Ellen Page cam out as a lesbian in the last year. She recently made a visit to the Iowa State Fair where Ted Cruz was grilling pork chops as part of a campaign swing.

The two of them went back and forth for five minutes and it was captured by the national media. However, it probably makes no difference one way or the other. Conservative media portrayed it as a victorious put down of Ellen Page and liberal media portrayed it as showing how out of touch Cruz is.

It was like the two of them were from different planets and were talking different languages. Page saw it as a discussion of gay rights and Cruz saw it as a discussion on religious persecution and freedom. Neither one seemed to hear the other.

Page started by asking Cruz what he felt about LGBT people being fired because they were gay or trans. Cruz came back with how horrible it was that God fearing Christians were being persecuted for their beliefs. Page said no, they are being persecuted for their discrimination. Cruz said no, they were being persecuted for living based on their faith.

Page said the arguments being used to discriminate against LGBT were the same that had been used to discriminate against minorities which is now illegal. Cruz came up with a story about an Iowa couple who wouldn’t hold a same sex wedding at their business. Cruz then came up with an odd hypothetical story about a gay florist refusing to sell flowers to  two evangelicals who were going to get married. Page said the gay florist should sell them the flowers.

The conversation then got stranger. Cruz asked where gays were being persecuted. Page said all over the world. Cruz said they are being killed by ISIS and Iran and there is no outcry and the Obama administration is sending millions of dollars to the country. Page said that was not true and that gays were being persecuted worldwide, including Jamaica. Cruz said Jamaica is not killing gays. Why isn’t Obama raising the issue? Page said she would love to talk to President Obama. Cruz then says, “Then we agree.” Page said not at all and to stop twisting her words.

Pretty much that was then end of the conversation. Basically red meat for both bases with little accomplished.

Well, the US has gay marriage not but many advocates say there are still issues that need to be resolved before equality can be achieved and LGBT people don’t have to live in fear of prejudice and reprisals and losing their job. In many states it is legal to fire someone for their sexual preference.

BUT, If you think it is bad here, you are wrong. It is actually pretty good and getting better all the time. Especially when you compare the US with many Mid East and African countries.

The frustrating thing is that the antigay sentiment is being fueled by missionaries from the US who don’t like the trend in acceptance of gays in the United States. It is also being fueled by money from right wing Christian zealots in the US. Some people are wondering if they could be held liable for the deaths in Africa of gays killed by the hatred that these “Christians” from the US have stirred up.

The odd thing is that in different African tribes there was a place for a third sexuality which was essentially gay men. They were accepted and played an role in the functioning of the tribe. But with the teachings of the missionaries, antigay sentiment seems to be spreading and becoming more virulent. In some countries there is even the death penalty for homosexual acts.

It was refreshing to hear President Obama speak out on his recent trip to Africa. He managed to walk a very fine line of pushing for change and not insulting the leaders he was speaking to, or coming off as a heavy handed American trying to dictate to them. It definitely didn’t hurt that he is African American and his father was Kenyan. It gave him a vantage point and credibility to speak to these African leaders that no prior American President has ever had. He pushed for tolerance for gays and the need for women’s rights. It would be nice if the African leaders listened and turned down the heat some on the gay community.