Update: I spoke today on the radio with Wild Bill McKubby from Z-94.5, out of Baxley, GA, about the Chick-fil-A controversy and today’s Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day.

It’s the age old rule, ingrained in our society since the left deemed it so: Discussing politics and religion in public is rude.  Chick-fil-A somehow missed the memo and this past week has suffered a constant barrage of attacks since their president, Dan Cathy, dared to voice the fact that his company has (gasp!) Christian values.  His unbelievable, hate-filled, bigoted, anti-gay, homophobic rant was as follows:

“I think we are inviting God’s judgment on our nation when we shake our fist at Him and say, ‘We know better than you as to what constitutes a marriage,'” Cathy said. “I pray God’s mercy on our generation that has such a prideful, arrogant attitude to think that we have the audacity to define what marriage is about.”

“We are very much supportive of the family — the biblical definition of the family unit. We are a family-owned business, a family-led business, and we are married to our first wives. We give God thanks for that … We want to do anything we possibly can to strengthen families. We are very much committed to that,” Cathy said.

If those radical views sound familiar to you, it may be because you’ve cracked open a Bible for more than just to find an out-of-context verse to throw in someone’s face.  Since Jesus made the declaration 2,000 years ago, Christians have never backed away from the belief that marriage is between one man and one woman.

“Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’  and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”

~ Matthew 19:4-6

Since Chick-fil-A opened 45 years ago they have never hidden the fact that they are a Christian company.  Anyone who has ever yearned for the best chicken sandwich on the planet on a Sunday can attest that they are closed so that employees can have a day to themselves and attend church if they’d like.  If being closed on Sundays wasn’t enough of a hint, they play Christian music inside their restaurants.  It must have been quite a surprise for Cathy that, after all these years of open Christianity, actually verbalizing the values Chick-fil-A was built on would cause such a firestorm.  The over-the-top response was immediate, with calls for boycotts spreading across social media and the Muppets choosing to deny Chik-fil-A children their toys.  To anyone that has previously broken the rule of being quiet (unless you agree with liberals), the reaction to Cathy’s statements was worthy of an eye roll; been there, done that.  What came next, however, took the issue to a whole new level.

It started with Chicago Alderman Proco Joe Moreno who decided, in these times of economic prosperity, he would abuse use his position to block a Chick-fil-A planning to open in his Ward.  Never mind the people he’s supposed to be representing who need jobs or may actually agree with Cathy’s traditional Christian values.  Mayor Rahm Emanuel defended Moreno’s decision, stating that Cathy’s views “are discriminatory against people who are our neighbors and our residents. Those aren’t our values,” he added.  Meanwhile, homicides in Chicago have gone up 38% over the last year and, had the police department not figured out a way to fudge their crime statistics and trick the FBI, Chicago’s “values” would earn them placement as one of the most dangerous cities in the country.  Quick to follow was Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, who wrote an open letter to Cathy letting him know that, in his city so representative of freedom, Chick-fil-A was not welcome; because nothing says freedom like attacking someone who dares to exercise their first amendment rights.  San Francisco Mayor Edwin Lee jumped on the bandwagon last night, tweeting out a threat that he, “strongly recommends Chick-fil-A not come any closer to his city.” Fortunately for anyone that lives outside of Chicago, Boston, and San Francisco,  legal experts are in agreement that efforts by government to block Chick-fil-A from expanding their business is discriminatory and unconstitutional.

While satisfying to know that out of control government officials can be checked by the likes of the ACLU, the relief is fleeting when considering the bigger picture.  The mayors of three cities (thus far) believe it is within their power to tell a private citizen he cannot grow his business because his personal beliefs are not in line with theirs.  Put another way, liberal elected officials think they are dictators.  It shouldn’t come as a surprise, being that they are led by Obama who doesn’t appear to understand the limits of the office of the President.

Cathy ended his interview saying, “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 principles.”  Thank God, indeed, we still do live in a free country and if you’d like to support Chick-fil-A against those that wish to stifle their rights, Mike Huckabee has arranged a “Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day” on August 1st.