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Gary Smith
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U.S. Promoting Homo Perversion in Macedonia !!
Quote from article below:
"... the U.S. embassy in Macedonia is using U.S. taxpayer dollars to erect billboards promoting the homosexual agenda.
Not just billboards, but graphic billboards. The large photo array includes three pictures of gay men holding each other; three pictures of women in suggestive positions (one even using elderly women); and lastly, a ménage à trios with an Asian woman, a blond woman (neither looking even remotely Macedonian), and a man who looks very much like Jesus of Nazareth.
The billboards reads: "Face Reality, The Campaign to Pomote the Rights of Sexual Minorities," and in the lower right-hand corner is the seal of the American embassy...."
______________________________
January 06, 2004, 8:53 a.m.
<br>Diplomatic Missteps
The State Department works for the American Left in Macedonia.
By Kerri Houston
It is a beautiful country to be sure, but the small Balkan nation of Macedonia has some big problems.
As it works to satisfy cumbersome requirements for integrating into NATO and the EU, Macedonia continues to experience high unemployment and a staggering trade deficit. It has fallen victim to the eastern European criminal network active in trafficking women and children into prostitution. Both its majority and minority political parties are trying to balance national unity with ethnic recognition. It is a ticking time bomb for ethnic violence that could erupt at any moment. The country isn't even allowed to use its rightful name: The Greeks, still apparently reeling from the invasion of Alexander the Great, objected to the name Macedonia during the post-Communism renaming process of the 1990's. So out of the wreckage of Yugoslavia came its ludicrous official name, FYROM — the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
Against this backdrop of critical economic and identity development as well as ethnic unrest, the vast majority of Macedonians think that homosexuality is a disease. Therefore, the U.S. embassy in Macedonia is using U.S. taxpayer dollars to erect billboards promoting the homosexual agenda.
Not just billboards, but graphic billboards. The large photo array includes three pictures of gay men holding each other; three pictures of women in suggestive positions (one even using elderly women); and lastly, a ménage à trios with an Asian woman, a blond woman (neither looking even remotely Macedonian), and a man who looks very much like Jesus of Nazareth.
The billboards reads: "Face Reality, The Campaign to Promote the Rights of Sexual Minorities," and in the lower right-hand corner is the seal of the American embassy, Skopje.
The billboard is prominently displayed in the capital of Skopje, and also in the peaceful, ancient city of Ohrid. It is unclear how many of these billboards dot the Macedonian landscape.
I saw these myself while there recently to speak to Macedonian and ethnically Albanian women about increasing their roles in the political process. It was promising to see these disparate women discuss politics, ethnic violence, and the universal female kinship of child rearing as they put aside centuries-old differences on behalf of their country. In comparison to America's hollow heroes of celebrity, it was an honor to be among these legitimately brave and forward-thinking women.
According to these political activists, supporting coalition building, opening dialogue between factional political parties, and expanding manufacturing and commerce for this emerging democracy should be the primary mission of U.S. interests — both political and economic. There are numerous NGOs and U.S. government agencies currently operating in Macedonia, and the private-sector presence is growing.
Much of this activity centers around the U.S. embassy in Skopje, headed by Ambassador Lawrence Butler. Ambassador Butler served on the National Security Council staff as director for European affairs for President Clinton, and was made a member of the Senior Foreign Service in 1997 by the Clinton administration. He has been in foreign service since 1976 and has vast European experience, particularly in the Balkans.
Since arriving in Macedonia in April of 2002, Ambassador Butler has created discomfort and resentment by dismissing the use of a Macedonian translator when speaking in predominantly Albanian areas, and supported a USAID memo that advocated the use of the flag of the Republic of Albania at U.S.-sponsored events in Macedonia.
It is mystifying why an experienced diplomat with in-depth knowledge of Balkan ethnic unrest and cultural mores would eschew caution and sensitivity when dealing with inter-ethnic protocol. That our embassy would not just support, but sponsor, billboards that offend the entire national spectrum is particularly egregious and ill-advised.
