SLOWLY COMING OUT OF THE CLOSET

I can remember 2 years ago how excited I was to cast my vote for Barack Obama on November 4, 2008. Before this day my husband and I became a small voice for him in Utah. We were not given a sign to put in our yard, but, had we had a sign, my husband would have still wanted us to be respectful of our neighbors and their beliefs and opinions. I agree. We all should be respectful, but I would have been fine placing Obama's name in my front yard. Would putting a sign up for the person I wanted to vote for really make people angry with us? Would it be disrespectful? Would my friends disown me? True friends love you despite your differences. We all can't think the same. Many put up Republicans signs. Why would a Democratic sign be so different? I started seeing some signs for Obama while driving and I got excited. I remember going to a girl’s night out and one of our friends, a staunch Republican, spoke up about proposition 8 in California. She stated that if Obama wins this election he has legislation he plans to sign immediately after his oath to office that will over turn Proposition 8. I had read the document she had been making reference to and her statement was inaccurate. I spoke up in this group and declared that was not so. She asked me to go read the document. I responded, I have, and what she is saying just is not so. Obama has stated he believes that marriage is between one man and one woman and that he would not be changing proposition 8 in California, that banned same sex marriage. However, he did say “I know there are differences on same-sex marriage, but surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters deserve to visit the person they love in the hospital and to live lives free of discrimination” I absolutely agree. This friend tended to be someone people would listen too unfortunately, and on many occasions she has not had her facts straight. She even blogged that Obama was a radical, I had to chuckle at that one. Imagine someone with compassion for all, being called a radical. I do recall that the Pharisees considered Jesus that in his time. I am not comparing Jesus to Obama . Just making note how in history people claimed the same thing about Jesus. Now in this group of ladies I believe she new that by bringing up same sex marriage and stating Obama would over turn prop 8, that would instantly make our friends vote against him. I am not sure if my speaking up made a difference, but all of a sudden I felt good and a little flushed about the correction, and helping others know the truth about Obama’s position. There are 2 things you are taught at an early age and that’s not to talk about religion or politics, you are sure to have discourse. I did not want to offend anyone, but leading people with falsehoods was something I could not stand for. I believe this friend believed she was being accurate as she tends to listen to conservative media as fact. Let the record show that Obama administration on Oct 12, 2010 decided to appeal a judge's rulings that prevented the U.S. government from banning same-sex marriages. Still it seemed to me that no matter what a person believed in, or what he stood for, he or she would not have a chance to win if he was a Democrat in Utah County. So I tended to just go out and vote and speak up every now and then and leave it at that. Frustrated by the condition of our country,seeing my friends lose their homes,people without health care or the negative effects of health care debt, a war without end, our economy, rising cost of gas, the pollution of our world, the banks charging 25,00 dollars for a 3.00 over draft, insurance companies taking advantage of their power, I was now speaking out a little more. Obama gave us something to believe in!