A Surgeon General Who Will "Cure" Gays?

[CatWoman]

Last week, with little fanfare, George W. Bush announced the nomination of Joseph Holsinger to become the Surgeon General of the United States. Said Bush:

As America's chief health educator, he will be charged with providing the best scientific information available on how Americans can make smart choices that improve their health and reduce their risk of illness and injury.

And speaking of choices, Holsinger and his wife:

...founded Hope Springs Community Church in a warehouse at 1109 Versailles Road. Calhoun called it a socially diverse congregation with a "very vital recovery ministry." It serves the homeless and those with addictions to drugs, alcohol and sex; and it has a Spanish-language Hispanic congregation with its own pastor. <...>

Hope Springs also ministers to people who no longer wish to be gay or lesbian, Calhoun said.

"We see that as an issue not of orientation but of lifestyle," he said. "We have people who seek to walk out of that lifestyle."
And as a member of the United Methodist Judicial Council, Holsinger:

...supported a pastor who would not permit an openly gay man to join the church...(The church's bishops voted later to allow the gay man to become a member.)
But rest assured, according to his supporters, this potential Surgeon General for all Americans won't "be driven by ideology."

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/6/1/11540/63349

[radfringe]

1. could we just work on curing stupid first?

[Ganja Ninja]

7. A vaccine against superstition would nice. n/t

[radfringe]

8. I hear that

shaking your index finger over salt while walking around a ladder 3 times rids a person of superstition

[The Count]

36. Sorry, you're aiming way to high! Considering the minds in charge at least...

:shrug:

[Cha]

42. Along the lines of what

Chris Rock said when asked if he thought America was ready for a Black President. Chris said, "America was ready for a retarded president(sic)."

[Occulus]

2. Christians are SO persecuted in this nation

It's very sad

[Cha]

43. The ones who play the victims are

the faux christians..fristians as it were. Funny that.

[Mz Pip]

3. This guy is a doctor????

Yikes! Where does Bush find these people? I didn't know Pat Robertson had a medical school, too.

Once again he managed to find a yes man hack to fill an important postion. Pathetic.

Mz Pip
:dem:

[DFW]

4. What a quote

"We see that as an issue not of orientation but of lifestyle," he said. "We have people who seek to walk out of that lifestyle."

What if that is applied to celibate Catholic priests, or monogamous Christians,
or vegetarians? Maybe quotes like that should be used more sparingly, lest they
be applied to their authors.

[AndyTiedye]

5. Is There ANY Chance the Senate Will REJECT Him?

nah, I didn't think so.

[phantom power]

6. Does he believe disease is caused by imbalanced humours too?

:eyes:

[Nikki Stone1]

19. Bet he still uses leeches.

Good Lord!

[jmowreader]

22. Don't be dissin' on leeches, Nikki

They call it hirudotherapy now, but leeches are fantastic for use in restoring bloodflow after microsurgery--among other things.

[TahitiNut]

23. Maybe not, but his practice has a barber pole outside and he uses treppanation to let the demons out

:evilgrin:

[whistle]

9. Ah, a faith based Surgeon General...is he even a medical doctor?

The Joseph Holsinger which appears in my web search was somehow involved in the CIA MKULTRA cover-up of the Jonestown massacre. If Bush is appointing someone like that guy to be the nations heath-care teacher, he might as well have appointed Nazi death-camp physician Dr. Josef Mengele

[madinmaryland]

10. Why is a minister being nominated for Surgeon General

:wtf:

Just unbelievable.

:nuke:

[whistle]

11. Because George W. Bush had his "addiction disease" cured by his Lord and Saviour

....Jesus Christ and God Almighty! Pass the halos around the White House....amen brothers and sisters. Sacramental wine for all with a light dusting of white powder!

[MonkeyFunk]

21. well

while the guy seems to be an asshole, he's a doctor with a lot of experience.

