tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2981150132319902442024-02-19T16:49:52.368-08:00JustBeingPhillyUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-49230089953770972392015-07-06T11:47:00.001-07:002015-07-06T11:47:27.469-07:00My response to "40 Questions for Christians Now Waving the Rainbow Flag".<div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; font-family: proxima-nova, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; margin-bottom: 1.25em; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizeLegibility;">
<span style="color: #222222;">As some of you may have seen, there has been a blog post circulating around entitled, "40 Questions for Christians Now Waving the Rainbow Flas."</span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222;">As many of you know, I have, long, been a supporter for marriage equality. I have been ashamed of many of my Christian brothers and sisters for they way they have treated this issue. My God is a God of love and compassion. My God is not the God that many conservative churches talk about. My God is not a God that is all about "fire and brimstone" and all about "you are going to 'Hell'". Many young adults are leaving the church because of that type of Christianity and those types of churches. However, that is not who my God is. The God that I believe in IS love. There is room for EVERYBODY at God's table in Heaven. Yes, that's right; EVERYBODY!!!!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222;">This is my response to those 40 questions:</span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222;">1. How long have you believed that gay marriage is something to be celebrated? </span><span style="color: blue;">I have believed in marriage equality every since I found out that gay people couldn't get married. (I may have been in middle school or so) I thought that was the most ridiculous thing that I've ever heard. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222;">2. What <nobr style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a class="pxInta" href="http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2015/07/01/40-questions-for-christians-now-waving-rainbow-flags/#" id="PXLINK_2_0_1" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent !important; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-bottom-color: rgb(28, 125, 255) !important; border-bottom-style: solid !important; border-width: 0px 0px 1px !important; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(28, 125, 255) !important; display: inline !important; line-height: inherit; padding-bottom: 1px !important;">Bible verses</a></nobr> led you to change your mind? </span><span style="color: blue;">I am offended that this "pastor" just assumes that I HAD to change my mind. I've always believed in marriage equality. Here's a bible verse that I love: Matthew 22: 36-40: "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law. Jesus replied, 'Love the Lord your God and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself. All the law and the prophets hang on these two commandments."</span></div>
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3. How would you make a positive case from Scripture that sexual activity between two persons of the same sex is a blessing to be celebrated? <span style="color: blue;">Jesus put love at the very top, he told us not to judge, and he did not say anything about homosexuality (as did nobody since that term wasn't around until the 1800s)</span></div>
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4. What verses would you use to show that a marriage between two persons of the same sex can adequately depict Christ and the Church? <span style="color: blue;">There aren't any that flat-out say that. You can say that Isaiah 54:5 or 2nd Corinthians 11:2 do. However, the Bible was written in a much different time. The PEOPLE who wrote the Bible wouldn't even fathom that. That is because they are people and they live in a much different time than we do now.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222;">5. Do you think Jesus would have been okay with homosexual behavior between consenting adults in a committed relationship? </span><span style="color: blue;">I definitely do. </span></div>
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6. If so, why did he reassert the Genesis definition of marriage as being one man and one woman? <span style="color: blue;">Jesus says "Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. What therefore God has joined together let not man separate." Jesus lived in a much different time than we do. In his time, they could only fathom talking about husbands and wives. That particular bible verse says nothing about a man being with a man or a woman being with a woman. He is not saying that homosexuality is a sin or anything like that in this verse.</span></div>
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7. When Jesus spoke against <em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;">porneia</em> what sins do you think he was forbidding? <span style="color: blue;">I see that you are trying to put me in the seat of "judgment". In Romans 2:1, Peter says, "You therefore have no excuse, you who pass judgment of someone else. For at, whatever point, you judge another, you are condemning yourself because you who pass judgment do the same things."</span></div>
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8. If some homosexual behavior is acceptable, how do you understand the sinful “exchange” Paul highlights in Romans 1?<span style="color: blue;"> In my opinion, Paul is an "Old Testament" writer in a "New Testament" world. He could have easily fit into the craziness that is in Leviticus. If you believe Paul's writing, then I assume that you believe that "women should be silent in the churches. They are not to be allowed to speak, but must be in submission as the law says." People are picking and choosing again. Paul was a human writing how HE believed. His prejudices and thoughts are behind his writing.</span></div>
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9. Do you believe that passages like <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="1 Cor 6.9" data-version="esv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/esv/1%20Cor%206.9" style="background: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #78b147; line-height: inherit; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">1 Corinthians 6:9</a> and <a class="rtBibleRef" data-purpose="bible-reference" data-reference="Rev 21.8" data-version="esv" href="http://biblia.com/bible/esv/Rev%2021.8" style="background: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #78b147; line-height: inherit; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Revelation 21:8</a> teach that sexual immorality can keep you out of heaven? <span style="color: blue;">No</span></div>
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10. What sexual sins do you think they were referring to? <span style="color: blue;">I do not know. However, 1st Corinthians was written by Paul and you already know by thoughts on him.</span><br />
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11. As you think about the long history of the church and the near universal disapproval of same-sex sexual activity, what do you think you understand about the Bible that Augustine, Aquinas, Calvin, and Luther failed to grasp? <span style="color: blue;">Considering that John Calvin is the youngest of that group and died in 1564, I would say that I live in different time than they do. They all lived in a time where homosexuality was frowned upon because people didn't know too much about it. Luckily, as the years have gone on, people have evolved. If they were alive today, there is a good chance that their thoughts might be a tad different.</span><br />
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12. What arguments would you use to explain to Christians in Africa, Asia, and South America that their understanding of homosexuality is biblically incorrect and your new understanding of homosexuality is not culturally conditioned? <span style="color: blue;">The same things that I am saying now. Their understanding of homosexuality is culturally conditioned. People in the US that believe it is a sin are culturally conditioned, as well. </span><br />
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13. Do you think Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama were motivated by personal animus and bigotry when they, for almost all of their lives, defined marriage as a covenant relationship between one man and one woman? <span style="color: blue;">I'm sorry but I don't think that I have the right to speak for them. </span><br />
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14. Do you think children do best with a mother and a father?<span style="color: blue;"> No, I believe that a child does well with parent(s) who love them and show unconditional love throughout their lives. I think that a child does best when their parent teaches them to not dislike a group of people because they are different, I think that a child does better when their parent teaches them about inclusiveness, compassion, and love. If you say that a child needs a mother and father, then you are completely devaluing any parent who might also be a widow, a divorced parent who has nobody else in the picture, AND homosexual couples.</span><br />
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15. If not, what research would you point to in support of that conclusion? <span style="color: blue;"><span style="background-color: white;">I did no research. However, I know these couples. I know a few moms who don't have the dad in the picture. Their children are incredible kids who are wonderful in all assets of life. I know a couple gay couples who also are wonderful parents. </span></span><br />
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16. If yes, does the church or the state have any role to <nobr style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a class="pxInta" href="http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2015/07/01/40-questions-for-christians-now-waving-rainbow-flags/#" id="PXLINK_3_0_2" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent !important; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-bottom-color: rgb(28, 125, 255) !important; border-bottom-style: solid !important; border-width: 0px 0px 1px !important; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(28, 125, 255) !important; display: inline !important; line-height: inherit; padding-bottom: 1px !important;">play</a></nobr> in promoting or privileging the arrangement that puts children with a mom and a dad? <span style="color: blue;">N/A</span><br />
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17. Does the end and purpose of marriage point to something more than an adult’s emotional and sexual fulfillment? <span style="color: blue;">I want to talk about the last part of this question. People that oppose gay marriage always bring up one thing. They think about sex. For some reason, that's all that is important to these people. They don't think about two people who love each other and would do anything for that person. They think about what they do in the bedroom. They are very lucky that they can use the Bible to justify their hatred and bigotry because just saying "it's icky" wouldn't get them very far. </span><br />
