andy rodick's Kevo

These past couple of weeks have been exciting and exhausting. In the interest of my own sanity, I'm going to start the weekend early. We'll be back with you soon.

Scientists have observed magnetic behavior at one of the poles of Saturn unlike anything they've ever seen in the solar system: "Saturn's main auroral ring, like Earth's, is caused by the solar wind. But the newly observed infrared displays go all over the place. 'We've never seen an aurora like this elsewhere,' the University of Leicester's Tom Stallard, lead author of the Nature paper, said today in a NASA news release. 'It's not just a ring of aurorae like those we've seen at Jupiter or Earth. This one covers an enormous area across the pole. Our current ideas on what forms Saturn's aurorae predict that this region should be empty, so finding such a bright one here is a fantastic surprise.'"

The first image ever taken of Earth from the moon was shot in 1966 by Lunar Orbiter 1. A 20-year project to revamp the image to a higher resolution was recently completed, resulting in what you see below.

See what it looked like before the re-tooling, AFTER THE JUMP...

Shane Mercado, whose spot-on rendition of Beyonce's "Single Ladies" has earned him over a million views on YouTube, was asked to do the routine for The Bonnie Hunt Show in front of the video backdrop and his story was the subject of a recent CW11 news segment.

Suddenly everyone wants to be a "Single Lady", even Cubby from 96.1 The Beat in Charlotte (above, right). Even the big girls are doing it.

Watch all the clips, AFTER THE JUMP...

Former Memphis police officer pleads not guilty to civil rights charges in the videotaped beating of transgender woman Duanna Johnson while she was in custody: "Johnson, a biological male who lived as a woman, was being booked on a prostitution charge when the incident happened. A videotape of the beating was broadcast on Memphis TV stations and online in June, leading to McRae's firing. His former partner, James Swain, 25, was also fired." Today is the National Transgender Day of Remembrance.

It's what being single does to a girl.

Guy Ritchie won't take a cent.

Two men plead not guilty to gay bashing murder of Liverpool teen Michael Causer.

Obama taps Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano as Homeland Security secretary. Politico: "Napolitano is a border governor who will now be responsible for immigration policy and border security, which are part of Homeland Security’s myriad functions. Napolitano brings law and order experience from her stint as the Grand Canyon State’s first female attorney general. One of the nation’s most prominent female elected officials, she made frequent appearances on behalf of Barack Obama during the campaign. She was reelected to a second four-year term in 2006."

Brad Pitt comes face-to-Skype with a Bradaloonie.

The truth about Phyliss Burgess, the old lady who had her cross stomped at the Palm Springs 'No on 8' rally.

Detroit sports radio personality loses football bet, comes to work in drag.

An interview with Aaron Harvey, whose work was the inspiration for the now well-known Shepard Fairey "Defend Equality" image: "I landed on a design that was certainly not new, but was new this go around -- a raised fist of solidarity, with a twist: this fist also had a wedding band on it. The color scheme was also deliberate. The official "No on 8" campaign was using a green check in their campaign which I felt was a visual oxymoron. I knew red needed to be part of the design. When I showed it to friends and colleagues some of them said 'Oooh that's kind of angry, how are you going to persuade people sitting on the fence with that?' Well, for me, it wasn't about persuading the other side. It was about my side, and getting my side to realize there was something they needed to get up and defend!"

Pete Wentz on having his man part manscaping revealed to the world: "Honestly, I felt slightly overgrown in those pictures. If I had taken them for public consumption, I would have done it differently—groomed a little closer, better lighting."

Huckabee: Prop 8 did not ban same-sex marriage, it affirmed traditional marriage.

Campaign to move Sundance Film Festival out of Utah launches website.

New York's Triborough bridge renamed for Robert F. Kennedy.

Wentworth Miller to be out of work soon?

Time Out New York interviews activist Cleve Jones: "I think there are lots of Harveys out there, but the movement has changed. The charismatic individual leaders who were able to get things done by the sheer force of their personalities—we don’t see them anymore. In Harvey’s day, we didn’t have infrastructure. We just had individuals with big ideas and big mouths. When Harvey ran for office, we had to raise $30,000 to get him elected, and that was a challenge. Today there are hundreds of gay organizations around the country that routinely raise and spend millions a year. We didn’t have community centers, churches and youth groups, and of course, we didn’t have HIV/AIDS. I think people like Harvey and myself are really anachronisms. Probably the last leader of that style was Larry Kramer."

Home Depot founder Bernie Marcus on electing Republicans: "If a retailer has not gotten involved with this, if he has not spent money on this election, if he has not sent money to Norm Coleman and these other guys, [then those retailers] should be shot; should be thrown out of their goddamn jobs."

