@Morgan: Why is it more mature to laugh at someone behind his back than to have an honest reaction to his stupid remark about next year’s budget? I couldn’t help but gaffaw when I heard it. Does anyone really believe that we are going to be significantly better off financially in one year to warrant such aggressive new spending? I have the utmost respect for the office of the president, regardless of the occupant, and would have tried my best to act respectfully during the speech. But, really, when someone tells a joke, it’s rude NOT to laugh.

Everyone seems to want to get their hands on “government money.” But remember, there is no government money. It only gets its money by taking it out of your pocket and mine.

Please allow me to give an answer a go… My status as a gay is hardly the definitive aspect of my personhood and my relationship status has virtually nothing to do with my citizenship. I will fight for this country because it is mine and because I have no other, and I will fight for it because I believe in making this country better. Abandoning America and/or its leadership over marriage rights is absurd and pathetic, to say nothing of patently antithetical to the message of the founders of this nation.

It is true that state and federal congressional panels and supreme courts have ruled time and again in favor of restricting rights for GLBT people, but so have they voted and ruled to restrict the rights of other minority groups. Obtaining rights requires us to maintain constant vigilance, it requires us to NOT abandon our country, it requires us to live by the same standards that we expect others to live by, for if we do not fulfill these requirements we will NEVER be granted any sort of legal equality.

I’d rather die for my country in my efforts to improve it than stand on the sidelines and cry about injustice. And I fully accept being alone in that position.

Actually, Obama has appointed GLs to two fairly important positions – one as head of a federal agency. Hardly ‘minor’

But my question is – so what? Would African Americans have been satisfied in 1964 has LBJ appointed one or 2 AAs to minor positions – and not lifted a finger for the Civil Rights Acts?

See my point?

Call me crazy, I am not wild about this guy, he is ZERO compared to Dennis Kucinich (one of only 2 presidential candidates to support marriage equality)but, he, Carter and Clinton are THE ONLY PRESIDENTS to reach out to GLBT Americans in any way. Bush gave us a gay official or 2 in minor positions “in perhaps an odd or “mavericky” mood of the moment” and Obama did not put any one LGBT into anything important. but he is the first pres to even give lip-service to even voicing the idea of repealing any antigay policies or laws on national TV.

You know Gene, it’s one thing to laugh at him in private as some do, but you know if you are in his presence, you let the man say his piece, and laugh at him later elsewhere. After all he is the president. Those who laughed at him “in front of him so to speak” during his speech, what are they, grown-up “infants”?
He has one of the most demanding and one of the most thankless jobs in the world. I wouldn’t want his job FOR ANYTHING! He isn’t paid enough to put himself at risk for getting assassinated as were 4 of our presidents in the history of our country just to have some immature people laugh in his face.
But no worries. You might be rid of him in 3 more years. A older friend of mine thought she heard him say that he will be one-term president. She thinks he’s had enough. He didn’t not spend enough time in the US Senate before running for president. We can’t afford to provide “on the job training” to any US president. You can’t be thin-skinned as president. As they say, can’t take the heat, get out of the kitchen. If I were him, I’d think you have to get use to wearing the laughter, jeers and taunts as a badge of honor and have to have a “bring it on” attitude. The job of president is not for the weak or for the faint of heart. The whole world as well as this country is watching any US president when he addresses the nation and sets “forth his vision or lack of it”. Our enemies and our friends and allies don’t respect weakness in a US president or in any other president or leader of a country constantly sharing the center of international politics with say Russia, UK, Iran, China, Israel, Saudi Arabia or any other lands big and small of importance in their region or on the world stage.

BTW, anyone else notice that he looked super pissed at the end of the speech? Is it because people laughed out loud at him a couple times?