About LGBT 2k15

read article here 

On February 9, 2015, federal law permitted Alabama to become the 37^th state to allow same-sex marriage, although some Republican officials are still blatantly advocating against it. Journalist Steve Benen reported, “Many same-sex couples have spent the morning getting legally married in the Heart of Dixie.” Roy Moore, conservative Alabama chief justice, tried to proclaim judges could not issue same-sex marriage licenses. Moore has been known to have written many probates on the constitutionality of same-sex marriage. “Moore has argued repeatedly in recent weeks that Alabama courts can feel free to ignore federal court rulings on marriage,” wrote Benen. At the same time, Alabama governor Robert Bentley (R) has honored ending the same-sex marriage ban and has taken no action to prevent the marriages from proceeding; upsetting some Alabaman citizens. Although Bentley is a staunch, conservative Republican who is against same-sex marriage, he stands by the supreme law of the land and believes states can’t simply ignore laws they don’t concur with. 

This article, published in 2015, is still depicting a battle between the government and United States citizens for basic civil rights. We are still trying to live up to the United States Constitution preamble “We the people”; not “We, some of the people”. Our founding fathers promised to ensure a life of justice, domestic tranquility, and the promotion of the general welfare. It’s the twenty-first century, some Americans are being denied their fundamental rights, and there are still people saying, “But…” Gay/lesbian/transgender/bisexual Americans are being oppressed and discriminated against for the people they choose to love, which does not directly affect any other human. 

Another issue to be addressed with this article is the deliberate neglect Alabama politicians are placing on the federal ruling to allow same-sex marriages. “I’m not worried about following the U.S. Constitution,” says Alabama county judge Nick Williams regarding his homosexual marriage views. Federalism, the distributed power between central government and states, has been a significant principle in our constitutional democracy, as has majority rule. One legally cannot state they disagree with federal law and magically be exempt from abiding by said law. The United States operates on a set of principles to establish peace and equality. The Alabama officials who are adamantly against same-sex marriage are beating on a wall trying to change it to a door.

The article “Alabama judge: ignore federal courts on marriage” by Steve Benen is important to know because every single United States citizen deserves the same respect and to be valued. We don’t authorize a law enforcing children to mandatory vaccinations, which increase the risk for fatalities otherwise, yet we authorize legal sanctions against the personal preference of who one can enjoy the rest of their life with. Also, this is a prime example to pay attention to your officials and be aware of what’s happening in the news. If one relies solely on their community leaders, they are more liable to be misled or fed biased information. Benen describes Governor Bentley’s inaction from stopping same-sex marriages like so: “On Sunday, in his own First Baptist Church of Tuscaloosa, Bentley heard his pastor to call on him to ‘do the right thing’ and take some kind of action to stop same-sex marriage… The appeal did not change Bentley’s mind. He was not going to stand in the courthouse door and defy the law.” The United States Constitution was published to set guidelines as to how our government works. Personal opinions cannot overrule federal laws. Go about it the proper way and write Congress a proposal as to why same-sex marriage should be illegal.

I think this current event is sad. Most conservatives don’t want to allow same-sex marriage because it violates the sacred Christian biblical value that marriage is between man and a woman, though 40% of Americans are not Christian. We established this nation to escape religious persecution and here Congress is trying to enforce their religious beliefs on the whole country. If you don’t want a gay marriage, don’t get married. It’s that simple. What a couple does in the privacy of their home has no effect on anyone else on the planet. We don’t like being told how we can or cannot run our lives; why would we try to prevent our fellow Americans from being happy and being with the one they love all because someone wrote it in a book over two thousand years ago? They also thought the earth was flat. Were they right about that too? Most importantly, inequality is a direct threat to the foundation of our democracy.  

References

Benen, S. (2015, February 9). Alabama judge: Ignore federal courts on marriage. Retrieved February 11, 2015, from http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/alabama-judge-ignore-federal-courts-marriage

About February

About Scholarship Essays

On Monday, August 11, 2014, headlines everywhere were buzzing with the heart-wrenching news of Hollywood icon Robin Williams’ self-inflicted death. Many people questioned how someone so vibrant and energetic could make the grave decision to end his own life when he had money, recognition, and success. In the United States, society has constructed a stigma against mental illness that frequently discourages affected people to seek the proper treatment they need to live healthy lives.

