By Todd Ransom
As a former reporter, I find myself constantly getting wrapped up in the news. As a former publicist, I also find myself asking the question, “Who the hell is advising so and so to say such rubbish while being interviewed for the news?”
On the rubbish side, I have been following the missteps of Miss California, Carrie Prejean, and consider her responses and her 15-minutes of fame as a tremendous source of entertainment. I have long believed that when you find yourself on the opposite side of an issue and the opposing side selects a spokes model, I mean spokesperson, to spew forth their agenda, it is simply a dream come true when the spokesperson turns out to be dumb as a hoe handle.
I have watched and listened to Miss California’s responses to “tough” questions and wondered what questions I might ask if I had the opportunity. I think my interview with Carrie Prejean would go something like this:
TR: “We know your strong stance on marriage and the need to protect it. So, that said, would you support the movement by a gay organization’s petition drive to get a measure on the California ballot that outlaws divorce?”
CP: “That’s ridiculous. I think it’s wrong for a group to take away someone else’s right when it doesn’t even affect the ones taking it away.”
TR: “So do you favor civil unions?”
CP: “Of course, we fought for it during the Civil War and we now have a civil union. I just love history”
TR: “Who do you admire most in history?”
CP: “I think it was that guy Alexander Graham Bell, who invented electricity. Where would a girl be without her lighted make-up mirror?”
TR: “I think you mean Thomas Edison.”
CP: “Wasn’t he the one who invented that funny car in the 50s?”
TR: “No, I think you mean Edsel Ford.”
CP: “No, I don’t listen to that hard rock music.”
TR: “What? Did you think I said Axel Rose? Perhaps we should move on.
So is it safe to say you are not a big advocate of science?”
CP: “No. I mean how real can it be? Look how it’s spelled…does that make any sense putting an ‘s’ next to a ‘c’?”
TR: “You might as well say the world is flat, Carrie.”
CP: “Duh, haven’t you ever seen a map?”
TR: “So you believe in creationism, not evolution, right?”
CP: “Yes. God made Adam and Eve, not Adam and Brandon.”
TR: “Don’t you like gay people?”
CP: “Of course I do…on opposite day!” (snorts).
TR: “So do you believe that Eve came from Adam’s rib?”
CP: “Yes, that’s why I only order chicken at barbecue restaurants, never the ribs.”
TR: “What was the hardest question asked during the pageant?”
CP: “Umm, it was ‘what is your original hair color?” Can you believe how they try to trip us up? It’s so unfair.”
TR: “Do you believe that Perez Hilton tried to trip you up with his question on gay marriage?”
CP: “I think Perez Hilton is jealous that his sister, Paris, gets all the attention.”
TR: “It seems that you now have an ally in Governor Sarah Palin. What would you say to her?
CP: “Love your hair, hope you win!!”
TR: “I’m sure you had some words of gratitude to express to Donald Trump for his help in making sure you retain your crown.”
CP: “Yes, but my mother always taught me not to speak with my mouth full.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Sunday, March 29, 2009
I Have Met the Enemy and its Name is Time Warner
By Todd Ransom
Like most of the people out there, I’m a busy guy. I have a full-time job, am trying to get a book published and do publicity for my friends in the entertainment business on the side. That’s why I love convenience. Anything a company can do to make my life easier wins over my heart, my loyalty and my cash.
That said, might I suggest a name change for Time Warner to Time Waster? I don’t know what the rest of you have had for experiences with this company but I have got to tell you that after dealing with them over the past several weeks I have had to up my dosage on Xanax, Prozac and red wine.
I think cable TV is a great invention. I’m a totally movie freak and use my remote as a search light to find any film that I haven’t seen before and cable allows that luxury. However, I took the bait to add broadband as a way to “bundle” services.
Don’t laugh. I currently have been using dial up. I realize no one else does, but I was just lazy and didn’t want to have to change my e-mail addresses. Well, I’m also an impatient person so I needed to dump the dial up and since I was with Time Warner I wanted to take advantage of one of their offers.
