The Fayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commission’s funding requests are in and about half of the organizations asking for money plan on bringing brand new events to town.
The new events, which include a food festival, a half-marathon, a bicycle race, and All OUT June, a gay pride celebration, have requested about $86,000 in funding.
Returning attractions, such as the 540 Film Festival and Lights of the Ozarks, make up the remainder of the requests. Altogether, the 13 groups seeking funding for the second half of 2010 are asking for just over $260,000.
Sometimes, what is asked for is higher than what is approved when it comes to event funding. For example, the Joe Martin Stage Race, which takes place next month, requested $10,000 for this year’s event, but received only $3,200. The money for special events comes from the unallocated revenue fund which means there’s only so much left to go around.
Unfortunately for organizers, there’s only $31,000 left in undedicated revenue for the remainder of 2010, said commission director Marilyn Heifner.
“Either we’re going to have to find some money or we’re going to have to really do some cutting,” Heifner said at this month’s meeting.
The commission will discuss and allocate the funds at next month’s regular meeting.
Fayetteville A & P Commission Funding Requests – April 2010
| Date | Event | 2009 Funds | 2010 Request |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct. 9-10 | Fayetteville Half-Marathon | New | $20,000 |
| Mid Sept. | Puppets in the Park | $0 | $1,000 |
| Sept. 25 | Ozark Harvest Food Festival | New | $4,700 |
| Oct. 28-29 | Lewis & Clark Adventure Races | $3,000 | $5,000 |
| Nov. 7 | Cyclocross | New | $2,500 |
| Nov. 4-7 | 540 Film Festival | $8,000 | $62,000 |
| Nov. 21-Dec. 31 | Lights of the Ozarks | $20,000 | $30,000 |
| June | All OUT June | New | $10,000 |
| Oct. 7-10 | OffShoot Film Festival | New | $20,000 |
| May-Oct. | Fayetteville Underground | New | $29,057 |
| July 27-Aug. 8 | Beauty and the Beast | * | $25,000 |
| Sept. / Dec. | TheatreSquared | $8,000** | $15,000 |
| Year Round | Washington County Fair | $0 | $36,612 |
| Totals | $39,000 | $260,869 |
* Walton Arts Center was awarded $30,000 in April for Artosphere
** TheatreSquared was awarded $7,000 in April for marketing
Let me start by saying the gay pride rally (a.k.a. ALL OUT June) is about three leaps beyond rediculous to even think of using our tax money for. There is no way I want my taxes to go for anything of that nature. If someone feels there should be a rally for that, then sponsor it yourself. The second thing that leaps out at me is the amount of fundage asked for by a few of these groups…$20K for a Marathon??? $29K for “Fayetteville Underground”??? And why are two private businesses on the list? Lewis and Clark and the Theatre Squared??? Lewis and Clark I would think should be able to swing the $5K without sweating…and if Theatre Squared had better business sense, they would only have shows in peak times to cut down on cost…instead of 60 shows per month…how about 15?
Is a gay pride rally more ridiculous than Bikes, Babes, and Bling? I think not.
To clarify an earlier poster’s comments, TheatreSquared is a not-for-profit organization. Sixty performances take place throughout the year, fifteen for each production. For full information, please visit http://theatresquared.org.
Partly as a result of marketing support provided by the A&P Commission for 2009/10 Season productions, TheatreSquared has successfully more than doubled its audience this year.
Lawrence Caesar–
The fact that you are, apparently, so ignorant of Fayetteville’s rich history vis-a-vis the gay and lesbian community amply demonstrates the need for funding All OUT.
I love it when the homophobes out themselves…
Comment removed.
They asked for ten grand. Surely that’s not too gay and/or proud for you.
Hmmm, so clearly you can post as any name here, since we have two Innarested Observers now. Some say I’m schizo. No I’m not. (Yes I am.)
Innaresting, no?
Nice one Mark_Landry.
If you can afford a Harley, you damn sure don’t need tax dollars to throw a party that 90% of the town doesn’t want anyway.
Do you gays want your tax dollars going to a church or something that is a blatant in-your-face hetrosexual celebration? Well, I don’t want my tax dollars going to a gay pride festival. Gays are still a minority (even around this hippie town). So if ya’ll want to have a party, go ahead. But not with my money.
I just love how I express my opinion of no taxes going towards gay pride marches and I immediately get labeled “HOMOPHOBE!!!”. That’s about as closed-minded as you can get, isn’t it? And I never supported Bikes, Babes, and Bling. I think we all know that was an internal deal with the Fayetteville A&P and whether we, the people, wanted it or not, it was coming…just because someone or two on that board could see some possible cashflow. Is anyone even paying attention to what kinds of people you are attracting to these rallies and events? Bikers, sluts, gays, etc. It’s rediculous. And all funded by the majority of this town that are not bikers, sluts, or gay. You’ve had your cake…now let’s do some things for the people….FAMILY ORIENTED.
Lawrence Caesar–
Note that the $10,000 requested for All OUT June is a minority of the $260,869 in requests. Also note that even gay people have families. Since there is no reason to assume that any of the other requests would support non-family-oriented events, it appears that you have singled out All OUT June for your underlying distaste.
Your first post was clearly an uninformed rant, and your second isn’t much better. Don’t complain when people take you for an uninformed ranter.
Don’t yall get it? The A&P dudes don’t care if you’re gay, green, babes, bikers or hikers….all they care about is “heads in beds;” filling up hotel rooms and slinging more meals is their ONLY concern. They don’t care a whit about the character of the city, or the peace of citizens. I predict the national group
Gay Christian Biker Midgets will be the city’s next big festival.
Sooo….Walton Arts Center would be getting a whopping 55 thousand of the taxes we pay for the Beauty and the Beast and the Artosphere. I would like to go see that with my wife and two chidren, but it would cost me $88 JUST TO GET IN THE DOOR. And this is non-profit??? Looks like as much tax payer money as they’ve received, every person in Fayetteville should be issued a season ticket. How is that making sense???
I have to agree about the WAC. While it surely is an asset to some of the city, living on Social Security, I cannot afford to see anything there. I would have loved to see South Pacific, but the ticket prices are for the rich.
I can see the direction this city is headed in. Since my tax dollars keep being spent on all this crap that I don’t agree with (Bikes, Arts, Gays) and the A&P won’t listen to the people who are suppling the tax money, I guess the only thing I can do is to start limiting the money I spend in this town. I’ll go to Springdale or Farmington to get my gas and groceries.
SAM, it has nothing to do with gas and groceries. A&P funds come from lodging and meals.
