Would you support Rainbow on Hockey Unis for Sochi?

[Stormchaser]

Talk about making a huge deal about one single issue happening in the world. What about all the rest of the crap happening in other countries?

[TurnedTheCorner]

[JohnnyB]

Originally Posted by korzym12

I'm completely for this.

This is a completely moral and natural "lifestyle" and it's just as important as the civil rights and womens' rights movements. Russia stops them from living the way they live, the solution is to let them have the same rights as everyone else on this matter.

Boo Russia. This is one of the many times I'll not salute you.

Wholeheartedly agreed!

Edit: Fixed!

[MRCboicgy]

Rainbow hockey laces.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by korzym12

I'm completely against this.

This is a completely immoral and unnatural "lifestyle" and it's no where near as important as the civil rights and womens' rights movements. Nobody stops them from living the way they live, the problem is they want everyone to have the same opinion as them on this matter.

Bravo Russia. This is one of the few times I'll salute you.

I can understand that some people think it's immoral or gross, but that does that mean it should be illegal?

Free countries shouldn't legislate morality.

Having said that, I do find it funny that this issue is getting so much attention, yet most people gave China a free pass and they have a worse human rights record.

[Żoso]

Politics and sporting events should remain separate from one another. I'm totally against the Russian government on this issue but rainbow jerseys is too much. Maybe a nice little rainbow sticker on the back of their helmets will do just fine.

[Jables16]

Originally Posted by korzym12

I'm completely against this.

This is a completely immoral and unnatural "lifestyle" and it's no where near as important as the civil rights and womens' rights movements. Nobody stops them from living the way they live, the problem is they want everyone to have the same opinion as them on this matter.

Bravo Russia. This is one of the few times I'll salute you.

I don't think you have a clue what you're talking about. This isn't just a gay marriage or lifestyle issue, the new Russian legislature makes homosexuality in its entirety illegal. Anyone caught talking about the existence of homosexuality (gay or straight) can be fined and/or imprisoned. That's just for talking about it, let alone BEING a homosexual or caught in some sort of homosexual act. If this same treatment were being applied to your religion (I assume you're religious since you're judging homosexuality to be immoral and unnatural) which is actually a lifestyle choice would you still be saluting Russia?

This sort of scapegoating and persecution is not a big jump away from Hitler's treatment of Jewish people. Would you salute that?

[sun]

Goodwin'd! That was quick.

[Jables16]

Originally Posted by sun

Goodwin'd! That was quick.

That might make sense if I was saying Harper=Hitler or Obama=Hitler or something ridiculous like that. I don't think you can say there are no similarities at all here.

[kyuss275]

Originally Posted by korzym12

I'm completely against this.

This is a completely immoral and unnatural "lifestyle" and it's no where near as important as the civil rights and womens' rights movements. Nobody stops them from living the way they live, the problem is they want everyone to have the same opinion as them on this matter.

Bravo Russia. This is one of the few times I'll salute you.

NM

I'm not going to waste my time on you.

[BigBrodieFan]

Originally Posted by undercoverbrother

Oh, I see equality of people is "trendy".......

I agree, I don't think 'trendy' is the right word. However, I think he/she meant that it's something that is constantly in the news as more and more States allow gay marriage, and as we get closer to the Olympics. It's not 'trendy'- it's time that gays are being accepted and getting the same rights as others- it's an important historical time.

I think the idea of a patch is great, but I think it should be an individual decision to wear it.

[カナダ人です]

For those of you who are against it saying things like "let sports be sports", I assume you are against the following:

-Jackie Robinson playing. HUGE political issue at the time, and a landmark for the civil rights movement.

-European soccer campaign "football against racism". A great cause in my opinion.

-Sports teams/leagues participating in charities and promoting various causes (both social and health-related)

-The summit series was pretty political - far more than 'just another game', no?

Tonnes of other examples....

Plus what could be more political than a bunch of nations sending their best athletes to compete against other countries athletes, covered in national symbols and often literally draped in its flag?

