The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

Just last week, Donald Trump said this: "We just passed Choice. That was 44 years, they've been trying to pass Choice. So that if you have to wait for nine days, 30 days, 21 days, months, you don't do that anymore. If the line is big, and you're unhappy, you go to a private doctor, they take care of you and we pay the bill. They've been trying to pass that one for many, many decades. They couldn't do it. We got it passed. We're good at passing things, right?" Actually, just four years ago, under Barack Obama's leadership, he and Congress passed the Veterans Access, Choice and Accountability Act of 2014. 4 years, 44 years? What's the difference? Only 91%... That'd be like Trump saying, "I got a 100% on this test!," while only scoring a 9%. A perfect score, a near zero? Yeah, that's the same thing... https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2018/oct/02/donald-trump/donald-trump-gop-finally-passed-veterans-ch...

Following the Supreme Court's landmark marriage equality ruling on Friday morning, social networking sites spread the news faster than the NRA spreads fear and paranoia, and while most of the posters (from my vantage point anyway) appeared to be in quite the celebratory mood, there were of course a few whom were disappointed. With regard to the latter group, one such post I read was a Facebook meme, attributed to Duck Dynasty 's Phil Robertson, but which was really said by pastor Rick Warren, and said this: "Our culture has accepted two huge lies. The first is that if you disagree with someone's lifestyle, you must fear or hate them. The second is that to love someone means you agree with everything they believe or do. Both are nonsense. You don't have to compromise convictions to be compassionate." First of all, these words weren't uttered by Phil Robertson, so please stop including his picture on the memes. Secondly, and more importantly, stop refe...

Just last night, I read the following meme posted on Facebook and felt the need to comment on it: "Everything you do is based on the choices you make. It's not your parents. your past relationships. your job. the economy. the weather. an argument or your age that is to blame. You and only you are responsible for every decision and choice you make. Period" First off, I found it kind of funny that the meme closes its mini-rant with "Period," without adding a period after that very word, yet the author seemed content to place in periods throughout the piece where they would result in fragments. Secondly, I can understand how some people may get sick and tired of hearing individuals blaming their current situations on others (such as their parents), however, when one makes a claim using absolutes, he or she is almost always wrong. According to the author of this meme, does this mean that: Jews could blame themselves for being killed during the Holocaust? ...

I saw this poem posted on Facebook by a couple of acquaintances this morning: "When I say, 'I am a Christian' I’m not shouting, 'I’ve been saved!' I’m whispering, 'I get lost sometimes That’s why I chose this way' When I say, 'I am a Christian' I don’t speak with human pride I’m confessing that I stumble - needing God to be my guide When I say, 'I am a Christian' I’m not trying to be strong I’m professing that I’m weak and pray for strength to carry on When I say, 'I am a Christian' I’m not bragging of success I’m admitting that I’ve failed and cannot ever pay the debt When I say, 'I am a Christian' I don’t think I know it all I submit to my confusion asking humbly to be taught When I say, 'I am a Christian' I’m not claiming to be perfect My flaws are far too visible but God believes I’m worth it When I say, 'I am a Christian' I still feel the sting of pain I have my share of ...

While it appears that numbers are moving in the right direction, a new Pew Research poll shows that 36% of the U.S. population still feels that one's sexual orientation can be changed, while 51% does not. The numbers were 39 and 49 percent in a similar poll taken in 2006, and 42 and 42 percent in a 2003 poll. I guess I have one question for 36% of the country, whom I'm guessing are heterosexual. ::clears throat:: For the 36% of heterosexuals whom feel sexual orientation can be changed, do you think someone could turn you gay? ::waits for them all to pause before saying no:: Alright, thanks for playing. Feel free to join me again on the next episode of  Answering a Poll Question Before Thinking About It . See you soon. http://www.pewforum.org/2012/07/31/two-thirds-of-democrats-now-support-gay-marriage-long-term-views-gay-marriage-adoption/#views-homosexuality

I personally wouldn't care one way or the other if homosexuality were innate or chosen, since I believe two people whom are in love with one another should be afforded the right to legally marry. However, if there is scientific evidence to document homosexuality as being at least partially genetic, then I think this provides LGBT supporters with a much stronger argument against religious individuals whom abhor such "lifestyles." Now I personally feel that homosexuality is mostly, if not fully innate in most to all cases. Science has slowly been showcasing significance in this theory. Even so, though, I stumbled across a comment on the debate just recently, which I wanted to mention and counter. In a recent Facebook debate on whether or not homosexuality was indeed a choice, I read one individual say, "I support gay people, but I chose to be straight with what I do with women. They may have had feelings they couldn't help for the same sex, but chose to be gay ...

