"Anti-Gay Attacks are Hate Crimes"

So in the NYT on Friday October 9 there was a story about a piece of legislation going through Congress that would expand the qualification of a federal hate crime to include sexual orientation and other gender issues.

Here's a link to a similar story run by NPR.

I read this article and felt like I wanted to talk about it. I read some of the responses from some GOP leaders, such as Rep. John Boehner, and I was disheartened by them. Here's one in particular that I did not like:

"The idea that we're going to pass a law that's going to add further charges to someone based on what they may have been thinking, I think is wrong"

Another comment I was frustrated with was by my very own Representative, Mr. Todd Akin:

"We believe this [piece of social agenda] is a poison pill"

Now I do not doubt that both Boehner and Akin are opposed to violence against the LGBT community. That is an unnecessary fight to pick. What I do find offensive is that they do not see the fundamental difference between an assault and an assault driven by hatred or bias.

For me, the difference is that an assault can be random, based on anger about a personal relationship, or economically motivated. An assault driven by hate for an identity represents something more insidious. It represents the idea that this person, because of their race/religion/sexual orientation, is inherently offensive and perhaps subhuman.

By adding punishments to crimes of hate, it becomes clear that as a society we believe it is unacceptable to disregard the humanity of anyone based on their sexual orientation. These crimes need to be treated more seriously because they are more serious. Violence against a specific minorities threatens the fabric of a democratic society; if we cannot ensure that every voice is safe, then we cannot ensure that we will have a unified community in the quest for democratic representation.

Also, by making this a federal law, it gives the federal government the ability to investigate and prosecute cases where local authorities fail to, perhaps because they are influenced by the same biases as the perpetrator.

Many have pointed out that assault or murder is already a crime and there is already a punishment, why do we need to be the "thought police" as well. I believe that intent is everything when it comes to crimes. It is a fine line between crimes against humanity and genocide. The reason we establish more serious levels of violation is to establish that we do not support bigotry. Matthew Shepard's murder was gruesome, but it made it so much more despicable that it was motivated by his sexual orientation.

There are also people who are concerned that this legislation will be heavy-handed and enfringe on people's First Amendment right to speak out against LGBT lifestyles. Democrats have pointed out the legislation forbids prosecution of people's individual beliefs or statements.

However, it has to be clear that intent, though important, is very hard to prove. Just like in cases of genocide, the prosecution must make it crystal clear that there was bigoted intent, otherwise the hate crime status is lost. So though it would be a good step, it may not dramatically change the way that crimes are prosecuted.


I do not think this bill is poison, Mr. Akin. I feel like it is a message to our community that it is not acceptable to be violent against anyone based on their identity. I know that most people would not deny that violence is wrong. But I believe this legislation could be a necessary deterrent against people committing crimes based on sexual orientation and perhaps it will highlight the fact that hatred of the LGBT community is not acceptable.

Rainy Day

I hate rainy days.


Well, I guess that's not fair. When I don't have to be in class, and I don't have to be outside, and I don't have to wear shoes, they are not so bad.

My major complaint is wet socks. They make the day really unenjoyable and you never really feel comfortable in any class. And no matter how you hold your umbrella, your backpack and your pants are going to get wet.

Anyway, last nights Cardinals game was surprisingly frustrating to watch. The Cards struggled all game on offense and defense, and neither team retired three consecutive batters. The game lasted roughly 4 hours. Long one, even by baseball standards. New game tonight, though. And the Blues home opener!! Yes. I'm so excited for it.

Well, now I have to present about Frederick Douglass and primary sources. Yes! OK, enjoy the various sport events tonight. Maybe open a nice cold Budweiser. Either way, take it easy tonight. Tomorrow is Friday.

A Moment to Celebrate

Well. I finally did it.

I am the champion of my public Yahoo! Fantasy Baseball league. 2009 was just my year. I played my cards right, and I just seemed to do no wrong come play-off time. I should accredit my success to Roy Halladay, Ryan Howard, and Aaron Hill, but I won't. For this moment, I'm going to bask in the glow of my excellent management skills. Ah.


Anyway, today was a bit rushed. I once again had a news story to write for the Mirror literally moments before it was due. Second week in a row. It makes writing the stories a little more exciting, but also a bit more stressful. It will be much better once I get a paycheck... Is it strange that Drury only pays out once a month? I hate that.


I still haven't caught up on Glee for this week. I didn't catch the episode last Wednesday. I just gotta make time for that because there's no come back once you are behind by two episodes.

OK, well more homework, dinner, and what not.

YES!

So tonight, I went to a flea market with Ma and Pa. I got some great movies. I hope that everyone is super jealous of this excellent list:

1. Plan 9 From Outer Space (Worst Movie of All-Time)

2. They Came From Beyond Space (Just looked like a great, old Sci-Fi film)

3. Outbreak (Awesome movie about a viral, well, outbreak... also a staple in pop culture references... the Deadly Motaba Virus!!!)

And all for a grrrrrrand total of $6.25. Wow. All the people at the Estate, prepare for some delicious movie viewing.


In other news, Drury Girl's Volleyball suffered a loss tonight to Northern Kentucky U. It was a great match, but just didn't work out. There was one call that lots of people got mad about, and it was sort of justified, but one Mom got reallllly mad... It's kind of embarrassing. I will be the first to say I have no problem harassing a ref, but at a crucial moment in the game, when it could still go either way, have faith in the team. It's one point. You gotta move on. If you can move on and still win, then do it. Succeed in the face of adversity, that's what I like to live by. And don't be excessively mean. Two phrases to live by. OK, off to dinner with the fam. Enjoy the rest of the weekend!