The L.A. Times has published a big profile on Stu Rasmussen, the nation's first transgender mayor. Rasmussen was elected by the people of Silverton, Oregon on November 4th:

"Rasmussen, longtime manager of the local cinema, was also elected mayor in 1988 and 1990, and served four years -- but that was when he was wearing slacks and sport shirts to council meetings. The new Rasmussen -- who got breast implants a few years ago and began calling himself Carla Fong -- wears skirts, lipstick and high heels. The thing is, Rasmussen's been a fixture in this small former lumber mill town so long, people tend not to pay much attention to what he's wearing."

Rasmussen notices when they do though: "Guys come up to me in the bar and say, 'Hate to tell you this, but I saw this woman on the street the other day, and I'm thinking, great legs, nice tan, and she turns around and I go, 'Oh, my God, it's Stu!''...If I could have a face transplant, it'd be perfect. A face like this, only a mother could love. But people overlook the face now, because there's all this other real estate."

Rasmussen's gender identity has earned him notice nationally, and you could have bet on this:

"The Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., known for its protests across the country targeting gays, plans to picket Monday in downtown Silverton 'to speak some words of truth to this 60-year-old pervert,' according to the church's website."

Robbie Daw presents a weekly pop music update here on Towleroad! Robbie runs his own site called Chart Rigger.

Last night the official Guns N' Roses MySpace page began streaming Chinese Democracy—an album, as we've been reminded at every opportunity by the media, that is 17 years in the making.

You can't help but think the soaring expectation for something "revolutionary" after the waiting period alone has set this album up for disappointment from the get-go.

So whether you're a fan, could never stand GNR or are just morbidly curious, here are some entertaining opinions from the web:

From EW.com: "And the verdict? Mixed! Gone is the Sunset Strip guitar grime of Appetite for Destruction, replaced by an army of ProTools-packing shredders, three ''digital editors,' and a dude responsible for choral arrangements. This is unapologetically huge music, not fit for tiny iPod earbuds... We can't wait to hear what he does next — hopefully sometime before President Chelsea Clinton takes office in 2025."

NME reader whatawasteoftime: "17 years to make, 2 minutes to download off bittorrent, five minutes of laughing then one second to bin it. What a joke this album is..."

Stereogum reader try maturing: "If you're over 30 and didn't wear all-stars in high school, you will get a kick out of four or five of the songs. It sounds dated -- and GNR should sound dated. It could have been a lot worse. And if you don't believe that you can hang yourself with your white belt."

London's Times Online: "Anyone looking for clues that may shed light on the gestation of Chinese Democracy would be well advised not to get their hopes up. While distant strings circle around a discourse of plunking ivory and elemental powerchords, the final song 'Prostitute' sees [Axl Rose] concede, 'It seemed like forever and a day,' before beseeching his audience to 'be kind, I’ve done all I should.'"

NME reader aphexbin: "Its utter shit. Ive heard it and can confirm its utter shit.Youll only like it if your a massive guns and roses fan and miss the sound of axls voice on record- which to be fair, was the only positive thing I can think to say about it."

AbsolutePunk.net user Sikbeat37: "...the guitar solos are sick, the orchestration in 'Madagascar' and 'Prostitute' is actually pretty cool, and songs like 'Better' and 'Riad N' The Bedouins' do well in reaching back to the classic GNR sound that made them famous."

Rolling Stone: "To him, the long march to Chinese Democracy was not about paranoia and control. It was about saying 'I won't' when everyone else insisted, 'You must.' You may debate whether any rock record is worth that extreme self-indulgence. Actually, the most rock & roll thing about Chinese Democracy is he doesn't care if you do.

Stereogum reader Ash: "I would rather listen to Third Eye Blind."

A FEW CLIPS FOR THE WEEK:

BEYONCE: "If I Were A Boy/Single Ladies/Crazy In Love" medley on Sunday's final episode of MTV's TRL

BRITNEY SPEARS: Recording "Womanizer," saying she married for the wrong reasons in MTV's For the Record.

TAKE THAT: U.K. Marks & Spencer's Christmas ad.

ALESHA DIXON: Music video for her current U.K. Top 10 hit, "The Boy Does Nothing."

THE WEEK'S NEW RELEASES:

Beyonce's third solo album I Am...Sasha Fierce, containing the hits "If I Were A Boy" and "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)."

Dido's Safe Trip Home, her third LP overall, and first one in five years.

American Idol winner David Cook's self-titled debut.

New Zealand electropop/rock artist Ladyhawke's self-titled debut, now added to U.S. iTunes.

