Hopeless cause

Apple has come under fire for approving an “app” that offers guidance on how homosexual people can be “cured” and convert to heterosexuality. The “gay cure” application, designed to be used on Apple’s hand-held devices, was created by and named after Exodus International, a religious organisation which believes in teaching “freedom from homosexuality through prayer and practicing conversion therapy”.

The app is offered free on Apple’s iTunes online shop and was given a “4+” rating by the company, meaning it is not considered to contain objectionable content. A description of the app on the online shop said: “With over 35 years of ministry experience, Exodus is committed to encouraging, educating and equipping the Body of Christ to address the issue of homosexuality with grace and truth.”

Gay activists quickly gathered more than 37,000 signatures for an online petition persuading Apple to drop the software. The petition on the website change.org said the Christian group was using “scare tactics, misinformation, stereotypes and distortions” of gay life, and promoting “the use of so-called ‘reparative therapy’ to ‘change’ the sexual orientation of their clients, despite the fact that this form of ‘therapy’ has been rejected by every major professional medical organisation”.

Insulting the bulk of your customer base would appear to be a bad idea. OK, that was a joke…




  1. bobbo, its politics most foul, if thats not redundant says:

    Is there an app for post cult kidnapping mental recovery? Post Catholic Alter Boy Anus repair app? etc. Just looking for the fair and balanced approach of what is assumed as a matter of course.

  2. MrMiGu says:

    #1

    “Is there an app for post cult kidnapping mental recovery”

    Are you talking about Christianity or Apple?

  3. Airsick says:

    Am I the only person thinking “so don’t buy it”?

  4. Olo Baggins of Bywater says:

    These guys are on the SPLC radar.

  5. Gary, the dangerous infidel says:

    Apple isn’t so much approving the “gay cure” App itself as they are approving the right to make money off of stupidity and superstition. Of course, they’ll never be able to match the Church’s expertise in that area.

  6. Floyd says:

    Taxed: if a heterosexual couple don’t want to have children, is that unnatural because it doesn’t result in propagation? Lots of people don’t want children, you know.

  7. LDA says:

    #5 Taxed Enough Already Dude

    “homosexuality is “unnatural” as it does not result in propagation, the obvious goal of the design.”

    Natural; existing in or caused by nature; not made or caused by humankind.

    It’s not biblical (most of reality isn’t) but it is natural.

    I wish the divine creator would have told us about all the stuff the Chinese and Koreans had already invented when he inspired that book (would have helped get The Word out). Surely he knew about it and not just the stuff the tribals in the middle east knew (hint, man made i.e. not natural).

  8. LotsaLuck says:

    This thread is sooooooo gay:

    http://youtube.com/watch?v=jbkMzQmbxuI

  9. MrMiGu says:

    #5

    One would think that when a species propagates to a point in which growing any larger would hurt the species that they would naturally begin to reduce their reproductive rates….

  10. agp says:

    #10 “they would naturally begin to reduce their reproductive rates….”

    Before nature does it for us and we all know how “kind” and “gentle” nature is in such situations.

  11. dittmv says:

    The biggest challenge facing the gay community today is a gay conversion app! This is completely amazing the progress that homosexuals have made in being accepted as a part of society! Just last week most faced at least some discrimination and now all of that is over thanks to Obama!

    Discrimination has been washed down the drain and they are now able to serve in the military, visit loved ones in the hospital, no societal denigration for simply being, and organizations do not feel it necessary to ask, “do you like girls” as a requisite of employment.

    Oh wait, none of that happened.

    Funny, I do not hear about vegans gathering signatures to have Target not sell steak knifes.

  12. Olo Baggins of Bywater says:

    I’m thinking, Alfred, that most gays probably don’t want to inherit the kingdom of God. So this threat is probably somewhat empty to them.

    Problem is, looks to me like a vast swath of the GOP doesn’t want it, either.

  13. What? says:

    Taxed:

    You seem quite obsessed with sex, and the sex other people are having.

    You’ve never read Johnathan Livingston Seagul have you, or experienced any form of enlightenment?

    I suggest you leave your bunker once in a great while, and interact with average people.

  14. Guyver says:

    This is news because this app may have offended some liberals. Offending non-liberals isn’t newsworthy because the liberals do it all the time. 🙂

  15. WmDE says:

    If they don’t like it they can shove it up……

    Never mind.

  16. Steve S says:

    Well it is about time someone made an app to “fix” that problem 🙂

    Taxed. By your definition, even married heterosexuals having consensual sex for pleaasure is unnatural. What a cold, sterile world you paint.

