all shared a forming experience. I felt free, happy, sexy. New friendships were forged under the waves of Typhoon Lagoon (the most amazing water park party I ever saw), in the scary seats of the Rock and Roller-Coaster at the MGM park, at the Donna Summers concert. It felt GREAT to be gay . I was never as free in my life. The group we formed there is meeting again soon at the NYC Pride. Can't wait.

Two nights ago I left Israel. After intense days with my man R for the first time in my life I was having sex with tears in my eyes. He made me a farewell package including books, music and an amazing watch. Even got a T Shirt drenched in his sweat. Smell invokes the strongest memories. We said goodbye at the boarding gates as the sun was coming up on Tel Aviv . I Left behind a family of friends, a comfortable life. Left him. All for an adventure with many risks. Shaping your life by your own hands is not an easy thing to do but it is the only way to live. The journey to America has begun.

When did the Eurovision become the biggest European gay event? Was it the Abba period? Was it when Dana International the Israel transgender princess won? Tonight we sat around at M's place, drinking, eating the usual pub crap and laughing our heads off with billion others as the most buizzar and campy show on earth took place. What a show: The cute Greek guy, the prancing Turk, the German Manson look alike. These were all intros to the two big ones, the amazing voice of the butch les from Serbia and the pointy silver tits of the Ukrainian drag-queen. As the scores were broadcast from Euro-Asia we discovered some unknown capital cities (where is Yerva kids?). Content with the winner, Marija Serifovic - Molitva (Prayer) - of Serbia, we went our ways. I bet you the Ukrainian DQ is going to be all over the coming Pride events of the world. It's the Gay World Cup, not the Eurovision . Here is the video of the winning song. See you next year in Belgrade .

Tel Aviv is not a big town. In world standards it's about the size of Amsterdam. A few miles of streets and parks on the Mediterranean coast. It is however the nightlife queen of Israel which automatically makes it the biggest fun place in the Middle East. There is no "gay area" like Chelsea in New York or the Castro in San Francisco. Gay guys and gals are just about everywhere. Walking down the streets you get curious looks from interested fellows. Night time is better. I once had a traffic warden pick me up on the street at 1 AM. How user friendly. As bars and clubs are concerned situation is the same. Few gay bars, hardly any exclusively gay club. The scene is mixed. Men cuddle each other in almost every party and every bar. It makes things confusing sometimes. The average apartment building in the city center will have at least one gay couple, usually more, and if you spend enough time living here you end up having a detailed personal map of ex-lovers and one-nighters...

Last year I came across the horror of being gay (or different in any other way for that matter) in Iran. Two teens were hung in public just for being queer. Two local Muslim kids. Not spies or god forbid Zionists! Just two kids who dared to love each other. I will not show the photos here, but you may see it on the excellent blog Mideast Piece . When the story of these two teens was published I felt for the first time true and deep revulsion for this cursed land called Iran and it’s leaders. Years of spiteful anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli propaganda had only caused me mild discomfort but not achieve what was “accomplished” with a single photo. A country where kids are hung in public for having hots for each other does not have the right to be a member of any international community and should be banned from the company of nations, companies or private individuals. Such a country should be taken seriously. Every threat it makes should be accounted for. Such a place of horror and oppres...

Want to discover the Middle East? How about checking yourself in for a night at an Internal medicine department at the Tel Aviv medical center? Like that old Benetton united colors add it's just full of the widest collection of skin tones and languages you can find. The department where I did my six month internal med rotation was an extreme example. Nurses and doctors, patients and families stuffed into a long neon-lit floor with very little in common except all were very busy being sick or trying to get rid of it. We had Muslim nurses, Russian-Jewish doctors, Ethiopian staff members, immigrants from all over the world. The sexual orientation was from a military macho straight doc who likes them young and tender to the flamboyant gay nurse who loves them big and hairy. Hebrew was the common language but not many were truly fluent. Like a mini New York City or an ancient merchant port in the Roman empire all sorts of colourful people managed to get along and continue with the busi...

Passover is about liberation and lots of wondering about till reaching the promised land. We celebrate an exodus. I think everyone needs some sort of an exodus to party about. If you think of it it's an ancient fantasy almost all of us have. Go and leave your troubles behind while wagging your tail at the enemy/authorities/old life/taxman/ [fill the spot]. Grab a chance at a new start. And the added bonus, no bread is allowed in Passover hence less carbs . Here is a dumb but kinda jumpy Passover Clip .

Living in Tel Aviv is a state of mind. Somewhere in this ever burning middle-east there is one place, not too big, that allows all sorts of people to be themselves. Yep that includes the crazy cat lady from across the street and the drunk Russian that occasionally uses our entrance for a bathroom but it also has full positive range of human expression. I grew up in the north in a small town covered with trees and moms and bridge clubs. Night was officially over by 10 pm. Every drive south to the big city sent a chill down my spine. Just seeing the gloomy interchanges and heavy traffic was enough to make me happy if somewhat edgy. Five years ago I moved to TLV and became a part of the buzz. Today the local pub and coffee shop make me feel at home while keeping this buzz going. The vibe is lower, but still humming. In TLV I found love and friends and a haven from the battlefields. A friend has written a great piece about it all at Details magazine . I'm even quoted there, see if you...

There is a moment in every gay man's life that defines a "before" and "after". It's that moment when you tell your mom you are not gonna bring a little wife to the holiday diner. For me it was almost 8 years ago one rainy afternoon on a park bench. Lots of tissues and late night phone calls later we are better friends with stronger mutual understanding. This week my partner R told his mom. He made a decision to celebrate his 27 birthday with self liberation. R comes from a relatively conservative family although not religious and his moms' response could not be predicted fully. He told her in the presence of his older sister and a frozen silent was the immediate response. R is very close to his mother and the courage to risk endangering this bond is not to be taken lightly. The conversation was tense and many tears were shed (mostly by him). I am so happy for him, he made such amazing progress in very few months. The coming weeks will not be easy but I b...