Church Fight Caught On Video

Recently I posted a video of an incident that took place at a church here in North Carolina. I could explain the video's content, but it wouldn't do it justice. So if you haven't seen it, then I'd suggest you take a look at it before you read the rest of this blog. (watch it directly from my blog, or click on this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdynJSTsOPA

This video sparked a very interesting discussion about the current state of churches in the Black community. Here are a few of the comments I found most interesting. The first of which belongs to me:

I miss the "civil rights" era of Black churches. It was more about community, fellowship, togetherness, a safe place to worship and exchange ideas. Now it seems to be more about money and power. I think the mega-churches have done a huge disservice to the Black community, & that's what turns a lot of people away from the church. Back in the day what made a good pastor was how well he spoke the word of God, not how much money he has or how big his church is or how many books he's sold.  -T DeMon Spencer

Comment #1:

The lady at the end said this is GOD's house but what she fails to understand is that GOD does not live at every church you see. Pastor Donnie McClurkin made that so clear at a service he did on Southern University's campus last Friday.

Comment #2:

This has to be THE MOST embarassing situation I have seen to date. Clearly, this is nothing more than a worthless power grab by those that have NO CLUE of what the true church "ekklesia" represents.

Once again, we have people that are more interested in practicing religion and "playing church," having made a complete ass of themselves once again. When, oh when, will these people learn?!

Comment #3:

I saw Pastor Donnie McClurkin preach at Southern University last Friday and you are just saying what he said. But in a nutshell. He blasted those Baptist preacher with all their man made religious crap. I mean it was awsome. His preaching was awesome.

Comment #4:

Hate to say it but its true....and it didnt use to be that way, thats why the black community is in the shape its in now. Too much mess going on in the "LAWDS" house. I was brought up in the church, sunday school, BTU (baptist training union) say no to drugs, youth choir, young adult choir...EVERYTHING lol. As I got older I saw how SOME church members were. How many are hypocrites and judgemental. I still go but not as much, I stay home and have my own personal relationship with God.

The Right Movie At The Right Time

I randomly came across this movie early this morning (4am) because I couldn't sleep. I was shocked that I had never heard of it before. Even though it was released in 2009, the message is so very relevant to everything going on in the news right now. Gay-bashing, homophobes, religious zealotry, gay teen suicide, etc. What's even more amazing is that it's a true story. It stirred up so many emotions with me. At times it seemed as though I were watching a movie based on my life. It was kind of eerie how much of my life paralleled the main characters. It's probably the most touching film I've ever seen. If I had normal human emotions, I probably would of cried through the whole movie (lol). 

PLEASE watch this movie, and then get your friends and family to watch it. Stories like this have the power to open closed eyes, and reach those who we thought were unreachable. After you watch it, I'd love to hear your thoughts and opinions on it. Anyone that can watch this movie without being moved is not human at all... or what I like to call a "Republican" (lol).

You can watch the movie right here for free, or purchase it on DVD by clicking this link:
Prayers for Bobby

The Mormon Proposition

"The Mormon Proposition" details in devastating fashion the efforts of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints to help pass the 2008 California ballot measure that defined marriage as solely consisting of a union between a man and a woman. Writer/Co-Director Reed Cowan's film reveals a disturbing truth of the increasing overlap between church and state. This documentary is extremely well done and at times it even brought me to tears (which is EXTREMELY rare). I wish I could get every person in this country to watch this amazing documentary. I thought I knew everything that went on with proposition 8, but this film exposed a lot of new & shocking information that left me speechless. If this film doesn't move you, then you have to be a soleless heartless pitiful sociopath incapable of any human emotion... or a practicing Mormon (I'm only being facetious here, so please no hate mail).

The legal battle to declare Proposition 8 unconstitutional is currently underway, which means the ending to this story has yet to be written. Will we write an ending of triumph and redemption, or will we continue this story of intolerance and hate? 

