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"We are all sodomites now: a case for sexual freedom" -- by Andrew Sullivan
New Republic via andrewsullivan.com ^ | March, '03 | Andrew Sullivan

Posted on 04/28/2003 7:10:48 PM PDT by churchillbuff

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To: man of Yosemite
What you don't understand is that the Ten commandments ARE the TOP TEN NO-NO'S!! They were DIRECTING spoken down from GOD to Moses. All other sins and questionable deeds are minor and trivial in comparison. The very fact that you and others don't understand this is one of the MAJOR reasons why this country is in such bad shape.
21 posted on 04/28/2003 8:38:05 PM PDT by Paul C. Jesup
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To: man of Yosemite
If homosexuality was the ONLY problem in this country, then I would say that we were doing pretty good.

But if it is NOT the only problem we have. And there are much worse problems that we need to face first, like people constantly violating the Ten Commandment; for example, demonization of innocent people by the press, the government stealing the money from the hard working people of this country, the murdering of unborn babies...

I think you get the idea. Compared to all that and more, homosexuality is a minor problem that can be worried about and debated for another day.

22 posted on 04/28/2003 8:45:18 PM PDT by Paul C. Jesup
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To: Kurdistani
Our Nation's laws against homosexuality go back beyond it's founding. In every single civilized nation since the beginning of time, homosexuality was considered immoral, a crime against nature, and usually was a capital offense. Let's look at a few quotes:

"Homosexual conduct is, and has been, considered abhorrent, immoral, detestable, a crime against nature, and a violation of the laws of nature and of nature's God upon which this Nation and our laws are predicated. Such conduct violates both the criminal and civil laws of this State and is destructive to a basic building block of society -- the family." ---- Chief Justice Moore of the Alabama Supreme Court in a decision denying custody of children to a lesbian mother.

The Corpus Juris Civilis is the sixth-century encyclopedic collection of Roman laws made under the sponsorship of Emperor Justinian. "It is Justinian's collection which served as the basis of canon law (the law of the Christian Church) and civil law (both European and English)."

The following is a statement in Law French from Corpus Juris: "'Sodomie est crime de majeste vers le Roy Celestre,' and [is] translated in a footnote as 'Sodomy is high treason against the King of Heaven.' At common law 'sodomy' and the phrase 'infamous crime against nature' were often used interchangeably."

"Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it [is] abomination." (KJV) Leviticus 18:22

"If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood [shall be] upon them."(KJV) Leviticus 20:13

"Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God." 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 (NASB)

"There shall be no whore of the daughters of Israel, nor a sodomite of the sons of Israel." (KJV) Deuteronomy 23:17

No matter how much society appears to change, the law on this subject has remained steadfast from the earliest history of the law, and that law is and must be our law today. The common law designates homosexuality as an inherent evil... ---- Chief Justice Moore of the Alabama Supreme Court in a decision denying custody of children to a lesbian mother.

"The Constitution does not confer a fundamental right upon homosexuals to engage in sodomy. None of the fundamental rights announced in this Court's prior cases involving family relationships, marriage, or procreation bear any resemblance to the right asserted in this case. And any claim that those cases stand for the proposition that any kind of private sexual conduct between consenting adults is constitutionally insulated from state proscription is unsupportable. " The United States Supreme Court in BOWERS v. HARDWICK, 478 U.S. 186 (1986) 478 U.S. 186

Criminal sodomy laws in effect in 1791:

