I support Phil Robertson

This is the email I just sent to A&E Networks over their handling of Phil Robertson and Duck Dynasty.

I do not know if this email will even get to whoever the powers that be at this network are...but on the chance it does, I am letting you know you have lost a viewer for all time.

Why? Because your network has lowered the boom on a man for speaking his opinion..his personal opinion, one he never claimed to be that of the network or anyone there. Because a very small minority of people who probably never ever have seen the Duck Dynasty show thought that Mr. Phil Robertson was offensive in his opinion, which stems from his religious beliefs.

Sirs/Madams of A&E networks, you cannot legally force a person connected with your network to give up his Constitutional rights of free speech and religion simply b/c you do not agree with either. You knew when you gave this family their show that they stood for Christian values, that their faith was very much a part of who they are and what they do. Otherwise who would watch a show about a bunch of duck call manufacturers?  

I have watched the show because their values are mine. Because it is a show I can watch with my child, age 12, and not worry about sex, drugs, and violence being shoved in our face, not to mention the profanities that most other shows and apparently the FCC seem to think are ok for all to hear. Duck Dynasty, while silly at times, is good clean fun entertainment. Your other programming is either propoganda or wholly made up to get reactions, like the Storage Wars and other junk. 

I sincerely hope you reconsider your decision to indefinitely suspend (a euphemism for fired---your viewers are not stupid) Mr. Robertson and issue a heartfelt and honest apology to the Robertson family and the millions of fans of the show. But I am not going to hold my breath for it and whether you do or not, I hope another network picks up the show, another more tolerant network. you are finished in my book.

I know that the network can s***can a show and cast members for whatever reason...however this one has made a point of stating that this is because of Phil's stated beliefs....Never at any time did Phil claim to be speaking for the network or the show's sponsors..... but quite frankly I am sick and tired, as are many other people, of having our beliefs downgraded, desecrated, and crapped upon simply because a very small minority of folks take offense. I take offense at a lot of people's opinions, Christian and otherwise, but we all have the right to state our opinions, beliefs, and so on regardless of offense taken by others. I may not like your opinion but you have a Constitutional right to it and to state it. As do I. If you are offended by things I say, you have choices---unfriend, block, ignore, reasonably debate me ( and that does not mean saying over and over meaningless things like "but you just can;t say that") and simply shrug and move on. 

I believe in the God of the Bible and His Son Jesus, and I believe a have a relationship with them. No I do not attend a church on a regular basis, although I do have one I continue to call my church home. I do not practice a religion, but my faith.....and not always as well as I should. I also have personal beliefs about gays and other groups of folks. But I do not let them color my relationships with folks I know who are gay. Their being gay or not is not my business. We are commanded to love our neighbor, to love the sinner. Lord above knows I am a sinner, and I hope my neighbors love me as Jesus says. I have no clue if being gay is gene/based or a chosen lifestyle, but I do think that one's lifestyle and choices are between that person and their Maker, whoever they believe that to be. '

I know our free speech rights are limited to a degree---one simply cannot yell "fire" in a crowded gathering space when there is no fire...you cannot use speech to incite panic leading to injury and death....you cannot divulge confidential information about your employer and such---ask any inside trader---there are some limits out of common sense. But to state one;s beliefs, heck I do that at work....always with the disclaimer of "I may be wrong" or "if this bothers you, please tell me and i will not talk about it again." But my place of employment has a fairly close knit group of employees, and no not all of us have the same opinions or beliefs, but we are pretty much a mature lot of folks who understand that we are not always going to agree. 

I was taught to treat people as people, give the benefit of the doubt until proven otherwise. I do not attack groups of people simply because they are gay, black, muslim, purple polka dotted or whatever. The specific actions of a person in that group, yes. But not the group as a whole unless as a group they do something completely asinine or whatever. 

A&E networks powers that be are simply wrong on this issue. Like the show or not, agree with the stated personal beliefs of any member of the cast or not, you can choose to watch the show or not, to buy the tshirts and related merchandise or not....you do not have the right to demand one of the cast shut up because you do not agree with them. 

