11. February 2011 by admin.

Isn’t it wonderful, living in such historic times?  Well, there are good elements of history and then there are bad.  The downfall of Hosni Mubarak is a good element.  It shows promise and hope for a future in this world, something momentous and affirming.  The Egyptian people have taken back their lives and presented a statement to the region that power is granted by the people, not taken by a few chosen ones.  Not a bad start to the year.

Call me an idealist, but for me things began changing as the Soviet Union began to collapse.  This was followed by the destruction of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of the two Germanies.  Imagine, in a few years’ time there will be people who will have never known a divided Germany. 

We’ve seen relative peace break out in North Africa and the Middle East and while our focus has shifted toward central and eastern Asia, things have trended toward a common theme: knowledge begets power.  The knowledge of an incident of corruption and violence in Egypt has ultimately led to the downfall of an autocrat.  Facebook was the rallying point around which hundreds of thousands of Egyptians could coalesce to bring about (relatively) peaceful revolution.

How powerful is this knowledge?  Let’s say that the fear of spreading knowledge has led several countries to restrict the access of its citizens to information in a vain hope of avoiding a similar fate.  But let’s face it, the tide has turned already.  Even in the most impoverished of nations, people have their cell phones and their internet and are able to communicate without the knowledge or consent of their governments.  And even in places like North Korea where the people in power have the populace firmly under their boot, information trickles in.

Information becomes knowledge, knowledge is shared, and soon you have people who view knowledge (and access to information) as a right, not a privilege.  What is even funnier about this scenario is that even the most enlightened countries will have to face their own little revolutions as more people use the information that’s available to develop knowledge and then, to act on it.

Look at what has happened with the whole Wikileaks situation.  We all knew that the United States had its own share of secrets but the sheer volume of information that became available is staggering.  The big concern is that humanity is not yet mature enough to know how to handle this overload of information.  Or that we know how to determine what is fact from hyperbole from fiction.  For me, this means that we, as a world, need to ensure that everyone has full and complete access to unfettered and unbiased education.

I don’t just mean schools.  I mean that every human being has the right to learn how to learn.  This is distinct from learning information since anyone can learn stuff, but learning how to learn is the building block on which the future is built.  Sure, parents want their children to be just like them, believe just like them, but the reality is that every child has the right to choose for themselves.  More and more these days we hear about children diverging from the philosophies and beliefs of their parents, often to a diametrical opposite.  And that is good.  Because I firmly believe that while we all may disagree on how we get there, we all have the same set of goals in mind: peace, prosperity, and security.  And while some of us still think this is a zero sum game where someone has to lose for them to gain, I believe that we will discover that we can all succeed equally, if we choose to work at it.

So the changes in the Middle East are beginning and my heart is singing the possibilities of the future.  Where are we heading?  When will we get there?  I just hope that I am alive to see some of the major events unfold toward a bright and glorious future for all of humanity.  I can’t wait!

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24. December 2010 by admin.

And so, with the flourish of a pen, the President eliminated one of the major barriers to equality for gay men and women: Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.  It’s funny to hear how the right wing fanatics are beating the airwaves with claims that the military will collapse, that we’ll have to reinstitute the draft and that this decision will destroy our ability to rule the world..er..maintain our safety in these troubled times.  Please.  First, by saying these things, you make the United States sound like a weak nation.  How is it that other countries can integrate their militaries but the United States cannot?  I mean, if the British can do it why can’t its former colony?  Are we less than them?  That’s what they will have you believe.

And then there are the claims that suddenly, because they now can come out, gays will be showering with their straight counterparts in the military and sexually assaulting them.  Since there have been gays in the military since there has been a military, I seriously doubt anything will change.  In fact, it may help to alleviate the sexuasl issues that have plagued the military of late, perpetrated, I might add, by straight men against straight women.  The assault cases against cadets in the Air Force academy were not gay.  In fact, if you look at the statistics, gay men and women tend not to be the problem, straight men are the problem.  I don’t hear any call for “outlawing” them.  Ah well.

And then there are the concerns that this is just the first step toward giving gays and lesbians full equality!  Oh, the horror of it!  Soon we’ll have gay marriage and then you’ll be able to marry animals and children will have to grow up knowing there are gay people in the world.  Um…ok.  Why are these people so concerned with me?  Don’t they have their own lives to live?  Don’t they have their own marriages to destroy?  I mean, if marriage is such a sacred institution, then why is divorce allowed?  And why do 50% of marriages fail?  I would suggest that if these people are so afraid of the lives that others live that they begin with their own lives first.  He who is without sin, first stone, ect.  When your house is in order, then you can come and check out mine.  You’ll find it’s cleaner, more organized, and fabulously stylish.  Please!

