Alright, so there are a few things I'd like to blog about, simply because they're there.
One of them being the television show, Heroes. I love this show, and have followed it pseudo religiously since the day it started. And while I'm a huge fan of the show, I'm also a huge fan of something else. CONTINUITY! I'm a good enough fan to go with the flow and just assume that it all gets worked out in the end. But some things I'd like to know are worked out. For instance, when Peter lost his memory and accidentally transported (then girlfriend) Caitlyn (with her adorable irish accent and everything) to the virus ridden future, what happened when he came back and left her there? I know since he destroyed the virus and all that she's probably back in Ireland or wherever dealing with her mob-ish brother and goon-ish friends. But it would be nice if he sought her out since she helped him during that lack-of-memory period.
Also I think we need to consolidate storylines. I'm all a fan for having a huge cast and intricate plots and sub-plots and plots to my sub-plots plots but I think the show is taking it to ridiculous lengths. I've been reading on the web, and lest we forget about Niki's abusive father and her sister Jessica who was also one of her alternate personalities that was killed by said father. (and this is not one of her other two twin sisters who were injected with power inducing formulae (or whatever the plural of formula is)).
All I'm asking for right now is a little more continuity and a little less assumption that we viewers are just gonna stick with it. Tie up some loose ends Kring, before you loose viewers like we've been infected with the shanti virus.
One other thing I'm relatively pleased with is the continued success of Cloris Leachman on DwtS. I think that despite the fact that the judges don't seem to know what they want from their dancers, and are either high, drunk, or both, when watching people perform that the dancers are doing a wonderful job. Lance and Lacey are doing the best they can with what the judges are telling them. Cloris is trying to find a way to balance her dancing skills and her far better skills as a show-woman. She is an entertainer after all.
Lets see, I know there's other things in the news that bother me. Oh. Here's something interesting. Apparently after getting bailed out with a large portion of 700 BILLION dollars and after spending approx. 440,000 more dollars on a retreat and spa thingy, the executives at the prestigious AIG decided to do a little hunting....IN EUROPE. After reading this I am more adamant than ever that that company just needs to go under.
Not once, but twice did they use funds, after the bailout of their company which staved off financial ruin of their top executives, did those same executives who begged for money go off and spend it frivolously. If anyone that I know did that, the money would be gone faster than we could blink, and we'd be thrown in a federal prison and the key would be melted down for something else. Now is the time that we need to step up and tell the rich that simply because they have money, doesn't mean that their (excuse the language) shit don't stink.
Interestingly enough, there's another minority out there that is seeking to get full protection under the law and failing. After reading the article, I couldn't imagine why. And before you jump down my throat about bashing minorities, read the article
Personally I think that its a crock. If you're an "ex-gay" then you're not homosexual. Which means you're also not bisexual. So unless you're something really out there like a...necrosexual or something (any anything beyond hetero, homo, and bi is probably illegal), the only thing left is heterosexual. Ergo, you're straight and have full rights, protections, and privileges under the law. So where's the problem.
If the issue comes from having once been considered homosexual, and the things that happened during that period, (assuming that being homosexual is a choice (which is not my viewpoint, FYI)) then you have nobody to blame but yourself. You made the choice to be gay, and you made the choice to back out of that lifestyle. You also made the choice to open your big ol mouth about having been gay too you idiots.
Alright, well I think that concludes another resounding issue of things that I find annoying. As always I welcome discussion on anything I blog about here. And for those interesting in reading my treaties on how being gay and Lutheran works....I haven't started it yet, its still purely in mental form. Maybe once snow flies I'll start putting it on paper.
Oh, before I forget I finally got my copy of Pastor, I am Gay the book that Sarah Palin purportedly wanted banned/removed from a library up in Alaska. Its an AMAZING book. I only wish I had this book when I was in college. I would have told EVERYONE to read it. As it is I'm going to recommend my old professors read it and discuss it with their students, or at the very least add it to the reading lists or something for their classes. It would come in as such a good useful book for a Youth Ministry course or a good discussion in a religious course nonetheless. I highly recommend it if you're going to be dealing with GLBT people in your religious career at all.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Current Events? [edit]
Alright, so I initially thought that I would blog on a semi-regular basis. But that idea didn’t go so well when I realized that you all probably don’t want to listen to me gripe about what my boss has put me through on any given day. So I’ll probably only be blogging, or something akin to it, whenever I have time and come across things that I feel are worth spending time writing about.