Nickelback's Dark Horse.

Simon Cowell's operatic quartet (read: classed-up boy band) Il Divo's The Promise.

Talk of the possibility of a voter recall of Supreme Court Justices (similar to the recall effort that ousted Governor Gray Davis in 2003) by opponents of marriage equality should the Court overturn Prop 8 has been reported:

"With all eyes now on the court as it considers whether to hear a number of petitions asking it to invalidate the proposition, Andrew Pugno, an attorney with Prop. 8 told the Los Angeles Times that the court could face the very real possibility of a recall should the justices vote to overturn the measure. Officially, however, Pugno said the campaign is discouraging supporters from making such threats until the high court renders a decision. 'We think the discussion of a recall at this point is premature and not helpful to the current situation,' Pugno told the newspaper in this story. 'The court should have a chance to do the right thing,' Pugno said. But should it go against the measure, 'no one would be able to stop' a recall, he added."

Today, Equality California Executive Director Geoff Kors reissued a statement condemning the threats. Said Kors: "It is unconscionable that the supporters of Proposition 8 would threaten to recall California’s Supreme Court justices who are simply doing their job in making sure all Californians are treated fairly and equally under the laws of our state. Once again, the proponents of Prop 8 are resorting to scare tactics in their attempts to eliminate the rights of same-sex couples in California. We are confident the justices will not be swayed by such blatant intimidation."

DoSomething.org's blog Celebs Gone Good interviewed Kevin Spacey at Petra Nemcova’s 2008 Happy Hearts Gala and asked him how he felt about Californians passing Proposition 8:

"Well there’s no doubt that election night was a bittersweet night. But in some ways, these kinds of setbacks allow for a bigger fight, more challenges, and eventually we’re going to get it right. Eventually the American public will figure out that it really isn’t right to deny citizens basic civil human rights. And we can no longer allow that to happen. So the fact that these things were voted in, to me, it’s just an example of the fact that they had more money. How much money did the Mormon church put in? So I hope, like Arnold Schwarzenegger said, 'Don’t give up. Keep protesting.'"

They also asked him about Elton John's statement that gays should forget about fighting for marriage and settle for civil partnerships:

"I haven’t heard what Elton has said about it, and I don’t really know the particular laws in London with respect to whether they just have civil unions or...Look, I think at the end of the day, if people are given rights, and the same basic rights that any individual is given, then we are in fact honoring the Constitution of the United States. Anything less than that is unfair."

The blog, however, neglected to ask Spacey about the wild night he had in September inspecting male curves in Croatia.

Hugh Jackman's wife is apparently not happy that some think he's gay:

"The actor, who was this week named the sexiest man alive by People magazine, said wife Deborra-Lee Furness often has to assure people that her husband is straight. 'She said the most infuriating times would be in the bathroom because all she'd hear is: 'Is he or isn't he gay?' 'I don't know, he's married'. 'Oh, who cares? I'm sure he's gay'," he told People. 'She used to call out from the stall: 'He's not gay. I'm telling you he's not.' And there would be silence until someone said: 'I think that's his wife.'"

Poet Mark Doty has won the National Book Award for his collection Fire to Fire: New and Selected Poems.

In an interview about his nomination, Doty said, "I feel completely thrilled—I’m in wonderful company, and it’s particularly satisfying to me because my nominated book is a ‘New and Selected’ poems, so it’s 20 years worth of work. To have that volume singled out feels like a kind of affirmation of what I’ve been busying myself with for the last two decades, so I’m delighted."

He also talked about his newer work: "In these new poems, I found myself turning over notions that have always been at the fore for romantic poets: the nature of beauty, the nature of the soul, how love exists in time. I’m always thinking about beauty as a subject—that contested, difficult, fascinating ground that’s so important to me. So I wrote a poem in which I proposed a little theory of beauty. It was about the unlikely circumstance of looking at a prison tattoo on a man’s shoulder and realizing that it was quite an awkward looking thing, but it became beautiful when someone explained what it represented—it was a sign language character. This is beauty that is emerging out of knowledge. But there was more to say about kinds of beauty."

The other 2008 award winners were Fiction: Peter Matthiessen, Shadow Country (Modern Library), Nonfiction: Annette Gordon-Reed, The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family (W.W. Norton & Company), Young People's Literature: Judy Blundell, What I Saw and How I Lied (Scholastic).

Doty is the author of many books of poetry as well as several prose works including Dog Years and the beautiful memoir Heaven's Coast.

Doty reading his poem "Charlie Howard's Descent" at the Split This Rock Poetry festival in Washington D.C., AFTER THE JUMP...