Neon Angel

Pardon my odd posting schedule, apparently my phone-to-blog posting isn’t working so I had a few to publish that had been saved to draft. Annoyed.

Anyway, I’m slow on the draw with this, but a few days ago I was directed to a video of Glenn Beck on The O’Reilly Factor being held to standard by Papa Bear for stupid, bully-like insults hurled at John McCain’s daughter Meghan. It seems that Meghan stripped clothing off of her shoulders (pretty much only her shoulders, below which she was not filmed) for a skin cancer awareness PSA and Beck found the time, apparently while relaxing at the Bart Simpson Hair Salon, to pretend to vomit at the thought of Meghan naked and suggest she put on a burqa to cover up.

Is it just me, or is Meghan McCain gorgeous? She looks like Candice Accola, I haven’t noticed her being hugely fat or in any way ugly, in fact she’s so gorgeous that it makes me wonder if she criticized Beck and he couldn’t take it because of a history of pretty girls making ass fun of him? Because the way he lashed out was so far below juvenile that it lands him in the midst of schoolyard bullies, because calling her fat or ugly because you don’t agree with her is pretty childish, especially because it’s entirely untrue. To make time in a busy schedule of eating cookie dough and crying to the camera just to take pot shots at a woman for doing something… awesome? Are you as big a dummy as you pretend to be? Don’t you ever think about these stupid things before you do them? No wonder Fox kicked your ass to the curb.

Now, I don’t agree with many of the things McCain and her family stand for, but she’s always struck me as intelligent and makes a better case for her beliefs than Beck ever could. The same goes for O’Reilly, I don’t agree with him but it’s hard not to like him. Beck, on the other hand, it’s hard to even take seriously.

Glenn, let me let you in on something here. You have absolutely no room to talk about Meghan when she looks like she looks, and you look like you look (which resembles a perverted cartoon’s face stamped into biscuit dough). Even O’Reilly, who tried to make you look like a good guy (should thank him for that, P.S.) said what you did was “dopey” and that if he were Cindy McCain he’d slap you. You and all the other fakey patriots who scream and kick pajama feet at the sky whenever someone disagrees with you can all go to that island and leave the real producers behind. I’ll even christen the ship and buy you new wayfairers.

Originally published at Neon Angel. Please leave any comments there.

I just had a fun time over at at Big Hollywood, which I was referred to during a chat with a friend of mine in Oregon. It seems that Atlas Shrugged is being adapted for the big screen, and the best part? Conservatives are rallying around it like it’s Passion of the Christ II.

Now, I have no issues with them adapting it for film. In fact, I think it’s a good idea since it seems like most of the people who use Rand’s concepts as armor haven’t even read the book and it may be easier in an age of rapid-fire information to take it in visually like that.

I actually don’t like the book, or a lot of Rand’s work. What I didn’t realize is that being outspoken in some places is a capital offense. In their defense, what I said was snotty (albeit, not aimed at anyone) – I basically said I thought Rand was an idiot (though I should have clarified, I actually meant delusional and egotistical), that Atlas Shrugged isn’t about what people think it is in my opinion, and that people who don’t get it are making odd, weird statements about it and applying it where it doesn’t belong and it flat out makes America look stupid.

See? Snotty, lol. Since I was being a smart ass (which I’m used to being), I thought I’d get a couple of just as snotty comebacks and maybe come out of it either a little wiser or with a new perspective. If those things cost a million bucks? Would’ve gladly paid it, because what I got was ridiculous.

In one post alone? 3 or so different people went off on me. Because I didn’t agree with them, and dared say so, I was a Troll. I was ignorant, angry and came there looking for a fight. Well, it’s too bad I didn’t because that’s what I got.

The first person to respond to me was fairly civil (we exchanged a few blows, but it seems like we were both confused as to what the other one was saying) – we parted on decent terms. The other two were a nightmare and a treasure. The treasure was a troll himself disguised as a regular, trying his damndest to make me angry but it just came out kind of sad. The other one was purposely (it seems) misinterpreting what I was saying to try to make it sound like I was presenting a different argument. The whole thing was more or less frustrating.

Well I surfed around to the other posts and made a comment, a disagreeing comment but I tried to be nice about it – chopped my head off. So I went to another one, this time a post about the Muslim Brotherhood and asked NICELY what it was, because working with Conservatives I’d heard about it before but I didn’t really know what it was.

It all seems to come down to, “If you don’t agree with me, either I’ll force you to or you’ll just disappear.”

One commentor actually mentioned, on a post I was smart enough not to get too involved with, that all Muslims should be kicked out of America because it just ‘safer that way’. Um. Who, exactly, is safer that way? Then we remove the Chinese because of fair trade issues, so no more Chinese people in America. Then we remove the Mexicans, all of them, even the legal ones or the four or fifth generation ones because of those who are illegal.

