Fuk U & Me... (or something like that) Radiation

I've held off talking about this because I don't want to seem paranoid.... but come on, really!

First, I don't necessarily think that the government will lie just for the sake of lying, but I do think they'll try to prevent panic, to the point of not being forthcoming with prudent information.

Radiation levels are now 4300 times the "legal" limit in the ocean waters around this area of Japan. And I think I heard that this level was detected for 20 miles.What does this mean? I mean, I know what it means... but what does this really mean? Will this kill ocean life in that 20 mile radius? How long will this take to dissipate? What about ocean currents? How long do we have to worry about buying a can of tuna?

And, the experts are saying... "We don't know where it's coming from.." .......? Really? Turn on CNN dipshit. I'm not a nuclear physicist, but I'm fairly certain I know where the radiation is coming from.

Dangerous radiation levels have been found in a town 12 miles outside of the evacuation zone... Why haven't they increased the evacuation zone?

Ocean water is corrosive. As soon as they pumped ocean water into reactors 1, 2, and 3... It was pretty much guaranteed that those reactors would never go one line again. When the incident at Chernobyl happened, they dumped fuck-tons of sand and cement, and "corked" the problem. WHY IS JAPAN NOT DOING THIS? You cannot save those reactors. Exposing them to ocean water compromised them INDEFINITELY... I don't understand why they are acting like they can save them. Cut our losses... please... ?

From what I've read, and I realize you can't necessarily trust everything you read, but.... it appears to me, that the majority of incidents of cancer ensuing from the Chernobyl accident were cases of thyroid cancer, from radioactive iodine... that seems to have come from drinking affected milk....

California and Washington are now detecting increased radiation in their milk. The FDA says these are minimal and that the milk is still safe to drink.. I hate to sound like this.. but I can't help it... If the FDA came out and said, "Well, this could be a concern..." Dairy farmers in the western US would be going out of business left and right.

Assuming that the FDA is being honest at this point, what does this mean long term? Cuz, I'm not sure if you people noticed, the situation in Japan hasn't changed. Everyone keeps talking about how American's are being paranoid and that there is no reason for concern, but what I'm taking into consideration is that this situation is not over. I get that the amount of radiation in the milk is equal to less radiation that you're exposed to during a 5 hour plane ride... but they aren't talking about long term.. Can we handle a continued exposure to this... cuz as I pointed out, they haven't "corked" the problem yet. What is the long term affect if my son drinks a gallon or two of radiated milk for the next year? I mean, I have friends who are radiology techs, and you reach a certain level of exposure, and you have to change careers. There is a "lifetime" exposure limit... I just don't know the realities of those limits.

And, god forbid.... what if it gets worse? What if somehow the damn plant blows up?

Am I ridiculous for thinking about going and getting some powdered milk? (ugggg) I don't want to be over-the-top paranoid, but I don't want to kick myself in the ass later for being too naive.

Opinions Are Like Assholes....

And I have lots.

What I have discovered about myself is that while I've very interested in debating and discussing some issues, others are absolutely non-negotiable.

RELIGION - Anyone who knows me at all knows that I love to discuss and debate religion. I have ideas, but I don't know it all, and I'm always looking for that bit of wisdom or understanding that will broaden or focus my thoughts. However, if you're using your faith to give foundation to intolerance of any sort, of any kind, you better know your literature, and you better be able to back up your beliefs with an explanation of WHY you believe the way you do. "Cuz that's how I was raised", or "The Bible says so",  just doesn't work with me.

ABORTION - Non-negotiable. I agree with abortion. I believe there is a medical purpose for it. I believe the alternative to legalization is scary. Finally, a woman should decide what to do with her body. That said, I don't like abortion. I think some people are irresponsible with it. Though I don't really view it as murder, I do still feel that it's killing a baby. (How is that different? I don't know, some sort of grey area.) I don't condemn people for it, but it makes me sad when it isn't a desperate last resort. Lastly, though a woman should get to choose what happens to her body, I can't help but feel that a man should have a say in what happens to his child. That said, wow... what a mess that would create if he did. So the bottom line is this : I agree with abortion and there's no debate in the issue.

GAY RIGHTS - Non-negotiable. I cannot debate this topic with any sort of reason or understanding for people who don't, in some way, believe as I do on this issue. I don't want to hear you spew your fucked-up God-shit. I don't want to hear you refer to mental illness. And if you think it's disgusting, quit being a pervert and mind your own damn bedroom! Oh? You don't want to offend me? Well, YOU DO! You're talking about my friends, my family, my coworkers. People I love, and every time you open your hateful, ignorant mouth on the subject I find myself fantasizing about ripping your fucking tongue out.

*breathe* (See, I'm fairly firm on that issue.)

