I am just excited for the BYU football players (who happen to be mostly Tongan, 400 lbs and over 21 years old) to scare those U of U players (who happen to be all freshman and completely breakable) with the Haka.
They even scare little me. =D
18 November 2008
three days and counting
It's that time of the year again. It's November, the air is cold, the leaves are falling, and the statues on and around BYU campus are covered in saran wrap. The big game is approaching. BYU (the Lord's University..hahaha) against U of U--that one up in Salt Lake City. (By the way, the saran wrap is to protect the statues from evil U of U pranks that might include spray paint or other types of materials that could ruin them =D).
I am just excited for the BYU football players (who happen to be mostly Tongan, 400 lbs and over 21 years old) to scare those U of U players (who happen to be all freshman and completely breakable) with the Haka.
They even scare little me. =D
I am just excited for the BYU football players (who happen to be mostly Tongan, 400 lbs and over 21 years old) to scare those U of U players (who happen to be all freshman and completely breakable) with the Haka.
They even scare little me. =D
twilight premiere
My dear sister Marie, as I believe I have stated before, is spoiled. =D She went to the Twilight Premiere festivities in Westwood last night. Granted, she did not have a ticket. But her (and her friends) intent was to just see the actors and actresses of the movie and enjoy the night life. Now as a 16-year old obsessed with Twilight, of course she was decked out in Twilight stuff--apparently enough so to get attention. So much attention, in fact, that msn.com decided to write an article in which my sister, Marie Sheranian, is quoted. (http://movies.msn.com/movies/article.aspx/?news=340080).
"Marie Sheranian, 16, and Brianna Matheson, 17, came from Simi Valley, Calif., to catch a glimpse of Pattinson, the 22-year-old actor who became a heartthrob after winning the role of Edward. The two "Twilight" fans created T-shirts professing their devotion for Pattinson and brought crates to stand on in hopes of seeing the actor's face — or even the top of his hair — from above the crowd.
'My heart is gonna explode,' Sheranian said from atop a crate."
My first reaction was pure laughter followed by the thought "How embarrassing." Afterwhich, I emailed the link to my parents and my sister Sarah and a few other people to enjoy as well. In addition, I texted Marie to see if she knew that she was in an article. She was not aware of this, apparent by her answer: "Omgomgomgomg!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ahhhhh!!!!!!!!!" (I have not altered the number of exclamation points or letters used). However, she did say Brianna (the other girl, a friend of Marie's) was the one that actually said that quote. Which makes me feel a little bit better that my sister is not over-the-top obsessive. Marie was excited to find out she was "quoted" but would have preferred to have had it quoted correctly, since it does make her seem like a love-sick teenager---which she is.
"Marie Sheranian, 16, and Brianna Matheson, 17, came from Simi Valley, Calif., to catch a glimpse of Pattinson, the 22-year-old actor who became a heartthrob after winning the role of Edward. The two "Twilight" fans created T-shirts professing their devotion for Pattinson and brought crates to stand on in hopes of seeing the actor's face — or even the top of his hair — from above the crowd.
'My heart is gonna explode,' Sheranian said from atop a crate."
My first reaction was pure laughter followed by the thought "How embarrassing." Afterwhich, I emailed the link to my parents and my sister Sarah and a few other people to enjoy as well. In addition, I texted Marie to see if she knew that she was in an article. She was not aware of this, apparent by her answer: "Omgomgomgomg!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ahhhhh!!!!!!!!!" (I have not altered the number of exclamation points or letters used). However, she did say Brianna (the other girl, a friend of Marie's) was the one that actually said that quote. Which makes me feel a little bit better that my sister is not over-the-top obsessive. Marie was excited to find out she was "quoted" but would have preferred to have had it quoted correctly, since it does make her seem like a love-sick teenager---which she is.
13 November 2008
perpetuating hate and discrimination
Author: Jill (last name unknown)
Subject: you are perpetuating hate and discrimination
"I'm Mormon and I don't hate any group of people or any person for that matter. This link you put on your site: http://www.mormonsstoleourrights.com/ is so objectionable. You know as well as anyone that any person can put together lies on the web without validation. That site is full of lies. You are perpetuating prejudice and hate.
I've enjoyed your blog over the past 2-3 years and really thought that although you were sometimes a tad cruel that you did it all in fun and with a sense of humor and that you had a good heart (as demonstrated by your many attempts to get people to donate to different charities). Now, I have to say, that I don't want to have any part of your "success" and your 9 million pageviews/day (or whatever # it is up to). You have a lot of power to influence people and what they see and read and you are using that power to preach hatred.
