Civil Rights for All

As the Boy Scouts considered an historic (and long overdue) elimination of their ban on gay scouts and leaders, the Michigan Department of Civil Rights released its report on LGBT Inclusion Under Michigan Law. The report contains shocking and compelling stories from gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals across Michigan who have faced discrimination in the workplace, schools and housing. The study concludes that there is indisputable evidence of alarming rates of LGBT discrimination in the state and outlines the negative economic impact discrimination has not only on LGBT residents, but also on employers and students in Michigan.

Whatever your personal opinion about sexual orientation and gender identity, legalized discrimination against LGBT individuals must end. Just as we did with women and then people of color, we have learned that discrimination against people on the basis of who they love has no foundation in science, law or morality. Discrimination against gays and lesbians is unjust and should be made illegal.

The Report called for the expansion of laws that protect people from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity/expression in employment, housing, and the full and equal utilization of public accommodations, public service and educational facilities. The current nondiscrimination clause used by the City of Midland Human Resources Department “considers all applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, handicap or disability, or status as a Vietnam-era or special disabled veteran in accordance with federal law.” I call on our city officials to be proactive and take the steps needed to add “sexual orientation and gender identity/expression” to its nondiscrimination clauses for hiring, for contracts, or for any other public use.

Let’s join other progressive communities in Michigan, like our neighbors in Mount Pleasant, and support this action.

Recent Activity

I have been cheating on the muse kennel and pizzatorium.  I found another blog.  But fear not, dear readers, I have not forsaken my blog for another.

I was recently asked to become a contributing writer to the online blog of the Midland Daily News.  Since the paper has a reputation of leaning to the conservative side, I welcomed the opportunity to present a progressive voice.

I will be posting weekly on timely issues, and usually on issues of social import with justice implications.  Now that I have settled in and received an enthusiastic (?!) welcome from some of the local regulars, I will cross post to the paper and to the pizzatorium/

Also, BIG NEWS!!!  My e-book is up and available for purchase on Amazon.  Sauntering: Wandering the Path of Mystical Omnitheism offers beginning advice on how to open your body, mind and spirit to new insights without resorting to complicated spiritual practices or time-consuming meditative arts. By sauntering, you explore the path of Mystical Omnitheism - the idea that ours is only one of countless universes and planes of existence - and that all existence is god, everything is sacred, and that you and everything that exists is important. Sauntering opens the door to mystical experiences with all universes.

After years of trying meditation and prayer, various arts and devotional activities, I always returned to the spiritual practice that worked for me - sauntering - the act of mindful wandering. I offer tips on how to use this spiritual practice in your life. With each chapter, I also include reflections on my own saunters through woods, along railroad tracks, or through city streets (some of these saw their first publication here in the muse kennel).

As a long-time atheist, I have found the hard line attitude of most atheists combative and unrealistic. In a world where people want the good that religion has to offer, I feel that the answer is not to reject all religion, but to find a cosmology that allowed one to live a useful religious life - one dedicated to helping others and to making the world a better place.

Declaration of Independence 2.0

Over two centuries ago, Thomas Jefferson wrote a document that forever changed our understanding of politics, of society, and of the citizens’ role in change. Now, events here in Michigan call on us once again to evolve beyond our current political structure, and to assume a more perfect state of equality and justice. A decent respect for the diversity of humanity and the complex demands of living in an interconnected environment requires us to declare the causes of our discontent and the elements of our vision for a better future.

We hold these truths to be self-evident; the People deserve equal rights under the law, regardless of any personal attribute, self-identity, social class, or status. The People have the right to a core level of health care, education, legal representation, and access to employment. The People own their bodies, their identities, their labor, and their privacy. All People should be accountable to the same rule of law and held responsible for their actions. The People have the inalienable right to the pursuit of happiness and should not be made to fear their safety and well-being as a tool to manipulate their actions, guarantee their compliance, or demand their obedience.

