Regarding "Are you outraged by Rick Warren?", I am outraged that some people do not believe that all people should have the same rights. I strongly support gay rights and the right of gays to marry.

I'm also outraged that some people have little tolerance for engaging others in a dialog and want to shut out those who do not hold the same beliefs. I believe in diplomacy. We must bring different sides together to engage in discussion and reach a peaceful resolution.

Thus I believe Obama is right to have Rick Warren at his inauguration and to stick with this decision even though it outrages some. I still believe that Obama is going to be more centrist than many give him credit for. He needs to be a unifier to accomplish what the US and our world needs accomplished. We need a leader who can build trust among those who may disagree, not one who will force others to see it their way or the highway.

Obama knows what he is doing. Having Rick Warren give the inaugural invocation is a difficult yet good choice. It is time for us to move on and build bridges, not isolate each other and build more walls.

The time will come, hopefully sooner than later, when all will recognize that gays have a natural right to marry.  That day will come sooner if more engage in dialog so that each recognizes others as humans too, instead of hate speech which brands one group or the other as this or that thus exchanging dialog for shouting matches where neither side can listen to the other.

Sincerely,

Tim Oey

http://timoey.blogspot.com