Population of California Residents: 38,000,000
California Mormon population: 750,000
California Catholic population: 10,906,992
Democrats in California: 61.01% 6,308,015
Republicans in California: 37.21% 3,849,023
(Mormons are overwhelmingly Conservatives)
The statistics above show clearly that if every Mormon in the state of California voted Yes, and everyone else voted no, the no's would win. This of course suggests that simply the vast majority of all of Californians voted yes again to keep the concept of marriage, a union between a man and a woman with one of the major goals of procreating and solidifying their union with a child or children.
By being homosexual, as far as I understand it, and please tell me if I am wrong, you go into it with your eyes wide open: No marriage, no offspring, and no tax benefits. You are all basically trying to change the very definition of the word marriage to include something that it has never been. That is like going to an American school and being upset because they don't teach in German-- Ordering a steak and being upset that a chicken dish did not show up at your plate-- Flying on a plane and being upset that you are so high in the sky, and for you Californian's, it is like surfing and being mad that it is wet. The argument seems so absurd.
Webster perhaps said it best, MARRIAGE: the social institution under which a man and woman establish their decision to live as husband and wife by legal commitments, religious ceremonies, etc. (Did you know that a straight couple cannot obtain a License of Civil Union? Thus far, there has not been one complaint among them. Perhaps you should picket libraries or Webster's heir's houses.)
To pick one religion that happens to have a difference of opinion than your own flies in the face of everything that you all claim to believe in: the goal of a world where all are accepted for what they are, religion and gays included. You are gay, good for you. Catholics are Catholics and Mormons are Mormons, good for them. There is no benefit to the society of the Earth or the groups whom are gay to pronounce upon them the ability to marry another than that is just what you want. You sound like spoiled rotten kids who are not getting what they want.
You live in the most accepting of gays and lesbian society that has ever existed in all of history. You have every right that everyone else has and the level of persecution that you experience is less than ever before, yet you find ways of poking at the fire. You were granted civil unions and can see loved ones in their hospital rooms and bequeath all of your possessions to each other and adopt children and display yourselves in all your glory in clubs, parades, government, politics, newspapers, websites, etc. It just seems that you will never be happy until and unless you are successful in destroying the very culture that made all the above rights possible; this seems cannibalistic on some level. We have fought for and many have died for the rights that you now enjoy, but this agenda of unsatisfactorily depicting the Mormons for all of your woes is absurd and perpetuates hate on every level. Hypocrisy, at times, creeps silently; this is not one of those times.
You have every right to picket and speak your mind according to your desires, but to openly display the disgusting behavior that I witnessed on the news in front of what the Mormons believe to be one of the most holy places on earth, screams volumes of the level of class that you must possess. I liken it to a war protester shouting over the preacher at a military funeral while the family cries over their loss, or defecating on a Buddhist temple. I am not in the military and I am not Buddhist, but class is class and no class is not cool.
It just seems that your first battle would be more judiciously prudent to focus on obtaining better rights and expanded acceptance of civil unions before you attempt to do away with Santa and trick-or-treating.
To suggest that a religion should lose their tax exempt status is a very slippery slope, one that could backfire without impunity. Mormons do not preach politics from the pulpit and the only money they spent on this entire issue is the amount it cost to fly a few dignitaries to an interview. The quotes that I have heard that the church has spent tens of millions of dollars on this Prop 8 issue is absurd. Ironically you referenced one Mormon, Steve Young's wife, who spent 50k against it (your side) and although you attempted to reference every other fact with varying degrees of success (mostly irrelevant and capricious) you failed to reference any documentation on any facts pertaining to the Church spending a dime on this issue. To suggest that you, as a group, have determined that this is the issue of issues in a time when everything in the country is falling apart, again screams volumes. Every moral fiber that seems to be in the gay and lesbian population seems to simply be to buck the system and cause controversy, convey hatred, decry inequality and reverse all of our traditions. This is deplorable. At some point you are simply taking a Machiavellian approach that will ultimately do more harm than good to your cause.