Watch the full length documentary for free below:

SIGN THE "FREEDOM TO MARRY" PLEDGE

http://www.freedomtomarry.org/

Missionaries of Hate

After I got home from a long day of shopping, paying bills, buying groceries, and a few other miscellaneous errands, I was dog tired and craving a nap like you wouldn't believe. YES, I am a young man, but because of my illness (Sickle Cell), my energy and endurance levels decreases exponentially as my age progresses. I'm telling you this because I know someone would read the part about errands and paying bills made me dog tired, and they would probably think, damn, this guy is seriously out of shape (lol). So don't get it twisted, I keep things tight and the full six pack is still in effect. I could never disappoint my haters and let them down like that. I've always given them plenty to hate on, so why stop now (lol).

I chose to start this particular blog post off in a light-hearted and humorous way because what I'm about to share with you is anything but. In fact it's down-right disgusting. I could write a list of every negative and horrible adjective I could think of, and still not do it justice. Ok, so after I got home, I put away the groceries and cataloged my bill payment receipts and headed straight to bed for a 2 or 3 hour "power nap" because I told my friend Tamika that I would return to Washington and spend the night watching movies with her at her new apartment (which she has beautifully decorated, and I'm soooo jealous of her bedroom suit lol). So I lay down to start my nap, and of course I can't fall asleep (I hate when that happens). So I got on my laptop and searched the web for a good movie or tv episode to watch. I ended up finding a documentary about the "kill the gays" bill in Uganda. If you're not familiar with this disturbing story, then let me give you a super condensed synopsis: The African country of Uganda joined up with some very prominent AMERICAN Evangelicals (à la Pastor Rick Warren) to draft a piece of legislation in Uganda that would make being homosexual a crime punishable by either life in prison or DEATH. Yes, you heard me right... DEATH! In other words, if I lived in Uganda, and I were in a same sex relationship with a man that I loved, both of us would be arrested and sentenced to DEATH... Can you imagine getting arrested for being in love? And these evil people that claim to be "Christian", are all doing this in the name of God. These American evangelicals have created a huge campaign with millions of dollars at their disposal to fight those that are gay and rob them of their basic civil rights, and impose their beliefs on everyone. There are so many problems and ills that plague our society, like hunger, famine, disease, homelessness, poor education, etc, and instead of using their power and recourses to combat some of those issues, they choose to fight the gay community in order to strip them of their rights. This makes no sense at all. What is "Christian" about that? I really didn't intend to write all this and shout from my soapbox, but things like this really angers me. The real point of this blog post was to get you to watch this 40 minute documentary about Uganda's "kill the gays" bill, and how American Evangelicals played a huge role in the creation of the bill. I'm warning you now that this video is very inflammatory, and so ridiculous at times that you just want to laugh from frustration. The most absurd part of it is when the church pastor shows his congregation gay porn during one of his sermons condemning gays. Yep, I kid you not... gay porn on display right in front of the whole congregation, kids included. Just watch it, and let me know what you think. Evil comes in many forms, and in this particular documentary, the evil is in the pulpit preaching hate.

The Religion Debate Continues

I posted a copy of my blog entry entitled "Religion Seeks To Kill Spirituality" on a popular gay African American discussion forum that I'm a member of.  It had the same effect that the original had when I first posted it on this blog... it BLEW UP and stirred controversy which led to an interesting debate among those who read it.  I was really impressed by everyone's ideas and how perspicacious and well articulated their arguments were.  Sometimes in those type of forums, people can get very disrespectful and overly argumentative when others disagree with their point of view, but for some reason this discussion didn't head that way at all.  I was so pleased with our discussion, so I decided to post the "back & forth" repartee here on my "Blue Options" blog.

ENJOY :-)

CLICK TO READ THE REST OF THIS BLOG ENTRY WITH A LIST OF ALL COMMENTS

Part 2 of "Religion Seeks To Kill Spirituality"

This is a continuation of my previous blog post from Tuesday March 16 2010 entitled "Religion Seeks To Kill Spirituality".  I got such a huge response from one of the shortest blogs I've ever written.  One of those readers sent me a message that I read and intended to write a short thank you message to reply to him.  Well, it didn't turn out as short as I intended.  I guess I still had a whole lot to say on this issue, and his response was the catalyst that sparked the fuse (lol).  So I'd like to thank and acknowledge him for being the inspiration for this blog post.

