Get in our straight faces all you want Dan. Cudos to you for the great work you're doing, and for the miracles you're achieving.

Dan, I LOVE you, but if you're going on national TV, maybe you could change out of the hoodie.

Given recent homophobic statements by some NFL players, I have to say yes, they should make a big deal because some people aren't playing fair and being tolerant to the point where it really doesn't matter any more.

Meanwhile Michael Jordan had a traditional heterosexual marriage to his much younger and prettier model wife.

Jesus, Dan, could you have let everyone else speak maybe?

Strong performance, Dan. Clear and direct. Love Maddow's bit at the end.

FYI, you also got heavy mention on Bill Simmons' "B.S. Report" podcast in relation to this topic.

hey #10 not ALL Christians or Republicans or Catholics or southerners think gay marriage is bad social policy ok. You can hate gays all you want but legally discriminating gays is what the gay activists are trying to change.

@7 - sarcasm, right?

@11 The troll is an angry closeted mess. Don't try to reason with it.

When I bar tended late night bars in the late 80's, one of which was known as a notorious gay bar, I knew several gay Division I football players. I knew guys who dated pro football players, some I even met. I have always known there were gay men in sports. It is great they can start being themselves now.

On the swishy gay men Dan talks about. Most of the gay men I knew from that period of time were not the feminine kind. They were men, many rugged men. Many worked blue collar jobs. They were just guys. Of course, there is nothing quite like seeing an offensive lineman in a short dress and platform boots....

And Dan was correct about the main issue is about how straight men will react. Will they be men or will they be children?

When I am not pointed at by people with power, when my fellow citizens stand up and tell a bigot to shut up, when little boys don't automatically know that there is something wrong with them, then I will shut up. Jesus, do I have to change my last name to Joad to make people see???

Amen.

The other reason gay people have to "make such a big deal about coming out" is because if we don't come out, you assume we're straight.

Exactly: gays will stop talking about being gay as if it's a big deal when homophobes stop making it a big deal.

Gay people will stop making a big deal about coming out when coming out ceases to be a big deal.

That's not being a whiner; it's being capable of recognizing and responding to social realities. Notice how feminists don't go around screaming about sexism 24/7 any more? That's because there's less sexism than there was. (Also notice that they haven't stopped entirely.) Notice how interracial couples don't constantly go on about how they're interracial couples? That's because it's nowhere near as big of a deal as it used to be.

Plus, straight people talk about THEIR romantic relationships all the time. Turn on any radio, and most of what you'll hear is men singing love songs about women or women singing them about men. Go to the movies, watch TV, even play video games, and you'll see straight relationships all over the place.

Talk to people, and they'll tell you about weddings, prom dates, baby showers, and divorces. Who's dating whom, who's marrying whom, who's suspected of cheating on whom -- most of what straight people talk about, most of the time, is heterosexual romantic relationships.

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual people talk about OUR romantic relationships because that's what people in general talk about.

@12: No, I don't think it was sarcasm, and I agree. One of the other guests started saying something and Dan talked right over him, which annoyed me because Dan had already made his point and I wanted to know what the old guy had to say. I love Dan, but when he's on someone else' show, I think he shouldn't interrupt other commenters, ESPECIALLY when those other commenters happen to be on his side.

this was great, as was town hall last night!

aside: i want to know more about the sweatshirt - specifically, why it says 'holden' on it.

The NHL has been promoting the You Can Play Project for the past year.
http://youcanplayproject.org/