To begin to suggest that the history of the Mormons in this country can be compared to the plight of the gay community is laughable. The Mormons are one of the first true American religions (meaning it was started here). They defined the original Bill of Rights in their actions and for it were murdered, hunted and had hundreds of millions of dollars of cash, land and property stolen by individuals, cities, counties, states and even the military of the U.S. and were forced to flea out of the country to Mexico (Utah now) just to survive. At the time the concept of polygamy was not new and not illegal. When it became illegal, instead of being grandfathered in like in every other situation before and since would have been, those who practiced it, (Not even close to being all Mormons) were again forced to abandon their children and wives, or leave the country to Old Mexico (where it was not illegal). The Mormons are a God fearing, law abiding group of people who have risen to the highest levels of every political affiliation and office and every industry on earth. They have become the 4th largest religion in America, and spend more on relief than any other religion on Earth and have been persecuted to the nth degree for it. They also have one more claim to fame for being one of the most persecuted people in American history, right up there with the American slaves, and yet they happen to be the only persecuted people that has never requested, hinted, or demanded reparations for what they went through. Talk about speaking volumes...
It is disturbing that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is being singled out for speaking up as part of its democratic right in a free election.
Members of the Church in California and millions of others from every faith, ethnicity and political affiliation who voted for Proposition 8 exercised the most sacrosanct and individual rights in the United States -- that of free expression and voting.
While those who disagree with our position on Proposition 8 have the right to make their feelings known, it is wrong to target the Church and its sacred places of worship for being part of the democratic process.
Once again, we call on those involved in the debate over same-sex marriage to act in a spirit of mutual respect and civility towards each other. No one on either side of the question should be vilified, harassed or subject to erroneous information.
Please see the Catholic Church's opinion on the subject:
http://www.sltrib.com/ci_10937437
I know you do not care that one Mormon will never view your website again, but I definitely felt like I had to say something.
Jill
I don't have much to say, but it makes me sick that this is just one of the many members of the church who have had to stand up for our right to believe as we do, and to vote as we did. There has been so much slander, hatred and erroneous remarks and calumny that has been thrown our way since the election's outcome. And it is so disappointing that the opposing sides can't disagree in a more modern, tolerant, accepting manner--the same manner in which the gay community wishes to be accepted--the same manner in which every other minority in America still wishes to be accepted. In the same moment of history when the United States of America shows the world that we can vote overwhelmingly for a black president, we find that the same problems that caused oppression and delayed Civil Rights are still alive and strong. Voting for President-elect Obama was just one small step forward. And then there was a small step backwards with the unfortunate, violent events following the passing of prop 8.
Subject: you are perpetuating hate and discrimination
"I'm Mormon and I don't hate any group of people or any person for that matter. This link you put on your site: http://www.mormonsstoleourrights.com/ is so objectionable. You know as well as anyone that any person can put together lies on the web without validation. That site is full of lies. You are perpetuating prejudice and hate.
I've enjoyed your blog over the past 2-3 years and really thought that although you were sometimes a tad cruel that you did it all in fun and with a sense of humor and that you had a good heart (as demonstrated by your many attempts to get people to donate to different charities). Now, I have to say, that I don't want to have any part of your "success" and your 9 million pageviews/day (or whatever # it is up to). You have a lot of power to influence people and what they see and read and you are using that power to preach hatred.
Population of California Residents: 38,000,000
California Mormon population: 750,000
California Catholic population: 10,906,992
Democrats in California: 61.01% 6,308,015
Republicans in California: 37.21% 3,849,023
(Mormons are overwhelmingly Conservatives)
The statistics above show clearly that if every Mormon in the state of California voted Yes, and everyone else voted no, the no's would win. This of course suggests that simply the vast majority of all of Californians voted yes again to keep the concept of marriage, a union between a man and a woman with one of the major goals of procreating and solidifying their union with a child or children.
By being homosexual, as far as I understand it, and please tell me if I am wrong, you go into it with your eyes wide open: No marriage, no offspring, and no tax benefits. You are all basically trying to change the very definition of the word marriage to include something that it has never been. That is like going to an American school and being upset because they don't teach in German-- Ordering a steak and being upset that a chicken dish did not show up at your plate-- Flying on a plane and being upset that you are so high in the sky, and for you Californian's, it is like surfing and being mad that it is wet. The argument seems so absurd.
Webster perhaps said it best, MARRIAGE: the social institution under which a man and woman establish their decision to live as husband and wife by legal commitments, religious ceremonies, etc. (Did you know that a straight couple cannot obtain a License of Civil Union? Thus far, there has not been one complaint among them. Perhaps you should picket libraries or Webster's heir's houses.)
