- cross-posted to:
- politics@lemmy.world
- cross-posted to:
- politics@lemmy.world
Bubba Copeland shot himself in front of police on Friday, days after he begged 1819 News not to expose his private life.
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I love what John Oliver said on his segment about I believe Lindsay Graham.
Paraphrasing, he could have helped usher in the change that would have made his lifestyle more acceptable and more inclusive. But he wanted power.
These people choose to be a Republican. They choose to associate with a party that is actively trying to eliminate the very people they are and the sad thing is that they think they are the exception. They think the party will accept them.
And the hard, harsh truth is that they are only accepted so long as it’s convenient. I think he knew this and that’s why he chose to end his life.
It’s sad that he felt he had to do that. But I’m not holding my breath for the GOP to say that they learned a lesson from it.
Being a mayor of a small town and being a US Senator or even House Rep are two very different things. It is very likely that, despite being Republican, he did nothing to further Republicanism with the power that he did have.
Most of the time, mayors really just do small town mayor shit like approving a tree to be cut down or asking the state for a road to be fixed. They’re not usually involved with politics in the way Lindsey fucking Graham is.
Stop white washing this shithead. He was a horrible person who was perfectly fine persecuting others BUT THE FUCKING IMSTANT IT CAME BACK ON HIM HE OFFED HIMSELF.
THIS WAS NOT A GOOD PERSON, CLOSET LGBTQ OR NO.
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no plausible alternative?
Are you kidding me!? “He had to be part of the anti-LGBTQ party because of where he lived”. Fuck out of here with that nonsense. I deleted my longer comment, let me sum it to for you:
- He didn’t have to live in Alabama
- He didn’t have to be part of the anti-LGBTQ+ (or any) party
- He didn’t have have to run for political office
- He didn’t have to engage in crossdressing
If any of those conflict with each other, well; life is about choices. Anything less is cowardice.
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This person partook in the persecution of others. proof? they were in the GOP. there’s your proof.
And nobody is celebrating suicide. This person is not a hero is all that is being said.
Is it implausible that perhaps this person wished to hide within the GOP to escape its suspicions about their personal life? A Democrat mayor in a deeply Republican area would attract a lot of distrust and hostility simply by virtue of being a Democrat. A Republican mayor, not so much.
Is every trans person morally obligated to leave every institution that persecutes them? Even when to do so would scrutiny?
You heard it here folks, association by organization means you did the same thing some other shitheads did.
The secretaries for concentration camps? They gassed the Jews themselves, might as well have anyways, based on that logic.
Let’s take it even further, all Germans are bad because of what Hitler did to the Jews, after all, they are ASSOCIATED with the SS, being in the same country and culture and all, they all obviously have symmetrical views because all people really believe the same thing even in a party such as the GOP.
(Don’t you dare try to pretend those analogies flew over your head, work with me here)
Grow up, it’s not about him “being a hero”, nobody here is claiming that. The fact you came to that conclusion somehow on your own is evidence enough that you are celebrating his death. Have some respect, it seems pretty clear to me that he had second thoughts atleast some point in his life about his political decisions, had no way out, and when someone threatened to take even that away, made the last mistake you can ever make on your own accord. Please have some respect just as you would wish for yourself.
Fuck off nazi apologist.
It isn’t binary
(Don’t you dare try to pretend those analogies flew over your head, work with me here)
lmao I loved this part.
You have a good point, I’m starting to think I was in a hateful mood yesterday. I still don’t think this person was a hero but it’s truly very sad that they had to hide this part of their life, and were so scared of the public’s opinion that they killed themselves.
None of those words backs up your assertion, which was that there was “no plausible alternative” to being a GOP politician in Alabama. You can’t defend it because it’s complete nonsense.
Also, I didn’t celebrate his death, and I haven’t seen anyone else do so either…
He stood at the pulpit that makes him party to the persecution of others.
Meh sometimes people just hate someone for not understanding them. And that’s enough. You don’t always need to pretend to have a good reason for hating someone, you just decide and then one day someone asks you why, like asking about babies crying in Africa, people often prefer not to have their beliefs challenged or broken to pieces by any kind of paradigm shift
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You got a source for ur bullshit? No alternative?? Lmfao ok yeah right.
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Yeah a 3rd grade understanding. Like there are no Dems in the south.
In most rural areas of the South, it’s a racial divide between which are Republican or Democrat. Where I’m from, a white person being a Democrat would be, and are, actively threatened and hurt if they voice their opinion (by white Republicans).
He was not forced to be a GOP.
He would be if he wanted to become a mayor
Not really local level most people do care. My area is blue and my ward has a GOP council member. I did vote for him.
besides simply being a member of the GOP in s location where there is no plausible alternative
You know that democrats do live in Alabama, right?
*She was a horrible person.
*SHE OFFED HERSELF.
ftfy
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She identified as trans and was offering advice on HRT on Reddit.
This person never called or asked anyone to call them she. What the fuck are u even talking about? Get a grip.
He also apparently did not have overt anti-LGBTQIA+ values, beyond being a member of the GOP.
Yes and (?) was never antisemitic, beyond being member of the nazi party. (???)
If you are part of a party that stands STAUNCHELY against queers, you don’t deserve solidarity for being queer.
You can blame that on the US’s bipartisan system rather than the multiparty system it is supposed to be.
