Gay Mariage Redux

It baaaaaack. The fight over "gay marriage", that is.

If you follow my blog or any of my public personality postings, you likely already know where I stand - or can guess. It's not even an issue. A gay couple should have the right to marry.

I wrote an essay years ago - I think 1997 or 1998, I can't find it right now, not even on archive.org - about this issue. My stance was pretty much the same back then.

In Vermont, yesterday there were hearings in Montpelier listening to apparently over a thousand people (well, in attendance, not all spoke) opposed to and in support of legalizing gay marriage (in Vermont).

From the news I heard near sobbing from gay people and having to fight for the same right others just have. I hear dumbass ignorant bigots lay out arguments about "it being against god's will". And this time around, the Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington pleading to keep those dirty nasty ungodly beings from joining in any such marital fashion. (he didn't say that, I'm paraphrasing his dopey ignorance and bigotry). Many other clergy have stood strong in support of gay marriage already. I couldn't tell if they spoke out yesterday. But what's it really matter? The claim of "against it"-clergy is that it's not what "god intended". Do they also invalidate my marriage? I'm a friggin atheist. I think they are loopy in the first place. I was married in a civil ceremony, not even the mention of a deity or a savior (though I'm sure mom was praying :) ) in the ceremony. Do I not have a marriage? It was utterly and completely outside the church.
They keep spouting a fear that clergy will be forced to marry gays. Grow up and pay some attention. No reasonable person would say that. It's a legal thing, not a religious thing, in my view. The clergy aren't required to even marry their own parishioners if they feel they don't support the marriage in question are they? Right. I think I heard a collective "oh yeah". So how are they suddenly going to be forced to marry a bunch of sodomizing sinners? Hm...

As I would expect... they are full of crap just trying to scare the ignorant masses.
As well with the argument of "jettisoning" the "traditional meaning of marriage that has been culturally accepted for 6 millenia"... yeah, I saw that in the paper. In other words, we have bible literalists telling the rest of us how we are supposed to live and that we must follow their bible's laws. Assholes. This is the U.S. of A., you have a right to freedom of religion and I have a right to freedom from religion. That means keep your crazy out of the public square and I won't tell you how to believe your fairy tales stories. That includes you not being allowed to say that gays can't get married because you are uncomfortable with it, or insecure with your marriage to the point that your tiny mind would actually believe that two men or two women getting married would somehow magically lessen your marriage. Face it, you haven't a leg to stand on with that argument. You're a liar and a fraud.

So, the sheep do as they are told. The faithful (I don't know any atheists/agnostics who are against gay marriage - not to say they don't exist, I've just not met any... who weren't against marriage as a rule - and let this be clear, I know more faithful who are pro-gay-marriage than not) cling to their bibles and lash out at people who are different. Worse yet, they argue things like "we can't let a minority make these changes". Again, who the hell are they? I suppose they are against blacks still too... they are still a minority. How about this, from polls I've seen, bible literalists are a minority. That means you freaks who believe Noah's Ark was a real thing are a minority. Those who believe the world is only 6000 years old... minority. How about we start limiting your rights? Oh yeah, "this is a Christian nation"... so as long as you declare that "jesus christ is your savior" then you are above the law or expectation of equality for all. Shut up! You are poison. You might likely be raising children who are poisoned and will poison the world they way you do. Because this isn't just about gay marriage or gay rights, it's about being a bigot and declaring that your way is the only way. It's about you not realizing that your way might be the right way... for you and yours, but that you have no right to rules others' lives when those others' actions do in fact not impact your life in any way. Gay marriage has no impact on you. It just doesn't. Stop lieing. Stop pretending. Stop. If your marriage is weak enough that another's marriage will ruin its meaning, then you need to end it. You are not ready anyway. My marriage will be stronger knowing that the institute of marriage I have will be shared with a larger group of people who believe as I do... that marriage is about sharing your life, love, and everything in between with another person, with rights, responsibilities, privileges, hopes, desires, families, jobs... everything you have. How can you hold the one single difference between the you and "them" as the litmus for something like marriage? When it comes to human rights, a simple majority rule has no place in deciding who gets to use those rights.

