Is Equality actually Equal? - Maybe for some...

"No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States...nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

The equal protection clause can be found in the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution...

I wonder how many people actually know this statement is in the Constitution....but does it really matter...we already have law after law after law that denies equality to groups of people...we suppose to be the land of the free, the home of the brave...the land of equality... a country found on the principles of Christian love taught by Jesus...

Yet how free are we....

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal..." I wonder if people actually believe this...whether "rights" are being limited based on race, sexual orientation, or religion, etc...maybe in society, it would be better read as, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men in the "majority opinion" are created equal...

Because really that is really what "rights" are...it is whatever the majority decides "in its good grace" to grant to those in the minority....or to themselves....

I am 31 years old...I have a successful career...a pension...a profit sharing plan...retirement fund...a family that loves me....friends that adore and care for me...a good place I call home...a great car...a puppy...

sounds just like you eh? like the good ole American Dream...

Well....I am also gay...and that alone limits me on over 1400 rights in the state of Texas...that includes both the 300 or so state's rights and 1100 federal rights...

Imagine that...if you are straight and reading this, just by the simple fact that you marry someone you will have 1400 MORE rights than me...

I mean honestly...whether you are for gay marriage or against it...any intelligent person cannot tell me that is fair...equal...or free...

And I can tell you....the majority of those 1400 rights are not spelled out in the bible...many of them are unique rights to our culture and time...

So if you ever have to make medical decisions for your spouse in the hospital, or pass on health benefits, or social security benefits, or choose to adopt an abandoned child who needs someone to love them or any of the other 1400 rights you have...be thankful..because in America...in the 21st century as it turns out...depending upon who you are...you may just be MORE free than me...

And that is truly sad....

Humanity - A Dying Trait

“Never take a person's dignity: it is worth everything to them, and nothing to you.” Frank Barron

How often have we attacked someone for no reason other than to embarrass or tear them down to nothing more than a speck...a grain of sand...something so small and so insignificant, that no matter how small we are or feel, compared to them, we will feel or seem bigger, better, and badder than the biggest bad-asses this world has ever seen....

Hmmm....make sense...???

In my estimation it takes more energy to be negative than to be positive...maybe I am wrong...maybe some people are built for negativity...built to attack...built to tear down...built to manipulate and reduce the confidence of others into nothing more than a melting lump of playdoh....

I actually feel sad for them...they are the same people who hide their candlelight and do not share it with others to light their wicks, for fear that lighting someone else's candle will put out their own...little do they know that by lighting someone else's candle, in building up someone else you magnify and increase your own light...

It can take a lifetime to repair that which can be torn down in one second with the opening of one's lips and the passing of words through one's mouth...and yet the damage done is exponential in comparison to the effort used in speaking them...

I guess I just do not understand...I mean I know that we have all had those moments when we have been far less than perfect...those moments when we have attacked, yelled, screamed, destroyed, and hurt others....for some of us, those moments are the exception...for others, it seems to be the rule...

But what is gained...what is gained in reducing the life of someone else into a soundbite that gets a few laughs...a soundbite that may or may not be true..that may or may not have any actual relevance to their life...

Where is the humanity in that....where is the humanity in many things nowadays....

Chocolate Martinis - And A Fun Night Out...

I have come to one conclusion...sometimes you just have to let loose and enjoy the life that was given to you...there is nothing wrong with taking some time and just enjoying what life has to offer...tonight I am having a wonderful chocolate martini to start my evening...

Svedka Vodka, Creme de Cacao, Disaronno, Godiva Chocolate Liqueur, with dark chocolate syrup...mmmm...doesn't it sound good?

It tastes delicious and is a perfect way to start out an evening...if you have never tried it, then i suggest you buy the ingredients listed above and have one as an after dinner dessert drink...

You will not regret it...

Tik Tok - Keisha....It's growin on me....

This song is kind of growing on me...can definitely see myself dancing on the dance floor going crazy to this song...ha ha..every now and then you just have to let loose and say "the hell with it"...and just have fun...

Don't care what anyone thinks or says about you...enjoy life...its the only one you have...

Try To See The Good In Everything - As Much As Possible...

We all have those rough days when life kicks us in the ass...still always try to be thankful for what you do have...the moment we find nothing to be thankful for in life, is the moment we stop living.

I am thankful for my best friends in life.
I am thankful for my family
I am thankful for my job that pays my bills and then some
I am thankful for that little voice in my head that reminds me to do good
I am thankful for my conscience
I am thankful for new beginnings
I am thankful for random acts of kindness
I am thankful for renewed hope in the goodness of people
I am thankful for the promise of tomorrow
I am thankful for the release of leaving yesterday behind
I am thankful for alone time
I am thankful for the people who love me all over the world
I am thankful for good wine and pleasant conversation by candlelight
I am thankful for hot water in the winter and a cool pool in the summer
I am thankful for coffee shops
I am thankful for time
I am thankful for happiness and joy
I am thankful for smiles that make me laugh
I am thankful for tears that make me grow
I am thankful for good and bad time for the make me a better person
I am thankful for second chances
I am thankful for being one of a kind
I am thankful for vodka - any flavor will do
I am thankful for all those things I have not listed but are present in my life
I am thankful that I have more things to be thankful for than can be put into one list

Random Thoughs on Equality, Life, and the sort...

I believe that EVERY PERSON regardless of who they are, is and should be treated as equal to everyone else. There is no reason to think, believe, or subscribe to a belief that views anyone as inherently less than anyone else.

I believe equality is NOT something that should be put to a vote at the ballot box...why would we as Americans (the so-called standard bearers for freedom, equality and justice) ever allow Freedom and/or Equality to have a "NO" option. If you disagree with me, just imagine the right you hold most dear...then imagine that the rest of the country gets to decide if you should have that right...its astonishing how your mindset can change.

I believe that the only way to secure equality for yourself, is to defend it for everyone else. If you fail to support and defend the rights and freedom of others, who will be there to defend you when your own rights are threatened.

The life we wish we were living, keeps us from fully engaging in the one we currently possess. Stop wishing and hoping and praying for a different life, a different path, a different anything. Enjoy the life you already have and make changes to obtain the one you want.

Sometimes you have to see yourself for everything you are not, in order to realize everything you can become.

Life is easy for those who push no boundaries and test no limits. Always push harder, think bigger, live and love stronger. Give out what you would wish to recover and overlook in others, the same flaws that exist in your own life.

Be a better person...to others and to yourself...

Name one person who made the world a better place by taking away and restricting the rights and freedoms of others. Who benefits from laws that segment and divide society. Does it erase poverty, end war, and cure our serious diseases and plagues....

I think not...

It's Official - I Am Back To Blogging

Yes...I have caught the bug again...I had this blog for four years which ended in March 2009. Now I am feeling the urge to make my opnion known about various topics and I know you all care! ha ha...So yes...from now on I will be back to my postings and musings...

If you are knew to my blog, feel free to look through the years of posts previously made. You never know, you may find out something about me you never knew.