And what, pray tell, is the level of dance that triggers such punishment? Why if you should hold your arms over your head and wiggle a little because your underwear is binding that would definitely do it! The people who enforce these laws are like all law enforcement personnel, they take the laws that they enforce quite seriously. Blatant loud music playing is also forbidden, especially when it is the type of music that encourages dancing. So the Pub around Trafalgar has had to become quite a sober place. And it will stay that way unless it obtains an entertainment license, which will allow it to actually provide an entertaining environment. This is obviously a law that is enforced vigorously and that makes it at least partly a good law. It also appears that it is not enforced selectively, that also makes it potentially a good law. Laws that are placed on the books and left to molder until some officious sort trots them out to use against the one unfortunate person out of many selected for an example are not good laws. They are a convenience to public officials who want to punish someone who may be inconvenient to them in some way. They may be pointed at people who are slightly outside the norm. These types of laws make the policing of society less just and thus should be discouraged.

Rick Sanatorium recently chimed in on an issue coming before the Supreme Court regarding a case of consensual sex between two gay men in Texas. His unsolicited opinion was that homosexuality is OK as long as homosexual people don't act on their sexuality. Thus the law, which is almost never enforced, is a good law? Aside from the hundreds of thousands of words that have been written about this communication I have one bit of advice to offer both sides. To define the sides: One side defends his right to say these things which has never been denied so far, The other side has clarified the reasons why it was a crude attack on homosexuality which seems obvious enough. My side is based on the way these laws threaten constitutional protections. If society really wants to outlaw homosexuality it can but it will require far more draconian measures in order to even enforce laws banning gay sex already on the books than have come out of 9/11. That repression will be much less than what will be required of police surveillance if those laws are strengthened and an attempt is made to rigorously enforce them.

I, for one, object to the level of intrusion that will be focused on anyone suspected of being gay if our government decides that such laws are to be imposed universally. Next we will, in order to be consistent, be forced to enforce laws against prostitution, which will put a lot of legislators out of office. Oh, we are talking only about sex here, never mind, votes cast for campaign contributors don't count. Of course there are all of the laws against sex with anyone except one's spouse, think about what level of police surveillance would be required to fully enforce those laws.

Of course there are the people who think Mr. Sanatorium was only pandering to his homophobic base, but that is unlikely. I think he has a bigger agenda. I think he is intent on proving to everyone who is slightly restrained by civility that those rules don't apply to "Queers" and other outsiders. Indeed, in one case he is serious and wants to really enforce those sex laws he mentioned. In the other case if he merely wants to endorse homophobic repressive behavior in those who are too tentative in acting out their anger derived from their fear. In either case he is really quite a dangerous fellow. I recommend that the Log Cabin Republicans wave a new banner in the next Republican Convention, Ad Hominem Exit (appeals to prejudice, get out). Of course that isn't a Latin phrase, it is in English but Mr. Sanatorium won't know that, he is obviously not well trained enough to be running around out in public without a keeper. By the way, spellchecker approves of my spelling of his name, not his (Santorum). God bless and keep you all safe, Homosexuals, Santorums, Troops, Protestors and Homophobes too, it is more than a full time job with leaders like this in charge of our nation.