When is the rally for sluts? Sounds entertaining.
SAM, that’s not a bad idea at all. I think that’s the same direction I am heading. Usually, the A&P commissions for a city are actual city servants whose main goal is to improve the quality of life for the majority of the people in their district. Here, it seems to be more liken to a band of backscratchers in a circle that are nothing more than hellbent to vacuum the last dollar out of the majority of people in this town. All the while doing as they please with the loot they think they have “deserved”. Maybe I’ll see you at Marvin’s IGA in Farmington sometime.
Great, the two idiots on here complaining the most don’t even know what A&P funds are, and where they come from.
The sluts will gather in the parking lot of the intellectual hotbed of NW Arkansas, Marvin’s IGA in Farmington.
Hogs, Hefers & Shiny Things??
umm…they come from the A&P tax that you pay when you eat at any restaurant in city limits and stay at any hotel in city limits…hence the packing of my own lunch from now on and anytime I have family come stay, it won’t be here in town.
Never would have guessed a post about a gay pride parade would be loud and obnoxious……
does anyone know how many people each of these events was estimated to bring in from other cities?
I suggest the A&P not fund the Gay Christian Midget Bikers event, because everybody knows they don’t eat as much, and often sleep 6 to one queen size bed, so we don’t stand to make much money off the midgets. I suggest we fund more of the obese biker babes & their bling stuff, whatever bling is.
@Snort Times, please!
Comment removed.
@Ceasar. My guess is you don’t get out much, please keep it that way.
What TheatreSquared is doing is great fro Fayetteville, Martin and everyone else involved are doing an amazing job. I hope they can keep it up. They deserve everything they get.
Also, as someone who’s lived in Fayetteville for a decade I think ALL OUT JUNE is awesome. I think the tide is slowly turning. There is a growing Gay and Lesbian community in Fayetteville, more so than a BBBBQ community (which is dragged in from **** knows where). We all need to support ALL OUT JUNE.
Um, hey Flyer folks, why is this guy posting using my name (required)? It’s not a particularly good name (required). Should I start using a different one? I am Tony Stark, and I AM INNARESTED OBSERVER.
Comment removed.
@Innarested Observer – We’re looking into it. Give us a minute.
It is my hope that Lawrence and SAM will go to Springdale.
OK, folks, we don’t have an official policy (yet) that says you can’t use the same name as someone else, but we are going to be taking some steps in the near future to try and keep the confusion in the comments at a minimum. Until then, if you use a name that has already been taken and we notice, your comment might get deleted. Exception: “Steve Guttenberg.” That one’s fair game. Maybe.
@Lawrence Caesar
Just curious…what would YOU like to see happen? What parades and festivals would you like to see? KKK rallies and bring your gun to the square day?
“Bikers, sluts, gays, etc.” Really? Those 3 are all grouped together to you?
And Sam thinks there’s too many hippies here so…maybe Harrison would be more comfortable for y’all? I’ll bet THEY don’t spend their tax dollars on a *gasp* gay pride festival.
As a gay biker slut I am offended on so many levels. All OUT June seems like a fine event to me. Nice balance to the BBBBBBBQ’s. We can’t let events like that shape the identity of our town. We are a diverse community. That’s part of our appeal. If some don’t want to support it, that’s fine. You have a right to your opinion. Just know that in this town you will probably be outnumbered and have it forced on you (figuratively).
***Please note that any posts under “George” without the urinal gravatar do not represent the real George Papadopolous***
You’d think with $10,000.00, All Out could put together a better website.
Fayetteville isn’t as gay as some people seem to believe. I am not anti-gay, but I struggle to understand the need for a month long orgy of events (festival?) promoting a sexual preference. I guess I don’t understand. As far as I can tell, gays go about their gayness in Fayetteville with little difficulty.
If the point of the festival is political, it doesn’t seem to me like A&P tax funds should be spent on that.
I could see it if this was focused into a big Pride weekend, like Eureka’s Diversity thing. Make it a big gay weekend, have some music, a big party, etc. But stretching it out over a month, does anyone really think we’ll get any extra hotel stays out of that? I don’t.
But yeah, its hard to complain about the distribution A&P funds to things like that when we keep dumping money into BBBBQ.
Also, that logo looks like a rainbow piece of bacon.
@skalmt
Extremely well hidden in all that flaming gibberesh, you did have a valid question…what would I like to see the funding go for…
I would like to see family oriented things…AFFORDABLE…FAMILY…ORIENTED…EVENTS. I still think a water park would go over really well here. Or events such as the grape festival in Tontitown would be great. Definitely a fireworks display for 4th of July…things of that nature that do not cater to a specific SMALL MINORITY group and more for families…because I really feel the family events could go a long way in attracting more DECENT people into this area.
Reminder: None of these groups (aside from WAC and T2) have received any funding for the second half of 2010 yet. The new ones haven’t received any money ever. These are just the requests. The commission will discuss and allocate the funds at next month’s regular meeting.
@Lawrence
What about people who don’t have families? I don’t mean any family of course…I just mean the traditional sense of the word, a mother, a father, and children. Just because you think families are the majority of this town doesn’t mean other people (minorites) shouldn’t get an equal opportunity to be together and celebrate whatever it is they want to celebrate right?
I’m not opposed to the idea of “family oriented” events…I just think that that’s not the only group entitled to funding from the city. And having events like a gay pride festival or first thursday etc. are what makes Fayetteville Funky so to speak…unique…and home.
@Todd Gill:
Right on. Okay, for the gays… I think you need to organize a big weekend event, get some gay artists, gay oriented music acts, make a big gay weekend where gays take over Dickson Street and downtown.
I think All Out is a fine name, but its really watering things down when you are going to have a “month full” of activities.
If there was one week or weekend set aside, I really think you’d get more support from local businesses than having a few events spread out over a month.
A big gay weekend would be something gays from Arkansas, Tulsa, SW Mo could all organize and plan to attend.
Since the gay bar is on Block Street, you could make it into a “Block Party”, eh? Get it?
Pride Nights, or something of that nature.
It could really turn into something impactful and well known in the region if done right.
Also, I think the big city gays would enjoy a little time in the mountain town. Spend the $, get some music acts booked, invite the LoGo channel, have a drag festival, etc. I really think most of Fayetteville would be very supportive of something like this.
Mmmm. Rainbow bacon.
how about a pride parade led off by all the people you work with/go to church with/thought were just happy batchlors, etc………..who are really gay. Would love to see that.
Yup. I like where b-boy is going. A month is too watered down. If I’m out of towner gay folk I’m not going to be enticed to go to a month long event. Now a weekend or even a full week (with an emphasis on one of the weekends) might bring me in.
