Of all the loud-mouths you will stumble across in Social Media, I'm unlikely to engage in name-calling. Last year some time I believe that I made some less-than flattering comments about former Argentinean President Cristina Kirchner, but normally I deal in facts, not personalities. I think I might have to cross the line a bit today. Wednesday, June 15, I was visiting with my friend Jennifer and the television in the living room happened to be on CNN. We had been keeping an eye on the news, hoping against hope for miracle in the case of the two-year old boy in Florida who had been grabbed by an alligator. During a break in our conversation, we noticed that CNN reporter Anderson Cooper has started a live interview with Florida's Attorney General, Pam Bondi. Given all the news coming out of Florida, we decided to listen, and turned up the volume. I wish I had said my goodbyes, and left for the day. The roughy one-minute interview between Cooper and Bondi upset me so much, that I truly wanted to walk out into the front yard, and scream.
I imagine I was not alone in assuming that Cooper's interview with Bondi would focus on law enforcement and the investigation of the Pulse nightclub terror attack. If my memory serves me correctly, the first question or two dealt with the Florida Attorney General's Office response to the tragedy. On a few occasions that morning, I had observed on Social Media members of the LGBT community complimenting Bondi and her office for doing a great job. But Cooper didn't care about the needs of Florida's LBGT community that afternoon. He wanted to discuss Bondi's role in the State of Florida's litigation dealing with Gay Marriage. It appears that Bondi, in her sworn duty as Florida's Attorney General, had been obliged to defend Florida's position on the issue. In later interviews, Bondi claimed that she was blindsided, and that just before the interview, Cooper had told her he would be asking about the "GoFundMe" account set up for the Orlando victims, and also alleged price-gouging by Florida funeral homes. Let me assure you, folks; neither of those subjects were raised by Cooper in the interview. In response to Bondi's claims, Cooper accused Bondi of being "very mistaken or lying", and that she knew very well that Cooper wanted to talk about Gay Marriage. Now lets use a little common sense here. The day after this terrible terrorist attack, would it make sense for Anderson Cooper to ask the Attorney General questions relating to the incident, or would it seem normal for Cooper to start asking Bondi questions about her role as Attorney General during litigation over the Gay Marriage issue?
During the interview, Cooper accused Bondi of once stating that Gay Marriage would cause "public harm". Before allowing Bondi any real chance to respond, he then asked her, "do you really think that you're a champion of the gay community?" It seemed as if Cooper had gone over the edge. Bondi has never claimed to be a champion of the Florida gay community. During the short interview, it was apparent that Bondi was expecting to discuss the terrorist issue. Instead, we received a reminder that the gay comunity "holds a grudge", at least according to Anderson Cooper. If you google Bondi and Anderson Cooper you will get a full broadside on this issue, mostly from Cooper's perspective (big surprise). Well folks, I saw the interview as it happened. I used to have a bit of respect for Anderson Cooper. But his verbal assault on Bondi left me disgusted and angry. In addition, I wanted to hear an update on the investigation into the terrorist incident, not more propaganda on the Gay Marriage issue.
Forgive me, but I'm going to take this opportunity to be blunt. The "organized" gay community in the United States, the one that is represented by the LBGT movement (there are many gays and lesbians in the United States who do not support the LGBT organization, which has led to introduction of such lovely phrases as "self-loathing fags"), has been given so much free press by the media, it seems that they are never off of the airwaves. Entertainment moguls go out of their way to create gay characters for TV shows and to promote gay-themed movies. The average American is being barraged by issues involving the gay community day and night. I have gay friends of mine who joke around that the entertainment industry needs to tone down the gay propaganda just a bit. It has nothing to do about equality, folks. The war being fought by the LGBT movement, which includes the transgender community, which liberally makes up roughly .003% of the population, is about forcing people to "like" and "respect" homosexuality. That is about as un-American as it gets. Gay Americans (and transgendered folks) deserve a workplace free of discrimination, and equal access to the great opportunities provided by our nation. No one gets to force anyone else to be their biggest fan. If someone chooses to dislike homosexuality and decides to only have heterosexual friends, that person is not breaking any law. Regarding the openly gay Anderson Cooper's interview with Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, it would do Anderson good to remember that the gay community consists of possibly 10% of our nation (according to the Kinsey Report). The remaining 90% wanted to hear you ask the Attonrey general questions about the terrorist attack. Actually, I'm sure a good number of gays would also have preferred that Cooper address the terrorist issue and not drudge up the subject of Gay Marriage once again. Anderson, I realize that you live in New York City, and you are constantly surrounded by patronizing syncophants who only encourage this idea that you have that the United States begins and ends with the gay community. It does not. After watching a replay of the interview, I have decided that I really don't like you anymore, Anderson, and I should consider myself fortunate that for news purposes, my television never leaves Fox.
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