Monday, October 25, 2010

Frustration At The Polls For The Gay Community

There was a recent Associated Press article that I had read recently that I had found interesting because it stated that gays were considering staying home on election day or possibly voting for a different candidate other then the Democrats who typically support gay issues.
Across the country, activists say gay voters are angry -- at the lack of progress on issues from eliminating employment discrimination to uncertainty over serving in the military to the economy – and some are choosing to sit out this election or look for other candidates...

It didn't help that the controversy over the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy for gays erupted less than two weeks before the election, when a judge overturned it, then Obama's justice department decided to fight the judge's decision. On Thursday, the Defense Department declared that "don't ask, don't tell" is official policy but set up a new system that could make it tougher to get thrown out of the military for being openly gay.
I think it would be a serious mistake for them to throw away their vote because they are dissatisfied with the preceived lack of progress - just take a look at comments by some of this years Republican candidates.

"I think that birth has an influence over [being gay], like alcoholism and some other things, but I think that basically, you have a choice," said Ken Buck, GOP Senate candidate for Colorado.

"There's no absolute right to serve. Men under the height of 5 feet, 2 inches can't serve -- I don't see anybody protesting. Where are the people standing in front of the White House, the short guys standing in front of the White House? You don't see it," said Sean Bielat, who is challenging openly-gay Barney Frank for his congressional seat.  "We understand that there's no absolute right to serve in all these other areas," he continued."

Do gays believe these individuals have their interests at heart?

Should they stay at home this election cycle, they give people like Buck or Bielat a better chance to win, and these guys would rather die then give equal rights to gays...

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