It's a very good day for America

I wish the pundits would stop saying that this is a sad and/or sorrowful day for the country, as I think it is the exact opposite.  As I've posted about recently on this, the rule of law is precisely what makes the United States of America truly great.  It isn't the only thing yet it is one of the bedrock, foundational things that is actually quite special about us:  no person is beneath the law, or above the law, and that includes the POTUS.

So, if the POTUS is a treasonous, traitorous, law-breaking, constitution-flouting... I could go on, but you get my gist:  if the POTUS commits crimes, it would be a sad and sorrowful day for our country if he or she were to NOT get indicted and then, today, arraigned.

I personally am celebrating.  I am so relieved.  When the indictment first came down, I felt a sense of relief for my country that I haven't felt since before the day after election day, 2016.  On that day, I learned that 45 had won--45 had become 45.  On that day, I felt a sense of peril and terror that I've never, ever felt before for my country.  I clearly saw 45's potential to do all of what has since unfolded.  I clearly saw that our democracy, our constitutional republic, was in great peril.  With this indictment, and now arraignment (but I first felt the following with this indictment), I now feel RELIEF.  We made it.  We survived 45 (<--omg, I want a teeshirt that says that!).

We have a lot of pathology going on in our country.  I'm not saying we are in a state of perfect health as a country.  But I'm saying that the foundations, the bedrock, is still standing, and still strong.  I was not sure there, for a while.  And it was, and is, not guaranteed.  Had 45 won in 2020, for example, I do not believe we would have made it through another 4 years of 45.  I believe we would have descended all the way into fascism (we were well on our way, with babies in cages...  the damage that man did can never be undone, but we--our democracy, our constitution, our separation of powers, we, the people, VOTING, our free press, all of it--have SURVIVED.

So is today a "sad" and/or "sorrowful" day?  No, today is a beautiful and awesome triumph.  A healthy day for the rule of law.  Today is a happy day!

Oy Vey

What the? Imagine if this basket of deplorables had been in charge (read: in chaos) a two years ago tomorrow. Think about it.

You would think I would be relishing the Republican Party imploding right now, unable to elect a Speaker of the House, seeing as how I DETEST said party and most of those who comprise it, but, as a patriotic American who wants my country to be healthy--or at least functional--this is NOT good.  At all.  Yes, it is delectable that the complicit treasonous traitor known as McCarthy is not getting the power reward he expected for his betrayal of our constitution and people, but any satisfaction I would be feeling from that is totally eclipsed by these despicables paralyzing our country.

Just thank goodness (and all of us who VOTED in 2020) that their sociopathic leader (45) didn't win a second term.  The ripple effects of all he unleashed are horrendous enough without him still at the helm.  At least there have been some very healthy signs of hope for recovery for our country recently.  But this?  This spectacle going on as we speak in the House of Representatives?  This is totally the inmates taking over the asylum.  Only they can't even do that--they can't even effectuate the takeover off the asylum.  So how are they going to run things, IF they ever elect a Speaker?

Short version of my above post:  oy vey.

It Ain't Over 'Til The Rule of Law Sings

It ain't over 'til the rule of law sings.

I think today, the rule of law is going to sing.

#45isGoingDown #TheConstitutionWins #AmericaEndures

Independence Day 2022

The weirdest/eeriest thing just happened.  I was having a very peaceful, restful 4th of July holiday Monday today.  I was just making some tea.  While waiting for the water to boil, I was putting some clean dishes and utensils away in the kitchen, and thinking about how I was going to go into another room and turn the TV on once I got my tea.  All of a sudden, I got a feeling.  And I said out loud to my cat, Kioko, "I have this feeling there's been another mass shooting."  I had a strong feeling that, when I turned on the TV, there would be some sort of horrible news, and furthermore, it would be a mass shooting.

