The Gaytheist Agenda

Governor Rick Perry (R, TX) has written a new book decrying the “left wing war” on the beleaguered Boy Scouts of America. It seems Governor Perry has issues with the ACLU, atheists, LGBTs…and the truth.

 

Meanwhile, some excerpts from Perry’s book, which questions the American Civil Liberties Union’s efforts to open the Boy Scouts of America to gays and people who don’t declare a belief in God:

“Only they know, but isn’t it odd that the ACLU, which champions First Amendment rights, wants them applied selectively? It seems some of the most intolerant acts occur in the name of tolerance; a paradox that seems to describe much of the ACLU’s political agenda.”

The ACLU has no such desire. The ACLU champions the civil rights of all Americans, Christian, atheist, straight, gay, bisexual, transgender, black, Latino, Jewish, Asian, Buddhist, etc. Anybody who seeks their services with a civil rights case will be afforded assistance. That’s how people like the Phelps family got assistance. They asked for it. Perhaps if more Christians asked for the assistance of the ACLU instead of fighting against them they’d realize the ACLU is not their enemy.

“The point is that Scouting is not the place for sex education. When a gay or lesbian leader makes an issue of his or her sexual preference, it makes it impossible to remove sexual conduct from the Scouting realm.”

It’s not gay and lesbian leaders making an issue of their “sexual preference”, it’s people like Governor Perry and other RRRW bigots. It’s strange how they never consider a straight man or woman who wears a wedding band or shows photos of their new baby around to be “making an issue of their sexual preference”, yet a gay/lesbian who fails to stay deep in the closet is pushing their sexuality in everybody’s face.

“Though I am no expert on the ‘nature versus nature’ debate, I can sympathize with those who believe sexual preference is genetic. It may be so, but it remains unproved. Even if it were, this does not mean we are ultimately not responsible for the active choices we make. Even if an alcoholic is powerless over alcohol once it enters his body, he still makes a choice to drink. And, even if someone is attracted to a person of the same sex, he or she still makes a choice to engage in sexual activity with someone of the same gender.”

Yes, and millions of people choose to become adherents of one religion or another. They choose one denomination over another. They choose a particular church they want to belong to. They choose to commit criminal acts in the name of their religion. Yet is anybody suggesting we dispense with the laws that protect people from hate-crimes based on their religion?

“It is not as if the Boy Scouts teach intolerance toward the atheist or the homosexual; it is just not the purpose of the Scouts to engage in a debate about these issues… In a wider context, it is also not my personal belief that society should condemn either the homosexual or the atheist. We must draw a line in the sand: people have the right to decide for themselves what they will believe in the core of their being, and how they will live… For those who want to throw stones at homosexuals in the name of calling out sin, may they be just as loud about adultery among heterosexuals and pornography among their own churchgoing friends.”

The average church, however, does not preach as loudly against adultery because they know they’d lose a great number of their flock. Same with divorce, lying and the majority of “sins” the Bible condemns. Railing against gays is safe because they’re a small minority, gay sex has an “ick factor” to it and it helps inflame the base. Any sin their flock is largely guilty of is very unsafe territory because the key is to be able to cast stones at others, not look within and seek to change oneself.

“You can’t have a rational discussion with the left about nature versus nurture, global warming, or the validity of evolution because they claim science has already weighed in. Yet, science reveals new discoveries all the time and in so doing, for instance, makes the evolutionary explanation less plausible.”

On the contrary. “The Left” admits freely that new discoveries constantly occur in the scientific world. That’s the beauty of science and what makes it vastly superior to religion–its ability to grow and to evolve. Religion is static and immobile. Yes they’ll try to cram newly discovered truths into what is written in the Bible and make it “fit” but it just doesn’t work. Pretending Jesus rode a dinosaur to account for the existence of fossils doesn’t make it so.

“Scouting will survive as long as it sticks to the virtues and values of the great middle class.”

If Gov. Perry considers bigotry one of the virtues and values of the great middle class he’s clearly delusional. Scouting may survive, but I see it losing access, slowly but surely, to public funding and public venues. Embrace bigotry all you want but be prepared to suffer the consequences.

In October 2007 Philadelphia city officials determined that the local Boy Scouts chapter would have to pay an additional $199,999 in rent per year for the city owned headquarters because of the ban on gay scouts.

The organization’s Cradle of Liberty Council, which currently pays $1 a year in rent, must pay the increased amount to remain in its downtown building past May 31, Fairmount Park Commission president Robert N.C. Nix said Wednesday.

City officials say they cannot legally rent taxpayer-owned property for a nominal sum to a private organization that discriminates. The city owns the land and the Beaux Arts building constructed by the Scouts in 1928.

Boy Scouts of America fought hard to maintain its right as a private relgious based organization to discriminate against gays and atheists. At the same time they wish to maintain their special privileges such as free or nearly free use of lands and facilities, tax-exempt status, governmental sponsorship and more. They want to have the best of both worlds; to be considered a private group with regard to their own rules and regulations, but a public non-profit when it comes to everybody elses. In other words, dear reader, they want to be subsidized by your tax dollars while reserving the right to discriminate against you or your loved ones. Furthermore the Right Wing–famous for raving against the funding social programs that might keep children off the street after school, put food in their mouths, or pay for their health care–fully supports tax dollars going to the homophobic and atheist-hating BSA.

Now an effort is underway by homopobes to pressure Philadelphia officials to reverse their decision. Thus far 1,200 signatures supporting the BSA’s right to be bigots have been collected and submitted to mayor-elect Michael Nutter.

According to Gramley, the media and homosexual activists have silenced many supporters — even though she says there are far more supporters than naysayers.

Silenced many supporters how? Gagged and beat them? Shipped them off to Gitmo? I’d be interested to hear exactly how this amazing feat was accomplished. More than likely these alleged silenced supporters exist only in Gramley’s mind.

But as city leaders continue to kowtow to homosexual activists, she continues, the Scouts have no other choice than to either sign the one-year lease for $200,000 or find a new location by May

I’m sorry Gramley sees the city leaders making the BSA follow the law as “kowtowing to homosexual activists”. Actually, I’m not sorry. It’s high time that people and groups that discriminate against others based on their deeply held religious beliefs or other dubious criteria stop being granted special rights and privileges.

Boy Scouts of America cannot keep one foot on each side of the line. It cannot claim to be both a private organization , which gives it the right to discriminate, and a non-profit group, thereby granting it special privileges. It must decide which it wants–or needs–more.