“If you can’t love yourself, how the hell you gonna love somebody else?” - RuPaul - - - - - - - - - - - “if by a "Liberal" they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people -- their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, and their civil liberties -- someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "Liberal," then I'm proud to say I'm a "Liberal.” - John F. Kennedy - - - - - - - - - - - - “Imagine finding someone you love more than anything in the world, who you would risk your life for but couldn’t marry. And you couldn’t have that special day the way your friends do – you know, wear the ring on your finger and have it mean the same thing as everybody else. Just put yourself in that person’s shoes. It makes me feel sick to my stomach …. When I shared a picture of my tattoo on my Twitter page and said, ‘ALL LOVE is equal,’ a lot of people mocked me – they said, ‘What happened to you? You used to be a Christian girl!’ And I said, ‘Well, if you were a true Christian, you would have your facts straight. Christianity is about love.’ The debate resulted in a lot of threats and hate mail to people who agreed and disagreed with me. At one point I had to say, ‘Dude, everyone lay off.’ Can’t people have friendly debates about sensitive topics without it turning into unnecessary threats?” - Pop star Miley Cyrus on her marriage equality tattoo - - - - - - - - - - -
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Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Obama Sign Thief

I'm not sure if I ever shared this story with my BLADE 7184 readers, but now is as good a time as any.  My friend Guillermo text me last night, and sent me this lovely picture. LOL.  
The Reason for my laughter is because in 2008, when Barack Obama was running for President, Ryan and I posted 2 Obama signs on our yard.  In the middle of the night someone stole them, destroyed them or whatever the hell they did with them.  Needless to say, I was pissed!  Yeah, yeah, they're just signs, but it was our yard and our property.

I went on Ebay and bought 100 or so in a package and for the next several weeks, every time a sign was stolen, I'd place a new one on the yard the next day.  It was getting so ridiculous that the moment we left for work, they disappeared.  

So one night I hid in my car with a video camera and watched as a car slowly drove by.   A passenger (who of course happened to be white - probably a teabagger) started to creep out of the car, when they spotted me.  They quickly made the corner and sped off.

Let's just say, our signs were never stolen again.  That was four years ago, now it's 2012 and the Tea Party has dwindled away.  Maybe there's hope yet. LOL.

Back In The Day - Disneyland 1957

Wow, let's go back to 1957 for a moment.  You probably have mothers and fathers who were just being conceived, or maybe even grandmothers who were one or two.   You may even have grandfathers who were teenagers, or parents who were getting married.  Regardless of where you're loved ones were at the time, Disneyland was short of two-years-old when this video was made.  What did it feel like to be in "The Happiest Place On Earth" in 1957?
The Disney History Institute cleaned the film, transferred it with a Spirit DataCine, and edited a few clips to music. But all of the images here are from 1957, before the park was even two years old.

Problems Of A Gay Kid #267

Quoted: Miley Cyrus on Her Marriage Equality Tattoo

Imagine finding someone you love more than anything in the world, who you would risk your life for but couldn’t marry. And you couldn’t have that special day the way your friends do – you know, wear the ring on your finger and have it mean the same thing as everybody else. Just put yourself in that person’s shoes. It makes me feel sick to my stomach …. When I shared a picture of my tattoo on my Twitter page and said, ‘ALL LOVE is equal,’ a lot of people mocked me – they said, ‘What happened to you? You used to be a Christian girl!’ And I said, ‘Well, if you were a true Christian, you would have your facts straight. Christianity is about love.’ The debate resulted in a lot of threats and hate mail to people who agreed and disagreed with me. At one point I had to say, ‘Dude, everyone lay off.’ Can’t people have friendly debates about sensitive topics without it turning into unnecessary threats? 
                                      – Pop star Miley Cyrus on her marriage equality tattoo on Glamour

Documentaries To Watch: America - The Story of Us

If you've never seen this, you should.  It is one of the best television mini-series I have ever seen.  It aired in April of 2010 on The History Channel, and I'd have to say I learned things I never knew about our country.  Ryan and I initially saw it on TV, but later purchased it on Blu-ray, and it's even far more beautiful than I expected.
America: The Story of Us aired as a six-part mini-series consisting of 2 hours each episode.  From the creation of our country to it's current state.  I have listed the episode guide after the jump, and have included the trailer below, it truly is fascinating.  The first episode re-airs tonight on the History Channel at 10/9 C.  So whether you use your DVR, rent it on netflix, or purchase it, you will not be disappointed.

