"Prop 8 - The Musical" - Starring Jack Black, Margaret Cho, & John C. Reilly

*BEWARE - OFFENSIVE CONTENT*

Subliminal messages:

Gay marriage is trendy, youthful, and light; traditional Marriage is prudish, outdated, and black.

Love is all you need; the Bible is hocus pocus.

Gay marriage is right and good because all the money spent on weddings will save our economy. 

*Oh brother*

My take:

If this is what passes for comedy now days, I'll have no part of it.  It didn't make me laugh; it made me roll my eyes and throw my hands up in exasperation and disbelief.  I find it telling that the director went straight for mocking religious beliefs, completely ignoring the fact that there are stacks and stacks of secular research studies which prove that the gay lifestyle is violent, destructive, diseased, and unwholesome (check out the resources section here).  In truth, the reality of the gay lifestyle is a far cry from the bouncing, singing, "gaiety" depicted on the "beach" in this insipid musical.  The reality that is so conspicuously absent from this supposed "humor" is that of AIDS, violence and domestic abuse, broken homes, confused children, and a genderless, dead-end society, left stripped and scorned in the frigid cold, hugging its identity-complexed, family-murdered, dysfunctional self.

Reality Check:

Supporters of traditional marriage

(not anti-gay people, just anti-gay marriage)

Supporters of gay marriage 

(mockers and haters of all things religious)

Stark contrast, eh?  Let's be honest here, do these pictures inspire confidence in the gay community's touted love theme?  Does this look like a poor, victimized, minority that needs constitutional protection? Are these the same frolicking, gay beach-goers so "gaily" depicted in Prop 8 - The Musical?  The answer is a resounding "NO." Kinda like the one gays already got when 52% of Californians said that gay marriage was not acceptable to them.  Seems like we've got ourselves some kids who need a lesson on poor sportsmanship.  Gays need a modern-day Martin Luther who can teach them to be respectful and peaceful as they promote their so-called "rights."

And last....

Jack Black as Jesus?  Give me a break.  Check out this Jack Black Biography excerpt:

"This being the Seventies in Los Angeles, the parents believed that one should not say No to one's children, making life ever more volatile. Beyond this, there was what Black later described as weird family stuff, not wife-swapping exactly, but swinging. 'It was funny', he said 'and not funny ha-ha'."

Couldn't say "no" in the Seventies.  Gee, imagine that.  Perhaps, and this is just a theory, but perhaps the lack of parental discipline then is what feeds this sense of entitlement so prevalent among youth today.  Eh?  Can I get a "holla?!"  Just a thought.  So, anyway, back to Black.  He says he grew up with an awareness of the "weird" sexual practices of his parents, claiming it wasn't exactly ideal, but in a twisted turn-about he now supports the unconventional. (???)  Hm.  And then there's this....

"Black met cellist Tanya Haden, one of jazz great Charlie Haden's triplet daughters. In fact, he'd first met Haden back at his specialist high school, but the pair had never dated. Now, after just months together, they'd elope, getting married in March, 2006, with Haden bearing him his first child, son Samuel, that June."

Black doesn't exactly have the greatest track record to be able to establish what is good and right and to represent the Savior of the world.  When did sacred things become so openly and brazenly subjected to mockery without so much as a "by your leave?"  When were we taught to laugh at blasphemy and promote immorality?  When did Jack Black, Margaret Cho, and John C. Reilly become authorities on the Bible? And when did their opinion take precedence over thousands of years worth of Biblical teachings from the Savior Himself and His prophets?

Oh I could go on and on, but I'll save it for another post.  Coming up...discussion on how the media has spearheaded the moral neutering of society.

Mormon is the New Black - A Thanksgiving Story

Tonight (or I guess I should actually say last night) I watched Glory Road. Based on a true story, the inspirational movie chronicles a 1960's Black college basketball team who, against all odds, wins the NCAA Championships. The team was not completely made up of African American players, but after several incidents of racism, discrimination, and intimidation aimed at the Black members, Coach Haskins and "the White" teammates got fed up and turned the fight for the NCAA Championship over to their Black Brothers. In doing so, the NCAA win became a sort of "stick-it-to-the-man" victory.