This letter-to-the-editor is in response to Tuesdays' letter, entitled, "Gay agenda pervades military, retailers" and some comments which followed. There was talk about religion, morality and how no study has shown any shred of evidence that homosexuality is at all genetic. Of course, that's not true - there are a growing number of scientists who believe that homosexuality is at least partially due to genetics, including geneticist Sven Bocklandt, who couldn't understand how anyone could believe that people actually choose to whom they're sexually attracted. He commented on how "virtually every animal species that has been studied - from sheep to fruit flies - has a small minority of individuals who demonstrate homosexual activity."  I have noticed, like with the comments I read on Tuesday, a decent majority of those whom don't believe homosexuality is in any way genetic are quite religious.  Now, I may not be a religious person, but do belie...

So, I read a Columbus-Dispatch letter-to-the-editor today which revolved around gay rights and how it sickened her it was becoming normal for people to accept homosexuality. There have been 36+ comments made in response to the article. A majority of posters disagreed with the author. There were a few, however, who brought religion into the discussion and made claims (with no sources to back them up) that homosexuality cannot be in any way genetic, that it's an abomination in the eyes of God and that the increase of gay rights was slowly destroying the moral compass of our society. After I provided links to studies which showed that there's an increasing belief by scientists that homosexuality is at least partially due to genetics, one individual in particular dismissed the studies, continuing to clamor that there's been no proof of the orientation being due to genetics. I just had to laugh. Now, I believe in freedom of religion. I'm not a religious person, but a per...

So, I saw a question posted on a site not long ago which read, "If a girl/guy sleeps with 100 guys/girls, does that make her/him a bad person?" I then read some people's responses. Most of them said that no, it wouldn't necessarily make the person "bad," but that's when the agreement(s) came to an end. A few mentioned how gross it was and that these people had some serious personal problems to deal with. Others said they'd never date someone who had so many sexual partners. Those responses were in the minority, though. Most people took offense to the question(s). Many women said the double-standard was ridiculous - as when men sleep with many women, they're seen as studs and when a woman sleeps with many guys, she's seen as a slut. Some people said that experience is a good thing and shouldn't be looked down upon. Some said that those who were being judgmental of people who slept with more than 100 guys/gals were the ones with the problem...

Choice Is Not An Option The day on which I was born, The day on which I will die, The people whom raised me, The places where I reside, The schools where I was a student, The classes which I attended, The extracurricular activities I took part in, The degrees that I earned, Where I was employed, For whom I worked, How long my stay was, My ultimate career path, The jokes to which I laugh, The music that I enjoy, The trips that I took, It was all predestined, My politics, My religion, My family, My friends, My hobbies, My dreams, My loves, My experiences, All was decided for me, Choice is not an option, Fated to write this poem, And declare that it’s nonsense.

No, I didn't say that. But a friend of mine did a few years ago. He compared the "gay movement" to the Goth movement, saying "It's just a phase and it'll all go away sometime." It’s one of the few times this ever happened, but I lost it right then and actually raised my voice (that doesn't happen often). Because how idiotic of a statement is that? "A gay phase?" What, a person just wakes up one day after sleeping with someone of the opposite sex and says to themselves, "You know, I'm getting kind of tired of this. I think I'm going to be gay for a few months and then go back to this"? I don't think so. What, can we go through "Asian phases" one month, "European phases" another, and "African phases" yet another? What about with gender? Can we go through "man" and then "woman phases? What about androgynous ones? Can I go through a teacher phase, followed by a lawyer pha...

Is it all in our head? A buzz after one drinks alcohol? Love? Misery? Seizures? Highs? Depression? Is everything controllable? What is possible and not possible is dependent upon our thoughts and beliefs? If one believes they can beat depression, can they automatically flip the negative thoughts to positive ones and go from misery to joy? If one battles seizures, can they beat and overcome the seizures through outwitting them? Is everything a choice? Can we ultimately decide everything that will or won't occur in our lifetimes and how these events will affect us? Some would like to believe this. I wish I could believe it. But there are some things in life that we cannot help. I didn't have a choice as to what gender I'd be, whom my parents would be, what language I'd be born into, where I'd be born, what skin color I'd have, what orientation I'd be, what religion I'd be born into, what political leanings I'd be surrounded by, what health issues I...