An apology from Rick Munroe

[Rick Munroe]

I just posted this in shorter form on another thread, but just in case it gets lost in the shuffle, I thought I'd repost it & expand here.

 

I sincerely apologize if I offended anyone (and I'm sure I did) in my Republican-bashing posts of late; that is just not me to use name-calling or to be such a...well, an asshole. My most recent post (and I should have waited to post it) came after a disturbing phone call I received late last night from someone I've never met but who, I guess, feels he knows me from my posts here. He said that he felt that gay men like me should just shut up about politics in general; & that maybe things would be better off if "the gays" didn't come out of the closet so "loudly." My post was actually intended at that one person...who hung up on me before I could say anything.

 

In any case...I still uphold my belief that we all have the right to think & choose as we wish without others passing judgment...and if it seemed like lately, I was thinking otherwise, it isn't true. The reason I'd never live anywhere else but in the U.S. is the very fact that we do have the right to think & speak what we want, and I still respect anyone who thinks differently from me. I've also been learning from the posts written here by Republicans...there are two sides (duh) to every issue and I was allowing myself to feed into the fear that was being offered to me in emails I received from certain groups (like People for the American Way), and yes, I'm ashamed to admit, from Barbra Streisand's website. I can't really say that I'm a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat (I don't blindly vote according to party; I vote according to issues); for example, I was disgusted when Clinton signed the Defense of Marriage Act. Derek and I got married (or "unionized") in Vermont last year, and the thought of it never being recognized is something that angers me. The number one issue that was concerning me recently (and still concerns me) was the fear of an ultra-conservative Supreme Court.

 

And no, this was not "damage control" or backtracking. I hope to continue to learn from everything I read here, and from clients I meet (closeted, conservative, etc) who lead very different lives from mine. I sincerely, in my entire life, have never wanted to offend to hurt anyone. That's one reason I enjoy what I do...putting a smile on someone's face is what it's all about for me. Well...that, and doing some other things with my mouth. }>

[Guest elwood]

Rick,

Sorry to see an apology from you because of recent postings here regarding politics. In my view, you have absolutely nothing for which to apologize. And the timing is unfortunate because it makes it appear that the apology comes in light of Republican victories.

I am well aware of the large number of clients who are Republican, I mean thats where there is a lot of money.... but really there is no need to grovel.

[+ Axiom2001]

Rick, I know you don't like fem terms used, but I HAVE to say: Honey, you DO NOT HAVE to apology for your thread of two weeks ago. It was quite relevant. We're in a precarious and scary situation based on what happened at the polls in our many states yesterday. Will any progressive legislation get passed in Congress within the next two or more years? I only hope.

[KY_TOP]

This is America, and no one should have to apologize for expressing their views. Politics is always an emotional issue especially if we strongly believe in something. Were would we be if we believed in Nothing?

None the less your apology shows you are a Class Act.

[ValleyDwellerNorth]

Rick,

 

It was a pleasure to read your post. It is sad you received such a phone call. It is also sad that the person who called you has fear and confusion and instead of self-educating he chose to react out of confusion with his own emotions. When we deal with the psychological principle of diffusion the person, or object, that gets the anger usually had nothing to do with the ignition of the aggressor's feelings. You were a whipping post for no reason.

 

>Way), and yes, I'm ashamed to admit, from Barbra Streisand's

>website. I can't really say that I'm a dyed-in-the-wool

 

Dearest Rick ..... PLEASE get your info from other places OTHER than this source! Though I love Star Trek, Wonder Woman and Ab Fab I don't go to those sites for political info.

 

Thank you for sharing and, once again, you remind us all of something that tends to be forgotten from time to time .... I may dislike the fact my best friend is a member of the NRA, loves Metallica and thinks Jesse Helms is "rad" but I LOVE the fact I live in a country where people, ideally, can say they have these beliefs and not be burned. Granted, we live in a country with so many hate groups and speaking "out" can, at times, cause physical harm. Nonetheless, I still love this country.

 

THANKS AGAIN RICK!!!!!:*

[Gigiloz4me]

.... "I apologize BUT..."

[Chuck50]

I still love you Rick and I am sure many others do as well. What did you say about your ASS???? Hugs Chuck

[Rick Munroe]

No, no, no. I was/am not apologizing for expressing my views, and I certainly was/am not groveling. I thought I made that clear. I was apologizing for the strong words I used...in particular, the post where I said that "any gay man, out or closeted, who voted Republican is an asshole." That is not my style to resort to name-calling. By apologizing, I wanted to make it clear that I was not intending to bash anyone for having opinions that are different from mine. I stand proudly by my posts of the past week...my intention was to start discussions & get people to think & to vote. My intention was not to put anyone down. Kapeesh? :*

[Guest ncm2169]

"My intention was not to put anyone down."

