The War Never Left

I was asked to speak Veteran’s Day at an anti-war event by the Chicago Vietnam Veterans Memorial. While I would like to spend a bit more time refining this message as it feels like a run-on sentence. Here is the speech as penned. “My name is Edgar Gonzalez. I’m a teacher, a veteran, an artist, an immigrant, a latino, and I’m queer. With the president elect, I would be lying to myself if I said I wasn’t scared. I deployed to war Iraq in 2005, and came back home in 2006. Many would say that a war is coming. I say that the war never left. It’s always been there, in the corners of the TV screens, in social media posts, in newspaper stories, in the communities which have bad news reported with the matter-of-fact assumption that bad news always happens there, like the south or west sides of Chicago. The war is present in the way that churches are firebombed because the congregation is black. Or the way that we are told that we are told that we should be afraid of immigrants from “over there in the Middle East” because they might be terrorists while we ignore the terrorists in our own house. The war is present in how an armed militia of American men can occupy federal land, be peacefully negotiated with, and then later acquitted because of the color of their skin, while Native people are first ignored, then maced, spied on, tear-gassed and bulldozed by police forces using the same equipment I saw used in Iraq while the First Nations are defending their right to clean drinking water. The war is present in the military industrial complex which refuses to hire a transgender woman at a grocery store, or a restaurant, or a clinic; criminalizes the sex work she will turn to as a means of survival, but then lifts a ban on transgender people enlisting on the military because the quotas of enlistees from poor communities can no longer satisfy the military’s need for bodies to send to the front lines of conflicts so wide-spread and far-flung they are as difficult to keep track of as number of unarmed black people gunned down by police, the black women killed, or like Marissa Alexander, jailed because they are put in impossible positions, or the trans women of color with such disdain that if it weren’t for the activists mobilizing and imploring us to #SayHerName, we might never know about them at all. The war is present in how economic policy devastates our infrastructure, starves our education, leaves millions of people without jobs by downsizing any industry which does not have a direct tie to benefit of a war based economy and insists that there is no money to tend to the sick, without inflating big pharmaceuticals, or for education, which might rob the military of a pliable uncritical mind they could recruit, rebuild a crumbling infrastructure that might provide our families clean drinking water, safe roads to travel on, heat for our loved ones in the winter. The war has been here and is roosting in the hatred the Trump campaign has inspired and emboldened. The kind of racism, sexism, xenophobia, islamophobia, transphobia, and homophobia which the Trump campaign has legitimized. Against the war, it is important to remain educated, dedicated, and ready. The battles are in discussing uncomfortable topics outside of social media. In breaking of dinner table taboos and speaking out for what you believe in. Our battles are in the premise of being. Of being an immigrant, latinx, queer, a woman, trans, a veteran, a muslim, black, or any other race or religion. In doing what you do to carry yourself, your family, and your loved ones forward. In the backlash against our communities, existing is a battle in this war. In my opinion - being yourself fully, openly, aggressively loving is one of the battles you can win every day. Take care of yourselves Take care of each other Educate yourselves Support the people who organize by being present, or by making snacks for them to take to rallies and marches, or by being a check-in buddy for them, donating time or money, getting involved with political organizing, getting involved in local politics and running for school boards, and local positions. We can move forward de-militarizing police, properly funding education, providing healthcare, providing shelter for the homeless. We CAN confront this new assault of racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia. Steadfast Shoulder to shoulder taking care of each other. “

