I Also Believe in Dance

I rarely post about “hot topics”.  It’s not my style.  I read other blogs and think, “Hell Yes!” or “Hell No!” and sometimes… if it really hits a nerve for me, I’ll talk about it.

I quite like Ellen DeGeneres.

Did you know she was gay?  Who the fuck cares?  It amazes me that our society is so quick to judge others.  So quick to jump up and down, pointing fingers saying, “You are doing it wrong!”  “You are a sinner!”  “You are less than I!”  Really?  Says who?

Oh I know what (some) of you are thinking.  Who some of you are thinking of.   I am pretty sure the same guy you are thinking of is the same guy that preaches love and acceptance of everyone.  Everyone.  Not “everyone unless you are gay”.

If you don’t know what I am talking about, you can read about Ellen and her new gig as the JC Penny Spokeswoman (hurry up and come back).  I’m sure you have all seen the article, watched the video.  It’s viral on Facebook.

How is my lifestyle any better than yours?  How is yours any better than Ellen’s?  So what if she is gay.  What does gay have to do with it?  Well according to Onemillionmoms.com, everything.  And according to them, JC Penny is now insulting its customers, because most of its customers are traditional families.

My head just exploded.

I dare you to define a traditional family by looking at our current society.  You don’t get to look it up in Websters.  You won’t find the real life answer there.  Did you know that fifty (50) percent of marriages end in Divorce?  Did you know that you increase your chances of divorcing if you marry before the age of 25?  (Your odds are significantly higher if you live in Hollywood, regardless of your age).  There is no shortage of work for me as a Family Law lawyer and I can tell you that I have never had a gay couple walk through my office door.

In a society where celebrities marry and divorce in the wink of an eye, abuse alcohol and drugs and indulge in extra marital courtships, we are concerned that JC Penny has hired a gay spokeswoman.  Really.

I have had the pleasure of meeting all kinds of people.  All different walks of life.  And, gasp, I even know and have friends that are gay.  I can only share my experiences with you and my experiences are positive ones.  They love just like I do.  They are daughters, sons, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, friends, grandparents.  They are lawyers, doctors, engineers, cashiers, dancers.  They are people.  No different, no better, no worse than you or I.

So what if they will have to answer to their God.  That is not your worry, is it?  And aren’t you just the slightest bit concerned that maybe it’s you that has it wrong?  That maybe the Ellen’s of this world have nothing to fear but that you do.  For being so judgemental.  For condemning those not like you.  For spreading hate.  Maybe you will be the one answering to your God about the hate in your heart.  What will you say?

I know what I’ll say,

“I stand for honesty, equality, kindness, compassion, treating people the way you’d want to be treated and helping those in need.  To me, those are traditional values.  That’s what I stand for… I also believe in dance.” ~ Ellen DeGeneres