Monday, November 3, 2008
Why I Voted NO on PROP 8
Monday, November 3, 2008 3:10pm "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." These are words of one of the foremost renowned Americans of the twentieth century, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. As an African-American minister who was literally thrust onto the stage of history by racial injustice in the south, Dr. King was most clear about the insidious nature of hate and discrimination. Throughout the pages of our history we have seen time and again how the small-minded ideologies of one group of human beings have been allowed to oppress the lives of others. This is unfortunate. In California, there is such a proposition on the 2008 election ballot. Proposition 8 seeks to amend the Constitution of the State of California to exclude homosexuals from the right to choose and marry the person they love and enter into civil contract. (One group of human beings, in their small-minded ideologies, has set out to oppress the lives of others). Those in support of this proposition have framed the conversation in “defense of marriage.” My question is: Why does marriage need defending? The idea that marriage has been an unchanged tradition in the human experience is not supported sociologic- or anthropologically. Marriage has evolved from our earliest understandings of the agreement. These evolutions have followed the pattern of human progression in expanded thought and insight for centuries. Long gone are the days when 12 year old little girls of ancient times (and recent modern times) were bartered off in exchange for goods & familial reputation. No more do we experience in civilized society the occurrence of women, though “married,” being considered property and having their rights apportioned into their husband’s trust. No longer is it illegal in this country of expanded freedoms for members of differing races to enter into loving relationships and later marry, as it was some short forty-one years ago (Loving v. Virginia, 1967). We are grateful for evolution in human understanding. Now, we who love justice and equality have another battle to fight. It would be easy to base this decision on fear. The supporters of this proposition have offered us a heavy dose of that medicine. Even easier, may be the notion to decide based on religious beliefs. However, we’re a country of laws and principles and one such law is the separation of church and state and one of the founding principles of this country is the notion that ALL MEN ARE CREATED EQUAL, THAT THEY ARE ENDOWED BY THEIR CREATOR WITH CERTAIN UNALIENABLE RIGHTS; THAT AMONG THESE ARE LIFE, LIBERTY AND THE PRUSUIT OF HAPPINESS... Proposition 8 is discriminatory and discrimination is beneath humanity.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
GREED: The Ironic Antecedent to the Fall of Capitalism (as we have come to know it)
Saturday, October 11, 2008
7:49am
Our free market system has been placed on life support. This cataclysmic attack has not been at the hands of global terrorists unwell with our duplicitous foreign policy or the corruption that stales our domestic political agenda. It was an inside job…the mastermind of a proverbial parasite. Moreover, the demise of this system has cast economic dominos tumbling downward throughout the world, and has sent us back to the doorsteps of communist China – hat in hand – requesting a “bailout”.
From economists, politicians, and savvy businessmen to retired teachers, farm workers and American dreamers from sea to shining sea, we have all had a whack at identifying the culprit of this catastrophe – feverishly searching for an outlet upon which to project anger and rage, disappointment and unease. Fear has taken hold of the minds and hearts of many of our countrymen as well as citizens that inhabit cities and towns around the globe. In the aftermath, we have been allowed to see yet again how intricately tied our destinies are.
This has occurred amid our seeking to democratize the planet and arrogantly insist that others follow our lead. While we can’t seem to dislodge our ego-inflated head from our own ass, we steadily offer the world our empty rhetoric of e pluribus unum, in exchange for their deeply rooted cultural understandings of such fundamentally human concepts as:
“I am because we are, and because we are therefore I am..."
"Between friends all is common…”
“I am my brother’s keeper…”
“When spider webs unite, we can tie up a lion…”
It looks to me like we have a lot to learn.
7:49am
Our free market system has been placed on life support. This cataclysmic attack has not been at the hands of global terrorists unwell with our duplicitous foreign policy or the corruption that stales our domestic political agenda. It was an inside job…the mastermind of a proverbial parasite. Moreover, the demise of this system has cast economic dominos tumbling downward throughout the world, and has sent us back to the doorsteps of communist China – hat in hand – requesting a “bailout”.
