Get over it..Legalization is coming..

President Obama got conservative panties in a bunch when he said in an interview that cannabis isn't any more of a problem than alcohol. He also said in another interview that it was up to Congress to reschedule..that he couldn't do that on his own. He thinks that sentencing should be looked at given the racial disparity that exists. But he still believes the so-called science that states cannabis is a health issue and problem for the community. Needless to say, I respectfully disagree. 

Did he even watch Sanjay's show? What "science" is he referring to? I know there will be backlash, but it's not like he has to run for office anymore. People are serving long sentences for following their state medical cannabis laws to the letter. How is that fair? Any problems in the community are driven by draconian, unjust, and irresponsible cannabis laws. Just like the reforms needed for immigration, health care, women's safety, children's safety, gun violence, income inequality, we need cannabis and hemp reform. 

The government needs to be honest for once and stop lying about the safety and efficacy of this plant. Reschedule cannabis and then get out of the way of much needed research. Cannabis saves lives. Enough is enough. Parents are moving their families to medical cannabis states in order that their children live happy, healthy lives. Does the government want these precious babies to continue suffering when there is an answer to that suffering? Evidently so.

Legalization is coming. The revenues alone will push this along faster than you will ever believe possible. No one is listening anymore. The only smart approach to marijuana is to embrace legalization and the subsequent research it will produce. We don't need baby steps here. We don't need a Farm bill that doesn't let farmers grow industrial hemp. I'm sorry if that reduces your election coffers..that's the price you pay for deception and manipulation. We need the doors flung open wide..not the inevitable regulation that will follow. We've already seen how cities try to circumvent existing medical cannabis laws by disallowing dispensaries in states where they're legal. This needs to stop. Fix the banking rules, because the mountains of money retail outlets will earn will have to go somewhere. And don't overtax the new retail outlets in states that have already legalized. Give this a chance..you'll see that it can be a invaluable part of our economy.

Industrial hemp will save the earth. Cannabis makes everything a little better..and it sure seems to cure cancer. It gives life back to children with severe seizures. It balanced my runaway immune system, reduced the excruciating pain and constant inflammation I experience from rheumatoid arthritis, and I'm in clinical remission now. I still have RA, but the meds I take now actually work. Without cannabis, that's not possible. The list of chronic diseases that can be successfully treated with cannabis is endless. And cannabis should be the go-to treatment for PTSD in all forms.

Get over it..get on board..and if you can't do that, then get out of the way.. We're not going away, and we're going to keep talking about this until truth and sanity prevail.

Working through the Workbook

Now that I've read the entire text of A Course in Miracles, I've finally begun the accompanying workbook for students. It's divided into 365 lessons which I can do daily, or stay longer with some lessons if I need to. The lessons appear at first to be simplistic, but as I continue to work through them, their meaning is profound. The idea is to re-train our minds to see holiness instead of judgment. The Course begins with:

Nothing real can be threatened. Nothing unreal exists. Herein lies the peace of God. ACIM Preface p.x

The point is to embody that idea in our daily lives. It's the way to peace. It's the way to remembrance. It's the way to Oneness. The lessons illustrate that the world we see is a projection or illusion and that we give it all the meaning it has. It's really that simple. We can choose to see it through the prism of the ego, or we can choose to see it as either an expression of love or a call for love. We can see it with judgment, or see it as nothing at all. In the Oneness, this world doesn't exist. The workbook teaches us how to live in the world while remembering we're not of the world.

