August 10, 2015

I respond to comments to yesterday's evening's post "I walked down to State Street to get a cup of coffee and ran into a gay pride parade."

Chuck said: "Professor Althouse, having lived briefly in your lovely neighborhood myself, I happen to know that for you to 'walk down to State Street for a cup of coffee,' you'd have had to bypass three or four other pretty wonderful coffee shops. Are you being coy about why you walked at least two miles, the better part of an hour, to the scene of the Gay Pride Parade at the very moment it was starting?"

I like to go for walks, and I usually motivate myself by setting a destination and a reward, like ice cream at the Union Terrace or coffee at Colectivo on Monroe Street. There's a new Colectivo on State Street, and I decided to go there again and make it a longer walk. On the way I stopped at the Chazen Museum...

IMG_0725

... and I arrived on State Street just as the paraders were amassing in the staging area. I walked up a couple blocks, positioned myself on a corner and waited a mere 5 minutes before the parade began. Got my planned coffee about 20 minutes later.

Humperdink said: "Yep, throw your sexuality in my face (and others) again and again and again. That'll win us over."

Their sexuality is firmly entrenched on the other side of your face, in your head. No sexuality was thrown in anyone's face. In fact, the parade was completely unsexy. There were people in matching T-shirts indicating membership in some good-doing group. There were hockey players. The dressed-up folks looked rather bored. Some tamely danced. The liveliest float was the one for the Methodist church — not included in the edit — with a little band playing "When the Saints Go Marching In." There were a couple vote-for-me politicians at the front of the parade, right after the lead-off motorcyclists. Near the back of the parade — what symbolism! — was a "black lives matter" group and a Latino group. Seriously, it was the polar opposite of in-your-face sexuality.

David said: "Overwhelmingly white, as usual in Smugsville...."

It's Madison. And my iPhone ran out of space before the "black lives matter" group arrived.

Curious George said: "Hey was that justice fora day JoAnne 'I won' Kloppenberg at :05? I think it was. Same 'Deer in the headlight' stare. I'm guessing she got lost and decided to follow the shiny things."

That was, indeed, JoAnne Kloppenburg. She's running for Supreme Court Justice again. I don't know why politicians are put at the front of a parade like this. It bugged me, especially since the "black lives matter" political cause was relegated to the back.

JZ said: "Gay seems like the wrong word to me...."

That has got to be the tritest observation on the subject. Maybe if you'd said that 40 years ago, it would be fresh.

lgv said: "Why are they proud. They say they were born that way. It's like being proud of being left handed. One can be proud of their accomplishments, but I'm not sure that being proud of something you cannot control, like genetics, is illogical. Anyone's pride is not worthy of a parade to advertise it, either."

I didn't see the word "pride" anywhere or hear anyone proclaiming pride. I used the term "gay pride" because it's traditional, originating, I assume, in a desire to cancel the shame that had been culturally imposed. Now that the culture has changed, the word is perhaps a relic that could be discarded, but it's not yet the case that everyone who finds himself to be gay is free of shame, and there's something to be said for tradition.

Renee said: "Honestly, it wasn't that bad. No corporate sponsors. Just people who come in support ina peaceful manner."

Maybe you were distracted by the cute Pomeranian, but the man on the other end of the leash was holding one end of a sign that read: "American Family Insurance/Proud Sponsor."

walter said: "[T]hey clearly need to get the word out if Ann encountered it through happenstance. So why not join the parade, Ann?"

I'm not good at keeping track of Madison events. I just stumble into them sometimes. People who care about events check Facebook and Isthmus and whatever. I prefer places on normal days. I can't imagine actually being one of the paraders... in any parade. 

103 comments:

Scott said...

What an interesting installation. It looks like a Gollum clan coffee klatsch.

Humperdink said...

I do not deserve top billing, but thanks Professor. Help me understand what was the purpose if not to shove it in our faces. Hey look at us!!

What left for the gay agenda to win?

David A. Carlson said...

Testy today, are we? I hope your not grading summer exams

Ignorance is Bliss said...

...and there's something to be said for tradition.

LOL

Ignorance is Bliss said...

There were people in matching T-shirts indicating membership in some good-doing group.

Assumes facts not in evidence.

Scott said...

"What left for the gay agenda to win?"

I got the email this morning, but I'm not supposed to tell you.

Humperdink said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
MadisonMan said...

Is the Colectivo on State open? The wife and I walked for coffee yesterday, but "just" down to Monroe street.

It's strange (to me) how three of my favorite coffee shops in Madison -- Colectivo, Cargo and Crescendo -- all start with 'C' and end of 'o'. I still miss Eureka Joe's though.

I went to Froth House on Saturday -- excellent coffee!

MAJMike said...

As with most things LibCong, the desire for tolerance has progressed to "give me unconditional approval or we'll sue you out of existence."

