Sarah Palin stirred the Twittersphere Monday evening when she retweeted a pro-gay message by lesbian conservative commentator Tammy Bruce concerning the "hypocrisy" of homophobic and anti-gay actions.
"But this hypocrisy is just truly too much. Enuf already--the more someone complains about the homos the more we should look under their bed," Bruce wrote Monday, reportedly about the dismissal of U.S. Navy Captain Owen Honors, following the release of a series of controversial videos made aboard the USS Enterprise that featured gay slurs, cross-dressing, and simulated same-sex encounters.
Later that day, Palin retweeted the message, first caught by Gawker.
Max Read at Gawker suggests that her decision to delve into such a politically charged post could have been driven by a number of motives. Though he doesn't discount potential confusion or a simple mistake as a catalyst, Read also believes that it's possible that Palin believed it to be the proper forum to outline her stance on gay rights, a social issue that she has kept mostly quiet about during her rise to political stardom.
She is coming out in support of DADT repeal and gay rights. Bruce thinks that Palin is expressing her point of view on "DADT, treatment of gays & attempts to marginalize us." Which isn't out of the question--Palin is not, in the context of her party, rabidly homophobic, and her stance on Don't Ask Don't Tell was limited to a sort of feeble "not right now" back in February. So, yes, maybe reality ungulate-shooter Sarah Palin is expressing her solidarity with gay soldier-types via microblogging. What a blow for the forces of freedom and openness!
While some have wondered about whether it is a good idea to make such an announcement by rebroadcasting a message that refers to gay people as "homos," Tammy Bruce has since defended Palin on her Twitter page, and even claimed that "I know Gov Palin & this "anti-gay" meme has been a lie--plain & simple. She's a decent woman & friend to the community."
