If the Truth Doesn’t Set You Free -Lie!
December 14, 2006:
Conservative Christians continue to shower the Cheney-Poe famliy with the love for which they are famous. Here’s the always-compassionate James Dobson writing in Time:
With all due respect to Cheney and her partner, Heather Poe, the majority of more than 30 years of social-science evidence indicates that children do best on every measure of well-being when raised by their married mother and father. That is not to say Cheney and Poe will not love their child. But love alone is not enough to guarantee healthy growth and development. The two most loving women in the world cannot provide a daddy for a little boy–any more than the two most loving men can be complete role models for a little girl.
Isn’t it funny how when someone starts a sentence with “in all due respect” you can be pretty sure they’re going to say something incredibly insulting and disrespectful?
In making his case, Dr. Dobson felt free to cite the work of a well-respected child-development expert:
According to educational psychologist Carol Gilligan, mothers tend to stress sympathy, grace and care to their children, while fathers accent justice, fairness and duty. Moms give a child a sense of hopefulness; dads provide a sense of right and wrong and its consequences. Other researchers have determined that boys are not born with an understanding of “maleness.” They have to learn it, ideally from their fathers.
Apparently, in addition to being unkind, Dr. Dobson is also a liar and a distorter. At least he is according to that psychologist he cited, Dr. Gilligan. She wrote him a letter obtained by a previous guest on The Gay Parenting Show, Wayne Besen
Dear Dr. Dobson:
I am writing to ask that you cease and desist from quoting my research in the future. I was mortified to learn that you had distorted my work this week in a guest column you wrote in Time Magazine. Not only did you take my research out of context, you did so without my knowledge to support discriminatory goals that I do not agree with. What you wrote was not truthful and I ask that you refrain from ever quoting me again and that you apologize for twisting my work.
From what I understand, this is not the first time you have manipulated research in pursuit of your goals. This practice is not in the best interest of scientific inquiry, nor does bearing false witness serve your purpose of furthering morality and strengthening the family.
Finally, there is nothing in my research that would lead you to draw the stated conclusions you did in the Time article. My work in no way suggests same-gender families are harmful to children or can’t raise these children to be as healthy and well adjusted as those brought up in traditional households.
I trust that this will be the last time my work is cited by Focus on the Family.
Sincerely,
Carol Gilligan, PhD
New York University, Professor
I love, love, love it when people speak truth to power. You go, girl!