Now, one could argue that this truly is "an INFJ thing".  I'm an INFJ and we do tend to have such strong intuition that it can border on, and, in some cases, at some times, even BE to the level of what some call "ESP" or extra sensory perception, and I've experienced this in the past:  precognition.  I just experienced it again.  Because I just turned on the TV and:  at least 6 killed, 31 injured in yet another mass shooting carried out with what should be, and is in other countries, a weapon of war that is not accessible to civilians.  But in America, where we seem to value being the wild, wild west above almost all else, we are "free" to carry around weapons that have no other purpose at all except to kill the maximum number of people in the minimum number of moments.  So one really doesn't have to be an INFJ to think "I have a feeling there was another mass shooting", turn on the TV, and see that it's true.

Friends, I love my country, America, very dearly.  I'm patriotic.  For all her faults, she's got so much that is very, very special in very, very awesomely good ways about her.  But in this way--this way of having more and more and more and more mass shootings, massacres--we are "special" in a very, very terrible way.  And we don't have to be.

This is the 4th of July.  A day to celebrate all that is good about America.  A day to celebrate our Independence and that we exist.  When Benjamin Franklin emerged from Independence Hall after the Constitutional Convention in 1787, someone called out an eager question to him:  “What have we got? A republic or a monarchy?” Ben Franklin responded, “A Republic, if you can keep it.”

A republic, if you can keep it.  Already a phrase I've been reflecting on so much, in the wake of 45's reign of terror.  The republic held, but in some ways, barely, and it was and remains a close call.  Our very foundations were shaken, and some cracks happened and/or were exposed.  We have a lot of work to do.  We have a lot of shoring up and rebuilding and we have also reached a moment of reckoning in our country about a lot of our history that isn't so star-spangled, and that is ugly, and that was wrong.  Yet there is so much beautiful and to cherish and to fight for--to shore up, to build up, to fix where needed and to lovingly preserve and/or restore where needed.  So I was, in the midst of all that is wrong, also celebrating the 4th in my heart, mind and imagination--wherever one's ideals live--as always.

But turning on the TV and seeing that six worlds just ended and 31 more are shattered and imperiled, and all because we think "freedom" includes wielding weapons of mass murder, makes me, and this day for me in 2022, indescribably sad.  How many times can I and others say:  BAN ASSAULT WEAPONS AND AMMUNITION FROM CIVILIAN HANDS?

Freedom is the freedom to go to church, synagogue, mosque, the grocery store, work, your elementary school, or a 4th of July parade without the very real fear of being gunned down in a massacre.  This is the wild, wild west on steroids.  This is not what our, or any, country should stand for.  We should reflect on this, this 4th of July, as six worlds just ended and 31 more might from one massacre, and then we should do a lot more than reflect on every day after this 4th of July until we get a full, federal assault weapons (and ammo) ban.

Another thing about us INFJs is that we are very idealistic.  This--an assault weapons ban--is considered a pie in the sky ideal.  But is it?  How pathological is a society in which just being able to leave the house without being gunned down is considered a pie in the sky ideal?  And how pathological is a society in which the "freedom" to own a weapon of war, of mass murder, that can kill hundreds of people in moments, is somehow considered a "right"?  Guess what, it is not mentioned in the constitution.  So let's sic Clarence Thomas on this one, since he's very big on anything not explicitly mentioned in the constitution:  there is ZERO right to carry military assault weapons of war, let him write a draft opinion on THAT.  And then, my Democratic President and Congress, LET'S ENACT A NEW LAW BANNING ASSAULT RIFLES FROM CIVILIAN HANDS, so that we can celebrate our independence with a parade and not fear being gunned down in the process.

America Still Has a Heartbeat...

I'm awed.

The scenes out of my hometown (DC) right now are impressive. The streets are filled with caring, empassioned, righteous, brave Americans of all different colors, ages and backgrounds. Recently, I've felt like giving up. Giving up on social change in America (and the world), which is basically what I've been about my entire life. Everything has felt completely dark.