I went online so I didn’t have to speak with someone reading from a script. I know from experience that when you call a customer service rep at Time Warner they have two answers to any cable problem:
1) Take you cable box to a local cable store
2) We’ll send a technician
I don’t like either of those options, so I ordered a modem online that had a mail-in rebate of $89. It sounded like a pretty good deal. I got an e-mail letting me know when it had been shipped to my home address complete with tracking number plus a reminder to call Time Warner to schedule a time for installation. A Time Warner phone number was also provided.
Okay, now it gets weird. I get home on a Friday night, dragging my tired ass up the stairs instead of using the elevator (trying to burn a few calories) and when I get to my door I find a plastic bag with its top tied in a knot sitting on the floor outside my door. Because I know the Unabomber is not at large, I decided to open it. Inside was a modem with no paperwork, no tracking number, no indication it belonged to me and later I find out no serial number.
I called Time Warner and get the rep on the phone with the script. She agrees it’s weird they would deliver it that way so she tells me to take it to a Time Warner store. I get in my car and drive to the Hollywood location on Cahuenga and have to admit the people working there are nice enough, but they had absolutely no idea what I was doing with that modem, claimed to never have seen it before and tried to tell me I should be renting one from them instead. Well, I had no intention of renting one after I already bought one from the same damn company. Dejected and frustrated, I return to my home and call Time Warner on the phone and schedule a time for a technician to come out and install the damn thing. We agree on Sunday between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. (this works because it is the time of day I usually am doing laundry so I’m stuck at home anyway).
Saturday morning, I am drinking my coffee and chatting with my mom on the phone when my cell phone starts ringing. I don’t answer it because anyone who has a mother knows you don’t interrupt their phone call for anything short of an earthquake or other natural disaster (except the American Idol results show). The cell phone rings again and then a third time. I finally answer it and it’s the cable technician who says he’s lost.
“I’ll say,” I said sarcastically. “You’re not supposed to be here until tomorrow.” He offers no apology and says he was told Saturday. He said I could call customer service, which I did. They told me they had no openings on Sunday. I said that’s fine, but I don’t moonlight for the Psychic Hotline so in the future, when you change the appointment why don’t you call me. I know it’s a novel idea, but some would call it good customer service.
I explained to the rep that I was expected in Palm Springs early Saturday evening so I could see my fabulous friend, Amanda Abel, sing. The rep assured me that the appointment wouldn’t take very long and I wouldn’t have any problems getting out to the desert on time. I reluctantly agree to let them come over on Saturday but I did let the rep know that I was not very encouraged with the fact that the technician couldn’t find my building which stands on Fountain near La Brea in Hollywood. People may get lost in L.A., but most everyone knows the corner where Shia LaBeouf got T-boned in his truck. I would expect a technician to find an easy intersection such as mine but alas, I have high expectations.
The technician arrives with a second technician in tow…enter Dumb and Dumber. I know for a fact that neither could identify themselves without first checking to see what was written just above their left breast pocket on their blue Time Warner shirt.
I tried to explain the mail-in rebate program and the modem but didn’t get very far. They both looked curiously at the modem as if they were two cavemen trying to figure the flames of fire for the first time. Even when they did respond, it was with a blank stare and a monotone voice leaving me to ask myself, “What is this? An audition for a Sleep Number Bed commercial?”
One of them frequently disappeared. The only thing he said to me was that he liked my original artwork, especially the female nudes. My guess is that while he was missing he had run down to the newsstand on La Brea to sneak a peek at the latest Playboy while the other one was left here scratching his rather empty head.
The first technician finally asked me where the cable box was for my building. I no more know where the damn cable box is in my apartment building than I know where the war room is in the Pentagon for the simple reason that I don’t need to…I leave that up to the experts. He looked at me like the homeless guy on the corner who doesn’t believe I don’t have any spare change when I say I don’t. In fact, he insisted on looking in my closet while I told him it was unlikely that the cable box for 36 units was located in my walk-in closet. I was convinced at this point that these guys couldn’t find their own butts with both hands and a pack of bloodhounds.