What other option would he have, the democrats? What if there are things that they did he didn’t agree with either? 3rd party is out the window because it would take minimum 2 elections to get their candidate in office.
Oh no, poor guy had literally no choice but to participate in a corrupt system by going into politics and becoming a mayor 😭
Get the fuck outta here.
Ah yes, you shouldn’t go into politics to make the changes you would like to see because the “system is corrupt”
Man, imagine being that retarded. The forefathers would have never revolted against the British if that logic actually made any sense whatsoever.
The problem is that he joined the especially notoriously infamously corrupt and evil side, dumbass.
Whoops! It seems like you may of missed what I wrote, no worries though, I got you covered.
Ah yes, you shouldn’t go into politics to make the changes you would like to see because the “system is corrupt”
Man, imagine being that retarded. The forefathers would have never revolted against the British if that logic actually made any sense whatsoever.
Fighting evil with evil doesn’t make you a good guy. Don’t be evil, you can defeat fascists while still being a decent human being.
Plenty of options. Didn’t have to be a shaman, didn’t have to live in a sheit tier state, didn’t have to run for public office, didn’t have to support the GOP. He went up to the leopard and screamed “eat my face”.
I mean, he was 62 years old you know, not like he could just turn his life around on a dime given the position he was in.
The dude was not hurting anyone. He clearly wanted to help operate the city, you have zero chance of winning with the democratic party in the vast majority of deep south states. Being a part of a party does not mean you believe in every single view that someone in your party holds, why do you think half the GOP is trying to get rid of Trump?
And would you stop with this leopard eating shit? I have read it here like 40,000 times. Suicide isn’t a joke, this is borderline not even a story about politics FFS. Save it for actually funny shit.
Boy that leopard is getting fat. Must be from all the faces it is eating. He fed the leopard for fucking decades.
You really think his church gives a shit? I bet during their weekly pretend time this morning they were celebrating.
Did I say anything about a church?
Are you an actual human being? I don’t give a shit about the church, I don’t give a shit about religion in general at all actually.
The fact you mentioned that raises my suspicion that you are a bot or something
I am mentioning the church. He was a leader for a denomination of Christianity infamous for the degree of its anti-LGBT stances. Decades feeding the hate machine. And I bet you anything that today they those people who said a thousand good morning to him are happy that he killed himself.
The final unavoidable conclusion of Christianity is to kill its own.
Yeah that’s a fair point
Would you blame a secret jew for jojning yhe Nazi party if that was a way of keep away from a concentration camp?
i guess not, good point
Was this guy at threat for being queer in America?
But the rest of the small minded fucks in his small minded town who were laughing and pointing? And the asshole who outed him? Now THAT’S a different story, and I hope their laughter becomes a curse to them.
How many of those are also hiding their sexuality/gender just because of the same reasons that you mentioned?
Im sorry for the guy that shot himself, but he was part of the problem. It doesn’t matter the reason why someone is a church goer, Trump supporter, one less of them is always good.
Also a pastor, “shot himself in front of police during a welfare check.” It also appears that his wife was aware and involved with the hobby (not with the suicide), presumably in a supporting way.
I may disagree very strongly with this guy’s politics, but fuck the assholes who make this shameful.
@Poutinetown quotes from the article:
… even though it does not appear [Copeland] had taken any public positions against LGBTQ issues that could be construed as hypocritical.
These are the assholes who make it shameful.
Leopard face eating moment
This is a rare example of the leopard eating its own face!
It’s not a “rare example”, it’s the whole point of the leopard-eating-face thing. People support a political party and then react with shock when the party carries through with its promises in a way that hurts them.
It’s not news when someone votes for the leopard and then sits back smugly while the leopard eats the faces of other people.
I’m referring specifically to the act of him killing himself.
Republicans have a track record of voting against their own interest and *shocked pikachu* oh no! These policies are hurting me??
This guy took it a step further by being the one to pull the trigger.
…if only that wasn’t rare. If our nation’s trash made a habit of taking itself out as this fucker did, a lot of problems would get fixed very quickly. The opposite is usually what happens - evil shits are like cockroaches.
Your comment here is seriously making me rethink ever partaking in political discussion, let me just wrap my head around this for a second;
So you think this guy deserved to kill himself or die because of some of his political beliefs? How are you better than they are exactly? Look at me, no tolerism bullshit or anything like that when I say this.
Nobody deserves to die because of social issues or image.
See, every time that objection pops up, it’s always wrapped up into “just because of political beliefs” or “a difference of opinion” like the core of the problem is a disagreement over spending a city’s budget on a new bridge vs a new rail station; or whether or not pineapple belongs on pizza.
This guy’s “political beliefs” is that life should be hell for a long list of out-groups. Working toward that goal makes him evil, and being evil means he should be removed from power by whatever means available. In this case, he did us all a favor by eating a bullet. Ideally he would have taken all this as a point of self reflection, realized the hypocrisy of his dilemma, and abandoned the evil shit to go on to advance policy that actually made his community a better place. Instead he decided to abandon his life. And in doing so, this world became a little less evil, which is a win for the rest of us.
Personally I’m over the sentiment that no one deserves to die. It keeps villains in power, which feeds into the suffering and deaths of everyone else. When one of those assholes decides to commit suicide for whatever reason, or fatally runs their car into a tree, or gets hit by a well-placed meteor, etc: the loss of evil is worth celebrating.
