On the Gaydar: LGBT Military Index, Rob Ford, Ellen DeGeneres, and more

Here's a selection of LGBT news headlines from around the world.

Arizona passes antigay bill  Arizona's legislature has passed a bill (a 33 to 27 vote) that will allow business owners to refuse service on the basis of their religious beliefs. The bill now will go to Gov. Jan Brewer for approval.

Ugandan antigay bill signing delayed  Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni has postponed his signing of an antigay bill until he receives further scientific advice to prove that homosexuality is genetic rather than a choice. He has sought input from American scientists even as he defended himself against criticism from U.S. President Barack Obama, who has warned that signing the bill would complicate relations between the countries.

Study evaluates military LGBT integration  The Hague Centre for Strategic Studies has released the LGBT Military Index, an evaluation of how inclusive armed forces are for LGBT people. New Zealand led the list, followed by the Netherlands, Britain, Sweden, Australia, and Canada. The United States ranked 40^th. Syria, Iran, and Nigeria rounded out the bottom of the list, which rated 103 countries.

Iranian star releases controversial lesbian video  Expat Iranian pop star Googoosh has received a mix of praise and criticism for releasing a controversial music video for "Behesht" (meaning heaven), which features a lesbian couple, on Valentine's Day.

Canadian speedskater wins Olympic silver with gay sponsorship  Canada's Denny Morrison, who won the silver medal in long-track speedskating on February 19 at the Winter Olympics, revealed that he was once homophobic, due to growing up in a small town where he was teased for being a speedskater. He has since changed his attitude and was even sponsored by a Calgary gay bar, Twisted Element. Morrison even insisted on maintaining the sponsorship from the bar in spite of Russia's antigay legislation.

Some Canadian cities resist flying Pride flags during Olympics  While many Canadian city halls and legislatures have been flying rainbow flags during the Olympics to support LGBT Russians, some cities have been reluctant to do so, including Surrey, B.C., and Miramichi, New Brunswick.

Ford feels bullied by homophobia accusations  Toronto mayor Rob Ford, who protested Toronto's city hall flying the rainbow flag during the Olympics and has avoided Toronto's Pride parades, struck back at his critics. He denies he is homophobic and claims that being called that makes him feel bullied.

Patrick Stewart misidentified as gay  Patrick Stewart congratulated fellow actor Ellen Page, who co-starred with Stewart in X-Men movies, on publicly coming out as lesbian during a speech on February 14. However, an article in The Guardian mistakenly identified Stewart as gay. Stewart, who is married to Sunny Ozell, has portrayed gay characters on screen, including in the 1995 gay romcom Jeffrey and guest appearance on the TV series Frasier.

Ellen DeGeneres revisits difficult coming out  Ellen DeGeneres revealed that coming out publicly was difficult for her as a celebrity. She said she felt rejected, isolated, and hurt after coming out as a lesbian in 1997.