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bookmark_border“LMAOOO he’s shrinking”

Posted on by Marissa
 
 
 
 
 
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A post shared by Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk1776)

In addition to the fact that it is factually incorrect (as Charlie Kirk’s response demonstrates), this post angers me because it exemplifies the flippant, stuck-up, and quite frankly moronic attitudes of those on the left-hand side of the political spectrum. 

It’s as if they look at politics as a game, as a source of entertainment, as a joke.

While I’ve been subjected to excruciating, soul-crushing pain for over four years due to government policies that violate my rights and destroy the things that my life worth living, they laugh their butts off because a person that they dislike has allegedly shrunk in size. While I logically analyze issues, make philosophical arguments to support my positions, and thoughtfully consider the best words to use in expressing my ideas, they ridicule a person because of his height. 

For me, politics matters because one of the major political parties supports forcing me to undergo medical procedures against my will, discriminating against me because of my skin color, and obliterating from existence the historical figures that I love. Politics matters because the outcome of the election may very well determine whether I have any hope of a life that is worth living. 

But to supporters of Harris and Walz, politics are apparently just one big joke. In their eyes, politics are something funny, a source of entertainment, an opportunity to ridicule, insult, and make fun of people who are different from them.

There is so much talk about white privilege, male privilege, straight privilege, cis privilege, et cetera, but no one recognizes or acknowledges the type of privilege that this “LMAOOO” post represents. This post represents true privilege: the ability to treat politics as a joke because it’s not your rights under attack, not you being shamed, sneered at, and insulted merely for existing, not your loved ones being lynched and dismembered with impunity.

Slowly and laboriously, I am working to heal from grief and pain more severe than I ever thought possible, all while fighting to preserve the few things left in this country that are worth fighting for. Meanwhile, the person who made this post is making fun of someone for shrinking as he gets older.

The things that I’ve experienced are not something that I will ever be able to laugh off, and it’s both infuriating and disturbing that those on the other side can dismiss political issues as a laughing matter.

As one of the comments on the post astutely pointed out: “Even if he’s shrinking.. is that all they’ve got? Trying to find reasons to not vote for him, and ‘shrinking’ is what they came up with.”

The attitude embodied by the “LMAOOO” post is mean-spirited, thoughtless, and completely lacking in empathy. It’s pathetic that this is the level to which political discourse has sunk in our country. 

And I don’t know about you, but I don’t find that to be particularly funny. 

bookmark_borderWise words from Arlington amicus brief

Posted on by Marissa

According to an email that I received from the organization Defend Arlington, several amicus briefs were recently filed in the litigation surrounding the atrocity that was committed at Arlington National Cemetery.

The organizations filing amicus briefs in support of reversing the despicable atrocity include the Foundation for Moral Law, the Society for the Preservation of Jewish Civil War History, the Virginia Council, Guardians of American History, Hood’s Texas Brigade, and Veterans Monuments of America.

I was struck by the following quote by the Foundation for Moral Law:

Sadly, the Reconciliation monument – erected in 1914 to reconcile and bring closure to harsh feelings about the War, and to honor those who fought bravely for their homes and families – is now being sacrificed on an altar of political correctness. Not only is Arlington National Cemetery being deprived of what is arguably its most impressive and beautiful work of art, but the relatives and survivors of those who are buried in that section of the Century are also being deprived of this Monument to their ancestors, all because someone thinks they should not have to be exposed to ideas with which they disagree.

I would go even further and argue that not only do the worshippers of political correctness believe that they should not have to be exposed to ideas with which they disagree; they believe that they should not have to be exposed to the existence of people that they dislike. The defining quality of political correctness (and “woke” ideology, which is a synonym for political correctness) is intolerance for people who are different. Believers in this ideology possess complete and utter intolerance for people who are different from them. Essentially, they believe that people who are different from them should not be allowed to exist. (Many people would say that I am exaggerating by claiming this, but I truly don’t think I am.) This is extremely ironic, given that this ideology purports to be all about diversity and inclusion. In reality, it is about the opposite: conformity, compliance, and obedience to authority.

The Virginia Council, for their part, argued that by committing the atrocity, the Department of Defense “frustrated national historic preservation policy and contributed to the proliferation of cancel culture.” That, I would argue, is an understatement.

If you are interested in supporting the organization fighting back against the Arlington atrocity, you can visit their website at DefendArlington.org. You can also view the press release about the amicus briefs here.

bookmark_borderAn example of the bias of Yahoo News

Posted on by Marissa

While checking my email the other day, I came across this infuriating set of headlines on Yahoo:

I can almost hear the awe and admiration in the author’s voice when reading the headline about Harris’s “historic speech” as the “first Black woman and first person of South Asian descent to accept a major party’s presidential nomination.”

Meanwhile, Trump’s reason for doubting election results is sneeringly dismissed as “baseless.” 

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: News articles and headlines are required to be neutral. This is the entire purpose of the news media. News articles, and their headlines, must contain information only, without opinions or value judgments.

