WAKE UP EVERYBODY

Wake Up Everybody. POVERTY IS MASS MURDER. Hate is a Crime. 
I challenge you to use your mind, but to also use your heart.

Where are You in The Food Chain?

Looking around the world today,  I must confess that I believe there was some truth to Darwin's Theory.  Truly it has become survival of the fittest in this world. And perhaps it has always been this way. Does this mean that I have lost faith in all humanity? No, but I would be a fool to think that the world were full of caring and compassionate people who accept everyone and  reach out and lend a helping hand to those in need, because it isn't.

There are those who are out for themselves and what they can get for themselves. This puts them, theoretically at the Top of the Food Chain. They are Ruthless, Selfish, Power Hungry, and will let nothing stand in their way, and they don't care who they trample to stay on Top of The Food Chain.

Theoretically those on the bottom of the food chain, those that get eaten alive by those at the top, are the down trodden. The ones who have been preyed upon, lost their jobs, had social programs cut by the Government, and maybe they are just getting too tired to fight.

There is however somewhere in the middle, a creature who has not yet become extinct. The Human with a Heart. This Creature doesn't have a whole hell of a lot, but is willing to share with his fellow man. He hasn't lost his voice yet, and still has fight in his body, and will stand up for the down trodden, and those who can't stand up for themselves. This Creature is Humanity's last Best Hope.

Two and a Half Women

I am writing this post today to empower myself. Today on Facebook I noticed that My biological sister had posted a photo of My niece, whom I call Baby Mama.  I have always been a close part of Baby Mama's life, i watched through the glass as her mother had a C- Section.  I bought the child everything she needed to start off in life. She lived with me for the first six months of her life before moving to Florida, and then returned when she was two years old.

Baby Mama spent a great deal of time with me upon her return nearly four years. There were times when I would I feed her, brush her hair, as she would come to me with her looking afright, we would call it "haggy hair", sh has beautiful curly hair.  I would bathe her and clothe her too. I loved being her Auntie.

I always thought of her protection and what was best for her, Her Mother and Brother had Domestic Violence Issues, and when they would erupt, I would put her in my room for safety sake. She is small, and I was always afraid that she would get caught in the line of fire.

In December of 2010 I was fired from Two and a Half Women , and Baby Mama's Mother took her away, as I could no longer condone Domestic Violence in My Home. I did not put my sister out of my house, she decided to leave because I wanted her son to stop laying hands on her under my roof, and to stop damaging my property. I guess some women aren't always ready to get help. It took me awhile to get help too.

I am grateful that there is peace and serenity in my home, and that I can recognize abuse when I see it, and that I don't have to accept it nor condone it. I am also grateful that I can now recognize that I am mourning the loss of this Beautiful Dominican Princess that I helped to Raise and Protect.  A person doesn't have to be dead for you to mourn their loss.

Mississippi Needs Another Medgar Evers

I have written about the Great State of Mississippi before, but I am so passionate about it , I feel compelled to write about it again.
People in Mississippi are dying in part due to bigotry, I believe, and this is just my own personal opinion. Those in charge have decided that HIV?AIDS is an Immoral disease and therefore does not deserve medical treatment although Federal Funds are allotted to their state through The Government's Medicaid Program.
The state refuses to approve life saving education preventative programs to be taught in school teaching only the standard abstinence only theory in it's schools.
The highest rates of HIV exposure are among men who have sex with men, heterosexual women are the second-largest group affected by the disease. Young people in Mississippi are becoming infected with HIV at increasingly high rates. African-Americans constitute 37 percent of the population but 76 percent of new cases of HIV. 
Numerous legal provisions, including constitutional amendments, discriminate against homosexuals, and state sex education laws marginalize lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth. In some instances, state public health workers have been found to harass and threaten people testing positive for HIV. So There we have it, Discrimination, Witholding Medical Treatment, Denial of Education. This is not only a Human Rights Case but a Civil Rights Case.

Who will Be the Next Medgar Evers Down in Mississippi? We Need One....

Eat Your Neighbour, But Don't Forget To Say Grace

Loving thy Neighbour as thyself. What a beautiful Concept right? I guess it's just not always possible in today's day and age for most folks, or Heaven Forbid to Love Thine Enemy as Thyself.

Maybe some of us do Love our Enemies as we love Ourselves, simply because we Do not Love Ourselves. When we are bankrupt in the love  department we can not give away what we do not have.

