I was wondering when somebody (besides Ann Coulter, and Michele Bachmann) would come to the defense of Carl Paladino for saying things like gays “brainwash” kids into joining their lifestyle. That man is Slate‘s William Saletan, and he thinks Paladino is right about our gay pride parades: they’re no place for kids.
Paladino did apologize, belatedly, and says the only thing he actually hates about gays is their attempt to get married (but: “I have the same position on this issue as President Barrack Obama”). But he didn’t specifically address his statements aimed at opponent Andrew Cuomo, who “took his daughters to a gay pride parade. Is that normal? Would you do it? Would you take your children to a gay pride parade? … I don’t think it is proper to go there and watch a couple of grown men grind against each other. It’s disgusting.”
Cuomo’s kids are 16, 16, and 13. I’m sure they’ve seen plenty of bikinis and grinding already. But Paladino is right about the gyrating Speedos. Gay pride parades aren’t the best thing to take little kids to, especially if you want them to think of homosexuals as normal people. You’d be better off taking them to a picnic where boring gay couples chat about one another’s kids and gardens. You’d be better off, in short, if gay people were married.
I lived for 10 years along the route of the gay pride parade in Washington, D.C. The New York parade is bigger but similar. You can watch a video montage of it here. You’ll see ordinary folks: grandparents in sun hats, a parade queen in a tiara, a bicycling AIDS activist in a suit and bowtie, and a guy with a sign that says, “You know what’s so gay? My family.” But you’ll also see scrotal pouches, jockstrapped drag queens, men with exposed butt cheeks, a guy with a flagpole in his pants, women wearing nothing but pasties, and a nearly naked dude grinding his crotch against a pole. The Onion, as my colleague Farhad Manjoo reminds me, once summarized these freak shows in a brilliant parody: “Gay-Pride Parade Sets Mainstream Acceptance Of Gays Back 50 Years.”
Drag queens and butt-cheek boys don’t represent gay America any more than Mardi Gras, Spring Break, and Jersey Shore represent straight America. The reality is less sexy. According to the most recent census estimates, 700,000 to 800,000 same-sex couples now live together. One-third of them are raising children. But most of these people don’t refer to their partners as spouses, and few have gotten married. Legally, they can’t.
I’m not even going to touch what qualifies as “normal” depictions of gay Americans, the same way I’d never touch definitions of “normal blacks” or “normal Christians.” But Saletan does touch on one notable weakness in Paladino’s argument against both parades and gay marriage.
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
That’s what makes Paladino’s position so odd. “I have no reservations whatsoever about gays, except for marriage,” he said on GMA. “I only have one problem with homosexuality, and that’s their desire to be married.” On Today, he drew the same line. When Fox News asked him why he had brought up homosexuality, Paladino said the real difference between him and Cuomo was on gay marriage.
But if skimpily clad pole dancers are bad models for kids, the obvious antidote is to legalize and promote gay marriage. Then politicians wouldn’t have to march with boys in bikinis to show their support of equal rights. There’d be a Mardi-Gras-style parade for the nipple flaunters, and a family-friendly parade for the boring gay couples. The couples could walk with their kids. And your kids could watch.
For now, the only gay person Paladino apparently knows — his nephew and campaign aide Jeff Hannon — is keeping mostly quiet, avoiding the press and, until everything dies down on the campaign trail, though he did tell the Post, “Obviously, I’m very offended by his comments.”
Lucas
You know, I think Saletan has it about right.
PLAYS WELL WITH OTHERS
“Exposing” your children to Gay parades is “harmfull” to them and as a so very wonderfull father Pallidio claims. He would never subject his own children to anything which would harm them………
Guess he forgot that whole line of thinking when he fcuked a woman who was not his wife and had a child out of wedlock…..
What kind of alternate universe does this immoral loathsome hyprocrite live in that your father having sex outside the marriage is soooooo very not harmfull to your children???…..