But today I'm seeing candles. Thousands upon thousands of candles in the street. And just as the first Women's March (which I participated in, thank God, as it honestly was the hope and inspiration that got me through the subsequent first three years of the 45 administration) heartened me and gave me strength to go on, now these utterly beautiful, engaged, caring, protesters in the streets all over our country (and even in other countries on our behalf), but especially in DC, are bringing tears to my eyes. Heartened tears. Tears of hope.

I thought America ended on February 5th. Murdered by the complicit Republican Senate, which ruled that the current and and all future POTUS are above the law. I thought: that's it. Everything that so many sacrificed so much for, and worked so hard for, for our entire history, is over. Because they've killed the constitution now. The constitution, which I was raised by my beloved momma to think was/is everything. The foundation that this country is built on.

But you know what? It's powerful, but, at the end of the day, it's a document with words in it. It's the people that gave it life, and it's the people who give our laws, our checks and balances, and our entire everything that is "America"--the highest ideals of, and idea of, and reality of, America--life. Or death. And I'm realizing something, as tears fill my eyes: the Senate didn't kill America. They dealt a blow to the constitution. That's all. And that's not nothing. But that's not everything. We ain't dead yet, folks! And why? Because of WE, THE PEOPLE.

We are still here. And as long as we rise, and as long as we march, and as long as we make our voices heard, and, as my hero, Bernie Sanders always says: stand together, there is nothing we can't do. Including SAVING THIS COUNTRY.

My God, we're not dead yet. America still has a pulse! And all of these protesters, lighting one candle instead of cursing the darkness, have lit up my darkness. And given me hope. Maybe this truly is the proverbial darkness before the dawn. If we, the people, usher in the dawn, it will come. If we all keep lighting candles.

America still has a heartbeat! It's us, y'all! The constitution is beautiful but it isn't the heartbeat. That's in all of us, we, the people. <3

The End of America

America is in dire distress today. Within hours, America as I recognize, know and love it, will be over, if the Senate votes to acquit 45. Precedents will have been set that effectively end the separation of powers, and end the rule of law. The current POTUS, and future presidents, will have free reign to be lawless. They also will not be subject to congressional oversight. Our country, the heart and soul of which are the rule of law and the separation of powers, will be effectively ended.

The great American experiment will be over. We had a good run. We had a beautiful run. We had a lot of ugliness and wrong in our history but also a LOT of awesome goodness, high ideals, and much that was so beautiful.

So many gave so much, in so many ways, to envision, create, and continue to try to make America a more perfect union. In minutes, to hours, that will be over.

We will still be in the same physical place. The same beautiful, breathtaking land. We will still be called The United States of America. But it will all be over.

Just like that: no war. No guns. Just like that. Goodbye, my beautiful, beloved country. I'm so sorry we couldn't save you.

December 3, 2019

I'm off work today and seeing news that 45 is once again bringing shame on our country, attacking our allies, attacking our constitution, and being the best puppet Putin could have ever dreamed of. Useful idiots like 45 don't come along every day.

I know 45 makes us all (except his crazed, cult-like followers) ashamed, but just focus on the fact that there is an impeachment inquiry underway and he certainly will be impeached in the House. Hopefully, he will be removed by the Senate, but if not, at least history will show that many of our elected representatives tried to preserve and save our constitution and rule of law. At least history will now show that we, America, went down fighting.

45: The Puppet Show From Hell

Folks, no one seems to be saying it, stating the obvious, so I will: when it comes to 45’s now rightly infamous, impeachment-inquiry-triggering Ukraine call, I think it was all orchestrated by 45’s puppet master: Vladimir Putin. Think about it: strong-arming the Ukraine into somehow producing faux dirt on 45’s possible 2020 opponent *AND* telling them to produce faux evidence that shows Russia didn’t interfere in 2016’s election. Who does this benefit most? PUTIN!!! And now, 45 suddenly pulling the US out of Syria, totally abandoning the Kurds, our allies, and benefiting Assad: whose interests does that align with? Those of PUTIN!!!