Connecticut: 1 Public Statute Laws of the State of Connecticut, 1808, Title LXVI, ch. 1, 2 (rev. 1672). Delaware: 1 Laws of the State of Delaware, 1797, ch. 22, 5 (passed 1719). Georgia had no criminal sodomy statute until 1816, but sodomy was a crime at common law, and the General Assembly adopted the common law of England as the law of Georgia in 1784. The First Laws of the State of Georgia, pt. 1, p. 290 (1981). Maryland had no criminal sodomy statute in 1791. Maryland's Declaration of Rights, passed in 1776, however, stated that "the inhabitants of Maryland are entitled to the common law of England," and sodomy was a crime at common law. 4 W. Swindler, Sources and Documents of United States Constitutions 372 (1975). Massachusetts: Acts and Laws passed by the General Court of Massachusetts, ch. 14, Act of Mar. 3, 1785. New Hampshire passed its first sodomy statute in 1718. Acts and Laws of New Hampshire 1680-1726, p. 141 (1978). Sodomy was a crime at common law in New Jersey at the time of the ratification of the Bill of Rights. The State enacted its first criminal sodomy law five years later. Acts of the Twentieth General Assembly, Mar. 18, 1796, ch. DC, 7. New York: Laws of New York, ch. 21 (passed 1787). [478 U.S. 186, 193] At the time of ratification of the Bill of Rights, North Carolina had adopted the English statute of Henry VIII outlawing sodomy. See Collection of the Statutes of the Parliament of England in Force in the State of North-Carolina, ch. 17, p. 314 (Martin ed. 1792). Pennsylvania: Laws of the Fourteenth General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, ch. CLIV, 2 (passed 1790). Rhode Island passed its first sodomy law in 1662. The Earliest Acts and Laws of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations 1647-1719, p. 142 (1977). South Carolina: Public Laws of the State of South Carolina, p. 49 (1790). At the time of the ratification of the Bill of Rights, Virginia had no specific statute outlawing sodomy, but had adopted the English common law. 9 Hening's Laws of Virginia, ch. 5, 6, p. 127 (1821) (passed 1776).

Criminal sodomy statutes in effect in 1868:

Alabama: Ala. Rev. Code 3604 (1867). Arizona (Terr.): Howell Code, ch. 10, 48 (1865). Arkansas: Ark. Stat., ch. 51, Art. IV, 5 (1858). California: 1 Cal. Gen. Laws,  1450, 48 (1865). Colorado (Terr.): Colo. Rev. Stat., ch. 22, 45, 46 (1868). Connecticut: Conn. Gen. Stat., Tit. 122, ch. 7, 124 (1866). Delaware: Del. Rev. Stat., ch. 131, 7 (1893). Florida: Fla. Rev. Stat., div. 5, 2614 (passed 1868) (1892). Georgia: Ga. Code 4286, 4287, 4290 (1867). Kingdom of Hawaii: Haw. Penal Code, ch. 13, 11 (1869). Illinois: Ill. Rev. Stat., div. 5, 49, 50 (1845). Kansas (Terr.): Kan. Stat., ch. 53, 7 (1855). Kentucky: 1 Ky. Rev. Stat., ch. 28, Art. IV, 11 (1860). Louisiana: La. Rev. Stat., Crimes and Offences, 5 (1856). Maine: Me. Rev. Stat., Tit. XII, ch. 160, 4 (1840). Maryland: 1 Md. Code, Art. 30, 201 (1860). Massachusetts: Mass. Gen. Stat., ch. 165, 18 (1860). Michigan: Mich. Rev. Stat., Tit. 30, ch. 158, 16 (1846). Minnesota: Minn. Stat., ch. 96, 13 (1859). Mississippi: Miss. Rev. Code, ch. 64, LII, Art. 238 (1857). Missouri: 1 Mo. Rev. Stat., ch. 50, Art. VIII, 7 (1856). Montana (Terr.): Mont. Acts, Resolutions, Memorials, Criminal Practice Acts, ch. IV, 44 (1866). Nebraska (Terr.): Neb. Rev. Stat., Crim. Code, ch. 4, 47 (1866). [478 U.S. 186, 194] Nevada (Terr.): Nev. Comp. Laws, 1861-1900, Crimes and Punishments, 45. New Hampshire: N. H. Laws, Act. of June 19, 1812, 5 (1815). New Jersey: N. J. Rev. Stat., Tit. 8, ch. 1, 9 (1847). New York: 3 N. Y. Rev. Stat., pt. 4, ch. 1, Tit. 5, 20 (5th ed. 1859). North Carolina: N.C. Rev. Code, ch. 34, 6 (1855). Oregon: Laws of Ore., Crimes - Against Morality, etc., ch. 7, 655 (1874). Pennsylvania: Act of Mar. 31, 1860, 32, Pub. L. 392, in 1 Digest of Statute Law of Pa. 1700-1903, p. 1011 (Purdon 1905). Rhode Island: R. I. Gen. Stat., ch. 232, 12 (1872). South Carolina: Act of 1712, in 2 Stat. at Large of S. C. 1682-1716, p. 493 (1837). Tennessee: Tenn. Code, ch. 8, Art. 1, 4843 (1858). Texas: Tex. Rev. Stat., Tit. 10, ch. 5, Art. 342 (1887) (passed 1860). Vermont: Acts and Laws of the State of Vt. (1779). Virginia: Va. Code, ch. 149, 12 (1868). West Virginia: W. Va. Code, ch. 149, 12 (1868). Wisconsin (Terr.): Wis. Stat. 14, p. 367 (1839).

