Now They Know How The Rest Of Us Feel

.......about the Republican Party in general.

The stuff that comes out of the mouths of those on the Right leaves us bewildered and more than confused....and yet, half of this country (if you believe their numbers) is in total rapture with it.

Denial Of Rights Made Right

UPDATE: Governor NOT going to follow court's ruling.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/04/ohio-voting_n_1855238.html
This is going to be an all-out war for votes in Ohio.

It's gratifying to see that once in a while precedent actually counts for something, and fairness prevails:

http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2012/08/31/784981/breaking-federal-court-strikes-down-ohio-law-restricting-early-voting

"Amusingly, the court’s opinion relies on the Supreme Court’s infamous decision in Bush v. Gore to reach this holding, citing Bush‘s statement that “[h]aving once granted the right to vote on equal terms, the State may not, by later arbitrary and disparate treatment, value one person’s vote over that of another.”


Now, I wonder if Rep. Sec. of State Jon Husted (he of the questionable political past) will give the two Dems on the Montgomery County Boards of Elections their jobs back??

"The Democrats were removed as the result of their failure to comply with Husted's order to standardize early voting hours across the state. Ritchie and Lieberman voted to keep early voting hours on weekends despite Husted's order which only specified weekday voting, claiming that Husted's order was ambiguous."

http://www.wdtn.com/dpp/news/local/montgomery/dems-kicked-off-local-election-board#.UED_RELFJ5g

I know these Right Wingers, with the aid of Koch money, are trying their best to win this election. Maybe, just maybe, they won't. But we can't take ANYTHING for granted....or lying down.

Ah, The "Europeanization" Of America..

Wow, things got a little heated over at Morning Joe this morning. I'm sure you've seen the discussion. But one point I want to bring up is this:

The MSNBC host Chris Matthews criticized Mitt Romney’s birther joke, his consistant claims that Obama imported his domestic policies, and argued that the campaign has sought to foreignize the president. Priebus defended the party by claiming that Obama’s health and economic policies are European, but Matthews quickly dismissed the claim.
(jump)

PRIEBUS: But I think Obama’s policies have created a sense that for whatever reason, he’s looking to guidance [from Europe] as far as health care is concerned, as far as our spending is concerned 

PRIEBUS: You don’t think the take-over of our health care system called Obamacare is a problem for most Americans?

http://thinkprogress.org/election/2012/08/27/747131/chris-matthews-confronts-rnc-chairman-obama-being-a-foreigner-is-the-thing-your-party-has-been-pushing/

Well, to me that seems a bit disingenuous, seeing as how both Romney's plan and the President's are the same. Even people on the Right say so: 

http://townhall.com/tipsheet/greghengler/2012/03/27/advisor_for_romneycare_and_obamacare_theyre_the_same 

The Obama administration may have relied much more heavily on Romney’s Massachusetts healthcare legislation as a blueprint for Obamacare than was previously believed.

http://michellemalkin.com/2012/01/26/confirmed-romneycare-obamacare/

Maybe Mr. Romney picked up some pointers when he was spending those three years in France, on a missionary trip of course, NOT being drafted into the American military.

http://2012.republican-candidates.org/Romney/Military.php

 Chris Matthews was also right on the whole theme of Romney team pushing the "otherness/class/racist" theme against Obama:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/27/mitt-romney-welfare-waivers_n_1832871.html

UPDATE:
I guess I was wrong about Mitt having a"gay" old time over there in France. CNN just set this straight:
http://littlegreenfootballs.com/page/283670_-CNN_Airs_The_Most_Ridiculous_

Romney Good For Women, Obama Bad
or Something Like That

It's getting harder and harder to keep up with this guy...especially if you're an intelligent woman.  

Romney:“Look, I am the guy that was able to get health care for all of the women—and men—in my state. There was talking about it at the federal level. We did something.”

Wallace: “So, you’re saying look at Romneycare?”

Romney:“Absolutely. I’m very proud of what we did, and the fact that we helped women and men and children in my state. And then with regards to contraceptives, of course Republicans and myself in particular recognize that people should have a right to use contraceptives. There is absolutely no validity whatsoever to the Obama effort and (sic)  try and bring that up. And with regards to the issue of abortion, that is something where men and women have alternative views on that or different views.”

http://www.addictinginfo.org/2012/08/26/romney-says-women-should-vote-for-him-because-of-romneycare/

And yet for months, Romney and all the Repubs have shouted from the rooftops (or at least within the cameras of Fox News).."Obamacare has GOT to go." As well as abortions, contraception, voting rights, and jobs if they had THEIR way. Then there IS that little problem concerning birth control: http://thegrio.com/2012/02/16/dems-try-to-turn-contraceptive-issue-against-gop/

But the fly-in-the-ointment for Romney and Ryan is that ACA, which is now law, has the same core principles as the Massachusetts healthcare law, the one that Romney has tried to dodge mentioning for months.

