A golden opportunity to express thanks

What better way to honor our seniors in their golden years than to provide them with  a better quality of life. This Friday evening, July 27, 2012, residents of Greater Lansing have a golden opportunity to give back for all they have done for us by contributing and participating in the 7th Annual Ingham County TRIAD Senior Prom.

A $25 donation allows you to partake in some of the finest dining in Mid-Michigan at the East Lansing Marriott, as well as hors d’oeuvres from Lou & Harry’s and yummy dessert items from Grand Traverse Pie Company.

The mission of the Ingham County TRIAD is:

 “A partnership among Law Enforcement Agencies, Fire Personnel, Senior Citizens (60+) and Community Members which promotes elder quality of life through advocacy, assistance, education and training.”

Furthermore, Ingham County TRIAD:

“Recognizes the dignity and worth of all senior citizens while addressing the unique needs and concerns of our aging population in a creative, sensitive and effective manner. Ingham County TRIAD pledges to maintain the trust and confidence of our elders by:

• Promoting senior safety through education and training
• Enhancing the delivery of law enforcement services to senior citizens
• Continuing collaborative efforts to meet the needs of our senior community
• Reducing criminal victimization to elder individuals
• Improving the overall quality of life for seniors.”

Sounds like a great, fun, and tasty way to assist senior citizens in the Greater Lansing community. Please consider attending the Senior Prom on July 27th or making a donation to the organization. Either way, it’s a golden opportunity to say thank you.

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The heart of “Brave”

Saw the newest Pixar movie, Brave yesterday afternoon in a theater stuffed to the rafters. While not my favorite Pixar movie of all time, it ranks up there with the best. An excellent film full of howling laughs, edge of your seat action, drama, lovely animated scenery that made me feel I was back in Scotland, and an important moral to the story -

“you must be brave enough to follow your fate.”

The best and most important aspect of the film was the two strong central characters were both women. Both Merida and her mother, the Queen are excellent characters who carry the storyline on their own. They are the heart and soul of the picture.

Most of the men in the movie are rather comical, except Merida’s father. One the three suitors for Merida even vaguely resembled a Middle Ages’ Napoleon Dynamite.

All in all, an enjoyable film that was worth every penny. One caution, small children may get frightened by some of the battle scenes, so use good judgment. Lastly, it is very nice to see Pixar back at the top of its game. Kudos on a terrific film.

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Scenes from Michigan’s vagina support rally

Here are some of my photos taken last night at the Michigan rally in support of vaginas held at the steps of the State Capitol in downtown Lansing. At least 5,000 people attended in support of Women’s Rights.

Sheroes of the day – Rep. Barbara Byrum and Rep. Lisa Brown

“Vagina Monologues” being presented

Under a beautiful June evening sky.

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Michigan vagina rally

Photo of portion of the crowd in front of the state capitol in Lansing.

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Michigan vagina rally

I am currently attending the Rally for Vaginas at the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing. This is easily the largest crowd I have seen at a capitol rally with at least 5,000 women and men of all ages attending.

The rally is in response to the overtly prudish and arrogant actions of the conservative, male dominated state house of representatives where the leader censured two female representatives last week. More will be posted tomorrow.

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More musings

• What exactly is a wild goose chase? Is it like a greased pig contest?
• If we are so free and have so many liberties in the United States, then why can’t a female state legislator in Michigan say the word “vagina” without be censored by her conservative male counterparts?
• It is unfortunate that the parents of some conservative pundits and politicians didn’t do a better job of practicing birth control.
• If a cow can jump over the moon, why isn’t that factoid listed in the Guinness Book of World Records?
• If several states, including Michigan have towns named Climax, do you ever wonder which one came first? : )

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GOP legislative “house’shit and ‘man’ure (NSFW)

I was totally disgusted yesterday by the puritanical and prudish actions of the male-dominated Michigan House leadership for silencing two female legislators. As the War on Women has been raging for nearly two years, Representative Lisa Brown (no relation) expressed satirical appreciation to all those legislators who were “concerned about her vagina.” She was silenced for that statement.

Representative Brown

Meanwhile, Representative Barb Byrum was silenced for protesting that she was not being allowed to speak on another bill. Once again those stalwarts of liberty and freedom proceeded to silence her as well. My, how Kabul on the Grand River is so delightfully charming and civil in June.

Representative Byrum

I don’t know about you folks, but the actions of these right-wing GOP (a.k.a. Grand Old Pricks) zealots in the Michigan House is getting out of hand.

I am also curious why these women were silenced when earlier this year Representative Rick Jones was not  for using the word “hooker” to describe a female public relations executive. Oops, I forgot. He’s a man, so stupid, idiotic, prudish, puritanical, asinine, and archaic rules written by other egotistical, etc. men do not apply to him.

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Ya get what ya vote for

Earlier this week, House Republicans blocked a Democrat proposal to require equal pay for women for equal work. This represents yet another attack on women by the right.

So folks, we have an election coming up later this year. If you are a male or female supporter of women’s rights and for equal pay for equal work, then I hope you choose to vote for those candidates who also support these issues. Otherwise, ya get what ya voted for.

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A few predictions

Making predictions on future events and trends can be risky, as more often than not you are likely to be wrong. But, there are a few items I think are worth noting. So here goes:

• Brazil, not India will be the next superpower after China and the first in the Southern Hemisphere.
• Sadly, I think parts of Europe may be headed for possible open warfare – not over political ideologies, but between the haves and the have-nots. If the USA is not careful, it may be going down that same path.
• The Basque and Catalonia regions of Spain will successfully separate into independent nations as a result of the economic upheaval.
• Canadian banks will become among the world’s largest and most influential as they avoided the pitfalls of the housing bubble.
• The Republican Party will split in two within five years.
• Poland will become an economic powerhouse as the link between Germany and Russia.
• America’s first woman President will be elected in 2016.

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A disturbing example of role reversal

In 2010, the Supreme Court decided in the Citizen United case that corporations are “people.” More recently, I have seen and heard references to people as something other than “people.”  I have heard “units” utilized on a television commercial for Colonial Penn Life Insurance and “giving units” at two different churches to describe people who donate to the church. While this may be accounting lingo, I find it very disturbing that corporations are being called “people” while people are being described as “units.”

This may seem innocent to some, but my concern is these subtle alterations slowly but surely dehumanize people into something other than human beings, while raising corporations up to a standard of perception that frankly, they do not deserve.  When you dehumanize people, it can be the start of a very slippery slope towards mistreating and disrespecting them. It is much easier to dispose of a “unit” than a “person.” We all know history is littered with the corpses of those poor souls who were dehumanized by their enemies.

To keep humankind from repeating some of history’s lowest moments, it is high time for all of us to re-emphasize our love and respect for ALL of humanity, whether they are our friends, family, neighbors, fellow citizens, or our enemies. Love is life’s greatest gift. It is time for each and every one of us on the planet to start behaving like we appreciate this generous blessing.

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