Heterosexuals Demand A Monopoly On Screwing Kids Over
According to a recent poll conducted for The Globe/CTV, 55% of Canadians think the new marriage legislation should stand and do not want politicians to revisit the issue. It's an encouraging statistic that will no doubt cause Harper to reconsider his threat to repeal the legislation if elected Prime Minister.
One should be careful, however, in reading the poll results as a ringing endorsement of gay and lesbian rights. The survey also shows that 51% of Canadians do not believe that gay and lesbian couples should not be able to adopt children. 51%. This stat turns my stomach. Sure, the law in Ontario is clear -- gay and lesbian couples can adopt -- but it's the sentiment that upsets me. I suppose I take these things kind of personally and have always been sensitive to what others think. So, knowing that a large segment of the Canadian public has an irrational and baseless fear of allowing me to raise a child... frankly, it hurts. Do these people really believe that I, and the loving partner I eventually hope to find, am less qualified to have a child than a single parent working two jobs, or a struggling alcoholic, or a woman working on her fourth marriage? There are so many kids out there who have been mistreated or abandoned and who might blossom if provided with a stable and loving home in which to grow up. I find it bizarre that anyone would want to deny them this opportunity.
How badly do they think we'll fuck these kids up? Such strong opposition to gay adoption is a staggering blow to my faith in my fellow Canadians and a sentiment I don't think I'll ever understand. The fact that more than half of Canadians think we’ll somehow fuck kids up any more than they already have makes me want to vomit.
One should be careful, however, in reading the poll results as a ringing endorsement of gay and lesbian rights. The survey also shows that 51% of Canadians do not believe that gay and lesbian couples should not be able to adopt children. 51%. This stat turns my stomach. Sure, the law in Ontario is clear -- gay and lesbian couples can adopt -- but it's the sentiment that upsets me. I suppose I take these things kind of personally and have always been sensitive to what others think. So, knowing that a large segment of the Canadian public has an irrational and baseless fear of allowing me to raise a child... frankly, it hurts. Do these people really believe that I, and the loving partner I eventually hope to find, am less qualified to have a child than a single parent working two jobs, or a struggling alcoholic, or a woman working on her fourth marriage? There are so many kids out there who have been mistreated or abandoned and who might blossom if provided with a stable and loving home in which to grow up. I find it bizarre that anyone would want to deny them this opportunity.
How badly do they think we'll fuck these kids up? Such strong opposition to gay adoption is a staggering blow to my faith in my fellow Canadians and a sentiment I don't think I'll ever understand. The fact that more than half of Canadians think we’ll somehow fuck kids up any more than they already have makes me want to vomit.
posted by Doughbot at
12:20 PM
5 Comments:
It's a terrifying and ultimately depressing statistic. I think it stems from the following thought process: "We let heterosexual couples raise children, and they come out gay. I've heard that most of those children being raised by gay couples in Ontario are growing up, (gasp), straight!"
Seriously though, the mind boggles. A straight couple that accidentally conceives a child in a drunken stupor are better equipped for parenting than a gay couple who have to plan and jump through administrative hoops exactly how?
By
Matt, at 8:01 AM
I agree with this post fully. Any *person* who provides a stable, loving environment for a child to grow up in would do best to be judged only by the standards that apply to all parents/guardians of children: to provide essentials, to and to provide an environment condusive to the flourishing of human life...the child, the parents...I much prefer to understand the growth of a child interms of growth within a community. Communities raise children...that includes families, and that includes non-bilogical parental figures/role models who often, are stronger parental figures than the biological children of straight parents. I have grown up myself with two heterosexual parents but I can't say both parents were ideal role models or supportive throughout my life. I spent much of my youth looking to and appreciating the influence that family friends and personal friends played in my life in terms of strength, support, encouragement, etc.
I find the 51% who do not believe the gay/lesbian community should raise children of their own a very sad statistic.
You should visit wales, where most children are conceived out of a drunken night, where pregnant women drink and smoke during the term of their pregnancy, where their straight male partners abuse them, physically, verbally...and where it seems half the time, the only reason there are so many teenage mothers is because they are automatically granted welfare status, and so receive government funded housing in addition to welfare payments to cover the cost of living for the mother and her child. This is literally a *strategy* in which women believe they can support themselves by becoming pregnant between 14 and 20 years of age, assuming that single parenthood will give them money and a roof over their head for which they will not be financially responsible. Drug and Alcohol addiction, I might add, is rampant here, and often affects families/children/parents in negative ways.
It is surprising to see the high rate of teenage pregancy and single parenthood here, and to know that the births were unplanned, and generally, the children are not properly cared for is alarming. To see teenage mothers pushing carriages in the fall with children who are underdressed for the weather...
In short, there are many bad environments in which a child could grow up in the world, and my comments are limited to the western european world, but to suggest some human beings are more or less worthy to be an effective role model and loving parent seems utterly prejudiced.
The other day I read a quotation that essentially suggested that without love, children do not grow, and so all children must be loved, and love must be demonstrated toward them for them to feel a sense of support, and encouragement of their flourishing. I think this is key. Why put a limit on love??
There are so many unappreciated, unloved, children, without parents, without homes, with parents who are abusive or neglectful...if there are people who can offer any child a chance to grow up with the love and support they need, I would like to see that supported without limitation or prejudice.
Yes...not a very legalistic analysis, but I am not a law student you might be able to tell. :)
By
Anonymous, at 12:18 PM
Yes Kids growing up in "gay" homes tend to grow up "straight". You know these people seem to miss that most of us gay folks came from straight parents!
In BC adoption of children by gays is the same as straights. Same rights, qualifications etc.
By
Rick Barnes, at 3:05 PM
To Anonymous #1: "Why put a limit on love?" Wow. I like that. And I'm going to use it in my next debate over SSM. Oh wait, I don't have to debate it anymore. That's such a relief.
By
Doughbot, at 3:42 PM
I think you would make a great dad. I love you Bobo!!
By
Anonymous, at 10:00 AM
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