There’s been a lot of discussion lately about same-sex marriage, more so than usual, with the U.S. Supreme Court poised to make a definitive ruling to set precedent in the matter. In the case of human existence, however, there is really only one correct side for any just law to be on.

This is my philosophy on life:

People should be free to do whatever they want, say whatever they want, and believe in whatever they want, as long as their actions are not to the detriment of other living beings. Basically, like Bill and Ted said, just be excellent to each other. That’s all.

I believe a person named Jesus Christ once said something in a similar vein. I don’t believe he ever said “Love everyone—except the gays, and the Muslims, and the Jews,” and whoever. Seems he was rather unconditional about love, and anything in the same belief system that would run contrary to that philosophy should have a person seriously questioning the system as a whole. That’s my belief. You might believe something different. And you know what? As long as you’re not hurting anybody, that’s perfectly okay.

I don’t believe in religion, but this isn’t an attack on religion. If anything, this is a defense of it—because while I don’t subscribe to any one religion, I’ll cut out my tongue before I say it’s not okay for other people to believe what they wish. Me not believing in religion does not make it okay for me to say no one should be able to believe in religion, in the same way that it isn’t okay for a religious person to impose their beliefs upon those who believe anything to the contrary. That’s not what life is about, and it’s not what government is about.

So, regarding same-sex marriages: I really don’t see how allowing two people who love each other to spend their lives together, regardless of their sex, hurts anyone—and I can’t imagine having more love in the world would make it anything but better.

And when people understand that, and respect that, and realize that this world is made beautiful by the billions of unique ways human beings interpret and navigate life and love, that is when we are the best people we can possibly be.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren slapping around some bank regulators who don’t want to answer her perfectly logical question. Can we get more of this, please? And, y’know, some ensuing accountability as a result?

For now, I’ll just be thankful for Senator Warren and bask in the glow of these people squirming.

This is a picture of me and a number of other students from our high school meeting with Barack Obama in 2004, while he was running for Senate. Talking to him, and hearing him speak that day, in the VFW hall of a small Illinois town, there was no question in my mind he was going to go on to do some very big things.

Barely relevant, but me and a few friends had a contest afterwards at Denny’s to see who could drink the most Cherry Cokes. I won with six and claimed it was the “power of Obama” that allowed me to do it. Like him or not, the man knows how to be inspirational.

Ladies and Gentlemen, SOPA is back. Meet CISPA:

1.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ya2TmSmbUQI&feature=g-all-u&context=G2ca0619FAAAAAAAAPAA

2.) http://rt.com/usa/news/cispa-bill-sopa-internet-175/

So, what, telling Congress once that this bullshit isn’t going to fly wasn’t enough? I tend to agree with mumblingkraken there on reddit—that these people are just going to keep recycling this same garbage and won’t rest until they’ve succeeded in seeing it through.

Is it too much to ask to have a representative democracy in this country where people can elect citizens to represent their best interests? Where we can realistically elect people from more than just two political parties, because money doesn’t control who has a voice? Can we live in a country where weekly threats to our freedom aren’t discussed in our nation’s capitol as new legislation rather than things to be safeguarded against?

I’d like a government that actually respects the words written on its founding document and follows them. I’d like to live in a country that doesn’t pass laws disguised as preventing piracy or addressing legitimate concerns about child pornography when REALLY what they’re meant to do is silence people who voice their disagreement with what their government is doing and take away their primary tool for information sharing and voicing their dissent.

Disagreement and dissent over weekly rights removal, here in AMERICA—where the Supreme Court just said it’s okay for police to strip search anyone for any offense (even just perceived, nonexistent ones), no matter how small, because it wasn’t enough for private citizens to be groped and manhandled in just airports. Where the police are given large sums of money by corporations to contain people protesting their corruption and their partial responsibility for driving this country into an economic crisis (and that they have yet to be taken to task for it—instead they’re given $16 trillion in secret bailouts by the government) and then those in charge look the other way when the police beat them down, violate their rights, SHOOT them even—peaceful protestors like Scott Olsen, who FOUGHT FOR OUR COUNTRY to protect the rights its government is now taking away. Where police are used by the government and private corporations as tools of oppression rather than as protection. Where the government is ruled by lobbyists and corporations and the few with money make the call for the vast majority, and the decisions they make do not reflect the best interests of the many, but the greed of the few.

This is AMERICA. Why are we even talking about this? What in liberty’s name has this country become? What is this ugly, twisted, looming shadow that calls itself by a name we know and love, but plunges all within its borders into darkness?

On 9/11, terrorists brought a couple of buildings down and murdered thousands of American citizens. But that wasn’t their end goal. What they wanted was what came after—to destroy America’s economy with an ensuing war we couldn’t win, and destroy the very principles this country was founded upon.

And we let them.

This.

Must.

STOP.

Draw the line and hold it. Say no to CISPA just like we said no to SOPA. Let our government know that we will not stand for this.

They will not stop—they will persist, counting on us becoming tired of staving off their offensive legislation over and over again. But we must be just as persistent, or we will fail. And the cost of our failure will be our freedom, in a country that once really did stand for the word and the principles of it. We need to make this that country once again.

We. Us. You.

WE the people. This is our country. Remind them.

[Screenshot via a reddit discussion regarding CISPA: http://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/rs54l/the_latest_attempt_by_congress_to_try_to_regulate/]

wilwheaton:

The Roberts Court is so dangerous, it’s frightening. This Court seems hellbent on turning America into a police state, where the rich and powerful call all the shots and everyone else is too terrified of arrest to do anything about it.

“It’s sad when I have to check that date for headlines to make sure they weren’t April Fools.”

Agreed. What the fuck is happening to this country?

It looks like President Obama isn’t going to veto the NDAA bill, an even bigger threat to free speech and democracy than SOPA. Except what we have here isn’t a democracy, it’s a mockery. A parody of the proud nation that once was. Coming from a government that labels “mild protest” as a form of terrorism, now, it shouldn’t really come as a surprise that this bill will pass that allows the government to round up people it views as a threat and hold them indefinitely without proof of wrongdoing. Which, waitaminnut…isn’t that ILLEGAL? Not for long. So while I can still say this, I’m going to, again and again and again:

Dissent is not synonymous with TREASON, or TERRORISM. In fact, dissent is essential in order for a democracy to FUNCTION. It’s a fundamental part of the process. And any government that claims to be a democracy but does not allow dissent is NOT a democracy, but merely masquerading as one. The biggest threat to this nation is not terrorism. It’s not the protesters or American citizens that the NDAA bill would allow the government to round up and incarcerate (and probably torture, as long as they don’t call it that and they don’t do it on American soil). The biggest threat to the United States of America is the people RUNNING IT. The politicians who are meant to uphold the Constitution and revere its words as the highest form of law in this nation, who instead create laws that undermine the foundations this country was built upon.

The downfall of The United States will not be caused by an outside force. It will be from within. It will be destroyed not by the masses, but by the few—by those in power, who look out only for their best interests, and have no respect or reverence for the Law or the people it protects…and they’re not going to pass any bills into law to fix the destructive force they’ve become. The responsibility for redress is ours.

A democracy is designed to be a government by the people, for the people, and of the people. WE are the people. And it’s time we control our government.