Sadly this is a prime example.
The blog reported that Copeland, a Republican, confirmed that the accounts were run by him, saying they were a “hobby” he used for “getting rid of stress.” 1819 News reported that Copeland asked them to not out him, but they did so anyway, even though it does not appear he had taken any public positions against LGBTQ issues that could be construed as hypocritical.
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'Ol Bubba knew the wolves would turn on him.
But anyway, what is with this. Is it that this secretive cross-dressing thing seems correlated with repressed sexual desires or what?
JCS covered that one Canadian colonel serial killer who would cross-dress, sneaking into women’s homes.
Then I just watched this 48 Hours case about a dad who killed his son after they found pictures of him cross-dressing and literally eating his own shit.
Wtf?
People tend to sexualize the taboo. In a society where gender is seen as set in stone and comes with a bunch of stupid bullshit like what clothes it’s socially acceptable to wear some people will sexualize violating the taboos
Hate is a strong emotion. Hatefucking is a real thing. I’m sure Pornhub has data showing an increase of searches for Middle Eastern people after 9/11.
Alright, not gonna lie that last one threw me for a loop.
Pretty sure it was the last part that caused him to do that, I think the gap between crossdressing and scatophagy (is that a word yet?) is pretty far.
Yeah I want a world where nobody is persecuted for this, even pieces of shit.
You’d think some empathy would be in order. However, judging from the comments made on the bird website, many people are actually proud of this happening.
This is tragic but I feel like shaking the people trying to shame or guilt the ones who outed and ridiculed the Mayor.
“Are you happy now?”
Yes, of course they are. The cruelty is the point.
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Reading other articles it seems like no, he was generally very positive and encouraging to others online. The impression I get (from 10 minutes of reading, not saying this conclusively) is that he was not overtly hostile whatsoever to trans people.
There are enormous social pressures in small conservative towns, and the man was 63. I can imagine life leading someone otherwise pro-trans into being a republican preacher in that environment. An awful tragedy
This. People are complicated, even when it is inconvenient.
it does not appear he had taken any public positions against LGBTQ issues that could be construed as hypocritical
Except for being a member of the anti LGBTQ party.
Yeah, but so is Caitlyn Jenner…
How anybody takes someone like that seriously is beyond me
You’ve got me. I don’t understand why any trans person would be a Republican, but I guess money trumps all when you’re rich.
Because they (wrongly) believe that being “one of the good ones” will save them from being targeted by republicans and their proposed legislation like Project 2025
That doesn’t mean people who have previously voted red are in the wrong (lots of internalized homophobia can lead to opposite beliefs). But once you realize your identity and continue to vote against yours and other people’s human rights, you’re absolutely in the wrong.
Pretty sure there were slaves that actively sought to maintain slavery. In some cases, they had relatively decent lives compared to other slaves and even some free black people.
You can disagree with your party on one issue. There are tons of Democrats who are opposed to increased gun control, for example.
But it’s not just “an issue”. We are talking about a demographic and their legal recognition. No I’m sorry but we cannot agree to disagree on something so fundamental as equal treatment of people.
It’s not comparable gun control.
I’m talking about whether people are physically capable of breaking with their party on a single issue. They obviously are.
Good luck trying to get the terminally online to understand the nuances and complexities of the human condition
Disagreeing on policy is one thing; disagreeing on human rights is another. You cannot be a Republican and have respect for queer rights at the same time. It has to be a 100% deal-breaker.
I’m not sure what you’re talking about. There are tons of Republicans who support gay rights in some fashion, even if it’s not a majority position within the party.
No, there are precisely zero Republicans who support gay rights. What you’ve cited is a poll showing some who claim to, but are lying. Their deeds, not their words, prove their true intentions.
How likely are those Democrats to get bullied to the point of suicide if their “secret” of being against increased gun control was to come out? Or to preemptively commit suicide in anticipation of the bullying they’re going to receive?
This is not the same thing. Democrats are, generally speaking, flexible about a lot of their positions. It’s how they wind up with problem members like Manchin and Sinema. The Republican party is very different.
That’s not the right comparison. He didn’t commit suicide because he was ashamed of supporting gay rights, he was ashamed of wanting to cross dress and of having engaged in the activity. Regardless of politics, that’s a pretty uncommon behavior. Most people don’t want other people to know they’re a sexual deviant of some kind. I’d guess that this behavior is much more maligned in conservative circles than liberal or left, for sure, but the point is that it’s not just the breaking from the standard beliefs of that side.
I’d guess that this behavior is much more maligned in conservative circles than liberal or left
And that, right there, is exactly my point.
I would imagine that becoming mayor in certain parts of the country is much easier if you’re a member of the dominant party in the region.
Or existing in society at all. Sometimes in those parts of the country the first question upon meeting someone is “what church do you go to”.
He didn’t have to become mayor.
No, he didn’t. But people get to want things. Sometimes they want things for themselves, sometimes they want things for their communities.
The GOP has created a really shitty life for a lot of people.
It’s a feature, not a bug.
He was a Baptist minister too…
I don’t think many of them preach acceptance of LGBT
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Some do. It’s just correlation because low church denominations like Baptists suit rural areas more than being at the behest of a large denom.
He was a Republican so yes he voted repeatedly to hurt LGBTQ people AS LONG AS IT WASNT HIM
If you read the article, it said, about halfway through, that he never spoke up on LGBTQ issues despite being a Republican.
