Discussion: Michael Sam Signed By Dallas Cowboys To Practice Squad

TPM Article Topics
21

Good For Dallas as a poster mentioned good for Michael and Jerry Jones as much as I hate them Cowboys,Nice move.

22

Please do not put words in my mouth. I never said there weren’t LGBTs in the state. There are. I lived in Dallas for a number of years. However, that, in no way means the state is tolerant. Not even the major urban areas (where the majority of LGBT Texans live) are totally accepting. As someone who was beaten and attacked because I was gay (and the police refused to do anything about it even though I saw one of the attackers a few minutes after while I was in the presence of a police officer), I can say that with complete confidence.

This is also a state where a man was up on murder charges for killing a gay man (the defendant stated that was the reason for the killing) let the man go stating that the gay man got what he deserved.

Finally, in 2012, anti-gay hate crimes reached a 5 year high – a 16% increase.

So, why do you put away your Texans-are-all-loving-and-accepting broad brush away and face the reality that LGBT people in Texas live in peril. Then tell me with a “straight” face that Sam shouldn’t worry about his safety.

23

This is a story for the sports pages. It does not belong at TPM.

24

Interesting - when you made post after post on the airline legroom thread, not once did you mention the fact that a business story had no place on TPM.

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25

Please do not put words in my mouth. I never said “all Texans were troglodytes.” It doesn’t take “all Texans.” It just takes a few (or even one) with animus toward gays to do harm. And there are more than enough Texans who fit that description. Also, see my reply to jw1 for some other information which supports my thesis.

While there may be “huge communities” in certain locations, that does not mean that acceptance and tolerance has been reached. Nor does it mean that people in those “huge communities” aren’t in danger.

26

Sorry but your analogy is way off. That was a story about plane travel and the comments, mine and others, reflected that. Mr. Sam is a football player. Many other young men made teams or were released. There were few headline about them and certainly none that merited a comment on TPM.

27

Yet here you are, scrolling down to read comments and to bloviate on your own—on a subject you don’t believe belongs here.

Tell us—when did you buy TPM from Josh, allowing you to decide which stories belong and which ones do not?

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28

Yes, I know of Ms. Parker and Ms. Valdez (whom I happen to know personally). This does not mean the entirety of the cities of Dallas and Houston are accepting of gays. It’s a false equivalency. It’s like saying racism disappeared when Obama got elected. It didn’t. And neither did the anti-gay animus in Texas. The fact is LGBT people in Texas still face danger.

In February of this year, a Ft Worth man was beaten in his home and then bound and put in the trunk of a car after connecting with a man through a gay dating app. He spent 10 days in the hospital with head and facial fractures. The assailant stated he did it because the man was gay.

You also have to factor in that hate crimes in Texas are under-reported.

Texas’ James Byrd Hate Crimes law puts the responsibility for enforcement and training on the Attorney General (Greg Abbott – likely to be the state’s next governor). If you look on the AG’s website, hate crimes aren’t even mentioned. Mr. Abbott has also taken great care to align himself with extremely anti-gay groups.

Further, Texas (specifically the Texas Dept of Public Safety) missed the deadline for reporting its hate crimes to the FBI so it’s difficult to say where they stand nationally and there are many localities in Texas that simply do not report hate crimes to the TDPS.

All of this does not paint a picture of Texas (even the parts you claim are “tolerant”) which is anywhere near tolerant or safe for LGBT to live.

I stand by my statement that I fear for Mr. Sam’s safetly.

29

I’ll give you a ‘heart’ for effort.
Because I’m an old Dolphin fan who grew up in Miami during Don Shula and the 'Fins heyday.

And I saw Coach Shula forced out in much the same manner as Landry.
I’ve always despised the Clownboys-- except when Jimmy Johnson was their coach-- as I’m a U of M fan as well.

Johnson didn’t fire Landry-- it was the ham-handed Jones-- so don’t go pissing on Johnson-- who retooled a horrible and aged Clownboy team in 1989 to Super Bowl winners in just 3 years.

At least get the story-- and the credit for the successes right.

jw1

30

I rest my case:


http://www.fwweekly.com/2014/09/04/thousands-to-protest-cowboys-michael-sam/ – NOTE: the FWWeekly article states that American Decency claims 1 million members in Texas alone.

31

I rest my case:


http://www.fwweekly.com/2014/09/04/thousands-to-protest-cowboys-michael-sam/ – NOTE:  the FWWeekly article states that American Decency claims 1 million members in Texas alone.