When he was confronted with the question of whether being Gay was a choice he was informed his Gay nephew told him he was born that way and had no choice in the matter. Palladio replied he had “issues accepting that” to the media. He was willing to toss his own nephew under the bus to pander to the hatefull orthodox jews. His nephew who is a member of his campaign staff has not been to work since this erupted. He has not left his home. We can only hope this kid comes out strong and calls his contemptible loathsome Uncle out as the vile bigot he is……..
Jim
Actually my least favorite part of the Gay Pride March in NYC is the guys in speedos, especially the damn Rentboy float. (Their first year at the march it wasn’t just butt cheeks hanging out either.) That kind of thing always embarrasses me for the gay movement and I agree it doesn’t help our cause any. That being said, it’s no reason to deny us marriage.
SometimesElla
While Saletan’s take on Pride Parades is interesting, I think that it’s case by case. The first pride parade I ever attended (also the first one in which I participated) was in ATL. It was almost entirely spectacle – floats with stripper poles; assless chaps, etc. Pretty much the stereotypical (iconic?) Pride Parade.
I next attended DC Pride, less than a year later and it was entirely different. Far more staid, but also far more…heartwarming (for lack of a better word). It was quite family oriented. And this doesn’t just mean families marching with gay relatives (though there was plenty of that) but also workplaces marching together in solidarity. There was some spectacle but it was very rare (and it was more in the attendees than those IN the parade)If I had children I would be happy to bring them to such a parade. The participants embodied “inclusion” – a far more powerful message than merely stressing it to your children through rhetoric.
It stands to reason, however, that the more oppressed or look down upon, the more the need for spectacle. While DC does have some homophobia issues, I don’t think the GLBT community has as much a need for spectacle – its existence has already been recognized. In a place like ATL the spectacle may serve the purpose of SHOWING that they are here. Once they begin to earn more respect the tone of the parade may shift.
Casey
“Drag queens and butt-cheek boys don’t represent gay America any more than Mardi Gras, Spring Break, and Jersey Shore represent straight America.”
To that I would respond:
Cohabiting same sex couples raising children don’t represent gay American any more than Mardi Gras, Spring Break, and Jersey Shore represent straight America.
I support LGBT equality as much as the next person.
But it is not in anyone’s interests to criminalise and stigmatise those people who are not married and who don’t want kids.
I loathe children. I like S&M.
That does NOT mean that I am less deserving of my civil rights than a nice hetero-normative gay couple.
And no-one better ask me to change either.
Miss Understood
As always the people obsessed with all things dirty have an unusual obsession with all things dirty. I hate when people, especially gay people, make such a big deal about a few wild floats in Gay Pride and act as if “normal” people are somehow excluded. Almost the entire New York Gay Pride March is made up of community groups, ethnic organizations, political organizations, service organizations, etc. Here and there there are a few floats with some sexy dancers. Big deal. Why is And drag queens? You think drag queens will corrupt children? Kids absolutely love drag queens. I’ve booked drag queens at Bar Mitzvas and Sweet 16s.
Ann Cunter
In Buffalo, I don’t blame him for being anti-Pride. The amount of gross losers fucking in the port-a-potties in Bidwell is beyond disgusting and trashy.
ousslander
@Casey: I thnk you are just as deserving as everyone else but we are not talking about thaT. we are talking about kids at pride parades and I would not take mine. It is oversexualized and I def wouldn’t want them seeing an S&M float or people practicing it. I would not stop you from marching, however.
@Jim: should just call it the prostitution float
timncguy
@Casey: no one is asking you to change and no one is trying to criminalize your preferences. All that is being said is that bikini clad men grinding on each other in front of young children is not a good idea. The same goes for scantily clad hetero couples. In your case, S&M activities do not need to be put on display in front of small children no matter whether the couple engaging in those activities is gay or straight. I don’t think it’s a controversial position to take. The problem with Paladino’s statement was that he only specified gays. He made it sound like he thought it would be perfectly fine if the nearly naked grinding was being done by heteros.
