OFF THE RACK: Blair on Men's Vogue, Obama on GQ, Samberg on Blender

"In His Prime" by Roger Cohen

If you look at extremism in Pakistan or Chechnya or other parts of the world, extremism on the streets of Spain or France or wherever, it wasn't born there but imported in. ~ former British Prime Minister Tony Blair

^{[Photography by Norman Jean Roy]}





"Above the Fray" by Ryan Lizza

The danger is that you become so risk-averse that you become canned and scripted. I am resisting that. I want to push the boundaries of it and try to make a point. ~ Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama

^{[Photography by Peggy Sirota]}





"Andy Samberg's Super-Awesomely Retarded Awesome Zone" by Jonah Weiner

Most comedians aren't offered oral sex outside rock concerts. But Samberg is a lot better-looking than most comedians. When Scarlett Johansson last hosted SNL, guess who she made out with in a sketch? (It wasn't Horatio Sanz.)

^{[Photography by Jill Greenberg]}

He's No Vick-tim

The reason I haven't written about Michael Vick sooner is that it's taken me this long to calm down. The story - in case you've been living under a rock, is that the quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons and three of his buddies have been running a dogfighting ring for six years.

Then today comes word that basketball star Stephon Marbury of the New York Knicks has come to the defense not only of Vick but also dogfighting, labelling it a "sport" rather than what it is: a "crime".

While even the ASPCA labels dogfighting a sport, that doesn't make it right. After all, Death Race 2000 was a sport... If it's such a sport why don't Michael Vick or Stephon Marbury get into the ring with one of those pitbulls and show us how it's done? Eh, sport?

In the meantime, not even the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People will come to Vick's rescue; Dennis Courtland Hayes, interim president of the NAACP, said today that Vick is not a victim and must take responsibility for his actions in the matter.

Hate Music Silenced?

From Gothamist... Clear Channel - owner of Power 105, the Manhattan radio station which is a major sponsor of the Reggae Carifest at the city's Randall's Island - has pulled its sponsorship in response to homophobic lyrics by a number of its headliners.

Buju Banton and Beenie Man are among the most popular performers in the dancehall genre. Their music also advocates the torture and murder of gay men. Someone at Clear Channel is bound to have known this, but following a recent telephone call from the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), Clear Channel has not only withdrawn its support but is now calling on other sponsors to do the same.

Also singled out for their hatred are Bounty Killer and Elephant Man.

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