The world of illusion is filled with drama. We don't want to accept our role, much less our active participation, in that drama. But we must accept that responsibility or we'll never accomplish the task at hand. The first twenty-five lessons focus on understanding that not only do I give meaning to whatever I'm seeing, but also my thoughts have power, that they're not neutral. They have effect and keep the drama going. I can focus on thoughts of attack and judgment, believing that I am responding to what I see. But that's the whole point..I'm responding to what I see. Not someone else..me. No one forces me to process things the way I do. I do that. I can choose something else. Choosing to stay above the fray and not judge, frees me to love unconditionally. I'm only at lesson twenty-five. Still having trouble with the unconditional part at times. We can attempt to control the outcome of situations, but as long as we stay in the drama, that will never happen. It's only when we step away from it, and choose extending love over judgment that we choose to remember who we are as part of the Oneness that is God. That's the only thing that's real. The rest is a projection of our collective guilt over our perceived separation from God. It's not true..we're still part of that Oneness, existing here in our collective dream state. That ends when we all remember. The workbook furthers that goal.

Lesson 22 says that when we typically look upon the world, vengeance is what we project. We blame everyone for our so-called problems and feel justified in responding with attack. The drama is circular in nature and, therefore, self-reinforcing. It never ends unless we choose to step away and end it. In lesson 24, it suggests that nothing I do is in my best interest as long as I'm choosing judgment. It's in my best interest to see holiness and Oneness, not judgment and separation. And yet that's exactly what we all do. Our justification fosters more separation. Judgment gets us nowhere and never will.

Today's lesson, twenty-five, tells me that everything I encounter is for my best interest. It doesn't matter if it is an expression of love or a call for love, it gives me everything I need. These are opportunities to join with others in Oneness. They're a blessing. If I devote my time to expressions of ego, then I don't understand what my life is about. Remember that if only God is real, then this world of projection is meaningless. Focusing on or responding to meaningless projections instead of seeing them as love or a call for love, prevents my awakening.  If I extend love in whatever situation I find myself, then my awakening continues.

As the work continues, I'll be posting more.. It's going to be an interesting year..

Note: the above quotation is from A Course in Miracles. Foundation for Inner Peace. 2007

 

Well now, isn't that convenient?

There's a movement afoot that requires women to be subservient to their husbands. Yeah, like that's going to happen. I'm so glad I raised my two boys to respect women and view them as equals. I can't imagine either of them ever behaving this way toward their wives. If they did, they'd have to face me, and that won't end well.

Yes, it's that important. Shared responsibility is what we modeled for our boys. Subservience was anathema. I knew women who lived that way and I didn't understand it then and I surely don't understand it now. It's one thing to defer to someone who knows more than you about something. It's another to do so simply because of gender and family position. The other thing we did was to respect their views. Ultimately, we made the final decisions, but they had a voice in their lives. Of course, that's not how we were raised. We both grew up in the "be seen and not heard" era of child rearing. Having experienced patriarchy that was abusive, we made the choice to break that cycle. My husband has never viewed women as less than, so he naturally set a positive example for the boys.

Patriarchy breeds abuse. Women and children lose. Every time. The feminist movement has tried to suggest a more balanced approach to relationships, but apparently it fell on some pretty deaf ears, because we're seeing the effects of this attitude everywhere. Conservative governors are signing into law policies that not only promote inequality, but are also found later to be unconstitutional in some cases. It's evident in committee hearings on women's issues when no women are at the table testifying. Apparently Congressional committees believe only old, white men have the answers when women's issues come up. It's governmental patriarchy at its most disgusting.

The Mayor of Hoboken, New Jersey, and her staff, are talking to the feds right now about a conversation she had with the Lt. Governor of her state. The nasty comments from other political officials that ensued were demeaning..referring to her as the lady mayor, and questioning her motivations. She's a Democrat, so evidently it's open season on her gender instead of on what she's saying. Most of the comments I heard indicated that no one seemed to even know her. How do they not know the Mayor of Hoboken? It's not like it's some out of the way little town. 

It's bad enough when we have men in our lives that oppress and abuse us, but when it gets codified into law, we have no redress save the courts, and they're a mess. A woman defends herself against a violent husband she had a restraining order on, and she gets 20 years. She's out on bail now after already serving time and nearly went back to jail for going shopping after receiving permission to do so. They've calmed down, but what else are they going to do to her? How much dignity is she supposed to lose for defending herself?

