Associated Press
Washington, DC - After months of delay, obstruction, and hot-blooded rhetoric on both sides of the issue, the ban on Christians in the military has finally passed the United States Senate and is on its way to the White House for the president's signature.
Many pro-Christian advocates are hailing this vote as a triumph of equal rights. "This vote is proof that the United States Constitution is for all, no matter what who you worship," said Speaker of the House, Annabelle James, herself a Christian and co-author of the Senate version of the repeal of the so-called "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" legislation that was enacted by President James in 1993.
Opponents of the measure campaigned hard against passage of the repeal. Congressman Randy Wilcox, a self-avowed atheist, said during the House debate on the issue that "Our military cannot stand with anyone who follows the teaching of a pacifist like Jesus Christ! How can we possibly maintain the strongest military in the world when someone follows a god who says "Thou shalt not kill"?"
In the end, the measure passed on a mostly party-line vote with a few Senators crossing the aisle to show their support.
Senator and former presidential candidate Harry Wilson, acknowledged that there were not enough votes to stop passage of the repeal. He blamed the passage on pro-Christian elite with little military experience on forcing their social agenda on troops during wartime.
"They will do what is asked of them," Wilson said of service members. "But don't think there won't be a great cost."
Many servicemen and women who had been discharged under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" cheered the vote as a victory for future Christians who wish to serve their country.
"When I served, I felt like I couldn't be me, like I couldn't be fully me." Former First Sergeant Timothy Jacobs told a crowd outside Capitol Hill during a rally for support of the repeal. "My faith is part of who I am as a person, and to have to hide that in order to serve the country I love... it was like cutting off a limb."
...
(Back to this time plane)
Before anyone gets on my case about the comparison between sexual orientation and religion, and anything about choosing faith vs. choosing sexuality, get over it. This is satire, designed to illustrate a point, not to pick apart an argument.
That point? What if it were you? What if it were something that you did/believed/were that kept you from doing something you felt was the right thing to do? What if you were forced to make a choice to not be or not be one thing that you are in your heart of hearts in order to be something else that you are in your heart of hearts?
In the interest of full disclosure, I'm not a big fan of the military, and I'm not a big fan of government in general. And my view of DADT is summed up by the late Bill Hicks: "Anyone dumb enough to want to be in the military should be allowed in; end of fucking story." (his emphasis)
But I am an even lesser fan of hate. I do not begrudge people who want to be in the military, but neither do I think less of them - they are following what they believe to be right, and more power to them. But to be denied that just because you live a lifestyle that people who crafted rules and regulations years ago didn't like and still don't is asinine.
My conclusion is this: You should be who you are. Everything that you are. Nobody should have the right to tell you that you can't be you while doing something else that makes you you.
Unfortunately, we live in a society where disagreement is no longer civil; it is for all intents and purposes criminal. Whether it's ideas, politics, morality, or simply how you choose to live your life, those who disagree see you not as a person who they happen to disagree with, but as the enemy, and treat you as such.
This goes beyond sexual orientation, as I'm sure you've guessed by now, but it seems that in the current environment, gays and bisexuals are "safe" to hate, primarily because of very flimsy biblical backing and just the sheer popularity of it.
And hate is fear. Yes, it is. Insecurity in one's self, fear of punishment by some invisible higher authority, whatever your flavor, it's fear.
And no, going up and punching someone in the jaw doesn't show that you're not afraid. In fact, it shows just the opposite.
Until we live in a world without fear, we have to live with these small victories, claiming something that should have existed from the beginning.
Thank you for your time.
BTW, the "great cost" was cut and pasted from a quote by Senator John McCain.
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Welcome to the fishbowl
You can say anything you like,
But you can't touch the merchandise!
She'll give you every penny's worth,
But it will cost you a dollar first! - "She's a Beauty" , The Tubes
Do any of you remember the song "She's a Beauty" by The Tubes? If not, here's the gist: it's basically an advertisement for a girl behind a glass. You can look all you want, but touching costs money.
I bring this up because I have found a place where every inhabitant, male or female, is behind a glass, and you can only touch them if you pay.
That place is called Match.com.
Or, as I have come to call it, The Fishbowl.
Let me relay my experience below. Granted I should probably have known better, but I thought I'd try it out, based on my previous experiences with dating sites.
