Speaking on the topic "Does Marriage Matter" at the June 11, 2012 SW Metro Tea Party meeting in Chanhassen MN, state representative Glenn Gruenhagen shared his unflattering opinion of Sigmund Freud: "he started the concept of sexual orientation...he's a pervert, okay. He's a moron in my opinion and I don't believe in anything that he came up with."
Gruenhagen joined "ex-gay" activist Kevin Petersen at the group's regular meeting at a local rec center to advocate passage of an amendment to the Minnesota constitution which would limit the freedom to marry to one man and one woman.
The event isn't the first time the pair has ventured out to speak publicly together. In February, the American Independent's Andy Birkey reported in Ex-gay movement deeply tied to marriage amendment push:
A Republican state legislator and a man who claims to be a “former homosexual” have teamed up to support an anti-gay-marriage amendment to the Minnesota constitution.
The group — called the Pro-Marriage Amendment Forum — is just one example of the deep ties between backers of the marriage amendment and the “ex-gay” movement. The connections have left some LGBT advocates wondering if it’s not just gay marriage these groups are opposing, but rights for LGBT people as a whole.
“Ex-gay” therapy is a controversial practice that involves efforts to help gays and lesbians either abstain from relationships with partners of the same sex or engage in heterosexual relationships. Most mainstream psychological, medical, and counseling organizations have criticized the therapy as harmful due to its very limited success rates and studies showing it may lead to depression or suicide.
Rep. Glenn Gruenhagen, a Republican who represents the city of Glencoe about an hour southwest of Minneapolis, and Kevin Peterson, a man who says he was gay until the age of 33, started the Pro-Marriage Amendment Forum in order to raise money in support of the amendment. They are planning to show a series of Powerpoint presentations around the state.
Birkey notes that Petersen is no stranger to controversy in Minnesota:
Earlier this year, he testified before the Anoka-Hennepin School Board, saying that the LGBT community is attempting to recruit children.
That school district was embroiled in a heated debate over a policy that limited discussions of LGBT issues in the classroom, a controversy that abated earlier this month when the board repealed the policy.
A letter from Petersen, 'Ex-gay' argues for marriage amendment, was published online on June 29 by the Hutchinson Leader.
Gruenhagen raised eyebrows in 2011 when he advocated castrating sex offenders and called for the destruction of ‘filthy’ Kinsey research. He also claimed that:
there is nothing more destructive — or, one of the most destructive things to a society in terms of our women and children and even having economic consequences — is when the male sex drive is released in an uncontrolled and undisciplined way.
Within two days, the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami struck Japan and the Pacific, so maybe not.
Here's the clip of Gruenhagen's Freudian rip:
Photo: Rep. Glenn Gruenhagen. Photo: GlennforStateRep.com via the Minnesota Independent.
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As a right wing Christian, shouldn't he be leading the stoning of the formerly gay guy instead of appearing on stage with him? After all, just like the statement about stoning those who play around with the neighbor's spouse, I see no forgiveness in those Leviticus passages...just rock throwing.
I wonder if he is saving up stones for the fornicators that may be brought forth in the trial of the Minnesota Republican Senate fornicators.
Posted by: T Pa or Coffee | Jul 08, 2012 at 02:05 PM