@LC – Could you get “Flaming Gibberish” to play the event? Cuz they rock. All OUT June featuring Flaming Gibberish. Yeah!
I’m kinda wishing these were split up somehow to debate different listings. To me, what the Walton Arts Center is doing is worse than what the gays are asking about doing…and yet the gay topic has become the main focus here…
I am honored to live in Fayetteville, Arkansas. A progressive, tolerant city filled with intelligent and caring citizens.
“Who’s Your City – How the Creative Economy is Making the Place Where You Live the Most Important Decision of Your Life” (published 2008) by world-renowned author and creative class expert, Richard Florida, selects Fayetteville Arkansas for two categories (small regions):
“Best cities for young singles (ages 20-29)”
and
“Best cities for gays and lesbians”
http://www.creativeclass.com/whos_your_city/best_cities/
And additional info here:
http://www.randomhouse.ca/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780307356970&ref=author_wyc
This book is an excellent read.
San Francisco, CA counts Pride Week as its largest grossing week for tax revenue (sales, hotel, etc).
Please, bring on the tourists, bring on the residents – of any creed, religion, race, sexual preference. This place is great, even if we do have our differences.
Fayetteville is a diverse town and that’s something in which we all should take pride. All OUT June is a month of events to help create awareness about the LGBT community in northwest Arkansas, educate the general public about the community, and for the community to celebrate its diversity. The schedule of events – which will be published soon – is as diverse as the LGBT community itself. It will include cultural, education, sporting, and family oriented events. What sets this apart from many others is that it will actually draw attendees from across the region (Tulsa, Springfield, Joplin, Ft. Smith, Conway, Little Rock, and even further). The month of events will end with a parade and festival in downtown Fayetteville. It’s exactly the type of event that the A&P grants are created for and All OUT June deserves the same opportunity as any of the other applicants.
While we are on the topic of having celebrations for sexual deviants why not go ahead and have a pedophile parade. Or even a rapist rally. Be gay on your own time and money.
Yeah, Seriously. We could have a Douchebag Parade too and you could headline it.
A gun rally/convention on the square would be a fun time, though only if you could get the state to get rid of their stupid prohibition on open carry.
WOW! Look at all the suggestions for how to make June a good and inviting time for a diverse community to celebrate itself! Where were all these suggestions when the grant application was being written :-).
Yes, a month does seem spread out, but with some events being held early in the month and some late, that’s just the way it falls. The focus though, as suggested by a few folks here, is indeed towards one big weekend. A Friday night with a large bar party/parties, a Saturday parade, rally, and “block” party in a closed parking lot, and a Sunday recovery picnic. Sprinkled through the month will be guest lectures, film screenings, Sunday brunches, athletic events, etc. All of these things could just as easily be taken to a different city in Northwest Arkansas. The choice is whether Fayetteville wants to keep them here, or let another local town snag them up.
I love the DDP comment because part of what it could accomplish is not just a weekend of increased tourism, but an entire year where the local and Arkansas LGBT community feels like Fayetteville is the perfect kind of place for them to come spend their money.
It’s a shame that the main focus of all the comments are about disagreeing with All Out June. This is a great opportunity and it isn’t JUST for gay people. We want straight allies involved too. This is for families who don’t encourage hatred in their family. This isn’t even necessarily for tourists. It’s for the NWA community. People who are GLBT or have GLBT friends and family. It’s a good chance for people to see how normal we really are.
This event boils down to one thing: bringing the community together and opening people’s minds. Whether you like it or not, gay people are everywhere. They are answering your phone calls, ringing up your groceries, writing your newspaper. The fact that people are willing to dismiss that and treat GLBT people like they are second-class citizens is disgusting.
Also, AOJ is asking for very little funding compared to everyone else.
Above all else, the month isn’t just a big party. There are all sorts of events, many of which are educational.
No one is better than anyone else. Especially because of a sexual orientation or identity. Equality is coming whether you like it or not.
I do not understand the controversy that this has created. Anything that brings a diverse crowd to Fayetteville should be encouraged. We are the only “open-minded” town in several states. I do not understand how people cannot see that this would benefit the area. Well, I do understand that sometimes peoples own prejudices speak loudly- and then they must attempt to justify. The varied opportunities will appeal to people who may not have thought of coming, relocating or visiting Fayetteville. My husband and I think its wonderful to be able to share this with our kids- THIS extends to All Out June. That is a wonderful idea- 1) spread over a month with different attractions will appeal to different crowds- and because it will be in the summer-summer camp, family vacations can be worked around to see it. You do realize that many Gay people have families and children- why do you automatically assume it would not be a family friendly event? and if people visit 2 or three weekends then it double/triples the amount of hotel/food money to the area WHILE not causing an overly congested traffic issue that plagues the weekend of BBBBQ.
I think its wonderful that our community supports the WHOLE of the community- and embraces the Arts.
I guess I’m not really surprised at some of the comments. I suppose I am a little bewildered at why everyone is talking about All Out June and not the $30,000 being asked for by the Lights of the Ozarks people….Frankly, I don’t care about that either. (It was fun this past year.)
The truth is your taxes go to a lot of things that if you knew about, you’d be even MORE pissed off about. All Out June is attempting to EDUCATE the community, and at the same time hard to help raise as much money as we can.
It’s not anyones intention to be a burden on taxpayers…and yes, the logo looks like rainbow bacon….but bacon rocks hardcore….and you know you want a piece of it
Go gays.
I wanna piece of that gay bacon.
Proud to be a slut. Proud to support All Out June. Don’t have a bike, but I love blues & BBQ, and I like think I’m still a babe, so hell yeah, bring on the other BBBBQ & BBB.
Theater Squared is doing an amazing job and deserves all of our support.
The ones complaining the loudest about this are also the first to complain about the woes of city tax revenues falling. Ummm, hello? The people that come to these rallies spend money in a wide array of local businesses, not just restaurants, bars and hotels.
The wide range of entertainment offerings are just one of the many rich facets of our city. I would hate to see the dismal city some of these complainers apparently envision. Perhaps some of you would be happier in a more quiet burg, say West Fork or Prairie Grove. Of course, you might still have to deal with neighbors that are gay or ride a hawg, or go to the theater, but hey, your tax dollars wouldn’t be supporting them.
oooo, and gimme some of that gay bacon, too!
Gay Bacon.
Gay….bacon.
Clay Aiken.
And the Gay Bacon brand was born… t-shirts and bumper stickers available soon.
The gay bacon logo makes it perfectly clear that All OUT June will not be just another sausage fest.