Humperdink said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Ann Althouse said...

"What an interesting installation. It looks like a Gollum clan coffee klatsch."

That's "Are a Hundred Playing You? Or Only One," by the Chinese artist Xiang Jing. From 2007. Part of the museum's permanent collection.

Humperdink said...

I need to temper my comments regarding the sin of homosexuality so as not to elicit additional physical threats from Scott (see previous thread).

Liberals = love, or so I was led to believe.

Scott said...

"I need to temper my comments regarding the sin of homosexuality so as to elicit additional physical threats from Scott (see previous thread)."

Well I certainly elicited libels from you. I didn't threaten you. Please stop being a mouth-breathing controversialist.

And my apologies for violating the rule, "Don't feed the trolls." No soup for you.

Shouting Thomas said...

I have to filter your comments through the ghastly, creepy Brain in a Jar sexuality that you've developed over a lifetime of trying to adapt yourself to every dismal feminist status trope. Let's see...

1. Punish young men for wanting to fuck a pussy with kangaroo courts in colleges
2. Glamorize men fucking one another in shitty assholes
3. Pettifoggery and ten thousand HR rules in place of traditional morality
4. Fag hag brain dead refusal to acknowledge the deadly health hazard that is gay men (AIDS)
5. Insistence that your short term Brain in a Jar ideology should supercede thousands of years of human experience.

The creep show sexuality you've developed over decades of status seeking feminist and HR pettifoggery is astonishing and guaranteed to kill the erection of any sane man.

You seem to have no idea how sexually dead, creepy and just plain damned stupid you are. That's the result of your Brain in a Jar existence.

Scott said...

I love art with people in it.

Shouting Thomas said...

How did you get so fucked up?

Well, the answer is obvious.

Status seeking twisted you into a nutjob case.

Shouting Thomas said...

And before you get started with another of your favorite Brain in a Jar tropes...

I don't represent anybody. I'm not a political activist. I don't have any power. I'm a complete outlaw and have been all my life, which is what enables me to see though this incredibly sick shit you've embrace, because I can't be blacklisted. The world of shitty feminist, brain dead pettifogging lawyers in which you live doesn't mean shit to me.

I just an outlaw who hates bullshit.

You are one of the most depraved bullshit slingers in existence.

Scott said...

(Don't slip on the mouth foam. Breaking out the Piso Mojado cones again.)

Shouting Thomas said...

The fag hag is the most lethal enemy a hetero man faces on the job... because she's a two faced liar.

Here's the game the fag hag plays.

Kissing the ass of gay men because they are the current stars of the quota system is the way to get ahead in the office. (Kissing the asses of black men would be better, but there aren't any who actually qualify to get a decent job.)

I fought it out with the fag hags for decades. On the one hand, they were publicly trying to stab me in the back because I'm white, male and hetero, and those attacks advanced their careers. On the other hand, they were usually trying to seduce me, and making it clear they were willing to switch sides if only I'd take them seriously and fuck them.

Fag hags are treacherous back stabbers.

Most of them find a hetero man to take them seriously by the time they turn 30 or 35, and they cease playing the game. The gay boys drop them anyway, because by the age of 30 or 35 the gay boys don't even want to pretend that they want to fuck women.

Althouse seems to have fallen through the gaps, to be stuck eternally in the desert of fag hagdom.

MadisonMan said...

It's like Stella is in the comments section!

Harcourt Fenton Mudd, what have you been up to? Nothing good, I'm sure. Well, let me tell you, you lazy, good-for-nothing thing...thing...thing....

MayBee said...

Near the back of the parade — what symbolism! — was a "black lives matter" group and a Latino group.

Why were the Black Lives Matter people in the Gay Pride parade?

Was this just a general purpose parade, or did the BLM people insert themselves into the Gay Pride Parade (like they do with Bernie Sanders), or what?

tim maguire said...

Humperdink said: "Yep, throw your sexuality in my face (and others) again and again and again. That'll win us over."

Like the people ridiculing Caitlin Jenner for being called heroic, your comment is proof of what you deny. So long as they are attacked for not hiding, they must not hide.

Who cares if it won't convince you? You'll die eventually and you'll be replaced by someone with the opposite opinion. (Contrary to common partisan assumptions, gay rights are not a left-right thing, they are a young-old thing. Young people, even the young conservatives, are for it, old people, even the old liberals, are against it. Every year, the average age of the people who oppose gay rights goes up by about 6 or 8 months, we're already at a tipping point as enough of you have died off that you barely matter.)

Shouting Thomas said...

(Don't slip on the mouth foam. Breaking out the Piso Mojado cones again.)

Althouse is an enemy.

If you are a heterosexual white man with any dignity, this woman is a deadly enemy. She's a deadly enemy of your sons.