He's a cardiologist, was secretary of Kentucky's Health and Family Services, a Chancellor of the University of Kentucky Medical Center, and undersecretary of Health in the Dept. of Veterans Affairs.

The article doesn't say he himself is a minister.

[wildhorses]

12. i didn't know they were sick?

:wtf:

[The Count]

37. "lifestyle" makes it sound more like "wayward' than sick...Prodigals....

[Parche]

13. Change

Why would anyone want to anyway...its fun to be Bi/Gay!!! :hi:

I wish the right wingers would stay out of everyones bedroom....

[Az]

14. Homosexuality does not appear in the DSM-IV

It is not a recognized mental disorder. Whatever would you treat them for?

[Prophet 451]

27. Not being guilt-ridden enough to please God

Fundie Christianity relies on guilt to keep it's pews filled and the cash rolling in. You can't "cure" homosexuality (short of outright brainwashing) but if you can just get them to feel guilty about it, they'll shill all the harder for you.

[Laughing Mirror]

15. You can't cure what you are

Being gay is something you are, not something you have, like a lifestyle or a disease, like insanity, which is what this nominated surgeon general needs to be cured of.

[rodeodance]

16. O MG---This crap just keeps coming---Bushco just keeps pushing!!

[VP505]

17. Good grief,

if this clown is pushing "curing" homosexuality, I have to ask, is he a medical doctor or a witch doctor? If he claims to be a medical doctor I want to see his License to practice medicine?

[DFW]

18. If Bush can get an MBA from Harvard

Then you better believe they will dig up a medical degree for this clown
somewhere, even if it's from the University of Southern North Dakota at Hoople.

[0xDEADBEEF]

20. It's too bad that....

"You can't cure 'stupid!'" --Ron White

[NMDemDist2]

24. welcome to DU 0xDEADBEEF

:hi:

You may find our handy DU Glossary to be entertaining and helpful to understand many of the 'inside' jokes around here.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_oet&address=358x190

[Deja Q]

25. Why do people walk out of 'that lifestyle'?

(not a rhetorical question, but it's a question so few ask.)

[Forkboy]

26. Maybe we can get a Secretary of Education to cure his homophobia.

Is there like some kind of huge vat of stupid somewhere where workers just scrape out one dumbass after the other?

[Prophet 451]

29. Yep

It's the joint property of the SBC and Christian Coalition but since the rise of His Holiness King George III (aka: Jesus II), it's been on exclusive lease to VRWC (Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy Inc., a subsidiary of Halliburton). Formerly a limited scale prototype, VRWC have improved the model, adding such features as a direct interface with the most conservative kook in America (a Mr. Phelps of Kansas) and a pictoral interface (literacy not required since reading is a gift of Satan) and now have the improved model working flat-out, pumping out ten, sometimes twelve, complete idiots every hour.

[Forkboy]

30. LOL...I knew it!

:rofl:

[TZ]

28. Sometimes I think its a game to them..find the LEAST qualified

applicant to hold the job!! What's next a faith healer in charge of NIH?

[theHandpuppet]

31. Will he start with Mary Cheney?

Or will it just be working class gays registered as Dems?

[shadowknows69]

32. Dr. Mengele paging Dr. Mengele

report to genetic tampering lab STAT.

[gollygee]

39. If Dr. Mengele were available

his shoulder might get tapped.

[FloridaJudy]

33. I've been hoping for a cure for Mean

For the last six and a half years.

{{{{{{{{{{sigh}}}}}}}}}}}

Ain't gonna happen.

[hedgehog]

34. Hey - if the Surgeon General doesn't work on protecting us all from

catching The Gay, do you suppose he can work on controlling TB?

[orleans]

35. WTF IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE?? my god! n/t

[gollygee]

38. Maybe he'll bring back leeching

[Prophet 451]

41. No need, it's still around

Leeching is actually very useful in certain circumstances.

[shadowknows69]

44. Prophet is good, Prophet is wise. tis true.

:toast:

[The Count]

40. I know! I know how!