Tampa Bay Coalition
Eye on GLBT News & Headlines
September 5, 2002
By R. Zeke Fread
Concerned Women for
America Says O'Reily is Offense to Catholics
Bill O'Reily, The O'Reily Factor ~ Fox News, has taken
some nasty hits from the Concerned Women for America,
CWFA, a fanatical Religious Right group, for not
condemning Homosexuality and the granting
of Homosexuals Equality of Rights. They are quite bitter
because he is not to buying what they are selling
about GLBT's. Believed to be quite the conservative
himself, he has considerable influence on the right,
but, many of the religious right are now questioning
his views and standing as a good Irish Catholic.
In an interview in The Advocate, Mr. O'Reily
expressed pro-gay viewpoints in favor of protecting gays
from job discrimination by all states passing laws to
do so, opposes the effort to repeal the gay rights ordinance in Miami-Dad County
and goes as far to say, that he wouldn't complain if gay marriage ever
became law . If this wasn't enough to cause the CWFA to blow a gasket, he
made some very unflattering comments, to say the least, referred
to Bible believing Christians, as 'fanatical'
religious right who should
just be '.ignored.' Of
course, Mr. O'Reily is being accused of
pandering to homosexuals only to increase ratings and
for the entertainment value this
subject brings.
What has really raised their blood
pressure and vicious personal attacks on Bill O'Reily was an interview
with Stephen Bennett. This was one interview, I thank God,
I did not miss. Bennett, an ex-gay, who admits
to being very promiscuous with
engaging in sexual encounters with over 100 men in 11 years. But, Bennett
has found religion and claims to be a happy heterosexual
man. Which is fine and if he is happy, so be it.
But, he is now preaching that all
gays can change, which has pretty much been proven to not be the
actual
truth for most all gay people. As others
who also claimed the same ability to become an ex-gay, have only
kept their homosexuality in the
closet. That is until they are caught cruising in a gay bar, but, claim to
have
only stopped to use the rest room. But, only two hours and
a few cocktails later that is. Bennett now quotes selective Bible verses to
back up his position that God condemns homosexuals. However, in his recent interview on the factor, Mr.
O'Reily, absolutely proved that his programs no spin policy, was in effect this
night. Bennett's attempts to
misinterpret selective Bible verses to condemn gays, were to no avail. Not only
did Mr. O'Reily, not allow this, his tore
apart Bennett's use of such verses and the pure hypocrisy of claiming to be only following what
the Bible states. Yet by quoting only selective Bible verses
and ignoring many
others that don't suit their purposes. Mr. O'Reily,
at one point called Bennett a religious fanatic, adding that Bennett didn't have
the right to judge others and did not speak for God on issues related to
homosexuals.
Mr. O'Reily, also said that he, himself, did not have the right to
judge others. All attempts by Bennett to read Bible verses, were shot down,
by Mr. O'Reily saying that he, Bennett, just didn't like gays and was
in favor
of denying gays equality of rights, period, which Bennett tried to deny.
Mr. O'Reily was ever so persistent in not allowing Bennett to spin his
personal dislike for gays, into professing these were Gods words and
his teachings in the Bible. At one point, Mr. O'Reily said he
didn't care for the old testament and I thought Bonnet was going to stroke out
right there on the spot. It was certainly an enjoyable event to see, one who
preaches blatant intolerance and hatred of gays, squirm in his seat, be cut off
every he tried to misquote a Bible verse to justify his intolerance and just not
be permitted to dispense his usual fanatical anti-gay rhetoric.
As expected, Mr. O'Reily is now the target of the religious rights
venomous and nasty personal attacks. I
wouldn't be surprised if they started to flood Fox News with letters,
demanding that he retract, apologize
or recant his statements, or lose his job. This is a tactic used many
times in an attempt to silence those
who disagree with their homophobic agenda.
Bill O'Reily has in the past, said some unflattering and quite
hostile things about gays. And he has certainly
heard about them from us. However, whether claims his pro-gay comments were
for ratings or any other ulterior motives, may be somewhat true, I believe,
that Bill O'Reily deserves the benefit of doubt. He was
well aware of the severe backlash that he would be faced with from the
religious right fanatics for making
such pro-gay comments. Yet, he said what he meant and meant what
he said and I for one am grateful that
someone finally did.
Please, take a moment to send Bill O'Reily a message of support and
thanks for his positive comments on
gays. And, for not backing down, recanting his comments
or relenting to harsh criticism from the Concerned Women for America, CWFA
and other Religious Right Fanatics for expressing his pro-gay viewpoint. Mr.
O'Reily always asks that you Include your name and hometown and he just may read
your messages on The Factor. Send your messages by email to him at
mailto:oreilly@foxnews.com or
oreilly@foxnews.com .