Creep of the Week: Rep. Dennis Richardson

Okay, let's do a quick exercise in association. What's the first thing that comes to mind when you hear Virginia Tech shooting?
If you said "gay rights" then you might be Oregon Rep. Dennis Richardson (R- Central Point).
Confused? Well, apparently so is he.
Richardson titled his April 20, 2007 Weekly Update "A Tragic Week In Review." He began, "This past week has been like no other. On Monday the world witnessed the tragedy at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia. On Tuesday Oregon witnessed the passage of Domestic Benefits for same-sex couples (HB 2007) and Civil Rights based on sexual orientation."
Yes, first an insane gunman takes out over 30 people. Then gay and lesbian couples are given the right to share health insurance and visit each other in the hospital and stuff. What is this world coming to?
Aisling Coghlan, interim executive director of Basic Rights Oregon, responded, "For Richardson to say that protecting Oregon families in times of crisis is equivalent to the mass murder of some of the best and brightest America has to offer is beyond extremely distasteful–it is outright abhorrent."
Mentioning mass murder and gay rights in the same breath is way off, but Richardson's Weekly Update gets even weirder. You see, on Planet Richardson, guns can stay, but gays must go.
When asked "what might be done to keep guns away from such madmen" Richardson responds that, in his opinion, "if violent killers, such as this madman, had no guns available to them, they would accomplish their vicious goals using some other means–explosives, deadly poisons, chemicals or otherwise. Such isolated acts of extreme violence are a sad commentary on the deprived level to which our society has devolved."
Uh, also a sad commentary on how guns are easily available to "madmen." But you know, he's probably right. I mean, if the Virginia Tech killer hadn't been able to so easily buy those guns from the local gun shop and that ammo from eBay, he probably would have been cooking up mustard gas in his dorm room. Gosh, Rep. Richardson, thanks for pointing out that as a society our hands are tied. There's nothing we can do but sit back and watch as troubled young people become depraved killers. After all, writes Richardson, "in a free society the government cannot always protect the innocent from violent or deranged people."
But we can and must protect ourselves from gays. Writes, Richardson, "In the years ahead, I believe SB 2 will result in a small minority of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender (GLBT) activists imposing their lifestyles and views of behavior on an unwilling majority in Oregon's schools, work places, and eventually in all aspects of our society. When it comes to political strategy and maneuvering, the GLBT activists have certainly been successful in moving forward their political agenda."
Yes, just you wait, Rep. Richardson. Some day we might be as good as the NRA.