His message is written below in red and italics, and my response follows it in dark blue:

We agree on this issue. Sometimes I feel like Socrates and that the state of South Carolina will figure out a way to put me to death for not believing.

I have no doubt that some of these evangelicals would put that into law in a split second if they could. It's all very very sad, and it's something I will NEVER ever understand. There's something very dark in the human spirit that religion seems to prey upon. Like when slavery was legal in this country. These slave owners considered themselves Christians. They had no problem committing some of the worst most heinous atrocities on a fellow human being on a daily basis, and they saw nothing wrong with this. Those slave owners weren't some dumb illiterate back-woods hicks that didn't know any better. They were educated highly respected pillars of their community, and still they saw nothing wrong with what they were doing. We were all born with an inherent sense of right and wrong. I know murder is wrong, with or without a law that tells me so. When we start looking in a book to gage our moral compass, or letting a book written by man tell us how we should live our lives, we lose one of the greatest gifts God has given us, which is FREEWILL and the ability to think for ourselves. Once we give that up, our minds become easily manipulated. This is so dangerous because the people that we look to for guidance may have deceitful motives or devious intentions, but because you gave up your critical thinking abilities, you can't see the evil in this person and in their actions, so you follow him blindly.

I don't want anyone to think I'm bashing Christians, because I'm not at all. I was raised in a very religious Christian home, so I have a great respect for the message it teaches. I'm addressing religion as a whole here, and the beliefs of religious extremist. I do believe in God, and I consider myself a spiritual person, but If you want to give me a label, all I can say is I do not identify myself as "a Christian", and that's because I do not allow other people to define my relationship with God because that's between me and him. I don't expect everyone to agree with me and my way of thinking because I hope after reading this, you'll start to use your gift of "freewill" and "critical thinking" to find your own path and discover what you truly believe.

If you haven't seen this documentary, then I'd suggest you buy a copy and watch it quick.  It covers a lot of the points I made in this blog.  It's informative, but it's done in a humorous way... classic Bill Maher cynicism and wit.  This is a definite MUST SEE.  Here's a link if you want to buy it on Amazon.com Religulous

Or if you're too cheap to buy it, click on the title of this blog entry and you can watch it for free (streaming directly from icefilm site). You can thank me later:

Religion Seeks To Kill Spirituality

I hate to see "so called" Christians use religion as a tool to perpetuate hate and intolerance. The problem with religion is it's one size fits all ideology. This ideology is what causes intolerance to flourish. This is also why spirituality and religion are two very different things, and why religion seeks to kill spirituality. Religion is man-made and divisive. Spirituality is divine and unifying. Religion selects the designated few, while spirituality embraces the divine in us all.

RECOMMENDED READING:

What the Bible Really Says About Homosexuality

Their Own Receive Them Not: African American Lesbians And Gays in Black Churches

Broken Spirit

Today I feel so very sad, tired, and somewhat defeated. My initial outrage and anger (that I felt when I first became aware of Uganda's gay death penalty bill) has slowly turned into angst on the cusp of despair. I grew up in a very rural extremely small White town in the south right in the heart of "The Bible Belt", so I'm very well aware of the homophobia that exist in most conservative and Christian households here, so I'm not at all naive about their beliefs and opinions about gays. I usually just chalk-it-up to ignorance, and continue living my life as open and honest as I can. I've always believed that my character as a person who happens to be gay, is a lot more effective in changing the minds of those that are homophobic, way better than any magazine article, movie, argument, debate, march, or protest can. By knowing someone who's gay, they can see them as a person with the same hopes and dreams as they have, and not just an issue to be for or against. But when I learned that an American "Christian" evangelical group were going back and forth to Uganda to aide them in committing the worst human rights atrocity in my lifetime, I began to lose my faith in the goodness of man and doubt the compassion and love in Christianity. I know this particular situation with Uganda involves only one of many religious organizations and/or churches, but I feel that a majority of those groups and churches share equal blame in this. By not speaking out against an injustice of this magnitude, it makes them culpable. The few that have came out with public statements are choosing their words very carefully so they can appear sympathetic to the gay community without admitting that their homophobia indirectly contributed to the creation of this "kill the gays" bill. The only thing that frustrates me just as much as homophobia is unacknowledged and/or unaddressed hypocrisy. And these people are pushing both buttons at once.

