Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Leftist Mad at Middle Class Gays in Chelsea for Being Middle Class
Since it appeared no one was posting anything and I was very bored I decided to write something in response to a Slate article I read.
Note: The following contains some crude references to sexual acts.
Sometimes the greatest joys in life are the little joys and sometimes the greatest little joys come from reading the clueless ravings of magazines aimed at liberal upper-middle class whites. I am referring, of course, to the New York-area rags Slate and Salon. Now, while Slate is the more sane of the two (not exactly high praise), featuring writers who are occasionally willing to buck the left-wing party line, Emily Yoffe’s work on the rape culture hysteria comes to mind, they are still a magazine of the upper-middle class white urban left; I.e., the folks who whine about the gentrification of lower-class neighborhoods as they eagerly move into newly-gentrified neighborhoods. Which means that while Salon, with an eclectic mix of articles featuring some rant on the latest iniquity committed villainous Koch brothers one day and a woman recounting “How (insert non-normative sexual act here) made me a happier person” the next, is by far the more entertaining of the two magazines Slate still does its work in providing enjoyable work for those of us who dwell on the Right side of the political spectrum.
Which brings me to a column at Slate by J. Bryan Lowder, the site’s resident LGBTQ writer, headlined, “Gay Parents Fight Valiantly to Protect Children From Gay Culture.” You see, a group of parents in Chelsea, NY are trying to get a gay sex shop in their area closed because the shop features advertisements for sexual paraphernalia, as well as several items sexual paraphernalia, in its windows in full view of their kids. Also, this shop appears to promote a free-for-all sexual lifestyle as “they find used condoms and latex gloves in front of their homes, have light bulbs removed to darken their vestibules, and see men having sex in the hours before dawn on playground benches,” complaints that Mr. Lowder finds “silly.”
Now, it would be one thing if he were criticizing them on the libertarian principle of free speech; the “I may be offended by what they are selling but I will defend to the death by their right to sell their wares and display them in their front window for all to see —even if those wares are double-ended dildos that allow two consenting adults to bugger each other in the rump at the same time” principle.But, as you may have guessed from his headline, Lowder is furious because several of these uptight parents are… gay!
To him, by protesting these gay sex shops they are betraying gay culture and everything it has ever stood for. (To him.)
Mr. Lowder’s frustration with these prudish middle-class gays is, I think, best encapsulated here (emphasis mine), “The desire on the part of many gays to assimilate into traditionally straight ways of living is not in itself a bad thing; the problem comes when that move is made as some kind of repudiation of other, gayer ways of living, particularly as manifested with regard to important gay spaces like bars and shops.”
Catch the references to “traditionally straight ways of living”, such as raising a middle-class family, and “gayer ways of living,” as defined by sex shops and bars where you can have one night stands? It seems that he and other members of the gay left are discovering, apparently to their shock, that now having gained the right to marry and raise kids, many gays want to marry and raise kids responsibly. They want to be good spouses and parents. They want a house, a white picket fence, a well-paying job, a safe neighborhood, and finally, many want good, clean environments in which to raise their kids.
As P. J. O’Rourke said, “Gays want to get married, have children, and go to church. Next they'll be advocating school vouchers, boycotting HBO, and voting Republican.”
The thought must really incense him.
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19 comments:
As an ancillary to the above, from Gavin McInnes:
"Gay couple buy an old church and discover an abandoned military graveyard in the back so they clean it up. War buffs now come over every #memorialDay to venerate the dead soldiers (including two confederate POWs). The couple plays patriotic music on outdoor speakers as the old-timers give speeches. This is America outside the snarky NY blogosphere."
LINK
America, still awesome.
I suppose this applies to any subculture but Andrew Sullivan (I know) has written about this, as have many others no doubt: the more gay people are accepted in mainstream culture, the more "gay culture" would disappear (gay clubs, gay bookstores, etc.).
And sure, there will inevitably be people who miss the "good old days" even if they weren't all that good by comparison.