EVOLUTION - Debatable. I believe in evolution, but I can learn more and I'm not opposed to hearing from both sides. I tend to stand on the side of science, so give me your science you op'posers'!! (Little hint... You can't use the Bible or religion as "proof" against evolution. 1. God made Adam from the mud, it doesn't say how long it took him, and 2. The Bible isn't science.)

CAPITOL PUNISHMENT - Kind of non-negotiable. I believe in the death penalty. I believe that some people can't be rehabilitated. I don't believe in Life Without Parole. If a dog is especially vicious and has killed someone, the dog gets put down. If it's repeatedly attacked people, it gets put down. I don't think people should be treated any differently. You don't put a dog in a little kennel and wait till it dies. You peacefully put it down. I don't believe in hanging, firing squads, electric chairs, or gas chambers. Just put the person down. I don't believe that the death penalty should be used as a deterrent or a punishment. I believe it's a solution to a problem. I think that keeping "Lifers" is a drain on finances and a risk to the staff that have to care for them.

MEDICINAL MARIJUANA - I can totally debate this one, though I'm pretty firm on my opinion. My argument against legalization isn't a moral, but an ethical issue with the way that it's happened. Being that we are a republic, our government is set up that supposedly the States get to make their own rules as long as they fall within the Federal government's guidelines. (In a nutshell..lol) But on the issue of marijuana, the States shouldn't be allowed to make these choices because the Federal government has decided that it's a Schedule 1 Drug. The Federal government has made it illegal and and deemed it to have no medicinal purpose.  I totally don't agree with this scheduling and most of the rational and informed people of this country probably wouldn't agree that pot is worse than heroin. I just disagree with the legality of the process with which it was made legal (here in Oregon and several other states).

(HOLY CRAP!!! Do you know Samoas have 70 calories EACH?)

I could go on. Gun laws, legalize prostitution, sex ed in schools, government-sanctioned breeding laws, career-welfare moochers..... some of those, I'm sure you can guess where I stand...

Anyway, it's late and I'm getting tired.
Yay, American Idol is back!! I like a few, but Casey Abrams stands out for me at the moment. (Ohhh and the Asperger's boy.)

Here are a couple of links to things that inspired this little rant. Mostly, it's not the pieces themselves, but the some of the comments people posted to them that got me all riled up.

http://nerdyapplebottom.com/2010/11/02/my-son-is-gay/

http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/02/24/new.york.billboard.abortion/index.html?eref=mrss_igoogle_cnn#

http://kezi.com/news/local/205484

The Battle In Council Rock...

Some people think that I am one of those parents that shelter my child a little too much. Of course, being the one in question, I disagree. I try very hard to evaluate what my child is ready for and give him age/maturity appropriate information. It's not always an easy call. That said, he is 9... with Asperger's... so maturity wise, he is often more like a 7 year old, at best.

Today I read an article about the issues the Council Rock School District is having with the group PARE. Parents Active in Responsible Education is a group fighting the school district on the issue of the use of R-rated movies in high school classrooms.

Sure, initially, I was like... ok.. my kid can't see it in a theater without me, but he can see it at school?? Does this make sense? But then I investigated a little further.

The School District has a section on its website where you can view the entire list of 52 R-rated movies approved by the school district, see which class it will be used in, more specifically which teacher requested the use of it. For the teen to be able to see it, a parent or guardian MUST SIGN A PERMISSION SLIP.

PARE is saying that parents are bullied into signing the slip out of fear of embarrassing their children or kids are forging their signatures. Funny, but I don't remember parents being afraid to pull their Middle Schoolers out of sex ed when I was a kid or in high school when certain kids had to leave class when we talked about the theory of evolution.. Yeah, they were embarrassed, but their parents didn't give a crap.

The bottom line is, if you don't want your kid to see the movie, don't sign the paper. Call the school. Make sure the school knows how you feel. Don't block the other kids' chance at getting the message.

Viewing the list, there were several movies on it that I watched in my high school. I think that they were effective tools for giving concrete examples of the things that were taught in the text books. In psychology, we had to watch The Breakfast Club and do a report on social cliques and status in school. In that same class, we also had to watch Harold and Maude, which is not R-rated, and it disturbed me way more than the R-rated films. While we didn't watch it in school, we got extra credit in history if we went and saw Schindler's List, cuz yes, I'm that old. Our theater had a special viewing just for the high school kids.

There are several major advantages to using movies to aid education. One, study after study has proven that not everyone learns the same. Some kids just can't sit down with a book of Shakespeare, read it, and retain it. Two, there is a benefit to giving the pupils a visual scenario to apply to the text. Sometimes it takes a dramatization to make the jump and impact the lesson in the student's mind. Hell, they still use dramatizations on me at work when they make me watch that ethics crap and take tests on it. If they let me watch a real movie, instead of their crappy, campy, low-budget drivel... I might pay more attention.. even look forward to doing my education requirements.

