I wrote yesterday morning that Peter LaBarbera seemed to think better of a post he had written castigating the National Organization for Marriage, having pulled it soon after it was written. In that piece, he was upset with NOM affiliate Louis Marinelli for tweeting that he didn’t care about DADT repeal, and that their goal was solely to keep marriage from the gays.
Peter has issued an explanation, in the form of “Evan is so mean,” etc.:
Wayne Besen’s hateful sidekick over at the comically-named Truth Wins Out, Evan Hurst, speculates that AFTAH pulled a post from today because we did not want to offend National Organization for Marriage (NOM). Yes, and no. We pulled the post because a Tweet we thought was produced by NOM was actually put up by a NOM ally, Louis Marinelli. The tweet, shown at right, is unfortunate – coming as it does from a pro-family leader who should know better – but much less so than if it had been produced by the leading advocacy group for traditional marriage.
Yeah, I’m so hateful, Pete. I spent my week speaking out on behalf of kids who have been bullied, literally, to death, partially as a result of “pro-family” teachings which create a climate that fosters a sense of self-hatred in innocent children. Such a meanie, I am.
To be clear, though, and here, Peter, I’m trying to help: Jeremy Hooper conclusively showed in August that Louis Marinelli is not simply a NOM ally, but indeed a NOM strategist, closely linked with their organization. Louis Marinelli IS a representative of NOM. So your first post was not in error, at least on that level.
So yes, Pete: that tweet might as well have the name NOM written directly on it. Now, if the NOM bigwigs have a different opinion and you want to suss that out from them, go for it.
How do you feel about the spate of gay teen suicides reported this month, Peter?
“the comically-named Truth Wins Out”
Isn’t this the “Truth Academy” guy?
Of course he’s not comical, just sad.
Petey remains oblivious to the spate of suicides!
This says loads about his character!!
(Notice how he’s never yet acknowleged the Rekers affair either??)
Christoph, I don’t believe he’s “oblivious” to them.
I believe, rather, that, for Peter and so many others like him, the circuits are so broken in their minds, due to their rigid, authoritarian, fact-free ideology, that they can’t even begin to understand how their beliefs and teachings, and their public advocacy, might lead to dead gay kids. In their worldview, there is no detail, there is no nuance, there is no deep thought. It is all “This good, that bad, him good, her evil, Jesus good, gay bad.”
It’s simplistic and extremely childish, yes. But it’s precisely that childish worldview that precludes them from thinking for themselves on these subjects. I honestly believe that if Peter or Laurie Higgins or the staff at Focus ever actually had a lightbulb moment and understood that their teachings contribute to a climate in which kids who are gay are devalued, and that being gay is not a “choice” that you can persuade someone away from, and a myriad of other things, they’d probably fall to their knees in shame, and since they are religious, repentance.
I could be wrong. They could just be pure evil.
But somehow I doubt it. They just don’t get it.
You don’t honestly expect Porno Pete to answer your question about the gay teen suicides do you? He still hasn’t answered the open letter I sent him months ago and posted on my blog for all to see. And he never will answer either one, because he’s very careful to avoid questions that are so direct and blunt and straight-forward that there’s absolutely no wiggle-room for him to weasel-word his way out of an honest answer. And we all know Petey-boy is allergic to honesty. The truth gives him hives.
No, I simply intend to continue asking the question of him, and of others, at every opportunity.