Ken S
@PLAYS WELL WITH OTHERS: “What kind of alternate universe does this immoral loathsome hyprocrite live in that your father having sex outside the marriage is soooooo very not harmfull to your children???”
I read about some very interesting studies recently that found that not only does being in a position of power almost universally reduce sympathy by every measure, but it promotes hypocritical thinking. In several psychological studies, researchers found that by giving one group of test subjects half an hour of completely arbitrary ‘power’ over another group of subjects, the powerful group became more likely to see themselves as special, better, ‘exceptions’ to the rules and leaned towards punishing others for some offense far more harshly. The disempowered subjects showed more empathy, were more likely to follow the rules, and more likely to forgive others. It’s pretty basic human psychology that takes a *lot* of introspection and vigilance to rise above.
scott ny'er
@Jim: Sigh. So the Rockettes at the Thanksgiving Parade is fine? Or the lushes at the St Pattys Parade or the scantily dressed woman in the Puerto Rican parade?
Or the MTV videos with women and men barely wearing anything? OR the TV shows going way back to Charlie’s Angels to the present, with Gossip Girl, 90210?
I can go on. People in bathing suits are everywhere (Miss America Pagent, other pagents).
The thing is Paladino pointed out the GAYS as the problem. Nobody else.
Matt S
This is always a tricky one for me. I agree that such floats are not always the best PR for us. But the Pride Parade isn’t only about good PR. It originally was a very in-your-face event because we were (and still are) told to hide in shame. We refused to do so. We marched right up to the line and said we’re here, we’re queer, get used to it.
Nowadays, many people are used to it. And that’s great.
Frankly, the only thing that separates gays from straights is sexuality. We work the same jobs, come from the same families, look basically the same (maybe a little better), speak the same languages. So, it doesn’t strike me as wrong that the parade which is to celebrate us in some ways celebrates that which makes us different.
Lastly, just last weekend I had a football game on broadcast tv and saw the Texans’ cheerleaders in tight pink spandex (and not too much of it) bouncing up and down. I wonder if Paladino feels that’s ok for his children to watch, but a guy dancing in a speedo is not. Not to mention kids who play Grand Theft Auto and watch violence on tv 24-7. It strikes me as a bit hypocritcal to decry the Pride Parade and not the many other over-sexualized and violent images out there today.
ewe
Paladino also said that gay people should not grind the same way he thinks is ok for straight people to grind. What does a gay pride parade have to do with speedos anyway? He needs to be educated not represent all of New York. I have been to and in many gay pride parades and it was never once about grinding my crotch into someone else. That whole scenario is so telling about the complete ignorance and lack of knowledge this piece of shit knows about homosexuals and the politics of oppression. He probably thinks black people sell crack on the corner and eat at KFC all day on the public dole. Those are stereotypes. What about all the hooked nosed curly que jews he is using right now to stir up religious hate and get a vote or the wop italians who pump drugs into black urban centers? Would all those stereotypes be ok for him to say? NO, not for one milisecond. The fact he puts down gay people is enough to keep him dismissed as a candidate if society truly believed in equality. But we don’t. That is a myth. This motherfucker need to be dragged out into the spotlight and exposed as an idiot not a potential public servant. How about going down south and eating some squirrel soup with the red necks? Is that ok to say? Why should putting down gay people as solely sexual be permitted by anyone? “Fuck Paladino.” That should be the only slogan and poster people carry around on election day.
ewe
Cuomo is no better. i hate dynasty
scott ny'er
@ewe: To be fair, there are some peeps who dress risque at the parade. I’ve marched with and also viewed them from the sidelines. Dudes in Speedos. Woman sans shirts after breast reduction surgery. Etc.
the thing:
1. There is nothing wrong with that. Americans like Paladino are caught up in prudist notions.
2. Males and females in all forms of media are shown in skimpy swimsuits. TV, movies, magazine, ads, billboards. Yet, Paladino only points out the Pride March.
