He pleaded guilty to a lesser charge. That means he was up to something. Had he been truly innocent, he would have fought any guilty plea tooth and nail. He pleaded guilty to keep the story from coming to light. He admitted as such early in the story. He pleaded guilty because he knew he couldn't deny what he had done. Unfortunately for him, the story did come to light. It came to light, and he was finally confronted with the truth about himself.
I've seen the reenactment of the vice cop's report. I've heard the interview tapes. He did the deed. He was there to solicit sex in that men's room. Every action spoken of in the report is classic tearoom cruising practice; looking in through the door, tapping the foot, blocking the door with his bag, and running his hand under the partition. He was out for dick, and had that vice cop not been there, he'd have gotten some, and we'd all still be in the dark.
And another gay homophobe would still be employed with the persecution of his own kind for political gain. But that's not the case. There is one less gay homophobe dictating public policy from his twisted, closeted, bigoted world view. To my way of thinking, that's cause for celebration!
Larry Craig is a clear illustration of what the gay rights movement is up against in our fight to be removed from the list of second class citizens. He cares more about his purse and his image on the world stage than he does the suffering of a class of people of which he is a part. He is as much a traitor and betrayer as Judas Iscariot himself.
All of this begs the question, "why?" It's a question that has yet to be satisfactorily answered. What about homosexuality is so threatening to society that groups like the RepubliKKKan party and the Religious Reich are compelled to do all in their power to keep gays in the closet, in the tearoom, and by the actions of vice cops, in the courtroom?
I have no real answers on the why. I have some theories, but I can't call any of them facts.
Social control: Politics and religion are in the business of social control. They use many means to maintain their power over society as a whole. By effectively making homosexuality both a crime and a sin, effectively if they can't shame us into compliance by invoking the name of god, they will get us with the threat and real possibility of legal action. By using these methods, they insure that none but the bravest or most foolhardy will have the courage to come out. They also insure that those who have the need, but not the courage to be honest will eventually wind up busted, and in the legal system. That means dollar bills. If there is one thing that America loves, it's those filthy green-backed pieces of rag paper.
Envy: As I said above, men are horny from the time that testosterone begins raging through their bodies around adolescence. Gay men as a general rule are more likely to find a willing partner for quick anonymous sex. The sex we have has no way of being reproductive. Effectively, without the threat of AIDS or other STD's, gay sex is sex for pleasure. It is sex for pleasure with no ill effects, or nine month surprises. The same cannot be said of heterosexual contact. There is the ever present reality that the nine seconds of pleasure of the orgasm will be followed by nine months of worry followed by eighteen years of child support. Tell me that isn't cause for jealousy. If people will kill because of jealousy, does it not stand to reason they would label someone who was getting more sex than themselves a sinner?
The need to hate: There are simply some people out there who have to hate. It is their Alpha and Omega. It is their overriding reason for living. Gays make a convenient target. As a matter of fact, the use of the word "faggot" remains the last socially acceptable bit of hate speech. The actions of the Religious Reich and the Republicans insure that nothing short of our own version of a march to Selma will ever begin breaking the hatred.
Larry Craig was a part of this environment of hatred. He was a willing participant in keeping his own in a state of second class status. He willingly licked the boot heels of those who condemned him and people like him. He sewed the seeds of the tempest, and he is reaping the whirlwind. And I don't feel the least bit sorry for him.
It is my fervent hope that he is just another in a growing line of closet cases who are having their closet doors ripped off. I would truly love to know just how many Judases in Republican garb there actually are. Perhaps having everyone of those toadies exposed will stop the relentless persecution of the American gay community.
Blessed be!
Pappy
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