While I was reading the latest developments about this story, searching different blogs and established print media (on the web); I stumbled upon something that switched my anger into utter despair. I noticed that a majority of the comments that were left on all the African American targeted blogs were siding with Uganda's attempt to execute gays. That just blew me away. I really didn't expect that amount of hatred from my own race. A race that I'm proud to be a part of, a race that has first hand knowledge of how oppression and violent injustice feels. I just don't understand... why, or how this came to be. I would of never guessed that my race would ever under any circumstances, take on the role of the oppressor. I just can't get my head around that one. I've tried and tried and tried to make sense of it all, but disappointingly, it turns into a contest of futility. If I can't convince my own race to change and see things rationally, then what chances do I have to convince a whole country.

*FIND MORE INFORMATION ABOUT TOPICS DISCUSSED IN THIS BLOG POST BELOW:

Uganda Anti-Homosexuality Bill

Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Bill is a piece of proposed legislation under consideration in Uganda. It was proposed on 13 October 2009 by... more

Get one for any topic!

Uganda's "Kill The Gays" Bill Sponsored By A U.S. Christian Group

Just when I start allowing myself to think that the fight for equality and gay rights are progressing; I get blindsided with the most disturbing shit I've ever heard. The law makers in Uganda have teamed up with a Christian religious organization here in the United States to introduce a bill that if made into law will make homosexuality a capital crime punishable by DEATH in their county. This law is the inevitable culmination of hate, intolerance, ignorance, bigotry, religious zealotry, political propaganda, and hubris dogma that ironically reveals how much evil can exist in the heart of man. I can not find words that would adequately express and convey my feelings about this. Just knowing that this kind of thing is going on in this day and age baffles me. I go through a roller-coaster of emotions every time I hear, read, or think about it. The most profound of those emotions are anger and helplessness. I'm most angry about the involvement of this well known American religious group (known as "The Family") that wrote and supported the bill that Uganda is now making into law. What's Christian about that? It's absolutely ridiculous to believe that killing gay people has anything to do with God or Christianity...

Here are some recourses to help you learn more about this issue. You'll also find startling information about some of "The Family's" well known supporters and members like Rick Warren, Pat Robinson (from the 500 club), and several Congressman and Senators who are connected to the group, including John Ensign, Bart Stupak, Joe Pitts, James Inhofe, Tom Coburn, Charles Grassley and Zach Wamp.

http://rawstory.com/2009/11/author-the-family-proposed-ugandan-law-execute-hiv-men

Video clip from the Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC:

Ugandian Official David Bahati talks about homosexuality and why he thinks they deserve to die:

NPR Interview & discussion about Uganda's Anti-Gay History:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=121605525

News article from the BBC:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/news/2009/12/091218_gay_uganda_law_wt_sl.shtml

Things to laugh at (Neo & The Church Lady)

Can you believe that is Neo. WOW! Dude looks like he's in his late 40's or something. He should have kept that damn Cuban fedora hat on (lol). Now we know why he wears it in every video.

AND ON TO ANOTHER SUBJECT: THE CHURCH LADY

I didn't write this; I jacked it from another blog that I follow. He had me crackin' up when I read this because it's sooooooo true. I decided that I just had to share it with you guys.

For the church kids… Every church has a church mother.. responsible for undergurding the ministry, praying for the saints and teaching the women to be holy! No matter what denomination, state, or spiritual persuasion.. they all have somethings in common.. shall we review?