Hey Lawrence? I have no problem with you deciding what events are fit for your family to attend. I have a huge problem when you start deciding for the rest of us what events are fit for my family and other families to attend. Sorry but you don’t get to make that call. Just like you don’t get to make the call on what constitutes a family.
Gay bacon… yum… because it’s bacon, so it’s good like all other bacon. Even Canadian bacon.
I guess I should consider it progress that someone who considers a homosexual a “deviant” can read and use a computer. Evolution is tedious. However, it is puzzling that some events are deemed OK because they bring money to the area, yet others that bring money to the area are not OK. My gay friends are almost unfailingly polite, considerate, open-minded and make great neighbors. I like them a lot better than Tea Partiers, religious freaks or Republicans. Wait, that’s redundant.
Hey Morgan, I never said one word about where you can or cannot go with your family. But when it comes to city funding, something funny is telling me I should have just as much say as to where that funding goes as you. Did you attend the last “pride march”? Did you see any women hugging and kissing? Men hugging and kissing? Do you want your children to see that? It’s your call. I know I don’t. And the main fact of the matter is when this interest group requests city money, then it becomes a public matter. Our “acceptance” has already been stretched to the brink in my opinion. The next step (public funding of this immoral activity) should never…NEVER be taken. And I might add that the law is on my side on this one. Should the city give a nickel in funding for this event, it will be opening itself to a lawsuit.
My wife, myself, and our family are PROUD Gay Allies. We’ve participated in the parade every single year and apart from the occasional protesters who have shown up to tell my wife she’s going to hell for being the crime of sodomy. (yeah, that’s right…) it’s always been a family friendly event. If the city doesn’t want to fund it (and given the funds available I think that HIGHLY unlikely) that’s okay. We’ll participate in whatever we can and have a great time!
So smile, enjoy this wonderful city, and quit being so exclusionary and grumpy! lol!
Anthony- I want one of those shirts.
The pride parade and everything that surrounds it is so positive! I do not have children, but if I did- I would be taking them to the pride events. I love the diversity of Fayetteville. I think nothing but good can come from supporting this event.
I’m sorry, kids aren’t allowed to see grown ups hug? Men can only hug women and vice versa? Are you kidding me? As a man I can’t HUG another man in front of a kid? HUGGING?
I DO agree that we should not be funding public orgies and calling them family events. What I don’t understand is where in the world anyone got the impression that a gay pride march and an S&M party are one in the same, other than the fact that that person may be a bigot.
HUGGING?
I find Lawrence hysterical.
First off, how can acceptance of a human being ever be “stretched to the brink”? You can come back and say, “Oh, well if we accept them we have to accept bestiality too”, or whatever ignorant comment you can come up with. You want your kids to be as close-minded as you? It’s 2010. Your kids will get their asses kicked for being as big of a douchebag as you are.
AOJ isn’t an “immoral activity.” Going to a public forum and bashing those who aren’t like you, is.
And the fact that you think a lawsuit will suddenly spring up if All Out June is funded the money just shows how genius you are.
I am sick and tired of people thinking they are better than others because of what they are. Your problem is you don’t see WHO they are. Shame on you.
Lawrence Caesar–
The A & P Commission awarded $182,850 in funding last fall, and will award $31,000 this spring. All OUT June asked for $10,000, or less than one-half of one percent of the total funding. Do you really not think that at least one-half of one percent of the people who pay the HMR tax are gay, and so entitled to the expenditure for that reason alone? Never mind that gay people, in addition to having exquisite taste, are well known to be bon vivants in general and profligate drinkers in particular. They must pay HMR taxes out of all proportion to their numbers.
You complained about the turn this thread has taken. Look at your posts: You turned it. The only consistency in your entire scattershot contribution to this thread, besides your avoidance of valid points made by others, is that you apparently hate gay people.
But you would strive to protect your children from the influence of gay people. Who will protect your poor children from your influence? The stunting you wish to impose on their intellectual and social growth constitutes child abuse.
Men hugging men. Women kissing women. Straight people never do that. Sounds like trouble, right here in River City, with a capital “T” and that rhymes with “G” and that stands for Gay.
Trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble,…
Lawrence, you have clearly made the determination for all of us that this event isn’t family oriented. So again I ask you, when did you gain the power to make the decision for me what events are family oriented? The point is you didn’t. You only get to make that decision for you family. I make that decision for my family. The solution is remarkably simple – if the event isn’t in line with your views and beliefs and values – DON’T GO. I promise you nobody will hold a gun to your head or miss you if you don’t attend.
Do I like everything my taxes are spent on? No, not at all. Imagine this country if taxes were only ever spent on activites, events, progams, and policies that every single tax payer approved on. Yeah, that would work really well, huh?
Yes, I’ve attended Gay Pride events. Yes, my child has seen them. Shoot, Lawrence, my teenage son’s best friend is being raised by his lesbian mother and her girlfried. Guess what! This young man is a great kid. Guess what else, Lawrence? My son is better for the relationship with this other family. He is having reinforced what I’ve always taught him; that the character and value of a person has nothing to do with if that person has sex with the opposite gender or their own gender. He is fair and open minded which is far more than I think we can say about you at this point.
Do you really think it’s going to somehow harm your family if they see two women kissing or two men hugging versus seeing heterosexual couples engaging in the same activity? Honestly, if that causes some sort of emotional or physical harm to your family then you have way bigger problems than gay pride. If it were to cause them some harm I would go so far as to say your parenting skills sort of suck.
As far as your belief it’s immoral behavior, I hate to break it to you but my generation and my son’s generation are pretty accepting of it and don’t find it at all immoral. I may not be attracted to my gender but I don’t think it’s immoral when others feel that attraction. I have to ask again, who died and made you the arbitrater of what is moral and immoral? Where and when did I sign off on allowing you to determine what is moral and immoral for me? I assure you I didn’t.
I find it amusing the supposedly open minded ones on this site constantly shout down any viewpoint that has an inkling of conservative ideas or religious principals…
I find it amusing that you find it amusing.
How do presenting a counterpoint or pointing out a lack of logical skill constitute “shouting down”? What religious principles has Lawrence Caesar demonstrated even an inkling of?
Note: “principles”.
Lawrence has said nothing about religion. But none of this is even about religion at all. Not even the event itself. Leave religion out of it.
I am so sickened to know homophobic bigots like Lawrence Caesar (by the way, there is really no such person with this name that has ever voted in Fayetteville from public records) may be living in my neighborhood or in my community. He was ugly about a 10 year old having an opinion regarding gays and the Pledge of Allegiance last November and now his ridiculously uniformed hateful opinion regarding gays celebrating diversity.
