Food for thought:
If a store-owner can refuse service to a gay couple because it violates their freedom of religion, then a store-owner can also refuse service based on your political affiliation.
Remember that freedom of speech and freedom of religion are the two tenets of the same Amendment.
Now, is that right? Should you be denied service because you voted for Trump/Romney/Clinton/Obama? Wouldn’t that directly affect your own freedom of speech, by refusing you service based on your beliefs?
Some people would argue that a person has the right to refuse service for any reason.
Well, if the cause to refuse service is based on actions – ie, the customer is being belligerent, or even just intentionally rude, then that’s different. That’s actionable, and a store-owner has every right to throw them out, because that person *did* something to justify it.
Is he spitting on the floor? Is he screaming at another customer? Is he dancing drunkenly on a table?
Those are legitimate grounds for removal. But if a person is forced out because of *who* they are – how is that right?
To put it another way – would you think it’s right if a store offered their services “only to Christians”? If a Muslim refused service to Jews and Christians simply because ‘they were infidels,’ would you have a problem with that?
What if the store is the only place nearby that does what they do? What if you weren’t allowed to purchase a wedding ring, because it’s the only jewelry store within 50 miles, and they tell you “we don’t like your kind, it’s against our beliefs.”
The Constitution’s Amendments are fundamental rights that you have, which the government cannot encroach upon. They cannot discriminate against you because you speak your mind, or practice your religion. And if the government can’t do that, then why should businesses be allowed to do it?
And as the old adage goes: “One person’s freedoms stop where another person’s freedoms begin.” You are free to do whatever you like – as long as it doesn’t not affect another person’s freedoms.
