Trivia for the Day: The coffee chain with a franchise on every corner — and even a few drive-thrus, one of which I was both stunned and amused to see near my home — takes its name from the first mate in the Great American Novel Moby Dick by Herman Melville. In the novel, Starbuck tries his best to stop Captain Ahab from pursuing the great white whale, a quest Starbuck apparently realizes is doomed.
Starbuck’s namesake now has its own futile quest: To normalize homosexuality by advertising the musings of a homosexual writer on its disposable coffee cups:
"The world’s most famous coffee shop chain has begun a program called ‘The Way I See It,’ which is a collection of thoughts, opinions and expressions provided by notable figures that now appear on Starbucks coffee cups, according to the chain’s website.
"But one particular quote — #43 — blatantly pushes the homosexual agenda. It’s by Armistead Maupin, who wrote ‘Tales of the City,’ a bestseller-turned-PBS drama advocating the homosexual lifestyle, and it reads:
"’My only regret about being gay is that I repressed it for so long. I surrendered my youth to the people I feared when I could have been out there loving someone. Don’t make that mistake yourself. Life’s too [expletive] short.’"
Aside from wondering what the fictional Starbuck — or his creator, Herman Melville — might have thought of his namesake’s doomed quest, it occurred to me that it is both sad and utterly appropriate that these "thoughts" are being disseminated on disposable cups destined to be tossed into the nearest litter receptacle once the coffee is gulped down. Rather apropos of the ephemeral nature of false ideologies, isn’t it?
I wonder what a Starbucks employee would do if a customer requested a non-gay cup for their coffee?
I’m so happy I’m a tea drinker.
“‘My only regret about being gay is that I repressed it for so long. I surrendered my youth to the people I feared when I could have been out there loving someone. Don’t make that mistake yourself. Life’s too [expletive] short.'”
Life isn’t too short, rather it’s eternally long.
This is the lie that comes from the devil.
I wonder how people would react if it were tweaked slightly –
“My only regret about committing adultery is that I repressed it for so long. I surrendered my sexual impulses to the people I feared when I could have been out there getting some. Don’t make that mistake yourself. Life’s too [expletive] short.”
After all, it’s all about freedom, right? Why deny your feelings?
And that one was quote #43! How many are there, I wonder?
I almost want to go just to ask for a non-gay cup, but since I never go to Starbucks I would just be giving them business because of the cups. How about you try it, Joy? 🙂
Disposable thoughts printed on disposable cups.
Or just another reason I’m glad I don’t patronize Starbucks.
I sent them an email, but I don’t expect anything back. My gripe is this:
I take my kids with me when I go and two out of the four can read. I am tired of our society not thinking about the kids. I feel like I can’t walk through the mall, stand in a grocery store check-out and now buy a coffee without someone trying to force sex on my kids! They can read people! Unless you are going to put UNDER 18 NOT ALLOWED on your door then you have to expcet that at sometime a minor could be standing there reading whatever it is in front of them. I am not naive, I know that is what they want, but I am just sick of it! Thanks for the rant space!
Do you think people chose to be gay, is it a product of how they were raised, did God create them that way or????????????????
The whole “God made me gay” thing betrays an incredibly problematic doctrine: that God makes each baby ex nihilo and therefore chooses to give them birth defects or childhood cancer or what have you. Even if a predisposition to gayness is there at birth, God didn’t put it there anymore than he made the girl with two faces have two faces.
Our bodies come from our parents and their parents before them, operating in a world tainted by original sin.
betrays an incredibly problematic doctrine
I.e., on the part of those claiming it.
There is definitely an agenda in the release of this quote on their cups. I, for one, would request a differnet cup if Maupin’s were to be used to make my drink.
Most of these cups have been fairly innocuous in their messages. But I have seen a quote from Jonah Goldberg of NRO. And his quote is pretty strong, I thought:
“Everywhere, unthinking mobs of ‘independent thinkers’ wield tired clichés like cudgels, pummeling those who dare question ‘enlightened’ dogma. If ‘violence never solved anything,’ cops wouldn’t have guns and slaves may never have been freed. If it’s better that 10 guilty men go free to spare one innocent, why not free 100 or 1,000,000? Clichés begin arguments, they don’t settle them.”
The “enlightened dogma” Goldberg’s referring to would include Maupin’s view on sexuality, I’m sure.
Publius, Do you believe that the sins of our ancestors cause genetic defects? That is a new one, at least to me.
The idea that Original Sin is somehow responsible for the suffering we now experience on a daily basis and the complete hostility of nature is new to you? You must never have read anything about the problem of evil, or else you would have seen that idea (whether you agreed with it or not).
The sins of our ancestors certainly cause defects in at least a physical sense; abuse of alcohol and drugs, smoking, sexual promiscuity, even obesity (not that it’s always a result of sin) can result in a myriad of birth defects.
In a broader sense the idea that, when our first parents (Adam and Eve) fell, they dragged the rest of creation down with them, is almost inescapable. As God said to Adam, “…cursed is the ground (earth) for your sake…”.
Adam and Eve, who were given dominion over the earth, allowed original sin to enter the garden. To put it bluntly, crap rolls downhill. Call it entropy, if you like.
I believe most if not all members of the Catholic Biblical Society as well as the members of the Papal Biblical Commission would agree that the stories of Adam and Eve express profound theological truths, but are not historical. We are not physical decendents of the people referred to as Adam and Eve.
I won’t quibble about names or details of course, but the Catechism states that:
“390 – The account of the fall in Genesis 3 uses figurative language, but affirms a primeval event, a deed that took place at the beginning of the history of man. Revelation gives us the certainty of faith that the whole of human history is marked by the original fault freely commited by our first parents.”
