Anger, but not in the way you're probably thinking. Seeing people suffer, especially when others ignore it or refuse to help just plain pisses me off. Take what's been going on in Burma right now. Most if not all the world knows about it, and does anyone do anything? Fuck no. Its much the same way with smaller stuff. Especially when its someone punking on a kid. I can't tell you how many times I've stepped in to be a protecting/comforting force in highschool especially seeing an older kid bullying one of the younger ones. This sort of thing just plain rubs me entirely the wrong way.

I was just watching one of the 24 hour news channels, and a story came on that frankly plain pisses me off and makes me question what little faith in humanity I frankly have left. In the American mid-west, a schooldistrict has outlawed all kinds of touch, period. No high-fives, no shaking hands, no hugs, nothing, period. A 13 year old who put his arm around his girlfriend's waist got sent to the principle, and subsequently suspended. Their reasoning? They are having problems with things escalating and getting out of control. Umm, these are teenagers you're talking about, they aren't exactly in control of their emotions all the time, non of us are. They claim that they tried everything from teaching about "appropriate touch" to other forms of contact. Well, for one thing, the rules are only going to spur these kids to engage in these activities more, anyone who was ever a teenager knows that part of the teenage years is defying authority. If you're going to solve a problem, you punish and work with the people causing the problems, you don't make blanket statementts against a certain activity period. Frankly This is one of those situations where I question people's intelligence, and feel like banging my head or, prefferably, theirs against a wall. I thought education generally led to an understanding that using such methods to solve problems DOESN'T WORK, NEVER HAS, NEVER WILL.

Education, at any level, should be free. Education should not be something that is restricted by whether you can or can't afford it, only whether you are willing to work for it, and  go on to do something worthwhile with what you have acheived. You should not be allowed a free ride if you are good at sports. Highschool and college are not about sports, higher education is about just that, education, learning, not who made what team, or which team made the playoffs. Unfortunately, most people seem to forget the whole point of higher education in the whirlwind of sports, and 24-7, 365 frat parties. It's about getting an education, not just so you can get a better paying job, but so that you can be a more well rounded human being. College is not about sports, and who made what team, or which team made it to the finals how many times. College was originally, and should still be, about getting an education, and if you think you have the right to just blow off work and not go to class, because you are there on a sports scholarship, you are in college for the wrong reasons, and honestly, should not be there. College is not a scouting ground for the big leagues, it is a place of higher learning and discovery. Unfortuantely, many people seem to have forgotten the point of college these days, and forget that there is a whole organisation outside the sports teams. I have seen colleges where the sports facilities are top notch, the weight rooms are packed with high end equipment, but the rest of the college looks like a transplant from Harlem. This whole thing is bullcrap, and I think most people know it, so why do we let these things go on?

Ok, one of my big problems with these groups, is their arguement essentially boils down to "You're human trash for no other reason than what you are." This sort of stuff isn't even tolerated on preschool playgrounds, so why dear God in Heaven, do we not only tolerate it on a national level, but give this sleez police guards? If they want to speak out, they should have to deal with the consequences of their actions, without a police guard, just like everybody else. By protecting these dirtbags the way we do, we're essentially saying that its ok for them to say the hateful, closeminded, simpleton stuff they do, and occasionally kill or harrass people, when we don't let anyone else do these things. This is complete hypocritical crap, and everyone knows it, so why do we continue to let the government do it? Free speach does not mean that you get to say whatever you want, and the government will protect you from people who think you're intolerant assholes, what it says is that you have the right to say what you want, period. I say, pull the plice guards at Nazi and Klan rallies, let these people say what they want, and make them deal with the consequences. Hell, if one or two of them are killed or sent to the hospital or prison, all the better. If these individuals are going to act like children on a playground, which is essentially what they're doing, they need to learn that their actions and opinions have consequences, and what better way to do that, then take away their guards, and let thihngs escalate?