Abortion is a constitutional right, but you'd never know it in some states. Conservative governors again sign into law bills that are only going to ultimately be overturned in some higher court. Of course we have no idea what SCOTUS will do about all of it, and given the conservative activist mentality on the Court today, we may be in for some real trouble on abortion rights. Or they may just surprise us and simply do their jobs and interpret existing law. It didn't happen with the Citizen's United decision, so many of us are worried.

This week, Mike Huckabee made a ridiculous comment about women's libidos.This, from a former pastor. He essentially believes that we're all Democrats so that someone called Uncle Sugar will support us while our libidos run amok. He needs to get his mind out of the gutter and remember God. Others in the last election cycle had idiotic things to say about rape and pregnancy that does result no matter what delusions are rattling around their empty heads. Why don't they all come out and say what they're thinking: women are sluts. Sluts because we dare to question. Sluts because we dare to say no. Sluts because we dare to believe that we can be someone. Sluts because we want to equal pay. Sluts because we dare to decide WHEN we have children. Sluts because we want respect. Sluts because we dare to want more than you will give us. This is why you cannot be in control. You can't handle the responsibility. 

I've known some pretty intelligent men in my life, but I've also known real idiots. Same is true for women I've known. We need to respect individual differences and not claim ownership on others. Women and children aren't objects for your amusement. We're here and we matter. We move forward in life together; otherwise, we go nowhere. You have to stop being afraid of that fact.

And blessings to my husband and sons who already understand this..

Thought creates form..

Thought creates form. That's easily understood when you hear a beautiful song or see a priceless painting. We understand that the songwriter or painter was inspired and from that inspiration arose a wonderful creation. Our efforts to live together as one don't always inspire wonderful creations. But they do offer us a classroom of sorts, with the ultimate goal of seeing holiness in everyone.

Choosing to see holiness instead of what others present to us feels odd at first, especially when the other person is behaving in a hurtful manner. We're used to justifying our own responses based upon the actions of others. How do we see past their projection and respond with love instead of judgment? For me, it helps to go into every moment with forgiving intention. Or I should say, it's my goal each time. I fail often. But when I don't, it's such an awesome feeling. To stay in the Holy Instant with people is amazing. After experiencing it even one time, I feel compelled to do that again. It's so much better than living in drama where few, if any, real solutions exist.

The Course teaches that what we see in others is either an expression of love or a call for it. When people are difficult, that's clearly a call for love, so why would we respond with judgment or attack? If that person were our child, we would naturally try to figure out what's going on before concluding anything. In reality, we should feel that way about everyone.

It's not about religion, or which religion is right. It's about our reality in the Oneness that is God. That doesn't require any religion at all. It just is. We just are. If we are One in God, then we are also One here in this illusory projection we call life. In other words, we're family. Always have been, always will be. We should remember that.

So, back to thought creating form. How we think about things matters. Divisive thinking gives rise to punitive laws that serve no one. It allows governments to abuse their people as we've seen, for example, in Syria. It allows lawmakers in this country to not only refuse to extend federal unemployment benefits to those in our family still struggling to find work, but to also shut down the government in an effort to prevent people from taking advantage of the Affordable Care Act. We've waited forever for affordable health insurance, and yet conservatives mistakenly believe this is a terrible thing to have. 

Evidence of separation is all around us. It's an illusion, because we can never be separate from each other. It's not possible. We are one. We can choose to see separation or we can choose to see the truth, but we cannot change what is. Look around the world and what do you see? Conflict is everywhere. We come up with endless reasons to be separate when the only way forward is together. We must stop putting people in their so-called proper place in life. It's never proper for them..only for us. And while we're at it, we must stop thinking in terms of us versus them. There is no them. There is only us. What affects you, affects me. Always.

