Tag: death

listen up!, near and dear, that is so gay, tragic, wtf?!

another, this time local, victim of hate

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This completely breaks my heart: 11 year old boy named Jaheem Herrera, commits suicide to escape bullying and taunting from fellow classmates (h/t to my friend Joey who posted the link earlier this afternoon).

I don’t know if anyone even read the piece that I wrote last week about this EXACT thing happening to another 11 year old boy, Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover, but I will not let this go silently either.

This is sickening. This is outrageous. This is infuriating. This specifically made my already upset stomach turn: Jaheem’s mother, concerned, had talked to Jaheem’s best friend the prior week, who said,

Yes ma’am. He told me that he’s tired of everybody always messing with him in school. He is tired of telling the teachers and the staff, and they never do anything about the problems. So, the only way out is by killing himself.

I’ll say it again; DO SOMETHING if you see this happening. You CAN stop your children from being bigots. EVERYONE must stop the “playful” use of faggot and gay as derogatory terms; it isn’t a joke. ANOTHER 11 year old child is dead because people take this issue so flippantly. Taunting and teasing is not just “kids being kids”, and EVERY time this happens, it adds to the problem.

Our society of “subversive” hate and the fervent anti-homosexuality campaign in this country must stop. This should be a country were an 11 year old child can go to school without fear of being taunted, teased, and bullied to the point that the only way he feels he can escape is to kill himself. It just isn’t right, and I can’t believe that less than a week after writing about a horrible case of this happening, it shows up again, practically at my doorstep.

My heart goes out to Jaheem’s family. Jaheem, I am so sorry for what they put you through, and I am even more sorry that no one with the power to stop them stood up for you. They should be thoroughly ashamed.

Clearly, there is a major problem with anti-gay sentiment and outright hatred for gays in this country. I have to wonder how many children we need to lose before we start doing something about it? Sadly, many have gone before Carl and Jaheem, and many more will go before the judgment and hatred subside. What’s the WORST, is that it doesn’t even matter if these two boys were gay or not; their peers used the hatred and disgust behind words like ‘faggot’ to hurt them so badly, that they couldn’t take it anymore. It disgusts me that people continue to let this happen around them.

A final thought: I will never understand how the very people that stand there, pointing their fingers in our faces, saying that they are morally superior, pass the judgment that causes things like this to happen. Shame on you all. Your “feelings” about homosexuality are far more dangerous than homosexuality itself could ever be.

get involved, is it just me?, listen up!, that is so gay, tragic

how many times must this be said before it actually changes?

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In this clip, Ellen speaks about something very real and very dangerous, and unfortuantely, something that affects us all; HATE:

Seeing this clip (thanks to vanyel) makes me wonder AGAIN, why this isn’t common knowledge, and it makes me wonder how many times we are going to have to say this before it actually changes. I feel horrible for that boy’s family, and for any other family that has been devastated by hate. I am sick of hearing “that’s so gay”, and letting it go, because it isn’t funny. Ellen is right; being gay is not funny, IT’S NORMAL, and until we get that to be the message that everyone hears, things are just going to continue. I never thought I would want to be normal, but that’s exactly what would be the best thing for gay people; acknowledging that we are actually normal.

Is it so much to want to live in a world where you aren’t hated because of who you love? I would like to think that it isn’t too much to ask at all. I am just sickened by all of the hate and cruelty that is taught in this world, and how it is being passed on to our youth.

near and dear, show the love, tragic

RIP Tammy Faye

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I just wanted to write out a few thoughts, and offer my condolences to the family of Tammy Faye; a kind, gentle, beautiful, honorable, and wonderful soul. Tammy, you will be missed. You embraced the gay community, despite the hate the Christian community wanted you to push onto us. You helped people see that we were just people, just like everyone else, and there was no need to hate us because of who we are; and we love you for that. I personally am saddened by her loss, because it is saddest when the world loses someone who truly understood love and compassion; and did not discriminate how she shared it.

May you rest in peace, you sweet, beautiful soul.

I am just glad that you no longer have to suffer, because you definitely deserve eternal happiness; as you have been a shining example of what true Christianity is supposed to be about: acceptance and love.

Thank you for caring about us; I hope that you know that we certainly cared for you in return.

You will be missed, Tammy Faye.

all about me, happenings, hmm interesting, is it just me?, mixed media

more tattoo, tetanus shot pain, and reflections on losing a loved one

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Getting tattooed tonight… not looking forward to the pain, but I am very anxious about getting it done; the design is so cute. I can’t wait. I am worried that it is going to hurt like nobody’s business because of the all over the body pain I have been experiencing since I got a tetanus shot on Monday.

They said that I would be a “little sore”, but it literally feels like someone stabbed me in the arm, and that my arms and legs are in a vice. I just feel extremely uncomfortable in my skin right now. I hope that the pain from that subsides, and I really hope that it doesn’t make the tattoo more painful (which it sometimes can).

Other than that, there isn’t a whole hell of a lot going on with me right now. I am pretty much in limbo zone, trying to get these vaccinations squared away for going back to school. I will be glad when it is finished, and I can find out about my acceptance and all that fun stuff. I have to admit that I am excited about going back to school, but there are two things that are worrying me; I am worried that I won’t do as well as I want to, and I am stressed about the amount of time it is going to take to finish my degree. I just wish I could dedicate 100% of my time to it and knock it out… but we work with what we have, right?

