Yellin' for Ellen

I like Ellen DeGeneres.
I like stand-up comedy.  Unlike many of her contemporaries, her act is somewhat clean and more family-friendly than what's considered the norm.
And she's funny.
I also self-identify as a Christian.  And I know that Ellen is openly gay.  This was pretty much a forgotten issue since she came out in 1997, marking the occasion by kissing another woman on her now-former sitcom.  Working at a small radio station in northern Michigan, I made sure I called the NBC television affiliate to see if they were going to air or pre-empt the show for that evening, as I was going to make it a news story.
"We're airing it," said the station manager. 
People made noise about it.  But it didn't take long for the dust to settle.
The show aired in just about every television market in the country.  It turned out to be not that big a deal.
Now she has her own daytime TV talk show.  Highly-rated, I might add.
We forgot about Ellen's personal life.  Or we just chose to live and let live.  Ellen is highly regarded as a genuine person who seems to care about others and not resort to tabloid-grade garbage, preferring to keep it real.
One Million Moms has not forgotten.  This upstart conservative Christian group is threatening to launch a boycott campaign against JCPenney for hiring Ellen as their new spokesperson.
They must have hired the Westboro Baptist Church as their publicist.
When I watch or hear a commercial for JCPenney, or see an ad, the last thing I think about is their spokesperson.  I'm looking for deals on shirts and shoes.  I could care less about the face or name in the ad slick, to be honest with you.
OK, maybe if it were Charlie Manson, I'd reconsider.  But come on, we're talking about a mass murderer versus a woman who just happens to like other women.
As I said, I self-identify as a Christian.  I know my Bible.  I know what the book of Leviticus says about homosexuality.
Leviticus 19:18 also says something that I find in conflict with that.
I also know Matthew 7:1.  And I believe One Million Moms should take a second look at it if I were them.
I will leave that part up to God. 
And so should they.


NEXT WEEK:  All Washed Up