Soap boxes of the world colliding..

Well, last night ended on a stupid note. I check my phone around 9 (after dinner, shower, ect.) to find that my Facebook wall exploded with an argument between two people on my friends' list. I've got a lot of friends. Some are fans, some are family, some are buddies I met through World of Warcraft. They're from everywhere, and some can't help but argue. Well, here I am giving the middle finger to the Boy Scouts of America for kicking out a kid who came out as gay, and someone from my list argues his stance as an Eagle Scout.

I'm gonna be honest with you guys. There's something about the Boy Scouts of America that I've always hated. Even as a kid, their little uniforms weirded me out. I never joined the Girl Scouts (too busy with music), and I always thought Boy Scouts were weird. The only kids I knew in Boy Scouts where white kids, and being from PG, there weren't a lot of them. They were just outside of my comfort zone. As I grew older, I got a little more accepting of this American tradition, but I don't know. Something about them always weirded me out. Well, now I'm seeing all this controversy about them not allowing gay kids, kicking out gay parents, ect. They claim it's because of their Christian beliefs, which is what this particular Facebook friend argued, and all I can say is... COME ON.

Guys, I'm a Christian. I love Jesus. I love God. I love all the good stuff about this religion, and I'm not ashamed to admit that there is some pretty ridiculous shit in the bible that we've been actively ignoring. Like... slavery. Multiple wives. Marrying your rapist. Things that people are A-Okay with ignoring, you know? But as soon as the whole gay thing comes up, wooooah, holy shit, we can't allow THAT kind of "sin". Are you fucking kidding me? What is up with these people and gay folks? Why do they actively pick on gays, especially? I do not understand. They say "it clearly saays in the bible...", but then they get tattoos and have babies out of wedlock. I'd love to see the BSOA kick out a kid for being someone's bastard child. Give me a break, people. There's something about gay people that this sect of Christians just doesn't like, and I do not get WHY. Hell, I know priests who are more accepting of gay people than these Christians. I say "accepting" because I'm starting to hate the word "tolerant". Like.. when you tolerate something, it's when you grudgingly accept it. Like someone's bad behavior. I hate the idea that people are just grudgingly accepting someone's sexuality as a bad behavior. Number one, it's none of your business, and number two, you should be ashamed of yourself for thinking you can judge someone in that way. Isn't that God's job? And doesn't God love all his children? Don't you sit there and tell me that being gay is a bad example that you can't have your precious Boy Scouts be exposed to. I'm pretty sure he's gonna meet a gay person at some point in his life. The kid's gotta buy a suit sometime, right?

I just don't understand this hatred. Some people get so worked up about why they don't like gay people and it bothers me. Maybe because I hear some people use the same hate speech toward Latinos, I don't know. But it bothers me a lot and I hate hearing it, especially from people who are supposed to be friends and/or family, who claim they're Christian. Being Christian doesn't just mean going to church and reading the bible. You're supposed to show your love and acceptance. You're supposed to be like Jesus. There's a lot of crazy shit in the Old Testament that Jesus kinda pushed aside. We don't just follow everything in the OT. That's why we're CHRISTIANS. See that "Christ" in there? It means we follow Jesus' example, and never once did he say to kick the people you think are sinners out of your organization and hate on them. Never once did Jesus say, "forgive everyone, but not the gays. Those guys are icky," and never once have I heard a story in which Jesus told a gay dude that he can forgive the infidelity, the tattoos, the not honoring of the Sabbath, and all the other crap this does in front of everyone... but being gay is not allowed, so kindly leave the village and never come back.

I don't like using the word "retarded". It's offensive, and I understand that. But seriously, you guys are being retarded and I just can't come up with a better word for it. Excluding gays is retarded. You are retarded. And you're shitty Christians, so fuck you.

So hey, I lost a pound this morning! :D I'm also gonna see Batman tonight, so I'll probably post a view... after the weekend.

Gay Marriage in DC!?

Well, looks like DC might be getting gay mariage! I must say, I'm proud of my city for it.

Now, a lot of people might say, "Wait a sec Nina, you're a Christian! How can you condone such a thing??"

