Known Plaintext

I sat out of the 2008 election because I couldn’t support the candidate — yes, the candidate: no matter who you voted for you were really voting for Bush’s third term, and I couldn’t bring myself to do that.

It now seems I’ll be sitting out of the 2012 election, too. The President is undeserving of a second term, and tonight’s disgrace at the Republican debate shows none of the Republican contenders are deserving of a first.

Short version: an openly gay soldier asked the candidates a question about gays in the military. The answers don’t interest me so much as the fact the crowd heckled this soldier. That’s right: the debate crowd openly booed and hissed at this soldier, presumably for having the temerity to be gay and in uniform.

Any one of the candidates — any one of them — could have turned me into a supporter had they just told the crowd, “Listen to yourselves: you’re disgracing the Party of Lincoln. So what if he’s different? He put on that uniform to protect your right to be different in your own way. Show some respect, damn it.”

Of course, none of them did. A few have issued press statements calling the booing “unfortunate,” which is one of those political weasel words meaning “I’m going to claim I disapprove of what happened while pointedly not calling anyone on the carpet for it.”

This is not an issue of gay rights. This is a matter of basic human dignity, and the political courage necessary to hold people accountable when they fail to respect it. There were a lot of cowards up there on the stage, and they were all too happy to let the bus run over that soldier in the name of political expediency.

They’ll do the same to you or me if the need arises.

That’s all.

[Edit:] Kevin points out the reports that (a) only a very small number of people were heckling, but doing so loudly, (b) they were quickly hushed by their neighbors, and (c) the candidates on stage couldn’t hear the heckling. Gary Johnson, who was on stage, has confirmed that he heard it just fine, but the other two claims seem plausible. Even then, though, my real concern is the cowardly silence from the Republican candidates.

Governor Johnson has since come out to condemn the heckling in no uncertain terms, and to condemn his own silence. Good on you, Governor: most reformed prisoner in the penitentiary, you are. You could’ve had me as a rabid supporter had you only had the courage to stand up and be counted right when it mattered.