I'm not foaming at the mouth. I'm using this forum against her, because she's an enemy and she's giving me the opportunity to ridicule her.

I'm retired. I don't have to pretend that this depraved, rotten woman is a reasonable person. She's quite skilled in presenting herself as if she is. She's bat shit crazy and utterly vicious.

Charlie Currie said...

Well, if you're looking for proud sexuality in a parade format, come to Long Beach next June...Long Beach Pride...they have a website...check it out...

...or maybe Montreal...it's closer...there's actually a neighborhood know as the Gay Village...

Madison needs to step up its game.

TrespassersW said...

Are you quite sure that the shame is culturally imposed, and not intrinsic?

jacksonjay said...

Tradion is Trite!

David Begley said...

I'm a new reader here. Why are so many people here mean, nasty and insulting to Professor Althouse and her husband?

Is that part of the ouvere of this blog?

I think you people ought to lighten up a bit.

If this was Coach Bo Ryan's blog, you wouldn't act this way. He would also beat the hell out of you. He also would never have a blog. I bet he doesn't even use Twitter. Too old school. Part of the reason why he won so many games.

mikee said...

tim maguire, what is the average age of an ISIS member, and what is their opinion of homosexuality?

I suggest only that your views of old/young divide on social issues may be limited in applicability to US suburbia.

Scott said...

We don't go to the gay pride parade in NYC anymore. The Village is too crowded and the cops don't let you cross the street once the parade reaches there. You have to be standing near a bar to find a bathroom. But Queens and Brooklyn have their own events, and I did have fun at the Queens one in years past. Maybe I'll try it again.

And the Asbury Park NJ pride festival has been taken over by a lesbian clique for a half dozen years; and they are intrinsically control freaks. Bring your own bottle of water on to the festival grounds and some petulent fireplug dyke will forceably eject you.

Nichevo said...

David, there are answers to your questions. I'm at work but ST is free and if so minded, and calm enough to emulate fairness, might be able to bang you out a precis. Basically she has forfeited a lot of credibility and the quality of her work has diminished.

Mark said...

"Why are they proud. They say they were born that way. It's like being proud of being left handed. One can be proud of their accomplishments, but I'm not sure that being proud of something you cannot control, like genetics, is illogical. Anyone's pride is not worthy of a parade to advertise it, either."

My first thought was of the Confederate flag, which just a few weeks ago people defended the right to fly.

You know, that flag showing pride in something you cannot control, like genetics.

Oh wait - it's only the gay people being proud and walking in groups that issue is found with. Being proud and flying a confederate flag is not an issue, and certainly isn't `throwing it in faces' like is accused of these people.

Was surprised Althouse didn't dig up some of the blatant hypocrisy from those discussions.

Shouting Thomas said...

I'm a new reader here. Why are so many people here mean, nasty and insulting to Professor Althouse and her husband?

Because they are insane, depraved enemies of decent hetero men.

It all starts with Althouse decision to fuck for status. She's a twisted, demented woman. Decades of fucking in an attempt to acquire status within the insane world of academic feminism and the mandarin legal class has transformed her into a monster.

She's using the power that she gained by transforming herself into a status seeking monster to try to force men to faggotize and pussify themselves. Even she is deluded here. She thinks she's doing this to do good. She's just an S&M freak enjoying the beatdown.

Her husband is another strange type found on campuses. He makes his living by kissing fag hag ass, which requires him to run around the web denouncing other white men as racists in the hope that he won't be denounced first.

It's a war. One of Althouse's most potent weapons is her pretense that she isn't forcing a war. You fell for it.

Eric the Fruit Bat said...

There was something that I hadn't heard before in A Universe from Nothing: Why There Is Something Rather than Nothing: "If you want to know what it will be like when you're dead, imagine what it was like before you were born." Interesting way to put it.

Right now I'm listening to a lecture series on Greek myth and the guy was talking about how the Greeks communicated with the gods through ritual sacrifice, which was basically a big feast, and how Judaism, Christianity and Islam all reflect the same tradition. He said that there's no evidence that the Greeks practiced human sacrifice, and how their literature suggests that it was quite the taboo. Human sacrifice was punished severely.

He didn't say anything about transubstantiation and how that sort of cannibalism gets rewarded, which was probably all for the better.

Roger Sweeny said...

Ann, like you I have gay family and the word "pride" was all over the place here in eastern Massachusetts. Pride Day, Pride Week, Pride on the Quad (an official event at Harvard Medical School).

Lewis Wetzel said...

"They say they were born that way. It's like being proud of being left handed."
The phenomena we call "handedness" and "sexual orientation" have a lot in common.

Eric the Fruit Bat said...

On the subject of gay pride, I recall a lecture series on evolutionary psychology were the guy was talking about how organized religion requires people to expend scarce resources and make a public display of conformity. Sincerity isn't prime. Rather, it's the willingness to partake in the display that is operative.

