Now that Senator Larry Craig is having his fifteen minutes of infamy along with such other notable tycoons of family values as defrocked Rep. Mark Foley, the absurdity of his having beena vocal, and virulent, opponent of gay marriage isn't lost on anyone.
What is getting lost in the shuffle is the perfunctory manner in which we, in America, accept dragging someone through the public square on charges of "lewd behavior" without questioning exactly what the phrase means, who gets to apply it, and what penalty must be paid. How willingly we give up our personal privacy.
Make no mistake, the issue isn't whether or not this Idaho senator deserves outrage, and stoning---the issue is whether the neo-Conservatives, who still walk among us, should be allowed to turn his arrest, and trial in the notorious court of public opinion, into a backlash against gay men and sodomy After all, what takes place between consenting adults is, after all, their business. It's the context, not the act, that is tacky and sleazy.
After all, what constitutes "public decency?" Who gets to decide that, and at what price? In recent years, the Federal Communications Commission has been caught with its pants down when it comes to this matter, too.
Larry Craig's real "crime," apart from the obvious hypocrisy, is perjury if, as he said, he entered a false guilty plea. What bitter irony given Craig's role in working to impeach a former president, Bill Clinton, for lying before a grand jury.
If the radical right is permitted to use the sensationalism, and widescale titillation, to reactivate homophobia, then every person who reads, or writes, about what would be considered a tasteless, and insipid act, if committed by "ordinary" folks in a men's room, will be used as an indictment against all homosexuals.
http://ladyjaynestahl.blogspot.com
Widely published, poet, playwright, essayist, and screenwriter; member of PEN American Center, and PEN USA.
Bravo...bravo...bravo...and hallelujah, and amen! I see no contradiction in someone singing Handel's Messiah on Sunday, and having consentual gay sex on Monday...or even Sunday afternoon. It's none of our damn business, and even though I, too, couldn't resist some puerile jokes at the Senator's expense, the fact that his private behavior, that he desperately wanted to be kept secret, is now out there for public consumption is an injustice, and the piling on (again, I'm guilty, I confess) does serve to unfairly disparage the glbt community in a wider sense. Thanks, Jayne!
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Robert Sargent (10 articles, 0 quicklinks, 24 diaries, 299 comments)
on Thursday, August 30, 2007 at 4:09:00 PM
... Would be me, Jayne (Sarge sent me, and I'm glad he did)! You summed up quite nicely what bothers me the MOST about 'Publicans pecadilloes - the HYPOCRISY of their 'Do As I Say, Not As I Do' attitude. They castigate from morning 'til dusk about the 'shameful, disgusting habits' of gays, yet we now see, over and over, those same GOPers caught up in the very 'sinful' lifestyle they claim to 'loathe' SO much - one would almost think they enjoy the 'suffering and shame', wouldn't one..? ;) ...
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CynAnne (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 6 comments)
on Friday, August 31, 2007 at 11:43:48 AM
..."injustice" was, perhaps, a little too generous given the Senator's voting record and repetitive "naughty boy" accusations. "Poetic justice" is probably more like it. Still, I'm uncomfortable with this sort of "outing" by law enforcement...
And thanks for visiting, CynAnne. If I had known this piece was going to appear in our other meeting place I wouldn't have sent you here. (and let's hope my wife doesn't read your comment to my first article!). Also, here's a link I wanted to email you .. http://ladyjaynestahl.blogspot.com/ And, FYI, Jayne had a nice (albeit distubing) editorial published in the NY Times on 8/22 titled "stacking the electoral deck".
Ciao....see you in cyberspace.
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Robert Sargent (10 articles, 0 quicklinks, 24 diaries, 299 comments)
on Saturday, September 1, 2007 at 5:54:25 PM