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18. How would you define marriage? <span style="color: blue;">Two people who love each other and want to spend the rest of their lives together.</span><br />
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19. Do you think <nobr style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a class="pxInta" href="http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2015/07/01/40-questions-for-christians-now-waving-rainbow-flags/#" id="PXLINK_1_0_0" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent !important; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-bottom-color: rgb(28, 125, 255) !important; border-bottom-style: solid !important; border-width: 0px 0px 1px !important; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(28, 125, 255) !important; display: inline !important; line-height: inherit; padding-bottom: 1px !important;">close</a></nobr> family members should be allowed to get married? <span style="color: blue;">No! However, if you want to use the Bible to discuss this, then they should be able to sleep with each other. Just ask Lot and his daughters. However, in Lot's defense, his daughters got him drunk in order to do it. That was the first recorded instance of "blaming the alcohol".</span><br />
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20. Should marriage be limited to only two people? <span style="color: blue;">This is another question (just like 19) that is brought up with the "slippery slope" argument. I am going to go against the Bible and say "yes, it should be". </span><br />
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21. On what basis, if any, would you prevent consenting adults of any relation and of any number from getting married? <span style="color: blue;">This is going back to the "slippery slope" argument that gay marriage will lead to polygamy, incest, bestiality.</span><br />
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22. Should there be an age requirement in this country for obtaining a marriage license? <span style="color: blue;">Yes</span><br />
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23. Does equality entail that anyone wanting to be married should be able to have any meaningful relationship defined as marriage? <span style="color: blue;">No</span><br />
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24. If not, why not? <span style="color: blue;">It should be between two consenting adults.</span><br />
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25. Should your brothers and sisters in Christ who disagree with homosexual practice be allowed to exercise their religious beliefs without fear of punishment, retribution, or coercion? <span style="color: blue;">Of course they should. If they don't want to marry somebody of the same sex, I don't think that they should be made to do that. However, if you are including not providing a service to somebody because they are gay, that is not exercising your religious beliefs, that is pure discrimination. Nobody should have the right to discriminate against another person.</span><br />
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26. Will you speak up for your fellow Christians when their jobs, their <nobr style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a class="pxInta" href="http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2015/07/01/40-questions-for-christians-now-waving-rainbow-flags/#" id="PXLINK_4_0_3" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent !important; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-bottom-color: rgb(28, 125, 255) !important; border-bottom-style: solid !important; border-width: 0px 0px 1px !important; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(28, 125, 255) !important; display: inline !important; line-height: inherit; padding-bottom: 1px !important;">accreditation</a></nobr>, their reputation, and their freedoms are threatened because of this issue? <span style="color: blue;">If people are living as Christ called them to live (loving God and loving one another) then none of this should be threatened.</span><br />
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27. Will you speak out against shaming and bullying of all kinds, whether against gays and lesbians or against Evangelicals and Catholics? <span style="color: blue;">I'm sorry but bullying of Christians is not the same as the bullying of gays and lesbians. Christians' rights are not being threatened. Christians don't have to worry for their safety like many gays and lesbians do. Jesus often fought for the oppressed over the oppressors. I will do the same.</span><br />
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28. Since the evangelical church has often failed to take unbiblical divorces and other sexual sins seriously, what steps will you take to ensure that gay marriages are healthy and accord with Scriptural principles? <span style="color: blue;">Our job is to support each other in loving community. Some churches offer counseling to straight couples; they can do the same for gay couples. However, gay couples are not in need of "fixing." People need to worry about doing better for themselves, loving each other, and doing what Christ would want you to do. The Jesus that I love would not want you oppressing or discriminating against other people.</span><br />
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29. Should gay couples in <nobr style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a class="pxInta" href="http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevindeyoung/2015/07/01/40-questions-for-christians-now-waving-rainbow-flags/#" id="PXLINK_5_0_4" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent !important; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-bottom-color: rgb(28, 125, 255) !important; border-bottom-style: solid !important; border-width: 0px 0px 1px !important; box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(28, 125, 255) !important; display: inline !important; line-height: inherit; padding-bottom: 1px !important;">open</a></nobr> relationships be subject to church discipline?<span style="color: blue;"> I don't trust church discipline. All it does is hurt people and pushes people further away from the church. However, if there was any church discipline, gay couples in open relationships should not be subject to it any more than straight couples in open relationships should.</span><br />
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30. Is it a sin for LGBT persons to engage in sexual activity outside of marriage? O<span style="color: blue;">ur job, as Christians, is not to decide what is or what is not a sin. Our job is to love God and to love our neighbor. When we start saying that this is a sin or that is a sin, we automatically leave the job of "loving" and start our job of "judging."</span><br />
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31. What will open and affirming churches do to speak prophetically against divorce, fornication, pornography, and adultery wherever they are found? <span style="color: blue;">The focus of the church should never be about "sin". It should ALWAYS be about Christ and Christ's love for us. That is the problem that I have with all of the "fire and brimstone" type of churches. They don't focus on God's love, they focus on "sin" and whether or not people are going to "Hell".</span><br />
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32. If “love wins,” how would you define love? <span style="color: blue;">How would I define love? Love is too broad of a word to just give a quick definition. However, love is treating someone how you would like to be treated. Love if compassion, forgiveness, kindness, etc.</span><br />
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33. What verses would you use to establish that definition? <span style="color: blue;">1st Corinthians 13: 4-7 is a good definition.</span><br />
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34. How should obedience to God’s commands shape our understanding of love? <span style="color: blue;">God's greatest command was to love. Everything we do needs to follow under that command. Romans says, "Love your neighbor as yourself. Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law".</span><br />
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35. Do you believe it is possible to love someone and disagree with important decisions they make? <span style="color: blue;">Of course it is. However, with homosexuality, people always use the old adage, "Love the sinner, hate the sin". I have a big problem with that particular statement. With homosexuality, that is a big part of who this person is. Just like, being straight is a big part of who I am. Therefore if you think that being straight is a sin and you hate that part about me, you are, in turn, hating a huge part of what makes me who I am. Therefore, you are NOT loving me. Therefore, it is time to throw that line away. </span><br />
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36. If supporting gay marriage is a change for you, has anything else changed in your understanding of faith? <span style="color: blue;">It is not a change for me. </span><br />
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37. As an evangelical, how has your support for gay marriage helped you become more passionate about traditional evangelical distinctives like a focus on being born again, the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ on the cross, the total trustworthiness of the Bible, and the urgent need to evangelize the lost? <span style="color: blue;">I hate the term "born again". The Bible is more of a guidebook. There is a lot of truth in the Bible; however, it is not all "true". The Bible was written by humans. It was not written verbatim by God. God might have inspired it. However, it was written by people with their own thoughts and prejudices behind it.</span><br />
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38. What open and affirming churches would you point to where people are being converted to orthodox Christianity, sinners are being warned of judgment and called to repentance, and missionaries are being sent out to plant churches among unreached peoples?</div>
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39. Do you hope to be more committed to the church, more committed to Christ, and more committed to the Scriptures in the years ahead? <span style="color: blue;">Not necessarily</span><br />
