What same-sex "marriage" has done to Massachusetts
It's far worse than most people realize
October 20, 2008
by Brian Camenker
Anyone who thinks that same-sex “marriage” is a benign eccentricity which won’t affect the average person should consider what it has done in Massachusetts. It’s become a hammer to force the acceptance and normalization of homosexuality on everyone. And this train is moving fast. What has happened so far is only the beginning.
On November 18, 2003, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court announced its Goodridge opinion, ruling that it was unconstitutional not to allow same-sex “marriage.” Six months later, homosexual marriages began to be performed.
The public schools
The homosexual “marriage” onslaught in public schools across the state started soon after the November 2003, court decision.
· At my own children's high school there was a school-wide assembly to celebrate same-sex “marriage” in early December, 2003. It featured an array of speakers, including teachers at the school who announced that they would be “marrying” their same-sex partners and starting families either through adoption or artificial insemination. Literature on same-sex marriage – how it is now a normal part of society – was handed out to the students.
· Within months it was brought into the middle schools. In September, 2004, an 8th-grade teacher in Brookline, MA, told National Public Radio that the marriage ruling had opened up the floodgates for teaching homosexuality. “In my mind, I know that, `OK, this is legal now.' If somebody wants to challenge me, I'll say, `Give me a break. It's legal now,'” she told NPR. She added that she now discusses gay sex with her students as explicitly as she desires. For example, she said she tells the kids that lesbians can have vaginal intercourse using sex toys.
· By the following year it was in elementary school curricula. Kindergartners were given picture books telling them that same-sex couples are just another kind of family, like their own parents. In 2005, when David Parker of Lexington, MA – a parent of a kindergartner – strongly insisted on being notified when teachers were discussing homosexuality or transgenderism with his son, the school had him arrested and put in jail overnight.Second graders at the same school were read a book, “King and King”, about two men who have a romance and marry each other, with a picture of them kissing. When parents Rob and Robin Wirthlin complained, they were told that the school had no obligation to notify them or allow them to opt-out their child.
· In 2006 the Parkers and Wirthlins filed a federal Civil Rights lawsuit to force the schools to notify parents and allow them to opt-out their elementary-school children when homosexual-related subjects were taught. The federal judges dismissed the case. The judges ruled that because same-sex marriage is legal in Massachusetts, the school actually had a duty to normalize homosexual relationships to children, and that schools have no obligation to notify parents or let them opt-out their children! Acceptance of homosexuality had become a matter of good citizenship! Think about that: Because same-sex marriage is “legal”, a federal judge has ruled that the schools now have a duty to portray homosexual relationships as normal to children, despite what parents think or believe!
· In 2006, in the elementary school where my daughter went to Kindergarten, the parents of a third-grader were forced to take their child out of school because a man undergoing a sex-change operation and cross-dressing was being brought into class to teach the children that there are now “different kinds of families.” School officials told the mother that her complaints to the principal were considered “inappropriate behavior.”
· Libraries have also radically changed. School libraries across the state, from elementary school to high school, now have shelves of books to normalize homosexual behavior and the lifestyle in the minds of kids, some of them quite explicit and even pornographic. Parents complaints are ignored or met with hostility. Over the past year, homosexual groups have been using taxpayer money to distribute a large, slick hardcover book celebrating homosexual marriage titled “Courting Equality” into every school library in the state.
· It’s become commonplace in Massachusetts schools for teachers to prominently display photos of their same-sex “spouses” and occasionally bring them to school functions. Both high schools in my own town now have principals who are “married” to their same-sex partners, whom they bring to school and introduce to the students.
· “Gay days” in schools are considered necessary to fight “intolerance” which may exist against same-sex relationships. Hundreds of high schools and even middle schools across the state now hold “gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender appreciation days”. They “celebrate” homosexual marriage and move forward to other behaviors such as cross-dressing and transsexuality. In my own town, a school committee member recently announced that combating “homophobia” is now a top priority. Once homosexuality has been normalized, all boundaries will come down. The schools are already moving on to normalizing transgenderism (including cross-dressing and sex changes). The state-funded Commission on Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Youth includes leaders who are transsexuals.
Public health
· The Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health is “married” to another man. In 2007 he told a crowd of kids at a state-sponsored youth event that it’s “wonderful being gay” and he wants to make sure there’s enough HIV testing available for all of them.
· Since homosexual marriage became “legal” the rates of HIV / AIDS have gone up considerably in Massachusetts. This year public funding to deal with HIV/AIDS has risen by $500,000.
· Citing “the right to marry” as one of the “important challenges” in a place where “it’s a great time to be gay”, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health helped produce The Little Black Book, Queer in the 21st Century, a hideous work of obscene pornography which was given to kids at Brookline High School on April 30, 2005. Among other things, it gives “tips” to boys on how to perform oral sex on other males, masturbate other males, and how to “safely” have someone urinate on you for sexual pleasure. It also included a directory of bars in Boston where young men meet for anonymous sex.
Domestic violence
· Given the extreme dysfunctional nature of homosexual relationships, the Massachusetts Legislature has felt the need to spend more money every year to deal with skyrocketing homosexual domestic violence. This year $350,000 was budgeted, up $100,000 from last year.
Business
· All insurance in Massachusetts must now recognize same-sex “married” couples in their coverage. This includes auto insurance, health insurance, life insurance, etc.
· Businesses must recognize same-sex “married” couples in all their benefits, activities, etc., regarding both employees and customers.
· The wedding industry is required serve the homosexual community if requested. Wedding photographers, halls, caterers, etc., must do same-sex marriages or be arrested for discrimination.
· Businesses are often “tested” for tolerance by homosexual activists. Groups of homosexual activists often go into restaurants or bars and publicly kiss and fondle each other to test whether the establishment demonstrates sufficient “equality” — now that homosexual marriage is “legal”. In fact, more and more overt displays of homosexual affection are seen in public places across the state to reinforce "marriage equality".
Legal profession
· The Massachusetts Bar Exam now tests lawyers on their knowledge of same-sex "marriage" issues. In 2007, a Boston man, Stephen Dunne, failed the Massachusetts bar exam because he refused to answer the questions in it about homosexual marriage.
· Issues regarding homosexual “families” are now firmly entrenched in the Massachusetts legal system. In many firms, lawyers in Massachusetts practicing family law must now attend seminars on homosexual "marriage". There are also now several homosexual judges overseeing the Massachusetts family courts.
Adoption of children to homosexual “married” couples
· Homosexual “married” couples can now demand to be able to adopt children the same as normal couples. Catholic Charities decided to abandon handling adoptions rather submit to regulations requiring them to allow homosexuals to adopt the children in their care.
