Dancing With The Stars and Politics

This season of Dancing with The Stars has been by far the strangest season on the show. This is mostly due to the appearance of Bristol Palin, the daughter of Sarah Palin (you know who that is). Despite receiving the lowest judges' score 6 times Bristol the Pistol (as she is nick-named) has somehow made it to the finals. This shows the power and clout of the conservative voice in America. Because face it, even though she has grown as a dancer, several much better dancers have been eliminated, while Bristol keeps making it through. Looking at this, I think Democrats across the country need to be very nervous. If Sarah's clout can sway the voters on a TV show, imagine what might happen in the 2012 elections.

Many of you have probably already seen tonight's show, and know the results; I do not. I only hope America voted for a Dancer, and not a political point of view. Save that for 2012.

Please check out my other blog for a great story, and help if you can. Help Save Jerry.

Take Back America Day

Well, here I am at my most political. For the past two years we have heard President Obama and nearly every Democrat in Washington blame George W. Bush for the financial mess the country is in, and for just about every problem you can name.

And we have seen them do little to fix the problems. They've been too busy jamming through a health care bill that over 60% of Americans are against. Now please don't get me wrong, I think a lot of changes need to be made in health care. But turning everything over to the government is not the answer. I mean just look at the mess unemployment, Welfare and Social Security are in, and you will see what happens when you leave stuff up to the government.

And here is a big question, I agree Bush should take responsibility for some portion of the financial mess, but really, he is only one part of the government. Congress is also part of the government, and for the last two years of Bush's administration, when the finances were falling apart, the Congress was controlled by Democrats. The same Democrats that are in Congress now. The same ones who think that raising your taxes and sending millions in bailout money to the banks will make you want to spend more and help the economy recover.

I say, "Enough!" When Obama was coronated ...sorry, inaugurated ...I said I would give him the benefit of the doubt, and see how he did. Well, times up, and in less than 24 hours we will hopefully send the Democrats packing and flip the house. Let's Take Back America!!

Elections coming

Ok, just a really quick post to say that elections are coming Nov. 2 and you all need to get out there and vote. A lot of major races nationwide. Here in California we have a Governor's race and a Senate seat up for grabs. And a measure to legalize pot. No matter your views, I encourage you to vote. It is easy to sit back and complain about the way things are going, well here's your chance to try and do something about it. If you don't vote, don't complain!
That's all...thanks!

Love, hate & gay marriage

I have been trying to formulate this particular blog for quite a while. I realize this is a very touchy subject, and I may even lose some friends over it, although I hope not. So before I go any further, I want to say I love you all, and what is expressed here is only my opinion, and I ask you to respect my right to this opinion as I respect your right to disagree.

In the state of California, there is probably no hotter topic in recent years as that of Gay marriage. It is a political hot spot, and this makes me very sad. Marriage was designed as a symbol of love, but now the topic of marriage has become a topic surrounded by hate. There is even a NOH8 campaign, where the supporters of gay marriage are calling out to end the hatred of gay people, as they perceive the writers of Prop 8 as hating all gay people. And I can"t say they are wrong, because I don't know the hearts of the writers. I do see that many so called Christian groups tend to cringe at the mere mention of the word "gay" or "homosexual", at the same time many gay people, especially those who end up on the news, tend to cringe at the term "Christian" or "Republican". On both sides of this issue hate seems to be flowing. People have long ago forgotten that marriage is supposed to be about love. Gay marriage supporters, at least the most outspoken ones, seem to just be demanding the right to have a ceremony performed, and the opposition just seem to want to stop them because they are gay.

In my opinion (and now you all can direct your hate at me if you want to) we should throw out the term marriage all together. It has long ago lost the meanings it was intended for, and become a tool of political, and social manipulation. There should be a social contract that two people who love each other, and want to join there lives together before the state can enter into; and this should be open to all. There should also be a religious ceremony people can enter into, and each individual church could decide who can and can't be joined in a ceremony at their church. Okay, now that you all think I'm crazy, I'm going to get a little crazier and risk diving into the homosexual issue a bit farther.

I grew up in a very conservative family, and homosexuality was a big no-no. I was taught, as most conservative Christian churches in the 70's taught (and many still teach) that homosexuality was a terrible sin. I would call myself, for at last the first half of my life, a homophobe. When I was in college I had no thought that there might be homosexual people at my nice Christian college. But now, I look at my facebook friends list and many of my friends from college, as it turns out, are gay (I was involved in Theatre...go figure). And I realize that most of them were gay even in college. I admit that if I had been smart enough in college to figure that out, it would have creeped me out. But now, as I have come to realize, these friends are the same wonderful caring people I had become friends with. Their sexual orientation did not turn them into the evil nasty creatures that so many Christian leaders and churches like to tell us all gay people are. I have many gay friends at both of my work places, and they also are not the monsters that are portrayed from so many pulpits.

