Iowa Conservatives & GOP Politics

[Psyche2011]

I am sorry PA, you have lost me. Gay marriage, DADT, etc. are all about public activities.

Actually, the issue of gays in the military and same-sex marriage are civil issues. Because they're not allowed, for no particular reason other than bigotry, this is considered "institutionalized discrimination". That is, a large organization discriminates people based on one particular trait that isn't considered a hindrance of any kind, which is basically an attempt to homogenize the institution itself, so it does interfere with personal liberties. Marriage and military service are, in fact, public activities, but DADT and gay marriage are political hot buttons for the parties. Basically, the US right-wing (Republicans) is notoriously anti-gay, because it's the conservative faction. To galvanize them, paint homosexuality in a negative light, and do everything you can to oppose them, and you've got them right under your thumb. The US left-wing (Democrats), the more liberal faction, is actually not so cut-and-dry; basically, if you actively pursue what the public wants (e.g. gays in the military), then you'll be "safe". That's probably why not many Democrats openly support gay marriage, because they're afraid of putting people off. For gay people in the US, most Republicans are wolves, and most Democrats are wolves in sheep clothing, even though you're better off going Democratic, because they're the only ones who would get anything done for us in the first place. There is a lot of gray area in between, but in regards to social issues, this is a pretty certain rule of thumb.
I'm just saying that these parties seem to be using LGBT issues as political Red Herrings; that is, they only bring up issues that affect LGBT when they're under pressure from something else in order to take attention away from the more pressing matter which, in a way, diminishes the importance of these issues.