I eventually go downstairs to the bowels of my building to find the cable box and using the Annie Sullivan technique for Helen Keller using my fingers on his hand spelling out b-o-x h-e-r-e. He began tearing into the many wires like a hungry Midwesterner who has just arrived at an all you can eat buffet at the “Fried and Battered Café.” I knew he had no concept of what he was doing.
Eventually, we come back up to the apartment to try again. He tells me that my computer isn’t set up for broadband…only dial up. I reminded him that it is easy to install a driver and that it had been done before where I used to live but he stuck to his story and said I could call a supervisor, who would tell me the same thing. Now that really pisses me off when someone says that. I reminded him that he had taken three hours out of my day, time I will never get back, just like those times I actually watched a Jennifer Lopez movie, so I would appreciate it if he left now so I can try to get to the desert on time.
Needless to say, I still don’t have broadband and I have a useless modem sitting in a plastic bag that looks like it came from a Chinese restaurant.
Stay tuned for further developments, but please do so on Direct TV!
Like most of the people out there, I’m a busy guy. I have a full-time job, am trying to get a book published and do publicity for my friends in the entertainment business on the side. That’s why I love convenience. Anything a company can do to make my life easier wins over my heart, my loyalty and my cash.
That said, might I suggest a name change for Time Warner to Time Waster? I don’t know what the rest of you have had for experiences with this company but I have got to tell you that after dealing with them over the past several weeks I have had to up my dosage on Xanax, Prozac and red wine.
I think cable TV is a great invention. I’m a totally movie freak and use my remote as a search light to find any film that I haven’t seen before and cable allows that luxury. However, I took the bait to add broadband as a way to “bundle” services.
Don’t laugh. I currently have been using dial up. I realize no one else does, but I was just lazy and didn’t want to have to change my e-mail addresses. Well, I’m also an impatient person so I needed to dump the dial up and since I was with Time Warner I wanted to take advantage of one of their offers.
I went online so I didn’t have to speak with someone reading from a script. I know from experience that when you call a customer service rep at Time Warner they have two answers to any cable problem:
1) Take you cable box to a local cable store
2) We’ll send a technician
I don’t like either of those options, so I ordered a modem online that had a mail-in rebate of $89. It sounded like a pretty good deal. I got an e-mail letting me know when it had been shipped to my home address complete with tracking number plus a reminder to call Time Warner to schedule a time for installation. A Time Warner phone number was also provided.
Okay, now it gets weird. I get home on a Friday night, dragging my tired ass up the stairs instead of using the elevator (trying to burn a few calories) and when I get to my door I find a plastic bag with its top tied in a knot sitting on the floor outside my door. Because I know the Unabomber is not at large, I decided to open it. Inside was a modem with no paperwork, no tracking number, no indication it belonged to me and later I find out no serial number.
I called Time Warner and get the rep on the phone with the script. She agrees it’s weird they would deliver it that way so she tells me to take it to a Time Warner store. I get in my car and drive to the Hollywood location on Cahuenga and have to admit the people working there are nice enough, but they had absolutely no idea what I was doing with that modem, claimed to never have seen it before and tried to tell me I should be renting one from them instead. Well, I had no intention of renting one after I already bought one from the same damn company. Dejected and frustrated, I return to my home and call Time Warner on the phone and schedule a time for a technician to come out and install the damn thing. We agree on Sunday between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. (this works because it is the time of day I usually am doing laundry so I’m stuck at home anyway).
Saturday morning, I am drinking my coffee and chatting with my mom on the phone when my cell phone starts ringing. I don’t answer it because anyone who has a mother knows you don’t interrupt their phone call for anything short of an earthquake or other natural disaster (except the American Idol results show). The cell phone rings again and then a third time. I finally answer it and it’s the cable technician who says he’s lost.
“I’ll say,” I said sarcastically. “You’re not supposed to be here until tomorrow.” He offers no apology and says he was told Saturday. He said I could call customer service, which I did. They told me they had no openings on Sunday. I said that’s fine, but I don’t moonlight for the Psychic Hotline so in the future, when you change the appointment why don’t you call me. I know it’s a novel idea, but some would call it good customer service.
