SOME POLITICS
I have sat at my pc and tried to come up with
something to express my political views a few times, and found that I couldn’t
seem to find a starting point. Then I realized I always need some spark to get
it all out.
Well, over the course of months, I have been talking
with a young gay male reader of TJ, and he revealed that he is a republican. I
questioned him about that—basically asking him why he was in the enemy camp—but
I have come to the conclusion that it’s good to have gay republicans to fight
for change within the party, even if they’re considered pariahs in the ranks.
So we agreed to disagree and are friends. That doesn’t mean I don’t speak my
mind on occasion. Such was the case a day after the Supreme Court decision in
the Texas sodomy case. He sent me a note saying, “See, Sandra Day O’Conner
agrees with us and she’s a republican!” So I wrote back with the following
letter. I figure this letter espouses many of my views on national politics, so
I’ll put it in here:
Republicans as a species aren't all bad, and I know a
few that I like. And S.D. O’Conner, while agreeing with the majority, had to be
persnickety and write her own much narrower opinion, which only agreed with the
equal protection aspect of the overall ruling, thereby saying she
didn't really agree that this type of law is demeaning to gays and
lesbians and that they deserve dignity.
Many people vote republican out of a misplaced notion
that democrats are still-- as they used to be, no doubt-- big spenders who
throw money at problems with little results. That is simply not the case by and
large any more. More democratic governors have balanced budgets in their states
than republican governors (until the last couple of years when most governors
of either party are now running deficits because Bush has destroyed the
best economy in history.) Clinton balanced the budget and gave us a surplus and
presided over the best economy in HISTORY. Bush reversed all that in record
time-- and Clinton did it with control of only one house, while Bush has
screwed everything up with republican control of both houses.
We've lost MILLIONS of jobs due to Bush's
mishandling of the economy. Even his republican controlled houses scaled back
his absurd tax cuts several times because they knew they would be devastating
to the economy-- which they have been even in their scaled back form. Last
year's tax cuts that were supposed to 'create' almost 900,000 jobs, have done
the opposite and LOST millions. If they had passed his cuts unaltered,
we would be in an all out depression right now. And he cut taxes while
increasing military spending and gutting most social programs like SS and
medicare that seniors, one of his core constituencies, depend
on. Even many rightwing pundits acknowledge that.
What I said to you before about our rights
struggle is no less true simply because some republicans are fair minded. The
big unvarnished FACT is that in virtually every attempt for gay rights
that has been opposed in the last 20 years, that opposition has been historically
from republicans, with viciously homophobic fervor, openly condemming us as
sick and twisted, comparing us with criminals and kleptomaniacs and equating us
with bestiality and incest and every other vile thing they can attach to our
image. And this is done vocally, openly, and proudly on their part, and Bush
calls people like this "inclusive' and "A fine American" in
response to this type of disgusting comparison. Your appointed president said
recently: "An open homosexual is someone who wouldn't share my
views." And that is a direct quote.
But I detest this man for much more than his
gay views. As one Democratic candidate said recently,
"Our country is at stake. The
Bush Doctrine of preemptive war is wrong for America. The Bush tax cuts are not
about cutting taxes; they are about starving and destroying Social Security,
Medicare, and our public schools. They call polluting our air "The Clear
Skies Act," destroying old growth "The Healthy Forest Act," and
taking away our civil liberties "The Patriot Act."
What do you expect, when the pres
and vice pres are both former oil company execs and religious fanatics? Bush
says "God talks to him" regularly and tells him what to do. Ok,
right. Sure, whatever you say W. When common people say they hear voices,
we lock them away to protect them and society, unless they're hearing from God,
you know... well, unless God is telling them to go out and kill people.
Oh, wait, he did tell Bush to send others out and kill people in Iraq, but hey,
that's ok, they have oil we want, so it must be God's Will.
They have systematically
dismantled the Clean Air Act, doing things like allowing big corps to put more
arsenic in our drinking water for no other reason than to save them a few
dollars at the expense of your health and mine. He's defunded the EPA to the
point of non-effectiveness, and reversed many past presidents and eliminated
national preserve designation for federal lands so that big timber
companies can cut down old growth forests and not only wipe out our precious
little remaining old growth forest, but do it for pennies on the dollar
they would have to pay if they secured the forest from anyone other than the
gov. And mining companies can rape the federal land-- re: OUR land-- with
virtually no restraint.
His education slogan is "Leave
no child behind." while he has cut federal spending to schools and school
lunch programs etc... He constantly talks about supporting our troops and sends
them into battle to die for us, then cuts funding for their families, cuts the
Veterans Administration funding by billions, etc... He's currently trying to
get legislation through to eliminate businesses having to pay overtime to
employees. Do you want to have to work overtime at regular pay? Do you think
that's fair?