So what form should our thoughts manifest? Oneness, of course. The love that comes from that transcends any petty conflict and drama we've chosen to create. Awakening to Oneness is our means of rejecting the separation we have chosen to see in this life, and instead, seeing only God in everyone. 

We change our minds and we change everything. Do we create a world where love is abundant, or do we keep creating division among us? My preference is love..

Sunday Runecasting..

Before I begin, I wanted to talk about the amethyst rune set I used today. Typically I use a set I made from an apple wood branch from my backyard. I felt compelled to use the amethyst set today and after pulling the runes that I did, I understand why. Amethyst is a stone of protection and spirituality. It brings a sense of inner peace and helps attract positive energy while dispelling negative energy. Since I tend to absorb energy if I don't shield properly, wearing amethyst is helpful in that regard. 

Today, I pulled Wunjo, Ehwaz, and Fehu. I rarely pull Wunjo, and since it's a positive omen, I was eager to begin my interpretation. Wunjo represents joy, and a feeling of connectedness to others. It signifies friendship and shared identity with others. In a three rune spread, we have issue, action, and outcome. Wunjo suggests that awakening to our oneness with others will result in our collective joy.

Ehwaz emphasizes cooperation, teamwork, partnership and love. It suggests extending love and unity to others, seeing in them their holiness instead of reacting with ego-mindedness. We accomplish this by remaining in the present and refusing to allow the illusory past to influence that moment, preventing the judgment that typically happens. Instead, by choosing love and forgiveness, we further awaken as we join with our brothers and sisters, instead of judging and attacking them.

The result is Fehu, or wealth. Of course, it's not monetary wealth, but true spiritual wealth which occurs when we awaken to the fact that we are part of the collective Oneness that is God. Fehu also indicates freedom as well, which this awakening also represents. Abandoning judgment, we are free to choose a more loving way of seeing each other. Monetary wealth doesn't reflect this. True wealth is reflected in our Oneness.

We begin in joy..choose to see holiness in everyone..resulting in our true wealth in the Oneness of God.. What a lovely rune spread!

Because we give life to you..

Think about that for a minute..we give life to you.

There's an ongoing discussion about how women are targeted in social media. Of course, women understand that it's not just there, it's everywhere. We disagree, we're targeted. We object, we're targeted. We stand up, we're targeted. Men have such an extreme need to control women. Are we that powerful?

In a word, yes. We are that powerful..not that you want us to be. We give you life. You don't want us choosing to do otherwise, so you do everything possible to circumvent the very constitutional protections that had to be put in place to protect us from your control issues. And by otherwise, I mean reproductive choice. That's our decision, by the way. You can enact laws that require vaginal ultrasounds (oh my, the rape fantasies you must have), but courts will overturn them eventually. Or eventually we'll elect rational people to government office who actually understand how to govern in a compassionate, realistic and honorable way. But make no mistake about it, balance will return. And, in spite of our more confused sisters out there, women will lead the way.

Sexual harassment online is just icky. It goes from bad to worse almost immediately. Considering that many of us have experienced some form of abuse in our lives, it's interesting that these guys "go there" so quickly. Predatory behavior takes all forms and if they think this isn't predatory, they're wrong. Assault is assault, whether verbal or otherwise. Women shouldn't have to stay off social media to prevent this from happening. The guys doing this need to either stop or go away. It's creepy, and sometimes criminal. It seems to reflect an out of control rage or something because it gets incredibly vulgar at times. Then there are the guys who apparently think that because you friend them, you want to hook up. We say nothing to actually suggest this, but it doesn't stop them from getting confused.

So here's my take on participating in social media. I have accounts on most of them and I have a great time talking with other folks who share my views on life. When I talk to folks who feel differently, as long as it remains respectful, I love that too. We grow from individual differences, and many times another view is expressed which gives me pause. I like that. What I don't like is name calling and judgment. We see only a piece of people who engage online. We have no idea who anyone really is and what they go through each day. Why not leave the vitriol at the door? It only stops the conversation, when conversation is what we really need.

