Singer Rob Thomas wrote an article for the Huffington Post.  Please pass it along, because for those people who are STILL wrestling with the idea of marriage equality, I think it makes some beautiful points about why enlightened straight people need to get involved.

THE BIG GAY CHIP ON MY SHOULDER

I am a straight man, with a big gay chip on my shoulder.

A while back on my Twitter page (yes, I know how ridiculous it sounds), I mentioned that, if I believed in the devil, Pat Robertson might be him.

Being a fairly liberal-leaning guy with either liberal friends or Republican and Christian friends who don't believe that being one has anything to do with the other, I was surprised at how many people took offense to what I had to say.

These people weren't friends of Mr. Robertson but friends, apparently, of God. They had "spoken" with him and he had assured them that he was no friend of the gays. He also told them that he loved America more than any other country and was a huge fan of Dancing With the Stars.

The small controversy or "Twitter-versy" (patent on phrase pending) all started when I had made the mistake of asking why two people of the same sex shouldn't be able to make the same life-long commitment and (more importantly) under the same god, as straight people. Why can't my gay friends be as happily married as my wife and I? It seemed simple to me, but let me start off by telling you a series of things that I believe to be true:

I am a person who believes that people are born gay. I don't think you have any control over what moves you or to whom you're attracted. That's why it's called an attraction and not a choice.

I believe that America is a great nation of even greater people. I also believe that anyone who says that this is a "Christian nation" has RHS, or revisionist history syndrome, and doesn't realize that most of our founding fathers were either atheist or at least could see, even in the 1700s, that all through Europe at the time, religion was the cause of so much persecution that they needed to put into their brand new constitution a SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE so that the ideals of a group of people could never be forced onto the whole. (I also find it funny when people point out to me that it says "one nation under god" in our pledge of allegiance, not realizing that this was an addition made in 1954 during the communism scare of the McCarthy era. It's not surprising, however, knowing that these same people would punch me in the mouth if I called Jesus a Jew.)

I believe the fact that an atheist, who doesn't believe in God at all, is allowed to enter into the holy land of marriage while a gay Christian is not, shows that this law is arbitrary. Are we to believe that anyone who doesn't live their life according to the King James Bible isn't protected by the same laws that protect those who do? Using the same argument that I've seen on the 700 Club, that would mean that Jewish, Hindu, or Muslim weddings are also null and void.

I believe that to deny this right to the gay population is to say to them, "this god is not your god and he doesn't love you." There isn't one person who is against gay marriage that can give me a reason why it shouldn't be legal without bringing God or their religion into it. Still, I'm amazed at the audacity of a small, misdirected group of the ultra-conservative Christian right wing, to spend millions of dollars, in a recession, on advertisements to stop two men or women who love each other from being able to be married, but when you present any opposition to them, they accuse you of attacking their religion. Isn't it funny that the people who are the quickest to take someone's basic rights to happiness are always the loudest to scream when someone attacks their right to do so?

But this isn't a paper about religion. How could it be? Since we clearly have a separation of church and state, how could a conversation about laws have anything to do with religion at all? I'm writing about basic civil rights. We've been here before, fighting for the rights of African Americans or women to vote, or the rights of Jewish Americans to worship as they see fit. And, just as whites fought for African Americans or Christians for Jewish Americans, straight people must stand up and be a voice for gay people.

I've heard it said before, many times, that if two men or two women are allowed to join into a civil union together, why can't they be happy with that and why is it so important that they call it marriage? In essence, what's in a name?

A civil union has to do with death. It's essentially a document that gives you lower taxes and the right to let your faux spouse collect your insurance when you pass away. A marriage is about life. It's about a commitment. And this argument is about allowing people to have the right to make that commitment, even if it doesn't make sense to you. Anything else falls under the category of "separate but equal" and we know how that works out.

The support of legalizing gay marriage is in no way meant to change the ideals of the section of Christians who believe that homosexuality is a sin. But we should refuse to let other people's ideals shape the way we live our lives. Each of us has a short ride on this earth and as long as we stay in our lane, and don't affect someone else's ride, we should be allowed to drive as we see fit.

In the last blog, a friend (strictly plutonic) invited me over to his apartment to watch a couple of critically acclaimed movies: The Curious Case of Benjamin Buttons and Meryl Streep’s Doubt.  I was excited; not only to leave from my occasional nerve-wracking rugrats, but to relax with a friend and maybe have our usual intellectual conversations.  But this night was different.

