Category: is it just me?

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we regret that we must now interupt your regularly scheduled blogpost…

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For whatever reason, I have been “in it” again lately.

I actually stayed home sick from work yesterday, and slept until 5:30pm. It still blows my mind that I could sleep all night and all day. I feel like Rip Van Winkle, without the silly long beard. I feel better today, and I am glad that I took the sick time… but it is definitely reflective of how I feel lately.

I am fed up with my classes. My statistics professor apparently would rather trick us, rather than actually quiz us on what we are studying. That is the only explanation that I have for her behavior, and method of asking questions on information that is not covered. Additionally, my absent anatomy teacher is frustrating, but not something I am really complaining about… less fuss if you ask me. I just don’t want trickery on tests; which would be my complaint. Overall, my first semester back in college has been a weird one. It is going to be a long road. I have already registered for next semester, and I hope to god it is much better than this one was.

Speaking of God… apparently, praying for rain the night before the weather service calls for rain makes it rain. Cool. Perhaps I shall pray for the sky to be blue tomorrow, or for air to have oxygen in it. Maybe that’s how we should do all government things… just pray for what we already know is going to happen, and then be like, “See! God is listening! Pray some more, and everything will be right as rain!”. Gah… what a douche you are, Sonny. It is just frustrating that people like him have so much money and power.

Other than the rain, I would like to thank God for my ipod, and just music in general, because without it, I would truly be lost. That, and the fact that my new DVD player plays region 2 DVDs… I am loving Spaced so much right now. Also, I am really looking forward to my 31 days of music in December. I am really enjoying getting my 31 CDs ready for the list, and I hope that everyone will find at least something to enjoy.

Hope you are all well out there in blogland… I’ll see you tomorrow for your 5SF. Take care!

civil rights, get involved, hmm interesting, is it just me?, listen up!, politics, that is so gay, tragic, venting, well?, wtf?!

some wins, a major worry, and a lack of perspective (yet again)

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I want to high-five Dennis Kucinich; it does take balls to put forward something like the impeachment of Cheney (especially when we have been calling for it for so long). While it may not actually happen (boo!), I hope that it does; and I won’t forget that Dennis is the guy that got the issue actually going, which is a welcome sign that there are some balls somewhere in the house of Dem.

ENDA passed; which is a great step forward in the protection against being fired simply for being gay or lesbian. I hope that this signals more good things in store for the equalization of rights for all of us. No one should be able to be fired because their boss is a bigot, and now, it seems like they are a little safer. Bravo.

I blogged about it before, but please, don’t forget that there is a gay youth in serious danger of being hanged for being gay in Iran. This cannot happen. I am glad to see that the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission is at least paying some attention now. This is a chilling reminder that gays and lesbians are NOT free in this world, and if one of us is at risk of being murdered because of who we are, we are all at risk. It cannot be allowed to happen, and Iran must not be allowed to conduct serious acts of murder and violence against any human. I certainly feel for this boy and his family. By keeping this topic in the news, we are keeping Iran under the microscope, and hopefully, it will lead to a stay of execution indefinitely.

Finally, I was amused when I read that this is what Bush had to say about the veto override the Senate exercised in the funding of projects to rebuild the areas affected by hurricane Katrina:

“American taxpayers should not be asked to support a pork-barrel system of federal authorization and funding where a project’s merit is an afterthought,” he said.

Wait, WHAT? All of a sudden, Mr. Bush is concerned what WE taxpayers are concerned with when it comes to government spending? Uh, Mr. Bush, you can’t have a blank check for your war on the middle east, and then get all pissy when we want money to rebuild parts of our own nation; it just shows how out of touch with the real situation he really is. Someone, please get this man a large does of perspective; stat. I love how it was “an afterthought”… uh, someone really needs to get him up to speed as to what is going on in the world right now; the man clearly has no idea.