Adam
One thing that always bothers me in these conversations is that we take for granted how absolutely saturated our cultural media is by heterosexual displays of sexuality, and most especially imagery of very scantily clad women. I think what a lot of people find more offensive is not the gay aspect of the gay pride parades, so much as the sexualization of the male physique. I mean, honestly, do you think Paladino and his clan dispatch young children to the other room during the Miss America beauty pageant? I can’t imagine they do, since our culture is used to ogling over beautiful, nubile women. The male body, however, is something to be appreciated only somewhat reluctantly and only in the privacy of a woman’s bedroom.
Incidentally, I think this is also the source of a lot of homophobia in our culture. According to the hetero-male narrative (which is the main one informing our cultural dialogue) women are not truly attracted to men; they shack up with them simply for the financial security and physical protection that men provide. So the idea of a man being with another man, with men presumably only hooking up with those to whom they are physically attracted, simply does not compute in the minds of many.
ewe
@scott ny’er: If there is nothing wrong with that which i happen to agree with you about then what do you mean when you say “to be fair”? I know what this is? Paladino is a hatemonger. He doesn’t have to go to a pride parade. He can turn on his tv and see straight tits and ass. No outrage at all. He is a fucking scumbag.
ewe
@Adam: you are so right. Paladino forwards emails of women fucking horses. ok. enough said. i only make a judgement cause if he wants to compare his seedy psyche against any gay person i know, he loses.
scott ny'er
Ok. Jon Stewart said it best:
=================
“That’s Carl Paladino making the case that he is the ‘family values’ candidate,” Stewart said. “Because he would never take either one of his two simultaneous families to a gay pride parade.”
tjr101
As much as I think Carl Paladino is a piece of shit, he does have a point about the gay pride parade. There are some elements of the celebrations children should not be exposed to.
ewe
@tjr101: Are you so strict about Mardi Gras in Rio? Do you think the Brazilians who bring their children to that festival are bad parents? Don’t internalize Paladinos stereotypes of gay people. He is out of his mind and an ignorant pig who needs to be confronted by people who will shout that fuck down.
Casey
“As much as I think Carl Paladino is a piece of shit, he does have a point about the gay pride parade. There are some elements of the celebrations children should not be exposed to.”
Well there are some elements of religions that children should not be exposed to either – the cannibalism of the catholic church for example. What type of depraved message is Palladino giving his children when they look at the torture victim Jesus on his cross. And then when they go to get communion they are told they are cannibalising his body.
As for this idea that wee need to modify Gay Pride so that it is more ‘family friendly’ – well f*** that. It’s family friendly enough. The vast majority of participants dress in regular, everyday clothes.
It is in no-one’s interests to start ostracising the more ‘out-there’ elements of our community (you know – the ones who started the Stonewall Riots?)
fizzydrink
I agree (with Saletan). Pride parades are no place for kids.
In general, I would say that that GLBT culture has done a poor job differentiating between the public and private spheres with respect to displays of sexuality. For example, you can’t really walk a kid down Santa Monica Boulevard in West Hollywood without the kid being exposed to some pretty graphic, adult material. The same thing is true for every other gay enclave I’ve ever visited, in the U.S. or abroad (which are many).
The depictions of sex in gay pride parades, gay publications, gay television programming and gay communities significantly outpaces the depictions of sex in their mainstream counterparts.
In some places, this doesn’t matter as much because the culture has been conditioned to see a lot of nudity and sexuality anyway. But in places such as the U.S., where societies have more protective notions about what kids should be seeing, it’s a real detriment that GBLT culture is so overtly sexualized.
I understand the reasons for this, I think: (1) A desire to say “Fuck You” to the dominant system; (2) most GLBT people hold more lax views than general society. Even so, I think it’s ultimately detrimental to their acceptance and integration into society.
Soupy
@Adam. That was an incredible post. So perfect.
