Restless Wanderings

I've wondered if some of the resistance on the Right comes from the fear that if gays, lesbians, etc. are allowed to serve openly in the military, the "homosexual lifestyle" will rapidly become more acceptable to mainstream Americans. This interests me, as it's precisely the opposite of the fear that's usually voiced: the fear that it will "destroy morale" among the troops.

My impression is that military folks, especially in combat, tend to be a lot less concerned about race, religion, and sexual orientation than about whether the person beside them can get the job done. If our military subculture becomes tolerant of (or even indifferent to) gays, lesbians, etc., that seems likely to spill back over into "Middle America" - and from a source that a lot of the right wing claims to deeply respect.

I don't know; that's pure speculation on my part.

Good point Michael.

Bruce

Hey Bruce,


I have a question. I need to place it here, 'cause I know you don't like email too much. But I need to ask you: when you were a Pastor, were your views always hard Right or did you tend to tilt to the Left sometimes?

Did Liberalism "slip out" sometimes? Something tells me that it did, but I would love to hear your take on it.

During my ministerial days, nothing even remotely LEFT ever reared it's head. I was Rushborn and bred and when I died I was gonna be Rushdead. The word "Liberal" was as bad (or worse), than Atheist.

Hey Steve,

I gradually drifted left over the years. The last 6 years or so of my ministry I was a socially liberal Evangelical.

I remember one man visiting our Church...He read something I had written for the newspaper and came to check me out. In my sermon I made a comment about politics about Christians of good will being Democrat and Republican.

Afterward he told me I was wrong. A democrat could not be a Christian. :)

The last six years of my ministry I was usually to the left of most, if not all, the people I pastored.

Bruce

Enough already. Let's just close the communication gap in the military:

http://bit.ly/9YNli3

(social satire)

Amen,

It's past time to repeal "don't ask don't tell."

This is good. I agree ~ repeal it. If for no other reason than the general social and religious connotations placed on gay and lesbian peoples are ridiculous. The right-wing wants people to believe that every homosexual male secretly desires to turn every straight man into a 'butt-cruncher', if not, they must be a pedophile and all lesbians are man-haters who desire to seduce straight women away from their husbands and families. Problem is, most of these right-wing fundies wouldn't give a gay person the time of day so they don't even know what they are talking about on a personal level whatsoever (unless they are denying their own homosexual tendencies). This issue gets under my skin more than any other. My gay friends don't care to hear about my heterosexual exploits and they don't talk about their homosexual ones (right-wing fundies talk about THAT more than anyone). They're just people ~ different shapes, different sizes, different backgrounds, ideas, viewpoints and most of the ones I know have bigger hearts than any Christian I've ever met because they have walked the road of disorientation, discrimination and rejection their whole lives.

The fact that we even HAVE gay friends is a step forward.

I used to savagely attack the gay community from the pulpit yet everyone sitting there was heterosexual (at least outwardly) Talk about preaching to the choir.

Bruce

Yes, I know. I heard the 'gay' sermon so many times when I was a fundie. As if a man or woman in the congregation, struggling with their sexual preference, is going to be helped by hearing their headed for hell, AGAIN!

And yes, it is pretty amazing how one's perspective changes. It's not even about tolerance it's about genuinely seeing every person as a person instead of a brand or label no matter who they are. I even arranged flowers for two of my friend's commitment ceremony (aka, marriage) last year. GASP!! Yes, we've come along way.