From economists, politicians, and savvy businessmen to retired teachers, farm workers and American dreamers from sea to shining sea, we have all had a whack at identifying the culprit of this catastrophe – feverishly searching for an outlet upon which to project anger and rage, disappointment and unease. Fear has taken hold of the minds and hearts of many of our countrymen as well as citizens that inhabit cities and towns around the globe. In the aftermath, we have been allowed to see yet again how intricately tied our destinies are.
This has occurred amid our seeking to democratize the planet and arrogantly insist that others follow our lead. While we can’t seem to dislodge our ego-inflated head from our own ass, we steadily offer the world our empty rhetoric of e pluribus unum, in exchange for their deeply rooted cultural understandings of such fundamentally human concepts as:
“I am because we are, and because we are therefore I am..."
"Between friends all is common…”
“I am my brother’s keeper…”
“When spider webs unite, we can tie up a lion…”
It looks to me like we have a lot to learn.
(I wonder if this makes me a 'socialist' or maybe even 'un-American'...if so, I guess I'm in good company)
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
The Best Birthday Gift Ever!
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
1:35pm
I had an amazing birthday yesterday! There was a lot of reflecting, some quality ME time and quite a few heart-warming notes from family and friends who I love and appreciate for making this life experience a tremendous ride. The cards I received were beautiful. The gifts were very thoughtful. However, yesterday I got a gift that I can honestly say will never be duplicated. It was one of a kind. It was the best birthday gift ever.
I found this gift in my mailbox. It was there with an Allen Brothers catalog, a bill for my student loan payment, and a beautiful card from my mother (yeah, I'm still a "mama's boy" no matter how I try to deny it). My hands trembled as I held the envelop. I smiled a very big smile. Of all the things I could have received on my birthday, I stood there holding my vote-by-mail ballot for the November 4th election. How freakin awesome was that?
Yesterday....on my birthday....I was given the opportunity to exercise my right to vote in a very special election. I proudly cast my ballot for Barack Obama and Joe Biden. What an amazing birthday indeed!
1:35pm
I had an amazing birthday yesterday! There was a lot of reflecting, some quality ME time and quite a few heart-warming notes from family and friends who I love and appreciate for making this life experience a tremendous ride. The cards I received were beautiful. The gifts were very thoughtful. However, yesterday I got a gift that I can honestly say will never be duplicated. It was one of a kind. It was the best birthday gift ever.
I found this gift in my mailbox. It was there with an Allen Brothers catalog, a bill for my student loan payment, and a beautiful card from my mother (yeah, I'm still a "mama's boy" no matter how I try to deny it). My hands trembled as I held the envelop. I smiled a very big smile. Of all the things I could have received on my birthday, I stood there holding my vote-by-mail ballot for the November 4th election. How freakin awesome was that?
Yesterday....on my birthday....I was given the opportunity to exercise my right to vote in a very special election. I proudly cast my ballot for Barack Obama and Joe Biden. What an amazing birthday indeed!
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
On Identity - Part 5 - Life Force (A Birthday Finale)
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
7:55am
Thirty-2 years ago today I showed up. I had chosen as a backdrop all of the identity props that I have mentioned in my previous posts on this topic – a race, a gender, a family, a hometown (Washington, DC). I’ve lived the vast majority of this life making agreements, doing what was "appropriate": being a good student…a good son...a good Christian; all as if who I was could be encased, defined, shaped, or understood by a human story. It often seemed as if I were in search of an identity, when in actuality I was returning to a truth.
There is a dimension of me – who I really am – that was never born and will never die. This dimension has never been hurt, harmed or endangered. It’s the energetic that plays the soundtrack of my existence. It’s an orchestral symphony; an improvisized jazz riff; blues that shout rhythms; spiritual hymns that speak a freedom unbeknownst to captivity; it’s the reverb of the drum....that beats the heart….that sources the blood… that awakens the house in which my soul dwells. It’s a feeling that illuminates a body. A force which animates a life! I AM LIFE FORCE (élan vital).
