Jonny McGovern is one of the cast members of Logo's The Big Gay Sketch. The show features a number of comedy skits that focus on all things LGBT. McGovern is a stand-up comic who often plays a character called The Gay Pimp.

In the following video, The Gay Pimp shares his latest creation, a music video for the song, Don't Fall In Love With A Homo...an ode to straight women who might be tempted to fall for their male gay friends. McGovern and friends want straight women to know that doing so is a recipe for disappointment. They also want them to know that there are plenty of lesbians who would be happy to oblige. Needless to say, all of this is an ideal subject for a tongue-in-cheek video.

I think it's pretty funny but I'll offer a word of caution that it contains adult language that some may find offensive.

In this episode of The Onion News, the network takes a look at the Gap's new clothing line...the one that is made by kids for kids. Nothing like American children being able to wear the right tags...even if those tags are sewn on by children in sweat shops.

After all, isn't that why we Americans are the envy of the world...what with giving our children generous allowances to buy the products they need instead of having to sell them into virtual slavery to make those products.

Yes, without capitalism, what would parents in third world countries do with their children? Thank goodness we provide the demand that allows them to be productive individuals. Otherwise, they might spend their time playing video games, participating in club sports, and trying to one up the neighbor's children by wearing the latest fashions.

Now if we can only get these same foreign children trained in providing first rate customer support for American companies that have been "forced" to hire adults in third world countries. Thank goodness these folks are willing to do the jobs that Americans won't do.

It certainly makes one feel good to know that we're continuing our efforts to prove our unyielding commitment to assisting the underprivileged people of the world...at a significant profit to U.S. corporations, of course!

In the following video clip from The Daily Show, Lewis Black shares his skepticism regarding the recently authorized stimulus checks that are intended to jump start our stalled economy. Needless to say, Black has some choice words for a program that he views as a waste of taxpayer money that he can endorse...as opposed to the endless war in Iraq.

Black laments that the government has skimped on the allowance for children...stating that he can get easily get more than $300 dollars for them on the black market. He's also of the opinion that consumers will spend their windfall on the same junk that has led us into this mess. Black closes by telling us he's spending his $600 dollars on lottery tickets.

If you've never seen Pam Ann perform, you don't know what you're missing. I first saw her on a cruise a few years back and thought she was hysterical. The following videos give the viewer a sense of her act though nothing can replace the in person experience.

In her act, she plays an airline stewardess for Pam Ann Airlines. As you might imagine, Pam Ann is the epitome of every bad experience one has ever had while flying. She's utterly and completely irreverent and nothing is off limits for Pam Ann.

The first video is a promo for her show and gives you a glimpse of the many faces of Pam Ann as she switches between different stewardess personae....from stodgy British flight attendant to one that will remind you of an uptight German general to a sheepish server from Singapore wearing her signature spectacles.

In the second video, Pam Ann presents the airlines preflight safety instructions.

If you ever have the chance to see her show, you're in for a treat.

I remember when Richard Carmona was appointed as the U.S. Surgeon General by George W. Bush. At the time, it was uncertain as to his actual ideological leanings though he seemed to be a thoughtful individual. As it turned out, he was an apolitical advocate for the betterment of health care in America...and thus often at odds with the Bush administration.

In the following video, Carmona offers his insights and observations into the job of Surgeon General and what is needed to address our growing inability to provide affordable health care to so many of our citizens. His own assessment is that a focus on wellness will do more to transform our health care system than would the adoption of universal health care.

Carmona cautions that the rapid expansion of costs to care for accelerated incidences of chronic illness must be addressed if we are going to be able to provide better health to more people. Further, as income disparities grow, the potential to address chronic illness becomes less likely. He appropriately notes that we don't actually have a health care system in America; rather our system is only focused upon providing care for those who are sick.

He points out that chronic disease is also preventable...though he wisely notes that addressing these diseases requires an awareness and a willingness to repair the underlying socioeconomic factors that enable them. Carmona explains that poverty contributes significantly to the inability to make prevention a focus.