Joanne
I was following links about Ann Coulter and came upon this article and felt the need to comment from a Christian’s perspective. I can only speak to the whole ‘gay marriage’ issue from my stance as a Christian. The Bible condemns homosexuality and a Christian LIVES by the Bible (ideally) and it’s tenets (yes we often fail miserably but it is STILL our goal). Christians CAN’T condone gay or lesbian marriage because hetero. marriage is GOD’S design. Homosexual marriage (or any homo. interaction) is CONDEMNED by God. (And before anyone argues that by trying to skew the scripture to fit their needs…..DON’T. It won’t work, not if you’re SERIOUS about what scripture actually says and means.) And like it or not the U.S. IS a Christian nation. Our Constitution was BASED ON and INSPIRED BY scripture… by intent. Whether ALL the founders were Christians or not isn’t the point. They RECOGNIZED God’s laws as THE best laws and those Judeo/Christian laws give PROTECTION to all people. TRADITIONAL marriage (one man, one woman) is the very FOUNDATION of a healthy society and has been throughout the ages. It is the ‘template’ for children to learn from when it comes to growing up and taking their place in society. Society NEEDS this structure to hold together. God KNEW BEST then and He KNOWS BEST NOW.
It ISN’T about ‘hating’ homosexuals (men OR women). It’s about what God commands. Christians want to and MUST follow those commands daily. I don’t HATE gays and lesbians (though I admit the lifestyle is disturbing to me). No TRUE CHRISTIAN hates them either. God LOVES them as does all true Christians. Gays, Lesbians, Straights, we’re all just PEOPLE. God created and LOVES US ALL. BUT…God FORBIDS sexual perversion, and for good reason (for societal structure). That’s why gay/lesbian ‘marriage’ should not and MUST NOT ever be permitted by law in the U.S. It destroys what is normal and healthy and seeks to replace it with something COMPLETELY unnatural and unhealthy (and yes, homosexuality is a perversion of what is ‘NORMAL’). And for that matter so is adultery, fornication, and a myriad of other sexual sin.
I personally feel that ALL adults should be free to live as they wish in the privacy of their homes. That’s what FREEDOM is about! Even GOD is for freedom. He loves freedom so much that He gives each of us freedom of ‘choice’. I also HATE hearing about violence against gays by heteros AND hate the reverse! And God hates it too. God calls us to LOVE each other, NOT harm each other. But America CAN’T ‘legitimize’ homosexual marriage by allowing it to become law. If she does we will find ourselves under even greater judgment by God than we already are. As stated above, God forbids and CONDEMNS it for GOOD REASON.
If someone reads this and construes it as hateful for any reason that’s in YOUR own head. It ISN’T in my head or heart. I want my grandchildren to grow up in a HEALTHY and NORMAL society. Unfortunately this nation has already been so screwed up that it’s pathetic. But that’s no reason to hurry it along into even MORE confusion! For anyone who may be angry about this comment and who may comment back please DON’T waste any insults or demeaning statements. It’s HIGHLY unlikely I’ll be checking back here since I only ‘stumbled upon’ this web page (though it’s possible I may check back). I realize this is a web site with a gay agenda but I felt drawn to comment. For what ever its worth…. ‘it is what it is’.
Soupy
Nobody “stumbles” onto a site name Queerty.
And please remember that god says that eating shellfish is an abomination. So stop it now!
ron
Fuck you and fuck your god.
Cassandra
Joanne
Regarding your attempt to lie to us about our own lives and experiences – repent.
I . . . felt the need to comment from a Christian’s perspective. ”
Unfortunately, your perspective is not particularly Christian.
“I can only speak to the whole ‘gay marriage’ issue from my stance as a Christian.”
No, actually, you should also be able to speak to it from the perspective of someone who abides by the laws of her country. If you are a U.S. citizen, that would include the Constitution.
“The Bible condemns homosexuality”
No, it does not. However, it contains passages that can be construed as barring women from having any authority over men, speaking in public about religious matter, and trying to teach or instruct men.