Of all the news stories, op-eds and television punditry I’ve been absorbing like a sponge since the whistleblower’s story broke and now, since 45 decided to pull us out of Syria as of yesterday, I’m not seeing or hearing ONE journalist just SAY IT: 45 didn’t come up with these things on his own, people: Putin is pulling the strings and making his puppet dance!

Many have pointed out during the past three years that 45 is compromised, under Putin’s control, yet for some reason, no one in the news media, at least not that I have seen, is saying it specifically and clearly right now about those two things: the Ukraine call and surrounding entire situation, leading up to it and afterward, and this latest horror show of pulling out of Syria suddenly, abandoning our Kurdish allies and basically giving new life to ISIS. None of that is in the interests of the United States of America. All of that is treasonous because 45 is acting as the puppet of an enemy foreign power, precisely against the interests of the United States and our allies.

I have seen it said today that 45 pulling us out of Syria benefits Putin. I have not seen it said that he did it AT THE INSTRUCTION OF Putin, yet it is so crystal clear to me that he did, just as the whole Ukraine situation must have come from Vlad. 45 wouldn’t think of those things on his own.  Oh, he'd initiate a wild goose chase to dig up non-existent dirt on an opponent, for sure--that's classic 45--but via the Ukraine, via strong-arming them?  And including in said strong-arming that they should somehow clear Russia of interfering in our 2016 election's integrity?  That's got VLAD written all over it, baby.

And this Syria pull-out?  That's all Vlad, too.

I’m not saying 45 isn’t crazy—clearly he is a sociopathic, unhinged mercenary within the construct of a malignant narcissist’s personality. I've been shouting that from the rooftop to anyone who will listen since 2015.  But I am saying that all of these actions are not just things that he up and did on a whim, or even on what passes for something that he thought through. I am saying, point blank, that if we scratch the surface of any of this, it will be Vladimir Putin’s face that we see beaming back at us. When you look at all the “crazy” things 45 does through the lens of him being Putin’s utterly compromised puppet, IT ALL MAKES SENSE.

As I have written many times before, 45 is a clear and present danger to our constitution, rule of law, separation of powers, free press, rights and our very democracy and republic. I am so very grateful and heartened that my Democratic Party has finally opened a formal impeachment inquiry, and I just pray that they move with all deliberate speed because, as the walls close in, 45 is becoming more and more dangerous, more and more putting the “clear and present” in “clear and present danger”. He’s got to go: it’s his presidency or the United States of America that we love—both cannot survive, so we have to choose. I am rooting with all my heart and soul for my country, the United States of America, and all that we truly stand for.

Impeaching 45 is not about party, it is about country.

Okay, where, where, where, oh dear God WHERE to start on the jaw-droppingly infuriating, sad, frankly scary (we have GOT to get this man out of the office of POTUS, asap), incredible, sickening news conference I just witnessed 45 give?

Oh, I know!

Infuriating and Outrageous Item Numero Uno:

He kept saying that this is all a Democratic "witch hunt" because we are so terrified of losing the upcoming election, we have to impeach and remove him. Um, let me update you on something, 45: *every* poll out there shows *every* major candidate in the Democratic field of same beating your rhymes-with-bass definitively in the upcoming 2020 election. If any of us--our leaders, or Democratic voters out here in the electorate who also are AMERICAN CITIZENS FIRST--were acting on a purely partisan basis, we would NOT, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not, not want to impeach you! I myself would love to run against you! My platform? Two words: Not Trump!

This isn't about party, this is about saving our rule of law and our very country from you!

As for all the many, many other points I could make re your terrifyingly unhinged press conference, I will let them all speak for themselves. I will say this, though: the only people who still support you are the voluntarily brainwashed members of your cult, fueled by the constant pro-you propaganda and unsubstantiated conspiracy theories of Fox "News".