Reflecting on the DOMA ruling today

When I came out to myself almost a full decade ago, I had resigned myself to the notion that there were some things in life which were never going to happen for me. There were things which I would never have and dreams I had to quell because of who I was, and what that legally meant here in the United States, let alone also serving in the military. It was a part of me I had parted with, which I saw as necessary in order to move forward with my life. It was my rearranging of the reality I constructed. Because of who I was, my religious identity changed because my being queer was seen as an abomination and a sin. I could not get married because that was something hetero folk did. Marriage was something which, looking back on now, I had subconsciously discarded. It was not something I was ever going to do.
I loosely followed the debate on the "Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)", as well as "Don't Ask Don't Tell (DADT)". I felt the acute sting of betrayal when the first repeal of DADT failed, and elated when it finally was repealed. I knew that the Supreme Court was going to rule on DOMA this year after the knockout drag-out fight over California's discriminatory "Proposition 8 (Prop 8)". I knew that equal rights were something which was happening in small but important steps across the nation. That every year, and every election, there were small victories. Iowa was kind of surprising. Then eventually Washington State. But there was the challenge taken up to the Supreme Court. They ruled this morning that portions of DOMA were unconstitutional. There was in that ruling happiness that they did something which gave more rights to people who did not have them. There is irony in that they took some voting rights away just the day prior. But here was a federal path forward toward equality. Like Loving v Virginia, and the Civil Rights Act of 1964, here was another landmark ruling. I celebrated along with the hundreds of friends too elated by the ruling. And then it hit me. There is the possibility of if I fall in love with someone, and want to spend my life with him I can in the future get married. I was so overcome with emotion, it was like reuniting with a someone who I had thought dead, mourned, and missed brought back from the dead. I was paralyzed, weeping, and contrary to my countenance so overcome with happiness psychologically, and biologically, I had no clue how to react. I'm still grappling with the notion. A door I thought closed, and bricked over was all of a sudden open once again.
There is still a great deal of work to do. There are several states for which the ruling changes nothing for same-sex couples who wish to marry the one they love. There is still a tremendous and arduous fight for transgender rights both nationally, and for the military. In Illinois because there is no recognition of same-sex marriage, the ruling on DOMA is essentially meaningless. But the fact that it happened, is a monumental step in the right direction.

An Arbitrary Anniversary

Eight years ago, I was fighting the flue and had missed a drill weekend which was part of my commitment to my contract with the United States Army Reserves. I actually agonized over whether or not I would go to drill that weekend because while I was sick and feeling rather miserable, I also had a misguided sense of duty combined with a diminished sense of self-care. I ended up doing what could be considered the responsible thing and stayed home with my sickness. It was February 13, 2005; a Sunday morning. My supervising NCO (Non-Commissioned Officer) called my house asking to speak with me. She asked me how I was, and if I was recovering well, and if I was sitting down. I said I was, and she replied with "You're going to Baghdad". Whatever visceral emotional response I might have had, I will never know. Reflexively I was a clear minded professional calculating a thousand things which were contingent on my almost robotic reply: "What's my timeline?"

The next day was a series of phone calls, and e-mails to school. I was within a year of graduation of a series of classes which I had fought tooth and nail through a portfolio review to get into. It was imperative I knew I would have my place held or if I was going to have to resubmit my portfolio again. I had to notify work, and I had to let certain friends and family know I was leaving soon - really soon.

After a few farewells, and a few very encouraging metaphorical but well needed kicks in the ass, I was not sad when I was saying my farewells and good byes. I consequently found out I would have far more time than the "This Thursday" my NCO told me, as there was training I had to complete prior to heading overseas.

The deployment was a profoundly formative experience in my life, which I cannot say with any sort of confidence that I would be the person I am today were it not for that experience. There are people whom I would have never been put on a path to meet were it not for how my military service and actually deploying affected the way I think, and helped shape my values and beliefs. There are people like Marc-Anthony, or Cherie whom I would have never spoken too or been fortunate enough to befriend. The introduced me to Sacha Sacket, wonderful ideas, and unbridled kindness of strangers. A longer lasting kindness than the Bangor Troop Welcomers, who also are very deserving of my respect.I would have never met the other "nerdiest person in the batallion" Lysandwr, my deployment girlfriend! If I had not deployed to Baghdad I would not have taken an interest in foreign languages and cultures, nor would I have gotten involved with the Vet Art Project, and met Lisa, Jessa, Tim, and subsequently Aaron, Sabrina, Nicky, Vinny, Alejandro, Barry, Hans, or Iris. My friendship with Susheela would not have been as nurturing nor fulfilling. I would not make the kind of art which I am making now, nor would I explore the ideas and grapple with the issues which I grapple with now.