I could say my mom, my elementary school teachers, or any number of people. However, if I were to be truly honest with myself, I would have to say Mister Rogers. The man was a role model and a comfort to me from an early age, and the world has lost a truly great man who really was unique, that the world has never seen before, and will never see again. He spent his life teaching young children, who society typically ignores, that they are special, that they are loved, and helping them through struggles that most adults have forgotten about. Most of all, he taught that it was ok for people to be emotional, and to talk about it, that we are all humans, and nobody's perfect, but to love everyone for who they are, not who they will or should be. It is a rare thing for completely, utterly unselfish people like Mister Rogers to come along, and we are lucky that we have this man's amasing work preserved for the future, for nobody's childhood is truly complete without the neighborhood. It is my honest feeling that if more people were exposed to Fred Roger's amasing work, we'd see a lot less violence in the world, a lot less jumping to killing each other to solve problems, and a lot more understanding and working to create peaceful solutions.

Most people think that violent white supremacist groups no longer exist in the US. They do. The Clan may have largely disappeared, but there are increasingly more and more violent militaristic groups popping up all over. I realise that my view is probably a minority and militaristic just as this filth is. However, I suggest that if these people are so intent on starting a war and wiping large groups of innocent people off the face of the country, we accept their challenge and respond. If they want a war, we give it to them and fight these individuals with physical force. What they are doing is not free speach, they lost that when they started vandalising and committing acts of violence against innocent people. I'm not saying we hunt down the idiots that spew it, but the ones that act on it. People have the right to live their lives withhout having to worry about being robbed or killed for no reason other than their religious beliefs or skin color. Its great that communities are banding together and cleaning up this shit, but just cleanning it isn't going to stop them, we've been cleaning it up for years, and it keeps happening. How is it the land of the free when people in large parts of the country live in fear for their lives every day for no reason than their skin color or beliefs.

You'll usually find me in the fiction, philosophy, or religion sections. I've considered myself a seeker after truth and a philosopher/theologian (of Eastern thought) for the past couple years, so the philosophy and religion sections have been a big draw for me.

You've got the "Christians" picketting at soldiers funerals with signs like "God hates Fags" (how do they know what God likes?) and the picketers at the funeral of the amish girls who were murdered back in the '80's or '90's carrying signs saying "your daughters are burning in Hell." ,This just sickens me, do these people really think Jesus Bar Joseph would have approved of their hate and inconsiderate actions? This isn't free speach, all this is is being an unthinking, intolerant asshole, and it needs to be stopped. Apparently the poeple picketting the soldiers funerals were going to be taken to court to get them removed to an appropriate distance, but apparently that wasn't respecting their rights because the mourners wouldn't get the benefit of the picketers free speach. Let me get this straight, your son has just died in Iraq, so you should have to listen to some asshole picketing your son's funeral screaming God hates fags, and that your son's death isGod punishing the US or some shit? Give me a break. These people aren't participating in free speach, they're participating in being unfeeling assholes, and if Jesus knew what his followers were doing 2000 years after his death, I'm pretty sure he'd be disgusted.

Ok, so apparently yesterday when Virginia Tech students were trying to return to their lives, and go back to class, reporters were continuing to ignore them, and after showing footage of reporters bugging students trying to get more interviews and being refused, simply went on to continue reporting about the issue. I understand that this is a national issue, but its also an issue that deeply effects REAL PEOPLE. To me, this is whats most important about dealing in any way with an issue like this. You have to respect the wishes of people effected by tragedies, you can't just say "well, they want to go on with their lives, but we can get higher ratings if we continue coverage." This just proves to me yet again that TV news is no longer about THE NEWS, but entertainment, and the ratings race. I personally find the media's handling of this whole situation to be disqusting.

I pray that the families of the victims of this attrocity might find the strength to get through this time of extreme difficulty and sadness, I pray that they find comfort and healing, which are so important when tragedies like this occur. However, I also pray for the shooter, for these crimes do not truly have a victimiser and a victim. It is clear that this individual was suffering from severe depression, and was making a cry for help. This individual needs help, not punishment, and unfortunately our legal system is geared toward punishment, not help. I therefore pray that the shooter finds help, not punishment, as a result of this tragedy, and go on to live a long, fulfilling, happy life.