· In 2006 the Massachusetts Department of Social Services (DSS) honored two men “married” to each other as their “Parents of the Year”. The men already adopted a baby through DSS (against the wishes of the baby’s birth parents). According to news reports, the day after that adoption was final DSS approached the men about adopting a second child. Homosexuals now appear to be put in line for adopting children ahead of heterosexual parents by state agencies in Massachusetts.
Government mandates
· In 2004, Governor Mitt Romney ordered Justices of the Peace to perform homosexual marriages when requested or be fired. At least one Justice of the Peace decided to resign.
· Also thanks to Gov. Romney, marriage licenses in Massachusetts now have “Party A and Party B” instead of “husband and wife.” Romney did not have a legal requirement to do this; he did it on his own. (See more on this below.)
· Since homosexual relationships are now officially “normal”, the Legislature now gives enormous tax money to homosexual activist groups. In particular, the Massachusetts Commission on Gay Lesbian Bisexual and Transgender Youth is made up of the most radical and militant homosexual groups which target children in the schools. This year they are getting $700,000 of taxpayer money to go into the public schools.
· In 2008 Massachusetts changed the state Medicare laws to include homosexual “married” couples in the coverage.
The public square
· Since gay “marriage”, annual gay pride parades have become more prominent. There are more politicians and corporations participating, and even police organizations take part. And the envelope gets pushed further and further. There is now a profane “Dyke March” through downtown Boston, and recently a “transgender” parade in Northampton that included bare-chested women who have had their breasts surgically removed so they could “become” men. Governor Patrick even marched with his “out lesbian” 17-year old daughter in the 2008 Boston Pride event, right behind a “leather” group brandishing a black & blue flag, whips and chains!
The media
· Boston media, particularly the Boston Globe newspaper, regularly does feature stories and news stories portraying homosexual “married” couples where regular married couples would normally be used. It’s “equal”, they insist, so there must be no difference in the coverage. Also, the newspaper advice columns now deal with homosexual "marriage" issues, and how to properly accept it.
· A growing number of news reporters and TV anchors are openly “married” homosexuals who march in the “gay pride” parades.
Is gay marriage actually legal in Massachusetts?
Like everywhere else in America, the imposition of same-sex marriage on the people of Massachusetts was a combination of radical, arrogant judges and pitifully cowardly politicians.
The Goodridge ruling resulted in a complete cave-in by politicians of both parties on this issue. Same-sex “marriage” is still illegal in Massachusetts. On November 18, 2003 the court merely ruled that it was unconstitutional not to allow it, and gave the Legislature six months to “take such action as it may deem appropriate.” Note that the Massachusetts Constitution strongly denies courts the power to make or change laws, or from ordering the other branches to take any action. The constitution effectively bans “judicial review” – a court changing or nullifying a law. Thus, the court did not order anything to happen; it simply rendered an opinion on that specific case. And the Legislature did nothing. The marriage statutes were never changed. However, against the advice of many, Gov. Romney took it upon himself to alter the state's marriage licenses to say "Party A and Party B" and order officials to perform same-sex "weddings" if asked, though he had no legal obligation to do so. Technically, same-sex marriages are still illegal in Massachusetts.
Nevertheless, we are having to live with it. And furthermore, this abdication of their proper constitutional roles by the Legislature and Governor has caused a domino effect as "copycat" rulings have been issued in California and Connecticut, with other states fearful it will happen there.
In conclusion
Homosexual “marriage” hangs over society like a hammer with the force of law. And it’s only just begun.
It’s pretty clear that the homosexual movement’s obsession with marriage is not because large numbers of them actually want to marry each other. Research shows that homosexual relationships are fundamentally dysfunctional on many levels, and “marriage” as we know it isn’t something they can achieve, or even desire. (In fact, over the last three months, the Sunday Boston Globe’s marriage section hasn’t had any photos of homosexual marriages. In the beginning it was full of them.) This is about putting the legal stamp of approval on homosexuality and imposing it with force throughout the various social and political institutions of a society that would never accept it otherwise. To the rest of America: You've been forewarned.
Friday, October 24, 2008
"Coming Out Day" in a Hayward Elementary School
"Coming Out Day" Coming This Week to California Elementary Schools
City: Hayward, CA
October 22, 2008Parents at a K-8 charter school in Hayward were shocked to learn this week the extent to which their school is promoting gay and lesbian ideals to their daughter in kindergarten. The parents were shocked to see a poster announcing that "Coming Out Day" will be celebrated at the school this coming Thursday, October 23. The school, Faith Ringgold School of Art and Science, chose not to tell parents ahead of time, but it is in the midst of celebrating "Ally Week," a pro-homosexual push typically aimed at high school students. When one mother asked her daughter earlier this week what she was learning in kindergarten at the school, the 5-year-old replied, "We're learning to be allies." The mother also learned that her daughter's kindergarten classroom is regularly used during lunchtime for meetings of a Gay Straight Alliance club. Later this week, the school is slated to talk about families. The parents have noticed several posters promoting families, all of which depict only homosexual families. More controversial discussions can be expected through next week, as the elementary school continues to celebrate Gay and Lesbian History Month. On November 20, the school will host TransAction Gender-Bender Read-Aloud, where students will hear adapted tales such as "Jane and the Beanstalk." These parents are being advised by attorneys from Pacific Justice Institute. Brad Dacus, president of Pacific Justice Institute, commented, "Do we need any further proof that gay activists will target children as early as possible? Opponents of traditional marriage keep telling us that Prop. 8 has nothing to do with education. In reality, they want to push the gay lifestyle on kindergartners, and we can only imagine how much worse it will be if Prop. 8 is defeated. This is not a scenario most Californians want replayed in their elementary schools." Any other parents whose elementary-age children have been subjected to pro-homosexual propaganda should contact Pacific Justice Institute for counsel and possible representation.
City: Hayward, CA
October 22, 2008Parents at a K-8 charter school in Hayward were shocked to learn this week the extent to which their school is promoting gay and lesbian ideals to their daughter in kindergarten. The parents were shocked to see a poster announcing that "Coming Out Day" will be celebrated at the school this coming Thursday, October 23. The school, Faith Ringgold School of Art and Science, chose not to tell parents ahead of time, but it is in the midst of celebrating "Ally Week," a pro-homosexual push typically aimed at high school students. When one mother asked her daughter earlier this week what she was learning in kindergarten at the school, the 5-year-old replied, "We're learning to be allies." The mother also learned that her daughter's kindergarten classroom is regularly used during lunchtime for meetings of a Gay Straight Alliance club. Later this week, the school is slated to talk about families. The parents have noticed several posters promoting families, all of which depict only homosexual families. More controversial discussions can be expected through next week, as the elementary school continues to celebrate Gay and Lesbian History Month. On November 20, the school will host TransAction Gender-Bender Read-Aloud, where students will hear adapted tales such as "Jane and the Beanstalk." These parents are being advised by attorneys from Pacific Justice Institute. Brad Dacus, president of Pacific Justice Institute, commented, "Do we need any further proof that gay activists will target children as early as possible? Opponents of traditional marriage keep telling us that Prop. 8 has nothing to do with education. In reality, they want to push the gay lifestyle on kindergartners, and we can only imagine how much worse it will be if Prop. 8 is defeated. This is not a scenario most Californians want replayed in their elementary schools." Any other parents whose elementary-age children have been subjected to pro-homosexual propaganda should contact Pacific Justice Institute for counsel and possible representation.
