Tuesday, November 04, 2014

Get off of your butts and vote

Okay, it's election day, folks and if the prognosticators are to be believed, the Republicans will take over the Senate. With them already the majority in the House, that could spell for bad times ahead for President Obama and the lgbt community.

IF (which is the greatest Laconian answer of all time - look it up) the prognosticators are to be believed.

To tell the truth, though, whatever happens doesn't scare me. I've seen it before. If the Republicans succeed, one can count on various parties overdoing the analysis thing - the religious right will be bragging, Fox News will be lying, and almost everyone will falsely wonder is this the end of the Democratic Party and President Obama's agenda.

If Republicans don't succeed, then I look forward to enjoying many youtube videos of Republicans raging about "voter fraud" or crying over the "future of the country."

Then less than a year from now, something will happen which will cause everything said today to shift to the other direction.

The main thing to remember is your vote is powerful and very symbolic of the fact that in spite of the insanity and craziness today will launch, you are a citizen of this country and you matter.

Also, regardless of what happens, the lgbt community should never get discouraged. With all due respect, if Republicans do get what they want even after you voted, I am not the best person to come crying to. I don't want to hear it. That's not to be completely harsh, but I just want folks to be reminded that what we are achieving isn't supposed to be easy.

No matter who is in office, lgbt equality will not be handed to us. We are going to fight for every inch, every law in every state, and for the lives of every young lgbt who could either change the world for the better or be discouraged from all of the anti-lgbt negativity. Their choice is up to what we do and what attitude we take.

If things don't go how we want it today, then look to it as a setback but not an ending. If you must weep and cry, do it to get it over with and then come out swinging.

One thing that doesn't change regardless of today is that lgbts are on the road to equality (and not just with marriage equality) and once you are on that road, you can't be stopped from reaching your destination. Sure, there are some who can delay but every delay doesn't last that long.

Wait, I was wrong. If you are on the road to equality, you can be stopped from reaching your destination. But the only person who can do the stopping is you, if you choose to give in to discouragement and such.

The question today is what it has always been for the lgbt community. What are you prepared to do? Give in or keep moving forward?