To secure these rights, a nation consists of three important bodies – the People, government, and the private sector. Government exists to protect the People from harm, whether from external or internal sources. When the private sector proves itself incapable of providing services that abide by these core values, then Government must create regulations that guarantee the maintenance of the People’s basic human rights. The People and the private sector each benefit when the implicit social contract between the two is kept in proper balance. The private sector provides the People with jobs, fair wages, and products for consumption. The People provide the private sector with a lasting social infrastructure that allows the private sector to function and grow. The People each have one vote and no one human person or non-person entity should have the capacity to unduly influence free elections. Society must provide all of the basic freedoms guaranteed to the People as human beings – freedom of speech, freedom to assemble, a free press, the free practice of religion, and the ability to redress grievances.

Nations exist within the larger framework of a global society. The United States is one of 200 sovereign states in the world. Each of these states deserves the same consideration for self-determination and existence for its People that we demand for ours. Any global call for assistance or intervention should be coordinated by global or regional representative bodies. Violent intervention should always be the very last resort, and only considered after every possible diplomatic effort has been fully exhausted.

We also live as part of the interdependent web of all existence. The People must acknowledge the rights of other life forms and our responsibility as stewards of our planet. All nations, their People, governments, and private sectors must place equal emphasis on the future of our global society as on the immediate gratification of needs. Any action that threatens future generations, regardless of the short term benefits, should be considered a non-viable alternative. The highest aspirations of all humanity can only be achieved if love is our most important core value – love of self, family, community, society, and the world.

Whenever the social contract between the People, government, and the private sector becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles. Such change should not be undertaken lightly, but when a long train of abuses results in insurmountable corruption and tyranny, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security.

As we gather together in solidarity to express a feeling of mass injustice, we must not lose sight of what brought us together. We write so that all people who feel wronged can know that we are your allies.

As one people, united, we acknowledge the reality: that the future of our planet requires the cooperation of its members; that our system must protect our rights, and upon corruption of that system, it is up to the individuals to protect their own rights, and those of their neighbors. A democratic government derives its just power from the People, but the private sector does not seek consent to extract wealth from the people and the Earth; and no true democracy is attainable when the process is determined by economic power. We come to you at a time when corporations, which place profit over people, self-interest over justice, and oppression over equality, run our governments.

Democracy in the State of Michigan is under siege from a well-funded horde of marauding savages. Their names are Greed, Selfishness, Hatred, Bigotry, Misogyny, Ignorance, and Elitism. We call for a revolution of the spirit of our nation and of our world; not a revolution of bloodshed and violence, but a revolution to win back the souls of the People.

We absolve ourselves from allegiance to this government and to the private sector as currently constituted. Instead, we pledge allegiance to the People, to the heart and spirit of our human community. We pledge allegiance not to dogma, but to our capacity to reason, to love, and to courageously seek to build the best society for all. We pledge allegiance not to hollow promises and creeds, but to honesty, integrity, and openness in our words and our actions. We pledge allegiance to no status quo, but to respecting ourselves and others and to helping everyone gain and maintain the basic freedoms guaranteed to all. We pledge allegiance not to blind obedience to ancient voices, but to a respectful consideration of all the sacrifices made and being made by all people so that future generations can be empowered to continue the legacy of peace and freedom.

We pledge allegiance not to any flag or other symbol, but to the inherent rights of all people to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We pledge allegiance not to any currency, but to fair compensation, free speech, freedom to believe, freedom to define one’s own identity, and the freedom to love.

The War on Democracy in Michigan

Here is what passed for logic and reason for Republicans in Lansing this week.

• We must restrict access to abortions in order to eliminate abortions,
• We must increase the rights of gun owners to carry concealed weapons in order to reduce gun violence
• Religious organizations using public funds to do the work of the state may discriminate based on their religious beliefs
• Someone with a few hours training has the right to bring a concealed, loaded handgun into your church

As Rep. Brandon Dillon said on the floor of the House on Tuesday, Michigan is now the place where democracy goes to die.  Despite the clear voice of the people last November, the Koch-funded governor is recreating the emergency manager function, which creates total autocracy in a local government and the suspension of everything you would view as the democratic process.

The nation awakes this morning to the shroud of shame woven by Michigan Republicans last night.  If you call yourself a patriot and American, the events of this week should jolt you into action.