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40. When Paul at the end of Romans 1 rebukes “those who practice such things” and those who “give approval to those who practice them,” what sins do you think he has in mind? <span style="color: blue;">The beauty of it is that, honestly, I don't know and I'm not even going to pretend to know. For all of my conservative Christian friends out there, it's okay to not know. It is okay to not think that you have all of the answers. </span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-39913048019128445412014-10-18T19:55:00.002-07:002014-10-18T19:58:59.625-07:00Why the Cowboys didn't have a 4-peat in the '90's.As a lifelong Dallas Cowboy fan, this 5-1 start to the season got me thinking about the Cowboys from the '90's. I started watching the Dallas Cowboys in 1994. Well, technically, my first introduction to them was in the previous year's Super Bowl (the 2nd time they beat the Bills). However, this was the first full season that I really paid attention. <br />
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I am going to discuss the one player that I still don't know if I like or dislike. In that '94 season, he was playing for the hated 49ers. However the next year, we went to Dallas and helped them win the Super Bowl. That person is, of course, Deion Sanders.<br />
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The reason that I dislike him is because I lay a lot of the blame of that '94 NFC Championship Game loss at his feet. Most people who remember that game remember the 21-0 hole the Cowboys found themselves in; they remember the interception and two fumbles that accompanied the Cowboys' first 3 possessions. However, if it wasn't for Deion Sanders, I believe that the Cowboys would have come back in that game to win. If they won that game, they would have easily beaten the Chargers. Everyone knew that this was the Super Bowl. No way would either team lose.<br />
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Why do I blame Deion, you ask? It all goes down to the 4th quarter. The Cowboys were losing 38-28. However they were moving down the field at this time. With 6:30ish left, Troy Aikman let a ball go deep towards Michael Irvin. However, before the ball even got there, Sanders arms were pulling Irvin's right arm down. It was a blatant pass interference that all the fans and, even, the announcers saw. There was a no-call. If they had made that call, they would have gotten the ball at the 5 yard line. I believe that they would have punched it in. They would have been down by 3 with 6 minutes left. The Niners hadn't done anything in the 2nd Half. All it would have taken is one stop and they would have gotten the ball back to score and win. <br />
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Of course, I have no proof that the rest would have happened. However, I believe it would have.<br />
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Instead, it was an incompletion. Barry Switzer yelled at the ref and bumped into him; getting an unsportsmanlike conduct. That made the down and distance 3rd and 25. The Cowboys, in turn, turned it over on downs.<br />
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There ya have it. It's Deion's fault that the Cowboys didn't win 4 Super Bowls in a row. Of course, Deion went to the Cowboys the following year and I rooted for him like crazy.<br />
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Of course, you could blame other aspects for the Cowboys' disappointment (i.e. Jerry Jones micromanaging, Barry Switzer having NO discipline,etc) However, those are blog posts for another day. :-)<br />
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<img src="http://www.knowyourdallascowboys.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/d_sanders_950115_640.jpg" />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-85203493012395805352014-06-30T17:18:00.001-07:002014-06-30T17:18:14.137-07:00Why feminism mattersBare with me; I am about to say a bad word. I am very sorry but I feel the need to mention the "f" word. I am going to talk about "feminism". I also have some bad news for many people. "Feminism" is not a bad word. I know that many people think that it's an insult. In fact, calling somebody a "feminist" is quite a compliment. Now I'm going to discuss why feminism still matters.<br />
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First off, there's one thing that has always confused me. Why does the GOP care so much about everybody's sex lives? That seems to be all they truly care about. Please get out of our bedrooms<br />
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Having said that, feminism still matters. It matters because certain corporations don't want their insurance to cover birth control. However, Viagra and vasectomies are covered.<br />
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It matters because women that use birth control are being called "sluts" and "whores" by many people on the conservative side.<br />
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It matters because everybody who might not be able to afford birth control are being painted with a broad brush. I am sorry but you don't know their particular back stories. You do not know what is going on in their lives.<br />
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It matters because the ONLY people in the Supreme Court who voted for this are MEN!!!!<br />
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It matters because women have the right to make choices about their bodies<br />
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It matters because women who are walking into Planned Parenthood (which could be for a variety of reasons) are being harassed as they walk in.<br />
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It matters because people who work for Planned Parenthood have to fear for their safety all day long.<br />
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It matters because women have to be careful when they're by themselves.<br />
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It matters because women still get cat calls when they walk down the street.<br />
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These are just a few reasons why feminism still matters.<br />
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It saddens and sickens me how many people in the GOP are downright mean and extremely rude when these rulings come out. It seems to me that there is so much name-calling; they seem to go back to grade-school maturity. I know that not all do this. However, many do!!<br />
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If somebody calls you a feminist, please don't worry. They are giving you a compliment. They are saying that you want women to have equal rights They are saying that you don't believe women are inferior They are saying that you love equality!!!<br />
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Having said all this, I want you to remember...<br />
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FEMINISM STILL MATTERS!!!<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-58003366678293053012013-11-06T20:17:00.000-08:002013-11-07T08:43:40.881-08:00My reaction to a blog post gone viral.As many of you are most likely aware there is a blog post that has gone viral. This is from a mother of two young children and it is entitled "Why my kids are not the center of my world." <br />
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Here is a link if you have not read it: <a href="http://www.viralnova.com/this-young-mother-is-sick-of-how-kids-are-being-raised-heres-her-controversial-blog-post/">http://www.viralnova.com/this-young-mother-is-sick-of-how-kids-are-being-raised-heres-her-controversial-blog-post/</a><br />
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I am sure that people who read my reaction will say, "What does he know? He doesn't have kids." You are correct. I do not. However, I have been teaching for 6 years and have been working with children my whole life. <br />
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So here ya go:<br />
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In this post, she states that "there was a time – not too long ago – when bullying was defined as slamming someone up against a locker and stealing their lunch money. There was a time when kids got called names and got picked on, and they brushed it off and worked through it."<br />
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The idea of bullying did use to be a lot more black and white. If you didn't have some sort of physical damage, then you weren't bullied. However, that thought process is wrong. I can't believe that it has taken us until now to begin to correctly define "bullying". "Picking on somebody" and "calling somebody names" has always been and is still bullying. That was, easily, the most asinine paragraph in the post. You may say that I'm a bleeding-heart liberal or trying to sissify our children (the latter which is the most annoying phrase in the world). I don't care. With social media the way it is, we need to crack down on this. I am thrilled with the way we in, 2013, are FINALLY cracking down on bullying. <br />
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She also states that "modern parenting is creating a generation that’s not going to be able to function in society. Your child, who you cater to every need, who you shelter from all things “evil.” How will this child react when he or she grows into adulthood? “Debbie” graduates from high school and goes to college. She writes her first paper and meets with her professor about that paper and the professor tells her that it’s junk and it will get a failing grade. How will Debbie cope with that if she’s always been made to feel that no one should ever make her feel sad, or criticize anything she does?"<br />
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I fully disagree with this assertion about "modern parenting". "Modern parenting" is not catering to every need. I think it makes no sense for her to paint "modern parenting" with such a broad brush. To me, "modern parenting" is walking a fine line between "catering to children's every need" and letting them figure things out for themselves. My question is this: why is she wanting her children to be in the "real world" so soon. Let them be children. Her part about Debbie is insane, as well. First of all, I've never heard of a professor referring to a paper as "junk". Second of all, if Debbie wrote a bad paper in college, I'm sure that she had written some bad papers in high school and it got "criticized". As an elementary school teacher, you don't get a child's best by calling his/her work junk. You don't get a child's best effort by demeaning his/her work. You get his/her best effort by mentioning what you like about the paper and then telling the child where he/she could improve it, what changes they need to make. If you disagree with this sentiment then "Congratulations", you know nothing about children. (Did you see how I just used a generalization just like she did throughout her whole post? See, anybody can do it :-)).<br />
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She also mentions about her boy wanting to bring something to show-and-tell. His action figure has a "drill" with it. He decides not to bring it because he doesn't want to get in trouble for bringing a "gun" to school. <br />