A six-night miniseries presenting the history of how the United States was invented, looking at the moments where Americans harnessed technology to advance human progress -- from the rigors of linking the continent by transcontinental railroad to triumphing over vertical space through the construction of steel-structured buildings. The series also is a story of conflict, with Native American peoples, slavery, the Revolutionary War that birthed the nation, the Civil War that divided it, and the great world war that shaped its future. Written by History Channel Publicity

Gay News of the Day! Proposition 8 Struck Down

In awesome gay news yesterday, proposition 8 was ruled unconstitutional by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in California, and there's nothing more exciting in recent memory to hear.  Besides mine and Ryan's love for each other of course. :-).

Nearly one and a half years since Federal District Court Judge Vaughn Walker declared Proposition 8 to be unconstitutional in the landmark Perry v. Brown case, the 9th US District Circuit Court of Appeals finally announced this morning that they will be upholding Judge Walker's decision:

PROPOSITION H8 IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL!

Opponents of same-sex marriage will likely file an appeal to the decision, and the next steps may inevitably lead to a hearing before the US Supreme Court; casting the national spotlight on California's fight for the freedom to marry and putting the focus on same-sex marriage at a federal level. Most importantly, today's rulings open up the door for the same arguments to be used to the benefit of advancing pro-same-sex marriage legislation in other states. Read Full Story here!

Cyanide and Happiness: Snowglobe

I Quote That - Failure

The Joys of Being a Parent: The Coolest Grandparents

When I blog about the joys of being a parent, I usually come across a video of a parent or child doing something sweet, special or funny.  Or even babies!

For the first time I will be blogging about grandparents on this segment, and they're no ordinary grandma and grandpa - these two are super cool. They sing a song for their grandson, Josh who is turning 18 years old, and it's absolutely adorable.  

Watch as they sing "those 18-yr old Birthday Blues" LOL.

A Lesson In Life...

Back In The Day - Shadow Puppets

For those who grew up creating shadow puppets, because you were an only child, no one wanted to play with you, or you're just feeling nostalgic, here's a handy chart to reflect on those times :-)

Quoted: Lady Gaga on her "Born This Way" Ball Stage and Monster Pit

Prologue by Blade 7184...  Don't you think it's time we take a breath and focus on other things besides Madonna? Jesus, it's been nothing but Madonna these past few days, Madonna almost slipped, Madonna's face was plastic, Madonna is the queen of pop.  We got the point, geez.  I grew up in the 80s, and yes she's cool, but lets move on to other news...

- Lady Gaga tweeting about her
"Born This Way" Ball stage and Monster pit
"To give you a bit of insight on the design of my new tour, the central area within the stage will be known as 'The Monster Pit.' 'The Monster Pit' is General Admission only, and Little Monsters unlock it when they arrive to the arena or stadium. Entry to 'The Monster Pit' is relegated to the fans who have arrived first, waited all night, + dressed to 'Ball.' Every night Haus of Gaga will choose fans from The Monster Pit to come back stage + meet me! These tickets are NOT more expensive. Reading your questions :) No dress code requirement. 'Born This Way' means anything goes."


I don't know about you, but I'm super excited about this, and I know Ryan is too.  Check out a sketch of Gaga's Born This Way Ball Stage and Pit after the jump...

Laugh of the Day: Hey Jimmy Kimmel, I Unplugged the TV During The Game

Jimmy Kimmel has done it again, and this time he did something that made some people go ballistic.  Don't ever unplug a TV during the Superbowl, never!  That is a major no-no, as some of these kids and wives have learned. LOL.


Kimmel has been known to offer challenges to his viewers that are quite hilarious.  He did it over Halloween by having parents hide their kids' candy, and he did over Christmas when he asked them to tape their kids opening a present with something terrible inside.

