Indiana's Govenor Signs 'Religious Freedom' Bill

[Heywood]

More weaseling and baseless claims.

Like I said earlier, if you want to talk about baseless claims, you're welcome to provide a verifiable reason for discrimination that doesn't rely on the unevidenced religious claims of the christian god. Until then, I'd kindly invite you to stop dismissing my claims regarding discrimination, which have a rich tradition of bearing out exactly as I've said, merely because you're incapable of thinking back even a few years. Just look up the record that employment discrimination against gay people has, and then tell me things won't be exactly the same if you give those same goddamn people another method to discriminate with.

Can you point to a study that shows gays can't easily hire florists, or photographers, or get health care when they need it?  Can you provide some actual independent evidence of your claim instead of simply re-iterating it hoping that if you do it enough, it magically becomes fact?

Can I point to a study indicating the results of what would happen if a thing that was illegal before now became legal? Sorry, no department of hypothetical science that I know of just yet, but the past is always a good indicator of the future, and as I've pointed out in the past, conservative states equipped with the legal ability to discriminate tend to foster inequality toward gay people because of this: the fact that you don't think it's a big deal because that's not important to your argument is little more than your own baseless claim. I'd invite you to live as a gay person under such discrimination for a little while so you can make that claim in an informed way.

But hey, in the end I'd just like you to admit to what you're arguing for: just say "I hate gay people so much that I'm willing to open the possibility that they and their children die or suffer medical problems, because I hold the religious opinions of others in higher regard than their lives." Because that, ultimately, is what you're arguing for here; you could at least be honest enough to say it. And if you can't, then I guess you don't really feel that strongly about all this. Your convictions only last up until the point that you're required to own up for the nasty shit you believe.

In many states it is already been and has been legal to refuse to serve someone because they are gay.  You're just trying to weasel out of backing up your claim with an excuse that doesn't hold water.

The truth is, the only problem that exists is people like you are butthurt that there exist a few people like pizzeria owners who don't want to serve gays.  I am sorry, but your butthurt isn't a sufficient reason to start curtailing individual rights.

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Heywood's argument in this thread strongly resembles the argument some make about the cause of the U.S. Civil War; that it was a conflict about states' rights and had nothing at all to do with slavery.

Having lost the argument, Cato tries to change the subject to justifications for the Civil War.