So, here’s my proposed timeline:  In 2011 we will see the fall of Proposition 8 in California.  Civil Unions will begin the erosion of discrimination against gay marriage which will culminate in the codification of civil marriage sometime in 2013 or so, allowing religious marriage to supplement, but not control, the institution of marriage.  Sounds like a dream but then, the repeal of DADT was once thought to be a fantasy as well.  Here’s to our dreams coming true in our lifetimes!

Posted in Leadership, Gay, Your Rights, Freedom, Politics | No Comments »

3. November 2010 by admin.

And so we come to the end of another political season.  I know for myself and for most friends of mine it couldn’t have come soon enough. Unfortunately we’re going to be hearing a lot of pundits argue semantics about whether this is a referendum on the current president or if this is as I suspect merely a correction in the natural political order.

The fact is, it isn’t good for anybody to have a single political party in power.  And while I, personally, believe that the Democrats didn’t go far enough in achieving their goals, it does the political process good to know that you have to compromise from time to time in order to move your business forward.  Still, I think the problem was going to be that the Republicans will feel emboldened by a string of victories that really has nothing to do with the Republican Party or the Democratic Party, but in fact a general antipathy toward the entire government process.

So, do we really think that much of anything is going to change in Washington?  I’ve been around long enough to know that that will not be the case.  Although, it is my fervent hope that the Republicans will actually begin to stand for something again, instead of falling for anything.  In a recent discussion I had with several friends of mine about the political process, I reiterated my sincere admiration for the political process as it exists in Germany.  Mind you most Western (and some Asian) governments do have a similar democratic structure to them, but as it is here in the United States, too many of these political structures are dominated by one or two parties.  If youWhile the Italians have the same number of political parties as the Germans do, they don’t quite seem to be able to pull together in any fashion to be able to govern appropriately.  Still, it does seem to work for them.  Commentary centered on the fact that there are 3 to 5 major parties and another five or so minority parties and in order for any group to govern, have to enter into alliances and partnerships.  Example that was given was when one of the major parties had to ally itself with the new Greens party in order to form a stable government.  The fact is, the United States doesn’t have the same level of ideological passion that these are the nations do and so instead of trying to develop a party around a specific ideology, we tend to lump ourselves into one of two categories.

The problem with only having a two-party system, is that the parties themselves try to be all things to all people in order to garner the most votes.  Simply put, this does not work.  The fact is that we are too divided to come together under just two banners.  And we, as the people who elect politicians, have to compromise on our own beliefs in order to fit within one of the two political parties.  It also means, that politicians assume that when people vote for them, they are voting for them and their beliefs.  All too often it’s actually the opposite, and they received a vote that was against their competition. 

Still, this is a political system that we have today and until there is the opportunity for the creation of a third and preferably a fourth political party, we will have to figure out how to make the system work for us.  It has been an interesting few months, but I’m glad to see it over.  Now we see the consequences of our actions.

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27. March 2010 by admin.

Can I say that I hate the anger being directed at our politicians in Washington?  How dare these people vent with the hatred and vitriol they have shown, and without regard even to political party!  This is an undirected and misdirected venting that serves no purpose and actually highlights the ignorance and stupidity of the people doing the venting.

Let’s begin with the fact that the people making these decisions in Washington were duly elected by the majority of the voters to represent us in making the laws that govern this nation.  If these people disagree with the decisions of the politicians, they have the right to vote them out of office in the next election.  But to threaten them?  I bet they didn’t even vote in the last election.

And then there was the homemade sign in the back of a BMW 740iL parked next to me at the grocery store this afternoon.  One Big Ass Mistake America.  Oh, funny, taking the name of the President and turning it into a comment.  Let’s see, would that have made him Big Ugly Stupid Hick?  Hey we can all play that game.  But does it serve any purpose?  Once again, venting by attacking the people who were duly elected by the majority of the nation.  Huh.

Does anyone think anymore?  Or is it all just knee-jerk reaction, hatred, vitriol, and stupidity by people upset that their viewpoint lost in the last election.  You know what?  Get over it.  You lost and we won and now it’s your turn to sit and watch as the nation heads in a direction you don’t like.  I happen to think that we are heading in the right direction…well, our politicians are, some of our people are definitely heading in the wrong direction.  Wonder if they happen to be Republicans or used-to-be-Republicans-but-they-were-too-liberal-Tea-Partiers.  Huh.

Let’s get back to honest and open dialog with an understanding that the loser has to accept reality and not attack those who represent us in government.  Debate, I can work with.  Hate hurts everyone.

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23. March 2010 by admin.

Well, the landmark legislation has been passed and is being signed by the President today.  I, for one, am looking forward to a time when I won’t be denied coverage because I now have a pre-existing condition.  And I do hope to change jobs in the future and I don’t want to be afraid of losing my insurance as a result.  If people would just look at the provisions of the bill, they would see that it is a major step in the right direction.