This time, Jimmy Kimmel asked his viewers last week to submit a video titled, "Hey Jimmy Kimmel, I unplugged the TV during the game," and let me tell you, there were some pissed folks. LOL.  The object of the prank was to wait for a crucial moment of the game, and then unplug the TV.

WHATEVER YOU DO, DO NOT CUT IT OFF DURING MADONNA'S SUPERBOWL PERFORMANCE!!! LMAO!

WTF Has Obama Done? - Issue No. 010 - Education: Children

Yesterday I posted three achievements our President has accomplished over the last three years in regard to college education.  Today I would like to focus on our children.  What has the President done to help your child in the three years he's been in office.  Republicans will tell you, "not a damn thing, this President is a failure at everything,"  but that is simply not the case - that's BS.
President Barack Obama has managed to cover 2 broad policies, 11 funding policies, and 8 targeted actions in regard to our children's education, and future generations.  As hard as it was, he managed to do it with Republicans fighting him every inch of the way.  Remember, they said it from the beginning, their number one priority was to make sure Obama is a one-term President.  And if America fails, Obama fails.

In today's issue I will cover the two broad polices I mentioned earlier, and one in regard to funding.

WTF-26
Created the Race to the Top Fund ($4.35 billion) to reward States that create comprehensive education reform plans.
Authorized under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), the Race to the Top Assessment Program provides funding to consortia of States to develop assessments that are valid, support and inform instruction, provide accurate information about what students know and can do, and measure student achievement against standards designed to ensure that all students gain the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in college and the workplace. These assessments are intended to play a critical role in educational systems; provide administrators, educators, parents, and students with the data and information needed to continuously improve teaching and learning; and help meet the President's goal of restoring, by 2020, the nation's position as the world leader in college graduates. 

Through the Race to the Top Assessment Program, the Department awarded two Comprehensive Assessment Systems grants in September 2010.  [Reference-1, Reference-2]

The Obama Administration is committed to reforming America’s public schools to provide every child access to a complete and competitive education.  President Obama recently presented states with an unprecedented challenge and the opportunity to compete in a “Race to the Top” designed to spur systemic reform and embrace innovative approaches to teaching and learning in America’s schools.  Backed by a historic $4.35 billion investment, the reforms contained in the Race to the Top will help prepare America’s students to graduate ready for college and career, and enable them to out-compete any worker, anywhere in the world. [Reference-2]

WTF-27
Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009.
On February 4, 2009, President Obama signed the Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 (CHIPRA). This legislation marked a new era in children’s coverage by providing states with significant new funding, new programmatic options, and a range of new incentives for covering children through Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). One of the clear goals of the legislation is to support states in developing efficient and effective strategies to identify, enroll, and retain health coverage for uninsured children who are eligible for Medicaid or CHIP but are not enrolled. CHIPRA also provided flexibility to states to expand health care coverage to children who need it, and tasked the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) with developing standards by which states can measure the quality of the care that children are receiving.

U.S. Census Bureau data show that, in 2008, the uninsured rate among children was at the lowest level since 1987, yet 7.3 million children did not have health insurance coverage that year. [Reference-1, Reference-2]

WTF-28
Provided funding for high-speed, broadband Internet access to K-12 schools.
"There's a big gap that remains between rural and urban areas because it's just hard to make a business case in rural areas," said Jonathan Adelstein, the agriculture department's rural utilities service administrator, in a conference call with reporters. "Rural areas' future depends upon access to broadband and we're not where we need to be today."

The states that will benefit from the funding are: Alabama, Arkansas, California, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

As many as one in 10 Americans can't get Internet connections fast enough to engage in such common online activities as watching video or teleconferencing, and two thirds of schools have broadband connections that are too slow to meet their needs, the Commerce Department reported earlier this year. [Reference-1, Reference-2]


As promised, I will come back to this topic in another issue.  Please make sure to read the next issue, Issue No. 011 - Arts and Culture as I continue with
WTF-29
Posted daily or weekly on BLADE 7184
until Election Day!
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Hope you enjoy my daily posts, and hope to hear from you soon.

- Blade 7184 aka Peter