Interesting.

(And no, I'm not intimating that marching in a gay pride parade is a religious observance.)

Eric the Fruit Bat said...

WHO WON'T WEAR THE RIBBON?????!!!!!!

MadisonMan said...

Why are so many people here mean, nasty and insulting to Professor Althouse and her husband?

They hold grudges and don't have lives, despite their insistings to the contrary.

Consider them the angry comic, banging out one note and expecting a laugh, or merely a reponse. In small doses, it can amuse as it is very predictable.

Etienne said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

Blogger Eric the Fruit Bat said...
On the subject of gay pride, I recall a lecture series on evolutionary psychology were the guy was talking about how organized religion requires people to expend scarce resources and make a public display of conformity. Sincerity isn't prime. Rather, it's the willingness to partake in the display that is operative.

Interesting.


You will partake in the display or we will sue you for discrimination.

jr565 said...

If sexuality was not thrown in people's faces then Madison has really boring gay pride parades. Maybes it's something gin the water that produces dull gays in Madison.
In NY, they throw sex in your face. now THATS a gay pride parade.
One of my fondest memories of a recent gay pride parade that I witnessed was two gay guys walking down the street walking either towards or away from the parade. (We happened to be going to a movie that was close to where the gay pride parade a being held).
Anyway, one of the gay guys was on a leash being led by his lover down the street. He had on a leather outfit where one leg was covered in leather and the 2nd leg was bare so one of his ass cheeks was completely visible and his balls clearly seen. He also had on nipple clips on his bare chest. Don't remember if he had a ball gag in his mouth. But he did seem a bit embarrassed to be walking down the street as he was kind of rushing and mumbling under his breath to his lover to hurry up.
Clearly this couple doesn't live in Madison.
But I assure you, if you go to a gay pride parade in NY or SF such spectacles are commonplace.

David Begley said...

I'm with Carly on this point: name calling doesn't advance the discussion.

Nebraska federal judge Richard Kopf used to have a well-read blog. He had rules. One rule was he could kick you out for any reason or no reason at all. He kicked one guy out and, like a federal judge, wrote about it.

Don't be surprised if Althouse kicked some of you out. If is, after all, her blog.

Lighten up.

Anonymous said...

What happens if you go to a cake baker who normally supplies parades and you tell them you want a gay pride parade cake and the baker says no?

I think we all know the answer to that question.

Anonymous said...

Blogger jr565 said...
If sexuality was not thrown in people's faces then Madison has really boring gay pride parades. Maybes it's something gin the water that produces dull gays in Madison.
In NY, they throw sex in your face. now THATS a gay pride parade.
One of my fondest memories of a recent gay pride parade that I witnessed was two gay guys walking down the street walking either towards or away from the parade. (We happened to be going to a movie that was close to where the gay pride parade a being held).
Anyway, one of the gay guys was on a leash being led by his lover down the street. He had on a leather outfit where one leg was covered in leather and the 2nd leg was bare so one of his ass cheeks was completely visible and his balls clearly seen. He also had on nipple clips on his bare chest. Don't remember if he had a ball gag in his mouth. But he did seem a bit embarrassed to be walking down the street as he was kind of rushing and mumbling under his breath to his lover to hurry up.
Clearly this couple doesn't live in Madison.
But I assure you, if you go to a gay pride parade in NY or SF such spectacles are commonplace.


They also like to dress up as Nuns and mock the Catholic Church.

Eric the Fruit Bat said...

Why are so many people here mean, nasty and insulting to Professor Althouse and her husband?

My wife is short. She was in a business meeting, and as they were filing out of the conference room, a tall man held the door open for her in such a way that he expected her to walk underneath his outstretched arm.

The incident pissed her off and she felt conflicted about getting pissed off. She asked me if her emotions were out of line.

My response was: "No. The guy would have never done such a thing if you were his boss."

I try to live by the Golden Rule, but sometimes I feel like a sap.

I Callahan said...

I'm getting the feeling that our hostess is starting to dislike her commentariat.

Etienne said...

When Indians see parades with cowboys, they have the same icky shiver.

Known Unknown said...

"I answer your questions,"

Well, you answered three questions. Out of eight comments highlighted.

Scott said...

I love the smell of feigned umbrage in the morning.

And it's laughable how social conservatives have embraced the rhetorical tactics of adolescent feminist social justice warriors. (Lovely mattress you're wearing.)

Known Unknown said...

"I'm getting the feeling that our hostess is starting to dislike her commentariat."

Starting to? This is all a social experiment, remember?

Known Unknown said...

"I love the smell of feigned umbrage in the morning."

Homosexuality is pretty boring when you think about it.

Also, I always wanted to ask about the broccoli.

jr565 said...

