We've had more than enough violent acts of bigotry and hatred against gays here, even with increasing acceptance and hate crimes laws in more and more places. I hate to say it, but all too often the gay community as a whole does not do all it can to help put a stop to it.
Yes, there are plenty of involved men and women like me who have spent decades working to break down the divisions and animosity, but here in the US these days, we have far too many people who have no concept of where we were 40, even 10 years ago. The notion of having to get off one's ass and actively participate to make further progress, much less defend what we have, escapes too many. The horrendous failure known as Prop 8 in California is squarely on us, no matter how convenient it is to simply scapegoat the conservative zealots. That we still don't have a more fundamental part of the foundation -- across-the-board, universal human rights laws here in the US -- after all these years of feel-good debate leaves the door wide open to discrimination and violence against us or any other "inconvenient" minority group.
The other thing that must also be considered (but is often lost) is that there will always be someone who is such a sick nut case that it doesn't matter what the societal norms or laws are: if they're hell bent on bloodshed, they're going to do it. There doesn't need to be a conscious act of hate toward any "protected" group...to wit, Columbine or Virginia Tech, or countless incidents of shoot-em-up by disgruntled employees, spouses, rivals, just plain psychotics.
While it is important to draw attention for the need to respect others regardless of their skin, gender or affiliation, it is far more important that we don't lose sight of the bigger picture: The taking of another life is a deplorable act. Period. If the asshole who shot these people is caught alive, bring the full weight of the law down on him or her. However, many killers will choose death by policeman when cornered...making the laws or societal imperatives moot. Society should stop fretting over classifying "victims" and focus on eliminating the misunderstanding, barriers, labels, stigmas, other negative factors and influences that encourage or enable such desperate and deplorable behavior.
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I have a need for seed!
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