Other than that… I am sure that there is a lot more SHIT going on in the world that is scary and evil, but it almost seems too overwhelming to deal with it all, doesn’t it? I mean, just look at the CRAPPER that the economy is in… we are seriously inching towards being TOTALLY fucked instead of just being fucked. When will the great America turn things around for herself? I just hope that we can.

civil rights, hmm interesting, is it just me?, listen up!, near and dear, politics, tragic, venting, well?, wtf?!

remember, remember…

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The fifth of November,
the gunpowder, treason, and plot,
I know of no reason
why gunpowder treason
should ever be forgot…

The plot of Guy Fawkes is a good reminder that dissent may truly be the most ambitious, yet patriotic form of patriotism (which is paraphrasing the often thought to be Thomas Jefferson, but it actually wasn’t (?), quote). I believe, now more than ever, that it is imperative, given the circumstances of this country, this world, this existence, that we stand up and question what is being done. Things are out of control, and we can’t look the other way any longer.

We can’t let there be a time when recalling the events of this day include a time when no one stood up when they came for the others, and then, inevitably they finally came for us, and no one was left to stand up for us. All accounts of the events in the news indicate that in more ways than one, things are going from bad to worse, and I can’t help but think, “does it have to happen?”. Do we have to just follow? Why aren’t our representatives doing something about this? How bad does it have to get before we make it stop?

Remembering the bravery that it takes to stand up to the government isn’t enough, but it seems that it is all that there is right now. I hope that changes soon. I hope that our words and our actions can bring some accountability to where there is none. I hope that our pressure on our government can shed light on the theft that is occurring right before our eyes. I hope that we won’t be the ones that suffer for the blood money that those at the top are raking in.

This really makes me think; where is V when you need him? I think that I will be watching V for Vendetta tonight… and hoping for some bravery to stand against our ever-increasingly-oppressive government. Want more? Check out this remembering article.

civil rights, get involved, is it just me?, listen up!, near and dear, that is so gay, tragic, well?

executing homosexuals doesn’t bother us… so long as it happens elsewhere

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This has me upset, outraged, and disturbed.

Less than 24 hours ago, atlmalcontent professed an agreement with my position on gay marriage as an issue, and it is the issue that has gotten me so upset, that brings us to agreement again; in a big way. There is a boy about to be executed for alleged homosexual acts in Iran, and there is an almost chilling silence (or worse (??), only a simple passing mention — which I admit, is at least SOMETHING), coming from the gay rights organizations and gay mouthpieces of the world. How is this possible? I thought that our gay rights organizations like the HRC stood for equalizing and gaining HUMAN rights for gays and lesbians everywhere? Perhaps it is more accurate then, to say that they are focused more on gaining rights for gays and lesbians here in America only? I wish it weren’t the case, but one can only surmise that the apparent silence with regards to this boy’s pending execution, definitely suggests that this is a more accurate mission statement. So I wonder, why aren’t we fighting for every gay and lesbian person in the world; or for that matter, the freedom and equality of everyone? I know that it is important that we focus energy on finding equality for ourselves, but it is clear that we need to widen our focus, because acts against any homosexual as awful as this, are acts against all of us — because it could BE any of us.

Instantly, when I heard about this case, I was reminded of when those two boys were executed in Iran for the very same thing a while back, and how they were very publicly hanged for their “crimes”. That image is still burned in my mind, and thinking of it turns my stomach to knots, and brings tears to my eyes. In addition to that memory, to think that someone was/is going to be hanged for doing something that I take for granted is indeed scarily humbling and intensely frightening. What’s worse, in my mind, is to think that we don’t seem very concerned about the fact that it is happening again. Why aren’t we all up in arms about this case, as we supposedly were before (because really, what was done about it last time?)? Could it be, that we are waiting for the kid to be swinging from the rafters before we give it a passing glance? WTF? Why aren’t the human rights organizations outraged, and calling for action from the government? Those questions are burning me up inside, and because of a lack of attention, I can have no answers.

