- This is the sweet face of 14-year-old Philip Parker of Tennessee who killed himself after years of relentless bullying for being gay.
I have to admit, with some shame, that more often than I would care to acknowledge, my anger at stupid people gets the best of me. Instead of trying to be patient and reasonable, I choose the less constructive path of angrily expressing condescending insults.
And I did it again yesterday. I had read an article on Advocate.com about a Tennessee law-maker who seems to put a lot of time and effort into being a homophobic bigot. The fact that Tennessee has one of the highest suicide rates of LGBT teenagers in the country suggests that the kind of intolerant culture that this legislator promotes is all to prevalent in that state.
Rep. John Ragan recently sponsored a “license to bully” bill that protects thugs who want to verbally harass LGBT people based on “religious and moral grounds.” And if Ragan’s license to bully bill isn’t outrageous enough, consider if you will, that just one day after 14-year-old Philip Parker, a gay teen in Tennessee, committed suicide, Rep. Ragan had the unmitigated gall to publicly declare that gay people are “not mentally healthy adult human beings.”
At least he considers them human. That’s a step in the right direction, no?
Actually, he may have a point. If many LBGT people suffer from emotional instability it is not the result of their sexual orientation, it comes from years of being subjected to the hate of stupid people who need to demonize others to validate their pathetic lives.
A middle school lesbian student in Tennessee, Kristin M. Johnson, wrote a respectful, reasonable letter to Ragan to object to his license to bully bill. In response, Ragan replied that homosexuality is just another bad choice that people make like: “murder, rape, overeating and prostitution.”
After reading this article, it took me all of a minute to dig up an email address for the learned legislator: rep.john.ragan@capitol.tn.gov
I know, I could have politely told him how disappointed I was in his proposed legislation and unkind rhetoric. I could have nicely told him that, as gay man myself, I understand that it can be very challenging for some people to accept that LGBT people do not choose their sexual orientation. But I was too angry. I wrote the Tennessean:
“Why do southern red-necks open their mouths and advertise to the world how incredibly simple, bigoted and foolish they are?”
If I had any remorse about lowering myself to childish name-calling, it was quickly extinguished upon reading the meandering, unbelievably inane response I got back.
Dear Mr. Gilbert,
I find it amazing that those who demand tolerance from others are so intolerant toward others.
A person is a heterosexual because of the presence of genitalia of one sex or the other. No one except a very few with an exceedingly rare congenital deformity have both kinds of genitalia.
The term, “sexual orientation” is based entirely upon “feelings” according to the American Psychological Association definition. I went to great lengths with multiple examples and illustrations to point out that “feelings” do not “control” behavior. I also went to similar lengths to point out that descriptors based upon behavior do not apply to those who may “feel,” be “oriented,” a certain way but do not engage the behavior of the applicable descriptor.
Given that everyone born without the previously mentioned birth defect is heterosexual, the defining characteristic of homosexuality (not sexual orientation) is behavior. Behavior is a choice, as I am sure you agree. Therefore, one chooses to engage in homosexual behavior or not. if one chooses not to engage in homosexual behavior, then the descriptor of that behavior is not applicable regardless how that person may “feel” or be “oriented.”
I trust this exposition has clarified the issue for you.
Regards,
John D. Ragan
State Representative
I’m so glad Ragan cleared all this up for the world. I get it now. I don’t know how all of us missed that obvious fact previously! Genitalia determine our sexual orientation and all those “feelings” we have? They don’t mean a darn thing.
If obvious “facts” like genitalia play such a decisive role in determining human identity, does overt stupidity indicate that someone has a pea-size brain? I stand by my original missive to Ragan.
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I can only say…can’t fix stupid.
is all to prevalent in that state.
should be…
‘is all TOO prevalent in that state.’
Why are you surprised at this? We all know Republicans don’t have feelings (but if you look real close, you may find they do have genitalia…)
I personally believe you’re being quite generous by suggesting that his brain might actually be as large as pea-sized. My only question would be, which buttock do you think it is situated in?
John Stuart Mill, a prominent philosopher of his day, offered this observation– “Although it is not true that all conservatives are stupid people, it is true that most stupid people are conservative.”
‘Nuff said?
Unfortunately, the answer is no. As long as stupid people are allowed to gain positions of prominence and power in our political parties, we will see this kind of incredible idiocy over and over. My one real regret is that the American LGBT community is too civilized for their own good.
What do I mean by that, you ask? Just this–that the law protecting bullies in Tennessee would protect LGBT kids who bullied back. Yes, I know, it’s a terrible idea, and an awful precedent, and would ignite an immediate backlash from the parents of those poor, bullied bullies. . . But I am sorely, terribly tired of people like Ragan thinking they can get away with this crap because the LGBT community is too “nice” to give back as good as they get!
The simple truth is that all people like Ragan respect is power. And to people like Ragan, power consists of the willingness to beat the shit out of people you don’t like. I know that this is anathema to the LGBT community, who pride themselves on being better than the people who persecute them.
To those exceptionally tolerant and civilized individuals, I offer this repulsive reminder. You are espousing the same position the Jews did in the 1930s, in Germany–refusing to fight your enemies with the weapons and attitudes of that enemy, for fear of becoming the monster you would be fighting against.
History tells us how well that worked for the Jews. Do NOT mock the lessons that history offers you, lest you be forced to relive them, learn them yet again, and leave your own similar mark on history. The so-called “Christians” would love to push, and push, and push, until it’s legal to purge the LGBT community the same way Hitler purged the Jews.
And don’t even tell me it isn’t possible, not here, not in America, not today. No, they can’t do it today, or even tomorrow. But if you folks don’t start fighting back, now, as if your lives all depend on it, then in a few years they very well might.
But then it will probably be too late.
God help us ALL.
Love the conflation of ‘homosexual’ with ‘hermaphrodite.’
can you send me a link to the article you are talking about. i realise it is likely futile, but i would like to attempt to disprove his hypothesis, however, he says in his email to you that he cites multiple examples of behaviours not being controlled by feelings, and i need to know specifics if i am to refute the claims he is making. thanks, luke
http://mentallyhealthyadulthumanbeings.blogspot.com/2012/01/it-gets-better.html
http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2012/01/25/Tennessee_Lawmaker_Gays_Not_Mentally_Healthy_Adult_Human_Beings/