Announcement: Good. The need for one: Bad

So, a male professional athlete in the United States came out today and said that his sexual orientation is homosexual and not heterosexual. It was a huge announcement, and one that most people hope will now be made by others that feel the same way. But to me, while this is a good day, it is also a sad day. The simple fact that an announcement had to be made, and will have to be made in the future, shows what a strange, closed-minded, fearful society we live in. Why does it matter what a person's sexual orientation is? Why, is it okay for a male to hit on, to try and have sex with, as many women as he can, but a man can't have a monogamous relationship with another man? I don't understand that thinking. And no, my sexual orientation is not homosexual, or bi-sexual for that matter. But, when you started reading this, did you think I was? Does it matter to you what my orientation is? If so, why? If I don't flaunt my sexuality, or force myself on anyone, what does it matter? That's right, it doesn't.

So, announcement was made today that a male professional athlete is attracted to men, and not women. It took a great deal of courage, and I applaud him for his stand. But I'll applaud even more when the day comes when an announcement isn't made, when the day comes when it really doesn't matter what your sexual orientation is. In my mind, the announcement was a good thing. But the fact that one is even need is a very bad thing.      

Washington shows its disdain for regular people.

Every politician in Washington, on both sides of the aisle, should be completely ashamed of themselves after the action they took today. They won't be, of course. But they showed they really don't care about people, families, or kids. So what did they do to arouse my anger? Well, actually, they took steps to resolve a problem. But in doing this, they showed how little they care about everyday people.

After less than a week of delays at airports, the Senate and the House passed a bill to stop the furloughs brought on by the sequestration. The business people spoke, and in no time a bill was passed to relieve their pain. But what about the cuts to programs like Head Start and Meals-On-Wheels? What about the cuts that will take teachers out of the classrooms and takes cops and fire fighters off the street? Nothing could be done to restore those cuts? Of course not, since there's no big money from any of those groups lining the pockets of politicians.

Washington showed their disdain for regular people today, and I for one plan on returning the favor back at those who are cutting vital services. Will you?

The spiral down to the right continues for the GOP.

The GOP just can't seem to find a safe place to stop when it comes to their spiral down to the far right side. Whether it is Glenn Beck stating that it was really a Saudi Arabian man that set the bombs at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, and that the Obama Administration was harboring him, or Ann Coulter saying that the wife of one of the bombers should be jailed for believing in Islam, the political pundits in the GOP can't move far enough right. But don't worry, the politicians aren't far behind. GOP Congressmen have said that if your plane takes a while to take-off, or is late landing, it's the President's fault. So he follows a law that you signed and it's only his fault? You stated that sequestration wouldn't cause any problems, and now that it does, you don't look for a solution, you just blame the other side.
Just when I think the GOP has been pulled as far right as it can get, it seems that the spiral down and to the right just keeps on going. At least it isn't the tail wagging the dog. It's the whole dog doing whatever the tail on the right wants.      

During times of tragedy, GOP can still be cold and crass.

It doesn't matter how bad things get in America, at least we can be sure of one thing: The GOP will will act in a cold, crass, and completely illogical way.

First, GOP Representative Peter King said that the Boston Marathon bombs shows the need for police to forget about "political correctness" and to start targeting Muslims. What? So, let me get this straight. Two youths born in Chechnya (part of Russia), 10 years after immigrating here with their family,  plant the bombs that killed those people, and he wants to target all Muslim? Is the anything but cold, crass, and illogical? Well, yes, it's also pandering to the base of the GOP, but to the Representative, that's really the point. Pander to the far right GOP.

Then, after the horrific explosion at a fertilizer plant in West, Texas, Texas GOP Senator Ted Cruz quickly requested federal aid. So, what makes this request in any way cold, crass, or illogical? Well, on its face, absolutely nothing. But remember that Senator Cruz belongs to a group in the GOP that has stated that both the EPA and OSHA need to have their budgets slashed, if not completely defunded and eliminated. Then, it must be remembered that Senator Cruz voted against federal aid for the victims of Hurricane Sandy. So, is federal aid okay for man-made disasters but not natural ones? Or is it not okay a liberal part of America, but fine for a conservative part? Or is federal aid fine for people you represent and no one else? No matter how you slice it, it is a cold, crass and illogical way of looking at things.

The last week has seen some horrible acts, both man-made, even if in completely different ways. But it's good to know that even in times of tragedy, the GOP will keep a steady and even keel: To be as cold, crass, and illogical as ever.        

What's the difference when 3 people die and 26 die? The GOP and the NRA.

I am not surprised by almost anything the GOP the does these days. For many years, I've seen them go farther and farther right. So most of what they do now doesn't surprise me. That's the main reason why I haven't wrote much lately. So what got me writing today? The sheer audacity and stupidity of both the GOP and the NRA.