I Feel Like...

I have had lots of great ideas for blog posts, but I have been entirely too lazy to get them in type, so... this one will not satisfy anyone's urges for greatness, but at least I'm trying.

OK, so wow, is it really October already? This is incredible. September, we hardly knew ye. I feel like I was just ushering it in. That's fine though, because now it becomes time to focus on the greatest holiday ever: Halloween!

Yes, Halloween is amazing. The candy, the costumes, the scary movies, the fun parties, the outrageous antics... it's always a crowd-pleaser. I am going to have to make more time for scary movies because honestly it has been lacking around here. A lot of guitar, but not a lot of movies, and that's fine. Movies will have their time.

So my favorite Halloween movie is one that gets its namesake from the holiday, Halloween. But I was recently reconsidering that. I watched Halloweeen II the other night (not the Rob Zombie remake, which was average at best), and it was really truly excellent. All the great elements of a deliciously suspensful "slasher" (it's a technical term). So what that means is I will have to watch the rest of them and see if I like any of the others (I really like H20 despite it's corny moments. When Laurie goes back into the school with the Ax screaming out for Michael, you have to be a pillar of steel not to get goosebumps).

So I officially am intimidated by the GRE. I looked at the study guide and it was a bit more complicated than I imagined. I didn't see much about how much time you got, but I hope it's more than the ACT or maybe there's no time at all... But either way, I am intimidated...

I watched Frost/Nixon last night. It is an excellent film and fairly historically accurate. So everyone should see it (of course, see it after you've seen a horror film. Double features are the best). But the movie made me realize how little Americans seemed to care that President Bush also broke the law, just like President Nixon. The torture and wiretapping alone should have warranted the same type of anger, but nothing really. Obama covered for Bush and we may never get a trial to illicit that kind of apology and confession of guilt. So my question is: Where is our generation's David Frost? Who knows.

Anyway, time for other things. Enjoy the weekend.

It's Been A While...

I thought a Staind reference in my title would be good enough to summarize the first section of this here blog post. Wow. 10 days since I last posted? First of all, it feels like a million years since I last posted. And I cannot believe that it has only been 10. My days have been so action packed, it is unreal.

And by action packed, I mean used to the fullest. I have been spending more time having fun and visitng with people than I have in the past. I have also been writing a lot more. I write for Drury's newspaper, The Mirror. It has been a great experience, but it does take up a good chunk of time.

Fantasy sports have also consumed my brain. I am currently in the playoffs in my Fantasy Baseball league, which is awesome (the best I have done since I started in roughly 2005). I recently started a Fantasy Hockey team, and I'm getting all pumped for that (Go Blues!!), and I am getting into futbol a lot now... so naturally I joined a Fantasy Premier League. In addition to this Fantasy sports bonanza, I started a Dynasty on NHL '06 which apparently is the best game ever invented ever. The 2006 Blues never looked so good on ice...

Anyway, I am also in the market for buying a soccer jersey, or as they say a "kit". We have been watching the USA inch closer and closer to the World Cup, so I am fairly inspired to get a US National Jersey, but I have also taken Arsenal under my wing as my favorite team in the Premier League... so I may want one of their jerseys...

But the point is that I am really having time to enjoy all the finer things in life (read sports), and still get all of my work done in style.

Being a senior is wonderful. Anyway, I want to start doing some news reviews... so I think I will start tomorrow. Gotta pick of the NYT and see what it has to say. OK, goodnight!

The Weekend is About to Begin...

Hello and welcome to the first weekend in September!

Wow, it's good to be at the weekend. Yes, my life is somewhat stressful despite the obscene wake-up time of 10:30 on nearly every day of the week. I'm looking forward to just kicking back, reading, and enjoying my time. I really only have one class that requires intense reading; my other classes will have work occasionally, but nothing that will blow me away. I might for a chance to get READ everything, and not just skim or rush through it all. That would be lovely!

So I'm kind of excited about this: I'm in Model UN this year, presenting Drury as either Costa Rica or Haiti. I think this is going to be really sweet. In high school, I did something like this except it as a representative in state government. This is a whole new animal. But I'm only a little intimidated. Mostly excited. So I may get to prep for that this weekend.

Also, I finally settled on a topic for my history paper. I think I'm going to pursue Frederick Douglass and analyze his writings through a feminist lens, essentially. Douglass wrote a lot about Women's Suffrage. So I will see what he had to say about that, and what he says about modern rights advocates or something else that is cool. I really wanted to write about the formation of my church, but I'm just not sure how I would go about finding the sources. The UCC is so new, there's not a lot of research that has been done. Maybe it will be something good to pursue later!

Speaking of church, I recently went to a vigil for health care, hosted by everyone's favorite partisan organization, MoveOn.org. It was nice to see lots of people genuinely concerned about the welfare of others and their health in Springfield. There were some people who liked to hear themselves talk, there were some people who were not very well-informed, and there were some people who were quite excellent. It was a fun evening, and it was sponsored by the Community Christ Church or something to that effect. I think it was a DOC church, very small, very progressive/social-justice oriented. So I think I may try out their church this weekend. Who knows!?!?

Well tonight will be mad. Lots of things going on, and there's only so much time!!! OK. Well, again, welcome to September, hope you enjoy your stay... and yes Billie Joe Armstrong, I'll wake you up when it's all over... HA!