If what I read in the news today is to be believed, Obama has lost my vote.

(emphasis is my own)

CHICAGO - Reaching out to religious voters, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama called for expanding President Bush’s program steering federal social service dollars to religious groups and — in a move sure to cause controversy — supported some ability to hire and fire based on faith. [Link]

I fully support groups that provide food, clothing, and shelter to those in need, but to make hiring decisions based on religious beliefs (or lack thereof) is pretty offensive in a country founded on religious freedom. Our founding fathers would surely be sad at the state of things today.

I actually heard Cokie Roberts, NPR Commentator, use the word “illegitimate” to describe a child born outside a marriage in a news interview this morning.

Let’s take a look at what that word means, and for that, we consult the book:

Main Entry: il·le·git·i·mate \-ˈji-tə-mət\
Function: adjective
Date: 1536 (note how antiquated the word is)
1: not recognized as lawful offspring; specifically : born of parents not married to each other

2: not rightly deduced or inferred : illogical

3: departing from the regular : erratic

4 a: not sanctioned by law : illegal b: not authorized by good usage cof a taxon : published but not in accordance with the rules of the relevant international code
— il·le·git·i·mate·ly adverb

First off…it’s an antiquated (yes I like the word) belief that children born outside of an Old Testament defined marriage is a big deal. It amazes me that some people actually believe that the only families that exist on the planet are those composed of 1 female mother, 1 male father, married, with a child.

Second off…children are “legitimate” just by the nature of being born on this planet, although I will admit that many of us do “depart from the regular” - but then again, who defines what regular is. And to me, regular changes every day.

Third off…what educated person still uses that word to describe a child born outside marriage? None of them. Only dumb people do. It would be like calling the child a “bastard”. Dumb.

</rant>

As I start to look at re-branding this blog, I wanted to take a moment to call your attention to what I feel are 16 of the most interesting posts that have flowed from my brain in the last couple of years. You may not find all of them hilarious or funny, as many of my posts tend to be, but you might find them interesting.

Insightful, inspiring, informative. The 3 I’s of blogging. Well, interesting as well, so really the 4 I’s of blogging. My four eyes. You get the point.

So without further or farther adieu or adoo, here I present them for your review:

1. Back before my wordpress migration, I did a 5 post series on the 2006 Out and Equal Workplace Equality Conference. You can start at the beginning when Rachelle and I arrived in Chicago, enjoy our adventures at a disgusting restaurant called Stetson’s, and revel in the magnificence of us meeting Mr. Sulu of the Enterprise.
2. Continuing on the multi-post theme, who could forget the 5 days of Victoria, BC. Not only did I finally get to meet Bobby Apperson, but we once again experience the awe inspiring Butchart Gardens.
3. Next on the list is an informational page about the Randompedia, the Random Encyclopedia. Are you looking for things you’d never find in wikipedia? Look no further/farther.
4. A pivotal point in my life centered around an event in November 2006. NaNoWriMo, the writing competition to complete a 50,000 word novel in 30 days. Well let me tell ya, I didn’t just complete it, I blew it out of the water in 12 days then started on the next one! Here’s the post that started it all. (And the post about my first book published on amazon.com)
5. Ready for something spooky and scary? How about the story behind one of my favourite holidays? Hellaween! (I also shared the true history of Valentine’s Day too, but it’s not one of my favourite holidays because it’s not really a holiday. However, Easter is.)
6. The list wouldn’t be complete without at least one GLBT informational component, and what better than a warning that you should not do business with the gays. Ok, maybe two components - especially a warning about hate crimes.
7. The Hellaween season continued with a quick movie review. Some of you might recall the 8 Films to Die For series, and specifically, the movie Unrest. Yeah - I tried to forget it too. Here’s the review.
8. One of the longest series posts that I’ve done here is the Childhood Journal. After receiving a stack of old notebooks from my parents, I realized there was a goldmine of interesting writings from yours truly back when I was a wee little boy. Here’s the one that kicked it off, which includes a link to the entire series.
9. Ok, so GLBT is a common theme here, and so I should probably fill you all in on what it means to be a Friend of Dorothy.
10. Want to know how to make the world a better place? Try Star Trek.
11. I don’t just care about making the world a better place, I also want to make your lives and relationships better. Who knew that you could learn so much about a relationship from your toothbrush?
12. One of the most popular posts I’ve ever done was about throwing a wine party. It’s really quite easy, and I’ve provided simple instructions on making it a memorable event.
13. Some of you were probably wondering when I’d get to this one, and number 13 is probably appropriate for it. That’s right, it’s my American Idol series.
14. Time for a meme. I’ve done quite a few of these, so I’ll lump some together into #14. What’s on your iPod, iTunes Meme, and What’s On Your Desk.
15. Sometimes it’s important to share your dreams. For some reason I felt compelled to share one of my most bizarre ones with you.
16. Finally, I provided more education, in a post on 8 Quick Tips for Aspiring Amateur Photographers. We don’t just provide entertainment here, we also educate.