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I completely understand his thought process. Schools don't want children bringing anything resembling a gun to school. However, I can easily tell that his mom watches too much TV or reads stories on the internet a little too often. People act like that craziness that they see in the news is the staple in all schools. They act like every school suspends a kid for a pop tart that was eaten to look like a gun. I'm sorry. But for every one of those stories, there are hundreds of stories of children bringing a toy gun or something of that nature to school and it being collected by the teacher and/or principal. Then it is returned to the parent. However, you know what? THOSE STORIES AREN'T IN THE NEWS!!! For some reason, they don't report those. Elementary-aged kids are not gonna get suspended for acting like they have guns at recess. They might be asked to stop but that's it. As a parent, she can let them do whatever she wants at home. At least, she realizes that.<br />
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She also mentioned her boys having manners, speaking to people when spoken to, etc. "Modern parents" also do that. That is not just old-fashioned parenting.<br />
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I know that a lot of people liked her post. I know that not everybody is going to agree with me. By the amount of people that re-posted that blog, I can tell that a lot of people will disagree with me. However, from the moment I read it, I knew I had to respond to it.<br />
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Thanks for taking time to read!!<br />
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PhilipUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-56842889919336608002013-07-05T18:33:00.000-07:002013-07-05T18:33:07.354-07:00Independence Day ramblingsI will say that I understand Independence Day. I understand it's significance. I believe it is a wonderful holiday where we get to celebrate our country and the freedom that we have. It is also a time where we get to thank the military for all they do for us.<br />
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However, it has also become a time to show off about how patriotic you may be. All day long, people are posting pictures up on facebook just so people know they are more patriotic than anybody else. You won't see this much one-upmanship until Christmas time when people will post non-stop about their love for Jesus. I am always picturing people getting in a room and yelling, "I LOVE JESUS MORE", "NO, I LOVE HIM MORE". "WELL, I POSTED THAT MANIPULATIVE STATUS ABOUT HOW MUCH I LOVE JESUS. YOU KNOW, THE ONE THAT SAYS IF I DON'T RE-POST IT, THEN THAT SHOWS THAT I DON'T LOVE HIM." "We're done 'cause you're just a moron". (The argument has to end sometime) <br />
After all, most people are competitive by nature. You have to be better than other people somehow, don't you? Oh, you don't? Dang, now I know!!<br />
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Every year, I hope that we are a little more free than the year before. More free? How can people be "more free"? Lucky for me, I'm as free as I can be. I can't be any more free. You want to know why? That is because I'm a white, straight, Christian, male. We can basically do whatever we want, as long as it's legal. <br />
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However, all people who aren't white? They're still discriminated against. Believe it or not, the KKK is still around. Racism isn't has prevalent as it used to be. However, it still exists.<br />
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My gay brothers and sisters? People still use the Bible to justify their hatred. When somebody uses the Bible to spew their diatribe, that just proves to me that he/she has never read the Bible. I believe that someday, all of my gay friends will be able to marry the person that they love. Isn't that what we all want? The "gay agenda" is the same as the "straight agenda": to marry whomever we love. The world is getting more accepting. I feel that each year, they will be more and more free.<br />
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My non-Christian friends? The "religious right" constantly preaches against any other religion. If you don't believe as they do, then you are going to Hell. They want you to know that. You want to know something? They are full of crap. As my second paragraph stated, that is their way of being a better person than you. Luckily, they do NOT speak for all Christians.<br />
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Women? People are trying to make it to where the gov't has control over a woman's body. I'm sorry. You don't get a choice. We will make it for you. Oh my friends, that's not all. We are also going to shut down women's clinics all over the world. Ummm...what? Maybe someday, women won't be treated as the weaker sex. Hmmm...just maybe.<br />
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Yes, I look forward to a day when we, ALL AMERICANS, are more free.<br />
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-Philip<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-33869146437392357942012-12-14T15:14:00.000-08:002012-12-14T15:14:15.981-08:00Guns don't kill people. People AND guns kill people!!!As many of my friends know, I don't tend to stay away from controversial topics. I am always ready to share my opinion on certain subjects. Lucky for all of you, I am now joining the "gun" conversation.<br />
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To begin, I want you to understand that I hate, hate, hate, hate, hate guns. I truly believe that without guns, we wouldn't have as much violence as we do have. I have heard all of the quips from the conservative side and they have not changed my mind.<br />
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I have often heard "guns don't kill people, people do". That, in and of itself, is true. Guns need somebody to pull the trigger. However, I think the gun certainly helps. If the person didn't have a gun, he/she would not have the same opportunity to do this damage.<br />
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I, also, hear people say that if the person didnt have a gun, he/she would find another weapon and still kill. There is a problem with that. Any other weapon that somebody could use (knife, baseball bat, etc) has another purpose. Guns only have one purpose: TO KILL!!! You might be able to put a wire through it and make a lovely lamp. However, I don't think that too many people do that. For those who think that a gun can compare with other weapons, I want you to try this. Tell a hunter that instead of using a gun, he/she should use a knife or a baseball bat. Afterwards, ask them how much game they got. I would be willing to bet that they would have gotten quite a bit less. With other perceived weapons, the victims would have a fighting chance. However, with a gun, you have a much worse chance of surviving.<br />
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For me, a perfect world would be a world without guns. However, I know that'll never happen. Therefore, we need better gun control. It must be harder to get a gun. I know that some criminals will still get guns. However, if you have to jump through more hoops to get a gun, less will be able to get one. We need LESS guns in the world!!!<br />
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Hopefully, this will happen soon!!!<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-47704563754135181852012-12-06T18:48:00.000-08:002012-12-06T18:52:21.907-08:00Some of my ramblings about Christmas and religion<div style="margin: 5pt 7.5pt;">
<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Let me preface this post with this:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am a Christian.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe in God and I believe that Jesus was the Messiah.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, please let me continue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe that our God is a loving and merciful God..<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God doesn’t hate anything that God has made.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God sometimes doesn’t like what we might do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, God never punishes us by sending us to a place called “Hell”. I don’t believe that this place even exists!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe your God is different than mine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe your God does do those things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All I know is that my God equals love!!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> (Also, my God is not a male or female, which is why I refuse to use pronouns when discussing God)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Now, I will begin: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This is a wonderful time of the year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People are caroling, decorating trees, eating lot of sweets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are parties galore (where did the fascination with “Ugly Christmas Sweater Parties” even come from?”).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everybody seems to be in a better mood than the rest of the year (that is, until they look at their checking accounts after Christmas shopping).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is easily my favorite time of the year: Christmas!!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now here are a few thoughts about this holiday.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><strong><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My 1<sup>st</sup> thought:</strong><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A lot of people think that Christmas has become too commercial, too secularized.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They think that we<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>forget why we even celebrate Christmas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I disagree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe that the combination of the religious aspect and the secular aspect is what makes Christmas such a great holiday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course, I don’t think they should be combined too much.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Santa in a Nativity is a little too much.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, I digress.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love the commercial aspect of this holiday, starting with Santa and going right down to the tiniest gingerbread man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I absolutely love it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also love the religious aspect of Christmas, starting with the birth of Christ right down to discussing how many wise men were actually there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(I think that 4 were actually there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One brought frankincense, one brought myrrh, and two went halvsies on the gold).