 

Damn.

 

Will you consider an exception and "put me down" for a date when I get to NYC? :+

[Rick Munroe]

>Will you consider an exception and "put me down" for a date

>when I get to NYC? :+

 

You got it. Btw, I liked your "Concession and Congratulations" post. Very classy. :-)

[Guest in yer face]

Other than the fact that talking about politics with prospective clients is like shitting where you eat, why are you apologizing? Eveything you had to say made sense, if these guys didnt like it, well BFD.

 

Now if you are worried that posting your personal opinions under your working alias will cause a problem with your clientel, then you are probably right.

 

The escorts that post here are just providing free entertainment for these guys. When an escort gets wrapped in a heated discussion, its like watching Survivor. Only its the escorts rep and income at stake, while these old farts with nothing too lose sit back and watch the revelry. Occasionally youll see one crash and burn, and its quite the (free) spectacle.

 

Not that I think escorts should not post here, but I would never expect to have any kind of meaningful dialouge with a group of anonymous bitches that have nothing to lose while you are a)not anonymous and b)at the possible financial mercy of their opinons.

 

Just my 2 cents.

[Rick Munroe]

>why are

>you apologizing?

 

See post #7 above.

[chrismac]

I openly and wholeheartedly supported Bonnie Dumanis' bid for the job of District Attorney in San Diego. She is a gay woman and a Republican, and very much a supporter locally of gay rights. So it's not wise to paint with a broad brush. Like Rick, I vote on the issues and individuals, not by party. And I find I vote more often, in liberal California, for Republicans than Democrats. But I certainly don't support any candidates or politicians who advocate any discriminatory attitudes towards gays, including the issue of not recognizing gay marriage as legal.

 

But then again, I'm not a registered Republican. I do appreciate the right to own a gun, however. As long as they let ANYONE have one - I sure as hell want the right to have one. I don't own a gun currently - but it's good to know I can get one if I feel the threat to myself and home are real.

 

I'm sure not many African-Americans in Alabama voted for Wallace (a Democrat) back in the '60's. Things change over time. Pity that the right-wing religious fanatics have such a voice in the Republican Party. But the pendulum perpetually swings.

 

Good job Rick on apologizing for the name-calling. You're a great guy for setting that right. And to the folks who honestly think that anyone who ever votes Republican really is an asshole - better reconsider the notion of "tolerance" vs. "fanaticism" themselves.

[trilingual]

You have nothing whatsoever to apologize about. As for "Gay Republicans," they may or not be assholes, but they sure are oxymorons.

 

>The reason I'd never live anywhere else but in the U.S. is the very fact that we do have the right to think & speak what we want

 

News flash: Free thought and speech aren't unique to the U.S. They're basic features of any modern democratic state. Most of which, I might point out, aren't in any danger of being taken over by fundamentalist fascists. I really despair of Americans ever getting past this kind of "God's country" mentality and realizing that there are lots of other good places to live on this planet, many of which could teach us a great deal about tolerance, good government and civic responsibility.

 

We may still have the right of free speech (at least until it's squelched by the Bush/Asscroft/Rumsfeld/Cheney cabal in the name of protecting the all-sacred "national security") but what else does the U.S. have to offer to the world lately as an example to emulate? Our corrupt corporate culture? Our sickly economy? Our isolationism? Our rampant power-hunger and greed? Our reliability when it comes to honoring treaties? Our bought-and-paid-for Supreme Court (a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bush Sr. & Co.)? Our religious fanaticism? Our indifference to poverty and suffering at home and abroad? Our ever-yawning gap between rich and poor? Our commitment to preserving the environment of the planet we all live on? Our crime and gun-ridden cities? The way we treat our elderly and sick?

 

Earth to America: Go to Starbucks and smell the coffee! Most other Western democracies have confronted these issues, dealt with them, moved forward and surpassed us in quality of life measurements. This doesn't mean they're all flawless, but we're becoming a real standout for our staggering self-absorption and callousness. Not to mention our boundless ability to delude ourselves, as embodied in proclamations like "I'd never live anywhere else but the U.S. because here we have the freedom to think and speak what we want!"

 

Personally, I think there's little hope for the U.S. until Americans can cast aside our blinders and see ourselves for what we've become. Only then is there any hope that we'll realize how far short we've fallen from the values and aspirations of the founders of the country, and put ourselves back on a road that might truly lead us towards achieving their vision of a free, equal and just society.

[Rick Munroe]

>News flash: Free thought and speech aren't unique to the

>U.S. They're basic features of any modern democratic state.

 

OK, I should have said that it was one reason I'd never live anywhere else. It certainly isn't the reason. And I didn't mean to say "the U.S." either...I should have only said NYC. I'd never live anywhere else (don't quote me on this when I'm old & want to move to Florida like my parents, please).