Even more, part of me shudders to think that it could (at least in some small part) be because the boy is Iranian, and we are currently being drilled by our government to believe that Iranians are our enemies, linking the boy with our concept of an enemy (and therefore, lack of care if he dies(?)). I really hope that isn’t so, but it is swimming in my mind nonetheless. The lack of any concern has me reeling, and looking for any answers, to be quite honest.

The point here is this: there is an awful crime that has happened before about to happen again; and it should not go unchecked. The Iranian government should not be able to commit such heinous acts of violence against anyone, and someone should say something, and at a bare minimum, focus some attention on this situation. This represents the very problem with only focusing on “some” civil liberties in “some” places for “some” people; if you go somewhere else, in the world where you are not protected (or worse, for those that have no choice but to be born gay in those places), and it means that you have done nothing to help the global cause of equality for all gays all over the world. Being safe in America, and able to marry, does not protect gays in other parts of the world; and that is something that should concern us. We should care that gays and lesbians in other countries are KILLED for what we take for granted.

I for one am hoping that something is done, and this CHILD does not have to die. I hope that our gay rights organizations speak up, and show some consideration for what this child is going through; because it could just as easily be one of our own… but again, the fact is, that he IS one of our own. This boy’s struggle for life should really shake us to the core, and make us realize how good we have it here; and challenge us to make it better everywhere… but for whatever reason, it isn’t, and that really bothers me.

Please, do what this post is doing, and direct as much attention as you can to this situation. I heard about this from atlmalcontent, and by voicing our outrage, we are forcing this to be discussed. If one person tells someone else, this can go somewhere; I believe that. Attention to heinous acts of violence like this, can hopefully make changes happen; and it is clear that we are the ones who shine the light on it. Please, don’t remain silent.

My heart goes out to this boy and his family. I can only hope that he is saved. This is a dark, dark day for gay rights worldwide; unfortunately, it has happened before, and will probably happen again. What will it take for us to stand up and unite?

civil rights, get over it!, hmm interesting, is it just me?, politics, public health, that is so gay, venting, well?, wtf?!

why is gay marriage an issue?

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I keep hearing all of this stuff about trying to find each presidential candidate’s position on gay marriage, and I have ask… why is gay marriage an issue that should be the concern of a president? Seriously? The issue is not gay marriage; it is civil rights. Marriage is the word that the use to describe the religious procedure of getting bound to another person for life. The only thing that could make it an issue, is that it is currently recognized by the government as a legal union, and there are privileges that come with its status. However, it is not the issue, and I don’t get why we are so concerned with that word; marriage.

I would happily take a civil union any day; so long as it afforded me EQUAL rights. I don’t give two shits about calling my partnership a “marriage” vs. calling it a “civil union”; so long as we are treated equally under the law of our government. I personally think that should be more of the focus, as this issue will always be used as more of a wedge than anything, and no person in their right mind is going to go up against the juggernaut that is the Christian church. Also, isn’t there supposed to be a separation of church and state? So again, why not stop calling it “gay marriage” as an issue?

I think that if you get married, good for you; you should also have to file for a civil union, which should be the only union the government officially recognizes. Make it standard for everyone, and make it available for gays and lesbians as well. Keep marriage in the churches, take religion out of the equation, and things can be more acceptable for everyone, right? Perhaps this is too simple of a concept, but it boggles my mind that gay marriage is all anyone ever asks about when it comes to gay and lesbian rights and a presidential candidate. (what about gay civil rights of other people throughout the world? I think that should be a huge concern of ours as well; but that is a more lengthy conversation).

