Bad Apple

I have to admit that I have been a big fan of Apple computer products since about 2003.  I have coveted owning a Macbook for quite a long time.  Their products are good and they just work.

However, Apple made a very bad decision this week.  They decided, as a company, to support the No on 8 campaign in the state of California.  If you don't know, Proposition 8 would amend the state constitution and ban gay marriage in California.  Apple, Inc. donated $100,000 to the campaign.  Here is the statement they posted on their website:

"Apple is publicly opposing Proposition 8 and making a donation of $100,000 to the No on 8 campaign. Apple was among the first California companies to offer equal rights and benefits to our employees’ same-sex partners, and we strongly believe that a person’s fundamental rights — including the right to marry — should not be affected by their sexual orientation. Apple views this as a civil rights issue, rather than just a political issue, and is therefore speaking out publicly against Proposition 8."

Let me say very clearly: The gay marriage issue IS NOT a civil rights issue!  Notice their proclamation that they were "among the first California companies to offer equal rights" to employees and their same-sex partners.  The fact is: Everyone in America has the same marital rights!  It is just as illegal for me to marry a man as it is for a gay man to marry a man.  Every gay man in this country has the same right I do to marry a woman.  We all have the same rights!

By calling this issue a civil rights issue, the proponents of gay marriage are (successfully) equating this battle with the battle for women's rights and racial equality.  The problem is, when women or black people didn't have the right to vote, that was inequality.  A white man had a right that a black man didn't.  A male had a right that a female didn't.

Another tech company you might be familiar with, Google, also came out with their support of gay marriage.  Co-founder Sergey Brin posted this on the official company blog:

"While we respect the strongly-held beliefs that people have on both sides of this argument, we see this fundamentally as an issue of equality. We hope that California voters will vote no on Proposition 8 -- we should not eliminate anyone's fundamental rights, whatever their sexuality, to marry the person they love."

Ah, the "love argument."  Sergey is a genius in many ways, but a fool in this one.  People who make this argument never think it all the way through.  What if I said that I want to marry my sister because I love her?  According to Sergey's logic, there's nothing that should stand in the way of that desire.  What if I told you I love my dog and I wanted to marry her?  What if I told you I love 3 women and I wanted to marry all of them?  There are laws against all of these scenarios and, believe me, they'll be the next to go.

These are common arguments offered by those who support gay marriage.  However, with just a little bit of logic, you see how easily these arguments crumble.

Let's just say that I have lost my appetite for an Apple.

Atheist Ads

Please help me understand how this works.  A group of atheists are organizing to place anti-God ads on buses in London.  How do you place an ad against Someone you don't believe exists?

A hilarious part of the linked article states that there is "preferential treatment given to religion in British society."  Wow.  Seeing that Europe is one of the greatest bastions of secular liberalism in the world today, I find that very hard to believe.