A GaGa Paradox

You have to believe me, I never wanted to be a fan of Lady GaGa.  Back when Poker Face first hit the airwaves I was determined to ignore what I thought was just another shallow popstar singing vapid (and incredibly catchy)  pop songs.  But the more I heard the more I liked, despite myself.  Before long she progressed from "popstar I don't care for" to "secret guilty pleasure" to "dammit, I'm a Lady GaGa fan now, aren't I?".  She is just so refreshingly different.  So unashamedly weird.  Best of all, despite all the theatrics she just comes across as so... honest!  Anyway, I'll just come out and admit it, after seeing this interview with her on 60 Minutes I totally had a crush on Lady GaGa!



I freely admit that it gave me great schadenfreude to read a review of her new song "Born this way" on the Christian review site Plugged In Online.  It was adorably cute to watch the reviewer do mental gymnastics in order to explain that, yes she is totally right in saying "God makes no mistakes" and that everyone is lovingly created by God to be special in their own way buuuut that this cannot in any way include your sexual orientation because being gay is always wrong even if you were born that way.

Much as it pains me, I have to note though that there is indeed a teensy problem with the lyrics to "Born this Way".  See the chorus proudly states:

I’m beautiful in my way
’cause god makes no mistakes
I’m on the right track baby
I was born this way

OK, still all good but then later she says:

No matter gay, straight or bi
lesbian, transgendered life

Wait a second, did she include transgendered on that list?  That makes the song a bit oxymoronic, don't you think?  According to Wikipedia: "Transgender is the state of one's "gender identity" (self-identification as woman, man, neither or both) not matching one's "assigned sex" (identification by others as male, female or intersex based on physical/genetic sex)".  In other words the concept of  being transgendered is in direct opposition to the notion that "God makes no mistakes" and that He "made you perfect".  To be transgendered is to say, "There's been a mistake, I'm not the gender I'm supposed to be".

Is it nitpicky?  You betcha!  But if my relationship with Lady Gaga is to have any future she needs to understand that I only nitpick the ones I love!

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OK, slept on it and while I stand by my nitpick I do feel there is one more thing I should add.  If I could somehow have been there when she wrote "Born this Way" as a good friend and trusted adviser, I would probably still have shaken my head a bit at the bit about transgendered life but I would not have changed a damn thing about the song.  What I love about Gaga is that she is the patron saint of aggressively being yourself.  She manages to convincingly bring the gospel that it is OK to be who you are, even if that means you don't talk, dress and act like your peers - I mean she dressed in meat ffs!  That, I believe, is a message worth sharing.  I never did a great job fitting in as a kid and I was a heterosexual male Caucasian!  I can't even imagine how hard it must be for those who are actual minorities.  That is why I love this song enough to nitpick it!