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The Advocate, an LGBT magazine, has released a list of what it says are the "gayest" cities in the U.S. The equation breakdown used is a bit different from what you may have expected. The magazine takes into account such parameters as LGBT bookstores and "International Mr. Leather competition semifinalists" among the nine criteria used to compile the list.

Remember the 2002 Winter Olympics in Utah? Of course, that was what helped put Mitt Romney on the map nationally and internationally. Financially, the Salt Lake Organizing Committee (SLOC) was deep in the hole. Then the bribery scandal surrounding the bid hit the news in a big way. The foundering committee turned to Mitt Romney, a guy with a great track record in turning around failing businesses. Romney came in and made everything better than even the most optimistic had hoped. The games went well (except for the ice skating scandal) and made money. Romney, who had previously failed in...

ROY -- A plane has crashed into a Roy neighborhood Sunday night. Authorities confirmed three homes in the area of 2000 West and 4300 South were on fire. Fire officials say those fires have now been contained. Gary Cox helped pull the pilot from the plane. He says the pilot was confused and badly burned but was able to answer questions. "Pretty banged up, burnt on his hands and face, but he was actually coherent and remembered what his name was and what he was doing," Cox said. The pilot was able to confirm he was the only person in...

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - The safety of Utah's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community is the topic of a Tuesday night town hall meeting at the Salt Lake City Library. The Utah Pride Center says a panel will hold a discussion with police officers, prosecutors and community representatives. Pride spokesman Michael Westley says the group will release the results of a survey of 500 people on safety questions. Westley says nearly 70 percent of the respondents say they feel an increased sense of safety related to housing and employment discrimination issues. Only 26 percent of respondents said they feel...

Salt Lake City, Utah (CNN) -- The executioner says he was eager to join the firing squad. Not because he was familiar with the 1996 case, or felt the need to deliver justice for a raped and murdered little girl. It wasn't even because his high school classmate was raped and killed just before graduation. So why did he do it? Why choose to join four other men in executing a convicted murderer? "How often does this come along?" he says, "... 100 percent justice." It's been more than 14 years since guns were last fired in Utah's execution chamber....

He developed a national reputation as a vocal critic of George W. Bush, accusing Bush of leading the country into an "illegal" war in Iraq. But avowed Democrat, and former Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson, did not hold back on President Obama's conduct during a 2News interview aired Sunday night. "We have tyranny by the executive branch," said Anderson. Asked if President Obama is part of that tyranny, Anderson responded, "There's no question that we're seeing a continuation, and even in some instances a worsening of our republic under this administration. "The Obama Administration has contended that no documents...

SALT LAKE CITY — Thanks to Mitt Romney, the head of the site selection team for the 2012 GOP National Convention said Tuesday she knows more about Salt Lake City than the other two cities competing to host the event: Tampa, Fla., and Phoenix. (SNIP) Hughes dismissed concerns that Utah, headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, might be seen as alienating some Republicans. Romney, a Mormon, faced a backlash from conservatives in his party who did not believe he was a Christian. "I heard that question when he was running for president, and I'm like, 'What...

Long before the crack of tomorrowÂ’s dawn, this old man will be creaking out of bed, cantering to the airport and jetting to Salt Lake City, Utah. In some respects, IÂ’m going there to argue against my usual political allies and in favor of my usual opponents. But I donÂ’t really see things that way. At least, nowhere near enough to consider chunking out the most important ally of all: citizen control of government. In America, we citizens are in charge. Or should be. In Utah, conservative legislators are throwing out this very first principle of governance in an attempt...

Washington » Former -- and potentially future -- presidential candidate Mitt Romney isn't weighing in on where the Republicans should hold their next national convention. Romney told The Salt Lake Tribune on Friday that he believes all three cities vying for the 2012 gathering -- Salt Lake City, Tampa and Phoenix -- are "terrific" cities but that he's not going to give a preference. "I remember what an extraordinary host Salt Lake was for the 2002 Winter Games," Romney said, "but one thing I will stay a mile away from is any discussion of which city should be the host...

ROY -- A church in Roy may end up affiliated with a different Lutheran congregation because of a split with national church leaders over gay priests. Last summer the Evangelical Lutheran Churches of America voted to allow openly practicing gay and lesbian pastors to preside over congregations instead of requiring gay pastors to practice celibacy, as had been the previous policy. The Standard-Examiner reports that vote has caused concern for at least one Utah congregation. Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Roy will hold a forum on Thursday to talk about the possibility of joining a different Lutheran congregation, the Lutheran...

