[sigh] I've been avoiding this place... I keep writing things, only to stop mid-thought because it's so irritating. Yet somehow, listening to L'Internationale gives me hope ^^" It's the "official" anthem of socialists, etc... And it really is beautiful. I really don't like how socialist ideology has been distorted in countries such as China & Russia & North Korea... They're the reason I say pure socialism could never work... Not yet at least. It's because of our individualistic nature that a truly socialist society can't exist here. Everyone's only in in for themselves and their own agendas, not for the good of the group as a whole. We see things like Prop 8 & this mosque controversy that prove that only some of us care about true equality... and the rest would like to believe that their way is the only right way, even when they're wrong. And somehow that makes them more "American" than those of us who actually believe in freedom, peace, and equality for ALL. I haven't been able to express these, or really any thoughts lately, because I am just so disgusted with the world. It makes me sick to my stomach. There's so much hate... so much anger. I've been remembering why I've avoided politics for so long... It brings out the worst in people. Though I think in some cases, that's been a good thing-- exposes the hypocrisy... and sometimes, allows us to rethink how we act and what we say.... or just know who to avoid.
And remember, there are always more polite, cheerful ways to tell stupid people to go fuck themselves. Like this:
Though really, we as a nation need to be more civil... It's embarrassing and appalling how we treat each other. This is getting too far out of hand. Dissent is fine of course, and we don't all have to agree on everything, but why can't we at least be civil about this? Haha, I feel like a kid stuck in the middle of a bad argument between parents... We need some marriage counseling, ASAP. (Or a good divorce lawyer lol) In all seriousness, I'm still a bit worried this is going to escalate into something major if we don't get a handle on this crazy. We have one side already armed & dangerous, & the other is starting to scream back too [finally...?], some people are trying to mess with basic rights while claiming it's going to make us all free & happy, & someday someone's going to snap & pull a Joe Stack on a grand-scale level... Some have tried, and thankfully failed, but it's only a matter of time before someone gets it in their head that this is a good thing... How do I know this is possible? Our last President bombed the hell out of a country or two as a "pre-emptive" strike. I remember sitting there in front of the TV crying... All of those innocent people murdered, and for what? We shouldn't fight anger with anger, violence with violence, terrorism with terrorism. Turns out there are a lot of people in this country who believe that using violence and force is the only way to win. I'm pretty sure our new President isn't so recklessly stupid, but people always disappoint me, so who knows. Not like these stupid wars are over yet anyway-- slowly ending, but not over. But lately, it feels like the more we try to get people to work together, to better ourselves, it's like the more we push ourselves further apart.
Last night, I received an email from one of the readers of that "article" I had commented on (see my last post for details on that...). She was trying to convince me to oppose the bill (S5.10 Food Safety Modernization Act)... I was pretty annoyed, since I thought I had made it very clear the night before how I felt about it, however I wrote her back. I had taken a look at her profile. It seems that we actually have quite a bit in common in terms of our positions on various environmental & animal rights issues. We both seem to want transparency in the food industry, an expansion of organic farming, and responsible farm practices. This bill, to me, seems to help with that. She sees it as hindering... Something as small as our interpretations of a bill stands in the way of working together on those goals... Something designed to help is just pushing us apart...
The community center, Park51 (a.k.a. the "Ground Zero Mosque") was meant to be a gesture of peace... It shouldn't be a controversy. It's not at Ground Zero, but 2 blocks away. It's a community center that combines 2 existing, tiny mosques into 1 big place for everyone to meet (and swim). The 2 mosques in the area are so tiny that they've had to turn people away. The mosque is only 1 floor, and the rest will be a pool and restaurants, etc. And even if it were much closer Ground Zero, and it were just a mosque, I don't see a problem with it. A mosque is just a church. Different religion, but technically the same god, and surprisingly similar beliefs to an extent.* A church is a place where people gather to celebrate, to mourn, to share. And to say that they are any less welcome than any other religious group is wrong... and incredibly disrespectful.
I may be an atheist, but I believe quite strongly in the freedom to believe and engage in any religion you so desire, so long as it doesn't hurt anyone. But from what I'm seeing right now, too many are letting their religion dictate others' lives, and it always seems to be one group in particular... So "Christians," do the Christian thing and learn to love and accept others for who they are, not what you want them to be. (This applies to Prop 8 especially.)
There were 19 extremists who attacked us, and they alone should be held accountable for their actions. (Well, also including anyone who directly helped them I suppose...). No one should punish a group for the actions of a few. So Rep. Peter King, and all who agree with him- the right and moral thing to do is to be tolerant and respectful of others' rights. YOU are the ones being insensitive and uncaring. I too knew people who were lost on 9/11. But as we've all learned, life has to go on... and that doesn't mean that we've forgotten.
* If you didn't know, many Muslims apparently believe in Adam & Eve, the "virgin" Mary story, Jesus' life & resurrection, the "Second Coming," Heaven & Hell, etc. And like most of the "public" TV/political Christians appear to advocate [cough*palin*cough], there's no separation of church & state... & as evidence for my claims (since it was my friend who took Comparative Religions), I've found for you this lovely chart.
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