Jimmy Swaggart apologizes after remark about 'killing' gay man

[funkybutt]

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Christian evangelist Jimmy Swaggart apologized Wednesday for saying in a televised worship service that he would kill any gay man who looked at him romantically.

...
In the broadcast, Swaggart was discussing his opposition to gay marriage when he said "I've never seen a man in my life I wanted to marry."

"And I'm going to be blunt and plain: If one ever looks at me like that, I'm going to kill him and tell God he died," Swaggart says, to laughter and applause from the congregation.

http://www.nola.com/newsflash/louisiana/index.ssf?/base/news-11/1095869949303890.xml&storylist=louisiana#continue

[maxsolomon]

1. what a true christian

why do the faithful buy this snake oil?

[funkybutt]

4. maybe because...

they're not "faithful" but "hateful"

[Seabiscuit]

65. For the same reason Dubya's faithful vote for him

They're part of the dumbed down "great unwashed" American moron society.

[Parche]

2. swaygert

Unless the guy kills Jimmy first!!

[shaolinmonkey]

15. Indeed. Lots of people forget that gay men are, after all,

still men. And a great number are in great shape. Capable of beating the snot out of a rickety old crank like Swaggart. Go get him fellas.

[Catherine Vincent]

3. He need'nt worry if any man or woman looked at him romantically.

[htuttle]

5. Jimmy Swaggart fucks prostitutes and ignores the Beatitudes

Can just anybody call themselves a Christian and redefine it's teachings?

[atreides1]

19. Sure They Can

It's been going on for centuries.

Evangelists are not "Christians", they adhere to the teachings of the Old Testament, and only use the parts of the New Testament that they can interpret to their use.

Those like Swaggert, Falwell, Graham, Robertson and the others could not survive in a true Biblical society, neither could the majority of those who are Evangelists.

Perhaps someone should issue a challenge to these false Christians.
Have them form a small society, consisting of them and their families and at least 5,000 of their supporters. The only restriction is that they will have to live under Biblical laws for 2 years, laws as stated in the Book of Leviticus and the rest of the Old Testament.

They'll never do it, because none of them truly have faith in God, or believe in his word, and neither do their followers.

[Morning Dew]

37. That would make a good "reality" show.

I'd also like to see one where the * family has to live on minimum wage jobs in a 2 bedroom apt. for a year.

[Sugarbleus]

54. Heehee...Oh, how I've dreamed stuff such as that...

Living in a two bedroom apt. for far more than one year though. Minimum wage for two people (him and her) at the most undesirable working establishment possible.

No backyard, so bbq's are out. Not enough space to park...that keeps company from wanting to visit. Bad cable TV connection. Some loud and obnoxious neighbors too. Oh, and add a few cockroaches in for some excitement.

Make sure the apt. is in a "low rent" district..let 'em get a feel for the raw world. No fancy cars either.... Let's see how long it takes for one of them to become depressed and angry.

[KDLarsen]

75. Make that..

.. "at the most undesirable working establishment possible."

WALLMART!

That would be interesting to see.

[allalone]

67. very good point

[Bake]

70. Correction: he spanks the monkey while watching the prostitute...

Just to be technically correct. And how pathetic is THAT????

Bake

[donco6]

6. Oh, that makes it OK, then.

He said he was sorry, what more do you want? I'm just sure he REALLY, REALLY means it, too.

:puke:

[area51]

57. Swaggart's really, really, sorry ...

that he got caught.

[RobertSeattle]

7. "laughter and applause from the congregation"

Gawd I hate organized religon.

[pagerbear]

12. He doesn't represent organized religion

...any more than Andrew Sullivan represents gay men.

[CarolynEC]

30. He's got a hell of a lot of more TV exposure......

... with broadcasts in all 50 U.S. states, Canada, the UK, Australia, etc.

The sad fact is, Swaggart DOES represent organized religion in a way or to an extent that few individuals do.

That's what makes him dangerous, not merely an annoyance.

[pagerbear]

58. Oh, I forgot, if it's on TV it's the truth

[CarolynEC]

73. Huh?

It's about audience reach. As for the truth of his message -- well, his audience seems to be lapping it up pretty eagerly.

You know, the first step is admitting Christianity has a problem...

