babysealclubber Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 Hey all, For those of you not in the know, proposition 8 is the latest attempt to amend the California constitution to make gay marriage illegal. Being the non-religious, non-homophobe that I am, I voted against it. (Absentee Ballot, if you were wondering) I visited my parents this weekend while they were filling out their ballots, and my mom asked me how I voted on a few issues. She normally just votes the same way as my dad, so I relished the opportunity to influence her vote to better reflect my views (yes mom, of course reducing drug penalties will save taxpayer money.) I had her pretty well strung along until this particular item, where I told her that I voted against the amendment. She blew her top. She couldn't believe that I would support something so "gross." After all, the babble tells her that it's wrong, dontcha know. My sister wanted to know if I was gay, as though one would have to be gay to support gay marriage. We got into a pretty heated argument, and she wound up telling me that I'm not going to church enough, and that I can forget going to school to learn science. It's off to the local mennonite university, where I should have gone in the first place, so I can learn all about the bible. Never mind the fact that I quoted more scripture than she did, or that I am most certainly not interested in studying the bible at a christian college. My dad refused to believe that I voted against it, probably because I used to joke around with him about doing things like that. My mom said she failed as a parent when she found out I voted for obama. I laughed and smiled during the exchange, but some of the things she said to me hurt more than I care to admit. It also gave me an idea of how things would go if I ever let my atheism be known to my family. Not looking forward to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MonolithTMA Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 I'm sorry your parents are such insensitive bigots. Hopefully once they see that you are a good person despite your different world views they will come around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff H Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 I know how you feel. I decided that my best strategy was just to refuse to talk politics to my parents - until I tell them about my de-conversion. They asked me if I had followed the American election campaigns, and what I thought of them, and I just shrugged and said I hadn't followed it that closely (which is a lie, I hope that a piano falls on Sarah Palin). This past weekend they asked me how I had voted in the Canadian election (since I voted ahead of time by mail-in), and I just turned it into a joke by saying I couldn't tell them because it might "influence their vote". Didn't want to tell them that I didn't vote for the Conservatives or Christian Heritage parties.... On the bright side, I'm sure that once you tell your parents that you're an atheist, they won't hate you for how you vote. They'll just hate you for being an atheist Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ouroboros Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 The current stats on Prop 8, is about 40% yes, and 54% no, and 6% undecided, meaning, if those numbers hold, a weak majority of California do not support it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazycatlady Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 I am so glad my parents are also liberal. Their views on gay marriage can be summed up this way: "we think it's wrong, but not everyone does and it doesn't hurt anyone, so it should be allowed." Of course, if their daughter wanted to marry...or even just go on one date with...a woman, then she would be in BIG trouble. Thank goodness none of us is homosexual. Edit: Just in case it wasn't clear from the above, I support gay marriage. Unlike my parents, I support gay marriage, not civil unions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
babysealclubber Posted October 13, 2008 Author Share Posted October 13, 2008 I'm sorry your parents are such insensitive bigots. Hopefully once they see that you are a good person despite your different world views they will come around. Yeah, I'm sure they will. Things had begun to smooth over by the time I left the house. I know how you feel. I decided that my best strategy was just to refuse to talk politics to my parents - until I tell them about my de-conversion. They asked me if I had followed the American election campaigns, and what I thought of them, and I just shrugged and said I hadn't followed it that closely (which is a lie, I hope that a piano falls on Sarah Palin). This past weekend they asked me how I had voted in the Canadian election (since I voted ahead of time by mail-in), and I just turned it into a joke by saying I couldn't tell them because it might "influence their vote". Didn't want to tell them that I didn't vote for the Conservatives or Christian Heritage parties.... On the bright side, I'm sure that once you tell your parents that you're an atheist, they won't hate you for how you vote. They'll just hate you for being an atheist Yeah, I was sort of asking for trouble, I could have just as easily not talked to my parents about politics. I had been looking for an opportunity to test them out, and gauge their reactions. I found out what I needed to know. ---- Thanks everyone for listening, it feels better to know there is some sanity in the world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Posted October 14, 2008 Share Posted October 14, 2008 The current stats on Prop 8, is about 40% yes, and 54% no, and 6% undecided, meaning, if those numbers hold, a weak majority of California do not support it. Good to hear. I heard that "yes" was gaining some ground, but those stats are not bad. I think it's great that state courts are overturning gay marriage bans. Hopefully one day the Supreme Court will follow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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