1. A Good wig:Its not that they need one but sometimes you have to get to the hospital to pray over the sick or deliver a plate of food to the bereaved and you do not have time to put your hair in a pony tail so you grab a wig, slap it on and jump in the Buick the kids bought you!

2. A collection of safety pins:The safety pin to the church mother is the equivalent of a good asprin to the sick… it will fix ANYTHING… Your skirt, your pants, a hole, the communion table clothe, dirt under your nails, wax in your ears, a loose wig.. you name it! Mother has one and she can take care of the problem!

3. A formidable hat collection:One in every major color…almost always have a rhinestone or an Australian crystal. These are not accessories to a mother.. they are apart of the outfit… When they travel to Memphis they ship the hats ahead of them so that they get their in time for morning Manna without being squished! You are not allowed to play in them young ladies!

4. A fur: This accessory may come as a coat, hat, gloves, or accessory glued on their suit but fir represents dignity and distinction…expect for it to be draped over one shoulder! If it is, she is a mother.. if it is on the cuffs of her suit.. she might be a mother in training or a Burlington shopper!

5. The “mother face”:This means she aint playin… some smile a lot but the good majority of them have afaced dressed in wisdom.. see “the face” below!

6. Peppermints:Not necessarily because your breath stinks but because she is cautious.. somebodies sugar could be low on the mothers board or she may need to give a crying grand baby something to suck to quiet them…

7. Holy Oil:its like lotion to them! They rub it on their hands in the morning.. use after the bathroom! You name it, holy oil will fix it! They have a small bottle in the car, house, purse and any other nookie you can think of! You will never know when duty calls!

8. A collection of denim skirts: Pants are out of the window! The next best thing to a pair of denim jeans is a denim skirt! They come in all varieties!

9. A coin purse:She never knows whens he will run into a deserving kid or some poor man.. however the primary reason she has this coin purse is to hold large sums of cash. This coin purse may be safety pinned to her bra strap.

10. An encouraging word.. it might just be “God bless you” or “stay sweet” but a mother has a way of making you feel loved!

June 2, 2009

Here's his blog link: http://iamdomo.com/

Let's See The Homophobic Evangelicals Explain This One.

I have two words for you; GAY PENGUINS. Yes, you heard me; GAY freakin' PENGUINS. I guess I should explain. I was reading one of my favorite blogs "The Huffington Post", and I see a headline that reads "Two Gay Penguins Raising A Chick". Of course my first thought was WTF?!? Then I read the story, and in a way, it made me feel a little bit better about who I am, and it also made me think, if these two gay male Penguins found love and started a family, maybe there's hope for me after all. I would love to hear those Bible thumping extreme right wing Republican evangelical homophobes explain this one. lol... I'm waiting?

Here's the whole story from "The Huffington Post":

BERLIN — A German zoo says a pair of gay male penguins are raising a chick from an egg abandoned by its parents.

Bremerhaven zoo veterinarian Joachim Schoene says the egg was placed in the male penguins' nest after its parents rejected it in late April. The males incubated it for some 30 days before it hatched and have continued to care for it. The chick's gender is not yet known.

Schoene said the male birds, named Z and Vielpunkt, are one of three same-sex pairs among the zoo's 20 Humboldt penguins that have attempted to mate.

Homosexual behavior has been documented in many animal species.

The zoo said in a statement on its Web site Thursday that "sex and coupling in our world don't always have something to do with reproduction."

HERE'S A LINK TO THIS STORY ON HUFFINGTON POST:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/06/04/two-gay-penguins-and-a-ch_n_211497.html


http://www.kyte.com

Talking to Satan?

