Last Friday a very good friend of mine lost her 16 year-old son in an accidental drowning at his school, her only child. He was in practice for the high school swim team and although the response time from the school coaches and the arriving paramedics was quick he passed away shortly after reaching the hospital. Upon hearing the news her husband suffered a heart attack. Although he remains hospitalized he’s ok and is expected to be released soon.
I wanted to write something to express my feelings for my friend’s loss but I just sat and I stared at the screen. I wanted to write of this unexpected and shocking event which will forever change her life and those connected to her son. I wanted to write of how I kept waiting for the phone call to come that day saying there had been a tragic mistake and her son was ok. I wanted to write of young lives taken too soon and of the unexplained will of God. I wanted to write of the empathy I felt for my friend but in all honesty I have no idea what that is, as I can’t imagine having to bear the massive and sorrowful weight of such a loss. I can’t even begin to fathom the pressure she must feel within or the hurt she struggles with just to rise out of bed. I can’t conceive her aching as everything around her reminds her of her son and subsequently of her loss. Ultimately, I had no shared experience I could offer in order to console her.
I wanted her to know I’ve prayed for the pain she feels to subside. I wanted to tell her it will get better but I can’t imagine this to be true. I know that the pain she feels will probably last longer than any mother’s heart should be forced to bear. I wish I could find words to comfort my friend. I wish I could say all the right things to make the pain go away and I wish I could hold my dear old friend to let her know she’s not alone. I take comfort in knowing she has a strong family and they will aid in her struggle to continue. I wanted to write but my heart was too heavy and the words wouldn’t come….so I stared at the screen.
Monday, February 25, 2013
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Burnin' Down The House
So after a weeklong manhunt during which the LAPD had heavy light skinned Black men on lockdown in their homes for fear of being accidentally shot, they finally caught up with and reportedly killed alleged cop killer and former LAPD member, Chris Dorner…I’m still confused why they didn’t just go pick him up from Staples Center when he hosted the Grammy Awards last Sunday night. Anyway it’s good to know that the citizens of L.A are for the time being safe from the LAPD. For the past seven days I didn’t venture out of my home unless absolutely necessary as I didn’t want to become the result of a tragic misinterpretation which is how L.A Police Chief Charlie Beck described the incident where two Latino women on their morning paper route were shot in their vehicle as police mistook their truck for Dorner’s. But you can’t blame the LAPD, I mean who knew there was more than one Nissan Titan truck matching the description of Dorner’s in Los Angeles and anyway why take the time to run the tags on a vehicle when you can just open fire. But it’s all good, they offered them a new car to replace the bullet riddled one they refashioned…negotiated settlement to follow.
No comment so far from the Torrance police chief after peace officers shot up a second not Dorner vehicle. This time they rammed and fired three shots into the pick-up truck of a LAX baggage handler who was heading to the beach for some early morning surfing. It was reported that the colors of neither he nor the truck he was driving matched those of the suspect…seriously, it was in the L.A. Times. So apparently it doesn’t matter what hue or gender you are…and dude may want to pick up an afternoon hobby. The police then posted a bulletin stating the public should beware of Dorner…probably some computer glitch, I’m sure they meant the out of control trigger happy police officers. They later offered a million dollar reward for Dorner, apparently dead or alive it didn’t say, which prompted all conscientious and civil minded Anglo citizens for the entire Southern California region to report every African-American male they encountered…as a result quite a few malls and office buildings were temporarily closed down.
Now I want to preface the following by saying I do not condone the actions of Christopher Dorner and I feel for the family of his victims. One more time for the illiteracy squad, I DO NOT CONDONE HIS ACTIONS. However I can certainly empathize with his frustration and I have a few questions regarding his dismissal. Additionally, it’s obvious that there are still major issues going on in the ranks of the LAPD and not a lot has changed since the Rodney King beating. Why are the abusers of Rodney King now in supervisory roles? Why is it that if you accuse a fellow officer of excessive force and the review board doesn't believe your side, you get fired? How can you possibly have an effective system of reporting abuse when there's no reward if they believe you and your career is ruined if they don't? Why were they so nervous and adamant about killing him that they'd open fire on a vehicle without identifying the occupants? (ok quite a few questions) This ridiculous PR ruse of reopening his case after he’s gone and unable to speak for himself speaks volumes and in fact any new inquiry should be handled by State or Federal authorities. It certainly should not be left up to the LAPD to investigate themselves…yet again.
