Another Of Those Hmmmmm Topics

I am not a bar person so this doesn't mean a rat's ass to me but it does raise a question about whether if I did own a bar whether I or my patrons could decide to bar gays? I doubt it very much sooooooooooooooo........

Jonathan Kay: Heterosexuals not allowed
Here's an interesting story out of Australia: The Victorian state civil and administrative tribunal (which appears to be some kind of human-rights panel) has ruled that a gay pub — the Peel Hotel — has the right to ban straights from the premises.
Proponents of the club's right to keep out straight folk say the case is about protecting homosexuals from abuse. But freedom from annoyance seems to be a big factor, as well: Apparently, a lot of local women were coming to the bar in big packs ("hen parties") because they liked hanging out with gay men.
By my observation, this is a pretty common phenomenon in most large cities: Male gay bars allow women to hang out with members of the opposite sex without being groped or hit on. According to stereotype, the men also tend to be better-looking and -dressed, as well.
Although I'm not usually a big fan of politically correct human rights tribunals, I think I would support this decision: It must be annoying to be a gay man trying to enjoy yourself at a gay bar, but all the while you're being treated as some kind of hip, aesthetic night-life prop by a bunch of tipsy lady folk.
The ruling applies as much to straight men as straight women, however. This raises the obvious question in the case of the former: How can the bouncers tell whether you're gay. I suppose there are a bunch of phallometric tests that could be administered — but none of them seem suitable for the vestibule of a bar (or for discussion on a National Post blog for that matter).
jkay@nationalpost.com