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

8. Swaggart's trunk should be searched for the body

He's so homophobic, you KNOW he's in the closet

[richabk]

9. Don't you just love...

those conditional apologies?

"It's a humorous statement that doesn't mean anything. You can't lie to God — it's ridiculous," Swaggart told The Associated Press. "If it's an insult, I certainly didn't think it was, but if they are offended, then I certainly offer an apology."

IF...IF they are offended....otherwise he did actually mean it.
That's not an apology at all

[napi21]

18. Conditional. Yes! He appologized for saying it on TV!

It didn't sound like he said he was wrong for saying it, but sorry for saying it on NATIONAL TV! Oops! Shoulda kept that stuff for the private congregation, huh?

[Bake]

71. God, I hate that conditional shit - "If anyone was offended ..."

TRUE repentence means "Yes, I WAS WRONG AND I'M HONEST-TO-GOD SORRY." Not this conditional b.s.!!!

Bake

[AJ BENDER]

10. Allright Jimmy... You're still an asshole !

It nice to have some consistency in this world !


:evilgrin: :evilgrin:
:evilgrin: :evilgrin:

[CarolynEC]

11. He said this during a worship service, in front of the altar?

And, uh, tell me... HOW is he any different from a radical cleric preaching hate from a mosque?

Memo to Christians: Your religion is being hijacked.

[histohoney]

17. He can't

hijack it as long as we talk about it.
I thought he was gone.
Glad to see people are there to expose this stuff.
Just keep teaching the GOOD works and shine the light on the bad works so they can be corrected and exposed.

[kayell]

21. More proof that there is no god. Any decent, worthwhile deity would

have zapped that a-hole into another dimension to play games with Crouch.

:grr:

[Lerkfish]

76. No offense, but using Swaggart to disprove God's existence is like

saying that because Bush fabricates lies about Kerry but doesn't suffer repercussions means there are no laws or ethics.

Simply because one (or a group) of people go against a law does not invalidate the law.

[TNDemo]

13. My husband has always said that whatever a preacher

preaches about the most is his own problem. He used to rail on and on about adultery and prostitution and we all know what he got caught doing. Now he is railing about being gay so I am expecting some guy to out him.

[mhr]

14. This Only Proves Yet Again The Level Of Dumbness We On The Left

Face in turning this country around.

Are any of you ready for a thirty year fight to save a sinking ship.

Thirty years is how long the right wing has been working to bring us to this point today.

I think most progressives are in denial or clueless about how organized and systematic the right wing has been and has become.

You want to fight the anti-intellectualism displayed by the likes of Swaggert, then organization and money are the only answers.

[progressivejazz]

44. Amen.

.

[noonwitch]

16. Why can't some straight men learn to say:

"I'm flattered that you find me attractive, but I'm not gay". Is it that difficult to say?

[Gildor Inglorion]

34. Trust me in this, noonwitch....

99% of the time it's the "straight" man approaching the the gay man with a line like, "You know, I've always wondered what it would be like..." I personally have never tried to pick up a straight man, and I don't have any gay friends who have. Or who will admit to it, anyway. O8)

[donco6]

40. I've never tried, but have had plenty come on to me.

You're right, it's almost always the other way around.

[Lerkfish]

77. correct me if I'm wrong...

but as a straight man, I can pretty much tell MOST of the time who is gay....I would think the opposite would be more true: that a gay man can pick out the straight guys easily enough.

I think the "getting hit on by a gay man" is an example of manipulating a person's fear/revulsion ratio more than representing usual events. I'm sure it happens, but I can't imagine there's anything in it for the gay guy except rejection.

I've been mistaken for gay before (by straight people mostly)...I'm artistic and have sensitive eyes, also I'm very tolerant of gay issues....but even so, I've only been "hit on" once by a gay person, and it never went beyond simply checking me out to see if I was gay and politely inviting me places. Simply saying I was flattered but not interested solved it amicably.

For swaggart to brag that he would "kill a queer" is hatemongering of the worst type, has nothing whatsoever to do with religion or morals...just his distate of homosexuality.

Oddly enough, he doesn't extend that distaste to picking up prostitutes. Apparently that's right in God's eyes....go figure.

