Lee-- You have nothing to regret. That was suicide by cop if I ever saw one. I hope that if FT comes back, he gets a grip on the idea that treating us all like a bunch of hateful primitives because we don't buy his interpretation of Scripture is not going to get him anywhere. And just to make it clear, I don't think Gina was being harsh at all.

Lee. Great thoughts. It is rather ironic that those who say marriage is not necessary spoon-feed it to audiences for a living. There is an undeniable true reality, when she decides to get married rather than giving a different explanation. I am grateful for the irony, rather than a force to re-write the rules of creation. :)

(Chris, I think it was Stalin who said "Shoot one, educate many." However, it's one thing to take someone out unannounced, and quite another to deliver repeated warnings - interlaced with pleas from fellow commenters - and finally follow through. Nevertheless, I'll bet it's one of the lousier aspects of Gina's employment, and I truly feel sorry for her and sorry it came to this. I'm even conflicted about my remark to you, which was in no wise intended as "piling on" but FT perceived it as such. Sigh.) And we can see the glass as half full: Hollywood is unintentionally convicting Hollywood of its own sins. Gotta love the irony. I think I'll go ponder what it is about marriage that makes everyone suddenly want it, after decades of rejecting it. Not that long ago we heard "We don't need to be married to love each other" along with "I don't need to go to church to worship God" and similar folly. Is it pure pragmatism, or is it as Gina indicates that God calls people to Himself through any means that works, including tugging at a mother's heartstrings? Or put another way, why didn't Angie just tell her kids that marriage is for fairy tales, not real life?

Gina, remind me not to mess with you! I hope this isn't off-topic...if it is, just don't print it, lest I incure your wrath. :-) I always find it interesting when someone (especially a Christian) defends a behavior by noting how many people are involved in it. It's possible that Ms. Jolie used some version of it to mollify her kids..."Well, lots of mommies and daddies aren't married", etc. Yet, I'm pretty sure there are more guys who look at women lustfully in their hearts on a regular basis than there are adoptive gay parents, so maybe we should just stop saying that's wrong. Same thing with the number of men who use porn, or the number of heterosexual couples having sex before marriage. Perhaps then, we can just stop objecting to that sort of thing, even though it's condemned in the Bible and by 2,000 years of church teaching. And perhaps we can even say anyone who says we should talk about them is a bad person, or ignorant or a heretic. Or, we could do our Father's work on this Earth, and speak the truth of the Gospel of grace to the lost and saved, to the gays and straights, to everyone we can as Jesus commanded us, and do it from the Holy and perfect Word he left us as our guide. After all, 100% of the population in Nineveh was messing up before Jonah hit town. Imagine if the standard then had been "Well, there are lots of people doing it, so it must be OK."

As you wish. You may appeal the suspension in one month. http://thepoint.breakpoint.org/comment-policy.html

Let's see Gina, Off topic comments are counted as (n) On-topic *n* Brian started out by asking about gay parenting. (1) I answered (2) Chris Clukey responded, twice (4) Zoe said original post was good. *1* LeeQuod piles on (5) FriarThom adds stats (6) So this post received 6 off-topic comments and 1 on-topic, but I was singled out for a warning. Go ahead and suspend me. It would only confirm your bias and it would deprive Steve, Chris and LeeQuod of their cat toy. It was a short sweet love affair. All good things must come to an end.

Consider this your one warning before suspension.

lalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalalala

Brian-- It wouldn't occur to most homosexual couples raising children, but the truthful answer to the question would sound something like this: "Well, my dear child, most Americans still realize that gay marriage makes about as much sense as strapping a bottle rocket to a hatbox and calling it the Space Shuttle Discovery."

FriarThom-- Glad to see you back. I thought you had left in a huff, but apparently you left on a boomerang. Consider this: If one was teaching false doctrine (knowingly or unknowingly), and someone called what you were pushing false doctrine, would you say... "Wow, it turns out that is false. I'll stop preaching it immediately. Thanks for getting me off the wrong track." ...or something like... "Of course you say my teachings are false, that's a very convenient way to get around the truth"er pushing something Seems to me any false teacher pushing anything actually dangerous would brand his critics as hater or heretics, and maybe even tell them that even discussing the concept is an example of their benighted ignorance. Bottom line: There's not an iota of evidence in the Bible or early church teachings (or pretty much any teachings up until people's ears starting itching in the last part of the 20th Century) that indicates homosexual practice is consistent with Christianity, married or not. When you show me some, I'll be glad to comment, but I suspect what I'll see is *you* plugging your ears and saying lalalalalalalalalalalala.....

Chris wrote: "[...] strapping a bottle rocket to a hatbox [...]". Sidesplit!

Hey, good post. I'm working on turning it into a script for the radio!

Brian, Try this: close your eyes put your fingers in your ears say lalalalalalalalalalalalala..... poof! There are no "children of gay parents". The existence of such children would violate the "theory of 'God's Design'". We shall not engage in debate about THAT theory...there's a very convenient Biblical passage about "false teachers". It's a sort of fail safe that can be used when all else fails.

Brad and Angelina have said they were not seeking civil marriage out of respect for their gay friends who are barred from it. I'm certainly not slighting them for reconsidering! It's too bad that many children of gay parents around the country are asking the same question: Why aren't you?

Brian, If a child's questions are based off what they see in cartoons, a child of a gay couple might be more prone to ask: "Why are Shrek and Fiona a different sex and you're not?" or "Where is my mommy [or daddy]?" (Thanks to FriarThom for pointing out a surprise [*wink*]: homosexual couples cannot bear children together.) Of course, while we're on the subject, who's living in a fairy tale Brangelina? "In reality my life is a lot more chaotic and adventurous now. Brad [Pitt] and I pilot airplanes, we travel non-stop, we go to difficult places and we have chosen to do it taking all of the kids with us," said the mother of six. "I feel a lot braver now than when I was an angry young woman." Good for her. Most people are just afraid. That's why they don't take their 6 children on their self-piloted globe-trots. And this is great: "That curiosity about the world is a value she wants her kids to maintain throughout their lives. "I want them to be able to walk through a marketplace in Adis Ababa and not bat and [sic] eye, not think it is dirty and ugly, but that it just represents another part of the world and humanity."" I understand that there are different cultures. Great. I've walked through marketplaces in Africa. Colorful places. Exotic. Entrepreneurial. Now walk down the street through the gutter of filth piled with garbage. Who needs sewers or clean water? Kids, on our globe trotting, stick to the representational places. Don't share your bottled water with those people. They hate our jetsetting lifestyle. That's humanity.

http://adoption.about.com/od/gaylesbian/f/gayparents.htm Question: How Many Children Have Gay Parents in the US? Answer: # There were an estimated 300,000 to 500,000 gay and lesbian biological parents in 1976. # In 1990, an estimated 6 to 14 million children have a gay or lesbian parent. # Between 8 and 10 million children are being raised in a gay and lesbian households. Latest statistics from the U.S. Census 2000, the National Survey of Family Growth (2002), and the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (2004) include: * An estimated two million GLB people are interested in adopting. * An estimated 65,500 adopted children are living with a lesbian or gay parent. * More than 16,000 adopted children are living with lesbian and gay parents in California, the highest number among the states. * Gay and lesbian parents are raising four percent of all adopted children in the United States. * Adopted children with same-sex parents are younger and more likely to be foreign born.

FriarThom, no one has disputed the fact that there are gay parents in the United States. Keep your comments relevant and to the point, please.