So today, I honor my eighth anniversary to my deployment to a war we should have never fought, but my involvement in has made me a more conscientiousness and engaged inhabitant of the world.

Shocking War Videos and the Forgotten Context of War

Recently there was a video of four United States Marine Fighters urinating on the corpses of alleged Taliban fighters. Rick Perry drew some criticism for comparing the video to the Daniel Pearl video as noted on the Daily Beast. Asra Nomani wrote a very compelling response to the concept which Perry brought up. Reflecting on my own experiences with the criticism of war videos and the criticism they will draw, I am compelled to reflect and respond to this. There have been numerous videos which have emerged from both sides of the ideological “War on Terrorism”. The “War on Terror” itself is problematic, and I am certain historians are busy writing their dissertations on the matter. Something that people forget, and Perry touches on this, as well as Nomani: War is one of the most destructive, devastating and catastrophic forces in the world. Part of the outrage which stems from the Marine video urinating on the corpses, as unfortunate as those actions are, is that in this ideological war, we idealize and elevate our fighting forces to a status comparable to paragons of virtue, defenders of all that is right and just in the world. They are representatives of American virtues and values. They represent everything that is purportedly good and wholesome about America. In the paradigm set forth by the ideological narrative of the “War on Terrorism” our enemies are subhuman. They represent everything that is wrong with that “other” culture, with their antiquated belief system (which ironically brought Europe out of the Dark Ages). They are barbaric murderous savages who embody all the vices which American Values abhor. The worst of the inhumanity is represented in the video where they butcher Daniel Pearl, and subsequently Nicholas Berg, and numerous other innocent casualties of war. This is an enemy who by the existence of these videos does not value human life, and is so ravenous and violent American forces are paragons of virtue fighting the forces of evil. Killing someone in such a manner and disseminating a video of the butchering can be nothing less than an inhuman act of people. We forget these people are in fact human. Nomani states that one of the men who killed Daniel Pearl retched and had to step out of the room when Pearl was being dismembered. However, both the Taliban forces just like the US Armed forces are at the end of the day human. I am not absolving the actions of either group. I am merely seeking to point out an important omnipresent fact: we forget the humanity of those we send to fight in war. Our society is probably all very jaded and so protected and removed from the realities of war that when a video such as the one the Marines have is shocking and appalling. The narrative and the reality of war is so far removed that it is a cold hard slap to the face when it is dropped on our news narrative again. The idealization and simplification of something as complex, brutal, and transformative as war seems only natural. War is so volatile that even the most virtuous people shed a bit of their humanity, and civilians do not and arguably cannot understand this. I deployed to Baghdad Iraq in 2005 through 2006 and I maintained a blog as a means of communication with some friends since I did not have all their e-mail addresses, and I could jot down my thoughts on a word document and paste it later. One of the discussion that emerged on a blog post not of my own involved a video which was at best a display of military power, at its most base and banal Neanthderthal-like, it is testosterone driven chest-thumping military cum shot. The person who posted this video was decrying how horrible it is and all the atrocities that military forces were raining down on Iraq & Afghanistan; a narrative of someone who clearly was unfamiliar with war, or deployment. In my deployment, I was a paper pusher. I worked logistics, so most of my time was either driving all over the Baghdad military bases or command complexes picking up and dropping off materials. I would hardly consider my deployment going to war, so videos such as the one this individual posted were common circulation as a means of passing the time, and entertaining ourselves because the time between missions, and a form of stress relief (albeit sophomoric, and juvenile, but stress relief nonetheless). I defended this video as such, and for daring to speak my opinion and the most memorable and insightful reply I received was “You are worse than Satan.” Now as the New Yorker Magazine cartoon once brilliantly stated “On the Internet, no one knows you are a dog.”, so to this armchair activist, it did not matter that I was a deployed troop/college student who had some insight into the thought processes behind why these videos are made. To them, I was probably some gun-toting hick from middle of nowhere southern United States who voted republican always and unapologetically. I too drew conclusions about this blogger and his comments. When I read Nomani’s editorial piece, I reflected on this. Maybe our culture has experienced War fatigue. Afghanistan is no longer a feature in the headlines because of the issues with the economy. Stories about troops coming home and going on post traumatic stress injury fueled fits of violence are seen as uncommon, or exceptions to the rule (which in some cases they are) I read this and I think…. A lot of people truly do not understand war. I include myself in that demographic. I think I have meandered beyond the main idea of what I wanted to get to. I do not think we should be all that surprised that for every terrorist posting a video of the butchering of a human being from the “other side”, we should not be surprised when our own fighting forces do something like piss on the corpses of their enemies. I say this without condoning or absolving the actions of either group, but with the intent of getting the few people who read this to think before they so quickly cast judgment.

