Brief Thoughts on Rick Perry's Implosion

Rick Perry is not a fan of the gays.  We knew that all along, but it has been deeply gratifying to watch the backlash to his latest political ad, not because he went so far over the lines, but because he did not go so far.  Against the likes of Santorum, he seems pretty moderate in his comments, and yet the backlash has been remarkable.

The text of the spot:

I'm not ashamed to admit that I'm a Christian, but you don't need to be in the pew every Sunday to know there's something wrong in this country when gays can serve openly in the military but our kids can't openly celebrate Christmas or pray in school. 
As President, I'll end Obama's war on religion. And I'll fight against liberal attacks on our religious heritage. 
Faith made America strong. It can make her strong again. 
I'm Rick Perry and I approve this message.

To paraphrase: "DADT is good, School Prayer is good, and I'll try to bring them both back."

By making his prejudices explicit, he seems to have alienated the entire internet, and Time Magazine.  This warms my heart, because in absence of hateful language, the backlash can only have been to his hateful opinions, and while we still have a long way to come, these opinions would never have brought the same level of outrage even ten years ago. This is what progress looks like!