Because it made me giggle...

[changeyourstars8]

So apparently some parents in Rhode Island are worried that their high-schoolers shouldn't go on a class trip to see RENT. They might not be able to deal with the "in-your-face glorification of homosexuality and lesbianism." (quote from Focus on the Family)

Please. I became a fan of the musical (and the Broadway version is quite a bit raunchier than the movie) when I was fourteen or fifteen. Of course, I doubt that Dobson and his ilk would look at me and see anything good, so. . .

Anyway, I could get into a huge rant about how Christianity is supposed to be about loving your neighbor and being kind to people, etc. and etc., rather than finding a new 'oh my goodness see look the gay people are everywhere eeeeeeek' target every other day, but I'd rather just post this:

Jesus Bans 'Christian' Group Focus on the Family

When the news reached Focus on the Family's Colorado Springs headquarters, stunned members were seen running into walls and bashing their foreheads with large Bibles and ramming their Toyota Corollas and Ford pickups into each other and muttering incoherent lines from "Passion of the Christ" and popping Prozac like M&M's.

Comments

[jadelynx.livejournal.com]

Alright, I'm a little irritated, so if I am too harsh or anything, please call me on it.

First of all, if you want other people to respect the things you believe, then you shouldn't support such blatant disrespect as the article you linked. On the other hand, if you find that sort of thing amusing, that is your choice, but please don't get upset when other people laugh at or disrespect the things you believe. I'm not offended that you find that article amusing (I WAS offended by the article), but I am offended that you are willing to laugh at it at the same time be upset that parents don't want their children exposed to something they believe to be morally deviant.

To be clear, I don't always agree with Dobson on his viewpoints, so I am not here to defend him. But the truth of the matter here is that it's not Dobson saying that the kids shouldn't see the film. It's their parents. And the concern isn't just over the blatant homosexuality, but by the glorification of myriad issues that go beyond sexual orientation. The movie glorifies drug use (despite their attempt to get the druggies to stop, it's STILL a glorification of it), it glorifies defying the law, it glorifies living a second rate life rather than working for a corporation, and it glorifies theft.

The worst of it, though, is that it does it all to some of the most brilliant, most beautiful music out there. Even some of the actors agree on this point:

" Idina Menzel, who plays Maureen, added, “Music has a weird way of sneaking up on people and making them feel something they wouldn’t necessarily feel if they were being preached at.”

AND, just because you were able to handle the content at 14 (and I highly doubt at 14 you truly understood the content fully), that does not mean all kids, or even most kids can. These parents weren't complaining about the film being aired. They weren't saying that homosexuality was horrible. They weren't even saying homosexuality wasn't a choice. They were saying that sexual orientation shouldn't be a part of a "diversity" class and that using a film of that caliber was inappropriate and unnecessary.