WHAT?!
Politicians in New York have been debating a momentous bill that would legalise mixed martial arts in the state for the first time in nearly 20 years.
The debate has been opinionated on both sides, with those against the bill argued that the sport was too brutal and should remain banned, while others claimed that fights were already going on underground and that regulation would add a necessary shield of protection for amateur fighters.
Things took a turn when Assemblyman Charles Barron equated the sport to forced combat on slave plantations...
https://twitter.com/MMAjunkieSteven/status/712363250352926720
... but that was far from the most outrageous contribution to the debate, as Daniel O'Donnell (not that one!) rose to his feet to speak against the bill.
O'Donnell, the first openly gay member of the NY Assembly, insisted he was a tennis fan, but that he was intrigued to find out more about MMA when he heard about the amount of money being poured into efforts to lift the ban.
He contended that MMA was something he should be a fan of, given that it was "two half-naked men rolling around in a cage trying to dominate each other. It's basically gay porn, only with a different ending".
O'Donnell, the brother of actress and talk show host Rosie O'Donnell, then revealed his sister is an MMA fan who had asked him to vote for the bill, but fearing a rise in violence among young people and and increase in gambling, stated he was going home to "take a long shower" after discussing the proposals.
As you can imagine, the reaction to O'Donnell's comments among the watching MMA community was immediate.
https://twitter.com/MeganOlivi/status/712370250268848129
https://twitter.com/DannStupp/status/712368968938479616
https://twitter.com/GormleyAlbany/status/712369444706713601
https://twitter.com/DanWearsShirts/status/712369649707556865
https://twitter.com/ChuckMindenhall/status/712372453838884864
https://twitter.com/SBNLukeThomas/status/712370525083987968
