Aint no Purple in the rainbow flag... oh... yes, there is

Prince is worried that America is going to hell in something of a handbasket, and blames politicians and - oh, yes - gay marriage:

"It's all about religion," he said.

"You've got the Republicans, and basically they want to live according to [the Bible]. But there's the problem of interpretation, and you've got some churches, some people, basically doing things and saying it comes from here, but it doesn't. And then on the opposite end of the spectrum you've got blue, you've got the Democrats, and they're, like, 'You can do whatever you want.' Gay marriage, whatever. But neither of them is right."

Republicans wanting to live according to The Bible? I suppose John McCain's daughter can do the bit about her father's many mansions if nothing else.

But is Prince really attacking gay marriage - or "marriage" as grown-up people call it - as "not right"? Prince? Little 'sticking women to the ceiling, umpteen positions in a one night stand' Prince? He's finally found a place he's going to draw the line, has he?

Predictably, his people are already trying to change the vision that he's a spite-filled homophobic hypocrite:

The Perez Hilton blog has weighed in with an anonymous source "close to the rocker", alleging that the singer was "grossly misquoted and misinterpreted".

"What His Purpleness actually did was gesture to the Bible and said he follows what it teaches, referring mainly to the parts about loving everyone and refraining from judgment," Perez Hilton reported. "'We're very angry he was misquoted,' says our Prince insider."

Beware people who claim that a person was misquoted who, erm, won't allow themselves to be quoted on that. It's also worth mentioning that this interview was with the New Yorker who are standing by their story.

It's also a little odd to understand how this is either a misquote or a misinterpretation - "they're, like, 'You can do whatever you want.' Gay marriage, whatever. But neither of them is right" does seem pretty conclusively to be saying that the allowing of gays to marry is wrong - and if he didn't mean to be condemning gay marriage, why mention it at all?

In addition, in the same interview, Prince talks about being a proselytizing Jehovah's Witness - which would suggest he buys the Church's view of homosexuality which they claim is based on Bible teaching:

Today, many people—even some clergymen—soft-pedal the issue of homosexuality. Yet, the Bible leaves no room for confusion. It tells us that Jehovah God made man and woman and that he purposed for sexual desires to be fulfilled only between husband and wife. (Genesis 1:27, 28; 2:24) It comes as no surprise, then, that the Bible condemns homosexual acts.—Romans 1:26, 27.

Of course, many would say that the Bible is out-of-date. For example, 14-year-old Megan asserts, “Some of the things stated in the Bible have no place in today’s world.” But why are some so quick to make that claim? Often, it is because the Bible’s view conflicts with their own. They reject God’s Word because it teaches something different from what they want to believe. That view is biased, though, and the Bible encourages us to rise above such closed-minded thinking!

Since the unnamed Prince-mate who talked to Perez Hilton didn't try and suggest that when Prince was talking about being a Jehovah's Witness he actually meant he was registered as a state notary and somehow it's got lost in translation, it's difficult to see how Prince could simultaneously believe that gay marriage is right and homosexuality is wrong.

It's pathetic to see off-the-record briefings trying to 'correct' what seem to be Prince's actual views. If he's so upset with the New Yorker, could he not go on the record and explain what he actually believes? Or, at the very least, tell his management team not to go round trying to make him seem pro-gay marriage

[Thanks to Jack B for the tip]