Creep of the Week
By now you're probably familiar with the It Gets Better Project, but in case you're not, here's a little refresher. It Gets Better was started by Dan Savage after a spate of suicides following anti-gay bullying. Savage and his partner Terry made a video and put it up on YouTube, basically telling gay kids that even if things suck right now, things won't always suck.
They encouraged others to make videos and show gay kids who might be feeling isolated and alone that they aren't. There are more than 10,000 videos on the site now, including messages from Kathy Griffin, Sarah Silverman, Janet Jackson, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Vice President Biden, and President Obama. All of them have the same basic message: you're okay the way you are and don't kill yourself.
Most folks would see this as a positive thing. But not Gary Cass of the Christian Anti-Defamation Commission who saw an It Gets Better ad on TV. He's created his own video to counter attack It Gets Better. His message to gay kids? It gets worse, you're a sinner, you're disease ridden, and you make Jesus puke. But if you pray to Jesus really, really hard you might find the strength to "change."
Cass claims that the thousands of people who have contributed to the It Gets Better Project are all a bunch of liars who refuse to acknowledge the truth about homosexuality. "What people trapped in homosexuality really need is hope that they can find peace and escape the lifestyle," he writes. "It's up to us, who love those who live as homosexuals, to tell them the truth." See? If you're gay Cass loves you, just not the way you are.
He then trots out all of the usual anti-gay arguments and, in text accompanying the video, provides documentation by citing other anti-gay organizations like Exodus International and NARTH (the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality) as "proof."
Not surprisingly, the C-word comes up. "It is a lie that people are born homosexual and that the incidence of homosexuality is unaffected by influences from culture, family, peer socialization, and incremental choices," he writes. "It is a lie that homosexual conduct is not a choice. Although same-sex attraction may be involuntary, one's response to it is completely voluntary. All sex is voluntary except rape."
Um, okay. Thank you for that clarification. I think it's interesting that he acknowledges "same-sex attraction may be involuntary." It almost feels like a bit of a concession. But, of course, even if someone of the same sex has got your pants on fire, Cass says it's your duty to point a fire extinguisher at your crotch.
"All people have the obligation to resist temptations, no matter how strong, that lead to personal and social harms," he continues.
And what are those personal and social harms? Well, starting with the personal harms Cass claims will befall gay kids as they get older: you'll get AIDS, you'll get cancer, you'll become an alcoholic, you'll kill yourself. As for social harms, gays are basically out to subvert and destroy civilized heterosexual society and turn the whole country into a gay sex-crazed cesspool like Europe.
The answer? God. And going to an ex-gay therapist even though ex-gay therapy has been proven bunk by respectable psychological groups.
Homos are, according to Cass, "fighting with God." He writes, "All you have to do is turn from your sin and place your trust in him."
He then asks his readers to raise a fuss whenever an It Gets Better Project ad comes on TV. "Next time you see one of those deceitful TV ads call your local television station and ask them why they hate our children so much that they persist in promoting such a pernicious lie."
Hmm… Looks like Cass should really sort that one out himself first before pointing fingers.
