The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly...

I was just on USATODAY when I came across this article about Obama choosing a gay Bishop to give some sort of speech at his inauguration. G-A-Y, this three letter word seems to stir up controversy whenever it so much as leaves the lips of any random person.
Well, I looked at the comments and realized that they all had nothing to do with Obama or the article, in fact they were a continuous argument over homosexuality and its ongoing battle with religion. The commenters sort of polarized--one group was completely fine with it, the other wanted to force the fear of God into them and their supporters.
Personally, I'm Switzerland when it comes to arguments like this. But I am curious to know: Why is it such a big deal, to either side? People will be people, and we should just let everyone be...putting our personal biases into the way we treat people is no way to live.
I've also noticed that it's mostly the super religious people who have a problem with the situation. I'm not branding religious people as intolerant and overall ignorant, but the trend is hard to deny.
I also think that some Gay Activists should cool their jets a bit when attacking religious people or anyone who doesn't agree with them. People have the right to believe what they want, and they aren't afraid to exercise that right. For every Pro, there is a Con. For every birth, there is a death. You can't have one without the other and you can't expect and en masse sway belief without one going the other way.
As Americans, it is our constitutional right to practice religion, but please, don't use your faith to try to dictate how someone else should live their life. And just because you're advocating for a lifestyle that not everyone agrees with doesn't mean that you should alienate anybody who doesn't agree.
Tolerance, from either side, is a beautiful thing. Let's not perversely cheapen it by resorting to violence or slander against a person you disagree with.