Wednesday, April 30, 2008

To Expand on a Point...

Alex Charyna, at PA Watercooler, posted a column today that I'd like to expand on as well as take in a different direction.

In his post, Fumo: Pa Legislature Would Legalize Slavery, Alex points out that Outgoing Senator, Vince Fumo, equates the plight of gays and lesbians who want to get "married" to slavery, insofar as, in his opinion, the PA legislature would legalize slavery, if given the choice.

Well, I need to vent her for a moment. First of all, it is reprehensible for Fumo to even suggest that any law-abiding Pennsylvanian would even consider slavery in today's society. We've come a long way, being a key state in the abolition movement both before and during the Civil War (especially here in the Whitemarsh/Plymouth Meeting area, where Quakers actually hosted a stop on the "Underground Railroad"). To compare the two is stoopid.

Vince Fumo, you're stoopid. (roll the tape-see video here)

But this isn't about slavery, even though Mr. Wonderful, Vince "Plaintiff" Fumo, equated the two (probably just to see his name in the paper again).

It's about the institution of marriage and the regulation of the same in our commonwealth.

(here's where we switch directions!)

Let me start by saying that a close family member of mine is gay. I don't hate or dislike him because he's gay. Live and let live is my motto, but, to be fair, his rights end where my rights begin.

I don't believe in gay marriage, pure and simple. I don't have to. I believe, as the church does, that the sacrament of marriage is to be between a man and a woman.

What I can't seem to fathom, given my limited capacity as a conservative Republican, is when did "gay" stop being a sexual orientation and become a"community"? I'm straight. Do I have an official community, task force, and spokesman/woman? No. Why? because, unlike the "gay community" I don't try to force my sexual orientation down anyone's throat (pun very much intended). I don't care to share with the world what my wife and I do behind closed doors. I have too much respect for her and myself to make an issue about it.

Michael Nutter, just this week, appointed "Liason" to the gay "Community". It's preposterous that a sexual orientation gets a paid liason. They say it's purpose is to open a dialog between gays and non-gays to hash out their "issues".

Will this madness ever end?

Forget about gay marriage. It'll never happen. If you want respect, shut up about your sexual orientation. I, and many others don't care who you're sleeping with. We really don't need to hear about it. If you want to be taken seriously, get involved in the community. You'll probably find that most of your neighbors don't care if you're gay, straight, or celibate. They will care if you start making a ruckus about your sex life.

And, at the risk of repeating myself, gay is a sexual orientation. The end. It's not a political issue. Lets stop trying to make a special case out of every little "picked on" group, or, before you know it, we'll have a special hearing and a liason for people who want to marry their hamster. I'd rather my tax dollars be spent on real issues.

That's just my opinion...I'd like to hear yours.

B.

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