I can only speak about my own case Star Traveler, and this is not a black and white issue. That’s why I totally respect your decision, despite that it’s totally different from mine.
My biggest problem with Cook is that he is specifically representing Apple, and not only himself in a fight that is not relevant to the fortunes of Apple Corporation. Furthermore, the law itself is designed to find a happy medium between all the parties involved. The status quo is that the argument of religious freedom cannot even be used by someone who refuses service to someone else. Some Christians have seen their businesses essentially shut down as they were targeted by homosexuals for their Christianity, even though they could have easily gone to a different business. The business owners under the new law could still be found guilty of discrimination by the court, but they could at least bring up religious freedom as an ARGUMENT!
So what bothers me about those against Indiana, including Cook, is that they are fine to have Christians totally disarmed and helpless to be forced into behaviors that are against their conscience, and they could not even defend themselves in court. That mentality is so bigoted by Cook, coupled with him representing Apple Corporation in the fight, prevents me in good conscience to enjoy any future Apple product I buy, knowing part of the money will be used to destroy fellow Christians.
Here’s a wonderful article I found most useful to understand what the law does and doesn’t do:
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/416152/liberals-against-religious-liberty-indiana-editors
I also want to apologize about the invectives thrown at you by fellow Freepers. I love this site because of the high level of argument presented. If I wanted a screaming insulting match, I would have gone to a liberal site!
We are used to it. The Apple-Hate mongering brigade has been doing this for years . . . without let-up. They did it before their was an overt and practicing out-of-the-closet gay man as CEO at Apple and they will continue to do it, despite the vast majority of Apple employees and users being heterosexual as are you and I. Tim Cook is making a huge mistake in taking this course and should be censured by the board of directors and the stockholders. He is adversely affecting the brand.
Alas, but I fear that it may not come down that way in today's environment. Too many people are afraid of being labeled as a "Gay basher" and will not speak out for fear the main-stream press will lash out at them. . . and the main-stream press will do everything in their very considerable power to do just that. We are at the tail-end of a 50 year campaign to main-stream deviancy and it has worked. Normalcy now, according to the accepted "wisdom" which is anything but wise, claims that a deviant life-style which is un-healthy and can lead to death and is not in God's plan for procreating, is "NORMAL" and should be embraced.
This LIBERAL LIE was SHOVED down our children's throats at the public schools and even in many of our Sunday Schools in the Liberal churches many of us attended, where we thought the Bible and morality was being taught. Our institutions of higher education became institutions of indoctrination of Liberal non-thinking while we were busy trying to earn a living to pay for the tuition they were charging us to indoctrinate our children in things we were unaware they were teaching.
A minority of us screamed out in the wilderness but could not be heard, because the Liberal liars had already taken over the means of being heard. . . while we worked at being productive, just wanting to live our lives in peace.
We slept through an invasion of our culture by another culture which as anathema to our beliefs. . . and WE LET IT HAPPEN!
I totally disagree with putting someone out of business because of their Christian convictions. So I’m of the belief that no one on any side should be fired, or put out of business or even boycotted because of whatever their religious or political convictions are. I know there are people on both sides who want to shut down businesses and fire people (and they “work it” to do so).
That’s why I buy products for what they do and how it meets my requirements ... and then I support conservative candidates and support legislators to pass conservative laws, doing so in the realm of politics.
AND THEN ... I would also like to see everyone who says that they won’t buy Apple Products, not buy Google products (like Android) and not buy Microsoft products ... in the same way! Then if they did that with Android and Microsoft, I would then believe they were being CONSISTENT with Apple. If they don’t do it the same way with Microsoft and Android, then they are HYPOCRITES!!
Mind you, I don’t say that I refuse to buy Microsoft or Android or Apple, because I’m only buying those products as to whether they are better or worse, in and of themselves. But those others are buying (or not buying) because of politics. I go to the ballot box and to my conservative legislators for politics.