My straight twin who blogs at Aberrant Clone, has written an essay about an encounter he had with an elderly Mormon couple. I think it is worth a read.
The Enlightened vs. The Ignorant
By Frank on November 23, 2008
Yesterday, our landlord sent his handyman over to fix our leaky sink and broken shower faucet. It had been several months since my girlfriend first reported the problems, and although I was disappointed about having to spend a few hours of my precious weekend sitting around the house, I was happy to finally get the repairs done.
The handyman is an interesting, elderly gent named Joe. From the few times I've met Joe, I've noticed that he has a penchant for wearing rather unique sports shirts, and he appears to possess an indefatigable ability to chat ceaselessly, even with his head buried far under a kitchen sink. This time, Joe brought his wife along with his plastic bucket full of tools. I have no idea why, as she didn't assist him with the repairs. I think perhaps they simply enjoy each others company, which was certainly refreshing to see.
I was in the living room, trying to watch videos from the StrikeForce event on Friday night, but I soon found out that Joe and his wife combine to become the perfect storm of interruption. They really are a nice old couple and I wasn't really annoyed--well, yes, I was, but wadda ya gonna do? I ended up at the kitchen table talking about everything from grandchildren to airshows, to Mexican food.
As we sat there chatting, Joe's wife noticed the "No on Prop 8" magnet on our fridge. She mentioned that she and Joe are Mormons and they, of course, voted "yes". Oh, oh. She said she was sorry our side lost, but she was glad the proposition passed. Strangely, her apology was completely sincere. She didn't display any hint of celebration or smugness over her side's victory.
More below the fold.
I really didn't want to get into it with Joe and his wife--I really wanted that leaky sink fixed. Thus, I decided that since I was stuck in the situation, I would take the opportunity to try to find out what makes these people tick.
What I found was that Joe and his wife are very nice people. I mean it. They would probably give you their last dollar if you asked them for it. I seriously doubt that they are capable of hating anyone. Unfortunately, they are ruled completely by their religious faith--completely. The concept of separation of church and state is totally missed on them, as I suspect it is on virtually all of their church-going brethren.
Joe and his wife truly believe that they voted "yes" on 8 to protect their own religious concept of marriage. They bought the propaganda hook, line and sinker because their entire worldview is centered on their own marriage and the religious dogma intrinsically linked to it. Amazingly, I don't think they fully understood that their vote was actually taking rights away of same-sex couples. They didn't even mention the term "gay marriage" in their talking points, and I don't think they even gave that much consideration.
I told Joe and his wife my thoughts about the dangers of tinkering around with the state constitution. I tried to make it personal by asking if they considered the possibility that some other group might come along and try to limit their rights in the same way. They listened to what I had to say with polite interest, but I didn't see any lights go on. I'm sure they have only the most vague notion of how our government functions. They vote the way their church elders recommend. What more do they need to know?
These people actually feel bad that the passing of Prop 8 has angered and upset gays and lesbians, and they have a hard time understanding what all the current fuss is about. Their feelings are hurt and they honestly feel they are being unjustly accused of hating people. Crazy. I'm reminded of how Manson Girl Susan Atkins sincerely believed she was doing the work of God when she butchered her victims. She said she was stabbing them with love in her heart as she "set them free". What can you do when these fanatics are fully committed to drinking the Kool-aid?
Unfortunately, I did not come away from the discussion with a great deal of hope. I see our world forming into two major camps: The Enlightened vs. The Ignorant. Welcome to the New Dark Ages, folks.
What's interesting is that today, in contrast to the Old Dark Ages, the ignorant masses have access to endless amounts of information and opportunity for education, yet they choose to remain ignorant--they truly like it that way. They want someone to make their important life decisions for them. They want their information spoon fed to them in easily digested soundbites. The less thinking they have to do, the better.
I see this divide continuing to grow. It's easy to fight people who are truly malicious and coming at you with evil intent, but how do you deal with changing a viewpoint based on well-intentioned ignorance? It's like banging your head against a cinder block wall.
We certainly have our work cut out for us and unfortunately I don't see a solution coming in my lifetime. Just as many of the original Suffragettes never lived to see women gain the right to vote in our country, we will likely never see the day when discrimination based on sexual orientation is a thing of the past--but our children may see that day. Therefore, I encourage everyone with an intellect to keep up the struggle.
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Drop by Aberrant Clone and let him know what you think.
Ah yes, Daddy Dobby's wet dream: An opportunity to re-start the 'Obama Isn't Christian (Enough)' meme. From Politico:
President-elect Barack Obama has yet to attend church services since winning the White House earlier this month, a departure from the example of his two immediate predecessors.
This, of course, is in contrast to God's Obnoxious 'President':
On his first day as president-elect, following weeks of Florida recounts and court hearings, Bush went to church with his wife, Laura. They attended an invite-only prayer service on Thursday, Dec. 14, at Tarrytown United Methodist Church. About 300 people attended, including top campaign staff and visiting clergy. During the service, the Rev. Mark Craig, senior pastor at Highland Park United Methodist Church in Dallas, told Bush, "You have been chosen by God to lead the people."
Yeh, Mark - how'd that work out for America? (I wonder if Mark is any relation to Larry. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm......)
The whole story? Pffft.
From the Christian Post article Getting the Whole Story Out on Christians and Homosexuality:
For many Americans, all they've heard is that Christians are "anti-gay." The recent passage of amendments in California, Florida and Arizona defining marriage between a man and a woman and the large support those measures drew from churches haven't changed that perception, and perhaps made it worse.But few, if any, especially in the media, have given the public the "whole story" about churches and their persistent efforts to protect what they believe is God's definition of marriage.
So, the Post gets the "whole story" out on homosexuality from Focus On The Family's ex-lesbian Melissa Fryrear.
"I'm not anti-gay because I'm a Christian and I'm a heterosexual evangelical Christian," said Fryrear, who became a Christian and came out of homosexuality over 15 years ago. "I'm pro-biblical sexual ethic. I'm pro-God's created intent for sexuality" - that being marriage between a man and a woman."That's what I'm for, so anything that falls outside of that falls out of God's intent," she highlighted.
"It's not what I'm against, it's what I'm for," she added, noting the nuance.
Yeah. That's why the ProtectMarriage.com folks ran deceptive advertising, such as distorting Presidential Candidate Obama's position on Prop 8 and deceiving voters about how Prop 8 would effect what children are taught in schools.
That's why too they voted for removing the fundamental civil rights of same-gender couples in California -- it's God's will that government impose religious definitions of marriage on the entire state populace...er...ah...right?
I would say this is an attempt by Melissa Fryrear to put lipstick on a pig -- the whole story was an ugly vote on by the public on the fundamental civil rights of a state-recognized minority population. Fryrear can't nuance this vote into a pleasant, positive vote.
In the minds of most Yes on Prop 8 voters, I would bet this wasn't a "pro-marriage" vote at all. It was instead about Yes On Prop 8 voters believing the deceptive and negative advertizing of the ProtectMarriage.com folks; it was about using the democratic process to impose their beliefs about what God's will is about marriage on an entire state's populace.
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