Lileks - ....Besides, why would anyone want to go into politics if their children are now “fair game,” as Kerry’s campaign manager said? So the Cheneys have a gay daughter. OMG! I go to church, ergo I should hate the Cheneys for not putting her under wooden planks and pressing her death with stones, old-skool style! This is truly upsetting to me, because as someone who believes in a permanent reduction in capital gains tax and a strong military posture I must ergo obviously stands-to-reason rear back in horror at the very idea of gay people walking around freely instead of herded into camps and made to sew pink triangles 18 hours a day. Kerry was right to expose this festering obscenity! What if she visits the White House? What if she touches the silverware? Icky icky icky!
Jeez. Thanks for crossing that line, guys. So naturally Lynn Cheney fires back: Kerry is “not a good man,” which is a rather remarkable statement to make. Good Lord! You’d almost think her daughter had been dragged into a discussion of Constitutional amendments to score a point, or something. Lizzie Edwards on ABC radio responded:
She's [Lynne Cheney]overreacted to this and treated it as if it's shameful to have this discussion. I think that's a very sad state of affairs… I think that it indicates a certain degree of shame with respect to her daughter's sexual preferences… It makes me really sad that that's Lynne's response."
Preference? Not orientation, but preference, as in, she chose it? She got that big Hey, You Too Can Be Gay! circular Columbia House sends out twice a year, saw all the neat coupons and prizes she could earn, and thought what the hey. But you can let that one slide, since it’s the old PC phrase that replaced the new PC phrase, and some people get the memo but crumple it up without reading it. What really sticks out is the idea that the Cheneys speak from shame. Because, you know, if you’re a Republican and your child is gay you are ASHAMED, just as Democrats are ASHAMED when their children join the Army. Right? Can’t possibly be proud of them, because all Dems are commie-lib traitors, just as all Republicans are homophobes who throw a blanket over the TV every time a rerun of “Ellen” pops up on Oxygen.
What nuance. What elegant understanding of the human heart.
I wonder if they had a meeting and calibrated the impact of going after the daughter, weighed the options, and decided she was “fair game.” Hey: you don’t want to be brought up in a campaign, don’t be born. |