So there you have it. 16 posts (actually 22 but in a list of 16) that resonated with me and with my readers (based on a very scientific process that I developed just for this post). Have a great time browsing around, and remember that these are just a sample of what we have to offer here at Digital Heath.

Also remember - safety first!

Usually, I’m fond of the reporting I get from NPR on my morning commute. But this was just odd. I guess the apathy has really reached new heights when the newscasters can’t even muster up emotion in their voices.

“In Iraq today, 12 or so people died in a car bomb.” - that’s what I heard from the morning anchor. 12 or so? I know it’s just nuance, but there is a huge difference between saying:

12 or so people died today in a car bomb on the streets of …

and

more than 12 people died today in a car bomb on the streets of …

Subtle? Yes. But an important distinction. In the first example, we can’t be bothered to know how many people died. Maybe it was 12, maybe it was more, we don’t really know and don’t care.

In the second example, we know it was at least 12, but we want you to know that yes, tragically, it might have been more as well.

I don’t know what more to think about it. Maybe I’m overly sensitive, but it still bothers me to hear every day that more people are dying from car bombs, plane crashes, etc.

Let me first start by saying that I have the utmost confidence in MJ. I mean, I went to his wedding for goodness sake.

But a news article today had a hidden gem that just needs to be shared. [Link]

Apparently, Michael was paid $10 million, recently, to attend the 25th birthday of a Prince of Brunei. Unfortunately, MJ wasn’t able to stay for the cake cutting, because he was feeling ill. But here was the exact quote.

The moonwalker didn’t look that great, either, according to reports. “Michael seemed a shadow of his former self,” an onlooker told the London Sun. “He was white as a sheet.”

It’s little gems like this that make life worth living.

This distressingly tragic story is just in from Stratford, Connecticut. This poor little girl who had done nothing wrong except have zero communication with her parents, sneak outside to have naughtiness with her boyfriend from the “other side of the tracks“, then set off the motion sensor when she returned home and broke into her own house through the basement.

What is interesting about this story is how the media presents it. This wouldn’t be news otherwise, it would simply be an unfortunate accident, and thankfully she wasn’t killed because of it.

But let’s take a look at the multitude of ways the media presents a very simple story like this…

• Off-Duty copy shoots daughter who snuck out
• Cop shoots daughter mistaken as intruder
• Off-Duty Officer shoots daughter mistaken for intruder
• Police officer mistakenly shoots daughter
• Off-duty cop accidentally shoots daughter
• Off-duty police officer shoots daughter by mistake
• Cop shoots daughter, thinking she’s a burglar
• New Haven Officer On Disability Mistakenly Shoots Daughter

Put it all together and you’ve got -

Off-Duty New Haven Police Officer on disability accidentally shoots daughter who snuck out, mistaking her for an intruder.

And this is nothing compared to how the Anna Nicole Smith death was titled…

Here is the snippet and link to msnbc.com

STRATFORD, Conn. - An off-duty New Haven police officer shot and critically wounded his 18-year-old daughter, apparently mistaking her for an intruder after she sneaked out of their Stratford home and re-entered through the basement. [Link]

This is just a short one, but it made me laugh.

ROME - Italian consumer groups want authorities to cancel
Barbra Streisand’s concert in Rome next month because of excessive ticket prices.
…
The ticket prices, which range from just under $200 to more than $1,200, are “absurd and shameful,” the groups said in a statement Monday. [Link]

We saw BS on Ellen some time back (Oct 24). It was a huge deal because the interview was done at Barbra’s someone else’s house (which was discovered after-the-fact), and it was such a rare interview.

Those of you who saw it probably immediately noticed that it’s true, Barbra did sit on the right side instead of the usual left, and I have to tell you…the interview was awful. I mean, love me some Ellen, but it was like she was having to pull teeth to get Barbra to say anything. Ellen is fun, playful, and a pretty darn good interviewer, but this was a struggle. Barbra acted as though she couldn’t have cared less about being there and was just waiting for it to be over after she’d gotten her 15 minutes of publicity. It was very disappointing, because I enjoy her music - especially the live album One Voice.

Anyway - so when I saw this article from Rome, it gave me a fun little chuckle, and part of me really hopes that they do block the concert. I mean, she’s a good singer, but $1200 for a ticket???

* BS image is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 License.