Burnt Orange Report

Well, there goes Plato's Republic.

Hmm, I seem to recall a regime that banned/burned books that were written by Jewish authors and had Jewish characters...

What's next? Will there be gay concentration camps? Should Byron and Karl-T get ready to affix pink triangles to their clothing? You guys can hide out at my house. :)

Can I hide there too Andrea?! Do you have TIVO? ;)

All kidding aside, this whole shift to the far right (neo-nazism or whatever you call it) is quite frightening. As all political movements need a scapegoat, the right-wing has found gays - and (ironically) I don't see too many lefties coming to our aid.

Gayinmidland, of course you can come hide out with me! No Tivo, but satellite TV, pool, nice weather, and a house full of gay supporting lefties. I agree with you, I wish that more Dems would quit sucking up to the right wing and come out and call the "right"'s actions what they are--wrong, and un-American.

This is frightening but it is also illuminating.

The Republican Party succeeds by getting voters to think it is much more moderate than it actually is. The party trots out Rudy Giuliani, der Ahnold, and John McCain for public viewing, but then does its best to make sure that their views are marginalized within the party.

The more publicity Republicans like Gerald Allen get, the better. People need to know that this sort of thinking is not out of place in most Republican circles.

Rather than make Andrea's house really crowded, progressives in the South should move en masse to moderate swing states in the Midwest and Rocky Mountains.
Turning Ohio, Colorado, Arizona, and Missouri blue would be your best revenge.

Are they going to ban, "Fried Green Tomatoes"

Tim Z., I live in AZ and I agree with you--the more Dems we get here, the better. I am in Tucson, in a blue city and county, but with a Republican congressman--a gay one, no less. There has been a pattern since the mid 90's of people from the Northeast and Midwest (i.e. blue-staters) migrating to the Southwest. I think that is part of what is making the West a viable battleground.

I am in here with some desert land around the house, so all of my gay friends are welcome should the Gaybashing Gestapo come a-callin'. Plus, rent here is really cheap--an apartment a few blocks from the University of Arizona is about $450/mo. (2 beds, one bath, laundry and pool facilities.) But, I digress.

BTW, at UT, one of the best English classes I ever took was called "Gay and Lesbian Literature and Culture". It would be a shame if the works we studied were denied to others because of a bunch of bigots.

Will this spread to films? Will I no longer be able to watch a devastatingly handsome Paul Newman in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof?" No Marlon Brando crying, "Stelllllaaaaaa!!" in "A Streetcar Named Desire"? No "Importance of Being Earnest", none of the other dysfunctional families in Tennessee Williams' other plays, no Rock Hudson movies, no "Psycho"? One of my favorite films is "La Cage Aux Folles", the original "Birdcage". The list goes on and on of what our culture will be missing. Oh, no--will I have to take down my link to William Shatner's "Rocketman" because it was originally by Elton John?

I hope this gets all the publicity possible so that reasonable, "Eisenhower Republicans" as I like to call them and swing voters get an idea about what the right-wing is really about.

As for my last post--

"Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" and "A Streetcar Named Desire" are Tennessee Williams plays--I know that Marlon Brando was not gay, and neither is Paul Newman. And "The Importance of Being Earnest" is by Wilde.

Anthony Perkins of "Psycho" was a homosexual. Hitchcock was not.

I was writing all over the place, and I don't want any confusion.

Andrea:
I didn't realize you were in Arizona. If it weren't so darn much fun being an Illinois Democrat I'd consider moving down there myself, at least from late summer to mid fall of 2008. ;)

Even before the November 2nd election I felt that the Rocky Mountain states were far more fertile ground for the Dems than the South. The Democratic gains in Colorado and Montana were underreported in the mainstream national media.

Andrea, Tim Z. Thanks for the hide-out offers, though (quite frankly) we are getting tired of “hiding” as our country moves toward a theocracy.

Your point about changing the political landscape by a "blue invasion" is well taken. My partner (of 10 years) and I plan on moving from this capital of Christian conservatism to either Washington State (Spokane) or Western Idaho. Both areas tend to be very red areas, though changing quickly to purple or blue.

On a brighter note, I do feel that the farther to the right the Republicans go, the more the political winds will shift back to the center (or possibly to the moderate left) - especially if they nominate the holy reverend Frist for Pres in '08.

Hi, Gayinmidland--

I'm not too familiar with Spokane, but lived in Seattle for a few years. Seattle and its suburbs are pretty liberal, and WA state as a whole is pretty gay-friendly, from what I understand.