Salus Nobis Totus

Life and more importantly, living itself should not be that of hate. For when we spend our time living in hate, no matter how we justify or even deny it, we lose that which separates us from evil… compassion and love. In today's world, we have many different groups of people that believe in a great many things. Most of the time, these beliefs do not amount to any hatred or anger towards others but all too often, one specific area of beliefs do turn to hatred shrouded in the notion of civility, morality and peace.

As Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to Justice everywhere." Today's world is vastly different from that of just 50 years ago. For the most part, our schools are not segregated, we do not have separate restrooms or drinking fountains, the right to vote is not denied to someone because of the color of their skin, and yet we still have injustices that continue to go on, even in the face of what some have called the modern version of the great Civil Rights movement. A movement that brought us great persons such as Dr. King Jr., John F. Kennedy, Rosa Parks, and all the other greats who gave their sweat, blood, and even their lives for the advancement of peace and compassion. I know there are some who may fear this new movement, some who believe it is against the laws of nature, or against the word and the grace of God; just as there were those who feared it in the sixties.

They pull out their scriptures, whether it be the Torah, Qur'an, or even the Bible, telling us how God hates this group and their actions condemn them either in this life or in a version of Hell. Some tell us that they pray for these "sinners", others simply quote Leviticus as the basis for their hatred and disgust. For it is within this book of the Pentateuch that states "You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination," (Leviticus 19:22) and later describes the punishment as "If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall be put to death, their blood is upon them" (Leviticus 20:13). It is these simple words that have caused so much suffering and hatred towards our fellow mankind, even though their hatred derides that which their faith is based. For Christians, we must focus more on the teachings that come later in the Bible, such as First Corinthians where we are told to abide by three things: Faith, Hope and Love with the greatest of these three being Love (I Corinthians 13:13). For love, even in the face of conflict or the great unknown is more difficult to manifest than hate, yet it is love and compassion that we must aspire to.

It is not up to us to enact a punishment on these individuals who are seeking the same civil rights as everyone else for even Leviticus, which was written by man, can be wrong or interpreted to mean something else. It is not up to us to interpret the teachings of God for them, whether you side with the narrow-mindedness that uncovered itself with the recent passage of a hate filled law, or if you side with compassion, love, and doing the right thing. For those who take such an obdurate stance on this issue, holding on to the Bible as your justification, I ask you this: How can you be so sure and set in your ways when the Bible states "as for prophecies, they will pass away, as for tongues, the will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For our knowledge is imperfect and our prophecy is imperfect," (I Corinthians 13:8-9)? Our interpretation cannot be perfect for only God is perfect. Let us work towards bettering this place in this lifetime and let the judging and final determination on the morality of this great issue be decided by the only one that will get it right, God.

Salus Nobis Totus… indeed.

Voting… With fries on the side

I will dispatch of the typical political hoopla that has been going around for the past 2 years (can an election really take two years?) and keep this one short and sweet. I hate the expression "It doesn't matter who you vote for, just vote!" I think that everyone should vote but do not condemn those who do not. Our military has fought in countless wars and tens of thousands have died since this country's inception just so you can have the right to vote (or not to vote). It does very much matter who you vote for and what you are voting for. Instead, I will offer this amended phrase "No matter who you vote for, just vote."

Hopefully, tomorrow we will have a clear Victor, unlike the 2000 and even 2004, although 2004's uncertainty lasted only a day or two. I personally am voting for McCain and Palin but most of my friends are not (I would be willing to go so far as to say they are voting for Obama). I disagree with the politics of Obama but would still support him should he be elected… at least until he takes office, then the gloves come off. The same would go for McCain. I am an equal opportunity glover-off'r person. Also, for you California voters, I am voting No on 8, No on 2 (I really do not care if the animal I am about to eat was able to turn around while it waited to be slaughtered for our consumption… although I do care about the sanitary conditions but that is a different matter). Call me cold, heartless or whatever adjective you can think of. I really do not care what you think of me or my vote.

Also, I am voting against school bonds and other state initiatives that will further add to the required spending mandates of a state with financial difficulty. People complain that education is always the first thing that gets cut in financial difficulties. Well, there is a reason for that. Education and welfare programs represent the largest non-mandated expense of the state's budget. They cannot cut other programs that you may feel are less important to those big ones but because of the stupid electorate, the state has to fund them.

Anyways, I think I have done enough to cause letters to be written so I will close with this. "Denny Crane."