New York City’s Naked Cowboy is having a showdown with the new breasted version of himself that is infringing on his territory and business model. Sandy Kane is calling herself the The Naked Cowgirl, and the Cowboy’s not having. The heinous Sandy Kane is a stripper, stripper-comedian, late-night cable star, and overall cult figure…and now, The Naked Cowgirl.

The Naked Cowboy wants her to sign a franchise agreement and charge her $5,000 a year for the use of his name. He does, in fact, have a trademark on his name, and believe she is infringing on this trademark by calling herself The Naked Cowgirl. I think he has a valid point. That being said, she’s been doing her naked act longer than his Time Square act, so I’m not certain the cease-and-desist letter.

What do you think about The Naked Cowgirl vs. The Naked Cowboy?

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What if America was tolerant of homosexuals since its independence from Great Britain? What if the US Armed Forces never had a “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy? Could some of the USA’s most indelible images as we know them have changed? Well, a new photo editorial spread in Next Magazine answers that very question.

For their annual Pride issue, Next Magazine welcomes you to a gay America. Where homosexuals are no longer in the background and at the forefront of American history. They worked with an eclectic group of local New York celebrities and reinterpreted some of the most iconic images in patriotic US history.

With the help of photographer Bradford Noble, they revised a few of the most patriotic images and sassed it up as only gays can. Instead of the typical red, white and blue, they added the other colors of the rainbow. You go GIRL. Here’s the official description from the photo series:

Welcome to America. A gay America. Where homosexuals are no longer confined to a separate ghetto but are the new face of this great nation. A place where the queers are captains of industry, stars of stage and screen and political forces of nature. So why shouldn’t our patriotic imagery reflect that? ?

view images after the jump

A flash mob put to good use! Everyone once and a while, a flash mob (whether it’s dancing, walking zombies, etc.) comes round a big city near you to surprise unsuspecting people with more often than not, a huge synchronized dance – “Dancin’ in the streets!” as the song goes. I have yet to be part of one myself (seems like something always comes up) but it seems like it’d be a lot of fun. One guy in NYC took it to another level…or down a level, to bended knee – just depends on how you look at it.

The man hired about 100 dancers to take part in a flash mob in Washington State Park in New York City so that he could create the perfect wedding proposal for his deserving girlfriend. The proposal took place last week on May 13th, 2010. The couple stands by the fountain, the woman completely unsuspecting, as random people start dancing around them. Then – they dancers pair off, dancing to “Hallelujah I Love Her So!” by Ray Charles. I’m not gonna lie – the water fountain wasn’t the only waterworks as I personally watched the video for the first time. It was just so touching – I can only imagine what they both must have been feeling during an afternoon they’ll never forget.

Check out the video after the jump…

That’s right, not one, not two, but FIVE men are still not found in connection to a hate crime that occurred in Brooklyn on the corner of Luquer Street and Hamilton Avenue Tuesday the 2nd of March. Apparently the group of disgusting atrocities for human beings ganged up on a 22 year old man and beat him in the street after screaming slurs at him when the man exited a party. The man since then, has been released from the hospital thank god.

The Hate Crimes Task Force is being involved and the crime is being treated as a ‘bias attack’. In the video below taken from an ABC news report, a passerby was quoted as saying, “…I’ll definitely be more careful walking around here”. I know what that feels like even in such a gay proactive city like Vancouver. Last Summer, a couple scary incidences occurred in our own community in and around Davie Village, Jordan Smith, as a brutal example. The fear it creates is incomparable and unnecessary. That a person can be physically beaten for their sexuality still baffles me. We can all still remember the horrifying stories of Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado or Jack Price, just two of many that took place only last year.

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New York, a long over due trip that my partner and I kept postponing for other locations materialized this summer. We heard all about it, some said it was an astounding city; others said it was just an overly done American city, and others preferred to reserve their opinion. We really didn’t know what to expect, we had heard it all in the media: the financial district of the world, the city that hosts endless TV shows, the fashion Mecca and the place where most contemporary artists are formed.

We had to see it with our own eyes and form our own opinion. Although we thought, there is no way there could be a more beautiful place than our Vancouver. Fair enough, New York was not as aesthetically beautiful as Vancouver, but hell it was fun and one of the most amazing trips we had ever taken. My intent with this article is to give you some tips about New York and its gay scene. These tips will probably be outdated in a year as the city moves at the speed of light, but if you are planning on heading that way soon you might find these tips quite helpful.

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There are very few times that I have heard a DJ’s set, and have been TRULY inspired. I am in a very cool business that when there are times that I find someone amazing, I get to bring them up to our city to share with everyone…this weekend at AMPED is one such time!

This Saturday, we present to you the DEBUT of another hot new talent on the scene…DJ JOE HICKERSON

For Joe, rhythm truly is the essence of house music. Though Joe’s sets incorporate many genres of house music, from tech to tribal to old skool, the consistency throughout is rhythm – that element that motivates individual club goers to join together as one dance floor. There is nothing “flat” about any track Joe plays. If a track does not cause an unconscious shake of the shoulders, you will not hear it in Joe’s sets.

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I have wanted to stay at the Hudson Hotel since my first and only other trip to NYC a few years ago for New Years. I had some friends that were staying there and we had drinks one night in the Hudson Bar, which was a very popular destination at the time. I also have heard very positive reviews from other friends who have stayed there over the past few years.

I spent a long time looking at lots of hotels in NYC in areas where I thought I wanted to stay, but had a hard time making any decisions. This is partly because I find that internet reviews are not always reliable. Obviously some reviews you don’t ignore, like cockroaches and blood stains, but some you chalk up to inexperienced travelers, or overly picky uptight asses. From what I had heard the Hudson had very small rooms, but the hotels features, location, atmosphere and bars were really great. At least, that’s what I chose to listen to.

It took a while to confirm travel dates, so I held off on booking the hotel, which of course led to the rates getting higher. Eventually, I made the decision to reserve my room, but of course with taxes and everything, the Hudson was hundreds more than I wanted to spend. I got frustrated and had no idea how to make a decision where else to stay because I had it in my mind that I really wanted the Hudson. Since my partner was zero help in making a hotel decision I decided to just use Priceline for the first time.

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I spent a lot of time preparing and planning what to do prior to travelling to New York City last week. There are just so many places to go, things to do, and I didn’t want to be overwhelmed. Mostly, I wanted to eat some amazing food and I didn’t want to have to choose based on whim, or a random recommendation. I asked colleges at work, my bosses, friends and family for suggestions and came away with a list. My partner and I analyzed the list of suggestions and picked out our favourites based on menus, reviews and their proximity to other plans.

We ate many great meals, but one definitely stood out. I don’t typically enjoy going to steak houses, as I have trouble justifying paying a large amount for a hunk of beef and that doesn’t even include sides. But, when my brother and his wife suggested Maloney & Porcelli’s and their weekend wine dinner, I knew we had to try it. At first, when talking to my brother I thought he must be exaggerating. He said that for $75, you get a 3 course meal with unlimited pours of 4 featured wines. Now at first I thought that maybe they just had a good waiter who topped off their drinks a few times, but when I looked at the website they confirmed his rumour. The menu also excited me for one more reason, it’s not a set menu. Generally, I like some of choices on set menus, but usually I’d like to change at least one course.

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