[gratuitous]

43. Well, that hasn't been my experience

But the "flattered, but no thanks" approach has worked for me every time but once. However, I don't impute one guy's boorish behavior to all gay men any more than (I hope) all gay men don't impute Swaggert's boorish behavior to me.

I see though, that Brother Swaggert continues with his same old dodge: Outrageous statement, solemn apology, {wink}, repeat.

[ropi]

69. str8 men problems

what's truly funny about this is that the majority of str8 men are under the extreme impression that they are desirable to gay men. believe me, that's not the case.

[Lerkfish]

78. LOL! I"ve often said that....

The only gay guy who would hit on me would be a blind gay guy.

:)

[Borgnine]

72. Hell, I'm always flattered.

I'm straight, but at least I have options.

[ChrisK]

20. "It's a humorous statement that doesn't mean anything"

When did murder become humorous or mean nothing?...I must have missed that one somewhere.

[kokomo]

59. George Bush doesn't take murder very seriously...

He even laughed while Karla Faye Tucker was being led to the death chamber in Texas, mocking her by puckering his lips and squealing, "Pweese, don't kill me!?

[Aristus]

22. What's he worried about?

No man is going to look at him romatically. He's got the sex appeal of a car accident. And women only look at him romatically if he pays them to.

What an asshat.

[Booster]

23. I just can't believe people actually follow and believe

this man. Swaggart is and always will be scum.

[shraby]

26. He's going to LIE to God????????

"And I'm going to be blunt and plain: If one ever looks at me like that, I'm going to kill him and tell God he died,"

[funkybutt]

32. exactly

guess his god doesn't know the difference between "dying" and "being murdered out of cold blood"

[pschoeb]

24. Is the Congregation going to apologize? Actually Swaggert didn't really

apologize, he basically said "if you took it the wrong way, I'm sorry" that's not an apology, that's weaseling out of something, and placing the blame on the victim.

They're the ones that went into raucous applause after he said it. As far as I'm concerned, that congregation should be listed as a hate group until they all apologize.

All I know is that if Swaggert had said he would kill any black man that looked at a white women romantically, no one would broadcast him anymore on any television station, even in the US.

[funkybutt]

33. i think he's still on TV down here...not sure though

[livinginphotographs]

25. This could be interesting.

On Wednesday, Swaggart said he's jokingly used the expression "killing someone and telling God he died" thousands of times, about all sorts of people. He said the expression is figurative, and not meant to harm.

I wonder who else this closet case has gone after? What a piece of shit....

[yardwork]

27. I don't accept his apology

Sometimes sorry isn't good enough.

[Piperay]

28. So, a half assed apology makes

everything alright?? Why say something so hateful and evil in the first place ...... :wtf:

[DU9598]

29. No apology

Your apology is not accepted!

[Amigust]

53. Like Beanie Man's Non-Apology

"... if they are offended ..."


Both these low-lifes saw their $$$ being threatened.

What this emphasizes again is the need for national legislation against such hate speech.

It also shows how much we need to complain, and complain loudly, when this stuff happens.

[theboss]

31. Out of all the televangelists....

I've probably always enjoyed Swaggart the most because he has always seemed to be the most bat-shit crazy. I mean, he's Jerry Lee Lewis' cousin. Somewhere in that family, a gene would completely haywire.

I can't even be offended by this statement because the man has not made a lick of sense in 30 years. If Robertson or Falwell had said it, I would be calling for their heads, because they know exactly what they are saying at all times. Swaggart is just a loon at this point.

[oneighty]

45. Poor Jerry Lee!

What does he have to do with this?

180

[TlalocW]

35. You know...

If I ever met up with a preacher who had cheated on his wife with a prostitute, I would start off by kicking him in the balls then beating him with a tire iron before moving on to peeling back his skin and putting salt there then ripping out his fingernails, plucking out his eyeballs, and finishing by giving him a noogie and then tell God, "He tripped."

Oh, I'm sorry if I offended anyone! It was just a joke, and if anyone took umbrage, I'm sorry.

Mine is nicer because whoever that preacher is is still alive at the end of my little joke. :)

TlalocW

[GoddessOfGuinness]

36. Ahahahahaha! Praise Jesus!

The hypocrisy of these fuckers is nauseating. :puke:

[cliss]

38. Aw, Jimmy.

Thanks for the correction. We were all waiting for you to say something. After all, that was a pretty cruel remark you made.....ABOUT YOUR OWN*

*It's been said that the men who are the biggest homophobes often are harboring their own homosexuality and are trying to loudly proclaim its "badness".