This year the Council Rock School District cut some 20+ movies from their approved list. One of those movies was Kids. This makes me sad. I think this is an important movie that all kids should see, starting before high school. It's a movie about a teen whose number one goal is to devirginize as many girls as possible... one problem.. he has HIV. One girl who discovers that she contracted the virus from him tries desperately to warn his next victim.

What better way to teach young horny kids that you can't be too careful? That you can't trust every cute guy/girl with a pretty smile? And that people rarely do the right thing? I was an adult when I saw that movie.. and it still made an impact.

I was sad to see that Heathers wasn't on the list. I think every teen should see that movie. What better way to see what the evils of trying to fit in can bring.. as well as how easily a prank can get out of control?

Several years ago, I got in big trouble by my boyfriend at the time because I let his 12 year old daughter watch 8mm. Ok.. didn't "let" her watch it... highly encouraged and sat with her to watch it. This was a very naive girl who desperately wanted to be a model and didn't understand why her dad thought she was too young and didn't want her to have anything to do with it. After that movie, she understood.. still wanted to do it.. but understood. I, however, was in the dog house.

I just think it's important to remember that you can't shelter your child forever. In the right context, and the right environment, movies can have a great impact and can be a great teaching tool. I always use television as a learning tool, whether it's watching Man, Woman, Wild and telling my son you're not really dying of thirst unless you're willing to drink your own pee, or that starving to death means you'd eat a bug or a snake, or watching The World's Strictest Parents and showing him who he doesn't want to grow up to be or how bad he could really have it at home. Even Extreme Makeover: Home Edition shows him how good it feels to do something for someone else. I often use the news to show him things like "this is why we don't talk to strangers", "this is why we wear seatbelts", "this is why we never drink and drive", "this is why we don't mess with fire", or "guns".... The opportunity for teaching a valuable lesson is EVERYWHERE. It makes me sad to see people fighting such a valuable tool.

Canadian Judge Sides With Prostitutes.....

"Key provisions of Canada's prostitution law were struck down Tuesday by an Ontario judge who said they endangered the people they were meant to protect." ~CNN story.

Currently, in Canada, it's not illegal to earn money and file taxes as a sex worker, it's just illegal to do what you're being paid for. The main argument in the case seems to have been that this prevents sex workers from opening an establishment to work out of, therefore forces sex workers into more dangerous situations on the streets.

The judge found that this was an infringement of the sex workers' constitutional rights. In 30 days, within the province of Ontario, this will no longer be illegal. The Canadian Supreme Court is now evaluating whether they will block it, or allow it for the entire country.

My personal view on prostitution? Really, I'm on the fence. I initially think that it's not a good thing. I think that a lot of women are sucked into a demeaning, abusive, unsafe lifestyle. They become trapped by their addictions and have a hard time getting out. Yes, this is stereotyping. Yes, this is based on our current situation of prostitution being illegal in the majority of the US and women conducting their business in dirty alleys, with nasty pimps who purposefully keep them addicted to drugs. Yes, I know this is not always the situation.... maybe not even the total norm. This is my initial thought when the issue of prostitution is brought up.

On further review, my thoughts differ a bit. First, it's called "the oldest profession in the world" for a reason. Who am I to take away the one sure-fire way any woman has to put a roof over her head and food in her belly? If nothing else, a man can almost always fall back on hard physical labor... Women are not always capable of doing the same labors as a man.

Then, you have to consider, some women like it. I like sex. Superficially, it doesn't seem like a bad thing to get paid for doing what you love. No Mom, that doesn't mean I would do it... I guess I kind of view it as I do abortion... It might not be right for me, but who am I to say what's right for someone else?

I've had a great many discussions with Sandra on this issue since she moved to Australia where prostitution is legal. Their system seems pretty responsible and functional.

Ｉbelieve you are required to be a member of the sex worker's union. You have to go in for regular STD testing. I believe you have to work for an establishment (not on the streets). You have to pay taxes. And, I could totally be wrong about this one, but I think that condoms are not optional. I'm sure that there are many more rules and regulations, but those are the ones that obviously impressed me the most. (Sandra, feel free to correct me or fill in blanks. Please.)

I think a system like this is great. One, I think the likelihood of abuse and entrapment is greatly decreased. I think an environment such as this provides for the women who WANT to be in that profession and makes it harder for women who don't. Two, it is a great attempt to protect both the workers and the clients from disease.... Sure, you will probably always have alley hookers who are working for their next fix, but it gives people a healthy option.

I don't know that I had totally sorted my thoughts out on this matter until today.. One of the great/annoying things about CNN's articles is that the average moron can post their thoughts and opinions on the articles... Sometimes it takes hearing what those idiots have to say, before you can solidify your own viewpoint.

