Ever since all this Chick-Fila b.s. exploded all over facebook, all of a sudden eating a chicken sandwich becomes like this moral and political issue, and requires not just about 1.99$, but also a really strong opinion about alot of things that have little to do with chicken. The crazy thing is Chick-Fila is like pretty much the only fastfood I like. They use better ingredients than the others and they have this cool indoor playground that keeps the kids out of my hair. So imagine my dismay when all of a sudden the only fastfood I have let my kids eat becomes the center of all this strong opinion. Why couldnt this have happened to Burger King or hell even Taco Bell? I probably wouldnt have even noticed. Although, I kinda dig Meximelts. And those cinnamon twist things kinda rock. So anyways, I was all you know I love gay people but I am still gonna eat there. I mean those chicken nuggets are so good, I mean what are they like coated with heroin or something? But then I saw it- this picture of some people outside of a Chick-Fila near my house in cow suits wearing a sign that says "God hates Fags".
Wow, really? You know I am not like super religious, but I consider myself fundamentally Christian ( And I like gay people, crazy I know) and I like to think I have a personal relationship with God. I mean mostly I just pray when I am asking for stuff, but sometimes I occasionally pray even when I dont need something. And yeah I am not a bible scholar- I mean I tried to read it once but lets face it- the Bible is totally boring. Sorry God, but it kinda is. But I do remember some stuff about love, tolerance and doing good for other people. And I am pretty sure God doesnt really "hate" anything, I mean God is the antithesis of hate really. God is light. And I like to think if God really decided to hate someone he would hate bigoted assholes who wear hateful and intolerant signs at fastfood restaurants that children are reading and call it "Christian family values". What if those signs said "God hates black people" or "God hates Jews"? The fact that more people are not outraged by this kinda worries me. I guess in Hitler's Germany no one was that freaked out about people were treating the Jews until the Holocaust began.
So, thanks alot douchebags with your hateful and poorly grammatically executed signs, because this Christian mommy will not be eating at Chick-Fila. I guess this is God's way of telling me that fastfood is not the best thing for my kids to eating anyways, even if they do have really cool playgrounds.
Sus... Clearly these individuals were not put out there by CFA but rather were some jerks who need to find Jesus in their heart. In America, jerks are allowed to hold signs up that say bad things. As John 3:16 says, God so loved the world (all the world) that he sent Jesus to us that we might find him, choose him and have eternal life (my paraphrase).
ReplyDeleteMy personal take on this issue is a matter of free speech and the right to give your opinion when asked about it without being threatened by the government as the mayors of Boston, Chicago and DC have done by saying they would not welcome CFA but would rather try to prevent this private business from opening or operating in their cities.
CFA does not and has not denied service to anyone for any reason nor have they not hired people because of their sexual orientation. There is no evidence of this to date and I beleive their mission is to serve good food in a peaceful, family atmosphere. Keep eating CFA... their food is really good as you pointed out.
Also, why don't you try another version of the Bible. Like The Message... I suggest reading Song of Solomon to your husband after the kids go to sleep and this will definitely get your motor going for a fun pre bedtime activity.
Wishing you well... Lib
Oh Libby, I actually agree with all the free speech stuff, and when thats all it was about frankly I thought people were sorta overreacting. I mean I genuinely like Chick-Fila. I just think its really sad that so many hateful people are using this whole thing as a platform to propagate their personal fears and hate and to do it in Jesus's name. When I saw those people with those signs it made me think- when my kids get old enough to read- how am I going to explain to them why people think God hates their family members because they are gay? I just dont think I can even eat there anymore. Hope you are doing well by the way, miss seeing your face:}
ReplyDeleteAnd someone else just told me to read "The Message" too, so maybe I should do that sometime.
ReplyDeleteSusannah, I admire and respect you for expressing the sentiments of so many of us. If I were not so lazy and had a better sense of humor, I coulda/shoulda/woulda put something on FB myself. But I didn't. And because I like this particular fast food, most likely I will eat it again whenever I feel the urge and happen to see one nearby. Even grandmas are human and succumb to temptation occasionally.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I will try to attach a link here to a recent local paper editorial by Frances Coleman that expresses very well my overall opinion on this and similar issues. I agree with most of what she says, maybe not all, but close, and I appreciate that our paper was willing to extend and stretch its political boundaries a little bit wider.
"Let's not be pawns in the culture wars" by Frances Coleman, Press-Register, 07/29/12
http://blog.al.com/press-register-commentary/2012/07/lets_not_be_pawns_in_the_cultu.html
My problem with Chick Fil-A is that this all started because of something the company president interjected into a press conference, which was inappropriate in a business atmosphere, especially for a company trying to market itself as open and friendly. People decided it was okay to "express" their opinions on this issue in an incredibly offensive way because they thought they were given a green light by Chick Fil-A, and were supporting what they (reasonably) associated as the company view on homosexuality.
ReplyDeleteBut that he expressed a personal, religious conviction in a business/press atmosphere and therefore alienated a large percentage of his customer base who would have preferred to eat at his restaurants without having to think about what the company president personally feels about them doesn't make me as angry as the fact that Chick Fil-A could have stopped this. They could have told the people in the costumes or holding the signs that this kind of behavior was disruptive, offensive and wouldn't be tolerated. They could have put an end to it before the ball really got rolling on it.
So in my opinion (and the reason my family will no longer be going to CFA), yes, it was a crude act by a group of unenlightened individuals who don't understand the true spirit of Christianity, but the company and the restaurants themselves, at least in part, must have sanctioned this behavior or it would never have gotten as far as it did. True, to my knowledge CFA has never prevented homosexuals from working or eating at their restaurants, but sanctioning this kind of blatant attack on an entire subset of people and attempting to make them feel like they aren't welcome somewhere is, in my opinion, pretty heinous. Like you said, Susannah, no one (CFA managers and executives definitely included) would have allowed someone to stand outside on restaurant property with a sign that said "God Hates Blacks"...they would have exercised that "We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone" sign all businesses keep back in the dusty office and kicked their butts to the curb, nipping the whole situation in the bud. But they didn't. Not at any CFA location that I know of was anyone removed from the premises for reason of inappropriate behavior.
This is mostly a polite rebuttal to Libby's response that CFA is not responsible for this incident.
Much love and I adored and appreciated your post, not to mention I also wonder how I'm going to explain some of this to Starren, especially when she ends up going to school in the heart of the Bible Belt with lesbian parents,
Sam
Thanks From the bottom of my Heart Susannah for all of your deep thought and intuitions on this incipient turn of events that will likely act as a catalyst towards a revolution in human or American thought and multivariatude of ideologies and their incumbent actions which parallel ignorance
ReplyDeleteRyan