Asshat Smackdown! for June 24, 2009

You might be familiar with our regular Friday feature, Battle of the Network Gays, where we ask you to crown the Gay of the Week.

You folks seem to enjoy crowning people a lot. Hence our new feature: Asshat Smackdown!

Every Wednesday we'll ask you to select from a current crop of schmucks, jerks, demagogues and harpies to see who is most deserving of the week's coveted Asshat Crown! We'll announce the results right here on the blog on Friday, and that asshat will reign supreme until a new challenger is crowned the following week.

Curious to know more about the challengers this week!? Check them out after the break, and vote for your favorite!

This week's contenders:

1. Perez Hilton

The queen of all media got a number of write-in votes last week for something we made the editorial decision not to write about. But this week he lands in the headlines again for an altercation with Will.i.am and Black Eyed Peas manager, Polo Molina. The gist is, he called Molina a f***ing fa***t to his face and got punched for it.

Said Hilton...

"I made the split-second decision -- that I was gonna say what I thought was the worst possible thing that thug [Will.i.am] would ever want to hear."

As GLAAD pointed out when asking, futilely one supposes, for Hilton to apologize...

"These are vulgar anti-gay slurs that feed a climate of hatred and intolerance toward our community. For someone in our own community to use it to attack another person by saying that it is, quote, ‘The worst possible thing that thug would ever want to hear,’ is incredibly dangerous. It legitimizes use of a slur that is often linked to violence against our community. And it sends a message that it is OK to attempt to dehumanize people by exploiting anti-gay attitudes.”

2. Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei

See, we aren't just about the gay stuff here at AfterElton.com. We well-rounded queers are also concerned with major world events, and it's hard not to be riveted by what is going on in Iran these days. In terms of pure asshatedness one would be hard-pressed to beat Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei this week for endorsing clearly fraudulent election results and moving forcefully to crush popular protests. Boo hiss. Supreme Leader? Try Supreme Asshat.

Oh, and if you're a stickler and really have to have a gay angle in order to vote for him, here's one: In a 2007 speech he claimed that "Today, homosexuality is a major problem in the western world. They [western nations] however ignore it. But the reality is that homosexuality has become a serious challenge, pain and unsolvable problem for the intellectuals in the west."

And his government executes gay people, too.

3. Eugene Ornelas Jr. (a.k.a. Chyna)

The Ru Paul's Drag Race season 2 hopeful beat up the Mayor of Mulberry, Florida in an unseemly domestic dispute. What started it? Eugene/Chyna brought a fellow back to the home he shares with the Mayor, and when confronted he threw a beer bottle at the Mayor. In front of his two young kids.

This is not conduct befitting a lady. 

4. The Bruno Promotional Tour.

Photo credit: Getty Images

You might think Sacha Baron Cohen is a comic genius, or you might believe his latest movie will perpetuate the worst gay stereotypes imaginable. Possibly you hold both opinions. Whatever you're thoughts on Cohen/Bruno, I think we can all agree that the promotional campaign for the Bruno movie has gotten completely out of hand, and has most certainly wandered into asshat territory. Has there ever been a film this relentlessly and unpleasantly overhyped? I'm just waiting for the inevitable Burger King promotional tie-in merchandise.

Photo credit: Getty Images

Vote for your favorite asshat by 8 AM EDT on Friday, June 20. And be sure to check back Friday afternoon to see which asshat our readers have carried to glory! Note: Write-in candidates (other than AfterElton.com staff!) are encouraged.