GOP Debate or The reason my right hand reflexively flips off the screen as I am writing lesson plans

I saw the GOP debate last night and as much as a distraction it ended up being, it has made the word "republican' all the more dirty filthy and representative of all that is wrong with the world in terms of corruption, greed, and the absence of human empathy. I know not all republicans are like the pony show of trotted out in front of the Reagan Library, however, It begs the question about the sensible people I know are out there: This is who you want to represent you?!?!
I wouldn't vote for any of those people with your vote, let alone mine. I know there are conservative leaning individuals who are sensible empathetic people who understand the nuance and circumstance can drive individuals to hard times, and they are deserving of some manner of mercy, or at least more mercy than what the would be presidential candidates for the Republican Party. Also, am I incorrect in thinking the thing which garnered the loudest applause was the brazen hypocritical statement clad in righteous indignation about Capital Punishment by Rick Perry stating that in texas if you commit the ultimate crime against others, you shall receive the ultimate justice. Yet earlier in the night Perry claimed he would err on the side of life. I suppose because he is using Republican Logic, it is not what would be recognized in the real world as a logical fallacy.

Because this beckons some manner of reaction

Pretty much every news source, internet, televised, and broadcast has been flooded with the news that Osama Bin Laden has been killed by U.S. Military action. My reaction was at first skeptic, and now cautious. Killing or capturing Bin Laden has been a tantamount priority in the mission in Afghanistan. He and the Al-Qaeda have been an adversary and figurehead for radical perversion of Islam. On May 1, 2011, The news channels and President Barrack Obama have confirmed that Osama Bin Laden has been killed through U. S. Military Operation. I wonder, and question what effect this will have on Operation: Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. I wonder if troops will be brought home, or how much longer will they be deployed overseas? I wonder if Al-Qaeda will attempt some manner of retribution for the death of one of their public leaders. I wonder if there will be a a strain on Pakistani/U. S. relations. I stand, cautious and watchful, hoping that things will improve of only slightly.