In 2002, the Swedish Helsinki Committee and the Foundation Open Society of Macedonia did a comprehensive survey of the attitudes toward homosexuality of the four largest ethnic Macedonian communities — Macedonian, Albanian, Turkish, and Roma. The committee's conclusion is glaring: 64 percent of Macedonians think homosexuality is a disease, only 19 percent don't, and the rest are "not certain."
Another 60 percent believe it is also "immoral." As recently as 1996, homosexuality was a criminal offense, and nearly 35 percent of Macedonians believe that it should continue to be punishable by law. On the personal scale, only 20.5 percent of Macedonians surveyed would accept the homosexuality of a family member.
Yet into this worldview marches the U.S. embassy, allocating vital financial resources to an in-your-face strategy promoting the inevitability and acceptance of this perceived "disease." It seems that in Macedonia at least, support for the homosexual agenda has become the official position of the U.S. State Department.
The arrival of these billboards has been noticed by Macedonian president Boris Trajkovski, who was "appalled to see that the embassy of the United States of America would sponsor something such as this in Macedonia."
He told me, "U.S. taxpayer funds should not be used to promote alternative lifestyles in my country, and I do not believe that most Americans would appreciate this. We have many more pressing issues that the money could be used for. This is deeply offensive to most people in Macedonia which represents a very conservative mix of the Orthodox Christian and Muslim faiths."
Macedonia has been overrun by all manner of foreign invaders for thousands of years — Romans, Turks, Greeks, Nazis, and even billionaire leftist George Soros, who departed in a huff with his investment capital when his efforts to kingdomize the country failed. As Macedonia moves from the economic legacy of Communism to a free-market system, maintaining its stability is a key element in U.S. and international efforts to reduce political volatility in the Balkans, including neighboring Kosovo. The incursion of the homosexual agenda of the American Left — implemented by our diplomatic corps — is yet another incursion not welcomed by the Macedonian people.
The Macedonian women have it right — America's greatest gift to their nation should be the export of economic and individual liberty, wrapped in respect for the country's historic and deeply held cultural and religious beliefs.
- Kerri Houston is vice president of policy for Frontiers of Freedom.
U.S. Promoting Homo Perversion in Macedonia !!
Quote from article below:
"... the U.S. embassy in Macedonia is using U.S. taxpayer dollars to erect billboards promoting the homosexual agenda.
Not just billboards, but graphic billboards. The large photo array includes three pictures of gay men holding each other; three pictures of women in suggestive positions (one even using elderly women); and lastly, a ménage à trios with an Asian woman, a blond woman (neither looking even remotely Macedonian), and a man who looks very much like Jesus of Nazareth.
The billboards reads: "Face Reality, The Campaign to Pomote the Rights of Sexual Minorities," and in the lower right-hand corner is the seal of the American embassy...."
______________________________
January 06, 2004, 8:53 a.m.
<br>Diplomatic Missteps
The State Department works for the American Left in Macedonia.
By Kerri Houston
It is a beautiful country to be sure, but the small Balkan nation of Macedonia has some big problems.
As it works to satisfy cumbersome requirements for integrating into NATO and the EU, Macedonia continues to experience high unemployment and a staggering trade deficit. It has fallen victim to the eastern European criminal network active in trafficking women and children into prostitution. Both its majority and minority political parties are trying to balance national unity with ethnic recognition. It is a ticking time bomb for ethnic violence that could erupt at any moment. The country isn't even allowed to use its rightful name: The Greeks, still apparently reeling from the invasion of Alexander the Great, objected to the name Macedonia during the post-Communism renaming process of the 1990's. So out of the wreckage of Yugoslavia came its ludicrous official name, FYROM — the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
Against this backdrop of critical economic and identity development as well as ethnic unrest, the vast majority of Macedonians think that homosexuality is a disease. Therefore, the U.S. embassy in Macedonia is using U.S. taxpayer dollars to erect billboards promoting the homosexual agenda.
Not just billboards, but graphic billboards. The large photo array includes three pictures of gay men holding each other; three pictures of women in suggestive positions (one even using elderly women); and lastly, a ménage à trios with an Asian woman, a blond woman (neither looking even remotely Macedonian), and a man who looks very much like Jesus of Nazareth.