There does appear to be a storm on the horizon between the shemales and the drag queens. Apparently the transgendered take issue with drag queens calling them she males.
Ru paul got in trouble for this very thing:

http://thinkprogress.org/lgbt/2014/06/25/3449462/drag-queens-trans-women/

in Scotland, drag queens were banned from a gay pride cent for offending trains people:

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/07/23/drag-queens-banned-from-pride-event-for-offendi-ng-trans-people.html

"In an explanation on its blog, the founders argued that drag turned gender identity into a joke. “The decision was taken by transgender individuals who were uncomfortable with having drag performances at the event,” it wrote. “It was felt that it would make some of those who were transgender or questioning their gender uncomfortable.”

Sorry drag queens. You are now offensive to the guys who think they are women. You can't make it up. I'm wondering if the LGBT community might want to remove the T from their group, as they are now making drag queens seem like the oppressor.

Known Unknown said...

"And my iPhone ran out of space before the "black lives matter" group arrived."

Maybe your phone isn't the right color.

Etienne said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
jr565 said...

Eric wrote:
What happens if you go to a cake baker who normally supplies parades and you tell them you want a gay pride parade cake and the baker says no?

I think we all know the answer to that question.

that actually happened in Ireland. A group requested a cake that says "I support gay marriage" not even for a gay wedding but for a gay pride event. And the judge said to deny it was hate speech.
So now you have to make cakes for events, simply because the events are about gays.

Scott said...

@EMD: There's no intrinsic meaning to the broccoli floret--it's anti-meaning in a way. It's distinctive and the graphic scales well. That's why I use it.

Your logo has a nice shape and a stylized atom symbol in the center. It's too small for me to read the words, though.

These days my favorite logo is the emblem for Leaf Village in the anime Naruto Shippuden. If I were picking a blogger logo today, I would use that. It's interesting looking and has an obscure cultural reference.

Static Ping said...

To comment on the walking, a topic which I am pretty sure no one here really cares, the idea of using a landmark as destination is good motivation. I use it myself when I want to push myself, or I feel in a rut and want to do something other than my standard routes. Of course, one must be careful else discover that the route is a bit longer than what you had in mind, or goes through a less than savory part of town, or is very walk unfriendly (no sidewalks, speeding traffic, the only place to jump out of the way is off a bridge, etc.)

There is one particular landmark - a park - that has been on the list for about a year. It is not far as the crow flies. Unfortunately, I learned the hard way that it is completely inaccessible from my direction; to get there requires walking all the way around the park, which is large, and entering from the opposite side. Both routes there are undesirable for different reasons. It is starting to take on Moby Dick level obsession.

Amusingly, I understand the park is notorious as a pickup place for gay men.

Scott said...

The password for today is "intrinsic." And Allen Ludden smiles from Heaven, waiting for Betty to join him.

Todd said...

Althouse said:

there's something to be said for tradition.


OK now that there is funny! Ann can have such a dry wit at times!

Scott said...

@Static Ping: Gay cruising areas aren't as common as they were in the past, due to smartphone apps like Grindr and Hornet. Sigh.

But it sounds like the area you describe would be an ideal place for that. Public and difficult to raid.

MadisonMan said...

Unfortunately, I learned the hard way that it is completely inaccessible from my direction; to get there requires walking all the way around the park, which is large, and entering from the opposite side.

You have to wonder at the bureaucrat who thought Let's establish this parkland and make it hard to get to.

The reality is probably people didn't want undesirables on the other side of the park to percolate into their neighborhood. Sometimes bureaucrats should ignore the loudest complainers.

(That same goes for blog commenters).

Shouting Thomas said...

One of Althouse's favorite office politics pretensions is that she represents an oppressed class.

She is the face of the technocratic, corporate lawyer, mandarin class. She is The Boss.

I lived in SF and the West Village for 40 years. I know the people who march in the Pride Parades. They are your Boss. They are the technocratic, bureaucratic, professorial, lawyerly elite. They aren't the underdogs. They are rich, powerful and they tell you what to do when you go to work or to school.

They aren't out there fighting to escape oppression. They are out there to ridicule you for not being rich and hip, and to stick down your throat the reality that they can ridicule you and your family for the sin of wanting children and blood grandchildren, and that they have made it a crime for you to return the favor.

Althouse is the face of the technocratic, legal mandarin class. She is The Boss. Her Dylan obsession is an attempt to hide this fact, even from herself, while she pretends to be 18 year old Suze Retolo strolling through the Village.

You've got to give it to this woman. She's a master of office politics. She is your boss, and she tells you every day that she's a heroine of the underdog. And she does this very cleverly.

Static Ping said...

@Scott: I do not consider it to be a good thing. Not really interested in going to a public park to see if shock absorbers work or if the dumbasses humped in the poison ivy. Get a room. (And that goes for any sort of sexual activity by anyone. It's a public park.)