Then we remove anyone else who’s brown or yellow because, well, why not? Then it’s time for anyone who’s not Christian to go. Then it’s time for the Christians to duke it out amongst themselves to figure out who’s REALLY Christian and who has to leave. Once that’s narrowed down, then it’s men vs. women – if you open that can of worms, which usually begins with hate? It’s very hard to close it. I can see where you’re coming from but kicking an entire religion or people out of our country strips us of all of our freedom bragging rights. We should probably rip The New Colossus off of Lady Liberty, because it no longer applies.

Do unto others applies here, think whatever you want in your head but when you speak? Do so with respect, do so with compassion. Don’t go onto a hostile public forum and blame an entire people for the stupid actions of a few or we’ll have to be able to do that with everyone. I know I’m guilty of thinking, and sometimes saying things like that but I haven’t dedicated an entire website to it.

Nice does NOT work. Three or four people in a row jumped on me, called me names, right off the bat – for asking a question! Nicely! Why, exactly, do I bother trying with these people? Why bother having a place to debate if no one’s allowed to have a different opinion than you? Giving people a chance bites.

Originally published at Neon Angel. Please leave any comments there.

I’ve had a hectic few months since the mid of Thanksgiving weekend, it hasn’t managed to slow down for me yet. But I thought I would spread a little joy into your hearts by blogging, because I know how you miss me. You miss me, right? *menacing glare*

I’ve got a real hankering to head back to my side of the country and get out of Missouri altogether. I’d love to get back to Los Angeles but I’ll settle for one of three locals – Rocky Mountains, Southern California Shore or The Nevada Desert. Wherever I go, I know I need either sand, surf or mountains. And mountains have to mean the right mountains – the mountains with pine trees.

One thing I can’t stand about the bible belt are flora and fauna. It’s not that it’s not pretty, but I’m so tired of plains, elms, the humidity is terrible and don’t get me started on the bugs. When I lived in Washington state with my parents, when I was a little girl, we used to go to a lake to swim and we’d sit and have a picnic. You’d see bees, ants, spiders – obviously – but I don’t remember being bitten, scratch that, eaten alive by mosquitoes. I’ll trade bee stings for skeeter bites any day.

Most of all I miss the position of the sun when you’re up in the mountains, the pine forests and long stretches of road flanked by mountain peaks. The clouds so close that they look as big as they really are. There’s also a severe lack of indigenous culture out here, mostly it’s just white Christians. No one even talks about the native people, and we’re right int he middle of Sioux land. People here seem to be ants crawling on a log, they don’t even notice the land and just go about their business, but I suppose that’s the way it goes.

But, since I was in a nostalgic mood, I thought I’d post some gorgeous photos of a mountain road in Colorado. For those of you who’ve never been, this should be a real treat for you!

Originally published at Neon Angel. Please leave any comments there.

I can’t even tell you how much I adore the It Gets Better Project campaign on Youtube, I think it’s one of the greatest effing things I’ve ever heard of, and if you haven’t heard of it get ready, because I’m about to blab your ear off.

The background for the IGBP is a sad one. A young kid, only fifteen years old, named Billy Lucas was the subject of intense and horrific bullying and harassment by his classmates with a homophobic small town mentality. They called him gay, fag, you name it, and repeatedly told him to kill himself. Which he did, by hanging himself in his grandmother’s barn. He was found by his mother.

When IGBP founder Dan Savage (author of the Savage Love column, which you need to read if you get a chance – I hope he’s going to John Stewart‘s Rally to Restore Sanity) heard this, he was deeply upset. He wished that he had been given the chance to speak with Billy for a few moments to let him know that this phase of torment does end, and life can be great – in other words, he wanted to let him know that it gets better. The problem is that homophobes in the school system and PTA would never allow something like that – to have a happy, well adjusted but openly gay man talk to kids about their lifestyle doesn’t sit well with them, and they’d likely not let the children take any advice even if it were able to be given.

But after all of this happened, instead of doing what many do and sitting on his thumbs Dan took matters into his own hands. He made a PSA wherein he explains to anyone who needs to listen that he’s living proof that it does get better. Only a few short months later and the movement is huge, over 100,000 public supporters including the likes of President Obama (video below) and a footlight parade of celebrities, as well as regular Joe’s making their own videos to try and reach out to not only LGBT but also to anyone who’s suffered from such awful bullying that they felt they couldn’t go on.

I can’t tell you how much I support this project, so much so that I’m considering making my own video and I’ve already taken the IGBP Pledge to continue to speak up against intolerance wherever I find it – I hope you do the same! Below are Dan Savage and his adorable guy Terry, and President Obama. If you can, please do make your own video or share your stories – or better yet, contribute to the cause. Dan, you’re my hero!

Originally published at Neon Angel. Please leave any comments there.