You, non-sir, are going DOWN. And you clearly know it. You know what you looked and came across like in your little presser there? A very rattled cornered rat who knows he's cornered.

Bye bye, 45. You're done.

Thank you, Speaker Pelosi

Email sent to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi this afternoon by moi:

"I just want to profoundly THANK YOU for doing your duty by starting a formal impeachment inquiry re our current POTUS. By doing so, you are fighting for our constitution, rule of law, and democracy. I have sent you several emails and phone messages in recent months, passionately asking you to do this, so now that you have, I had to take just a moment out of my busy day to say thank you, Speaker Pelosi. I appreciate very much that my party is taking a stand on the right side of history and the constitution--I appreciate that so much, as a Democrat, but even more as an American. This is not a partisan thing, this is about preserving and protecting our democracy."

Impeach 45

It is a constitutional imperative to begin impeachment proceedings re 45. He has, and continues to, violate our precious constitution in so many ways, he is a clear and present danger to our country, and a treasonous traitor.

It's getting close to 2020 now. Some may be thinking, oh, let's just wait it out. Focus on 2020. I say we cannot set the precedent that a US President can get away with the violations of the constitution that this man has done and is doing, and we cannot tolerate a traitor in the White House.

Start the impeachment process now, for the sake of the present and future health of our constitution, rule of law, and country.

Impeach Trump Now

Get the Memo

Memo to everyone in the United States of America:

The constitution of this great country, which is also the main thing that makes this such a great country, is about equal civil rights for all American citizens. The Supreme Court took up the issue of same-sex marriage and ruled that, constitutionally, no matter what one's sexual orientation, every American citizen has the right to marry.

Apparently, the above memo I just issued is necessary, as there are some who are just NOT understanding and/or accepting this reality. If you don't like the constitution, go move to another country which isn't ruled by it. And by "ruled by", I also mean "protected by". See ya later, Chief Justice Roy S. Moore of Alabama. And don't worry: you can always come back to America for a visit, as I'm guessing you are not Muslim.

Click this link to see the NPR article that prompted me to write the above memo/blog.

Binary Blues

The following article (see link below) infuriates and profoundly dismays me. This is what's wrong with society! Why can't this kid just be himself? He's not "wearing a disguise", he just doesn't fit into society's/the DMV's binary box of what a male should look like. This is who he is and he has the right to be who he is, binary box be damned!!!!!!!!!

If he keeps having experiences like this, he may feel like he has to "choose" one way or the other (one side or another of the gender binary) instead of just being himself, and that is a crime. Why should he have to fit himself into what the DMV or anyone else says he should be? He doesn't fit neatly on one side or the other of "the line", and that is PERFECTLY FINE--the DMV doesn't have the right to say "Step onto what we define as the MALE side of the line!" This just infuriates me beyond any ability to even adequately express the degree of my infuriation.

P.S. PLUS this is a clear violation of his civil rights and I hope he takes this all the way up to the Supreme Court!

Link: Teen forced to remove his make-up for driver's license photo.

Pork Yes, Love Thy Neighbor No?

Soooo, let me see if I have this: If I'm a Christian restaurant owner in Arizona, it's okay if I serve pork (bible says no), open my restaurant on Saturday (bible says no), and serve shellfish (again, big fat NO), yet I can't, in good conscience, allow all my fellow humans equal access to my establishment because "those people" over there, who I am commanded to LOVE by the bible I claim to be bound to follow, engage in some behavior that I don't approve of and that I think God doesn't approve of (even though God clearly says I'm supposed to LOVE MY NEIGHBOR AS MYSELF) ...or I think they do, I can't really tell because right now they are just two people presenting themselves at my restaurant and asking to be let in and allowed to support my business.

So, do I have this situation evaluated correctly?