In the video, Carmona provides a comprehensive look at the factors that impact our ability to insure the health of Americans. It is an excellent primer on the obstacles we face and the reasons they exist. The question and answer session covers a number of specific health topics including immunizations, the Bush administration's opposition to stem cell research, aging, and others.

This is priceless. The following video is apparently a legitimate advertisement for men seeking to overcome their homosexuality. The fact that it is filled with homoeroticism only reinforces my belief that many of these men are tortured Christians with a limitless ability to disguise their sexual orientation by engaging in acts of denial that are intended to demonstrate their heterosexuality...as well as their devotion to the religious dogma they seem hopelessly driven to embrace.

Honestly, when I first saw the video clip, I thought the program had to be a joke. However, after tracking down the site where it is advertised, it appears to be a "legitimate" attempt to offer services intended to "repair" homosexuality. Of course I know nothing about the credentials of the gentleman offering the program. For all I know, he could simply be an opportunist attempting to play upon the insecurities of men who feel compelled to reject their homosexuality. Even if he is sincere in offering this program, it doesn't negate the absurdity in suggesting that homosexuality can be washed away.

Yes, I believe there are individuals that will go through the motions needed to assert that they have abandoned their homosexuality...but I have to say that I simply don't believe they have actually changed their sexual orientation. Keep in mind that Ted Haggard (the minister from Colorado Springs who hired a male prostitute on numerous occasions) proclaimed his heterosexuality after completing a program that lasted just a few weeks.

Call me a skeptic, but are we to believe that a reversal of sexuality is the equivalent of joining Jenny Craig for two months? I'm sorry, but believing that would be an unrivaled act of faith. On the contrary, I see it as evidence of the sham that is being sold as "reparative therapy".

On that note, there isn't much more that can be said about these ridiculous programs. Instead, it is far more productive to exploit the humor that is so abundantly attached to this particular program and the video by which it is being marketed.

With that said, the following is a list of everything you need to know about the WorkOUT program:

Number Ten:

WorkOUT will help you find your manhood...though this process will require you to frequently drop your pants.

Number Nine:

While it may take several rounds of being in and out (of the program), men who participate in WorkOUT have proven they have the ability and the stamina to go much deeper.

Number Eight:

Every life coach is under 25, sufficiently buff, on standby for urgent emergencies, and very reasonably priced. "Happy endings" are always guaranteed.

Number Seven:

If your manhood doesn't increase during the first phone conversation, you'll have access to videophone encounters designed to jump start the process. Face-to-face meetings are available though the fees for these "meetings" are dependent upon the length of time it takes to maximize your manhood.

Number Six:

911 calls cost $1.99 per minute and the charges will appear on your credit card statement under the name - Meet Christian Singles.

Number Five:

Absolutely no women are involved in administering the WorkOUT program...every man is assured that treatment will be provided by a man who previously entered the treatment regimen and remained engaged until completion.

Number Four:

WorkOUT gear is available on the website. Access to this page requires confirmation that you are over the age of 18. All models have been verified to be at least 18 years old (though definitely not much older).

Number Three:

David Pickup is the founder of WorkOUT. This is his real name and it does not imply that David attends gay bars or frequents online gay chat rooms in order to solicit men for sex. Should you encounter Mr. Pickup in either setting, he is simply seeking men (attractive, fit, and well-groomed) who would be interested in joining WorkOUT and discovering the "benefits" of Christian manhood.

Number Two:

A full understanding of homosexual sex is a prerequisite for admission into the WorkOUT program. Men simply curious about gay sex will not be accepted.

Number One:

Participants in WorkOUT are discouraged from dating women during the time they are enrolled in the program as it may serve to deflate their emerging manhood.

The following series of videos comprise the 48 Hours special title The Lord's Boot Camp. Much like the previous documentary, Jesus Camp, the piece chronicles a group of teen aged children; including their attendance at a Christian boot camp and the subsequent missions they are assigned to complete.

I'm sure the parents of these children believe they are doing the right thing but the camp is little more than an indoctrination process designed to reinforce the beliefs parents have sought to impose. Unfortunately, what I noticed first and foremost was that many of these children have simply been fed their beliefs as well as the words they express to prove them. Independent thought is clearly not encouraged and likely not allowed in many of these children's homes.