To pick one religion that happens to have a difference of opinion than your own flies in the face of everything that you all claim to believe in: the goal of a world where all are accepted for what they are, religion and gays included. You are gay, good for you. Catholics are Catholics and Mormons are Mormons, good for them. There is no benefit to the society of the Earth or the groups whom are gay to pronounce upon them the ability to marry another than that is just what you want. You sound like spoiled rotten kids who are not getting what they want.
You live in the most accepting of gays and lesbian society that has ever existed in all of history. You have every right that everyone else has and the level of persecution that you experience is less than ever before, yet you find ways of poking at the fire. You were granted civil unions and can see loved ones in their hospital rooms and bequeath all of your possessions to each other and adopt children and display yourselves in all your glory in clubs, parades, government, politics, newspapers, websites, etc. It just seems that you will never be happy until and unless you are successful in destroying the very culture that made all the above rights possible; this seems cannibalistic on some level. We have fought for and many have died for the rights that you now enjoy, but this agenda of unsatisfactorily depicting the Mormons for all of your woes is absurd and perpetuates hate on every level. Hypocrisy, at times, creeps silently; this is not one of those times.
You have every right to picket and speak your mind according to your desires, but to openly display the disgusting behavior that I witnessed on the news in front of what the Mormons believe to be one of the most holy places on earth, screams volumes of the level of class that you must possess. I liken it to a war protester shouting over the preacher at a military funeral while the family cries over their loss, or defecating on a Buddhist temple. I am not in the military and I am not Buddhist, but class is class and no class is not cool.
It just seems that your first battle would be more judiciously prudent to focus on obtaining better rights and expanded acceptance of civil unions before you attempt to do away with Santa and trick-or-treating.
To suggest that a religion should lose their tax exempt status is a very slippery slope, one that could backfire without impunity. Mormons do not preach politics from the pulpit and the only money they spent on this entire issue is the amount it cost to fly a few dignitaries to an interview. The quotes that I have heard that the church has spent tens of millions of dollars on this Prop 8 issue is absurd. Ironically you referenced one Mormon, Steve Young's wife, who spent 50k against it (your side) and although you attempted to reference every other fact with varying degrees of success (mostly irrelevant and capricious) you failed to reference any documentation on any facts pertaining to the Church spending a dime on this issue. To suggest that you, as a group, have determined that this is the issue of issues in a time when everything in the country is falling apart, again screams volumes. Every moral fiber that seems to be in the gay and lesbian population seems to simply be to buck the system and cause controversy, convey hatred, decry inequality and reverse all of our traditions. This is deplorable. At some point you are simply taking a Machiavellian approach that will ultimately do more harm than good to your cause.
To begin to suggest that the history of the Mormons in this country can be compared to the plight of the gay community is laughable. The Mormons are one of the first true American religions (meaning it was started here). They defined the original Bill of Rights in their actions and for it were murdered, hunted and had hundreds of millions of dollars of cash, land and property stolen by individuals, cities, counties, states and even the military of the U.S. and were forced to flea out of the country to Mexico (Utah now) just to survive. At the time the concept of polygamy was not new and not illegal. When it became illegal, instead of being grandfathered in like in every other situation before and since would have been, those who practiced it, (Not even close to being all Mormons) were again forced to abandon their children and wives, or leave the country to Old Mexico (where it was not illegal). The Mormons are a God fearing, law abiding group of people who have risen to the highest levels of every political affiliation and office and every industry on earth. They have become the 4th largest religion in America, and spend more on relief than any other religion on Earth and have been persecuted to the nth degree for it. They also have one more claim to fame for being one of the most persecuted people in American history, right up there with the American slaves, and yet they happen to be the only persecuted people that has never requested, hinted, or demanded reparations for what they went through. Talk about speaking volumes...
It is disturbing that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is being singled out for speaking up as part of its democratic right in a free election.
Members of the Church in California and millions of others from every faith, ethnicity and political affiliation who voted for Proposition 8 exercised the most sacrosanct and individual rights in the United States -- that of free expression and voting.
While those who disagree with our position on Proposition 8 have the right to make their feelings known, it is wrong to target the Church and its sacred places of worship for being part of the democratic process.
Once again, we call on those involved in the debate over same-sex marriage to act in a spirit of mutual respect and civility towards each other. No one on either side of the question should be vilified, harassed or subject to erroneous information.
