A personal blog by a graying (mostly Anglo with light African-American roots) gay left leaning liberal progressive married college-educated Buddhist Baha'i BBC/NPR-listening Professor Emeritus now following the Dharma in Minas Gerais, Brasil.
Friday, July 4, 2014
An Open Letter to the People who Hate Obama more than they Love America
I meet you all the time. You hate Obama. You hate gay people. You
hate black people, immigrants, Muslims, labor unions, women who want the
right to make choices concerning their bodies, you hate em all. You
hate being called racist. You hate being called a bigot. Maybe if you
talked about creating jobs more than you talk about why you hate gay
people we wouldn't call you bigots. Maybe if you talked about black
people without automatically assuming they are on food stamps while
demanding their birth certificates we wouldn't call you racist. You hate
socialism and social justice. You hate regulations and taxes and
spending and the Government. You hate.
You like war. You like torture. You like Jesus. I don't know how in the hell any of that is compatible, but no one ever accused you haters of being over-committed to ideological consistency. You like people who look like you or at least hate most of the things that you hate. You hate everything else.
Now, I know you profess to love our country and the founding fathers (unless you are reminded that they believed in the separation of church and state), but I need to remind you that America is NOT what Fox News says it is. America is a melting pot, it always has been. We are a multi-cultural amalgamation of all kinds of people, and yet you still demonize everyone who is not a rich, white, heterosexual christian male or his submissive and obedient wife.
You hate liberals, moderates, hell, anyone who disagrees with Conservative dogma as espoused by Fox News and Rush Limbaugh. You hate em.
Well, here are the facts, Jack. If you hate the Government then you are unqualified to manage it. If you hate gay people more than you love America than you should take your own advice and get the hell out. There are several countries that are openly hostile to gay people, but they are full of brown people and you don't like them much either from what I understand. It looks like you are screwed, but that's not what I am here to tell you.
More rant below. . .
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/01/09/1053088/-An-open-letter-to-the-people-who-hate-Obama-more-than-they-love-America?detail=email#
You like war. You like torture. You like Jesus. I don't know how in the hell any of that is compatible, but no one ever accused you haters of being over-committed to ideological consistency. You like people who look like you or at least hate most of the things that you hate. You hate everything else.
Now, I know you profess to love our country and the founding fathers (unless you are reminded that they believed in the separation of church and state), but I need to remind you that America is NOT what Fox News says it is. America is a melting pot, it always has been. We are a multi-cultural amalgamation of all kinds of people, and yet you still demonize everyone who is not a rich, white, heterosexual christian male or his submissive and obedient wife.
You hate liberals, moderates, hell, anyone who disagrees with Conservative dogma as espoused by Fox News and Rush Limbaugh. You hate em.
Well, here are the facts, Jack. If you hate the Government then you are unqualified to manage it. If you hate gay people more than you love America than you should take your own advice and get the hell out. There are several countries that are openly hostile to gay people, but they are full of brown people and you don't like them much either from what I understand. It looks like you are screwed, but that's not what I am here to tell you.
More rant below. . .
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/01/09/1053088/-An-open-letter-to-the-people-who-hate-Obama-more-than-they-love-America?detail=email#
Via Daily Dharma
Flower of the Day: 07/04/14
“Everything
that happens in the school of life is meant to teach you how to develop
mental equanimity. If you can already be a channel of love and silence
to some degree, then it is important to share this with other people,
even if you sometimes run the risk of falling, because this fall serves
as a sacrifice as well as a lesson. This descent means that you are
still not completely immune, so if someone invites you to argue with
them, you still accept their invitation. A balanced mind can be in the
world relating to others and still refrain from accepting the invitation
to enter warfare. Regardless of what is happening, the person always
remains the same, simply observing that which is transitory and letting
it pass.”
Sri Prem Baba
Thursday, July 3, 2014
Flower of the Day: 07/03/14
“Your
talents are at the service of humanity’s evolution, since they are the
way love expresses itself through you in order to carry out your dharma,
your life’s purpose. Your purpose and the gifts that will help you to
fulfill it are revealed to you very early on, but they are usually
forgotten. Throughout your journey the entire universe encourages you to
become aware of them. You are always being inspired to ask: What does
God want from me? What do I wake up for in the morning for? This movement
leads you towards aligning yourself with your dharma, and when you are aligned with your dharma, you reach the sacred dwelling place.”