I am not sure how the homosexual lifestyle has become the #1 unforgivable sin in so many churches. The thing I hear over and over from church leaders is that the Bible says its a sin, and the Bible doesn't change. So I have been looking at my Bible and yes, there in Leviticus 18 it does say that it is wrong for a man to lay with a man as he lays with a woman. But I continue to look through Leviticus, and in the very next chapter it says that you are not to have tattoos or to trim the sides of the hair on your head or the edges of your beard. Yet I don"t hear many church groups condemning the tattooed. And out side of strict Jewish denominations, I don't see a lot of full beards and side curls on men. And in I Corinthians it list homosexuality as a sin, but it is right there along with the greedy, the thieves and drunkards. Yet very few churches today still speak out of the great evils of greed and drunkeness. And churches certainly have not declared a battle on the greedy or the drunks the way the have on the homosexual

What I think I am trying to say is that whether you think homosexuality is a sin or not, the response a Christian should have is that of love, not fear and hatred. God calls us to love all people, He made them all after all. In the end it is up to each person to stand before God for all their actions, and when I stand before God, I don't want God to see me as someone who hated or mistreated someone because of their sexual orientation. I want to be someone who showed God's love to everyone. Now let me issue a challenge to all my Christian friends out there. If you are one who feels that homosexuality is wrong, I just want to challenge you to reach out to a person you may know who is a homosexual, get to know them. Be their friend. Get to know them as a person, putting aside your own bias. I think you may be surprised to find that they are wonderful people. And to those of you who already have gay friends, be sure to let them know they are loved, amid all the hate floating around.

Okay, for any I've offended, feel free to drop me as a friend if you want...I still love you.

Cyber-bullying...let's stop it!

In the wake of 5 recent suicide by gay youth stemming from cyber-bullying, the entertainment world is launching a massive ad campaign to stop cyber-bullying, and bullying in general. I think this is great. Bullying of all kinds should be stopped. I ask this one question: WHAT TOOK YOU SO LONG? Cyber-bullying has gone on for years. Megan Meier and Rachel Neblett both commited suicide in 2006 as a result of cyber-bullying. Where was the entertainment world's outcry then?

I am very sad for the recent suicides of the young gay men. It is a tragic loss, as are the over 4000 teen suicides each year. Statistics report that over 40 percent of these are the result of some form of bullying. I just want to know why these recent five are the ones that suddenly got the attention of Hollywood. Are the lives of these 5 gay young men worth more than Rachel or Megan? Are they some how more special? Will their families miss them more? Yes, we need to stop bullying, especially cyber-bullying; but let's not make it a gay issue. Over 56% of cyber-bullying victims are teen girls. Lets make the emphasis on stopping the action, not on idolizing the victim's lifestyle.

And one last not... Perez Hilton in calling for a stop to bullying, needs to stop it himself, since he is the world's most popular cyber-bully.

Obama's campaigning again

Every where you turn and look in media right now you seem to see President Obama. And it looks exactly like two years ago. The President seems to be running for office... but doesn't he still have two more years before his re-election? Of course he's campaigning. Campaigning for all the incumbent democrats who stood by him through all the blunders of his first 2 years. He is trying to stem the overwhelming backlash of the health care that he and his buddies illegally pushed through congress.

And what he keeps focusing on in his speeches is the financial mess he "was left with" asking if we wanted the people who brought this mess on us back in power. Here's the thing he seems to forget... Democrats have controlled congress since 2006, so maybe these Democrats are at least partly responsible for the financial mess....hmm...just a thought.

Anyway, elections are a few weeks away, so remember to vote, no matter which party you support.

9-11, ground zero mosque, quran burning & why I love America

Nine years ago, on the morning of September 11, I walked into my work at Toyota. at the time I was the communication starpoint for Home Position E. For those of you who don"t work with me, that means I was in charge of reading the daily announcements. Normally these were work related items, or safety tips. But the morning of 9-11-2001 may manager handed me a piece of paper with a news story off the internet and told me to read it over a few times before reading it. As I read about a plane being flown into the world Trade center, I could not believe what was on the paper. As the day proceeded the work being done was a minimal, as we all huddled around the radio between cycles, and listened as news unfolded.

