witchhunted

[witchhunted]

Wild Wild West???

So it is constitutional to make heads of households purchase and maintain firearms, ammunition, permits, and all other necessities for ownership and use of a gun, but it is unconstitutional to create affordable health care?!?!?

WHAT?????

Am I missing something here?  When did this become okay?  In what plane of existence does it make sense to allow people decide whether or not they want to buy insurance that will keep them healthy and living longer, but they have no say in wanting to keep a deadly weapon in their home and around their family?  It is well understood that heath care is very expensive in this country and that we have a choice to purchase it or not.  It is also well understood and documented that those who do not have health insurance tend to amass incredible amounts of debt and they tend to die sooner!  But instead of changing the system and making healthcare affordable to every one, something that could save countless lives and solidify infinite futures, we instead decide to make a lethal weapon a mandatory part of the home.  Guns take lives, cause serious bodily injury, and pretty much lead to a direct trip to the hospital, do not pass GO do not collect $200.  Brilliant, lets have people who may or may not have health insurance own deadly weapons.  And not just the trained people, ALL of the heads of household in an entire town!  I guess this will save a lot of trips in the ambulance huh?

America, it is a sad and dark day when making someone purchase a firearm is more constitutional than  providing affordable health care for all.  

[witchhunted]

I Am the Gatekeeper, But I Want to Be the Key Master

When will men and women cease to be "Key Masters" and "Gatekeepers"(Ghostbusters), respectfully, and be satisfied with plain old equal?  This morning I was listening to some generic Boston radio morning show in the car on my way to work.  As I pull into a parking space and prepare to turn off the engine, the last thing I hear is a female voice say, "...and you got beat by a girl!"  It has bothered me ever since, so lets air this puppy out shall we?

Being referred to as feminine shouldn't be a put-down.  There is this stigma that comes along with being perceived as submissive that translates to being inferior.  The feminine is NOT the enemy of the masculine!!  In fact, we need each other more than ever.  Our economy sucks, our education system is failing our youth, we lack even basic civil rights for our citizens, and our future as a global power seems to be on the rocks.  And what are our solutions to these issues?  Bailing out big banks who were careless with our money, increasing tuition costs in a job market that lacks the capacity to employee people so they can work-off their degree debt, and white, privileged men are deciding what is best for the female body and the female life.  We need each other as human beings, not as leaders and subordinates.  We need partnership between the genders, not a master and a servant they can stick "it" in when ever they feel like it.  

[witchhunted]

165 Years And Still Going; How Much Longer Are We Going To Have To Fight?

I'm finding it incredible that today, March 7, 2013, The New York Times has published two very contradictory articles in the same front page section.  The first article appears on the side of the front page, "Arkansas Passes a 12-Week Limit in Abortion Law."  Then, further into the A-section of The Times, there is an article on page A20 called "City Campaign Targeting Teenage Pregnancy Draws Criticism."  While the later article is indeed about the criticism of the new teenaged mother campaign, it begs the question most teen mothers ask, "What do I do?"  Or more accurately, "What does society say I should do?"

We all know that the point of a newspaper is to report the facts.  This usually includes as many sides of a story as possible.  However, in both of these stories women are silent.  This post is not meant to attack The New York Times, not in the least bit.  This is a commentary on society and how it is expressed through the media.  One article is about severely limiting the abortion options for women, while the other is using hypothetical children to convince women not to have children when they are in their teens.  Many states in our country have abortion laws that require the parental consent of at least one parent or guardian before an abortion can be performed on a minor.  If the law is not going to make abortions available and safe to women, then how can they expect teen pregnancy rates to decrease?

Why don't the powers that be just come out and say they are trying to teach abstinence?  I understand these are two drastically different states and The New York Times has a vastly diverse readership, but what signals are we sending to the women of our society? They are told to not become teen mothers, but yet if they do become pregnant they cannot get a safe abortion without consenting with a parent.  What if a teenager becomes pregnant due to rape?  Does she have this child with the fear that these anti-teen mother campaigns put in her head?  Seems she may have to since the backlash against abortions is mounting higher and higher every day.  

What proof do these anti-teen mother campaigns have that teenage mothers make poor parents?  Is it because they are young, inexperienced, and hardly adults themselves?  Yes, those are all valid points.  But what about the populations with the highest instances of teen pregnancy?  Is there anything else connecting these children who apparently have no chance of success because of the age their mother was when they gave birth to them?  Some factors that come to mind are location, education, class, religious affiliations, and access to a safe abortion, just to name a few.  It seems that not many people are taking into consideration that teen mothers rarely have the opportunity to go back to finish their education or move on to higher education.  This can convert to a lower paying job, if any at all in this job market, and therefore less money to help their children get a better education than themselves.  The campaigns even take to slandering would-be fathers, saying they won't stick around or take responsibility for their children.  Aren't they just as much a teen parent and just as much to blame as the mothers of these children?

This is not to say that all teen mothers are unsuccessful individuals and have unsuccessful offspring.  This is also not to say that all pregnant teens should have abortions.  There are successful teen parents who raise successful children, and there are parents with every afforded opportunity in life who ignore and abuse their offspring.  This post is to say that pregnant teenage women should be making these choices for themselves, and be able to have options no matter which way they turn.  These women should be in control of their own bodies, if not because women don't have much control of anything in this world, then because it is our basic human right.  

[witchhunted]

Snow

Just now realizing why legalizing LGBT marriage is taking so much longer than it should.

The majority of states that have legalized marriage for LGBT individuals are focused in the North Eastern United States, New England.  While the populations of these states appear to have more liberal attitudes than the rest of the country, the question still remains; what took so fucking long?

Well I believe I have stumbled onto a theory as to why even in the bluest of states, equal rights for LGBT persons is still lagging behind the rest of the globe.  Are you ready for the mind shattering epiphany?  Snow.

That's right I said snow!  Think about it.  Most winters in New England are frigid and snow ridden.  No one wants to be out of their homes, driving, working, or any where near a gym.  So of course this leads productivity to slow down to a near halt in most areas of New England.  Many times workers are given permission to leave their offices early due to weather conditions, which also hinders progress.  Now, not only does this retard progress for offices, businesses, and laborers, but it also seems to have slowed down the cause for social justice.  No wonder equality for all takes so long, it's that damn snow!  

And have you ever noticed all of those states with hotter climates seem to oppress people that much longer while the rest of the country calls for change?  Yup, you got it, no snow!

So the next time you wonder why the fuck our country is so backwards when it comes to equal rights for all, just remember that it's the snow's fault and that it couldn't possibly be all the schmucks and religious fanatics who run our nation.