sometims...

Sometimes I just like to remind myself of the liberties I have as a US citizen and how I really enjoy them...

From the AP:
By SUZAN FRASER Associated Press Writer
© 2005 The
Associated Press

"ISTANBUL, Turkey — The presiding judge halted the trial
of Turkey's best-known novelist Friday, saying the court would need the approval
of the Justice Ministry for the trial to proceed.

Orhan Pamuk is accused
of insulting Turkey's national identity, a free speech case that has divided the
nation.

He faces up to three years in prison for saying to a Swiss
newspaper in February that Turkey is unwilling to deal with painful episodes in
its treatment of the country's Armenian minority or its continuing problems with
its 12 million Kurdish citizens.



Turkish novelist's trial halted
The trial of Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk, charged with insulting the
national identity, was halted when the judge said the court would need the
approval of the Justice Ministry to proceed.

The case has led to
widespread criticism from the European Union, and the case is seen as a test of
Turkey's commitment to European standards of free speech. ......"

See, I can sit here and say: THE US SUCKS WITH RACIAL EQUALITY AND HUMAN RIGHTS!. or GEORGE BUSH IS ONE CHROMOSOME AWAY FROM AN ORANGUTAN ..(although I think that is actually insulting the orangutan).. And not have to go to jail or to trial for "insulting the national identity"... Gotta love the 1st Ammendment :)

How can Turkey hope to join the EU when it will not even discuss the horrible dark periods of it's history? The US can not progress until it addresses it's deep seeded racial inequality and backwards thinking when it comes to human rights, or it's open and (even worse) hidden descrimination against gays and lesbians and neither can Turkey progress unless it recognizes the mistakes it has made specifically with respect to genocide, women's rights, treatment of gays etc.

Who knew...

Okay..so I find these assessment things based on your birthday or name or what kind of ceral you eat incredibly funny. Below is what MY birthday supposedly means.

Your Birthdate: Not Tellin (although I did put it in for the thing)

You're incredibly introverted and introspective. You live inside your head. Oh so true don't you think? MUHAHAHAHAH You spend a lot of alone time meditating and thinking. 10 people in Italy..'nough said People see you as withdrawn, and at times they are right. Withdrawn?!?! People can't get me to shut up! 4 words folks: "Bring it home Steph!" You are caring and deep, but it may be difficult for you to show this side of yourself. Okay caring and deep yes... difficult to show it? I cry at frickin Hallmark commercials for christ's sake!! Your strength: Your original approach to thinking Oh yeah..I am an original alright.. Your weakness: You tend to shy away from others In which universe? Your power color: Pale blue Not since 1979 honey! Your power symbol: Wavy line um...er...whatever.. Your power month: July I live in Finland..of COURSE July is my power month..the sun barely frickin sets during that month!

These things are a HOOT!

Pretty soon I get to see this guy


Oh..yeah..and my family... :) I have the world's most rockinest 87 year old grams... isn't she great?!!

Officially...

Officially according to me Kristin Thomas shall now be known as the venerable Kristin "I am smarter than those silly people in white lab coats" Thomas a.k.a Dr. K. I have visited the very nice IwentToMedicalSchoolSoIShouldKnowWhatYouHave person at the hospital today to get the results of my bone marrow test. It turns out (and I have an officially signed paper to prove it) that I should have listened to K all along. I am certified as a Freak. I am an exception to the rule of white blood cell counts. The standard deviation of a white blood cell count is + or - 2% in the general population. Meaning at least 2 % of the population is either above or below the standard "acceptable" range when it comes to your white blood cells.

My Dr. confirmed to me today what K has said all along: "You have lesbian cooties and are a freak." It is true. My Dr (all Harvard edgumakayted and crap) told me that I am the execption even to the standard deviation rule. My white blood cell count is just, for me, normally and genetically twice that of everyone else. I am 100% healthy...and a freak of nature.

I should have listend to K in the first place. Then I wouldn't have had to have steel instruments stuck into my bones, x-rays, ultra sounds, blood tests galore and I wouldn't have had to travel to a bazillion doctor's appointments.

oooooohhhh I have cooties!!!!

