I’m an angry man and I’m a puzzled man. It’s all to do with a Million Moms.
The Million Mums Fund and Challenge is a non-profit organisation dedicated to ensure healthy pregnancies and safe deliveries to thousands of women in the third world. It does a wonderful job. So why would it make me angry.
Well, there’s another Million Moms campaign which has nothing to do with the first one. This one started out in America in 2000 when a small group decided to try and combat what it saw were loose gun controls in the US and marched to try and keep guns out of the hands of children, young people and criminals. As one who doesn’t live over there I can only say my heart would have been with them in those days and not with the rival group who took issue with them. I know it’s written into the Constitution that all Americans have the right to bear arms but since the Wild West has gone and gun crimes are ever in the news you have to wonder why the Constitution hasn’t been rewritten. Easy answer, the manufacturers of weapons there have a lot of political clout and very little conscience.
Things changed within that group when it appeared that money was being used to support politicians and numbers on their marches got as low as a couple of hundred as support fell away. But now it’s back on the increase. And is it another issue to combat the previously unsuccessful gun laws? No, this is all about hate. Only this time they’re in the business of generating it.
Recently I mentioned a blog post by a friend about a 14-year-old boy who died. His name was Kenneth James Weishuhn and he committed suicide at just 14 after he made the mistake of coming ‘out’ at school and declaring himself gay. He was unmercifully bullied at school and out of school. His life was made miserable by taunts and by (some) friends no longer talking too him. School can be an evil place to be and schoolkids amongst the most cruel people but often they grow older and wiser. Why don’t I think this will happen here? Well, it because of One Million Moms and their like who have decided that gays are bad and unnatural and teach their children this. So, it becomes OK for children to bully when they have their parents opinions to encourage them. One Million Moms have tried to have J C Penney drop Ellen DeGeneres as a spokesperson because she’s gay. They’ve asked people to write in to complain. Fortunately Miss De Generes has enough fans to fight that off and the One Million Moms facebook site had to close when the fans showed their muscle. This where the anger got bad because Million Moms Fund who are also on Facebook started to get the flak from the fans who mistook the site. I’m glad to say this has been sorted now as it could have cost them a lot in donations.
One Million Moms are wont to say that being gay is unnatural and they have the bible on their side they’d have us believe. There have been recommendations that children should be ‘cured’ of this disease and I worry about what they’d want to do with adults. They call themselves Conservative which makes me shudder as that’s the Political Party I vote for in the UK. I think they remind me more of A VERY right-wing group from the 1930’s who came to power in Germany.
Just as worrying was their saying the Church supports them, for tonight I listened to a rant I couldn’t believe came from a Church at all. Pastor Sean Harris of North Carolina ( who in my opinion should now be sitting in jail for promoting cruelty) suggested that any four-year old boys who showed a ‘limp wrist’ should have it cracked and dad’s should punch them. I hope he doesn’t have children of his own. Any church that pays this man and doesn’t instantly de-frock him is not one I’d like to see people go to.
North Carolina in the news again also decided they should make an amendment to create an Anti-gay Marriage act. It seems to me that Church and State are getting too close here and I thought the US was founded to keep the two separate. So now I’m puzzled. I’m reading all about the Land of the Free trying to curtail the rights of some of its population. A country that spoke of bringing them your poor and huddled masses ( forgive any misquote) which would lead you to believe they care and yet 14 year old boys can be left so desperate after being bullied that they kill themselves rather than tolerate another day of that vaunted freedom.
I read of Battered Wives shelters being taxed out of existence, abortion clinics being attacked and closed down and it makes me want to weep for women and children there. ( Except for One Million Moms of course). What does worry and intrigue me is what is going to happen if the child of one of these parents reaches 14 and decides he/she is gay. Will their parents lead the hounding of them and ensure the bullying starts in the home with Dad (or the Pastor) punching them?
