Friday, July 9, 2010
Via SacBee: Viewpoints: Gay or straight, marriage is sacred
Published: Friday, Jul. 9, 2010 - 12:00 am | Page 13A
Boy meets girl and they fall in love. Maybe they get a dog together, a scruffy cast-off rescued from the pound, which makes them bond even more. They take long walks with the dog, talk of future children, of owning a home, and whether they should merge their cell phone plans.
Then they marry. Marriage, they believe, makes their love legit. And with legitimacy comes benefits – from society, from family and friends, from the government.
But tweak this standard script and its happy ending turns from Hollywood mainstream into art house flick. Or it could be an import from our kinky neighbor up north. In Canada, same-sex marriage has been legal nationwide since 2005.
In the United States if, say, boy meets boy and they fall in love, not even Lassie crossed with the Taco Bell Chihuahua could help propel such a scenario into wide release.
Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2010/07/09/2878453/gay-or-straight-marriage-is-sacred.html#none#ixzz0tEkpor36
Quote of the Day via CP:
“To punish me for my contempt of authority, Fate has made me an authority myself.”
-albert einstein
-albert einstein
The Four Nobles Truths
1. Life means suffering.
2. The origin of suffering is attachment.
3. The cessation of suffering is attainable.
4. The path to the cessation of suffering.
1. Life means suffering.
To live means to suffer, because the human nature is not perfect and neither is the world we live in. During our lifetime, we inevitably have to endure physical suffering such as pain, sickness, injury, tiredness, old age, and eventually death; and we have to endure psychological suffering like sadness, fear, frustration, disappointment, and depression. Although there are different degrees of suffering and there are also positive experiences in life that we perceive as the opposite of suffering, such as ease, comfort and happiness, life in its totality is imperfect and incomplete, because our world is subject to impermanence. This means we are never able to keep permanently what we strive for, and just as happy moments pass by, we ourselves and our loved ones will pass away one day, too.
2. The origin of suffering is attachment.
The origin of suffering is attachment to transient things and the ignorance thereof. Transient things do not only include the physical objects that surround us, but also ideas, and -in a greater sense- all objects of our perception. Ignorance is the lack of understanding of how our mind is attached to impermanent things. The reasons for suffering are desire, passion, ardour, pursuit of wealth and prestige, striving for fame and popularity, or in short: craving and clinging. Because the objects of our attachment are transient, their loss is inevitable, thus suffering will necessarily follow. Objects of attachment also include the idea of a "self" which is a delusion, because there is no abiding self. What we call "self" is just an imagined entity, and we are merely a part of the ceaseless becoming of the universe.
3. The cessation of suffering is attainable.
The cessation of suffering can be attained through nirodha. Nirodha means the unmaking of sensual craving and conceptual attachment. The third noble truth expresses the idea that suffering can be ended by attaining dispassion. Nirodha extinguishes all forms of clinging and attachment. This means that suffering can be overcome through human activity, simply by removing the cause of suffering. Attaining and perfecting dispassion is a process of many levels that ultimately results in the state of Nirvana. Nirvana means freedom from all worries, troubles, complexes, fabrications and ideas. Nirvana is not comprehensible for those who have not attained it.
4. The path to the cessation of suffering.
There is a path to the end of suffering - a gradual path of self-improvement, which is described more detailed in the Eightfold Path. It is the middle way between the two extremes of excessive self-indulgence (hedonism) and excessive self-mortification (asceticism); and it leads to the end of the cycle of rebirth. The latter quality discerns it from other paths which are merely "wandering on the wheel of becoming", because these do not have a final object. The path to the end of suffering can extend over many lifetimes, throughout which every individual rebirth is subject to karmic conditioning. Craving, ignorance, delusions, and its effects will disappear gradually, as progress is made on the path.
from:
Himalaya Crafts on Facebook
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Quote of the Day: Via Stuart Gaffney on Facebook
The World Cup of Marriage Equality! Spain vs. Netherlands, hosted by South Africa -- all countries with full marriage equality -- coincidence?
Via JMG:
JMG reader Tallulah tips us to an NPR interview with Louis CK is which he discusses his recent Louie episode about the word "faggot." Louis says, "I don't think it matters" whether the etymological definition given on his show is accurate or not, "what matters is having the conversation." It's a great piece, start at around 18:00.
Labels: faggot, FX, television
reposted from JoeVia JMG: Quote Of The Day - Lord Rodger
"Just as male heterosexuals are free to enjoy themselves playing rugby, drinking beer and talking about girls with their mates, so male homosexuals are to be free to enjoy themselves going to Kylie concerts, drinking exotically-coloured cocktails and talking about boys with their straight female mates." - British Supreme Court Judge Lord Rodger, explaining the Tuesday's ruling that gay people have a right to asylum in the UK.Anti-gay forces are already decrying the Court's decision, saying that "millions may falsely seek asylum" in Britain under the new rules. Thanks for the ruling, Lord Rodger, but please shut up now.
Labels: asylum, Britain, LGBT rights, Quote Of The Day, UK
reposted from Joe
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