Gotta Love Hypocracy

Okay..my little activist side is all in a huff right now. I am all about to whip out the big gaigundo rainbow flag, pink triangles, drag kings, gender-bending friends, gay priests...anyone I can find.

For those of you who don't know, I am a supporter in the fight against Breast Cancer. My very dear friend K is a breast cancer survivor (ROCK ON K!!) and I have known several women in my life with breast cancer. You, who know me, also know I have a real love of the music of Melissa Etheridge (yes I play softball, wear flannel occasionaly, own power tools and can open any damned jar without the help of a guy). Now, Ms. Etheridge has been an out and proud musician with over 25 Million albums sold world-wide. She is also a breast cancer survivor. Her battle with the disease was one that was open and not hidden - just like everything else in her life. So was Kristin's. Two very strong women from different socio-economic backgrounds, different careers, different friends, different cricles but with 2 things in common - both women, both with breast cancer. Okay, K isn't THAT different. She isn't gay, but let's face it, when your bridal party at your wedding included 2 lesbians and a gay man, you aren't a closed minded person. Just the opposite. K is one of the strongest women I know. That woman had side affects from Chemo that NO ONE should ever go through.. She was bald, sick, throwing up, tired, sad, exhausted emotionally ...the list can go on. Chemo, from all accounts, kicks the ever loving shit out of you.

Fast Forward - Grammy's 2005 - Ms. Etheridge performs a tribute to Janise Joplin after just having finished her last chemo treatment - bald as anything. Her hair was a big thing in her image and she admitted at first she was a bit concerned people would make fun of her, aside from being exhausted from chemo. Well..she decided to do it anyway because she never hid before and wouldn't hide now. Her performance was talked about around the world as inspiring and courageous. She received letters and comments from women all around the world, walks of life and stages of cancer stating what an inspiration she was to them to continue their fight - that if a 42 year old woman bald from chemo can perform in front of millions of people then they will not be ashamed of their baldness or be afraid to talk about their disease.

SO inspirational was her openly public battle with breast cancer that a major auto manufacturer approached her. Ford approached Melissa in 2005 about recording a single to serve as an anthem for the fight against breast cancer. The result, I Run for Life, is a song written and performed by Melissa that describes her own experience with the disease and also the experiences of every woman who has ever been touched by breast cancer. Ford, on their website describes her as:

" Grammy®Award winner, wife, and mother, Melissa Etheridge, knows just how
breast cancer can threaten our most precious human relationships. She also knows
how it endangers the most precious human relationship of all—the one we have
with ourselves. Diagnosed with breast cancer in late 2004, today she is
cancer-free. Hers is a success story. She fought breast cancer with all she had.
And, she won..."

So what does Ford do?!?!?!?

DETROIT - Ford Motor Co. said on Tuesday that its luxury Jaguar and Land Rover brands will no longer advertise in gay publications,...

Ford’s move came nearly a week after the Tupelo, Miss.-based American Family Association canceled a boycott of Ford vehicles that began in May, when the group criticized Ford for being too gay-friendly.

“We are ending the boycott of Ford,” association Chairman Donald Wildmon said in a statement Wednesday on the group’s Web site. “While we still have a few differences with Ford, we feel that our concerns are being addressed in good faith and will continue to be addressed in the future.”

You ask an out and proud Lesbian who is a breast cancer survivor to write a song to show how much Ford cares about women's health, said artist contributes ALL of the royalties from that song to Breast Cancer Research and then you turn around and stop advertising in Gay magazines because the conservative Christian right threatens to boycott your product?!?!? You hypocritical bastards.

I know people will say: " It was a business decision." MY BIG FAT ASS it was. Pure and simple they caved. The gay community should stand up and be noticed in this. Gay market reports that 78 percent of gay online users prefer to buy from companies that advertise to the gay market. More affluent. The gay and lesbian market is perhaps the most affluent and loyal affinity group of all. More discretionary income. The average middle-class family spends over one million dollars to raise a child through age 22. Some gay people have kids. Most don't. Where are they spending that money? EVERYWHERE.... Take a look at THIS list FORD.. Seriously people...

Research shows that gay consumers are...

