Obama Nets Political Capital by Honoring Rick Warren

At OnTop Magazine this morning, Carlos Santoscoy points out that President-elect Obama is reaping political capital for picking an anti-gay pastor to deliver the inaugural invocation on Jan. 20.

Santoscoy explains:

‘“While the pro-gay left media has been busy pointing out the inconsistencies of choosing Saddleback megachurch leader Rev. Rick Warren – he likened gay marriage to polygamy and an incestuous relationship, while Obama says he is a ‘fierce advocate of equality for gay and lesbian Americans’ – social conservatives, particularly the evangelical left, has been heaping praise on Obama – effectively canceling out any loss of political capital he may have otherwise suffered.”’

Santoscoy concludes his post: “Favoring a homophobic pastor to such an honorable position and gaining political traction from that misstep can only spell trouble for gay rights activists who had viewed the election of Obama as the silver lining of an otherwise somber Election Day.”

I noted in a previous post that the ugly misogyny endured by both Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin in 2008 has encouraged other cultures to continue their barbaric treatment of women, e.g., the stoning to death of a 13-year-old Somali girl who had been brutally raped by three men and the brutal exploitation of teenage girls in Cambodia described in a recent column by Nicholas Kristof.

In a related matter, we need also to examine the harmful effect of disrespecting gay rights inherent in Obama’s politically profitable decision to honor Rick Warren at his inauguration.

Already reeling from the passage of California’s Proposition 8, actively supported by Pastor Warren, the GLBT community has recently been jolted by news accounts of the gang rape of a lesbian in San Francisco.

The Associated Press reported today, Jan. 2:

“Two men and two teens have been arrested on suspicion of gang-raping a woman last month in the San Francisco Bay area while allegedly taunting her for being a lesbian, police said Thursday.

“Officers arrested Humberto Hernandez Salvador at his Richmond home Wednesday night, Richmond police Lt. Mark Gagan said. The 31-year-old is being held without bail on gang rape, kidnapping and carjacking charges.

“Police on Wednesday also arrested a 15-year-old Richmond boy and a 16-year-old Hercules boy, who were being held at a juvenile detention center on similar charges. Their names were not released.

“The 45-minute attack started when one of the men approached the woman in the street, struck her with a blunt object, ordered her to disrobe and sexually assaulted her with the help of the others, according to detectives.

“When the group saw another person approaching, they forced the victim back into her car and took her to a burned-out apartment building. She was raped again inside and outside the vehicle and left naked outside the building while the alleged assailants took her wallet and drove off in her car, police said.”

Our nation’s leaders, including our soon-to-be president, and our media are urged to open their eyes to the real world consequences of their careless disregard for the rights of women and gays both here and elsewhere in the world.

The question arises: Is the political power won by trashing our most prominent female political leaders and honoring a homophobic pastor worth the unspeakable abuse of innocent people?