Posted by
Bob Siegel on Saturday, October 10, 2009 2:02:08 PM
The House voted Thursday to extend Hate Crimes legislation to protect homosexuals. Broad interpretations of this law can prosecute free speech, even pastors if some nut job claims his violence against a gay person was inspired by a reading of Romans Chapter One or any similar sermon that calls homosexuality a sin. An earlier version of this bill passed the House back in April but met opposition in the Senate.
I have a few questions:
1) Why have we heard nothing about this in the media? I did not even hear the modest little story discussed on talk radio. Obviously I cannot catch every single show all day long and so I am sure there was something, somewhere, but I listen to a good deal of talk radio and I heard nothing, either this week or the months leading up to this monstrous assault upon free speech. I have heard nothing on Fox News editorial shows either. Yes, Fox News did do a report but nothing from the big guns who normally are not shy about their opinions. Nothing from O'Reilly, Hannity, not even Glen Beck who doesn't seem to be afraid to talk about anything.
2) Inasmuch as the House Democrats shamelessly attached this legislation to a military spending bill (as if one subject has anything to do with the other) in an attempt to force Republicans into voting for it, I want to know how many Republican Congressmen took the bait. Yes, of course I understand their dilemma. What Conservative politician wants to explain to his constituents that he refused to support a bill that helped the military? My point, is, they could explain it to their voters and had a responsibility to do the right thing instead of looking like doing the right thing. Let's think about this, because the devious genius of the Democrats is not being noticed. They lured Republican suckers into an irresistible trap where they can delude themselves into believing they have the best of both worlds. Supposedly, a Republican Congressman can think to himself, "If a Liberal asks me, I will say I voted against Hate Crimes and supported gay rights. On the other hand, if a Conservative complains, I can explain that I did not want to cast my vote but had to for the sake of the troops."
Much as it sounds good to support the troops, our troops will not have much freedom to fight for if we continue to erode free speech an inch at a time.
This is Bob Siegel, making the obvious, obvious.
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10-4-09