Something Fierce

Ok. So I’ve read the positions of the proponents of Prop 8 both from a political and a religious standpoint. I understand that they are concerned about the “slippery slope” factor; what do we allow next? They are concerned about the deterioration of “traditional” family values and concerned that the voters are being denied their right and collective say in a society that relies on the votes of the individual to make and govern our laws. I understand that a large part of our population believe in a higher power and that most of these religions retain a firm position on homosexuality and it’s place, or lack thereof, in our society. They believe the word of God or Allah or whomever their diety may be is the absolute truth and constitutes the laws they should live by. But might I offer a civil discourse and an opposition that takes into consideration the thoughts and opinions of all Americans, even the ones I disagree with. In this blog I will not subscribe to any bigotry or ill mannered speak. I will not call names to the opposition or debase their reasons or beliefs. I will simply point out facts and opinions that ultimately shape one side of this debate, the side I believe to be correct.

First I will start with the religious aspect as it is supposed to not have any legal power but is most definitely a root cause for the opposition of legally recognizing gay marriage. The most fundamental of flaws with this argument comes from the Christian side of this argument. I am going to use this as the cast for the religious right as they are the most prominent and vocal opposers. Jesus said “let he who is without sin cast the first stone”. In other words don’t judge others unless you yourself have nothing to be judged for. Second the separation of church and state is in the most basic of our beliefs as a nation. Yes the country was founded on Judeo-Christian principles but that is the key word, principles. Such things as respect and honesty are those basic principles that are not endemic to Christians but to all people across the globe. Our moral choices and standards ought not to be derived from religion but supported by it. Morality is not spurred from religion but from concious thought and the caring for our fellow man. third this is most definitely NOT a moral debate. This is not a political debate either but a legal issue. The moral debate can not and should not be argued on a national scale because it is obviously an asinine task but also because religion is a personal belief and a personal choice. It is a relationship that exists solely between yourself and your faith. It should not be put upon others who do not wish to subscribe to it nor should it be used as a shield to hide the faces and hate of the bigoted. Christianity, though I am not a person of faith, is a beautiful thing for those who believe. So much more than ethereal, it transcends the plane of an existance that we do not know nor understand but these people believe that through faith and good works they can attain a life far better than the one they lead here on Earth. And to tarnish that concept by using it as a tentpole for narrow minded and spiteful opinions is a shame.

Second: the political and legal position.

My favorite argument for this is Separate but Equal. the civil rights movement in the 1960’s was defined by this phrase which emanated 60 years earlier in the case plessy v ferguson. It is inherently false as things that are equal can not be separate. In the same vein as water fountains specified for white and black citizens we now have titles for life long legal commitments for straight couples, marriage, and for gay and lesbian couples, civil unions. We can not presume to say that citizens who happen to be gay are equal to straight Americans if we deny them the same constitutional rights.

The voters have ruled though, how can this be overturned if the voters have decided? Well there happens to be an amendment in the constitution that states “No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States…nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws”. The 14th amendment clearly states that the will of the people does not always translate to the law of the land. Gay Americans are protected equally under the rule of law and any deviation of said protection or diminished rights has been declared to be unconstitutional. This is segregation. This is the fear of upsetting the status quo. This is wrong. 

This does nothing but continue a cycle of segregation and fear. We must embrace all Americans and offer them equal rights under the constitution. This country is meant to be unfinished and we must always strive to make it better. This is the process and I must respect that but we need to remove our partisan blinders and realize that we are only hurting our country and in deed tarnishing it’s legacy if we continue to uphold laws like Prop 8. 

Pretty/Magic/Girl

This pretty girl, this magic one

she slips through my fingers like sand

she is fallible yet beautiful in precision

I cant explain what draws me but it does

and i drink her in

her fragility and strength coincide

a bevy of intricate thoughts and emotions

have pieced together such a delicate creature as she

a cyclonic burst of neurons and light

give birth to stars and galaxies and are captured in her eyes

and this speaks nothing of the goodness of her heart

it encompasses all things good and true

it is giving yet selfish

compassionate and prideful

but it is unrelenting in its fervor and appreciation

she will never let you go wanting

she will never turn her back

she is good in the most common and most cryptic definition

her smile is beaming her skin the softest silk

the touch of her skin is electric and her scent intoxicating

the most perfect poison

to lie beside her and hold her warm

fills the heart with a calming, overwhelming joy

she is fleeting and irremovable

the sparrow who sits on the window sill

only to fly away

she is beautiful

she is pure

she has stolen my heart,

and she is haunting me

The first night

I’ll never feel whole again,

never your skin against my lips,

when I come home.

And I can’t walk away from this,

not like the way you did,

I can’t let it go!

I want to choke off the air that’s filling my lungs,

and dig through the alleyways searching for drugs,

that I’ll shoot in my veins and fill them right up,

with your love.

And I want to cut through the skin and feel the steel burning

and let the pain in cause I have been yearning for,

for your love.

Tell me the truth!

I feel I deserve at least that much from you

So stop dragging this out across sunfire coals,

cause the pain that I feel is taking control

and where it is now is the place it hurts most.

codes:

we are of opposite poles and opposite souls

and the words that we speak are not words but are codes

in so many ways

every turn of a phrase

and these words that you say

don’t mean much to me

you’re miles away and i think we both know

what you’re gonna say, so i put down the phone

and walk away

The rain and the sparrow

the rain is the only thing that truly soothes me.

the crisp, cool cleansing of it.

the warm smell of a concrete superhighway,

still wet from the night before.

cool flecks of water breathe in through my window.

they spatter on my face like little pinprick kisses.

watching through the glass eyes of my home.

warm

safe

alone

the rhythm of the storm outside like a sweet lullaby.

arresting.

the rain washes away my sorrows.

dark clouds wrap me in oblivion,

catapulting me past my memories.

until the sun reappears, and with her

brings the Sparrow

Sex in shiny packets

too much boxed wine, perhaps.

the surgeon general forgot to warn us of this.

the hairs on my arm stand at attention.

the soft touch of her warm skin.

i hold the air in my lungs until they are about to burst.

quickly we become coiled and tangled on the couch.

frames of incendiary passion, boxed and shipped.

delivered to my memory at the flick of a switch.

clothes tossed and hair muffed like a denim commercial.

we clench and release rolling back and forth.

condensation dripping off us, a hot summer night.

the credits roll as she sits up to locate her bra.

she doesn’t want to complicate things.

she’s beautiful.

she doesn’t want to lose our friendship, she says.

single serving love.

The road

to me, Heaven is in this car.

a warm spring day the dew dripping from cold drinks.

windows down, a cool breeze bathes my face.

i look at Her. She looks on, the wind whips Her hair.

Her toes wiggle in the warm sun on the dash.

She twirls Her hair over, and over. squishes it twice, repeat.

i turn back to the road unsure of our heading.

it’s a good thing.

black asphalt passes beneath and through us.

will we end up here again? where we are?

i look back to the passenger seat, She’s gone.

i drive on alone, unchanged. still unsure.

but it isn’t bad, it isn’t supposed to be.

what does it mean? where will i be?

where does this road lead? back to where we were …