I hope my children never have to see him in a public place or hear his nasty ignorant rhetoric. It’s just downright scary. On the other hand they don’t seem to be very interested in public same sex hugging as far as I can tell.I’m pretty sure some women/women and/or men/men hugs have been seen at our rather traditional Methodist church now and again. I would like 100% of my hotel, motel, restaurant tax to be designated to a month long event celebrating diversity, tolerance (acceptance), and education of an often maligned and misrepresented sector of our rich diverse community. We will go as a family to a gay parade for the fun of it unless there is Vacation Bible School activities that day. My kids really enjoy the VBS arts and crafts. I also think gay bacon may be tasty but should not be funded with the tax dollars. Bacon is just too good and should support itself. -Mike
@Michael – So apparently intolerance and bigotry re: sexual orientation are open-minded concepts. Let’s go whole hog and say that racial bigotry is open-minded, too. Suddenly Arkansas is a shining example of all-inclusive, free-thinking compassion. Sounds good to me!
So if nothing is planned for the month of July, could we make that one a NAMBLA celebration month? We could continue the cultural diversity that June is promoting. It would be a totally family-oriented event. I think that your kids need to be exposed to men and boys who are in a committed and meaningful relationship. What do you say A&P? Could you hook me up with city funding?
Oh, boy– the famous and irrelevant slippery slope argument.
Sexual preference has nothing to do with pedophilia, bestiality, or polygamy. In fact, one could argue that these predilections are more in the nature of religious values. Two of them, anyway.
@David Franks
pedophilia, bestiality, and polygamy ARE sexual preferences, just like homosexuality. Its just that our society has now moved the line of what is acceptable to include GLBT but not these others. Just so were clear, I don’t really approve of NAMBLA or any of the thigs you mentioned. I also don’t approve of homosexuallity. The only difference in what they claim (a mutual and consentual relationship based on love) and what the GLBT community professes (I cant help who I love) is who that love is directed toward.
Now all of that said, who you chose to love is your business. You want to celebrate that, go ahead. Organize events, have block parties and parades. But I don’t beleive that it should be funded by the general populace.
I am he(re)–
Clearly I should have used the term “sexual orientation” instead of “sexual preference”, as they are used to mean the same thing and it wouldn’t have led you to believe I was talking about other types of behavior. It would help the discussion if you used terms as they are commonly understood, instead of defining them as you wish.
Polygamy is a marriage arrangement, not a sexual preference. Pedophilia is as much a socialization disorder as it is a deviant sexual behavior. I don’t defend pedophilia or bestiality; curable or not, they are deviant behaviors with some traceable external cause. Sexual orientation, though, is not a deviant behavior– it is intrinsic to the individual. We are all programmed to have a sexual orientation, and heterosexuality is not the only possible outcome.
As I pointed out above, the amount of money requested by All OUT June could easily have been collected from HMR taxes paid by the GLBT community, so your fine family-oriented heterosexual tax dollars would remain untainted by funding the event.
There’s another group that is getting large, it spends money, and is at the core of Fayetteville Values. I was amazed when I last cruised the main drag of Fayetteville and discovered that Fayetteville has more tattoo parlours than Springdale. In fact, you have twice as many. Plus, you have more tattooed residents as per the last couple of public events I attended.
So, to really be inclusive why not a tattoo contest? Shirley, it’s what the young, upward bound professionals in Fayetteville aspire towards. Well, at least Angelica Jolie agrees. It would attract bikers too.
I will volunteer to judge the tramp stamps if David will be my co-judge.
Think of the needle bidness you could draw. Think of the free-spending young people and middle aged wannabes!!
Homosexuality is a natural phenomenon; it’s going to occur due to the natural variation of people, just like some will be short or tall, some will be black or white, some will be smart or not-so-smart.
It’s been observed and documented in the natural world for over a century. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_animals_displaying_homosexual_behavior
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_and_Silo
I am he(re), you don’t think that penguin couple “chose” to be gay, do you?
Fayetteville’s an educated community, capable of disentangling prejudice from reason; this festival will be a testament to that.
eLwood–
Tattoo parlors, indeed. But have you noted all the bail bondsmen down on South School?
Sure, I’ll join you in judging a tattoo contest, but I’d prefer to judge only tattoos that are well clear of the naughty bits. Especially on a hot day.
“Go forth and live as art.”
David if you shall go forth and live as art then Shirley, you could judge biblical tattoo art, no matter its placement on the human form. I’m telling you if Fayetteville can host a loud, rowdy bunch of drunken bikers it only seems reasonable that tattoo contest should be next. Besides, what’s a biker event without tattoos. Have them run back to back, so to speak.
.
Here we go again with the homosexuality is “just the way you were wired” stuff. That is just the best argument you can come up with. Is it true? No. Will it hold up in court? No. Fact is no matter what or who you have a sexual attraction to, you can control it. It is a CHOICE to pursue your sexual attractions or fantasies and it is your ACTIONS that can make you either a sexual deviant or not. In my opinion…as well as over 70% of the popularion of the U.S., the practice of homosexuality is a deviant behavior…just like any other deviant act that two people or a person and an animal..or what have you…CHOOSE TO PRACTICE. And the main fact of the matter is the city funding. I don’t care what the gay people want to do. I have never opposed their private funding for the “pride” marches. But I live and work in Fayetteville. I eat at restaurants here very often. I use hotels for my parents and friends when they are in town. I do NOT want my money going to this sort of thing. Again, I submit family oriented events as for what I would like to see. AFFORDABLE family oriented events.
oops. One more time as I close the instruction.
David if you shall go forth and live as art then Shirley, you could judge biblical tattoo art, no matter its placement on the human form. I’m telling you if Fayetteville can host a loud, rowdy bunch of drunken bikers it only seems reasonable that tattoo contest should be next. Besides, what’s a biker event without tattoos. Have them run back to back, so to speak.
Lawrence Caesar–
Apparently the decision to be heterosexual was easy for you to make. When did you decide?
eLwood–
Speaking of biblical tattoos, I have actually considered getting a tattoo of the Last Supper. Unfortunately, it would be prohibitively expensive. Perhaps I can afford this: http://tinyurl.com/amet34
Clearly you disagree with science, Caesar. That’s unfortunate–you live in a university community. You did not use an iota of evidence to support your claim–there’s tons of scientific research on the topic. Now, scientific research may not be your thing, but it’s the reason why you’re able to use a computer, use a car, or use anything beyond basic tools.