So I actually heard this story on the Jane & Kidd morning show on 99.1 here in Milwaukee, and I was kinda pissed about it. Apparently the top executives of the huge insurance company AIG, went on a HUGE [read 440,000.00 dollars worth] spa retreat only days/hours/rather small amount of time after accepting their portion of the 700 Billion dollar bailout from the Fed/taxpayers.
I wasn’t totally livid, but I believe my first thought was “So, we can take that back, right?” Because, come on, if we bail you out and you go on a spa weekend, I think that what you’re basically telling us (those who bailed you out) that you think we’re dupes. Think about it this way, if you borrowed, oh say 700 dollars from a friend/neighbor/relative as a loan, to bail you out when things were looking pretty bleak for you, and then you take a trip to the Bahamas right after accepting that loan from your friend…I imagine whoever supplied that loan would probably bang your door down and beat you senseless. Or at least demand their money back, right now.
And that’s basically what I see happened here. We (the American people) bailed out a company to stave off huge economic catastrophe (notice the use of loaded language to describe the current market situation) and then were basically given the finger as the executives got into their limos to make a quick getaway. That’s awful, and according to the fed “despicable”. So my question is, what are we going to do about it.
While we can’t beat them senseless, I think we should at least prove to these blustering, pompous, egomaniacal, windbags of businessmen that we will not stand for that. Take the money back, and let the company take the fall, and let them deal with the fallout of the investors and customers. Or fire them, and take away any sort of pension/401K plans and such that they may have. I don’t know, I’m not all that business-y but something should be done to communicate to them that we will not stand for this type of behavior.
Also, later on in the article they talk about laying blame on why the company and the economic crisis is so bad. This is pointless. Its not a matter of who’s fault it is that this happened, although it needs to be addressed so it doesn’t happen in the future. But rather than spending time to point fingers at every possible executive aside from yourself, why not take a pay cut and figure out how to help the economy instead of whining that its all falling apart.
As a child I was not allowed to whine about things, because I was told that whining didn’t accomplish anything. Neither does blaming everything in sight for a problem that is most likely partly your fault. But picking yourself up and fixing the damn problem is a way of dealing with it. So to all those executives who are earning millions of dollars in salaries a year, and who own 6 or so homes around the world. Suck it up and fix it, and stop effing whining!
On another note, I came across this story and was rather intrigued. So I read up on it. I even, as a religious person with a degree for such, decided that the book would be a decent read (if I could ever find it, and I’m working on it. I get to call Alaska at 1pm today). But I also looked up the book on Amazon, and read some reviews. This is just further reason why I will not vote for McCain/Palin.
McCain is aged, and will probably die under the pressures of presidency. Which leaves us with Palin who is a Christian Fundamentalist as the first female president, and a fundamentalist in charge of the most [albeit declining] powerful country in the world. And while I’m religious and all that jazz, I refuse to support fundamentalists in their crusade of viewing the world as strictly black and white. Not to mention that as an avid reader I would never support anyone who wanted to ban books for any reason.
So after reading the reviews and trying to procure a copy for myself, I thought that I should at least mention that this book isn’t a religious way of forcing homosexuality onto the religious community. As I understand it, the book is simply one pastors way of dealing with the increasing number of parishioners who are gay, and the issues that a pastor faces with sexuality. I think this book would be an excellent read, hence the wanting a copy. But I don’t think it should stop there.
I graduated from a conservative (LCMS) Lutheran college, who’s official policy regarding homosexuality is that they do not allow openly gay students to live on campus in the dorms, as it does not keep with the universities policy of living an upright Christian life, or some such drivel. Nevermind that all your jocks are drinking on a dry campus, smoking pot and who knows what, and that everyone is having more sex than you can shake a stick at. But those fags….let me tell ya…
Having graduated from the Lay Ministry Program, with a focus on Youth Ministry, I really think that this book should be read by those entering that field. Mostly because the issue isn’t going away anytime soon. And the age old response to the issue of sexuality by the church to ignore it, hide it, or excommunicate it, just isn’t cutting it anymore.
I believe pastors (aside from those few who research this issue on their own, or have dealt with it in their parishes or what have you) are ill equipped to handle it when a parishioner comes to them expressing issues with sexuality. This book and a number of others would be a hugely beneficial tool to at least open the door and get the church and it’s workers to think about how to address this issue in the best way possible.