The problem for Romney is that there are no fundamental differences between the two laws. Both programs create exchanges where private insurers compete. Both require individuals to purchase insurance. And both subsidize those who can’t afford it. It’s a relatively new way of extending coverage.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/03/06/romneycare-and-obamacare-differ-only-in-inconsequential-ways.html

I wonder if this guy is actually made of Silly Putty? But...... at least he speaks in complete sentences, using words that are ACTUALLY in the dictionary.

"How Much Longer Can People Let This Go On?"

Those were the words spoken by the dental assistant the other day as I had my broken back tooth assessed...just looked at, but not attended to. I have no dental insurance, or at least none other than preventive care and X-rays once a year, and I feel lucky to have that! I was trying to find out if I could go another month, since money is way-beyond-tight right now. (The answer is no: nothing left but a bit of tooth attached to an old filling...)

She has been living in the US for 17 years, but is from Germany and has lived in various countries in Europe and Asia. "I cannot believe that the government of a country so large has no concern for people's health. In Germany you would  not even think about this. Other countries are basically laughing at the US, and feeling sorry for what is going on here. Why is there such a fuss over this?"

Well, you can guess the discussion....... "Yes," she said, "the politics everywhere make you want to pull your hair out. But how long before there is a revolt against all this?"

I'd say it will probably be sooner than later, seeing as how Mitt Romney and his VP-pick Paul Ryan are dead set against having any "social safety nets" and plan to gut them ASAP. This I find interesting since Mormons have a complete, well-run mechanism for their followers who happen to fall on hard times. Perhaps you saw this on NBC the other night:

http://rockcenter.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/08/22/13400307-mormons-stash-away-for-social-safety-net?lite

Then there is the interesting history of Paul Ryan:

 Ryan and his mother would not have had to make the wrenching choices Smith and his mother did. Ryan received Social Security survivors’ benefits as a minor: “It was a tough time for our family, and Social Security was there to help us when we needed the help,” Ryan told the Associated Press in 2005

http://rachelsigner.com/2012/08/16/the-new-yorker-paul-ryan-al-smith-and-getting-by-in-america/

Mr. Ryan today:"We’re in a moment where if government’s growth is left unchecked and unchallenged, America’s best century will be considered our past century. This is a future in which we will transform our social safety net into a hammock, which lulls able-bodied people into lives of complacency and dependency"

http://www.democracynow.org/2012/8/15/77_years_after_fdr_signs_social

I guess the further up the ladder you go, the rarified air affects your thought processes and the memories of what your life was like in earlier days. Or maybe it just allows you to create a new history, a new reality. My reality is: the tooth will wait for a week or two......

Also a little background to help you understand where this "new reality" may be coming from, if you are interested.

http://www.exmormon.org/tract2.htm

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/08/12/us-usa-politics-mormons-idUSBRE87B05W20120812

If Only We Had This Guy....

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/page/283280_President_of_Ireland_Destroys_

Instead we have to put up with the likes of Romney, Ryan, Boehner, McConnell, Aiken, McCain, Rove, Norquist, Grassley, King, Hannity, Thompson, Limbaugh, Palin, and all the other Right Extreme ideologues spouting hateful propaganda day in and day out. The America they wish us to live in is nothing more than a fundamentalist (or Mormon) hell. 

In their world:

Women shall remain second class citizens, or just stay at home:

http://progressillinois.com/quick-hits/content/2012/06/06/republicans-say-no-equal-pay-women 

Take us to the back alleys of the 1800's:

http://www.nationalmemo.com/just-like-akin-gop-platform-demands-amendment-banning-every-abortion/

A 53%-majority of Republicans say there is no solid evidence the earth is warming. Among Tea Party Republicans, fully 70% say there is no evidence. Disbelief in global warming in the GOP is a recent occurrence. Just a few years   http://pewresearch.org/databank/dailynumber/?NumberID=1126

They do not care about how we get the sources for our energy or the costs

http://www.policymic.com/articles/12838/romney-ryan-2012-energy-plan-there-is-none