The Republican National Committee named three cities on Friday as potential hosts for the 2012 Republican National Convention: Phoenix, Tampa and Salt Lake City. The finalists emerged after multiple cities submitted bids to the RNC by the committee's January 15 deadline. "These cities submitted three very strong bids, so all three are in contention," Holly Hughes, an RNC member from Michigan who chairs the RNC Site Selection Committee, told CNN. "Hosting a convention is a huge deal. A city has to raise multiple millions of dollars, but they also get the benefit of showcasing their city and bringing in revenue."...

SALT LAKE CITY — The next Republican presidential nominee could be named in Utah. After four months of study, the GOP has selected Salt Lake City as one of four finalists for the 2012 Republican National Convention, an event that could bring 30,000 people to the state for several days. The other finalists will be announced early next week, and the winner will be selected in late summer after GOP officials visit each city. If Salt Lake City gets the bid, the 2012 event would be the first GOP convention held in the Intermountain West. Denver hosted the Democratic National...

A downtown protest of the climate change talks in Copenhagen became a victim of Wednesday's snowstorm. "Not many people showed up because of the blizzard conditions," said organizer Clea Major, an international studies student at the University of Utah. It didn't take long for the six friends to pack up a bullhorn and posters they'd planned to use for their "scream-in," an outlet for their frustration about the failure of the Copenhagen climate talks earlier this month to curb the pollution blamed for climate change.

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah police say the husband of a 28-year-old woman who disappeared more than a week ago is hindering the investigation. West Valley City Police Capt. Tom McLachlan says Josh Powell didn't show up for an interview Monday on the advice of his attorney. McLachlan says that's costing authorities valuable time in the effort to find Powell's wife, Susan.

SALT LAKE CITY -- The mayor of Salt Lake City thinks extremist attitudes like those at some "tea parties" have no place here. Mayor Ralph Becker is slamming tea parties. He says he was visiting with a group from Ireland who had also been to a tea party in Utah. "They were surprised by how aggressive and mean-spirited the group was toward people who weren't just like them," Becker said. The Irish Times quoted Mayor Becker as saying the U.S. tea party movement represents "an incredibly narrow, bigoted, angry, nasty, mean view of the world." He clarified his comments to...

Below is an informative piece by my friend Gary Glenn of the American Family Association of Michigan about the awful decision by the LDS Church (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) to support legislation granting legal protections based on homosexuality. Gary of AFA-Michigan writes: A Shocker from Salt Lake City: The LDS (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) Church now officially endorses so-called “gay rights” laws, specifically a Salt Lake City law prohibiting “discrimination” on the basis of “sexual orientation” (homosexual behavior) and “gender identity” (cross-dressing). From the official LDS Church website: http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/news-releases-stories/church-supports-nondiscrimination-ordinances ASSOCIATED PRESS: “Mormons throw support...

Gay rights legislation in Salt Lake City receives its first ever endorsement by the Mormon church. Salt Lake City, Utah (WiredPRNews.com) - The passage of gay rights legislation in Salt Lake City, Utah was supported for the first time by the Mormon church. As reported by the Associated Press (AP), the church announced its support of laws that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in housing and employment prior to a vote on the legislation Tuesday. Michael Otterson, the director of public affairs for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is quoted by the AP...

Salt Lake OKs Gay Rights Ordinances Mormon church — which opposes same-sex marriage — backs laws SALT LAKE CITY - With a historic endorsement from the Mormon church, the Salt Lake City Council unanimously passed a pair of ordinances making it illegal to discriminate against gays. Tuesday's action was the first time the Utah-based church — which has been steadfast in its opposition to gay marriage — has publicly supported gay rights legislation. "The church supports these ordinances because they are fair and reasonable and do not do violence to the institution of marriage," Michael Otterson, the director of public...

The National Security Agency, whose job it is to protect national security systems, will soon break ground on a data center in Utah that's budgeted to cost $1.5 billion. The NSA is building the facility to provide intelligence and warnings related to cybersecurity threats, cybersecurity support to defense and civilian agency networks, and technical assistance to the Department of Homeland Security, according to a transcript of remarks by Glenn Gaffney, deputy director of national intelligence for collection, who is responsible for oversight of cyber intelligence activities in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. "Our country must continue to...

Video on site http://www.notoriouslyconservative.com/2009/04/salt-lake-tea-party-attorney-general.html