I’m also writing something that I don’t know what to call about how Christianity and homosexuality can co-exist. And while it’s not perfect (as a great many things aren’t) these conclusions have helped me find a measure of peace in my own life. So I’m hoping that once they get worked out on paper, they can do the same thing. If you wanna read it or prod me to get it done, or offer comments, I’d be more than happy to accommodate. ^_^
[Edit: So I called Alaska and was able to order the book. I learned two things from that. They will only sell the book to people out of state, and it takes an extra day to ship things from Alaska. For those of you who care to look further into getting a copy of the book in question this is their web address: http://www.goodbooksbadcoffee.com/NASApp/store/IndexJsp
Their phone number is on the site and keep in mind their hours are 10am-7pm Monday through Saturday and that's 1pm-10pm Central time. The book itself is about $15 but you pay for shipping. I did the 2-day shipping and it cost me about 40$ to get it here on Monday. Just fyi.]
So I actually heard this story on the Jane & Kidd morning show on 99.1 here in Milwaukee, and I was kinda pissed about it. Apparently the top executives of the huge insurance company AIG, went on a HUGE [read 440,000.00 dollars worth] spa retreat only days/hours/rather small amount of time after accepting their portion of the 700 Billion dollar bailout from the Fed/taxpayers.
I wasn’t totally livid, but I believe my first thought was “So, we can take that back, right?” Because, come on, if we bail you out and you go on a spa weekend, I think that what you’re basically telling us (those who bailed you out) that you think we’re dupes. Think about it this way, if you borrowed, oh say 700 dollars from a friend/neighbor/relative as a loan, to bail you out when things were looking pretty bleak for you, and then you take a trip to the Bahamas right after accepting that loan from your friend…I imagine whoever supplied that loan would probably bang your door down and beat you senseless. Or at least demand their money back, right now.
And that’s basically what I see happened here. We (the American people) bailed out a company to stave off huge economic catastrophe (notice the use of loaded language to describe the current market situation) and then were basically given the finger as the executives got into their limos to make a quick getaway. That’s awful, and according to the fed “despicable”. So my question is, what are we going to do about it.
While we can’t beat them senseless, I think we should at least prove to these blustering, pompous, egomaniacal, windbags of businessmen that we will not stand for that. Take the money back, and let the company take the fall, and let them deal with the fallout of the investors and customers. Or fire them, and take away any sort of pension/401K plans and such that they may have. I don’t know, I’m not all that business-y but something should be done to communicate to them that we will not stand for this type of behavior.
Also, later on in the article they talk about laying blame on why the company and the economic crisis is so bad. This is pointless. Its not a matter of who’s fault it is that this happened, although it needs to be addressed so it doesn’t happen in the future. But rather than spending time to point fingers at every possible executive aside from yourself, why not take a pay cut and figure out how to help the economy instead of whining that its all falling apart.
As a child I was not allowed to whine about things, because I was told that whining didn’t accomplish anything. Neither does blaming everything in sight for a problem that is most likely partly your fault. But picking yourself up and fixing the damn problem is a way of dealing with it. So to all those executives who are earning millions of dollars in salaries a year, and who own 6 or so homes around the world. Suck it up and fix it, and stop effing whining!
On another note, I came across this story and was rather intrigued. So I read up on it. I even, as a religious person with a degree for such, decided that the book would be a decent read (if I could ever find it, and I’m working on it. I get to call Alaska at 1pm today). But I also looked up the book on Amazon, and read some reviews. This is just further reason why I will not vote for McCain/Palin.
McCain is aged, and will probably die under the pressures of presidency. Which leaves us with Palin who is a Christian Fundamentalist as the first female president, and a fundamentalist in charge of the most [albeit declining] powerful country in the world. And while I’m religious and all that jazz, I refuse to support fundamentalists in their crusade of viewing the world as strictly black and white. Not to mention that as an avid reader I would never support anyone who wanted to ban books for any reason.
So after reading the reviews and trying to procure a copy for myself, I thought that I should at least mention that this book isn’t a religious way of forcing homosexuality onto the religious community. As I understand it, the book is simply one pastors way of dealing with the increasing number of parishioners who are gay, and the issues that a pastor faces with sexuality. I think this book would be an excellent read, hence the wanting a copy. But I don’t think it should stop there.
