Millions of Americans wear purple on Spirit Day as a sign of support for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) youth and to speak out against bullying. Spirit Day was started in 2010 by teenager Brittany McMillan as a response to the young people who had taken their own lives. Observed annually on October 20, individuals, schools, organizations, corporations, media professionals and celebrities wear purple, which symbolizes spirit on the rainbow flag. Getting involved is easy -- participants are asked to simply "go purple" on October 20 as we work to create a world in which LGBT teens are celebrated and accepted for who they are.
http://www.glaad.org/spiritday
Is it odd that I find John McCain to be kind of hot in this photo? Maybe it's the uniform...
I feel like a traitor to my party now.
Well turn me upside down and paint me blue.
Apparently, this weekend, a 9-year-old girl donated $1.48 to the "No on Proposition 8" campaign. This was all the money she had in the world. At 9, I would imagine a buck and a half to be a veritable fortune.
She was quoted in the media, saying "My grandfather was gay and I wish he would have been able to get married."
A NINE YEAR OLD GETS IT. I think that speaks VOLUMES.
I'm sorry but I gotta get something off my chest if you'll pardon my big mouth for a few minutes...
I'm so riled up about Prop 8, I can hardly stand it. I'm so steaming, crazy, passionately adamant that NO ONE should be able to tell another person who they can or cannot marry because of sexual preference.
Let me put it to you this way - and maybe this is a reach of a metaphor but work with me here -- Should all Jews be forced to marry only Jews? Should black people only be allowed to marry other black people? Should citizens of a certain region only be allowed to marry people inside of that region? Can I marry a Canadian? Can I marry an African-American Muslim?
And if I would, should, shouldn't or wouldn't, should my government be allowed to decide? (Is it not bad enough that my parents, grandparents and the occasional friend try to influence me; that society all on its own forms opinions here and there?) Why does marriage, which we often equate with love, now also have to be equated with legal mandate?
But listen, this is just my opinion. And you are entitled to yours, for whatever reason. I won't deny that.
However some of these horrible ads on television have me worried. You can't teach a child to be gay just like you can't teach a gay person to be straight and I'm sorry, but anyone who thinks otherwise is being poorly educated or is just naive and/or ignorant. And what worries me is that enough of these under-educated or morally void nit-wits will see commercials and vote the wrong way. And I don't mean wrong as in they should agree with me. I just mean if you are UNINFORMED? You're wrong.
In short? Have an opinion. Take a side. But don't do it for the wrong reason (put less delicately, don't do it because you're a jackass).
I was going to keep my politics out of the workplace this year but since watching Keith Olbermann around here is practically a group activity and from the get go it was pretty clear who the Republicans were and who the Democrats were, it's not been inappropriate to talk about the election and the propositions in the office. And I sit 3 feet from human resources. BUT! I was SO stunned today to overhear that one of my co-workers is planning to vote yes on Prop 8.
And like I said-- that's their right. Their choice. But in THIS case, I have to say this person functions in life with morals that are beyond questionable and their reason for voting yes is completely, unarguably HYPOCRITICAL so it just infuriates me. I am LIVID over it.
And all I'm saying is I just hope all the homosexual agents, lawyers, managers, actors, reporters and publicists this person works with DAILY don't get wind of the idiocy. I may work at hokey Hallmark but this is still the entertainment industry, right? Hopefully they are at least smart enough to shutup about it. EVERYONE talks in this office. EVERYONE. And there are gay employees here. Some of whom I count among my good friends. Some I care about very much. One in particular who wants nothing more than to marry his partner of many, many years and is afraid to til after November 5th. And I want that so badly for him. He should be allowed that "privilege," dammit.
So that, my friends, is my rant.
Here is my new favorite ad:
