A family-owned pizza parlor is causing a media stir after
reportedly becoming the first business to publicly vow to reject gay weddings in the wake of Indiana's controversial
Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
The owners of Memories Pizza in Walkerton said theirs is a "Christian establishment" and that they agree with
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, who has come under fire after signing the bill, which allows business owners to cite religious beliefs as a defense when sued by a private party, ABC 57 reported.
“
That lifestyle is something they choose. I choose to be heterosexual," Kevin O'Connor told the news station. "They choose to be homosexual. Why should I be beat over the head to go along with something they choose?”
O'Connor's daughter Crystal said she didn't think that the bill was "targeting gays," adding, "It's supposed to help people that have a religious belief."
In a separate interview with The Daily Beast, O'Connor clarified that although he doesn't "
have a problem with gay people," he does not condone same-sex marriage. Although he wouldn't cater to a same-sex wedding, he wouldn't turn anyone away from the shop itself.
“I mean, we don’t believe in murder. I also don’t believe in abortion,” he added.
More:
Indiana's Memories Pizza Reportedly Becomes First Business To Reject Catering Gay Weddings
It's sad to watch religious bigots expose themselves.
This may surprise some Righties, but I am a little conflicted about this. I see both sides.
On the one side, there is the commerce clause to the Constitution of the United States of America, upon which the public commerce laws are built.
But then there is a somewhat libertarian side of me that says "meh, ok, let the guy be an asshole", because I bet that at the end of the day, his business will suffer massive losses once enough people catch wind of what he is doing. And then he will scratch his head and wonder why people aren't coming to his pizza place anymore.
So, you know, if the jerk wants to shoot himself in the foot, why should I stop him?
And although this is indeed truly insulting to gay folks, not being able to get a pizza at his place is not going to cause them to starve and who knows, maybe one of the places that delivers to that bigoted pizza place may decide to cancel their contract with him. Maybe one of his delivery services is run and owned by gay people who will just say, "well, ok, we don't need his business, screw him". And so the cycle of the wonderful, truly free market goes onward.
Do I think it is totally stupid that a "Christian" business owner would want to cut off his own nose to spite his face? Well, yeah, I think it's stupid. But in a way, I support his desire to be stupid, because if it means that his business goes belly-up with time and he ends up on the street, well then, that's his problem as well. That's the moral side of it.
But right now, on the legal side, federal law says he
should serve everyone.
I do think that most people are having problems differentiating is the legal vs. the moral side of all of this.
And for this, because he explanations are the best in all of USMB, I am asking
C_Clayton_Jones to once again explain the legal side of this, very slowly, to frothers who have forgotten that we are a land of laws.
Thanks, Clayton!
