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Rob Portman, father
I’m glad to hear that Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) has changed his opinion on marriage equality. His support makes it easier to get same-sex marriage approved in Ohio and that would improve the live of many people in his state.
Portman changed his opinion in part because his son came out to him. In his op-ed Portman wrote, “Knowing that my son is gay prompted me to consider the issue from another perspective: that of a dad who wants all three of his kids to lead happy, meaningful lives with the people they love, a blessing Jane and I have shared for 26 years.”
This is a great lesson in how you should form opinions about policies with real-world implications. If your position would change if the issue directly affected one of your family members then your original position is probably wrong. Everyone who is hurt, left out, or suffering as a result of a policy is someone’s son or daughter.
I can only hope this is something Portman and his fellow senators can keep in mind when addressing every other important issue. It shouldn’t require something happening to one of your own kids for you to put yourself in the shoes of a concerned parent.
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These sociopaths have no understanding of empathy. At all. None.
No, your position should not be based on benefits to a family member. If your son/daughter commits murder, does that justify you in calling for the repeal of the law against murder? Morality is mostly based on overall benefit to society.
I see, if it effects your family its completely different.
Isn’t this the same Portman (R-Dickhead) who was a dark horse for RMoney’s VP?
It’s the same Portman. And commenters around the web are now saying that a key reason why Portman lost the VP selection to Ryan is because of his gay son, and that Portman would have had to pull a Dick Cheney on this issue, which wouldn’t have sat well with Rmoney’s base (such as it was) in this last election.
If only some of these politicians had children who lived on planet Earth, we might get somewhere on environmental legislation.
This is what I’ve been saying for years now. Conservatives are the most synical bastards on earth. They use the LGBT, Hispanic, and Black communities as sounding boards to enrage their troglodyte, knuckle dragging base. Here is another so-called conservative who’s switched on a dime on an issue these bastards have demaqogued for years now. I supposed its a good thing he changed his mind, but the bigger question is why do these people constantly sell their morals and principles down the tube for electoral success. You know he couldn’t have had a problem with Gay Marriage because he switched on a dime, once it became known to him he was destroying his son everytime he utters those infantile words against the Gay community. As Mary Griffin said in the movie Prayers for Bobby; everytime you utter gay slurs in your church’s and homes, THINK, a child may be listening. Well now Mr. Portman knows it was his child who was listening and suffering all those times. Great for the kid he took the brave route and did not do what so many young people in our society do today; commit suicide, because of the words uttered daily by these cretons. I actually have more respect for those people who really believe their crap on homosexuality, because they’re standing by their principles. But people like Portman, and half the conservatives in elective office today, they do it for pure, unadulterated greed. AND THAT’S AS SICKENING AND EVIL AS IT GETS!!!!!
Kudos to the son. Imagine how fucked up his life has been knowing his dad’s sponsors hated people like him.
I hope Portman is voted out of the senate when people realize his hypocrisy but I wish nothing but the best for his courageous son.
So Portman once again confirms that in order for a republican to achieve enlightenment they have to personally experience, either themselves or a close family member every variation a human being can manifest (e.g., being Gay, being non-white, etc.) and every misfortune a human can experience (e.g., being broke, ill, discriminated against, etc.) before they can accept anything not like them.
The most salient characteristic of republicans, the common measure of their universal indecency is their complete absence of empathy – the human characteristic that is the very foundation and essential element of enlightenment.
Today’s republicans are fundamentally monsters – some more poised and refined than others, but from a human perspective – all monsters, because of their absence of empathy.
you got that wrong – they don’t have any morals or principles, which is why its so easy for them to switch on a dime. They are haters of everything not-like-them, because they are insecure, aurthoitarian, violent, hateful bastards. Demagoging hate is the real republican.. Making exceptions on a personal basis out of their control only demonstrates their vacuous hypocrisy – their complete lack of morals and principles.
Remember that four years ago they attacked empathy as some sort of malevolent, socialist value during the Sonia Sotomayor nomination process?
https://www.google.com/search?q=republicans%20attack%20empathy&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a