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12/24/2007

Huckabee's verbal violence against our domestic loves

by Jeremy Hooper

 Good As You Images Picture-2-113Over the weekend, GOP hopeful Mike Huckabee took the opportunity to clarify why, exactly, his opposition our families is not something we gays should take personally. And by "clarify," we mean, "once again justified his stance in a way that masked the true ugliness behind his misguided discriminatory pushes." Read below:

"It's not because I don't like them," Huckabee said of gay people. "It's because I like even more the idea that the heart and soul, the essence of our civilization is in the family. It's not in the government. It's not even in some institution, not even the church. Before there was the church, and before there was government, there was family.

"When you mess with the design, you end up messing with results," he added. "We can't afford to do that. That's why you will never hear me waver."

So in terms of his justification, it's kind of like Mike's taking the abusive spouse approach to dealing with our lives and loves. He's attacking our worth within the spectrum of familial acceptability, yet not without also making sure to tell us just how much he loves us. Not to be too hyperbolic, but it's almost as if Huckster's saying to us:

"I don't mean to hurt you by attacking the idea that you deserve legal parity, baby. [::speaker smacks equality in the face::] It's just that you make me so mad sometimes! [::kicks fairness in the groin::] And when you start acting up and asking for shit like a joint tax return and health insurance, I gotta show you that you ain't gonna go messin' around like that while I'm in charge! [::punches decency in the gut ::] I'm the boss. B-O-S-S. And I and only I will say who can and cannot be getting married on my watch! [::unleashes a fury of jabs right into the heart of freedom::]

It's for your own good that I do this, baby. It's because I love ya. You know that, right? [::speaker takes partner in arms in vain attempt to try and make up for their long record of wrongdoings (to which they have just added more)::]"

It's sort of like a linguistic "culture war" version of Ike and Tina (except with less actual violence, soul, and choreographed "Rolling on the River" dance routines)! And just like Tina, we have to ask of our Mike and his uncompassionate, myopic definitions of love and family: What's love got to do with it? Because the one thing that seems seriously lacking in these social conservatives' fear-mongery, pandery attacks on gay marriage is a consideration that maybe, just maybe, they do not have a monopoly on the game of love.

Huckabee: Stronger Military, Families [AP via Google]

**Note: This is not meant to directly compare Huckabee with a physical tyrant, or our fight for marriage equality with one's fight against physical abuse. It's just to say that there is a disconnect between the blows he (and his ilk) constantly wage against our souls and the protestations that they use to soothe over their hostility. And that disconnect resembles one of a "loving" partner who has a very funny (but not funny "ha ha") way of showing it.

**SEE ALSO: The Concord Monitor has an article assessing Huckabee's unique brand of gay rights opposition. For us, the money quote comes from the ACLU of Arkansas' Rita Sklar, who says:

"He is hardly ever outright nasty,"... "But he is suggestively nasty."

Exactly.

'Bullying' gays wasn't priority for Huckabee [Concord Monitor]

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Your thoughts

I think you put that rather nicely.

Posted by: Christy Brown | Dec 24, 2007 10:59:46 AM

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