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fact that the wise men weren’t there at the birth of Jesus is completely lost on the nativity scenes, anyways.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><strong>My 2<sup>nd</sup> thought:</strong></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">There is one thing that I can always rely on at Christmas time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is this: “THE WAR ON CHRISTMAS”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would be willing to say that you didn’t read that as I read it when I typed it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First, you need to work on your Boris Karloff impression.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once you attained this ability, repeat the first two sentences of this paragraph.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did you do it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It sounds scarier that way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">“The war on Christmas” is a mythical war that occurs every year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is led by Fox News where they are trying their best to “keep the ‘Christ’ in Christmas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It must be hard with all of us liberal heathens running around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I have the ability to take “Christ” out of Christmas, then I am more powerful than I ever knew.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Next, I will use my powers to take “Fat” out of Father’s Day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Please, wish me luck in this venture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Seriously, though, what is people’s problem?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why do people have such a prolem with people wishing them a “Happy Holidays”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the holiday season: Christmas, New Years, Chanukah, etc. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The word “holiday” is derived from the notion “holy day” and evolved into its current form.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the definition of making a big deal out of nothing. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><strong>This leads me to a discussion that doesn’t involve Christmas.</strong></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">There is a question for which I have been dying to know the answer: “Why do so many Christians (mostly from the religious right) feel the need to act like they’re being persecuted f.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My friends: nobody’s religious freedom has been taken away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When Rev. Billy Graham’s daughter was on CBS’s “Early Show” after 9/11, she said, “I would say also for several years now, Americans have shaken their fist at God, and said, ‘God, we want you out of our schools, our government, our business, we want you out of our marketplace”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She then continued to say that we can’t turn our back to God but , then, ask God back when we need protection.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This quote proved to me that she might be as crazy as her old man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> Nobody has taken God out of any of these places.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s take the schools for instance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For some reason, so many people are up in arms about schools not allowing the students to pray.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is absolute hogwash (yes, I said hogwash).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Students are allowed to pray.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Silent prayers work as well as prayers that are said aloud.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For those, who love to spout Bible verses out, please read Matthew 6:5-6.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It says, “</span><span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt;">And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As far as I know, schools aren’t stopping people from praying silently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A lot of schools have a moment of silence every day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is a perfect praying time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> <br /> Even if any of this could be remotely true, my God is a god of love, kindness, and compassion. I wish that some of you Christians could get to know my God. You would love it!!!</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: windowtext; font-size: 10pt;">Fellow Christians, please don’t act like a victim because you aren’t one!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-61073180104773569962012-10-31T19:59:00.001-07:002012-10-31T20:01:19.255-07:00My review on The Beatles "Please Please Me"I have now decided to begin a series of posts about my favorite band: "The Beatles". I will give my review and thoughts on each of their albums. I begin with their first album.<br />
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<b>Please Please Me</b><br />
<img src="https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTazsbu5DG5RJYNknzfUutdGhFUk-LcxsQEPnfsap7bwryQ1Udx4w" /><br />
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This album, like a few of their early ones, contains quite a few covers. On this album, there are 6 covers and 8 original songs. One interesting note is that on this album, the original songs were credited to McCartney/Lennon as opposed to Lennon/McCartney which is what they did for the rest of their careers together.<br />
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They recorded this album in one day (9 hours and 45 minutes) They were in a rush to do an album to capitalize on the success of their singles, "Please Please Me" and "Love Me Do".<br />
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<b>I Saw Her Standing There</b>- The album starts strong with this gem written primarily by McCartney. He conceived this idea while driving home from a Beatles concert in Lancashire. McCartney had, originally, written "She was just seventeen/ Never been a beauty queen". Lennon asked him if he was joking about that last line. He then gave him the idea for "you know what I mean." This song gave them a good chance to open with a little rocker.<br />
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<b>Misery- </b>They go for a bluesier feel for their next song on the album. "Misery" is a song both Lennon and McCartney say was 50/50. This was one of their true collaborations. In 1963, The Beatles were on the bill for Helen Shapiro's nationwide tour of the United Kingdom. Her manager needed a new song for her. Therefore, they wrote "Misery" for her to sing. Her manager didn't think it would fit her so she never recorded it. The Beatles, in return, recorded it for this album. It's not a bad song. However, it's one of my least favorites of their originals on this album.<br />
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<b>Anna (Go To Him)</b>- This is the first cover on this album and was written by Arthur Alexander. This was an early favorite of John Lennon. They included this in their live stage show repertoire. I'm, personally, not a fan of this song and haven't heard any other renditions of it. Lennon was battling a cold the day they recorded this album and you get the feeling that something's not quite right with his lead vocal. <br />
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<b>Chains</b>- This cover was written by the songwriting team of Gerry Goffin and Carole King. This song gives George Harrison his first crack at lead vocal on the album. He does a very good job vocally on this song. It isn't their best cover song but is well done.<br />
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<b>Boys- </b>This is Ringo's song on the album. They tried to give him one song on each album and this was the winner. This is probably his song because it's the weakest song! It was written by Luther Dixon and Wes Farrell and was, originally, recorded by The Shirelles. This was a song that they did in their old Cavern days and was always a fan favorite. They recorded this song in one take.<br />
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<b>Ask Me Why</b>- This is, principally, a John Lennon composition. He was influenced by Smokey Robinson. This is a wonderfully written and performed song. It was tge B-side of the "Please Please Me" single. This is one of their lesser known songs that really shines.<br />
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<b>Please Please Me-</b> "Please Please Me" was the second single that The Beatles released. This was written, primarily, by John Lennon as an attempt at a bluesy, slow tempo song. It didn't have any of the harmonies or the harmonica bit. Their producer, George Martin, heard it and thought that it could really use some pepping up and asked them to make some changes to it. It was, then, sped up, with harmonies, and the harmonica bit, and became what it is. George Martin, correctly, predicted it to be their first major hit.<br />
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<b>Love Me Do- </b>This was the first single that they released. This was, principally, written by Paul McCartney when he was 16 years old. John Lennon wrote the middle eight part. Lennon and McCartney sang joint lead vocals on this song (a-la the Everly Brothers). This version of the song does not feature Ringo on drums. Andy White was asked to come in because George Martin wasn't happy with how Ringo was doing on it. Ringo was, then, relegated to playing the tambourines. Like "Please Please Me", this was one of their first major hits.<br />
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<b>PS, I Love You- </b>"PS, I Love You" was, principally, written by Paul McCartney. George Martin asked Andy White to do drums on this song, not knowing that their drummer, Pete Best, had already been replaced by Ringo Starr. Therefore, Andy White played the drums while Ringo rocked with the maracas. McCartney didn't write this about anybody in particular. He found that writing in a love letter format came easily to him, so he wrote this great song.<br />
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<b>Baby It's You- </b>This cover was written by Burt Bacharach and Luther Dixon. This song is an R&B song that was, also, recorded by The Shirelles. I find this particular song to be a bit boring and find it to be one of their worst covers on this album.<br />
