Preface: This is a slipshod piece of opinion. If you'd like to read something of actual value, I point you toward Walter Wink's Biblical Perspectives on Homosexuality.
I don't read the paper, I don't watch any news networks, and I don't read any online news. In my opinion, most events outside of my immediate sphere are so inconsequential that they may as well just not exist. (College football happenings excepted).
Sadly, through the wonders of social media, I'm sometimes overrun by a typhoon of winging and hand-wringing because of some insignificant cultural or political issue. This effect is exacerbated when the issue of the day involves the plight of the homosexual.
I reside uncomfortably between two very verbose camps, journalists (or, even worse, amateur journalists) and evangelical Americans. This means that anytime the sodomists take command of the national zeitgeist I'm forced (by virtue of casual Facebook browsing) to read 200 word excoriations from both sides, often riddled with incomplete thoughts, rampant generalizations, and an appalling lack of perspective.
I realize that this issue could be resolved quite easily by averting my eyes from the offending posts, but this has proven difficult. Facebook is little more than a 21st century bathroom window, and we're all pervs in the bushes, hoping for glimpses of exposed humanity.
And, like (I assume) real peeping toms, this exercise leaves us with nothing but a sort of perplexed shame, wondering how we got ourselves into such a mess.
Humanity is often beautiful and transcendent and moving, but this is never the case on Facebook.
Facebook is where the sublime goes to rot away - discarded amongst the farmville and vampiretown requests. Facebook is a limitless reservoir of ignorance.
Which brings me to today's issue. A popular chain of fast-food chicken restaurants rustled all sorts of jimmies when the company president stated that he was steadfastly opposed to marriage equality.
This was a dumb thing for the president of Chick Fil A to say. It does nothing but alienate people and the franchise is already outspokenly evangelical, so most could likely surmise the higher-ups' views on gay marriage. He certainly can't have helped his business.
Things escalated from there. The laity mobilized on social media while those with actual clout began taking sides. The mayor of Boston crafted a letter to discourage the franchise from expanding in the city. Politicians began eating at Chick Fil A to show their support. Thousands of blogs were written and the whole world got dumber. Eventually, Mike Huckabee got involved and we're now all sitting here, existing, on Chick Fil A Appreciation Day (which is exactly what it sounds like).
So now, this is officially a thing.
The udder (little Chick Fil A mascot pun there for you guys) ridiculousness of this is hopefully not lost on you, dear reader.
We should all be ashamed of ourselves. (I'm not ashamed, because I'm sitting comfortably on my high horse).
I understand that everyone has an opinion and that everyone feels that their opinion is of value, but that's because we all exist in our little solipsistic universe where we believe that eating or not eating from a certain restaurant, or, worse, writing a holier-than-thou Facebook status is doing any good for anyone.
If anything, you're just annoying people and contributing to the already noxious level of acrimony that permeates the American political and religious discourse.
Even if you're delivering an even-handed and thoughtful critique of the situation you're at fault. This situation does not dignify even-handed and thoughtful critique. This situation should not exist and anything that gives it legitimacy should be cast down.
If I had any integrity, I would delete this blog right now and never share it, but I'm on the Internet, so I can do whatever I want.
This kerfuffle will do nothing to bring LGBT equality, it will just give bigots an excuse to go bigot it up.