Sri Prem Baba
Via Daily Dharma
Wednesday, July 2, 2014
Flower of the Day: 07/02/14
“Our
mission here on Earth is not so simple. Awakening love in everyone and
everywhere demands great steadiness, determination and the constant
renewal of our vows. That's the only way to deal with the immense
opposing forces that exist in the world and that act through us.”
Sri Prem Baba
Via Daily Dharma
Live From Love | July 2, 2014
Non-identification means that your
sense of who you are is not fused with or defined by any limited set of
emotions, sensations, or stories. When identification with the small
self is loosened, we begin to intuit and live from the openness and love
that express our natural awareness.
—Tara Brach, "Finding True Refuge"
Tuesday, July 1, 2014
Via JMG: George Takei: Boycott Hobby Lobby
"In this case, the owners happen to be deeply Christian; one wonders
whether the case would have come out differently if a Muslim-run chain
business attempted to impose Sharia law on its employees. As many have
pointed out, Hobby Lobby is the same company that invests in Pfizer and
Teva Pharmaceuticals, makers of abortion inducing-drugs and the morning
after pill. It also buys most of its inventory from China, where forced
abortions are common. The hypocrisy is galling.
"Hobby Lobby is not a church. It’s a business — and a big one at that. Businesses must and should be required to comply with neutrally crafted laws of general applicability. Your boss should not have a say over your healthcare. Once the law starts permitting exceptions based on 'sincerely held religious beliefs' there’s no end to the mischief and discrimination that will ensue. Indeed, this is the same logic that certain restaurants and hotels have been trying to deploy to allow proprietors to refuse service to gay couples.
"While we work to overturn this decision by legislation, people of good conscious should BOYCOTT any for-profit business, including Hobby Lobby, which chooses to impose its religious beliefs on its employees. The only way such companies ever learn to treat people with decency and tolerance is to hit them where it counts–in their pocketbooks. I won’t be shopping there, and women everywhere should exercise their right of protest and refuse to shop there as well." - George Takei, writing on his personal blog.
"Hobby Lobby is not a church. It’s a business — and a big one at that. Businesses must and should be required to comply with neutrally crafted laws of general applicability. Your boss should not have a say over your healthcare. Once the law starts permitting exceptions based on 'sincerely held religious beliefs' there’s no end to the mischief and discrimination that will ensue. Indeed, this is the same logic that certain restaurants and hotels have been trying to deploy to allow proprietors to refuse service to gay couples.
"While we work to overturn this decision by legislation, people of good conscious should BOYCOTT any for-profit business, including Hobby Lobby, which chooses to impose its religious beliefs on its employees. The only way such companies ever learn to treat people with decency and tolerance is to hit them where it counts–in their pocketbooks. I won’t be shopping there, and women everywhere should exercise their right of protest and refuse to shop there as well." - George Takei, writing on his personal blog.
Labels: boycotts, Christianists, gay artists, George Takei, Hobby Lobby, insurance, Obamacare, religion, retail, SCOTUS
The Dirty 100: Meet the Companies and Institutions You Should Avoid After Hobby Lobby
It’s not just Hobby Lobby. There are one hundred
cases that have been filed for the right to discriminate against women’s
healthcare. NOW calls them the “Dirty 100″.
Here they are in all of their infamy: The following
is a list of plaintiffs in the 100 cases that have been filed in
opposition to the birth control mandate in the Affordable Care Act, as
provided by the National Organization for Women.
American Family Association
American MFG Co
American Pulverizer Co
Annex Medical
Autocam Corp
Ave Maria School of Law
Ave Maria University
Barron Industries
Beckwith Electric Co
Belmont Abbey College
Bick Holdings, Inc.
Cherry Creek Mortgage Co
CNS Ministries
Colorado Christian University
Conestoga Wood Specialities Corp
Continuum Health Partnership/Management
Criswell College
Doboszenski & Sons
Dordt College
Dr. James Dobson’s Family Talk
East Texas Baptist University
Eden Foods
Encompass, Develop, Design & Construct LLC
Eternal Word Television Network Inc.
Fellowship of Catholic University
Feltl & Co., Inc.
Franciscan University of Steubenville
Freshway Foods
Gilardi
Grace College and Seminary
Grote Industries
Hart electric LLC
Hastings Automotive
Hercules Industries Inc.
Hobby Lobby
Holland Chevrolet
Infrastructure Alternatives
Johnson Welded Products
Korte & Luitjohan Contractors
Liberty University
Lindsay Rappaport and Postel LLC
Little Sisters of the Poor
Louisiana College
M&N Plastics
Mersino Management Company
Michigan Catholic Conference
MK Chambers Company
O’Brien Industrial Holdings
Ozinga
Paul Wieland
Priests for Life
QC Group Inc.