Wall Street Journal Opinion Forum - CTA
Big Labor Does Gay Marriage
Because a teachers' union has other priorities besides education.
Here's a pop quiz: Who's donated the most money to an effort in California to defeat Proposition 8, an initiative on the November 4 ballot that would define marriage as between a man and a woman in the state?
A) Gay-advocacy organizations
B) Civil-rights groups
C) The California Teachers Association
If you guessed "C," you understand the nature of modern liberal politics. And if you didn't, perhaps you're wondering what exactly gay marriage has to do with K-12 public education. The high school dropout rate is 1-in-4 in California and 1-in-3 in the Los Angeles public school system, odds that worsen considerably among black and Hispanic children. So you might think the CTA, the state's largest teachers' union, would have other priorities.
Yet last week the union donated $1 million to the "No on Proposition 8" campaign. Of the roughly $3 million raised by opponents of the measure so far, $1.25 million has come from the teachers' union. "What does this cause have to do with education?" said Randy Peart, a public school teacher in San Juan who was contacted by a local television station. "Why not put that money into classrooms, into making a better place for these kids?"
In fact, the CTA and its parent organization, the National Education Association, have used tens of millions of dollars in mandatory teachers' dues to advance all manner of left-wing political causes. And members like Ms. Peart are right to ask questions. In some years barely a third of the NEA's budget has gone toward improving the lot of teachers themselves.
In addition to vigorously fighting school choice and other reforms that benefit underprivileged children but threaten the public education monopoly, the NEA has directly (or via state affiliates) bankrolled Acorn, the Democratic Leadership Council, the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation and, naturally, the Human Rights Campaign, which lobbies for "lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equal rights."
Public school teachers of America, take note. This is your dues money at work.
Because a teachers' union has other priorities besides education.
Here's a pop quiz: Who's donated the most money to an effort in California to defeat Proposition 8, an initiative on the November 4 ballot that would define marriage as between a man and a woman in the state?
A) Gay-advocacy organizations
B) Civil-rights groups
C) The California Teachers Association
If you guessed "C," you understand the nature of modern liberal politics. And if you didn't, perhaps you're wondering what exactly gay marriage has to do with K-12 public education. The high school dropout rate is 1-in-4 in California and 1-in-3 in the Los Angeles public school system, odds that worsen considerably among black and Hispanic children. So you might think the CTA, the state's largest teachers' union, would have other priorities.
Yet last week the union donated $1 million to the "No on Proposition 8" campaign. Of the roughly $3 million raised by opponents of the measure so far, $1.25 million has come from the teachers' union. "What does this cause have to do with education?" said Randy Peart, a public school teacher in San Juan who was contacted by a local television station. "Why not put that money into classrooms, into making a better place for these kids?"
In fact, the CTA and its parent organization, the National Education Association, have used tens of millions of dollars in mandatory teachers' dues to advance all manner of left-wing political causes. And members like Ms. Peart are right to ask questions. In some years barely a third of the NEA's budget has gone toward improving the lot of teachers themselves.
In addition to vigorously fighting school choice and other reforms that benefit underprivileged children but threaten the public education monopoly, the NEA has directly (or via state affiliates) bankrolled Acorn, the Democratic Leadership Council, the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation and, naturally, the Human Rights Campaign, which lobbies for "lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equal rights."
Public school teachers of America, take note. This is your dues money at work.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Our Rally Acknowledged on ProtectMarriage.com website!
From the ProtectMarriage.com website. Just found this was posted. No pictures, but it is nice to get the story out to encourage the effort. Hopefully, it can be circulated to everyone working in our area -- and beyond. MS
Blog
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Yes on 8 Campaign Fights Desperate Attempt of Opponents To Stop Airing of Truthful Commercials »
Auburn Rally Draws Hundreds of Yes on 8 Supportersby Nancy Limon - Grassroots Director on October 11th, 2008
Today Yes on 8 campaign supporters in Placer and El Dorado County held a rally in Auburn, CA where over 400 enthusiastic Yes on 8 voters came to hear speakers discuss the importance of passing Proposition 8 as well as to sign up to volunteer for the grassroots campaign. A representative from the First Baptist Church in Auburn and Christian Ministerial Association of the Foothills attended along with represntatives from the Pacific Justice Institute, Brigham Young University, Captol Resource Institute, Abundant Life Christian Fellowship in Roseville, City of Auburn's social programs and the ProtectMarriage.com campaign. Guests of Honor included the five students from the American River College's student body who bravely stood up for their beliefs and right to Freedom of Speech, passing a Resolution to support Proposition 8. They held up their resolution to the crowd and challenged youth in attendance to recruit 38,000 more students for the campaign. Many people in attendance came bearing signs reading "Stop Judicial Tyranny", "Save Traditional Marriage" and "Free to Choose- Yes on 8!". Yard signs for Prop. 8 lined the entrance into the venue and supporters held additional Yes on Prop. 8 signs high and proud along the streets of Auburn. Even a toddler, with his Mother and Father waved his Prop. 8 sign excitedly as cars filed into the parking lot. People could be heard outside of the venue chanting "Stop the Hate- Vote Yes on 8!" Many booths were set up for people to pick up t-shirts, bumper stickers and yard signs as well as sign up to volunteer. Carig Garbe, El Dorado County Co-Chair for the ProtectMarriage.com campaign asked everyone to take the day off on election day to help pass Prop. 8 - he was met with excited cheers and a round of applause. The event was held at the Auburn Garden Theater Library.
