Jerry Falwell dies at 73

"AIDS is the wrath of a just God against homosexuals. To oppose it would be like an Israelite jumping in the Red Sea to save one of Pharaoh's charioteers . . . AIDS is not just God's punishment for homosexuals; it is God's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals." -Jerry Falwell

"I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People for the American Way—all of them who have tried to secularize America—I point the finger in their face and say "you helped this happen." -Jerry Falwell

"I hope I live to see the day when, as in the early days of our country, we won't have any public schools. The churches will have taken them over again and Christians will be running them. What a happy day that will be!" -Jerry Falwell

This just in: Televangelist Jerry Falwell is dead of a heart rhythm abnormality at the age of 73.

Now. Erm. "Ding dong, the wicked witch is dead"

There's no doubt in my mind that he was a very nasty man. Actually, if he were still alive, I'd probably have more colorful names for him. He believed that anyone who didn't agree with him was a failure as a human being. As you can see from the quotes above, he reveled in a pandemic that killed millions. He was a proud homophobe and misogynist. He was vehemently against things like religious freedom and the separation of church and state. Worst of all, at one time he was a well-respected figure. I can see why people would be pleased with his death.

However, I think it's inappropriate to celebrate. For one, it's a huge slap in the face to the family and friends he's left behind. For another, it's not as if he bombed any abortion clinics or killed any homosexuals. All he did was do his damndest to convince people of the virtue of his views. However loathesome those views are... was it really wrong of him to push them? It seems a bit disturbing to me that people can so easily loathe other people who disagree with them, even if those disagreements are on extremely fundamental issues. Isn't it about time we were able to recognize the humanity of all people? And finally, Jerry Falwell was a person with both good and bad in him. He pushed for some awful things, but he wasn't the only one, and those things aren't going to die with him. I'm not going to bother wasting my time dancing on his grave when the things he represented are still alive and well.

(Edited once because of some messed up formatting.)

"Gay Pride".

Okay, don't shoot me. However, am I the only one who doesn't like that phrase? It's not that I'm a homophobe, it just seems illogical to be proud of who you're attracted to, period. A point that is reiterated over and over in the GLBT rights crowd is that you can't control your orientation (I agree with them, by the way). So why would you be proud of it?

I, for example, am bisexual, Eurasian, and American. I'm not proud to be any of these. I'm proud of my A+ average, and of being called a good writer by one of my teachers. The latter items are accomplishments, the former ones are just luck and genetics. If you have no control over something, there's no point in being either proud or ashamed of it. It's neither a personal accomplishment nor a personal failing. It's just how things are.