But right now one of the most powerful Catholics in American politics

(Paul Ryan)

 is publicly claiming that church teaching says his plan to take food and health care away from millions of vulnerable Americans is the right thing to do—and the bishops are remaining silent.

http://www.tnr.com/blog/jonathan-cohn/102746/catholic-bishops-protest-ryan-republican-budget-cuts-food-stamps-poor

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/03/us/politics/republican-governor-of-florida-says-state-wont-expand-medicaid.html 

These Republicans literally would rather see our nation crumble than allow President Obama to be reelected. I've watched a lot of cynical things with these politicians in my lifetime, but this has to be right up there with some of the worst.

http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/sen-sanders-knocks-republicans-refusing-pa

But the faithful followers will NEVER hear or see any of this on FOX. And here in Tennessee....well, you get the picture:

Repubs Intent On Winning Ohio....

Sunset

Not too happy about getting caught in a blatant attempt at voter suppression (early voting hours restricted only in Democratic-leaning counties) in his state this week, Ohio's Secretary of State Jon Husted is at it again:

DAYTON — 

The two Democrats on the Montgomery County Board of Elections were suspended by Republican Secretary of State Jon Husted on Friday after they refused to back down in a standoff over extending in-person early voting hours for the upcoming election.

After hearing of the suspension Friday night, Ritchie said that neither of the Republicans on the board made a motion to rescind Lieberman’s proposal either, and he wondered why they weren’t disciplined.

http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/news/local-govt-politics/husted-suspends-democrats-on-montgomery-county-boa/nRDx5/

This is the same Jon Husted that himself has been the subject of questionable political behavior.

http://constitutionalfights.wordpress.com/2008/10/28/ohio-senator-jon-husted-corruption-fraud-arrogance/

Jon Husted, contrary to law, does not live in the 6th District. Husted, Speaker of the House, is currently representative for the 37th Ohio House District. A Cleveland Plain Dealer article published Sunday that reported that Husted’s Kettering home looks abandoned. The article said:

“While Husted won’t say how much time he spends in Kettering, his modest ranch-style house had tightly-drawn blinds and a six-week-old stack of newspapers next to the front door on a recent summer day. Cobwebs were beginning to creep over a front picture window.”

Oh, arrogance...where have we heard THAT word?

http://www.scribd.com/doc/24097346/Husted-Water-vs-Mileage

Husted was paid for travel to his Kettering home 36 times, but apparently only used water during 8 trips.

http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/husted-refuses-to-let-opponent-see-tax-returns/nNHPZ/

Must be a Republican thing...just like Romney, Tommy Thompson....

You've got to watch these people like hawks!

Pennies for Pizza

In typical Right Wing fashion, John Schnatter, a multi-millionaire supporter and fundraiser for the Romney campaign, is decrying the fact that Obamacare will cause his franchises to raise the cost of pizza. 

Never mind that about 14,400 of his 16,500 "team members" work part time, are paid minimum wage, and are paid hourly. The law presently states a full-time worker must work 30 hours....
http://blogs.courier-journal.com/derbycitycents/2012/08/09/papa-johns-fears-health-insurance-costs-for-employees/

This sounds a little like a congressional hearing held decades ago, where fast food places like McDonalds were not treating their US employees like those overseas: providing some employees at their companies with insurance, but not  those here in the states:
http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1901&dat=19940722&id=xNghAAAAIBAJ&sjid=jp8FAAAAIBAJ&pg=2495,3118105

"Think about the core ingredients that go into a pizza. First, there's dough. Do you know what goes into dough? Mostly it's water and flour. Let's see, water is basically free and flour costs pennies. Minimal amounts of yeast, salt and sugar and there you go. Next, pizza sauce. Even the most dressed-up, fresh homemade sauces are not that expensive; it's just tomatoes, water and spices. Cheese and toppings, while costlier, still add a substantial markup." http://www.dailyfinance.com/2010/09/08/top-5-food-mark-ups-where-restaurants-make-huge-profit

Granted, with the past droughts  I'm sure ingredient costs have gone up. and if people are not employed they may not go out to eat as much, but given that pizza is about the cheapest food to eat these days....
Then there are those local family-owned pizza parlors where "everybody knows your name".........

Is there ANYTHING that cannot be made into a political snipe? Or was he hoping that the conservatives would go all Chik-Fil-A like they did a couple weeks ago???