It says he hasn’t posted or supported anything publicly so he wasn’t a hypocrite, he belonged to the wrong party though, I do feel bad for his family because he doesn’t seem to be a right wing asshole
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Could have just said he’s a conservative.
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Christianity once again demonstrates it’s outstanding moral virtues.
Not the case here. This person was posting photos of local minors to pornographic websites and writing sex fantasy fiction about local residents (including one where he stalks and murders a local businesswoman, seduces her husband, and steals her life).
I agree with what you’re going for here. It just doesn’t apply here. There’s a whole rabbit hole to go down before coming to any conclusions about this one.
Doubt.
Ok I’m just making it up.
Believing what you want to believe rather than what is actually real and happening is why the world is so frightening at the moment.
Enjoy your bubble.
I mean do you have any kind of reliable source? Because none of that stuff is in the article OP posted.
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Could make the same comment about Islam and suicide bombers. As it’s easy to do with the two largest religions in the world to paint them with the same brush.
Yes and? You just told me that if I am complaining about one serial killer I could also complain about another
What a waste. Regardless of his political affiliations, it’s sad that someone got bullied so hard that they decided to take their own life. It’s what we fight for in the LGBTQ community and beyond- so nobody feels that their life is over if discovered. Nor should it be a big deal, regardless. It’s what we’ve been fighting for since the Lavender Scare, and we’ll keep fighting for a general sense of normalcy for everyday Americans, regardless of political orientation.
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I just imagine him being so conflicted about what he wanted for himself and what he thought reality would allow that killing himself made more sense then living ostracized. He must of truly believed the goodness of people is limited to what the majority find socially acceptable.
I think it’s a good reminder that one of Hitler’s closest “friends” and instrumental in the rise to power of the nazi party, was executed in the night of the Long knives. Ernst Rohm was publicly known to be gay. Due to this close relationship with Hitler, they determined it would weaken Hitler’s image.
Copeland certainly won’t be the last GOP casualty due to their bigoted policies.
Well, the fact that he was gay is perhaps a sidenote to the internal power struggle in the nazi Party, and the struggle between the SA and the SS. Hitler stayed in power by playing the people beneath him against each other, and Himmler was particularly ruthless in this regard to the very end of WW2.
Did not help Röhm that he was gay tho’
this wouldn’t be the first comment thread to speculate about the gayness of Nazis and Hitler, but i’m here for it
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I can’t speak to Copeland’s character, but regardless, I think you misunderstood what OP was saying. There was zero attack on Copeland. They were drawing a parallel between Hitler’s peeps being homophobic to the point that they executed a close ally for being gay so as not to ruin Hitler’s image, and the Republican party outing this man for cross dressing, which led to his suicide.
Hours before Copeland’s death, Hemant Mehta, who runs the popular religion blog Friendly Atheist, noted that Copeland did not appear to have bigoted views toward transgender people or people who simply enjoy cross-dressing.
“There’s a story making the rounds about an Alabama preacher/mayor who secretly dresses in drag and adopts the persona of a trans woman on social media,” Mehta tweeted. “The problem? It’s not clear he’s a hypocrite. If he’s not a bigot, why is he being outed?”
Mehta tweeted. “The problem? It’s not clear he’s a hypocrite. If he’s not a bigot, why is he being outed?”
Maybe we shouldn’t be outing anyone. One’s personal sexuality isn’t anybody else’s business. Even if one is a bigot.
I think there is a good argument to be made for outing someone closeted who is using their power to oppress LGBT+ people, but there is also a trend of labeling any homophobic politician as being in the closet when a lot of them are just plain old bigots.
I think there is a good argument to be made
I’m sorry, but I must vehemently disagree. There is absolutely no reason to discuss publicly someone’s private sexual preferences. Otherwise, you have the society they want where witch-hunts can be started over rumors.
there is also a trend of labeling any homophobic politician as being in the closet
That is also bad, and should not be tolerated.
If I’m being oppressed I would like to know if the thing I’m being opposed for is something my oppressor practices. That is called injustice.
It’s called none of your business. You can’t expect someone to adhere to a standard you refuse to recognize. It’s classic, “Rules for thee…”
But I can expect them to adhere to a standard they’re using to oppress me.
That is actually a different thing. And I agree, but you still shouldn’t be outing them.
Excuse me? Are you for, “rules for thee but not for me”? I cannot decipher your actual stance.
I cannot decipher your actual stance.
I can’t fathom why, when I’ve stated it multiple times in the clearest possibly English.
Don’t out anyone. No exceptions.
If you make exceptions then it’s you who is creating “rules for thee…”
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Except he wasn’t outed as a bigot. He was outed as “not a bigot”.
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Maybe the politicians, I could agree with that, but most Republican voters are not on board with the southern strategy and all of this other stuff.
All the majority know is that they hate Democrats, and that is why they vote the way they do. Human beings are creatures of habit after all.
Besides, even if a group of people are doing bad things en masse, it’s ultimately counterproductive to lump the followers in with the leaders. It makes it harder for the followers to break from the leaders that are leading them down the wrong path.
I am anti-republican politics, and I don’t get along with Republican voters, but I’m not going to call the guy at the gas station evil because he votes Republican because his dad voted Republican because his dad voted Republican.
