I just don’t get it. I know I’ve rallied and railed against the sheer idiocy and obtuse (not to mention wholly incorrect , unsubstantiated and unprovable) nature of the viewpoint that “marriage is sacred” and “marriage is traditionally between a man and a woman” and whatever else the right-wing nut jobs are saying about it. a little research online, even by the most inept of conservatives, will yield enough ammo to decimate any of those arguments like a howitzer being leveled at a mosquito.
It’s hard to argue that the sentiment that gay marriage is not a right and that it somehow diminishes the meaning of so-called “traditional” marriage is anything other than absurd. Again, I’ve posted several times on this, so I’m not going to go into it any further.
Cue Miss California, Carrie Prejean. During the Miss USA pageant she was asked by openly-gay blogger Perez Hilton (who was a judge – now THAT’s funny, right there) if she believed in gay marriage. Her answer?
“We live in a land where you can choose same-sex marriage or opposite. And you know what, I think in my country, in my family, I think that I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman. No offense to anybody out there, but that’s how I was raised.”
Wow. This one soundbite is an incredibly revealing insight into why people continue to oppose gay marriage and the absolute self-imposed blindness to reason that plagues these right-wingers.
Let’s break it down.
“We live n a land where you can choose same-sex marriage or opposite. “
If that were true, this wouldn’t really be an issue, now would it. The fact is that in almost every state, choosing same-sex marriage is NOT an option.
“I think in my country, in my family, I think that I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman.”
The arrogance is astounding. In my country ?!? Sweetheart, it’s not just yours. Guess what? this country is full of gays and lesbians! And you know what? They’re just people. Just like you’re a person. Just like I’m a person. They fall in love, just like you or I. And much like you or I, they don’t choose who they fall in love with. Do you choose to be heterosexual? These people that you discriminate and marginalize no more ‘chose’ to be gay than you consciously ‘choose’ to be heterosexual. Stupidity and resistance to logic and reason (on either side of the fence) is another issue entirely…
“No offense to anybody out there, but that’s how I was raised.”
Again, I’m just flabbergasted. No offense? Really? You’re less of a person than I am, and you don’t deserve the same rights. Sorry, no offense, that’s just how it is. Pretty sure Hitler had the same basic point of view. I’m sorry you’re a Jew. It means you’re less of a person. In fact, it means you’re just an animal, and really have no feelings or rights. No offense.
And the coup de grâce, “that’s how I was raised.” Yes, and if we had all adhered to how we were raised from the beginning of time, we’d still be drawing on cave walls with our own feces. This is how stupidity is perpetuated – an unwillingness to accept or even entertain any new idea that does not fit within the context of our ‘beliefs’ as imparted to us by our parents.
Neil Peart, drummer for Rush, put it very eloquently in simple terms. “People who actively choose their faith are vanishingly few.”
Please. Make a choice. One that is based in reason, sensibility, love and logic.
And the truth is, the battle has already been won. The Right just doesn’t know it yet. Check out the video of conservative Iowa Senate Leader Mike Gronstal relating why he has chosen to oppose an amendment effectively banning gay marriage in his state.
I just wonder if the conservatives who are opposing gay marriage realize that history will view them in the same light as those who opposed the abolition of slavery and women’s suffrage.
April 26th, 2009 at 5:07 pm
J, come on. Really? Opposing gay marriage is like opposing the abolition of slavery. If you can’t see how ridiculous that is, I’m not going to bother trying, but I think you’ve let your frustration and emotions get the better of you on this one. People have been brutal with Miss California based on a 30-second soundbite, and I’d expect more of you. What I heard in that snippet was that she believes Americans should have a say in the matter, and I tend to agree. I have also been reluctant to accept the notion that this stupid debate over semantics is at all equivalent to civil rights battles of the past. Am I a bigot and a fool? I agree with you that the tide is turning rapidly, and I’ve been on record for years saying that I prefer that the government get out of the marriage business altogether and just refer to two people joining together as a civil union, regardless of who those people are, but I hope you’ll take your stand more respectfully in the future.
April 27th, 2009 at 7:29 am
Aaron, you’re right, perhaps I was a bit too harsh with Miss California. What can I say, deliberate stupidity, the conscious choice to be narrow minded, and the intentional perpetuation of bigotry pisses me off.
We’ve had some good discussion here, you and I, but the one thing we haven’t seen eye-to-eye on is the fact that marriage is a civil right. I agree, the government has no place in this arena. I agree with you that there’s plenty of semantics involved. But Aaron, this is, at the most basic level, a group of people trying to deny a right to another group of people that they have found a reason to view as “less than”. How is that any different from racial discrimination or gender discrimination? When it comes right down to it, we’re all just people. We all have wants, needs, likes, dislikes, and on and on…
Telling someone they can’t marry someone else based on their sexuality is no different than telling someone they can’t vote because they’re a woman or they’re not entitled to the same things as you because their skin is a different color. It’s all discrimination and it’s all wrong.
April 27th, 2009 at 11:03 am
The real rub for me is that this has only been a mainstream social issue for less than a decade, and people are somehow surprised that it’s not changing all at once, and acting like this is the worst injustice of our times, while in many parts of the Middle East, women are stoned for the most mild of offenses, and in Africa, genocide is occurring and children are brainwashed and forced into armies that torture and murder thousands of the opposition. As I see it, this is ALL semantics. Gays have all the rights that one could hope for (and I do realize that they’ve had to fight for even that). What they don’t have is that one little word, marriage. I’m sure it is a real irritant, but really, is it worth obsessing about while we have so many urgent problems?
I’ve been caught in this too, more than you may realize. I have no close homosexual relatives, but my favorite former mission companion is gay, and as a libertarian-leaning man who truly tries to love all people, I want things to be fair. I really do. I have had to reconcile my own who-cares leanings with the fact that the leaders of my faith have taken a very strong stand against it. The LDS Church has come out repeatedly saying that the reason for their opposition is to protect their legal and financial interests, and idiots like Buttars take it as a license to go beyond that and make interpretations that are taken seriously by few and only cause the issue to become more heated and more deadlocked. And instead of addressing those with legitimate concerns about what happens when gay marriage becomes legal, everyone gets lumped in together. On one side you have hateful bigots and on the other you have a bunch of America-hating Commies, and nothing that the other side has to say is worth listening to. It’s not going to work, and it will probably slow up the process more than it already is. Anyway, I’ve gone on for too long. I hope that someone reading will take this into consideration before labeling the drag queen down the street or the right-winger as a nutjob who isn’t worth your while.
April 27th, 2009 at 3:01 pm
Aaron, as always, I appreciate your input. I also know how difficult it can be to reconcile what I feel inside with what my faith teaches me must be. I absolutely agree that there are other problems in the world. I purposely avoided using the word “bigger” because a problem is a problem, regardless of scope (which I know is opening the door for an entirely different and probably worthwhile discussion). There are things that each of us feel passionately about. We identify with different issues on different levels. It’s part of the diversity that makes this existence so beautiful, rich, and fulfilling. I love you, my friend, and I’m truly grateful that you have chosen to repeatedly share your views and passions with me. I look forward to many more years of the same, as it’s through discussions like these that I get to learn and grow, and see things from another point of view. My hope is that the same is true for you.
April 27th, 2009 at 10:12 pm
Game, set, match. Good entry!
April 27th, 2009 at 10:44 pm
Thanks man. I like knowing that my rants are appreciated!