Going For The Win One More Time

from the WEB

If at first you don't succeed, try again. The last time at Nascar didn't have quite the effect Mitt was hoping for: In February, while attending the Daytona 500, an AP reporter asked whether he follows the sport. Romney's responded, "Not as closely as some of the most ardent fans. But I have some great friends that are NASCAR team owners." Just.....wow!

So once again, campaigning at the Nascar Technical Institute introducing his new running mate Paul Ryan, Romney attempted the "down-home, regular guy" approach. He mentioned that Ryan's ambition was not to go to Washington, but he wanted to serve his country. He would put his career plans on hold, Mitt said, work for smaller government of course, and "get America back on track."

Just ONE problem:

"As a college student at Miami University in Ohio, he began serving as a staffer for Republican Sen. Bob Kasten. After graduating, he was hired as a speechwriter for Jack Kemp, then a congressman from New York. Ryan, who cited Kemp as a mentor at an event in Manassas, Va., on Saturday, would also work for Kemp's think tank, Empower America, and as a speechwriter on his vice presidential campaign in 1996. He also was a legislative director for then-Sen. Sam Brownback, now governor of Kansas.

Aside from a brief stint working in the marketing department his family's construction company in Janesville, Ryan's life has been almost entirely in government service. 

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-57491670-503544/romney-downplays-the-beltway-in-ryans-biography/?tag=stack

And you know what, those people at that event will probably believe it. A white Repub would NEVER lie to his constituents, right? Especially after just meeting with former Nascar Cup Winner Darrell Waltrip........

Romney's pick of Ryan also signals something else: "Political analysts told The Huffington Post that in the careful parlance of national politics, the Romney campaign also confirmed that it likely views minority voters as an unwinnable portion of the electorate in 2012."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/12/paul-ryan-latino-voters_n_1770100.html

Sounds like a crash and burn to me. With the Repubs, some things never change.....

Now You've Done It, Mitt

Did you think all those seniors at the Tea Party rallies were in the beginning stage of Alzheimer's? Did you think they wouldn't remember: 

Did you you think they REALLY meant this in 2008:

Well, I guess we'll just see. You've pegged Paul Ryan as your vice-presidential running mate. He, of the Paul Ryan Budget fame: 

 "The most contentious part of Ryan's proposed budget is what he would do to change Medicare, the nation's insurance plan for retirees and a political third rail. Ryan's plan would eventually transform Medicare into defined payments that seniors can use to buy private insurance or a government plan on an insurance exchange. There would be no limits to the out-of-pocket costs seniors could have to pay in this program, but Ryan assumes that the increased competition between Medicare and private plans would bring down overall costs. The amount of money seniors get to buy their insurance can only grow at a slightly higher rate than GDP each year. (The Congressional Budget Office says this would save the government money, but also significantly increase the amount seniors will eventually have to pay for their own insurance"

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/OTUS/budget-hawk-closer-ryan-plan/story?id=16985437#.UCbGrULFJ5g

Oh, did you know this little tidbit:

 After his father's  death, he used Social Security survivor’s benefits to help pay for attending Miami University, where Ryan double majored in economics and political science in 1992. But I guess...he wasn't OLD...........

It's going to be a VERY interesting three months....

Get Thee Away From Me, Damned Truth !

You've got to hand it to the Republican Party...they have a way with words. Leaving them out, that is. Talking in circuitous routes. Reaching for an alternative reality much better suited for their aims. Knowing that their FOX watchers will latch on to it as sainted truth...and spread it like wildfire amongst fellow True Believers.

"The Romney campaign on Tuesday released a TV ad claiming President Barack Obama "gutted" the 1996 welfare reform law....."

"Under Obama’s plan, you wouldn’t have to work and wouldn’t have to train for a job," the ad said. "They just send you your welfare check" spoke the mighty Newt Gingrich, former erstwhile GOP presidential candidate.

Pressed by Anderson Cooper during an interview, Gingrich hemmed and hawed, saying, "I believe absolutely the Obama administration is filled with people who do not support the work requirement." He suggested he would have run "a much tougher ad" before finally admitting there is "no proof" for the basic premise of the spot.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/08/newt-gingrich-romney-welfare_n_1758461.html?utm_hp_ref=politics

The "truth" is finally presented as an afterthought, if at all.

Gee, I only wish there was someway "intelligent" people could check up those old facty-things. Somewhere, maybe on the interwebby machine.......

**UPDATE**

Good. The Obama camp is putting it out there!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWTPRrMW6Dk&feature=youtu.be

ALSO

Somehow, this just seems appropriate with the poop the GOP has been trying to sell us these days:

Fertilizer Company Goes Public with Romney Support

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company, "familiar as the producer of a ubiquitous plant fertilizer, is now a political player, donating $200,000 in June to the Restore Our Future super PAC supporting Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney," the Washington Post reports.