Well, I might have to open a restaurant in AZ and refuse to serve radcon fundie bigots because they are VERY offensive to everything that MY religion stands for!*

And where does it stop? Religious freedom is fundamental to our constitution. Bigotry and discrimination are NOT. Get to know the diff, fundie radcons.

( * AND everything that my COUNTRY stands for!!! You know, the constitution: yeah, THAT. That's what the laws in this country are built on, NOT on what ONE radical, hate-filled wing of ONE religion MISINTERPRETS their own bible to be saying!)

Hateful "Church" Plans to Protest Elizabeth Edwards' Funeral: At what point does free speech become harassment?

I am horrified to hear that the profoundly hateful, sick Westboro Baptist Church plans to "protest" Elizabeth Edwards' funeral:

Westboro Baptist Church to Protest Edwards Funeral

I pray that their presence will not in any way impact Elizabeth Edwards' youngest two children. I hasten to add that, of course, I also pray that it doesn't impact her adult daughter, Cate, or any of the mourners.  It's just that, upon learning of this horrible prospect, my first thoughts were of the two young children, Emma Claire and Jack.  I am especially concerned for them and I hope it doesn't affect even one tiny aspect of the experience for them. This should be a day that helps them process their grief and makes them feel surrounded by love, comfort and family. I don't want hate or ugliness to even touch them, they've been through enough.

Of course, none of us wants to see hate or violence touch any child, ever, but for the possibility of it to happen on the day of their mother's funeral seems especially egregious and awful.

I am one of the staunchest defenders of the constitution and civil rights that you will ever come across.  I am so grateful that we live in a free country, but to me, free speech ends at the point at which it becomes harassment.  If these people get too close to the church and hurl hateful attacks at the mourners, they would be engaging in harassment, not free speech, wouldn't they?  I mean, if they have to stay a certain distance back from the funeral venue and from the mourners, then I can see and must concede that tolerating them is the price we pay for free speech (even speech that most of us find abhorrent). But surely there is some law that would prevent them from verbally attacking mourners--including children--at a funeral?

I defend the right of everyone to engage in free speech, including speech that I find offensive and repugnant, because if they don't have the right to say what they want, I don't have the right to say what I want.  However, at what point does free speech morph into harassment?  When does a peaceful protest become a verbally violent attack?  I think the point at which people disrupt mourners, including young children who have just lost their mother, attempting to enter and/or leave a funeral, by spewing hateful verbal attacks at them could conceivably be such a point.  I think this "protest" just might fall outside the wide embrace of constitutional protection, as the rights of the mourners to gather peacefully, without being harassed, in order to grieve need to be protected, too.

If these hateful, sick people want to "protest" a certain distance away from the church, then I don't see how it can be stopped, frankly.  However, surely there is some minimum distance they can be legally kept back from the funeral venue and/or from the mourners, isn't there?  If not, there should be.  There is free speech and then there is disruptive harassment.  Where is the line?

I am going to pray very hard that their actions do not impact the Edwards family, particularly the two youngest children, in the slightest. If they do, I think it's a crime, literally...or it should be. It's harassment, it's stalking, it's something. Maybe John Edwards, an outstanding attorney, could make it a new cause of his to find some legal way to stop these folks from doing this at any future funerals, or if not stop them altogether, at least keep them from getting too close to the venue or the mourners.*  Freedom of speech is a precious right, but the rights of mourners to attend a funeral in peace must also be respected and protected.

* Edited to add:  I have learned that there is a current Supreme Court case (Snyder v. Phelps) pending regarding a past funeral protest by this "church" and whether it constituted free speech or harassment:

Washington Post article on Snyder v. Phelps

MSNBC.com article discusses Snyder v. Phelps

Florida to Allow Gay Adoption: a Great Day for Civil Rights, Children and True Family Values

I was very heartened to learn yesterday that the overturning of Florida’s 30-year-old, wrong-headed law prohibiting gay people from adopting in the state has been upheld. This is a victory for our constitution, for civil rights and for the children of Florida.

