The one about: Mercy

Since the horrific shooting in Colorado everyone has been having their own reaction to it. With human reaction comes a lot of mixed emotions and statements. A lot of which comes in some form of "Thank God i'm safe" or "Thank God for protecting me" which led me to beg the question...Is God really protecting you? Or are we at the mercy of the Devil?

Example: A car accident. Two cars are involved in a head on collision. The person in Car A dies and the person in Car B is barely injured. The person in Car B says (or thinks) "Thank you God for protecting me!". This makes it seem that God had something to do with the person in Car A dying. As in "God didn't protect the person in Car A". 

There is something about those types of situations that bothers me.  

The first question you have to ask yourself is, Do you believe God has the power to do anything? No 'ifs', 'ands' or 'buts'. If you hold the belief that God is all knowing and all powerful then the next question you have to ask is....What is His role in the tragedies of the world? By no means am I trying to be the person who says "Why did you take them from us God!!" because I think we all know God didn't go into that theater and kill people. So...when someone thanks God for protecting THEM or...thanking God that it WASN'T them makes me wonder if we aren't talking to the wrong person. Could God have stopped what happened Friday? Of course. Could he have stopped all the world wars and all the senseless murders of millions of people? Of course! But He didn't. Why not? God might have a reason for everything HE does. But murder and horribly death isn't part of His doing. So don't try to reason as to why these people are getting killed and think "hmm...God must've had a reason for letting that 6 year old girl die". I don't believe this is true at all.

God has let the Devil loose upon the world. This is something we *should* all know. The Devil is going around creating natural disasters that kill thousands, He is the one going around murdered millions of Jews, He is the one making people walk into malls, schools and theaters shooting people. Here is another question that I have...back when Hitler was in power, and millions of innocent people were being slaughtered, God didn't intervene. Or did God intervene when the WWII was won? We will never know. This is the world of man now. This is the world where the Devil has the freedom to go about and do what he wants. Without God stopping him. At least not yet. This is the world we live in. It's a hard pill to swallow but I refuse to believe God has single handedly "cured" anyone from cancer while letting the cancer patient in the next room to die. I don't believe he works like that. Either you believe God is picking and choosing who lives and dies or you believe He loves everyone equally.

If we can't blame God for what happens, does this mean we should be thanking Him for sparing our life? Or are we sitting at the mercy of the Devil at this point? Should we say "Thankfully the devil didn't get me yet"? Who knows. I don't have all the answers. I don't think anyone does. We will always fail when we try to assume what God is thinking. Or assume what God's intentions or plans are. I can tell you God *probably* doesn't have a reason for everything. Those with power hardly have to have reason to do what they want to do.So I wish people would stop either blaming God for not intervening or thanking Him for being safe. Stop forgetting that the Devil is playing a major role in this world right now. I think forgetting about that has led people to a lot of deception. The Devil is good. He knows Gods word well and he knows how to use it against you.

This is why I tend to stay away from organized religion. If I said one word of any of this they'd call me a Sadist and hang me from the nearest tree or burn me at the stake (which was such a Christian thing to do, wasn't it?). I am not trying to question God but I am questioning the people. Organized religion wants you to follow blindly. They make up some silly rules and you're supposed to abide by them. Even if it doesn't say anything about it in the Bible!! NO there are no other prophets than those described in the Bible. If you had to make your own book, chances are you're wrong. NO birth control isn't wrong, but you getting pregnant out of wedlock is. NO you don't have to do some silly ceremony and treat your pastor or Pope like he is Jesus himself!! It's all so ridiculous to me that people can make up their own denominations and people will follow them like sheep. Follow the ONE book that God gave us. Stop trying to interpret it to mean what you want it to mean!! Take it for what it is...and READ it for yourself! Don't allow some pastor to read it and interpret it for you. He is not responsible for your salvation. YOU ARE. When you start to question things, it leads you to look for answers, which leads you to the knowledge that God  has been wanting you to seek. His word.

Yes, I love God. Yes, it is great to be thankful! It is great to thank God for a new day and for the blessings you have! But be smart about things people, please. God gave us brains and the power to think for ourselves for a reason. Use it.

Here is a quote from an article that I really enjoy...

"My friend, how many times have you heard people describe to you their sicknesses, tragedies, or misfortunes and then end the story with, "...but God must have done it for a reason." Or "God is trying to teach me something." I am just as much to blame because I too remember years ago putting the blame on God for different situations thinking that it was all for a reason. But also remember that when we do have trials and tribulations in our life, God uses them and turns them into something good as told in Romans 8:28, "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." During this process we are drawn closer to God and learn of His awesome power and dominion over the works of the devil, thus strengthening our walk with Him.

A good loving father would never put His child's hand over an open flame to teach him that fire burns! Likewise, God is our Father and like any good Father, He only wants to teach us using good instructional methods and to protect us from harm...not cause it! Matthew 7:11

It is not God we should be blaming, it is our adversary the devil or satan who causes these things. For 1 Peter 5:8 says, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." And in John 10:10 it says "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."