Static Ping said...

MadisonMan: Actually, the reason the park is inaccessible from my direction is cruel geography. Cliffs! It looked so close on the street map.

jono39 said...

Arguing from history is always a dubious enterprise. But here I go. Homosexuality, bisexuality, asexuality are aspects of human biology that have been modified and transformed by culture, law and custom. Just because all previous cultures that elevated same sex conduct -- I am talking male because historically men have never much opposed women screwing with each other - decayed or were overthrown is not evidence that "gay liberation" is evidence of our decay. The rise of Christianity led to a hard line on homosxuality as there emerged traditions of devotion committed to abstinence -- which in turn decayed into various debaucheries from land grabbing to paedophelia, Which does not mean that all or even most men who became monks were debauched freaks practicing nefarious acts of same sexuality.

Islam has very strong prohibitions vs onanism and homosexuality. Having lived in the Sinai desert for a year in the early 90s, scuba diving every day for many months, I was befriended by a Beduin family. I lived with two brothers for a while, met other members of the family, was present as a young mother -- maybe 18 -- nursed her newborn as we sat around the campfire. (The Beduin who mostly do not know how to swim owned all the dive shops around Sharm el Sheikh and Nuweiba, the finest points from which to explore the Red Sea reefs.) According to the Beduin every Arab, the word they used to reference any Arabic speaker who was not a Beduin, has sex with other boys or men before marrying because girls are treated like plutonium. I came to the conclusion that an important source of the endemic discontent in the so-called ArabWorld is caused by access to western movies and TV which had sex and romance at their core from the beginning. The Internet has universalized porn. None of this is talked about in the Arab press or publicly.
This is hardly the place to lay out why I believe the current movement to treat all genders as equal will inevitably fail, I will say flatly there are two genders only. There are some genetic oddities but people who claim to be Transgender are either mentally ill or deceivers. To give this concept legal status will only hasten the assault on the rights of people to choose how they want to be sexual.

Anonymous said...

Mark said:
"Why are they proud. They say they were born that way. It's like being proud of being left handed. One can be proud of their accomplishments, but I'm not sure that being proud of something you cannot control, like genetics, is illogical. Anyone's pride is not worthy of a parade to advertise it, either."

My first thought was of the Confederate flag, which just a few weeks ago people defended the right to fly.

You know, that flag showing pride in something you cannot control, like genetics.

Oh wait - it's only the gay people being proud and walking in groups that issue is found with. Being proud and flying a confederate flag is not an issue, and certainly isn't `throwing it in faces' like is accused of these people.

Was surprised Althouse didn't dig up some of the blatant hypocrisy from those discussions.
--------
Good ol' Mark, completely oblivious to his own hypocrisy. Or are you now OK with the Confederate flag being flown?


Ann Althouse has a son who is gay. She is 'morally/inellectually' required to find nothing wrong or questionable with his lifestyle. His lifestyle is a comment on her as a mother, she knows. She wonders deep inside if she somehow caused him to be gay... ambitious mother, divorce...that kind of stuff. She has also gone through the it's-natural-and-not-my-fault mental discussion and thinks she's absolved herself of any 'guilt'. She is also required to find those people who believe homosexuality to be 'wrong'.
She's the mother of a gay man. Give her a break. She's protecting her ego. That's fine by me.

Levi Starks said...

Ann is clearly thin skinned about this subject, yet she comes back for more....

damikesc said...

It bugged me, especially since the "black lives matter" political cause was relegated to the back.

Isn't that best for Dems?

For all of the talk of how bad Trump is...that the Dems are effectively owned by that joke of a movement is measures worse.

Shouting Thomas said...

I am talking male because historically men have never much opposed women screwing with each other...

Female homosexuality is not the deadly public health hazard presented by male homosexuality.

Hetero swinger clubs have always recognized this. Male on male sexual contact is prohibited because allowing gay or bisexual men into the orgy can be a death sentence for everybody involved. Female on female sexual contact presents no such threat.

The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...

"I'm wondering if the LGBT community might want to remove the T from their group, as they are now making drag queens seem like the oppressor."

This will happen sooner rather than later. There's a light year of difference between gay and trans. I'm very surprised that Gays ever felt they had anything in common with transexuals.

damikesc said...

Like the people ridiculing Caitlin Jenner for being called heroic, your comment is proof of what you deny. So long as they are attacked for not hiding, they must not hide.

Given that I'm likely your age or younger...in what way is Bruce Jenner "courageous"? Playing dress-up is hardly courageous.

And how is saying "I don't want to see it" the same as "You must HIDE!!!" I don't want to watch heteros (who, contrary to media attention, are still about 97% of the population) carrying on like a bunch of ninnies, either.


