Quote of the Day: Alan Simpson on homophobes and hypocrites in the GOP

By Michael J.W. Stickings

And, oh, is this quotable. Here's the former Republican senator from Wyoming on Hardball yesterday:

Who the hell is for abortion? I don't know anybody running around with a sign that says, "Have an abortion! They're wonderful!" They're hideous, but they're a deeply intimate and personal decision, and I don't think men legislators should even vote on the issue.

Then you've got homosexuality, you've got Don't Ask, Don't Tell. We have homophobes on our party. That's disgusting to me. We're all human beings. We're all God’s children. Now if they're going to get off on that stuff -- Santorum has said some cruel things -- cruel, cruel things -- about homosexuals. Ask him about it; see if he attributes the cruelness of his remarks years ago. Foul.

Now if that's the kind of guys that are going to be on my ticket, you know, it makes you sort out hard what Reagan said, you know, "Stick with your folks." But, I'm not sticking with people who are homophobic, anti-women, moral values -- while you're diddling your secretary while you're giving a speech on moral values? Come on, get off of it.

No one ever accused Simpson of being verbally delicate, and while he doesn't really have anything to lose, he deserves a lot of credit for telling it like it is. It's just a wonder he still calls himself a Republican. Because, let's face it, there's an awful lot more he could have said.

Here's the clip:

Gays in the military and the vulnerability of homophobic men (not)

By R.K. Barry

One of my absolutely favourite experiences has long been listening to gay-bashing masquerade as a concern by heterosexual men that they will be hit on by gay men.

The is almost always expressed by some of the most obnoxious, mouth-breathing morons, which would suggest to me that they need not be all that concerned.

I was reminded of this recently when I read that a conservative Republican delegate to the Virginia House of Delegates, Bob Marshall, will introduce a measure that would ban practicing homosexuals from serving in the state's National Guard. His claim is that openly gay soldiers would distract straight troops, commenting that, "[i]t's a distraction when I'm on the battlefield and have to concentrate on the enemy 600 yards away and I'm worried about this guy whose got eyes on me."

I am not gay and can't speak from direct experience, but I have never been particularly attracted to women who are openly hostile to my core values or significant aspects of my identity. Is there something difficult to understand about this?

No, Mr. Marshall, I think you're safe, as are all the other homophobic jackasses who express concern that gay men will find you irresistible. Has that every really happened to you? Ever? I didn't think so.

(Cross-posted to Lippmann's Ghost.)