With the Chick-Fil-A controversy (that should not be a
controversy might I add), I am yet again reminded of the fact that tolerance
cannot simply be one-sided. Dan Cathy obviously has every right to say what he
wants and publicly state his opinions on what he believes. He may not one day
with the direction our country is going, but for now, he does. The protestors
of Chick-Fil-A also have every right to act however or say whatever they want
in response to his statement. What is distorted here is that Cathy, in no way,
said anything against homosexuals. In fact, Chick-Fil-A often employs
homosexuals. His statement was simply that he and Chick-Fil-A support
heterosexual marriage because they believe that is biblical. This was not
hateful or bigoted in any way. The problem here lies in that people want
tolerance unless they have to be tolerant. To me, it seems as though the
tolerant person here is Dan Cathy, not the protestors. People are allowed to
have varying views. I personally, however, believe it to be wrong for someone
to have a double-standard.
Another issues with Chick-Fil-A right now is the fact that
three mayors (San Francisco, Boston, and Chicago) have all said that
Chick-Fil-A is not welcome in their city. First of all, this is
unconstitutional. One cannot stop commerce. This is where, just like the
federal government, any government involvement in personal life, business, or
education at all is bad.
I, for one, have beliefs and views that are vastly different
from what a typical Christian believes. That is because I do not, at all,
believe in creating laws based on morality. What you get is a theocracy if that
happens. There are things that are illegal that I believe should be legal.
However, simply because I support something legally (such as gay marriage) does
not mean I believe it is morally ok. In the same way, those who are protesting
Chick-Fil-A because of a moral stance on an issue should reexamine their own
lives to see who the tolerant one in the situation is because it is definitely
not them.