Below are some of the early Statutes Banning Sodomy:

That the detestable and abominable vice of buggery [sodomy] . . . shall be from henceforth adjudged felony . . . and that every person being thereof convicted by verdict, confession, or outlawry [unlawful flight to avoid prosecution], shall be hanged by the neck until he or she shall be dead. NEW YORK

That if any man shall lie with mankind as he lieth with womankind, both of them have committed abomination; they both shall be put to death. CONNECTICUT

Sodomy . . . shall be punished by imprisonment at hard labour in the penitentiary during the natural life or lives of the person or persons convicted of th[is] detestable crime. GEORGIA

That if any man shall commit the crime against nature with a man or male child . . . every such offender, being duly convicted thereof in the Supreme Judicial Court, shall be punished by solitary imprisonment for such term not exceeding one year and by confinement afterwards to hard labor for such term not exceeding ten years. MAINE

That if any person or persons shall commit sodomy . . . he or they so offending or committing any of the said crimes within this province, their counsellors, aiders, comforters, and abettors, being convicted thereof as above said, shall suffer as felons. [And] shall forfeit to the Commonwealth all and singular the lands and tenements, goods and chattels, whereof he or she was seized or possessed at the time . . . at the discretion of the court passing the sentence, not exceeding ten years, in the public gaol or house of correction of the county or city in which the offence shall have been committed and be kept at such labor. PENNSYLVANIA

[T]he detestable and abominable vice of buggery [sodomy] . . . be from henceforth adjudged felony . . . and that the offenders being hereof convicted by verdict, confession, or outlawry [unlawful flight to avoid prosecution], shall suffer such pains of death and losses and penalties of their goods. SOUTH CAROLINA

That if any man lieth with mankind as he lieth with a woman, they both shall suffer death. VERMONT

"Forasmuch as there is not yet sufficient and condign punishment appointed and limited by the due course of the Laws of this Realm for the detestable and abominable Vice of Buggery committed with mankind of beast: It may therefore please the King's Highness with the assent of the Lords Spiritual and the Commons of this present parliament assembled, that it may be enacted by the authority of the same, that the same offence be from henceforth ajudged Felony and that such an order and form of process therein to be used against the offenders as in cases of felony at the Common law. And that the offenders being herof convict by verdict confession or outlawry shall suffer such pains of death and losses and penalties of their good chattels debts lands tenements and hereditaments as felons do according to the Common Laws of this Realme. And that no person offending in any such offence shall be admitted to his Clergy, And that Justices of the Peace shall have power and authority within the limits of their commissions and Jurisdictions to hear and determine the said offence, as they do in the cases of other felonies. This Act to endure till the last day. of the next Parliament" Buggery act of England 1553

Britton, i.10: "Let enquiry also be made of those who feloniously in time of peace have burnt other's corn or houses, and those who are attainted thereof shall be burnt, so that they might be punished in like manner as they have offended. The same sentence shall be passed upon sorcerers, sorceresses, renegades, sodomists, and heretics publicly convicted" English law forbidding sodomy dating back to 1300AD.

These quotes are just a few of the many that are avaliable.

Now, why did these laws exist? Libertarians and other assorted liberal folk don't like any laws that protect society and prevent the moral decline of a nation's people. They are immoral people and they want to be free to be immoral.

What did our founders say about this? Way back in 1815, The Pennsylvania Supreme Court decided an important case, here are excerpts from that case:

This court is...invested with power to punish not only open violations of decency and morality, but also whatever secretly tends to undermine the principles of society... Whatever tends to the destruction of morality, in general, may be punishable criminally. Crimes are public offenses, not because they are perpetrated publically, but because their effect is to injure the public. Buglary, though done in secret, is a public offense; and secretly destroying fences is indictable.

Hence it follows, that an offense may be punishable, if in it's nature and by it's example, it tends to the corruption or morals; although it not be committed in public.

Although every immoral act, such as lying, ect... is not indictable, yet where the offense charged is destructive of morality in general...it is punishable at common law. The destruction of morality renders the power of government invalid...

No man is permitted to corrupt the morals of the people, secret poision cannot be thus desseminated.