Over twice as likely as national index to be professionals or managers

Average household income over $85.4K

Are 3.4 times more likely to have household income over $250K

The 2000 Census showed gay men and lesbians living with partners in 99.3 percent of all U.S. counties

Research shows 9 percent of urban populations are gay and lesbian

Twice as likely to have graduated from college

Gay men and lesbians go out more, buy more, have more disposable income and are extremely loyal consumers

Gay and lesbian consumers purchase from companies/brands that advertise in gay media, deliver product messages in gay-specific advertising, support gay and lesbian community causes and are good to their own gay and lesbian employees

Four times as likely to spend over $150 on long distance monthly

Twice as likely to spend $250 on cellular service
Over 90 percent took a domestic trip this year

60 percent took a foreign trip in the last three years

65 percent identify themselves as having to have the "latest"

68 percent upgrade to a product's latest model

77 percent "believe in indulging in themselves"

57 percent "prefer to buy top of the line"

59 percent buy themselves whatever they want

I say hit Ford where it counts. In the WALLET.

At the behest of Sug

Okay here it is. In a conversation with my best friend the other day (gotta love a 10 hour and 30 degree F difference), we were discussing my blog. I know she reads it because she gives amusing and insightful comments. Okay not so insightful, we save those for actual voice conversations. As most of you know, I have the utmost respect for my Sug (aka Beth Martin) and we will discuss anything from religion to politics to the weather. I asked if she had read my post on the whole Vatican decree about gays in the priesthood and she had mentioned that she didn't want to offend anyone so she didn't put a comment. ..don't worry I told her she was being dumb. She then asked if I had followed the stories about the civil unrest in France. Okay Riots. Plain and simple riots. And I told her I had, but had refrained from commenting on them because...because....well..I don't know precisely why....which is when I promptly called MYSELF dumb. SO at the behest of SUG here goes.

The Riots in France
by: Me

Lots of people got mad and burned stuff. The end.

Just joking. Okay one of the things that I am in some perverse way happy about, is that these riots took place in France. Let me go on the record as saying Riots are never a good thing. Innocent people get hurt and in some cases killed; property gets damaged and lots of businesses, who otherwise were harmless and serve the community, get destroyed. Now that the disclaimer is done with. I am pleased that situations with horrible racial and economic inequality which result in unmitigated violence happen in countries other than the US as well. Seriously folks. I live in Europe. My mom is Portuguese and my Dad is French. The country that seems to think it has the greatest social system in the world just had 20 days of terror and bloodshed due to the economic and racial divide that exists between people of color (in this case also immigrants and muslim) and the white majority during the month of November. As many of you know, I am not usually the one to wave the American Flag around and shout from the roof tops about how great the US is. The US is a great country in many respects but also has a long way to go in others. HOWEVER, sometimes it gets my little ackadack (Sug's word for my portuguese heritage) blood boiling to so often be exposed to outright anti-American sentiment and hatred. I can not tell you how many times I have listened to the Anti-American-Bigger-Bully-Stupid President-War Mongering Bastards speech and politely turned the other way. Now it is time to say: Hey, we aren't the only country with racial and economic problems!


Well Mr Chirac, how about you look to your own country with it's 8973 vehicles burned and it's 2888 arrests! The inhabitants of the French suburbs (banlieue) suffer from unemployment at a much higher level than that of the rest of France. And according to data gathered by the BBC unemployment of people of foreign origin is 1.5 times higher than that of people of French origin, after adjusting for educational qualifications. An unemployment rate of 5% for French university graduates can be compared to the unemployment rate of 26.5% for university graduates of north African origin. Racial and religious discrimination against persons with dark skin or Muslim-sounding names has been cited as a major cause of unhappiness in the areas affected.

...see the US isn't the only country with problems.... I am not going to sit here and say I support the war in Iraq. I don't. I am not going to sit here and say that there isn't a problem with racisim in the US. There is. I am not going to sit here and say that there isn't a huge economic gap between white and black in the US. There is. I am not going to say that there isn't a problem with religious intolerance (ironic considering the 1st ammendment) in the US. There is. But I am going to sit here and say: No country is perfect so quit bashing the US all the time.