Time For a Music Video

Great song by The Hold Steady who I just discovered a few weeks ago. It is off of "Boys and Girls in America" which is a great album. I got their newest album "Stay Positive", but haven't gotten a chance to listen to it yet. So here is "Stuck Between Stations".

John McCain Tomorrow

I will be going to see the Senator speak tomorrow with my grandfather. He will be voting for McCain in the Fall, and he is looking forward to the townhall meeting tomorrow. I like to keep an open mind and I wouldn't pass an opportunity to see a sitting Senator of such prestige as John McCain.

So we'll see how it goes. I'd like to ask him a question. I have a few I'm thinking of. My mother told me that my grandfather has a question as well. If he does I'll keep my hand down so he has a better chance of addressing the Senator.

I'll be taking my digital camera, and hopefully I'll get some good pictures. I'll post them tomorrow as well as a take on the event.

John McCain Is Coming...For Free

Upset that you can't get into the invite only and $250 plate luncheon with John McCain? No worries, he will be at the F.M. Kirby Center Wednesday at 10 am. The doors will open at 8am. There are no details available as to how long it is expected to be or anything else.

Link

"I was against gay adoptions before I was kinda for them"

Two days ago John McCain in an interview came out against gay adoption explicitly.

"I think that we've proven that both parents are important in the success of a family so, no, I don't believe in gay adoption," McCain said in reply to a reporter's query.

Asked if those adopting should be a "traditional couple," McCain answered, "Yes."

Florida is the only state in the Union that outlaws gay adoption. There are over 100,000 children in foster care in the United States awaiting adoption.

The idea that gay adoption would be detrimental to children is not supported at all by major medical and psychological organizations. "The American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Psychiatric Association and the National Association of Social Workers, among other groups, have expressed support for gay adoptions."

Likewise polling shows a change in American attitude towards gay adoption.

"A 2006 poll by the Pew Research Center found a near-even split on the issue; a 2007 poll by CNN and Opinion Research Corp. said 57 percent of respondents felt gays should have the right to adopt, while 40 percent said they shouldn't."

Now after backlash from the gay and lesbian community John McCain is slightly changing his tune.

"'John McCain could have been clearer in the interview in stating that his position on gay adoption is that it is a state issue. ... He was not endorsing any federal legislation,; a campaign statement said."

The statement also added this

"However, as an adoptive father himself, McCain believes children deserve loving and caring home environments, and he recognizes that there are many abandoned children who have yet to find homes. John McCain believes that in those situations that caring parental figures are better for the child than the alternative."

What a straight-talker. You say something to pander to your conservative base and then you backtrack to make yourself sound less of a bigot.

Besides an issue like this just further drives home the media-driven myth that John McCain is a maverick. Maybe he was honestly one back in 2000 and before, but not now. A real maverick in the Republican party would've supported gay adoption.

If John McCain and other conservatives believe that having a gay or lesbian parentage would harm a child, I wonder how they feel about religious radicals and fundamentalists raising children. Is not the radical and hateful indoctrination of a child at the very least child abuse? What if someone came out and said "Radical religious fundamentalists should not raise kids because indoctrination would harm the child's growth and social abilities?". There'd be an outrage.

You can defend almost anything by calling it religious. But just being a homosexual? Gosh, you're going to turn that adoptive child into the next Boy George!

Ridiculous.

Utterly Tasteless

There are three billboards that carry this message in Orlando, Florida. It was put up by Business man Michael Meehan. On the website that the billboard advertises there is a promotion for Meehan's song and music video about why people should not vote for Democrats or liberals.

Naturally a lot of residents are offended. They find it tasteless and exploitative.

"'Just looking at it, I'm not thinking about Democrat or Republican, I'm thinking about the twin towers and all the people killed,' resident Mary Anderson told Eyewitness News.

'This is a blatant exploitation of that terrible tragedy for political and, perhaps even worse, personal gain,' said Bill Robinson, Orange County Democratic Party Chair.

In addition to Orange County Democrats calling for the billboards to be taken down, the local Republican Party is joining in as well calling it 'inappropriate'."

While Meehan certainly has a right to blame whoever he wants for the tragedy of 9/11, there is no denying that these billboards are offensive, tasteless, and are exploiting the 9/11 attacks. It is a disgusting move by Mike Meehan to do this. Especially if it is to help sell his anti-Democratic song for $5 dollars a copy. He has a right to free speech and I'll defend his right to do this, but it is still absolutly horrible of anyone to use the imagery of 9/11 for gain, profit, or exploitation.

That's how I see it.

The Redskins Keep Their Name...For Now

The Washington Redskins scored a legal victory in the continuing battle over their name. The ruling didn't decide whether or not the name is offensive. Instead the ruling came on a technicality that the plaintiffs waited too long to bring their suit against the team.

"U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly made a similar finding in 2003, but the Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in 2005 that one of the plaintiffs at that time was only one years old when Washington registered “Redskins” as a trademark in 1993. The Appeals Court said the District Court should review its finding in that light.

The District Court found no reason to change it’s findings, noting that the plaintiff in question waited eight years after his 18th birthday to file the suit. However, the court did not rule on the “appropriateness of the imagery,” but on the timeliness of the suit itself."

Hopefully this is the end of the battle. I understand why the Native Americans would bring suit, but I don't believe that the name should be removed. It is not being used in an offensive manner. Maybe I'm a little biased because the Redskins are my team, but we always cannot avoid offending someone. No matter what someone is gonna get offended, and sometimes they have to live with it.

Bisexual Animals

I found a very fascinating article on www.sciam.com. It is about the sexuality of various animal species and how homosexuality plays into their societies as well as ours. A very good read, especially for those who call homosexuality "unnatural". It occurs in over 1,500 species of animals in varying degrees. Just remember, humans are animals too.

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=bisexual-species