Social media offers a wonderful opportunity for connection and unity. I remember talking to a woman on Twitter back east where she was present during a gun incident. Several of us were talking to her, making sure she was safe. To have an opportunity to extend love and concern to someone we didn't know who was at risk was a blessing. She was finally safe and I felt such relief. It didn't matter that I didn't know her. She was my..no, our..sister, and that's all that mattered.

In reality, we are all part of the Oneness that is God. We have the opportunity to express that on social media, or we can express other things.. For me, I think it's better to try to create than destroy, so I prefer positive engagement over negative.

Remember..we give life to you. We're your mothers, grandmothers, wives, girlfriends, partners, sisters, friends, co-workers, neighbors.. We're necessary. Words matter. How you treat us matters. We have more choices than you can even imagine..and we're making them.

Balance will return.

"Feminized atmosphere" alert..

Okay, I couldn't let this one pass. A guy by the name of Brit Hume suggested that 

 "..New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) had only gotten a reputation for being a bully because men could not be “masculine and muscular” in the “feminized atmosphere” created by the media." The Raw Story: Fox’s Brit Hume shocks female panelist: ‘Feminized atmosphere’ made Christie a ‘bully’

Really? Women, via their champions in the media, are preventing men from being "masculine and muscular"? So women and the media emasculate men to the point that they feel it necessary to behave as a bully? 

Oh my God, where do I start? No, Brit, bullying is a choice. Intimidation is a choice. Manipulation is a choice. If women are doing all of this, don't you think we'd have everything we want by now? Does this also apply to men who beat women to death, or just when they slap them around a bit? Does it apply to men who rape women? Who are these pansy-assed men to whom Brit is referring? Are they all politicians? Is that what's going on in Texas? In Virginia?

Brit, is it my fault if I'm sexually harassed? Is it what I'm wearing? Is it my perfume? Is it how I look? What did that teacher do wrong that day prior to the election when Governor Christie, with his wife looking on grinning from ear to ear, yelled at and berated her? Was that the media's fault that he bullied this woman? Was it her fault?

This "old-fashioned" way men have of behaving went out a long time ago. I know there's a resurgence of this idiotic behavior, nevertheless it's unwelcome. Stop blaming others for your ridiculousness. Every day, you get up and you have a choice as to who you are going to be. Are you going to extend love and unity to others, or are you going to make life difficult. As a governor, Christie has a responsibility, in my opinion, to be as gracious the people of New Jersey as possible, regardless if they voted for him or they didn't. His behavior, at times, falls far short of this. At times, he presents himself as a caring person. He needs to make up his mind which it is, and then do that. Because if he doesn't, people will choose for him and it won't be the caring option. 

Guys have to stop blaming women, and evidently the media, for all the crap that exists in the world. Because if you look beneath the surface of most of it..I'll just bet you won't find too many women as the cause. The days of "boys will be boys" have ended. Women aren't listening anymore. 

Ripple Effects..

The nonsense about BridgeGate is really about ripple effects. When people behave this arrogantly, lives are affected. I've never been to New York or New Jersey, but it seems the bridge in question is a busy place. Bridges between states typically are. The George Washington Bridge is reportedly the most heavily traveled bridge in the world. Someone in the governor's office decides to punish the Mayor of Fort Lee, a Democrat, for not endorsing Christie's re-election by reducing available lanes of traffic to only one instead of three, and someone actually died in the process. I also read, among other things, that a child was missing, and kids going back to school were affected. I'm fairly certain that we can also agree that this created a National Security situation, particularly given that it happened around 9/11, specifically 9/9 through 9/13. All under the guise of a nonexistent "traffic study". They really thought no one would check this out?

Ripple effects..people have been fired..and rightly so. But what if the investigations that will no doubt result find that the Governor was directly involved? Does he lose his job too?  What about the woman who died? What about her family? In the coming days, we may find out about additional tragedies. Clearly this won't be over for a long time to come.