I've insulted a lot of people here, it's nothing uncommon. Feel free to hate me, that would be justified. But hating those I am sticking up for in this is not justified. Supporting gay marriage is supporting marriage and family.

Dumbldore is gay... and some people are just assholes

Perhaps it was intentionally not "big news", but I mostly only caught that Harry Potter author JK Rowling announced that Hogwarts headmaster Professor Albus Dumbledore was gay by chance listen on the news. I was shocked at the announcement, but frankly, after reading Deathly Hallows, who is really shocked about the fact??? For real. As a young wizard he totally had a boy-love relationship with Grindelwald. My only disappointment is that there wasn't a better hint. No need to explicitly state it, as it really had no bearing on the story, but I had a feeling and it would have been cool to have just a tiny hint more to make a better educated guess. But so fargin what? I still found the book amazing and will forever be happy I was pushed into reading the series. Bravo JK.

The second after I heard the news, I knew for a fact that the ignorant masses that are homophobes would freak out about it. Boy did they. I'm looking right now at the comments section to a posted article at The Leaky Cauldron where I see lots of support, but lots of ignorance and homophobia.

To bring things closer to home... I have played the Harry Potter Trading Card Game for years. Actually, I've had it for years, but rarely play. It's a fun game though. I joined a Yahoo! group for players of it and have gotten some info and advice from the list. It's a low traffic group, but still served its purpose. This morning however, the original creator of the group sent this final message to the group:

Due to Rowling's decision to turn HP into a series for homosexual
propaganda, making the series unsafe for children, this group is being
shut down.

Um, you asshole! I realize she created the group, but in the real world, if a group thrives even without the direction of the creator of the group, who is the creator to destroy it? Especially since the server is was supported by was not hers.

In any event, I was shocked to see such an abrupt message and that when I went to check if the group was still there, it was already gone, so she really did kill it off quickly. I'm honestly guessing she wanted to hurt it by making sure we couldn't easily get the member list so if a new group would be created, the previous members could be directly invited. So I responded to her in a not nice way - screw it, homophobes are not deserving of respect when they do something specifically to make negative issue of homosexuals - and then wrote to one of the group members who is much a group leader. Another person already started a new one and he was added as a co-owner (a good idea BTW, in case someone flips out - I got booted off the LG-V6000 group because I made a comment about the group creator making some religious comments) so he invited me.

I was in the car going out to lunch with my mom a few years ago, possibly even 6 or so. She had the radio on a Christian talk show. They happened to be talking about how evil Harry Potter books were and how kids should not be allowed to read them; they should be removed from school, and all that stuff. I asked what my mom felt about it (being an evangelical xian) and she didn't really have an opinion. I don't recall too much more, other than stating the positive the books have done even to get more kids reading (statistically debatable from what I've heard) and questioning if she had a problem with The Lord of the Rings -something she knew I had had interest in strongly for a very long time. She hadn't formed an opinion. As of last year, I'm certain her opinion was aligned with the rest of the religious zealots. It's a shame. She even talked my dad out of wanting to see Order of the Phoenix at the drive in. Eh, what can I say. The point is, the wingnut fervor died down for a while, or at least wimpered, and now they are at it again - and it has hit my inbox yet again.

So yeah, Dumbledore is gay. It's cool, and it's not... it just is. Being an asshole is a choice, however.

Vicks Vapo Rub

So, NFL player Michael Vick has finally plead guilty to being an asshole. Ooops, I guess just to killing dogs that he had set up to kill each other. Wooopeeee... right?

Why is this here? I hate football. I loath professional sports, for the most part... pampered, over-paid social leeches... kinda like Lindsey Lohan and Paris Hilton.

No, I'm posting because he states that he "has found jesus". Argh!!! Do Christians actually buy this shit? Oh, wait... yes, they do. I know some who personally will likely hate him for the evils he did against animals raised to be murderous sport fodder, but they will sure find a place in their hearts for him since he found jesus(R)(tm).

