Erick Erickson: Gay-Friendly Businesses Are ‘Aiding And Abetting’ The Sin Of Homosexuality

You’re probably familiar with what might be the greatest scene from The West Wing. In a 2000 episode titled “The Midterms,” the White House hosts a gathering of talk radio announcers and while President Bartlet addresses the group, he notices a “Dr. Laura” type, Dr. Jenna Jacobs, sitting down while every one else in the room are standing out of respect for the chief executive.

Bartlet interrupts his remarks to the room and engages Jacobs directly.

“I like your show. I like how you call homosexuality an abomination,” Bartlet snarkily observes.

Then he sets about completely decimating the chief justification for homosexuality being a sin — the Book of Leviticus — by rattling off a series of other things which the Bible condemns as abominations such as growing two crops side-by-side, touching the skin of a pig on the Sabbath, wearing garments of two different threads and so forth.

Knowing how this fantastic bit of television writing by Aaron Sorkin has been out there for so long, you’d think the flimsy Leviticus-says-homosexuality-is-a-sin argument would have died a long time ago. It’s such an inherently weak position to take, but on the contrary it’s returned in full force in several states where proposals for “Right to Refuse” laws have emerged. If passed, these laws would allow business owners to refuse service to homosexuals based upon religious objections. The most infamous law was recently introduced in Arizona.

And now, in addition to homosexuality being considered a sin by these people, businesses who serve homosexuals are evidently “aiding and abetting” the sin.

At least that’s what Erick Erickson tweeted on Friday.

The squinty conservative fire-eater was debating a fellow Fox News contributor and USA Today writer, Kirsten Powers, who came out against the Arizona law, referring to as a “Jim Crow law.” And she’s right. It is.

Powers noted in her column that prison ministers work with obvious “sinners,” unrepentant murderers and the like, so why shouldn’t businesses serve homosexuals? In response, Erickson wrote that prison ministry happens after the sin is committed, but business owners (they agreed that work is a form of ministry) who sell goods and services to homosexuals are “aiding and abetting” the sin… [CONTINUE READING HERE]

By: Bob Cesca

Bob Cesca is the managing editor at The Daily Banter (www.thedailybanter.com) and a Huffington Post contributor since 2005. He's worked in journalism since 1988 as a print writer/editor, a radio news anchor, a digital media columnist/editor, a book author and blogger. He's the co-host of the Bubble Genius Bob & Chez Show podcast and a Thursday regular on the syndicated Stephanie Miller Show. He's appeared on numerous other radio shows including the John Phillips Show and Geraldo Rivera Show in Los Angeles. Bob has been a commentator/analyst on the BBC (TV and radio), MSNBC, Current TV, CNN and Sky News. Following him on Twitter: @bobcesca_go