:: Womit ::

:: Sunday, June 29, 2003 ::

Be afraid. Homophobes are in power.

"I have this fear that this zone of privacy that we all want protected in our own homes is gradually ... or I'm concerned about the potential for it gradually being encroached upon, where criminal activity within the home would in some way be condoned," Frist told ABC's "This Week." (quoted from the yahoo! news story above)

Mr. Frist is saying that homosexuality is criminal. Yes he is. Follow the logic. First, Frist is concerned about the potential for privacy to go to far and somehow, in the nebulous and always frightening future, legitimize criminal activity. He then says he backs an amendment to ban marriage between anyone that is not a man and a woman.

Logically I feel I can conclude that this man believes homosexuality is a criminal act. I believe I can also logically conclude this man is a homophobe and should not have as much power as he obviously has because anyone who is so blatantly prejudiced should not be allowed to be a spokesperson for the dominant party in the country.

But guess what? He doesn`t stop talking.

"And I'm thinking of ... whether it's prostitution or illegal commercial drug activity in the home ?? ... to have the courts come in, in this zone of privacy, and begin to define it gives me some concern."

He is comparing prostitution, illegal commercial drug activity, and homosexual activity. It is a fact, irrefutably, that this man is homophobic.

I also am a bit worried about the other extrapolations I can make from his statement. Is his fear of privacy and criminal activity in the home a manifestation of the "fear talk" that the government is so keen on using? Why is Mr. Frist so worried about us having "a zone of privacy" when the Patriot Act took most of those silly old rights away? But who wants privacy anyway? Didn`t reality TV show that we all want to be voyeurs and exhibitionists? So I`m sure Mr. Frist is certain that no one will mind if our privacy rights are eroded away, one by one.

Here`s another observation. When has anyone in power ever referred to the future as bright and shiny in since 9/11? I would say about 2 out of 10 times and only when referring to the economy. But when it comes to our neighbors lawd knows what those heathens may be up to in their house in the future! Could be planning terrorist attacks, could be engaging in sodomy! So let`s legislate the hell out of everything so we can make everything illegal. Because the future is a dark and scary place full of WMDs, terrorists, and gay people. But don`t worry! The economy will be alright and the environment is AOK. Consume, be afraid, consume to ease your fear.

Sorry. I got a little side-tracked. Back to the main observation: Mr. Frist and the representative who sponsored the proposal, Marilyn Musgrave, are the very definition of homophobes. Yet homophobia is the rallying phobia of the party now that racism is so very dame. Question: Would we allow someone so blatantly racist to be power? Oh yes we would and did. And while Trent Lott was kicked out of his party for making very stupid remarks that reason was pure lip-service. He was kicked out for poor leadership and his party decided that blaming his booting on things said at a birthday party would soothe the raging masses.

For a party that believes in less goverment interference, the Republicans sure like to butt into my and everyone else`s private life. Well, I got a place they can stick that amendment. And guess what? It`s legal now.

I would like to end on a side note. The definition of sodomy is:
1 : copulation with a member of the same sex or with an animal
2 : noncoital and especially anal or oral copulation with a member of the opposite sex

so by definition there were alot of heterosexual couples breaking the law as well before the Supreme Court decided to overturn what I will refer to as "Homophobic Law Part 1." For you see, you KNOW a homosexual couple has to engage in sodomy. They don`t have a choice, so it is pretty easy to prosecute them. But there could be plenty of heterosexual couples engaging in the same activity but unless you were watching them (aka spying on them aka `Patriot Acting` them), they could deny everything.

So let`s overturn the Supreme Court ruling that Mr. Frist insinuates is wrong. And we`ll put it in the power of the goverment to enforce that law. But the law must be impartial and fair and should be applied to all people regardless of circumstances so we`ll have to place cameras in every room in the country to make sure NO ONE is engaging in sodomy. Who wants the cameras in their house first? Do I have a volunteer? Mr. Frist? Ms. Musgrave?

Yeah. I thought not.
:: 8:08 PM [+] ::
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"BEHOLD! I have in my hands the head of the beast named FAFSA!" cried the hero. And the villagers broke out in a tremulous, jubilant cry and there was feasting and merry-making for days afterwards.

Yesterday I realized that the FAFSA (aka the damn form that says whether the government will consider paying me any money to attend university and which all other scholarships, grants and loans are based off of) was due Monday. No rolling deadline for those of us starting in the second semester - why would it be EASY after all? That meant that I had two days to get all my tax information together and fill out a form and send it into the government. It meant that I had to wake up my father at one in the morning his time and tell him to leave a note for mom to check the email which would have a list of every form and figure I would need to fill the FAFSA out. It meant biting my nails for a day. It meant me staying up until midnight so that it would be a decent time to call my mom. It meant getting a bunch of answers that made no sense and having to repeat things like, "Okay, I need line 55b from IRS Form 1040A." and "Was that the 2555EZ form or just the 2555? Because if its the 2555EZ I need the number on line 6a. If it's the other one, I need the number on line 89." Yeah, my taxes are all screwed up because I live overseas and then have exemptions and then have this and that and the other.

