What's Up

     Olympus 97, bash or bust? From the people I have talked to, it would
seem that the later is the case. Whether those in charge of the event were
totally overwhelmed by the magnitude of the party or were hamstrung with
conditions set forth by the County for use of the Courthouse, who knows.
It is sad that the organizers in Cleveland could not put together a better
event than they did. For your thirty dollar ticket price, you got to smoke
outside, and were served draft beer until 1A.M.. Doesn't seem quite like
a bargain to me. Will Cleveland try again in 1998 to join the Circuit
Party ranks? Good question. However, I am sure that any successive event
will be hampered by the fact that those who attended Olympus 97 were
disappointed that the event didn't erupt into the blast that we all had
hoped it would be.

     Don't ask, don't tell, the policy adopted by the Defense Dept. seems
to be working quite well; at least for the Defense Dept. anyhow. It seems
that in the last two years the policy has been in effect more gay service
men and women have been discharged from the armed forces than in any
period under the old policy. Clearly this new policy does not work well
for gays in the military. However; getting this policy changed given the
political situation in Washington is about as remote as Fidel Castro
calling for Democratic elections in Cuba. Must we idly sit by and watch
this continue to happen? No, we must give of our time and money to
organizations that are politically involved and promote a better
understanding between the gay and straight community. Note I did not say
to promote the " Gay Agenda" whatever that is supposed to be. Being
treated fairly and equally in, the job market, in housing, and just in
general is not a special agenda, but a right guaranteed by the
Constitution to all of us.

     Now onto my pet project, a community center in Akron. I have written
previously about the formation of the group called Visions, where eighty
percent of the people attending their early meetings said they wanted to
see a community center founded. With that mandate in mind, a lot of us in
the new group worked a concession stand at the Cleveland Indians baseball
games to set aside money in the building fund. Over the last few years
the focus of Visions has changed and the issue of a community center has
been shoved to the back burner, or even removed from the stove. However,
the need for one has not changed. We need a place for people to meet
besides the bars. Bars certainly have their purpose but they are not for
everyone, nor should they be. Where do gay teens go to meet their peers,
or perhaps seek a role model. Where can gay parents take their children
to meet children of other gay parents? Were can the various gay
organizations meet instead of someone's home? Some of you may have
already come up with an answer to these questions, the church. Yes that is
partially true, but, the church like the bars is not everyone's cup of
tea. But a Community Center would be. It is a fact that the suicide rate
among teens is about three times that of their counterparts. The teens,
as well as a lot of other people in our
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