Keep in mind now that the judges on this court had lived through the revolution and fought for the nation's survival. This was just a few years after the Constitution was Adopted. SO the libertarians who are going to scream that these judges didn't know what they were talking about are way off base. (They want you to think that your basic pot head knows more about the Constitution than the men who were actually there at the nation's founding.)

Now why did the court take that position? Simple, a Nation without morality cannot function. A nation that loses site on principle is doomed to go the way of the Roman Empire. Every single nation that has lost sight of basic moral principles has fallen. Homosexuality is anathema to morality. The two cannot exist together. Homosexuality is unnatural (no matter how much liberals will try to convince you otherwise.) And it is immoral. It cannot be tolerated period.

Homosexuality is immoral, Indecent, abhorant, and repugnant. It is a stain on our society, and must never ever be tolerated.

23 posted on 04/28/2003 8:45:56 PM PDT by FF578 (Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just and His justice cannot sleep forever)
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To: Paul C. Jesup
You are the same libertarian idiot that claimed there were 6,000,000 libertarian votes cast in the 2000 election.

"If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood [shall be] upon them."(KJV) Leviticus 20:13

24 posted on 04/28/2003 8:50:10 PM PDT by FF578 (Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just and His justice cannot sleep forever)
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To: churchillbuff
read later
25 posted on 04/28/2003 8:50:58 PM PDT by LiteKeeper
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To: bourbon
I have never heard of 'sodomy' or 'the crime against nature' as referring to masturbation or any other simply non-procreational sex acts. It refers specifically to anal sex.

Although I tend to be pretty laissez-faire about gays, I can understand why one would consider anal sex a crime against nature. And I think that Nature, repeatedly insulted by an invasion of e.coli where it doesn't belong, has responded with a terrible, deadly virus that destroys the autoimmune system.

As the commercial used to say, you don't mess with Mother Nature! (She IS a Mother, after all!)
26 posted on 04/28/2003 9:14:35 PM PDT by Jerez2
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To: FF578
You are the same libertarian idiot that claimed there were 6,000,000 libertarian votes cast in the 2000 election

I simply stated a equation based on total population of the U.S. versus the percentage that claim to be regestered Libertarians. And if you forget, I also state that I voted for BUSH.

"If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood [shall be] upon them."(KJV) Leviticus 20:13

'Do not bare false witness against thy neighbor.'

Bible thumpers like you love to quote the Bible, but hate live by what it says.

27 posted on 04/28/2003 9:21:07 PM PDT by Paul C. Jesup
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To: churchillbuff
And not just any place. In the Book of Genesis, Sodom is a city uniquely condemned by God for its waywardness. Its sins merit utter destruction. But what are those sins? Alas, the text is not specific.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but, that the insinuation in this passage is related to desire for "carnal knowledge" of the visitors (men) by other men is about obvious as all git out... (my italics)

There are obviously other sins pertaining to the town, but its a bit facetious to claim it didn't refer to the inhabitants desires for the same sex...

19:4 But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter:
19:5 And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them.
19:6 And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him,
19:7 And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly.
19:8 Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof.

28 posted on 04/28/2003 9:23:49 PM PDT by Axenolith (Hey, look at that cute little critter...Yaaaa! GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF!!!!)
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To: Paul C. Jesup
The 10 Commandments do not all have = weight. When faced with death, one can violate all of them with the exceptions of idolatry, murder, and forbidden sexual relations (including homosexual).
29 posted on 04/28/2003 9:24:54 PM PDT by Krafty123
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To: AriOxman
The 10 Commandments do not all have = weight. When faced with death, one can violate all of them with the exceptions of idolatry, murder, and forbidden sexual relations (including homosexual).

Your above statement is proving my point in how much hypocrisy your side has.

30 posted on 04/28/2003 9:31:46 PM PDT by Paul C. Jesup
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To: FF578
Homosexuality is immoral, Indecent, abhorant, and repugnant. It is a stain on our society, and must never ever be tolerated.

Criminalized?

