Obama: “Shameful!”

President Obama fired a warning shot at Wall Street on Thursday, branding bankers “shameful” for giving themselves $18.4 billion in bonuses as the economy was spinning out of control and the government was spending billions to bail out many of the nation’s most prominent financial firms…

“That is the height of irresponsibility,” Mr. Obama said angrily. “It is shameful, and part of what we’re going to need is for folks on Wall Street who are asking for help to show some restraint and show some discipline and show some sense of responsibility.

via Obama Harshly Criticizes Wall St. Bonuses – NYTimes.com

Time Out: Free Bird!

Billy Powell, the former roadie who became a rock star for his keyboard work with the band Lynyrd Skynyrd, died early Wednesday morning apparently of heart problems at his home in Orange Park, Fla., police said. He was 56.

via Billy Powell dies at 56; Lynyrd Skynyrd keyboard player – Los Angeles Times.

Why do we think gay men are wealthy?

This column was interesting. It uses a pointless cheap photo from Getty, but the guy is pretty. Anyway, it touches on why we think gay men are wealthy, and how coming out is easier when you have means.

I suspect this stereotype has something to do with the fact that, in the recent past, only gays who had earned fame and fortune — especially in artistic circles — could afford to come out. So the world began to believe that “rich” went hand-in-hand with “homosexual.” And even now, the gay men we tend to read about in magazines or see on TV are rich ones. On “Will and Grace,” Will must have been earning seven figures to pay for his lifestyle (and Jack’s). The “Queer Eye” guys made expensive tastes seem genetically hard-wired in gay men. I’m not saying that the idealization of wealth is solely a gay thing — but it has especially affected gay men, who see fewer representations of themselves in popular culture.

via Style: The Wealth Myth.