The billboards reads: "Face Reality, The Campaign to Promote the Rights of Sexual Minorities," and in the lower right-hand corner is the seal of the American embassy, Skopje.
The billboard is prominently displayed in the capital of Skopje, and also in the peaceful, ancient city of Ohrid. It is unclear how many of these billboards dot the Macedonian landscape.
I saw these myself while there recently to speak to Macedonian and ethnically Albanian women about increasing their roles in the political process. It was promising to see these disparate women discuss politics, ethnic violence, and the universal female kinship of child rearing as they put aside centuries-old differences on behalf of their country. In comparison to America's hollow heroes of celebrity, it was an honor to be among these legitimately brave and forward-thinking women.
According to these political activists, supporting coalition building, opening dialogue between factional political parties, and expanding manufacturing and commerce for this emerging democracy should be the primary mission of U.S. interests — both political and economic. There are numerous NGOs and U.S. government agencies currently operating in Macedonia, and the private-sector presence is growing.
Much of this activity centers around the U.S. embassy in Skopje, headed by Ambassador Lawrence Butler. Ambassador Butler served on the National Security Council staff as director for European affairs for President Clinton, and was made a member of the Senior Foreign Service in 1997 by the Clinton administration. He has been in foreign service since 1976 and has vast European experience, particularly in the Balkans.
Since arriving in Macedonia in April of 2002, Ambassador Butler has created discomfort and resentment by dismissing the use of a Macedonian translator when speaking in predominantly Albanian areas, and supported a USAID memo that advocated the use of the flag of the Republic of Albania at U.S.-sponsored events in Macedonia.
It is mystifying why an experienced diplomat with in-depth knowledge of Balkan ethnic unrest and cultural mores would eschew caution and sensitivity when dealing with inter-ethnic protocol. That our embassy would not just support, but sponsor, billboards that offend the entire national spectrum is particularly egregious and ill-advised.
In 2002, the Swedish Helsinki Committee and the Foundation Open Society of Macedonia did a comprehensive survey of the attitudes toward homosexuality of the four largest ethnic Macedonian communities — Macedonian, Albanian, Turkish, and Roma. The committee's conclusion is glaring: 64 percent of Macedonians think homosexuality is a disease, only 19 percent don't, and the rest are "not certain."
Another 60 percent believe it is also "immoral." As recently as 1996, homosexuality was a criminal offense, and nearly 35 percent of Macedonians believe that it should continue to be punishable by law. On the personal scale, only 20.5 percent of Macedonians surveyed would accept the homosexuality of a family member.
Yet into this worldview marches the U.S. embassy, allocating vital financial resources to an in-your-face strategy promoting the inevitability and acceptance of this perceived "disease." It seems that in Macedonia at least, support for the homosexual agenda has become the official position of the U.S. State Department.
The arrival of these billboards has been noticed by Macedonian president Boris Trajkovski, who was "appalled to see that the embassy of the United States of America would sponsor something such as this in Macedonia."
He told me, "U.S. taxpayer funds should not be used to promote alternative lifestyles in my country, and I do not believe that most Americans would appreciate this. We have many more pressing issues that the money could be used for. This is deeply offensive to most people in Macedonia which represents a very conservative mix of the Orthodox Christian and Muslim faiths."
Macedonia has been overrun by all manner of foreign invaders for thousands of years — Romans, Turks, Greeks, Nazis, and even billionaire leftist George Soros, who departed in a huff with his investment capital when his efforts to kingdomize the country failed. As Macedonia moves from the economic legacy of Communism to a free-market system, maintaining its stability is a key element in U.S. and international efforts to reduce political volatility in the Balkans, including neighboring Kosovo. The incursion of the homosexual agenda of the American Left — implemented by our diplomatic corps — is yet another incursion not welcomed by the Macedonian people.
The Macedonian women have it right — America's greatest gift to their nation should be the export of economic and individual liberty, wrapped in respect for the country's historic and deeply held cultural and religious beliefs.
- Kerri Houston is vice president of policy for Frontiers of Freedom.