WATCH: new Sade video for "Soldier of Love"

Finally!! Sade's new album Soldier of Love is available in stores today. It is her first album in over a decade, following 2000's Lovers Rock.
I got mine through the power of Amazon.com.

You can see my list of Top 5 favorite Sade songs here.

Openly Gay Man Nominated For Federal Judgeship

United States Senator of New York Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is making news today with the announcement that he is recommending the first openly gay man for a federal judgeship: Daniel Alter.

From the press release from the Senator's office:

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced that he is recommending Daniel Alter to President Obama to serve as a judge in the Southern District federal court. Mr. Alter is a history-making pick, as he is the first openly gay male nominated for the federal court in American history. Schumer laid out several reasons Alter would make an excellent fit for the job. Schumer said that Alter’s stellar legal background, close ties to New York, even-handedness, temperament and demonstrated leadership skills would make him an excellent choice for the Southern District Court. Schumer also said that he is highly capable and very qualified for the position.

“Daniel Alter couldn’t be a more perfect choice. He is a brilliant attorney who possesses the knowledge, balanced views and temperament required of a federal judge,” Schumer said. “His outstanding leadership skills, his commitment to justice, and his extensive experience make him an exceptional choice for a position on the federal bench. I’m proud to nominate Daniel Alter. Period. But I am equally proud to nominate him because he is a history-maker who will be the first openly gay male judge in American history.”

Alter is a graduate of Columbia College and Yale Law School. As a young lawyer, Mr. Alter clerked for the Hon. John M. Walker and the Hon. Guido Calabresi, who both served on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

The sexual orientation of federal judges has been in the news recently with the San Francisco Chronicle reporting over the weekend that U.S. District Court judge Vaughn Walker, who just happens to be conducting the most important gay rights case (on the federal constitutionality of California's Proposition 8) of the decade (century?) is openly gay.

There are currently 875 federal judges under Article III of the United States Constitution and exactly two are known to be openly gay or lesbian: Vaughn Walker and Deborah Batts (who is also Black).

Human Rights Campaign Joe Solmonese released a statement:

“Daniel Alter is eminently qualified for a position on the federal bench. America is taking a step forward towards equality by evaluating an individual based on his accomplishments and without regard to his sexual orientation. We commend Senator Schumer for his historic recommendation, and look forward to the President’s nomination.”

Federal judgeships are lifetime appointments and have been a flashpoint with Republicans in the past. It should be interesting to see how long it takes the Alter nomination to get through the Senate, and how long it takes the Obama administration to formally initiate the process.

I'm also curious if this will encourage any other federal judges to come out. After all, 2 out of 875 federal judges being gay or lesbian is a statistically unlikely number.

Eye Candy: Deric Mickens

As usual, I am not the first blogger to discover the hotness that is Deric Mickens. David Dust and Rod 2.0 have both featured this former college football player from University of Northern Iowa who now makes his home in New York City. Deric has also done a photo shoot with the talented photographer John Gress, but the above shots all came from a recent blog discovery of mine, Dark Flex.

WATCH: Final Night Launch of Space Shuttle

Hat/tip to Towleroad

SF CHRONICLE Outs Prop 8 Federal Judge

The San Francisco Chronicle has published a story revealing to the general public an open secret that many of us have already known: Vaughn Walker, the federal judge conducting the federal trial into the unconstitutionality of Proposition 8 known as Perry v. Schwarznegger, is gay:

The biggest open secret in the landmark trial over same-sex marriage being heard in San Francisco is that the federal judge who will decide the case, Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker, is himself gay.

Many gay politicians in San Francisco and lawyers who have had dealings with Walker say the 65-year-old jurist, appointed to the bench by President George H.W. Bush in 1989, has never taken pains to disguise - or advertise - his orientation.

They also don't believe it will influence how he rules on the case he's now hearing - whether Proposition 8, the 2008 ballot measure approved by state voters to ban same-sex marriage, unconstitutionally discriminates against gays and lesbians.