I support Phil and the Duck Dynasty cast...The show may drive me crazy with the silliness at times, but I can watch it and not worry about who is in the room with me, because there is no sex, no profanity, no gratuitous violence with the blood and guts, no drug use...It is a good clean show. I hope the show continues, preferably on another more tolerant network.

manners, propriety?

...with the disclaimer that I realize anything can be photoshopped or spun to suit the storyteller....

So all day today I have been treated, anywhere I go online, to a set of pictures. They are of the Obamas, seated at a memorial service for Nelson Mandela (If you don;t know who he was, please google it or at least read something more reliable than mainstream media or wikipedia). They are seated next to a blond, apparently the PM or some such of Denmark maybe? Michelle is not looking pleased as hubby participates in taking a selfie with the blond. next pic shows O and Michelle having switched seats....hmmm...

Now this brings to mind a question or two....one is...as a married man in the public eye (or a married man in general), would you take a selfie with an attractive blond while wifey sits there looking undeniably not pleased? Now if said blond was a relative, that changes things somewhat, but somehow don;t think that's the case here. Plainly if you do, you have no consideration for the feelings of the wife....which could make your home life a little dicey, to say the least.

Number two----as president of a country, representing said country at this memorial event, broadcast on tv and internet worldwide, should you not show a little decorum? Laughter may be appropriate at certain times...i.e. an amusing story involving the deceased, etc....but to be blatantly ignoring social mores by self picture taking and so on...really Presidential behavior, huh?  

Just a little classless and crass, I would say.

But also not limited to the actions of O and his ilk/followers.....I see it too often in everyday life too....

When did it become socially acceptable to wear pajamas and houseshoes out shopping or to any other activity not involving an emergency trip to the doctor or hospital? Or to let ginormous ta-tas hang braless and flopping under teeny shirts not designed to cover them? Or to wear britches with the waistband down so low that anyone who cares to look and more importantly those of us who would rather not see such sights, can see one's underwear down to the crotch of it?

When did it become de rigueur for children of any age to dictate to their parents what is going to happen...like buying them something or letting them do something just because they want to? When did being the parent become such a bad thing? Not to mention applying some discipline to those little brats you gave birth to?

I know I fight a losing battle trying to raise my kids to go against the stream...but I see some wins.....I see kids who have grown up to be thoughtful of others...who for the most part keep the appropriate body parts appropriately covered, who shake their heads at how kids are let run loose in stores and other public areas and vow to raise theirs with some rules and standards. Maybe not always as I would wish, but then I parent differently than my folks did to some degree also....

the Miley lesson

Posting a link to a beautifully done blog
http://roadkillgoldfish.com/2013/08/26/dear-daughter-let-miley-cyrus-be-a-lesson-to-you/

Beautifully done because you can see the love for the writer's daughter shining through...and the determination to not have her turn out like so many spoiled brats do these days....

Now I will be the first to admit my lovely 11 yr old daughter is probably just a touch spoiled. She has things and gets privileges I never dreamed of at her age--even if they had been invented yet!!!! But she is firmly grounded in love and support and security from me and her father...and brothers and sisters and extended family members. For the most part, she has a good group of friends as well....even with the middle school drama that goes on....

Shellie was the biggest Hannah Montana fan I had ever seen. And we played into it, b/c the show was a wholesome breath of fresh air, a silly break from the rest of the crapola Disney thinks is entertainment. and we loved the way daddy kept Hannah/Miley's feet firmly on the ground...Well Miley grew up, shed the Hannah persona and act, and went to hell in a handbasket faster than you can say Britney Spears....

You know, her first Miley album wasn;t bad.....but when the one came out with her pic on the cover where she looked like she just crawled out of some guy's bed after a weekend orgy....that did it for me. Shellie wanted the album, liked the music.....I put my foot down right there in the middle of Walmart, told the child precisely why she was not getting it..and it all had to do with image...the image on that CD cover was not one I wanted my child to get a message from.  She threw a mini-tantrum, which I quickly put down...and we';ve had similar tiffs over other pop artists she likes.....but my word is the be all and end all....I can;t control every single thing she is exposed to, but I can control what I allow her to bring into my home. I ban MTV happily. With shows from Jackass to 16 and pregnant to teen mom, not the station my child, or most people with a brain, should be watching.

