Harm

 “The evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones” 

What good? Surely that’s the question. 

Another ghoulish pervert has just gone down to dusty death. Dr. James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, is dead. Took his sweet time, but at least he’s dead. Best thing for everyone. Not a moment too soon. Really the only reason to regret his passing would be if it in any way ended his suffering or that of his family and friends. Almost worth it to bring him back if it would keep that going.

He was an evil-minded, ignorant, hateful, harmful bigot and he devoted his adult life not as he would doubtless tell you “to Christ,” but to the persecution of innocents, the perversion of scripture, the promotion of misogyny, racism, homophobia, and in a relentless pursuit of influence and power. He deformed every tenant of his profession — psychology not theology by the way, not that he made any such distinction — and used his credentials as cudgels with which to brutalize at least two generations. 

He actively promoted beating children. He absolutely believed women were inferior to men and all men inferior to lipless white Southern Christian crackers like himself. 

He spoke not to or with his God but for Him, all but as Him. This is what God wants, as divinely revealed in scripture to — wait for it, Dr James Dobson Jr. Lil’ Jimmie Lee knows just what He likes. More often though, this is what He hates, and so should you.

He craved celebrity and political influence and was one of the leading architects of the submission of the Republican Party to the fanaticism of the Christian Pharisees and the unrepentant Confederacy. 

He created and promoted much of the material used in conversion therapy and homophobic reeducation camps, collected and spent millions of dollars to deny and repeal gay and women’s rights legislation, and used his considerable influence within his evangelical community to turn them from witness and charity to far right activism and violence.

He was yet another mild white monster in an ugly suit and a bad haircut who hardly ever raised his voice even as he lowered the morality of his time and ruined countless lives in the name of Gawd and James Dobson.

If anybody reading this should wonder why so many of us of a certain age have been on social media celebrating his death, let me just remind those of our friends untouched by his dry, icy influence that this is one of the many who put us here, where we are today. If the world is more hateful, it’s because of Dr. James Dobson Jr. and men just like him.

I wish I believed in Hell, if just to see him in it.

May his memory bring the shame it deserves and all his words, works, and deeds follow him down to the grave and be forgotten.