Blog
« We Can't Stop Now
Yes on 8 Campaign Fights Desperate Attempt of Opponents To Stop Airing of Truthful Commercials »
Auburn Rally Draws Hundreds of Yes on 8 Supportersby Nancy Limon - Grassroots Director on October 11th, 2008
Today Yes on 8 campaign supporters in Placer and El Dorado County held a rally in Auburn, CA where over 400 enthusiastic Yes on 8 voters came to hear speakers discuss the importance of passing Proposition 8 as well as to sign up to volunteer for the grassroots campaign. A representative from the First Baptist Church in Auburn and Christian Ministerial Association of the Foothills attended along with represntatives from the Pacific Justice Institute, Brigham Young University, Captol Resource Institute, Abundant Life Christian Fellowship in Roseville, City of Auburn's social programs and the ProtectMarriage.com campaign. Guests of Honor included the five students from the American River College's student body who bravely stood up for their beliefs and right to Freedom of Speech, passing a Resolution to support Proposition 8. They held up their resolution to the crowd and challenged youth in attendance to recruit 38,000 more students for the campaign. Many people in attendance came bearing signs reading "Stop Judicial Tyranny", "Save Traditional Marriage" and "Free to Choose- Yes on 8!". Yard signs for Prop. 8 lined the entrance into the venue and supporters held additional Yes on Prop. 8 signs high and proud along the streets of Auburn. Even a toddler, with his Mother and Father waved his Prop. 8 sign excitedly as cars filed into the parking lot. People could be heard outside of the venue chanting "Stop the Hate- Vote Yes on 8!" Many booths were set up for people to pick up t-shirts, bumper stickers and yard signs as well as sign up to volunteer. Carig Garbe, El Dorado County Co-Chair for the ProtectMarriage.com campaign asked everyone to take the day off on election day to help pass Prop. 8 - he was met with excited cheers and a round of applause. The event was held at the Auburn Garden Theater Library.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Gays Acknowledge There Is No Gay Gene
Source: http://www.virtueonline.org/portal/modules/news/article.php?storyid=8802
Posted at iperceive.net last night. This is material you may wish to use in letters to the editor. (Letters to be published need to go out right away. They often wait till others have their say who were first in line. Letters are usually limited to 200/250 words; longer letters will not be printed or may be edited in ways you would not choose. It is best to keep them to that limit.
April 38 10.17.08 at 11:21 am
At VirtueOnline - News, dated 28/8/5,
A series of homosexual — not heterosexual — activists are quoted who assert that there is no gay gene; that it is a life-style choice. It's nice to get the word from those who live it.From the article by by Bill Muehlenberg:
The tendency is to deny choice, to make it appear that homosexuals cannot help it, and to argue that any criticism of the gay lifestyle is as silly as criticism of being left-handed or red-haired. And this has been a deliberate strategy by homosexual activists. They have done a very good job to convince a gullible public that homosexuals are born that way and cannot change.
Among a number of homosexual activists quoted, Australian activist and Latrobe University lecturer, Dennis Altman, wrote in 1986: " 'To be Haitian or a hemophiliac is determined at birth, but being gay is an identity that is socially determined and involves personal choice.' "
Another Australian gay activist comments, "I think the idea that sexuality is genetic is crap. There is absolutely no evidence for it at the moment, and I think it is unhealthy that people want to embrace this idea. It does reflect a desire to say, 'it's not our fault', as a way of deflecting our critics. We have achieved what we have achieved by defiance, not by concessions."
There is no gay gene. And therefore no legitimacy in the demand that gays and lesbians be treated as some sort of predetermined, ethnic group.#
Added quote from same online article:"And a leading Australian feminist and lesbian has also made it clear that choice is a major component of the lifestyle. Melbourne University academic Sheila Jeffreys became a feminist in her twenties, when she was involved in "perfectly good" relationships with men. She then decided to become a lesbian: "At the time," she says, we "made the decision to become political lesbians, as we called it.""She says that "you can learn to be heterosexual and you can learn to be lesbian". When challenged by an interviewer that sexuality is more innate than that, she continues, "I don't think there's anything natural about sexuality; you do learn it. And you can unlearn it, go in a different direction, change it." She says that her own experience proves this, as does that of many other women who decided to switch to lesbianism in the '70s."
Posted at iperceive.net last night. This is material you may wish to use in letters to the editor. (Letters to be published need to go out right away. They often wait till others have their say who were first in line. Letters are usually limited to 200/250 words; longer letters will not be printed or may be edited in ways you would not choose. It is best to keep them to that limit.
April 38 10.17.08 at 11:21 am
At VirtueOnline - News, dated 28/8/5,
A series of homosexual — not heterosexual — activists are quoted who assert that there is no gay gene; that it is a life-style choice. It's nice to get the word from those who live it.From the article by by Bill Muehlenberg:
The tendency is to deny choice, to make it appear that homosexuals cannot help it, and to argue that any criticism of the gay lifestyle is as silly as criticism of being left-handed or red-haired. And this has been a deliberate strategy by homosexual activists. They have done a very good job to convince a gullible public that homosexuals are born that way and cannot change.
Among a number of homosexual activists quoted, Australian activist and Latrobe University lecturer, Dennis Altman, wrote in 1986: " 'To be Haitian or a hemophiliac is determined at birth, but being gay is an identity that is socially determined and involves personal choice.' "
Another Australian gay activist comments, "I think the idea that sexuality is genetic is crap. There is absolutely no evidence for it at the moment, and I think it is unhealthy that people want to embrace this idea. It does reflect a desire to say, 'it's not our fault', as a way of deflecting our critics. We have achieved what we have achieved by defiance, not by concessions."
There is no gay gene. And therefore no legitimacy in the demand that gays and lesbians be treated as some sort of predetermined, ethnic group.#
Added quote from same online article:"And a leading Australian feminist and lesbian has also made it clear that choice is a major component of the lifestyle. Melbourne University academic Sheila Jeffreys became a feminist in her twenties, when she was involved in "perfectly good" relationships with men. She then decided to become a lesbian: "At the time," she says, we "made the decision to become political lesbians, as we called it.""She says that "you can learn to be heterosexual and you can learn to be lesbian". When challenged by an interviewer that sexuality is more innate than that, she continues, "I don't think there's anything natural about sexuality; you do learn it. And you can unlearn it, go in a different direction, change it." She says that her own experience proves this, as does that of many other women who decided to switch to lesbianism in the '70s."