I firmly believe a big part of my job as a parent is to guide her away from the decisions that will ruin her life. I can;t stop what she may do at 18, but you know, I was told my sons would cut and run as far as they could get from me and my rules and high standards and expectations once they turned 18 also....well they left for college, 3-4 hrs away from home...and I am sure they are trying out their new roles as legal adults responsible for themselves...but they still come home....they still have respect for the way they were raised...and I have no fears that my daughter will be the same....

GOP cavers

And no I don;t mean those who like to explore caves....

I'm talking about those supposedly conservative politicians/flag wavers who think that in order to gain followers and get votes, they have to move the message to the center, or heaven forbid, even further left. Really? How's that work out for you in 2008 and 2010? Not to mention handing the House to the left in 2006.....

So moving to the center gains no followers, no votes, no credibility...in fact, it loses you what dubious credibility you may still have.

I've been called a right wing nut job...or in twitter speak, RWNJ...by more liberals than I care to count. I am a "bitter clinger" to my God, my values, my guns, my Constitution. I have folks in my own family and circle of friends that most likely wish, and some have said, I should shut up. Nothing is going to change, no matter how hard I bitch, so why waste the energy?

I don't consider it a waste of time or energy. I may only count on one hand the number of folks who I have "led to the light", so to speak.....in other words, opened their eyes to the fact that they really are conservatives, so why vote lib? But even that is a victory in this culture of do whatever you want, don;t impose your morals etc on the rest of us.

But something has got to give nationally.....the pass and spend this country into oblivion while masking it behind social issue debates has got to stop.....and the GOP as it stands is doing those of us who are conservatives no favors. I'm not real sure the Tea Party is either, b/c just like in every group of folks, there are a few loons on the loose there too....but  folks, John McCain is not a conservative, Pat Toomey is not a conservative....and on the other side..hey folks in WV--Joe Manchin is not a conservative either....all liberals trying to cloak themselves as sheep while they are really wolves.

The GOP needs to get back to its base....and the base is not liberal. The base wants spending cut, wants border security, wants the govt to quit trying to screw with the Bill of Rights. The base wants you folks in DC to grow up and quit living high on our dime while we can;t afford to take a day trip with the kids, much less an actual vacation somewhere. Quit spending the money we haven;t even earned yet while bemoaning the fact that foreclosures or up and students are defaulting on student loans and so on. Be adults and realize you in both parties have created these problems, with the cooperation of a widely apathetic population of voters/nonvoters.

Be aware things are changing..little by little....we, your base, are going to take back our country and kick you to the curb if you do not listen to us. If you do not move back to the right, to true conservatism...and I am not talking the smokescreen of social issues you want to debate---to fiscal responsibility, to national and border security, an so on....you will be out of a job.It may not be 2014, or 2016, but it will happen.

And when it does, try not to wonder why....you know. Deep in the recesses of what is left of your heart and mind, you know.

Free speech?

So I wake up from my not-long-enough night and pop on Facebook to see what's up before attempting to go back to bed. Along with the usual game requests and other junk----love the pics from those who have escaped this crappy weather for spring break (slightly sarcastic, heavily jealous), I find a post or two linking to and commenting on different news stories.

Or what purports to be news.

Frankly, I don;t find reader reaction to a letter to the editor/opinion column to be news. I find it to be more opinion based on the prior opinion. How is that news? But apparently somebody thinks it is news to react to an opinion piece espousing anti-gay, anti-black, etc. thoughts. And the same someones apparently think all such talk should be at least hushed up, if not outright banned.

No, I did not read the link. I read enough of the reactions of some on FB to irritate me.

No I do not espouse the "kill 'em all" or whatever opinions against any group.

BUT.....