For the elucidation of any of the Million Moms out there. I looked it up….Being Gay is NOT an illness that can be cured and I don’t think Skinner and his operant conditioning would help much either. It’s not something teens ‘grow out of’, it’s NOT something they’re doing this week just to spite you and it most definitely CAN’T be cured by constantly beating them up. It’s a way of life that they’re born with so learn to live with it and the resultant people will probably grow up well balanced. As long as N,Carolina doesn’t get it’s way your gay child will probably be able to marry and enjoy a happy life.
I’m hoping to see a banner flying somewhere in N.Carolina that says A Billion Moms against A Million Moms and for common sense.
barsetshirediaries 
David…our blogs are now linked. What a great post. Thank you for your bravery in stating your views openly. I am not altogether certain that the Internet is a safe place. It is littered with bullies. I am glad that we are finally linked by blog. Hope all is well with you. Best.
Thank you Niamh. After reading about the young boy I realised it’s those that shout loudest get heard the most. That’s usually the bullies. It’s time for me to take a stand and say enough is enough. We need more tolerance. Gays are people too. People have to accept that and move on. It’s as bad as the time when evolution theories couldn’t be taught because people thought to believe it made them monkeys. Hate and this kind of fascism must not be allowed to win.
LIKE. People like these women and those who are members of the Westboro Baptist Church use their bible to spread hate. It is a very sad thing to twist religion to your own ends.
Out of a million families there has to be a percentage who are gay, I wonder how many of them also suicide and the reason behind their action is never known as they have kept their true selves hidden? A sad state of affairs all round 😦
Yes, it’s bad enough to be considering suicide but for it to be so bad that you know your family wouldn’t understand the way you feel must be awful.
It always surprises me that churches like Westboro can be allowed to continue since Christians profess to love their fellow man ( I should perhaps have reworded that). You’d think the other Churches would try to pull in the congregation and have Westboro closed down and de-loused. Surely Ministers who preach this hate are not mainstream and supported by Bishops, they must have taken their ordinations online much like those who claim a multitude of Titles as they front for Fake Orders of Chivalry and become an Archbishop after a week. Because if the Westboro hate mongers are backed by a real church hierarchy then they’re obviously working from another book than the bible I remember.
God I love you guys! If the world had a million like you – all prepared to take a stand and fight for tolerance, places like that Westboro place might wither and die from the public backlash and young children could grow up being happy and safe just the way they are..
-absolutely ginormous hugs-
Meeks
In this instance I’d have been in the dark about this issue if you hadn’t raised it. Any public support now is thanks to you, and I personally owe you my thanks for having made me look hard at this and research a little more. Like many others, I drifted by unaware of this tragedy and the background to it and the growing fundamentalist threat from the Christian Church. I’ve now heard of preaching against Moslems without taking into account that the only threat there is from their fundamentalists. If now looks like we have the same problem and hate will grow from this unless these people on both sides are brought down by the ordinary people who just follow the tenets of their faith or those who view religion as the biggest warmonger ever.
For this world to survive we need to be living in peace, helping each other and celebrating our differences rather than fearing them.
I would like to address the gun law/constitution. The reason it hasn’t been changed is, everybody thinks the gun laws were all about hunting or protecting yourself from Indians and other unruly types in the old West. That isn’t exactly the case. The gun laws were established to prevent the American government from tyranny against its people. For as long as Americans are allowed to own guns, they will remain free in a free land. And don’t say that communism, could never happen in America in this day and age, it has already rooted and is trying to grow as we speak. Each year, Americans lose at least one right or freedom. Since my birth, America has lost 45 rights/freedoms. It’s a slow process for communism however, it would be a lot faster if they (progressives) could just get our guns.
As for gay/homosexuality, there is nothing wrong with it. Sure, one could argue it is against nature however, in nature, there are plenty of other species on this planet where males “bond” with males. (I saw it actually on animal planet or something several years ago so I can’t remember all of it) Religion is a very dangerous occupation globally. (As is politics) Every war ever fought since the civility of man was fought over religion or politics. Prior to that, it was a matter of survival for Neanderthal man. However, as a straight man, I have no problem with homosexuality. I cannot see how somebody else’s sexual preference would affect me. Why so many religions are against it is beyond me. Except to maybe control the masses in the same guise as communism.
