Christian Bigots Apoplexy Over Marriage Advances

All too predictably the Christianists and professional Christian set are beside themselves in the wake of the Iowa ruling on Friday and today's votes in Vermont and Washington, D.C. What is amazing is just how hate filled some of these alleged Christians are when it comes to vilifying LGBT Americans. To these folks we are definitely less than human and they truly do not care what type of violence their messages of hate may incite. Perhaps the most vile remarks were made by radio bigot Michael Savage who said the following:

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"So there are the vermin now celebrating twisted perverse marriage in the middle of America. It's a victory for perversion in my opinion. You want me to tell you what makes me sick? When I see two puffy white males kissing each other, I wanna puke. When I see two women kissing each other, on the lips, as lovers, I wanna vomit. Why? It's unnatural. It's against all of the laws of mankind. It's against all the laws of humankind. It is suicide for a society to embrace such behavior."

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Speaking of "puffy white males," I guess Savage must have been looking at his own image in a nearby mirror. Not far behind Savage was the ever reliable Klan loving Tony Perkins from Family Research Council who likewise denigrated gays and anyone who would treat us as citizens deserving equal civil rights. Here is a sampling of the loving words from this professional Christian who relies on promoting anti-gay hate for his livelihood:

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"Same-sex 'marriage' is a movement driven by wealthy homosexual activists and a liberal elite determined to destroy not only the institution of marriage, but democracy as well. Time and again, we see when citizens have the opportunity to vote at the ballot box, they consistently opt to support traditional marriage," said Perkins.

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"The vote today by the D.C. City Council was a direct affront to the federal Defense of Marriage Act. The radical Left wants to destroy the traditional union of one man and one woman across the country and they will not rest until they do so.

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Then there are the remarks of the ever anti-gay columnist, Cal Thomas, who likewise slammed gay Americans but who at least recognized the fact that professional Christians like Tony Perkins, James Dobson, Peter LaBarbera, et al, who denigrate gays for a living ought to be doing more to support heterosexual married couples. Here are some highlights"

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One must hand it to the gay rights movement. They have taken advantage of a morally exhausted nation that tolerates so many things that used to be intolerable—from abortion, to easy divorce, to pornography. And they have attacked American traditions at their strongest points, from the military, to pressuring Disney to allow “gay days” at their amusement parks, to marriage.

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The problem with the Iowa Court ruling is that it vitiates a standard that defined marriage as between two people of the opposite sex, which was God’s idea, not government’s (see Genesis 2:24), while failing to substitute a new standard. . . . As Iowa and other courts continue to dismantle the foundations of our nation without the approval of its citizens (each time the public gets an opportunity to vote on marriage, it votes to uphold the male-female version), they have an obligation to say where they intend to take us. What is the new standard for human relationships? Or do we make this up as we go, bowing to whatever pressure group makes the most noise?

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To those on the political and religious right who are intent on continuing the battle to preserve “traditional marriage” in a nation that is rapidly discarding its traditions, I would ask this question: What poses a greater threat to our remaining moral underpinnings? Is it two homosexuals living together, or is it the number of heterosexuals who are divorcing and the increasing number of children born to unmarried women, now at nearly 40 percent, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention?

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Most of those who are disturbed about same-sex marriage are not as exercised about preserving heterosexual marriage. That’s because it doesn’t raise money and won’t get them on TV. Some preachers would rather demonize gays than oppose heterosexuals who violate their vows by divorcing, often causing harm to their children.

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The battle over same-sex marriage is on the way to being lost. For conservatives who still have faith in the political system to reverse the momentum, you are—to recall Harold Hill—“closing your eyes to a situation you do not wish to acknowledge.”

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Since we LGBT citizens are being depicted as vermin, destroyers of society, and those seeking to destroy democracy by these Godly folk, I can only wonder how soon it will be before we see the next news story of a some gay - or perceived gay - citizen murdered by someone who feels that God supports the murder of gays and that that person (or all of us) deserve to die.

Far Right Extremist Rants do Breed Violence

Back in July, 2008, I commented on the shootings at the at the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church. The shooter was one Jim D. Adkisson who read far right rant literature such as: "The O'Reilly Factor," by television commentator Bill O'Reilly; "Liberalism is a Mental Disorder," by radio personality Michael Savage; and "Let Freedom Ring," by political pundit Sean Hannity. Adkisson pleaded guilty to murdering two church members on Thursday and received a sentence of life without parole. What is particularly chilling, however, is the fact that Adkisson shows no remorse and released a four page manifesto (it can be found here) urging other right wing extremists to engage in violence.

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I am all for free speech, but at some point the constant message of hate generated by far right commentators and the Christianists becomes an incitement to violence and individuals like Adkisson are induced to embrace that message and engage in violence. The almost weekly stories of violence against gays are a direct product of constant stream of denigration and scapegoating that is put out by those proclaiming that "the gay agenda" and similar rot is "threatening the family" and similar untruths. At some point those like Ann Coulter, O'Reilly, James Dobson, Tony Perkins, et. al, need to be held accountable for the trash they put out. Here are highlights from the Knoxville News:

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“The future looks bleak,” the ex-soldier lamented. “I’m absolutely fed up! So I thought I’d do something good for this country — kill Democrats ‘til (sic) the cops kill me.” With what he believed to be his last pen strokes, Jim David Adkisson urged other suicidal soldiers against the “liberalism that’s destroying America” to leave their own trail of carnage behind. “I’d like to encourage other like-minded people to do what I’ve done,” Adkisson wrote. “If life ain’t worth living anymore, don’t just kill yourself. Do something for your country before you go. Go kill liberals.”

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He will spend the rest of his life behind bars for killing Greg McKendry, 60, and Linda Lee Kraeger, 61, after opening fire with a sawed-off shotgun inside the church where more than 200 people were gathered to watch a children’s musical. He admitted wounding six others.

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After lamenting the ills of liberalism and Democrats, Adkisson explains why he specifically targeted TVUUC, which he once attended with his now-ex-wife. “Don’t let the word church mislead you,” he wrote. “This isn’t a church, it’s a cult. They don’t even believe in God. They worship the God of secularism. … The UU church is the fountainhead, the veritable wellspring of anti-American organizations.”

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In his manifesto, Adkisson deemed his rampage part “political protest” and part “symbolic killing.” “This was a hate crime,” he wrote. “Liberals are a pest like termites, millions of them … the only way we can rid ourselves of this evil is kill them in the streets, kill them where they gather.”

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No doubt Ann Coulter, Bill O'Reilly, James Dobson and Don Wildmon are proud of the results of their handiwork.