I had actually met my wife (see my previous blog for details on that) through an online matching site. We were able to contach each other freely, exchange E-mail addresses and communicate without purchasing a subscription.
It seems that dating sites have wizened up in the intervening decade.
It seems despite the rise of free social sites like Facebook, MySpace, and MyYearbook (all of which I am members of, btw. Ask for me by name), Match.com, ostensibly a dating site, does not allow for any actual dating, simply because all you can do without a subscription is show interest.
By winking.
Yes, you actually wink at the user you are interested in. And, if they are also interested, they can wink back.
...and that's it.
You can wink at each other, but if you want to actually make a move, you have to purchase a subscription.
Both of you.
Only subscribers can send messages, and only subscribers can read sent messages.
There's an IM function for chat but, again, that's only available to subscribers.
This seems to me to be one giant cocktease. At best, this structure is a cynical money trap designed to siphon money from lonely hearts who are forced to pay $30 for a month's subscription to get in touch with one person, or pay a few months, at a bulk discount, of course "just in case" it doesn't work out. (Sounds to me despite their "guarantee" that they're banking on failure or, at least, a protracted search)
At worst, of course, it's prostitution. Because it's not inconceivable that these couples will have sex and, in not a small number of cases on either side of the equation, that is a primary goal. But that's cynical, even for me.
It's ironic that the banner ad for this app... excuse me, "widget" ... I'm using to enter this says "Chat for free", and,, yes, I followed it - it was a link to the Match.com widget for my Droid.
"Chat for free", my ass!
So now, I have a person interested in my Match.com profile (winked back), and we have no way of getting in touch. No workaround, no breakthrough- it's either buy a subscription or stay behind the glass.
Welcome to the fishbowl.
Now, I'm not against making money, but social sites nowadays can do the same thing Match.com does for free. Hell, MyYearbook has a much better compatibility system than Match.com, and it's available FOR FREE!!!
It's like an Onion headline I read a while ago: "Classmates.com Employees Don't Have the Heart to Tell CEO About Facebook"
One would hope that Match.com employees would be a bits more heartless toward its management.
Oh, and pearlluver2323, if you're reading this, check out my Facebook or MyYearbook profile and drop me a line. I'm interested, but it's this glass, you see...
But you can't touch the merchandise!
She'll give you every penny's worth,
But it will cost you a dollar first! - "She's a Beauty" , The Tubes
Do any of you remember the song "She's a Beauty" by The Tubes? If not, here's the gist: it's basically an advertisement for a girl behind a glass. You can look all you want, but touching costs money.
I bring this up because I have found a place where every inhabitant, male or female, is behind a glass, and you can only touch them if you pay.
That place is called Match.com.
Or, as I have come to call it, The Fishbowl.
Let me relay my experience below. Granted I should probably have known better, but I thought I'd try it out, based on my previous experiences with dating sites.
I had actually met my wife (see my previous blog for details on that) through an online matching site. We were able to contach each other freely, exchange E-mail addresses and communicate without purchasing a subscription.
It seems that dating sites have wizened up in the intervening decade.
It seems despite the rise of free social sites like Facebook, MySpace, and MyYearbook (all of which I am members of, btw. Ask for me by name), Match.com, ostensibly a dating site, does not allow for any actual dating, simply because all you can do without a subscription is show interest.
By winking.
Yes, you actually wink at the user you are interested in. And, if they are also interested, they can wink back.
...and that's it.
You can wink at each other, but if you want to actually make a move, you have to purchase a subscription.
Both of you.
Only subscribers can send messages, and only subscribers can read sent messages.
There's an IM function for chat but, again, that's only available to subscribers.
This seems to me to be one giant cocktease. At best, this structure is a cynical money trap designed to siphon money from lonely hearts who are forced to pay $30 for a month's subscription to get in touch with one person, or pay a few months, at a bulk discount, of course "just in case" it doesn't work out. (Sounds to me despite their "guarantee" that they're banking on failure or, at least, a protracted search)
At worst, of course, it's prostitution. Because it's not inconceivable that these couples will have sex and, in not a small number of cases on either side of the equation, that is a primary goal. But that's cynical, even for me.
It's ironic that the banner ad for this app... excuse me, "widget" ... I'm using to enter this says "Chat for free", and,, yes, I followed it - it was a link to the Match.com widget for my Droid.
