bigmacbear (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
bigmacbear) wrote2009-08-01 01:13 pm
bigmacbear) wrote2009-08-01 01:13 pm
An open letter to President Obama
Dear Mr. President:
Please allow me to introduce myself. I’m Mike McManus – no, not the fellow from Marriage Savers, and not the character actor by that name either. I’m a computer professional originally from Cincinnati, a current resident of Everett, Washington, as of last fall a second-time homeowner, an avid singer and sometimes songwriter, and – oh, yes – a gay man with a legally registered partner, and thereby a member of a same-sex couple. We’ve been together for almost 11 years now.
It is well known among the more politically astute members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community whose opinions and reporting I read daily on the Internet, that you promised us immediate action on reversing a number of unfair, ill-advised, and downright dangerous acts of your predecessors. These acts include the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) which has the effect of denying same-sex couples who are legally married in several states, and hold more or less equivalent status in others, the full benefits all other married couples enjoy under Federal law; and the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” provision in the Uniform Code of Military Justice (DADT) which compromises our national security and denies our men and women in uniform the very right of free speech which they defend with their lives. You promised to be a “fierce advocate” for LGBT issues during your campaign.
It’s become crystal clear that these promises have already been broken. Not that a politician breaking his promises is anything new, but it would be understandable – given the more pressing issues we as a nation face, with our economy in general and health care in particular – to expect these comparatively minor issues to be set aside in silent ignorance until more pressing business was concluded. What upsets me, and I believe I have much company in this, is that several recent actions taken by your Administration on your behalf if not on your direct orders, actively attack the LGBT community and insult the intelligence of those for whom you promised to be a “fierce advocate”. And I’m sure that as a scholar of the Constitution you do not enjoy having your intelligence insulted, and I hope you will once again come to have the same regard for me and those in my situation.
Case in point: I read the recent legal brief filed by an attorney in the Justice Department in a case with regard to the constitutionality of DOMA– a brief which, with all due respect, was a slap in the face for me personally and, I dare say, for every member of every same-sex couple in these United States. It went far beyond what is necessary to defend the law as it stands (as you have pointed out is your duty in this case). It presented arguments whose logic is tortuous at best, and contained language so inflammatory that (were it to be written and published by a private citizen in his or her individual capacity) I believe it would be worth a trip to the nearest attorney to explore the notion of a class-action lawsuit for libel against the writer.
The outcome of this particular brouhaha, as you well know, is that you allowed this horrendous smear masquerading as legal argument to stand, while you exhorted our community to put the blame on the Congress, as repeal of these wretched laws must originate from that body and not from your office nor from the Federal courts.
Fast forward to the other day, when it came to light that “liaisons” from the White House approached Rep. Alcee Hastings and placed pressure on him to remove an amendment to the Defense Authorization Act to stop the enforcement of DADT – a law which you yourself said undermines our national security. Allowing the Congress to withhold the funding to enforce DADT takes the matter out of your hands, provides you with the best possible political cover, and leaves you free to pursue more important tasks, while our military benefits from the best and the brightest without fear of irrational dismissal on grounds which have no place in a modern military.
So in one breath you tell this community to seek our relief from the Congress, and in another you deny us the very opportunity to seek such relief. Mr. President, I’m forced to conclude that we, the LGBT community, rather than merely being asked to wait a bit longer while more pressing needs are fulfilled, are having our issues actively sacrificed under the wheels of the proverbial bus; and that your promise to be a “fierce advocate” for our issues was an outright lie, that you have no intention of ever correcting these grave errors in our legal system that endanger our personal security while actively harming our national security to boot.
I have in the past been an active supporter of your campaign, and contributed a modest sum to ensure your election to the high office you now hold. I have attempted to give you the benefit of the doubt, to be patient, and to understand the limits to what a President can do on his own. But, frankly, my patience and that of many others in our community is at an end, and for the simple reason that while ignorant silence and passive delay can be forgiven, active enmity to our issues cannot.
Therefore, please be aware that not one thin dime of my money will find its way into the coffers of the Democratic Party at the federal level until our community gets some satisfaction on the many issues for which we have waited far too long for redress, and I will do everything in my power to convince everyone in our community and everyone with whom I come in contact to do the same. If this jeopardizes your re-election in 2012, so be it. [Emphasis in original.]
This goes beyond a mere broken campaign promise. These actions leave me and many others in my position with the perception we’ve been defrauded and disenfranchised. My sense of betrayal now rivals that which I felt after the utter failure of President Clinton to achieve his agenda on our behalf, which was the spawn of these hurtful pieces of legislation which you promised to work to remove.
In closing, I’m reminded of the maxim of Hippocrates: “First, do no harm.” Were we as a community simply waiting for a positive change from this Administration, and meanwhile lobbying Congress to do what it alone can do, there would be no need for me to write this letter. I expect you, if you cannot support us, to at least refrain from doing any more damage to me, to my community, and to this great nation of ours.
Sincerely,
(signed) Michael P. McManus
I have the original of this letter signed and sealed, and waiting to be dropped off for delivery to the White House.
For more information:
Yes we can, but we won't.