Video Of Our Defaced Yard Signs
Please view and pass it on. Whatever intolerance exists is not at this end.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjkKqjkq1r4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjkKqjkq1r4
CA Teacher's Union Donates a Million Dollars to Defeat Prop. 8
October 17, 2008
CA Teachers Union Ignites 'Class Warfare' over Prop 8
In the weeks leading up to Halloween, the California Teacher's Association (CTA) has no intention of masking its agenda on marriage. The 340,000-member organization -- long considered a powerful branch of the radical Left -- took a risky step yesterday by donating a million dollars to defeat Proposition 8. The gift, which is now the largest contribution by any institutional donor to the ballot issue, raises the stakes in an already tense battle for parents' rights. The CTA's own members, whose dues are fueling this opposition, are fuming. Many, like Randy Peart, are questioning what same-sex "marriage" has to do with education. "It bothers me [that they're] spend[ing] my money on something I'm morally opposed to," she said. "Why not put that money into classrooms, into making a better place for these kids?" But according to CTA President David Sanchez, "...[I]t's a civil rights issue." And he's right. This is a civil rights issue -- for children who deserve to be raised by a mother and father. The donation, CTA's second, should serve as a wake-up call for anyone who doesn't believe that schools are becoming dangerous incubators for the homosexual cause. If the union will stoop to using its dues to promote the homosexual agenda, then you can bet it will have no reservations about using its classrooms. Just last week, a San Francisco administrator took first graders on a field trip to their teacher's lesbian "wedding." How's that for indoctrination? If California schools are promoting "teachable moments" like this for five- and six-year-olds, imagine what the middle and high school curriculums will look like! This is much more than a battle for marriage. It's a last stand for education and parents' rights. The CTA's million dollars will go a long way to undermining the truth. California families need your help! Log on to www.protectmarriage.com and educate yourself about the issues at stake in this fight. Additional Resources ProtectMarriage.com News 10: Teacher's Union Blasted for $1 Million Donation to No on Prop 8
CA Teachers Union Ignites 'Class Warfare' over Prop 8
In the weeks leading up to Halloween, the California Teacher's Association (CTA) has no intention of masking its agenda on marriage. The 340,000-member organization -- long considered a powerful branch of the radical Left -- took a risky step yesterday by donating a million dollars to defeat Proposition 8. The gift, which is now the largest contribution by any institutional donor to the ballot issue, raises the stakes in an already tense battle for parents' rights. The CTA's own members, whose dues are fueling this opposition, are fuming. Many, like Randy Peart, are questioning what same-sex "marriage" has to do with education. "It bothers me [that they're] spend[ing] my money on something I'm morally opposed to," she said. "Why not put that money into classrooms, into making a better place for these kids?" But according to CTA President David Sanchez, "...[I]t's a civil rights issue." And he's right. This is a civil rights issue -- for children who deserve to be raised by a mother and father. The donation, CTA's second, should serve as a wake-up call for anyone who doesn't believe that schools are becoming dangerous incubators for the homosexual cause. If the union will stoop to using its dues to promote the homosexual agenda, then you can bet it will have no reservations about using its classrooms. Just last week, a San Francisco administrator took first graders on a field trip to their teacher's lesbian "wedding." How's that for indoctrination? If California schools are promoting "teachable moments" like this for five- and six-year-olds, imagine what the middle and high school curriculums will look like! This is much more than a battle for marriage. It's a last stand for education and parents' rights. The CTA's million dollars will go a long way to undermining the truth. California families need your help! Log on to www.protectmarriage.com and educate yourself about the issues at stake in this fight. Additional Resources ProtectMarriage.com News 10: Teacher's Union Blasted for $1 Million Donation to No on Prop 8
Saturday, October 18, 2008
We Have to Find the Humor!
This is humorous ("humor" is funny because it is based on truth!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ko2-EQss0V4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ko2-EQss0V4
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Editorial by Kurt Schulzke
This story is about one of our area coordinators:
Means-Enders of the left: Stealing Proposition 8 signs in California
by Kurt Schulzke on October 16, 2008
Why can't the anti-Prop 8 crowd play fair? They don't have the arguments, the decency or the integrity to make them. Instead, they resort to childishness or criminality — ranting, punching, kicking and stealing signs. Here's an eye-witness account from the Sacramento area:
Today [Tuesday, October 14] as I was driving home from work I witnessed and very nice lady stealing one of our signs!!! I quickly made a U turn and followed her to the post office. I parked behind her and approached her and asked "why did you steal our sign???"" She was dumbfounded and answered, "Well it shouldn't have been there"!! I told her that I was so disappointed to see that a very nice upstanding woman like herself would lower herself to steal a sign off a private property."
I said "you have a Obama sign in the back of your car, I don't steal your signs." I said it's funny, but she had "just confirmed why I'm a Republican, we don't steal, we believe in freedom of speech and have integrity!"
She didn't know what to say; she asked who owned the property. I told her some very intelligent people that don't like to be stolen from; could I please have the sign from her back seat. I told her also that I wrote down her license plate of her brand new Lexus, and that if the sign was missing again I would know who to report to the police. I promptly returned the sign! . . .
These people have no shame. It's as if their emotional and moral development suddenly ended at age 2. At one point will the militant gay community and its enablers grow up?
Means-Enders of the left: Stealing Proposition 8 signs in California
by Kurt Schulzke on October 16, 2008
Why can't the anti-Prop 8 crowd play fair? They don't have the arguments, the decency or the integrity to make them. Instead, they resort to childishness or criminality — ranting, punching, kicking and stealing signs. Here's an eye-witness account from the Sacramento area:
Today [Tuesday, October 14] as I was driving home from work I witnessed and very nice lady stealing one of our signs!!! I quickly made a U turn and followed her to the post office. I parked behind her and approached her and asked "why did you steal our sign???"" She was dumbfounded and answered, "Well it shouldn't have been there"!! I told her that I was so disappointed to see that a very nice upstanding woman like herself would lower herself to steal a sign off a private property."
I said "you have a Obama sign in the back of your car, I don't steal your signs." I said it's funny, but she had "just confirmed why I'm a Republican, we don't steal, we believe in freedom of speech and have integrity!"
She didn't know what to say; she asked who owned the property. I told her some very intelligent people that don't like to be stolen from; could I please have the sign from her back seat. I told her also that I wrote down her license plate of her brand new Lexus, and that if the sign was missing again I would know who to report to the police. I promptly returned the sign! . . .
These people have no shame. It's as if their emotional and moral development suddenly ended at age 2. At one point will the militant gay community and its enablers grow up?
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Connecticut Court Creates Same-Sex Marriage
Breaking News: Connecticut Court Creates Same-Sex Marriage
Today the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled 4-3 that the marriage law of that state was unconstitutional and must be redefined to include same-sex couples. The decision ends with a direction to the trial court to issue an injunction against the Department of Public Health, which means that same-sex marriages will begin taking place in that state as soon as the trial court acts.
In Kerrigan & Mock v. Dept. of Public Health, eight gay couples had sued on the grounds that the state's 2005 civil unions law did not provide equal protection under its constitution. The trial court had ruled that the essential equivalence between the state's civil union status and marriage meant there was no constitutional deprivation in not allowing same-sex couples to marry, according to Bill Duncan of the Marriage Law Foundation.
The Supreme Court disagreed, holding that by creating civil unions, the legislature had relegated same-sex couples to "an inferior status in essence, declaring them to be unworthy of the institution of marriage." The majority believed civil unions are not equal because marriage "is an institution of transcendent historical, cultural and social significance."
One dissenting judge argued that the majority opinion was premised on a presumption "that the essence of marriage is a loving, committed relationship between two adults" but the actual purpose "is to privilege and regulate procreative conduct." The dissent also said "a couple that is incapable of engaging in the type of sexual conduct that can result in children is not similarly situated to a couple that is capable of engaging in such conduct."