Please see the Catholic Church's opinion on the subject:
http://www.sltrib.com/ci_10937437
I know you do not care that one Mormon will never view your website again, but I definitely felt like I had to say something.
Jill
I don't have much to say, but it makes me sick that this is just one of the many members of the church who have had to stand up for our right to believe as we do, and to vote as we did. There has been so much slander, hatred and erroneous remarks and calumny that has been thrown our way since the election's outcome. And it is so disappointing that the opposing sides can't disagree in a more modern, tolerant, accepting manner--the same manner in which the gay community wishes to be accepted--the same manner in which every other minority in America still wishes to be accepted. In the same moment of history when the United States of America shows the world that we can vote overwhelmingly for a black president, we find that the same problems that caused oppression and delayed Civil Rights are still alive and strong. Voting for President-elect Obama was just one small step forward. And then there was a small step backwards with the unfortunate, violent events following the passing of prop 8.
aftermath of yes on prop 8
By Lara Kerr
November 6, 2008
"Ah, the lessons we learn about ourselves when we are in pain. Hundreds of thousands of "no on 8-ers" are puzzled and hurting, struck by what they perceive as a resounding slap. In utter sincerity, they ask, "Where is the harm in it?" They cannot see the pitfalls, and because they can't, they shrink in revulsion and swallow the proffered lie that a "yes on 8" vote means a "no" vote for gays as people. Their painful question resounds: "Where's the harm?"
Yet less than 48 hours since Proposition 8 passed in California , the answers to that plaintive question begin to emerge. A people who've longed to be seen as harmless and peaceable came forth en masse and disturbed the peace of those who also voted from their hearts, just as passionately, and with just the same desire to promote right. With the first angrily-scrawled picket sign, ugly seeds were strewn; and they're quickly taking root.
Heedless of the needs of innocent drivers and their schedules and worries, people swarmed into the street, effectively proclaiming, "My needs trump yours". That was a small selfishness, but it was a beginning. It grew. Police resources were siphoned away from averting existing dangers, and who can catalog the pain that ensued when cries for help went unanswered, or when help was delayed?
Some protestors marched on the short access road to private property: a holy place for millions, some of whom chose to vote no on 8. The crowd spat. They profaned. They shouted and raged, but no matter, because the people they bullied disagree with them. And so it became acceptable to mock and malign.
They came back the next day, emboldened and angry, although there had been no retaliation, no rebuttal in kind. (In fact, the opposing campaign was markedly void of contention, derision, or hate.) Shrieking and hurling obscenities, even making a mockery of things sacred to others, they flung their vitriol at peaceable people who spoke no ugliness but who simply stood up for their beliefs and voted their consciences.
Watching the news, we could quickly see the harm; and nothing in their behavior demonstrated anything else but the intent to force into our lives their "rights', even if those rights infringe on children's rights to innocence, parents' rights to teach the things they embrace as sacred, or workers' rights to refuse to perform actions and speak words that are in violation of their beliefs. It speaks volumes when someone, even in rage and pain, is capable of viciousness, of force. In the moment that they turned their anger into active, undulating hatred, their true colors emerged. If within hours of an election people use brute force and intimidation to further their agenda, then what else will they do? What else will they demand? Who else will they terrorize into compliance? The forecast is tragedy.
If people are so quick to denigrate, deride, and blame an entire ethnicity that was but a tiny part of a vote, then what hypocrisy! The insistence on silencing those of opposing views borders on fascism. I stand stunned, because this mob mentality is in stark contrast to the gentleness I thought I'd felt from the gay community. So, to those who sincerely ask, "Where's the harm?" I answer sadly, 'It's in the headlines'."
I agree with Lara Kerr. But I also have to add my feelings towards the gay community. I am not gay. But I am trying to understand and be empathetic towards those who voted no on proposition 8. I know that many are feeling pain and anger because of the outcome. I know that they voted no on prop 8 with the same conviction and passion as those who voted yes. And I want to respect their vote and their pain. But I am torn, because although I respect their pain and even their anger, I don't respect the consequenting actions against my religion and against my personal right to vote.