You are asking people who were born gay (just as other species can be) to simply, “not be who they actually are.” It’s too bad the absurdity of that belief is not able to penetrate the sponge in your cranium.
Perhaps you will find more to your liking in a, say, Searcy. But I warn you: there’s a reason progressive, educated cities (e.g., Austin, Fayetteville, Portland, etc) are great to live in, and it’s directly tied to the fact that progressive, educated people tend to move to them, enhancing the culture.
Defining it as I wish? Yeah, I made the mistake of defining ‘sexual preference’ as who you prefer to have sex with. I see now how that is a huge stretch. Prefering to have sex with a man, woman, child, animal or other is all sexual preference
Again, let me reiterate, in this thread I am not trying to gay-bash or tell you how to live your life. This is about the allocation of tax-funds, albeit half of one percent. That small fraction is still linked to my taxes.
Noww… Since you keep wanting to talk about the morality or social aspects of homosexuality…
Deviant behavior is defined in the context of society. If you profess gay in the middle east, you get your hands chopped off or something. But here your celebrated as being so brave or something. Well a person who loves little kids is really no different than you.
And if you beleive that it is in our biological make-up to be GLBT sometimes…my dog leaves more common sense in piles on the lawn. Biologiacally, it is obvious that a man was made or evolved to pair with a woman. So the deviation would really be in gay behviour (or bestiality).
I think Lawrence and I am he(re) doth protest a little too much. Reminds me of Rev. Haggard.
And I don’t like the name lawrence. It’s for sailors and …
Great one David, I’m saving.
I hope this sex obsession on these pages comes to an early end.
Otherwise you have no idea of the evils in store for you in Fayetteville.
click here.
I am he(re)–
When one ventures into a discussion pertaining to a particular field, it is customary to use the vocabulary of that field as it is used by experts in that field. I would suggest that you not post to discussions on topics upon which you are ignorant, but we’d risk never hearing from you again.
Deviant human behavior is defined at the same time as normal human behavior is defined. Using the mores of one society– or even many societies– does not provide a basis for making that determination. If that were the case, such things as epilepsy and not believing in tree spirits would be deviant behaviors. Humanness transcends society; only by considering all people can one begin to determine what is normal and what is deviant.
Well, appearantly I said something right because you are now grasping at straws and flinging insults like a monkey flings poo. I guess that that is befitting since you probibly believe that we came from monkeys. Really its flattering that you find my points so sound that you have to try and degrade me instead of civilly debating the issue at hand. I will accept your last post as a concession. Thank You.
You’d be just as incorrect.
We love comments but please be civil, OK? No AD HOMINEM attacks, vulgarity, SLANDER, LIBEL, etc.
Congratulations David, you got 3 out of the 4 things that it says not to do on this website. I don’t see why the moderator allows these kinds of posts to stay up. When you get on here and just run someone into the ground, you aren’t accomplishing anything.
You obviously think you know everything. But what you fail to comprehend is how much there is to know.
I am he(re)–
If insulting posts are a concession (and I can’t imagine that you were insulted by my simple extrapolation of easily-observable fact), you conceded when you said “And if you beleive that it is in our biological make-up to be GLBT sometimes…my dog leaves more common sense in piles on the lawn.”
So: Thank you.
I am he(re)–
I don’t think I know everything. But I do know that as far as this thread is concerned, I know more than you do.
Oh, the thing about my dog crapping was not an insult. According to your terminology it was merely an extrapolation of easily-observable fact.
It really seems the “open minded” people are more “closed” than the “closed minded people” were originally perceived to be. At least by the self proclaimed “know it all” free thinkers that are here only to criticize and to attack…devoid of any information regarding the topic that is at hand. What originally began as a healthy discussion about where tax money should go has become “if you aren’t supporting the gays and approve of every single thing we want to do, then you’re a homophobe/ignorant person/stupid person/the devil/christian/etc.” I think they’ve all been used here. All the more reason I do not wish the city to give any money to a special interest group so that they can “have a gay ole’ time” on my dime.
I am he(re)–
Ah. Then you acknowledge the superiority of my argument. Thank you again.
As A straight man i would love to see this for the gay community and i would donate my time to come spin records to help in any way possible!
If straight people had a “straight pride” event, wouldn’t they be considered bigots? What about if white politicians persued a “white agenda”?
Me–
Straight people have “straight pride” days every day. Because they’ve never had to hide their nature, they have nothing to overcome.
Do you think white politicians don’t already pursue a “white agenda”?
All Out June is a fine idea and as someone with kids, I am looking forward to both family friendly community creating events (fun and educational) we can bring the kids to as well as non-family friendly events that are parties to celebrate and create community amongst adults!
Yes, I do indeed want my kids to see women kissing women and men kissing men! Why not! It is a healthy representation of the relationships people have in our society,one that in fact doesn’t get seen in public often enough because same-sex couples fear persecution! So in fact I especially need my kids to see this and it’s unfortunate that a pride parade is one of the few places they can see it!
Even if LGBTQ people AND their Allies were a minority, (which I am not sure they are!) they are just as entitled to create a month long celebration as anyone else using city money, as I don’t know of any restriction on that money that states that you have to be some sort of majority group, so this argument is silly!
I look forward to All Out June, whether it ends up being a month-long or a week-long celebration and I hope we, here in Fayetteville- become even more famous for our diversity and acceptance than we already are! I am proud to live in Fayetteville and I hope All Out June gets it’s funding!
We didn’t come from monkeys? Whaa?
Well said Denise!!
I sure do hope that Lawrence does go shopping elsewhere. Like Benton County. In fact, I think he needs to move up to Bella Vista. They don’t do funky there. But I tell you what, I absolutely do not want my children exposed to his kind of bigotry. THAT’S not family-friendly to me.
I was wondering when Steve Guttenberg was going to weigh in on this. Hi Steve.
@ David Franks: Straight people don’t have pride days… I don’t hide my nature, but I am not prideful. I think this is a great idea for Fayetteville, but I completely agree that it will be stretched too thin by encompassing a month. They should have a weekend or a few days for an event instead. Just my thought… I’m sure we don’t get much participation during black history month every February except maybe from schools.
Hey there Dustin! I had to – Todd called me out on it!
Me–
Your hypothetical questions had a tone that I wished to address. I rather agree with your last post, however.
The “All Out June” concept seems to be a decent idea…but despite what organizers say, the events spread out over an entire month are hardly going to draw the masses from far & wide to Fayetteville. A gay parade, picnic, poetry reading, documentary screening, ect could have easily been scheduled into a three day weekend. Sounds like poor planning to me. And what on earth would the $10K be spent on? Lets hope our city leaders don’t waste our tax dollars on this event/organization!
wowwww
so all of Common Grounds has voiced their opinions
and two or three others
where’s the rest of fayetteville? what do they have to say?
