I got an email today with the subject line ‘List of corporations that support the “Equality” Act’. It was from Ralph Reed, FFC. I wasn’t familiar with either his name or what FFC meant, but the quotes around “Equality” suggested that it was probably from someone who didn’t believe in the term. In any event, I was curious to see which companies would be listed, so I opened it.
Sure enough, the salutation was “Dear Fellow Conservative.” According to Mr. Reed the act is “an attack on religious liberty in all forms.” Passing it would mean “opening women’s bathrooms and changing areas to biological men.” It would also, Reed said, force “adoption agencies that operate under a biblical understanding of family…to violate their beliefs or shut down adoption services.”
There’s a lot to unpack even in these few selected excerpts but suffice to say the following: the idea of Reed, or evangelical Christians in general, giving a hoot about religious liberty “in all forms” is laughable; biological men have been doing the things described above for centuries, with or without legislation such as this; and the stuff about adoption agencies is just nonsense.
What I want to talk about is how the fine folks at Faith & Freedom Coalition (FFC!) apparently feel they have to trick even their supposed supporters into opening their fundraising emails. There was no list of companies, not even a mention of one. The only thing inside the email was a bunch of words designed to terrorize the feeble minded, surrounded by a bunch of links to send FFC your money.
The Satanic Temple, by contrast, has a straightforward approach to addressing actual issues. In light of the renewed assault on women’s freedoms, it is sending out simple instructions as to how to become a member, noting that as one “your rights to abortion will be protected by religious freedom.”
I don’t purport to know the accuracy of that statement one way or the other. But it makes me wonder. Which do you suppose is the better recruiting technique? Tricking your audience into opening your message and then shaking them down for money? Or providing a straightforward solution to rapidly escalating problem?
Not to worry…Mr. Reed is ready to defend religious liberty in all forms! Right, Mr. Reed?
Mr. Reed? Oh well. He was kind of a bummer anyway.
Chris Smith, Author 