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<b>Do You Want to Know a Secret- </b> This is a real gem of a song written, primarily, by John Lennon. This song was inspired by Disney's classic, "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs". The song "I'm Wishing" opens with the line, "Want to know a secret? Promise not to tell?" George Harrison does a wonderful lead vocal job on this song. In 1980, Lennon said that they gave it to George Harrison because "it only had 3 notes and he wasn't the best singer in the world." He, then, added "he has improved a lot since then". This is a wonderful song that is worth quite a few listens.<br />
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<b>A Taste of Honey- </b>This standard was written by Bobby Scott and Ric Marlow. They perfomed this song in the 1962 live show repertoire. This is a song that is well done by The Beatles. It is done well instrumentally and vocally.<br />
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<b>There's a Place- </b>This song was written by Lennon and McCartney. It was influenced by the song "Somewhere" from West Side Story. The song includes the line, "there's a place for us" which is the first line of this Beatles song. Recorded at McCartney's home, it was a part of their 1963 repertoire.<br />
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<b>Twist and Shout- </b>This is, in my opinion, their best cover. It was the last song that they recorded on that long day. Since Lennon had a cold, they saved this for last, knowing that it would finish his voice off for the day. They used this as their rousing song to end numerous concerts. This version really became a standard in Rock.<br />
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This album is a great first album for The Beatles. Their original songs easily surpass the majority of their covers. That just goes to show how talented these 4 Liverpudlians really were. This album is a great springboard for the rest of the decade.<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-61410230457457390342012-09-07T12:58:00.002-07:002012-09-07T17:13:05.516-07:00One reason why college athletics is so important (that no one ever talks about)College and athletics go hand in hand. There are people that like sports and how collegiate sports has evolved. On the other hand, there are people who think that too much emphasis is put on collegiate athletics. <br />
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As a teacher, I want my kids to realize that they have the ability to go to college. They need to know that every one of them can get a higher education. When you work in a school that's in a low-income area, a lot of those students don't realize or don't even think that they could go on to college after high school. I think that college athletics is extremely important because that's one of the best ways to hook kids into thinking and dreaming about going to college.<br />
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When I was in 5th grade, I became hooked on OSU basketball. I watched every single game, knew all the players, knew all their stats. That was in 1995 when OSU lost to UCLA in the Final Four. One day after a game, I went up to my mom and told her, "I am going to go to OSU for college." <br />
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That was the first time that I had really thought about going to college. College athletics planted a seed in me that I want to do that. It was more than the team doing well. It was watching the crowd during the game; seeing the student section supporting their school of choice. I wanted to be a part of that type of atmosphere.<br />
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From that moment on, I thought about OSU as my college. I knew that there would be education beyond high school because I was going to reach for it.<br />
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That is one thing that I love about college athletics. Young children fall in love with a team and then dream about going there for college. Without it (or even if college athletics was at a smaller scale), not as many children would think about possibly going to college.<br />
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It made college a goal of mine at an early age and it continues to do so for each generation!!<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-77232567042687903922012-08-31T16:22:00.000-07:002012-08-31T16:22:37.002-07:00Presidency: Why does religion matter?It is that time again. The time that comes every four years. Republicans are insulting all Democrats and vice versa. One of the many aspects, of the two people that are vying for presidency, that people want to discuss is their religion. <br />
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Why is that?<br />
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Why is that so important to us?<br />
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Many people point to them having the same values.<br />
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What are those values that people talk about? Loving one another? Caring for the poor? Renunciation of violence?<br />
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I have news for you. Those aren't "Christian" values. Those are "human" values. Many people have those values regardless of their religion.<br />
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Four years ago, when President Obama was elected, numerous right-wingers believed and still do believe that he is Muslim. I, for one, believe that he is Christian. However, does it matter? Why would people be so afraid of having a muslim individual as president. Is it because they only know what they watch on Fox News? Have they been reading too much of the hate monger (Ann Coulter)? Do they equate terrorism with the nation of Islam? For those who do any of this, I beg of you to actually learn about Islam. Don't only listen to what people say. Study it; learn about it. Become educated before you decide to dislike a whole religion. Islam does not equal terrorism. (Sorry for this little soap box. It's a bit of a pet peeve of mine)<br />
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What it comes down to is this: Why does religion matter when choosing a president? <br />
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IT SHOULDN'T!!!!!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-84599056909142023502012-08-19T14:39:00.000-07:002012-08-19T14:39:10.537-07:00A fault of mine!!I think I might attempt to write a blog post every week. I'm not sure that I have enough subjects to discuss in order to be able to do this. However, I shall try. This is the beginning of that venture.<br />
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A lot has been made over the Chick-Fil-A saga during the past month. However, in the midst of all this, I realized one of my faults.<br />
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I, usually, feel that I am open-minded and a caring individual. I just realized that I am not open-minded to everybody. Yes, I feel that gay people should be able to get married, I feel that women should have equal rights, etc. It's extremely easy to feel for those who have been persecuted throughout history. It's easy to be open-minded to those who are in the minority. That has always been easy for me.<br />
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However, I have had a difficult time being open-minded towards those people who take a conservative approach to the Bible. I haven't been as compassionate to people who have this outlook as I should have been. We are taught to love every person, regardless of race, sex, sexual orientation, and, even, political leanings. In the hubbub of the upcoming election, I think that it's very important to remember that. People will differ in opinion than you (and me). People will call their candidate's opponent some pretty bad names. It's really easy to get in that mess. It's easy to join the madness. <br />
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It is my turn to say that I am going to attrempt to not get involved with that kind of talk. I am going to try to be more open-minded and loving to everybody (including the socially conservative). I hope that all of my friends take the same approach.<br />
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With love,<br />
PhilipUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-12629908744232768802012-07-12T14:35:00.001-07:002012-07-12T14:39:59.438-07:00Who wins? 1992 Dream Team vs. 2012 USA Men's BasketballThe Dream Team played 20 years ago this summer. They have often been called the best basketball team to ever play together. You had MJ, Bird, Magic, Barkley, Stockton, etc. This was a great team; defeating it's opponents by an average of 44 points.<br />
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The 2012 team is about to begin it's run through the Olympics. They have stars such as Lebron, KD, Kobe, CP3, etc.<br />
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People are now starting to debate if these two teams played each other, who would win. Kobe was asked that recently and mentioned that he thinks his team would pull it out.<br />
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Jordan, being told what Kobe mentioned, said that that was the stupidest thing he could have said.<br />
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Barkley, also, laughed at Kobe's quote.<br />
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These three people are extremely competitive (as are most current and former NBA players) and that is what you'd expect them to say. <br />
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Luckily for you all, I am here to give you my thoughts.<br />
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It starts with me talking about nostalgia. As we get older, we all become more and more nostalgic. Music isn't what it used to be, people were more respectful all those years ago, basketball was much better when I was younger. <br />
I have been known to get nostalgic. I was growing up in the early to mid-90's when NBA on NBC was really getting big. I loved the intro, the players, the teams. I remember watching Barkley and the Suns play Hakeem and my Rockets. It was amazing. I'll never forget watching Reggi Miller (singlehandedly it seems) defeat the Knicks time and time again. <br />
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Ask anybody who their favorite player of all time might be and, more often than not, they'll mention a player from when they were a kid. My favorite player of all time is Hakeem Olajuwon and I doubt that will ever change. No matter how well the Thunder does or how well Durant might play, he will never top Hakeem (in my eyes). Every person in the world is nostalgic and loves the players from their childhood. <br />
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With that being said, I feel that we are being a little too nostalgic with the Dream Team. <br />