Eighty percent of Americans believe mental illness isn’t real; that it’s just weak people wanting attention. Those who have never experienced a mental illness are frequently known to say, “They just feel sorry for themselves” or “It’s all in their head and they can change if they choose to.” However, when one has bipolar disorder, there is a biochemical event that takes place. People that suffer from bipolar disorder experience significant fluctuation with the neurotransmitter dopamine. When someone with bipolar disorder is in a depressive state, they exhibit traits like lethargy, sadness, anger, nothingness, insomnia/hypersomnia, and weight gain/loss. When they are in a manic episode, they feel empowered, energized, confident, and lose judgment. There is literally a biological dysfunction that inhibits someone with bipolar disorder from “snapping out of it”. Typically, people don’t enjoy not being able to sleep for days at a time from depression or accruing thousand-dollar debt by maxing out credit cards during a manic episode, therefore, their behavior is not a choice. There is a comic on the internet that depicts physical illness being treated the same way as mental illness: one cartoon character has an amputated hand with blood and bone showing and the other is saying, "You just need to change your frame of mind, then you'll feel better.” The stigma that people with mental illness are simply weak is erroneous, and mental illness should never be minimized.

When society constantly claims having a mental illness is a defect or an attention-getter, people with mental illnesses start believing it. People frequently refuse medicine and psychological treatment because they feel like getting help for their mental illness is embarrassing. If you were referred to as crazy, loony, or nuts, you would do everything in your power to prevent living up to these stereotypes. Lessening or criticizing mental illness is not how society should react. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, professional bicyclist Lance Armstrong described Robin Williams’ depression by stating, “He was an incredible hider. It was defer, deflect, and go back to that place of making people laugh.” What if someone had sat down with Robin Williams, one of America’s greatest comedians, to tell him that depression is the number-one affective disorder in the country, and even though he had so many stressful factors in his life, there could be a way to manage it? Society needs to be reassuring those with mental illnesses that it is manageable in time and with the proper resources.

           In order to stop the stigma of mental illness, people need to change their way of thinking. If someone doesn’t understand a foreign concept, they are quick to judge, discriminate, and mock. With education and awareness, mental illness could be better understood and more people could see that it’s a daily struggle to live with any disorder. The United States, as a society, should try to eliminate words like “whack-job” and “crazy” when referring to those with mental illnesses, because they are offensive terms towards a characteristic that absolutely nobody can control.

Instead, the United States should provide affordable and convenient healthcare. It’s hard for those who live in rural areas to acquire the necessary resources if they aren’t within a reasonable distance. Another huge dilemma in mental health is the costliness of therapy and/or medication. The first step to help manage a mental illness is to get the proper medication prescribed by a licensed professional to accommodate the lacking, excessive, or unstable neurotransmitters related to their illness. After the medication works its way into a nervous system and performs its duties, it is sometimes necessary to see a therapist for one to learn how to live and cope with their mental illness.  It is possible to have a mental illness and still live a happy and healthy life if those affected with a mental illness seek the help they need.

As former president Bill Clinton once said, “Mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of, but stigma and bias shame us all.” Anyone from a billionaire to a homeless person can become affected by a mental illness; it has no preference. It was eye-opening to see someone as strong and vibrant as Robin Williams’ succumb to his mental illness, because so many people are great at masking their pain. Let’s prevent others’ mental illness to escalate to this point and create a more positive awareness in order to eradicate the stigma of mental health.

                    You're only given a little spark of madness.

              You mustn't lose it.
  —Robin Williams

About Framing

framing: the way a problem is presented 


    "What kinds of things do you hear about it? It’s awesome. It has minimal side effects. It’s better—I always love this one—it’s better for you than cigarettes. Well they’re both bad for you. Better? You know, it’s like: having my arms and legs cut off is better for me than death. And do they talk about the potential negative side effects? Do you even know what potential drug effect you get with marijuana? Is it an upper? Is it a downer? Or is it a hallucinogen?
At least with meth, we know it’s an upper, right? You take it; you know what effect you’re going to get. You take alcohol; what effect are you going to get? Downer. It’s a depressant, right? But you know, marijuana is the only substance known to man that is a hallucinogen, a stimulant, and a depressant all in one substance? Does that sound like something that would be good for people? 