"Chat for free", my ass!
So now, I have a person interested in my Match.com profile (winked back), and we have no way of getting in touch. No workaround, no breakthrough- it's either buy a subscription or stay behind the glass.
Welcome to the fishbowl.
Now, I'm not against making money, but social sites nowadays can do the same thing Match.com does for free. Hell, MyYearbook has a much better compatibility system than Match.com, and it's available FOR FREE!!!
It's like an Onion headline I read a while ago: "Classmates.com Employees Don't Have the Heart to Tell CEO About Facebook"
One would hope that Match.com employees would be a bits more heartless toward its management.
Oh, and pearlluver2323, if you're reading this, check out my Facebook or MyYearbook profile and drop me a line. I'm interested, but it's this glass, you see...
Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.3
Friday, October 1, 2010
What I Want
Given everything I've had to surrender to get to this point, and especially considering that everything I thought, or was told by society and observed by family (which turned out to be a poor example, but meh...) that I wanted turned out to be an exercise in self-delusion that brought two lives up to the brink of collapse, realizing our mistakes not a moment too son, it occurs to me that, well, I've never actually set down what I wanted.
So... what do I want?
I want to be in control of all aspects of my life, from my body down to when I choose to buy a trinket, instead of mania, hype, and addiction creating a false sense of longing that requires immediate gratification.
I want friends that are friends. Friends that are happy to see me rather than seeing me as an inconvenience to be tolerated. Friends that call me out of the blue just to make sure I'm okay, or call me out when I'm having trouble to talk it out before I lash out.
I want a woman who is only interested in what's now instead of leveraging for the future. One who is willing to explore life and living with me, both in the outside world and the one that only exists in the mind. One to whom sex doesn't mean everything, but also to whom sex is never meaningless. One who is willing to explore all sensations possible without, within, and between.
I want to do what I love, and share that love with everyone who wants to see it. I want to be known, enjoyed, but not famous.
But most of all, I want to Love and be Loved, without expectations or requirements. This is true both individually and universally. As Jimi so eloquently said, "When the power of Love overcomes the love of power, there will be peace on Earth."
Steep demands, I know, but I have a lot mode time than I thought I did a year ago, so I am willing to wait for the right moment. Love to all. -J
So... what do I want?
I want to be in control of all aspects of my life, from my body down to when I choose to buy a trinket, instead of mania, hype, and addiction creating a false sense of longing that requires immediate gratification.
I want friends that are friends. Friends that are happy to see me rather than seeing me as an inconvenience to be tolerated. Friends that call me out of the blue just to make sure I'm okay, or call me out when I'm having trouble to talk it out before I lash out.
I want a woman who is only interested in what's now instead of leveraging for the future. One who is willing to explore life and living with me, both in the outside world and the one that only exists in the mind. One to whom sex doesn't mean everything, but also to whom sex is never meaningless. One who is willing to explore all sensations possible without, within, and between.
I want to do what I love, and share that love with everyone who wants to see it. I want to be known, enjoyed, but not famous.
But most of all, I want to Love and be Loved, without expectations or requirements. This is true both individually and universally. As Jimi so eloquently said, "When the power of Love overcomes the love of power, there will be peace on Earth."
Steep demands, I know, but I have a lot mode time than I thought I did a year ago, so I am willing to wait for the right moment. Love to all. -J
Sunday, September 19, 2010
It's been a ride...
I guess I had to go to that place to get to this one. - Eminem, "Not Afraid"
I know I've been very secretive about what's been happening to me lately, and I apologize for that. The reasons are simple: The changes that were happening were happening rapidly and for the most part with no way to stop and take a breath, let alone explain. Besides which, everything was still being worked out, and it wouldn't be fair to all involved to lay things out without a proper post-mortem, as well as a clear head.
Besides that, it involves something I never do: bringing my life in the Other World (RL) into that of my online persona. Unfortunately, as often happens to those of us who live in both worlds, when one goes into chaos, the other does as well.
That chaos has subsided, things are mostly settled - that which I can control, anyway - and I have some breathing space.
So now, I will explain.
About a month and a half ago, I and my wife of eleven years came to the mutual agreement that the relationship we thought, hoped, and convinced ourselves was there simply wasn't, and hadn't been for some time - in some cases, it never was there to begin with. As a result, we have separated, and will be officially divorced momentarily.
