Obviously I like catchy titles to the tune of classic songs. Yes, it’s clever but more importantly it makes a statement. A statement that shouldn’t need to be made. You know, that whole freedom of speech thing. Darn Americans and their love of all things freedom and liberty related.
I wish we could move past this whole ridiculous idea that freedom of speech will ever mean politically correct or inoffensive. It won’t. It shouldn’t. It doesn’t. Feelings get hurt, people get offended, which are both voluntary actions based on how you choose to receive something and your associated response or reaction. The beauty of that is that this is okay. Yes, it’s perfectly alright.
The only time any law, government or court order should dictate the actions or expressions of any business are if that business is in any way publicly funded, receives business from government or other taxpayer funded organizations or is an actual government entity in itself. Yes, some other things also need to be regulated based on causing actual harm to others. Common sense can dictate this if we’re in fact having this discussion with those who possess any sense at all to begin with.
It is perfectly okay if a dating website called Where Black People Meet wants to exclude white people. They have that right. They’re trying to create an environment for their target audience, black people. That may in fact mean no Asians, Mexicans, Whites, or Middle Easterners. This is perfectly fine.
It’s also okay if RednecksOnly.com wants to exclude city people, people with all their teeth, people who are literate and people who don’t proudly display their Confederate battle flag. This may make certain people angry, but that’s their choice and their right. They can voice their opposition but they should have no right to stop it. Neither should any court, even if and when they choose to do that very thing.
This all brings me to the issue of cake. That’s where civilization in our country is today. We have nothing better to do with our time than threaten the life, livelihood and quality of life of a private business owner who happens to make cakes but also happens to disagree with homosexuality. The shame of any private business owner having their own beliefs and convictions! How dare they!
Can you believe that some business owner who happens to make pizza also feels that way? I mean, who are these people with these personal convictions and beliefs? You’d think they live in a country where religious freedom, freedom of speech and other core values still hold weight over people’s sensitive feelings.
These people must bake some seriously good cake and pizza for all the attention they’ve garnered. I mean they must be the best in the United States. They’re so good that people will actually sue and threaten their lives and property just so they have to serve them.
Let’s really think about this. What if I walk into a sandwich shop tomorrow and the shop owner looks at me and says, “Hey, aren’t you that wanna be blogger guy, with all the opinions he thinks other people care about?” After, conceding that yes, I am in fact that guy, he tells me to get out of his sandwich shop. Guess what? He can. He should be able to and the answer is I don’t get a sandwich there. I shouldn’t be able to sue. I shouldn’t be able to ask for blogger anti-discriminatory legislation because I and other bloggers are offended. I should get over it and go elsewhere.
If I walk into a place of business owned by a homosexual person and they decide they don’t want to serve me because I’m straight then I should be out of luck. If someone doesn’t want to serve me because I’m white, then I’m out of luck. If someone doesn’t want to serve me because they don’t like men with green eyes, crow’s feet, stubble and a slightly crooked front tooth then they have that right. I can certainly choose to have hurt feelings, outrage and voice my dissatisfaction but other than that I should find another place to go.
I can’t even fathom why anyone cares enough to attempt to force someone to do business with them. It’s a cake. It’s pizza. You have plenty of choices. Go somewhere else and get over it.
I am aware that in this I also touched on segregation with some of my comments. I also realize segregation is illegal and there are laws against it. Although I do agree that segregation in any public forum should not be allowed, I also believe if a racist business owner wants to espouse his beliefs and values inside his place of business then so be it. In my opinion I’d rather a racist be open about it that way I’ll know not to spend my money or my time on such ignorance.
It’s your business. If it’s not causing physical harm or the influence of physical harm to anyone, then it has a right to exist, even if we don’t all agree.
Indiana’s new religious liberty law is not wrong. It doesn’t hurt anyone. To the contrary it actually protects basic rights and liberties that should be afforded to all. If a Muslim business owner doesn’t want to serve an infidel, fine by me. I’ll gladly take my business elsewhere. If a Christian business owner chooses not to cater a gay wedding, get over it. No state should even have to have such laws in order to guarantee these inherent rights much less defend them when put in place. Anyone who feels government has the right to force private business to provide for or do business with anyone they choose not to has sorely missed the foundation of this nation.
It’s quite telling that our country has allowed freedom of speech protection to those who would rally against our soldiers as they returned from war, to those who would desecrate and burn our nations flag, to actresses who would openly advocate for the enemy in a time of war (here’s to you jane fonda) and yet not allow that same protection to a private business owner.
This has to stop. We all need to pray for common sense. The gay agenda, liberal agenda and humanist agenda all need to be slapped into reality. We as a nation need to quit being so desensitized by all the noise that we passively choose to ignore rather than expend our energy to defend our rights. Wake up, people.
In fairness to all, religious people are often their own worst enemy. Christians in particular are often extremely vocal over what they’re against even more so than what they’re for (sounds like a great song lyric). Somehow a professing Christian somewhere decided that standing on a street corner and yelling scripture mixed with dire warnings of damnation to sinners would actually resonate with people. If that’s love, I’ll take none, thank you.
You’d think that we as Christians would be prepared for persecution, but you’d also think we wouldn’t be so quick to beg for it. However, until the fundamental laws of our Constitution are once and for all changed and the basis of our country is reinvented then we have a right and a responsibility to speak up, speak out and be a champion of individual liberties.
We can disagree. We can choose not to respect the values of others. We can choose to take our business elsewhere and encourage others to do the same. We can picket, boycott and sign petitions. We all have that right. What we shouldn’t be able to do is to tell someone else what they have to do with their business.
My last point, will be this: Don’t confuse religious freedom and freedom of speech with my personal Christian views and convictions. I personally think if Jesus owned the cake shop, He’d bake the cake. I base this on the numerous times He encountered those in various states of sin throughout His ministry and chooses not to preach or dwell on their sin. As a matter of note, Jesus saved all of his harshest rebuke for religious people. It was always the religious people that had the hardest time understanding His message and believing His identity. Christianity isn’t religion and freedom of religion isn’t specific to Christianity. Laws protecting religious freedom should be redundant based on freedom of speech and the right to operate a privately own business as you choose.
This debate isn’t about my personal convictions or anyone’s for that matter. It’s the simple notion that private business has the right to espouse private views, be they religious or otherwise without legal repercussion or forced conformity. This is the land of freedom and opportunity. You personally are guaranteed that freedom, but leave your feelings at the door.
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