Fan. I was and still am a fan of Freddie Mercury. His voice was amazing and his audacity was audacious. At the beginning of his career, the unabashed, here I am, what I am, of him was bold indeed.
I worked at a city hospital while I was in college. It was my first exposure to openly gay men, as the male working population there was about 90% homosexual. I was accustomed to looking at life from the outside of the circle, so they and I became natural friends. It was one of life's learning moments. The flagrant queens fulfilled everyone's stereotypical bias (and were endlessly fun and interesting), but many defied definition. My best friend was a conservative. I did not understand it, but there you are. In very short order, I saw people of various types, personalities and likability. I saw human beings, living their lives, just like anyone else.
My state of birth, the place I returned to after a small wandering about, has a Democratic governor and a very radical rightwing legislature. Said legislature is putting on the ballot an amendment to the state constitution banning same sex marriage. It is not enough that we have a law banning this, they need to make the grand spectacle of a constitutional amendment. The governor cannot block it.
I wonder about people who want laissez-faire governance where business and guns are concerned (they are also putting together a 'shoot on sight' law for intruders of property), but are so dogged in their need to control individual actions. Of course, they all cite their religious beliefs, which are not supposed to be the basis of law in the US, but which are increasingly creeping in.
I do not believe in the omnipotent being, nor of the son, but if I did I would have to wonder why such a being would create individuals which then its' followers are expected to revile. It screamingly lacks logic. I know logic and religion rarely shake hands, but come on. From what I have gleaned over the years, Jesus was more about inclusion than exclusion. Was on the side of the underdog, the disenfranchised. How did his followers stray so far from his ways? How can they remove an entire class of people from humanhood in the name of Jesus?
May 21st is supposed to be 'The Rapture'. What if it really happened? Wouldn't there be a whole lot of very surprised righteous. I would be left behind, according to the pious, so I would get the very big thrill of observing their well-deserved horror. Oh, yes indeed.
You know, you don't have to agree with a thing to tolerate it. If it is not harming us or the society then we should have no say in whether it is done or not. It is not my nor your life, nor our business. One can still shield oneself with religion and proclaim "I am not a bigot."
Which leads me back to Freddie Mercury. I think I would have liked him. I know I like his talent and how he lived his life was his business, not mine.
I worked at a city hospital while I was in college. It was my first exposure to openly gay men, as the male working population there was about 90% homosexual. I was accustomed to looking at life from the outside of the circle, so they and I became natural friends. It was one of life's learning moments. The flagrant queens fulfilled everyone's stereotypical bias (and were endlessly fun and interesting), but many defied definition. My best friend was a conservative. I did not understand it, but there you are. In very short order, I saw people of various types, personalities and likability. I saw human beings, living their lives, just like anyone else.
My state of birth, the place I returned to after a small wandering about, has a Democratic governor and a very radical rightwing legislature. Said legislature is putting on the ballot an amendment to the state constitution banning same sex marriage. It is not enough that we have a law banning this, they need to make the grand spectacle of a constitutional amendment. The governor cannot block it.
I wonder about people who want laissez-faire governance where business and guns are concerned (they are also putting together a 'shoot on sight' law for intruders of property), but are so dogged in their need to control individual actions. Of course, they all cite their religious beliefs, which are not supposed to be the basis of law in the US, but which are increasingly creeping in.
I do not believe in the omnipotent being, nor of the son, but if I did I would have to wonder why such a being would create individuals which then its' followers are expected to revile. It screamingly lacks logic. I know logic and religion rarely shake hands, but come on. From what I have gleaned over the years, Jesus was more about inclusion than exclusion. Was on the side of the underdog, the disenfranchised. How did his followers stray so far from his ways? How can they remove an entire class of people from humanhood in the name of Jesus?
May 21st is supposed to be 'The Rapture'. What if it really happened? Wouldn't there be a whole lot of very surprised righteous. I would be left behind, according to the pious, so I would get the very big thrill of observing their well-deserved horror. Oh, yes indeed.
You know, you don't have to agree with a thing to tolerate it. If it is not harming us or the society then we should have no say in whether it is done or not. It is not my nor your life, nor our business. One can still shield oneself with religion and proclaim "I am not a bigot."
Which leads me back to Freddie Mercury. I think I would have liked him. I know I like his talent and how he lived his life was his business, not mine.
11 comments:
OMG!!!!!!! You couldn't possibly know this but I am not a closet Queen adoring fan, I still tear up when I think that Freddy died so young. Watching him not only singing but playing the piano made me one of his most loving fans. What a talent!
And his voice and his charm, and the damnable condemnation because he was gay.
If all the sanctimonious morons that mind what other people do in their private life instead of admiring and protecting the talent that they bring to others would mind their own business, this world would be indeed a better place to live. I am so glad to know that you like Queen. When you come to visit we can spend hours listening to them and lamenting how soon the whole bombastically beautiful thing was over.
