i posted this originally on 5/20/04, and am posting it again because huckabee looks to be winning republican primary votes today. can't stand the fucker. i'm soooo sick of the debate -- what are you republican assholes really afraid of?
the gay marriage "thing" is a big news item again lately. and jax wrote about a possible suicide in our area where rumors are flying at the high school that the boy was questioning his sexuality and worried that "god wouldn't love him." now, i do NOT know anything at all about this boy at the high school, but it just got me thinking about this whole thing again. i'm gonna lay it all out for you. my thoughts. MY beliefs.
#1. homosexuality has always been. always will be. hear me again. there will ALWAYS be a certain percentage of the human race that are homosexual. always.
#2. homosexuality DOES NOT EQUAL pedophilia. there are heterosexual pedophiles, homosexual pedophiles, priest pedophiles, teacher pedophiles, and garbage collector pedophiles. the adjective has NOTHING whatsoever to do with the noun. non-predator homosexuals (just like non-predator heterosexuals) want other homosexuals. tell me you haven't heard a hetero guy say something "admiring" about a lesbian. most people shrug it off. no big deal. but if a homosexual says the same thing about a hetero, boy oh boy, does the crap fly. this is not predatory behavior, people. get over it. nobody's trying to recruit straight people over to the other side.
#3. this is the big one for me. if you accept that there will be a certain number of human beings who will be homosexual (#1) and that homosexuals are not predatory by nature (#2) [if you don't accept these premises, you're pretty much hopeless. and brain dead. in my humble opinion.] given these FACTS -- oh yes they are FACTS - how can we say to a human being: if you realize that you are homosexual, understand that you will never have the right to love and commit to another homosexual person in the same way that WE can. WE are normal. YOU are a horrible mistake. YOU must live unloved and unfulfilled as a human being. live in OUR world. in OUR WORLD, only heterosexuals may marry. that's OUR sacred right. i don't know about you - but *i* believe that there's room for all kinds of people.
so YOU have a choice. two alternatives.
ONE: you do not accept facts. therefore - you are ignorant.
TWO: if you accept the facts, but believe that marriage is only for heterosexuals, you're just a mean, close-minded bastard. allowing homosexuals to marry doesn't demean you or your marriage. your position against gay marriage demeans you.
and this: don't tell me what your bible/priest/dogma/religion tells you. you need to accept the FACT that we are not a christian, jewish, muslim, wiccan, satanist - whatever you are - nation. that is what separation of church and state means.
imho.
edit: i see that the comments are getting into religion.
there are differences between a religious marriage and a legally sanctioned marriage. religious marriages are recognized legally, but the converse is not necessarily true. look at the catholic sacrament of marriage. there are very specific values and steps that must be accomplished in order to be married in the catholic sense. and the legal concept of divorce is not recognized in the catholic church. unless a catholic marriage has been annulled, it cannot be dissolved.
why is it so hard to distinguish between the two? why cannot homosexuals be married legally without it "demeaning" the sacrament of the catholic church. or any other church's belief system. if a couple does not meet the criteria of a religious marriage -- fine. they're not asking for that. neither did we.
i don't see a problem with the dichotomy. maybe that's just me. a lapsed catholic. one who left the church when a MAN (ok, a priest) denied my little sister absolution at confession because in the eyes of the catholic church, our mother and her husband were still married to their first spouses (they only went through LEGAL divorces). what that had to do with my sister's prayer for absolution, i'll NEVER understand. i guess this guy misinterpreted some scripture? could this be possible? so don't TELL ME WHAT YOUR BIBLE SAYS. i don't care what some men say jesus told them. i don't care. i don't believe jesus was the son of god. i don't deny you the right to your religious version of marriage -- as long as you're not hurting anybody. get your religious views out of my life.
but there MUST be a legal institution of marriage. maybe if the majority of people in this MOSTLY CHRISTIAN nation behaved in a christian manner regarding marriage and offspring, the law wouldn't have to be involved. cuz i don't think that the high divorce rate can be linked to only non-christians. i'm just guessing here -- there are a hell of a lot of christians not behaving very christ-like in their divorce and child-support proceedings. so my advice here to religious leaders: clean your own house before you come to MINE and tell ME what's wrong in MY HOUSE.
so don't talk to me about RELIGION. talk to me about the law. and the values of a compassionate, accepting, LOVING culture that we pretend to be. gah.
