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S A T U R D A Y , N O V E M B E R 0 6 , 2 0 0 4Condemning Gays -- Blame Game Continuesby Michael in New York on
11/06/2004 01:36:00 PMHere's another article trying to rationalize why the Dems lost byblaming our core values -- in this case, equal rights for gays. (And by"our" core values, I mean America's core values.) The argument? Ifthe homos in San Francisco hadn't made such a spectacle ofthemselves (by politely lining up for hours or days in a fervent desireto have their lifelong partners recognized by the state), then Bushwouldn't have been able to rile up the evangelicals so much and Kerrywould have won.As John pointed out to me, in 2000, the Dems tried to blame Gore'sloss on groups pushing for reasonable gun laws. In other words, if wejust abandoned the idea of reasonable gun laws (which are supportedby the vast majority of Americans), abandoned the fringe idea ofequal rights for all citizens, and, heck, abandoned a woman's right tochoose, then we could win elections AND rename ourselves theRepublican Party and save lots of money on stationery to boot.You could point to many different groups as making the difference inthis election since it came down to 3% of the popular vote and onestate. John Kerry didn't reach out strongly enough to the blackcommunity (turnout was so-so in Ohio). John Kerry didn't reach outto Hispanics enough. And so on.But let's assume for a moment that John Kerry's belief that gaysdeserve civil unions (which is also endorsed by Bush), that JohnKerry's opposition to a Constitutional Amendment taking away rightsfrom gays as unnecessary and divisive (an amendment that wasrejected by the Republican controlled Senate) DID in fact make himlose. So what?I would be proud to lose an election because I denounced slavery.I would be proud to lose an election because I supported the suffragemovement.I would be proud to lose an election because I supported the CivilRights Voting Act and finally guaranteed blacks the right to vote.(Though even today we can't guarantee those votes will be counted.)Why wouldn't John Kerry and the Democratic Party be proud to losean election because they defended equal rights for all citizens?Because they said gays/blacks/women are NOT inferior to anyoneelse and do deserve respect and equal and fair treatment under thelaw?Who do you think history is going to judge more kindly? George Bush-- who demonized gays and ran a nasty, divisive campaign maligningthem to get elected?I can't imagine anything that would make me prouder than to standup for my fellow citizens' rights and to pay a price for that stance. Iwould pay it happily. Why aren't the Democrats?
HuffPost PoliticsJeffrey Smith: Governor Sebelius Must Veto KansasBill That Endangers Milk Safety - Governor Sebeliuswants to be our new Secretary of Health andHuman Services. But before she is sworn in, shehas an important job to...8 minutes agoEschatonOvernight - Rock on.42 minutes agoDaily KosOpen Thread and Diary Rescue - *Tonight's RescueRangers are Louisiana 1976, jlms qkw, shayera,dopper0189, ybruti, and srkp23 with vcmvo2editing.* ~ World order will be secured only ...46 minutes agoCrooks and LiarsC&L's Late Night Music Club: The 50 State Strategywith The Pine Box Boys (CA) - Title: Mr. SkeletonArtist: The Pine Box Boys San Francisco isn'tknown for Bluegrass, but maybe if there weremore bands like The Pine Box Boys, it would ...51 minutes agoFiredoglakeLate Nite: Michele Bachmann Stars in “Birth of anAberration” - Minnesota's wackiest export treadsthe boards of the Wingnut dinner theater.2 hours agoJ O H N ' S P H OT O S
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Next 6AMERICAblog News| A great nation deserves the truth: Cond...http://www.americablog.com/2004/11/condemning-gays-blame...
1 of 64/7/09 1:34 AM
11/06/2004 01:36:00 PMHere's another article trying to rationalize why the Dems lost byblaming our core values -- in this case, equal rights for gays. (And by"our" core values, I mean America's core values.) The argument? Ifthe homos in San Francisco hadn't made such a spectacle ofthemselves (by politely lining up for hours or days in a fervent desireto have their lifelong partners recognized by the state), then Bushwouldn't have been able to rile up the evangelicals so much and Kerrywould have won.As John pointed out to me, in 2000, the Dems tried to blame Gore'sloss on groups pushing for reasonable gun laws. In other words, if wejust abandoned the idea of reasonable gun laws (which are supportedby the vast majority of Americans), abandoned the fringe idea ofequal rights for all citizens, and, heck, abandoned a woman's right tochoose, then we could win elections AND rename ourselves theRepublican Party and save lots of money on stationery to boot.You could point to many different groups as making the difference inthis election since it came down to 3% of the popular vote and onestate. John Kerry didn't reach out strongly enough to the blackcommunity (turnout was so-so in Ohio). John Kerry didn't reach outto Hispanics enough. And so on.But let's assume for a moment that John Kerry's belief that gaysdeserve civil unions (which is also endorsed by Bush), that JohnKerry's opposition to a Constitutional Amendment taking away rightsfrom gays as unnecessary and divisive (an amendment that wasrejected by the Republican controlled Senate) DID in fact make himlose. So what?I would be proud to lose an election because I denounced slavery.I would be proud to lose an election because I supported the suffragemovement.I would be proud to lose an election because I supported the CivilRights Voting Act and finally guaranteed blacks the right to vote.(Though even today we can't guarantee those votes will be counted.)Why wouldn't John Kerry and the Democratic Party be proud to losean election because they defended equal rights for all citizens?Because they said gays/blacks/women are NOT inferior to anyoneelse and do deserve respect and equal and fair treatment under thelaw?Who do you think history is going to judge more kindly? George Bush-- who demonized gays and ran a nasty, divisive campaign maligningthem to get elected?I can't imagine anything that would make me prouder than to standup for my fellow citizens' rights and to pay a price for that stance. Iwould pay it happily. Why aren't the Democrats?
HuffPost PoliticsJeffrey Smith: Governor Sebelius Must Veto KansasBill That Endangers Milk Safety - Governor Sebeliuswants to be our new Secretary of Health andHuman Services. But before she is sworn in, shehas an important job to...8 minutes agoEschatonOvernight - Rock on.42 minutes agoDaily KosOpen Thread and Diary Rescue - *Tonight's RescueRangers are Louisiana 1976, jlms qkw, shayera,dopper0189, ybruti, and srkp23 with vcmvo2editing.* ~ World order will be secured only ...46 minutes agoCrooks and LiarsC&L's Late Night Music Club: The 50 State Strategywith The Pine Box Boys (CA) - Title: Mr. SkeletonArtist: The Pine Box Boys San Francisco isn'tknown for Bluegrass, but maybe if there weremore bands like The Pine Box Boys, it would ...51 minutes agoFiredoglakeLate Nite: Michele Bachmann Stars in “Birth of anAberration” - Minnesota's wackiest export treadsthe boards of the Wingnut dinner theater.2 hours agoJ O H N ' S P H OT O S
Show AllA M E R I C A B L O G T V
Next 6AMERICAblog News| A great nation deserves the truth: Cond...http://www.americablog.com/2004/11/condemning-gays-blame...
1 of 64/7/09 1:34 AM