I will most likely be criticized for this, but I will say it anyway. I was mortified when I heard that people were celebrating the fact that Gadafi's son was killed. Did anyone not feel any compassion that a human life was taken. It is his Father that is the Dictator. Granted the people have discovered that they have the right to participate in a free world and live in a Democratic Society, but He was after all someone's son. I am not in anyway condoning the actions of Gadafi's Regime, nor am I comparing his son to Jesus Christ, nor am I comparing Myself to The Virgin Mary, but For a moment I can step in Gadafi's shoes and feel sympathy, empathy, and compassion. I also think back, seeing as this is this is the Advent Season, on how the Crowds cheered at the execution of Christ, even though Mary knew her son must die for mankind, the pain was overwhelming. I have three children, the pain must have been astounding.

Jesus Christ and John Lennon

Perhaps I am a bit Naive, but Then I suppose John Lennon and Jesus Christ must have been too. I do believe that love conquers all. and ultimately Good does win out over Evil. No I am not being blasphemous in any way, and if you perceive it to be that way, I apologize. I do however strive to be Christ like in my intentions daily.

Does that mean I lead a pure and chaste life. No. What it does mean is that I strive to be of maximum service to mankind each day that I am blessed with breath in my human body. If it is within my means to help someone I do it. I believe it to be a sin against humanity to not do so.

You might be sitting out there and saying " Well, I have no money to give."  Helping your fellow Man is not always done monetarily, we are all blessed with unique talents, and it is up to us to use those talents for good. I have a talent for truth seeking, researching, and writing. Thus if someone were to ask me to help them on a project, it would go against everything I believe in to say no them.  Perhaps you are good at organizing events, and could bring about a Rally or Charity Benefit.

It is Through Loving your Neighbour that We Bring Power to The People and We must never Forget that each and everyone of us are the People.

Libya-Act of Aggression or Humanitarian Act

While I am a Pacifist, I do not endorse the senseless slaughter of your own people because they do not agree with your point of view.  Sometimes I bitch and moan about living in America, but at least I know that I can speak out against the Republicans without fear of them coming to my door and slitting my throat.
There are some who would ask why are we wasting money in Libya while our economy is already so stressed. We are doing this because our country was built on FREEDOM. The people of Libya deserve to be free of Oppression. Free of Fear. They deserve to LIVE.
This was not so much an act of aggression as it was an a Humanitarian Act.
Being a Proud American, I am inclined to say Let Freedom Ring, and Being a John Lennon Fan I am Inclined to say Power To The People!

A Prayer for the World

This is a Prayer I use daily and has become a part of my Creed. While I officially do not subscribe to any religion, I was and am profoundly influenced by the depth of humility, love and humanitarian efforts set forth by Saint Francis. It is better to Give than to Receive, and it is better to Console rather than to be Consoled. When you Truly give of yourself, the peace from within is worth more than all the riches in the world.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love.

Where there is injury, pardon.

Where there is doubt, faith.

Where there is despair, hope.

Where there is darkness, light.

Where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master,

grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;

to be understood, as to understand;

to be loved, as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive.

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.

Amen.

Don"t Kill The Future JFK or MLK

A vast Majority of us go on in our day to day lives with the assumption that if nothing tragic falls upon me, than it was a good day. Sure they are , for the most part not oblivious to their surroundings, and the atrocities that have overwhelmed their fellow man, but are under the mistaken impression that what happens to them does not affect them. Naturally they feel a slight twinge of discomfort when they see the suffering going on in the world around them, but what they don't understand is why they feel that twinge of discomfort.

Humanity is connected on a deep level, as we are all brothers and sisters, and have been from the beginning of time, whatever religious affiliation you subscribe to, it is hard to argue this one. What affects one of us affects all of us.  I will illustrate this with a few examples.

Today's abused child, that everyone turned a blind eye to, grows up and becomes bitter and mentally ill. Everyone thought it best to mind their own business. The Child of Ambivilance decides it is a good idea to take revenge on the society that has failed him.  He buys a gun and goes on a shooting spree, shooting innocent  children and public officials at political rallies. No One cared enough about him as a child to help him, we turned a blind eye to him because his problems didn't affect us. His problems affect us now Don't They?

