Yes, another issue in the media this week is causing me to yet again to climb up high to the top of my soapbox! Unless you have been living under a rock this past week, you are surely familiar with the controversy surrounding this year's Miss USA Pageant. This firestorm that the media has stirred up is absolutely ridiculous! Once again, we have a victim of the media simply because she chose to stand behind her convictions.
In case you don't know - here it is in a nutshell. Miss California, Carrie Prejean, was asked if she believes in gay marriage. Her response was: "We live in a land where you can choose same-sex marriage or opposite. And you know what, I think in my country, in my family, I think that I believe a marriage should be between a man and woman. No offense to anybody out there, but that's how I was raised." She never once denounced gay marriage, gay relationships or said it was wrong. She simply stated that in HER family a marriage should be between a man and woman. Is she the ONLY person on the planet who thinks so? Hardly!
Good for you, Carrie Prejean! I applaud your courage for standing up for what you believe in and how you were raised. This feeding frenzy that has been created has absolutely nothing to do with the issue of gay marriage and everything to do with the fact that this girl stood her ground.
Let's look at this for a minute...the judge who posed the question was openly gay gossip columnist Perez Hilton. If any of you have ever listened to or read anything he's done, you know he makes his living by basically putting down other celebrities. Guess what? Thanks to our forefathers and every member of the military personnel who ever wore the uniform, he has that right to freedom of speech. So who is he to denounce this girl and call her vulgar names for speaking her mind? The same goes for anyone else who does so. We have the right to speak up for what we believe in, right or wrong. If the shoe was on the other foot and he was criticized for the things he says in his column, you can bet he would be up in arms.
By the way...who won the pageant? Does anyone know? Again, the media has blown this so far out of proportion that the winner, Miss North Carolina, Kristen Dalton, has been pushed aside. Her victory has barely even been mentioned because of this. All the media reports is that Miss California's statements "cost her the crown."
A friend of mine put it best: "I am extremely upset that we are being forced to either (1) succumb to dishonesty in order to achieve our goals or (2) stay true to ourselves and risk the possibility of watching our dreams slip through our fingers!" She took the words right out of my mouth! To Carrie Prejean: who cares about that crown - if you have to become a self-sacrificing, belief-hiding person to earn that title - you don't need it. That crown isn't worth the plastic it's molded from.
I welcome your comments...
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"Good for you, Carrie Prejean! I applaud your courage for standing up for what you believe in and how you were raised."
ReplyDeleteI wonder if you would be so gung-ho and applauding her statements if she had come out against inter-racial marriage. Or maybe if she had said Christians and Jews shouldn't marry...it's not natural. Or said that mentally handicapped people shouldn't be allowed to breed. Would those statement be Ok? Would you applaud her "courage" then?
Yeah, THAT would be wrong but coming out against gays is ok.
What a crock.
Discrimination is ugly and vulgar no matter how much you try to dress it up. Nice try though.
I appreciate your comments and I understand what you're saying. I am not applauding WHAT she said, or who it was against. She stood her ground, right or wrong, and that's where my kudos is going. Too many people succomb to the pressure of others! And for the record, she's being told that her comments "cost her the crown" how is that NOT discrimination?
ReplyDeleteI'm all for being proud of folks standing their ground. I am with you there. But at the same time, there is a line....and I believe that line is discrimination. The Government giving rights to some people and not others is just that.
ReplyDeleteJust because a Klan member sticks to his/her beliefs.....doesn't make me feel the need to give those beliefs or their desire to stand their ground 'kudos' or respect.
How is costing her the crown not discrimination? Because it's a beauty pageant. It's not housing, tax breaks, or rights. It's standing up in a skimpy bathing suit and trying to convince a group of judges that you are the most beautiful.
Bottom line really should be 'who cares what she thinks......it doesn't matter'. Harsh, but true. Just my opinion....
I think you're misunderstanding my point. As Americans we are afforded certain rights and one of those rights is freedom of speech. We all have it and we should be thankful for it. I may not necessarily believe in what a certain group of people believes in - the Klan, as per your example - however, I believe in their right to say it. Too many of our freedoms are being taken away and it's got to stop.
ReplyDeleteI am so thankful that you wrote, I really am. I appreciate what others think and I knew this was going to cause some "discussion." I welcome your opinion anytime. And maybe you're right, maybe we should be saying "who cares", but thanks to the media, that's not really an option, is it?
You are probably right about the media taking this ball and running with it.
ReplyDeleteI don't have cable or satellite television of any kind. I am not as mired in the media circus as most. But I'm certainly aware (via the internet) of the bru-hah-hah that's been going on concerning this story.
You seem to now be shifting to more of a "right to say it" approach.
That, I agree with all day long. Absolute and complete freedom of speech is essential. Always has been and always will be.
What we were dancing around with before was more along the lines of "does some speech deserve respect".
Yes, she has the RIGHT to say whatever it is she believes, but that doesn't mean what she says will automatically gain my respect, just because she has conviction.
I have just as much conviction and freedom of speech to say that her opinons are discriminatory and vapid.
I'm glad you are thankful I wrote. I'm also glad I recieved a welcome and friendly response. Stop by my blog and join in a conversation or two yourself when you get a chance.
What a peaceful existence you must have with no cable or satellite television!
ReplyDeleteI apologize if anything I wrote came off as being agreeable with any of the parties involved. That was NOT my intention. You are right, you DO have the conviction and freedom to speak out against what she said. I just don't think she should be ostracized for exercising her same rights - make sense?
I am most thankful you wrote - I have enjoyed our "debate." I will be happy to visit your blog - see you soon!
I think its a darn shame because of the way she was raised "cost her the title". Very proud of her that she stood her ground with what she believes. Should not have made a difference in the judges voting. Unless they seen it from my view. Theres a lady who is not afraid to speak her opinion and be proud of her family beliefs. Just a shame of it all. And your right, who actually did win? This will blow over and on will come another crazy television controversy.
ReplyDeleteSo if she was raised to believe that Jews and Christians shouldn't be allowed to get married....that would be OK?
ReplyDeleteI don't understand the thinking that says "just because she was raised with the belief that some people don't deserve the same rights as others", that makes it OK.
Just me I guess.
I am a week late reading this blog, but I would like to say that Mel you are right on. You are not stating your belief or siding with her belief (you may or may not agree with her). You are simply stating that she has the right, thanks to those that have fought and died for that right, to speak her opinion.
ReplyDeleteShe didn't just stand up there and start speaking on her platform, she was asked. Don't ask an opinion if you aren't prepared for the answer! If you want her answer to be what you want to hear then just talk to yourself.
Lemmy, I don't believe that she should use her public status as a platform to spew hate and bigotry, but that truly is not what she did. She specifically said that she felt that it was a personal decision, but her personal decision would be against it. If she were up there saying that gays should never marry and that she thinks it's an abomination, etc then I would be completely agreeing with you. I happen to be for gay marriage, however her response didn't bother me in the slightest. I felt that she was completely respectful with her response.
I also, think that she should be given props for standing there in front of millions (knowing that she was going to be burned at the stake no matter what she said) and answered the question as truthfully as possible. We try to teach our children to have courage when dealing with peer pressure and I feel that she showed this same courage perfectly.
I think the true problem with all of this is that it is being said that she lost the crown due to this. We don't know that. She very well may have lost the crown no matter what. It's such a huge disservice to Miss North Carolina. Imagine being in her shoes. "Well, I really was second choice, but they had to pick me because Miss California said something unpopular". I would hate to win under that guise.