After the horrific action Monday in Boston, there were of course the the voices in the far right-wing of American politics, in other words the GOP mainstream, that immediately wanted all Muslim interrogated. There were those even farther right that wanted all Arabs in Boston brought to a police station and jailed. And everyone, in every range of politics, wanted to get to the bottom of it and see how the next bomb could be stopped. How many people died in Boston? 3 But then Wednesday afternoon, the Senate voted down a bill would require background checks to buy a gun. Not take any guns away, not making gun trafficking between states illegal. Simple background checks. This bill was in response to 26 people getting shot and killed in an elementary school, Sandy Hook. Does that makes sense to anyone?

3 people get killed in Boston Monday, and the government will move mountains to ensure it won't happen again. 26 people die by a gunman and the Senate does nothing. Hey Senate, you want to try to tell me again why you won't act on guns? Oh, that's right, you're in the NRA's pocket. Actually, this doesn't surprise me. either. But the pure hypocrisy and stupidity of both the NRA and the GOP did get me to write again.  

Rand Paul, and the GOP, misses the point.

Senator Rand Paul went to Howard University and gave a speech followed by question and answer session. Now, while that sentence doesn't sound scary or strange, weird or bizarre, but in fact, it kind of was all of those things. Why? Well, let me change the sentence to this: A white Senator from Kentucky, who has spoken out against parts of the Civil Rights Act, went to a predominately black college to give a speech and take part in a question and answer session. And while I give Senator Paul high marks for going and giving the speech, I give the students of the university even higher marks. And not for the reason most people would think.
During his speech, Senator Paul asked the students which party had the greatest hand in the formation of the NAACP, and they correctly said Republicans. Yes, the people who started the NAACP were mostly Republicans. And while the students knew this, Senator Paul had to admit that he didn't. But then he made it sound like the black students there had a natural place in the Republican Party, in the GOP. He didn't say that the it's the GOP that has changed so much that for the majority of the students at Howard University have nothing in common with it. It's the GOP that's changed, not the wants, needs, or desires of young black students. Sorry Senator, but you missed the point completely. But in truth, that isn't the point I'm talking about.
Senator Paul's main point in his speech, and the central point in his political beliefs, is that people have the right to do what they want, and the government has no right to limit that freedom. And in some ways, this the central point in today's GOP. This is why the GOP believes in almost everything they have in their plank, from no regulations on businesses, to their attempt to overturn Universal Health Care, to the desire to have taxes as low as possible. But they miss the point, which is that the country's main tenet is that all men are created equal, and that each citizen has the right to be the best  person that they can be. And to ensure this happens, everyone must have the same opportunity as everyone else. And to do that, some people need help to get started, while others will need help later in life. How does this happen? By leveling the playing filed with things like regulations and a progressive tax plan. And for that you need a national government that things like that happen, and that people in Alabama and Mississippi and Kansas have the same chance to succeed as those in states like California and New York.
Senator Rand Paul gave a speech at Howard University, and missed the point in several points. But that shouldn't be a surprise, as Senator Paul, as well as the entire GOP, have missed the true point in the founding of our country.                

How bad does the USA look to the world?

While I know that a lot of people, especially Tea Party followers, don't care how the rest of the world thinks of America, I just wonder how we are viewed now. And I'm not only wondering about the person in the street, but I wonder how we are being seen by other governments, too.

There are governments that will hate America no matter what we do, but it's our friends that I wonder about. While Europe is headed to another recession, due to austerity budgets, they watch as one entire political party and one branch of government bash them for their morals while following them done the same monetary path. They must watch and wonder how actions to limit guns, while all approved by a majority of Americans, can't even get voted upon in Congress due to the obscene amount of money in politics. They watch as Tea Party leaders bash entire countries for their religious laws, their complete disdain for those who don't follow their beliefs, and their acts against women. This while those same leaders are trying to enact laws here in America that would enshrine Christian beliefs as law, try to keep millions from voting in an attempt to throw elections their way, and attempt to take women's rights away from them with laws outlawing all abortions.

When Tea Party Senators and Congressmen go to other counties, they represent America. And as they bash other countries while doing the same thing here, I wonder how bad they and all of America looks to not only the people in that country but of the people in the government. How good can they actually look, and as a consequence, how good can we look? Not very good, I imagine.      

This is a different GOP? Where?

In the last few weeks, the GOP has said that they need to show more compassion, to show they care about minorities and women. This was after their autopsy (Don't you have to be dead to have an autopsy?) form the 2012 election was revealed. So how are they doing?

Well, in the last few weeks, two state legislatures, both GOP-dominated, have tried to make abortions harder to get, while other states have tried to get rid of the single womens' clinic in their state. Then, the Kansas Legislature, again dominated by the GOP, approved a budget moving the state away from an income-based tax system to a product-based tax system, making it the most regressive state tax system in the country. Then a GOP Congressman called Mexicans who used to work on this father's farm a derogatory term. Although he apologized, the ease in which he said the word was simply thoroughly disgusting. Then, another GOP Congressman stated on a Sunday show that big donors would have to realize that Congressmen had franchises that they had to attend to. No Congressman, you district isn't a franchise, they are the people who elected you. In other words, they're your boss.

The GOP have said they need to change, to show their compassionate side more. If there's a different GOP than the 2012 model, where is it? They haven't shown anything other than the same contempt for people that they have had recently. And I'm not holding my breath waiting for them to start now.