Category: Columns

John’s column “The Gay Moralist” appeared bi-weekly in Michigan’s Between the Lines from 2002-2007, and then weekly at 365Gay.com from 2007-2011. His columns and op-eds have also appeared in other venues, including the Independent Gay Forum, The Advocate, the Los Angeles Times, The New Republic and the New York Times. Most of these columns are archived here.

Homosexy in China

First published in Between the Lines on June 1, 2006. I am writing this column at my desk at the Xianlin Hotel at Nanjing Normal University in China, where I am delivering a two-week series of lectures on business ethics. Prior to arriving here I visited Beijing, and in a week I will visit Hong… Continue reading Homosexy in China

Polygamy Illogic Strikes Again

First published in Between the Lines on March 23, 2006. In his nationally syndicated column of March 17, Charles Krauthammer uses the HBO series “Big Love” (about a modern-day polygamist family in Utah) as a springboard to telling gay-rights advocates “I told you so.” Krauthammer writes: In an essay 10 years ago, I pointed out… Continue reading Polygamy Illogic Strikes Again

Battling for Our Children

First published in Between the Lines, March 9, 2006 Question: What’s worse than a dozen or so states contemplating gay marriage bans during an election year? Answer: A dozen or so states contemplating gay adoption bans during an election year. Welcome to 2006. At least sixteen states are considering laws or ballot initiatives restricting the… Continue reading Battling for Our Children

Left-Handed Desks and Same-Sex Marriages

First published in Between the Lines on February 26, 2006 I have just completed a week’s worth of same-sex marriage debates with Glenn Stanton of Focus on the Family. During the debates, Stanton made an excellent case in favor of traditional heterosexual marriage. I really mean that. What he did not do—what he utterly failed… Continue reading Left-Handed Desks and Same-Sex Marriages

Open Relationships and Double Standards

First published in Between the Lines on February 9, 2006 As I embark upon a week’s worth of same-sex marriage debates with Glenn Stanton of Focus on the Family, I am bracing myself for his arguments. (There’s a useful summary of his position here.) In every debate we’ve had, Stanton has brought up Jonathan Yarbrough… Continue reading Open Relationships and Double Standards

Debating the Indefensible?

First published as “Angry Lesbians and Right-Wing Nutcases” in Between the Lines on January 26, 2006 In a few weeks I’ll be doing a “Michigan tour” debating same-sex marriage with Glenn Stanton of Focus on the Family. People sometimes ask me whether I ever encounter hostile audience members at these debates (I do). “Which kind… Continue reading Debating the Indefensible?

Kurtz’s Confusions

First published in Between the Lines, January 11, 2006 Stanley Kurtz is at it again. In the cover story for the December 26th Weekly Standard—“Here Come the Brides: Plural Marriage is Waiting in the Wings”—Kurtz cites a recent Dutch “triple wedding” as further evidence for the slippery slope from gay marriage to polygamy. (The Netherlands… Continue reading Kurtz’s Confusions