Of course the media is already rampant with stories portraying African-Americans as Dorner’s only supporters and comparing them to those of O.J. Simpson. This is a false narrative that only serves to incite more racism and further paints African-Americans as supporters of terrorism. You only have to read the comments on every single page that covers this story to see the nearly unanimous opinion that his actions are wrong yet understood in light of the corrupt actions of his LAPD superiors. Dorner's manifesto (which is 10 pages long and took quite some time to read) does talk about the legacy of racism that exists in LAPD, but his grievance is not about that. It's about the blue code of silence and administrative retribution which protects their corrupt institution and the shitty way they treat some people and destroy the lives of others who don't fall in line. It’s sad that Dorner felt so betrayed by his fellow officers and superiors that he would resort to the actions taken. He may have had greater affect by simply releasing his manifesto to the media and the general public…or at the minimum maybe sending out a few resumes, just thinking out loud.
Finally, there has to be an independent investigation into last week’s shameful and unfounded assaults on innocent citizens going about their daily business in the overzealous hunt for a suspected cop killer. Both bullet riddled trucks should be parked downtown in front of police headquarters as a constant reminder of the corruption of the LAPD. But we can rest in the comfort that at least for now the LAPD can go to sleep without their night lights on…and I can finally get some sun.
No comment so far from the Torrance police chief after peace officers shot up a second not Dorner vehicle. This time they rammed and fired three shots into the pick-up truck of a LAX baggage handler who was heading to the beach for some early morning surfing. It was reported that the colors of neither he nor the truck he was driving matched those of the suspect…seriously, it was in the L.A. Times. So apparently it doesn’t matter what hue or gender you are…and dude may want to pick up an afternoon hobby. The police then posted a bulletin stating the public should beware of Dorner…probably some computer glitch, I’m sure they meant the out of control trigger happy police officers. They later offered a million dollar reward for Dorner, apparently dead or alive it didn’t say, which prompted all conscientious and civil minded Anglo citizens for the entire Southern California region to report every African-American male they encountered…as a result quite a few malls and office buildings were temporarily closed down.
Now I want to preface the following by saying I do not condone the actions of Christopher Dorner and I feel for the family of his victims. One more time for the illiteracy squad, I DO NOT CONDONE HIS ACTIONS. However I can certainly empathize with his frustration and I have a few questions regarding his dismissal. Additionally, it’s obvious that there are still major issues going on in the ranks of the LAPD and not a lot has changed since the Rodney King beating. Why are the abusers of Rodney King now in supervisory roles? Why is it that if you accuse a fellow officer of excessive force and the review board doesn't believe your side, you get fired? How can you possibly have an effective system of reporting abuse when there's no reward if they believe you and your career is ruined if they don't? Why were they so nervous and adamant about killing him that they'd open fire on a vehicle without identifying the occupants? (ok quite a few questions) This ridiculous PR ruse of reopening his case after he’s gone and unable to speak for himself speaks volumes and in fact any new inquiry should be handled by State or Federal authorities. It certainly should not be left up to the LAPD to investigate themselves…yet again.
Of course the media is already rampant with stories portraying African-Americans as Dorner’s only supporters and comparing them to those of O.J. Simpson. This is a false narrative that only serves to incite more racism and further paints African-Americans as supporters of terrorism. You only have to read the comments on every single page that covers this story to see the nearly unanimous opinion that his actions are wrong yet understood in light of the corrupt actions of his LAPD superiors. Dorner's manifesto (which is 10 pages long and took quite some time to read) does talk about the legacy of racism that exists in LAPD, but his grievance is not about that. It's about the blue code of silence and administrative retribution which protects their corrupt institution and the shitty way they treat some people and destroy the lives of others who don't fall in line. It’s sad that Dorner felt so betrayed by his fellow officers and superiors that he would resort to the actions taken. He may have had greater affect by simply releasing his manifesto to the media and the general public…or at the minimum maybe sending out a few resumes, just thinking out loud.
Finally, there has to be an independent investigation into last week’s shameful and unfounded assaults on innocent citizens going about their daily business in the overzealous hunt for a suspected cop killer. Both bullet riddled trucks should be parked downtown in front of police headquarters as a constant reminder of the corruption of the LAPD. But we can rest in the comfort that at least for now the LAPD can go to sleep without their night lights on…and I can finally get some sun.
