# What exactly did the Indiana GOP \*think\* was going to happen when they passed this anti-gay law? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [March 30, 2015, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378 "2015-03-30T23:44:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Disgscen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f05b48/32.png) [@Disgscen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Disgscen)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2015, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/41 "2015-03-31T20:51:22Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > How does the national RFRA fail to do this? Specifically? There is no text in the national RFRA allowing for-profit businesses to assert a right to “the free exercise of religion.” The Indiana law has that text. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2015, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/42 "2015-03-31T20:58:39Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > . . . When the products are expressive, forcing a business to provide for everyone equally represents compelled speech. . . . But allowing them to discriminate on their own personal grounds…allows them to discriminate against classes of persons. Don’t go into the “expression” business if you feel a need to discriminate, especially on the basis of people’s natural classifications. If you don’t want to do business for a tire store…you don’t have to: tire stores don’t get that kind of protection. If you don’t want to do business for black people…you do not belong in business in this country. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2015, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/43 "2015-03-31T20:59:21Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > Every law has trade offs. Given that the US has had an RFRA for 22 years and yet gays are not banned from places of business throughout the country the damage this law could cause is mostly notional. **On the other hand there have been highly published cases of religious small business people sued for not wanted to provide products for gay marriages. The damage this law prevents is entirely real.** 😕 Really? It looks like **the damage** is intended to be **protected** by the law. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2015, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/44 "2015-03-31T21:08:44Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > There is no damage this law prevents. Well, not in a financial sense. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2015, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/45 "2015-03-31T21:15:58Z")
Indiana is a right leaning state and it is kind of a bubble. I didn’t see this kind of backlash coming myself. I’m glad it did though, lots of businesses and entertainers are cutting us off. ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2015, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/46 "2015-03-31T21:17:36Z")
> [@Disgscen](#): > > There is no text in the national RFRA allowing for-profit businesses to assert a right to “the free exercise of religion.” The Indiana law has that text. There is nothing in the federal RFRA specifically saying that it doesn’t apply to businesses or the people who own and run them. I, like others, have trouble understanding why so many people are whining about the Indiana law that is not hugely different from laws in other states or the federal law. There is nothing anti-gay about it. It protects religious freedom, the first right in the Bill of Rights, which is the bedrock of our way of life. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2015, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/47 "2015-03-31T21:34:25Z")
> [@ITR\_champion](#): > > There is nothing in the federal RFRA specifically saying that it doesn’t apply to businesses or the people who own and run them. > > I, like others, have trouble understanding why so many people are whining about the Indiana law that is not hugely different from laws in other states or the federal law. There is nothing anti-gay about it. It protects religious freedom, the first right in the Bill of Rights, which is the bedrock of our way of life. Then there is nothing this law remedies, hence no need or purpose for the law, other than to codify the right to discriminate. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2015, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/48 "2015-03-31T21:50:17Z")
> [@ITR\_champion](#): > > There is nothing in the federal RFRA specifically saying that it doesn’t apply to businesses or the people who own and run them. > > I, like others, have trouble understanding why so many people are whining about the Indiana law that is not hugely different from laws in other states or _the federal law_. (Italics mine) If it wasn’t much different from the federal law already on the books, are you saying it accomplished nothing, and was a waste of time and money? ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2015, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/49 "2015-03-31T23:24:08Z")
No, of course not. The federal RFRA restricts the federal government from putting a substantial burden on anyone’s free exercise of religion, but puts no such restriction on state or local governments. State RFRAs put the same sort of restriction on state and local governments. It’s not rocket science. The majority of states have either a state RFRA or something like it. They have been widely supported by both parties and were not controversial until some folks decided to have a hissy fit about the Indiana law. Such laws have, in fact, helped people [including](http://thefederalist.com/2015/03/30/meet-10-americans-helped-by-religious-freedom-bills-like-indianas/) Christians, Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, and Native Americans to practice their religion freely when government tried to get in their way. They are not “a waste of time and money”. ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2015, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/50 "2015-03-31T23:42:13Z")
Since many people obviously need it, here’s an overview of the law: > **[Your Questions On Indiana's Religious Freedom Bill, Answered](https://thefederalist.com/2015/03/30/your-questions-on-indianas-religious-freedom-bill-answered/)** > > You've got questions: How do RFRAs work? Why is everyone so mad about Indiana's? Do religious freedom protections hurt gays? We've got answers. And here’s the story of Connecticut Governor Dan Malloy who’s boycotting Indiana because of Indiana’s defense of religious freedom, while apparently not caring about the fact that his own state also has a law defending religious freedom. > **[Connecticut Issues Hypocritical Travel Boycott Against Indiana Over RFRA](https://reason.com/2015/03/30/connecticut-issues-hypocritical-travel-b/)** > > Boycott everyone. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2015, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/51 "2015-03-31T23:46:47Z")