When people think about the guys on that team, they think about everybody in their prime. Bird, possibly the greatest shooter we've ever known, couldn't even play because of back problems. Magic was still a good player but was still past his prime. In fact, he came out of retirement to play in the Olympics. He ended up playing infrequently because of knee problems. Sure, it was a cute idea to have those two pose with Jordan for a poster. It was kind of a nice way for Bird and Magic to pass the torch to Jordan, letting him carry the league for a while.<br />
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I will go position by position:<br />
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Point Guard: Magic Johnson and John Stockton vs. Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, and Deron Williams.<br />
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Magic, in his prime, was the best point guard to ever play the game. However, 1992 Magie was not who he used to be. Stockton was great and is the all-time assists and steals leader in the NBA. However, I feel that Paul, Russell, and Deron are way too athletic. How Stockton and Magic going to even attempt to guard them. I think that when his career is over, Chris Paul will be considered one of the all time greats. <br />
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Edge: 2012 team<br />
Shooting Guard: Michael Jordan and Clyde Drexler vs. Kobe Bryant, James Harden, and Andre Iguodala<br />
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MJ is, arguably, the best player in NBA history. Drexler was a great player and Hall-of-Famer. Kobe is the only one out of the 3 2012 players that can play with the other guys. Harden and Iguodala are good players but don't even belong in the conversation with the other three.<br />
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Edge: 1992 Dream Team<br />
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Small Forward: Larry Bird, Scottie Pippen, and Chris Mullin vs. Lebron James, Kevin Durant, and Carmelo Anthony,<br />
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Bird was a nonfactor in 1992. I will always believe that Pippen was vastly overrated. Mullin was a great shooter but not the best defensively. Lebron, KD, and Anthony would dominate their Dream Team counterparts.<br />
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Edge: 2012 team<br />
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Power Forward: Karl Malone, Charles Barkley, and Christian Laettner vs. Kevin Love and Anthony Davis<br />
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Malone and Barkley are two of the three best power forwards of all time (along with Tim Duncan). Laettner shouldn't have even been on this team (with LSU's Shaquille O'neal available). Kevin Love is an up and coming player. When it's all said and done, he might be considered up there. Anthony Davis will most likely be on the team with Griffin's injury. He was the top player in this year's draft. I think he will have a great career but I really can't be sure about that.<br />
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Edge: 1992 Dream Team<br />
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Center: David Robinson and Patrick Ewing vs. Tyson Chandler<br />
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This position matchup shows you where the NBA game has gone since the 90's. It used to be a center-dominated league. The game has gone away from that and is played more on the wings. The majority of centers in the league are becoming PF/C. They're learning to play away from the basket. Robinson and Ewing are two of the greats. I do feel that they might have a harder time scoring than you would think against Chandler. He is a great defensive presence. Just don't expect Chandler to score much.<br />
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Edge: 1992 Dream Team<br />
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So by position, I have the 1992 team winning 3 while the 2012 team winning 2.<br />
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If these two teams could play, it would be a great game. I'd give the slight edge to the Dream Team. However, I think the 2012 team could beat that Dream Team. Kobe's remarks were not that off-base. We need to forget about nostalgia and look at it with an open mind.<br />
The one thing that I know for sure is that it would be an AWESOME game!!!!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-13646599653087261302012-07-11T08:44:00.002-07:002012-08-05T06:03:49.798-07:00What is freedom of speech?People say dumb and/or controversial things. That never changes. However, when there is some kind of repercussion or consequence for them saying these things, people always go to the "freedom of speech" rhetoric. <br />
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Let's take Reggie Jackson for example. "Mr October" is a Yankees legend. You mention his name and people think of his great career as a Yankee. (Of course, out of his 20 year career, he only played 5 years in New York.) His nickname, Mr. October, came from his clutch hitting in the postseason. Now, he serves as a special advisor to the Yankee organization.<br />
In an SI interview, he discussed how Alex Rodriguez's numbers should be tainted and he should not get into the Hall of Fame. Those remarks were not the smartest because Rodriguez plays for the Yankees (who Jackson advises). Jackson might have actually been correct in his words. However, he was completely mistaken when he said that Kirby Puckett, Gary Carter, Don Sutton, Phil Niekro, and Jim Rice shouldn't be in the Hall.<br />
Anyways, the Yankees asked him to step away for a little bit in light of these controversial comments. Because of this, people start screaming "WHERE IS HIS FREEDOM OF SPEECH."<br />
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He's not the only one who people scream that about: <br />
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Don Imus' comments about Rutgers women's basketball that got his show cancelled, anything that Rush Limbaugh says, etc...<br />
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People wonder why they don't have their freedom of speech.<br />
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Read this closely: Freedom of speech does not mean freedom from consequence.<br />
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Did Reggie Jackson get arrested for his comments? Did Don Imus get prosecuted? The answer to this is no.<br />
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That is what "freedom of speech" means. No legal action can be taken because of their comments. <br />
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Go into your boss' office and call him/her "stupid". Tell your boss that he/she doesn't know anything. If he/she fires you, please don't say that your "freedom of speech" was taken away.<br />
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Freedom of speech DOES NOT mean that there is freedom from consequence!!!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-32688111751796220922012-06-16T15:33:00.002-07:002012-06-16T15:34:19.989-07:00It's Their Fault!!!Whereever you go, you will find people that are passionate about their sports teams. People love sports. Nothing can rile a group of people up quite like their team losing or the opponent acting like jerks. Sports is one thing that can bring people together. You might find yourself hugging somebody that you wouldn't have even talked to in a million years. When your team wins, that just makes it that much better. You love everybody (as long as their sporting your team's colors).<br />
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However, sometimes your team might LOSE!!!<br />
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When your team loses, you must always find a scapegoat. That is the number 1 rule. Never, and I repeat, NEVER say that the opponent was the better team (for that one game) It has to be my fault, for instance. I wore the same shirt every game we won. This game I decided to wear a different shirt. Stupid me!!!. Or, how dare you not eat your regular pre-game meal. You usually eat 2 bowls of cereal. This time, you ate one. You're the reason we lost. Sometimes, the reason is closer to the action. If it wasn't for that one play (out of 100), we would have won. <br />
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However, the biggest and best scapegoats in the world are the referees. If you haven't mastered the art of blaming a referee, then you are not a true sports fans. Forget the fact that there are always bad calls for both teams. Forget the fact that they missed that call that went in my team's favor.<br />
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MY TEAM LOST!!!! IT"S THE REFS' FAULT!! THOSE REFS WANTED US TO LOSE!!! (yelling this is done best when you slam your hand on a table while stomping like a child who didn't get his way)<br />
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Of course, the bad calls that go in your favor become cheers of "good defense" or "awesome block". However, it's best to ignore the fact that that "awesome block" may have been your player giving the opponent a high-five (while missing the ball completely) or the "good defense" was your player doing his best attempt at a mugging!! <br />
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None of that matters. The refs were the reason we lost!! <br />
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WHY DO THEY HATE MY TEAM????<br />
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Another thing to remember to be a fan is that every referee is out to get you and your team. They have dreams about how to mess up your team's goal of being champions. They will do everything in their power to make your team lose. Your team is ALWAYS playing 5 on 8!! It's HARD to beat your opponent and the officials also. However, that's your team's cross to bare. <br />
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Are you a real fan? <br />
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Then it's time to find your scapegoat!!!<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-42870974330060056172012-04-11T15:50:00.000-07:002012-04-11T15:51:17.448-07:00A world for our future children!!When a couple gets married, people all of a sudden start questioning them about when they will start having kids. While we are a couple years away, I started thinking about how the world will be when our kids are growing up.<br />
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To tell you the truth, it made me a little sad.<br />
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The sadness had nothing to do with the economy, how clean the Earth may be, or anything like that.<br />
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It had to do with people's hearts or the lack thereof. It had to do with the fact that total equality STILL doesn't exist. It had to do with racism and bigotry still exist/<br />