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“They don’t know what they’re voting for” is not a defense, frankly. If you’re truly ignorant of what a party stands for and you just can’t bring yourself to vote for their opponent, maybe don’t vote at all?
If you vote Republican then you are “on board” with the southern strategy and all of this other stuff. That’s what voting signifies, that’s the whole point of voting. It’s a binding statement to the world that you want the person or group you’re voting for to be in charge, and in the case of Republicans we know very well what them being “in charge” entails.
They aren’t evil, doesn’t stop them being ignorant, stupid, wrong, and detrimental to society. Ebola isn’t evil, but it’ll fuck up your life if you don’t kill it first.
Republican voters are cancer, they might not want to kill you, but they will.
I didn’t vote for the Nazis to kill the Jews, I just wanted my taxes lowered :(
Maybe the politicians, I could agree with that, but most Republican voters are not on board with the southern strategy and all of this other stuff.
It’s certainly a not big enough deal for them to leave.
I’m not going to call the guy at the gas station evil because he votes Republican because his dad voted Republican because his dad voted Republican.
I am.
If they’re voting to for and supporting the party that does evil stuff, it really doesn’t matter the reason they do it for.
Out the ones that could be a part of the ones who could effect change so they can be ousted and replaced by another run-of-the-mill Republican demon. Smart. Real big-brained move.
Mmmmmmmm… No, you know what? fuck that. You don’t get to be a bigot and then expect privacy in your own life. Response to even if one is a bigot
Exactly.
This is classic conservative rules for thee bullshit.
This is classic conservative rules for thee bullshit.
This is anti-conservatives sinking to the level of conservative rules for thee bullshit.
You’re literally saying “it’s ok to be queer, unless…” Either it’s ok, it it’s not. Spoiler alert, it’s fucking ok.
Yes I’m saying it’s ok to be queer and not ok to be intolerant. What the fuck is wrong with your reading comprehension?
No one is saying that it is ok that he was outed. They’re saying he was making rules as a Republican official that bound LGBTQ people and the instant those rules would apply to him he killed himself…
Rules for thee but not me.
Do u get it now, junior?
No one is saying that it is ok that he was outed.
Plenty of people are saying exactly that. Are you reading a different thread?
Do u get it now, junior?
Go back to Reddit, you muppet.
Uk u lost when you resort to “go back to reddit” followed by an ad hominem.
You don’t get to be a bigot and then expect privacy in your own life.
You have it exactly backwards though. You don’t get to expect privacy in your own life if you refuse to respect the privacy of others.
Also, why would you fight bigotry by demeaning the very thing they oppose with their bigotry? You’re only adding fuel to the fire.
Paradox of intolerance. Your argument is invalid.
Wrong. You don’t have to tolerate bigotry to respect sexual privacy. You have no argument.
Imagine outing someone as straight. Essentially it’s a weird attempt to enforce a degree of group think
“The problem? It’s not clear he’s a hypocrite. If he’s not a bigot, why is he being outed?”
Because every issue has exactly two sides nowadays. And this guy uses twitter, so he should have noticed that by now.
That quote is ignoring the fact that it was his fellow conservatives who went after him to destroy his life. It is his fellow conservatives – the ones he chose to stand among and support – that enjoy this outcome.
You cannot be surprised when bullies bully. And the people who hang out with bullies because it benefits them to do so? They are also bullies.
And unfortunately, I think that’s exactly why you’re wrong. The issue isn’t partisanship. The issue is bigotry. These people outed him because they hate and want to destroy LGBT people. There’s no shades of grey here. There is no moderate position. This story happened even with no one from the opposite partisan position being involved.
And he participated in that bullying for years himself.
This guy was those guys. Dressing in drag doesn’t give him a pass.
Dressing in drag doesn’t give him a pass.
I don’t see anyone making that argument. What I do see is people saying that being conservative removes your pass to be queer. And that’s just atrocious.
Nah, I’ll go ahead and say it.
No one has a pass to be conservative, especially a queer person. No one. Not one person. It is not acceptable to be a bigot, a bully. It’s not acceptable to be cruel just because you believe there is a certain social hierarchy that ought to be enforced. All the tenants of conservatism are unacceptable. And if you are queer, you now have INTIMATE knowledge of what it is like to be on the receiving end of that hatred and oppression and should know better than most to take no part in it.
I must agree with all of that. But, it still doesn’t excuse outing anyone.
Literally no one is saying that anywhere. Your reading comprehension is shit.
What people are saying is it makes him a self hating person and a hypocrite and a bad person to hold office in a party that oppresses LGBTQ people.
You seem to be thinking that just cuz someone is LGBTQ that makes them a good person inside. That’s pure identity politics and simply false.
Literally no one is saying that anywhere.
https://kbin.social/m/news@lemmy.world/t/598062/-/comment/3362718
You don’t have to apologize. Your silence will suffice.
You seem to be thinking that just cuz someone is LGBTQ that makes them a good person inside.
You don’t have to speculate about what I think. I’ve explicitly stated it on clear and uncertain terms. A person’s sexuality is their own private business and there’s no reason to be outing anyone.
Your reading comprehension is shit.
I don’t think you have demonstrated enough reading comprehension to sit in judgement.
I’m pretty sure there’s more than two sides to a lot of things in life dude
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Guys, he not only was a Republican, he was a Baptist preacher. He aligned himself with these two LGBTQ hater groups.