Main Entry: life force
Part of Speech: n.
Definition: the vital force or impulse of life; one's source of vitality, spirit, energy, and strength;
A great delusion has swept the consciousness of the planet. It has lulled us into a false belief of separation from the thing itself. As a result, we define ourselves according to outward appearances rather than inward realizations. We live victimized by circumstances, because we have relegated our creative power to performance rather than emboding it ontologically. We have the power, yet we consider it blasphemous to think that we ARE the power. There is no separation.
I have awakened to a conscious awareness that I am the very vibration of life. I am life itself. EXPANSIVE…WHOLE…BOUNDLESS! I am now free from the limited beliefs…which shaped the limited perspectives….which out pictured as the limitations of my experiences. The force is with me. I bring the force. I AM THE FORCE!
Happy Birthday to me!
7:55am
Thirty-2 years ago today I showed up. I had chosen as a backdrop all of the identity props that I have mentioned in my previous posts on this topic – a race, a gender, a family, a hometown (Washington, DC). I’ve lived the vast majority of this life making agreements, doing what was "appropriate": being a good student…a good son...a good Christian; all as if who I was could be encased, defined, shaped, or understood by a human story. It often seemed as if I were in search of an identity, when in actuality I was returning to a truth.
There is a dimension of me – who I really am – that was never born and will never die. This dimension has never been hurt, harmed or endangered. It’s the energetic that plays the soundtrack of my existence. It’s an orchestral symphony; an improvisized jazz riff; blues that shout rhythms; spiritual hymns that speak a freedom unbeknownst to captivity; it’s the reverb of the drum....that beats the heart….that sources the blood… that awakens the house in which my soul dwells. It’s a feeling that illuminates a body. A force which animates a life! I AM LIFE FORCE (élan vital).
Main Entry: life force
Part of Speech: n.
Definition: the vital force or impulse of life; one's source of vitality, spirit, energy, and strength;
A great delusion has swept the consciousness of the planet. It has lulled us into a false belief of separation from the thing itself. As a result, we define ourselves according to outward appearances rather than inward realizations. We live victimized by circumstances, because we have relegated our creative power to performance rather than emboding it ontologically. We have the power, yet we consider it blasphemous to think that we ARE the power. There is no separation.
I have awakened to a conscious awareness that I am the very vibration of life. I am life itself. EXPANSIVE…WHOLE…BOUNDLESS! I am now free from the limited beliefs…which shaped the limited perspectives….which out pictured as the limitations of my experiences. The force is with me. I bring the force. I AM THE FORCE!
Happy Birthday to me!
Monday, September 22, 2008
On Identity - Part 4 - A Tribute to Autumn
Monday, September 22, 2008
11:53pm
Today, I am Autumn.
This is the season when I first appeared. I was ushered in with the crisp autumn breeze, the libra sun, the harvest moon. This is the season when change colors the landscape in browns and oranges, reds and golds....when tree branches lovingly release their foliage to the cascading fall.
I greet the autumn leaves....with autumn kisses.....and dreams that make for a season of bliss.
11:53pm
Today, I am Autumn.
This is the season when I first appeared. I was ushered in with the crisp autumn breeze, the libra sun, the harvest moon. This is the season when change colors the landscape in browns and oranges, reds and golds....when tree branches lovingly release their foliage to the cascading fall.
I greet the autumn leaves....with autumn kisses.....and dreams that make for a season of bliss.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
On Identity - Part 3 - From the Perspective of Who I Am NOT!
Saturday, September 20, 2008
1:05pm
I'm sure I'm not alone when I say that I’ve spent a lifetime (or two…maybe even three) toiling with the fundamental question: “WHO AM I?” I started this discovery with the grotesquely obvious. However, in their conspicuousness, I have come to re-cognize (re-know) that those indicators are in fact antithetical to my enlightenment. I am beginning to understand that how I once defined myself is no longer sufficient. My old tools for crafting an identity for myself have long since worn out. They don't serve me anymore.
