Some really shocking television today: Oprah's interview with Ted Haggard and his wife, Gayle.Haggard was the founder and pastor of the New Life (Evangelical) Church in Colorado Springs who was forced to resign and go into exile after it was discovered that he was having an affair with a male prostitute.
After years of fiercely denying that he was gay, Haggard now seems to have to come to accept who he really is, even though he still wouldn't quite say the words, "I am gay" on Oprah today. He muttered something ridiculous about "not being completely straight and not being completely gay", but was still never able to quite own up to the complete truth.
The real fool today, though, was Haggard's wife, Gayle. She obviously still has not dealt with the reality of her husband's orientation. And at one point, she tried to say that although "gay people can't change who they are, they can choose not to 'act on it'...". Are you fucking kidding me? This is the same old, tired bullshit that we've heard for decades, and quite frankly, we've had it. So what, Gayle, straight people are allowed to "act on their sexual urges", but gay people are not? Fuck you! And fuck you hard! And fuck you until you get your head out of your ass! Let's not mince words here, this kind of thinking is stupid, it's ignorant, it's beneath us as intelligent human beings in 2009, and anyone who still believes this kind of stuff doesn't deserve any kind of respect. We feel sorry for you, Gayle Haggard, because you're a stupid fool who will go to her grave not even understanding all the beautiful and complex wonder of the world that your beloved God gave to you to contemplate and appreciate. In other words, you have sinned against your own God because you chose to close your mind to all that He offered you.
Thankfully, Oprah put the dumb-ass in her place. When Mrs. Haggard offered that thought, Oprah shook her head and said repeatedly, "No! I do not accept that. No! I do not agree with you. No!" At that moment, I loved Oprah like I have never loved her before.
In case you haven't noticed, there's a new mood in the country. In the past few months, as the economy was collapsing, and Bush and Cheney tip-toed through the tulips of their final months in office, smiling, laughing, even proud of their "accomplishments", a new feeling descended upon the national consciousness. Everyone, save a few mentally challenged Republicans, suddenly realized we'd been had, and been had big-time! We realized Bush and Cheney lied to us, and lied to us over and over and over again, daring to accuse anyone who tried to call them on their lies of being "Un-American". Bush and Cheney failed us on Iraq, on domestic policy, on the economy; they fucked us sideways, and then laughed about it. So at this point, I'm telling you, everyone has had it. Just like Peter Finch in "Network", 'We're mad as hell, and we're not gonna take it anymore!" Obama's election inspired us, not because we believe he is some super human who will rescue us from all of our problems, but because his election reminded us that we do have power in this country, and we don't have to take it when someone tries to pull a fast one on us.So we won't stand for any more lies, not from our national leaders, not from the people in our daily lives, and certainly not from half-witted, backwoods Bible-humpers who still believe that there is something wrong with being gay.
Now if we just had a few more people on the national stage with the courage and intelligence of Oprah Winfrey to look the fools in the eye and say, "No! I do not accept your bullshit!"
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