Open Letter Tuesday: Dear Juan Pablo Galavis

Dear Juan Pablo,

I get it. You’re a retired athlete looking for a new career. You’re a single dad looking for a wife, and mother for your child. I get it. What I don’t get is why you think, for even a brief moment, that finding a suitable wife and mother on a serial dating show is the way to go. I don’t get how you think that dating twenty-five, or however many, women, whittling that down to about ten or so with whom you’ll make out in hot tubs and bedrooms, then making another cut down to four or five, some of whom, more than one I assume, you will have an intimate sexual relationship with, before deciding that you truly love two women and then choosing one of them to be your wife.

What I don’t get is how you think that’s okay but you think if The Gays were to have a similar looking-for-love type show it would be bad, because that’s what you said:

“No… I respect [gay people] but, honestly, I don’t think it’s a good example for kids… Obviously people have their husband and wife and kids and that is how we are brought up. Now there is fathers having kids and all that, and it is hard for me to understand that too in the sense of a household having peoples … Two parents sleeping in the same bed and the kid going into bed … It is confusing in a sense. But I respect them because they want to have kids. They want to be parents. So it is a scale… Where do you put it on the scale? Where is the thin line to cross or not? You have to respect everybody’s desires and way of living. But it would be too hard for TV... There’s this thing about gay people… it seems to me, and I don’t know if I’m mistaken or not… but they’re more ‘pervert’ in a sense. And to me the show would be too strong… too hard to watch.”

You respect me but I’m a pervert? Way to toe the Catholic line, painting an entire community with the broad brush.

Children need parents who will love them, raise them, teach them and nurture them, and that doesn’t necessarily mean only a mother and a father. There are so many folks, gay and straight, and Latino, who were raised by single parents and they turned out just fine; and there are people raised by two, opposite-sex parents, who are not. It’s not the number of parents, or the gender of the parent, it’s the parent willing to do the work, that raise children to be loving and respectful and kind and good.

But, you know, because you're on a TV show, and a multi-million dollar franchise at that, you decided to apologize:

 People,

I want to apologize to all the people I may have offended because of my comments on having a Gay or Bisexual Bachelor. The comment was taken out of context. If you listen to the entire interview, there’s nothing but respect for Gay people and their families. I have many gay friends and one of my closest friends who’s like a brother has been a constant in my life especially during the past 5 months. The word pervert was not what I meant to say and I am very sorry about it. Everyone knows English is my second language and my vocabulary is not as broad as it is in Spanish and, because of this, sometimes I use the wrong words to express myself. What I meant to say was that gay people are more affectionate and intense and for a segment of the TV audience this would be too racy to accept. The show is very racy as it is and I don’t let my 5 year old daughter watch it. Once again, I’m sorry for how my words were taken. I would never disrespect anyone.

Sinceramente,

Juan Pablo Galavis.

First off, don’t apologize to the people you “may have” offended, apologize for saying something ridiculous. I’m sorry if isn’t an apology. I’m sorry but isn’t an apology. I‘m sorry is an apology.

Secondly, do not play the Some Of My Best friends Are Gay card because if you truly have gay friends, I wonder how they feel about you saying they’re perverts who shouldn’t raise children.

Thirdly, quit playing the English as a second language card. Pervert means the same thing in all languages and that's what you said about The Gays.

And lastly, say you respect gay people after saying “There’s this thing about gay people … they’re more ‘pervert’ in a sense.”

That’s not a form of respect, in any language. But I get it, you’re trying to save face, er, ratings because like it or not Juan Pablo, you’re kinda hot — and kinda dumb — so maybe a lot of The Gays were watching you and you don’t want to drive away your audience.

Well you haven’t driven me away because I’ve yet to see one episode of that show because I don’t believe people can find true love while dating 25 women — or men —  then making a cut, making a cut, having sex with multiple partners, making a cut and then saying you cannot live without two women just before you break the heart of one of them for a TV show.

That’s just me. But, before I go, i do have one question for you, Juan Pablo. What kind of example are you setting for you daughter when you choose to go on what is essentially a TV game show to find her a new mommy? I mean, you won't let her see the show, but you'll find her something to mother her on it? What kind of parent does that?

PS
ABC, naturally, has distanced itself from Juan Pablo’s idiocy, also in an effort to say face, er ratings:

“Juan Pablo’s comments were careless, thoughtless and insensitive, and in no way reflect the views of the network, the show’s producers or studio.”

But if it gets people talking about the show, and it gets more people watching the show, well, then, that’s a good thing, right?

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