Randy Reed Automotives
Reaching Souls International
Right to Life Michigan
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. Louis
Roman Catholic Diocese of Beaumont
Roman Catholic Diocese of Biloxi
Roman Catholic Diocese of Cheyenne
Roman Catholic Diocese of Dallas
Roman Catholic Diocese of Erie
Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth
Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort-Wayne – South Bend
Roman Catholic Diocese of Nashville
Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh
School of the Ozarks
Seneca Hardwood
Sharpe Holdings, Inc.
Sioux Chief MFG Co
SMA LLC
Southern Nazarene University
The Most Reverend Thomas Wenski
Tonn and Blank Construction
Trijicon, Inc. (AKA Bindon)
Triune Health Group
Tyndale House
University of Notre Dame
Weingartz Supply Co
Wheaton College (Wheaton, IL)
Willis & Willis PLC
WLH Enterprises
Zumbiel
American MFG Co
American Pulverizer Co
Annex Medical
Autocam Corp
Ave Maria School of Law
Ave Maria University
Barron Industries
Beckwith Electric Co
Belmont Abbey College
Bick Holdings, Inc.
Cherry Creek Mortgage Co
CNS Ministries
Colorado Christian University
Conestoga Wood Specialities Corp
Continuum Health Partnership/Management
Criswell College
Doboszenski & Sons
Dordt College
Dr. James Dobson’s Family Talk
East Texas Baptist University
Eden Foods
Encompass, Develop, Design & Construct LLC
Eternal Word Television Network Inc.
Fellowship of Catholic University
Feltl & Co., Inc.
Franciscan University of Steubenville
Freshway Foods
Gilardi
Grace College and Seminary
Grote Industries
Hart electric LLC
Hastings Automotive
Hercules Industries Inc.
Hobby Lobby
Holland Chevrolet
Infrastructure Alternatives
Johnson Welded Products
Korte & Luitjohan Contractors
Liberty University
Lindsay Rappaport and Postel LLC
Little Sisters of the Poor
Louisiana College
M&N Plastics
Mersino Management Company
Michigan Catholic Conference
MK Chambers Company
O’Brien Industrial Holdings
Ozinga
Paul Wieland
Priests for Life
QC Group Inc.
Randy Reed Automotives
Reaching Souls International
Right to Life Michigan
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. Louis
Roman Catholic Diocese of Beaumont
Roman Catholic Diocese of Biloxi
Roman Catholic Diocese of Cheyenne
Roman Catholic Diocese of Dallas
Roman Catholic Diocese of Erie
Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth
Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort-Wayne – South Bend
Roman Catholic Diocese of Nashville
Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh
School of the Ozarks
Seneca Hardwood
Sharpe Holdings, Inc.
Sioux Chief MFG Co
SMA LLC
Southern Nazarene University
The Most Reverend Thomas Wenski
Tonn and Blank Construction
Trijicon, Inc. (AKA Bindon)
Triune Health Group
Tyndale House
University of Notre Dame
Weingartz Supply Co
Wheaton College (Wheaton, IL)
Willis & Willis PLC
WLH Enterprises
Zumbiel
Read the full article here: http://www.politicususa.com/2014/07/01/list-100-plaintiffs-filed-opposition-birth-control-mandate-obamacare.html
Via Daily Dharma
Dissolving the Conceptual Attitude | July 1, 2014
Through the training of trying to be
mindful, one becomes more aware, but to such an extent that it expands
further and further, encompassing all situations and all moments, and
finally to such an extent that trying to be more mindful and being
mindful becomes one identity of just awareness. At which point there is
no longer someone being aware of something. That is what is meant by the
dissolving of the conceptual attitude.
—Tsoknyi Rinpoche, "As the Clouds Vanish"
Flower of the Day: 07/01/14
“Anxiety,
unrest and the compulsion to do are symptoms of ambition and desire.
Since one searches for success in the paradigm of the material world,
one wants to accumulate wealth because one believes that success means
having a lot of money. But when the paradigm shifts and one begins to
move towards a spiritual life, success becomes being considered
charitable and making people happy. But how can you make others happy if
you yourself are not happy? One continues to seek out success through a
spiritual life with the same ambition as one sought success in the
material life. Compulsive action is a way of running away from oneself.
We need to understand the root cause of desire, and self-awareness is
what allows for this understanding to occur.”
Sri Prem Baba
Monday, June 30, 2014
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