You can find the rest of the article here

The One About: Video Games

Let me say this up front: I love video games. I met my boyfriend playing a video game and he moved halfway across the country to be with me. We play games together often and it is something that we have in common that some other couples don't. I do not believe that female gamers are as rare as a lot of people try to make them out to be and as a female gamer there are a lot of things about video games that really piss me off. Shall I begin to name a few?

Apparently it is just as useful for my female character to have her T&A hanging out of her armor as it is for her male counterpart to be completely covered up wearing his 50lbs of gear. I understand I am not the first person (or the last) to complain about this, but it really puts me off. Why yes, if I am to go on an assassination mission, of COURSE i want my skin tight suit to have my boobs hanging out of it. It's not like any of my vital organs are near my boobs, right?

There is a great article written about this here: Video games and Male Gaze - are we men or boys? In which the author, who happens to be male, argues against this blatant sexism in video games. Is it necessary to have these characters have sex scenes like in Mass Effect and Farcry 3 (during which actual boobs are shown). Do men really wonder why women don't like to play games much? I wouldn't doubt a lot of it has to do with how obviously male oriented video games are. I'm sorry, sometimes I get tired of seeing half naked women running around in these games for no other reason than to excite the male consumer. I will end this argument here because honestly that article says more than I could've hoped to put into words myself. It is a good read if you have the time. The bottom line is: There is a way to make female characters 'sexy' without making them into whores.

Secondly, I absolutely cannot stand war simulation video games. At all. Here's my reason for that. War isn't something we should glorify. I've recently been watching a documentary on Netflix entitled WWII in HD. It shows tons of actual footage of WWII, including lots and lots of dead bodies. Not just dead...but blow apart, burnt, shot, bloated and floating in water, limbs missing and all. I have a military history in my family and I have a ton of respect for our military. That being said, I cannot see how so many people can enjoy these games like CoD, MW, etc. Not after seeing what I have. Since when is it something to cheer about when someone gets their face torn off by a mortar? Since when is it something to cheer about when a soldier dies instantly with a bullet to the brain? Am I supposed to say, "It's just a video game. It isn't real life"?

Isn't it though? Do we not have thousands of bodies being returned to the US in coffins from being killed overseas? By roadside bombs, beheadings and torture? Is it supposed to be okay because it's the "other guys"? To me that type of murder is never okay. These men who go off and fight our wars, from WWI up though this current war in Iraq and Afghanistan are brave. They are heroes. They paid the ultimate sacrifice. Even if they didn't die, we have thousands of men coming back missing limbs, disabled, psychotically messed up for the rest of their lives. But some pimple faced kid or some man with something to prove gets to stay at home, play these games and curse at each other over a headset because someone died one too many times to headshots and they're pissed off about it? They're a bunch of cowards. Have some respect. I despise that this has become such a popular industry of which we have bought into as a nation.

There is a difference between being proud of what our soldiers accomplish and glorifying the horrors that is war. These men don't get to respawn and try again. Death is permanent. Anything else is a disgrace to those men and women's husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters and children. They will never see their loved ones again. And for what? For you to sit at home and pretend to do what they go out and do day in and day out. What a shame.

"War is a horrible, nasty business and to say otherwise is to do a disservice to those who died."

The one about: Factoids

I had a good idea earlier in the day about something else I can make a long rant about. But instead I decided to just throw out a list of things that piss me off because I don't feel like writing an entire entry on each of them. What can I say? I'm lazy sometimes.

* People who drive under the speed limit. Especially while on the expressway. Really? If you aren't willing to go at least 55MPH stick to the roads!

* People who like to think that turn signals are optional. Especially when they are turning.

* People who over generalize. (I.E. "All men are horndogs" or "All blondes are whores" or even better "All mexicans drive a Honda civic".)

* People who put ketchup on their hotdogs.

* People who don't know the difference between their, there and they're. (Also too, to, your, you're.)

* Men who call women c*nts, make "get in the kitchen" jokes, etc. I see this a lot when i am playing video games. (And men wonder why women don't play video games? Maybe because a lot of them act like complete douchebags to us when we do?)

* People who have more than 5 sexual partners by the time they are 21. And more than 10 in a lifetime.

* Women who wear low cut shirts and get mad when people are staring at their chest instead of their face. (Because you TOTALLY wore that to NOT get attention, right?)

* Overly judgmental Christians

* Racists

* People who tan too much and look like a traffic cone

* People who make unnecessary noise when they eat. This includes slurping soups, cereal, etc. Loud chewing, etc.

* Women who complain about not looking like a fashion model but are lucky to be free from cancer and disease. Count your blessings.

