Religious Freedom vs. Separation of Church and State

Why do politicians make things so difficult?

This whole issue of Catholic organizations not wanting to pay for health insurance for employees which covers birth control has an incredibly SIMPLE solution.

Does a Catholic hospital  (which does not pay taxes) have the right to deny paying for insurance which will cover birth control for its non-catholic employees (who do pay taxes)?

Absolutely! It's a matter of religious freedom, is it not? They shouldn't have to pay for something that they think is morally wrong.

And secular tax money (such as the money paid by the employees in question) should not be given to religious organizations which impose their religious views on their non-religious clients or employees.

So, the above mentioned Catholic hospital should be ineligible to receive government money of any kind, including Medicare and Medicaid.

So simple.

If such legislation were passed, how quickly would these Catholic institutions shut up and pay for women's health insurance?

Urinating Soldiers

I'm assuming we've all seen the pictures of members of the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marines out of North Carolina's Camp Lejeune urinating on fallen Taliban fighters.

My inclination is not to defend these guys because I admire that the US strives to maintain some level of civility in war.

While I hope that these soldiers are properly punished for their behavior, certainly we as a people need a reality check here. Until we can build robots to fight our wars, we can't be shocked when soldiers cross the line of professionalism.


I mean, their profession involves killing people.

Over the years, at the same that the civilian world has been pushing military culture to adopt a more humanitarian and professional attitude, the military has been finding ways separate young enlistees from their consciences in order to make them more efficient and reliable killers. One huge step forward was the move from practicing shooting a bulls eye to practicing shooting a human silhouette  --because many soldiers who practiced shooting a bulls eye target hesitated when there was a human being on the other side of their gun. Another example is that snipers, like the ones in the pictures, cannot go on missions with less than two individuals --because if you leave a man alone with his conscience, he might hesitate to pull the trigger.

So I'm not saying the behavior of the soldiers in question is acceptable; I'm just irritated that everyone is so shocked when things like this happen. What do we as a nation think war is? And what kind of superhuman soldiers do we think are out there fighting? You can't run headlong into a kill-or-be-killed situation, kill, and then switch off the emotions necessary to perform such acts and suddenly have respect the sanctity of life and be reverent of the dead men who were trying to kill you ten minutes ago.

Rick Perry Parody

To the 99% in San Diego and around the world who are being harassed by police:

Stay strong. Stay calm.

You are doing a great service to this country. Many people are made uneasy by the thought of standing up to authority (particularly those in authority). This is just the way most people are wired, and this natural inclination to acquiesce to authority figures is largely conducive to a civil society. But those who have the ability and the will to challenge authority and the status quo must accept the responsibility to answer to a higher moral consciousness than the average sheep.

The cage rattlers, the agitators, the children who color outside the lines... this is our time to shine, this is our moment to serve our fellow citizens and change our society for the better.

Stay true to your principles. Walk with a righteousness that few can comprehend. Remember your duty to serve, even as those whose job description is to serve lose sight of that very duty. Be honorable, kind, upright and strong; because when such individuals are dragged away unjustly by frightened authority figures, the rest of the herd takes notice and we become stronger and stronger.

Thank you all!

We are the 99%, and we want... well...

99% of the population is too many people to ever reach a consensus or a singular agenda. For now it is enough that we are coming together because those in power have worked so hard to keep us distracted with our petty differences. If we can unite, not on every issue or idea, but physically unite in the streets and join hands with one another; that simple act could send a shiver down the spines of those who look down on us from their priestly heights. They will have to face the reality they already know but have refused to acknowledge: that our current economic trajectory is unsustainable. Perhaps at that moment they will willingly move toward the changes they already know are just and right. And if they choose instead to dig their heels deeper into the poisoned ground beneath their feet... well, by then we will have had time to truly organize ourselves and set forth on our own trajectory... together.

The Day of Atonement

As I fast for Yom Kippur, with each hunger pang that rattles through my gut, I am thinking about all the people, right here in San Diego, who are hungry today, not by choice, but because their wallet is as empty as their stomach. I am thinking of the mother in Somalia right now whose stomach has given up crying out to her for food, as has her child. She stares numbly into the distance as her baby quietly withers away in her arms. I am also thinking of the gluttons; the 1% of the population who hoard enough money to feed everyone who is hungry and would still have enough left over to live comfortable lives. We are the 99%, and if we don't take a stand for our brothers and sisters who go without food, clean water, and basic human dignity, then we will eventually join them. For the greed of the 1% is boundless and insatiable.