I realized this more fully when I was reading what Obama said, and the “reaction” from some of the gays that he was against gay marriage. We don’t need to fight for religious justification; we need to fight for equality. Sure, the fight for gay marriage is a fight for equality, but it isn’t necessarily the same thing; take religious practice out of the picture officially. These church driven people are NEVER going to give us the “right” to take their “sacred” practice (now with a 50+% failure-rate!) for ourselves, so we should just drop the shit already. I am tired of continually giving it back to them so they can wedge it between what’s really important and this dance that we have been stuck in forever. I am for equality; nothing less, nothing more. Doesn’t that sound like a more fruitful fight?

Unrelated link: This is quite fascinating if it is true; apparently, the first AIDS case was in 1969 in the US. This makes me wonder; why didn’t it spread to the epic proportions that it has today? What was the factor that caused it to spread so rapidly in the 1980s that was different 11 years earlier? If this man was the first documented case of AIDS, how many people had it before him; and who infected him? It really turns the notion of epidemiology on its head, because it really did occur in a seemingly singular incident. Weird.

get involved, hmm interesting, is it just me?, listen up!, the catch-all-egory, well?

end of days?

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Seriously though… with fire taking it’s toll on the west coast, and drought taking it’s toll here; things are getting eerily like the end of days…

My thoughts are with all those in the west that are being affected by these fires; I hope that the situation is under control soon. Just looking at this map makes me scared. I hope that everyone gets to safety, and that their homes are okay.

As for our drought situation here, it is really good that it is finally raining. We went up to the lake this weekend, and the last public boat dock for Lake Lanier even had two out of the three lanes shut down. I have to say, I wonder why there isn’t more planning and action taken into account when things like water are threatened for a major area, like Atlanta. I mean, it isn’t like we can actually do without water; and I am not talking about watering lawns and stuff. It really makes you realize how lucky we have it to live in a country that takes things like water for granted… that is, until the real threat of it going away is on the horizon!

I hope we can get this situation under control soon… and that gregarious misuse is punished appropriately!!! Thomas hooks us up with the numbers to call if you see water misuse; we need to save in every way we can, right?

Here’s hoping that we can get all of these crazy “end of days” type situations under control soon!

all about me, get over it!, hmm interesting, is it just me?, tragic, venting, wtf?!

etiquette… not requirement… okay?

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Earlier today, I was coming out of the building next to the one that I work, in order to go back over to my office, when I encountered a situation that is normally dictated by etiquette. However, in this case, etiquette was stretched so far, that it broke, which, for whatever reason, tends to be quite common where I work. As such, I was treated like an asshole, when in reality, I did nothing wrong. Someone thought etiquette meant requirement, and voiced her opinion as a result; even though she is sadly mistaken.

Now, let me preface what I am getting ready to say with this: I always hold the door for people when they are close enough to reasonably come in; always. I hold elevators too. I’m a nice guy like that; even though I rarely have the favor of that etiquette being returned to me. It really doesn’t bother me to do it, and as such, I normally do.

Now, back to today’s little incident… When I exited the building, I didn’t hold the door because there was no one around. As such, I just walked out, and even smiled at the girl that I noticed once I was completely outside and about 5 steps away from the door. Instead of smiling back, she said loudly, “Well that’s fine… DON’T hold the door for me.”. Um, excuse me? What the fuck did she just say?!?!

First of all, I thought that basic etiquette implied that I am not required to hold the door, but I that I should, if for no other reason than to be courteous. Second of all, in this particular instance, the woman in question was no where near entering the door when I came out, so for me to have held the door for her, I would have first, had to have seen her (which I couldn’t, because she was far enough away, and to the left of the door, that I couldn’t see her), and second, even if I would have seen her, I would have had to wait for her to walk up to the door, (as I noted, it was about 5 steps outside that I noticed her and nodded appropriately) inconveniencing myself in the name of what I would call severely stretched courtesy… but not requirement.

Again, while I am all for holding the door for people when it is convenient, I think that she was ridiculous in expecting me to hold it for her; and even worse, was a fucking bitch for saying what she did. The weird thing is, that most women that work in my building are like that; which I can say, because there are very few men who will get bitchy if you don’t wait forever to hold the door for them.