The Recent Tragedy in Japan does bring us close r to the realization of how fragile life is. The Tsunami ravaged Japan, adn the Death toll climbs Daily. While Most of us were horrified at the extent of the damage, there were a few of us who were grateful that it wasn't us. That's Just It. IT WAS US! Many people donated ten dollars here or there, but they fail to realize the looming Nuclear Disaster that does affect us.  Anytime Radiation is leeched into the Air, Water, or Earth it is not good for Humanity and it will eventually affect us.

Starving A Child is perhaps one of the worst crimes against humanity you can commit, and yes this does affect us all. To Feed a Child's Body, Mind and Soul is one of the Greatest gifts you can give to Humanity. Would You want it on your conscience that you murdered perhaps the next John F. Kennedy, Albert Einstein, or Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. ? Our Children our Humanity's Greatest Resource, and it EVERYONE"S Responsibility to nurture them.

The Path To Enlightenment

I began my path to enlightenment with a young man who had spent time with Monks in Tibet. He had found himself the only survivor in a fatal car accident and sought answers as to why his life was spared. My life was I must admit not as spiritually fit as it could be, and i wanted answers also.

I began to pray. More than that, I began to listen. God is within me, he has never left me and never will.

I revisited the teachings of Christ, from a Spiritual perspective, from a Humanitarian Perspective.

I gained  a new perspective on life an humanity. I truly believe Christ was here to usher in a new era of Humanity based on Equality and Peace. That not one of us created any better than the other as we all come from the same collective race. There should not be "The Haves" and "The Have-Nots' nor should we waste our energies killing in the name of God. We are to take care of one another, truly as brother and sister, and love one another.

Love was the message that Christ spread. There is no Love in senseless slaughter in the name of Freedom, or Starving your Fellow Brothers and Sisters so that you can run a proper Government, and Look Good in your Political Party's Eyes.

Principles, Money, and Power, or even Fame if that's your thing will not bring you any Inner Peace. Loving yourself and spreading the Love is The Answer.

Cloth Diapers&The Garbage Barge

I am writing this for My daughter , who inspires me on so many levels. She is a a Full Time Social Work Major, pursuing her doctorate, she volunteers at the Local Rape Crisis Center, and She is also the Mother of My Beautiful Grandchild, whom I have affectionately dubbed "Princess Feisty Pants". Being a Mother in and of it's self is a full time job, the responsibilities are tremendous, as you literally hold the fate of an innocent child's life in your hands.
Recently My daughter asked me to write about the virtues of Cloth Diapers. My daughter has discovered an organic and healthy approach to parenting, and it has paid off. Princess Feisty Pants has grown from a tiny preemie, actually a micro-preemie in the NICU, to a Growing , Thriving,  toddler who is no longer underweight, and is well adjusted as well.
One decision my daughter made for her child and the future of her child was to use Cloth Diapers. I must admit that I was taken aback when she made this decision, and shame on me when I found out why she did. She also explained to me that they really are more cost effective. I did research this myself and below you will see the numbers.

*Health Standpoint
1. Disposable Diapers contain traces of DIOXIN. a carcinogenic chemical listed by the EPA as most toxic of all cancer linked chemicals.
2.Contain Tributyl-tin (TBT)  a toxic pollutant that causes hormonal problems
3.Contains Sodium Polyacrylate, a super absorbent polymer that turns into a gel when wet. A similar substance used in Tampons was revealed to increase the risk of Toxic Shock Syndrome.

**Environmental Standpoint
1.Disposable Diapers are the Third largest consumer item in Landfills.
2. In households where Disposables are used, Diapers account for Fifty percent of their Waste.
3. It has been estimated that it can take anywhere from 250-500 years for a Disposable Diaper to Decompose.

**Price
Average price of Cloth Diapers are $24.00 a Dozen. The average baby will need approximately 6 dozen over a 2 year span. This comes to a total of $288.00.
Average price for Store Brand Disposable Diapers is $6.29 a box, now multiply this by 104 weeks and you get a total of $654.16

You can argue convenience if you like. You can argue, by the time I wash them, I will be spending more money on detergent and water than the diapers are worth. There are a million ways you can spin this, if you choose. 
 
I would rather have a vision of a happy healthy baby spinning through my mind, than the vision of The Garbage Barge circling a harbor in Islip, New York, because it has ran out of places to dump garbage.

