Oklahoma Homophobe in Congress: Sally Kern

[liveonearth]

If you're going to be a politician these days and believe what Sally Kern believes, you need to have metal detectors and first amendment zones and keep anyone from taping you when you say what you really think. This is a week or more old but it's important so I thought I'd bring it to your attention. This clip from Ellen was what first came to my attention:

Here's one blogger's interpretation and a collection of responses:
http://jmbzine.com/2008/03/07/rep-sally-kerns-ugly-anti-gay-speech-is-made-public-on-the-internet/
This guy JM Branum has his heart in the right place, and it seems apparent to me that he's gay or at least very liberal. He writes about a lot of the same stuff that I find interesting.

I find it interesting that the LGBT crowd portrays Kern as hateful, but in her speech she did not sound hateful to me. She sounded like she was interested in governing a society for its best interests, and that she really believes that homosexuality is destructive and must be stopped. This woman is not evil or hateful, she CARES. She sounds ignorant, perhaps because of her southern accent or her lack of exposure to "these people" (gays). Perhaps her effort to save us from ourselves is misguided, but perhaps she is not. I don't know. (I do know that by acting as if she is a hateful bitch, people close the door to fruitful communication with her. And she is in congress, after all. There must be something good about her.)

So back to my big cultural question: why would a whole lot of people start living as homosexuals? Imagine what might drive a population toward non-reproductive behavior. Depression? A cultural death wish? What could make a whole lot of people stop reproducing? I mean, THINK BIG here. Think evolution. Think generations. What DID happen to the Greeks and Romans after their times of hedonism? One commenter says "Ms Kerns’s comments are NOT hate speech but merely the truth that society continues to ignore at our collective peril. The demise of the Romans and the Greeks a millenium or two ago attests to this. . .”. I would like to explore the basis of this assertion. Tell me about the Romans and the Greeks. What is the basis for this argument? I think there is one.

Here's Kern's info in case you want to let her know what you think:
(405) 557-7348
sallykern@okhouse.gov
2713 Sterling Ave., Oklahoma City, OK 73127

And here's the organization from which she gets here "homosexual agenda" ideas:
The American Family Association
http://www.afa.net/

The AFA has an ad campaign going about stopping homosexuals. The theme is "They're coming to your town"--- after some town in Arkansas woke up one day to find city counsel taken over by gays while they weren't looking. No wonder they're worried! The Christians just can't sit back and expect us to pretend they own the country anymore. They have to pay attention lest their ten year old daughters start having crushes on their lesbian school teachers! Imagine the pressure.

Comments

[labyris.livejournal.com]

Why do people equate being gay or lesbian with not reproducing, not being parents? There are lots and lots of gay and lesbians who are parents and are quite into reproducing. And, in fact, go to quite a lot of trouble to do so!

[liveonearth.livejournal.com]

Ach of course it is true that many people equate the two. It is also true that conception requires an egg and a sperm. So complex. I suspect that if you did a survey of the offspring per person among heterosexuals and homosexuals you would find a substantial differential, too.

Plenty of people, both homosexual and heterosexual, some male but more female, will go to incredible lengths to have/get children. That has nothing to do with sexual preference. That is many things, a desire to have a legacy, a craving for that deepest human bond, a joy in the beauty of life.

I confess to you that I do not agree in a dividing a line between homosexual and heterosexual. I don't believe that anybody is just one. We are all just sexual. What we choose beyond that is a product of hormones, culture and experience. Have you read about the levels of hormones and pharmaceuticals in our drinking water supply these days?

I am curious about cultural fluctuations and patterns of breeding in humans on a multi-generational level. I don't mean to offend you by appearing to assume things that are asinine. I certainly don't equate gay/lesbian with not having children. I simply want to understand why people think the way they do. Even the bigots have their reasons. If we can get down to the reasons, maybe we can find peace.

you're right

[(Anonymous)]

the reality is that most people are not 100% straight or 100% gay. We tend to go way or another because of cultural constraints, but most people could find themselves attracted to someone of the same sex if the circumstances were right.

[labyris.livejournal.com]

I applaud your drive to understand and your curiosity. I am in no way offended. I think you ask interesting questions and appreciate your desire to seek peace with bigots.

I think some people are exclusively homosexual, some are exclusively heterosexual, and there is a wide swath of degree between the two where many people fall. And though you may fall somewhere in the middle, I lean far toward the homosexual side.

And to the extent that you can understand bigotry as founded in science or environment to nature or religion or whatever, that still does not excuse discrimination.

People are people however they turn out and should be treated with dignity and respect no matter what their sexual orientation.

The bigots and haters don't see it that way. They find ways to justify their bigotry and then try to impose their way of thinking on the rest of us through religion, politics, and so forth.

[liveonearth.livejournal.com]

Thanks for your reply. I am blessed to have you reading and responding. I think that the "choice" to be gay, straight, whatever, is in a large degree unconscious, so we may not feel that we have any choice. We are what we are, and it is beneficial to us as individuals, and society as a whole, to accept each person. That is why I plead with LGBT people to avoid being reactive to bigots. Bigots are people too. A defensive or hostile response to someone's bigotry simply sets them deeper in their rut. A compassionate response gives them the opportunity to learn and love. Everyone has their reasons, whether they know them or not. We facilitate our own happiness when we honor our "enemies", and to give them what they need to feel safe and grow.

Just so you know

[(Anonymous)]

Thanks for plugging my blog.

I should tell you that I am very liberal but not gay.

I'd like to think of myself as honorary gay though, as a good number of my friends are part of the LGBT community. ;-)

Re: Just so you know

[(Anonymous)]

Sorry I forgot to sign my comment. This is J. M. Branum of JMBzine.com.

Re: Just so you know

[liveonearth.livejournal.com]

Well JM, you are very welcome. Thanks for your writing and thinking, and visiting. I like your idea of honorary gay. We need more people like you to speak out.