My first thought was of the Confederate flag, which just a few weeks ago people defended the right to fly.

You know, that flag showing pride in something you cannot control, like genetics.

Oh wait - it's only the gay people being proud and walking in groups that issue is found with. Being proud and flying a confederate flag is not an issue, and certainly isn't `throwing it in faces' like is accused of these people.

Was surprised Althouse didn't dig up some of the blatant hypocrisy from those discussions.


I've not seen calls to outlaw homosexuality. Can you point some out?

And it's laughable how social conservatives have embraced the rhetorical tactics of adolescent feminist social justice warriors. (Lovely mattress you're wearing.)

Can you explain WHY they shouldn't? If a tactic works, it will be used by others.

damikesc said...

This will happen sooner rather than later. There's a light year of difference between gay and trans. I'm very surprised that Gays ever felt they had anything in common with transexuals.

Yeah. One is tedious and the other is fucking retarded.

Ctmom4 said...

" The polar opposite of in your face sexuality". I concur. I think the parade could have used more music. Too quiet.

Todd said...

Shouting Thomas said... [hush]​[hide comment]
I am talking male because historically men have never much opposed women screwing with each other...

Female homosexuality is not the deadly public health hazard presented by male homosexuality.

Hetero swinger clubs have always recognized this. Male on male sexual contact is prohibited because allowing gay or bisexual men into the orgy can be a death sentence for everybody involved. Female on female sexual contact presents no such threat.

8/10/15, 12:08 PM


And if we can be honest, lots (most?) men think girl-on-girl is usually pretty darn hot!

Wait, should I have prefaced that with a trigger warning?

Shouting Thomas said...

Ann is clearly thin skinned about this subject, yet she comes back for more....

Having failed to discover evidence of a great history of persecution of gays in the U.S., she's invented "issues" with which you must agree or be denounced as a "homophobe."

Thus, disagreement with Althouse over "issues" becomes the proof that her son faces horrifying persecution.

In a way, the issue of gay marriage was invented to bury the reality of the AIDS epidemic. Gay men killed themselves (and innocents) by the millions with their reckless sexual behavior in the bathhouses. But, the real issue, you homophobes, is whether or not you agree with gay marriage. If you don't... well, you're just like the KKK killing niggers.

Clever, huh?

Humperdink said...

@Scott Been gone for awhile, but I wanted to return to compliment you on your debating skills. I was taken aback by your calling me a hater, a bigot, and a troll, after previously threatening me for the comments I made on another post ("You wouldn't tell that to my face if we were waiting at a bus stop together").

Why I have never been put on the defensive like that before in my life. Carved me up like the Thanksgiving turkey. Wow. Your language skills are beyond mine. You clearly have made your point. Gay Pride!! Won me over.

Drago said...

Mark: "You know, that flag showing pride in something you cannot control, like genetics."

That's quite an assertion. Would you mind presenting your evidence of this genetic root cause? We'll wait.

Scott said...

(Note to self: Must...not...feed...trolls...)

Drago said...

Note to self: requesting posters provide actual evidence for their assertions is now considered "trolling".

Drago said...

Scott, it would be helpful if you would simply list those subjects (with the "approved" positions, naturally) for which assertions require no evidence.

Scott said...

Drago: Project much?

(Damn I did it again. Bad fingers.)

JZ said...

I won the prize for being most trite! Well, I think the word Gay is trite. (By the way, I feel the same way about the term "Pro-choice". You're not pro-choice. You're pro-abortion.) How about "homosexual" instead of Gay? That's certainly NOT trite. Anyway, thanks for noticing.

Scott said...

(Write the word "gay" here in the comments and a hundred knees start jerking. Y'all should get together and stage a revival of Riverdance. Michael Flatley, call your office please.)

Paco Wové said...

Angry! day at the Althouse blog proceeds apace.

Sigivald said...

It bugged me, especially since the "black lives matter" political cause was relegated to the back.

Politicians can affect the cause of gay rights.

Another cause, both unrelated to gayness, and relating to a group statistically more anti-gay than the majority population, gets put at the back.

Humperdink said...

Note to Scott: If can't stand the heat, get out of the parade.

Second note to Scott: If someone asks why the need for a parade, respond with something other than "you're a trolling, hating, bigoted homophobe".

I am beginning to think name calling is your calling card.

Fen said...

Oh geez not this shit again. Last one to stop clapping gets front-paged and slimed by the fag hag.

Paul said...

You people are coo coo for cocoa puffs in Madison.

Explains a lot.

Fen said...

Why are so many people here mean, nasty and insulting to Professor Althouse and her husband?

Because she is nasty and insulting to us. Last time this went down, I made the cardinal sin of stating that I was bored with all the gay rights posts. For that thoughtcrime, she dedicated a post sliming me, basically calling me a homophobe and hater.