Last time I checked--and someone let me know if Obama has executive-ordered the 1st amendment to be unconstitutional yet---we have freedom of speech in this country. It's one of the things that sets us apart from places like Syria, Iran, etc.....even a lot of Europe these days.

So whether or not you agree with me, or agree with the in-my-honest-opinion nutjob carrying on about getting rid of whatever group he's ranting against, or agree with anything in general, we all have the right to state our opinion, and do so without calls for banning our speech.

Banning certain speech b/c it's not PC, or "nice" or whatever doesn;t make the thoughts go away. I can tell my daughter all I want that she is not allowed to say certain things...mainly based on her age.....but having once been a child, I know that I can;t stop her from thinking those things. All I do is change her venue for saying them. Now she knows she can;t say them around me, or Daddy, or grandparents, or teachers, or whatever....but around her friends? To her siblings? In her journal?

There are always better ways to say some things. Instead of cursing a vulgar, crude blue streak, try using some real vocabulary..be imaginative....instead of saying you hate a certain group, maybe try getting to know someone in that group....I don't condone a lot of lifestyle choices, to say the least, but they are not my choices to make. I try not to judge a whole group (although with Obama voters, it gets tough..lol), but rather deal with the individual. Just b/c one person in a group does something stupid doesn't make the whole group guilty of it. There are a lot of great gay, straight, white, black, purple, polka-dotted, whatever religion or lack thereof folks out there.

Deal with the fact not everyone is the same or thinks the same. Wouldn't this be a boring world if they did?

And yes, if you don;t agree with what someone says/does, you too have the right to say it...as long as you are respectful....if you are not, then you lower yourself to what you think the other person is guilty of being.

An open letter to the NRA:

QUIT BACKING DUMBASS CANDIDATES WHO ARE ONLY BENT ON TAKING AWAY OUR SECOND AMENDMENT RIGHTS!!!!

Here's a couple of examples:  Joe Manchin and Nick Joe Rahall.....

And you wonder why I let my membership drop.

That is all.

So over the last few months, I have become increasingly strident in supporting the Second amendment, as it seems our fearless leader is bound and determined to not only destroy it, but any other Constitutional right he deems necessary to get his agenda done. And now I find myself contemplating a letter writing campaign to my senators and representative demanding they do the right thing and not bow down to the dictator-wanna-be.

I used to be heavily in favor of gun control. The kind that takes all weapons away from any non-military, non-police citizen.

Then I grew up.

I understand that people have differing viewpoints on just what 2A means and how it should be interpreted. I have no problem with not owning an assault weapon---although the case could be made that even a rock is an assault weapon if used to attack someone-----but what the lefties keep dragging out are semi-auto weapons and in some cases, not auto in any way.....they have no clue what they are talking about. The media can;t even get right what the Sandy Hook shooter used.....here's a hint: the sick bastard did not use a fully auto weapon..get your facts straight.

Which brings me to another point: background checks....

I'm all for them. Matter of fact, some pretty stringent laws concerning background checks are already on the books.

But background checks would not have stopped Newtown.....the shooter obtained his weapons by killing his own mother to gain the weapons......his own mother had gone through the lengthy process requred by this country, as well as any state/local regs, to legally own her guns. Her son did not. her son committed illegal acts to obtain her weapons to carry out his sicko plan.

Most mass shootings are not the work of legal gun owner. Yes it does happen. In any segment of society, you are going to find a few folks on the fringe, or a couple who just need the right tension to make the wire of sanity at least temporarily disappear. Gun owners, non-owners, black, white, yellow, purple, Christian, Jewish, Muslim...whatever the group, there is always someone who may flip their lid to a destructive extent.

The point is, you are not going to solve one problem by creating another. If you take guns away from the law abiding, then the criminals/sickos/etc who are bound and determined to create murder and mayhem will have free rein. No one will be able to stop them b/c no one will have the capability. i mean, it's not like one can just carry a crossbow with a multitude of arrows into a theater, right? If you don;t want to own a gun, that is your choice. No one is forcing you to. But leave my right to defend myself in the manner I choose alone.