OWNER AND CEO OF URBAN OUTFITTER STORES REVEALED TO ALLEGEDLY BE RIGHT-WING HOMOPHOBE

Here's a bit of a suprise (and dissapointment).

Richard Hayne, the low-profile owner/founder/CEO of Urban Outfitters, the hip, trendy, progressive clothing stores is apparently a bit of a right-wing homophobe...


Urban Outfitters is a triumph of marketing - a hugely successful business that has disguised the gap between what it is and what its customers suppose it to be.

Walk into the store on Kensington High Street and be convinced you have entered a world run by a new breed of hippies - cooler and more sarcastic than the originals, and with better dress sense.

The staff look like students because many of them are, and everything in the shop blares detachment - a major attraction to twentysomethings who just can't resist an ironic T-shirt and thirtysomethings still trying to pull off the old look. The stores have already conquered New York and London. Ireland is next.

It seems unlikely that many of the staff or the customers know much about the owner and boss of Urban - a brilliant retailer called Richard Hayne whose views would be a serious risk to sales were his profile to rise.

Hayne started the business in the 1970s, taking it public in 1993 and bringing it to Britain in 1998. He is still the biggest shareholder and a seriously rich man - a billionaire by some estimates. You only have to look to see that there is nothing remotely hip about him. There is surely a bigger gulf between Hayne and his customer base than any other High Street retailer.

Shopping in Urban makes you feel like you are somewhere radically Left-wing, an antidote to the corporate blandness of The Gap. But Hayne is a stanch conservative who donates money to Republican politicians, not least Rick Santorum, a now failed Senator whose views on homosexuality are both bizarre and old-fashioned.

Hayne doesn't give many interviews precisely because he's afraid that college slackers who get to know him will suddenly realise that buying his clothes is like giving cash to George Bush.

Once described as projecting a "Dick Cheney-esque aura of no-nonsense grayflannel gravitas", Hayne must be the only retailer whose expansion plans depend on no one finding out who he really is.

Despite the strife in the sector, Urban just beat Wall Street profit expectations yet again. So far, the illusion is holding up perfectly.

TWO LESBIANS BURN THEMSELVES ALIVE IN SUICIDE PACT

Awful stuff: two lesbians in India lit themselves on fire in a suicide pact after being told they couldnt be together...

CHENNAI: Two married women, who allegedly shared a lesbian relationship, committed suicide by setting themselves ablaze after their families tried to separate them. The police recovered the charred bodies of the women, who died hugging each other, from the residence of one of the women at Sathangadu, near Thiruvotriyur, on Saturday.

The incident came to light on Saturday morning when the family members noticed thick smoke emanating from the house, where the women stayed the previous night. They peeped through the window and were shocked to see the bodies lying as if they had died hugging each other.

Police identified the women as Christy Jayanthi Malar (38) and Rukmani (40).

Malar and Rukmani studied in the same class at a Tondiarpet school. Malar got married to Chinappa Raj, a small-time biscuit seller, and lived in Sathangadu. Rukmani was married to Mohan and lived in Ernavur, near Sathangadu, when she met Malar again, 10 years ago. Rukmani later married Vijayan, a labourer, and shifted to Washermanpet. The classmates continued to see each other.

Sathangadu inspector A J Ravikumar, who registered the statements of the relatives, said the relationship had caused much consternation in both families. On Friday, Rukmani had gone to Malar's house. Rukmani's relatives went there and abused her. Malar's relatives, too, shouted at her. The two women stayed together on Friday and set themselves afire early on Saturday.

One of the relatives said Rukmani was forced to move from Ernavur, near Malar's place in Sathangadu, after the families came to know of their "unusual relationship."

Despite the opposition from the relatives, the two women continued to meet when their husbands were out on work.

This infuriated the relatives. Rukmani got separated from her first husband, Mohan and her relatives got her married to another man, Vijayan, four years ago and they moved to Washermanpet, some five km away. This, the relatives thought, would help in keeping the two women friends away.

But that was not to be. They continued to meet, often at Malar's house. On Friday morning, Rukmani went to Malar's house after their husbands had left for work. Not finding Rukmani for a long time, her relatives started searching for her and finally found her in Malar's house. In front of several people, they abused her for having a "physical relationship" with Malar, whose family members also started shouting at the two friends.

"Around midnight, they poured kerosene on their body and set themselves on fire. They appear to have hugged each other during the final moments of their life," an investigation officer who inspected the scene said.

Based on a complaint by Rukmani's elder sister Padmavathy, Sathangadu police have registered a case and further investigations are on. The case has been handed over to the revenue divisional officer (RDO), as Rukmani died within seven years of her marriage with Vijayan.

"We will proceed with the case after getting the RDO's report," a senior police officer said.

Reacting to the incident, lawyer and activist Sudha Ramalingam said it was time Section 377 of IPC (unnatural offence) was scrapped. "We have reached a stage where one has to accept relationships which are not termed normal. Everyone has the right, especially two consenting adults, to choose their way of life," she said. All India Democratic Women's Association leader Vasuki said suicides are not a solution to any problem. "Same sex relationships are coming to the fore these days, and we do not have a coping mechanism in place," she told The Times of India.

Vasanthi Devi, former Chairperson, State Women's Commission, said, "In India, same sex relationships are not in any way accepted, and even talking about it is considered taboo. Since it is perceived to be unnatural and unacceptable, a lot of sensitivity is required in handling the issue. Sadly, counselling is virtually unknown in our society, be it for students or adults. If we had counsellors to guide, any number of tragedies can be avoided."

JOHN MCCAIN DOESNT KNOW IF CONDOMS PREVENT HIV

(Editors note: Here is a reprint of a story I did last year that bears another look...)




According to the New York Times, when asked about his stand on condoms, and their ability to prevent HIV, John McCain seemed a bit at sea, and was quoted saying:

Q: “So no contraception, no counseling on contraception. Just abstinence. Do you think contraceptives help stop the spread of HIV?”

Mr. McCain: (Long pause) “You’ve stumped me.”

Q: “I mean, I think you’d probably agree it probably does help stop it?”

Mr. McCain: (Laughs) “Are we on the Straight Talk express? I’m not informed enough on it. Let me find out. You know, I’m sure I’ve taken a position on it on the past. I have to find out what my position was. Brian, would you find out what my position is on contraception – I’m sure I’m opposed to government spending on it, I’m sure I support the president’s policies on it.”

Q: “But you would agree that condoms do stop the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. Would you say: ‘No, we’re not going to distribute them,’ knowing that?”

Mr. McCain: (Twelve-second pause) “Get me Coburn’s thing, ask Weaver to get me Coburn’s paper that he just gave me in the last couple of days. I’ve never gotten into these issues before.”