Will Phillips Speaks Out Against Anti-Gay-Marriage Rally

Will Phillips for President in 2036!

Oooh, there is a kid with a big future.

Perhaps he could be a future contributor to the Friendly Atheist blog here?

@MaryD,
Instead of letting atheists or others put words into your mouth, perhaps you could take the opportunity to enlighten us as to why you are opposed to same sex marriage.
What exactly do you fear will happen if two people of the same sex get married? What specific consequences will result from two human beings of the same sex publicly committing themselves to each other out of love? Without preaching, can you share with us what it is that frightens you so much?
TGM

10 years old? How come he knows so much about “liberty” and “justice” and “hope”?

I’m sorry but he reminds me of this too much.

Mary D wrote:

All men and all women are free to get married, where is the inequality in that?

Here’s where it is: Dick can marry Jane, but Mary’s not allowed to marry Jane.

Inequality based solely on gender.

Next question?

@jose,
I’m inclined to agree with you on this point.
While the principles of liberty and justice are universal, this specific subject really should be relegated to discussion between adults. As it pertains to human rights, it’s as serious a matter as any and the involvement of children, while laudable to some extent, needs to be looked at carefully. After all, we don’t have children negotiating strategic arms limitation talks or investigating war crimes for the Hague, now do we? Let’s not cheapen or trivialize the issue by making a circus out of it. I get it, the kid has guts and is concerned with what he sees as an inherent unfairness in our society. Good for him, but lets be realistic about this, okay?
At the end of the day, we aren’t only talking about the right to marry. Does this kid even have a clue as to what sex of any sort is, much less sodomy? It’s a legitimate question to ask if this kid has put himself up as a spokesperson for gay marriage and even more so, if so many adults seem to have accepted him in this role. Marriage quite often entails sexual intimacy, does it not?
To me this whole situation is just as questionable as a priest giving marriage counseling to a couple. It’s not that the kid shouldn’t be praised for having the courage to stand up for what is right, but due to the “adult” nature of the subject, there is a major creepiness factor in all of this.

Bullshit his parents don’t have anything to do with it. He’s 10. Is he intelligent and in the right direction for his age? Goddamn straight.

Don’t bullshit though. If this was a christian kid speaking against homosexuality/gay marriage, we’d immediately dismiss him as a tool.

Lets not have double standards.

@Daniel;

It’s not a double standard. I dismiss anyone who speaks out against homosexuality and gay mariage as a tool, regardless of said person’s age (Hey, Mary…).

Frankly, these people have nothing but stock arguments, recycled bigotry and the most outlandish of paranoid objections to offer and I am sick of trying to “understand where they are coming from.” It’s only a matter of time–soon Will’s generation will be in charge of things, gays will be allowed to marry in all 50 states, and the last remenants of the xtian bigots can find someone else to hate and damn to their made-up hell.

As for those who dismiss the value of his message due to his age, I call bullshit. I was educated by my parents about sexuality at the age of 5. By the time I was 10 I knew I was straight and I had a pretty good grasp of the concepts of sexuality–which, btw is only part of a loving, committed relationship, right? Does any child really have to understand sexuality to understand the love she sees between her parents?

I also had a fair enough understanding of the concepts of justice and equality to recognize injustice when I saw it and to have formed legitimate and lasting opinions on the matter. And I was no where near as intelligent or erudite as Will appears to be.

Kids like Will only excel intellectually as much as their adult peers allow them. Don’t hold this kid back.

@fritzy,
Nobody in this thread is suggesting that the kid be “held back”.
Nobody.

I had a pretty good grasp of the concepts of sexuality–which, btw is only part of a loving, committed relationship, right?

Unless you were mentally an adult and were having sex at that age, the answer is no, you didn’t have a complete grasp of sexuality and/or sex. You may have had a good picture, but you didn’t have a complete understanding. The best we can expect of young people is that they understand the mechanics of it all. I can describe combat to you in excruciating detail, but it cannot and will not substitute for real experience.

Does any child really have to understand sexuality to understand the love she sees between her parents?

Yes, absolutely. Until then, a child will only partially understand the relationship. They cannot and do not see “the big picture.”
And that comes to my point. Without “The Big Picture”, the child cannot be a believable or effective spokesperson/advocate for adult relationships.

Jonas, yes, but adoptions by single parents are allowed in all 50 states. There are restrictions in a few states (Florida, Mississippi) against adoptions because of sexual orientation, but there are no restrictions based on marital status.

That’s why Mary’s statement was so bizarre to me. If you’re a single man, you can become a father through several different means, and there are no laws preventing you from doing so. Hence, no “campaign” is necessary for single men to have children.

@Anna,

“I can understand if you object to Will Phillips because you believe a 10-year-old is not cognitively developed enough to understand the political issue, but not a restriction based on his presumably limited experience with romantic and sexual love.”

Then I guess you’ll have to be perplexed. For the record, I have no reason to believe that a precocious 10 year old may not be savvy enough to grasp complex political issues.
I merely state that there’s a credibility gap when a kid talks about adult relationships. I don’t disagree with his message. Accept the fact that there are others who are not going to take part in the echo chamber…there’s room enough for all of us. Some think a 10 year old publicly advocating for gays is great. I question its utility. Let’s not make more of this than necessary.

The kid is just plain creepy ta boot. It seems to me that he got a taste of the limelight and liked it, (Fun Fact – this is one of only two reasons people learn to play guitars). I don’t believe for a second that this kid is anything more than some creepy sock puppet with a parental hand stuffed up his backside. Just go get him a guitar already and spare us his smug little political rants, even if in substance they are spot on… who cares, not me. Creepy, creepy creepy!
For christ’s sake this kid still looks young enough to cook and serve for dinner.

Gay marriage is inevitable, the clock is ticking and you have as much chance to stop it as you do stopping the tide, sure you can hold back the tide, kind of, for a while but really it is a loosing battle. (special shout out to the dutch who aren’t half bad at stopping the actual ocean tide… for now).
This battle can be won without the use of sock puppets. Everybody knows that not everyone thinks your kid… anyone’s kid is great, cute, smart, whatever… many people find kids gross.

(My hero? Oh that would be the Child Catcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang…. “Lollipops, ice cream, chocolate, all for free today… come along kiddiwinki’s”)

V

Yep I’m with TGM on that, good video… Thanks Axegrrl
V

Then I guess you’ll have to be perplexed. For the record, I have no reason to believe that a precocious 10 year old may not be savvy enough to grasp complex political issues. I merely state that there’s a credibility gap when a kid talks about adult relationships.

I still don’t get it. You talk as if the credibility gap is because he’s a child, which would lead me to assume you don’t think he’s capable of understanding the issue. It shouldn’t have anything to do with his lack of experience with romantic or sexual love, since plenty of adults have a similar lack of experience, yet they are not denied the right to have an opinion on marriage equality.

Some think a 10 year old publicly advocating for gays is great. I question its utility. Let’s not make more of this than necessary.

I’m not arguing that you might question its utility, but if a child is not a credible spokesperson, one would assume it’s because he lacks understanding of the issue. Since you admit he can understand the issue, I don’t understand your objection. Would Will Phillips have more credibility if he were personally affected? If he were the child of two moms or two dads, he would have a vested interest in the outcome of legislation.