Pride in what exactly?

So the Vancouver gay pride parade has concluded for another year, to be honest I don't attend, but looking at the pictures online and media reports I have to ask myself; Is this really what you want to be proud of? for the most part it appears to be a whole lot of barely dressed people at the best having fun, at the worst making fools of themselves. In fact I ask how much of the crowd is really laughing at you? I certainly feel educated, but not in the message I suspect you wanted.

Now the fact that the parade can be held and supported by the city and sponsors speaks more of the citizens of Vancouver than the gay community (Not to take away from the organizers who must have worked their butts off, well hopefully not literally). Also one can't help but to think of the outrage if there was a "Hetero-sexual pride parade", Hypocrisy is the name of the game in a progressive society after all isn't it?

Before you work yourself in a lather (or leather) I not anti-gay or attempting to gay-bash, I have known many gay people and count a couple as close friends. I take pride in their real accomplishments and respect their work ethic, humanity and other positive traits. the fact that they are attracted to the same sex is more or less immaterial to me, actually I don't really give a damm!!

If you are gay and you want people to respect you and want to be proud of who you are, then do you really want this to represent you? Because I tell you, that is what most people think when they hear "Gay Pride Parade"


So if you disagree with the above, feel free to show me where I am incorrect and pictures showing some of the more positive role models represented in the parade would be useful, here is one of the few I found.

Hama redux

Photo via Reuters

Like a chip off the old block, Bashir al-Assad is following in his fathers footsteps, brutally suppressing dissent throughout Syria and in the town of Hama. To be fair the death toll under Assad throughout Syria appears to be around 2-3,000, with a significant amount injured, arrested and some "disappeared". This seems to pall in comparison to his fathers approach to dealing with Hama, where between 10,000-40,000 people died over a few weeks. Seems all that western education has paid off, maybe Assad son will be able to make his point with only a few hundred dead, now that would be considered progress in that part of the world.
About the only silver lining in all this is it gives me more ammunition to beat "history unaware" progressives who seem to think all evils flow from Israel alone. Prior to the current uprising, few had ever heard of Hama or the atrocities committed there and why should they. Authoritarian regimes are always suppressing somebody and makes for boring print. Plus the dictators don't give a damn anyways. Far better to beat on Israeli's who actually care about their international reputation.
Meanwhile I await the first flotilla to Damascus to help the poor people there to throw off the shackles of the oppressor. (I don't plan on holding my breath)