There are so many kids in the system who desperately need loving homes. Under what was, in my opinion, the unconstitutional ban on gay adoption in the state of Florida, gay people were allowed to foster but not adopt, which makes no sense. If a single person or couple is evaluated by the state and found to meet the requirements for fostering children, why can’t they also adopt? There is absolutely no reason other than ignorance, prejudice and/or bigotry against gay people to deny them the same rights as straight folks, and to deny the kids of Florida a far bigger pool of potential permanent, loving homes.

When I was in 10th grade, I had a great sociology teacher. He was great because he wanted to teach us to THINK. Years later, I got my degree in cultural anthropology and sociology. Coincidence? You be the judge. But I digress. One day, this teacher somehow started our class on a discussion/argument that got extremely heated, and I recall that it was basically yours truly here against the entire rest of the class, especially one girl who was extremely worked up and vehement about her argument/point, which was, in my strong opinion then and now, based entirely on ignorance and prejudice. Don’t ask me exactly how or why this teacher, bless him, got his class of 10th graders arguing about prejudice against gay people back in, gosh, when was this, 1977? 1977!  The thought of gay adoption, let alone gay rights of any kind, back then was completely beyond RADICAL, yet somehow, he had us talking about it. I think maybe it started from a general discussion on prejudice and discrimination in society, but however it started, the argument between me and the class ended up being about, as I recall it, either “Why shouldn’t homosexual people be allowed to have kids just like heterosexual people?”, or it might have even just been (remember, this was 1977) “Can homosexual people be trusted around children?" I can’t remember what exact question got this argument going but I clearly remember that class because that was one time in my life when I stood up for what I believed in and did not back down, even though the entire class was sneering at my point of view and, like I said, this one ferocious girl was just FURIOUSLY up in my grill, attacking me vehemently over it.

Basically, this girl kept equating homosexuality to pedophilia (although I’m sure she didn’t know that word), saying that gay people are dangerous around kids because they might molest them. She kept using the word “perverted” and “perverts” and arguing that these “perverts” couldn’t be trusted around children, OBVIOUSLY. Every time she asserted that, I kept responding that a homosexual person is no more likely to molest a child than is a heterosexual person. There are heterosexuals who would molest children, and there are homosexuals who would molest children, but being one or the other as a sexual orientation doesn’t have anything to do with the likelihood of molesting children!

Well! This girl just got more and more FURIOUS with me, like how could I be so STUPID not to get her brilliant (not—try totally ignorant and bigoted) point that, apparently, all gay people are predisposed to be child molesters. And the more she kept insisting upon that, and literally getting in my face about it and egging on the entire class into attacking me, the more I would not back down and kept saying that homosexuality and pedophilia/being a child molester have NOTHING to do with one another!!!!! God knows there are plenty of heterosexual child molesters!  Sexual orientation, one way or the other, does not equate to pedophilia.

The reason I just harked back to that long ago, incredibly heated-n-lengthy argument in that great teacher’s 10th grade sociology class (and he, by the way, just sat back and did not intervene, as I recall, but the entire time, I felt like he was really proud of me, which helped me continue to take on the entire class and that one worked-up, intimidating-to-beat-the-band loon in particular) is because I think that, even though that was 1977 and this is 2010, unfortunately, those misconceptions and prejudices still remain to a degree in our society. While we have come a very long way in terms of attitudes towards homosexuality and how homosexuals are treated under the law, I think there is still the idea that somehow gay people are not to be trusted around children, which just makes NO sense to me. I’ll say it again: a gay person is no more likely to be a pedophile than a straight person is. So that argument against gay adoption just makes no sense.

There are other so-called “arguments” against gay adoption (and gay marriage and other gay rights), of course, but break them down into their essential components and they are all based on bigotry against gay people. Period.