Right, Jimmy?

[progressivebydesign]

39. I saw the clip.. he RELISHED that remark!

It was not a slip of the tongue. He went on to say that the people supporting gay marriage should be forced to go and "marry pigs and live with them". He is not sorry. He's an evil, twisted, perverted old fraud.. bilking the ignorant of millions each year.

Best yet, though.. is that in his tirade, he ENDORSES President Bush! Wow.. with public support like that, how could Bush lose??

[The_Casual_Observer]

41. One can only pitty the followers of this ass

in much the same way as the followers of chimp.

[davidinalameda]

42. the only reason he's apologizing is because

the Canadian broadcasting authorities are going to fine his ass for saying that

I'm moving to Canada as soon as I can!

[Walt Starr]

46. Did he cry corcodile tears while he apologized

and then begged forgiveness from god because he had "sinned before him"?

[progressiveBadger]

47. Howard Stern and Robin

were ripping the guy apart after listening to his hate speech monday (or maybe tuesday, i forget). I've heard of misinterpreting the bible on gay issues, but in this case, he actually misinterpreted the 10 commandments. Jeeze, there's only ten of them, you would think he could find time in between screwing prostitutes to read them.

[hatrack]

48. How did I just know . . . .

That he would apologize "if he offended anybody"?

What a pus-filled little boil of a man.

[AzDar]

49. He knew how hard it would be to explain to Jan Crouch.....

that he'd blown away her Husband!

[The Chronicler]

52. BWAHAHAHA

You heard about the Paul Crouch story too?

[AzDar]

56. Oh yeah.. Don'tcha love it?

Do you think he was always gay, or was it the wife's hair that drove him to the other team?

[smb]

50. Don't Flatter Yourself

Christian evangelist Jimmy Swaggart apologized Wednesday for saying in a televised worship service that he would kill any gay man who looked at him romantically.

Any gay man or straight woman who is THAT desperate probably is looking to end it all anyway....

[struggle4progress]

51. The sorta guy ya'd like to see fed to the lions. eom

[donheld]

55. even thinking of idiot swaggert/sgaggert makes me

:puke:

[Pallas180]

60. Me thinketh, he protesteth too much.....hmmmmm.

[BiggJawn]

61. Did he say "Ah....Have...SINNED Aginst Yoooo!"

Like he did when he got caught with his finger in some hooker's koochie?

Hell, Jimmy, give it a try. Gawd knows Frances hasn't given you a tumble since that day almost 20 years ago...

[leesa]

62. I doubt God is amused, POS!

[TheDonkey]

63. holy shit

that is just incredible.

[JSJ]

64. swaggert obviously has gay leanings nt

[allalone]

66. did he cry?

and hey, if they believe in this god that sees even a sparrow fall, how can you lie and say the guy died on his own.

[ropi]

68. his apology is not acceptable..

many in his flock can forgive him for his dalliance with his hookers, but i doubt if you'll find a glbt person who'd accept his apology.

[arwalden]

74. That's Not An Apology. That's NOT An Apology. THAT IS NOT AN APOLOGY!

What he said was a qualified "non-apology". He didn't apologize for what he said. He apologized "IF it's an insult" (he doesn't agree that it's an insult). He apologized "IF they are offended" (he doesn't agree or understand how any of 'they' could be offended).

He's not sorry at what he said. He's not sorry for having said it. He's sorry if others see it as an insult. He's sorry if others are offended. He's sorry that someone called him on his idiotic bigoted threats, and he's sorry that he has to say he's sorry.

This is the type of NON-apology that we're used to hearing from the bigoted likes of baseball player John Rocker.

<snip>

>> "It's a humorous statement that doesn't mean anything. You can't lie to God — it's ridiculous," Swaggart told The Associated Press. "If it's an insult, I certainly didn't think it was, but if they are offended, then I certainly offer an apology." <<

<snip>

[Surf Cowboy]

79. Why should Swaggart "I sinned against you all..." worry about being

fucked in the ass when he's so clearly fucked in the head?