At some point in the day, they told us we could go home if we had time to cover it, and if we wanted to. My wife, Bekkee was home with our 2 year old daughter Dakotah, and expecting our second child. I wanted to be home, so I left work earlier. These are my most vivd memories of 9-11. And of course I remember the way America rallied together, and for a moment almost seemed like the United States again, instead of a bunch of partisan idiots. I remember flying the flag in front of our apartment. I remember little Dakotah getting excited whenever she'd see a flag..."Look, America!" she would say. I remember one day walking out on our patio and seeing Dakotah just looking up at our flag flying there. I took an adorable picture, which I can"y find anymore.

Nine years after America was attacked, in an act of hatred; Nine years after America showed that through Love brotherhood and unity, hatred could not succeed in breaking us down; as we face the anniversary of the greatest tragedy in our countries history; the news is once again filled with stories of hatred. The current hatred is not shown on such a massive scale as it was on 9-11, but still hatred is the root of two of the hottest topics buzzing around the news, and internet chat spots.

The first story is of the ground zero mosque (forgive any spelling errors please). I understand the viewpoints of both sides here. If my family were in New York, and I had lost close friends and relatives in the WTC attacks, I would not want anything that reminded me of the attacks that close to the sight of the attacks. Whether the Muslims building it had anything to do with the groups behind the attacks or not. And as an American it would be my right to feel that way. If I were the Muslim who owned that land, and wanted to build a worship center there, and if I were an American citizen, that would be my right also. That is why I love America. People with differing views are allowed to live and to express their views freely. That is what is great about America. Now it were up to me, the government should claim the area near and around Ground Zero, and build a memorial, and a museum to remember the victims.

But the thought of the mosque has made so many people lash out in hatred, not even taking time to learn anything about the people putting the mosque, or whatever it is, up. I admit that I myself have not researched either, and I find the idea similar to if a group of Americans had gone to Japan ten years after Hiroshima and built a large Baptist university on the sight. But we just can't react with hate against the mosque. We are America, we must rise above hate.

And of course the second story all over the news is the crazy preacher in Florida who wants to burn the Quran ( again forgive my spelling). And I saw, to a point, this is his right as an American, and probably would have been a harmless act of stupidity, had the news media not picked up on it, and taken it beyond the walls of his 50 member church, and made it a world wide headline. Now, as much as I support the preachers right to express him self, even in a stupid way such as burning Muslim holy books; I have to agree with the US military officer who has said this act could ignite hate in the Muslim world, and endanger the lives of US military overseas. So I pray the minister gives up his act of hate, in order to prevent accelerated attacks on US soldiers.

To me it is a terrible shame that the media has brought these two stories to the forefront, and once again made hatred the center of attention, rather than the memory of the fallen of 9-11. So please for the day, put your anger, and your political leanings aside, and just say a prayer for the lives lost on 9-11, and all those who have lost their lives in the 9 years since, in service to their country.

Lunchroom Story, a cautionary tale

This is the story of three young men; Lee, Sam and Joe. They were all middle school students at the same school. Lee was known everywhere as a bully. He would regularly harass students and make them give up their lunch money, or shove them into their locker. People knew to stir clear of Lee.

Joe was a new kid at the school, and he had a habit of to the front of the lunch line, even thought the school had an established code of lunch room etiquette that said you were not allowed to cut in line.

Sam was the son of the principle, and had a long reputation as a leader in the school. One day he decided to talk to Joe about cutting in the lunch line. He told Joe this was against the rules and if he saw Joe cutting again he would move Joe to the back of the line.

The next day Lee was in the assistant principal's office and told him that the school had a problem with bullies. The Vice Principal said he agreed and pointed out the Sam had treated Joe, trying to keep him from cutting in line. He wondered how Sam could have dared to ask Joe not to cut in line.

Later that day Joe's dad came and had a conference with Sam's father (the Principal) and expressed concern over Sam's actions. Sam's father agreed that Sam was out of line for asking Joe to respect the rules. He even promised to ask the school board to change the rules and make it ok for Joe to cut in line.

Does this story seem a bit silly to you. A bit illogical. Well this is an illustration of the ridiculousness that happened in world politics this past week. China had the nerve to accuse the US of human rights violations; and our deputy Secretary of State had the nerve to agree, and sight Arizona's immigration law as an example. Then Mexico's president came to Washington to complain about the Arizona law and to say that we should loosen our immigration laws. And The President had the nerve to agree. Hey Mexico, when are YOU gonna loosen your immigration laws??