The Bible condemns injustice and discrimination, it condemns deception and false witness. It condemns harming other people, it condemns treating anyone as inferior to yourself. It condemns pride and greed, gluttony, dishonesty, and the abuse of those who are physically or politically vulnerable.
“and a Christian LIVES by the Bible (ideally) and it’s tenets (yes we often fail miserably but it is STILL our goal).”
Since you recognize that no Christian can be perfect, shouldn’t you do as the Bible tells us and stop judging GLBTQ people?
“Christians CAN’T condone gay or lesbian marriage because hetero. marriage is GOD’S design.”
No. Heterosexual marriage is not God’s only design. The idea that God only approves of heterosexuality is a human invention designed to create and sustain injustice. God condemns injustice.
“Homosexual marriage (or any homo. interaction) is CONDEMNED by God.”
No. There is not a single statement in the Bible condemning same-sex marriage, nor one to condemn any interaction between people who are homosexuals.
“(And before anyone argues that by trying to skew the scripture to fit their needs…..DON’T. It won’t work, not if you’re SERIOUS about what scripture actually says and means.)”
In other words, you cannot defend your claims against analysis and rebuttal, and are attempting a pre-emptive dismissal. Sorry, but that doesn’t work on me.
None of the handful of verses used to fabricate the condemnation of homosexuality actually do so. But the Bible has a very explicit and continuously repeated theme: God loves justice and hates injustice.
Denying same-sex couples the civil contract that mixed-sex couples have to protect their relationships, is injustice. Jesus said that all of God’s laws was fully expressed in two statements: “love God with your entire self” and “love your neighbor as yourself”. When you deny same-sex couples the contract of marriage that you yourself have or want, you are disobeying the second clause, which creates injustice and by creating injustice, you disobey the first clause.
“And like it or not the U.S. IS a Christian nation.”
You are bearing false witness, which is a sin.
“Our Constitution was BASED ON and INSPIRED BY scripture… by intent.”
No.
“Whether ALL the founders were Christians or not isn’t the point.”
Never let the facts get in the way of your lies, eh?
“TRADITIONAL marriage (one man, one woman) is the very FOUNDATION of a healthy society and has been throughout the ages.”
Marriage traditions change over the generations, and have taken many forms. For large portions of humanity, including the Biblical patriarchs, polygamy was traditional. You are making false claims. Doesn’t it bother you to know that you are committing sin?
“It ISN’T about ‘hating’ homosexuals (men OR women).”
Sure it is. The gang attack on three men in NYC last week is good evidence of the hate. The fact that you are willing to deny GLBTQ civil rights because of your false religious beliefs is evidence of hate. Traditional anti-gay theology includes a commanded death penalty – the moment you embrace it as correct, you’ve manifested hate for GLBTQ people. Your deception here indicates that you do not love us enough to tell the truth.
“It’s about what God commands. Christians want to and MUST follow those commands daily.”
And yet, you clearly are not, because God does not command injustice, God commands you to treat everyone, including homosexuals, exactly as you wish to be treated.
“I don’t HATE gays and lesbians (though I admit the lifestyle is disturbing to me).”
There is no gay or lesbian lifestyle, and characterizing our loving relationships in so shallow and trivial a manner indicates that you do indeed hate us. Wanting to deprive us of 1500 vital civil protections for our families indicates hate.
“No TRUE CHRISTIAN hates them either.”
This is the first correct thing you’ve posted, but since you and all other homophobes do indeed hate gays and lesbians, guess what your own words say about you?
“BUT…God FORBIDS sexual perversion,”
Characterizing our relationships as sexual perversion is an act of hate. If you truly followed Christ, you would speak of our relationships with exactly as much, if not more, respect as you speak of your own. You are being very disobedient, Joanne.
“and for good reason (for societal structure).”
No.
“That’s why gay/lesbian ‘marriage’ should not and MUST NOT ever be permitted by law in the U.S.”