Pettiness serves no one, and this was petty. Neither does thuggery. Getting even is ridiculous. Democrats are typically not going to endorse Republicans. For anything. It's not that it can't happen, but it wasn't going to happen in this case. Unfortunately, the governor made light of the situation when he said he was the guy rearranging the cones. All this time and he didn't investigate this himself? Given his fondness for press coverage, and to prevent any suggestion of a conflict of interest, he could have also announced that he was requesting DOJ to investigate this travesty. If he's not responsible for this debacle, he should have been the one to get out in front of it, not wait until now to fire people. The people of Fort Lee certainly would have appreciated something from him..instead of the nothing they received.

And now Christie's buddy has asserted his Fifth Amendment privilege. Of course his attorney indicated that, after receiving immunity from everyone short of the Pope, his client might be interested in testifying, just not now. Great. And where's Bridget? You know she's sitting on all kinds of information...perhaps waiting on that immunity (or book) deal. We'll find out eventually.

Honesty and integrity are at stake here. Politicians and/or their staff cannot manipulate the citizenry in an effort to exact revenge against a so-called political rival. For the love of God, grow up. The people of Fort Lee are not your puppets to do with as you please. The idiots involved here are an embarrassment and a disgrace. Losing their jobs should be the least of what happens to them. Prison would be better.

Ripple effects..the only way to control them is to not make them in the first place. But that takes a level of integrity and maturity, not to mention a moral compass missing in the people involved. Guess the presidency is out of the question now..maybe Governor Christie and Toronto's Mayor Ford could develop a reality show around their antics..in case unemployment is in their future..

So, they're running out of weed in Colorado..

I don't know if Colorado distinguishes between medical dispensaries and retail outlets. I hope they do so that patients aren't affected by all those legally happy folks out there. Don't get me wrong..I'm totally pro-legalization. I'm not actually complaining, even though it sounds like it. Patients need their meds. So, I hope they got their priorities straight there.

I predict that Oregon will legalize this year. It would be nice if the legislature would do it, but it looks like it's going to be on our ballot next time. Oregonians won't sit tight while other states around us do it. We've had medical cannabis since 1998, so this is a natural step for us. Our Board of Pharmacy has already rescheduled cannabis from schedule one to schedule two, allowing for research. We almost did it last time, so fingers crossed.

Washington has chosen to let their Liquor Control Commission decide how legal cannabis unfolds in their state. Patients are at real risk there. Medical cannabis has been legal there since 1998 as well, and what I've been reading in the news has been troubling. Opponents to legalization will always exist and I hope that their voices aren't influencing the outcome there. Too many times, cannabis is legalized or decriminalized in some way, and then immediately, cities pass rules making it impossible for anyone to use it. This, in effect, circumvents the law in an effort to curtail if not completely stop any successful implementation. Some cities in Oregon tried this when the legislature legalized dispensaries earlier this year. Thankfully they were told they can't do that. Patients in Washington are encouraged to make their voices heard on this issue before their existing rights are taken away. 

Americans love their cannabis. It's not going away. Cannabis kills cancer. High CBD strains are useful in treating severe epilepsy. PTSD is alleviated by cannabis. Multiple Sclerosis responds well to cannabis. Diabetes apparently does as well. My RA was so severe that I thought I would die. Fifteen years I suffered - the last twelve were excruciating. Cannabis saved my life as it has countless others.

Those of us who have experienced what this plant can do to return us to health will not stand down on this issue. We can't. It's too important. We're done being lied to by our government about this safe plant. We're done being dismissed as stoners who lie about being sick to get their cannabis legally. See, we produce medical records because we actually have medical records which document our health problems. We don't get our cards here in Oregon unless we do that. So no one is getting over on this.