I explained to the rep that I was expected in Palm Springs early Saturday evening so I could see my fabulous friend, Amanda Abel, sing. The rep assured me that the appointment wouldn’t take very long and I wouldn’t have any problems getting out to the desert on time. I reluctantly agree to let them come over on Saturday but I did let the rep know that I was not very encouraged with the fact that the technician couldn’t find my building which stands on Fountain near La Brea in Hollywood. People may get lost in L.A., but most everyone knows the corner where Shia LaBeouf got T-boned in his truck. I would expect a technician to find an easy intersection such as mine but alas, I have high expectations.
The technician arrives with a second technician in tow…enter Dumb and Dumber. I know for a fact that neither could identify themselves without first checking to see what was written just above their left breast pocket on their blue Time Warner shirt.
I tried to explain the mail-in rebate program and the modem but didn’t get very far. They both looked curiously at the modem as if they were two cavemen trying to figure the flames of fire for the first time. Even when they did respond, it was with a blank stare and a monotone voice leaving me to ask myself, “What is this? An audition for a Sleep Number Bed commercial?”
One of them frequently disappeared. The only thing he said to me was that he liked my original artwork, especially the female nudes. My guess is that while he was missing he had run down to the newsstand on La Brea to sneak a peek at the latest Playboy while the other one was left here scratching his rather empty head.
The first technician finally asked me where the cable box was for my building. I no more know where the damn cable box is in my apartment building than I know where the war room is in the Pentagon for the simple reason that I don’t need to…I leave that up to the experts. He looked at me like the homeless guy on the corner who doesn’t believe I don’t have any spare change when I say I don’t. In fact, he insisted on looking in my closet while I told him it was unlikely that the cable box for 36 units was located in my walk-in closet. I was convinced at this point that these guys couldn’t find their own butts with both hands and a pack of bloodhounds.
I eventually go downstairs to the bowels of my building to find the cable box and using the Annie Sullivan technique for Helen Keller using my fingers on his hand spelling out b-o-x h-e-r-e. He began tearing into the many wires like a hungry Midwesterner who has just arrived at an all you can eat buffet at the “Fried and Battered Café.” I knew he had no concept of what he was doing.
Eventually, we come back up to the apartment to try again. He tells me that my computer isn’t set up for broadband…only dial up. I reminded him that it is easy to install a driver and that it had been done before where I used to live but he stuck to his story and said I could call a supervisor, who would tell me the same thing. Now that really pisses me off when someone says that. I reminded him that he had taken three hours out of my day, time I will never get back, just like those times I actually watched a Jennifer Lopez movie, so I would appreciate it if he left now so I can try to get to the desert on time.
Needless to say, I still don’t have broadband and I have a useless modem sitting in a plastic bag that looks like it came from a Chinese restaurant.
Stay tuned for further developments, but please do so on Direct TV!
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Cut From the Top – Leave the Little Guy Alone
In the wake of the continuing budget crisis in the state of California are the middle- and lower-class taxpayers who have been treading water for months and are now taking on water as we speak.
As the governor and the state assembly continue their record-breaking impasse on a budget, it’s the little guy who continues to suffer. It was announced officially on Monday, Feb. 2, that Californians who overpaid their state taxes and are entitled to a refund will simply have to wait for their money.
Okay, I know that financial advisors don’t approve of consumers using their tax refund as a forced savings, but let’s be realistic here. In hard times, most people are cutting back on staples such as transportation, food, entertainment and utilities leaving nothing extra to save beyond what goes in the proverbial change jar full of pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters (except at my house the quarters don’t ever make it in the jar because I need them for laundry.)
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who I rarely agree with (beyond his taste in a spouse, his opposition to Prop. 8 and his passion for the environment), has done the right thing by accepting no official salary during these difficult times and paying for much of his travel with personal funds. My question is this, why are the members of the California Assembly still receiving a salary? The various solutions to the budget deficit in California clearly are on the shoulders of the people who least can afford it. State workers are the ones who will pay with layoffs and forced furloughs, which have already begun.