You are endorsing and demanding injustice, Joanne, something God hates. You have essentially just rejected God by embracing something God hates.
“It destroys what is normal and healthy and seeks to replace it with something COMPLETELY unnatural and unhealthy”
No, same-sex marriage does not. But what you are doing – promoting injustice, telling vicious lies, does indeed replace what is normal and healthy – justice, compassion, respect, morality, empathy, etc – and replace with what is unnatural and unhealthy – hate, deception, malice, pride.
See, Joanne, homosexuality occurs in nature. And though being attracted to your own gender may not be natural for you, it is for homosexuals, just as being attracted to the opposite gender is unnatural for homosexuals, but natural for you.
Your argument is built on the prideful assumption that you are so important that your life experiences define everyone else’s life experiences, and if theirs different from yours, they are wrong. That is the sin of pride, Joanne, the sin said to have cause satan’s fall, the sin the serpent invoked in Eve, causing humankind to fall into sin and imperfection.
“(and yes, homosexuality is a perversion of what is ‘NORMAL’).”
No, it is not, and certainly not on your say-so. You are arguing from pride, Joanne, not facts. Please repent.
“And for that matter so is adultery, fornication, and a myriad of other sexual sin.”
Equating our relationships with cheating and prostitution is an example of hate on your part, another case of you failing to treat us as you wish to be treated.
“I personally feel that ALL adults should be free to live as they wish in the privacy of their homes.”
And you want to bar us the freedom to marry. Your lies are transparent, Joanne.
“I also HATE hearing about violence against gays by heteros”
That violence is the direct result of the belief you have been defending here. Jesus said that good trees bear good fruit, and evil trees bear evil fruit, so we can tell whether something is good or not, by the fruit it bears, by its consequences.
The belief ‘homosexuality is sin’ only bears evil fruit. It drives the violence against GLBTQ people, it has you endorsing injustice and discrimination in a form that absolutely harms same-sex couples. It has you telling lies, and equating our loving relationships with deceiving one’s spouse and prostitution.
People are dead, Joanne, because of ‘homosexuality is sin’. More people have abandoned God because of ‘homosexuality is sin’, because that belief makes God look like monster, a god of hate and injustice and destruction.
“God calls us to LOVE each other, NOT harm each other.”
Banning same-sex marriage harms GLBTQ people. Calling our relationships perversion, Joanne, harms GLBTQ people, in fact, Joanne, that word is responsible for teen suicides.
So you are not doing as God has commanded.
“But America CAN’T ‘legitimize’ homosexual marriage by allowing it to become law.”
The America is not and never will be a truly Christian nation.
“If she does we will find ourselves under even greater judgment by God than we already are.”
Funny, I think that the severe economic crisis in our country, the horrific approaching ecological crisis, the yearly natural disasters, might just be a sign that God hates the injustice that plagues this country, injustice you are endorsing.
“As stated above, God forbids and CONDEMNS it for GOOD REASON.”
You condemn it for a lousy reason, but you are not God. God does not condemn same-sex marriage.
“If someone reads this and construes it as hateful for any reason that’s in YOUR own head.”
No, it is in your words. You are sinning again, Joanne, this time by bearing false witness. You called our relationships perversion, and insist that we always be held hostages and slaves to your heretical religious beliefs, sacrificing our right to religious freedom to your ego and pride.
“It ISN’T in my head or heart.”
But of course it is, Joanne. And it is what is in one’s heart that makes him or her unclean.
“I want my grandchildren to grow up in a HEALTHY and NORMAL society.”
Defining society without equality for us as ‘healthy and normal’ is hateful, Joanne. Your insinuation that our relationships are not healthy or normal, is hateful. You are making excuses, which is a sign of guilt.
I think you know that your belief is rank and malicious disobedience, you know your belief is hate, and feel compelled out of pride and guilt to keep lying about, to convince yourself something you will never convince those of us you are persecuting.
“Unfortunately this nation has already been so screwed up that it’s pathetic. ”
So your answer to the injustice in our society is to demand more injustice.
