>It Shouldn’t Matter, But It Does

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Okay, this is hard for me, because i so seldom do it. But, yeah, here goes.

I was wr…..
I was wro…..
I was wron……
I.Was.Wrong.

Whoosh. That was hard. But, as usual, there’s more. See, I was annoyed by some of the blogs in the ‘hood that were complaining about the fact that news organizations weren’t mentioning that Daniel Hernandez is gay.

Who, you say, if you’ve been living under a rock?

Hernandez is Gabrielle Giffords’s assistant. He’s the one who went to her side, applied pressure to her wound, and kept her calm amidst all that madness. Daniel Hernandez very well may have saved her life. And he’s gay.

And some bloggers were pissed that his orientation wasn’t being mentioned as though it played some role in what he did. And I was pissed because his orientation shouldn’t matter. He saved her life because he’s a compassionate human being; he aided her because he was trained as a Certified Nurse’s Assistant, and knew what to do. He didn’t step up because he was gay, but because he was human, and that’s how we all should act, gay or straight.

But, and here’s where I was wr…..not right.

Mary Elizabeth Williams, writing on Salon.com., “[Reporting that Hernandez is gay and Latino] matters because guys like Arizona Sen. John McCain, who described the repeal of ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ as ‘a very sad day,’ still think that orientation has an effect on whether or not a person can ably serve in the military. It matters because the notion that two people of the same-sex can love each other and build a life together is still considered in many parts of the country, including Arizona, a threat to what is laughably referred to a “traditional marriage” — as if heterosexuals have really mopped up the floor with this whole commitment thing.” 

See, I didn’t look at it that way because sometimes I want to look at the world through my fabulous rose colored glasses where sexual orientation doesn’t matter. it doesn’t make you better or worse than anyone else, it just makes you more like everyone else.

And we should all, gay and straight, strive to be more like Daniel Hernandez.

Read Mary William’s article HERE.

>Stop. Just Stop.

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The shooting has been everywhere; it’s all over my TV, all over the web, on every front page and everybody’s mind. I try to wrap my head around the idea that someone can shoot someone in the head at point blank range, for any reason, least of all different political views, or simple dislike. I try to wrap my mind around the thought that someone can simply open fire and shoot at anyone and everyone in sight.

And I wonder, how many fingers pulled that trigger that sent a bullet through Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords’ head, that discharged bullets that killed US District Judge John Roll, Gabe Zimmerman, Gifford’s director of community outreach; Dorwin Stoddard, a pastor at Mountain Ave. Church of Christ; Christina Greene, a student at Mesa Verde Elementary; Dorthy Murray and Phyllis Scheck.

I know there was one gunman, and maybe an accomplice, who will achieve no sense of notoriety by having their names or photographs mentions or shown in this space, ever, but there are more to blame. More people around this country who have been spouting hate, and promoting violence as a means to get their viewpoint heard. 

Teabaggers who’ve said that any means necessary should be used to take back the country. Take it back from whom? People with a different idea? Why is there this need for using such hate-speech against a rival political group? Why is violence the answer they seem to promote so often? I am not a fan of Teabaggers, or of most Republicans or most conservatives, or most religious wingnuts, but I would never suggest violence, never suggest death be the answer to my problem with other people.

And, while we hold the Tea Party even partially responsible, let’s also lay some blame squarely at the feet of Sarah Palin. I don’t use her name here often, as I refer to call her the Mama Grizzly Bore, but today, her name must be used, because she has blood on her hands.

When you use words and phrases like putting someone in your ‘crosshairs’ exactly what do you think that means? Crosshairs. Guns. Violence. When you ask that your followers reload, instead of retreat, what are you telling them? Take up arms. Shoot. Take up arms, and take the lives of people with whom you disagree, even if one of them is a nine-year-old girl, and others are grandmothers.

This has to stop. We cannot become a nation where violence is the means to sway the vote, and gain momentum for our cause. This has to stop. It’s time for people like the Tea Party, and their minions, and Sarah Palin, and her minions, to accept responsibility for their words. 

Words have power; words create violence; words incite. Whether the words are aimed at the LGBT community, or a Muslim community center, a liberal, or a conservative, the words must stop inciting violence.

Different is good. Differing opinions are good because they create dialogue. But putting someone in your crosshairs, and threatening to reload, sends the message that violence is the answer.

It isn’t. And it’s up to us, all of us, liberal and conservative, Democrat, Republican, Independent, whatever political affiliation, religious affiliation, non-religious affiliation, gender, ethnicity, orientation, color, age, education, socio-economic standing, to stop this speech.

Stop it.
Or start getting more body bags.