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You may say that it is getting better. I agree, it is getting better. I don't mean to trivialize what feminists in the early part of this century and civil right leaders in the '60's may have gone through. It continues to improve.<br />
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However, it pains me to see that when my children are growing up, gay marriage will still not be acknowledged nation-wide. It makes me mad to think that people will still hate and discriminate because of these differences. I know that I can't change every heart (or any heart) about this issue, or any other. However, I just have to wonder what their reasons are. What reasons do we have to not let two people who love each other so much marry? Some people don't fully understand it until they put a face to the issue. Sometimes, it takes that for the hatred and bigotry to go away.<br />
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People can back up this belief with any religious book that they choose. However, what it comes down to is love. People often hide behind the term "Christian". As a Christian, that is pretty offensive to me. My God is a god of mercy and grace; not of this hate that is perpetrated by so many people.<br />
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For our future children, I want a world with: gay marriage<br />
women truly having equal rights<br />
harder access to guns<br />
people exhibiting love instead of hate<br />
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Remember that hate is NOT a family value!!!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-8441284261104232942012-03-20T10:13:00.000-07:002012-03-20T11:56:29.364-07:00Fred Astaire vs. Gene Kelly<br />
There are many debates out there. Coke vs. Pepsi, Beatles vs. Rolling Stones, Garfield vs. Heathcliff, Frank Sinatra vs. Bing Crosby.<br />
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One of these such debates is "Who was better? Fred Astaire or Gene Kelly."<br />
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These two men have been compared and contrasted many times. They've been compared in books, in films, and now in my blog. The average person can easily see that they are very different in the way that they approach dance. I don't have a great deal of technical knowledge about dance. However, I have spent an unknown amount of hours watching and enjoying both of them and their movies. So let's begin:<br />
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Now to begin this conversation, you need a little bit of information. <br />
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Fred Astaire was born in 1899 and from the age of 6 was already in show business. Astaire started as a brother-sister act with his sister, Adele. They continued to do this until he was 32. He then went to Hollywood to be in movies. According to Hollywood folklore, his first screen test is reported to have said, "Can't Sing. Can't Act. Balding. Can dance a little." Then his partnership with Ginger Rogers began.<br />
<img height="150" src="http://image.absoluteastronomy.com/images/encyclopediaimages/v/vc/vcvg16.jpg" width="200" /><br />
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Gene Kelly was born in 1912. He didn't enter into show business until he was 26. He started on Broadway in a show called, "Leave It To Me" as a dancer. Then he got a part in "Time of Your Life" which is the first show that he danced to his own choreography. His big break came when he starred in "Pal Joey". It was during this show's run that David Selznick saw him and signed him to a contract. He then sold Kelly to MGM and his movie career began.<br />
<img height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihbN68klPrSA_rhbTFOu6Jh1HdyINBlX8sRFaQ-JWVnLC-y9b52FkQ3l4BRZSAl5BDWGvAZx1QzRRZ634VH717BfSF88_p5kSkBVWjsuCo8NT22XohAvq6Oxi7nqgSiwa6SiwYM6qgLhYy/s200/tumblr_lz58azoMfC1qk7d2oo9_1280.jpg" width="200" /><br />
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When Fred was making his move through the Big Apple, the shows were an excuse to get the latest songs out there. The dialogue and action were written around the songs. By the time Gene came around, most of these songs had been written. His shows, such as "Pal Joey", were a little darker and had a story line that easily integrated the songs into the show.<br />
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<b>Acting</b><br />
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Their acting mirrored their dancing in a way. With Fred Astaire, there is a shrugging quality to him. He doesn't look like he's really trying. He often plays a lovable, affable character. It's kind of like he's saying, "Bare with me as I get to the next dance and then I'll amaze you".<br />
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As it seems that Fred Astaire might not be trying. Gene Kelly seems to be trying too hard. The characters that he tended to play were more brash, more outspoken. He didn't like to see closeups of himself because he wasn't a natural actor. He felt that his face showed that he was really trying. His best acting was in the movies where he played a boastful, over-the-top character.<br />
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<b>Singing</b><br />
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Neither Gene Kelly nor Fred Astaire are thought of as having wonderful voiced. However, they are both very enjoyable. Their voices are kind of alike in that they both have a high timbre to their voice. However, Irving Berlin preferred Fred Astaire to sing his songs than any other singer in the world. That included Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Dean Martin, Perry Como, etc. That is because he felt that Astaire interpreted his songs better then any other person. <br />
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<b>Dancing</b><br />
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Now we get to their bread and butter. Their dancing is what they are truly known for. <br />
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Fred Astaire, just like his acting, often seems like he's not trying. He is very up-right in his dancing and his taps skim the floor. His dancing seems to characterize class and elegance. It seems that he has invisible wings that slightly lift him up. His body was longer and leaner than Gene's and he had a higher center of gravity. No matter how he moves, it seems that his dancing is completely effortless. He is probably working extremely hard but you would never know.<br />
<img height="200" src="http://marymiley.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/220px-astaire_fred_-_daddy1.jpg" width="158" /><br />
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Gene Kelly, just like his acting, seems to be trying a little harder. His dancing is low to the ground. He has a much lower center of gravity. His taps are more pronounced. They seem to be digging into the ground a little bit more. He was more trained in different dances than was Astaire. He liked to incorporated these dances into his movies. His three most celebrated movies are ones that had long dance breaks that incorporated his ability to perform different types of dance. These three are "Singin' in the Rain", "On the Town", and "An American in Paris". From the latter, he won an honorary Oscar for "his versatility as an actor, singer, director and dancer, and specifically for his brilliant achievements in the art of choreography on film."<br />
<img height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikrNomevN7IqB-WVCIedo-h_Ql5_BtRJW6DdzoZOU37CbnBVd9teRGiWdzBlEyOI-QS8oAVU-NZ5-CmtNrSZX-s-d0_xqDMGVDm3A93bE39ZvsVle6xK7QFgWVFUC3STYYh_1X2npWUOo/s200/gene-kelly.jpg" width="198" /><br />
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These two performers were both excellent in what they did. The only true similarities are that they both danced and sang in movies. They way that they danced was very different from each other. They were both innovative and led the way for many dancers and performers on stage and in film. <br />
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Personally, I prefer Gene Kelly's way of dance and his movies to that of Fred Astaire. However, I enjoy both of them and will continue to do so for years to come!!<br />
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Fred Astaire<br />
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Gene Kelly</div>
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Gene and Fred together</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298115013231990244.post-67289895674583209362012-03-17T09:19:00.002-07:002012-03-17T09:19:44.880-07:00March is maddening!!!It comes around once a year. You know it's here by the crumpled up paper in the wastebasket, by the grumblings going on at the nearest watering hole, by the lack of anything productive being done at work. Yes, my friends, it is March Madness. No other time has a name fit so well. <div>
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Why do so many people love this time of year? </div>
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It's easily my favorite sports time of the year, even when I don't have a team vying for a championship. Why is that? For me, the Super Bowl can be hard to get into if I don't care about either team. I feel the same way about the World Series, BCS Championship, and the NBA Finals. March Madness is different though. It is a tournament of 68 teams (68's right? It still should be 64). It's do or die time. It's pure excitement. The first weekend is the best part of an unbiased observer like myself. You have games all day long, usually 3 or 4 at a time.</div>
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Why is March Madness so great?</div>
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Everybody loves a Davis vs. Goliath story. We love the small underdog taking on the big boys. That's why there are so many of these type of movies: Hoosiers, Rudy, Major League, Rocky, Cool Running, Little Giants. There's a reason people love those movies. They are inspirational. At no other time will you find me being a huge Belmont fan, or a big Lehigh fan. No other time will I say "Go Norfolk St.". However, when these teams do the unbelievable, I feel like a kid on Christmas. I jump up and down and continue to say, "I can't believe it". This is what brings out the Madness in March.</div>
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It's great because of the last second shots to win the game. It's Bryce Drew hitting the shot to help his dad reach the next game. It's seeing the Christian Laettner shot over and over reminding me why I dislike Duke. It's Rip Hamilton hitting the shot against Washington to save them from being upset. It's Tyus Edney going coast-to-coast against Mizzou on their way to a championship. It's John Lucas hitting the three to take my alma mater to the Final Four.</div>
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March Madness is one of the reasons we all watch sports. </div>
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May your March continue to be maddening!!!!!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0