The good news: The British Supreme Court has voted to overturn a discretion test that barred asylum protection for persecuted gay folks. The bad news: Obnoxious stereotypes are still alive and well in Britain. For one judge, at least.

When asked about the decision to overturn the discretion test — which claimed that gays persecuted in institutionally homophobic countries could simply not Act Gay and be fine — a UK judge said the following:

Just as male hetero­sexuals are free to enjoy themselves playing rugby, drinking beer and talking about girls with their mates, so male homosexuals are to be free to enjoy themselves going to Kylie concerts, drinking exotically-coloured cocktails and talking about boys with their straight female mates.

So, ughhh. The heart's in the right place, vis a vis people being able to live as who they freely and all that good stuff, but the execution is... unfortunate. And then the Daily Express, a tab-ish British paper, ran the above front page headline and quote. Terrific. I'm sure all those Iranian and Malawian and Cameroonian gays who are worried about being tossed in jail or (much, much) worse are glad to know that it all comes down to Kylie Minogue and cosmos. Some gay people do like that stuff! And it is, yes, recognizably gay. BUT. The quote makes it seem as though that's what the issue is about — that gay people are murdered and imprisoned by their governments because they like Kylie Minogue — instead of, you know, the real serious stuff. Ah well. Ultimately it's not important how they got there, just that they got there, right?

Damn, Britain. Why you gotta make it hurt to feel good?

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