Moving on. Then it meant me getting up early to go into work because I don't have a printer at home and filling in the form off the internet and checking and double checking and printing and signing and RUNNING to the post office because it is only open until twelve on a day that is pouring rain and then sending it off by registered super fast roadrunner mail.

And after all that, the expected contribution I am supposed to make to my future education is approximately HALF of my total UNTAXED income. That's right. I was supposed to be saving HALF of everything I earn and putting it away. What the hell happened to the biblical ten percent tithe? I have no choice but to laugh and laugh and laugh because my only other option is to cry. *shakes fist at the injustice* I am an independent!!!! I am not hanging on mom and dad's purse strings anymore! I HAVE NO MONEY! *ignores the piles of manga and DVDs* None, do you hear me?!

But it's over. And Georgetown said that my application is all together and ready to be reviewed. *chorus of angels sing* One step closer!
:: 10:26 PM [+] ::
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I will miss taiko. I will miss the women I play with. I will miss how we begin "Haruka" - with Keiko striking the O-daiko (as big as a horse) and us in the front row, lifting our eyes to confront the world (we challenge you, the people watching us, we challenge you, gods and goddesses, we challenge you, the very thunder and lightning itself ...) I will miss the reverberation of the one two CRACK that comes in the finale. I will miss yelling "SORE!" in the middle of Yuka. I will miss sensee reminding me that the O-daiko is the battle-axe, the Chuu-daiko are the katanas and the ko-daiko are the knives in our fight to summon the gods out of their apathy and listen to us! I will miss my drumsticks, the sticks that are definitely mine from the day we practiced so much that I rubbed my hands raw and bled all over them and stained the wood.

I will not miss the gold foil outfits. Never. Why can't we wear the happi coats all the time?
:: 10:10 PM [+] ::
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I will try to write one thing I will miss about Japan and one thing I won't.

I will miss hearing the three old ladies who make what I call the "Shrine Rounds" every night. They walk a circuit around the village and clap three times in front of every torii gate. I hear them every night and it's a ritual I've incorporated into my own schedule. I will definitely miss that.

I will not miss the the ichi nensee teacher not coming to class and expecting me to teach English alone.
:: 8:01 AM [+] ::
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I am 90% Evil Genius

I am pure evil. I lie awake at night devising schemes of world domination, and I will not rest until all living souls bend to my will.

Take the Evil Genius Test at fuali.com

Well no freakin` duh.
:: 3:31 PM [+] ::
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Feel all depressed - kinda par for the course, but especially today since it was my last Sports Day at the junior high and also because I finished HP5. Not that the book itself depressed me - I always get depressed after finishing a book. Books are almost as bad as chocolate covered coffee beans for me. Reading gives me a high, finishing gives me a low. It always happens. I wish I didn't read so fast. *shakes fist at cursed reading ability*
:: 5:17 AM [+] ::
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Random happenings and volcanic anger.

I`ve been running again every day. I loathe running. The only satisifaction I receive from it is the fact that I have finished it for the day and it will be another twenty four hours until I must don the shoes and run again. I only do it because of ROTC.

Yesterday some japanese perv prank called me. I hung up on his ass. I hope he calls again so I can swear at him in Japanese. Why are people stupid?

Then I got all paranoid because we`re always taught in JET that since we`re foreign we`re the most visible community members and we need to take precautions - more precautions than regular Japanese people at least. I actually went around the house last night checking to make sure all the windows were locked. That makes me angry - that some random jerk-off can influence my behavior.

They`re making a big deal on yahoo! about the Marine accused of raping an Okinawan woman. (woman/girl - she`s 19.) I am really really jaded with Japan right now and knew this when I just shrugged and thought to myself, "How`s that different from going to Thailand to use sex slaves?" I ranted here a few months ago about the nasty gross-ness of the Southeast Asian sex trade and how Japanese men are the main "consumers" aka violators/criminals/complete bastards. So really how is it different? Going to a foreign country and then taking advantage of some woman? Does it matter if you`re in a uniform or on a business trip? Or that one`s an adult and the other is a child prostitute held against her will? Not in my eyes. Big lot of hypocrites.

Of course I`m not defending the Marine. I don`t know how you can say you`re serving your country when you`re engaging in questionable behavior of any kind - drinking and driving, being a public nuisance, harassing the locals, etc. Just because you`re a soldier doesn`t give you a right to go out and do whatever the hell you like. Excuse me as I get all greek tragical - but does anyone have honor these days? I would never sully my uniform like that.

Maybe I just take honor too seriously. Sometimes I wonder what`s wrong with me. Most of the time I wonder what the hell is wrong with everyone else.

Speaking of the warrior ethic and how my personal views are gonna screw me over in the future (eh, hope is when army officers are democrats), I am going demi-vegetarian. I really don`t think there`s a word for the type of vegetarian I am. Perhaps the wussy kind. Anyway after seriously examining the health data, I have decided that no meat is good meat and that I am significantly evolved enough to cut it mostly out of my diet. I say mostly because right now i am in Japan and it will be too difficult to try to explain to my co-workers about this. Yes. Weenie. I know. But I want my last two months to be as stress free as possible. And when I get home and visit my grandparents I am going to eat whatever they put on the table because they are in their 80s and I am not going to hassle them. However everywhere else - home, work, restaurants - vegetarian is how it will be. Behold the power of tofu.

