Or – and I’m just spitballing here – but maybe both predatory sexism and disapproval of gay marriage are really, really bad, but I’m willing to cut Obama a little slack, what with the economy and Afghanistan and health care and so forth. I extend this slack to him based on my confidence that he will do what he said (he’s got a decent track record along those lines, as far as I can tell) and repeal DADT. And maybe, given the nascent tide towards legalizing gay marriage, he might even jump over to the good side on that issue.
But if he fails to move in a good direction on equal rights, then sure, I’ll excoriate him for it. In the meantime, I’ll dislike his current positions but hold out hope that he’ll do the right thing.
I agree with Dio’s “no way he’d get elected if he said he was pro gay marriage” stance but I don’t think it makes him a “cowardly liar” (astorian’s words) at all. It makes him a politician.
Also, it wasn’t as if we had the choice of voting for “Candidate X, Gay Marriage’s Best Friend” OR Obama, the choice was between Obama and Clinton in the primaries and then Obama and McCain in the election. Is there anybody out there left or right who doesn’t think that Obama is a better choice for gay issues than McCain/Palin would have been?
Also, believe it or not- perhaps I’m speaking only for myself but I hardly think so- people who support gay marriage AREN’T single issue voters. We voted for Obama for MANY MANY MANY reasons. Speaking only for myself, Gay Marriage wasn’t even at the top of the list; I’m more concerned in our relations with the rest of the world, the two wars we’re in [one of which we should be out of altogether and another of which we need to escalate], the economy [which I blame partly on Bush and mostly on many other factors including the lack of functioning balls among the Democrats], etc… In fact I’d rather see the repeal of Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell than nationwide gay marriage (obviously I’d like to see both, but I think DADT is the worst thing ever done by any president to gays and I don’t exonerate Clinton so no need brushing off that straw man; even he says it was the stupidest thing he ever did [though fat lot of good admitting that does after he left office.])
Bleu Copas, an Arabic translator, was discharged for being gay in 2006 even though
1- Nobody he worked gave a flying fuck that he was gay
2- He didn’t violate DADT (he didn’t tell)
3- The armed forces had a desperate shortage of reliable Arabic translators
There was an editorial yesterdayby Lt. Daniel Choi, a West Point graduate with a degree in Arabic, who is in danger of being dishonorably discharged for something that nobody in his unit seems to give a good goddam about. At the same time there are official reports from the U.S. military that state the shortage of Arabic translators is potentially lethal to many soldiers due to the delay and inability of translating documents. This was the case also before 9-11 incidentally; it is not at all impossible that the lack of interpreters may have aided the success of the terrorists on 9-11, and as Bush and Cheney quacked constantly always the chance of another 9-11 style attack, and yet to date more than 20 people who have these extremely rare and extremely needed language skills are being tossed out of the military because they’re gay---- if you believe the Bush Cheney rhetoric this is the equivalent of saying "we’d rather see thousands of Americans die than for 20 Americans to have to work with a fag. That is somewhere between criminal stupidity and zealous bigotry.
The PotUS is not a Tsar- Obama isn’t, Bush wasn’t, Clinton wasn’t. It is certain that Obama cannot legalize gay marriage in all 50 states with the stroke of a pen unless it’s to sign into law a bill that’s already been through Congress and that’s not likely to happen. There is debate over whether or not it’s in his authority to repeal DADT; if the Palm Center Reportis right then he can and if it is right he should and if he doesn’t then I’ll be right there with you denouncing him for not doing so if for not doing so denounce him you do.
As for Miss Born Again Tits 2009, Equipoise summed up my opinions exactly. I don’t give a fuck what she thinks one way or the other and I actually think Perez Hilton (who I can’t stand) was telling the truth when he said it was the fact she was a stupid bitch more than her opinion which sank her; had she answered “I believe it should be decided at the state level” instead of the rambling dumbass bouquet she squirted from her silicotits she’d have won and been true to herself since saying “I think X should be decided at the state level” is basically not saying you personally approve or disapprove of it and part of being a beauty queen is diplomacy (the other 99% being tits and or ass, and as is proven one of those wasn’t all it was cracked up to be and ironically it wasn’t her ass). The rest is just pure schadenfreude dark comedy of lies and revelations and more embarassment for Orson Scott Card and his fellow Knights of NOM. The fact we post to a message board on the subject doesn’t mean it’s an event of great importance in our life (or if it is then there’d be mass suicide if Tolkien went out of print or American Idol was cancelled).
Always nice to see Christopher Hitchens hasn’t lost any of his charm with age. His critiqueof Wanda Sykes and Obama:
First off, would it have made you feel better if Obama had walked out of the room in a huff? Bush had to have been murderously furious at Colbert but took it with a smile. It’s called being a politician.
Second, do you think the fact she’s black needs to be noted for the sight impaired or what exactly? Not that ‘black’ is offensive, but I doubt he’d refer to Arianna Huffington as “the Greek divorcee”.
Third, dyke is one of those words like nigger or wop that is best not said by someone to whom it isn’t usually applied by those who use it. Historically alcholic English gits who bitch constantly about a country they won’t leave and in fact become citizens of aren’t called dykes.
Hitchens is a bit like Gore Vidal in that I enjoy reading his writing, whether I agree with it or not, and envy his knowledge and wit, but I think he’s one of the last people I’d ever want to know in person.
Video link? I can’t seem to google/YouTube that up. I don’t enjoy Imus, but I’d like to watch it and see a fair counterpoint to the “grave offenses” that Colbert and Sykes had done at the WHCD.
I curse Wanda Sykes for making me defend Rush Limbaugh. Not only was the “I hope his kidneys fail” line not funny but are we really still doing oxycontin jokes? Is there not enough about the man now that one could build actual jokes out of, that she needed to resort to general abuse? Seriously, Wanda, shut the hell up.
What? Dick Cheney is the enemy for all the actions Dick Cheney took as VP, including supporting torture. What’s this business about Cheney defending seriousness?
Holy fucking what? Limbaugh and humility do not belong in the same sentence, unless that sentence is to state how the two are opposites.
Defending Limbaugh against mean-spirited attacks - why don’t some of those people turn their finely-tuned sense of fair play and polite discourse on the object of their fawning attention?
Sampiro said:
Hitchens is someone who has done one or two things that I admire him for, but is usually a gigantic ass.
I think you mistook Hitchens’ remark. He was stating that Sykes should have been making digs at Obama, to make him uncomfortable, instead of at Bush and Limbaugh.