I graduated from a conservative (LCMS) Lutheran college, who’s official policy regarding homosexuality is that they do not allow openly gay students to live on campus in the dorms, as it does not keep with the universities policy of living an upright Christian life, or some such drivel. Nevermind that all your jocks are drinking on a dry campus, smoking pot and who knows what, and that everyone is having more sex than you can shake a stick at. But those fags….let me tell ya…
Having graduated from the Lay Ministry Program, with a focus on Youth Ministry, I really think that this book should be read by those entering that field. Mostly because the issue isn’t going away anytime soon. And the age old response to the issue of sexuality by the church to ignore it, hide it, or excommunicate it, just isn’t cutting it anymore.
I believe pastors (aside from those few who research this issue on their own, or have dealt with it in their parishes or what have you) are ill equipped to handle it when a parishioner comes to them expressing issues with sexuality. This book and a number of others would be a hugely beneficial tool to at least open the door and get the church and it’s workers to think about how to address this issue in the best way possible.
I’m also writing something that I don’t know what to call about how Christianity and homosexuality can co-exist. And while it’s not perfect (as a great many things aren’t) these conclusions have helped me find a measure of peace in my own life. So I’m hoping that once they get worked out on paper, they can do the same thing. If you wanna read it or prod me to get it done, or offer comments, I’d be more than happy to accommodate. ^_^
[Edit: So I called Alaska and was able to order the book. I learned two things from that. They will only sell the book to people out of state, and it takes an extra day to ship things from Alaska. For those of you who care to look further into getting a copy of the book in question this is their web address: http://www.goodbooksbadcoffee.com/NASApp/store/IndexJsp
Their phone number is on the site and keep in mind their hours are 10am-7pm Monday through Saturday and that's 1pm-10pm Central time. The book itself is about $15 but you pay for shipping. I did the 2-day shipping and it cost me about 40$ to get it here on Monday. Just fyi.]
Friday, September 26, 2008
Danger: Politics Within!
Note: This will probably be the only think political I will ever post.
I would like to preface all of this blog with the a few things. One: I’m very politically apathetic, mostly for reasons that will be explained as I go along here. 2: My level of understanding regarding political issues is (very) limited because I have no desire to listen to any sort of propaganda regarding political issues. 3: I’m not trying to step on anyone’s toes, or offend anyone, but simply explain where I’m at in this whole debacle as an average young American, who doesn’t really have a burning interest in our nations mudpit that we call politics.
So after being sent some stuff regarding the Wall Street Bailout (WSB) which can be found here:
Story 1
Story 2
I really have to wonder what the heck is going on with the economy. The only thing I know, being a lowly peon, is that a grossly obscene amount of money is going to be put somewhere (I suppose Wall Street, the nebulous entity that it is) which is supposedly going to fix the economy…or so we’re led to believe.
Now, there are a few things that I would like to say, some of which have things to do with the WSB, some about the economy in general, and finally some things about politics in general (although I will warn you probably with a *little* bit of a slant to the left)
One would be that even though this outrageous amount of money is going to be used to bail out W.S/the economy, I have to wonder what is going to happen to the National Deficit that people have been complaining about for decades, and has only gotten worse in recent years. I remember about 5-6 years ago, maybe more, when the national deficit was all anyone could talk about. With this impending 700 BILLION-1 TRILLION dollar WSB, I have to wonder what sort of national deficit are we looking at for the next gazillion years?
Two, I’ve listened to various viewpoints on the economy. I’ve been told by many people who favor a conservative/republican POV (Point of View) that the economy is actually a lot stronger than the media portrays it to be. The only reason that the media is saying that the economy is weak is due to the fact that this is an election year.
While that may be the case, I have to say that from where I stand the economy’s going to shit. I look around and I see a lot of people in their 20s having a very hard time trying to find a job that will allow them to pay bills and such. People are loosing their houses and their jobs at record numbers and all sorts of other things.
Looking at some of those huge glaring issues, how could anyone say that the American economy is doing well to any degree considering the people that actually reside within the American economy sphere of influence are losing their shirts because they can’t make enough money to live?
Finally something I’d like to address about politics in general, and this applies to all people involved in politics without regard to political party choices or liberal or conservative leanings. When something happens in the economical/political sphere, how many average everyday Americans actually understand what is being talked about. Maybe it’s because we don’t care enough to know about our own system of governance and economy. Or maybe it has to do with the fact that if one dresses up issues (such as the WSB) with enough obscure economic-political terms, bad rhetoric, and political double speak, you could get average people to agree to anything, because they have no idea what is actually happening in the political world.
