Comments about ‘Hundreds take to S.L. streets to protest, support Prop. 8 ban on gay marriage’

Hatred? It seems like everywhere I looked, it's the gay and lesbian community who is showing hatred here. They are loud and boisterous and trying to shove their lifestyle in people's faces. It's not a political issue, it is a moral issue and the religious community has every right to express it's view and doing it in a civilize and peaceful way
I Agree.

THe GLBT is right. Everyone, including Mormons, should have voted against Prop 8 even if it went against everything they believe. WHatever!

You talk about LDS members being hateful, yet who is vandalizing buildings? Who is blacklisting people for their opinions?

Hey Disgusted, let's think about this for a second. Why do you think Gay Marriage has to be voted on and straight marriages do not? Perhaps because gay and lesbian acts are not natural.

You don't see those of us who voted for McCain out in the streets, intimidating people, and blocking freeways, do you? Why can't you accept democracy? Why vote if your going to be so INTOLERANT of the outcome.

Hey! You guys ! Just Drop it!! Prop 8 passed already!
Just forget and drop it and move on you life!

Don't waste your time by damaging the Worship place!
Just remember all the Christians are right to believe what they want to believe. Respect that!

We don't demonstrate because Obama won!! WE ELECTED SO Prop 8 has passed and America spoke it!
Drop it ASAP, this is the last day and Christ will come soon! What a people who forces others to do what they do that's WRONG!!

I'm a pro-8 person, but you are welcomed in my state of Utah, anytime. We regular Utahns are not as disagreeable as some of you evidently think we are. Please come and enjoy our hospitality.
A family from France, with whom we traded houses for a month last summer, (who also visited California) said they were pleasantly surprised that people in the United States were much nicer than their press would have them believe.

I have been an active member of the LDS church for almost fifty years and have attended Church all over the world. I have never once heard a joke or comment demeaning gays, blacks, Jews etc. I have heard numerous times that we must show love to all of God's children and never mistreat them. You need to get your hearing checked or have a serious mental health evaluation as to why you are hearing things that aren't being said.

Mormons are 0.28 percent of the world. Gays are about 3 percent. The bible was written by humans.

How is it that you can demand that gays and lesbians just lie down and take it? You came into a different state expressly for the purpose of stealing the rights of a specific group of people and you try and claim you're the victim? You say separate but equal (domestic partners) - haven't we gone through this already?

Do you tell African American that, while civil rights are great, their movements were intolerant because they didn't "respect" the rights of a majority oppressing them? Would you tell them isn't the back of the bus good enough, I mean, it got you where you needed to go, right? Do you tell them that separate drinking fountains are fine - after all, you still got water from them...

Separate but equal is NOT equal.

Gays and lesbians have a right to protest - read the constitution. It's called the right to "petition the government for redress of grievances". Let's not forget the right of free assembly.

Reason will win out, logic shall make itself know, and freedom and equality will soon arrive; just as slavery was abolished, just as women gained the right of the vote. They will have rights!

With numerous gay friends, my antennas are always tuned in for gay references at work, church, and elsewhere. While frequent in the workplace, I can honestly say that in over forty-five years of on-going active attendance in LDS meetings all over the world, I have never heard one gay joke, although I have had a stake president that several times encouraged love and support for a specific young man that was 'suffering' from SSA.

Never have heard a gay joke in sacrament meeting or in an elders quorum or high priest group meeting in my adulthood. Even during visits to wards in the Bay Area

Quit exaggerating your experiences at our expense. No doubt you have heard a few over the years as you have looked to be offended. Perhaps you are a mind reader and can discern what people are thinking about you.

In all my experiences growing up in Texas and Oklahoma and subsequently traveling around the world on business many times, I have never met a less bigoted people than LDS. Most are kind and genuinely loving to people like yourself.

On the other hand-if you want to feel ostracized, please visit Russia sometime-homophobes everywhere.

How about basic fairness? Married spouses get half of their spouse's social security at retirement? Gays and lesbians cannot go to a lawyer and make it so for them? Are all of you who are sure you have a direct line to god working to make social security fair? If so, I haven't heard it. Also, don't be surprised that people are protesting your church; what on earth did you think would happen? "OK, you poured money into my state to take away right from me, I'm fine with it" . Protest is part of our democracy' history. If you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen. How would you like gay people to act, so they are not "throwing their lifestyles in peoples' faces?

