NOM's ability to lie becoming a sad parody

Maggie Gallagher

Remember a certain moment in February 2012 when the National Organization for Marriage's Maggie Gallagher was interviewed on Up With Chris Hayes?

It was a contentious interview, by the way, punctuated by Gallagher accusing commentators from the show of "making up" facts to use against her and NOM, particularly when it comes to "reparative therapy," or the practice of trying to change the sexual orientation of lgbtqs:

Well, I've never advocated for gay reparative therapy, and the National Organization for Marriage does not. We focus on fighting for laws that define marriage as the union between a man and a woman.

Someone should ask Gallagher about a certain post on NOM's blog which appeared on Friday:

New California Law Would Forbid Professionals from Helping Teens with Unwanted Same-Sex Attraction

Parents and/or teens' wishes notwithstanding:

An unusual assortment of groups are beginning to express alarm over a bill moving through the California legislature that has sweeping implications for both free speech and family rights.

Brad Dacus, president of Pacific Justice Institute, is not mincing words. "I can honestly say this is one of the most outrageous, speech-chilling bills we have ever seen in California-and that's saying a lot," he said.

The main purpose of the bill, SB 1172, is to limit the ability of psychologists, therapists and other counselors to assist adult or minor clients with sexual orientation change efforts (SOCE). SB 1172 flatly bans SOCE for minors-regardless of the parents' or minors' wishes-and requires a new consent form for adults containing statements about sexual orientation that many counselors would dispute. The bill then creates significant liability for professionals who proceed with SOCE. -- Pacific Justice Institute press release

The actual story, by the way, has to do with a proposed California law which would outlaw reparative therapy for those under 18-years-of-age. Reparative therapy, while popular amongst many religious institutions, is frowned upon by mental and medical associations such as the American Medical Association, the American Psychological Association, the American Psychiatric Association, the National Association of Social Workers, the American Counseling Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.

And the added kicker - while seemingly insignificant - is that while NOM copied a press release from the right-wing Pacific Justice Institute, the organization actually had the temerity to change the headline.

Original headline - Bill Seeks to Limit Counseling Against Gay Attraction; Are Parents Next Target?

NOM's headline - New California Law Would Forbid Professionals from Helping Teens with Unwanted Same-Sex Attraction

And  the comments section of this particular blog post is an especial hoot. It is common knowledge that NOM bans certain folks - myself included - from posting comments on its blog because the organization can't handle being called out on its lies and also wants to push the false idea that it has a lot of support.

However, I have stopped getting angry at this because the comments the organization generally does allow - usually from the same people who go by the nicknames of OvercameSSA, Barb Chamberlan, Randy E King, Son of Adam, Daughter of Eve, and Ash.

One wonders if they are actually employees of NOM. The subject has certainly come up.

But every now and then, NOM lets through a comment from an outsider which is simultaneously pitiful and hilarious:

Wow for a people that profess to be "Gay" there is a lot of anger from them toward those that don’t want to have SSA. Conversion therapy does have some success and if it helps just a few people cope with their same sex attraction and help them feel better about themselves then why would you deny it as an alternative.

I am bisexual and live a straight life I am married and love my wife and family. I am faithful to my wife and do not practice any gay lifestyle. I have lived in the gay lifestyle in the past and found that for the most part people are miserable being gay. They flock to the youth and shun the elderly.

Older gay men usually lead very lonely lives. That is why they want to have legally binding agreements like marriage so that they will not have to be alone when they get old. They long for the stability of marriage, but Gays really are incapable of being completely monogamous. Every gay couple I know has at least one partner who is only pretending to be monogamous. It is in the nature of a dominate gay to want more than one partner.

Forgive my being blunt and using language that might offend others but a gay guy (in a stable monogamous relationship) said to me once that "every man is a bottom after 5 beers."

They truly believe that they can seduce any man into being gay. This gay guy that said this to me was in a bar trying to pick me up. And since gay men refuse to accept that men can be bisexual I guess if they can get a man to have anal sex they prove their point.

I left that lifestyle and never looked back I do not miss it and do not desire it. Do I have same sex attraction? Yes I do, I just don't struggle with it I accept that part of me and let it go. I do not indulge it. I accept that I am attracted to a man and then move on to something else much in the same way a man who is attracted to a woman, he appreciates that he finds her attractive and then thinks about something else. It is not a major distraction for me and my wife knows all about me.

She appreciates that she alone has my affections, and that she of all women in the world is the only one that can turn me on.

With all due respect, I'm sure your wife appreciates that private detective she most likely hired to follow you when you are not in her presence.