“But that’s no reason to hurry it along into even MORE confusion!”
Then, why did you post?
“For anyone who may be angry about this comment and who may comment back please DON’T waste any insults or demeaning statements.”
Yes, you’ve made more than enough of those already.
“It’s HIGHLY unlikely I’ll be checking back here”
What a stunning display of arrogance and pride then. You lecture and malign us about our lives without intending to ever hear our side of it. You’ve predetermined that we are too worthless for you to even come back and hear what we have to say about your hate and deception.
“For what ever its worth…. ‘it is what it is’.”
It is hate and ego and sin, Joanne.
scott ny'er
@Cassandra: Thanks again, Cassandra!!!
scott ny'er
@Joanne: You need to find another cult that is not hateful then. And then follow that non-hateful cult blindly as you do your current one.
Your cult is hateful and full of sexual abusers who hide behind/are protected by those in power at the top.
ewe
@Joanne: I don’t give a shit about your perspective. You use god as your weapon. The Bible says nothing about homosexuality. You are misguided. The very last thing one can think of you is as a christian. You don’t speak for god and you have no knowledge of history. The US Constitution is an evovling document and it did not furnish and continues to deny equality for all. Just ask the millions of deceased african american slaves and the extermintated indigenous peoples of America before you attempt to promote any further lies. You may hang around people who do not know history but this is not your turf. More importantly, truth is NOT on your side. You Joanne do not get to hijack god or “traditional” marriage as your own. You decided to believe that propaganda all by yourself in that empty head of yours. I must burst your fragile bubble even further and inform you god is not a “he” so take that into account whenever you decide and choose to finally reflect on your bigotry, hatred and false sense of entitled superiority. My spit is coming in your face right this second. Don’t wince. You will only be allowed to hate on your own by yourself of yourself. No one is going to allow you to hide behind your false god and your delusional fantasies except the preacher who you keep giving your cash to. You are not a christian because you are not christ like and your words are factual evidence of that. You say you do not hate gay people only because you do not fucking know gay people. I know people like you so get ready for this next line. I do indeed HATE your sorry ass and banish you to hell if at all possible. You are a filthy disgrace promoting hate itself and a coward of the worst kind at the same time hiding behind your flipped out fantasies. Grow up. You happen to be the sexual pervert here stickin your nose into the private affairs of gay people when you are fucking not invited. Twisted petty witch!!! Love is what enables societal structure. You exhibit the exact opposite of love and sit in judgement of all that do not believe the narrow way you do. You use your wacky interpretations of god in the hopes of scorning people to follow your ugly path. People that are different from you are not abnormal and if they are then you are abnormal to them so go fuck yourself again with your better than thou bullshit. You get in my face, i get in yours. Those them the rules motherfucker. You are not going to dictate equal rights the way you and yours see fit. I must make sure that the more i read your nonsense the more i must protect myself from feeling sorry for you and your complete utter silly crap. Hate in in the heads of anyone who reads your words because you wrote it as such not because you attempt to profess love out one side of your ass while killing the souls of mankind out the other. You tripped out retarded fuck. You, Joanne, are the pathetic one and it is people like you that have made this world you worry about for your grandkids so awry and screwed up. SHAME ON YOU AND YOUR HATE FOR OTHERS. I do not comment for people like you Joanne. I comment for those that read your grotesque intentions in the hopes they see that there is balance and glory in fighting your prejudice. I certainly hope you keep your word that you won’t be checking back but i highly doubt it. You yourself even left the window open. You are like an unwanted guest or a burglar that enters into the private space and safe home of another to take a shit without flushing while pissing all over the floor on your way out to the gutter where you belong. You did not accidentally stumble onto this website. You came here with specific purpose to judge and use god as your reason for doing so. The only gay agenda out there is about equality. That is the way it is. You are toxic and beneath every homosexual person.
ewe
@Cassandra: Bravo Cassandra. You are a fearless champion.