As I watched these children working in their assigned mission locations, I couldn't help but see the inherent manipulation in the program. In Africa, the camp participants have been transported to a country filled with desperate people in need. Their objective is to give those they encounter some measure of attention and care. In exchange, the impoverished children listen to the beliefs and suggestions of their newfound benefactors.

In other words, these vulnerable African children are told that if they believe in Jesus, their lives will improve and their souls will be saved. I suspect the real outcome of these encounters is to set the table for these African children to experience more disappointment and despair as their lives do not improve and they return to their squalid existence.

In Indiana, the camp children are told to conduct surveys with young people at county and state fairs in an effort to bring them to Jesus. The fact that they set a goal for the number of people they will save strikes me as rather absurd...but it's also a key element of the indoctrination. Essentially, it trains these children to accept rejection and to crave compliance. That's a very effective tool when seeking to ingrain these children with the beliefs of their parents and their handlers.

The last thing I recognized was the level of desperation found in some of these young people. In particular, I thought the girl who was in tears while talking about missing her boyfriend seemed intent on finding an outlet to escape her surroundings. Once she returned home, she announced her intentions to marry her boyfriend...a clear means to achieve some level of independence that isn't apt to be found if she remains at home with her parents. She also speaks of subsequently working in Africa which I view as more evidence she subconsciously seeks a means to escape.

The other child of note was Nicole, the troubled teen with a history of drinking and drugs. Once she returned home, she continued doing both and rather than addressing her underlying issues, her mother elects to remove her from public education and enroll her in a Christian home schooling program. I suspect Nicole's problems center on her inability to reconcile the strict beliefs of her mother with the world in which she lives. I also suspect her mom has characterized the divide Nicole sees as nothing more than good versus evil...right versus wrong. That likely leaves Nicole in a constant state of turmoil which only facilitates her efforts to escape through self-medication.

In the end, these children are forced to see a completely gray world as nothing more than black or white. They are also pressured to adopt uncompromising belief systems that are presented as incontrovertible ideology. While these parents and the camp founders may embrace this as a process of completing the Lord's work, I suspect it is more akin to full conscription into a cult.

We've all heard about the images of Jesus, Mary, or some other godly persons face being found in the strangest of places...whether it be on a pancake, a potato chip, a section of tree bark, or the reflection on a window. Each new finding is touted as evidence that God exists and the faithful flock to witness each new miraculous image...some seeking cures for illness...others simply looking to be in the presence of a divine apparition.

Well according to the following God Tube video, the same can be achieved at the dinner table in every home. Yes, if you simply take a closer look at the vegetables you eat, you will find all the evidence you need that we exist as the result of the great works of an intelligent creator...and we are not the outcome of a lengthy evolutionary process.

I like to call all of this the science of random recognitions and coincidental comparisons. Essentially, if one were to look at every rock or every potato chip, there would be numerous examples of recognizable images. It's simply inevitable...just as it's likely that someone somewhere in the world looks remarkably similar to each of us.

In my sarcastic moments, I like to think these replications are evidence that God is prone to laziness. Yes, it seems that God is often a temperamental artist. Apparently he has days when creating is just too damn boring or he's simply out of ideas and he pulls out some of the older molds and sprinkles the world with batches of duplicates he hopes no one will recognize as identical 'carbon copies'.

Once I watched the video, it all started to make sense. No wonder so many people don't like vegetables. I imagine that somewhere in the outer reaches of our psyches, we have this strange suspicion that eating an avocado is just too closely connected to cannibalism. Fruit, on the other hand is a different story. I now realize why men can't resist grapefruit and women love bananas.

Two recent news items led me to today's musing. The first is the Texas polygamists and the second is the Vanity Fair photo of Miley Cyrus. Both serve to demonstrate the fact that numerous American's have yet to resolve the unhealthy dissonance that seems to accompany any event that can be seen as remotely sexual. That inability provides the backdrop for countless conflicts that surface with virtually every event that remotely triggers the trepidation.

With the Texas polygamists, we have a group of men who seem to be obsessed with having numerous females available for their sexual gratification...couched of course as part and parcel of their religious beliefs. Unfortunately, that obsession apparently leads to a virtual paranoia with regards to insuring that the appearance of their women won't display the slightest hint of sensuality.