• Bills introduced and voted on before legislators or voters have the slightest chance to read them
• Bills passed without any Committee review or opportunity provided for public comment
• Bills rammed through the House and Senate without legislators being given the opportunity to discuss them or to offer amendments

If this is democracy, then what moral superiority does this country have the gall to claim?  Even if you support this legislation, you cannot support the manner in which it is being passed in Michigan.

When the wealthy can write the legislation and purchase its passage, then our elected officials before whores.  And if the people say nothing in opposition, then we are their pimps.

I do not want to live in an America betrayed by greed and selfishness.  I cannot live in a country where the people are too apathetic to stand up to rich bullies who maraud our state and our nation with impunity.  I cannot enjoy a season promoting the principles of the Sermon on the Mount knowing that we now mourning the death of democracy have no hope; that the gentle will inherent a barren landscape; and that those who thirst for righteousness will choke on the dust of corruption.  If we are pure in heart, perhaps we will see God someday.  But, right now if the pure in heart do not start overturning some moneychangers' tables, then the people in the here and now will suffer increasingly grave injustice.

I mourn for the women soon to die from medical complications because clinics are forced to close.  I mourn for the innocents soon to fall to the bullets of "law-abiding citizens."  I mourn for the workers and their families who will endure decreased wages, outsourced jobs, and increased job-related accidents and illnesses.  I mourn for GLBT folk who will be legally denied their rights.  I mourn for a generation that will not know the benefits of public education.  I mourn for people of color, many of whom will live under the dictatorial rule of politically-appointed cronies.  I mourn for all of us as we watch the dream of Adams and Jefferson die.

Legalizing Concealed Weapon Violates Religious Freedom...and Common Sense

I returned to Lansing today to testify before the House Committee considering SB 59, a bill that would allow gun-owners with a modicum of training to carry concealed firearms into churches, day care centers, schools, hospitals and other "no-carry zones."  The following were my prepared notes.

This proposed legislation is one of several recent bills that directly impact churches and other religious facilities. Some lawmakers feel that these bills protect religious freedom in this state. A few weeks ago, testifying before his own committee on one of this bills, Representative Kenneth Kurtz said, “…we need to make sure that government doesn't force these organizations to operate in a manner that violates their beliefs…We should never put faith-based organizations in a situation where they have to violate their faith in order to carry out their social mission.”

Now, I testified against that particular piece of legislation, not because I disagree with the need to defend religious freedom, but because I believe Rep. Kurtz’s reasoning for that instance was faulty. So, to stress the relevance of bills such as SB 59 to the issue of religious freedom, let me reference Thomas Jefferson, the father of our legal concept of religious freedom. The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom was written by Jefferson and enacted into the state's law in 1786. In part, the Statute reads:

Whereas, Almighty God hath created the mind free;

• That all attempts to influence it...beget habits of hypocrisy and meanness, and therefore are a departure from the plan of the holy author of our religion…
• That the impious presumption of legislators…who, being themselves but fallible…men have assumed dominion over the faith of others, setting up their own opinions and modes of thinking as the only true and infallible…
• That our civil rights have no dependence on our religious opinions any more than our opinions in physics or geometry…
• That to suffer the civil magistrate to intrude his powers into the field of opinion and to restrain the profession or propagation of principles on supposition of their ill tendency is a dangerous fallacy which… destroys all religious liberty…
• And finally, that Truth is great, and will prevail if left to herself, that she is the proper and sufficient antagonist to error, and has nothing to fear from the conflict, unless by human interposition disarmed of her natural weapons free argument and debate…

SB 59 promotes the further dissemination of the most heinous tools of violence and human injury in our society into our most sacred spaces – our schools, our day care centers, and of course our churches and religious sanctuaries. This bill tells religious communities that the decision of the state to expand the free reign of gun owners matters more than centuries-old traditions and beliefs, and more than the moral tenets of religious people in search of places safe from the sorrows and concerns of the secular world. And this bill threatens our religious freedom.