I have seen women go so far as to try and quickly jump through a closing door to prevent having to actually touch the physical door, or heaven forbid, hold it open for themselves… all while it shuts on me, who is right behind them. I have also, on MANY occasions, seen women stand in front of a closed door, and give me the look of, “well, aren’t you going to open that for me?”. I also can’t stand when the women that work in my building (who do this WAY more than men, which is why I am picking on the women folks) will stand in front of one of the two doors that you can open, because there is someone coming out of the other, and they are waiting so they won’t have to open the door for themselves. As if these weren’t bad enough, there is even one woman in particular who I happen to see more often than I should, who acts like the doors exceed her physical strength, and as such, I am actually forced to take over the muscling of the door, and open it for her. I just don’t get why these women can’t open a door for themselves, or even hold the door for me; who, has on most occasions, done that very thing for them. Even more, I wonder why I am an asshole when I don’t go out of my way to make every woman-who-works-in-my-building’s life that much more comfortable (even though it inconveniences me); especially when the same common courtesy is RARELY returned to me.

What bugs me about this, is that first of all, this isn’t 1950 anymore, ladies; so you should be able to open a door for yourself, and realize that it is being courteous, and not a requirement, that a man might open it for you. Again, let it be known that I honestly don’t mind holding the door for you, and I will even go out of my way to get the door for anyone most of the time; but when you bitch because I didn’t inconvenience myself to make your entrance into the building an effortless one, please listen up, as I will say this as plainly as I can for you to understand: why not just be a fucking adult and open the fucking door for yourself for a change?. And worse, if you do what that bitch did earlier to day, you should be seriously put in your fucking place, because you are just being an outright bitch, and that goes way beyond any courtesy that you deserved from me in the first place.

If you think that I am being too harsh, realize that I have been entering buildings and opening doors for years for myself, and I am just fine… and you will be too. When I think about these incidents, which usually just result in me rolling my eyes, it makes me want to do what these silly women do. Perhaps I should try standing in front of a closed door, and looking at the person who is walking up behind me in hopes that they will open it for me; or maybe I should jump rapidly through a closing door, only to have it hit me as I barely make it in, all the while it slams in the face of the person behind me; or maybe do my favorite, and act as if the weight of the doors is so massive, that my tiny, frail, child-like arms cannot handle the force required to muscle them open… Maybe, just maybe, that would make me feel a little better about how stupid people act under the guise of the unwritten “rules” of “etiquette” (which, for whatever reason, they believe that I, but not they, are required to follow).

I am pretty sure, though, that it wouldn’t work for me… unlike the women that get by with this shit day in and day out, because I am sure that I would get nasty looks and hateful comments because I am a man, and as such, I am “required” to hold/open/wait for every woman that may want to enter the building. What-the-fuck-ever.

The weird thing, is that my friend Deb, who is just as tall as I am, gets the same thing. Maybe it’s a height thing and not a sex thing? She is obviously a woman, and women do it to her too. Who knows… all I know is that it is time for the sisters to start REALLY doing it for themselves… and realize that I don’t HAVE to get the door for you, I am doing it to be nice. If I don’t do it because I don’t see you, or don’t wait for you because you are far away, be an adult and open the damn door yourself; and save the bitchy comments, okay?

/rant

hmm interesting, is it just me?, listen up!, politics, public health, sex (oh yeah), well?, wtf?!

contraception to be offered to middle school students; and?

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So apparently, there is a slight hub-bub about kids being offered contraceptives after an “outbreak” of pregnancies among middle school kids. AND?

Now, regardless of any objection about providing contraceptives for any reason, I want to know why we are not providing them with sex education that is the most effective? Wouldn’t that eliminate the need for this “controversial” take on preventing teenage pregnancy? How come our government still clings to the utter nonsense that is abstinence only education?