Fortunately, the two of us are parting amicably, and are going to remain good friends. We had believed that we had some time - several months, in fact - to sort through the separation of the physical and financial connections, and we would remain in close physical proximity, with her moving closer to her work and I finding a place in town for myself so I could finally be on my own for the first time in my life.
Fate, on the other hand, had other ideas.
Several issues came up in our current residence that forced us to have to rely on friends for certain necessities, and the place where she worked suddenly closed, forcing her to move hundreds of miles away to maintain her work.
This meant that in short order, our separation period moved from several months to a few months, then from a few months to a few weeks.
The situation, it should go without saying, became very stressful in a hurry, for both of us. She became externally sad and, at times, quite emotional, since her mourning period for this huge loss for both of us was compressed so much so quickly. Blame her, I do not, but it was, and still is, hard to watch her when she starts to fall apart emotionally, knowing there's not a damn thing I can do about it.
I, having never learned to handle my stress well, internalized everything, appearing externally calm, but being a literal ticking time bomb of anger and stress.
As a result, I started to marginalize the friends who were helping us because I believed, ironically, that there were attempting to marginalize me. I, who was on the verge of losing my best friend to a faraway job, began to fear that my other friends were going to shut me out and, as a result, pushed them away so that they did eventually shut me out.
Fortunately, I did have other friends who were able to help afterward, but I wanted it to be said, for the record, that I am completely grateful and appreciative of all my friends for their help, and regret how I dealt with my own life coming apart as it applies to them. I have made attempts to make amends that, thus far, has yielded nothing, nor do I have any assumption that it will.
I have made peace with this, and have decided to move on.
So what now?
Now I have a very large living space that is completely my own (it's a rental, but still...), and I will be writing a lot, since I will likely have a lot of free time. I will continue to write Humanity, Intuition, and Darkness, although the current part may be delayed for a while due to my own issues. (Writing it the first time nearly drove me insane. Rewriting it and incorporating it into this story may make me revisit that.)
I will also be working on my review vlog. I decided to start out with a simple top 10 list to start with to introduce myself and show you what to expect from me as far as attitude and sense of humor.
I will also try to keep up this blog in addition the other one on this site as sort of a bridge between the character you see and the person I am.
I hope this post sufficiently explains where I've been and gives an idea of where I'm going. If not, ask me something by e-mail and I may answer.
I know I've been very secretive about what's been happening to me lately, and I apologize for that. The reasons are simple: The changes that were happening were happening rapidly and for the most part with no way to stop and take a breath, let alone explain. Besides which, everything was still being worked out, and it wouldn't be fair to all involved to lay things out without a proper post-mortem, as well as a clear head.
Besides that, it involves something I never do: bringing my life in the Other World (RL) into that of my online persona. Unfortunately, as often happens to those of us who live in both worlds, when one goes into chaos, the other does as well.
That chaos has subsided, things are mostly settled - that which I can control, anyway - and I have some breathing space.
So now, I will explain.
About a month and a half ago, I and my wife of eleven years came to the mutual agreement that the relationship we thought, hoped, and convinced ourselves was there simply wasn't, and hadn't been for some time - in some cases, it never was there to begin with. As a result, we have separated, and will be officially divorced momentarily.
Fortunately, the two of us are parting amicably, and are going to remain good friends. We had believed that we had some time - several months, in fact - to sort through the separation of the physical and financial connections, and we would remain in close physical proximity, with her moving closer to her work and I finding a place in town for myself so I could finally be on my own for the first time in my life.
Fate, on the other hand, had other ideas.
Several issues came up in our current residence that forced us to have to rely on friends for certain necessities, and the place where she worked suddenly closed, forcing her to move hundreds of miles away to maintain her work.
This meant that in short order, our separation period moved from several months to a few months, then from a few months to a few weeks.
The situation, it should go without saying, became very stressful in a hurry, for both of us. She became externally sad and, at times, quite emotional, since her mourning period for this huge loss for both of us was compressed so much so quickly. Blame her, I do not, but it was, and still is, hard to watch her when she starts to fall apart emotionally, knowing there's not a damn thing I can do about it.
I, having never learned to handle my stress well, internalized everything, appearing externally calm, but being a literal ticking time bomb of anger and stress.