  17. bobbo, the evangelical anti-theist says:

    15–Olo==really? then you must think the gays don’t join the Republican party either?

    An obviously ignorant position based on being rational and looking out for one’s own best interests. Humans aren’t that smart though as evidenced by Staunch Catholic Republican Sexually Active Gays. The evil presented is insurmountable===which the gays also do.

    Hah, hah. Poor humanity. Looking for love and affirmation in all the wrong places.

  18. Dallas says:

    In my opinion, the Christian Taliban should have the opportunity to sell their voodoo shit on iPhone if Steve Jobs approves.

    From a business perspective, Apple does need to determine if apps from The KKK, Christian Taliban, Vatican, NAMBLA, Pedro-Mule Short Stories, 101 Death Panel Ideas by Alfie …. and other fringe groups have a place in their catalog.

  19. Olo Baggins of Bywater says:

    Bobbo…note the qualifier “most.” In any case I’m willing to be corrected by someone with a better perspective on the issue.

    I’m playing with Alfreds/Dude’s emphasized text. By his standard, pretty much nobody wants that kingdom. Personally, I’m having too much fun with the drunkard and fornicator parts to get in. At first glance I thought that other one said “reveler” and wanted in that group too, but no, and not sure what a reviler might be.

  20. bobbo, the evangelical anti-theist says:

    Olo–I don’t read Alfies droppings unless my peripheral vision catches something. Must be an acquired taste, a level of sophistication, an exercise to make lemonade, or more appropriately a shit burger when the resources are so lacking?

    I think I noticed the “most” and I assume most gays are like most non-gays==to stupidly religious. Never seen any numbers on it though. as in “most” other things, we are all the same. Even life experiences doesn’t teach the gays anything==just like non gays.

    Religious–yes. I too would be stuck: typo or transfiguration–reveler or reviler. Even the context won’t help us there.

  21. Mr, Ed - the Imitation (accept no original) says:

    Giggle bells and cockle shells,
    Dancing through the daisies,
    Boys and girls and cows and squirrels,
    All know Alphie is effen crazy.

  22. drying out says:

    Is there an app to cure pedophiles? What about serial killers? Shouldn’t there be an app to cure serial killers, too?

  23. Olo Baggins of Bywater says:

    There’s a bunch of apps that kill bad drivers.

  24. Buzz Mega says:

    Show of hands:

    How many people want to have an app on their iPhone that is designed to “cure” any sort of sexual behavior of any kind?

    Other than Craig Ferguson, in jest.

  25. Low Key says:

    It’s very rare that I am impressed by stupidity. “Taxed Enough”, you’re that rare breed of stupidity that is unshakable by any fact or argument. My hats off to you and your belief in your magic book.

  26. dcphill says:

    What idiot would buy and use this app?
    It will die under it’s own weight or lack of usability.

  27. Dallas says:

    #25 Not into leather but I did wear Dolfin nylon shorts a long time ago. Are you still wearing leg warmers?

  28. msbpodcast says:

    In #29, >Low Key said: “Taxed Enough”, you’re that rare breed of stupidity that is unshakable by any fact or argument. My hats off to you and your belief in your magic book.

    I wouldn’t call in a magic book.

    It is not magic, it does no magic, nor does it contain any spells or secret recipes, like the Necronomicon purports to.

    The book is actually not a book but a series of morality tales divided into:
    • the “Old Testament” being dedicated to Yahweh who was a irritable, grumpy, violent and/or murderous father figure (probably depending on how hung-over he was) and
    • the “New Testament” being dedicated to how barbarically he murdered his son and was estranged by his wife, Asherah, or who he may have murdered as well, since she is never mentioned even once in this portion.

    Its a book containing a bunch of tales which, altogether, tells this rather sad story of a tragic character who is eclipsed by his own son and, like Saturn, he ends up devouring him (in Saturn’s case it was murder by cannibalism.)

  29. msbpodcast says:

    By the way, the photo joke was originally composed of three characters, and the caption under the gay guy was “I’m Vista“.

  30. Nobody says:

    #21 – Apple does need to decide if 30% commission from the 2 copis of this that will be bought is equal to the loss in sales if every gay returns their iPad/iPhone/iDildo

    What happened was that the app just contains a bunch of Bible texts and a lot of christian fundie rhetoric – it didn’t have “cure gays” in the title. The reviewer did a quick search for rude words, couldn’t face reading all the drivel and approved it.


1

Bad Behavior has blocked 5803 access attempts in the last 7 days.