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Opening a new quick serve restaurant in the nation's 12th largest media market; home to Boeing, Mircosoft, Amazon, Nordstrom, Starbucks and a host of other companies, isn't generally a big deal.
Right?
Wrong.
Usually cities welcome new businesses. They create new jobs and more choice for the residents.
The welcoming mat is not out, nor is the opportunity of "choice" being celebrated.
Both Seattle Mayor McGinn and State Senator Ed Murray, who wants to be mayor, are expressing bigotry and intolerance toward Chick-fil-A.
And there seems to be some regret that there are no land use codes that could be used to stop the restaurant from doing business in the city.
Why are these two "public servants" so bigoted? So un-welcoming? So intolerant?
Chick-fil-A has upwards of 2,000 stores nationwide and is expanding due to public demand and acceptance of their quick serve restaurant menu, price points, pro-family environment and excellent service.
Why would the Mayor and want-to-be mayor Sen. Murray express such regret that they are coming to town?
KIRO 7 says, "The fast food chain owned by a family that vocally opposes same-sex marriage is planning to open a restaurant in Seattle, a city that overwhelmingly approved marriage equality."
Is that a criteria to do business in the city?
Actually the family "vocally supports natural, biblical marriage." They have never been on a campaign "against" so-called marriage equality.
Last year the Huff Post reported, "In a new interview with the Baptist Press, Chick-fil-A President Dan Cathy---the son of founder S. Truett Cathy---said 'We are very much supportive of the family...the biblical definition of the family unit. We are a family owned business and are married to our first wives. We give God the thanks for that...we know that it might not be popular with everyone, but thank the lord, we live in a country, where we can share our values and operate on biblical values'."
Dan Cathy soon learned that freedom to share your values without being attacked often depends on what your values happen to be. The press took him on as a bigot who opposes same-sex "marriage," others tried to launch a national boycott against them. Mike Huckabee and a few others launched a counter boycott calling it Chick-fil-A appreciation day. The chain set all time sales records that day and never returned back to the previous same store sales levels.
Then Cathy appeared on the Ken Coleman Show where he was asked again about his beliefs on marriage. He said, "I think we are inviting God's judgement on our nation when we shake our fist at Him and say 'we know better than You as to what constitutes a marriage' and I pray God's mercy on our generation that has a prideful, arrogant attitude to think we have the audacity to define what marriage is about."
And speaking of arrogance...and pride...
Senator Murray told KIRO 7, "I'm stunned."
He said, "If they want to be in Seattle, they have to obey the civil rights laws that protect our citizens, civil rights laws that I passed."
Does Seattle now have a litmus test for opening a business? And when has Chick-fil-A broken the law, on civil rights or otherwise?
Mayor McGinn says, "We'll process the application according to the rules, the land-use code doesn't have a provision about bigotry of owners."
It appears McGinn is wishful thinking.
So who is bigoted?
Both are trying to bully Chick-fil-A.
There is no question Seattle is the point of the secular progressive spear in the state. But should it be hurled at a business whose owners happen to hold a different moral view than that held by 2 mayoral candidates or even a majority of those who live in Seattle city limits, if indeed that is the case?
It is true, Seattle did vote overwhelmingly to redefine marriage. I'm uncertain what the actual City of Seattle numbers on R-74 were, but I know King County voted 67% (638,939 votes) in favor of redefining marriage and 33% (314,639 votes) in support of natural, traditional marriage.
Interestingly, if just the King County vote was extracted from the final statewide vote, traditional, natural marriage would have been protected. And much of King County does not necessarily reflect the far left secular progressive position of Seattle.
Here's the final vote count: 1,659,915 in favor of redefining marriage. 1,431,285 in support of traditional marriage. King County cast 954,578 votes---with 638,939 votes to redefine marriage and 314,639 votes in support of marriage. Subtract those votes and marriage wins.
KIRO reports that planning documents show Chick-fil-A is preparing to file an application to build an outlet at Northeast Northgate Way and Roosevelt Way Northeast.
Many of us remember the comic book adventures of Superman. We may also remember the anti-hero antagonist "Bizarro."
Everything Bizarro did was opposite the values of Superman. He looked like Superman, acted like Superman and even talked like Superman, but was his polar opposite.
In Bizarro World, that which was good, was deemed bad---right was wrong---good was evil. Bizarro World was a world of confusion.
Wikipedia has a great deal to say about Bizarro including this: "The Bizarro that is created is confused, stating: 'Me not human...me not creature...me not even animal! Me unhappy Me don't belong...Me don't know difference between right and wrong---good and evil'."
It is indeed a bizarre storyline and in the end, after creating cultural chaos, Bizzaro commits suicide. While this may have been funny in the comic books of a few years ago, it takes on an eerie sense of reality in the world of 2013.
In Bizarro's World it was wrong to do anything right.
As you drive into the city of Seattle on I-5, I-90, 520 or a dozen other freeways that feed into the city, could you be entering Bizarro Land?
While it may be "gay," it is not the happiest place on earth.
God explains these conditions in a different way in Romans, Chapter 1: "Professing to be wise, they became fools...God gave them up to uncleanness in the lusts of their hearts...who exchanged the Truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator." Romans chapter speaks of "God's Righteous Judgement," affirming what Dan Cathy told the radio host.
For those who hold to Christian values and beliefs, these can be difficult days, however, hold tightly to this truth:
"Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand" (Isaiah 41: 10).
"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not over flow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you" (Isaiah 43: 2).