If people still think that kids are not having sex, and want to continue with the utter and complete BULLSHIT that is abstinence only education, I seriously think they need to be beaten about the head and shoulders; in hopes that it would knock some fucking sense into them. The time to reform sex education is BEFORE a string of pregnancies; which I might need to remind people that focus on abstinence only education, is caused by having sex. That’s right! Kids are totally doing it, no matter how far you want to go in convincing yourself that they are not.

What really got me worked up in reading this article, is that it mentions that condoms are available, but it doesn’t say to what capacity that they are recommended. Under federal guidelines for sex education, it is my knowledge that they would not be recommended at all, and in some cases, even discouraged, and represented as an ineffective means of preventing pregnancy and STDs. To piggyback on that thought, it really frustrates me that they are so willing to try and prevent pregnancy, without any thought or stance on preventing STD transmission. Sure, having a baby is a big deal, but so is getting HIV! Where’s the concern? (did someone say, love the fetus, hate the child? oh…)

For me, this totally relates to whether girls getting a vaccine for cervical cancer, and how it could be seen as “controversial”. If you can PREVENT a disease by practicing certain things, why wouldn’t you want to encourage those things among the greater population? In all seriousness, to continue to follow this “bury your head in the sand and it will go away” method of treating our nation’s children and their “non” behaviors, is about as backward thinking as it can get. The whole take our government has on childhood sexual education makes me want to fucking scream. Grrrr….

all about me, happenings, is it just me?, mixed media, music musings, that is so gay, the catch-all-egory, well?

omigod, omigod you guys…

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This weekend, we were lucky enough to get the chance to see one of the currently playing Broadway shows; Legally Blonde: The Musical… and we didn’t even have to go to New York to see it! MTV aired the entire show on Saturday, and I have to say, it was awesome.

Not only was the musical totally cheesy, campy, silly, and fun, but it was awesome to have the opportunity to see a show that one might not otherwise be able to see (i.e., lack of access to NYC, lack of funds to pay for expensive tickets, etc). I am a big fan of musicals (of the ones that I have seen, that is), and having seen a couple on Broadway, trust me, I get the importance of the quality and presence of the show. However, I always leave the show wishing that it were a movie, or wishing that there was a recording of the show (not just the cast recording), because, of the ones I’ve seen, I enjoyed them so much that I would like to be able to see them again. I have never understood how a show that has such a high budget for production, and rakes in so much money ($100 a seat per night for most new shows), wouldn’t want to to capitalize even more, and bring the show to the masses… especially considering that some Broadway shows barely make back the upfront costs of production!

Sure, they do tours, and have touring casts for certain shows, but those just aren’t the same (trust me, I saw Wicked on Broadway, and I saw it again when it came to Atlanta… TOTALLY different show). Also, you have to be in one of those select cities to get to see the show, which again, plays into that whole concept of access. I just wish that some of the great shows could be recorded like Legally Blonde was this weekend; I can bet that it would make the show way more popular in the long run. I am, however, really glad that a lot of musicals have been adapted into feature length films recently; and super happy that the trend doesn’t seem to be slowing. There have been some EXCELLENT films come out over the past few years, and I hope upon hope that some of my favorites (ahem, Wicked), will follow the same path.

Overall, I loved the concept that MTV had, and I really enjoyed the show. James and I are talking about going to NYC over Christmas (James has family in NJ), and I know that I would REALLY like to see Legally Blonde now that I know what to expect. I personally hope that MTV decides to put the show that they aired on DVD, because I would totally be in line to buy my copy (hint hint, MTV!!).

Other than watching the show with friends, the weekend was pretty relaxing and nice. As I mentioned yesterday, James and I celebrated four years and one month last night, by ordering in some pizza, and just enjoying each other’s company. I am not big on flashy plans and expensive restaurants, personally… I am all about the simple things. (Like musicals on DVD!) I hope that everyone is at least adjusting to the start of a new week… I am personally avoiding the fact that I have an anatomy test this week… grrrr.