The real facts on the ground are that children need loving parents. There are many decent, loving gay folks who would love to be parents. Why not add to the pool of potential adopters, when we have such a staggering number of children languishing away in state care, in the foster system? But as compelling as that argument is, it too misses the main point in a way: the main point doesn’t have to do with numbers of kids waiting for homes, it has to do with what is right, morally and legally, and what is right is that ANYONE who is a decent, loving human being and has the necessary means, support system and ability to parent a child should have the opportunity to adopt a waiting child. More importantly, any child who is waiting for a permanent family should never be denied the chance to have one if one is there! I hope that the state will see sense, and not appeal this. Surely they want all the children in their care now and in the future to have every opportunity to be adopted into loving families. That’s what I call true “family values”.

Further Reading:

Miami Herald article of 9/23/2010

New York Times article of 9/22/2010

ACLU press release of 9/23/2010 on commondreams.org

And Crown Thy Good with Brotherhood

I am definitely in favor of allowing the mosque to be built near Ground Zero. Far from dishonoring the 9/11 victims, I think allowing and even, dare I say, welcoming the mosque profoundly honors them by honoring what America truly stands for and making a bold, bright statement to any would-be terrorists out there, as well as to everyone else, that what the United States of America stands for will never be weakened or turned away from for any reason, let alone due to a violent, cruel, downright evil act of terrorism such as what occurred on 9/11.

What do we stand for? We stand for freedom, tolerance, pluralism and respect for diversity. Of course a mosque should be allowed to be built near Ground Zero, as should a church, a synagogue, a Buddhist temple, or any other house of peaceful worship and/or community/cultural outreach that any group desires to build. I think it deeply honors the victims of 9/11, as well as our country, to say to the terrorists: you haven’t stopped us, and you won’t stop us. You will never stop America from being America. You won’t stop us from upholding religious freedom, from respecting and celebrating each other’s differences, or from being the marvelous, remarkable, pluralistic, free country that we are. Just because you hate us, does not mean that we, in turn, will choose to hate anyone who happens to be a member of the same faith as you were, any more than the actions of Timothy McVeigh made us hate all Christians. Just because you, 9/11 terrorists, had hate and violence in your hearts, doesn’t mean that we, Americans, will let go of the tolerance, respect for diversity and our most cherished values like religious freedom that we have in our hearts and in our constitution, and that define who we are as Americans and America. Just because you were small-minded, doesn’t mean we will become as you were. We’re Americans: we welcome a house of worship, of whatever faith, to be built near Ground Zero.  We stand for religious freedom and pluralism.  The violent, evil, terrorist acts of 9/11 have not, and will never, change that.

I myself am a Unitarian Universalist (and I’m also Jewish--complex, I know, but that’s a topic for another blog sometime), so I don’t say this as someone who practices Islam myself. No, I say this as someone who cherishes what my country stands for. I will strongly defend the right of any religion to practice freely, and if this particular group is allowed to do so near Ground Zero, to me, it very powerfully honors and reaffirms what our country is all about and therefore honors the lives of the 9/11 victims. What would dishonor them and us as a country would be for us to become intolerant, like the 9/11 terrorists themselves. What would dishonor them would be to harden our hearts and turn our backs on one of our most fundamental tenets, that of religious freedom. For to do so would mean giving up what we are and becoming like the terrorists. By contrast, if we allow the mosque to be built, we are affirming what we are—a truly free, tolerant and diverse country--and making a statement that nothing has changed that, nothing has changed us, and we will never allow anything to change or compromise what America stands for.

The terrorists could not take away what we quintessentially are as a unique, admirable nation. Only we can choose to give that up. I say we choose instead to embrace and confidently reaffirm our most inspiring, precious founding values! I say allow the mosque near Ground Zero to be built. What a powerful, beautiful message that sends! It says: America is still America. America is still the tolerant, free nation we have always been and always will be.  9/11 didn’t change that. What could possibly honor the 9/11 victims more than making that glorious statement?