أنا إرهابي : فكرة تحديث

أنا إرهابي has been evolving a bit, if not in form and formal presentation, but in applicable concept. I have been presented with two conceptual quandaries. One is the prospect of owning the label of "Terrorist" is far too confrontational. In the face of everything that is happening with what essentially amounts to separate media echo chambers in which each side accuses the other of being terrorists to one degree or another. Generally, I agree with some progressive principals: Equal rights for all, woman's reproductive health is a between a woman and her doctor, and generally speaking, religion likewise is between you and your god or no god if you so choose. To the conservative fringe, and the conservative fringe of the fringe, such beliefs and inclinations are seen as a form of terrorism. There is a myth perpetrated that to go against what are seen as conservative principles is somehow Un-American and you are effectively a 'terrorist'. Or another of my favorite myths, that progressives, liberals, and even center-left people have a deep-seated disdain and hatred for America. I find the thought laughable, and at worst deplorably close-minded. Conceptually, owning the phrase "I'm a terrorist" or "أنا إرهابي" would be seen by this possible audience as a defiant declaration which would validate their worst suspicions. They would totally miss the point. The echo-chamber propaganda spin would be something along the lines of "They admit it! They really are terrorists! We are justified in waging war against the godless liberal left!". It amounts to a rallying cry which poses those who are different as enemy, and attempts to dehumanize stated enemy in order to justify violence as an appropriate response.
The second is the possibility of presenting the project as a passive voice, basically questioning the premise that because people hold beliefs essentially opposed to certain, for lack of better descriptor: biblical moral principles, those people are somehow terrorists. It is another angle for the concept of owning this idea that those who would oppose your views would be your enemy and at worst, terrorists who are looking to destroy one's way of life.
"I believe that the lesbian couple who has been together for thirty years deserve to get married as a symbol of their devotion to each other, and in that receive all the legal benefits that a civil marriage bequeaths unto them. In believing that, I'm a Terrorist?" Rhetorically, phrasing it in that way rings dramatically different. "I believe Planned Parenthood is an important resource for women in low-income circumstances, for that, I'm a terrorist?" Presented in this manner, أنا إرهابي questions the dehumanizing effect which violent rhetoric puts forth on those who politically do not agree with you. We have freedom of speech, but with such freedoms, do we really exercise the responsibility of how the words will impact those who listen?

أنا إرهابي

I have been absent from here for a while. In recent months I have been percolating an idea which is mildly radical, but I have been reticent to move forward on, mainly on account that it is a drastic idea. To the extreme conservative and fringe elements of conservatism, and religion, someone who is homosexual or just not heterosexual, represent something so abhorrently reprehensible that we can be likened to terrorists. I thought about taking this a step further and owning such a term. In order to bridge the link between Wahabi Muslims who have often been the perpetrators of many of the past decade's terrorist attacks, through a simple act of language "I am a terrorist" or "أنا إرهابي" has become the new subject matter. At this point in time I am still playing with the phrase as a calligraphic form, but also as a label. We'll see how this idea develops.

A Really Late response to the Tucson Arizona Shootings and the surrounding politics

Last weekend a very unfortunate and gruesome event occurred in Tucson Arizona, when Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was shot point blank range through the head by an unwell gunman Jared Lee Loughner. Loughner had a high capacity clip for his pistol which allowed him to fire 31 total rounds before having to reload, which resulted in 6 deaths, and numerous injuries. I have the benefit of hindsight and the distance of time and space from this event in which I had plenty of time to digest the on-goings as they unfolded in the news media and the responses of the nation and myself to the shooting.

My first thought for good or for ill, and a shortcoming in my own judgments was "what right wing gun-happpy nutbag is responsible?". That judgment is a very broad generalization as I know most conservatives while strong in their convictions, and sometimes misinformed (something I am guilty of myself) are generally not bad people. As more information emerged about the shooter various news networks tried to paint him as an extremist of either the right or left based on what is altogether an arbitrary and wide-spanning selection of "favorite books" from Loughner's myspace page. All judgments about the shooter's politics opinions and conjecture piece-mealed and selected by presenting what was altogether only a limited selection of his readings.

As more information about the tragedy unfolded, we found out that Representative Giffords was part of Sarah Palin's Political Action Party's site to take back twenty districts from Democrats who voted to pass the Federal Health Care Reform. The districts marked off under a rifle scope's cross-hairs (I don't care what spin you try to retroactively put on the images, they are NOT surveyor's graphics, I know a rifle scope cross-hairs when I see it.) There are people who believe that symbolism and language riddled with gun euphemisms, and metaphors. This sparked a debate as to whether or not the political rhetoric was responsible for generating an environment in which politicians play on the public's fears and that in turn results in acts of violence seeming justified; a "do onto others BEFORE they do on to you" kind of mentality. I thought it was amusing to see the response from either side of the political spectrum, as it is telling when someone feels they are being called out on the offending behavior. It seemed a lot of the conservative news media and politicians responded with a "what are you accusing us of?" kind of response, where as some of the liberal media outlets acknowledged what might constitute their own infractions and adjusted their speech accordingly. My favorite example of the adjustment is Keith Olberman's satirical segment "Worst Person in the World" usually poking fun at people whose disregard for their fellow man may not be necessarily dangerous, but certainly deplorable if comedic in how it is presented. Olberman did not run this segment in the past week, acknowledging that not everyone may be able to appreciate the segment's satire.

