thomascwaters.com

The predictions of what will happen if there is gay marriage, are easy to find on any number of pro=family values web sites. However, what should we make of those predictions? The linked article considers what has happened in Massachusetts where gay marriage has been legal now for 5 years.

Legalizing same-sex marriage hasn’t hurt the institution of marriage one bit in the Bay State.  And it won’t hurt the institution of marriage in Vermont, Iowa, New Hampshire, Connecticut or Maine.

If anything, it seems to be helping straight people stick together.

Gay Marriage Seems to be Helping Straight Marriage (Gay Rights – Change.org).

This is the kind of stuff that just really gets me angry and wound up. The linked ad is blatantly false, but designed to evoke fear. The Massachusetts does nothing like this ad suggests. When the ends justify the means, and people resort to lies and misinformation as the only way to make their case, there is a real problem.

This is the most extreme example of it that I have seen, but others most more subtle have been out there all along. A friend described it to me as desperation, and it may well be, but that doesn’t alter the fact that it takes time, energy and effort to continue to combat it. There will always be some people, who no matter what you say,or how many facts you show them, they will want to discriminate and demonize some parts of the GLBTQ community. If these ads targeted only those folks, it wouldn’t be so bad. But the lies are broad and dangerous because many others, who when faced with facts often would side with equality. But when you color the issue with fear, and especially fear involving the safety of kids, sometimes the facts never make it through the fear response.

These are the folks who are destroying our country by turning lies into weapons and refusing to enter into reasonable rational dialogue. This isn’t about developing a majority view, it is about bullying through brute force.

Red Mass Group:: Bathroom Bill Update .

NO Bathroom Bill – STOP House Bill 1728

There is one part of blogging that I really dislike. Sure, you can say, that I don’t really need to do it, but it is a part of my process that I use to find what I want to write about. I use a number of Google Alerts, and at least glance at most everything that these alerts find. This brings to my attention a lot of blog posts that I would never in a million years, otherwise read. But it does let me know how the opposition is trying to frame the issues, and why sometimes the struggle is so great. And such is the case with this one.

House Bill 1728 in Massachusetts is generally framed by opponents in a way that is completely inaccurate and does not reflect the reality of the bill in any way. And this is a good example. Now, I don’t personally have a problem with someone having a strong negative opinion and expressing it. Free Speech is for everyone. And, I think in any issue, both sides can often learn something from the other by listening. While I might disagree with someone, I can appreciate their right and their ability to articulate their position and the rationale behind it. This morning, I was watching a video of Fred Phelps of the Westboro Baptist Church, calling Obama the antichrist for issuing a proclamation about Pride Month. I don’t at all agree with Phelps, but I understand his logic, and sticks very true to his message. He isn’t a hypocrit at all. I can have some respect for that.

BNCordeiro, who wrote the linked post below isn’t like that. His message is all faulty logic and ingenuous expression.

(s)He claims to support and have compassion for transgendered people:

We believe that persons with Gender Identity Disorder (GID) deserve professional support (as called for by the American Psychiatric Association) as well as community compassion…

Passing HB 1728 is all about providing safety and equity. Still (s)he says:

Safety and Privacy for All People

He has at least a reasonable understanding of of Transgenderism, and yet the fear tactic he uses “man claims he feels inwardly female at the moment”  isn’t in any way consistent with transgenderism!

Let’s say this happened. A man enters a women’s lockerroom. He is told to leave. He says, “I’m feeling like a woman right now.” The would kick him out as a nut case. The police would come arrest him, and he would have his day in court, where if he wasn’t laughed out of there, the judge would order him to undergo psychiatric counselling and then, probably some jail time.

HB 1728 provides protections in housing, employment, and public accommodations. Here is a more likely scenario where HB 1728 would help protect everyone. A female goes to interview for a job. Her hair is short, cropped tightly. Some might call it a manly hair cut. She is dressed in pants, has a deeper voice. The manager who is interviewing her focuses on these things, and not her qualifications to do the job she is applying for. The manager is thinking, “we don’t want a dyke working here, and even though the woman is qualified and has excellent credentials, she is not offered a job. Because of an assumption that was made because of her gender expression. The woman goes home to tell her husband that she didn’t get the job. The family neds both incomes, his and hers to raise their family of 4 children.

The manager didn’t adequately consider her because of her gender expression, her appearance, her behavior. The language used in HB 1728 isn’t vague. It uses a lot of terms to describe who is protected for a reason, and all are important. These various descriptors cover the ways that gender bias is used to discriminate against ALL people regardless of sex or sexual orientation.

Get a grip BNCordeiro! You at least looked up Gender Identity disorder. Can you do enough reading about it to recognize that your hypothetical man doesn’t fit that at all? Or get honest and admit your bigotry?

via Red Mass Group:: NO Bathroom Bill – STOP House Bill 1728 .