Before I get into this blog entry, let me preface it with this statement:

Although I'm not what most would consider "a religious" type person, I am a spiritual person. I do believe in God, and I totally respect everyone's personal beliefs, and religious affiliations (Christians, Muslims, Jews, Hindu, Buddhist, etc. etc.). I do have a problem with anybody that believes they are exclusively in possession of all the worlds answers, and are the only group that can connect humanity to God. That way of thinking is extremely dangerous because they use that belief to justify committing horrible atrocities (such as war, sexism, homophobia, racism, antisemitism, etc) all in the name of God. ....so to sum that all up, I do believe in God, I have issues with organized religion, and always respect everyone's religious beliefs.

Now... here's the whole reason for this blog. I received a forwarded e-mail from my sister, and responded to it in a funny tongue-in-cheek kind of way.

Here is the forwarded message she sent me:

*TELL THE DEVIL*


Tell the devil today, he is a liar! He will not take your joy, your peace or
disturb your spirit.

Tell him he cannot sleep in your bed-there's not enough cover.

Tell him he cannot sit in your chair-you will not give him occasion of
comfort.

Tell him he can't touch your body-its covered with the blood of Jesus!

Tell him he cannot audit your finances-you've changed accountants!

Tell him he cannot enter your home-the locks have been changed.

Tell him to leave your workplace-he's not on the list of things to do today.

Tell him to take his hands off your children-because you've had hands laid
on them.

Tell him you have no time for nonsense, criticism, or fears-you are on a
mission, and you walk by faith.

Tell him no more tears, heartaches or headaches-because there's another, He that restores your soul.

Tell him. Tell him. Tell him. Tell him. Tell him, today, you have a gentle,
powerful inner peace within, that consumes you and leaves no room for
confusion.

Tell him, today you will respond soothingly to a crying child, a tense
spouse, or impatient friend.

Tell him, today, you will find no fault with a relative, friend, or
colleague.

Tell him to leave your tongue alone-for today you will not talk of anyone,
before placing God at the beginning of your thought.

Tell him, wherever you are, that God is. Tell him, God said, "My people will
abide in a peaceful habitation..and in quiet resting places." (Isaiah 32:18)
Today, tell him he is a liar!

"These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the
world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the
world" (John 16:33)

While you are making these statements of faith and fact, try reading the
devil his rights just like the police do for anyone they arrest!

1. You have the right to remain silent.

2. You have the right to a fair trial-to be given you by the saints of God
right before we collectively drop-kick you into the pit of hell forever.

3. You have the right to know that not only anything you say but anything
you do CAN and WILL be held against you.

AND HERE'S MY RESPONSE I SENT AFTER READING HER MESSAGE:

I'm sorry, but I don't have conversations with the devil. But if I see him, I'll pass your message along.

ttyl,

-DeMon

I thought it was pretty funny... even if you don't (lol).

TD Jakes Son Arrested Public Gay Sex

This is a first for me. I came across some stories reporting the arrest of TD Jakes son, for indecent exposure sometime in January. He "reportedly" unzipped his pants, and began masturbating while making eye contact with an undercover male officer at a park in Texas. I'm just like most red-blooded Americans in the way of loving some good gossip every now and then. And my favorite kind of gossip is usually something dealing with a religious figure, or a politician. And to put icing on that cake would be some gossip about exposing or outing one of these people. This story is so crazy and I absolutely LOVE it. lol. Here are the juicy details:

Jermaine Jakes, the 29-year-old son of Bishop T.D. Jakes was arrested in Dallas last month after he exposed his genitals to two MALE undercover police detectives at a public park. He was charged with indecent exposure and released on a personal recognizance bond. Dallas Police say Jermaine Jakes approached the detectives at Keist Park on Jan. 3 with his pants unzipped. He then began to masturbate while making eye contact with the male detective, according to an affidavit. “We are aware of potential allegations involving Jermaine Jakes and are undertaking our own investigation of these allegations at this time. Given an apparent police investigation, we have no further comment at this time,” Jakes family attorney Faith Johnson said in a statement on Wednesday.

Read Jermaine Jakes’ Arrest Affidavit

Perplexed over Obama's Choice, Rick Warren

I know I said I wouldn't get too political on this blog (which is supposed to be a lighthearted look into pop culture), but I feel this issue is important enough to veer into the world of politics just this one time. I feel justified in doing this because the line dividing pop culture from politics seem to be disappearing currently anyway (sign of the time we live in I guess).