Rising out of obscurity in a racist world, these Black basketball players were viciously targeted by White supremacists. At one point in the movie the players returned to their motel room after a game to find racial slurs, threats, and profanities splattered on their walls in blood. At another point, one of the players was surrounded by three White men in a bathroom, brutally beaten, and dunked in a toilet almost to the point of drowning.

In the wake of Proposition 8, a popular phrase has sprung into being and is being widely circulated on the Internet and throughout media outlets. I have heard it often alleged that "Gay is the new Black." Supposedly gays are the oppressed, battered, African-American sequels. I protest that comparison and would suggest a more accurate one. In a near-perfect echo of the horrific monstrosities played out against the Black Texas Western basketball players, I propose that in truth, "Mormon is the new Black." Seeing those blood-splattered motel walls immediately brought to mind the graffiti-littered LA Temple walls and angry, anti-Mormon epithets hoisted up on homemade signs, swaying to and fro above a seething, volatile crowd. "Ban the Mormons!" This is the current and beloved call of gay rights activists. Watching that Black basketball player being beaten senseless in a filthy public bathroom reminded me of the elderly couple beaten mercilessly by their neighbor for exercising their freedom of speech by placing Yes on 8 signs in their yard, and the young Hispanic women attacked by gay rights activists while trying to remove vulgar signs from sacred temple property, and the elderly woman in Palm Springs who endured the mockery and rage of a vicious crowd who promptly snuffed out her freedom of speech as they ripped her cross from her hands and crushed it under foot. The anger of this mob knows no bounds and the religious - Mormon, Evangelical, and Catholic alike - are the unfortunate victims.

The gay "rights" movement is steam-rolling forward powered by blood-lust and rage, leaving in its wake a carnage the likes of which this country has not seen since Blacks were sent to the back of the bus. While this new, millennial movement claims love and equal rights as its objectives; lying in its wake is the antithetical and conspicuous reality - the tattered remains of freedom of speech and religion. At the end of the rigidly pointing homosexual fingers stand the Mormons, being sent to the back of the bus for equally unfair reasons as their beloved African American brothers - they voted.

Mormon is the new Black.

Today, Thanksgiving 2008, I recognize and express gratitude for many wonderful things in my life. And at the same time I watch the steady vanquishing of freedoms so dear and so sacred. It's clear our country is in need of a Religion champion in the same way Lincoln championed Blacks.

["Our founding fathers did not wish to have a state church established nor to have a particular religion favored by government. They wanted religion to be free to make its own way. But neither did they intend to have irreligion made into a favored state church.

Notice the terrible irony if this trend were to continue. When the secular church goes after its heretics, where are the sanctuaries? To what landfalls and Plymouth Rocks can future pilgrims go?" - Neal A. Maxwell]

["When they came for the gypsies, I said nothing, because I wasn't a gypsy. When they came for the homosexuals, I said nothing, because I wasn't a homosexual. When they came for the Jews, I said nothing, because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the Catholics, and I said nothing, because I wasn't a Catholic......then they came for me, and there was no one left to defend me." - Neimoller in Nazi Germany]

Sacramento Protest, Cho Blasphemy

Sacramento, CA -- On Saturday, Nov. 22, California's state capitol was the gathering place of a large crowd of disgruntled gay rights activists protesting Proposition 8. Featured headliners wooing the crowd were Gloria Allred, Hollywood attorney, and Margaret Cho, comedian. Below is a clip of the song Cho sang for the minority mass.

When Cho sings that "Jesus was probably gay," it reminds me of when The Beatles once claimed that they were "more popular than Jesus." To hope that she'll get the same kind of backlash is futile since media bias won't condemn the comedian and the public will probably wave a disgusted hand at her and move on. Argh. And, of course, the whole song is aimed entirely at the Mormons, preferred Proposition 8 scapegoat, spitefully mocking sacred beliefs and practices. It's disgusting that people were laughing and clapping at this stuff.