I for one would love to see a politician who presents things in a manner than everyone can possibly understand. For seasoned political veterans, that may be infuriating because they already know about what’s going on. But for the average person it would be a wonderful change of pace. Since America is supposed to be a “democracy” I think that a politician who takes the time to address issues in ways that the average American can understand would have my vote at the very least...
I would like to preface all of this blog with the a few things. One: I’m very politically apathetic, mostly for reasons that will be explained as I go along here. 2: My level of understanding regarding political issues is (very) limited because I have no desire to listen to any sort of propaganda regarding political issues. 3: I’m not trying to step on anyone’s toes, or offend anyone, but simply explain where I’m at in this whole debacle as an average young American, who doesn’t really have a burning interest in our nations mudpit that we call politics.
So after being sent some stuff regarding the Wall Street Bailout (WSB) which can be found here:
Story 1
Story 2
I really have to wonder what the heck is going on with the economy. The only thing I know, being a lowly peon, is that a grossly obscene amount of money is going to be put somewhere (I suppose Wall Street, the nebulous entity that it is) which is supposedly going to fix the economy…or so we’re led to believe.
Now, there are a few things that I would like to say, some of which have things to do with the WSB, some about the economy in general, and finally some things about politics in general (although I will warn you probably with a *little* bit of a slant to the left)
One would be that even though this outrageous amount of money is going to be used to bail out W.S/the economy, I have to wonder what is going to happen to the National Deficit that people have been complaining about for decades, and has only gotten worse in recent years. I remember about 5-6 years ago, maybe more, when the national deficit was all anyone could talk about. With this impending 700 BILLION-1 TRILLION dollar WSB, I have to wonder what sort of national deficit are we looking at for the next gazillion years?
Two, I’ve listened to various viewpoints on the economy. I’ve been told by many people who favor a conservative/republican POV (Point of View) that the economy is actually a lot stronger than the media portrays it to be. The only reason that the media is saying that the economy is weak is due to the fact that this is an election year.
While that may be the case, I have to say that from where I stand the economy’s going to shit. I look around and I see a lot of people in their 20s having a very hard time trying to find a job that will allow them to pay bills and such. People are loosing their houses and their jobs at record numbers and all sorts of other things.
Looking at some of those huge glaring issues, how could anyone say that the American economy is doing well to any degree considering the people that actually reside within the American economy sphere of influence are losing their shirts because they can’t make enough money to live?
Finally something I’d like to address about politics in general, and this applies to all people involved in politics without regard to political party choices or liberal or conservative leanings. When something happens in the economical/political sphere, how many average everyday Americans actually understand what is being talked about. Maybe it’s because we don’t care enough to know about our own system of governance and economy. Or maybe it has to do with the fact that if one dresses up issues (such as the WSB) with enough obscure economic-political terms, bad rhetoric, and political double speak, you could get average people to agree to anything, because they have no idea what is actually happening in the political world.
I for one would love to see a politician who presents things in a manner than everyone can possibly understand. For seasoned political veterans, that may be infuriating because they already know about what’s going on. But for the average person it would be a wonderful change of pace. Since America is supposed to be a “democracy” I think that a politician who takes the time to address issues in ways that the average American can understand would have my vote at the very least...
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Self-Expression vs Workplace Appearance
So I was at work today, pondering different things, when a lady walked by my window talking on a cell phone. She wasn’t remarkable in any way, nor did she do anything that was particularly interesting, aside from walk down the street and talk (loudly) into her phone. But I did notice that she had her lip pierced. And then I started thinking…
A couple of days ago, I came into work and I hadn’t shaved in a couple of days, but it wasn’t all that bad (I thought) and I figured I could get by that day without too much trouble. Needless to say I was incorrect. I was asked (and I use the term loosely) to come in to work the next day clean shaven.
So now I wonder. I come from a generation that prides itself on many things. Ipods (of which I do not own), the internet (which we all know Al Gore created), and a whole plethora of other things. One of the more prominent things is our self-expression.
Pick a way my generation engages in the need for self-expression, which is something that has been ingrained in most of us since birth. Some people talk/debate/argue, others pierce things, others wear outlandish or unpopular clothes, some hairdos, some people tattoo the hell out of themselves. All of which is fine by itself.
But then you have other things that play a role in how self-expression wars with other ideals like…oh…say, appearance in the workplace.
I have come to understand that in certain settings it isn’t appropriate for people to get visible tattoos and have visible piercings. In some instances I can see where this is appropriate. Such as having piercings (aside from ears, I suppose) when working with food? Or when you enter the corporate world?