It is actually pretty funny. I just re-watched Remember the Titans the other day and thought to myself how ridiculous all those people "against" Blacks looked, and how in 25 or so years we will look back to today and all those against LGBTQ rights and have a good chuckle at their idiocy.

[カナダ人です]

Originally Posted by korzym12

I'm completely against this.

This is a completely immoral and unnatural "lifestyle" and it's no where near as important as the civil rights and womens' rights movements. Nobody stops them from living the way they live, the problem is they want everyone to have the same opinion as them on this matter.

Bravo Russia. This is one of the few times I'll salute you.

BaHAHAhahahaha...

You're just trolling for fun, right?

Good one! You got me! *high five*

[Geeoff]

Originally Posted by PlayfulGenius

Personally, I believe that if the Olympics really stood for what they claim... they;d wouldn't go at all... I don't see that happening though, too much money at stake already.

I hope many athletes boycott. That's a REAL tough one for an athlete that does everything to get to the Olympics. For NHLers, perhaps it will happen where players back out due to this issue.

Personally, were I a gay athlete, I'd go to Sochi and act as publicly gay as possible. Maybe kiss a dude in front of the international cameras. They aren't going to arrest someone for that while the world watches.

[Stupid]

Rainbow helmets if you ask me.

It'll look like some kinda weird cocktail (haha) of homosexuality and cocaine.

[Hells Bells]

In related news, Team Sweden will show their support by wearing a patch of the Sedins.

[Plett25]

Originally Posted by korzym12

I'm completely against this.

This is a completely immoral and unnatural "lifestyle" and it's no where near as important as the civil rights and womens' rights movements. Nobody stops them from living the way they live, the problem is they want everyone to have the same opinion as them on this matter.

Bravo Russia. This is one of the few times I'll salute you.

Rainbow jerseys would be fabulous

[valo403]

Originally Posted by FanIn80

Or we could just decide to respect the decisions of other sovereign nations to govern themselves as they see fit. We have as much right to tell Putin how to run his country as Putin has to tell us how to run ours. The kind of change that matters has to come from within, and it has to happen naturally. Pressuring people to change only gets external results while seeding internal resentment and hostility.

How about, for the sake of all the men and women who have dedicated their entire lives to get to these events, we allow the Olympics to just be about the people competing in them.

Ah yes, the old 'let countries do what they wish' response. That's worked out oh so well in the past. Let them round up and beat the people who only ask to be treated as humans. Let them deny basic rights. Hey, let's turn a blind eye to those train cars while we're at it.

I'm glad this topic came up in FOI, it really exposed a whole new group of scumbags.

[FanIn80]

Originally Posted by valo403

Ah yes, the old 'let countries do what they wish' response. That's worked out oh so well in the past. Let them round up and beat the people who only ask to be treated as humans. Let them deny basic rights. Hey, let's turn a blind eye to those train cars while we're at it.

I'm glad this topic came up in FOI, it really exposed a whole new group of scumbags.

I'm not entirely sure how being a proponent of staying out of other people's business makes me a scumbag, but I respect your right to think whatever you want about me.

My point is that Russia isn't a country being ruled against its wishes by an evil tyrant or a group of radicals that have gained authoritative control through violent, illegal means. Russia is a country with a democratic election process and a legally-elected and well-respected (63% approval rating) President. Russian citizens are overwhelmingly against the acceptance of homosexuality. The country is not being oppressed. The country is passing laws through their own, legal, parliamentary process, and those laws are an accurate reflection of the wishes of the citizens they are being created for.

Also, as has been reported by many media outlets, Russia's response to the concern about gay rights during the Olympics, has been to say that they will respect the privacy and rights of the athletes, and that they ask that the athletes respect the laws of the nation they are visiting.

Russian authorities aren't looking for gay people to drag out into the street and condemn in front of the world. The Russian people just don't want public events that are geared towards promoting homosexuality.

It's not illegal to be gay in Russia. It's illegal to hold public events that promote homosexuality to people who (by a very high margin) don't want to have homosexuality promoted to them.

