Equal rights for all cannot come soon enough. Shame on us all that this is still an issue. Let’s get it fixed.
Category Archives: On A Serious Note (Probably A B-flat)……
Colbert Said It First. We’re Getting Double Poped.
Although Vatican fears of a possible schism of power might have some ring of tiny truth to them, the main reason for remaining cloistered at the Vatican is most likely the same as the motivating factor in his resignation.
Scandal, and a great deal of it. Once away from the protecting arms of Rome and the new Pope’s regime, just exactly how safe would Benedict be, either in his person or in a legal capacity?
The amount of attention which seems to continue to focus on the Pope Emeritus is a bit disturbing and presents an unfortunate aura of continued silence and non-action regarding rumors and accusations of abuses in the church.
If the church has any real intention of addressing these problems and repairing their deteriorating image, giving gabby reports of bi-Papal lunch dates is not the best way to go about it. This smacks of more sweeping under the rug of concerns and protecting their own.
No, Mr. Priebus, I Don’t Think That’ll Fix It………
Mike Huckabee is a nasty, vile little man. He is an attention whore. The fact that he is from my home state of Arkansas is yet another strike against him, since he shines a very unwelcome spotlight on a very backward state. He draws in criticism on all of us who live here, and in turn those of us who are trying to live Blue in a sea of Red have to cope with a multitude of slurs and insults everywhere we go, both online and in real life. We do not need any more bad publicity, Mike. We have too much already. He has nothing whatsoever of value to add to any public conversation, and has not been relevant in quite some time. I loathe the man, and I abhor pretty much everything he stands for. I wanted to be absolutely, sparkling, crystal clear about that.
So I could tell you this………..
As much as I dislike Huckabee, I am equally opposed to the GOP platform and ideology. Very little that issues from the right of center these days manages to be anything other than totally offensive. Even when you allow for the embellishments of hype in the media, it is clear that there is indeed a war on women, children, families, the middle & lower classes, the disadvantaged & disenfranchised, non-Christians of every and no faith & set of beliefs and non-beliefs, minorities, and pretty much everyone who is not an elite, upper class, older white male. The strong denials from the GOP on this just highlight their fractured and problematic relationship with the wing-nuts who have taken over in recent years.
They say they want to buff up their image. The RNC’s chairperson Reince Priebus was quoted in an interview with the National Review on Friday, saying that Mike Huckabee should be “the model for the GOP on social issues such as marriage equality and abortion.” This not only does not improve their image, it reinforces everything that is wrong with the party. No matter what the PR folks for the GOP churn out to rehabilitate their tarnished facade, every time these guys open their mouths, the truth slithers out.
The truth ain’t pretty.
Let Them Eat Cake. No, Wait…. Let Them Eat Roadkill.
So then there was this : Montana To Introduce Edible Roadkill. Ed-i-ble Roooaad-kill. Nope, it doesn’t sound any better when you say it slower.
Okay, here’s the thing. I am all for reducing, reusing, & recycling. I hate to see waste. C’mon, though, folks.
We live in such a litigious culture that feeding the homeless is actually banned across America. Restaurants who want to donate leftover food often do not or cannot due to fears of prosecution. As a nation we toss out massive amounts of perfectly good food every day, missing out on golden opportunities to help others.
Has it really come down to this?
Excuse me while I toss this turkey in the trash. Don’t dig it out, either, or you’ll be sanctioned. However, if I hit a wild turkey on the way home, you may scrape it up and tuck in.
You’re welcome.
No turkey, without tracks. Nice motto. Not.
So you're tired of hearing about "rape culture"?
TRIGGER WARNING:
The following includes descriptions, photos, and video that may serve as a trigger for victims of sexual violence.
Please be advised.
Someone asked me today, "What is 'rape culture' anyway? I'm tired of hearing about it."
Yeah, I hear ya. I'm tired of talking about it. But I'm going to keep talking about it because people like you keep asking that question.
Excellently put. So am I tired of hearing about it? Sure I am, and so is everyone else. You know what I am even MORE tired of? Living in it, and having sons growing up in it. Having a grown daughter living in it. Ignoring it and staying silent about isn't going to fix it or make it go away. As long as the problem exists, we SHOULD be talking about it.