Universal Beliefs of The Goddess

The following are Universal Beliefs. I hold these to be stepping stones to happy and joyous life.
1. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
* This does not mean do unto others before they do unto you, as often we are tempted to do.
2. What we sow, so shall we reap
* If we waste our life putting out negative energy and resentment with gossip and hatred, leaving little or no room for seeds of love to grow, common sense tells us there can be no love where there is no love.
3. We are all created Equal
* Every Human  being was created to be equal, not one of us genetically perfect in our DNA structure.
4. To Enrich your life or the life of another through your experiences, strengths and hopes is a common bond shared within humanity.
* Helping and sharing, even if it is just lending an ear improves the landscape of our planet.
5.  It is through being humble that we master our emotions. Submission is vital to emotional maturity.
* During the act of submission we are free to give completely of ourselves.  Growth comes from humility.





The Greatest of These is Love...

Growing a Consience During Tragedy

If we are honest with ourselves we often don't remember our connections to the rest of humanity until tragedy strikes. Then our conscience kicks in and we remember that we are all members of the same race, an all encompassing race which includes every creed, color, gender,, religion and sexual orientation.  We suddenly realize that when tragedy strikes we must put our senseless bigotries aside and help our fellow man in whatever way we can.

Those of you who only embrace humanity during tragedy, I challenge you. I challenge you to remember the way you are feeling right now. If people struck by tragedy are part of your collective humanity right now, shouldn't they be a part of it everyday?

The "Asking For It" Article in The New York Times

An eleven year old girl was Gang Raped by a total of Eighteen Assailants ranging in age from Middle School age to a Twenty Seven Year Old Man in an abandoned trailer park in a small Texas town.
Do you want to know how I found out about this?
A journalist for a well know newspaper, Sod it all I will Just say it, The New York Times, wrote an article about it.
He interviewed people close to the girl and asked them questions as to her character. and reported statements about the victim such as "Resident's in the neighborhood said she dressed older than her age, wearing makeup and fashions more appropriate to a woman in her twenties."
The reporter also sees fit to remind us, "She would hang out with teenage boys at a playground, some said."

I am all for Freedom of Speech and Freedom of The Press.

BUT..


No Woman , Let alone a an Eleven year old CHILD deserves to be raped simply because of her style of dress or clothing. This article portrays the child in a bad light and Blames the Victim, as if  she were somehow "Asking For It".

No One "Asks For It".

Mississippi-Bigotry Kills

It was recently brought to My attention that living in Mississippi with HIV is like having a Curse.
Why you might ask? This is the United States of America, and we are after all a progressive country, and take health and safety measures to avoid epidemics, right?
Mississippi has refused federal funding for those infected with HIV which would allow them to receive Medicaid, in fact the state sued the Government to block them from giving the state funds. The state has the highest death rate amongst any other state for HIV related Deaths.
The state also refuses to educate their youth on HIV Prevention and Teen Pregnancy, instead teaching only abstinence only curriculum.
Ignorance Kills. Bigotry is Ignorance. They are Murdering People with their Ignorant Bigotry.

March is Women's History Month

Today is International Women's Day. A day of Empowerment for Women, Women who have worked hard for humanitarian and peace relations globally.

International Women's Day's Roots began in Russia, where they formally acknowledged the role that women played in their political, social and economic growth. It was actually a display of love and gratitude that Women's Day was started.

Today March is celebrated as Women's History Month in Celebration of women and all of their achievements to our culture, society, and global/humanitarian efforts.

If you are a woman, love, honour and respect yourself.

If you love a woman love, honour and respect her.

NewsFlash: Big Bird To Hit Unemployment Line

Seems Educational Programming, Cultural Programming at PBS and News Programming at NPR are considered LUXURIES in The Latest round of Discretionary Spending Cuts as Determined by The GOP.

Farmers in the West and Mid-West who depend on The NPR for Honest and Reliable News Broadcasts are no longer entitled to them?

Educatiional Programming, News Broadcasts. Are They Trying to keep America Uneducated and Misinformed? Do They have a hidden agenda?

Perhaps.

OR...

They are just trying to exercise Brute Force with their Discretionary Spending Cuts and just plain flat out don't give a shit who they trample on to prove their point.

