Will Congress ban gays from the NFL?

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Well, it's come to this:

Washington lobbyist Jack Burkman on Monday said he is preparing legislation that would ban gay athletes from joining the National Football League.

Burkman in a statement said he has garnered political support for the bill, though his statement didn't mention any specific lawmakers who are behind it.

"We are losing our decency as a nation," Burkman said in a statement. "Imagine your son being forced to shower with a gay man. That's a horrifying prospect for every mom in the country. What in the world has this nation come to?"

Burkman said he came up with the idea after college football star Michael Sam publicly revealed he is gay a few weeks ago. If drafted, Sam would be the first openly gay player in the NFL...

"If the NFL has no morals and no values, then Congress must find values for it," Burkman said.

You know what, I really hope this ends up being debated in Congress and put to a vote. Let's find out who's for it. Let's force Republicans to vote their bigotry or cower in fear of political retribution. And let's not just hear from politicians but from, well, everyone, including conservatives who side with Burkman. Everyone should take a side so that we know exactly who the bigots are, who the hateful homophobes are -- with sitting on the fence counting as siding with the bigots and homophobes, no excuses allowed.

This guy is clearly, and has a long record of being, a right-wing piece of shit. But let him have his day. Let him expose himself in full public glare for what he truly is, and let all those who agree with him to raise their arms so that we may condemn them to the extremist fringe and their views to the dustbin of history.