The fisrt time I read this, I felt it was an excellent post. I still feel this is an excellent post.
One of my very best friends in this world is gay. SHE and I have been friends since highschool. She was raised in the roman catholic church--old school. She is one of the most compassionate and loving people I know. She goes to a community alternative church now to practice her faith in God where she is accepted and loved.
What people need to learn more than anything about the bible, or any other theological print, is that it is not sane to create a whole religious belief that something is wrong based on one or two verses in the whole book. I believe you are so right regarding the many people who call themselves christian who do not behave christ-like. There are even verses of scripture that speak of such people. But so-called christians don't haggle over those verses--heh.
I agree with you here-I was raised Catholic and remain Catholic, guess I'm a bad Catholic since I agree homosexuals should be allowed to marry. However, I do not want anyone telling me I can't do something reasonable just because, so I have to say this is a privilege and freedom all should enjoy. In the same right I do believe churches still have the right to their beliefs, be it an alternitive church or what have you. Legally this shouldn't be an issue and for the LOVE OF GOD a lot of time and money is being wasted here-put it to rest! OR as I think it was Jay Leno said "Why shouldn't gays have the right to marry and be miserable like the rest of us."
Posted by: Heather Z at February 10, 2008 01:14 AMI remember this post from the first time
I had a friend who was catholic and her Grandmother couldn't accept her baby boy because she was with her second husband. The poor little baby was a sinner for being born at the wrong moment.
The thing which really gets to me is all these people having big fancy church weddings, baptisms and confirmations and all that and they don't know one end of a bible, prayer book from another. Love is what matters. People don't even say 'making love' anymore.
Posted by: Anji at February 11, 2008 03:23 PMDing dang dong... where have I been?? This is an AWESOME post and I know I should talk about it as I'm supposed to talk about it if I'm commenting here, but see, comments are CLOSED on the post that I want to comment upon because I haven't been here for so long so I'm actually going to talk about THAT one (with apologies).
OMG! Fish sticks! And tuna salad sandwiches! Did you have to eat (if I hear from anyone about how this doesn't exactly sound like a bad thing...) cheese pizza frequently on Friday nights? My mom liked to add toast with cheese pizza. Hello? But yeah, tuna casserole, toasted tuna sandwiches in tinfoil in the oven, did you get those? And good grief of COURSE there could be no addition of celery or pickles or anything else to it. JUST the tuna and the mayo. I just KNEW there was more to the connection that was humming through these wires between us... it's that underlying recovering catholic thing. ;-)
Okay. Sorry for the interruption. Boo schmuckabee.
(don't get me started on catholic priests or the bastard that killed our friends' son who was confronting him for his actions around the young boys in the parish; or the higher ups in the church who had sent him our way in the first place, relocating him again and again when trouble started to brew...)
Posted by: Keri at February 13, 2008 01:18 AMHi there - came over from Heather Z's page. This is a fantastic post! I'd like to add my own belief that homosexuality is NOT a choice but that we are born homo- or heterosexual. I had a very close gay friend who once said to me, "why would I choose this?" Not an easy lifestyle here is the US of A. So amen to gay marriage and equal rights for ALL. And to those of you who bring up the religious aspects, although you most likely do not believe that people are born gay, since I DO, I ask you this: Does God make mistakes?
Posted by: Kacey at February 17, 2008 12:10 PMWow-I didn't mean to bring up Catholic bashing or any other bashing-my comment was meant to be supportive of ALL types of religions and beliefs I hope it was taken int the spirit it was intended. Bashing anyone's religion is not the way-there is good and bad in all walks of life.
Posted by: Heather Z at February 20, 2008 10:03 AMI remember this post from the first time. I think it was one of the first ones I read from you, which means I've known and loved you and Bill for 4 years!! I can't believe it's been so long.
I owe you a long email. Thank you both for posting and being who you are.
Posted by: moonandsun03 at February 25, 2008 04:55 PM