Discretionary Spending

dis·cre·tion·ary

adj \-ˈkre-shə-ˌner-ē\

Definition of DISCRETIONARY

1

: left to discretion : exercised at one's own discretion

2

: available for discretionary use <discretionary purchasing power>

Examples of DISCRETIONARY

1. <discretionary spending on luxuries dropped dramatically last year>

First Known Use of DISCRETIONARY

1698

 

The Government considers Education, Transportation, Health, and Human Services Discretionary Spending. 

Does feeding the country's poor sound like a luxury to you? 

 

Does Educating our Children so that we can assure America has a Future sound like a Luxury to you?

Does providing Well Child Clinics, and other Preventative screenings for Health to prevent Pandemics  sound like a Luxury to You?

Just Sayin'....

The Haves and The Have-Nots

This world of ours is unfortunately separated into two categories, "The Haves", and  " The Have-Nots".

"The Haves" are entitled to common basic needs like health care, food, shelter, education, having their dignity and self respect kept in tact.

"The Have-Nots" just can't seem to catch a break in this world of ours. There is no health care for them, there rights get trampled every time they turn around. Often they are homeless due to unemployment, leaving them to die on a cold lonely street somewhere.

Maybe if  "The Haves" weren't so busy singing 'God Bless The Child Who Has His Own" and show some compassion to 'The Have-Nots' , The world would not have to sing 'Mercy, Mercy, Me."

Do The Republicans Really Defend Marriage?

DOMA is just The Latest attack on The LGBT community and it has nothing to do with preserving the sanctity and old fashioned values of traditional marriage as The Conservatives would have you believe.

Pardon Me for being so opinionated on this subject but I will tell you why.

I have met many elderly couples who would love nothing more than to be married to one another, and live as husband and wife, Legally. Why don't they? Financially they would be screwed. Seems if you are on Social Security and you enter into a Marriage Contract as it is currently defined by DOMA, your benefits are decreased dramatically. They just can't afford to be married. They can however afford to live together. For some of these older people this was an insult, and an embarrassment. To "Shack Up" or " Live In Sin" but what other recourse did the government leave them? They have to eat and pay bills.

DOMA takes more away from marriage than it gives.

Saying No To Title X is PRO DEATH

 Republicans are attacking Planned Parenthood and Title X funding, Planned Parenthood has never performed any abortions to my knowledge so if it is a matter of Pro Life, they are way off the Mark. In fact  by stripping Planned Parenthood of these funds They are saying they are Pro Death.

Planned Parenthood provides essential screenings for Cervical Cancer, Breast Cancer, HIV, STD's and offers education and health care services and screenings to approximately one in five women in the United States, and the Demographic on these women are that they are the ones hardest hit by the economy. Perhaps The Republicans think their lives aren't worth saving.

Gettysburg-Did They Die in Vain

THE
GETTYSBURG
ADDRESS

Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth
 on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and
 dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
  Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing
 whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so
 dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-
field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of
 that field as a final resting-place for those who here gave
 their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether
 fitting and proper that we should do this.
  But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate…we cannot
 consecrate…we cannot hallow…this ground. The brave men,
 living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it
 far above our poor power to add or detract. The world
 will little note nor long remember what we say here, but
 it can never forget what they did here. It is for us, the
 living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished
 work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly
 advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the
 great task remaining before us…that from these honored
 dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which
 they gave the last full measure of devotion; that we here
 highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain;
 that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of
 freedom; and that government of the people, by the people,
 for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

November 19, 1863

The Bloodiest War ever fought on American Soil, The Civil War. It was fought to enforce The Constitution of The United States of America and to abolish slavery.  Slaves were being used to run plantations, mills, factories and in some cases used for forced breeding with no regard for their health or well being. They had no voice or representation. Even greater was the injustice, was that these slaves were forbidden to be educated, for if they were, then they would know that they were being mistreated. They had  no one to speak for them.

President Lincoln Spoke for Them with The Emancipation Proclamation. The Union waged war on the Confederacy and it's Unconstitutional Practices. The Civil War pitted Brother against brother in some cases, emotions ran high, but Lincoln and His Freedom Fighters never gave up.

The Union Forces won the Civil War and gave Freedom to The Slaves of The Confederacy. Collectively now through The Union they now had a Voice.

There was much blood shed during The Civil War to ensure that the Constitution of The United States of America was enforced. To take away people's right's today is like spitting in the face of those fallen soldiers.