Oct 24, 2008
Just wondering...
Just looking at some old news stories. Jim Jones. I was very young when this happened. Not really old enough to understand about cults, mind control and all that goes with it. What scares me is how many times in our history similar situations seem to repeat themselves. I think we are so hungry for a better way in this world that if a person with the right charisma, who speaks the words that will reassure us that they can lead us out of the depths of misery to the light, I think "it" could absolutely happen again. Hitler had charisma. Mao Tse Tung had charisma. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, they all had charisma. It's who's words you choose to let inspire you. Before Jim Jones lost his mind, he received humanitarian awards. Lots of CIA conspiracy theories there..in relation to Jim Jones..What never ceases to amaze me is how large groups of people fall under THE SPELL. Simply because they are hearing what they need to hear. People who join The Aryan Nation, fervently believe in the cause that they fight for. What separates you from those that fall into the myth that whomever is preaching at the time? Education, free will? I don't know. I do know one thing. I thank the man who raised me for teaching me that the best gift you have in this world is intelligence and the ability to make decisions. Pick up the pen or pick up a gun? What happens when you can't afford a pen or a gun?
Oct 23, 2008
Freegans...
What is a Freegan?
Freegans are people who employ alternative strategies for living based on limited participation in the conventional economy and minimal consumption of resources. Freegans embrace community, generosity, social concern, freedom, cooperation, and sharing in opposition to a society based on materialism, moral apathy, competition, conformity, and greed.
I watched some videos of "Freegans" and I was amazed at how much waste they are able to utilize. Some call it dumpster diving, they call it gathering resources. Didn't our ancestors hunt and gather? I know from personal experience in restaurant work, the food waste is shameful. I am talking about perfectly edible, fresh food. They also gather used clothing. The people in the video clip I watched were dressed rather nicely, their homes were clean and decorated nicely, all with other people's "garbage". I am a big believer in one man's junk is another's treasure. So here is an applaud from me to all the Freegans of our world who are making their way, harming no one, recycling waste instead of producing more and in their own humble way, making a difference in trying to be mindful of not harming our planet.
Oct 22, 2008
I have issues with this....
If my doctor writes me a prescription, I do not agree that a pharmacist's personal belief's should decide whether he fills it or not. My husband disagrees with me. He is pro choice but he fought in the military for people's freedoms. Although he doesn't agree with everyone's freedoms, you should at least have those rights. I believe in personal freedoms. I respect the right for every American to have a voice. I just can't swallow this one..When I stand there with my prescription and this pharmacist refuses to fill it, than what about my freedom...I know, I know, go to another pharmacy....
Va. pharmacy follows faith, no birth control sales
news-general-20081021-No.Contraceptives.Pharmacy
Pam Semler, of Fairfax, Va., works the register at DMC Pharmacy in Chantilly...
2 hours ago
Loading... Must Read?Thank YouYes 10
CHANTILLY, Va. — A new drug store at a Virginia strip mall is putting its faith in an unconventional business plan: No candy. No sodas. And no birth control. Divine Mercy Care Pharmacy is among at least seven pharmacies across the nation that are refusing as a matter of faith to sell contraceptives of any kind, even if a person has a prescription.
States across the country have been wrestling with the issue of pharmacists who refuse on religious grounds to dispense birth control or morning-after pills, and some have enacted laws requiring drug stores to fill the prescriptions.
In Virginia, though, pharmacists can turn away any prescription for any reason.
"I am grateful to be able to practice," pharmacy manager Robert Semler said, "where my conscience will never be violated and my faith does not have to be checked at the door each morning."
Semler ran a similar pharmacy before opening the new store, which is not far from Dulles International Airport. The store only sells items that are health-related, including vitamins, skin care products and over-the-counter medications.
On Tuesday, the pharmacy celebrated a blessing from Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde. While Divine Mercy Care is not affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church, it is guided by church teachings on sexuality, which forbid any form of artificial contraception, including morning-after pills, condoms and birth control pills, a common prescription used by millions of women in the U.S.
"This pharmacy is a vibrant example of our Holy Father's charge to all of us to wear our faith in the public square," said Loverde, who sprinkled holy water on the shelves stocked with painkillers and acne treatments. "It will allow families to shop in an environment where their faith is not compromised."
The drug store is the seventh in the country to be certified as not prescribing birth control by Pharmacists for Life International. The anti-abortion group estimates that perhaps hundreds of other pharmacies have similar policies, though they have not been certified.
Earlier this year in Wisconsin, a state appeals court upheld sanctions against a pharmacist who refused to dispense birth control pills to a woman and wouldn't transfer her prescription elsewhere. Elsewhere, at least seven states require pharmacies or pharmacists to fill contraceptive prescriptions, according to the National Women's Law Center. Four states explicitly give pharmacists the right to turn away any prescriptions, the group said.
The Virginia store's policy has drawn scorn from some abortion rights groups, who have already called for a boycott and collected more than 1,000 signatures protesting the pharmacy.
"If this emboldens other pharmacies in other parts of the state, it could really affect low-income and rural women in terms of access," said Tarina Keene, executive director of the Virginia chapter of the National Abortion Rights Action League.