I'm perplexed over President Obama's choice of Pastor Rick Warren to do the invocation at his inauguration. Here's a little back-story about Rick Warren:
He's an evangelical preacher with a HUGE following. He has very outspoken anti-gay views. Earlier this year he lead the charge to pass proposition 8 in California, which repealed an earlier judicial decision to legally recognize gay marriage in that state. This homophobic bigot has also equated homosexuality with pedophilia and bestiality in numerous interviews and sermons. Despite all this, his church boasts having the 3rd largest congregation in the US with a seating capacity of 3,500. He built a $20 million dollar student ministry facility called the Refinery. It houses the middle school (Wildside) and high school (HSM) consisting of nearly 1,500 students. He is most famously known for a book he wrote called "The Purpose Driven Life" which has sold over 20 million copies, becoming one of the best selling non-fiction books of all time. That's what makes this man so dangerous to anyone that believes in civil rights, and the separation of church and state. He's not some lone backwoods nutcase living out in the woods somewhere in West Virginia. He's an opportunistic religious leader with the ear of white middle America. Whenever I would hear people talk about how polarized this country is, I really didn't give it much thought. I chalked it up to media hype, and republican spin... but this whole situation with Rick Warren opened my eyes to a dark and glib reality. There's a huge force of Christian Evangelicals that are growing in number as we speak. They want to impose their beliefs and way of life on everyone living in the US. And they think anyone that's not straight white and Christian doesn't deserve any rights or protection under this government. I'm sure I made my opinion of Pastor Warren very clear. So you might ask, what am I perplexed over? I obviously disagree with this man, and his perversion Christianity... so you'd think I'd be 100% against and strongly opposed to Obama choosing him to speak at his inauguration? ...right? Well, not exactly... and here's why:

When Obama announced his decision to run for president, I really didn't know much about him. I knew he was a Senator, and I remembered what a great speech he gave during the Democratic convention back in 2004 when John Kerry was running. Other than that, I didn't know a thing about this man or his beliefs. The more I found out about him, and the more I found out about his politics, I instantly switched my whole attitude about politics from absolute cynicism, to energized optimism. I made it my business to do anything I could to help this man get in office. I happily volunteered at the local Democratic office every chance I got. I wholeheartedly believe in this man and his ability to lead this country in the right direction. When Obama won the election, he said something that made a whole lot of sense, and it was so simple and so true, it made me think why haven't I heard this before from any politician. He said that although a majority of America cast their vote for him, he still had a great number of Americans that voted the other way. He then went on to say that he's not going to be President to just the "blue states" and all who voted for him, but all of America. He said he wanted his office to be as inclusive and diverse as our country is. That means that we need to listen to those we agree with, as well as the ones we disagree with. That's what a true democracy is supposed to be. We're still extremely polarized in this country, but ignoring a particular group just gives them more power and more of a reason to separate themselves from us. In a way it legitimizes their cause. So even-though I don't agree with Pastor Rick Warren, he has very strong influence with middle America. And the way our economy is looking, we can't afford to ostracize anyone.

I think we need to change the way we look at politics. We're so use to the "status quo", of how our government and elected officials operate, that we think that is the way it should be done. For instance, everyone has made such a big deal over Obama's staff choices. He has women, men, Democrats, Republicans, Blacks, Whites, Asians, etc etc. He's picking the people that he thinks are best qualified for whatever position. Previous Presidents have always picked only staff members from their political party, and family members, and even people that they owe a favor to. We've seen this happen that way for so long, that we're blinded to the ugliness of it.

Ok, there's my "two cents" (lol). In conclusion, I strongly disagree with all of Pastor Warren's religious and political views, but I think President Obama made a wise choice in choosing him. He's reaching out to a huge Evangelical community, and showing them and all Americans a lesson in love and togetherness.