Friday, February 1, 2013
A Dose Of The Homos
So the guy (I refuse to type his name, it’s just too damn long) who’s accepting blame for this whole Manti Te’o made up girlfriend hoax, lie, fantasy or whatever they’re calling it today tells Dr. Phil he’s a recovering homosexual and that he impersonated the fake girlfriend to have some twisted version of intimacy over the phone in order to be closer to Te’o…because he’s like all in love with him and shit. So my question of course is just what the hell a recovering homosexual is and where’s the cure? Imagine telling a friend, “I caught the homos man but don’t worry, I got a shot and I’m on the road to recovery”, or “I had a bad case of the homos last summer, it all started after I saw that Idris Elba film.” WTF! What this guy really needs to recover from is his constant and complicated lies and delusions. Now he’s claiming he was molested as a child by a fellow Mormon Church member as if that explains his homosexuality…you know the homosexuality he’s totally recovering from. The sad part is this guy, whose father is a minister in the Mormon Church is simply afraid he’ll lose his relationship with the father, his friends and family if he comes out as gay. Instead because of his distorted religious teachings and societal indoctrination imposed on him he says stupid self-loathing things and pretends to believe in the cure.
Seriously, homosexuality has not been considered a mental illness and certainly not a disease for over 40 years, but there are opportunists out there who claim they can magically heal people who are not sick and fix people who are not broken. They call it Reparative Therapy. These so-called therapists mislead "patients", deliberately misrepresent science and dangerously play head games that can cause lasting mental scars. What they are doing is engaging in consumer fraud as they offer promises that they can't deliver while delivering disasters that they never promised. America's youth of which this guy is a typical example, deserve better than being pawns in a shameful effort to profit from the pain of hurting parents who are falsely led to believe that these quacks are genuine experts. The American Psychological Association, the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics all reject this supposed therapy and agree that attempts to change a person’s sexual identity can lead to anxiety, dejection, and self-destructive behavior. Teens exposed to this “treatment” are more likely to experience severe depression, suicide attempts and drug use according to the Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
I don’t know if this guy is in one of these programs but there are plenty of them out there. Most notably the clinic run by Michelle “Crazy Eyes” Bachman and her oh so obviously gay husband…I hope he’s not the poster boy for the clinic. By the way these are exactly the type of charitable organizations to which Chick-fil-A owner Dan Cathy donates. Honestly this whole reparative therapy scam has got to be stopped. The obvious and common sense question is has any heterosexual ever taught himself to become homosexual? Has the reverse situation ever occurred? We are inherently attracted to one gender or the other or perhaps to both genders. We do not sit down and choose A, B, or C, as if we are taking a multiple choice test. While no one has transformed from gay to straight, there have been too many people who have gone from whole to hurting or from alive to dead. Too many children are taught by these quacks to believe their genuine feelings are unreal or that they are somehow unclean and this therapy will cleanse them. The only disease this guy is suffering from is more commonly known as closititis and the cure is to simply come on out.
Seriously, homosexuality has not been considered a mental illness and certainly not a disease for over 40 years, but there are opportunists out there who claim they can magically heal people who are not sick and fix people who are not broken. They call it Reparative Therapy. These so-called therapists mislead "patients", deliberately misrepresent science and dangerously play head games that can cause lasting mental scars. What they are doing is engaging in consumer fraud as they offer promises that they can't deliver while delivering disasters that they never promised. America's youth of which this guy is a typical example, deserve better than being pawns in a shameful effort to profit from the pain of hurting parents who are falsely led to believe that these quacks are genuine experts. The American Psychological Association, the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics all reject this supposed therapy and agree that attempts to change a person’s sexual identity can lead to anxiety, dejection, and self-destructive behavior. Teens exposed to this “treatment” are more likely to experience severe depression, suicide attempts and drug use according to the Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
I don’t know if this guy is in one of these programs but there are plenty of them out there. Most notably the clinic run by Michelle “Crazy Eyes” Bachman and her oh so obviously gay husband…I hope he’s not the poster boy for the clinic. By the way these are exactly the type of charitable organizations to which Chick-fil-A owner Dan Cathy donates. Honestly this whole reparative therapy scam has got to be stopped. The obvious and common sense question is has any heterosexual ever taught himself to become homosexual? Has the reverse situation ever occurred? We are inherently attracted to one gender or the other or perhaps to both genders. We do not sit down and choose A, B, or C, as if we are taking a multiple choice test. While no one has transformed from gay to straight, there have been too many people who have gone from whole to hurting or from alive to dead. Too many children are taught by these quacks to believe their genuine feelings are unreal or that they are somehow unclean and this therapy will cleanse them. The only disease this guy is suffering from is more commonly known as closititis and the cure is to simply come on out.
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