The legalization dominoes are falling everywhere. More states are legalizing for medical purposes and more are talking about full legalization. And with countries like Uruguay legalizing, and more interested in doing so, this will be a done deal before long. We need to embrace this..if only for the purposes of truth. Our government needs to stop lying to us. It's always done to increase corporate profits at the expense of the American people. Think about it. What if cannabis had never been prohibited? What if industrial hemp had never been prohibited. Where would we be now? Would as many people have died from cancer? Would we be in a different place energy-wise? Industrial hemp could be grown and processed into ethanol without the problems that corn creates. Hemp can be used for just about anything.

Legalization in Washington and Colorado gives me hope, even with all the inevitable stumbling blocks that occur, that some sense is returning. Lives can be saved with medicinal cannabis, and industrial hemp production will provide jobs and environmental protection in the process. Throw in a little marriage equality, a living wage, gun control, leaving constitutionally protected rights for women alone, and single payer..I'd be in liberal heaven.

Rumor has it 2014 is the year of the progressive. Let's make that a reality! And how about legalizing cannabis on a federal level? Who knows, a few bong hits during House sessions, we might get some compassion out of these guys. They might forget all the animosity and posturing and remember why they're there.  Alcohol breeds anger..cannabis, on the other hand, love, baby, love!!

Oh, SCOTUS..Again?

It's fascinating to live in a country where we have the separation of church and state. Fascinating because every time I turn around, someone wants to live as if we don't. We have a Constitution and a Bill of Rights which are supposed to protect us from various and sundry nefarious things..yet someone somewhere always wants the Supreme Court to say they can get as nefarious as they want.

Justice Sotomayor granted the Catholics a stay regarding the birth control mandate in the Affordable Care Act. SCOTUS is going to hear a case in the near future on the issue, so I suppose that's why she granted it. But following that logic, then anyone sitting in jail awaiting trial should be released on zero bail. I mean, why not? If the Catholic Church and anyone else can discriminate against people while awaiting trial, why shouldn't criminals be let out to do whatever they want to do while they await their trials? It's true that no one is protected, but then who cares about that? Certainly not Justice Sotomayor.

Isn't it great that some people get to choose which laws they follow..and with the blessings of the highest court in the land no less! How about letting all the folks in prison for cannabis out? Most of us want legalization in this country anyway, so throw open the doors and let them all go home. So they want to get high. Who doesn't? Especially now when everything is such a mess in this country.

Look, we have separation of church and state for some pretty good reasons. Which religion wins the prize here? Christianity? Really? Two words..Duck People. You know who I'm talking about. The guy who thinks men should marry 15 year old girls..right. We really want his interpretation of the Bible running the country. Or how about the Westboro Baptist people? Do we want their interpretation of the Bible running the country?

Religion, as expressed by many of our more conservative lawmakers, has nearly brought this country to its knees. I believe their distorted religious ideology is at the very foundation of their lack of compassion for the American people..our brothers and sisters..illustrated by their draconian policies that leave everyone by the roadside. If that's not clear evidence that our founding fathers were on to something when they included this idea in the Constitution, then I don't know what is. And now the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court has said that sequester cuts have a negative effect upon public safety. Well, lot's of things do, sir..like your Citizen's United decision, and your Voting Right's Act decision. You keep us safe by protecting our rights, not diminishing them.

We're the United States of America. It's the united part that matters here. Sometimes it means that we have a neutral way to co-exist. That's what the Constitution is, in a sense. There must be a way to respect the beliefs of some without infringing on the rights of others. So we all have to agree to give up something when in the public arena, if you will. If you want to do business out in the world, then you can't decide to discriminate while doing so in an effort to stay true to your belief system. It's your belief system. It might be shared by others in your immediate vicinity, but that's about it as far as it goes in terms of relevance. Beyond that, your beliefs should govern only your life. 

It may sound cliche, but we're better than this. Vote Blue next time..besides, our national conventions are more like love fests, and not an empty chair in sight! Just sayin'..