Kit, It's my fault no one posted, I messed up the schedule again. Sorry Bev!
I have long felt that gays fit best on the political spectrum as libertarian Republicans. That is the ideology that best fits their lifestyles -- everything from permissiveness to protection of wealth, etc. I suspect the only reason they are on the left right now is because people like Rick Santorum hate them so much they make it impossible to be on the right.
I've said before and will say it again, if we can peel off even a few percent of groups on the left, the Democrats are finished.
The Democrat Party: Home of the True Scotsmen.
Andrew - That is no problem and thanks to Kit for picking up the ball and running with it!
A few weeks ago the NY gay community was all up in arms because some gay couple who own a swanky hotel hosted a meet and greet for Ted Cruz at their home. The betrayal! To the couple's great credit, they refused to apologize. So now the couple has been excommunicated from the gay community because they dared to build a bridge.
Interesting, but I see it more as a parenting than assimilation.
Bev,
They caved a while ago. Claimed they never Googled Cruz before inviting him :). The reality is probably that an upscale hotel that caters to gays can't afford to alienate them.
http://www.businessinsider.com/gay-businessman-deeply-sorry-for-hosting-ted-cruz-event-2015-4
"Unfortunately, I cannot undo this," he wrote. "You taught me a painful but important lesson. The people that know me know the work that I have done over the last 20 years for the advancement of gay rights. Today, I came to realize that I might have nullified my past efforts and accomplishments in just one week. Again, to all that I have hurt, please accept my sincerest apologies."
Anthony - that is a shame that they apologized. That was just stupid, stupid, stupid. Apparently they learned nothing in the last 20 years. There's no point in building a bridge if you aren't willing to cross it yourself.
Bev,
"thanks to Kit for picking up the ball and running with it!"
You're welcome, Bev!
"The Democrat Party: Home of the True Scotsmen."
The very essence of identity politics.
"If we can peel off even a few percent of groups on the left, the Democrats are finished."
That is something a lot of conservatives don't understand. We don't need to win a majority of blacks or hispanics. Just enough.
Here is a short bit at UK's Independent about a London mayoral candidate, "Ivan Massow: 'It was harder coming out as a Conservative than as gay'"
LINK
When did public sex and double-headed dildos become synonymous with Gay Culture? Haven't we been told over and over that being gay is far more than just the sex?
So either A) the writer is a hypocrite, or B) Rick Santorum is right and gays will burn in hell for their uncontrolled promiscuity. Personally, I suspect (and hope) it is A.
Just for the records the LGBTQ activists are the same as the Feminist activists. They all say they want equality and choice. But when it comes right down to it, it is not that at all. You are a traitor to the cause if you don't want what THEY want and when THEY say the goal has been met.
As in - Thou shalt not deviate TO the norm!
well, we all know why. The grievance lobby loses if they can't come up with any grievances...
Kit,
I cannot imagine the claim below (taken from your link) coming from a Republican running for elected office :). The sizable Rick Santorum wing of the party would explode or something.
---------------
Massow, 47, described having to “effectively apologise” for being Conservative as many felt that the party was against the LGBT community.
The reality, Massow maintains, is very different. “Our LGBT group is bigger than all the other groups for all the other parties put together. They [the Conservatives] are the gayest party there is! And I think we have the most gay MPs as well.”
Hey everybody! Sorry I haven't been around, it's been hectic here with the end of school and some guests visiting. I haven't even been near my computer most of the time. Things will start getting back to normal again now.
As for the gays...
The problem with identity politics is that the leaders try to force the followers to conform to their generally extremist view of the group. That's really what this article shows: "You have all the choice you want so long as you walk in lock step with what we tell you."
But that doesn't mean you can't reach a sizable portion of these people if you play your cards right.
Anthony,
Some of them would go insane.
"You have all the choice you want so long as you walk in lock step with what we tell you."
Yep. Sums up much of the Left's idea of "choice" in general.
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