Maybe he joined the GOP and the Baptist denomination in an attempt to shield his lifestyle, but he willingly belonged to these two groups which both actively HATE LGBTQ and condemn his very lifestyle.
I have a lot of sympathy for people who feel they must disguise their true selves in order to protect themselves…and I respect that he tried to reach out and offer support to others online.
But I’m hearing some very disturbing ‘rumors’ that he posted hateful, stalking, character assassination of particular people online. And accusations of child porn.
I’m going to reserve my sympathy for him for now, until the whole truth is known.
Really sad that he didn’t feel it was ok to be himself and chose to end his life.
I don’t think he killed himself because he wasn’t accepting of himself, but because he was being tormented and ridiculed and had his entire life turned upside down for who he was. Big difference.
I hate Republicans for all they do and stand for, but nobody kills themselves just for fun. This guy was mentally ill (aside from being in the GOP) and got pushed over the brink by an asshole.
You don’t have to be sad about his death, but suicide is not normal and should never be encouraged like some here basically do.
While I agree that suicide should never ever ever be encouraged. I don’t think it’s necessarily a mental illness. This person was going to or already had lost everything they had ever known and worked for. They would have been a pariah in their town. They very likely would have been disowned by family and friends. It’s a little late in life to be starting all over somewhere new. I don’t think it’s crazy to contemplate unconventional exit strategies in that case.
Source: I am from small rural town Alabama.
I also think that we should remove the negative stigma behind suicide. After all, even bringing it up with a mental health professional can and will get you essentially arrested for 48 to 72 hours which discourages people from seeking help.
Also, can we just acknowledge how fucked up it is that this person felt they had no other way to deal with the situation, all because a group of people cared what clothes he wore in private.
I get that he decided to be part of this group, but even still… No one deserves that.
He could have moved to Oregon and a small town would have embraced him. sigh
Where as I agree with you. It’s also funny that you say that. I have some friends that moved from Oregon to Alabama because it’s so cheap to live here.
Ah, right. Oregon. Known for our high cost of living…
Well, I think part of it was where they lived too. They were living in hood river.
I hope they had good flood insurance
Yeah I asked he said they lived right on the Columbia river.
Also, I admit that I don’t know. That was just the reason they gave for moving here. For all I know they are hiding from a murder. Heh
I didn’t say suicide always happens, because you are mentally ill. You are twisting my words to suit your argument, maybe unintentionally. There is good reasons why people want to die, e.g. when they suffer from an illness that is only going to cause pain and suffering and want to go on their own terms.
I am not and was never in his head, but I am quite positive he didn’t suddenly develop, let’s say relatively severe Alzheimer’s disease and wanted to die why he still had controll over his life.
And yes, suicide should be allowed in my opinion as well. You should be the one who decides when and how you go. I agree with you insofar.
Though mental health professionals don’t admit you against your will, because it is a fun joke to them, but because the vast majority people are mentally ill when they are contemplating suicide. It is not a normal thing to want to die.
I don’t know how things are where you live, but in my tiny spot of the world people usually don’t get admitted against their will because of suicidal tendencies, but chose to after they talked to a mental health professional. You usually only get admitted against your will here, when e.g. police, firefighters and/or medical services had to talk you down or save you from an attempted suicide attempt. If that is not the case in your small town in rural Alabama, then you should inform yourself as well as possible and try to teach others about a better alternative. Just my two cents on your comment.
I apologize if i misunderstood what your comment said it’s late and I’ve had , well, a day. I wasn’t trying to twist your words. So, I do apologize for that.
In my experience getting locked up for talking about suicide is subjective. What is serious to one mental health professional may not be serious to another. So, you never really know if you are crossing a line or not. I’ve always felt like it’s best to just avoid the subject all together. But in my experience it keeps me from building a relationship with the therapist. It says to me that there are things that are ok to talk about and things that are not.
No need to apologize. I assumed it was unintentionally. I sincerely hope things improve in general when it comes to mental health in society and in your life if things are not great.
Thank you.
Are you trying to make a case that suicide can be a well reasoned and appropriate solution?
Euthanasia might be appropriate in the context of some medical illnesses, but I think there’s very few people that would agree that suicide is a reasonable course of action when one encounters challenges like that described here.
I’ll just pull you up on some of the phrasing or terms you’ve used. I’m not trying to be an ass, I’m just concerned at the way you’re phrasing things and maybe you don’t realise?
He hasn’t “lost everything”. Sure I’m sure he’s lost his current position and standing with some political parties, but he still has whatever wealth he had, and given his experience can probably look forward to a lucrative career in some kind of political support role in another state.
A “pariah” is an outcast. He might have found it hard to make eye contact with some people at the shops but he wouldn’t have been banned from entering the city.
He may have been “disowned” but some of his friends, but not all of his friends and family.
It’s never too late to move and turn the page on a new chapter. He wouldn’t be “starting over” he would be making a change and continuing on.
Additionally, the term “crazy” doesn’t help anyone. People who are clinically depressed and suicidal are not “crazy”.
Words and phrasing is important and means things, whether you realise it or not your phrasing and framing is very catastrophic or black and white. Life happens in the grey.