This is indeed a disappointing loss, but a reminder that civil unions or domestic partnerships can be easily morphed into marriage by the courts.
Friday, October 10, 2008Visit familyleader.net for more articles, news & issues.
Today the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled 4-3 that the marriage law of that state was unconstitutional and must be redefined to include same-sex couples. The decision ends with a direction to the trial court to issue an injunction against the Department of Public Health, which means that same-sex marriages will begin taking place in that state as soon as the trial court acts.
In Kerrigan & Mock v. Dept. of Public Health, eight gay couples had sued on the grounds that the state's 2005 civil unions law did not provide equal protection under its constitution. The trial court had ruled that the essential equivalence between the state's civil union status and marriage meant there was no constitutional deprivation in not allowing same-sex couples to marry, according to Bill Duncan of the Marriage Law Foundation.
The Supreme Court disagreed, holding that by creating civil unions, the legislature had relegated same-sex couples to "an inferior status in essence, declaring them to be unworthy of the institution of marriage." The majority believed civil unions are not equal because marriage "is an institution of transcendent historical, cultural and social significance."
One dissenting judge argued that the majority opinion was premised on a presumption "that the essence of marriage is a loving, committed relationship between two adults" but the actual purpose "is to privilege and regulate procreative conduct." The dissent also said "a couple that is incapable of engaging in the type of sexual conduct that can result in children is not similarly situated to a couple that is capable of engaging in such conduct."
This is indeed a disappointing loss, but a reminder that civil unions or domestic partnerships can be easily morphed into marriage by the courts.
Friday, October 10, 2008Visit familyleader.net for more articles, news & issues.
Pictures From The Auburn Rally!!!
The Rally was a great success! Thanks to all that attended. The following is the email from Keenan Davis, the Committee Chair and Moderator. Continue down for a link to pictures !
"Oh man, oh man,
I am almost speechless to describe the blessings I saw showered on our heads today at the Rally. It was a wondrous sight indeed to see the culmination of so much effort manifest in that wonderful event. I echo Craig’s sentiments at the Rally: let’s turn this effort into VOTES…!!
It was so great to see how the advance publicity was prepared (see the above-the-fold article in the Auburn Journal?), the tables were spread with literature and good cheer, the stage was decked out with plants, flags, banners and musicians, how the three levels of security were so large and in charge, meshed (and vested), polished (include the chrome on the bikes!), gentlemanly and helpful, how the Scouts glowed with their posting the colors, how great the music felt, how gracious everyone was to our trio of brave protesters, how heartfelt and mighty the offered prayers were, how competent and passionate the speakers were, and what an impact the American River College kids made (and what they learned and the boost it gave them). I could go on and on.
If we had held this event in any major city, it could not have been more professional, substantive and inspiring. Estimates of attendees are in the 300 to 400 person range. No one can calculate the strengthening, lifting influence the Rally will have on the attendees, of course. But I have to believe the increased confidence in the cause and heightened awareness of the stakes and consequences in the hearts and minds of the attendees will pay victorious dividends.
The Lord presided over a teamwork miracle today of different faiths, talents, and skills. I can with conviction say He used all of us in His cause.
I know we can feel His approval and, at the same time, hear His still small voice urging us onward. May we continue to share in the rich blessings that come from such efforts, I hope and pray.
Mesha and I are grateful to be a part of such a marvelous team and such a stellar event. Let’s build on this and spread the net even wider for November 4. Thanks again.
Keenan"
Pictures of the Auburn Rally taken by Nathan Johnson.
Thanks Nathan!
.http://s239.photobucket.com/albums/ff305/thungsong/Prop%208%20Rally/?albumview=grid
"Oh man, oh man,
I am almost speechless to describe the blessings I saw showered on our heads today at the Rally. It was a wondrous sight indeed to see the culmination of so much effort manifest in that wonderful event. I echo Craig’s sentiments at the Rally: let’s turn this effort into VOTES…!!
It was so great to see how the advance publicity was prepared (see the above-the-fold article in the Auburn Journal?), the tables were spread with literature and good cheer, the stage was decked out with plants, flags, banners and musicians, how the three levels of security were so large and in charge, meshed (and vested), polished (include the chrome on the bikes!), gentlemanly and helpful, how the Scouts glowed with their posting the colors, how great the music felt, how gracious everyone was to our trio of brave protesters, how heartfelt and mighty the offered prayers were, how competent and passionate the speakers were, and what an impact the American River College kids made (and what they learned and the boost it gave them). I could go on and on.
If we had held this event in any major city, it could not have been more professional, substantive and inspiring. Estimates of attendees are in the 300 to 400 person range. No one can calculate the strengthening, lifting influence the Rally will have on the attendees, of course. But I have to believe the increased confidence in the cause and heightened awareness of the stakes and consequences in the hearts and minds of the attendees will pay victorious dividends.
The Lord presided over a teamwork miracle today of different faiths, talents, and skills. I can with conviction say He used all of us in His cause.
I know we can feel His approval and, at the same time, hear His still small voice urging us onward. May we continue to share in the rich blessings that come from such efforts, I hope and pray.
Mesha and I are grateful to be a part of such a marvelous team and such a stellar event. Let’s build on this and spread the net even wider for November 4. Thanks again.
Keenan"
Pictures of the Auburn Rally taken by Nathan Johnson.
Thanks Nathan!
.http://s239.photobucket.com/albums/ff305/thungsong/Prop%208%20Rally/?albumview=grid
New Meaning to First Grade Field Trips!
In the same week that the No on 8 campaign launched an ad that labeled as "lies" claims that same-sex marriage would be taught in schools to young children, a first grade class took a school-sponsored trip to a gay wedding.
Class surprises lesbian teacher on wedding day
Jill Tucker, Chronicle Staff Writer
Saturday, October 11, 2008
A group of San Francisco first-graders took an unusual field trip to City Hall on Friday to toss rose petals on their just-married lesbian teacher - putting the public school children at the center of a fierce election battle over the fate of same-sex marriage.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object/article?f=/c/a/2008/10/11/MNFG13F1VG.DTL&o=&type=politics
The 18 Creative Arts Charter School students took a Muni bus and walked a block at noon to toss rose petals and blow bubbles on their just-married teacher Erin Carder and her wife Kerri McCoy, giggling and squealing as they mobbed their teacher with hugs.
Mayor Gavin Newsom, a friend of a friend, officiated.
A parent came up with the idea for the field trip - a surprise for the teacher on her wedding day.
"She's such a dedicated teacher," said the school's interim director Liz Jaroflow.
But there was a question of justifying the field trip academically. Jaroflow decided she could.