I have been called a bigot more than once by those voting no on 8. And yet, my response is, "Who is the bigot?"--I think that gays should have the right to be gay. They should have the same standard rights of a married heterosexual couple. They should have the right to vote and express their feelings. But when that same gay community for which I respect, tries to force their beliefs down my throat and make it impossible for me to vote and believe the way I want to believe, my respect for those angry people goes out the window. They have the right to protest, even to begin to work on a way to overthrow the election's outcome. But they do not have the right to suffocate our belief system. Again, who is being the bigot? The person peaceably voting as they believe and, after winning, celebrating silently without rubbing in a victory that makes us want to dance in the streets? Or is it the person forcing their beliefs down another's throat instead of agreeing to disagree and even further, disrespecting the majority vote by targeting specific minority groups who voted yes and daring to belittle their sacred beliefs? I may not agree with the gay community. I may not agree with their lifestyle. But I would not attempt to make them feel insignificant; to make them feel less like a human being; to belittle their right as a citizen of the United States to believe and vote as they choose to. If it seems that that was my intention by voting yes, you are wrong. I voted as I thought fit, as my beliefs and heart felt was the right decision--just as the gay community voted as their beliefs and hearts felt was the right decision. We will always disagree and we will always feel like either way, one of our sides is losing an inalienable right. Therefore, we need to respect the votes--as each individual, (no entities) voted as they saw fit.
In addition, I just have to add that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints did not fund any amount of money OR vote in the election. It is an entity. It does not have the right to vote in an election. It was members--only SOME of the 750,000 Mormon members in California--who voted yes on 8--members who have the individual right and responsibility to vote as their heart pleases, just as the 35,000,000 other California residents (Catholic, Black, Hispanic, gay, Republican and Democratic alike) who have the same equal right to vote as their heart leads them to vote.
November 6, 2008
"Ah, the lessons we learn about ourselves when we are in pain. Hundreds of thousands of "no on 8-ers" are puzzled and hurting, struck by what they perceive as a resounding slap. In utter sincerity, they ask, "Where is the harm in it?" They cannot see the pitfalls, and because they can't, they shrink in revulsion and swallow the proffered lie that a "yes on 8" vote means a "no" vote for gays as people. Their painful question resounds: "Where's the harm?"
Yet less than 48 hours since Proposition 8 passed in California , the answers to that plaintive question begin to emerge. A people who've longed to be seen as harmless and peaceable came forth en masse and disturbed the peace of those who also voted from their hearts, just as passionately, and with just the same desire to promote right. With the first angrily-scrawled picket sign, ugly seeds were strewn; and they're quickly taking root.
Heedless of the needs of innocent drivers and their schedules and worries, people swarmed into the street, effectively proclaiming, "My needs trump yours". That was a small selfishness, but it was a beginning. It grew. Police resources were siphoned away from averting existing dangers, and who can catalog the pain that ensued when cries for help went unanswered, or when help was delayed?
Some protestors marched on the short access road to private property: a holy place for millions, some of whom chose to vote no on 8. The crowd spat. They profaned. They shouted and raged, but no matter, because the people they bullied disagree with them. And so it became acceptable to mock and malign.
They came back the next day, emboldened and angry, although there had been no retaliation, no rebuttal in kind. (In fact, the opposing campaign was markedly void of contention, derision, or hate.) Shrieking and hurling obscenities, even making a mockery of things sacred to others, they flung their vitriol at peaceable people who spoke no ugliness but who simply stood up for their beliefs and voted their consciences.
Watching the news, we could quickly see the harm; and nothing in their behavior demonstrated anything else but the intent to force into our lives their "rights', even if those rights infringe on children's rights to innocence, parents' rights to teach the things they embrace as sacred, or workers' rights to refuse to perform actions and speak words that are in violation of their beliefs. It speaks volumes when someone, even in rage and pain, is capable of viciousness, of force. In the moment that they turned their anger into active, undulating hatred, their true colors emerged. If within hours of an election people use brute force and intimidation to further their agenda, then what else will they do? What else will they demand? Who else will they terrorize into compliance? The forecast is tragedy.
If people are so quick to denigrate, deride, and blame an entire ethnicity that was but a tiny part of a vote, then what hypocrisy! The insistence on silencing those of opposing views borders on fascism. I stand stunned, because this mob mentality is in stark contrast to the gentleness I thought I'd felt from the gay community. So, to those who sincerely ask, "Where's the harm?" I answer sadly, 'It's in the headlines'."
I agree with Lara Kerr. But I also have to add my feelings towards the gay community. I am not gay. But I am trying to understand and be empathetic towards those who voted no on proposition 8. I know that many are feeling pain and anger because of the outcome. I know that they voted no on prop 8 with the same conviction and passion as those who voted yes. And I want to respect their vote and their pain. But I am torn, because although I respect their pain and even their anger, I don't respect the consequenting actions against my religion and against my personal right to vote.
