Why do I post relentlessly about gay issues? Well, there’s the most obvious answer: I’m gay. Of course I care whether or not I can get married, or whether my elected representatives are spreading vicious lies about me so that they can pass legislation that could harm me or prevent me from accessing the same rights as straight people. Of course I care about that. Of course I’m going to fight for my rights. Wouldn’t you? Social change isn’t just about voting. Yeah, I’m going to vote for the person who most closely aligns with the issues important to me, but it doesn’t stop there.

Awareness. People need to understand what their hate does to me and to others. In Tennessee and elsewhere, they’re attempting to pass legislation that could allow children to be bullied, to be hated on, because they’re gay. CHILDREN. In Oklahoma and elsewhere, they’re trying to keep LGBT people from serving in the National Guard. They’re going to lose their jobs (or not get one) simply because of who they are. Most of the current (and the loudest of the) GOP field talks about me and all LGBT people like we’re scum. We’re just as bad as murderers and pedophiles, we’re abominations, we’re unnatural, we’re ruining the country. And apparently we have no feelings, because many of these same politicians and religious leaders have no problem saying these things knowing we’re watching. If you were treated this way and you didn’t speak up, I’d think there was something wrong with you.

But here’s what’s worse, and somehow many of you don’t seem to understand this. You’re KILLING people. You’re killing CHILDREN.

Phillip Parker, 14
EricJames Borges, 19

Tyler Clementi, 18

Seth Walsh, 13

Raymond S. Chase, 19
Jamey Rodemeyer, 14

Jamie Hubley, 15
Corey Jackson, 19
Justin Aaberg, 15

Zach Harrington, 19

Caleb Nolt, 14

Lance Lundsten, 18

These boys couldn’t take it. They couldn’t take the constant hate from their friends and sometimes their families. We let this happen. ALL OF US let this happen by NOT speaking up; by voting for anti-gay politicians and allowing them to push their anti-gay policies; by not working harder to create an environment where it IS better, rather than just saying “it gets better”.

Silence is acceptance. I refuse to accept the loss of such beautiful young lives and I refuse to accept the lack of equality faced by all LGBT people. Therefore I refuse to be silent.

Sweet Potato Chili

6 servings

1 cup chopped onion

¼ cup coarsely chopped green bell pepper

¼ cup coarsely chopped red bell pepper

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 tsp cumin

½ tsp salt

½ tsp black pepper

1 cup water

1-28oz can diced tomatoes

1 mild or medium salsa

1 cup chopped zucchini

1 cup peeled, chopped carrots

3- cups peeled, cubed sweet potato

1 cup corn kernels

 1 28 oz can red kidney beans, drained

1- 15 oz can black eyed peas, drained

Saute the first set of ingredients, and add the rest and bring to a boil. Reduce and simmer until sweet potatoes are soft, and all of the individual flavors come together to make one fabulous meal (around 2 hours). Eat it. 

Or just live there…

First of all, I hope everyone understands the meaning of the word “myth”. Got it? Good.

I love this myth. Mostly because I’ve never before appreciated it as such. However, I’d love some discussion on the lessons we normally take from it.

I don’t understand why God wouldn’t want people to have this knowledge—that of “good” and “evil”, whatever that might be. I think Adam and Eve are portrayed as, well, dumb. I get that people might like to return to a time of naïveté. “Ignorance is bliss”, right? I’ve grown past that, though, and have decided that knowledge, though often painful at first, is freeing.

This makes Eve the hero of the story, to me. The one with the courage to ask questions; to follow her curiosity and pursue knowledge (and a tasty snack). Because she and Adam seem to be quite childish and ignorant, this idea may not fit perfectly. Supposedly the snake tricked her into it, though it really didn’t take much cleverness on his part. She seemed eager to discover something new.

Anyway, it seems churches, lately, have been encouraging the questioning of faith, however disingenuous they might be. They call it a chance to grow in faith. The pursuit of knowledge is generally admirable, is it not?

The idea that we are supposed to believe something simply because we are told so is illogical and, I think, dangerous. Unfortunately this is the faith of many. It also seems to be the lesson most take from this particular myth.

I can’t believe in a god who expects blind obedience. I believe that god—whatever that may be—values the pursuit of knowledge, the asking of questions, and the refusal to believe anything without reason. So, at risk of sounding blashpemous (let’s be real, I *love* sounding blashpemous) to Eve I say “You go, girl!” 

tithenai:

wizasaur:

-prettyprettyplease:

ultraball:

paranoidrobot:

…Do the Presbyterians think Rocks are animals?

ALL ROCKS GO TO HEAVEN

CONVERTING TO CATHOLICISM DOES NOT MAGICALLY GRANT YOUR DOG A SOUL.

 WOW. EPIC CATHOLIC WIN.

I LOVE THIS.

lesbifianakis:

GPOY to an infinite degree.

feistyfeminist:

jaggedflow:

Calling all North Carolinian LGBT supporters! Please vote “NO” on Prop. 1 this coming May.

Yeah it’s not like we’re busy cleaning up after a goddamn hurricane. What an appropriate time for these Republican bigots to propose this. Douche canoes.

It’s so much easier to feel a connection to nature when you get away from all the asphalt. Mowing my grandparents’ grass always gets me thinking about this connection, just because the land around their house seems so pure and unharmed. It’s the most peaceful and pleasant experience I can find. Today I realized that I am always most at peace when I’m viewing something in nature (or perhaps an artist’s depiction of nature). Sometimes it makes me a little sad that we have ruined many pure and beautiful places in the name of progress. I don’t think this is what God had in mind when s/he gave us the command to “be fruitful and multiply.” I think we were always supposed to keep that connection to the earth strong, but we have allowed our constant desire for more “stuff” to get in the way. We want food faster and easier and we want fancy gadgets and toys. Basically we seek instant gratification. 

Let me list a few things that don’t make me truly happy—that perhaps provide a temporary but fading satisfaction: TV, cars, movies, money, computers, phones, internet (yes, even twitter), etc.

So what makes me happy? I mean truly happy…relationships and conversations that enhance them, pure foods that came right from mother earth into my hands, working toward some semblance of justice, some kind of connection to god, nature, or just the idea that the universe is huge and the earth is filled with people whose desires and needs far outweigh my own. Also, working toward understanding that higher power or sense of connection to all of existence. 
 
 I like working for progress. I hope we continue to do so. But I hope we’re working toward bettering the situation for all mankind and not just for the rich who can afford whatever it is we’ll be inventing next. I wish we’d take our connection to one another as fellow human beings a bit more seriously and start caring for one another as family rather than making life better for ourselves or even for our own country. We don’t need all this stuff and if we’re honest with ourselves we’ll admit that it isn’t what makes us happy. 

(For the record, this post doesn’t come as a response to any political happenings—just thoughts stemming from a really peaceful day in a yet relatively untouched part of the country)

I’m really proud of my brother. Do I wish he could have found a place in a more peaceful occupation? Sure. But he finished something I never could have—and not because of ideology. He came out stronger and more grown up than he was when he went in. But really, my favorite part was seeing him smile. He doesn’t smile much, but after his graduation he couldn’t help it. He hated basic training, but he knew he’d finally succeeded at something really difficult. He’s proud of himself for what might be the first time in his life, and nothing could make me happier. I love my brother more than anyone else in the world and if this is the only place he could find a place, I support that.
Now if you please, Mr. President, bring the troops home so I don’t have to worry about him.