The Chicago Cubs haven't won a World Series since 1908, but they do have the magical power of turning gay people straight. At least according to David Benham, the staunch Christian who was fired from hosting a reality show after the anti-gay views of him and his twin brother, Jason, came to light.
In a speech to the National Religious Broadcasters last week, as reported by Glenn Beck's site The Blaze, David Benham said he won over one gay critic of his views with "love" and Cubs tickets.
"We had so many people from the gay community reaching out to us and one man in particular from the city of Chicago reached out — and he said things to me that made me lose my appetite," David Benham told the crowd during a panel discussion about religious liberty. "But I simply responded in love."
And that positive tone went well beyond merely listening and speaking with kindness.
"After a little conversation back and forth, I found out he loved baseball … and I got him tickets to a Cubs game," Benham continued. "He shot me a Facebook post and said, ‘I was not expecting that — and I've been thinking a lot about this. I've chosen to walk away from my lifestyle.' "
The story received a round of applause, The Blaze reported, one of the few times recently anyone has applauded anything the Cubs have done. In the comments below, Tampa Zeke suggested a more likely scenario. The gay guy actually said "give me tickets to a Cubs game and I promise to turn straight as soon as they win their next World Series."
The Benhams were supposed to host a real estate reality show on HGTV called "Flip It Forward," but it was cancelled last year after their views on gays and Muslims were exposed. It didn't help that they equated same-sex marriage to Nazism. They might not be flipping houses on TV, but David Benham claims to have flipped a gay man's sexual orientation.
That the Cubs would make a gay guy suddenly desire women is a bit odd. Cubs co-owner Laura Ricketts is openly gay and active in the LGBT community. Since 2001, the Cubs have held Out at Wrigley, a day welcoming LGBT fans to the stadium.
The Benhams will have 81 games at Wrigley Field this year to try and convert more gays. They better get busy, since the stadium is located in the heart of Boystown, Chicago's gay district. So many men, so little time.
Hat tip to Brent for sending me the Raw Story link.