Never apologized, never walked it back. It would be no different if your were frontpaged here as a racist for saying you were bored with all the #BlackLivesMatter coverage.

So fuck Ann Althouse and her calls for civility on this topic. Her son is mutation, a perversion of what he should have been. Probably due to all the female hormones in the water when he was born.

As for gays, these are the little Nazis running good people out of business and imprisoning them for not cheerleading gay marriage. Fuck them too. I hope ISIS kills them all. Fricken Nazis.

Pianoman said...

On the one hand, we are lectured about how "gays are no different than anyone else", and how This Is The Defining Battle Of Our Generation, because Equality!

On the other hand, we're assaulted with "Pride Parades", where people celebrate the fact that they have sex differently than 99% of the population.

Hard for me to know what the plusgoodthink is supposed to be.

Renee said...

I was happy to see local groups (churches), and in general local resources that impact the community.

I find corporate sponsors just odd compared to a local business.

The Saint Patrick's Day parade has been over whelmed with corporate sponsors.

walter said...

mikee said...

tim maguire, what is the average age of an ISIS member, and what is their opinion of homosexuality?
--------

Hey..that's below the belt, mikee. Those homosexuals threw themselves off that roof.
Tim's one of the "Oh yeah? Well..you're old and gonna die anyway" warriors.

Humperdink said...

Humperdink said: "Yep, throw your sexuality in my face (and others) again and again and again. That'll win us over."

Althouse responded: "Their sexuality is firmly entrenched on the other side of your face, in your head. No sexuality was thrown in anyone's face."

I was outside most of the day dear hostess, but before I left I posed the question: What was the purpose of the parade?

I did not see that my question was answered.

My opinion the purpose was to alert the Madison populace that here we are, Gay and Proud, as in ... in your face.

walter said...

But Humperdink, if Ann's vid is representative of the parade, it has become quite tame compared to previous level of "in your face"-ness I have seen there. And if a UW prof personally connected to the issue hasn't been hammered with awareness over such an event, the push and perceived importance has become marginal.
Regarding the point of it, who wouldn't enjoy being in a parade? Besides Ann..

By the way, kinda funny she starts another post just to announce her responses to posts found just a slight scroll down the page.

But all things considered, ironically conspicuously absent are Spatula's anal sex comments.

Any economic thoughts, ARM?

Pianoman said...

@AA: "I didn't see the word "pride" anywhere or hear anyone proclaiming pride."

But the organizers of these parades certainly do call it that. Google "gay pride".

On the other hand, if you Google "should the term gay pride be abolished", you get nothing.

The gay community has clearly embraced the phrase. So ... what are they "proud" of?

It made sense 25 years ago, when people were more afraid of coming out. But nowadays nobody cares. So why are they having to shout about it?


walter said...

2015 OutReach Pride Parade

Ann, you would have had to pre-register to partake.

Phil 314 said...

The professor periodically trolls her blog.

Worked.

(PS: Words to live by "Don't feed the trolls". And ST is one of the biggest ones)

Drago said...

Scott: "Drago: Project much?"

No.

Why do you ask?

Humperdink said...

Walter, I thought the purpose of a parade was to showcase some event, activity or cause.

Want low key? Have a picnic.

walter said...

"The professor periodically trolls her blog.
Worked."

Dunno..simply moving comments from here to there accomplishes very little. but I guess it elevates hers above the fray. I guess that's working.


Humperdink,
It's still a "cause"..the importance just varies based on context. I'm sure Madison Pride, the event is still an outlet to "let your freak flag fly" if you live other places. But in Madison, it's kind of meh at this point. Although, from what I saw in the past, the "rally" and speeches were where the intensity was. It's where Tammy Baldwin would shed her mild mannered persona/voice and serve up some vitriol.
Then again, maybe the Mirth and Girth folks were actually rolling their float there this weekend and Ann's cam didn't catch that wonderful freedom of expressing bondage.

Pianoman said...

"Freak Flag"?

But ... aren't gays just like everyone else? Are we really allowed to use the words "freak" and "queer" when describing them?

(Sorry for the dopey questions -- I'm just trying to understand the rules. Maybe there's a website I can go to that explains it all.)

walter said...

I meant it in the most general and relative of senses. As an example..for Madison natives, the equivalent would be going down State St. with I heart Walker T-shirt on.
I bet some of the downtown merchants who were Badger-ed about not posting anti-Walker signs have dreams like that.

Rusty said...

Wait!
Is this the same parade?
Or has there been another one?
Were there any Giant Paper Mache heads?
It isn't a parade for the left if there aren't any
Giant Paper Mache heads.(soon to be a registered trade mark)
Also
Why is it important that I know you're gay?
Isn't being FABULOUS enough?
I think gay is getting boring.
If it gets any more boring you're going to lose members.
(snort)