Mewsings from Lowecat (aka Indianacat)

My rants, ravings, and overall 'mewsings' on life, the universe, and everything.

Sunday, March 29, 2015

Why Indiana's RFRA is Wrong


The DH (Dear Husband, aka Damn Husband, depending on the situation), raised an interesting question to me the other day about Indiana's Religious Freedom Restoration Act that our governor signed into law this week.  He asked me if I thought Daddy would be for or against it. 

My immediate response was that I felt he would be against it.  

I think it surprised him, considering that my father was an ordained minister in the United Methodist Church.  There's a lot of my father in me -  though I have strayed from organized religion in the few years since his death - that has shaped my thoughts and opinions in my life.  

Though a lot has been written after the fact about what RFRA is and is not all about - and for education purposes, I'm including a link to an article in one of the magazines Daddy subscribed to; The Weekly Standard.  I think it gives the best information about the bill.  Go ahead and read, I'll wait.  Here's the link: 

http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/indianas-religious-freedom-restoration-act-explained_900641.html

Welcome back.  So if you're still confused and wondering what all the uprorar is about, don't worry.  So am I.  But I still think Daddy wouldn't be in favor of this bill, and neither am I. 

Not because of the possibility that someone could use religion as a reason to discriminate against gays.  And let's face it, that's the 800 pound gorilla in the room.  No one can ignore the fact that passage of this bill happened AFTER Indiana lost the legal war on the constitutional ban on same - sex unions.  The timing stinks.  LIke fish that has been left out of the water too long.  

And that's why I believe that there is such a back lash against the passage of the bill by the LGBT community.  I don't blame them for feeling angry and hurt by the timing. But that doesn't mean that calling for a boycott of the entire state is the thing to do, even though a large number of big businesses, cities, and entertainers (including those I love and respect) have called for exactly that.  So far, no business has used the state version of the law to discriminate against ANYONE, and until that happens, boycotting the entire state at the moment is a lot like asking a monkey to guard your banana.  It's a bit ridiculous. 

I'm not saying that their feelings and fears are unwarranted.  There is always some idiotic extremist asshat out there ready to use the law as an excuse for anti - social behavior against someone different from him or her.  It's just a matter of time.  That business owner will cite the RFRA as an excuse to deny service to that person. 

You know what?  Let that business owner do such.  THEN we can all boycott the asshat.  While he or she has the right to deny service, we as consumers have the right not to cross that business' threshold.  We'll see how long that business can stay afloat for using a legal crutch as a reason to be a bigot.  

In the meantime, I beg the rest of the world to not blame all Hoosiers for the stupidity of our legislature.  After all, the rest of y'all have equally blind law makers that leave you shaking your head and wondering what they use for brains.  

And the reason why I think Daddy would be as much against this RFRA as I am? Because  religion in America is already protected by the Federal Constitution.  Granted, there are some people who take the separation of church and state thing a little far - let's face it, the founding fathers were mainly not wanting one particular faith to be government sponsored as England had.  All this bullshit about not putting the 10 commandments on display on state property is for the birds, considering the 10 commandments are the foundation of basic human behavior (does the fact that murder is considered a heinous crime ring a bell?  Hmmmm?  Remember 'thou shalt not kill?')!  Having a state protection like this is overkill and it doesn't do anything to protect the basic religious freedoms of the followers of Christ that have been contested by believers and non believers alike for decades. 

While I've lost all faith in organized religion, that doesn't mean I don't believe in a higher authority.  My type of belief is that you have the right to worship as you see fit, just as I do.  It doesn't mean runnin' around tellin' people they're goin' to Hell because they haven't spoken in tongues or been baptized in the blood of the lamb (as a group of extremists in college would do), or stand on street corners passing judgement on everyone passing by.  My belief is based on trying to do what is right, even if it's not the popular choice with the masses.  My worship is taking the bike out into God's country and talking to Him.  

I wish it were a world where saying 'Merry Christmas' wasn't considered a slam and insensitive to others.  I wish it were a world where high school graduation ceremonies could still hold a prayer service.  A world where political correctness wasn't worshiped as the be all/end all of the way things should be.  

I fear that one day soon, the Indiana RFRA is going to used to discriminate not only against the LGBT community, but bi - racial relationships/marriages, and any other difference that someone will claim is their religious right to engage in.  I'd like to hope it's a baseless fear, but with the way that the nut cases can use theology to support their radical views, I tend to have little faith in that hope. 

Maybe I'll be wrong.