Anything is better than that stupid cock parade, Bikes, Babes, Bling….go away ignant bigots, you’re not wanted here
I don’t approve of the straight agenda. lol
@David Franks- I agree with you- It’s straight day every day.
it doesn’t matter if being gay is a natural condition or a choice, or whether it is against nature or “god’s design.” what matters is that two consenting human adults have chosen to pursue a relationship. that is what we are talking about. by not allowing certain rights to that couple, we are in effect discriminating against someone, based upon a difference in personal beliefs.
amendment 14, section 1 of the united states constitution reads thus:
“All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
we shouldn’t deny any person the civil rights that any other member of society has, based upon their sexual preference or relationship status. bestiality, pedophilia and any other examples put forth do not apply, because they are not relationships between two consenting human adults.
as taxpaying members of the community, anyone has the right to request funding for a nonprofit event, as long as the organization or events meets the criteria established by the city. just because a viewpoint is a “minority” does not affect their eligibility. neither does the fact that one disagrees with that viewpoint.
there is no mandate that events must be “family oriented.” but who determines what “family oriented” means? “family oriented” in this setting amounts to a euphemism for “gays are an abomination, and i shouldn’t have to be around that.” out of sight, out of mind? anyone is welcome to the events. i don’t think they would be any less “family friendly” than bikes bling and babes.
the LGBT movement isn’t going to quiver and shake itself out of existence simply because some wish it would go away. why should we deny rights to some, based upon the preference of another? it is unconscionable. it isn’t right. it goes against the very principles upon which this nation was founded.
Maybe we could make Bacon Day into Gay Bacon Day.
Or will we see a Gay-K-47 during All Out?
Hmmm… The possbilities are endless.
Kudos to the Flyer for the story.
Kudos to Fayetteville for standing up for equality.
Kudos to Lawrence for an excellent troll.
Everybody, let’s have a big gay pile to celebrate a most awesome thread!
Everyone take a deep breath and ask yourself……
What would Kevin Bacon do?
I’ve had enough of this. Just you all wait to find out what happens when we retake America beginning this November. The Constitutional Conservatives will put an end once and for all the flagrance you now enjoy. If you have not attended a tea party rally, maybe you should. Or just find out what it all means soon. Very soon. Tax money being spent for boosting pride of immoral activities. You call this “equality” or “tolerance”. It is nothing more than promotion of that which is disgusting. I have begun my boycot of spending for both hotels as well as restaurants until I know for sure there is not one dime of the money going towards this “cause”. And I am urging those within my party to do the same. As well as anyone else out there that may have a sense of decency…as well as common sense. Both of which are obviously severely lacking on this forum. Good day.
Lawrence Caesar–
Actually, but for the intervention of a commission, the apportionment of directed tax revenues to applicant organizations is the free market at work. The GLBT community provides a portion of the tax revenue you want to see properly distributed, and in the free market has the expectation od some return. In fact, fiscal conservatism demands that the A & P Commission fund All OUT June. Any other outcome would be typical liberal nanny government. As you pointed out above, that is the main point of the matter: All OUT June must be funded.
But thanks for the warning. You tried to deny that you were a moralizing homophobe, but now you’re out of the closet. Enjoy the fresh air of your newfound freedom.
As for your revealing sermonette, let me be sure I understand your position: You CHOOSE your sex targets. You make that CHOICE every time you attempt sex. But, being a fallible human being faced with some series of choices that is, you hope, not small in number, we all know it is only a matter of time before you CHOOSE to have sex with something different– it’s statistically inevitable. Very well, then, we’ll see you in November.
Until then, pardon me while I warn the kids and livestock about your impending meeting with statistical destiny.
Wow, Lawrence Caesar , man that guy really lost it didn’t he? Talk about a fail.
Gay Bacon.
Renee and I were talking this evening about the angry and hateful comments on this blog thread. It seems as if the Flyer flagrantly stirred it up by using the Gay Bacon logo. To our gay, lesbian, bi,transgendered friends: We are sad to see the media use your community’s logo in a headline simply to initiate nasty ignorant rhetoric. We doubt such hostility would have been manifested if the Washington County Fairgrounds were pictured in the headline. Additionally we absolutely certain we did not “CHOOSE” to be straight and We are almost certain you do not “PREFER” to be part of a group often reviled, abused and maligned by hateful homophobes. We simply have a straight “orientation” as we understand you have a gay/lesbian/bi/transgendered “orientation”. It is not a hard concept to grasp. Using “Choice” and/or “Preference” in regards to sexuality is absurd.
“When I was a child I asked my mother what homosexuality was about and she said—and this was 100 years ago in Germany and she was very open-minded—‘It’s like hair color. It’s nothing. Some people are blond and some people have dark hair. It’s not a subject.’ This was a very healthy attitude.” – Karl Lagerfeld
Um, sorry to interject yet again….but while perusing the internets, I have come across a product that I believe will prove to be quite beneficial to Lawrence Caesar.
I will provide the link. It’s called a MARP….maybe he already has one, I’m not really sure…but if not better start saving up. They’re actually sort of expensive. There’s a fitting and alignment charge that they add on.
http://s153139690.websitehome.co.uk/marp.htm
@Michael and Renee – I don’t know the Flyer’s motives any better than you do, but I agree, they shouldn’t have used that logo. It should’ve stayed in the logo closet.
Michael and Renee – I can assure you that including the All OUT June logo in this story was not an attempt on my part to “initiate nasty ignorant rhetoric.” I simply found it on the All OUT June website and worked it into the headline image.
For what it’s worth, All OUT June is an event that we sponsored last year and will likely sponsor again if asked.
If there’s anyone else who thinks that choosing their logo for the headline image was flagrant, I apologize. I do, however, disagree.
I lOVE that logo!!! I don’t see anything wrong with it! So it looks like bacon, so what? It also looks like a flag, a rainbow flag and it’s beautiful! Whoever picked that logo, kudos to you! Don’t listen to these naysayers, I like it! You rock!
Thanks Lawrence, for bringing up the tea baggers – it brought a smile to my face! What idiot came up with that idea for a bunch of conservatives? Obviously not a John Waters fan! Or maybe it WAS a John Waters fan – sounds like the quirky kinds of joke John would come up with himself… Anyway, you DO realize that your clever name for your intolerant agenda is, in fact, portrayed in “Pecker” as a gay strippers club dance move, right? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gi9hgqZr6fs
As for the Flyer using “Gay Bacon” Logo – I don’t think that’s what that was SUPPOSED to be. That was just what someone said it looked like in their comment here. They got it from the NWA Center for Equality. So if you want to rant on the logo, go over to http://pride.nwacenterforequality.org/ and tell them that Gay Bacon is not politically correct.