Robert Laird, executive director of Divine Mercy Care, believes many of the estimated 50,000 Catholics within a few miles of the store will support its mission and make up for the roughly 10 percent of business that contraceptives represent in a typical pharmacy.
Whether Catholics will be drawn to the pharmacy is uncertain. According to a Gallup poll published last year for an extensive study of U.S. Catholicism called American Catholics Today, 75 percent of U.S. Catholics said you can still be a good Catholic even if you don't obey church teachings on birth control.
Catherine Muskett said she plans to shop at the drug store even though she lives more than 20 miles away.
"Obviously it's good to support pro-life causes. Every little bit counts," said Muskett, one of about 75 people who crowded into the tiny shop for Tuesday's ceremony.
___
On the Net:
Va. pharmacy follows faith, no birth control sales
news-general-20081021-No.Contraceptives.Pharmacy
Pam Semler, of Fairfax, Va., works the register at DMC Pharmacy in Chantilly...
2 hours ago
Loading... Must Read?Thank YouYes 10
CHANTILLY, Va. — A new drug store at a Virginia strip mall is putting its faith in an unconventional business plan: No candy. No sodas. And no birth control. Divine Mercy Care Pharmacy is among at least seven pharmacies across the nation that are refusing as a matter of faith to sell contraceptives of any kind, even if a person has a prescription.
States across the country have been wrestling with the issue of pharmacists who refuse on religious grounds to dispense birth control or morning-after pills, and some have enacted laws requiring drug stores to fill the prescriptions.
In Virginia, though, pharmacists can turn away any prescription for any reason.
"I am grateful to be able to practice," pharmacy manager Robert Semler said, "where my conscience will never be violated and my faith does not have to be checked at the door each morning."
Semler ran a similar pharmacy before opening the new store, which is not far from Dulles International Airport. The store only sells items that are health-related, including vitamins, skin care products and over-the-counter medications.
On Tuesday, the pharmacy celebrated a blessing from Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde. While Divine Mercy Care is not affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church, it is guided by church teachings on sexuality, which forbid any form of artificial contraception, including morning-after pills, condoms and birth control pills, a common prescription used by millions of women in the U.S.
"This pharmacy is a vibrant example of our Holy Father's charge to all of us to wear our faith in the public square," said Loverde, who sprinkled holy water on the shelves stocked with painkillers and acne treatments. "It will allow families to shop in an environment where their faith is not compromised."
The drug store is the seventh in the country to be certified as not prescribing birth control by Pharmacists for Life International. The anti-abortion group estimates that perhaps hundreds of other pharmacies have similar policies, though they have not been certified.
Earlier this year in Wisconsin, a state appeals court upheld sanctions against a pharmacist who refused to dispense birth control pills to a woman and wouldn't transfer her prescription elsewhere. Elsewhere, at least seven states require pharmacies or pharmacists to fill contraceptive prescriptions, according to the National Women's Law Center. Four states explicitly give pharmacists the right to turn away any prescriptions, the group said.
The Virginia store's policy has drawn scorn from some abortion rights groups, who have already called for a boycott and collected more than 1,000 signatures protesting the pharmacy.
"If this emboldens other pharmacies in other parts of the state, it could really affect low-income and rural women in terms of access," said Tarina Keene, executive director of the Virginia chapter of the National Abortion Rights Action League.
Robert Laird, executive director of Divine Mercy Care, believes many of the estimated 50,000 Catholics within a few miles of the store will support its mission and make up for the roughly 10 percent of business that contraceptives represent in a typical pharmacy.
Whether Catholics will be drawn to the pharmacy is uncertain. According to a Gallup poll published last year for an extensive study of U.S. Catholicism called American Catholics Today, 75 percent of U.S. Catholics said you can still be a good Catholic even if you don't obey church teachings on birth control.
Catherine Muskett said she plans to shop at the drug store even though she lives more than 20 miles away.
"Obviously it's good to support pro-life causes. Every little bit counts," said Muskett, one of about 75 people who crowded into the tiny shop for Tuesday's ceremony.
___
On the Net:
Oct 19, 2008
Lovely evening
Well, it's official...We went over my friend/boss/new landlords house last night for dinner and sat down and discussed all the basics and the lease is ready. We are signing it November 3. Kenny is going down on November 6, and I am following him in the first week of December. What am I going to do without my man and my dog for two weeks? Ugh...Baggy boy isn't excited at all, but oh well.. He will get over his fear of the unknown, and he will thrive.. He just doesn't know it yet. This is one instance where I do believe this is for our families best interest. So the anticipation is building and the thrill of not being broke is rather exciting. Kenny smokes like a damn chimney, and that alone will save us a ton of money as they cost half the price down there. It's funny, I tried to explain to my family about karma. This friend of mine I have known for about 7 years. She knew me at my worst. No secrets there. No matter how I was living I treated people decently. People remember that. So now here we sit, an opportunity given to me, along with this temporary employent til we move, by an old friend who I always treated nicely. Not easy to explain that to an 18 year old, basically about the old do unto others bit...Those simple rules you learn as a child are life rules...Shame more people don't apply them to their adult lives...Peace...
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