"It really is what we call a teachable moment," Jaroflow said, noting the historic significance of same-sex marriage and related civil rights issues. "I think I'm well within the parameters."
Nonetheless, the excursion offers Proposition 8 proponents fresh ammunition for their efforts to outlaw gay marriage in California, offering a real-life incident that echoes their recent television and radio ads.
"It's just utterly unreasonable that a public school field trip would be to a same-sex wedding," said Chip White, press secretary for the Yes on 8 campaign. "This is overt indoctrination of children who are too young to have an understanding of its purpose."
The trip illustrates the message promoted by the campaign in recent days, namely that unless Prop. 8 passes on Nov. 4, children will learn about same-sex marriage in school.
"It shows that not only can it happen, but it has already happened," White said.
California Education Code permits school districts to offer comprehensive sex education, but if they do, they have to "teach respect for marriage and committed relationships."
Parents can excuse their child from all or part of the instruction.
On Friday, McCoy and Carder, both in white, held hands on Newsom's office balcony overlooking the rotunda and recited their vows.
"With this ring, I thee wed!" Carder said, shouting the last word for emphasis.
After traditional photos, the two walked out City Hall's main doors where the students were lined up down the steps with bags of pink rose petals and bottles of bubbles hanging from their necks. McCoy, a conferences services coordinator, was in on the surprise and beamed as the children swarmed around Carder.
The two said they have participated in the campaign against Proposition 8 and planned to travel around San Francisco on Friday afternoon in a motorized trolley car with "Just Married" and "Vote No on 8" banners.
The two met on a dance floor two years ago.
"This is one girl I can honestly say deserves happiness, and it came in the form of Kerri," said Carder's friend Dani Starelli.
Creative Arts administrators and parents acknowledged that the field trip might be controversial, but they didn't see the big deal. Same-sex marriage is legal, they noted.
"How many days in school are they going to remember?" asked parent Mark Lipsett. "This is a day they'll definitely remember."
Carder's students said they were happy to see their new teacher married.
"She's a really nice teacher. She's the best," said 6-year-old Chava Novogrodsky-Godt, wearing a "No on 8" button on her shirt. "I want her to have a good wedding."
Chava's mothers said they are getting married in two weeks.
The students' parents are planning to make a video with the children describing what marriage is to them.
Marriage, 6-year-old Nolan Alexander said Friday, is "people falling in love."
It means, he added, "You stay with someone the rest of your life."
As is the case with all field trips, parents had to give their permission and could choose to opt out of the trip. Two families did. Those children spent the duration of the 90-minute field trip back at school with another first-grade class, the interim director said.
"As far as I'm concerned, it's not controversial for me," Jaroflow said. "It's certainly an issue I would be willing to put my job on the line for."
E-mail Jill Tucker at jtucker@sfchronicle.com.
This article appeared on page A - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle
Class surprises lesbian teacher on wedding day
Jill Tucker, Chronicle Staff Writer
Saturday, October 11, 2008
A group of San Francisco first-graders took an unusual field trip to City Hall on Friday to toss rose petals on their just-married lesbian teacher - putting the public school children at the center of a fierce election battle over the fate of same-sex marriage.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object/article?f=/c/a/2008/10/11/MNFG13F1VG.DTL&o=&type=politics
The 18 Creative Arts Charter School students took a Muni bus and walked a block at noon to toss rose petals and blow bubbles on their just-married teacher Erin Carder and her wife Kerri McCoy, giggling and squealing as they mobbed their teacher with hugs.
Mayor Gavin Newsom, a friend of a friend, officiated.
A parent came up with the idea for the field trip - a surprise for the teacher on her wedding day.
"She's such a dedicated teacher," said the school's interim director Liz Jaroflow.
But there was a question of justifying the field trip academically. Jaroflow decided she could.
"It really is what we call a teachable moment," Jaroflow said, noting the historic significance of same-sex marriage and related civil rights issues. "I think I'm well within the parameters."
Nonetheless, the excursion offers Proposition 8 proponents fresh ammunition for their efforts to outlaw gay marriage in California, offering a real-life incident that echoes their recent television and radio ads.
"It's just utterly unreasonable that a public school field trip would be to a same-sex wedding," said Chip White, press secretary for the Yes on 8 campaign. "This is overt indoctrination of children who are too young to have an understanding of its purpose."
The trip illustrates the message promoted by the campaign in recent days, namely that unless Prop. 8 passes on Nov. 4, children will learn about same-sex marriage in school.
"It shows that not only can it happen, but it has already happened," White said.
California Education Code permits school districts to offer comprehensive sex education, but if they do, they have to "teach respect for marriage and committed relationships."
Parents can excuse their child from all or part of the instruction.
On Friday, McCoy and Carder, both in white, held hands on Newsom's office balcony overlooking the rotunda and recited their vows.
"With this ring, I thee wed!" Carder said, shouting the last word for emphasis.
After traditional photos, the two walked out City Hall's main doors where the students were lined up down the steps with bags of pink rose petals and bottles of bubbles hanging from their necks. McCoy, a conferences services coordinator, was in on the surprise and beamed as the children swarmed around Carder.
The two said they have participated in the campaign against Proposition 8 and planned to travel around San Francisco on Friday afternoon in a motorized trolley car with "Just Married" and "Vote No on 8" banners.
The two met on a dance floor two years ago.
"This is one girl I can honestly say deserves happiness, and it came in the form of Kerri," said Carder's friend Dani Starelli.
Creative Arts administrators and parents acknowledged that the field trip might be controversial, but they didn't see the big deal. Same-sex marriage is legal, they noted.
"How many days in school are they going to remember?" asked parent Mark Lipsett. "This is a day they'll definitely remember."
Carder's students said they were happy to see their new teacher married.
"She's a really nice teacher. She's the best," said 6-year-old Chava Novogrodsky-Godt, wearing a "No on 8" button on her shirt. "I want her to have a good wedding."
Chava's mothers said they are getting married in two weeks.
The students' parents are planning to make a video with the children describing what marriage is to them.
Marriage, 6-year-old Nolan Alexander said Friday, is "people falling in love."
It means, he added, "You stay with someone the rest of your life."
As is the case with all field trips, parents had to give their permission and could choose to opt out of the trip. Two families did. Those children spent the duration of the 90-minute field trip back at school with another first-grade class, the interim director said.
"As far as I'm concerned, it's not controversial for me," Jaroflow said. "It's certainly an issue I would be willing to put my job on the line for."
E-mail Jill Tucker at jtucker@sfchronicle.com.
This article appeared on page A - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle
Monday, October 6, 2008
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Should Christians Argue Politics?
10-1-2008
Should Christians Argue Politics?
by Frank Pastore
'Our political and social policies should grow out of our theology, not vice versa.'
