academic freedom at Harvard

[/ dave /]

budge wrote:

> [o'reilly] is very good on laws, rules, and social pressure to be
> brought to bear on "anti-gay" prejudice.  they should not be
> discriminated against in employment, housing, and certainly
> not beat up on the streets.  BUT, he also doesn't appreciate
> "going out in public and seeing two guys kissing". (esp if a
> minor child is around)
> 
> from the little i know of ventura, he strikes me very much
> the same way.


Actually, there was an incident two years ago where Ventura had to stand 
up for his chief of staff, a very capable and well-liked person in the 
administration, who was arrested by an undercover cop for indecent 
behavior, masturbating in the steam room at a local health/workout club. 
Ventura handled the issue deftly, and it blew over very quickly. He made 
it clear in no uncertain terms (albeit in typical Ventura fashion) that 
he wasn't going to allow it to be a big deal, and miraculously that's 
how it was handled. Here's a little snippet from the Advocate's website:

Ventura says double standard applied to gay public sex

Addressing the controversy surrounding his gay chief of staff, who was 
arrested on charges of allegedly masturbating in a health club steam 
room, Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura said last week that gays face 
different standards than heterosexuals when it comes to public sex. "We 
can do it, and people just shake their fingers at us and tell us we're 
spirited," Ventura said during a conversation on a radio talk show. "Is 
there any of us talking here that hasn't gone out and had sex in a place 
they're not supposed to?" Ventura said that while he doesn't understand 
the behavior of his aide, there is some heterosexual behavior he doesn't 
understand as well. "There's people out there in the hetero world that 
like bondage," Ventura said. "It's not my cup of tea, but I'm not going 
to sit there and say that it's right, wrong, or whatever." Ventura said 
he thinks the arrest of Steve Bosacker, by a police officer he allegedly 
propositioned, could have been handled differently. "I know in my 
alpha-male world--and I get in situations like that--I don't call the 
police," Ventura said. "This is just me personally. I would just laugh 
it off if I'm propositioned and I'm not gay, if I'm a hetero," he said. 
Bosacker has taken a leave of absence and is seeking counseling.

http://www.advocate.com/html/news/112800/112800news10.asp


I can't think of too many politicians of the Demopublican variety at his 
level who would've addressed the issue as directly as he did (not to 
mention tried to teach a subtle live-and-let-live lesson at the same 
time), and for that he's to be commended.

-- 

/  dave  /