Texas Gov. Rick Perry was confronted at a town hall in Iowa on Sunday about his opposition to gays serving openly in the military, a stance which he highlighted in a recent TV ad.
ABC News reports that a 14-year-old openly bisexual high school student confronted Perry during a town hall in Decorah.
“I just want to know why you’re so opposed to gays serving openly in the military, why you want to deny them that freedom when they’re fighting and dying for your right to run for president,” the student said.
Perry, who was apparently unaware of the girl’s sexual orientation at the time, responded as follows (note that “openly gays” is NOT a typo):
“Here’s my issue: This is about my faith, and I happen to think that, you know, there are a whole hosts of sins, homosexuality being one of them, and I’m a sinner and so I’m not going to be the first one to throw a stone. But to openly — it’s just like the Boy Scouts, do you recall when the Boy Scouts were sued to let openly gay individuals serve as Scout master? And that again is one of those issues that I don’t agree with. And I don’t agree that openly gays should be serving in the military. ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ was working and my position is just like I told a guy yesterday. He said, ‘How would you feel if one of your children was gay?’ I said I’d feel the same way. I hate the sin, but I love the sinner, but having them openly serve in the military, I happen to think as a commander in chief of some 20,000 plus people in the military is not good public policy, and this president was forced by his base to change that policy and I don’t think it was good policy, and I don’t think people in the military thought it was good policy.”
With adults telling 14-year-olds that they’re sinners, is it any surprise that LGBT youth are taking their lives at such alarming rates? Thankfully, it sounds like this student has a very supportive father, a Democrat and professor of religion at Luther College, who offered this takedown of Perry’s position, according to ABC:
“My daughter particularly was very incensed by the ad Governor Perry ran a week or two ago here in Iowa where he complained about the problem of gays serving openly in the military but Christians not being able to celebrate Christmas openly. He seemed to get that backwards,” Todd Green said.
“It takes no courage to come out of the closet to be a Christian and run for president of the United States,” he said. “I’d be more impressed if you were Muslim or an atheist and coming out like that, but to come out as though this was an act of courage for him to proclaim his Christian faith, but he also wants to take the stand against gays in the military. This is someone who’s in the position of power and privilege and he’s abusing it.”
Titled “Strong,” Perry’s ad created a firestorm upon its release two weeks ago, even causing tension within his own campaign after reports emerged that a top aide strongly objected to the ad.
Asked what he thought of the governor’s explanation that he “hates the sin” but “loves the sinner,” the father said, “I have always hated that phrase. I think it’s impossible and you show it by action. If you love the sinner, whatever that means, your policy should reflect that I think, but in the end, I don’t understand the logic behind that at all.”
Hate the sin but love the sinner. Translated: if the person who believes this commits the act him/herself, then it’s okay. But if anyone else does it, it’s a sin. As the old joke goes, heaven is a place where the Baptists drink in front of each other.
That’s a joke…id to see them say that about christians who hav been murdered for their faith in countries…that day will come in the usa soon enough. I congradulate the candidate for standing up for his beliefes…knowing this could lower his chances since the world is accepting gay people. His opinion doesn’t affect his ability to successfully run a country. That would b the same as condeming him for liking Chinese food(if in fact he even does…lol)
@Jenniffer: “what” day will come in the USA soon enough? And you would congratulate (you misspelled that word, by the way) someone for standing up for his beliefs of hatred, separation, discrimination, exclusion and judgmentalism? And if that really is his opinion, and if he really DOES have those beliefs, then his opinion most certainly DOES affect his ability to run a country whose constitution clearly and unequivocally states that “all men are created equal.” You appear (based on your screen name) to be of the female gender. What if Mr. Perry told you that he believed that women could not be competent lawmakers or would not be capable of serving their country? I suspect that would change your tune. Clearly you haven’t thought this through. What isn’t clear is whether it’s because you are unwilling, or unable.
@James Simmons: Thanks for explainin’ to jennifer what it means to be a real American, liberty and justice for ALL.
I don’t fault Jenniffer. I think she is a product of our failed public education system–a system which does not only fail to teach its participants the basics of a fundamental education, but that also effectively fails to challenge them to think and reason.
jennifer why are you reading a gay newspaper, why don’t you just read one the,run of the mill, straight newspapers out there. May be you can find a boyfriend or husband in the want ads.
RE: James and Kurtz..
Rock on! As a life-long citizen of Texas, I can speak to the shortcomings of Mr. Perry. In short, I have never been able to comprehend the fact that middle America is able to vote on the rights of our minority. They’re not able to vote to restrict the rights of African Americans, Mexican Americans (the legal ones), etc. How have we fallen between the planks? Where is the constitutionality in that?
So “love the sinner but hate the sin” in this context = God made you gay, but he doesn’t want you to find love.
What kind of fucked-up religious hocus-pocus cult is that?
Who knows if he really feels this way? He took his direction from George W. Bush, whom we all know was a raving lunatic. Also, I think Mr. Perry probably knows by now that he can’t win, so out of bitterness and indignation he is making these statements just to piss everyone off (and coming off as a pious, arrogant prick in the process). He won’t change his mind, because he refuses to listen to reason. And face it, you can’t reason with an idiot. They wouldn’t understand you anyway.
Rick Perry is perfectly Ok with executing people, even if there is serious doubt about the person’s guilt or of they received a fair trial. Christian doctrine would have a much bigger problem with that then it would with the idea of homosexuals serving in an organization whose primary function is in many instances to kill people (the military). The Bible doesn’t say anything about gays in the military. The Bible doesn’t say anything about openly celebrating Christmas (a made up commercialized and secular holiday) in government-funded public schools. The Bible does, however, say “Thou shalt not kill.”
why would a gay man not be born as equal as anyone else? Aren’t
we all born equal? If he was elected who knows how he would descriminate against gays he would be taking or country years back.
Rick Perry can suck it.