The "Patriotism Act"
breaks HALF of the provisions of the Bill Of Rights!!! Ordinary Americans like
you and me can be called "enemy combatants" at the whim of a gov
agency-- meaning they DO NOT HAVE TO SHOW ANY KIND OF PROOF WHATSOEVER to
arrest you, then they hold you "incommunicado" meaning you do not
have the right to a lawyer, the right to talk with ANYONE, including your
own family, or the right to call witnesses on your behalf, and they
can hold you like this for as long as they want, with none of the rights
guaranteed in the Constitution or Bill Of Rights.
Also, where a law enforcement agency
used to have to justify a wiretap on your phone or any other electronic
surveillance to the judge issuing the order, now the judge can't legally even
ask them why they're wanting it. True patriotism, huh? Real American values,
well, Bush's American values that is. And I'm extremely ashamed of all the
democrats who voted for the Patriot Act as well. I think everyone who voted for
it doesn't deserve to be an American and should be exiled permanently. Period.
This is the most offensive act to ever be foisted on the American people, and I
think it's CRIMINAL. And I include the presidential candidates who voted for it
in this as well! We need a whole new crop of leaders. (But since we won’t have
much choice, I will support one of them when the time comes—cuz anything is
better than this criminal in the White House.)
Do you think the Patriot Act
is a good thing? Did you think it couldn't happen in America? Do you think
this only happens to Arabic people? Think again. There are native born
non-Arabic American citizens being held this way with no charges against them
and no access to legal help or their families, completely cut off from the
outside world, and people don't even know where they are. This is precisely the
type of thing we as Americans have always reviled communist and
dictatorial governments for, and the very thing we have always said:
"That can't happen in America! We have a Constitution and a Bill Of Rights!"
Well now, WE HAVE THOSE MEN IN BLACK WHO CAN COME AND TAKE YOU FROM YOUR
HOME IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT AND MAKE YOU DISAPPEAR. That is reality, Matt,
not the stuff of suspense novels anymore. It's not something that happens
only in other countries anymore. And it CAN happen to you. Don't think it
can't.
John Ashcroft, who lost his election
in Missouri to a dead man because he was so twisted a rightwing religious
nutcase was rewarded by being appointed Attorney General of the US. He, who is
supposed to enforce the laws of our land fairly and justly, has consistently
said gays are sick and "condemned by God" and will go to hell. He
even kicked the Justice Dept's gay employee group out of their annual meeting
place and refused to acknowledge them, while not doing all this to any
of the other groups like the blacks or hispanics etc...
Make no mistake about it: George
Bush is the enemy of the people-- unless you are a super wealthy businessman--
and very much the enemy of gay people. He talks out the side of his mouth,
saying one thing while doing exactly the opposite. All of this is public
record, I'm not making anything up here.
I actually think it's good to have
gay republicans. More exposure to gay people can only be good for moderate
republicans; but the fact is, the party is controlled by the extreme, hateful
people who will zealously trample on our rights at any opportunity they
get, and they are constantly trying to create those opportunities with a
dedication that boggles the mind. These republicans are dedicating enormous
amounts of time and enormous amounts of money to taking away our rights and
making us criminals, third class 'citizens'. You and I are the biggest
threat in the world to them, and they will do anything they can to oppress us.
Keep being a republican, XXXX. Get
the facts. Be a republican and support good candidates-- but whatever you
do, don't support Bush for re-election if you value our American way of life!
And if you care about gay rights at all, just remember that if he gets another term,
he WILL appoint one or two Supreme Court Justices (one of them was supposed to
retire this time but didn't) and they WILL be rightwing idealogues who
view decisions like this one as 'tampering with the constitution', and who
openly say there IS NO RIGHT TO PRIVACY—for any American, not just gays-- which
IS Scalia, Thomas and other's view-- and a rightwing group WILL bring this
matter to the court again and the court WILL overturn this decision, just
like this decision overturned Bowers vs Hardwick, the 1986 Georgia sodomy
ruling in which the '86 court upheld the state's right to make us
criminals-- and, btw, Justice O'Conner AGREED with the decision then and
voted with the majority. At least she has moderated her views on this.
Right now, as we
speak, Bush has several appointees to judgeships that democrats are
fighting for the very views I'm talking about. These candidates for
judgeships have strongly, publicly described gays as sick and twisted
people who deserve no legal protections whatsoever. People like them who say
such things always are against abortion rights, so with those two views in
common, they are exactly the type Bush wants to appoint to all
the judgeships he can.
I think we're going to see
this issue become a big part of the campaign this coming year, because of this
ruling and the Canadian marriage law. Since most of the dem candidates support
gay marriage and gay rights, the rightwing republicans will proudly and
loudly stand up for discrimination of gays and they will push hard for a constitutional
ban on gay marriage. I predict it will become a hot button issue.
So, as I said, get in there and
fight for change, XXXX! Get the facts. If you are going to be a republican,
open your eyes to what the current administration is doing to us and fight to
change it! I personally wouldn't mind someone like John McCain becoming
president if we have to have a republican, but Bush is a dangerous man and
history will look back on his presidency with horror at what he did to our
American way of life.
Later, Mac