An Important Announcement

YOU GUYS I JUST BOUGHT A PERMANENT ACCOUNT FOR MYSELF AS A CHRISTMAS PRESENT. I NOW CAN UPLOAD 189 MORE USERPICS AND ALSO YOU ARE STUCK WITH ME. WHEEEE!

Today's Puzzlement ~ When Racism And Homophobia Actually Do Collide

I was watching Mike Huckabee on The Daily Show this week, and Jon Stewart kinda laid the smackdown on him for his stance on gay marriage.  Which was good, because I was sputtering in my seat at that—the “reasons” people like Huckabee give to oppose it are always spectacularly stupid and downright inaccurate.

 

The one that really pisses me off is the argument that marriage has always been between one man and one woman everywhere for the duration of human history—and please note, it is not Western history, it is human history they’re speaking for. Dudes, goddamn, no it hasn’t. Take one basic anthropology course and I promise you you’ll find that out damn fast.  Jon Stewart even pointed that out: in Biblical times—which are, in the arguments of the opposition, extremely relevant to their interests—marriage was polygamous and featured concubines and rapists being required to marry their victims* and all sorts of crazy shit.

 

But you know what’s really creepy about the argument?  When I respond with examples of modern marriage in other culture that don’t follow One-Man-One-Woman-Foreverz, like walking marriages or Islamic polygamy or polyandry, they get dismissed as irrelevant to the fact that Marriage Has Always Been Between One Man And One Woman.

 

… Uh.

 

So what you’re saying is, the other cultures—the ones that have different definitions of marriage—don’t count as part of history? Why the hell not? Are they just those inconsequential Others? Because what I’m hearing is, “Your argument is irrelevant because I am racist too!” Go ahead, explain your way out of this one. And while you’re at it, explain why you see our own culture’s different definitions of marriage—divorce, Vegas weddings, serial monogamy—as immoral, while the irrelevant savages can just go on doing their own thing because they don't count.  Take your time.

 

I don’t think people quite hear what they’re saying, do you? Maybe we should start repeating what people say to them—I’d be interested to see if they become any more self-aware when we do that

 

*Although AT LEAST THAT WAS ONE MAN AND ONE WOMAN!  EDIT: (Unless, as pixel39 points out, the rapist was already married.)

Advent Calendar ~ Day 11!

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?

 

I’ve never received a truly bad gift, I don’t think.  So I am going to change this.

 

11. Weirdest Christmas gift you ever received?

That would be the cassette tape in each of us kids’ stockings last year.  Each tape was a recording of a certain Famous Cartoon Character talking to one of us, personally. The character told me how cool it was that I was in Africa and that he heard I was interested in languages and that he hoped I was a good girl even though I was all grown up now.

 

See, the voice actor for that character was a patient of Dad’s. And the guy was stunned that we knew who he was, including his lesser-known roles. (“Are you kidding, Dad? He was that guy in that one episode of that show!* AWESOME!”) And happy.  And so he made us each a tape to sort of thank us for the recognition.

 

It was odd and sweet and I loved it. Thank you, voice actor!

 

 

And now for the Week o’ Happiness! What has made me happy today? Why, finding my old pirate story and reading through what I got done!  I’m not even wincing at my writing. I should write an ending for my little hobbit pirate.

Also my permanent account! I gotta get me a Christmas icon.

 

 

*I was actually more specific, but patient privacy on the blog.