From Yahoo News this morning:

LOS ANGELES -
George Takei, who as helmsman Sulu steered the Starship Enterprise through three television seasons and six movies, has come out as a homosexual in the current issue of Frontiers, a biweekly Los Angeles magazine covering the gay and lesbian community.

It's funny, how sometimes things can gain such new dimensions after even a lifetime. I watched Mr. Takei on Star Trek as a very small child with my father. Somewhere around here I have pictures of him doing jumping jacks with a bunch of fans preparing to go jogging in downtown Atlanta at Dixie Trek '86, my second convention. I've always thought that he couldn't have been safer in Atlanta if he'd had an entire SWAT team guarding him. I mean, think about it. Three or four dozen rabid Star Trek fans? If anyone had even looked at him sideways they would have torn them apart. He's a funny and very classy guy. Now I respect him even more. He says in the news article that he feels he can do this now because of the political and social climate being better, but as far as I can see it's worse. And yet he still came out. That takes guts, especially since he could have just never said anything.

Good for you, Mr. Takei. And thank you.

Now everybody flip open your cellphones and say, "Mr. Spock, it's been two hours..."