(My mother-in-law gave me this tip at our Mother's Day lunch as it hasn't yet made the Pittsburgh papers.)

From the Sharon Herald (largest paper near the college) comes word that John Gechter will be permitted to graduate with a GCC degree.  In a deal struck with the college, Gechter must complete his two remaining classes elsewhere which can then be transferred back to GCC for his degree.

Gechter had previously been suspected when school officials learned of his roles in gay male pornography.  Gechter claims he was using the money earned to finance his education.  A video was discovered by another student who shared it with the general student body.  Gechter was two classes away from completing his undergraduate degree. 

Gechter states he will drop plans for a lawsuit in return for this resolution.  He plans to move to New York City where he has been cast in a play. 

As for the students who spread the information (and the video?)?

 GCC also did not offer any specific comment as to whether any students were punished for spreading the e-mail about Gechter, only stating that ?in mid-April, the Office of Student Life and Learning at Grove City College received information indicating one of our students was actively involved in the hardcore pornographic adult entertainment industry.?

 Student reaction seems mixed with some students sympathetic to Gechter for being suspended so close to graduation.

Other students seem in la-la land, stating that they do not believe Gechter was harassed at their good Christian environment.  Seriously?  I've been to a whole lot of churches in my life and met a lot of very human Christians engaging in gossip, slander, and other nasty low down behavior.  I also attended a Catholic university so I definitely know what happens in that kind of good Christian environment. 

I am glad things worked out for Gechter and hope other students take heed to enroll in schools that accept federal financial aid if they plan to finance their education by freelance work in the adult entertainment industry.  Still, I can't help wondering if the students who "gossiped" this information around the campus even get that they violated a Christian code of conduct? 

How can the College act in "good faith" if these students and those who allegedly sent "hate email" to Gechter go about their way with nary a backward glance?

You may have heard about the new movie OUTrage which explores the controversial practice of outing LGBT elected officials and staffers who want to have their cake and eat it, too.  In other words, they work diligently to oppose full equality in their legislative guise, but still live the gay life -- be it enjoying the quiet cloak of privilege with their partner or trolling for sex with other persons of the same sexual orientation. 

Pittsburgh has at least three reveals connected to this project, courtesy of BlogActive.com. All three are/were legislative staffers investing their time, talent and energy into promoting the anti-equality agendas of their bosses. 

Agree with outing or not, clearly this is a conversation worth having here in Pittsburgh, particularly as we have many a social conservative Democrat representing our region and more than one elected official who falls into this category themselves. 

I'm not suggesting that we begin a witch hunt, simply that we bring a topical and timely film to Pittsburgh to generate constructive conversation on the subject matter.  We've elected one openly gay person and may be on the brink of electing an openly gay judge.  This is the time to examine the need for elected officials (and their staffers) to remain in the closet, as well as to ponder the implications of members of our community working for people who want to keep us in second class status. 

One of the film's participants, Michael Rogers of PageOneQ media, was recently interviewed by a DC talk show.  During that interview, the male host told Rogers that he wanted to take him outside and punch him in the head.  Nice.  He then refused to offer an apology because he thinks outing hurts innocent people.  Personally, that's a bullshit argument -- the individual's choices to lie to their spouses and children are the source of hurt, not the reveal.  Their choice to promote an anti-equality agenda hurts a lot of people.  There are plenty of quietly LGBT persons who work for a fair agenda.  This is about hypocrisy, not a witch hunt.  Watch the video and ask yourself if a representative from any other minority group would  be subjected to a threat like this.

Admittedly, I am naive as to how to bring a film to town.  I took a shot in the dark and contacted some folks who may be able to advise me on that process. I also contacted a few local theater that show this sort of film and simply asked for their assistance.

Again, you may disagree with outing but that should prompt you to want to see the movie and understand the phenomenon better.