Oh, and to those who decry its cost, where were you when the previous administration was spending $1 billion a day on an unnecessary war and to pad the pocketbooks of their profiteering cronies with no-bid contracts?  Besides, you do realize that we already pay this price in a hidden manner through higher costs for healthcare, don’t you?  Oh, right, remember who I am talking to.  Never mind, the money magically appears.

And to those who claim the Federal government can’t make you do anything, remember that they already regulate most everything so they have a means of doing it if they choose to.  Health care is a societal cost and its about damn time we benefit from our spending!  I am glad we’ve made it happen in my lifetime!

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29. September 2007 by Rob.

I had a little incident the other day with a woman who is devoutly religious, one of those “born again” Christian women who always say “amen” as a punctuation mark.  While in normal conversation I tend to ignore the overtly religious implications of her thoughts, tending to be of the “everyone has the right to their opinion” variety of person, this time she went too far.

She was agitated because two women tried to get a marriage license here in Denver and were denied.  They protested by sit-in and were arrested for trespassing.  Not entirely an uncommon event but something which was always occurring in other states, at least she thought it couldn’t happen here.

The comment which triggered my little diatribe was when she said that god had created marriage to be between one man and one woman.  Hold the phone.  God did not create marriage, man did.  In fact, if you look at marriage throughout the ages, you find that religion was either not involved until sometime around the middle ages or was only for the wealthy and powerful.  Now I have to apologize to anyone who has already recognized that this is a christian-centric thought because that, unfortunately, is the primary bias against which I have to fight.  I know a bit about other religions and apologize that my remarks tend to be a bit generic here, but they can and do apply to other religions, just not all of them.

Anyway, I asked her where she got the idea that marriage was created by god and she said that it had always been that way.  I then asked if Adam and Eve were married which seemed to startle her.  I said, there is no record in the bible of god ever marrying the two of them.  I then asked if there was marriage in the time of Jesus and she said “of course.”  You mean when the family of a girl (usually 12 to 15 and worthless to the family) was offered to the lucky family that had a son (usually much older)  along with a major bribe - in the form of a dowry - just so they could unify the two families?  You mean when the woman traded her father’s name for her husband’s since she was considered little more than property?  You mean when only the wealthiest or most powerful individuals had those unions “blessed” by the priests?  Did you know that the sacrament of matrimony is only about a thousand years old?

She went still, this wild look of shock on her face as I pounded truth after truth into the argument. You see, she had been converted by someone who told her that everything in the bible was true and she willingly believed it.  But when confronted with the truth, she was unable to process it.  I asked her how two women getting married could, in any way shape or form, harm her marriage.  She roused long enough to answer with the expected phrase: it diminishes the institution of marriage.

She was nervous when I laughed and responded.  So the strength of your marriage depends entirely on whether or not people you dislike are allowed to have the same rights and privileges that you have?  I would think that divorce, infidelity, and the ability to get married quickly would diminish marriage, not simply allowing two men or two women to be bonded in love.  You make it sound like a country club where you don’t want any of “those” people invited.

She was a little flustered and I could see that her mind was spinning.  It’s not nice to toss a little chaos into the rigidly structured minds of  people who rely on religion to determine their lives.  But sometimes you need to open the window and allow a little fresh air in.  Don’t ever claim anything as absolute when there is conflicting and contradictory evidence for something else out there.  And please don’t ever attack me personally.  You get me started and I won’t stop until I have completely destroyed your position.  You see, this little thing called truth?  She’s a powerful bitch!

Posted in Religion, Your Rights, Freedom | No Comments »

25. September 2007 by Rob.

The “him” I refer to is Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.  And the stories over the past few days have come fast and furious.  From the initial outcry over Columbia University’s hosting him to the comments he made at the United Nations, Americans really haven’t followed the true meaning behind these events.

The fact is that his participation in the event at Columbia University was necessary to prove the true power of democracy.  I was astounded and gratefully amazed at the University President’s comments which challenged President Ahmadinejad views.  And Ahmadinejad’s reaction and subsequent fall was the most perfect example of why this effort had significant value.  The derision he was met with when he stated that there were no gays in Iran is not something he is used to.  But he, and the world, need to see that true democracy allows idiots to spout their lies and fallacies but to also be challenged for them.  He couldn’t defend his views and so he lost, a true victory.

Unfortunately, those people who protested his appearance, while they have the full right to do so, obviously didn’t get it.  They didn’t want him to have the right to speak his piece in a forum where people could choose to be…or not.   If he had been barred from participating, then, remarkably enough, his views would have been validated because we would not be living in a democracy.  If the protesters had been there to challenge his views, then I feel they would have been valid.  But to seek to deny him the opportunity to speak?  I suggest you read the Constitution of the United States again.  And thank your lucky stars that we have not (yet) fallen from that ideal.

Posted in Your Rights, Freedom, International, Politics | No Comments »