Religious Freedummmmmmdumdumdum!!!!

Crawling out from under several biotic invasions jumping up and down on me since November, I am finally starting to believe I will survive this winter, except I've likely jinxed it now by 'saying' that 'aloud'.

Times like this remind one the stress of even temporary disease wears you down in a way that makes you slither away from added emotional aggravation.  By the time you crawl home the only energy you have is for necessities of domesticity before passing out.

Still, I am an adult and I'm privileged to have a home, plus employment that pays the bills and has HR policies against bigoted stupidity. (and sick days)

The point is, on a "Thank Guinness it's Friday" afternoon drive home today, I had the joy and wonder of seeing one of those temporary signs on the public boulevard/city property at the side of the residential road.  Community groups put them up all the time announcing meetings, sports recruitment etc.

"That's new," I thought idly, "wasn't there yesterday..." And then I parsed the content.  Advertising MP Michelle Rempel's name (my MP...don't start me) at the top, the sign demanded to vote no on Bill C279 and to contact your MP, signed FamilyAction.ca.

So.....I had a mild mental reaction of a record player needle screeching across vinyl. (yeah, it dates me, but so it goes). I had the luxury of being a passenger as I blasphemed heartily.

I expect many readers of DJ! are aware of the private member bill C279 . It seeks to instill human rights protection language that will stop federally controlled areas from discriminating on gender basis, in theory sheltering transgender folks as a class.  It has also been emotionally and breathlessly tagged (insert ominous echo effect) "The Bathrrrrrrroom Bill".  Why? Becuz FEAR!!!!, that's why.

Opponents of Bill C279 desperately paint it to mean helpless, HELPLESS women and children will be cornered in public lavatories, cowering beneath the leering gaze of muahahahaing rapist male villains who will use this unfettered, legal access to throw on a dress and enter the previously hallowed ground to commit vile and criminal acts upon them.  You know, like WorldWar 1 propaganda poster Huns.

As usual, the facts have little to do with the whingeing.  As usual, the defenders of "The Family" are social conservative religionists looking to cry moral degeneracy victim and exploit the Harper Government's new "Office of Religious Freeeeedommmmm".  Canada Family Action is a Catholic lobbying agency that also spends its time whingeing about nasty abortionzzes.  Quelle surprise, I know.

Here's the thing that got me. CFA's latest news pieces at their website concentrated on two things in their latest three announcements.  Scary transgender people being considered human...and depression, touting their allied site for helping with depression.

Depression among LGBTqueer youth has been cited as being up to 8 times greater in occurence than 'baseline' youth.  Ya think groups like CFA take any responsibility for contributing to the depression of kids who aren't 'normative' Christians? Ohellno.

Here's the kicker to my story.  Canada FamFuckingily Action stuck their lovely moveable billboard up on the corner across from James Fowler high school, beside a small strip mall where the school teens go to hang and eat.

Christian values and freedommmmmmm in action.

I need another beer.