Today Kevin Keller, a gay teenager, appears in the long running and famous cartoon strip, Archie. This marks the first gay character ever in a widely syndicated cartoon. (At right: Kevin Keller, the first gay cartoon character.)

When we were young and avid fans of Archie, Jughead, Betty, and Veronica, the humor was all about the heterosexual relationships between Archie and two teenage girls, Veronica and Betty. Now there is another romantic intrigue, Kevin Keller, a smartly dressed, metro sexual type with not a lifted pinkie in sight.

In today's comic strip, Kevin comes out to Jughead who, like most teenagers today, considers being gay a non issue, but Jughead's mind typically goes to mischief. What if Veronica sets her sights on gay Kevin?

To see Kevin's coming out, Click Here, and scroll down.

Norfolk, VA: A Marine staff sergeant pleaded guilty Tuesday to mistreating 17 male subordinates by touching them in the groin, repeatedly making offensive sexual comments and gestures, and accusing them of being gay. (At Right: Staff Sgt. James McCoy whose military duty was to hit men in their balls and tease them with gay photos.)

Staff Sgt. James McCoy could have faced 17 years in prison for the offenses; a judge sentenced him to a year in confinement, reduction in rank and a bad conduct discharge.

We all know how hard it is for a gay person to be married or a clergyman, but imagine being a gay cadet at West Point, the army's bastion of heterosexual masculinity. Well, now about 15% of the cadets are female, and it is from this group that news leaked that there are gay cadets of both sexes in the institution that has trained US Generals and Presidents.(At Right: West Point Cadet taking the oath to be truthful in all things except sex.)

Imagine being gay at West Point where code words, secret societies, covert meetings, and fake identifies are the weapons and protective shields of gay cadets.

The "Today" show decided last month to allow gay couples to apply to participate in its annual wedding contest. But now, the NBC program has revealed the four couples who will compete in the contest and there are no same-sex couples in the group.(At Right: Apollo married couple.)

There was public pressure on NBC from gay rights groups earlier in the summer to change the rules for the contest. Previously, same sex couples had been excluded from participating because of the restrictions on gay marriage in New York. After meeting with gay rights group GLAAD in July, though, NBC announced that it would be changing its rules, since New York's marriage laws recognize gay marriages performed in other states.

However, the finalists were revealed Monday, and no gay couples made it through.

No better proof exists that the gay movement is on the march around the world than the little country of Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal. Living on the the Himalayan top of the world and home to the largest mountain on earth, Nepal in the 21st Century turned to a republic form of government. Sunil Pant serves as the first and only openly gay member of Nepal's parliament. (For the record, the first openly gay member of the US Congress was 200 years after the country's founding.)

At Right: Sunil Pant is on gay breaking grounds at the top of the world.

A California Appeals Court reversed a decision that would allow gay people to resume marriage this week. The court's action is as puzzling as it is damaging. The defendant's case was based on religious myths about gay people and had nothing to do with the US Constitution.

Doubtlessly, the gay marriage issue will go all the way to the US Supreme Court, but this week's decision will be a case of justice delayed for another year. Also, it will encourage the religious right to pander for more money to fight the rights of gay people.

Mexico City: Mexico's Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that all 31 states must recognize same-sex marriages performed in the capital, though its decision does not force those states to begin marrying gay couples in their territory. In a 9-2 decision, the tribunal cited an article of the constitution requiring states to recognize legal contracts drawn up elsewhere. (At Right: Married Mexican couple.)

It did not specify what degree of recognition must be granted to same-sex couples.

Los Angeles: A federal judge ruled on Thursday to allow same-sex couples to marry in California, starting on August 18, handing another big victory to supporters of gay rights in a case that both sides say will likely end up in the U.S. Supreme Court.

Last week, Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker in San Francisco struck down the state's ban on same-sex marriage, ruling that voter-approved Proposition 8 violates the U.S. Constitution. Walker had issued a temporary stay on his decision, which on Thursday he said he would lift.

As the main stream Churches and Synagogues come to more accepting terms with gay people and their rights, it seems there is even a shift of mood in the smaller, radical denominations. A few evangelicals are seeing gay people as potentials church members. Perhaps their aim is to swell their rolls and their coffers, but giving these churches the benefit of our cautious doubt is the charitable thing to do.

Here are two recent examples that have happen within 50 miles of our rural location:

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger asked a federal judge Friday to allow same-sex marriages while an appeal over the struck-down law that banned them makes its way through the courts.

Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown filed briefs two days after Chief U.S District Judge Vaughn Walker ruled California's voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage, known as Proposition 8, violated the constitutional rights of same-sex couples.

In his Wednesday ruling, Walker also issued a temporary stay, which stopped his decision from taking effect.