This is getting off topic, though…
Wouldn’t that qualify as a profound theological truth?
To add into the conversation. My brother’s fiance buys into the whole “People are born gay” idea. She equates it to mean rejecting the gay lifestyle is the same thing as hating blacks because they are born black. I completely disagree. Everyone is born with disordered desires, save Our Lord and Lady, we all have a choice whether to follow those desires or not, a black man or woman doesn’t wake up one morning and say “hm, I think I’ll finally be white today.” THEY CAN’T DO THAT! Following homosexual inclinations is a choice, pure and simple. the “being born gay” is a cop out to be able to revel in ones sin. it’s the devil saying once again to this society “you are a slave to your feelings and sex drive, obey it, I will even give you chains.”
regardless of whether people are born gay or not, CW’s point still holds that you ought to be able to bring your children into a coffee shop without someone’s sexuality being handed to you with your coffee an pastery.
I personally think being gay has something to do with the war in Iraq.
LOL, hippo-
That’s it! The emotional shock of not finding WMDs in Iraq has caused millions to become gay!
Sorry… I’m done now.
well, whatever… when you make billions on luxury “drinks”, I guess you get bored and need to find more ways to squeeze more $$$$$$$$$$ out of the consumer coffee press that is human beings.
I am just curious if, after the owners died in a plane crash in the 90’s, if IN-N-OUT Burger still prints Bible verses on the bottom of their cups.
Can someone down in So Cal give me an update? Thanks!
Tim, I didn’t get to IN-N-OUT, but their Web site says the company is still privately owned by the family, so I suspect the verses still exist.
BTW, there are verses also on all of the wrappers. Check out the snopes.com article:
http://www.snopes.com/business/alliance/inandout.asp
‘thann
“I am just curious if, after the owners died in a plane crash in the 90’s, if IN-N-OUT Burger still prints Bible verses on the bottom of their cups.
Can someone down in So Cal give me an update? Thanks!”
We moved from SoCal a few months ago, but as of that time, the Bible verses were still being printed on the In-N-Out cups, and on another wrapper, can’t remember which. (I miss their food, esp. the french fries, ‘animal style.’)
Re: the Starbucks cups. I don’t go often, but when I do, my kids tend to get drinks too, usually caramel apple cider. It’s a treat for us all. Now I’ll have to check the sayings on their cups before they can enjoy their drink? Great..
There is a solution to the Starbucks’ cup issue: iced drinks! They use clear plastic cups for those so . . . no quotes. And their new green tea frapuchino is pretty good, too.
“I personally think being gay has something to do with the war in Iraq.”
Ya think Andy Sullivan knows about this?
Finally, In-N-Out Burger is no longer just a So Cal phenom! There are many in No Cal now, too! My longtime dream job is spud cutter. That is a nifty machine!
My favorite response the “they were born that way” claim is to ask if we should allow kleptomaniacs to steal, just because “they were born that way.” The simple presence of the desire to do an action does not render that action good.
‘My favorite response the “they were born that way” claim is to ask if we should allow kleptomaniacs to steal, just because “they were born that way.” The simple presence of the desire to do an action does not render that action good.’
Bingo!
The original fictional Starbuck (not to be confused with the two Colonial Viper pilots named for him), was also a fairly pious Quaker, IIRC. One of my favorite characters in Moby Dick, and not just because of the familiar name. 🙂
I was shocked to actually get cup #43 the other day. As far as the lesbian desire message and people say it’s just their consenting adult relationship–it’s poppycock. Starbucks trying to use a disclaimer that they don’t necessarily agree with the message is bogus. Like it or not they will have to answer to God for their choices as you and I will. My ex-wife of 16 1/2 years decided with little coaxing to try out her so-called suppressed lesbian thoughts. The cost: Loss of marriage, loss of custody of her 4 children, loss of home, and deep hurts to the children and I. Homosexuality is a sin–choice to disobey God and is equally abominable as other sins which separate us from God and His love. I pray for our country and send messages to companies who promote disobedience to God, “As for me and my house we will serve the Lord”. God has given me a wonderful new wife and has brought great healing to us by her love for God and us. If people don’t stand for what’s right they will fall for anything.
All of this bashing of homosexuals is a huge exercise in hypocrisy. Last year it was revealed the Bush White House had ties to gay prostitution and the same crowd who beforehand cheered President Bush for bashing gays just let the whole issue go.
You all are nothing but hypocrites.
“Last year it was revealed the Bush White House had ties to gay prostitution.” I see shuttle from Alpha Centauri arrived safely.
Jay, If God caused them to be born hypocrites, how dare you bash them?
Where has this new influx of trolls come from anyway?
I think the cyclops cat is drawing them.
Jay,
We are against the “Gay agenda” not people who struggle with same-sex attraction. Homosexual acts are always contraceptive and against God’s plan for our sexuality.
Publius,
The cyclops cat post brought the strangest traffic. I guess from people googling the story.
Take care and God bless.
J+M+J
It’s since turned out a bunch of your politicians are closeted homos. I guess Republican political rallies are a foot-stomping good time.
Wow! What an intellectual giant!
I have ejaculated twice while reading this article and the comments. As a homosexualist with a hidden agenda (to change the world and corrupt the youth) – no I am not a priest [LOL] – it gives me great stimulation to know that people out there want me to read their words of love and compassion. Keep it up; I know I will!! Much love and spooge, Rammy
Combox disinfection urgently required.