Our BetterMost Community > Chez Tremblay
Is freedom really all that "free"??
ednbarby:
Alec, you're in Buffalo? I'm from Rochester. I know very well what it's like in that part of the state. I really feel for you, honey.
And I agree with Gay Lee (maggiesmommy) - not all hope is gone. I've lost a lot of mine, but not every last shred of it. I think we have a good shot at taking back Congress in November, if not the Presidency in 2008. I certainly have given what money I can to the Bill Nelson campaign down here and have encouraged others to do the same.
I'm going to look into what I need to do to be one of those people sitting at the Democrats' table, handing out refreshments and spin at my local polling place come Election Day. As the line goes, I'm mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take this anymore!
maggiesmommy GayLee:
oh, no, alec...thank YOU...you have had a life time of patience waiting for some of us to understand. What is that quote??" the journey of a thousand (maybe a million) miles begins with the first step..."
Lets raise a glass to the first step, and all of those steps that will follow, on this journey to peace on earth, real goodwill to all humanity, and equality for mankind...the women fought for it and got it, the African americans fought for it and got it, we can win it too....however our hurdle may be a bit wider, beause this is viewed by some in the mainstream as a moral issue. until we get people to look beyond the deepley ingrained religious overtones that surround these issues and look at them in the bold light of day, it will be a struggle, never doubt it, but you just can't lay down....you have to step up, put out your hand, say loud for all to hear "this isn't right, it isn't decent, it isn't moral....it is judgement of another human being from people with no right to judge, and it must stop.....and I for one will help, with everything i have in me, my brothers and sisters fight this travesty."
i hate to always have to bring up the religious aspect, but that is the basis for all of the discrimination, is it not?? i just wonder with what misguided sense of selfrighteousness do people set themselves up as judges and jury for a whole segment of society...???? remember the stories of when black americans had to ride in the back of the bus?? go to separate bathrooms, would not be served in many eating establishments..couldn't use the water fountains...wouldn't be hired...couldn't go to school where they lived...couldn't live in the "white" areas of the city, and on and on?? i was in high school when the Martin Luther King marches were going on..i remember how hard and long that fight was, and i also remember where it was won....it began in the streets, but it was won in the statehouses all across america, and in washington, by politicians who saw how wrong it was and were determined to effect change. I'm not saying there is still not prejudiced people here, there are, but the LAWS have changed, and they have no real power anymore, and guess what, it is ILLEGAL to discriminate on the basis of color, race, religion, national origin.....ooops did they leave out your weight, and sexual orientation?? i THINK SO!! oh, yes, the ignorance is there, it can't be irradicated by written word, but it is impotent and again, i say, ILLEGAL!!
AND i believe We can see this happen again, we CAN see that, as you say, Alec, it could all be so simple....just let people live their lives...no heriocs, no fireworks, no change in anything we hold dear, just letting everyday citizens have peace, love, respect and in the future, not even have to think about it one way or the other...just people, all different, but all the same, living in a world where there really IS liberty and justice FOR ALL....with NO exceptions..no "buts" attached....
there will be a day, and i can see it, when little gay kids from Buffalo, or in any city in this country will never know what you have all gone through every day of your life...will be accepted from the beginning...never know the prejudice, the hatred and unreasoning judgement meted out by self appointed judges that exists now...they will live in a world where the only thing wrong and unlawful will be inhumanity to man...murder, rape, abuse, thievery..speeding?? but not merley living the life one was born to live. That is the future we must always keep before our eyes..it is for them that we fight....and i am not just giving this lip service...i want all the straight people who are on this board because of your love for BBM and your newly opened eyes for your G/L brothers and sisters, to consider a real change in your own life....talk it up....don't be afraid to verbalize your disagreement, don't be afraid to stand up and defend them in public to a crowd of 1 or 1,000!! when there is this kind of wrong, we need to stop it, not sit by and let it happen...its now or never, people, right here, on the front lines, fully dressed for battle, arm and arm...lets begin this good fight....
and i have to apologize, for repeating myself, for not being able to answer a post with less than 500 words, and for not seeing all of this 30 years ago....
smooches...
gay lee
maggiesmommy GayLee:
--- Quote from: ednbarby on July 05, 2006, 02:21:24 pm ---Alec, you're in Buffalo? I'm from Rochester. I know very well what it's like in that part of the state. I really feel for you, honey.
And I agree with Gay Lee (maggiesmommy) - not all hope is gone. I've lost a lot of mine, but not every last shred of it. I think we have a good shot at taking back Congress in November, if not the Presidency in 2008. I certainly have given what money I can to the Bill Nelson campaign down here and have encouraged others to do the same.
I'm going to look into what I need to do to be one of those people sitting at the Democrats' table, handing out refreshments and spin at my local polling place come Election Day. As the line goes, I'm mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take this anymore!
--- End quote ---
WEll, i don't knowwhat its like back east, but here in the heartland...i am in Topeka, Kansas, we have MrFred Phelps to deal with..you don't KNOW prejudice until you've lived in the "bible belt"....hohum....it gets real old....smug %*&#$*&%&&'s...
gl
alec716:
--- Quote from: maggiesmommy on July 05, 2006, 02:57:09 pm ---WEll, i don't knowwhat its like back east, but here in the heartland...i am in Topeka, Kansas, we have MrFred Phelps to deal with..you don't KNOW prejudice until you've lived in the "bible belt"....hohum....it gets real old....smug %*&#$*&%&&'s...
gl
--- End quote ---
Thanks, maggiesmommy and ednbarby, for continuing this dialogue. I have but a moment at work right now to be online, but I must tell you that I have tried to shout down Reverend Phelps at my share of demonstrations in the 18 years I have lived in Washington, D.C. What could motivate the hate that some people espouse? We can only speculate. Funny, I don't feel like a threat to the very fabric of the American society and Western civilization itself. ;) I have worked in inner-city child welfare for 15 years here in D.C. and have seen every manner of horror, from beatings to rape to murder, that people can inflict on their own flesh and blood. Others seem more worrisome to me than, say, me! ;) But that's a whole other story, and I am determined to keep this conversation positive. :)
to be continued....
thanks. :-* -- Alec
maggiesmommy GayLee:
no one should EVER, EVER have to feel that way about themselves or how others view them...you sound like a wonderful human being, alec...i worked in our local ER for many years before finally going to a private practice doc, and i too have seen so much misery that is inflicted on the helpless and innocent by bullies and absuers. You have a very very difficult job, and i know it is hard to take it every day without breaking totally or getting so calloused, just to maintain that you end up with no feelings at all...there is a very delicate balance there, and you seen to be doing a great job...the people whose lives you touch are belssed indeed...just think of the empathy and understanding you bring to the table...awsome..
gl
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