Why Senator Craig is a Hypocrite
Pat Buchanan, God bless him, was busy yesterday trying to argue that Senator Larry Craig was not a hypocrite. He went with the mental illness defense. No, he wasn't saying that all homosexuals are mentally ill (though I suspect he might think that). No, his argument was that anyone who would risk everything to seek a few seconds' excitement in a public restroom is sick.
My reaction to that is twofold: If Mr. Buchanan thinks sex is only supposed to last a few seconds, then I am very, very sorry for Mrs. Buchanan. But secondly, of course, I agree. I think nearly all Americans of whatever sexual preference can get behind the idea that sex in a public restroom is disgusting and just plain wrong. That doesn't mean Larry Craig isn't a hypocrite. Here's why:
You can't say that gays can't serve in the military, and be a gay man serving in the Senate. They're both public service. Senators are rather more vulnerable to blackmail, one of the traditional arguments against gays in the military. And, even more than the military, the Senate desperately needs better unit cohesion, the other major argument. Plus, if you don't want a soldier worrying about another soldier checking out his ass while he's facing heavy artillery fire, how much less do you want a Senator worrying about another Senator checking out his ass while voting on your taxes?
Incidentally, Senator Craig's early, and strong, support for Mitt Romney helped legitimize Romney among the Christian right. One wonders if the discovery Craig was a pretender will prove a reversal in Romney's efforts to get right-wing Christians to ignore the fact that many denominations believe Romney's religion to be a Satanic, though rather silly, cult. Also, Senator John McCain was among the first to call for Craig's resignation. One wonders how much that was an act of principle, and how much he was showing that he is still capable of extracting revenge on those who cross him. Either way, it was Presidential.
Larry Craig is one of the people who counted John McCain out: Look what happened to him. Now, I'm not saying everyone who has heaped scorn on McCain will suffer ruin and humiliation, I'd just like to point out I wasn't one of them.
My reaction to that is twofold: If Mr. Buchanan thinks sex is only supposed to last a few seconds, then I am very, very sorry for Mrs. Buchanan. But secondly, of course, I agree. I think nearly all Americans of whatever sexual preference can get behind the idea that sex in a public restroom is disgusting and just plain wrong. That doesn't mean Larry Craig isn't a hypocrite. Here's why:
You can't say that gays can't serve in the military, and be a gay man serving in the Senate. They're both public service. Senators are rather more vulnerable to blackmail, one of the traditional arguments against gays in the military. And, even more than the military, the Senate desperately needs better unit cohesion, the other major argument. Plus, if you don't want a soldier worrying about another soldier checking out his ass while he's facing heavy artillery fire, how much less do you want a Senator worrying about another Senator checking out his ass while voting on your taxes?
Incidentally, Senator Craig's early, and strong, support for Mitt Romney helped legitimize Romney among the Christian right. One wonders if the discovery Craig was a pretender will prove a reversal in Romney's efforts to get right-wing Christians to ignore the fact that many denominations believe Romney's religion to be a Satanic, though rather silly, cult. Also, Senator John McCain was among the first to call for Craig's resignation. One wonders how much that was an act of principle, and how much he was showing that he is still capable of extracting revenge on those who cross him. Either way, it was Presidential.
Larry Craig is one of the people who counted John McCain out: Look what happened to him. Now, I'm not saying everyone who has heaped scorn on McCain will suffer ruin and humiliation, I'd just like to point out I wasn't one of them.
That might be the stupidest thing 've read on the Web. The two are dissimilar in every other way -- or do senators face live fire? Do they share barracks with one another? Do they take communal showers and do calisthenics together?
If you want to argue that homosexuals deserve to be admitted into the military despite their orientation, do it with logic and evidence, not with that sort of idiotic pseudo-comparison. (Comment this)