Finally, last night I was watching Kathy Griffin’s My Life on the D-List, and it was a pretty sad episode, because her father died, and she was very distraught by his death. At the risk of coming across as somewhat heartless, I found that I couldn’t relate to what she was feeling; even though I felt bad for her, and as a result got upset myself. What most people would have probably felt during the episode would have been about how they would feel (or did feel) with regards to their own father’s death; but again, I didn’t relate. I had nothing. This is not to say that I wouldn’t be sad if my dad did die, but I just didn’t feel anything when the thought crossed my mind. Again, at the risk of coming across as heartless, I really don’t think that his death would affect me that much, mainly because of how distant my parents have become over the past several years. I talk with them maybe once every two months, and it is always me calling them for whatever reason (asking about when I had chicken pox for my vaccinations sheet was the most recent). The distance may or may not be a lack of caring, but at this point, I have stopped trying to fix it, and instead am learning to just deal with it. They are who they are, and if they wanted to be involved in our lives more, they would be.

See, here is where I am coming from: I had an 8 minute conversation with him on Father’s day, 75% of which I have heard every time I have talked to him on the phone in the past couple of years (they are coming to visit in the fall, he misses us, blah blah blah). Now, I am not saying that I don’t appreciate the sentiment, and that I don’t love my father, because there is nothing farther from the truth, but I honestly feel an empty place inside me where these deep feelings for him “should” be. Will that change? Probably not, because I know that he doesn’t “approve” of my “lifestyle”, and he and my mother keep their distance with expert skill. If things could be different, perhaps I would have identified more with Kathy, instead of simply feeling bad for her loss. Perhaps one day, I won’t feel that emptiness, and will fear the death of my own father, but for now, it isn’t something that particularly bothers me, especially because of his continued absence in my life. I remember being little and one of the things I worried about the most was losing my mother or my father, and as time has progressed, those fears have been hushed so significantly, that they simply aren’t there anymore. I have become numb to that fear, and I honestly couldn’t tell you if I would even feel anything at all. It is strange how your relationships can change so dramatically, especially when you have little or no control over those changes.

I guess that’s how it goes sometimes. Nothing to feel bad about, really, I guess I am just reflecting. I am feeling sort of reflective with Pride weekend coming up and all, and the show just triggered this lack of a reaction, really. Just thought getting it out there would make sense.

Totally shifting gears, who all is going to be out and about during Pride? We should be having a tent, so please, stop by and hang out!

is it just me?, listen up!, movie musings, tragic, venting

when is a stone more that just a stone?

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When it’s a diamond.

Last night, we watched Blood Diamond for the first time and it was shocking. After doing research about conflict diamonds when the movie came out in the theaters, I was excited to see this movie, and I have to say, that I was literally horrified when I saw the things I have read about conflict diamonds portrayed so realistically in the film. What makes the portrayal even more shocking, is that there are people in Africa are actually being killed, maimed, enslaved, and tortured all because of a little clear rock.

But why? Well, the De Beers diamond cartel has created a perception of rarity by controlling and manipulating the world’s supply of diamonds. The prospect of wealth from obtaining and selling these stones drives people to kill and maim (like the hand-less boy pictured here). These stones provide money to rebel organizations that go around doing this merciless killing, and all we have learned about diamonds, is to focus on the 5 C’s. That’s just awful. We’ve been duped, and people are paying for it with their lives.

It’s interesting that this continues, because diamonds are not precious or rare; they are actually found in abundance throughout Africa. But because of the control of those like the De Beers cartel, the value of an otherwise worthless stone fuels greed and destruction. It is a fact, that most of the diamonds that are mined and discovered go into vaults, so as to keep the supply of diamonds on the market very low. This makes the demand for diamonds high. High demand means they are worth more; and with that, owning a diamond has become a symbol of wealth.

The sad fact, is that these stones are used to pay for guns and ammo, which are used in rebel wars. In these wars, people chop off other people’s hands, kidnap their children and brainwash them, turning them into killing machines, and kill anyone that gets in their way. They enslave people to mine the diamonds for them, producing more and more wealth to fuel their wars. But why are these conflict diamonds being bought? Isn’t there a way to stop this? Well, thankfully, the UN and most of the African countries that have diamond supplies have made efforts to require authentication in order to sell diamonds. Unfortunately, the reality is that the conflict diamonds are smuggled out of the region, and their origin is faked in order to obtain “proper documentation”, thus “proving” that the diamonds are not conflict diamonds. Conflict diamonds are supposed to be illegal, but they are still bought and sold every day.

Until there are no more conflict diamonds, many, many people will suffer and die. All for a stone. All for that coveted engagement ring. I never thought about it before, but now, I can’t help but wonder how many people actually died or were maimed every time I see a sparkle from someones diamond ring. Sure, they are pretty, but they are virtually worthless without the supply and demand that De Beers has created. Africa has been producing tons of diamonds over the years, and the cartels control them, so this problem goes on. I for one will be steering clear of diamonds, because I can’t bear to stomach the thought that a diamond that I bought cost someone their hands or their life. Something to think about, isn’t it?

Here is some more information to check out, if you want to learn more. The whole thing just makes me sick, really, that an insignificant stone can be so deadly. A guess a diamond really is forever… but so is death.

Also, sorry if you think the image is graphic, but it struck me, thought it was appropriate. It isn’t mine, it comes from the internets.