"That makes Miracle-Gro among the first public companies with well-known consumer brands to publicly enter the new world of campaign funding. That world has been reshaped by the 2010 Supreme Court decision Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, which allowed direct corporate spending on election campaigns."

A Challenge For Romney

Seems like, not everyone of the "Christian-leaning" population in this country is enamored with the Republican presidential candidate. There are some that are able to read between the lines, and are not afraid to question him on a few things, unlike a certain Fair and Balanced network....

 A group of nuns is not taking his welfare stance very kindly, but have offered him an invitation to experience poverty first hand:

 'If Romney were to accept their invitation, Campbell said she would take him to places like St. Augustine’s in Cleveland, where food programs “provide a hand up” to the community’s neediest members. “He thinks they’re lazy,” Campbell said, in reference to Romney’s misleading welfare reform ad. “It is hard work to keep things together when you’re poor. He doesn’t have a clue. Let him talk to them, and maybe they’ll touch his heart. And his mind too."

http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2012/08/08/658741/nuns-challenge-romney/

I say, Bless You Sister........but that last sentence presents the problem. I truly believe this man has no heart. I also am beginning to wonder if he is putting his mind to good use...probably not since Grover Norquist has already stated that all the Republican Party really needs (and wants) is someone to just sign his name on the line they ask him to.

And speaking of minds:

REPUBLICAN OFFICIAL: PEOPLE WITH OBAMA BUMPER STICKERS ARE ‘MENTALLY RETARDED’ | At an election party last night, Pennsylvania’s Allegheny County GOP Chair, Jim Roddey, brought the crowd to laughter and applause by calling an Obama supporter “mentally retarded.” Roddey, who is a long-time supporter of Mitt Romney,told the joke to a crowd of about 200:  “I was very embarrassed. I was in this parking lot and there was a man looking for a space to park, and I found a space for him. And I felt badly — he looked like he was sort of in distress. And I said, ‘Sir, here’s a place.’ And he said, ‘That’s a handicapped space.’ I said, ‘Oh I’m so sorry, I saw that Obama sticker and I thought you were mentally retarded.’”

This is what today's GOP is appealing to.

 “The modern conservative is engaged in one of man’s oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.”
~John Kenneth Galbraith

Pretty Much Says It All..

Throwing Stones

Grateful Dead

Singing "black goes south while white comes north"

And the whole world full of petty wars

Singing "I got mine and you got yours."

And the current fashions set the pace.

Lose your step, fall out of grace.

And the radical he rant and rage, Singing "someone got to turn the page"

And the rich man in his summer home,

Singing "Just leave well enough alone"

But his pants are down, his cover's blown

And the politicians are throwing stones

So the kids they dance they shake their bones

Cause its all too clear we're on our own

http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/gratefuldead/throwingstones.html

And You Want To Know Why People Are Disgusted With D. C.

These grown men (and women too) do not have enough time to tackle our country's woes....minor things like unemployment, healthcare, poverty, the environment, welfare, the poor and the elderly...but they have time for this crap:

"The Republican National Committee (RNC) sent the Democratic National Committee (DNC) a birthday cake on Friday, but the DNC sent it back.

The cake read "you didn't bake this" over a picture of President Obama. Text written in icing reads, "Happy birthday, Mr. President." The cake marks the occasion of the president's birthday, which is Saturday, with a play on the "you didn't build that" controversy. "

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/242163-rnc-sends-dnc-you-didnt-bake-this-obama-birthday-cake

I have never seen such childish, hateful, mocking, mean, degrading, disrespectful, immature, condescending, patronizing, unchristian, spiteful behavior toward a public figure from GROWN MEN AND WOMEN in my life.

That's OK....he's just a black guy....you can do that. 

I don't know what BIBLE you all read....but mine sure is different.

Making The "R" Word Work 
or using "otherness" against your opponent without getting called out.