As the past eight years at the federal level have taught us, the little guy is the one who takes it on the chin and in the pocket book as federal laws have favored big business. Bankruptcy laws became stricter and less palatable for the average American. Unemployment was reduced during the past eight years from one year to six months. I understand that benefits have been extended to nine months these days, but it still is something that effects the people who can least afford it.
Those who have to live on credit because their paycheck won’t stretch from payday to payday are also penalized with credit lines being lowered and ruthless techniques in collection if, God forbid, they miss a payment or make a late payment.
Why in the world are we sitting back and letting the California Assembly play games with our livelihood with no repercussions for not doing their jobs? Any of us who would fail to meet budget in our jobs would be held accountable and dealt with accordingly. What is the punishment for those we put into office who made the mess and the rest who have failed to come up with a solution? It escapes me.
Instead, it’s the hard working, less educated workers who seem to be paying the price as well as the average Californian trying to make ends meet, who at this point isn’t even getting back money they overpaid to the state in taxes.
I hope that lessons can be learned from the federal government on how to deal with the abuse of power and its effect on the rest of us. During the federal bailout of corporations, lawmakers have been very critical of how these companies paid out bonuses to top executives after receiving taxpayer monies. Senator Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., (who I have not forgiven for standing me up at the Democratic National Convention in Denver last summer) has been one of the most outspoken referring to these companies guilty of this practice as “idiots.”
Strong words, you say? Well, she speaks our language and has been successful in drawing attention to this kind of abuse. Why is it acceptable for executives to be rewarded for running a business into the dirt? Why is it that these are the ones making the decisions that some poor sucker working for them is going to lose his or her job?
As corny as this may sound, I like to think of an organization as a tree. It grows from the ground up so if you cut from the bottom it will topple over. However, if you cut from the top, the bottom will remain and grow. So, my mantra during these hard times is “cut from the top.”
This past November, we voted for change at the federal level and we are getting it. When can we expect it at the state level?
As the governor and the state assembly continue their record-breaking impasse on a budget, it’s the little guy who continues to suffer. It was announced officially on Monday, Feb. 2, that Californians who overpaid their state taxes and are entitled to a refund will simply have to wait for their money.
Okay, I know that financial advisors don’t approve of consumers using their tax refund as a forced savings, but let’s be realistic here. In hard times, most people are cutting back on staples such as transportation, food, entertainment and utilities leaving nothing extra to save beyond what goes in the proverbial change jar full of pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters (except at my house the quarters don’t ever make it in the jar because I need them for laundry.)
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who I rarely agree with (beyond his taste in a spouse, his opposition to Prop. 8 and his passion for the environment), has done the right thing by accepting no official salary during these difficult times and paying for much of his travel with personal funds. My question is this, why are the members of the California Assembly still receiving a salary? The various solutions to the budget deficit in California clearly are on the shoulders of the people who least can afford it. State workers are the ones who will pay with layoffs and forced furloughs, which have already begun.
As the past eight years at the federal level have taught us, the little guy is the one who takes it on the chin and in the pocket book as federal laws have favored big business. Bankruptcy laws became stricter and less palatable for the average American. Unemployment was reduced during the past eight years from one year to six months. I understand that benefits have been extended to nine months these days, but it still is something that effects the people who can least afford it.
Those who have to live on credit because their paycheck won’t stretch from payday to payday are also penalized with credit lines being lowered and ruthless techniques in collection if, God forbid, they miss a payment or make a late payment.
Why in the world are we sitting back and letting the California Assembly play games with our livelihood with no repercussions for not doing their jobs? Any of us who would fail to meet budget in our jobs would be held accountable and dealt with accordingly. What is the punishment for those we put into office who made the mess and the rest who have failed to come up with a solution? It escapes me.
Instead, it’s the hard working, less educated workers who seem to be paying the price as well as the average Californian trying to make ends meet, who at this point isn’t even getting back money they overpaid to the state in taxes.