I also don’t think the Flyer “stirred up” anything by using it. I’m sure that Lawrence would have come out and expressed his opinion even if they had used a picture of the Fairgrounds or even the Theater Squared logo. People like that lurk around under bridges just WAITING for an oppportunity to blast their bigotry into the cybersphere. That’s why they call them Trolls.
So thanks, Fayetteville Flyer AND Fayetteville Flyer readers/commenters, for yet another extremely entertaining thread. It reminds me yet again why I love this town and why I choose to stay here!
Gay Bacon isn’t an insult. Just an observation.
Bacon is Meat Candy.
5-10% of Bacon is gay, according to Kinsey.
Thanks for Fayetteville for being a great city…..looking forward to All Out June. I love that it is the headline image. The GLBT Fayetteville residents pay taxes too….
Gay Bacon looks a lot like Fruit Stripe gum – do they still make that?
Yes, DDP they DO still make fruit stripe gum!
I tell you, Fayetteville in the 70s was much more tolerant and cosmopolitan than it is today, no comparison. There were Miss Gay Fay. pagents at George’s, Miss Gay Arkansas pagents at the old MtnInn. And everyone went, from fratboys with their dates, to ladies in waiting. Even if some went to laugh, it just wasn’t nasty or threatening…and thos laughing might just wind up with Miss Gay Tulsa sitting in his lap. There were wonderful parties at the old Red Lion where gay & straight had great times together. It was a blast with none of this nasty mean-spirited vibe directed at the gay community. Lots of subcultures found a place to co-exist back then. May it be so again.
@oldtimer That is flippin awesome!!! You don’t have to eat Kevin’s Bacon. Just be tolerant of the flavor.
Something I’ve never understood… people who truly admire the idea of America should know that freedom of speech and expression are core concepts. I don’t like what some people say. I’m grateful to live in a country that allows everyone to say what they want, though. I think we’ve got an awful lot of hate in this country… but you have to take that as the cost of freedom. People can express their hate for gays, brown people, women and their rights to their own bodies, legitimately born presidents, progress… because we are free.
The Tea Partiers are right-wing wackjobs IMO. But I have a right to say that and feel that. And they have a right to espouse their seditious views as well.
That’s why I love this country. You’re free to be as idiotic as you want, so long as you allow everyone else that freedom.
For the record, no offense was really taken about the bacon comment. In fact, a lot of us at the center found the original “insult” to be very funny. The original person just said it looked like rainbow bacon. We made up the gay bacon part. In fact, we even have a Facebook fan page JUST for Gay Bacon. :)
Let’s get real… ALL of the organizations that request A&P funds are “special interest” groups. Whether its for the arts, cancer, bling, or gay bacon all of these groups are advocating for/against something which means there will be someone oppossed to the idea. So the real question isn’t do I (or even the majority) agree with the mission of the organization requesting funds, but rather does the application meet the requirements and will the proposed event promote Fayetteville? The funds are supposed to be used as “seed” money for events that promote the City. Well, in my opinion All OUT June is one of the best examples we’ve seen in quite some time of doing just that. The organizers will be specifically targeting regional attendees (as I stated above) to come here to spend their dollars. Many of you are making judgments (about the type and frequency of events) without any knowledge of the actual proposal. The month will include a variety of different events that will culminate in a parade and huge ‘block style’ festival in downtown Fayetteville. How does this NOT fit in with the purpose of the A&P funds?
I am looking forward to All OUT June! Good to see the fayetteville community stand up for equality.
I am with burgerboy…Just because you choose to sleep with the same sex doesn’t mean you need to go throwing a ten thousand dollar event about it. You don’t see straight people asking for ten thousand dollars just because they’re not going against the grain.
Your comment is dumb for about a hundred different reasons.
hagaga–
Just glancing through the list, I see that the Washington County Fair has asked for over $36,000 and Lights of the Ozarks has asked for $30,000. Both of these organizations are, I’m sure, banking on their normalcy as part of the justification for giving them funding.
Comments such as yours make it clear why the educational aspects of All OUT June are needed.
And actually, events such as Lights — which I love, BTW — are pretty closely tied with a religious observance. Not everyone rolls that way. But I don’t mind if you are proud of your religion and can manage a subtly endorsed government funding of it, as long as you keep it respectful of those who don’t share those views.
That’s the big difference in us libs… we are cool with your religion, your narrow views, etc. You just don’t return the favor. And that is where we have a problem.
We kill what we fear…
And we fear what we don’t understand.
It’s not about “normal”. It’s about understanding no one has a choice regarding to whom they are attracted. Emotionally or sexually. And it’s nobody’s business. It doesn’t make anyone a second-class citizen. Just because I’m attracted to small-statured males and not leggy, blue-eyed blonde females doesn’t mean I’m flawed, or any less deserving of the same civil rights as anyone.
But it also doesn’t mean I’m going to shove it in anyone’s face either. Education is not jumping up and down yelling “look at me! look at me!” Education and understanding will come from being an integral part of the community. So when, or if, someone tries to make a point of your sexual orientation, it really is a non-issue.
Someday we can hope that humanity and respect will be foremost in our relationships. Not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer…
Just my opinion. To which their own everyone has the right.
Why not just bite the bullet? Whatever they choose to fund will be gay one way or the other.
Monroe Jesuser, Jr.–
Any attempt to educate– like any attempt to sell something– is, effectively, saying “Look at me! look at me!” You had to look at algebra, chemistry, and English before you learned anything about them. Every one of the requests for funding is some organization’s attempt to get people to look.
Integration does not happen without education. Sexuality will not be an integral part of the community until more of the community is educated. And this is not a question of forcing education on anybody; it is a question of providing opportunities for members of the community to become educated.
I agree with your statements about fear and understanding.
Is there a LGBTQ Razorback fan club or Alumni club? If so, Gay Bacon would be a fine nickname.
I wish we had a gay themed tailgate party like they do in Austin for Longhorn games, rainbow flags and all.
And does the university license a rainbow razorback flag? If not, somebody should make one.
Make this happen guys & gals and I’ll come have a beer or four with you. Visibility is the key to acceptance.
[...] announcing that there was only $31,000 available to go towards the more than $260,000 in April 2010 funding [...]