I have been called a bigot more than once by those voting no on 8. And yet, my response is, "Who is the bigot?"--I think that gays should have the right to be gay. They should have the same standard rights of a married heterosexual couple. They should have the right to vote and express their feelings. But when that same gay community for which I respect, tries to force their beliefs down my throat and make it impossible for me to vote and believe the way I want to believe, my respect for those angry people goes out the window. They have the right to protest, even to begin to work on a way to overthrow the election's outcome. But they do not have the right to suffocate our belief system. Again, who is being the bigot? The person peaceably voting as they believe and, after winning, celebrating silently without rubbing in a victory that makes us want to dance in the streets? Or is it the person forcing their beliefs down another's throat instead of agreeing to disagree and even further, disrespecting the majority vote by targeting specific minority groups who voted yes and daring to belittle their sacred beliefs? I may not agree with the gay community. I may not agree with their lifestyle. But I would not attempt to make them feel insignificant; to make them feel less like a human being; to belittle their right as a citizen of the United States to believe and vote as they choose to. If it seems that that was my intention by voting yes, you are wrong. I voted as I thought fit, as my beliefs and heart felt was the right decision--just as the gay community voted as their beliefs and hearts felt was the right decision. We will always disagree and we will always feel like either way, one of our sides is losing an inalienable right. Therefore, we need to respect the votes--as each individual, (no entities) voted as they saw fit.
In addition, I just have to add that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints did not fund any amount of money OR vote in the election. It is an entity. It does not have the right to vote in an election. It was members--only SOME of the 750,000 Mormon members in California--who voted yes on 8--members who have the individual right and responsibility to vote as their heart pleases, just as the 35,000,000 other California residents (Catholic, Black, Hispanic, gay, Republican and Democratic alike) who have the same equal right to vote as their heart leads them to vote.
07 November 2008
Fav Parts of our President-elect's Speech
BEGINNING
"Hello, Chicago.
If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.
It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen, by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different, that their voices could be that difference.
It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled. Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been just a collection of individuals or a collection of red states and blue states.
We are, and always will be, the United States of America."
MIDDLE
"Let's remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House, a party founded on the values of self-reliance and individual liberty and national unity.
Those are values that we all share. And while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress.
As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, 'we are not enemies but friends. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection.'"
MIDDLE
"To those -- to those who would tear the world down: We will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security: We support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright: Tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyielding hope.
That's the true genius of America: that America can change. Our union can be perfected. What we've already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow."
END
"This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one that's on my mind tonight's about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. She's a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for one thing: Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.
She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn't vote for two reasons -- because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.
And tonight, I think about all that she's seen throughout her century in America -- the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can't, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.
At a time when women's voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can.
When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs, a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.
When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.
She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that "We Shall Overcome." Yes we can.
A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination.
And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change.
Yes we can.
America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves -- if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?
This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment.
This is our time, to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth, that, out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope. And where we are met with cynicism and doubts and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes, we can.
Thank you. God bless you. And may God bless the United States of America."
-President-elect Barack Obama
"Hello, Chicago.
If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.
It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen, by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different, that their voices could be that difference.
It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled. Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been just a collection of individuals or a collection of red states and blue states.
We are, and always will be, the United States of America."
MIDDLE
"Let's remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House, a party founded on the values of self-reliance and individual liberty and national unity.
Those are values that we all share. And while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress.
As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, 'we are not enemies but friends. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection.'"
MIDDLE
"To those -- to those who would tear the world down: We will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security: We support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright: Tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyielding hope.
That's the true genius of America: that America can change. Our union can be perfected. What we've already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow."
END
"This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one that's on my mind tonight's about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. She's a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for one thing: Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.
She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn't vote for two reasons -- because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.
And tonight, I think about all that she's seen throughout her century in America -- the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can't, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.
At a time when women's voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can.
When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs, a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.
When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.
She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that "We Shall Overcome." Yes we can.
A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination.
And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change.
Yes we can.
America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves -- if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?
This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment.
This is our time, to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth, that, out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope. And where we are met with cynicism and doubts and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes, we can.
Thank you. God bless you. And may God bless the United States of America."
-President-elect Barack Obama
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