[...]

Many San Francisco gays still hold Walker in contempt for a case he took when he was a private attorney, when he represented the U.S. Olympic Committee in a successful bid to keep San Francisco's Gay Olympics from infringing on its name.

"Life is full of irony," the judge replied when we reminded him about that episode.

And did he have any concerns about being characterized as gay?

"No comment."

Shortly after our conversation, we heard from a federal judge who counts himself as a friend and confidant of Walker's. He said he had spoken with Walker and was concerned that "people will come to the conclusion that (Walker) wants to conceal his sexuality."

"He has a private life and he doesn't conceal it, but doesn't think it is relevant to his decisions in any case, and he doesn't bring it to bear in any decisions," said the judge, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitive nature of the Prop. 8 trial.

"Is it newsworthy?" he said of Walker's orientation, and laughed. "Yes."

He said it was hard to ignore the irony that "in the beginning, when (Walker) sought to be a judge, a major obstacle he had to overcome was the perception that he was anti-gay."

In short, the friend said, Walker's background is relevant in the same way people would want to know that a judge hearing a discrimination case involving Latinos was Latino or a Jewish judge was ruling in a case involving the Anti-Defamation League.

Walker, by the way, didn't seek out the Prop. 8 case - it was assigned to him at random.

I am actually glad that this story is being published. It is newsworthy that the judge is gay, and if reporters can come up with enough sources to be confident of printing that fact, they should write a story about it. Being gay is not something to be ashamed about.

Now, being appointed to the federal bench by a Republican President, that is not something I would want very many people to know about!

(Bonus) Eye Candy: Fernando Verdasco

Fernando Verdasco is part of the advertising campaign for the new Calvin Klein Underwear X Collection, as was previously featured here at MadProfessah.com. However, a friend recently sent me the above pictures that also feature the left-handed, professional tennis player from Spain in his skivvies and all I could say was ¡Muy Guapo!

Obama net approval rating now negative

WATCH: SOSUS and POTUS Condemn Uganda Anti-Gay Bill

At the National Prayer Breakfast this week Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Barack Obama both mentioned and condemned pending legislation in Uganda's Parliament which could lead to state executions of LGBT people for "aggravated homosexuality."

Hat/tip to Rod 2.0.

The reaction in Uganda was not very positive:

[Uganda minister of ethics and integrity James Nsaba] Buturo, one of the main Ugandan proponents of the bill which would further criminalise homosexuality and even gay rights advocacy, vowed that Ugandan MPs would not be swayed by US or any outside criticism.

"We cannot tell the Senate what to do. We cannot tell Congress what to do. So why do they feel that they can tell us what we should do in the interest of our people?" he asked.

"It is totally unacceptable," Buturo added, in reference to any attempt by some of Uganda's partners to reverse the adoption of the bill.

"Members of parliament have a constitutional duty to choose between what the people of Uganda want and what others want, and I am sure they will choose what the people of Uganda want," he said.

It will be interesting to see what the final resolution of this political debate will be. Clearly, Buturo doesn't understand that in a free society, everyone can comment on (and condemn, if they so desire) the potential legislative acts of another sovereign nation. There are generally accepted practices worldwide, and putting people to death or in prison for being who they are or advocating publicly for equal treatment under the law is absolutely unacceptable.

Celebrity Friday: Fernando Verdasco

Spanish tennis player (currently ranked at #13 in the world) Fernando Verdasco is one of the hotties who are serving as the bulge face of the new Calvin Klein underwear called X.

MadProfessah fave (True Blood Season 1 and 2 star) Mehcad Brooks is another person in the campaign, as are Japanese soccer star Hidetoshi Nakata and Twilight star Kellan Lutz. You can see Kellan and Mehcad at Rod 2.0's site here and Hidetoshi here.

hat/tip to ATP Men's Tennis Blog and Rod 2.0