The nature of violence

The talented blogger Rob Tisinai points out the bigotry of NOM . Brian Brown, NOMs director, writes,

Even I, who’ve heard pretty much everything at this point, was a little shocked to hear one gay marriage supporter say:

“It would be less harmful to me if you would just beat me up in a dark alley. It would be less hurtful to me if you would just spray paint the word f—-t on my garage door. Nothing you could do to me physically would be more hurtful to me than the action you are proposing to take with this resolution.”

If you and I disagree with him about marriage, we are hurting him as much as–more than–if we insulted and beat him?

Does Brian Brown REALLY not get it? As Tisinai writes,

So let me ask Brian: Which would hurt you more — getting beaten up in an alley or having your marriage declared invalid? Having a nasty word spray-painted on your garage door, or never being allowed to marry the one you love?...

See, Brian, the words that so shocked you feel less like emotion-driven unreasonableness and more like a plain and sensible statement of fact.

But you know what really struck me, Brian? You listened to this man’s words — his perfectly reasonable words — and heard in them an accusation of hatred and bigotry. But the man said no such thing. You did. You made that connection all by yourself.

So perhaps now you understand why some of us view you this way.

If that's where Brian is, that he doesn't understand how vile and vicious it is to deny someone the love of their life, how beyond brutality, then he doesn't understand anything. It is further proof that he is unable to see us as fully human, in any way the same as he. Or perhaps he's just too fond of his lucrative business.