But how much of those expectations are holdovers from the “Leave it to Beaver” and other past concepts of what the working world is suppose to be? I mean I understand the need for self expression, and as long as those options are available, people (especially younger people) are going to take advantage of them when it suits their needs/desires.
But now you have a contradiction. For my generation’s entire lives they’ve been told to express themselves and a whole plethora of other self-esteem building garbage. But when they enter the workplace, they’re expected to do a complete 180 and be the epitome of conformity, because that’s the image of the working world/corporate world. And if they don’t conform, they’re doomed to not get any jobs better than working at fast food places or places like Hot Topic where those issues apparently don’t matter as much.
Now I realize that this has been a little unorganized in the way it’s been presented here, as its just sort of falling out of my head. But the two real issues here I suppose are, where do you draw the line between working world image and self expression, and two: how are we going to correct the disparity between the two.
I could write pages and pages (probably a thesis length work) on the different sides of the issue, but that’s not going to help anything, and it would be parroting the dozens of viewpoints that have already been said. And I certainly don’t have any answers, and would welcome discussion on the issue. But it was something that bothered me, and probably a lot of other people, so I figured it was worth putting here.
A couple of days ago, I came into work and I hadn’t shaved in a couple of days, but it wasn’t all that bad (I thought) and I figured I could get by that day without too much trouble. Needless to say I was incorrect. I was asked (and I use the term loosely) to come in to work the next day clean shaven.
So now I wonder. I come from a generation that prides itself on many things. Ipods (of which I do not own), the internet (which we all know Al Gore created), and a whole plethora of other things. One of the more prominent things is our self-expression.
Pick a way my generation engages in the need for self-expression, which is something that has been ingrained in most of us since birth. Some people talk/debate/argue, others pierce things, others wear outlandish or unpopular clothes, some hairdos, some people tattoo the hell out of themselves. All of which is fine by itself.
But then you have other things that play a role in how self-expression wars with other ideals like…oh…say, appearance in the workplace.
I have come to understand that in certain settings it isn’t appropriate for people to get visible tattoos and have visible piercings. In some instances I can see where this is appropriate. Such as having piercings (aside from ears, I suppose) when working with food? Or when you enter the corporate world?
But how much of those expectations are holdovers from the “Leave it to Beaver” and other past concepts of what the working world is suppose to be? I mean I understand the need for self expression, and as long as those options are available, people (especially younger people) are going to take advantage of them when it suits their needs/desires.
But now you have a contradiction. For my generation’s entire lives they’ve been told to express themselves and a whole plethora of other self-esteem building garbage. But when they enter the workplace, they’re expected to do a complete 180 and be the epitome of conformity, because that’s the image of the working world/corporate world. And if they don’t conform, they’re doomed to not get any jobs better than working at fast food places or places like Hot Topic where those issues apparently don’t matter as much.
Now I realize that this has been a little unorganized in the way it’s been presented here, as its just sort of falling out of my head. But the two real issues here I suppose are, where do you draw the line between working world image and self expression, and two: how are we going to correct the disparity between the two.
I could write pages and pages (probably a thesis length work) on the different sides of the issue, but that’s not going to help anything, and it would be parroting the dozens of viewpoints that have already been said. And I certainly don’t have any answers, and would welcome discussion on the issue. But it was something that bothered me, and probably a lot of other people, so I figured it was worth putting here.
Monday, September 22, 2008
A couple of issues...
While anticipating the impending premier of Heroes, I watched the season premier of House M.D. last week. And I love this show. I think it’s fantastic. Probably for various reasons (not the least of which is comparisons between me and the main character). But then something occurred to me:
There are a lot of people who love that show. And not only do they love the show they adore the main character. Now it could be said that they like the main character because he has the cojonés to say and do things that they only wish they could do, or whatever.
But it seems to me that that’s where the adoration of this character ends. As long as he stays in the little box with a big screen. But if they meet this archetype of character in reality, they despise him. And my question is why?! What is so different from watching a character like House because you like him, but hating him once you come face to face with him? It just makes me wonder…
Let’s see…I’m trying to think of anything else that’s bothering me at this point. OH! Duh, how stupid of me to forget, its an election year. And we’re in the proverbial 9th inning stretch, which means mudslinging abounds and false promises are whats falling from the wagging tongues of all politicians EVERYWHERE! Isn’t America grand?
