Janet Porter's pathetic attempt to connect hate crimes legislation and ENDA

From Pam's House Blend and Tips Q comes news that one of my favorite religious right spokespeople, Janet Folger-Porter, has gone on a tear about the Employee Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA):

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act, or “ENDA” is “hate crimes” – or more accurately, “thought crimes” – for the workplace. It means the “ENDA” freedom of speech, the “ENDA” freedom of religion, the “ENDA” freedom of association and the “ENDA” freedom of conscience.

And like pretty much all religious right spokespeople, Porter provides "examples" of cases in which people's freedoms have been "trampled" by us "evil homosexuals."

All of her examples are vague rehashing of actual events - so vague that we don't know the truth behind the cases. And a lot of them are from foreign countries - you know, countries that don't have our Constitution, laws or legal system.

One of Porter's examples that come from the United States has to do with the Ocean Grove Pavilion controversy:

. . . the Christian Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association in New Jersey, which was found “guilty of discrimination” for standing by their beliefs instead of renting their facilities to a homosexual couple who wanted to use the Christian camp for their same-sex union in March 2007.

Of course Porter is being highly deceptive about this situation. I will let Tips-Q tell you why:

Janet sort of forgets that the gay couple wanted to rent an oceanfront pavilion that is owned by the Christian organization but is open to the public. Indeed, as part of their zoning law variance, the organization entered into a written agreement to comply with New Jersey’s anti-discrimination laws.

Another example caught my eye:

The 16-year-olds who were charged with felonies in Chicago for handing out flyers that criticized homosexuality . . .

Just like in the case of Ocean Grove, Porter leaves out crucial details:

Two female 16-year-old Crystal Lake South High School students face hate-crime charges after allegedly plastering their high school's halls and distributing anti-gay fliers directed towards a fellow student in the school's parking lot.

. . . McHenry County State's Attorney Lou Bianchi told Windy City Times that despite arguments being made by many locals about the right to free speech, what the two girls did is clearly a hate crime.'They had the intent to alarm and disturb another, and they were successful in that,' Bianchi said. 'In alarming and disturbing, they also committed a hate crime. Their words ... were directed against a specific individual of a certain sexual orientation.'

Bianchi would not comment on the exact wording of the flier because it is evidence. However, other sources quote those who have viewed the flier as containing a picture of the male student kissing another male, with the wording 'God hates fags.'

The hate crimes charges were dropped because the two girls pleaded to lesser charges. For Porter to attempt to make them poster children for "gay oppression" is beyond the pale.

I'm more concerned about the target of their vendetta.

If Porter was any type of Christian, she would have been too instead of attempting to distort the case to suit her agenda.