Amazing Grace reminded me of this, so I'm posting it here
This is based on a nightmare or possibly nightmares I had 20 years ago,
For the younger readers, at that time the Oregon Citizens Alliance (OCA) had gotten a ballot measure passed overturning an executive order by the state's governor that had forbidden discrimination based on sexual orientation by state agencies.
Emboldened by that success, they had put another measure on the ballot. This one forbade the state, or lower levels of government from "recognizing" homosexuals, sadomasochists and witches. With language that said that recognizing included issuing any sort of license or permit.
And there may have been something about schools saying anything "positive" (essentially, worded such that the only allowable mentions would have to be negative). Or that may have been part of the one they tried the next election.
Supposedly the bit about licenses and permits was supposed to keep them from becoming "professionals". You know, doctors, lawyers etc. But as some folks pointed out, the actual wording allowed a lot more.
Campaigning on both sides got rather heated. And then there was a firebombing of a house that a number of folks in the state capitol who were important in the campaign against Measure 9 lived in. It later turned out to be totally unrelated to the campaign (idiots got the wrong house!). But at the time it really ratcheted up the fear.
Now consider that at the time I was on the Board of a local BDSM group and before the ballot measure went public we'd done some publicity that included photos of all the board members. And while not strictly gay, I was definitely bi.
So against that background...