So, my message to Vick, and anyone else like him expecting that they are above the laws and above general morality, and then declaring they found religion (I guess he was atypical in that he didn't find Allah, as is apparently more common for many blacks in prison... but I'm guessing more poor black men, as Christianity is the capitalist's religion) , is that I hope a baddass, abused battle dog named "jesus" is set to rip you apart. Let it be a lesson. I'm not a PETA freak [I in fact despise PETA], but in this culture dogs are off limits for game killing. I hate dogs - I'm a cat person - but I'm getting tired of the current culture, often pushed by hip hop, of obsessive immorality while also claiming jesus... yar, and yes, glamorizing vicious-bred dogs!

All that said, Vick isn't the only shithead involved in all of this. If his partners are getting off and all the people who were betting and attending and letting it happen are just as guilty. Plea deals or not, there should be justice. I'm tired of seeing celebs getting away with murder, especially in a case where that is literal.

Oh, Lindsey... you're trash.

Don't think I'm attacking Vick because he's a black man. Trust me, if you know me, you know that couldn't be the case... I hate celebs equally. ;)

There is a god...

Hahaha, you know I'm just kidding, but one might have to wonder after hearing the great news that Jerry Falwell is DEAD. Oh dear me... wishing ill on the dead. Fuck him. That man is a worthless scumbag piece of shit anyway. Worms might not even want to feat on his carcass when his putrid body rots through his casket. Blame 9/11 on atheist, liberals and homosexuals... fucking moron! Asshole... you KNOW it was your "on the DL butt buddy" G.W. Bush.*

This was a shitty evening ending a not too bad at all day. But it all turned around when I opened my email from the account I wasn't looking at all day and saw the header "Jerry Falwell Dead"... only 10 minutes after finding a stash of gaming dice that I've not seen in a very long time, handily stowed away in my Munchkin Fu box.

I guess now I should make nice with the wife and go put in my violin practice time before SVU.

*I in no way mean my use of that term in disrespect toward homosexuals, or even men on the DL... you just gotta know that people who hate gays as much as they do must be hiding something.

Atheist Easter

I love my parents. I respect them both and hold them both in high regard in many ways. I do not, however, respect their faith. My mom has always been religious or at least of faith, but around 10 years ago or so, she became "born again". With a certain set of circumstances in life, dad ended up following along. I cannot honestly say what my dad really believes, but at the very worst, he believes my mom is worth him at least following along.

Anyway, they are members of a Methodist church that, from what I can tell, is possibly exclusively evangelical. Completely antithetical to my own beliefs - a strong atheist. Frankly, I find their religion offensive at its core. But like I said, I love my mom and dad and will be by them as much as I can.

So, today is Easter. In my view, a day of celebration of a fraudulent resurrection of a fake historical figure that entices children into celebration with the Easter Bunny and guarantees of chocolate delights (dudes and dudettes [err, I saw TMNT yesterday so cut me some slack], I practically live for chocolate) and other sweets. Christianity is sick in how it distorts everything to match its needs, co-opting pre-existing celebrations to do what it does best, fool people into adding numbers to the appearance of practitioners, to the point where we are now, millions in lunatics who actually believe their dogma, or worse, biblical literalists.

Most often, mo, tried to invoke prayer before we eat there. Usually she tries to get dad to do it, but he's doing it less and less, making me really wonder what's on his mind. When I was younger after their conversion, I defied the practice. I was becoming more open about my atheism on the internet, even had an essay I wrote published in an issue of Secular Nation and copied onto a few web sites. Defying them was something they took personal right off. These days, I let them have their fantasy, I just sit and wait for the madness to end. But what is funny is that when the whole family is together, such as today (immediate family and two wives), mom is surrounded by two strong atheists, an agnostic and a secular humanist. Lots of sore tongues form the biting there of. So I do my duty as a loving son and happy family member and silently - for the moment - suffer the insanity, as it makes them happy and I don't believe they are directly making the world a worse place... only indirectly

Thankfully xmas is pretty much the next forced down our throat xian holiday, where I'll happily go home and spend time (we do at least once a month anyway) doing a dinner with my parents. I just thought I'd point out the irony of the non-theists gathered around the praying theist.

To make it more intriguing I got home and read this exchange between Sam Harris (my somewhat hero) and Rick Warren, a relatively nice guy-but evangelical-creationist nut job. Not as cool as getting The End of Faith and A Letter to a Christian Nation as winter solstice (read as "that forced celebrating of xmas") gifts, but good enough.