http://tspwiki.com/index.php?title=1977
As always, Alex Shrugged's opinions are his own. Other people's work are their own. I include them here for the sake of completeness and to provide a second method of access to the material for the TSP history segment.
* Anita Bryant vs. the Gay Crusaders-- Contributed by Alex Shrugged
* xxx -- Contributed by Southpaw Ben
* Tokyo Rose is Free, and an American Citizen -- Contributed by Alex Shrugged
* Notable Births -- See below.
* This Year in Film -- See below.
* This Year in Music -- See below.
* In Other News -- See below.
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Anita Bryant vs. the Gay Crusaders
Contributed by Alex ShruggedAnita Bryant is a popular singer who belted out The Battle Hymn of the Republic at the half time show for Super Bowl III. Now she is doing commercials promoting Florida orange juice, and she is good at it. She is a 1950's stereotypical mom, and a believing Christian. She also believes that the flamboyant gay rights movement is promoting the gay lifestyle to children. She speaks out against the flaunting of homosexuality. (To be fair, she also objected when Jim Morrison of The Doors flaunted his manhood at a Florida concert.) She thinks a "Don't ask. Don't tell" solution is best just like President Bill Clinton will order as Commander-in-Chief when dealing with gays in the military, but unlike Bill, Anita is getting hassled left and right by gay activists. She is even assaulted on TV when a fellow throws a pie in her face. (FYI, years later, recalling the attack on Anita Bryant, two pies will be thrown at Ann Coulter. They will miss.) And then a gay man in San Francisco is beaten and stabbed to death by local toughs. The mother of the gay man accuses Anita of contributing to her son's death. 200,000 protestors take to the streets. Anita's career is over. And so it goes, even today. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]
My Take by Alex Shrugged
WARNING: I am going to use the real names for body parts. I use these same words in front of my children, and I always have. So brace yourselves. Here we go. As I understand it, the gay rights movement is divided between those who want to be peacefully gay, and those who want to ride giant inflatable penises down main street. I am OK with the first group and not OK with the second although I am willing for inflatable penises to be displayed in a private setting. To be fair, I feel the same way when women protest President Trump by wearing vagina hats. I am not shocked. I am bored. Some inequities exist between heterosexuals and homosexuals. We can fix those by eliminating the special privileges granted to heterosexuals. Marriage, like sex, should be private. Contracts can be entered into by consenting adults, and if the signatories do not live up to the terms of the contract, it can be adjudicated like any other breach of contract. Beyond that, government should butt out.
WARNING: I am going to use the real names for body parts. I use these same words in front of my children, and I always have. So brace yourselves. Here we go. As I understand it, the gay rights movement is divided between those who want to be peacefully gay, and those who want to ride giant inflatable penises down main street. I am OK with the first group and not OK with the second although I am willing for inflatable penises to be displayed in a private setting. To be fair, I feel the same way when women protest President Trump by wearing vagina hats. I am not shocked. I am bored. Some inequities exist between heterosexuals and homosexuals. We can fix those by eliminating the special privileges granted to heterosexuals. Marriage, like sex, should be private. Contracts can be entered into by consenting adults, and if the signatories do not live up to the terms of the contract, it can be adjudicated like any other breach of contract. Beyond that, government should butt out.
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Contributed by Southpaw BenText
My Take by Southpaw Ben
Tokyo Rose is Free, and an American Citizen
Contributed by SomeoneIva Toguri is a Japanese-American born in Los Angeles on the 4th of July. She was visiting her a sick aunt in Japan when World War 2 broke out. She was stranded. She refused Japanese citizenship. She could barely speak Japanese at all, yet she had to eat. She got a job working for a news agency and soon had a radio show called "Orphan Ann". The American servicemen called her Tokyo Rose, but many women before Iva had been granted that nickname. She was the first American. Her shows were innocuous. In some cases she tried to help Americans since she could be subtle in her broadcasts saying one thing, but meaning another. After the war, the US Occupation government wanted to charge her, but they had no evidence (because there was none) so they let her go. Americans were outraged that Tokyo Rose walked free. They remedied that situation by providing witnesses (otherwise known as LIARS) to testify against her. She became the 7th person in US history to be convicted of treason. She was sentenced to 10 years. This year is her 6th in prison, and as President Gerald Ford vacates the White House he pardons Iva Toguri. Tokyo Rose is an American citizen once more. [6] [7] [8]
My Take by Alex Shrugged
It is too easy to simply "know" when someone is guilty. It is too easy to justify in one's mind that it is OK to bend the rules a little, to tell a lie, so that the outcome is right. We take an oath to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, but we take so many oaths these days that it is almost perfunctory. I think we need to take fewer oaths, and treat the ones we take more seriously. After all, I really don't need that many oaths from others, and if others do not trust me, why are they asking for my oath in the first place? Iva Toguri passed away at the age of 90. I learned about her through a broadcast by Glenn Beck. He now owns the microphone that Tokyo Rose used. It still works.