Note: This column originally appeared Sept. 30 on Townhall.com. It is used with permission.
For the past several months, I’ve heard two recurring themes from critics of my show: “You’re too political and unloving; Christians shouldn’t argue about politics,” and “You’re not fair and balanced; you’re close-minded and too biased against liberals.”
Perhaps many Christians believe these things because they don’t understand politics is really an exercise of theology applied — one way we love our neighbors as ourselves. Our political and social policies should grow out of our theology, not vice versa. We are not to reverse engineer our theology based upon our political and social agendas. Our faith is foundational to everything else. For Christians, theology creates and shapes our approach to politics; for non-Christians, politics creates and shapes their approach to theology — or at least their worldview.
A Christian becomes too political when their politics is no longer rooted in their theology, when their faith becomes merely peripheral and unnecessary to their political agenda, rather than the one thing that is fundamental and essential.How we vote to spend our tax dollars, what economic and social policies we hope to advance through votes for particular candidates, and what domestic and foreign policies we hope our government advances — these things are the applications of the values rooted in our Christian worldview.
Just as how I choose to invest my time and treasure is the best expression of whether I’m living out my Christian values, so too what the government spends money on and what policy preferences it pursues is the best expression of our true American values.
The best way for me to love my neighbor is through those things I choose to do personally. The second best way is through votes for candidates who support policies that I believe will promote the common good. Thus, I am political because I am loving, and I am loving because I am Christian. Therefore, I should argue — albeit in a God-glorifying manner — about politics.
Perhaps many Christians don’t know how to argue without getting angry — though there are times when anger is morally justified. The two things that we should be willing to argue about are theology and politics. This isn’t about getting mad or letting your emotions get out of control. In fact, when we lose our cool and merely emote, we’re not arguing very well and we actually become less persuasive rather than more so. It usually escalates into a test of whose emotional intensity is strongest, rather than the strength of the arguments themselves.
Perhaps many Christians think arguing is bad because they can’t distinguish between a person and their ideas. Even for themselves, they can take it personally when someone is arguing against their ideas. But not arguing does make me a nice person. And the fact that I do argue about consequential things does not make me unloving. Nice people can be wrong, and mean people can be right. I can criticize a person’s ideas without criticizing the person. The challenge is to communicate my disagreement — to argue — in such a way that the person understands I disagree with their ideas, not them personally. Friends can and do argue over their disagreements, though it is most often the case that they are friends precisely because they do agree on so many things.
Finally, with regards to the criticism that I am “not fair and balanced” and that I am “close-minded and too biased against liberals,” I am perhaps guilty as charged. However, it is only because I have weighed the arguments on both sides and found the current expressions of modern liberalism deficient. I gave liberalism a fair hearing when I began to formulate my political philosophy and found it contrary to my Christian values. I am no longer struggling with moral equivalence between the left and the right. I would be close-minded and biased if I were unwilling to weigh arguments for liberalism. Having done so, I am a conservative precisely because I have found the arguments for liberalism unpersuasive.
Some Christians may claim, “Christians shouldn’t argue about politics” simply because they’re political liberals who are unwilling to actually engage in argument over their political views. Instead, they would rather attempt to stifle debate by taking the pseudo moral high ground, saying something like, “Truly spiritual Christians are above politics.”
That’s too bad. Christians can and should argue, especially about theology and politics — and hopefully in that order
Should Christians Argue Politics?
by Frank Pastore
'Our political and social policies should grow out of our theology, not vice versa.'
Note: This column originally appeared Sept. 30 on Townhall.com. It is used with permission.
For the past several months, I’ve heard two recurring themes from critics of my show: “You’re too political and unloving; Christians shouldn’t argue about politics,” and “You’re not fair and balanced; you’re close-minded and too biased against liberals.”
Perhaps many Christians believe these things because they don’t understand politics is really an exercise of theology applied — one way we love our neighbors as ourselves. Our political and social policies should grow out of our theology, not vice versa. We are not to reverse engineer our theology based upon our political and social agendas. Our faith is foundational to everything else. For Christians, theology creates and shapes our approach to politics; for non-Christians, politics creates and shapes their approach to theology — or at least their worldview.
A Christian becomes too political when their politics is no longer rooted in their theology, when their faith becomes merely peripheral and unnecessary to their political agenda, rather than the one thing that is fundamental and essential.How we vote to spend our tax dollars, what economic and social policies we hope to advance through votes for particular candidates, and what domestic and foreign policies we hope our government advances — these things are the applications of the values rooted in our Christian worldview.
Just as how I choose to invest my time and treasure is the best expression of whether I’m living out my Christian values, so too what the government spends money on and what policy preferences it pursues is the best expression of our true American values.
The best way for me to love my neighbor is through those things I choose to do personally. The second best way is through votes for candidates who support policies that I believe will promote the common good. Thus, I am political because I am loving, and I am loving because I am Christian. Therefore, I should argue — albeit in a God-glorifying manner — about politics.
Perhaps many Christians don’t know how to argue without getting angry — though there are times when anger is morally justified. The two things that we should be willing to argue about are theology and politics. This isn’t about getting mad or letting your emotions get out of control. In fact, when we lose our cool and merely emote, we’re not arguing very well and we actually become less persuasive rather than more so. It usually escalates into a test of whose emotional intensity is strongest, rather than the strength of the arguments themselves.
Perhaps many Christians think arguing is bad because they can’t distinguish between a person and their ideas. Even for themselves, they can take it personally when someone is arguing against their ideas. But not arguing does make me a nice person. And the fact that I do argue about consequential things does not make me unloving. Nice people can be wrong, and mean people can be right. I can criticize a person’s ideas without criticizing the person. The challenge is to communicate my disagreement — to argue — in such a way that the person understands I disagree with their ideas, not them personally. Friends can and do argue over their disagreements, though it is most often the case that they are friends precisely because they do agree on so many things.
Finally, with regards to the criticism that I am “not fair and balanced” and that I am “close-minded and too biased against liberals,” I am perhaps guilty as charged. However, it is only because I have weighed the arguments on both sides and found the current expressions of modern liberalism deficient. I gave liberalism a fair hearing when I began to formulate my political philosophy and found it contrary to my Christian values. I am no longer struggling with moral equivalence between the left and the right. I would be close-minded and biased if I were unwilling to weigh arguments for liberalism. Having done so, I am a conservative precisely because I have found the arguments for liberalism unpersuasive.
Some Christians may claim, “Christians shouldn’t argue about politics” simply because they’re political liberals who are unwilling to actually engage in argument over their political views. Instead, they would rather attempt to stifle debate by taking the pseudo moral high ground, saying something like, “Truly spiritual Christians are above politics.”
That’s too bad. Christians can and should argue, especially about theology and politics — and hopefully in that order
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