    How many ads have you seen where they show the study out of Illinois where long-term pot use (5 years or more) makes people lose, on average, 15 IQ points? Is that important to know before you embark on a habit? There’s a study out of Illinois that monitors long-term drug use of potheads. They were measured at the time they first started using. They were measured again 10 years later and 5 years later. In the end of 5 years, they lose 15 IQ points. In 10 years, they lost 20. They took someone who was slightly above average and they might be below average now. Take someone who is slightly below average and it would make them mentally retarded.

    Students, you know, have gone pot crazy. It’s not the first time in history they’ve done that. They went pot crazy back in my day, too. But regular, habitual use, using it daily, is disastrous for college students. One out of about 500 is likely to graduate. It interferes with memory, it interferes with recall, it interferes with concentration. Are you going to OD from it if you smoke it? No, probably not. But it’s not, you know, changing your brain in an environment that requires concentration is never a good idea. Alcoholics don’t graduate either. 

    But that’s not the way it’s ever framed to us. It’s always, “Oh, it’s good. It’s better for you than cigarettes. It’s better for you than alcohol. You can’t become addicted.” It can become addictive, but they tell you it can’t. 

    There’s another side effect other than loss of IQ points and the inability to concentrate that nobody ever talks about. THC helps to start a process that destroys your genitalia: so it destroys ovaries in women and destroys testicles in men. When I was working with a prior generation who were big potheads, I used to tell the guys, “You want to not be able to get it up in 10 years? Just keep doing what you’re doing.” 

    But those are the things that are framed to us. “Oh, it’s positive. You’re going to be mellow. It’s going to be so awesome.” Right? Now, I don’t care if it’s legal or not legal, but the way something is presented to us can alter our decisions."

— Scott Thompson, Northeastern Junior College (MA of Psychology & MA of Sociology)

About That Life

☮

 mystical     [mis-ti-kuh l]
 adjective
 obscure in meaning; mysterious

“The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past,

nor to worry about the future,

but to live the present moment wisely and earnestly.” 

―Buddha

“In the end

these things matter most:

How well did you love?

How fully did you live?

How deeply did you let go?” 

―Buddha

“Every morning we are born again.

What we do today is what matters most.” 

―Buddha

perhaps I'm a philosophaster

Kurz: Dislike. Those cops are as innocent as Eric Garner.

Can you mourn the death of one innocent man and celebrate the death of two more?

J: At least this is for a purpose... I know what you're saying.

And you were the one reason I was hesitant to post this because I knew you would put me in my place, but honestly.... it's tiring. And wearing to see a whole race be disregarded and devalued for years and years and years.

Kurz: Ya I got nothing.

We try to do better.

We try to be better.

Martin would NEVER approve of violent revolution.

In his last year, Malcolm would not have approved either.

J: I don't want LA or Ferguson riots where we self-destruct,

but I don't know how else we can convey our frustration, anger, sadness, pain, and the desire

for SOMETHING to change.

We are just as intelligent, passionate, and deserving as all other humans

yet we haven't been treated equally for 400 years........ YEARS.

nothingness or.... something, ness

we don't 

see things as they are,

we see things as 

we are.

– Anaïs Nin

▲ ▲ ▲

laugh like a story
body of a goddess
have you seen golden indigo?
I have and, my stars, is it something
her walk flows like the lyrics that 
play by her heartbeat
    smile. laugh. her.
a perfect example of being, by being
Beauty for days and a heart of ocean
gems
Power, will, love, hope; another
lost star in this sea of growth

if only she knew



—r*

sno

staring at base was mouthwatering I love the smell of her...

god how real

if I could sleep with her, I imagine heaven

my body light and energized, she takes over my body, and I groan something like
"I" and "love" and "you". she's silent. this eternal neverland is full of jokes & smiles & relief.

white

like this bullshit ton of snow dropping like sand in an hour glass

all my brain can do is bitch about why here, why this?

why



—r star

Sha Wants To Know

"Why is it that we, as females, criticize ourselves? 

And then! Other b*tches criticize us as well! 

I just don't understand it. We're hatin' b*tches.

Why do we do that?

But we're all beautiful! 

And I'm sure some girl walking down the street with an amazing smile thinks she has an ugly smile. 
There are things we don't like about ourselves thAT NO ONE ELSE EVEN NOTICES. 

Stop worrying about those things." 

―Shalynn Marie

Coal's Wise Words