Perhaps I'm wrong, but wouldn't you think that if you were going to have multiple wives, you'd want each of them to have a look and an identity of their own? Crass as this may sound, can this preoccupation simply be about having access to numerous vagina's? At the same time, are these individuals so driven by the fear that other males might covet their women that they embark to dress them alike...in garments designed to make them sexually unappealing? No, I don't claim to understand polygamists, but if you look at the pictures of these women, it seems to me that they have been transformed into the equivalent of low budget Stepford wives.

As I look at their prairie day's dresses and their caricature coifs, I can't help but feel for these women and their seeming inability to break free from their oppressive overlords. I'm even more disturbed by their willingness to indoctrinate their daughters into a life that has to be viewed as little more than a patriarchal prison. The structure and the system exude an array of pathologies. It also speaks to an imbalance that seems to be ingrained in many aspects of our society at large.

An example of that manifestation can be found in the recent events surrounding Disney sweetheart Miley Cyrus and the Vanity Fair image taken by renowned photographer Annie Leibovitz. The photo drew tremendous attention and elicited a level of outrage that struck me as rather odd...and abundantly indicative of America's inability to distinguish between puritanical prudery and limitless licentiousness.

In my estimation, the Leibovitz image was harmless...especially when juxtaposed with many of the images, inferences, and adult themes found in the Disney movie that propelled Cyrus to stardom. Frankly, I suspect that this battle between priggery and perversion is a permanent resident in the minds of many adults. As such, they are intent on attaching sexual connotations to each and every event.

The perpetual conflict this creates simply results in irrationality and an inability to strike a reasoned moral balance. It also facilitates calls for the erection (no pun intended) of barriers designed to keep the individual from acting on impulses they feel remiss to control voluntarily. I see religion as an adjunct in this effort to deter desires...one that often exacerbates the inclinations to act out in ways that are apt to sabotage the self and subjugate the actual identity.

Freud compared this to placing the lid on a tube of toothpaste without alleviating the pressure that is being applied to force it's expulsion from the inner layers of it's dark domicile. In this unnatural state, the toothpaste...or in the case of the individual, the often subconscious psyche...seeks out alternate outlets. Rarely are those outlets advisable or compatible with the process of self-awareness.

Returning to the tumult created by the Vanity Fair photo - truth be told, the image of Cyrus has been depicted in classical art forms for centuries and it needn't be viewed as sexually provocative. In fact, it is far less sexual than much of the clothing parents purchase for their children as well as the endless commercials that dad watches during any televised sporting event.

I see the outrage as evidence of an alternate outlet...one that fails to address the underlying discomfort or serves to diminish the dissonance that drives the demands for deterrents and/ or the squelching of subtle triggering events. Like the pendulum in a clock, this approach necessitates extremity as the individual (and therefore often the society) careens from one side to the other until such time as it can be pulled back towards the center.

In the end, the clothes worn by the Texas polygamist women or the lack of clothing worn by Miley Cyrus are simply outward evidence of an internal upheaval that requires recognition. Only then can the individual and the society begin the process of resolution. In the meantime, we're just a Janet Jackson breast away from our next moment of misguided moralizing.

In the following video, Mo Rocca and Tim Gunn take a tongue-in-cheek look at polygamist fashion. I get the impression that both men think the look is more akin to recidivism than with a retro revival.

Following the video are two graphics that seek to capture the intertwining, and the essence, of these two events. Hopefully they will also trigger a few moments of reflection as well as an honest assessment of the hypocrisy that has come to typify our convoluted culture.

In the following video, Jon Stewart tackles the question of abstinence-only sex education (with all of the appropriate sarcasm) and the fact that it has proven ineffective in reducing teen pregnancies and the transmission of STD's.

He first offers us a look at some of the techniques used and some of the arguments being offered by those opposed to comprehensive sex education. You're bound to love the dirty toothbrush example as well as the "god stick and shame cave" analogy that Stewart attributes to the likes of Senator Brownback. It's a good thing we've advanced from more primitive deterrent strategies and adopted these advanced measures of preventing children from exploring their sexuality.