31 posted on 04/28/2003 9:33:19 PM PDT by sinkspur
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To: churchillbuff
When's the last time Sullivan wrote an article about something other than sodomy?
32 posted on 04/28/2003 9:34:51 PM PDT by Mr. Mojo
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To: Kurdistani
Homosexual sodomy is a form of murder, since it destroys both the soul and the body.
33 posted on 04/28/2003 9:38:37 PM PDT by Cultural Jihad
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Comment #34 Removed by Moderator

To: Paul C. Jesup
Please point out to me where "my" side has ascribed special prominence to the decalogue. The Torah says explicitly that deviant sexual behavior is an abomination. Does civil law give equal weight to bank robberies and traffic tickets? Precisely where is the hypocrisy?
35 posted on 04/28/2003 9:46:22 PM PDT by Krafty123
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To: churchillbuff
Andrew Sullivan says: often hysterical aversion to sodomy

Andrew Sullivan, who is often quite lucid and right except when talking about his right to put his penis into a dirty rectum (excuse the graphics but that's the truth) shows the depth of his depravity when he talks like this.

Because read between the lines here: Hysterical aversion? What? So its not enough that gays want tolerance? They attack us for our rightful aversion to this despicable practice, that has been damned throughout time for good reason, and they seek to make the immoral and unnatural not only tolerated, but the norm.

I see gays as having a terrible sickness, a cancer of immorality. And like anyone with cancer, I do not hate the person with the cancer, yet I would certainly hate them if they wished to spread their cancer over the world, and infect all of us with it. That, in effect, is what gays wish to do. They do not wish to stop with mere tolerance. They seek to make their depraved lifestyle supplant what is now the norm.

36 posted on 04/28/2003 9:55:55 PM PDT by FirstTomato (Always remember you are unique. Just like everyone else.)
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To: churchillbuff
Thank you for posting this editorial by Andrew Sullivan. It was a very good read.

I was following his logic and understanding his point of view until deep in the article he glossed over what "homosexuals really do." Then he lumped the total range of gay sexual conduct in with his "what heterosexuals do" argument. When I understood that, his fundamental intellectual dishonesty was made apparent to me. As much as I hate to admit it, the author started spinning and engaging in deceptive tactics. Shame on him.

One problem that I have with male homosexual relations is their total fascination with anal sex and the ingestion of excrement and drinking of urine. All one has to do is pick up one of the free rags the gay community publishes in Los Angeles or San Francisco. The practice is wide-spread. You may read short stories, or personal advertisements galore. The gay rags are filled with them. (To think that these rags are available in stacks for any child to pick up and read is another pet peeve of mine. But this is not the time or place to rant about gay publications).

Without getting into detail – God forbid – the ingestion of excrement is a proclivity that is utterly disgusting. It is highly offensive on its face. It is a highly risky behavior in terms of spreading many types of disease (not just STD's). Such conduct is obviously "off the charts" and "beyond the bounds" of normal human sexuality.

It is deep into the realm of pathological behavior . . . There was a secret psychological profile on Adolph Hitler that was written during World War II and later was published by the OSS. It described his "addictions" in that regard in great detail. However, allegedly, only with women who were prostitutes. The addiction was cited as strong evidence of his moral depravity and his insanity. (I believe it is still available on the Internet)

And even worse: Some people even could write pages and pages about Secret Satanic Rituals. Marquis de Sade material, and even beyond that. But I decline to do so.

Just my humble opinion. Sorry if I offended anyone – I did not mean to offend. My intention was only to enlighten people who might be unaware.

37 posted on 04/28/2003 10:10:23 PM PDT by ex-Texan (primates capitulards toujours en quete de fromage!)
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To: churchillbuff
Homosexuals, like the Dixie Chicks, need to keep quiet. If they don't, then they should not get upset when a lot of people disagree with them vehemently.
38 posted on 04/28/2003 10:15:25 PM PDT by Russell Scott (Don't blame me for being homophobic, I was born that way.)
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To: Jerez2
interesting. Jerez2 replies to bourbon. Now there's a post with an alcoholic flair.

Do you know that jerez is aged in old bourbon casks?

Perhaps accordingly, we share some special link as well?? Hmmm.... :-)
39 posted on 04/28/2003 10:16:24 PM PDT by bourbon (The carrot can not be used to the exclusion of the stick.)
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To: AriOxman
You're commenting on the Torah, and here I thought you were commenting on the King James' Version of the Bible. The hypocrisy is in that you put more prominence on lesser sins than on the Ten Commandments.

Selective interpretation like that is hypocritical and is one of the major factors that is causing the erosion that is happening in modern day religion and this country as a whole.

40 posted on 04/28/2003 10:34:38 PM PDT by Paul C. Jesup
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