So now I’m watching D.w.t.S. and I’m very excited. Probably not for reasons that you think though. ^_^ I’m all over Cloris. But the thing I’d like to mention is that I’m also watching it because of Mr. Bass. Who, remains cute despite an abysmal haircut, is openly gay. (can you see where this is going yet). Awhile back, when Lance was announced as a contestant there were jokes/rumors/innuendo that he would dance with another guy. Now most people laughed and shrugged it off as just that…a joke.
But after reading this link
I realized that it shouldn’t be such a joke anymore. Despite the rules for ballroom dancing and the very traditional nature of the sport/hobby, which I respect immensely, I think that two men dancing together shouldn’t be anymore out of the ordinary than two women dancing together, which is very commonplace and very socially acceptable, especially in ballroom dance circles. I can recall numerous (too numerous to count) times when at the local moose lodge in the town that I grew up in, there were always a few couples of women dancing together for whatever reason. And nobody said anything.
Now, maybe this touched a nerve because I’m gay or because I’m a ballroom dancer (which is a hobby at least, and a possible job at best). I love to swing dance, but also a number of other dances. And while I respect the tradition of couples being man/woman, there are times I wish I could walk up to a cute boy who also dances and ask if he’d like to dance. (obviously there are a few problems with this, and I’ll let you, dear reader, puzzle them out).
And while I know that it probably wouldn’t cause too much of an uproar where I live and in the places that I dance, I can’t help but feel that nagging fear that most gay people feel that one step out of line and you could be asked to leave…or worse. Having to deal and live with that kind of fear and uncertainty is grossly unfair, and I would just implore my readers to stop and consider the little things like this.
Alright, at the risk of sounding like I’m pontificating or pushing some agenda, I’ll leave you with this. I’m never going to tell you what to think, but I will tell you to think, and hope that you do. But not too much, =P
There are a lot of people who love that show. And not only do they love the show they adore the main character. Now it could be said that they like the main character because he has the cojonés to say and do things that they only wish they could do, or whatever.
But it seems to me that that’s where the adoration of this character ends. As long as he stays in the little box with a big screen. But if they meet this archetype of character in reality, they despise him. And my question is why?! What is so different from watching a character like House because you like him, but hating him once you come face to face with him? It just makes me wonder…
Let’s see…I’m trying to think of anything else that’s bothering me at this point. OH! Duh, how stupid of me to forget, its an election year. And we’re in the proverbial 9th inning stretch, which means mudslinging abounds and false promises are whats falling from the wagging tongues of all politicians EVERYWHERE! Isn’t America grand?
So now I’m watching D.w.t.S. and I’m very excited. Probably not for reasons that you think though. ^_^ I’m all over Cloris. But the thing I’d like to mention is that I’m also watching it because of Mr. Bass. Who, remains cute despite an abysmal haircut, is openly gay. (can you see where this is going yet). Awhile back, when Lance was announced as a contestant there were jokes/rumors/innuendo that he would dance with another guy. Now most people laughed and shrugged it off as just that…a joke.
But after reading this link
I realized that it shouldn’t be such a joke anymore. Despite the rules for ballroom dancing and the very traditional nature of the sport/hobby, which I respect immensely, I think that two men dancing together shouldn’t be anymore out of the ordinary than two women dancing together, which is very commonplace and very socially acceptable, especially in ballroom dance circles. I can recall numerous (too numerous to count) times when at the local moose lodge in the town that I grew up in, there were always a few couples of women dancing together for whatever reason. And nobody said anything.Now, maybe this touched a nerve because I’m gay or because I’m a ballroom dancer (which is a hobby at least, and a possible job at best). I love to swing dance, but also a number of other dances. And while I respect the tradition of couples being man/woman, there are times I wish I could walk up to a cute boy who also dances and ask if he’d like to dance. (obviously there are a few problems with this, and I’ll let you, dear reader, puzzle them out).
And while I know that it probably wouldn’t cause too much of an uproar where I live and in the places that I dance, I can’t help but feel that nagging fear that most gay people feel that one step out of line and you could be asked to leave…or worse. Having to deal and live with that kind of fear and uncertainty is grossly unfair, and I would just implore my readers to stop and consider the little things like this.
Alright, at the risk of sounding like I’m pontificating or pushing some agenda, I’ll leave you with this. I’m never going to tell you what to think, but I will tell you to think, and hope that you do. But not too much, =P
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
