Michael Carl uses a Nov. 25 WorldNetDaily article to praise Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni for “publicly repenting of his personal sin and the sins of the nation” including “idolatry and witchcraft” and “sins of sexual immorality, drunkenness and debauchery; sins of unforgiveness, bitterness, hatred and revenge,” then, according to Carl, “dedicated Uganda to God.”
But Carl glosses over the Ugandan proposal to perpetuate some of those sins, particularly the ones of “unforgiveness, bitterness, hatred and revenge.”
Like the proposed anti-gay law that would permit the death penalty for mere homosexuality. WND has largely ignored the death penalty provision, while WND videographer Molotov Mitchell has endorsed the law.
Carl goes on to mislead about the proposed law while bringing in anti-gay activist Scott Lively to comment on it:
Lively added that Museveni is definitely drawing a contrast between Uganda and the West.
“This incident is also important as a contrast to the picture being painted of Uganda by the godless left of a backwards, violent and savage culture intent on murdering homosexuals,” Lively said.
“On the contrary, Museveni is calmly and confidently setting the course of his nation by the guidance of the Bible, in a way that also shows great courage and resolve,” Lively said.
Homosexual activist groups have criticized the government of Uganda and Museveni for passing laws criminalizing homosexual behavior. A current bill before the Ugandan Parliament increases the jail sentences for homosexual acts and includes criminal penalties for those who encourage or promote homosexuality.The bill had included the death penalty for those who commit multiple acts of homosexual behavior, but the provision has been removed, BBC News reports.
First, contrary to Carl’s claim the the law is “criminalizing homosexual behavior,” homosexuality is already illegal in Uganda; the proposed law ratchets up the penalties to a ludicrously oppressive extent, which include extending the threat of punishment to Ugandans living outside the country, outlawing any homosexual advocacy including advocating repeal of the law, defining “homosexual act” so broadly that just about anyone can be convicted, and violating religious freedom by making officiating a same-sex wedding a crime.Second, while the BBC did report that the death-penalty provision has been removed, Think Progress points out that the BBC provides no details of how the bill has been allegedly altered, adding that “It is irresponsible to suggest that the death penalty has been removed without a thorough investigation of the bill’s new language.”
Carl later quotes Lively as saying that he “supports the nation’s strong stance against homosexual behavior” (but “didn’t agree with the death penalty provision”) without mentioning Lively’s links to the proposed law. As we’ve detailed, Lively — who has used WND to smear gays as “lavender Marxists” and “murderers” — has been sued by a human-rights group for helping to inspire the law through his visits to Uganda.
Carl apparently did not ask Lively about the proposed bill’s other Draconian provisions to see if he approved them, or why Lively feels homosexuals in Uganda (real or suspected) must be punished even harsher than they already are. Since the death penalty provision is the only one Lively has tried to distance himself from, we can assume that he supports the rest of the bill.