  *trollthis 

there you go....easier access to ugly hookers...isn't that what every country really needs?  ~ ..... if you were a proprietor of a brothel, wouldn't you want the cream of the crop? Well, if I were to buy a little fun, I'd go to the place with the pretty hookers.

  *edrury101

Prostitution creates an economic imbalance in out society just like gambling and extreme drug abuse. -?? How does that even make sense?

*edrury101

Men love women. Prostitution is an easy sell. Too easy in fact. A man spending money for a prostitute has less money to feed his kids and pay his mortgage.  - WOW... I find this a lot like telling your 5 year old, "it's not your fault you stole that candy bar, the store shouldn't have put it there... too much temptation." or "Your Honor, it's not my fault I raped that girl... you should have seen what she was wearing..." 

On another note, so the moron spent his mortgage money on a piece of ass and can't pay his bills, BUT THE PROSTITUTE CAN... and her kids are eating steak tonight! 

People who are irresponsible with their money will blow it regardless of whether or not it's on a hooker, crack, or a new Harley - get real! The real issue isn't the immoral acts of the sex workers, it's the immoral, irresponsible act of the John in this idiot's scenario. Hmmmm? Feed my kids or buy a blow job? If you're asking yourself THAT question, you have way more serious issues. Put the blame where it belongs. And truly, someone like that? It doesn't matter if prostitution is legalized... No one would chose a blow job over feeding their child just because getting said blow job is now decriminalized!

Coffee and CNN.com

These days, I get the kid off to school and browse CNN, enjoying my coffee... looking for something that moves or inspires me. In some nerdy way, I am most entertained by my blogs on religion, politics, or current news items. This is nothing new for me. In the years following high school, I would spend my weekends at the radio station, babysitting satellite feeds or syndicated programs, surrounded by encyclopedias and writing letters to congressmen and newspapers that I never got around to sending. (Buying stamps is a congenital allergy) I am still the same person, the only thing that has changed is the technology. It's so much easier to investigate things via the internet, and now I no longer have to worry about an envelope or stamps... what hasn't changed is the odds that anyone but my mom will read my work.... (I know that's not entirely true, there are a few of you!) (Thank you!)

Yesterday, I wrote about 2nd Amendment rights.... Today I read about a young 9-months-pregnant, elementary-school nurse who was stabbed over 20 times with a butcher knife and managed to crawl to her mom's front porch before she died. They later discovered that her boyfriend had been shot and killed.... Pretty sick and superficially it would seem that the killer chose to make her death a little more personal by opting for the knife when a gun was readily available... The impersonal shooting the boyfriend indicates two things: 1, either the killer just needed to get him out of the way, or 2, the killer couldn't find pleasure in his death.

Sure we've had our Manson's... They are not the norm though. Generally, people are killed by people they know. Scary. The news was trying to say, "She couldn't have had enemies, she was an elementary school nurse...." Yeah, like that matters. My guess is going to be that the killer is female, probably one of the boyfriend's ex's... Generally speaking, a man's crime of passion is in the moment. He walks in and sees his woman in bed with another man and he kills the man, maybe both of them.. Almost never is the woman his one and only target. A woman feels spurned and commits a crime of passion..... She coddles it for awhile.. incubates it into a lustful rage. I think woman are more methodical in their revenge. We'll wait for the right moment... This person waited at least 9 months. A man wouldn't do that. But we'll see..... Though the odds are against it, this could just be a random loon who hates pregnant women.

On another note.. Johnny Knoxville got married..... Poor woman.. I couldn't even imagine..

An actors guild strike in New Zealand could hurt Peter Jackson's The Hobbit... Yes, that's right THE HOBBIT... **happy dance** He's apparently pretty pissed off and feels he's done a lot to help his homeland, and has threatened to take filming to Europe if they don't pull their heads from their asses.... THE HOBBIT!!!! I'm so excited... though the article I read states that this is NOT an entirely done deal. *fingers crossed*

Morning Ritual

Coffee!

Wiki recent deaths. Yes, I do this nearly every morning. OMG Gary Coleman and Dennis Hopper.
Art Linkletter last week.
Sometimes I see interesting trends. This month, 14 former Olympians, 7 poets, and 5 chess players. Hmmmm...

Then I go over to CNN.... Check on the oil leak. Still ugly...
Look at some of the headlines. Hmmm England has someone claiming to be a cannibal. I didn't read the article to verify. Nice to see we don't get all the crazies..
In Seoul, South Korea the court sought a 5 year sentence for a couple who let their 3 month old baby starve to death while they played 12 hour sessions of an online 3-D fantasy game, Prius . The premise of the game..... to raise a child and as she ages she gets magical powers. The court returned a 2 year sentence for the 41 year old father... but the 25 year old mother's sentence is suspended... Why? Because in August she'll be having another baby!!

Can I get an "OMGWTF! Really?"