LGBT people are back on the minds of Indiana's conservatives, but you can bet your bottom dollar they're not concerned with treating us fairly or equally to themselves. No, instead we get more of the same - extreme rhetoric, lies and falsehoods. Oh, and - of course - the possibility of making them some more money!

First we had former Speaker of the House Brian Bosma (who can't understand why Jews might be peeved when he allowed evangelical Christians to praise Jesus as the world's saviour in the legislature's opening prayers instead of sticking to the time honored practice of using a non-sectarian prayer) who again affirms the importance of an amendment in an interview with a local blogger during the Midwest Republican Leadership Conference. Check out this video (the pertinent part starts around the 6 minute mark) where suddenly Bosma claims "property taxes" as the most important Republican agenda item. What happened to the marriage amendment being "the most important piece of the people's business," Brian? Oh - wait there it is at the 7:15 mark - so a minute and 15 seconds later the amendment rears it's head. Damn those gays for buying houses! Arrrgh!

More examples from the machine after the jump:

Next up is a fundraising appeal letter the Indiana Family Institute sent to Hoosier households this week. (Hat tip to Taking Down Words) Don't you just love the fear-mongering, lies and horrific grammar? Remember, this is the religious group that Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy supports... Apparently Dungy's Christ is not only a Colts fan, he's also big on not telling the truth.

Imagine with me what Indiana would look like if we go forward with same-sex marriage or civil unions:

1. Public schools (as is being done in Massachusetts, where same-sex marriage is legal) will be forced to alter their definitions of family by having "alternative families" - "Heather has two mommies, which is just as good as having a mommy and a daddy." The nuclear family, the healthiest environment for families, will be redefined, and with it, our society.
2. Businesses will be required to give same-sex couples the same benefits as married couples - this could cost them millions!
3. Current confusion within the law will be amplified and dozens of new questions will arise that will require judicial resources - What "alternative" families can adopt defenseless children? Upon separation or divorce, which of the two daddies will get custody? Questions like this are certain to arise considering the research that shows the high risk of divorce within same-sex marriage. (In Sweden, gay male couples were 50% more likely to divorce and lesbian female couples were 167% more likely to divorce than heterosexual married couples. Gallagher and Baker "Same-sex Unions and Divorce Risks: Data from Sweden" www.imapp.org)
4. Most shocking will be measures implemented against those that oppose the view that homosexuality is a completely acceptable lifestyle. Soon, speaking against the homosexual lifestyle from the pulpit will be considered "hate speech." Not convinced? Ministers in both Canada AND Sweden have already been imprisoned for preaching the Biblical message that homosexuality is a sin! Closer to home, peaceful protesters (including some elderly women) at a gay pride parade in Philadelphia were arrested for "hate speech." We are not far away from this scary reality.

You may be thinking, "This would NEVER happen in our state!" But you would be sadly mistaken. The seeds of this dark future are already being sown by those who oppose the Indiana Marriage Amendment, but I am fortunate enough to be a part of a movement that seeks to prevent this dark future for Indiana families.

Wow, Curt. Darn those judges for having to decide custody cases. That never happens with straight people. Maybe we'd better start examining more closely which heterosexual families can adopt "defenseless" children. After all, the overwhelming majority of all child abuse cases in Indiana came from good old straight families... Maybe we should start doing background checks before any Hoosier parents can have kids. Pass the litmus test or get an abortion. I'm sure IFI will be supporting that amendment!

But while we're on the IFI topic, let's chat with Coach Dungy again to see if the outrage from his fans has changed his mind about dabbling in politics... Nope. Sure hasn't. The coach spent the off season yakking it up with noted homophobes like Focus on the Family founder Dr. James Dobson and mentioned the issue in a recent Indianapolis Star article.

Dungy's most controversial moment came after he denounced gay marriage in a speech to the Indiana Family Institute in March. That drew criticism from various media outlets and letters of opposition and support.

He doesn't consider himself a crusader, however.

"I didn't take the offensive or the initiative," he said. "I just said I think marriage is man and woman. That's my opinion."

Irsay said he has received "very, very little" in the way of protests over Dungy's public viewpoints and has no problem with them.

Allow me to be the first to publicly call Mr. Irsay a liar. When Bilerico broke the Tony Dungy story nationwide, I quickly got a call from the Colts office asking how they could make it up to the gay community. Every person I spoke to at the office thought Dungy was out of line for promoting his religious and political beliefs and couldn't believe that he was stupid enough to do so around the Superbowl. At one point, they were even trying to arrange for the coach to come to my house and have dinner with a couple of gay families. Apparently, the coach wasn't even willing to break bread with queers though as nothing ever came of it. The plans had gone so far though that I had even submitted a guest list to the Colts office.

So what do you think, readers? Will the conservatives try to force their favorite wedge issue on us again next year? I don't think we need a Magic 8 Ball for this one...

(Cross-posted from The Bilerico Project)

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