I hope that lessons can be learned from the federal government on how to deal with the abuse of power and its effect on the rest of us. During the federal bailout of corporations, lawmakers have been very critical of how these companies paid out bonuses to top executives after receiving taxpayer monies. Senator Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., (who I have not forgiven for standing me up at the Democratic National Convention in Denver last summer) has been one of the most outspoken referring to these companies guilty of this practice as “idiots.”
Strong words, you say? Well, she speaks our language and has been successful in drawing attention to this kind of abuse. Why is it acceptable for executives to be rewarded for running a business into the dirt? Why is it that these are the ones making the decisions that some poor sucker working for them is going to lose his or her job?
As corny as this may sound, I like to think of an organization as a tree. It grows from the ground up so if you cut from the bottom it will topple over. However, if you cut from the top, the bottom will remain and grow. So, my mantra during these hard times is “cut from the top.”
This past November, we voted for change at the federal level and we are getting it. When can we expect it at the state level?
Monday, January 19, 2009
Can we Expect a Future that Places a LGBT Member in the White House?
The wake-up call for the gay and lesbian community arrived on November 4 in California. Complacent gays and lesbians perhaps reacted with surprise at the voter’s decision to overturn the right for gays to marry with the passage of Proposition 8. Finger pointing and blame ensued after this decision and hopefully a lesson learned.
For some, the voter’s decision came as no surprise – not because we agreed with the decision but because some of us have fought the discrimination of gays and lesbians only to find that laws in place are largely not enforced. I for one reached out to various organizations for assistance in a personal case of sexual orientation discrimination, voicing my concerns over the lack of enforcement only to find deaf ears populating the so-called groups here to provide support.
With defeat sometimes comes the infusion to move forward, change paths, re-organize and gain strength. In the case of Proposition 8, the LGBT community responded accordingly with a show of support through demonstrations directed at those who provided financial support to pass the measure has certainly raised awareness. As a result, many attitudes changed and more acceptance was achieved.
In the wake of excitement over our new president, my mother said to me that she hopes she lives long enough to see a gay president. My response? Amen to that!
What we have learned in our community about opposition to being accepted and provided with the same rights as others is that it is largely religious based. Although there are religious groups, such as the Metropolitan Community Church and select other Christian churches who open their doors to our community and some religions, such as Buddhism, where it matters to no one your sexual orientation, education must continue to be targeted to religious groups.
My mom, who is not a fan of organized religion, tells me her local chapter of PFLAG is going out to these communities to do just that – educate. It’s going to be a long haul to get from equal rights to the presidency, but we have to look back at history and acknowledge how far we have come.
Leaders, such as John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King carved a path for civil rights more than 40 years ago. These leaders not only had superior qualities in communicating but in action. They also each brought their faith into the fight.
Although it may not be possible to educate those groups who do not accept human evolution even though science has proven over and over again that homosexuality is genetic based and not a chosen lifestyle, there will be those whose attitudes will change just like others have in the past.
We must look back at history to see the slowly changing acceptance one instance at a time. The movie “Milk” can provide a great historical overview of changing times and attitudes towards the LGBT community. Harvey Milk was relentless with his charge that rallied the masses to fight discrimination. Many would have said his fight was useless until they witnessed the change he inspired and brought forth. Rights we are entitled to today are a direct reflection of Harvey Milk’s leadership and many others who followed. We can acknowledge each step to equality but we must not accept that where we are now is enough, otherwise change will not ensue.
A few years into the AIDS crisis a friend of mine died from the disease. Although he was raised in the Christian faith, finding a church that would allow us to hold a service for him became a huge challenge. At that time AIDS had been characterized as the “gay plague” and some referred to it as God’s retribution for an “unacceptable” lifestyle. It seemed to have made little difference to churches that this man was also a son, a brother, an uncle and above all a human being.
Luckily, we found a Presbyterian Church that welcomed us. The minister began the funeral service with a story. He told the story of a European village where its inhabitants had suffered a terrible plague. It was a largely Catholic village where a non-Catholic nurse cared for the sick villagers. Eventually the nurse contracted and succumbed to the sickness herself, sacrificing her own life to care for others.