What has been brought to light as well in terms of the shooting was the long history and frequency of mass shootings which have occurred in the United States. I do believe we have the second amendment for a reason, however I think that we should look at the Right to bear Arms with reason and a sense of wisdom. What sorts of things are perfectly admissible in terms of owning firearms, and why is it justifiable. This week Congress has introduced a Bill which would ban the public sale of high capacity magazine clips. High-capacity magazines are not used by any part of public service. Policemen do not have them, and many members of the military do not use them, so why should any civilian individual need them? There is public acknowledgment that automatic weapons are also effectively banned on a federal level, and depending on the state, actually banned. What I mean by 'effectively banned" is that access to certain kinds of materials involve a rigorous process and series of background checks as well as some large fees which need to be paid and are a hassle. If you are willing to go through the process, and your state does not have an outright ban on automatic weapons, you can get a machine gun.

These events of course are not without their heroes. For every sociopath who has no regard for their fellow man, there is a selfless courageous individual who you would swear has ice water running through their veins, and the well being of others becomes tantamount. In the Arizona shooting, this person is Daniel Hernandez, a 20 year old, Latino intern who happens to be gay. Three traits which are no more important that any other, but given Arizona's recent controversial political history, three traits which should not be left out of the dialogue about the shooting (Also three traits which as one reader of the Dan Savage Blog, will guarantee a teabagger's head to explode). Daniel ran TOWARD the gunfire once he heard bullets and attended Gabrielle Giffords' injuries, keeping her upright and applying pressure to the wound. Danile has been lauded as a hero by the nation, including President Obama. During the Memorial, Daniel Hernandez while appreciative of the sentiment "humbly rejected the mantle of 'hero'" to a standing ovation of everyone in attendance. My thoughts on his response were ironically "spoken like a true hero". He really is, in spite of his rejection of the title. I certainly sympathize with the rejection of the sentiment.

Overall, the events are unfortunate, however they are just another series in a chain of a bloody and violent history of shootings here in the state. The shooting in Tucson is horrible, but it is anything but inconceivable.

SHOCK & AWE: Senate actually passed legislation.

I have been absent from blogging for a while, but I have maintained a proverbial ear to the proverbial ground as far as what this Lame Duck Senate has been up to as of late. In the past few months I have grown increasingly disillusioned, disappointed, and disgusted with the obstructionist tactics the Republican Minority in Senate has taken to make sure nothing gets done. The idea that Congress is a "Law-making body" seems to cease as soon as anything arrives at Senate, while the House of Representatives has been moving through legislation at least more effectively, though far from perfectly. I had adapted to the idea that Senate was where legislation of any sort went to die, and Senators were not interested in any sort of governing, but rather looking out for their own best interests and those that would screw the populous for the sake of giving the prodigious middle digit to one Moderate Liberal President of a political party some people plain don't like. Imagine my surprise this morning when I read the news that the Repeal of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Policy which keeps non-heterosexual individuals from serving openly, honestly, and with personal integrity (all values touted as paramount by the Armed Forces) out of the military. The Repeal of DADT is a piece of legislation which I keep near and dear to my heart because it affected me personally and made my deployment all that much more difficult to endure. I would have re-enlisted if it were not for DADT. Personal stories aside, In my jaded cynicism with the Senatorial section of the Legislative branch of government, the fact that ANYTHING got done was shocking. I'm happy the repeal got through, and is due to be signed into law. I am surprised that Senate did anything coherent in light of the established pattern of obstructing anything for the sake of political gain and getting nothing substantial accomplished. I think the later fact is far more surprising than the news that the repeal passed.

