Too Lazy to Read? Then Shut Your Pie Hole!

Too Lazy to Read? Then Shut Your Pie Hole!

That's the best advice that I can give to the deluded masses that insist on deluging our Senate today with calls, emails and letters imploring our elected officials to vote NO on the "Pedophile Protection Act."

What, you didn't know that the Senate was going to vote on the "Pedophile Protection Act" this week? Well, then consider yourself more intelligent than Focus on the Family's James Dobson who has also referred to S. 909, commonly known as the Matthew Shepard Act, as "utter evil."

Certain so-called "Christian" commentators and general muck-stirrers will have you believe that S. 909 is an attack on Christianity. Yea, they will even have you buy into the notion that it will criminalize Christianity!

Come again?

`(1) OFFENSES INVOLVING ACTUAL OR PERCEIVED RACE, COLOR, RELIGION, OR NATIONAL ORIGIN- Whoever, whether or not acting under color of law, willfully causes bodily injury to any person or, through the use of fire, a firearm, a dangerous weapon, or an explosive or incendiary device, attempts to cause bodily injury to any person, because of the actual or perceived race, color, religion, or national origin of any person--

...

`(2) OFFENSES INVOLVING ACTUAL OR PERCEIVED RELIGION, NATIONAL ORIGIN, GENDER, SEXUAL ORIENTATION, GENDER IDENTITY, OR DISABILITY-

Did someone say "criminalize Christianity?"

The above quoted material is from the Act as it was introduced to the Senate. Note that it actually adds religion to the criteria. Now, please explain to me, how that moves to "criminalize" Christianity?

As for protecting "all 547 forms of sexual deviancy," this is rhetoric designed to scare the average American into thinking that paraphiles will receive some sort of special rights or protections. That's thinking about it backwards. Let me spell it forwards: If a person is a known pedophile, or even a perceived pedophile (don't tell me you haven't looked at someone and said to yourself, "That dude's gotta be a perp"), it still gives no other human being the right to select that person as the victim of assault or murder. Let me spell it some more, just because a person has been labeled a paraphile, using the diagnostic criteria in the DSM it doesn't make them a criminal. Not all paraphilias, even if acted upon, could constitute illegal activity. For clarity, the diagnosis of Pedophilia does not require that a person acts out on his or her "urges" or "fantasies." A pedophile becomes a criminal when he or she violates the law by acting out on his or her thoughts. Now let me add some irony, Congressman Trent Franks opposed HR 1913 (this Act in the House) because, it "does not punish criminal intent, but criminalizes thought."

Well, you can't have it both ways, now can you, Trent?

Let's dig deeper, what is this list published by the American Psychiatric Association that people keep getting this 547 number from? I'm sorry but I cannot find the actual list except for something on the ever accurate Wikipedia that refers to an unamed scientific resource. Are they talking about the DSM-IV (The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fourth Edition)? Because I'm looking at it right now and listed under Paraphilias are the following: Exhibitionism; Fetishism; Frotteurism; Pedophilia; Sexual Masochism; Sexual Sadism; Transvestic Fetishism; Voyeurism; and Paraphilia Not Otherwise Specified. That adds up to...nine. Presumably these 547 deviancies published by the APA must fall under the last heading Paraphilia NOS. Right? This is where we can come up with a billion different variations of sexual deviancy by adding a Greek root to the word "philia" such as this list found on Wikipedia. Take a look and you will find that some of these "philias" are downright strange and not all of them are criminal, even if acted upon.

Congressman Trent Franks has said that S. 909 will "break" the Constitution. Once again, I refer to the actual Act as introduced to the Senate:

(3) CONSTITUTIONAL PROTECTIONS- Nothing in this Act shall be construed to prohibit any constitutionally protected speech, expressive conduct or activities (regardless of whether compelled by, or central to, a system of religious belief), including the exercise of religion protected by the First Amendment and peaceful picketing or demonstration. The Constitution does not protect speech, conduct or activities consisting of planning for, conspiring to commit, or committing an act of violence.

(4) FREE EXPRESSION- Nothing in this Act shall be construed to allow prosecution based solely upon an individual's expression of racial, religious, political, or other beliefs or solely upon an individual's membership in a group advocating or espousing such beliefs.

Furthermore, the association of the term "Pedophile Protection Act" to S. 909 or the Matthew Shepard Act is shameful and appalling. Why would anyone besmirch the memory of Matthew Shepard. At the very least it is rude and offensive. Think about it. He is someone's child, and he is dead, what are you going to do when someone talks about your child that way?


Well, guess what? I think James Dobson looks gay. So, S. 909 could actually help prosecute his attacker(s) were he the victim of a hate crime, not just because they may have been singled out for his religious beliefs but also because of the perception that he might be gay (isn't the church a hidey hole for homosexuals?).


I also think that Trent Franks looks like a pedophhile, so S. 909 could help him too (and isn't Congress a hidey hole for criminals?).

See how stupid perception can be?

Maybe the Matthew Shepard Act is Unconstitutional and maybe it is redundant since we already have laws against violent crimes but if you are going to oppose it, please actually read the Act and give us a real argument. In other words, stop making up lies and spreading fairy tales to get your way.

It's not working.

Resources:

Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act (Introduced in Senate)

Next on Senate agenda? 'Pedophile Protection Act'

Paraphilia

'Pedophile Protection Act' stirs 200K letters to Senate