Because she was not Catholic, her body was buried outside the fence to the cemetery where many of those she cared for were laid to rest. The next morning, villagers passing the cemetery noticed that during the night someone had moved the fence to include the nurse’s grave.
History has taught us that attitudes can change and people become more accepting of others who are different. I find great solace in knowing that the younger generation finds the issue of gay marriage a non-issue and can’t understand why anyone would find the love between two consenting adults threatening to anyone else.
Maybe it will be this younger generation, who were instrumental in getting Barack Obama into the White House, who will help us get closer to our equality goals. However, if we expect to see a gay president someday we will, as a country, have to keep moving the fence.
For some, the voter’s decision came as no surprise – not because we agreed with the decision but because some of us have fought the discrimination of gays and lesbians only to find that laws in place are largely not enforced. I for one reached out to various organizations for assistance in a personal case of sexual orientation discrimination, voicing my concerns over the lack of enforcement only to find deaf ears populating the so-called groups here to provide support.
With defeat sometimes comes the infusion to move forward, change paths, re-organize and gain strength. In the case of Proposition 8, the LGBT community responded accordingly with a show of support through demonstrations directed at those who provided financial support to pass the measure has certainly raised awareness. As a result, many attitudes changed and more acceptance was achieved.
In the wake of excitement over our new president, my mother said to me that she hopes she lives long enough to see a gay president. My response? Amen to that!
What we have learned in our community about opposition to being accepted and provided with the same rights as others is that it is largely religious based. Although there are religious groups, such as the Metropolitan Community Church and select other Christian churches who open their doors to our community and some religions, such as Buddhism, where it matters to no one your sexual orientation, education must continue to be targeted to religious groups.
My mom, who is not a fan of organized religion, tells me her local chapter of PFLAG is going out to these communities to do just that – educate. It’s going to be a long haul to get from equal rights to the presidency, but we have to look back at history and acknowledge how far we have come.
Leaders, such as John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King carved a path for civil rights more than 40 years ago. These leaders not only had superior qualities in communicating but in action. They also each brought their faith into the fight.
Although it may not be possible to educate those groups who do not accept human evolution even though science has proven over and over again that homosexuality is genetic based and not a chosen lifestyle, there will be those whose attitudes will change just like others have in the past.
We must look back at history to see the slowly changing acceptance one instance at a time. The movie “Milk” can provide a great historical overview of changing times and attitudes towards the LGBT community. Harvey Milk was relentless with his charge that rallied the masses to fight discrimination. Many would have said his fight was useless until they witnessed the change he inspired and brought forth. Rights we are entitled to today are a direct reflection of Harvey Milk’s leadership and many others who followed. We can acknowledge each step to equality but we must not accept that where we are now is enough, otherwise change will not ensue.
A few years into the AIDS crisis a friend of mine died from the disease. Although he was raised in the Christian faith, finding a church that would allow us to hold a service for him became a huge challenge. At that time AIDS had been characterized as the “gay plague” and some referred to it as God’s retribution for an “unacceptable” lifestyle. It seemed to have made little difference to churches that this man was also a son, a brother, an uncle and above all a human being.
Luckily, we found a Presbyterian Church that welcomed us. The minister began the funeral service with a story. He told the story of a European village where its inhabitants had suffered a terrible plague. It was a largely Catholic village where a non-Catholic nurse cared for the sick villagers. Eventually the nurse contracted and succumbed to the sickness herself, sacrificing her own life to care for others.
Because she was not Catholic, her body was buried outside the fence to the cemetery where many of those she cared for were laid to rest. The next morning, villagers passing the cemetery noticed that during the night someone had moved the fence to include the nurse’s grave.
History has taught us that attitudes can change and people become more accepting of others who are different. I find great solace in knowing that the younger generation finds the issue of gay marriage a non-issue and can’t understand why anyone would find the love between two consenting adults threatening to anyone else.
Maybe it will be this younger generation, who were instrumental in getting Barack Obama into the White House, who will help us get closer to our equality goals. However, if we expect to see a gay president someday we will, as a country, have to keep moving the fence.
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