Invert rugby player: Hero?

September 13, 2001 8:09 PM

Invert rugby player: Hero? Diversity is powerful: A passenger on the Pennsylvania plane who may have stormed the terrorists, Mark Bingham, was a 6'5" rugby player. A gay 6'5" rugby player. Hey, you never know who your friends are. Likely new contender for Toughest Sissy on the Planet status.
posted by joeclark (14 comments total)

Why does his sexuality, size, or occupation make any difference? If he had the courage to confront the terrorists and perhaps crash the plane rather than blowing up the White House, then our entire country owes him endless thank-yous. Being gay does not make you a sissy. This could have been anyone -- a more deserving title would be, "Bravest Hero on the Planet".
posted by bloggboy at 8:16 PM on September 13, 2001

blogg: I think he was being ironical. And Jerry Falwell said on the 700 Club this morning that part of the blame for the disaster can be placed on gays and lesbians. If a gay man may have stormed the terrorists, then, people should know he was gay.
posted by raysmj at 8:21 PM on September 13, 2001

joeclark - though i'm glad i got to read those articles you linked to, the way you presented them seems grossly disrespectful, whether you meant it to be ironic or not. this man is dead now, along with thousands upon thousands of others, and your saying he should be a contender for Toughest Sissy on the Planet. not only does your presentation ring of homophobia in general, it also rings of disrespect and insensitivity for Mark Bingham's fate, the plight of his family and friends, and the tragedy in general. i hope you didn't mean it to come off that way, but either way, it's jarring and disturbing.
posted by surblimity at 8:27 PM on September 13, 2001

And Jerry Falwell said on the 700 Club this morning that part of the blame for the disaster can be placed on gays and lesbians.

PLEASE tell me that you made that up. You did, right?
posted by rushmc at 8:27 PM on September 13, 2001

Why is Jerry Falwell so out there? Doesn't he have "God's Instruction Book"?

It is that kind misdirected religious fanaticism that got us here.
posted by hotdoughnutsnow at 8:33 PM on September 13, 2001

And Jerry Falwell said on the 700 Club this morning that part of the blame for the disaster can be placed on gays and lesbians.

The only blame they *might* shoulder would be being American. He should blame himself, too.
posted by Hackworth at 8:33 PM on September 13, 2001

Jerry Falwell is a misguided fool. IMOO
posted by bjgeiger at 8:37 PM on September 13, 2001

No, I'm just big on celebrating the lives of the deceased. We do this a lot in the Maritimes, what with the Irish black humour, which makes up a large part of the invert sensibility. We can't bring him back, and we all have our ways of venerating the dead. Your mileage may vary; feel free to act melodramatic, overwrought, and weepy, while I do it my way.

Two other articles, BTW: first, second.
posted by joeclark at 8:49 PM on September 13, 2001

Your reassurances are, well, reassuring, joeclark. I've been overwrought for the past 3 days - please understand that dry humor isn't penetrating my stunned skull right now.
posted by surblimity at 8:59 PM on September 13, 2001

rushmc: No, not a joke. The full list of those Falwell thinks shares part of the blame for the disaster are: abortionists, pagans, gays and lesbians, People for the American Way and the ACLU. You can find the full streaming hate presentation here at the CBN web site. Unfathomable. (The Falwell interview starts about three fourths of the way through "Today's 700 Club," on RealAudio. Wish there were a way to get there faster, but that's beyond my level of technical prowess.)
posted by raysmj at 9:01 PM on September 13, 2001

rushmc: Oh, forgot Falwell had feminists in his list of the guilty as well ("I point my finger at you, and . . . !").
posted by raysmj at 9:09 PM on September 13, 2001

Can sombody point me to the intrinsic differences between Falwell and bin Laden?
posted by crasspastor at 9:12 PM on September 13, 2001

My god there are a lot of sick assholes in the world. And many of them posting here in Metafilter. Some of you guys are fucking sick and wrong.
posted by Logboy at 11:23 PM on September 16, 2001