I Am Not Your Wife, Sister or Daughter. I Am A Person.
I don't have to tell you that Steubenville is all over the news.
I don't have to tell you that it's a fucking joke that Trent Mays and Ma'lik Richmond, the two teenagers convicted of raping a sixteen year old girl, were only sentenced to a combined three years in juvenile prison. Each will serve a year for the rape itself; Mays will serve an additional year for "illegal use of a minor in nudity-oriented material."
Very thought provoking. The Steubenville tragedy and subsequent trial shined a light on an ugly problem that occurs everywhere, all the time, to all kinds of people.
Nobody has the right to do anything, to anyone, ever, without their clear consent. A shake of the head means NO. A whisper means NO. An uncertain "I am not sure about this..." means NO. Silence means NO. Lack of consciousness means NO. Any kind of diminished capacity for understanding the situation means NO. A YES, given under any sort of fear, pressure, or duress, means NO. If the answer is not a clear YES, it is NO.
It does not matter whether the object of your desire is male, female, or transgender. It does not matter if they are straight, gay, bisexual, or any other sexual orientation. It doesn't matter if you bought them dinner, or gave them a ride home, or picked them up in a bar, or met them running naked through the street. There is NO excuse, EVER, to rape someone else. If you rape another person, you are a rapist. You are wrong.
If you stand by while it happens, you contributed to the rape, and you are wrong. Nobody gets to be neutral in this situation. If you do not completely support the victim, you are supporting the rapist. You are adding to the problem. Slut shaming a victim is effectively raping them again. Outing their name (looking at you, news networks) to make it easier for others to torment them is assaulting them again. Making excuses for the rapist is assaulting the victim again. It makes no difference what they were doing, or where, or with who. What kind of person you think they are is immaterial. Whether you agree with their life choices is immaterial.
If you are not part of a compassionate solution, you are part of the problem. Period.
Don’t Look, Ethel!
Best as I could tell, these folks were kissing each other on the cheek and holding hands.
Even if there was some actual kissing, there ain’t a child on Earth that hasn’t seen straight folks do that (and more) in public. Come to think of it, I have seen worse on any number of supposedly child appropriate cartoons and family friendly kids shows which air during kid TV hours on multiple channels.
This has nothing to do with PDA and everything to do with discomfort around something a segment of society is unused to seeing and therefore uncomfortable with. That segment needs to suck it up and deal with it, not try to drag everyone else down to their level.
The only way any of those children will be scarred is if their ignorant ‘straight’ parents do it. I am not worried. I’m quite sure that many parents will sink to the occasion so that they can continue to shield their children from reality and common sense. There will be a whole new crop of little intolerant bigots to release into the world in no time.
Sigh.
Stories like this are exactly why demonstrations take place. To educate the public.
Self Checkouts Offend Me
Today I made the trek with my Dad to Home Depot. Only they carry the furnace filter he needed. We found it of course, but what did we find when it came time to check out? Well, I'll tell you.
Well said. Comments below were interesting as well.
Customer service is indeed dying, slipping quietly away while we are all held hostage by faceless, toneless, emotionless machines.
Robocalls. Automated systems instead of human beings at the end of almost every help line (and when you DO get a real person, what are the odds that they can understand your accent, or you theirs?) Self checkouts.
Geez. We are being isolated more and more every day, while remaining surrounded by others as cut off as ourselves.
Sexual Assault Prevention Tips
Nice to see the conventional list turned on its side and given a whole new spin.
Thanks to the Facebook Page of Liberals Unite, where this image was found.
*No credit was on image, so if you are the creator or know who is, let me know so I can give proper credit.
You'll face 'consequences' from Canada if you take Israel to International Criminal Court: Baird to Palestinians
OTTAWA — Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird has told a powerful pro-Israel lobby that Palestinians will feel “consequences” from Canada if they pursue the Jewish state at the International Criminal Court.
Baird issued the warning just as the federal government considers whether to end hundreds of millions of dollars in Canadian humanitarian aid to the Palestinians when it expires at the end of this month.
They receive humanitarian aid, which they clearly need.....but for goodness sake lets prevent them from attempting to be heard or recognized. Can't have that.