* Women who don't eat. Let's be honest. I'm from the midwest and we know how to eat here. I can't stand women who eat like birds and eat rabbit food all day. You can still eat food with flavor and be healthy and lose weight. Just don't eat 4 freaking helpings of it. There is too much good food out there for me not to eat it. Sorry. I'll take a chicken taco over a nasty protein drink any day. I am of the idea that dieting doesn't work. After so long of being deprived you fall off the wagon hard. Just be smart about what you eat people. There is nothing in the world that in the right amount, you can't have. Enjoy life! It's too short not to!

* And along these lines, skinny girls who call themselves fat. GTFO.

* Men who think it's their mission in life to sleep with as many women as possible.

*Ungrateful children

*Certain religions such as strict Catholics and Mormons. I read and hear a lot about what their religion is based on and I think...Really? People believe this crap? Well heck, sign me up and mark me as a prophet! I bet I can get a group of people to believe me too!

*Unfit parents

* New York, New Jersey and Boston accents. I'd rather go to a Rebecca Black concert every day for a year than listen to those people talk.

* People who are constantly on their phones. Especially at the dinner table.

* Mitt Romney

I am sure there are many more I could add to this list but this is all I could come up with off the top of my head. Sure does feel good to get it off my chest though.

The One About: Civil Rights

Nothing seems to get me more heated than a discussion on civil rights and liberties. For my own sake I am going to try to stay as far away from topical politics as I can and simply deliver my opinion on the matters of civil rights surrounding us today.

Here we are, in the year 2012 and we are still arguing about who should have the right to do what in this country. I'm a Christian, yes. I usually vote Democratic, sure. I've lived my life in one of the biggest cities in the country my entire life, fact. I say this because I believe this to be one of the biggest influences on the way that I think and form opinions. 

Why is it that most major cities vote blue? And little out of the way cities and states vote red? Political history? Perhaps. But what I have come to believe is that a majority has to do with what people have seen in their lifetime. Someone in a small town in southern Illinois, who has lived in a town with a few thousand people their entire life has not seen what someone living in Chicago has seen. This isn't necessarily a bad thing but it no doubt effects their belief system. Someone who has not seen the poverty and oppression of blacks and hispanics will not have the same connection or sense of obligation to do something about it as someone who has lived on 79th and Blue Island in Chicago might. Someone who has never even met or talked to a gay person in their life may not be as willing to accept the fact that this group is in fact made up of people. People who just want the right to do what everyone else gets to do.

That being said, let me move onto something else. Southerners are known to be somewhat "bible thumpers". This can either be a good or bad thing depending on to who and how they are thumping that Bible around. But along with that, they are strong believers in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. They often like to quote various amendments that give them the right to say what they want, publish what they want, and the right to shoot someone who comes onto their property expectantly. All of this is fine, but...what happened to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness? Should gays not also have this right? And why is it that a lot of Christians just LOVE to throw out the verse in Leviticus about homosexuality yet they don't live their lives in accordance with the rest of the Bible? Oh, you have a tattoo of a cross on your arm? I'm sure God will love that, seeing as how tattoos are forbidden in Leviticus only a few verses after the infamous homosexuality verse. You're going to go watch Game of Thorns or some other porny crap? I'm sure God's word regarding lust and tearing out your eye if it causes you to sin because..."So if your eye--even your good eye--causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell." (Matthew 5:29)  Why do Christians like to use the Bible to point out things someone else is doing wrong and make it seem like it is the most important thing in the Bible? It isn't. I'd love it if they took that kind of scrutiny and apply it to their own lives. No one is perfect and no one understands this better than I do .But nothing irritates me more than someones own self-righteousness. 

That being said...I've lived in Chicago my entire life. I've seen many unpleasant, unfair and unfortunate things. In a city with 9 millions people, how can you not? I've seen gay friends get beat up because they are gay. I've seen and heard my minority friends being harassed and treated differently than me. I've become sensitive to the plight of others. My personal conviction may be that homosexuality is a sin. But I don't agree with discrimination. And the ones who harp about the "sanctity of marriage"...marriage is a civil ceremony. You don't even have to get married in a fancy church or have a priest marry you. The divorce rate is 50% in this country. Celebrities are on their 2nd, 3rd, 4th marriages but you won't let Tim and John who may have been together for 10 years get married because it's a sin? Divorce is a sin. Most of what we do and say on a daily basis is a sin. Get over yourselves. 


Yes I will vote democratic as long as the GOP wants to discriminate. That's just how it is for me. The dems aren't perfect, but they stand for a bit more of what I want than the GOP does.

It isn't the lonely farmers fault that he doesn't get to witness the problems of the world around him. It isn't the small town family's fault that they live in their own utopia far away from the problems of certain groups. But it doesn't excuse hate and discrimination. It doesn't excuse willful ignorance. Get out there. See things. Experience the unpleasant. It will change your life. 

Someone once said, "If it isn't happening in your own back yard you don't believe it." This is true for many and sad for all.