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Here's What Influential Political Players are Saying About "Odd Man Out":
"A former attorney for the Christian Right and a married gay man; what else could you ask for in a book?" - Fred Karger, Former Republican Political Consultant & LGBT Activist "As you read this book, you'll see the overarching theme of family, faith and belief in principles is strongly held, and beautifully painted in this picture by Joe. I can disagree on some of the points made -- mostly because as a person of color and a woman, my life experiences tell a different story of America, and how the Constitution has and has not protected my right in the same way as someone with white privilege or socioeconomic advantage at times. However, when you can sit down as people on opposite sides of the political spectrum and find commonality in one's humanity, you realize that it's a small world, and we have only a short time on it." - Pam Spaulding, former editor and publisher of Pam's House Blend & Internet Presence Business Consultant. "There is absolutely no one like Joe Murray. No label can describe his views. No box can contain his humor, zeal, generosity, kindness, or intelligence. He is one of a very few people with a heart open enough to embrace those who despise him and a sense of self strong enough to critically examine his own ideas, values, and judgments. This book takes readers inside the emotional and intellectual development of a remarkable human being, challenging them to see every person as an individual." - Lauren Hug, Founder of HugSpeak Consulting & Former Blackstone Fellow |
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EXCERPTS FROM "ODD MAN OUT"
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Identity Over Ideas
“The era of what you believe defining who you are has given way to who you are defining what you believe. This is an extremely dangerous development that occurred effortlessly and without sufficient commentary or alarm. If who you are defines what you believe, then there is little room for growth and development.” The Blackstone Fellowship (ADF) "The first time we arrived in Colorado, ADF’s [Alliance Defense Fund] leaders stated that history would look back at this meeting of some twenty-plus law students as a Second Constitutional Convention. Those were some heavy words that created even greater expectations for all of us wide-eyed Christian warriors.” *** “[The] promise of a Second Constitutional Convention fell horribly short. It was nothing more than a circus sideshow in which clowns pretended to be intellectuals in an attempt to spoon-feed a legal theology to wide-eyed kiddies happy to have some Scriptural cotton candy.” *** “Just like the Greeks inside the Trojan Horse, the idea [of Blackstone] seemed to be an attempt to carefully sneak these budding Christian legal warriors into the courts to change the culture through judicial opinion." Catholicism & the Christian Right "For Conservative Catholics donating to any Evangelical organization, you better understand that you are not considered an equal by a number of Evangelicals. You are considered a necessary ally in a battle for Christian coin. Put simply, you are to Evangelicals what Stalin was to FDR and Churchill." Christian In-fighting “At the AFA Law Center, we felt we had to outmaneuver the folks at ADF because we were trying to prevent ADF from obtaining a monopoly on Christian public interest law. Such a monopoly would be an endgame for the AFA Law Center as all the shots of the culture war would be fired from Scottsdale.” Gays & Abortion “This brings us to this extremely important question – if a mother in her first trimester can determine if her child is gay, what is to stop her from having an abortion to spare her child a life of hardship? If she aborts the child, won’t she be sparing the child the fate met by Matthew Shepard? Won’t she be acting in the child’s best interest to save him from a society that is more than likely to ostracize him rather than embrace him?” Christian Right Counterculture “By separating the faithful from the culture at large, the Christian Right created a counterculture that served a captive audience. Tell these folks that everything secular is sinful and, boom, Kirk Cameron has resurrected his career. It is my heartfelt belief that the engine of the Christian Right is not fueled by morals; it fueled by money. It is about separating people from their peers in order to sell them a product.” |
Gay Culture
"One of the things I hate most about gay culture and its interaction with mainstream America is the fact that you have to appear gay to be gay. One of the biggest pet peeves I have had when informing someone I am gay is the response “you don’t seem gay.” This response is highly insulting to me, not as a gay man, but as a man in general. Just because I am gay does not mean that I must act a certain way. Not all gay men are hypersensitive, talk with a lisp, wear women’s clothing, or relate more to Britney Spears than Kid Rock. This, however, is the culture the gay community created.” *** “When I first came out, I struggled with my identity because I knew I did not like, nor appreciate, gay culture as it was defined on blogs, websites, and other periodicals. Gay culture appeared to be all about sex and rebellion. This is not a creation of the Right, but a reality of the gay community.” Dating Women "Usually, the girls were Conservative Christians who also believed sex prior to marriage was sinful. Those were the girls I wanted to date because the farthest thing from my mind was sex with a female." American Family Association “This was the hypocrisy of AFA Christianity. Taking an intern to a public casino, having great meals, playing responsibly, and winning money was bad for the image. While having a private poker game in which interns are taught “lessons” was just good ol’ fun. As was true with much of AFA, so long as your private deeds did not impair your public image, it was all good.” *** “I will forever be amused that a Christian law center found it prudent to part ways with a co-worker in a smoke-filled bar. Here was a ministry that strenuously objected to drinking and its lawyers were smoking and drinking in a bar while discussing important employment decisions.” Gays & Family Values “At its core, family values are geared to benefit the children. These values are supposed to lift up and support children so that they are brought up in a safe and loving atmosphere. Rearing a child, whether biological or adopted, is a practice that should be encouraged. If you are upset that Heather has two mommies, get over it for Heather’s sake.” Hate Crimes “We did not have to pass hate crimes and other special laws to protect gays. We could have easily operated within the confines of the Constitution. Ironically, the push for hate crimes was the most vicious assault on our way of life, as it recast our criminal justice system as an Orwellian Thought Police, making some victims more important than others based on the motivations of the perpetrator … All victims, regardless of wealth, race, sexual orientation, gender, etc. are equal before the eyes of the law. It is why the lady holding the scales of justice is blind-folded. Hate crimes, however, permit Lady Justice, on certain occasions, to lift the blindfold and take a peek at the victim and the perp.” |
