Monday, March 16, 2009
Legislature / Politics / Woods Rep. Tony Shipley Speaks for God on Gay Adoption
Posted by Jeff Woods on Mon, Mar 16, 2009 at 11:11 AM
My last visit in Nashville was to the newly elected representative from Kingsport, Tony Shipley. When the subject of this bill came up, here is what he said (I am quoting directly as best as I possibly can): -"They can do whatever they want out in California, with gays passing babies around, and violating God's law, but when God drops California off into the sea, they will have to deal with the consequences of their actions." -"That [gays adopting] ain't gonna fly-I'm sorry, I'm a Southern Baptist, I'm a Christian." And the most alarming in my opinion: -"If they [the "secular progressives"] keep pushing and pushing and pushing-they're pushing us too far, and something will happen-just like we did in 1860."We tried to reach Shipley for comment but he hasn't returned our calls. Do you think he knows what we want to ask him about? With a few more phone calls, Pith was able to contact the anonymous lobbyist, who said she can't give her name for fear of losing her job. "If I take this any more public than I already just posted on the blog, I could literally be fired," the lobbyist told us. "I was just shocked because Representative Shipley had never met me before. I thought, 'How do you know I'm not gay? How do you know I don't have a gay kid?' " Aunt B comments
Comments (13)
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Perhaps Mr. Shipley should propose outlawing divorce, premarital sex, eating shellfish, and the like. Isn't it amazing that bigots justify their hatred by using the bible but always seem to forget the commandment to love?
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I'm just glad that he's being honest about exactly who he's trying to sacrifice to God with that piece of legislation. Making it against the law for single people to adopt when you're really targeting gay people is a little cowardly (and, I suspect, a little "false witness"y as well).
Aunt B,
I just read the summary of the bill, http://wapp.capitol.tn.gov/apps/billinfo/BillSummaryArchive.aspx?BillNumber=HB0605&ga=106, and it states, "This bill prohibits certain individuals from adopting a minor child. Under this bill, any individual who is living with another person and is involved in a sexual relationship with that person ("cohabitating") outside of a marriage that is valid under the constitution would not be allowed to adopt a minor child. This bill states that it would apply to cohabitating opposite-sex and same-sex individuals." Just for clarification, when you say 'against the law for single people' are you referring to unmarried individuals being referred to in the bill or those people who are just single?
I completely agree this bill should not pass; limiting the number of potential adoptive parents only further shrinks the small number of adults who wish to adopt children from the United States. More and more families are adopting children overseas (who also deserve safe and loving homes and is a wonderful thing) but so many of our own children are left dealing with a faceless parent (the government) because we keep giving parents chance after chance or require so much for a potential adoptive family to do... no child deserves to be raised never knowing if they're going to have to move again or even thinking they are not wanted by someone.
I just meant that the bill seems to come down on everyone (gay or not) who aren't married equally, but that it's really about keeping gay couples from adopting.
I imagine, though, that this kind of law would make it difficult for any single person who was dating and sexually active to adopt. After all, what constitutes "cohabitating"? That seems pretty arbitrary. Is it spending one night a week with someone? Five?
So, the only single people who would seem to have an easy path to adoption would be people who are genuinely single--not living with anyone, not dating anyone.
Unbelievable! Who knew God had so much hatred for people who might give a needy child a loving home? What's up with God???
And where is the leadership from the State Democratic Party or Caucus in this insulting mess. Leadership is definable under Webster and American Heritage dictionaries. I sincerely hope the TN Dem. Caucus shows some backbone and moves against this legislation. Talk about throwing the baby out with the bath water! Odious! Simply Odious!!! Perhaps Shipley needs to hear these words from God,as Queen Elizabeth said in "Shakespeare In Love,", "Have a care with my name. You'll wear it out!"
Ultimately the good Rep. Shipley would be well served to recall Luke 18:16- "Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not. For such is the Kingdom of Heaven." It is most regrettable to see bigotry hiding behind biblical pronuncements to do its dirty deeds.
Aunt B,
Thank you for the response. That makes a whole lot of sense. I had seen a few other posts on other blogs making similar statements but couldn't quite picture how this bill could impact so many. I am a single lady and plan on adopting someday. With or without a significant other.
Keep causing waves and hopefully the people we put in a position of leadership will notice we're not following behind them.
This guy is a total joke. He was groomed in under Ramsey and Mumpower, literally. It does surprise me though, that they didnt sit down and teach Tony to keep his hatred inside, rather than air it publicly. East Tennessee is conservative country, but this guy is a total clown. One term.
What ever happened to seperation of Church and State?
Did this guy threaten another Civil War over gay adoption?
This ass clown was elected to act like this?? He needs to take his ass back to the hills!
I had the lovely opportunity to work with Tony when I worked in Air Force Personnel in Hawaii, many years ago. Gay rights wasn't a big issue then, but I do definitely remember some really odd, very right-wing bigoted comments he made to me in those days. I remember saying that he was going home to Tennessee and saw a big place for him in politics. Luckily I'm not from Tennessee!
I knew Tony during his years at the University of Tennessee. During that time, he ran for student body president and lost. The students dodged a bullet. My experience with him was that he was a lying, backstabbing bigot with a grandiose delusional disorder, and a loose grip on reality. Personally, I never met anyone that actually liked or trusted the man. His rise to prominence as a State Senator is truly disturbing. I can just imagine how he got there.
Tell all your friends. Help us support Nathan Vaughn for 2nd District representative and get Tony Shipley out of office. www.facebook.com/electnathanvaughn
