April 21, 2008

Hateful Homophobe of the Day: Sen. Greg Brophy (R-Wray, Co.)

The face of homophobia. And he’s ugly, too.

We’d love to know what these folks would say about this jerk using “short people” as a pawn in his cruel attempt to mock gay Coloradans — and make a mockery of the law as well:

Senator’s mock amendment prompts emotional discrimination debate

The debate on the Senate floor over a bill that would expand the prohibition of sexual orientation-based discrimination became personal and emotional this morning after a senator offered a rhetorical amendment to ban discrimination against short people.

Sen. Greg Brophy, R-Wray, withdrew the stunt amendment after arguing that there is no need for the bill because he has not seen evidence that gays and lesbians are discriminated against when seeking a job or a home.

“What I’m talking about is economic discrimination, political discrimination, employment discrimination,” Brophy said. “I find no pattern of any of those.”

Brophy’s comments outraged Democrats, who took turns at the lectern denouncing his argument with angry and sometimes shaking voices.

“It must be nice,” said Sen. Jennifer Veiga, a Denver Democrat who is sponsoring the bill and who is gay, “as a white male to sit back and mock the real discrimination that occurs in our society, especially on the basis of sexual orientation.”

Sen. Chris Romer, D-Denver, came close to tears when recalling the ugly fights surrounding the state’s Amendment 2, which prohibited laws protecting gays and lesbians and which the U.S. Supreme Court later overturned.

Sen. Abel Tapia, D-Pueblo, spoke about his son, who is gay and who moved to Oregon to be a prosecutor several years ago because he felt Colorado was not accepting of him. …

And Senate President Peter Groff, D-Denver, said he was disgusted by Brophy’s amendment.

“Discrimination is a practice that has gone on in this country too long,” Groff said. “It is the birth defect of this country. And I think it’s time we deal with that.”

Of course, a handful of other Republicans tried to shoot down SB 200, which would prohibit discrimination “on the basis of sexual orientation in housing, places of public accommodation, consumer credit, labor unions and school enrollment, among other areas,” using the same old, tired, brain-dead arguments about crippling “a free society” — you know, the usual transparent idiocy the Wrong Wing parrots every time they’re threatened by the possibility that we homos might actually be recognized as human beings under the law.

The good news is that SB 200 passed a voice vote; it “still needs a final vote in the Senate before heading to the House.”

Let’s hope Colorado hasn’t forgotten the lessons learned from that travesty called Amendment 2.

In the meantime, we suggest some enterprising Democrat in the state legislature introduce a bill prohibiting discrimination against ugly people.

That’s right, ugly people. While we certainly see no pattern of “economic discrimination, political discrimination, [or] employment discrimination” against ugly people — like Sen. Brophy; after all, his rubbery visage, evil-clown smile, beady little eyes, and criminally awful haircut didn’t impede his political career, did it? — the more we look at that mug of his, the more we think that’s not a face every employer would want greeting customers in a store, or peering out from behind the desk of a hotel concierge. So why not pre-empt anti-ugly discrimination before such unfortunates as Sen. Brophy ever feel its sting?

We think somebody so butt-ugly as Sen. Brophy would appreciate such a bill.

Howdya like them apples, Brophy?

Posted by: Sapphocrat