To this, I give you my explanation as to why gay marriage is okay. First off, "marraige", as in, the union of a couple that allows them to recieve government benefits, is not a religious institution. The religious part comes when you do it in a church. Since I'm a Catholic, I know they're not going to get married in my church. They're not changing MY church at all, so really, what would I be offended by? I'm the type of person who believes that gay people should be treated like straight people. Namely, that being slutty is gross, and if they wanna get married, thank goodness!! You'd think that we would be encouraging gay people to get married!

I know more than a few people who are less offended by gay people than by their culture, and how it often promotes promiscuity. This is offensive to gays everywhere. Just because you're gay does not make you a slut. I think it's disgraceful that some people allow their sexual orientation to dictate how they handle their bodies, and that goes for straight and gay people alike. Straight people, and this includes men, disgust me. They disgust me all the time with how they treat their bodies, and how it negatively impacts others. It disgusts me how they treat marriage! The divorce rate is through the roof! Yet when gay people, who have solid beautiful loving relationships, want to get married.. straight people are grossed out?? Gimme a gaddamn break!!

As a married woman, I can say with the utmost confidence that if two dudes tie the knot, it will not destroy the sanctitiy of my marriage. If two chicks adopt a kid, thank goodness that kid will get a home. If my bible says that it's an "abomination", then I will argue that it's the lesser of two evils. We, as humans, are sinners. We sin all of the time. We try to do well, but we make mistakes. Do I think being gay is a mistake? I don't think so. Personally, I have a feeling that much of the bible, including the bits about gay people being an abomination, were written by some very frustrated men. I know where I stand with the good lord, and as a Christian, I believe that his love extends to everyone. That includes the gays and their love.

So, go DC!! I can't wait to see a bunch of couples come to my city to get married! And for the record, if any of them need a wedding singer, I am totally available.

This one's for you, kid

So I've noticed that throughout the years, my stance on religion and what is right and what is wrong has never really changed. I think I've got the same beliefs I had when I was five, which is that treating everyone with kindness and respect is the best way to praise God. Now, take into consideration, I don't care if anyone else believes this or not. My friends range from athiests, to wiccans, to Buddhists, and there's even a Satanist in there. Does that make any difference? No. Because again.. same beliefs that I had when I was five.

So when I found out what gay people were, I was like 10. I was like, huh. So it's okay for me to think boobies are hot? I could be gay? The whole "being gay is evil" thing never occurred to me, because again, those same 5 year old beliefs existed to me.

I gave this some consideration. I've been pretty artistically obsessed with boobs since I was little, and the more I drew the more I focused on women. Okay, I thought. Maybe I'm gay. Then I became a teenager and the boys happened. I found myself not attracted to any girls, and instead discovered the joy of boys. The more I dated, the more the truth was reinforced. Nope, totally not gay.

Even through college! With all the crazy drunken parties and lesbian showcases some of my friends did, I felt cool about the fact that maybe, MAYBE I'm gay. Or at least bi. How was it possible to not be, when I loved the female body so much?? It was hot and beautiful and perfect. Men are awkward. Women are curvy. It makes sense, right? Totally gay? Bi? Anything?

Nope. Totally straight. I've resigned myself to the fact that I am, in fact, completely straight. I do appreciate a woman's body, but that's pretty much as far as it goes. I prefer to draw women, I'm not shy of women, and that's all there is to it. How anticlimactic, huh?

Now for men.........

Check this out.

So.. Dumbledore's gay?

So I read today that J.K. Rowling has announced that Dumbledore was actually gay with his friend, the wizard he defeated named Gellert Grindelwald.

For those of you who aren't Potter fans, Gellert was a wizard that Dumbledore knew in his boyhood. They became best friends, but later, Dumbeldore became dissapointed in Gellert's interest in the dark arts, and his attitude towards muggles.

The article is here.

Now, I honestly don't know how to take this. On the one hand, yay for having a gay character who is also respected and loved. On the other hand... why the hell couldn't she have just written that in the book? I got so sick of Rowling's cryptic bullshit, after the 6th book. The 5th was great. The 6th left me so goshdamn angry. Really. If you want your character to be gay, don't beat around the bush and reveal it later. Come out and say it. You don't have to mention their sexual activity or anything like that, but giving your reader enough information to know what type of relationship your characters have is what makes a good writer. Leaving readers in the dark and then going, "a HA! I fooled you all!" is not the mark of a good writer.

I'm really dissapointed in Rowling, now. I think the last Potter movie is probably my favorite, of them all, and I am really afraid of how the last two will go.