Again, my point is that there is a time and place for interfering in the affairs of foreign nations. Freeing a country from oppression and genocide is a good thing. Freeing people who are being tortured and executed by an illegal regime is a good thing. Forcing our own views and beliefs upon a legally governed nation whose citizens overwhelmingly believe the opposite of what we do is not.

Personally, I am in favour of people being able to love and marry whomever they want to, regardless of their sexual orientation. I also believe that Family Law should just be focused on the various issues involved with familial units, and not on the specific orientations of the individuals that make up those units.

I'm also in favour of not pressuring other people to believe in the same things I do. Whether that's the angry old guy defending his front lawn down the street, or the citizens of the country of Russia.

Some facts about rights and legal issues in Russia, as they relate to the sexual orientation of individuals:

• The age of consent currently stands at 16 since 2003, regardless of sexual orientation.
• Transsexual and transgender people can change their legal gender after corresponding medical procedures since 1997.
• Homosexuality was officially removed from the Russian list of mental illnesses in 1999 (after endorsing ICD-10).
• There is currently no legal recognition of same-sex unions in Russia, and same-sex marriages are not allowed. Public support for gay marriages is at 16% as of 2013.
• As far as adoptions of children: single persons living within Russia, regardless of their sexual orientation, can adopt children. Russian children can be adopted by a single homosexual who lives in a foreign country provided that country does not recognize same-sex marriage. A couple can adopt children together, as a couple, only if they are a married heterosexual couple.
• Gay people (at least officially) can serve in the military on a par with heterosexual people since 2003.

Public opinion in Russia tends to be among the most hostile toward homosexuality in the western world, and the level of intolerance has been rising. A 2013 survey found that 74% of Russians said homosexuality should not be accepted by society (up from 60% in 2002), compared to 16% who said that homosexuality should be accepted by society. In a 2007 survey, 68% of Russians said homosexuality is always wrong (54%) or almost always wrong (14%). In a 2005 poll, 44% of Russians were in favor of making homosexual acts between consenting adults a criminal act; at the same time, 43% of Russians supported a legal ban on discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. There is a visible LGBT community network, mostly in major cities like Moscow and Saint Petersburg, including nightclubs and political organizations.

Same-sex marriages are not allowed in Russia. At a press conference, head of the Moscow Registry Office Irina Muravyova declared: "Attempts by same-sex couples to marry both in Moscow and elsewhere in Russia are doomed to fail. We live in a civil society, we are guided by the federal law, [and] by the Constitution that clearly says: marriage in Russia is between a man and a woman. Such a marriage [same-sex] cannot be contracted in Russia."

[etdpratt]

Originally Posted by Fozzie_DeBear

No sale

If someone doesn't want to marry someone of the same sex based upon their religion...no problem it impacts no one but themselves.

However, when they decide to deny (or attempt to change the law to deny) someone other than themselves the same suite of rights based upon race, gender, sexual orientation etc. That opinion is NOT valid IMO...you can't deny someone else the same right you have because someone interpreted the wishes of the flying spaghetti monster a certain way.

And I have the same opinion about majority rules....human rights should not be determined by majority rule.

I'll take the misogynistic version of Sharia law as another example...I don't accept that ######bags can make women second/third class citizens because they have a 'holy' man saying its the way to go...nor do I accept that philosophy as valid if the majority (of men) in the region think its right.

Equal human rights is a philosophy that trumps religion and democracy.

While I understand and appreciate your opinion, I believe that a religious individual has every right to put their religious beliefs first if they are asked to vote on it. If I believe that same sex marriage is against the will of God, I have every right to vote against such a law that permits it.

I am not going to try to keep someone from having a relationship with another individual but if I am asked to vote and say whether I think it is ok or not ok, then I will side with my beliefs. The same goes for other sensitive issues such as pornography, or drugs. If I have a vote to make pornography illegal or make drugs legal, I will be on the side of my beliefs.

I also ask the question to others on the issue of same sex marriage. If you support it, do you also support the practice of polygamy or family members getting married to one another. Do you support all these instances?

I know this post may be viewed negatively, but I do want to open up a dialogue and maybe this isn't the right thread for this discussion.