To honest, I’m not offended when I see homosexuals. They want equal treatment, fine I’m all for that. They’re people. I don’t think people should be persecuted for their beliefs. Whether I agree with the beliefs or not. My problem honestly lies in the fact that because I don’t agree or say that I don’t agree I’m labeled a bigot.

I have a brother-in-law who is gay. He’s a great guy, very talented writer who I count as my friend. Does he know I don’t agree with his life style? Absolutely. And because I don’t agree with that lifestyle I don’t go hang out at his house with him and his boyfriend and such. It’s a lifestyle, similar to religions or major life choices. Would I go to a Muslim church on Sunday (or whenever) .. no, because I’m not a supporter of that lifestyle.

As far as Colossus is concerned, the reason that he was ‘ruined for me’ was because up until the homosexual agenda he was not gay. Period. He and Kitty Pride where the thang. So by changing the character completely was in a way removing who he was in all the previous books … in turn it ruined who he was already. He was re-written completely. Nightcrawler, on the otherhand, was written that way from the start. He was deeply religious and in the original stories he became a priest to (if I remember correctly) rectify his past wrongings or something.

Also, the only reason I get frustrated when every comic or show has gay characters is because they put that character and their belief on a throne and make them look supreme to all other characters, especially ones who are religious or conservative. There is never a “bad guy” who is gay. Can’t do that. However, you can use a religious guy as the bad buy all you like! So it’s not the fact that there is homosexual things in shows, movies, comics, whatever - it’s the fact that it feels like they HAVE to have a gay/lesbian character and that character has to be extremely smart and their only struggle in life is their persecution from those close minded religious bigots. That’s what I have a problem with. Homosexuality is now a part of life - and that’s fine. I don’t expect people to conform to my ideology. But they shouldn’t force their ideology on me or my children in return.

The problem with the whole McDonald’s thing isn’t that they’re supporting homosexual people - but they’re trying to promote the entire lifestyle. That, I think, is wrong. I wouldn’t want McDonald’s pushing Christianity, to be honest. If they supported groups who were … well, support groups … then fine, no problem. But paying for homosexual education and supporting the agenda is taking a side. But, McDonald’s is a world company, not exactly a religious one … but they’re family. So I wish they’d think of that.

In the end, no I’m not a bigot. I won’t join a ‘gay basher’ protest. I won’t support those groups. I don’t look down on homosexuals in the least. They’re just as smart, wise and friendly as the next person. As I said, I have family who make this choice. HOWEVER, because I don’t agree I don’t condone, therefore I don’t want it to be pushed on me, I won’t do things that will look to my brother-in-law that I support that choice … so on and so on.

I wasn’t offended by anything you said, honestly. You didn’t come at me yelling and screaming. You addressed things well and really - you disagreed but without being insulting. Thank you. I’m waiting for those angry people to start replying saying how stupid and close minded I am and so on

Anyway, with that said, let me try to reply to what you write here, on a more or less point by point basis.

First, no one likes being called a bigot. It’s a fact of life thought, that we all have topics that we feel strongly about, and from the point of view of someone with an opposing view, we’ll seem (sometimes) unreasonable in our outrage.

But it’s possible to dislike something and not be (however accurately) thought to be a bigot. The key isn’t acceptance, but how strongly you react when confronted with the object of your dislike.

For instance, to use your example of a vegetarian, just not eating meat doesn’t make someone a bigot (in the same way that not having sex with other men doesn’t make you a bigot) but if the person refused to eat with people who ate meat, that would be a different matter. And if that person disparaged people who eat meat… well, yes, they would be bigoted.

As for McDonalds; I think the American Family Association is disingenuous, to say the least. When they say that they want McDonalds to stay “neutral”, what they mean is that they want McDonalds not to do or say anything either way, right? But that form of neutrality isn’t good. It allows bigots (and I mean actual, honest to goodness bigots, not the kind who merely dislike the idea of homosexual intercourse) to say and do what they want. And as the saying goes, “all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.”

Leave aside for a moment that the target of those people’s ire is homosexuals. Would you be opposed if McDonalds was promoting equal treatment of other minorities? What if they worked to make sure Christians weren’t persecuted?

Because that’s what it comes down to: Persecution. I don’t believe the “homosexual agenda” is any more insidious than trying to gain general acceptance of their lifestyle, on equal lines with any other. That might seem plenty insidious to some people, but at certain points, so did the idea of interracial relationships.

Anyway, on the topic of being seen as a bigot; some of the things you say in your post do seem bigoted, I’m afraid. For instance; you say Joss Whedon ruined Colossus for you by making him gay. Why? I’m not a Christian, but I don’t feel Nightcrawler was ruined when he became a Catholic priest.

The difference between not supporting a lifestyle, or not agreeing with one, and being an out and out bigot… Is simply a matter of how offended you are when you witness that lifestyle. I don’t feel offended when I see a Christian, vegetarian, or even a football fan revelling in their lifestyle; that’s how I know that I’m not bigoted against those things. And those are lifestyles I see all around me, all the time.

If you can’t watch TV, or read comic books, without being offended by homosexual characters in those mediums, much less when you witness real-life men kissing - then yes, I’m afraid you might be just a little bigoted.

The good news is that it’s not the end of the world. Everyone has a certain level of bigotry ingrained in their social makeup. The question is: Do you mind enough to do something about it?

Neither answer to that question is “right” or “wrong” - although depending on your point of view, the answer may be obvious in either direction. But it’s important to acknowledge that the idea that bigotry against homosexuals is wrong is gaining traction in society, and in some (expanding) circles, being offended by homosexuals will mark you as a social piranha.

I hope you weren’t too offended by this, and that I presented my arguments in a format that seemed reasonable. I also hope that you take what I said to heart enough to reconsider your views - or at least how strongly you react based on those views.

But I expect not. It’s pretty hard to change someone’s point of view based on a single (although long) message, especially someone who’ll already be expecting a backlash. That’s okay. One grain of sand at a time, right?

Emanuel