And as Jefferson asserted, religious freedom is not about legislators imposing their particular moral and religious beliefs on the populace, or acting as agents of those who would have government restrict the free practice of religion. Religious freedom is not about imposing the will of fallible human beings on the citizenry, but freeing us to make their own informed choices and seek Truth in an atmosphere free from coercion and violence. To protect religious freedom, then we should protect our schools and churches, where the presence of guns will only increase the likelihood of overt acts against peace and order.

Personally, if the powers of the universe granted me the capacity, I would eradicate every handgun from the face of the earth. I loathe handguns and the evil made more easily committed by their possession. But I realize that I do not have that power, nor can I even prevent them from existing in our streets. But I can fight for stronger laws regarding their purchase and registration. I can advocate for sterner measures regarding their use. And I can plead for you to protect important areas of our communities from their presence.

I will never allow handguns through the doors I was called to protect. I believe that handguns in my church are an anathema to my moral beliefs and to the religious tenets of my faith. Handguns present a vile assault on the universal religious principles of love and peace. A handgun presence in a religious facility is a depraved violation of the sacred protection our sanctuaries provide.

I also added a couple of comments based on assertions made by the bill's proposer at the hearing.

• Many of the people who walk into churches and schools with loaded guns were "law-abiding citizens" up to the point that the first bullet flew.
• Predictions of tragedy are not exaggerated - shootings have already occurred that this legislation would simply make more possible and less preventable.
• Empowering gun owners only emboldens those with no respect for the safety of children or the sanctity of sacred spaces.

A Tipping Point on the Horizon

Years ago, I was deeply troubled reading The Handmaid’s Tale, the novel by Margaret Atwood.  After a catastrophic plague, in the Republic of Gilead (formerly the United States), theocratic ideals have been carried to extremes.  Women are strictly controlled, unable to have jobs or money, and are assigned to various classes: the chaste and childless Wives; the housekeeping Marthas; and the reproductive Handmaids, who turn their offspring over to the "morally fit" Wives.  The tale is told by Offred (read: "of Fred"), a Handmaid who recalls the past and tells how the chilling society came to be.

Like all stories of its kind, The Handmaid’s Tale is meant to be fantasy, but just real enough to be cautionary. Sadly, we seem to be moving closer and closer to the fantastic here in Michigan.

I have been very actively opposing Michigan HB 5711, 5712, and 5713 in recent months – bills that would, in effect, make it nearly impossible for women in this state to receive abortions for any reason, be it rape or incest, even to save their own lives.  In just the past few weeks, more bills have been brought forth that jeopardize our core tenets of religious freedom in this county.

• HB 5763 would legalize discrimination against adopting parents by allowing adoption agencies the ability to deny a placement based on that agency's "moral or religious beliefs." HB 5764 would protect government funding for agencies choosing to so discriminate. The bills even acknowledge that a religious or moral conviction that could allow an agency to deny adoption rights to certain families does NOT imply "that the proposed adoption is not in the best interest of the adoptee." The obvious targets of this legislation are gay and lesbian, non-Christian, or nonreligious parents.
• SB 975 could allow emergency room doctors and nurses to deny emergency medical care to gay people, women who need a life-saving abortion, and even those with AIDS, for reasons of "conscience." This bill would create the possibility of the unimaginable cruelty suffered by Savita Halappanavar in Ireland a few weeks ago.

To be honest, I would rather spend my time writing sermons, providing pastoral care, and teaching religious education classes.  But my conscience and the spirits of Unitarians and Universalists who sacrificed through the ages to provide us the freedoms we enjoy command me to resist these efforts to create a dystopian theocracy in this state.

Ironically – and I wish I could laugh at the hypocrisy of it all – the sponsors of these bills argue that they are defending religious freedom. And yet they also back SB 59, which would allow people to legally carry a gun into churches or other places of worship, schools, day care centers, sports arenas or stadiums, day care centers, bars and taverns, hospitals, and college classrooms and dormitories. In other words, these theocrats want to use the church to shield their hate and discrimination, but then trample what the church represents when its principles runs counter to their lobbyists’ wishes.