Finally, you absolutely can talk to a mental health professional about thoughts of suicide, and they’re not going to lock you up. Usually the barrier beyond which someone needs to be detained is when they’re an “imminent risk to themselves or others”. There’s a whole spectrum from “wonders whether suicide is a solution” to “likely to harm themselves today” and in most of that spectrum locking someone up is not the right solution.
I’m going to have to respectfully disagree with you. I originally typed out a bunch of stuff, but I deleted it because I think it may break some TOS. But, suffice it to say that sometimes things go wrong and there is no coming back from it. I know because I’m there.
Also, did you go to 1819 news website? Because outing them for being trans isn’t the only thing they did. They also did an article about a fictional story they wrote where they killed a woman that exists in real life and took over her life.
Yeah posting pics of minors to porn sites is fucking terrible wtf
Oh shit! I didn’t know they did that too. I admit I didn’t read the whole article because it was long and from a shitty right wing news source. Damn.
Ok, I read it and I thought you meant naked pics. What they did was still not ok, but it’s better than what I imagined.
Hey! One quick correction - I’m currently a therapy student. You are correct that if a therapist thinks you are in imminent danger of suicide, you can be detained for a period of time for your own safety. But we are taught only to do that if the danger is imminent. If you are just depressed and occasionally have suicidal ideation, but likely will not act on it immediately, a good therapist would not have you detained. That would be counterproductive.
Definitely just be super blunt and honest with your therapist. They are trained to handle things appropriately. You might hear about shitty therapists occasionally, but most of us are really well trained and really want the best for people.
“Definitely just be super blunt and honest with cops. They are trained to handle things appropriately. You might hear about shitty cops occasionally, but most of us are really well trained and really want the best for people.”
Who are you even trying to fool…
Therapists aren’t cops… 😅
Small mercies, huh.
Anyways, therapists aren’t your friends, kids. You shouldn’t trust them just because they’re therapists.
Could you explain? I’m legit confused because doctors have the same authority to detain someone on medical/mental grounds. Should you lie to doctors as well?
What’s confusing you?
When I go to doctors at least, it’s because of a physical injury. They’re not going to detain me and lock me away because my broken leg is a threat to me.
I don’t know.
It seems to me that when objectively bad people take themselves out of the equation then it’s a net positive for everyone.
Yeah, for example convicted pedos have a higher suicide rate than the average - I don’t think most people believe that is a statistic we should work on changing.
I think that is a statistic we should work on changing. There is still a lot research to be done, but it is possible that poedophilia is not so different fron being sexually attracted to people of your own gender. Your brain is just wired differently, in the case of pedophilia wrong. But you don’t exactly get to pick if and how you are born.
Societies outlaw living out these sexual desires for obvious reasons, which (in better parts of the world) obviously don’t apply if you on the other hand e.g. have consensual sexual experiences between two adults of the same sex.
Obviously sexual acts between adults and kids are not okay, no argument there. That is why we outlaw it, rightfully so. We can, (usually want) and definitely should protect all babies, childen and young adults in our societies. Doesn’t mean you are a waste of oxygen if you have pedophilic urges, but don’t act upon them. There is also without a doubt a higher rate of suicides among those people. It is not a net positive.
The human sex drive is very strong, so despite having rules against non consensual or considered unacceptable sexual urges, people live those out. Sexual harassment is a better example for this.
My hope would be that someday we can somehow effectively help people who are sexually attracted to babies, kids and underage people without incarceration. There is already drugs that can supress any kind of sexual desire. We just don’t do enough research on this topic, because helping people struggling with pedophilic thoughts (especially those not having done anything wrong and never choosing that life) is a very unpopular topic. So we rather avoid it.
That goes for a lot of other mental illness like narcissistic or psychopathic disorders that tend to cause harm if lived out as well.
Not helping people afflicted by what we consider malfunctions of the human brain and letting them slide into more mental health problems, which might ultimately lead to their suicide is NOT a net positiv, is is a net negative. Always will be, unless you got your priorities wrong or can’t feel empathy.
My statement wasn’t about what’s “morally right”, it was an example of a suicide that the average person will consider a net gain for society.
A civilized society should obviously not have as its’ goal to make parts of its’ inhabitants kill themselves - the podcast that I got the statistic from was actually an interview with a police officer who worked on monitoring related internet activities, and proactively confronting said individuals to offer preventative chemical castration and therapy sessions. That still doesn’t change the fact that most would rather just see those kinds of people gone, at least after they’re convicted/proven to act upon their urges.
Okay, I see that as valuable context to what you wrote before and mostly agree. Thanks for adding that.
Though I also want to protect children from sexual abuse by adults, which is about the worst thing one can do, I do believe nevertheless it is still the right thing to try and help even the worst among us after they served their time, need rehabilitation more than ever and if they want and can be helped of course.
That’s a whole different topic to what happened to the man in thr article and I don’t want to go down this specific rabbithole any further. I hope that’s okay with you.
There is still a lot research to be done, but it is possible that poedophilia is not so different fron being sexually attracted to people of your own gender.
Societies outlaw living out these sexual desires for obvious reasons
Oh wonderful, the regressives are here with their whole “homosexuals are pedophiles” shtick.
They obviously aren’t, don’t be a dimwit.
They obviously aren’t, don’t be a dimwit.
No need to deny it, you know I was referring to you.
Since we clearly reached the “no, you!” stage of this argument and there is evidently no point in going forward, let me wish you a great day and you take care of yourself.