It is too easy to simply "know" when someone is guilty. It is too easy to justify in one's mind that it is OK to bend the rules a little, to tell a lie, so that the outcome is right. We take an oath to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, but we take so many oaths these days that it is almost perfunctory. I think we need to take fewer oaths, and treat the ones we take more seriously. After all, I really don't need that many oaths from others, and if others do not trust me, why are they asking for my oath in the first place? Iva Toguri passed away at the age of 90. I learned about her through a broadcast by Glenn Beck. He now owns the microphone that Tokyo Rose used. It still works.
Notable Births
- Donald Trump Jr.: Son of President Trump and trustee for the vast Trump empire. [9]
- Ahmed al-Nami (died 2001, age 24): One of the 9-11 hijackers of Flight 93. Todd Beamer led the passenger revolt. "Let's roll!" [9]
- Elisabeth Hasselbeck: Conservative panel member on The View and host of Fox & Friends. [9]
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- -- In Movies James Van Der Beek (Varsity Blues), and Liv Tyler (in anything she wants to be in--alexshrugged). [9]
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- -- In Sports Troy Evans, and Tom Brady. [9]
This Year in Film
- Star Wars: "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...." (So that you won't sue the crap out of the production company when you realize that there is every kind of weird alien in this film but NO BLACK PEOPLE! All kidding aside, Billy Dee Williams was considered for the part of Hans Solo, but Harrison Ford got the part.--alexshrugged) [11]
- Close Encounters of the Third Kind: Richard Dreyfus and Teri Garr. [11]
- Smokey and the Bandit: Burt Reynolds and Sally Fields break every traffic law known to man. [11]
- The Goodbye Girl: Richard Dreyfus becomes the youngest actor to win Best Actor at the Academy Awards. [11]
- Fun with Dick and Jane: With the aerospace industry collapsing, Dick and Jane look for another profession... like armed robbery. [14]
This Year in TV
- Roots: A TV mini-series loosely documenting the enslavement of an African family, its suffering and eventual rise in American society. Hello, LeVar Burton (Star Trek)! (As Alex Haley's personal history, it is hokum, but it will change American attitudes toward black people for the good. The KKK gets the boot from this time forward.--alexshrugged) [15]
- Soap: A parody of daytime dramas with Billy Crystal playing one of the 1st gay characters on TV. [15]
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- -- Also in Comedy: Eight Is Enough, Three's Company, and The Love Boat (It is Love, American Style on a boat! Did they think we wouldn't notice?--alexshrugged) [15]
This Year in Music
- And so many great hits, I can't list them all.
This Year in Video Games
- Atari opens Chuck E. Cheese's / Pizza Time Theater: It is a video arcade and pizzeria. [21]
- And in home computers... The Commodore PET, the Apple II and the TRS-80 from Radio Shack. (They figured the TRS-80 would never sell, but the phones lines melted down as 250,000 customers rushed to put down a $100 deposit.) [21]
In Other News
- GLOBAL COOLING! Snow is falling in Miami, Florida on January 19th: (Just to be clear, Alex Shrugged thinks that the world is generally on a warming trend. Whether this is a natural occurrence or due to human action is highly debatable. But even if it was due to humans, every plan I've seen to stop it is a joke.--alexshrugged) [6]
- Food Stamps are here!: (The line starts on the left.--alexshrugged) [6]
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