Same thing for abortion. I am pro life. But for everyone else, I am pro choice. The girl down the street who gets an abortion for whatever reason has nothing at all to do with me. It’s none of my business nor anybody else’s. If there is a problem with it, and you believe in God then maybe you should just let that God deal with that person when the time comes. (Like judgement day) After all, doesn’t it say something like that in the bible? I’m pretty sure it does.
The nature of man is to run with the pack. The more people that believe in the same things you do, the more you will think it’s right and the deeper you will believe in it. For some reason, many people need other people’s approval to boost their confidence.
Now that I have that out of the way … great post! LOL
Thanks for clarifying the gun law ( Hic, sorry that came out as gin law) constitution. From the time that those laws were enacted it was a viable argument given that there was a very pro-lobby for setting the U.S. on similar lines to England even to the keeping and awarding of titles. Again though, I wonder if that time of fear has not passed.
I’m not going to argue that Communism couldn’t gain a hold in the U.S. but I wonder what difference the guns make if they work on hearts and minds now rather than with open rhetoric.Only these days they wouldn’t call it Communism, they’d find a more appealing name and work by guile till the majority approved it,elect it and find themselves being deprived of weapons anyway.
It appears Communism has had it’s day in most places now and has been shown to have failed.I’m not sure we’re not looking at a resurgence of fascism and that could be the reason for losing so many of the freedoms you cherish. But each of those freedoms is lost because of the people in power and it’s the electorate who voted them in.
North Carolina is a great case in point but there are examples in other states too. Take a young girl who is emotionally unstable and incapable of looking after a child.She’s raped or taken advantage of and yet she can’t have an abortion if she becomes pregnant. That’s a freedom eroded. The gay person ( and like you I have no problem with them as it doesn’t affect my own sexuality).denied the right to ‘marry’ and form a life bond giving his partner all the rights another partner would have like pensions, denied because it offends SOME churches. What have the Church and Government got to do with each other since they are supposed to be separate.Another freedom eroded. It looks like we’re regressing here rather than making progress with human rights.
You’re quite right that the Church was created to control the masses. It’s also the reason that women don’t feature much in its hierarchy and why so many other ‘books’ were excluded from the bible, because they didn’t tell the story that would allow Rome to control the church. But the Church should not be able to wield it’s power over a government of free people unless those people give it permission.I think that’s what we’re seeing when a Pastor can stand and tell his congregation that punching children is OK if they act gay even before they are at an age to be aware of sexuality.In my country I’d hope to see the man arrested and out of a job pronto.
Thanks for what is a very great response to my blog. You make a lot of sense. Now I just have to hope that the pack man runs with starts to change it’s direction and come down on the side of tolerance and human decency.
Most Americans are very centered in their beliefs, but both “sides” get so loud they tend to drown out the middle.
I think having the right to bear arms is crucial. Most gun owners in America are responsible, it’s usually the guns in illegal gun trades that create the most damage. I don’t know of many criminals that register their firearms and take safety courses.
I think the right to live in a way that makes you happy and doesn’t infringe on others is the basis of our Constitution. That’s why the Puritans came over, to live in a manner fitting their own beliefs, with respect to others. It has been so distorted over the last 200 years by lawyers and people who have their own agendas that only the skeleton of it is what remains. Each side has picked the bones clean, not wanting the other side to have any.
There is no room in our Constitution nor our hearts for hate, yet it seems ever present when people don’t want someone to do something they disagree with. Then they turn to violence and bullying. They tell people that you can beat the idea right out of the person, like that’s a possibility. What they don’t know, like Ellen’s fans did, once the idea get’s support, it’s a hell of alot harder to beat the idea. We need more people who believe in love and empathy. Hate holds no place in heaven.
