Disgust...

is getting the better of me. I'm so tired of people rationalizing their prejudice and discrimination!

I read an article yesterday in which a noted Baptist minister said that if there was a way to genetically modify a fetus to make sure that it was heterosexual that his church would support it enthusiastically. Not even considering that his statement means his acceptance that genetics and not choice are at play here, how would he feel if the word Catholic or (your choice) were substituted for "heterosexual"?

In medieval times people were told that only the clergy needed to be able to read because the populace wasn't smart enough to interpret scripture on their own.

In the 1700's Americans were told that only male landowners were capable of determining who the leadership of our nation should be. They were also told that slavery was a good thing, that it helped civilize savages and make them productive members of society, and that scripture supported those facts!

When railroads were beginning men said that if a woman traveled more than 15 miles per hour she would die because her heart couldn't handle the stress!

Scripture was used in the arguments against giving women the right to vote throughout the world; women should be subservient; men are the decision makers...

People look back on all of these now in dismay and disgust that their ancestors could actually believe all of these things. Yet after the "Chairman of the Joint Chiefs" voiced his views on morality the other day, I heard a "viewer comment" on CNN in which a woman said "I've been told me whole life that homosexuality was wrong, and a sin. It's nice to have someone stand up and say it..."! Does that mean that she's ready to give up her right to vote, to travel, or to read?

People use their upbringing and their religion to support their views of things rather than think about what they truly mean. There are others far more qualified than I to determine whether it's a need to feel superior, or a need for control and power, or just pure cruelty!

People speak of the "founding Fathers" and what they felt and wanted. They mean of course, the Pilgrims (who weren't the first). They say the country was founded as a Christian nation.

The country was founded by people who were not being allowed to worship in the manner they wanted to. How dare anyone try to say a mosque shouldn't be here, or a synagogue? How dare anyone say that I have to attend church, or that should I choose to worship Bast or Brigit or Buddha I am less than they are?

The America I thought I grew up in was one that saw discrimination for what it is, and was dedicated to eradicating it in all it's forms!

The America I thought I lived in was one where you were allowed to determine how you live and I was allowed to determine how I live! Beyond that we would come together for the greater good, be it building schools or roads or libraries, and to defend ourselves from those who wish to enforce their wills upon us! (That would include lobbyists and shareholders, btw!)

Pardon the rant, friends...I've spent months trying to look beyond "the fool on the hill" and the myriad of ills that his "crew" have released on us! I've spent months trying to remain positive in the face of all the negativity that surrounds us like the dark of a moonless night!


That someone can die for this country, yet not be allowed to love and marry the person he or she wants to; that they can die for this country and yet be prosecuted for making love to the consenting adult of their choice ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTS ME!!!!

alan