It's also getting old that the gay community is whining about needing minority protection from the government when it's obvious that it's not equality they want, but complete acceptance - a societal embrace of their lifestyle. This practice of foot-stomping demand is now resulting in overindulgence and unwarranted concessions. Take eHarmony, for example; they are an Internet dating group that was created for the purpose of matching Christian singles and creating long-lasting marriages. This business is designed around a compatibility model that does not service homosexuality. Just days ago, however, eHarmony settled a ludicrous lawsuit with a homosexual man, essentially agreeing to change their business model to include him and others who subscribe to his lifestyle. eHarmony will now offer a website called "Compatible Partners," and adjust their match finding technology to service men seeking men and women seeking women. So the next time you're eating at a vegetarian restaurant, just threaten to sue if they won't serve you meat, because now the precedent has been set. Or, if you want a hair salon to wash your car, or a hospital to make you sick, or a podiatrist to deliver your baby, or a food manufacturer to build you a car, and the list could go on and on. THAT'S NOT WHAT THEY DO! So, why are they being forced to include homosexuality? Because after years of lawsuits, the kind, little old man who created eHarmony has been beaten down, heckled and prodded into catering to a group of people his business model was not created for. That, my friends, is ridiculous - shouldn't ever have happened. There is a gay agenda. There is, and it goes something like this: "Accept me, embrace me, cater to me, or else...."

["The greatest single victory of the gay movement over the past decade has been to shift the debate from behavior to identity, thus forcing opponents into a position where they can be seen as attacking the civil rights of homosexual citizens."
From The Homosexualization of America, by homosexual activist Dennis Altman.]

To see a comprehensive list of "or else's" that have already occurred, click here.

And while I'm busy airing out my concerns about the existence of a gay agenda, let's add 'secular coup' to the list. Check out this comment on another marriage blogger's latest post about raising our voices and standing up for marriage, and the fantastic response by another defender:

C Smith said,

Where does it say that marriage is between one man and one woman?

Don’t go down the Bible path - its a slippery slope.

Lil' Beebop said,

“Don’t go down the Bible path - its a slippery slope.”

Wow. Wow. Hang on a sec, I’m still reeling from this. Millions upon millions of people around the world believe the Bible to be the word of God and you just completely disregard their opinion/belief because, as you claim, it is a “logical fallacy?” Like I said, wow.

You just brilliantly proved what MJ Sobran once said two decades ago, “Far from equalizing unbelief, secularism has succeeded in virtually establishing it….What the secularists are increasingly demanding, in their disingenuous way, is that religious people, when they act politically, act only on secularist grounds….A religious conviction is now a second-class conviction, expected to step deferentially to the back of the secular bus, and not to get uppity about it.”

Wow.

Alice in Queensland

Have you ever seen Alice in Queensland? Well, it's not really a movie, it's just a part of a movie, but if you haven't inserted that DVD in your machine for a while, don't worry, you've been watching its live remake on the news for the past couple of weeks. See what I mean....

Queen of Hearts Campaign

Moral of the story: It's generally better to "campaign" before the vote, not after.

Mount Hope Church Invaded During Worship Services

[Michigan - During worship services on Sunday, Nov. 9, 2008, gay rights activists invaded Mount Hope Church in Delta Township. Activists interrupted services by standing up, throwing leaflets, and chanting slogans like "It's okay to be gay." Two women kissed each other before scattering more leaflets and running out the door, leaving behind a chapel full of stunned parishioners.]