You cannot have it both ways. You cannot live a moral life only when it is convenient or expeditious, or when it benefits you. A truly religious person stands for truth whatever the cost and whatever the consequences, because it is the truth.

And the truth is that it is wrong for churches receiving public funds, and thereby acting as agents of the state to deny any qualified adults the ability to provide their love and care to the 14,000 children needing homes in this state. It is wrong for any medical provider to deny treatment to anyone on any basis – ever. And it is wrong for government to force churches to allow loaded handguns – tools whose primary purpose is to injure and murder other human beings – into their sanctuaries.

Unitarian Thomas Jefferson defined religious freedom in the United States. His writings formed the basis of the separation of church and state, whose tenets include the freedom from the establishment of a state religion, and the free practice of religion by citizens. Any attempt to twist Jefferson’s words to support the withholding of public services on the basis of religious or moral beliefs is a vicious assault on our freedoms and our civil liberties. Jesus would certainly not approve, nor should the teachings of any mainstream, non-fundamentalist religion.

State Senator John Moolenaar, serving the 36th District, and State Representative Jim Stamas, serving the 98th District (both of which include Midland), have both supported or sponsored these bills. They will continue to support these attempts to erode true religious freedom until people speak up. I truly believe that we are approaching a tipping point in this state. And if we say that we promote justice, equity, and compassion in human relations, then we cannot sit idly by as our legislators rewrite the U.S. Constitution. To paraphrase Edmund Burke, the only thing necessary for the triumph of prejudice and hate is for good people to do nothing.

The Duty of Conscience

Many diversions have kept me from posting recently.  But, greatest among them towers the virulent spread of an incomprehensible plague; a plague that threatens to leave many of us stunned into hopeless silence.  I wish I was referring to something as simple as a zombie apocalypse.  No, I am writing about the mass psychosis that now represents the Republican Party.  Next Tuesday, whatever you choose to do in your polling place, I can only beg you not to further infect our society with this pestilence.

I didn't always view the GOP this way.  I respect the desire to control the size and influence of government in our lives.  And I admire fiscal discipline.  But this current mutation of the Republican Party leaves Goldwater and Reagan spinning in their graves.  The principles driving this party border on - no, I take that back - they are insidious.

• Mostly middle-aged White men seeking to make medical decisions for young and poor women, parents and children, regarding not just reproductive issues, but basic health concerns.
• Fanatics imposing twisted religious doctrines on the population - rape is a gift from God, but homosexuality is a choice.
• Outright deceit and hypocrisy, bald-faced lying to the people and then shrugging unapologetically with coy smugness when called on their lies.
• Caring only about fetuses, but not children; only about troops, but not our veterans; and always about wealth and the wealthy and never about workers or families, children or the elderly.
• Proudly displaying complete ignorance of the most basic scientific principles, while denying global climate change and evolution and continuing to commit us to unsustainable and dangerous environmental policies.
• Placing the right to own automatic weapons designed only for mass killing above the basic right to affordable medical care.
• Giving corporations the rights of human beings and continually violating the rights of real humans.
• Proudly holding our government hostage, costing this nations millions of jobs and access to health care, all for their own political advantage.

I am an Occupier, so I don't trust the Democratic Party much more.  Both parties are corrupt tools of the 1%.  And I will continue to fight in the future for a system of government that is compassionate and fair.  But, this is not the time to vote for a third party candidate.  While I share many concerns of Greens and Libertarians and my more anarchist allies, the time for a protest vote is not now.  Barack Obama is by no means perfect - illegal detentions, drone attacks, "clean" coal - but the alternative, a Romney presidency, makes me think of the worst dystopian visions.

We must come together and vote down the current iteration of the Republican Party, the party that worships ignorance, religious dogmatism, mean-spiritedness, and the most short-sighted expedience.  After the election, we can then begin again the hard work of making both parties understand that we are done putting up with business as usual from our politicians.

Please, people, you have not just a right of conscience, but a duty to act upon your conscience.  Justice and fairness will not be handed to you.  You must fight for them.  And on Tuesday, your best weapon is your vote.