Was he objectively bad though? You’re quick to judge him.
Yeah WTF, cross dressing is objectively bad? People don’t even try to hide their bigotry anymore. If anyone should get back in the closet it is the bigots.
You didn’t read the article did you?
He posted photos of local residents (including minors) in his sex fantasy fiction. He actually NAMED a local businesswoman in a story he wrote where he kills her and assumes her identity, seduces her husband, and takes over her life.
“To call myself a stalker would be an understatement.” He wrote before going on about analyzing every social media post the woman made and collecting her photos like pornographic baseball cards.
This person was batshit crazy and a potentially dangerous predator.
How anyone that unstable can convince people that they’re just your average Joe, mentally well and healthy enough to become a mayor, is beyond me.
Cross dressing isn’t bad. Sexually obsessing over everyone in your town and naming them in a public forum is miiiiilllllleeees above being creepy. It’s like something out of the Twilight Zone.
I wish he could have gotten help. I wish he didn’t end his own life. That doesn’t change the reality here.
The publication did nothing wrong by bringing this to the attention of the public. The parents of the kids whose images he posted on pornographic websites needed to be made aware of this bizarre shit.
If he hadn’t named anyone or shared photos of actual people that had known him all their lives, I’d feel a little differently about it.
The headline is clickbait. Read the article.
My bad, I only scanned it. Thanks for the clarification.
Thank you. The crazy amount of people who have absolutely refused to pay attention is mind boggling and concerning.
Seriously, thank you.
Dang he is the exact perfect match of the conservative Boogeyman.
He is trans, trying to push a “real” woman out her space, grooming kids, a threat to hetrosexual marriage, and mentally ill.
This is like if I invented a person named Reginald Slavetrader who born wealthy went to Harvard for economics. Now spends his day writing articles denying global warming and calling for less banking regulations.
Isn’t it amazing how perfectly this matches up? This guy just happens to have all the traits conservatives happen to hate and was caught by a conservative operator.
They present evidence. Tons of it.
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I do know.
It is not like I shed tears for bad people dying. You don’t have to either.
I just don’t want suicide to be celebrated. And I want suicide to be understood as (in the vast majority of cases) a very bad thing people commit, because their are mentally ill. Science is also backing up that celebrating or even covering suicide can bring other people to kill themselves too, who are good peoole, simply ill and shouldn’t.
Suicide is not normal.
But, but, but, I didn’t think the leopards were going to eat MY FACE!!!
/shockedpikachuemoji
There’s no evidence that the guy was anti-trans, so your comment is nonsense.
Why would you be a part of the Republican party if you aren’t a terrible person?
Asking the real questions.
To change it for the better??? How the hell are people in this comment section so dismissive of the possibility that a politician might want to improve his group?
The Republicans lost control of their party with the tea party people, and the moderate Republicans are not getting control back no matter how hard they try. Just look at how hated Romney was by the end of his career for going slightly against the grain, yet still enabling the Idiocracy.
Sigh you’re right republicans and their supporters are nigh irredeemable. Also by the way, its been at least 12 hrs and somebody else claimed that the late mayor was allegedly was a pedo and also had a weird murder identity theft thing going on. So now I am kind of regretting trying to empathize with such a person.
What are you talking about? It makes perfect sense. He was a republican and was attacked by a right wing journalist in an entirely predictable manner consistent with the modern GOP’s platform of bigotry. This is a textbook example of “The Leopards Ate My Face.”
I hate to be that guy because I feel for anybody that is driven to suicide. I’ve gone through two suicides in my IMMEDIATE family in my life, so I know how the fuck it affects everyone surrounding the situation permanently.
HOWEVER, when you are using the image of Donald Trump to campaign for reelection before being outed by a blog that was connected to right wing terrorists and Breitbart News then I think you can see where there are some serious fucking issues in the progression of this person’s logic and political affiliations. Knowingly participating in groups that continue to justify or carry out systemic oppression is still evil even if you yourself have not publicly taken a position justifying that oppression. Just saying…🖖
He was a Republican. He was at minimum anti-trans adjacent. And yes, there’s a lot of social pressure in small towns, and the South in general, to conform. Him being a closeted transvestite incorporates nuance into an often black and white issue. But one can only go along so much without being intentionally complicit, too.
He was a republican. Even if he himself was not anti-trans he was perfectly fine being in bed with those who were wishing death on trans (and others).
That’s the definition of LeopardsAteMyFace
Doesn’t change the fact that he was happily a member of the party more worried about removing trans rights than ending the american tradition of kids being gunned downed in schools
It’s part of the cognitive dissonance peppered throughout these comments: championing empathy, showing none.
I never said I was not empathetic. I am empathetic (see my comment above). That does not mean that I cannot also appreciate the irony in the situation. I wish this person had made different choices, and could be happy with who they were. That is not what they chose to do, and it cost them their life. There is an important lesson in that, and it cheapens their lived experience by not acknowledging where it caused them to end up.
You can have empathy for the guy while also recognizing that he definitely didn’t kill himself because liberals found out and wanted to love and accept him.
Evil people are not worthy of empathy.
Empathy is for everyone.
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Then why would that be a thing bad enough to kill himself over?!?
Daniel walks into the lions den, gets attacked by a leopard
Queer man surprised when anti-queer party he’s joined deems him a target. More non-news at 11.
