By virtue of the authority vested in me, I'm going to call on all America to celebrate vice.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim June 2011 as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month.  I call upon the people of the United States to eliminate prejudice everywhere it exists, and to celebrate the great diversity of the American people.

Can't get enough?  Here's the full Monty:

http://mmsweb.a.state.gov/asp/notices/dn_temp.asp?Notice_ID=15242

Think Pakistan is Self-Defeating? Welcome to India.

The common Western view of India is that its conservative Muslim rival Paksitan is inferior in every way and that India represents progress by leaps and bounds.

Once one gets there, however, one wonders if it really doesn't come down to the fact that Israeli students and dharma bandits are more free to roam India than Pakistan.  Does the presence of falafel at Indian tourist sights really mean India is that much more progressive?

Sudha Ramachandran writes a finely balanced account of the distance that remains to be traveled by "the good guy" in the fight for South Asia here:
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/ME25Df01.html