When I arrived to popcorn scent-filled apartment, he greeted me with this weird creepy smile.  My initial reaction to his weird expression was “he must’ve had way too many beers”.  I did not suspect one minute this guy had some other ulterior motive the reason he’d invited me over to his apartment.  I didn’t expect him to wrap his stocky arm around me like we were a couple; I didn’t expect him to have such a interest in tasteless porn, and I most certainly didn’t expect to be shock beyond my wildest dreams of what was revealed to me from his bookcase.

After he told me to grab the movies from his bookcase I’ve been longing to see, I found a two DVD’s that made me wanted to run to the bathroom and hurl.  I was so paralyzed with the grotesque nature of these movies….or flicks…..that I couldn’t help to delve closer at these DVD cases, to make sure of what I seeing wasn’t my imagination.

Are you ready?

Brace yourself….

Okay…

Ready?

This fool had a collection of BESTIALITY bullshit flicks…..WTF?????!!!!!!.......What kind of HUMAN would find this sexually gratifying?  On the cover of one of them was woman with a freggin horse.  The other cover was a man with a dog! 

Are you serious?.........GROSS!!!!

Hell, I didn’t know they sold this shit.  I would’ve thought the porn industry SHOULD know when to say when. But if it’s the old magic dollar, why should I be surprised?

And does this man realize that bestiality is crime (I know in Indiana it is).  I pray this guy never….ever….ever….ever….attempted to screw the dog he had because it’s sick…it’s weird…it’s NASTY!!!!!! 

If anyone thinks this type of sex is cool. Let me tell this is not a sexual arousing; this not a fantasy. This is a form a mental illness.  I think if anyone finds this HOT, they need to see a shrink.  They are sick PUPPIES!!!!

Okay….after being grossed out with this content of this blog…..let me resume on telling this story…

When the paralyses of shock dissipated, I turned to him and asked, “What the fuck are these?”  My friend (or what) face turned into a humiliation red—regardless of his chocolate tone---the redness pierced through his skin. He couldn’t help but not to be embarrassed.  Following that, I was still waiting for my answer, as I held up both of those flicks like a filthy laundry.

He leaned closer to his coffee table, as he his eyes widen with anticipation.  My friend began to nervously rubbed hands, and then suddenly stuck his couch pillow on his lap.

“Wait a minute !” I yelled as threw the movies next to him, “Are you getting aroused from this?’

“Girl, you crazy?” he nervously chuckled, “I’m just chilly in here”.   (Liar…it was hot as hell in his apartment).

Then at that moment, I was looking at man I thought I knew.  We’ve known each other for 20 years.  If there was something going in my life or his, we always had each other back.  He and I never had an inclination of animalistic attraction (wow, a pun).  I was proud to a have a male friend who I can call MALE FRIEND, and not a male friend with benefits.  So as anyone can imagine I was highly disappointed.

Then what he said next added insult to injury. “T, those videos aren’t mines”…….

If I haven’t mentioned in the other blog, let me say, this man has children who are grown. They all live on their own.  They both have very active careers one in the medical field and the other in the military.  Besides they’re both girls.  What girl wants to watch someone screw another species?  Or better yet, anyone that matter…..Not only I’m insulted with his assumptions of what he thought I was thought, I’m hurt he would sit there, with his dick hard, of course, lying to me whose videos they were.

 Anyway...

As the scent of the popcorn faded into a distant memory, and the commentator from the basketball game on his TV try to out talk one another, I snugged my purse closer on my shoulder, and opened his door.  I had to get out of from his web of lies and deceit.  I looked at him without saying a word, as he remained on his couch with a look a pity and embarrassment.  I think he wanted to get away more than I did. 

As I stepped out of his apartment, I heard him saying, “I’m really sorry, T……It’s just I have a weird fetish on some things”.

I answered without looking his way, “I can understand plain ole’ porn….I can understand lesbian porn ( he is a guy)….I can even take you watching gay porn ( again, he is a guy), but animals?  You need a talk to a shrink. **********, you have issues.  I can’t be your friend until you fix whatever this abnormal fetish this may be.

Then I left…..

Since that night, he called many times, but I didn’t answer.  I’m not ready to talk to him.

Let me ask this…..If someone watches a certain type of porn, then most likely, they want to try it….right? ….. If someone watches kiddie porn, most likely, they are pedophiles….If someone watches gay porn, they have a bi-curious nature or they’re gay…..If someone watches lesbian porn, most likely they have a bi-curious nature, lesbians, or freaky men….If a couple watches porn together, most likely they’re following along the action…But…if someone watches bestiality porn, they’ll most likely have a morbid curiosity to try it? …..ewwwww!!!!

 I refuse to compete with a real BITCH…..on the real….