And hence, like Dorothy and Toto in the Wizard of Oz (or The Wiz, depending on your flare), I’ve instigated this expedition anew. I’ve decided that to go deeper in my awareness, I must first separate the wheat from the chaff.
I am not a summation of intricate parts or experiences. No matter how dynamic or complex I would like to think myself to be, who I really am is beautifully simple – once you see past the multitudes of illusions.
I AM NOT….
my family, my friends or my foes
my race, my gender, nor my sexuality
my religion, my politics, the place I was born
my education, my degree, my career
my dreams, my aspirations, my secrets
my success, my misgivings, my failures
this body, this skin, these features
what you think I am, what you want me to be, or what you remember me as…
I AM NOT MY STORY!
This is not a statement of better nor does it come from a place of judgment. This is a statement of truth – a truth I think we all share...a truth that simply says: I AM MORE THAN THIS. ALL OF IT!
Now the question becomes, what’s left?
1:05pm
I'm sure I'm not alone when I say that I’ve spent a lifetime (or two…maybe even three) toiling with the fundamental question: “WHO AM I?” I started this discovery with the grotesquely obvious. However, in their conspicuousness, I have come to re-cognize (re-know) that those indicators are in fact antithetical to my enlightenment. I am beginning to understand that how I once defined myself is no longer sufficient. My old tools for crafting an identity for myself have long since worn out. They don't serve me anymore.
And hence, like Dorothy and Toto in the Wizard of Oz (or The Wiz, depending on your flare), I’ve instigated this expedition anew. I’ve decided that to go deeper in my awareness, I must first separate the wheat from the chaff.
I am not a summation of intricate parts or experiences. No matter how dynamic or complex I would like to think myself to be, who I really am is beautifully simple – once you see past the multitudes of illusions.
I AM NOT….
my family, my friends or my foes
my race, my gender, nor my sexuality
my religion, my politics, the place I was born
my education, my degree, my career
my dreams, my aspirations, my secrets
my success, my misgivings, my failures
this body, this skin, these features
what you think I am, what you want me to be, or what you remember me as…
I AM NOT MY STORY!
This is not a statement of better nor does it come from a place of judgment. This is a statement of truth – a truth I think we all share...a truth that simply says: I AM MORE THAN THIS. ALL OF IT!
Now the question becomes, what’s left?
Monday, September 15, 2008
On Identity - Part 2 - Stumbling in the Dark
Monday, September 15, 2008
4:55am
Trepidation looms in the darkness. Senses heighten. Ears question the quiet and search feverously for the faintest of sound. Eyes create formations of shadows and lines and the boogie man appears. Mind noise intensifies and no matter how tightly we hold our eyelids together, sleep does not come. There is no rest for the weary. This is the hour of reckoning.
Court is in session, and it is now judgment day … again. You assume your familiar position as defendant, as plaintiff, as juror and judge, and the interrogation ensues. Question upon question examines your fidelity to the immutable laws that demand meticulous adherence: know thyself and to thine ownself be true.
Your duplicity renders you incompetent to stand trial. However, the solace of double jeopardy does not apply. There is always tomorrow.
4:55am
Trepidation looms in the darkness. Senses heighten. Ears question the quiet and search feverously for the faintest of sound. Eyes create formations of shadows and lines and the boogie man appears. Mind noise intensifies and no matter how tightly we hold our eyelids together, sleep does not come. There is no rest for the weary. This is the hour of reckoning.
Court is in session, and it is now judgment day … again. You assume your familiar position as defendant, as plaintiff, as juror and judge, and the interrogation ensues. Question upon question examines your fidelity to the immutable laws that demand meticulous adherence: know thyself and to thine ownself be true.
Your duplicity renders you incompetent to stand trial. However, the solace of double jeopardy does not apply. There is always tomorrow.
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