Come on! Seriously? I am almost finding it in my so-called "bigoted" and "hate-filled" Christian heart to be embarrassed for these people. Almost. However, since the people of California voted Yes on 8, and since the "opposition" has taken that result and thrown a massive, teenage-reminiscent hissy fit aimed at anyone who took part in supporting Prop 8, I'll just say thanks, instead. Thanks to the gay activists who are helping to shoot the No on 8 campaign (or whatever is left of it in the shattered and unorganized wake of failure) in the foot. Thank you. Thanks for showing your true colors. Now I know what the "rainbow" flag really stands for:

Red = Ranting and Raving, Ruthless Rioters
Orange = Over-the-top Opposition Oppressors
Yellow = Yes on 8 "H8ters"
Green = Gay-or-the-highway Guerrilla Tactics
Blue = Bigots Bent on Boycotting
Indigo = Intimidating, Infiltrating, Intolerant Individuals
Violet = Violent, Vindictive, Virulent, Vitriolic, Volatile Vandals

(I know, I know - overboard. They're just making it too easy, for Pete's sake!)

Not a great track record so far, folks. Honestly, I would like to know how anyone thinks that a culture capable of producing this kind of reaction to the loss of a word, is something children should be learning to accept and embrace. Anyone? Anyone? And if anyone doubts that total acceptance of their lifestyle is the homosexual community's ultimate goal, beginning with the indoctrination of children, then just read this quote from a commenter I was debating with on a friend's blog:

["Yes, your child’s teacher ought to be teaching your child that it’s okay to be gay, it’s okay to have gay parents, because if you won’t, if you want your child to grow up thinking that it’s not okay to be gay, or that it’s not okay for their best friend to be gay - or to have gay parents - then someone must."]

Say what?! Come again? You're suggesting that I'm not fit to guide my child's moral upbringing just because I don't agree with homosexuality?! And you even have the audacity to presume that you, in all your open-minded, equal rights confusion, have the moral high ground. Wow. The intolerance of tolerance. It is a real thing, people. And just for the sake of clarification, I do not think it is wrong to be gay; I think it is wrong to act on those feelings and attractions. Our Church has many celibate gay members for whom I have deep respect and admiration. This difference between feeling attractions and acting on those feelings is a fine distinction that I don't trust a public school teacher to be adequately prepared to teach (or to want to teach, for that matter). I want exclusive rights to that conversation with my child and voting Yes on Prop 8 assured me that, at least for the time being, my child wouldn't be taught about homosexuality under the guise of equal marriage education.

Newport Temple Protest

Well, there was another protest today. No big surprise there. I am inclined to say that nothing will surprise me anymore, but that would be tempting fate. There were only about 300 protesters, but their choice of location, their sign messages, and photos snapped by media would suggest that they were only barely peaceful and most likely not part of the Join the Impact marches/protests - seeing as how they cast aside the whole "be respectful and refrain from attacking other groups" bit.

I've got to hand it to this guy. Can you imagine walking into an oil-drenched building with a lit match? That's what this image reminds me of. Gotta love the finger pointing. It is so true that 95% of our communication is non-verbal. And in keeping with that knowledge, what message do you think these men are conveying in this next photo? Love? Peace? Acceptance?

"Mormon Cult Teaches Hate"
Isn't calling my religion a "cult" considered hate speech? Anyone? Anyone? Can I get an AMEN?!

"Hate the Mormon Bigotry, Love the Mormon Bigot."
I have to give these people props (just not Prop 8). They really are getting clever. And it's nice to see that they managed to spell bigot correctly. I've seen bigget, biggot, bigit, etc.

This makes me sick to my stomach just looking at it. The man, John Remy of Irvine, decided that he'd make more of an impact if he wore some of his clothes from when he was an elder serving a mission for the Church. In a statement to the press, he said simply, "Having been a member of the church, I felt duty-bound to atone and duty-bound to be a critic of the choice it is making." So much for following the Prophet. I guess he didn't remember the Primary song, Follow the Prophet - specifically this text from verse 9 and the chorus,

"Now we have a world where people are confused.
If you don’t believe it, go and watch the news.
We can get direction all along our way,
If we heed the prophets-follow what they say.

Follow the prophet, follow the prophet,
Follow the prophet; don't go astray.
Follow the prophet, follow the prophet,
Follow the prophet he knows the way."

This one in the background just oozes love, "Seperate church from hate. Muck Formans."
Classy, I tell ya, classy. And the misspellings crack me up. You people need spell check for your protest signs!