Why don't these protester's march in the predominantly black and hispanic neighborhoods or in front of Catholic or Protestant churches???
They also overwhemingly supported and voted for prop.8. It's because they don't have the stones..I guess the LDS Church is an easier target. Try spray painting a black church and the Feds will nail you for a hate crime.

I find it sickening that the gay community has websites posting information about the Prop 8 financial contributors, the amount of money they gave, and their places of employment. What a sick way to harass people who were donating to a worthy cause!!
Voting YES on 8 was not anti-gay. It was to keep the sanctity of marriage between man and woman.

Wow, I had no idea my church had millions to waste on convincing people to vote differently than they wanted to, instead of like building temples, church buildings, humanitary projects, etc. Hmmmm. I realize there's a lot of tithing being paid, but that money goes to better things than what you claim it was used for.

I am an active member of the Mormon Church who works outside of the USA. I do not get to attend church with my fellow saints, nor attend general conference. Yesterday as part of my personal Sunday worhsip, I was watching the Sunday morning session of the last General Conference from October. I listened to a talk by Elder Robert D. Hales, and I was quite struck by his comments about how we should treat each other, especially those who are not of our faith. Those of you who are LDS and are posting here, I would highly encourage you to read or watch that talk before you make any further comments. I am guilty of making some rather ugly comments to our gay and lesbian brothers and sister, for which I aplogize and will have to repent. My morals and ideals significantly difffer from yours, but that in no way gives me the right to say mean or ugly or hateful things to you. We are all children of a Heavenly Father who loves us all. I will still fight to defend my beleifs, but I will find a way to do it in a less demeaning fashion.

Throughout human history, the best way to raise children has and will remain marriage. This isn't a civil rights issue, its human survival and deserves meritorious treatment under the law.

I'm not gay but I, my wife and children attended the rally in support of gay rights.

I was raised in the same ugly atmosphere toward homosexuality as most christians. I didn't know people who were outwardly gay until 15 years ago and it's been my pleasure to make friends of some. I have to say that as a whole, they are some of the kindest and most understanding human beings I have met. As far as living the words of Christ go (and Christ is never recorded once in his life on earth saying homosexuality is evil or wrong), I find the gay people that I have met to be much more Christian in practice than most Christians. They don't hate people for being hetero, they don't try to convert people to their way, most simply want to be accepted for who they are. And they want the same rights as the rest of America gets.

The gays at the rally weren't hateful, mean, ugly. They were more than civil and all smiles for the most part. The uglier people there were the Christians rallying against them. It was an honor to be there. I was touched.

If women had meekly accepted their lot in life and had not taken to the streets and protested and caused a general uproar it would have taken them a lot longer to win the vote.

If African Americans had not taken to the streets and marched and fought for their civil liberties it would have taken them a lot longer to achieve as well.

I would wager that there are a whole lot of people in some states today which would try and vote to reverse both those things if voting on revoking civil liberties was allowed. Oh. Wait a minute. That's what the citizens of California just did when they voted yes on Prop 8. They voted to revoke a minority group's rights.

Lawsuits have already been filed. Prop 8 will eventually be overturned by the California Supreme Court as an unconstitutional infringement on people's fundamental rights.

In a Democracy, a majority of bigots is NOT supposed to rule when it comes to equal rights for a minority of it's citizens.

Another Gay LDS man here...

I second the sentiment about "Gay Mormon" above.

When I have visited several wards --- there are plenty of jokes, particularly in Priesthood meetings, about people unlike their own...

oh, shall we say ---

* not affiliated with right-wing politics --- liberals and Democrats are often the butt of jokes at those meetings. Particularly coming from a church which in doctrine tries to stay itself away from "politicking"
* gays ---

To those you are taught to extend love and compassion, you make jokes at their expense.

shame, shame, shame...

you know it's true. So stop it.

Pain is trying to explain to an 8 and a 10 year old what "gay marriage" means. Confusion in their eyes and questions. Sorry to ruin their innocense. I can't imagine how confused the grade-school children are in MA. Sad day.

I don't remember ever hearing an off color joke about gays while at church.