And by the way, I wonder how people with so much righteousness can live in this world with wars and destruction and focus solely on the private lives that as you so rightly said, are none of their business. Sandra, I knew we have more in common than horses but my word! Queen!!!!!
So much to comment on! ☺ How have you remained silent so long?!
Really? I get raptured May 21st? News to me. Should I pack my bags?
Not a Queen fan ~ though having said that I do like lots & lots of their music & I missed the fact of their gayness for years. I have quite extended moments when I am out of touch with reality. Even with a name like that I missed it.
I am one of those awful people who believe in the diety & the son & sometimes my fellow travellers embarrass me no end with their self~righteousness & their lack of charity. As you know we run a lot with the Arts crowd who seem to attract gays the way light attracts moths & lets face it: Gays are fun. They have a sense of extravagance, of colour, of drama & cliche that it is I do have gays who are friends ~ & no I don't choose to bang them over the head with my bible.
I must admit your right wing puzzles me. We don't really have anything like it out here but if I've read my bible right its tenents are for those who choose to follow Christ & come out of the world because you are never going to squash the world into a garment it does not want to wear.
Has it stopped raining & has spring arrived there yet? ♥
Allegra, I am pleasantly surprised. I would not have thought it of either of us! We are more than the sum of our parts. "bombastically beautiful thing", you have a knack for getting it right.
I think sanctimonious righteousness is by its definition a cover for fear. People who need to take away from others to guard themselves are scared. Our tea party legislatures went right to work pushing their antisocial agenda. It is a terrible place to live at this time. I don't know if my heart will survive it.
Ganeida, yep. Start packing.
I do not want you to think that I am disrespectful of a belief system that I do not hold. What I am disrespectful of, is scurrilous politicians who thump the bible all the while pulling the rug out from those who can least afford to lose the rug. Who pick out a group of people and turn them into the 'problem facing America'. I wholly and completely have contempt for phony holiness. It makes me fervently want to believe in hell. Nothing about you, that I can see, speaks to me as this type of 'good Christian'. So, to me, you are not awful but one of the good guys. Even if I don't believe what you believe. You live and act your beliefs, like Jesus preached them.
I am a bit of a diva, here on the farm, so I love the over-the-top quality of this band. But Freddie Mercury could have mesmerized in a small piano bar. Too bad he died so young. And too bad there are so many gay-bashing comments in the comment boxes of the videos. It is disturbing to realize how much ignorance exists.
Sandra: I know perfectly well you are not disrespectful. lol You've put up with me for years now. {Really? Has it been that long?!]
However I suspect lots & lots of people get their ideas about belief muddled up with how they ought to treat people & they are not the same thing at all. They should be but people don't think, do they? They grab hold of the easy bits [gay = bad] & hang on to that like grim death & refuse to struggle with the difficult bits [love your enemies] You would get along very well with Jesus. He had a great contempt for *phony holiness* too & saved his most scathing condemnations for those who practised it.
My first brother is a Queen fan but I am a long time folk hippie so Queen wasn't really where my head space went. lol I find in old age I am reverting more & more to type & prefer Medieval sacred stuff or the plain chant to almost anything else. Getting weirder as I get older. ♥
It now qualifies as years! I found you through Ashley's blog and you were in a Celtic tale weaving mood. You can spin a good yarn when you put your mind to it.
Amen. Although reading the comments, I have to disagree and have the sad feeling that right wing politicians and Bible beaters might come to "tolerate" those who are gay but at their core will always believe them to be "wrong."
Elizabeth, I guess I don't care how they view them as long as their belief system does not enter into our laws. This is why I think it is important to understand that one does not have to like or agree with everything in life, that it is possible to be tolerant without agreeing. There will never be total acceptance of homosexuality, just as there still are people who believe Barack Obama should not be president because he is black. But it is not against the law for him to be president. But it is against the law, in MN, for people of the same sex to marry and our rightwing legislators want to get it into our state constitution, which will make it nearly impossible to change. So called religious beliefs have no business making law. Tolerance is necessary. Polling, surprisingly, is not on the side of the lunatics.
I'm good with the disrespect thing. Moderates and progressives tend to want to see or understand all sides of a debate.
Unfortunately, rightwing extremists aren't wired that way. As they say, it's either their way or the highway.
After decades of their nonsense I say, Disrespect them, marginalize them, kick'em to the gutter and let's get this Country back on track.
Ah. Wondered how you'd found me! ☺ Sadly I think you are my only reader to appreciated my Celtic tale telling. But I'm glad you did ~ do! ☺
Bill, no argument from me. We also need to support progressive, real progressive, candidates. And Young people need to become seriously engaged, they are the hope.
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