You’re right that Hate holds no place in heaven but it should no more hold a place on earth. I couldn’t believe that N.Carolina is ready to bring in laws to ban gay marriage thus denying gays the rights of straight people. A STATE trying to end rights so hard fought for and won.By a State I mean the people because without their backing this sickening law would get nowhere.Since when do Americans become so bigoted ? To hear the Pastor rant in Church about hitting children was bad enough but to hear him trying to claim his words were taken out of context was worse- I heard them. How many four year-old children are gay for Heavens sake or at least how many know what gay means ? And yet people will go back week after week and agree with this evil man and do as he suggests.How long can this situation continue before the silent majority stand up and shout “ENOUGH! it’s our turn now “!
You may be right about the right to bear arms. It’s just my own opinion that people reach for them too readily. Living in a country that doesn’t allow the carrying off irearms and which doesn’t license them except for hunting etc. has made it difficult for me to take a balanced view when I hear of so much killing there. But it is wrong that the pro-weapons faction including the manufacturers has such a big say because of the votes they can buy. A reasoned debate of the pro’s and con’s would be better than just repeating that the right is enshrined in the Constitution which I think was written for a different time.
People should be allowed to live in a way that makes them happy where that happiness doesn’t infringe someone else’s rights- I’m adding that before some smart alec tells me it makes him unhappy to see gays get married. I want to carry on with my life knowing that at least some of the hate in the world is eradicated. I want to see that the world has more nice people than bigots, more fed people than starving. To get there I have to hope that more and more people will write about the little evils that creep in and no-one notices until they creep out again and die leavingus a much more tolerant people.
In terms of gun laws I have seen and heard this discussion so many times, not just on blogs but on FB too.
There is a mindset in America that says guns are fine. There is a mindset in Europe, Australia, Canada, that says they are not. To me, guns are meant to kill and I don’t think that is a good thing, regardless of whether states with the right to carry a .45 or whatever in your handbag have less gun deaths than other states.
But changing cultures, beliefs and perceptions is far harder than legislating.
As other readers have said, someone’s sexuality is not my business, unless they are being victimised for it, in which case I will stand up for them. I lose patience with the debate though, because for me there isn’t one. People have the right to their own choice of sexual partner. I have readers who are gay, trans and lesbian, I only know because at some point it has come out (so to speak), but is it relevant? No. I don’t write about discrimination against LGBTQ because a) I don’t have enough knowledge and b) I have nothing to say except DON’T. (discriminate).
I won’t even get into abortion/pro-choice/pro-life debates. Although I used to.
Thank you. I agree with you, guns are meant to kill. If you’re not going to kill why have one?
Under normal circumstances I wouldn’t write about LGBT issues unless someone was being bullied because of their sexual preference. There have been too many cases that have led to death and I’d like to help stop it, but I’m enraged when I hear a Pastor ( his speech was recorded and put on Youtube) telling people to hit children as young as 4 for standing with a ‘limp wrist’ as though a 4 year old knows what he’s doing. The Christian fundamentalists are a danger as great as any other when they display no tolerance and little humanity.
As for abortion- my opinion is that the body is a woman’s and the choice should be hers.But, even if a state legislates against it, they should recognise the need in certain circumstances like rape for instance.Why subject a woman to nine months of remembering her ordeal.
Thank you for dropping in.
xxx Hugs Galore xxx
I really can’t get away from the fact that guns are meant to kill, whether it is people or animals.
Clearly criminals use guns. But I’m not a law enforcement officer and it is not up to me to go around shooting every person I think is a threat. I think justification of gun laws for civilians is beyond belief, but there you go. Others consider it a right.
I have no probs reading about LGBT (has Q been dropped these days?) I just don’t think I have enough knowledge to write about it, similarly to that I didn’t write about Mandela when he died. I have enough things to write about without dabbling in areas where I don’t have enough knowledge.
Any religious fundamentalist causes problems and wants to erode rights. I’m a happy atheist who has no problem with people following their own belief, but please don’t impose your beliefs on me or anyone else. That’s the problem. I might as well go around shooting people for eating animals (for example because I’m vegetarian).
We have a short life and our bodies are our own, to do with as we choose so long as it doesn’t harm anyone else. What is difficult about that?
Sadly it seems our minds shouldn’t be our own.
As for abortion – what about failure of contraception? But I’ll mention that in a future Clouds post. And personally, I would move state!