And then there's this lady standing on the street corner on a Sunday afternoon, sporting her sexy little spaghetti strap top, holding up a sign implying she's a Mormon: "Mormons for Love, Not H8te." It'd be a bit more credible, lady, if you were dressed modestly.

Newport Beach Stake President, Waterford Clayton issued the following statement to the press today, "Everyone in the United States has a legal right to protest, which we support fully. This is not about sexual preference. This is about the moral standing of marriage. When churches feel that something that affects society as moral questions do, churches will and should take a stand. Our desire is that we disagree with civility and have a conversation."

Amen.

More rallies were held today in Washington DC, Minneapolis MN, and Atlanta GA.

Photos from OC Register.

Getting Wise

San Diego - Today in an unprecedented turnout, 20 - 25,000 people flocked to downtown San Diego to participate in a peaceful protest march against Proposition 8. Peaceful. Apparently, Prop 8 opposition has finally wised up. In order to enforce peace with a crowd this size, a handful of anti-Prop 8 volunteers were recruited to be trained in crowd-control a few days prior to the march. "The Enforcers" wore yellow shirts and covered different sections of the march as it wound its way through the heart of San Diego. A megaphone was employed at the beginning of the march to issue a reassuring and calming reminder that the protest was planned to be peaceful and ought to remain so. Organizers handed out fliers with "approved" chants for marchers. Messages on homemade signs were extremely toned down compared with the threats and hate speech (mostly directed at the LDS "Mormon" Church) normally visible.

This march was one of many planned across the nation by Join the Impact. Representatives of this organization specifically requested that marchers remember to be respectful and refrain from lashing out at counter-protesters attending rallies.

One such counter-protester, David Cruz, resident of College Area, San Diego, stood holding a "Yes on 8" sign with his three buddies at a corner along the San Diego march route. He said he wanted to remind marchers that the majority of California voters had spoken by passing Proposition 8 on November 4. Cruz told reporters, "They are not going to overturn the will of the majority." According to the San Diego Union Tribune," Just after he spoke, marcher David Gonzales pushed toward Cruz, screaming that he was a disgrace. March volunteers kept them separated and Gonzales moved on."

One other counter-protester, at a different point along the route, was arrested by police following a fight. He was discovered to be a member of the anti-illegal immigration San Diego Minutemen vigilante group.

In a statement to the press today, Marriage Equality USA spokeswoman Molly McKay asserted, "Today is a national tipping point. History will look back on this day as the day that the national LGBT community rose up and said 'We are not going back."

San Diego County voted in favor of Proposition 8, 54% to 46%.



Similar rallies were held in cities across the nation including Manhattan, San Francisco, LA, and Sacramento.

Even while one sign in the San Francisco protest declared "Abort the Mormons," organizers and speakers...

"emphasized the importance of pushing affirmatively for full rights in marriage and other aspects of society, rather than turning on groups because of a perceived lack of support."

Rev. Dr. Penny Nixon, former senior minister at the Metropolitan Community Church, warned "We put salt on everyone's wounds when we scapegoat and place blame. We cannot speak about each other in this way. It will kill us."

Assemblyman Mark Leno reminded protesters that the vote for Prop 8 was much closer a race than the vote for Prop 22, eight years ago: "We gained 18 points, they lost 18 points. Momentum is on our side. History is on our side."

---------

We shall see. We shall see. Actually, as a purely personal interjection here, my opinion is that we will, in fact, see the legalization of same-sex marriage sometime in the near future. The part that remains to be seen is the effect of that legalization on family, on marriage, on children, on education, on government, etc. Those who plead that we not "legislate love" choose not to believe there are any possible negative repercussions of legalized same-sex marriage when, in fact, there are documented cases of issues arising in Massachusetts already, a mere four years after the state legalized SSM. I, personally, do not want to find out. I would rather we work toward the gay community having absolute equal rights without having the word marriage. I would rather we work toward true tolerance of a people rather than force the acceptance of a deviant, and, for some, immoral lifestyle on the greater American public.