Monday, June 16, 2008

How dare a governor tries to protect his constituents!!

Things will be slow around here next week due to South Carolina Black Pride activities. I am heavily involved in the planning and shaping of events for the week. I hope to have a report on it after it's over.

Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear has gotten members of the anti-gay industry upset because he recently issued an executive order adding the phrase "sexual orientation or gender identity" to the non-discrimination policy for state employees.

The responses to his action by the anti-gay industry only serves to underline how selfish and ugly some can get when it comes to the subject of gay rights:

Beshear claimed that, before the policy change, "a gay person could be fired simply for being gay." But (Peter) LaBarbera says that is just not happening. "There's no rash of homosexual firings ... this is all a myth. And it's designed to propel homosexual power forward.

So according to our friend The Peter, unless there is a rash of lgbts applying for unemployment and welfare or in danger of losing their homes due to being unfairly fired, there should be no legislation to protect them.

By that same token, why should science seek a cure for cancer? After all, many folks have been able to beat the disease therefore it's not a problem.

But more to the point, Peter's nasty answer (and he is not the only religious conservative who has voiced this belief - paging Robert Knight) got me thinking.

There is a parable that Jesus told involving a lost sheep. A shepherd owned 100 sheep. One night, 99 was in the fold, but one was lost. Did the shepherd say " I have ninety-nine, so this one sheep doesn't matter."

No. The shepherd went looking for that sheep and found it. That one lost sheep mattered to the shepherd just as much as the others.

And apparently to Governor Beshear, the well-being of lgbts matters to him as much as the well-being of his other constituents.

It was not only the right thing to do, but it was also the Christian thing to do. Peter and everyone who criticize his actions would do themselves a service to hush up and pay attention.


Box Turtle Bulletin exposes a very interesting person

David Benkof claims to be a bisexual man who wants to "defend marriage." And when I say "defend marriage," I do mean the same semantic nonsense that the anti-gay industry foists on us.

Benkof claims that gays will ruin the concept of marriage. And he has written several columns defending that position.

Sounds like to me that Benkof watched the musical Gypsy and applied that song "You Gotta Have a Gimmick" to his career.

But according to Box Turtle Bulletin, Benkof is something of a fraud:

David Benkof has been getting a bit of attention lately. This year he’s written several articles which he has been able to get published in mainstream newspapers. Sadly, he’s used deception and dishonesty to do so.

It's a very excellent piece. You can read it here.