When Chemists Attack

From The State,

The flap over an ad promoting South Carolina as “So Gay” will cost the state tourism dollars, according to an industry expert.

Gay and lesbian travelers will likely be turned off by the political posturing surrounding the ads, which were pulled by the state tourism agency and led one employee to resign

Exactly.  If your goal is to bring tourists into the state where they can spend money, you probably don’t want to make the state look as if it’s full of bigots waiting to tar and feather them.

I find it interesting that the fiercest complaints about promoting gay toursim come from a senator representing Greenville.  It brings back memories of the time I lived in the Upstate.  Anyone remember the 1996 Summer Olympics?

[…] May 1996, when the Greenville County Council adopted a resolution declaring homosexuality incompatible with community standards. The decision, on a vote of 9 to 3, prompted organizers of the run carrying the Olympic torch to Atlanta to shelter the flame in a van as it moved through the county.

I guess the Upstate hasn’t changed much in the last decade.

For more on the “So Gay” controversy, have fun with these links:

• Stupid Is As South Carolina Does: TPS Gets Very Gay
• Adam Fogle’s tourism death star won’t stop until as many people as possible agree not to visit SC
• South Carolina is “So Gay”
• Colbert weighs in