Gays in Court

The decision by the California Supreme court to “legalize” homosexual marriage is an affront to our society. This is not merely because of their decision going against the wishes of the people of the state of California, tradition, scientific evidence or just plain common sense. It’s most egregious affront is due to the liberal mindset embodied in this decision.
Ask yourself this: why did the State not have the right to define marriage as being allowed between two individuals of the same sex? It is because the State never had the right to define marriage of any kind in the first place. God has already done that. If you do not believe in God at least accept nature’s argument in that a union between a man and a woman (and only a man and a woman) produces the offspring necessary to continue our survival. Also consider that it has been proven time and again that a stable home with a man and a woman is the best place to raise these kids. Marriage was ordained before the State, any State of any kind, ever came into being. The State does not invent, endow, empower, or any other affirmative verb you can think of, the institution of marriage; it simply recognizes a function of the church as being important for the wellbeing of the State.
The court, and in the larger sense the state of California as a whole, injecting themselves into this debate displays the belief that man can counteract the decelerations of “Nature and of Nature’s God.” The root of this belief is that man, and his decisions, are the ultimate law. Holders of this philosophy seek constantly to establish the perfect law, the perfect society, in which the rule of the State has answered all of the questions of life.
They hold to a firm standard that all must be treated absolutely equal. This is not the same as being treated equally before the law; it is an equality established no matter what position one holds. When an innocent person or a multiple murderer comes before a court, they are each treated equal. The law looks at them the same, until the trial is concluded. This is not the same as being equal in truth. In reality, the murderer is in no way equal to the innocent man. He has given up his rights and his position by doing damage to our society. While violating nature’s law (homosexuality) may not require a punishment declared and delivered by the State, it does not merit an equivalence with the natural order of marriage.
This mindset that all points of view and all actions must be considered equal is the same mindset that will not make a distinction between the United States military and savages that blow up women on subways. This is the same belief system that will demand a moral equivalence between the USA and Fidel Castro’s Cuba. These are the same people who decry capital punishment because we cannot establish a strong enough argument in their eyes to warrant punishing the criminal’s actions. But then these same modern philosophers will allow abortions claiming that if that is the wishes of the woman, who are we to interfere?
Followed to its logical conclusion (the death knell for most liberal ideas) this ideology of absolute equivalence leads to trying to negotiate with evil instead of crushing it. This is the root of the idea of sitting down with terrorists and trying to understand them. It is the thinking behind policies of training and reconditioning criminals instead of punishing them. The decision by the California supreme court is a dangerous decision; but it is not nearly as dangerous as the belief system from which it sprang.

An Open Thank You Note to My Parents

My parents are some wonderful people. Throughout my years living with them, I never lacked for a meal. They made sure I went to school and tried to make sure I learned something. They paid for my college (and demanded that I learn something there.) They bought my first truck and, true to their word, made me buy the second when I wrecked it.

Now that we have a little one, my folks have been quite generous. Clothes, mobiles, a crib and any other little thing mom found she thought her granddaughter might need have come our way. In fact the Swan and I have joked that we need to be careful mentioning a need around them; they might just go get it. (Which I specifically recall my parents saying about my grandmother.)

Despite all this generosity, the Federal government, in it’s infinite wisdom, declared this was not enough. In the name of stimulating the economy, a clever guise for don’t-just-sit-there-do-something politics, the government is giving away money. Six-hundred dollars a head for us to spend.

This is the same government that has spent money far in excess of its income (tax revenue) to the point that our debt has negatively effected the value of our dollar. That devalued dollar is the reason the price of everything from corn to gas has gone through the roof and our economy is tanking to begin with. This is the same Presidential administration that has pursued a continued policy of keeping the dollar weak by dropping the interest rate continuously. Now, in their infinite wisdom the government has decided to take money out of their coffers and give it back to us. Instead of other silly ideas like paying off our debt and really fixing the dollar.

So why thank my parents?

In the government’s, again infinite, wisdom, it was declared that those who have worked hard, been successful in business, saved their money and been all-around good stewards of the blessings afforded one in this country, should not get this stimulus package. Only us poor shlubs who cannot make it from one meal to the next without the government are (dare I say) entitled to the payout. So in essence, my stimulus payment is coming from my parents’ tax money, with the usual stops through our wonderfully greased-machine government where I’m sure, none was lost to bureaucracy.

There is no objective standard that could possibly be applied which would label my parents as rich or us as poor. I would say we are both successful, just at different points on that time line of success. However we fall on different sides of some arbitrary line drawn by arbitrary government making an arbitrary attempt at fixing their very specific mess.

Oh, in thank you notes, you usually tell what you are doing with the gift. Our money will stimulate the economy by going directly on the principle for our mortgage. That was another thing my parents taught me: to be wise with my money. What? No I was not meaning to draw a contrast with the government, why do you ask?

So. Mom, Dad… Thank you.

President Bush…. [the author releases a long, pent up sigh]… never mind.