The Bilerico Project | Daily experiments in LGBTQ

What You Need To Know is a little light on links today, despite having all the news from Friday, Saturday, Sunday to draw from. That's because the nation has collectively entered into a low-pressure zone of news before the media storm we can all look forward to on Tuesday.

There may still be some undecided voters out there less than twenty-four hours before the polls open for the 2012 election, but by now we've surely passed the time point new ads or revelations could have much impact on the contest's outcome.

Add in the continuing story of perhaps the most devastating natural disasters in the history of one of the United States preeminent cities, and one finds a rather barren media landscape. Other than Hurricane Sandy related news, the vast majority of what you'll find in the news are predictions on the election's outcome, which now run the gamut from "Obama will win" to "Romney will win" to the frankly terrifying "it may be too close to call for up to several weeks."

Personally, I'll be hoping for an Obama victory, not because I'm a giant fan of the President, but because I think the alternative is far worse.

No matter the outcome though, I'm dearly looking forward to a break from what has at times seemed an eternal campaign. Remember, we've been at this now for 551 days, counting from the first Republican Primary Debate on May 5, 2011.

And now, here's what you need to know today:

• Homeless LGBT youth support organization The Ali Forney Center, has suffered a serious blow with the destruction of their Chelsea drop-in center during Hurricane Sandy.
• Despite being legally recognized as male by the government, a Japanese trans* man has been denied being listed as the father on his newborn child's birth certificate, despite sterile cis men routinely being granted that right.
• David Johnson, a state representative in Maine, has invoked the memory of his dead gay brother and the brother's partner of 25yrs as part of his statements opposing marriage equality for same-sex couples.
• A Tea Party affiliated group is has put together training materials that seem to specifically teach poll-watchers to disenfranchise trans* people.
• An excellent piece in defense of using the word "bigot."
• Mitt Romney has become the first major presidential candidate in the sixteen year history of The Youth Debate to decline an invitation to participate.
• It seems straight people want to see Cam and Mitch get legally hitched too. A new poll finds that visible gay couples on TV are helping drive acceptance of marriage equality.
• Current polling shows same-sex marriage winning in Maine, and a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage failing in Minnesota. Don't trust the polls though, get your ass out to vote tomorrow if you haven't already.
• I'm not actually a big Obama fan in many ways (though I loath Romney more), but particularly in light of James' Showtune Sing-Off, how could I end the last What You Need To Know before election day with anything but this:

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