So let me know what you think of this.

Give me a break!!

So here in California we are preparing for primary elections. This is where we get to pick among other thing the candidates who will battle it out in November for Arnold Schwarzanegger's (i know I butchered the spelling...sorry Arnold) governor seat. On the Democrat side we have most likely, Jerry Brown...if anyone is running against him, I haven't heard...he isn't even bothering campaigning much yet, because he is saving his money, I assume for he November election.

On the Republican side we have two major candidates. Steve Poizner, and Meg Whitman. Whitman used to run eBay; Poizner, I'm not sure, but has been involved in State Government.
Both Candidates say we need to fix the economy (DUH!!) but rather than tell us how they can fix it, they are both basically spending all their campaign dollars to tell us that the other candidate is a liar, and not as conservative as they claim to be. So, okay Meg and Steve LISTEN UP!! You're politicians, we know you lie, and you're from California, we know you can't be THAT conservative. So, Give Me A Break!! Stop slapping each other around, and tell me how you're going to fix our state. How are you going to be better than Arnold? Don't tell me why I shouldn't vote for your opponent, tell why I SHOULD vote for you.

Ok rant done. Thanks for reading.

Why I Support Arizona's Immigration Law

There probably has not been a piece of legislation in quite a while that has stirred up as much controversy as the Arizona Immigration Law that recently enacted. And people are polarized on their views; people either strongly support, or are strongly opposed to this law.

I support this law. This does not make me a racist. I have nothing against Mexicans, or any other race of people. Some of my best friends at my job are Hispanic. One of my friends at work comes from a family that immigrated from Mexico before my father's parents cam over from Holland. But when his ancestors came to America, they registered and became American Citizens, as my grandparents did when they arrived from Holland. They were Legal aliens And that is what this law is all about. It is not about hating on Mexicans, it is about legal versus illegal immigration. There is a process involved in coming into any country to live and work. And the Arizona law simply is saying, "Hey, if you're here without the proper paperwork, we're going to send you home."

If an American is found in Mexico without proper papers, they could be subject to up to 2 years in prison and of fine of up to 5000 pesos. Being an illegal alien in Mexico is a felony. So why is Arizona's law racist?

In Russia the Visa regime is constantly changing, and if an American is caught not in compliance with these laws he is subject to fines, imprisonment and or deportation. Why shouldn't Arizona be allowed o enforce the laws that the US government has set for immigration?

In China you can be held for up to 10 days before being brought to trial if you are not in compliance with their immigration law. And Japan also has a very tight registration process for non-nationals living in Japan, and if you are not registered, or if you over stay the term for which you are registered, you are subject to deportation.

I feel the Arizona law is simply an attempt to enforce the United States immigration laws. I don't see anyone protest all the immigration laws that the various other countries around the world have, Yet America is supposed to just open its borders and let anyone come in, whether they are registered or not. I have no problem with Mexicans who choose to live in the United States if they apply for visas or citizenship. But if you enter the country illegally and live here without paying taxes, and expect us to educate your children on our tax dollar, please go back to Mexico, where your citizens can pay taxes to send your children to school there.

And please, lest you still think I'm prejudiced against Mexicans, I am opposed to anyone living here without the proper papers. If you find any Dutch folks her without a visa, send their butts back to Holland.

Every country has its immigration laws, a way to keep the country from being over run by people not contributing to the country, but just living off the hard work of others. And every country should have the right to enforce those laws. Three cheers to Arizona for having the guts to enforce our immigration laws.

New Blog...ground rules

Ok, I've decided to leave behind my non-political rule. On my Facebook page as well as Twitter and my Growing Old Gracefully blog, I have chosen for the most part t remain non political. For this blog I will tell you from the start I will be very political. Many of you will probably disagree with at least some of what I will post. That's fine, if everyone agreed, life would be pretty boring. But I do ask you to follow at least a few simple rules if you want to respond to my posts. First, I will not tolerate hateful comments. Feel free to disagree with my opinions, just do not attack me, or any people I may be discussing. Ideas can be attacked, but please not any person or group of people. second, no foul language; I know it is very common today to throw in choice expletives to spice up your comment. To my this shows a lack of thoughtfulness. These two things will be removed from responses, other than that I will try to read and respond to ant responses. So tune in soon for my first Real post on this blog. I will be touching on my feelings toward the Arizona Immigrant Law that is all over the news right now. You won't want to miss this.