Glenn Beck can have free reign on criticizing veterans groups when I see his DD214

I found out that just earlier today Glenn Beck made a certain criticism of Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans of America when a listener of his radio show stated they received funding from the political action group MoveOn.Org. Glenn Beck stated that IAVA a nonprofit, nonpartisan veterans group is secretly a front for a socialist agenda. While I do not believe that veterans groups are above reproach or criticism, I do believe in the criticism being founded on something more substantial than a phone call, or that the group receives funding from a political action group. I am certain that there are many veterans nonprofit organizations that receive funding from groups with opposing ideals. But that a IAVA is secretly a socialist/communist front group? SERIOUSLY? It is veterans who allow for Beck to make these cowardly, panic induced, deluded accusations. I suppose that Beck achieves his goal of getting more media attention by saying such baseless appalling and grotesque accusations that a veterans group basically started on the grounds of picking up the slack where the government was not doing what it could as a "socialist" front. When he completes a tour of duty with the marines or the army, gets deployed overseas for Operation New Dawn, or Operation Enduring Freedom, and has an honorable discharge... I might let him slide for saying something like that.
And like Rachel Maddow stated in her show this evening. the saddest part is now thousands of listeners will now believe that IAVA is a socialist group.

Emotional Outbursrsts and Productivity

I will begin first by expressing my unsurprised disappointment with Senate not passing the Defense Authorization Bill. As Rachel Maddow stated "Republicans, your culture war is showing." Because the Republican Party did not want to have to deal with anything which would deal with the repeal of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell(DADT) Policy, the filibustered the whole bill. Politicians cited a whole multitude of reasons why they voted No on SB 3454, but I am a little bit more taken aback by Sen. McCain blatant denial in an interview after the session denying that DADT is not used to witch-hunt homosexual soldiers out of the military, despite that Air Force Major Mike Almy was discharged under DADT for that specific reason. I think I will cease that rant there.

Correlating with my disappointment has been, in my opinion, an alarming rate of art production. Yesterday I had primed several canvases for making something interesting, or maybe inane and un-pretty. I have now before me three recently finished artworks, two of which I intend on exhibiting in November.

This past weekend, I also purchased two particle board panels. It has been one of my artistic wants to have a kitschy collage board, which I intend on making into a 4.5'-5' tall room divider. I will eventually purchase the a third panel so that this project has the base and stability to stand on its own. In the mean time. I will begin adhering different images which I find fascinating and pretty to the panels. Hopefully, it will look like the inside of an old record store with hundreds of images that have been pasted up and taken down over years. It will not necessarily have that aged look, but hopefully a similar aesthetic.

Pastor Terry Jones is a Coward

Pastor Jones from Gainsville Florida has sounded a rallying cry against Islam in his profound and lamentable ignorance. He plans on staging a Qoran buring rally on September 11, 2010. Jones believes that the now renamed Park 51 Place Muslim Community Center, formerly called Cordoba House is an affront to the September 11 Memorial which is under construction at Ground Zero.

Pastor Jones and his congregation burning one-thousand Qoran's on September 11, is not a defiant act against what he perceives to be a tyrant religion, but at best an act of cowardice, and no matter which way you look at it, an act of sacrilege. He and his church's actions will endanger the lives of US troops overseas. The troops will be the ones to suffer the worst of the consequences for Pastor Jones burning the Qoran. The fact that he thinks this is a defiant act is beyond me. There is nothing brave, or profound about this. It is disrespectful, bitter, hate-filled vitriol. Jones and his congregation will not face the worst of the consequences. They will not have to face the people of Afghanistan and Iraq, and pretty much all other Muslims. He will not have rocket-propelled Grenades launched at him. He will not be shot at, or have fire bombs hurled at his vehicle. Muslim people overseas will not understand Freedom of Speech that is written in the Constitution. They will see a hateful American man descrating a Muslim Holy Book, as representative of American Sentiment because he has the right to do so. He will not have to endure what will happen to the troops overseas if he goes through with this.



That terrifies and shakes me to my core in a way that words fail to truly express. The most concise and articulate thought I can state is "Pastor Terry Jones is a coward."