As a result, I started to marginalize the friends who were helping us because I believed, ironically, that there were attempting to marginalize me. I, who was on the verge of losing my best friend to a faraway job, began to fear that my other friends were going to shut me out and, as a result, pushed them away so that they did eventually shut me out.
Fortunately, I did have other friends who were able to help afterward, but I wanted it to be said, for the record, that I am completely grateful and appreciative of all my friends for their help, and regret how I dealt with my own life coming apart as it applies to them. I have made attempts to make amends that, thus far, has yielded nothing, nor do I have any assumption that it will.
I have made peace with this, and have decided to move on.
So what now?
Now I have a very large living space that is completely my own (it's a rental, but still...), and I will be writing a lot, since I will likely have a lot of free time. I will continue to write Humanity, Intuition, and Darkness, although the current part may be delayed for a while due to my own issues. (Writing it the first time nearly drove me insane. Rewriting it and incorporating it into this story may make me revisit that.)
I will also be working on my review vlog. I decided to start out with a simple top 10 list to start with to introduce myself and show you what to expect from me as far as attitude and sense of humor.
I will also try to keep up this blog in addition the other one on this site as sort of a bridge between the character you see and the person I am.
I hope this post sufficiently explains where I've been and gives an idea of where I'm going. If not, ask me something by e-mail and I may answer.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
The Darian Hunter Files
Edit: Removed download links because Megaupload.
Since I now have no place to upload this, the links have been removed. I'm slowly adding revamped chapters to my Tumblr account
The Arrogance of Darian Hunter - The start of the new year at North High School brings an enigmatic new observer to the SOS Brigade. But what is he really after? And has he stepped into something bigger than he anticipated?
The Visions of Darian Hunter - After a life-threatening incident, Darian starts to experience clairvoyant visions every night. Who or what is causing them? What do they mean? And will he survive long enough to finally get a good night's sleep?
Humanity, Intuition, and Darkness - A three-tale anthology that wraps up the Darian Hunter arc
Part 1: The Humanity of Haruhi Suzumiya - Haruhi Suzumiya is acting strangely: kind, compassionate, remorseful. Has she lost her mind? ...or something else?
Part 2: The Intuition of Kyon - Darian Hunter is off school sick with the flu... or is he? Kyon digs deeper and learns a secret that could destroy everything!
Part 3: The Darkness of Yuki Nagato - The North High School spring formal is coming, and the SOS Brigade is crashing it! Little do they know that others have the same idea, for less humorous reasons...
I hope that you will enjoy them.
Since there are so, so, SO many franchises and mythoi that this story pulls from, I will use the same blanket copyright notice that I use whenever I post something like this:
All ideas, characters, concepts, et al, are copyright their respective owners as of their most recent copyright date. Challenge to these copyrights is not intended nor should be implied. (This includes me)
Since I now have no place to upload this, the links have been removed. I'm slowly adding revamped chapters to my Tumblr account
The Arrogance of Darian Hunter - The start of the new year at North High School brings an enigmatic new observer to the SOS Brigade. But what is he really after? And has he stepped into something bigger than he anticipated?
The Visions of Darian Hunter - After a life-threatening incident, Darian starts to experience clairvoyant visions every night. Who or what is causing them? What do they mean? And will he survive long enough to finally get a good night's sleep?
Humanity, Intuition, and Darkness - A three-tale anthology that wraps up the Darian Hunter arc
Part 1: The Humanity of Haruhi Suzumiya - Haruhi Suzumiya is acting strangely: kind, compassionate, remorseful. Has she lost her mind? ...or something else?
Part 2: The Intuition of Kyon - Darian Hunter is off school sick with the flu... or is he? Kyon digs deeper and learns a secret that could destroy everything!
Part 3: The Darkness of Yuki Nagato - The North High School spring formal is coming, and the SOS Brigade is crashing it! Little do they know that others have the same idea, for less humorous reasons...
I hope that you will enjoy them.
Since there are so, so, SO many franchises and mythoi that this story pulls from, I will use the same blanket copyright notice that I use whenever I post something like this:
All ideas, characters, concepts, et al, are copyright their respective owners as of their most recent copyright date. Challenge to these copyrights is not intended nor should be implied. (This includes me)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)