The world is ending in 4 days!!

I was sitting here looking at the news feed on my Facebook account, and I found a whole bunch of stuff that really got me thinking.  I'll give you some of the food my brain was munching on.

First of all, this tragedy at Sandy Hooke Elementary School is horrific and devastating to say the least.  I walked into the empty bedroom of my little son who was spending the night at Grandma's house that particular night, and I couldn't help but just cry over the fact that his little bed was empty, just like so many others were going to be that same night.  This event should have brought us together as a nation.  We should be grieving together, posting supportive messages on Facebook, sending our love to the families who are suffering through this terrible loss.  What are a lot of us doing?  Here are some examples:

"This is why we should never have taken God out of schools."
"Another reason why guns should be controlled!"
Etc. Etc.

Really guys?  Politics don't belong here. We have absolutely NOTHING to be taking sides over.  We all died a little that day, we all shared tears, and we all realized just how messed up this world is because it finally knocked on our own front door.  CHILDREN were shot.  And people are using this as ammo to take the other side down in a political debate?  Is nothing sacred anymore?  Are we seriously that numb to tragedy and violence that we're allowing these morons to use this for their own personal gain??  This genuinely pisses me off.

The next food for thought involves being politically correct.  In today's day and age, this particular way of speaking to others seems to be highly valued.  Don't say Merry Christmas, it might offend someone!  Don't make a joke about being gay, that's offensive.  Don't do this, don't say that.

Sitting here talking to my cousin, I realized that it just isn't worth it to ALWAYS be politically correct.  I have argued with people about the issues of gay rights, I have discussed the issue of gun control, I have debated the topic of religion.  All of this has come down to one simple fact that I have finally figured out.  I may not agree with a lot of people concerning gay rights, gun control, or religion, but that isn't a problem?  Why?  It's called the 1st Amendment.  Just like everyone else in this country, I have a right to believe what I want to believe, worship whomever I please, and say waht I think about things.

An example: Say I were to make a statement that I don't believe that being gay is morally right.  Immediately people jump on me saying I need to be more open-minded, I am a hateful person, and I and others like me are the reason there are so many problems in America.

Here's my standpoint.  I may not believe it is moral, but please, feel free to do whatever the heck you want to do, just don't tell me about it, don't ask me to like it, and don't tell me I need to accept what you're doing as okay.  If you do any of those three things, you have crossed the line from a spirited believer, to someone who doesn't respect me as a person or what I believe as an individual.  This is what America is all about folks!  Having the freedom to believe what we each want to believe, without someone telling us we can't believe that way, is the basis of this nation.  It is why our ancestors came here in the first place.

Therefore, with all that being said, I have decided that I will be making a habit of sacrificing being politically correct so that I may practice my 1st Amendment rights more often.  I shall do this in a kind and above board way, of course, but I won't allow people to strip me of my Constitutional rights, just so I can sound like and "open-minded" person.

The dessert for the mind is actually rather simple, and pretty tasty, to say the least.  Yesterday, I found this video about an incredible kid.  I would tell you more about it, but the best part of the story is how it speaks for itself.  You should check it out.  It's pretty awesome :)


Caine's Arcade from Nirvan Mullick on Vimeo.

And here's the link if this video doesn't work here:
http://vimeo.com/40000072#

4 more days until the end of the world as we know it!