I know..this is 2012 and we are WAY past all that nonsense.......NOT. But apparently we've got a long way to go......or a segment of the population is not on the same road we're on. For example:

"The language of GOP racial politics is heavy on euphemisms that allow the speaker to deny any responsibility for the racial content of his message. The code words in this game are “entitlement society” — as used by Mitt Romney — and “poor work ethic” and “food stamp president” — as used by Newt Gingrich. References to a lack of respect for the “Founding Fathers” and the “Constitution” also make certain ears perk up by demonizing anyone supposedly threatening core “old-fashioned American values.”
http://thehill.com/opinion/columnists/juan-williams/207295-2012-racial-code-words-obscure-real-issue

The latest is this, a political ad from an anti-Obama Super PAC:

 "Implying that whites are too stupid to have honest disagreements with the president without being racist is, in and of itself, racist against whites," the narrator says.

"Mr. President, you ran as the candidate of change," the ad's narrator says in conclusion. "But one thing has not changed—your tacit defense of racism against white folks, despite receiving nearly half the white vote to win the presidency."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/03/obama-racism-super-pac-web-ad_n_1739800.html?utm_hp_ref=politics&ir=Politics

OK, soooooo maybe Romney has NOT said "I approve this message" but you can be sure that a lot of the extreme Right Wing have...as well as the Tea Party People. Remember all those signs a couple of years ago?


When you have a Republican Representative coming right out and saying "diversity has never worked in this country", you know for SURE we're NOT on the same path.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/02/steve-king-english-language_n_1734431.html


We need to be very careful or we're going to become one of those country's we're always rushing to: helping them become"more democratic." From what I've seen lately concerning women's reproductive rights, voting rights, immigration, insisting that "Christianity" be first and foremost in this country, bigotry, back-handed racism, and scorn on those less fortunate..........some other more developed countries are going to be COMING HERE next.....

Rally 'round The Chicken, Boys


You've got to hand it to those on the Right: they certainly know how to throw an anti-protest. Just mention FOOD and they're all there.....

Anybody in this country can have a business. Anybody can have any point of view they want....be it religious or political. Where it gets tricky is when you openly state those views and make it known where you monetary support goes...you know that money that you make from that business you own.
This is where the politics of the situation shows it's ugly head.
The right, sensing a gain to made from this...exploiting again their "Christian family values" and the fact that the entire country must be "Bible-based"...had the likes of Mike Huckabee, Sarah Palin and others take the helm. The left, on the other hand, was simply standing up for their belief that all people are equal. With Fox along for the ride you see how that turned out:

"American Christians are facing uncertain times. Our nation’s values are under assault. Religious liberty has been undermined. We live in a day when right is now wrong and wrong is now right.

The vicious left-wing assault against Chick-fil-A should serve as a wakeup call to people of faith. It’s not about a chicken sandwich. It’s about the future of our country.

“Individuals have the right to decide whether or not to ‘eat mor chikin.’ But no government leader should restrict a business or organization from expanding to their district based on the personal or political views of the owners,” said Leith Anderson, president of the National Association of Evangelicals. 

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012/07/31/boycott-about-so-much-more-than-chicken-sandwich/#ixzz22PPRtdlf

Yep, you can have any business you want. To say something differently is wrong...and "undemocratic."
The next part is a little tricky: 
“Such evident discrimination and attempts to marginalize those with religious values have no place in American democracy.”Those who preach tolerance – are the least tolerant of all. And I suspect Councilman Kenney spoke for many when he issued a not-so-subtle threat to individuals like Dan Cathy who support traditional marriage.

“If he really, truly believes what he believes, that is his right to do so,” he said. “But there is often a price to pay for that.

In other words, Councilman Kenney wants people with dissenting views to shut up – or else face the consequences.

Apparently they've forgotten little matters such as this:
thttp://www.nashvillescene.com/pitw/archives/2011/06/07/not-welcome-documentary-on-murfreesboro-mosque-controversy-rough-cut

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2010/08/17/kt-mcfarland-ground-zero-mosque-god-september-obama-imam-feisal/

Or maybe even, as this commenter asks:

"What did you think when the American Family Association called for boycotts of Ford, Pepsi, McDonald’s, and Campbell’s Soup because of their pro-Gay stance?

What did you think when OneMillionMoms called for a boycott of Starbucks because they support marriage equality, or a boycott of J.C. Penney because Ellen Degeneres appears in their TV ads?"

Chicken and fast food aside, it all boils down to this for me:

"Denying civil rights to others in the name of Christian love has damaged our witness, alienated millions (including many younger Christians) and done nothing to address the real threats to marriage: the lack of time, energy and material resources necessary to nurture the bonds of love that hold a family together. If the church is to be faithful to Christ, then our political action should focus on what the kingdom of God is all about: .......not gays."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-j-dunn-phd/why-christian-activism-against-gay-marriage-is-not-christian_b_1509200.html