I am sooo angry with our govenor!

[Stray59]

AAARRRGGGHHH! I have just watched the second weekly show of Saturday Night Live where Indiana was a running joke - all over a very stubborn govenor, Mr. Mike Pence signing the Religious Freedom Restoration Act into law. For those of you who may not know, the RFRA allows business the right to deny services to people who do not live up to the business owners standards basically. Yes, Indiana is very conservative in many ways, but in all reality, we are making strides forward; as an example, we had just passed the law giving the LGBT community the right to get married. But with this new law, if a bakery does not wish to bake a wedding cake for LGBT wedding, they can just say they don't have to do so; but now they can say it is because they morally disagree with someone else's lifestyle. The weird thing is, they already HAVE that right - it is called the "right to deny services to anyone" - it is posted in most stores and restaurants, not just in Indiana, but in most, if not all, states and it comes as a right to anyone who owns or leases property or services. Usually it is reserved for people who are a public nuisance or present some other issue to the employer, but it is common practice. Duh.......
I hope the rest of the people in US, (and thanks to CNN "around the world"), understand that this law WAS NOT voted in by the majority of the people of this state; had it been put to vote, it would have failed by a huge margin. MANY of us fought it - State businesses, civil rights groups, teachers, churches, etc - and yet, not matter what, Pence said he was going to sign it into law, "regardless of any outcry".
He has pandered to a very small minority of people who fought the Right for Gays to Marry act, so, since it passed, now they wanted a law on the books so they can openly discriminate and tell you why they are discriminating - with no legal recourse.
Pence has states that this was not the "spirit of the law" but when asked 6 times on a CNN interview if he thought it was okay to discriminate against gays, he would not answer the question, he just kept talking about how that was not what the law was for; but he NEVER said it was not right or would not happen.
This is just such a blackeye to everyone here and it is going to cost the state's economy BILLIONS. We have companies pulling out, large numbers of high salaried individuals are transferring out of the state, we have already lost several huge conventions (THE lifeblood of Indianapolis) and the support of groups that have been a huge asset to everyone here.
This is really devastating to so many of us. One joke on SNL was bounced off the punchline of, basically, "If I wanted to know what it was like to live in the 60's, I would move to Indiana." I had to first laugh and then sort of cry on the inside. I would like to think that the basic focus on any state would be advancement, not regression, but we will be years trying to shed this perception of the people of this state, if we every do.
The only good thing to come out of this is it has destroyed Gov. Pence's chances of going any further in politics. He is reported to be a very nice person, with very high values, but this has shown that when he wants something, regardless of the majority opinion of the people, businesses and churches of this state, he plows right ahead, without concern for the consequences to the economy, pride, stature and hopes of the State.
Although I lived in Illinois until 8 years ago, (which by comparison is very progressive - Who knew?) I am embarrassed for what is now my home state. I have a very good life here, running into virtually no prejudice or discrimination, meeting very friendly people daily; but, to hear the newscasts and the opinions of other states, you would think that I ran a high risk of getting bent over everyday and was made to "squeal like a pig", to quote the movie "Deliverance" - That really is the farthest thing from the truth.
This was such a total loss on so many levels. The overall shame that this state has to carry due to one man being so pig-headed and losing sight of his duty, which is to protect and help the State prosper. Instead, he has imperiled the security of this state, and in my opinion we need a new bill - the GRTG bill. "Get Rid of This Govenor".....how else do we save face?
Thanks for letting me vent!
Signing off as "Glad to get that off my chest in Indiana............"