In the light of all the recent events that have taken place over the past month, I have so much to say. Every single time I start to post something on Facebook I have to consider who I am about to offend or who is going to have some snotty thing to reply. Someone telling me how I "hate" someone.
So, lets start this entry by saying this... I hate no one. If you are nice to me, no matter what choices you make, what color you are, or what person you love and want to marry, I will be nice to you. I just want to get this off on that foot so that I wont get the expected rude comments after.
That being said... It is so hard to get my point across sometimes because no one wants to see how certain things can go hand in hand, but they do.
I just read an article that a woman wrote to Donald Trump about his speech on illegals. She was stating that her father was one of the men sent to the US from Mexico. That he came here to make money to send home to his family. He came over illegally and once he was here, they had a child. He worked to make sure that she did good in school, was an upstanding member of society, and now she has a masters degree and wants to defend her father against what people are saying about people who come here from Mexico.
I am sure that he is an amazing man, just as she says. There are many people here from Mexico, and I am aware that many of them are wonderful people who come to America and work very hard. The point of it is... They are still here illegally. If you break into someones home and clean it, you still broke in. So, do I think that it is a rough situation, yes. Do I know that at some point we were all here as immigrants, yes. Since then we have established rules. There used to be no speed limit, does that mean I should say "Our forefathers all drove whatever speed that they wanted so why do people have to obey speed restrictions now" or "we previously did not have to use car seats, so why should we force people to put their children in them now."
So, no matter what, it is ILLEGAL to come into this country as an undocumented immigrant. No matter how great of a person you are, it is still against the law. When I make a remark about an illegal immigrant, I am not "hating" them. I am simply stating that they are breaking a law, and that we are allowing it, and now we can't say anything about it without fear of someone saying that I don't like Hispanics.
Recently a ban on the Confederate Battle flag in certain places and on certain things was implemented. I spoke out against it, to have someone comment on my post using foul language, with a picture of a murderer holding that same flag. So, here it is. I don't care what you think of that flag. Maybe you may think that it means hate, to me it doesn't. To that demented idiot that went into a church and shot those black people as they worshiped, it meant hate. You could have given him a pool noodle as his symbol and still we would have the same outcome. HE would still have hated black people because of his misguided ideas about life. He had hate in his heart and a flag did not put it there.
No one alive today was a slave. No one alive today was a slave owner. No one was alive when that flag was designed. Not everyone who fought for the confederate states was fighting for slavery. They fought and many of their lives were lost. You may see that flag and think it represents slavery, but to some here it is a memory of a past. Ancestors who fought and died. To families of soldiers from long ago that flag represents other things. If you remove that flag and there is never another one in this country, do you think people will just stop having hate in their heart? Do you think that we will remove the flag and then suddenly racist people will say "Well, I am so glad that flag is gone and is no longer brainwashing me to hate people of color, what a relief!" That is not going to happen. They will come up with another symbol of hate, or they will need no symbol at all. A flag DOES NOT have the power to hate. When you are offended by a flag, you are giving it and the people who use it for terrible reasons, that power. People say that racist stereotype all black people into one category and that is exactly what people are doing to this flag. Because a few uneducated idiots used it for a hate symbol, now we are saying that is all it means and now a part of our history must be torn down. Museums must take them down. Have you not heard that people who do not remember the past are doomed to repeat it. Museums that have American History, need to include the history of slavery and they way that very courageous people fought against it and won. It needs to include the history of the Civil War. Taking down parts and pieces of that is not right and it is a disservice to our children and future generations.
But... it seems that I cannot say anything about this or my feelings without someone claiming I am a racist or that I am just uncaring to the population of blacks. WRONG. I am all for us loving each other as we should, as equals. Love everyone. Even people who think the Confederate flag should stay right where it is because it is a part of our national history. And please don't tell me that I don't know what it is like to be black. No, I have no idea what it is like to have darker skin, try as I may to get a little tan, I will never be a black person. I do know what it is like to have two lungs, a brain, a heart, two legs, two arms, a couple eyes, nose, mouth, blood, kidneys, a really annoying gallbladder, and a few other vital organs, just like almost everyone else. I do not know what it is like to be worried about being treated differently because you are a person of color, but I know what it is like to be treated differently because of other things. There are always going to be people who do not like anything different.
Last night I watched my daughter play with a next door neighbor. They were beautiful playing together. They had so much fun and cannot wait until today when they have already made plans to go swimming together. They did see color. No, they noticed no difference. And you know what would have happened if I had pulled out a confederate flag? They would have just played with it like it was any other flag. They would have waved it and wrapped up in and laid on it and used it for tug of war. They would built a fort out of it. You know what they would not have done? Seen it as a symbol of hate. So as much as we should teach our children not to hate, lets teach them that the Confederate flag is nothing more than a flag used long ago during a war. Don't tell your child that people flying that flag hate them. Do not tell them that it is a symbol of slavery. This generation is guilty on both sides of not stopping the hatred.
Now for the most touchy of the subjects. Yesterday a law was passed making gay marriage legal. As of now all courts must issue marriages license to any couple wanting to get married regardless of gender.
I have a lot of people that I care very deeply for who are so happy to see this law passed. This is such a hard one for me, because their happiness means a lot. I love them and I see this as a way for their life to become better. They can share health benefits and they can call themselves married couples. Congratulations. It is a victory for you all.
I do not care what you do in your household. What choices you make are what you will be answering for when Jesus comes back and I have enough to worry about it my own life.
BUT (you knew this was coming right) I have another side of feelings also. I do not believe as a Christian that it is right. (yes I agree divorce is also wrong, thank you, I know, and I will ask for forgiveness for my sins and because I am saved I will be forgiven) I know that we should not judge, and I am not judging you. Go, marry, please... I want nothing in this world but your happiness, but I don't agree that it is right. I have lots of friends and family that I disagree with many of the choices that they make, so please do not think I am just picking you all out of the line up as sinners. I see sin daily in my life and everyone that is around me.
And the problem will come, and I am not saying that whoever is reading this will be the person to do this, when this happens... A couple will go to a church and ask to use the church to be married. They will deny them the right to use the church and then the couple will sue them for loss and pain and all those other things that people sue for when they are asking for outlandish amounts of money. The same goes for bakeries, dress shops, wedding chapels.. etc. The people may not support gay marriage and they will feel that they are going against what they believe in to perform said services and so they will be sued and subsequently shut down. We just saw this same scenario with a bakery. So why? Why do you fight so hard to believe and live the way you want, while anyone who does not agree with you is not allowed to have their own beliefs. I know that a court has to give you a marriage license and that is a wonderful thing. I have stated more than once that I am so happy at this turning point in your life, and in many of your posts you have made the very good point that your marriage wont affect my life at all. And it most likely wont for me. But what about the small mom and pop stores that feel that because of their values they cannot make a wedding cake or perform DJ services at your wedding. Will they all be closed because they cannot pay the 16 million dollars that someone feels that they deserve for pain and suffering for being turned away?
I know that we should all get freedom to live how we want to live. Freedom to believe what we want. Lets just make sure as you celebrate this victory, that we remember that freedom needs to go both ways.
I am sure at this point a few of you have decided that you will never read this blog again, or that you hate me (which its okay for you to hate someone as long as no one is hating you). Some of you think I am sharing hatred for everyone, but I am not. And please remember how you decided not to read my blog because you are against discrimination the next time that you make fun of someone for being overweight, ugly, saying something stupid. None of us are perfect, we can only try our best to have our views and still be respectful of others. THAT GOES BOTH WAYS....
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