 

>but what else does the U.S. have to offer to the world

>lately as an example to emulate?

 

I think we produce some pretty darn good TV shows (American Idol, notwithstanding).

[trilingual]

>I think we produce some pretty darn good TV shows

 

This is true. Like "The West Wing." Where's President Bartlett when we really NEED him? :'(

[Guest Bitchboy]

Passion is an emotion that needs no apology.:-)

[Will]

Rick, I admire you more than ever, and that's saying a lot. Those of us who feel passionately about the ways in which people try to live with each other, i.e., politics, will sometimes cross the line of civility. When that happens, the most dignified possible next step is to acknowledge that and to ask pardon from the persons one has offended. Whether they actually feel offended is not the point. The point is to behave like a responsible adult, and that is exactly what you did.

 

By the way, from your post I did not discern that you were apologizing for your views or for the depths at which you hold them. Feelings are feelings and they are not subject to moral appraisal. What is subject to moral appraisal is what we do with our feelings. That's where the rational faculties are supposed to tune in, and why we make known our political views through voting rather than through mob action.

 

Like Trilingual, I was sorry that you seemed to equate life in the U.S. with freedom of expression. There is in fact far less freedom of expression (de jure as well as de facto) in the United States than in the democratic nations of Western Europe. Furthermore, if a person feels that the only place to live in this whole vast country is New York City -- by which most people mean not only a single place, but a single borough of five, a borough surrounded by water, but only one part of that burrough surrounded by water, and a small part at that -- then I don't think that says very much for the rest of the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.

 

Don't get me wrong: Manhattan below 110th Street but above Battery Park is my address of choice. It happens that I don't have my choice, but because of it I have learned how to be happy in a place that I had to look up on a map before I moved to.

 

You've got balls, Rick Munroe, and in ALL the right places!

[Rick Munroe]

>Like Trilingual, I was sorry that you seemed to equate life

>in the U.S. with freedom of expression. There is in fact

>far less freedom of expression (de jure as well as de facto)

>in the United States than in the democratic nations of

>Western Europe.

 

Hey, I stand corrected. Never let it be said that I pigheaded stand behind every comment I make. When we stop learning & being open to new ideas, we stop living. (<---did I really just say that?) Btw, all this talk about de jure has got me hungry for some soup.

 

>Furthermore, if a person feels that the

>only place to live in this whole vast country is New York

>City -- by which most people mean not only a single place,

>but a single borough of five, a borough surrounded by water,

>but only one part of that burrough surrounded by water, and

>a small part at that -- then I don't think that says very

>much for the rest of the Land of the Free and the Home of

>the Brave.

 

Now, that comment I do stand by. I love to travel but NYC (and yes, I did just mean Manhattan) is the center of the universe (aren't we New Yorkers annoyingly cocky?). Hottest men, best theater, the most open-all-night restaurants than anywhere else, etc, etc. Sure, other places actually have real supermarkets but I don't cook.

 

>You've got balls, Rick Munroe, and in ALL the right places!

 

So do you, Will. And don't ever think I don't appreciate your appreciation! :* :* :*

[Rick Munroe]

>Never let it be said that I pigheaded

 

pigheadedly (how anal of me was that to correct something so unnnecessary that no one had probably even noticed?) ('pigheadedly' probably isn't even a word & I don't feel like checking)

[BigD]

Rick,

Your sensitivity and passion always

shows in your posts. Keep it up!

Peace.

[Rick Munroe]

>Your sensitivity and passion always shows in your posts.

 

<----and so does my ass

 

>Keep it up!

 

Can I also help you keep that Big D up? :9

Thanks for your kind words...means a lot.

[Justice]

>I'd never live anywhere else

>(don't quote me on this when I'm old & want to move to

>Florida like my parents, please).

>

 

You don't have a choice. You're Jewish. It is written. Thou shall move to Florida when you get old. (At least for the winter.) ;-)

[Rick Munroe]

>You don't have a choice. You're Jewish. It is written. Thou

>shall move to Florida when you get old. (At least for the

>winter.) ;-)

 

OK, but please tell me the Early Bird Special doesn't have to be part of the deal. I'll shoot myself.

[Guest WolfXing]

Rick, the more I read this message board, the more I like you. How refreshing to "meet" (if only in this impersonal way) someone so kind, thoughtful and genuine---especially when so many others seem to think that the "norm" for gay men is to be bitter and scathing. It speaks volumes about your character that you even care whether you offended anyone.

 

<sigh> Too bad (for the rest of us) that you're hitched. I'm thinking "husband material" here. <grin> :+

 

OK, I admit it, I'm gushing. But in all seriousness, thanks for helping make M4M a fun place to visit!