I recently posted a challenge about gay marriage/rights to an atheist discussion site

it's the reddit atheism page, taking a stab at the Chick-Fil-A controversy.

the full page is here:

http://www.reddit.com/r/atheism/comments/xvmtj/food_protest/

it started off as comments made about this pic:



where I was arguing with someone about the 'protest' by folks that showed up were just using 'religion' & 'freedom of speech' as cover for bigotry & homophobia

After all..it DID happen after the story got national attention where the owner openly said he contributes to anti-gay hate groups, in support of 'traditional marriage' & christian values.



There's a lot of conservative/religious trolls & bigots there & they disrupt the subreddit all the time saying that anything posted with a homosexual slant has nothing to do with atheism

Considering the majority of opposition comes from from religious groups, I think it's a pretty damn good reason why someone would choose atheism.

all that aside though, the issue is this:



I wanted them to state a clear, logical argument as to why they are against gay marriage and/or gay rights, without using religion or bible passages as an excuse.

I was trying to isolate & remove the religion aspect & expose the bigotry & homophobia for what it is.

It may be a wee biased & have a preconception to it, but it was the best I came up with at the time.



A little background on myself:

I'm a 36 year old male heterosexual atheist, with gay relatives & close friends. I love 'em all equally.

My posted challenge was this:

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I do want to have a serious discussion..

So I'm going to post a challenge to try to separate bigotry (or just plain distaste) from religious beliefs

I want folks that don't approve of gay marriage (or gay equality/rights) for that matter to justify in their OWN words & opinions WITHOUT using religion or bible verses as a fall back.

Calling it unnatural or whatever is not a valid reason either. that's just an opinion.

Or that it makes them feel 'icky' or uncomfortable to think about. that is not a valid logical argument.

The argument should stand on it's own merit without needing a few verses from a collection of stories written 2000 years ago in a totally different era to prop it up. (or any other 'holy' book for that matter).

I'll be waiting.

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I need a sounding board or at least a few to come over there & keep things honest.

I post under the same username as I do on DU.

I also want to hear from everyone interested here, criticism & all!