He closes the segment with a pubic service announcement promoting dry humping as a reasonable alternative to getting 'dirty'. Stewart tells teens that dry humping is safe...it avoids the need for those disgusting condoms...and it allows you to still get into heaven.

In the following video, The Onion reports that the vast majority of praise (compliments) is not sincere and is actually offered with sarcasm.

It reminded me of a Seinfeld episode titled The Good Samaritan. In the episode, George jumps the gun on acknowledging the sneeze of a woman in the presence of her husband. The husband is angered because George didn't allow enough time for the husband to issue the first "God bless you".

As the show progresses, the Seinfeld crew continues to debate George's alleged faux pas. During the discussion, Jerry decides that telling someone "God bless you" after they sneeze isn't really all that meaningful. Instead, Jerry suggests it would make people feel better if we said, "You're so good looking".

Since virtually everything on Seinfeld had to do with sarcasm, it seemed to perfectly complement the tongue-in-cheek satire offered by The Onion. With that said, next time you hear someone sneeze, give Jerry's suggestion a go and see if you get a thank you or a glare that tells you your smart ass sarcasm isn't appreciated.

A sad day indeed. This Friday was the end of the season for HBO's Real Time With Bill Maher. What will I do with my Friday nights now? Well I guess The Daily Show and The Colbert Report provide a safety net for those in need of irreverence...but it's still difficult to see Bill Maher drop off the scene for a few months. OK, enough with the lamentations...it's time for this weeks New Rules.

Bill starts out with a swipe at the high price of gas...call it the nine tenths rule. He then argues that psychedelic screen savers are a gateway drug...which may explain his reference to all things prickly.

Maher shifts to the upcoming wedding of Jenna Bush to remind our president that he's not losing a daughter...just a war. He knocks the obsession with cosmetic surgery and the need to bring our children to work, and he suggests those who think that Obama is a Muslim might want to be sure they haven't married their cousin.

Maher takes a jab at liberals and their oil burning and bumper sticker laden vans. He then closes with a segment on the lingering Democratic nomination in which he points out that the obsession with everything Jeremiah Wright may be Hillary Clinton's secret weapon...though I doubt the Reverend will provide the Clinton campaign with the offense Maher suggests will be needed to put her over the top.

The following video is one of those cool mind benders. All you have to do is stare at the center of the image, keeping your eyes still and steadily focused on the image while the video plays. You will eventually be instructed to look away. When you do, the strange man behind the curtain will have taken control of your mind. Good luck with taking it back.

Drinking stories are clearly a part of our culture...especially on college campuses. In the following spoof, The Onion provides the "research" on the most popular phrases 18-24 year olds use to describe their state of drunkenness to their roommates from a weekend of partying.

Ironically, little has changed over the years with regards to getting trashed. When we're young, the goal is to be the most outrageous drunk...the one everyone talks about the next morning. Wearing that badge becomes the objective. Then as we get older, the goal seems to shift to being able to drink the most without showing any tell-tale signs of impairment.

On the one hand, the unedited is celebrated...on the other, masking one's actual status becomes preferential. Perhaps it's all a result of societal expectations. We're willing to allow youthful indiscretion until the point at which we require adult inhibition. Makes one wonder if either approach makes any sense. I find that realization to be a downer..but then again, we're talking about drinking, eh?

This week Bill Maher argues that mailing our tax returns shouldn't require a stamp, that the airlines provide such dismal service that they ought to start loading us in the cargo hold, and that the Pope ought to wear a slip under his holy garments...especially in light of the church's long history of cover ups. Maher then blasts Blockbuster's plan to takeover Circuit City...calling it an effort to create the worst retail experience in America.

He closes with an excellent observation on the latest Barack Obama bitter-gate brouhaha. Maher isn't buying into the manufactured maelstrom when he seeks to understand how in the hell one defines an elitist in America. He then insists that those who think Obama is an elitist need to reconsider what lies behind the candidacy of John McCain and the presidency of George W. Bush. Instead, Maher suggests it is he who should be bitter at the fact that "shitkickers voted twice for a retarded guy they wanted to have a beer with".