On the process of reforming cherished beliefs, reinforced by NOM-induced anxiety, fear, and intimidation:
I am trying to discern why someone would want to hide their opinion, and in this case, a strong enough opinion that would compel him (or her) to sign a petition [required by law] that would potentially deny a sizable segment of Americans a right that all heterosexual Americans possess.
I know that when I want to hide an opinion, it is because it think that it will cost me something, either my reputation, or a friendship, or I will lose a work opportunity. And then, there is the specter of shame...and the cost of finding that I am not the person I want to be. No one wants to discover that they are a bigot, that they hold opinions that they can only seek to justify through flimsy religious basis, or by simply decrying "it just ain't right."
-MMcShane, Dallas on NYT blog
I know that when I want to hide an opinion, it is because it think that it will cost me something, either my reputation, or a friendship, or I will lose a work opportunity. And then, there is the specter of shame...and the cost of finding that I am not the person I want to be. No one wants to discover that they are a bigot, that they hold opinions that they can only seek to justify through flimsy religious basis, or by simply decrying "it just ain't right."
-MMcShane, Dallas on NYT blog
Compare:
Like everyone, my political and ethical views have evolved over time. From a somewhat racialist milieu in rural Louisiana, I consciously rejected racism when I was in my young teens. From a devout Catholic youth I became a secularist and freethinker at a fairly young age. From libertarian-conservative hawkish Reaganism at 18, I quickly became a die-hard libertarian minarchist, then an anarchist. ...
...
And so it is with gay marriage. My views evolved from mild ambivalence and recommendation of civil unions (see ...) to an increasingly pro-gay marriage position (Second Thoughts on Gay Marriage, Nov. 2006). And it’s become even clearer to me now; I’m no longer reluctant.
Not only should libertarians support gay marriage, but of course they should.
From The Libertarian Case for Gay Marriage, Kinsella
...
And so it is with gay marriage. My views evolved from mild ambivalence and recommendation of civil unions (see ...) to an increasingly pro-gay marriage position (Second Thoughts on Gay Marriage, Nov. 2006). And it’s become even clearer to me now; I’m no longer reluctant.
Not only should libertarians support gay marriage, but of course they should.
From The Libertarian Case for Gay Marriage, Kinsella