Dismay Over Obama's 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Turnabout
Please allow me to introduce myself. I’m Mike McManus – no, not the fellow from Marriage Savers, and not the character actor by that name either. I’m a computer professional originally from Cincinnati, a current resident of Everett, Washington, as of last fall a second-time homeowner, an avid singer and sometimes songwriter, and – oh, yes – a gay man with a legally registered partner, and thereby a member of a same-sex couple. We’ve been together for almost 11 years now.
It is well known among the more politically astute members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community whose opinions and reporting I read daily on the Internet, that you promised us immediate action on reversing a number of unfair, ill-advised, and downright dangerous acts of your predecessors. These acts include the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) which has the effect of denying same-sex couples who are legally married in several states, and hold more or less equivalent status in others, the full benefits all other married couples enjoy under Federal law; and the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” provision in the Uniform Code of Military Justice (DADT) which compromises our national security and denies our men and women in uniform the very right of free speech which they defend with their lives. You promised to be a “fierce advocate” for LGBT issues during your campaign.
It’s become crystal clear that these promises have already been broken. Not that a politician breaking his promises is anything new, but it would be understandable – given the more pressing issues we as a nation face, with our economy in general and health care in particular – to expect these comparatively minor issues to be set aside in silent ignorance until more pressing business was concluded. What upsets me, and I believe I have much company in this, is that several recent actions taken by your Administration on your behalf if not on your direct orders, actively attack the LGBT community and insult the intelligence of those for whom you promised to be a “fierce advocate”. And I’m sure that as a scholar of the Constitution you do not enjoy having your intelligence insulted, and I hope you will once again come to have the same regard for me and those in my situation.
Case in point: I read the recent legal brief filed by an attorney in the Justice Department in a case with regard to the constitutionality of DOMA– a brief which, with all due respect, was a slap in the face for me personally and, I dare say, for every member of every same-sex couple in these United States. It went far beyond what is necessary to defend the law as it stands (as you have pointed out is your duty in this case). It presented arguments whose logic is tortuous at best, and contained language so inflammatory that (were it to be written and published by a private citizen in his or her individual capacity) I believe it would be worth a trip to the nearest attorney to explore the notion of a class-action lawsuit for libel against the writer.
The outcome of this particular brouhaha, as you well know, is that you allowed this horrendous smear masquerading as legal argument to stand, while you exhorted our community to put the blame on the Congress, as repeal of these wretched laws must originate from that body and not from your office nor from the Federal courts.
Fast forward to the other day, when it came to light that “liaisons” from the White House approached Rep. Alcee Hastings and placed pressure on him to remove an amendment to the Defense Authorization Act to stop the enforcement of DADT – a law which you yourself said undermines our national security. Allowing the Congress to withhold the funding to enforce DADT takes the matter out of your hands, provides you with the best possible political cover, and leaves you free to pursue more important tasks, while our military benefits from the best and the brightest without fear of irrational dismissal on grounds which have no place in a modern military.
So in one breath you tell this community to seek our relief from the Congress, and in another you deny us the very opportunity to seek such relief. Mr. President, I’m forced to conclude that we, the LGBT community, rather than merely being asked to wait a bit longer while more pressing needs are fulfilled, are having our issues actively sacrificed under the wheels of the proverbial bus; and that your promise to be a “fierce advocate” for our issues was an outright lie, that you have no intention of ever correcting these grave errors in our legal system that endanger our personal security while actively harming our national security to boot.
I have in the past been an active supporter of your campaign, and contributed a modest sum to ensure your election to the high office you now hold. I have attempted to give you the benefit of the doubt, to be patient, and to understand the limits to what a President can do on his own. But, frankly, my patience and that of many others in our community is at an end, and for the simple reason that while ignorant silence and passive delay can be forgiven, active enmity to our issues cannot.
Therefore, please be aware that not one thin dime of my money will find its way into the coffers of the Democratic Party at the federal level until our community gets some satisfaction on the many issues for which we have waited far too long for redress, and I will do everything in my power to convince everyone in our community and everyone with whom I come in contact to do the same. If this jeopardizes your re-election in 2012, so be it. [Emphasis in original.]
This goes beyond a mere broken campaign promise. These actions leave me and many others in my position with the perception we’ve been defrauded and disenfranchised. My sense of betrayal now rivals that which I felt after the utter failure of President Clinton to achieve his agenda on our behalf, which was the spawn of these hurtful pieces of legislation which you promised to work to remove.
In closing, I’m reminded of the maxim of Hippocrates: “First, do no harm.” Were we as a community simply waiting for a positive change from this Administration, and meanwhile lobbying Congress to do what it alone can do, there would be no need for me to write this letter. I expect you, if you cannot support us, to at least refrain from doing any more damage to me, to my community, and to this great nation of ours.
Sincerely,
(signed) Michael P. McManus
I have the original of this letter signed and sealed, and waiting to be dropped off for delivery to the White House.
For more information:
Yes we can, but we won't.
Dismay Over Obama's 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Turnabout
no subject
no subject
I like Obama, and I am glad somebody more qualified than Bush or McCain is in the White House.
But I think Obama has drifted off course, partly because of very poor advice from his inner circle.
I think he needs to hear from people like you, and me, and other Americans who can provide some diversity in viewpoints.
You did a great job of articulating your points, and I really hope your letter gets the attention and consideration it deserves.