It took me a long time to come to this decision and trust me, it isn`t because I don`t believe in harming animals. I mean, my future job is about killing. I`m hardly squeamish about it. What I don`t like is big companies screwing up my food with injected hormones and genetic tinkering that will definitely affect me in the future. Chemicals are NOT good - I know. I have a degree in it. They should not be used to "enhance" my food.

Plus there`s the environment. It`s sucking fumes and it`s only a matter of time before it sputters. If I eat no meat, that`s one less animal killed in my name - one less animal raised on what was once virgin rainforest but which was cut down so that ranchers could have more room to graze cattle for the ever burgeoning meat eating surplus.

I do not look down on meat-eaters. Hell, whatever works for you. But I like knowing where my food comes from. If I could put chickens in my backyard I would. I would eat them and kill them and I would know exactly how they were raised, that they were treated humanely and that they weren`t so pumped full of steriods that I would get secondary sexual characteristics from eating them.

This is all part of my "think global, act local" way of thinking. I missed A LOT of pop culture and advertising and constant pressure from the media and society while living here. Any media that got filtered into my head wasn`t directed at me - I`m an anomaly, not a market. Society didn`t have an assigned role for me - the message I received was that as a foreigner I was capable of any "radical behavior" and people accepted whatever strange thing I said as "foreign" as opposed to say "being a hippie" or "being a radical" or "being brainwashed by the Left." Rather it is more of a crystallization of views that I`ve always had. The idea that I might "cease to resist" is an anathema to me.

Eh, what am I saying? I`m such an agitator. I seriously doubt I`ll ever roll over and accept everything the world throws at me. Righteous indignation is a drug, I`m addicted, and I`m never going to give it up.
:: 9:09 PM [+] ::
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I`m trying to figure out what to do with this blog. Should I post my political views in an attempt to gain followers so that I`ll have supportive disciples when I take over the world? Should I post links to hactivism sites that teach you how to build tiny radios that screw up the local radio stations so you can broadcast subversive messages like, "I`m the girl that`s gonna be the pirate queen," etc. Should I stick to the very fruitful topic of centipede killing and random psycho dreams I have?

Feel free to leave a comment about what YOU would like to see posted here. I may even take your opinion into account. ^_~
:: 8:48 PM [+] ::
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I woke up this morning and guess what? Killed another centipede - this one was trying to disguise itself as a decorative wall hanging. You know you have enough poison on the floor when the things start crawling the walls to get away from the floor. Muwahaha.

It's very odd. I made blogs so I could communicate, but I find that I censor myself here as much as I do in real life. I hate 'dumping' on others - maybe it's because I do all that counseling work and know that discussing one's problems will affect others, usually in a way that makes them worry. Maybe it's because I don't think I'll get the reaction I want. Maybe it's because I haven't gotten the reaction I want. So I just don't bother telling anyone anything any more. It's like - everyone has enough problems, why compound them with mine? And my view is that if I'm not smart enough to get out of the trouble or funk I'm in by myself, then I suck and don't deserve to get out of it at all. But if you got a problem? I've got an ear, a shoulder and if you want, an answer.

I've spent a great portion of my life attempting to become independent enough so that no one will have to worry about me. I don't ever want to be a burden to anyone. Sasu ga, Stacey desu. And I don't like anyone to know if I don't know the answers. That's been drilled into us; officers know the answers even when they don't. They never have a moment of crisis and they never question themselves because once the leader is uncertain, the followers freak and everything goes to hell in a handbasket aka people die. That kind of consequence leads to significant behavior modification, don't you agree?

But that doesn't mean I don't worry or feel like crap or having moments of gripping self-doubt or that I want to curl up into a ball and die. But I think that unlike a lot of people, I have way more self-loathing when I have those moments. Maybe when I mean 'people,' I refer to the female of the species. I won't presume to understand the male mind or what makes a guy self-loathe.

So - look! I only self-censored a little in this post. On another note, I find that my generally placid nature can still rage at the wrong prompt. There are only three of these prompts in existence and my mother picked one the other night. Luckily I devolved into my 'keep my mouth shut and seethe' reflex versus my 'get really verbal' mode. Strange how the past can still burn as hot as the present if the right memory if plucked.

On another note, I LURV you, little Skippy. Remember that while mother yells at you.
:: 10:09 AM [+] ::
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I woke up this morning and killed a centipede. Ah, there ain't nothin like the smell of chemical spray in the morning. *sighs* I felt all natsukashii.

For those who care: You CAN go without playing a musical instrument and then get asked to do it for the sports festival without any problem whatsoever. Either I am a musical genius or remembering how to play the trumpet is not as difficult as people make it out to be.
:: 4:43 AM [+] ::
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Stacey`s opinion on the Matrix: God-mode is wicked cool.
:: 9:01 PM [+] ::
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