> [@ITR\_champion](#): > > Since many people obviously need it, here’s an overview of the law: > > [Your Questions On Indiana's Religious Freedom Bill, Answered](http://thefederalist.com/2015/03/30/your-questions-on-indianas-religious-freedom-bill-answered/) > And here’s the story of Connecticut Governor Dan Malloy who’s boycotting Indiana because of Indiana’s defense of religious freedom, while apparently not caring about the fact that his own state also has a law defending religious freedom. > > [Connecticut Issues Hypocritical Travel Boycott Against Indiana Over RFRA](http://reason.com/blog/2015/03/30/connecticut-issues-hypocritical-travel-b) Why not just cite [wenevertireoffellatingronaldreagan.com](http://wenevertireoffellatingronaldreagan.com)? Seriously ridiculous choice of cites. Go ahead and ride that anti-gay horse. See how far it carries you next year. ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2015, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/52 "2015-04-01T00:05:03Z")
> [@ITR\_champion](#): > > Since many people obviously need it, here’s an overview of the law: > > [Your Questions On Indiana's Religious Freedom Bill, Answered](http://thefederalist.com/2015/03/30/your-questions-on-indianas-religious-freedom-bill-answered/) > And here’s the story of Connecticut Governor Dan Malloy who’s boycotting Indiana because of Indiana’s defense of religious freedom, while apparently not caring about the fact that his own state also has a law defending religious freedom. > > [Connecticut Issues Hypocritical Travel Boycott Against Indiana Over RFRA](http://reason.com/blog/2015/03/30/connecticut-issues-hypocritical-travel-b) Of course you and your cite fail to mention sexual orientation in CT is protected class so it would be illegal for public accommodations to discriminate against LGBT people. So IN law and CT law are exactly the same except for the fact they aren’t. Pence is doing wonderful in his interviews, if he keeps it up he’ll have no one left on his side. You have to sink pretty low when even NASCAR takes the time to call your actions bigoted. [NASCAR 'disappointed' in Indiana's Religious Freedom Restoration Act - NBC Sports](http://nascartalk.nbcsports.com/2015/03/31/nascar-disappointed-in-indianas-religious-freedom-restoration-act/) ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2015, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/53 "2015-04-01T00:07:56Z")
> [@puddleglum](#): > > Every law has trade offs. Given that the US has had an RFRA for 22 years and yet gays are not banned from places of business throughout the country the damage this law could cause is mostly notional. On the other hand there have been highly published cases of religious small business people sued for not wanted to provide products for gay marriages. The damage this law prevents is entirely real. > The good thing about this is that boycotts work be hurting the boycotter alot to hurt the boycottee a little. Therefore the bullies will be the ones hurt in this case for the most part. No gays have been turned away from businesses, so this law won’t hurt gay people. But it will protect business that have been sued… for turning away gay customers. The level of doublethink in this post is _phenomenal_. ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2015, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/54 "2015-04-01T00:17:40Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > 1. With any law, the backlash is always louder than the support. I’m just wondering what planet you live on. It’s out of the ordinary for laws to have any backlash to speak of. Generally people are supportive of laws. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2015, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/55 "2015-04-01T00:22:08Z")
The shit is really starting to rain down now. In addition to Apple, NASCAR, the NCAA and a whole bunch of others, the CEO of Nike just issued a statement denouncing the law. Indianapolis hosts a big data conference for those in the IT industry, and Amazon just cancelled their attendance, joining EMC, Platfora, and Pivotal. The whole conference is in danger of cancellation now. Colossally stupid move, Indiana. ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2015, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/56 "2015-04-01T00:50:17Z")
> [@boytyperanma](#): > > Of course you and your cite fail to mention sexual orientation in CT is protected class so it would be illegal for public accommodations to discriminate against LGBT people. So IN law and CT law are exactly the same except for the fact they aren’t. Malley didn’t say that he was boycotting Indiana because Indiana failed to make sexual orientation a protected class, though. He said it was because of Indiana’s religious freedom law. If he’s boycotting because sexual orientation is a protected class, there’s a long list of other states he should be boycotting as well. Indiana’s law makes no mention of sexual orientation. It guarantees the exact same rights to all. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2015, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/57 "2015-04-01T01:10:23Z")
> [@ITR\_champion](#): > > Indiana’s law makes no mention of sexual orientation. It guarantees the exact same rights to all. Yes, and the resorts that used to advertise “Pork served on Saturday” weren’t trying to keep out Jews. They made no mention of Jews. The exact same menu was guaranteed to all. If some people felt that the purpose of the advertisement was anti-Semitic, well, clearly they were wrong. Geez Louise. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2015, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/58 "2015-04-01T01:26:49Z")
I can’t tell if the rapidly dwindling supporters of this law are just grasping at any straw that passes by, or if they really think the vast majority of the country is stupid enough to be fooled by their lame arguments and outright lies. _Everybody_ knows what the purpose of this bill was. Everybody. ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2015, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/59 "2015-04-01T01:36:56Z")
> [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](#): > > Yes, and the resorts that used to advertise “Pork served on Saturday” weren’t trying to keep out Jews. They made no mention of Jews. The exact same menu was guaranteed to all. If some people felt that the purpose of the advertisement was anti-Semitic, well, clearly they were wrong. > > Geez Louise. I’m unaware of any such resorts. But even if they existed, I’m not sure what relationship that would have to the law protecting religious freedom in Indiana. The law in Indiana uses similar language to the federal law and laws in numerous other states. It makes no mention of sexual orientation. Its purpose is to protect religious freedom. There is no logical reason to believe otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2015, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378/60 "2015-04-01T01:38:42Z")
> [@boytyperanma](#): > > I’m just wondering what planet you live on. It’s out of the ordinary for laws to have any backlash to speak of. Generally people are supportive of laws. Yeah, just like how the reaction to Obamacare was 100% positive. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-exactly-did-the-indiana-gop-think-was-going-to-happen-when-they-passed-this-anti-gay-law/716378.md?page=4)