Despite this, Yahoo, as well as other media outlets, has a pattern of consistently portraying one party’s politicians in glowing terms while criticizing, condemning, shaming, attacking, and calling attention to every possible negative thing about, political figures of the other party. Because the things that have been going on in this country over the past few years are so triggering to me, I almost never read news articles. Yahoo’s disdain for people whose political views differ from those of the establishment is so blatant that its existence is obvious merely from looking at headlines. Given that the entire purpose of the news media is to present facts only, and to abstain entirely from voicing opinions, this situation is completely unacceptable.

To characterize something as “baseless” is an insult, not a piece of information. Therefore, it is unacceptable for a news headline to contain this word. (Unless it is part of a quote by a person whom the article is quoting… but that is not the case here. “Baseless” is the headline writer’s own word.)

It is mentally exhausting to be made to feel shamed, insulted, and attacked day in and day out for having political beliefs that are different from the majority. Shame on Yahoo for their repeated use of bigoted, biased, pejorative, and sneering headlines.

bookmark_borderMy top moments of the Olympics

Posted on by Marissa

The Olympics have come to an end nearly a week ago, and I am still recovering from the overstimulation and information overload that watching them entails. I have finally found the time and energy to put together a list of my most memorable moments of the Games, so without further ado, here they are:

The wonderful equestrian competitions at Versailles – I have a strong affinity for anything involving horses, so the equestrian competition is probably my favorite thing in any Olympic games. I enjoyed the equestrian events at these Olympics in particular because of their amazingly beautiful setting. It was so cool to see the Chateau de Versailles in the background during the dressage and jumping competitions, and to watch the cross-country competition that took horses and riders on a trek around the grounds. Some of the highlights were Laura Collett and London 52 setting an Olympic record for best-ever dressage score, and the U.S. show jumping team winning silver, making Laura Kraut the oldest female Olympic medalist since 1906.

Egyptian fencer Mohamed El Sayed – The bronze medal match in men’s epee was the first fencing competition that I watched in these Olympics, and El Sayed’s victory over Tibor Andrasfi of Hungary really left an impression on me. Turning on the TV one afternoon towards the beginning of the Games, I happened to catch the end of the match and El Sayed’s exuberant celebration. This was also my first glimpse of the amazing venue, the Grand Palais, with elegant patterns projected onto its high ceilings and competitors entering via a balcony and proceeding down a sweeping staircase to the piste.

Stephen Nedoroscik’s pommel horse routine – How could I not include this? The world fell in love with the nerdy pommel horse specialist while watching him wait nearly three hours to perform his routine during the team competition. Endearingly, he passed the time by going through the motions of his routine in his now-famous “pommel horse dance,” as well as by solving a Rubik’s cube. The most hilarious moment, in my opinion, was when the team was screaming and jumping up and down to celebrate Brody Malone’s strong routine, with Stephen sitting solemnly in the background, looking up just long enough to crack the briefest of smiles. Ultimately, not only did he clinch the bronze medal for the U.S. team, but he won an individual bronze on pommel horse as well.

Tom Daley ending his career on a high note – The legendary British diver won silver in the synchronized platform competition with his partner, Noah Williams. Already a veteran of 3 Olympics and a gold medalist in the 2021 Tokyo games, Daley returned to diving at the request of his 5-year-old son, Robbie. I found it endearing when Noah said, in a post-competition interview, that the best part of the Olympics was getting to compete in front of Tom’s family, and that the thing that made him most nervous was the possibility of disappointing them.

Getting to know David Popovici – I initially didn’t know much about this Romanian swimmer, and didn’t particularly care about or root for him. But NBC’s “puff piece” about him made me a fan. I found his nickname of “Chlorine Daddy” hilarious, I loved the scenes of Bucharest that they showed during the piece, and I really admire Popovici’s unabashed sense of pride in being from Romania. He ended up winning the gold in the 200 meter freestyle, as well as the bronze in the 100 meter freestyle.

Surprise gold for Sarah Sjostrom – This Swedish swimmer won gold in both the 100 meter and 50 meter freestyle at the relatively advanced age of 30. She was exuberant during a post-race interview, explaining that she wasn’t even planning to race the 100 meters, but her coach insisted she give it a try. “I didn’t think a thirty-year-old woman could win this event,” she said.

Kayak cross – This was a new sport in the 2024 Olympics, involving kayakers racing down a whitewater rapids like course. The competitors had to navigate around slalom gates, were required to flip upside down in their kayaks in the “roll zone,” and could push and shove each other out of the way. Although I had never heard of this sport before, I found it highly unique and entertaining and couldn’t stop watching whenever it showed up on my TV screen.

An emotional victory for Novak Djokovic– I am usually not interested in tennis at all, but I have been a fan of Djokovic ever since he was banned from competing in the Australian Open because of declining the covid vaccine. An Olympic gold medal was the one accomplishment missing from his legendary career, until now. One could tell by his emotional reaction how important the victory was to him. Even if you’re not a tennis fan, Djokovic’s gold medal was not only a triumph for him individually but also for medical freedom.

Alice D’Amato making history for Italy – As much as I like Simone Biles, Suni Lee, and their amazing teammates, the U.S. female gymnasts are so dominant that it is not really exciting when they win. I always enjoy rooting for underdogs, and Alice D’Amato of Italy definitely qualified as such going into the balance beam final. Amidst falls and mistakes by the favorites, Alice took the gold with her beautiful routine, becoming the first ever Italian woman to win a gold medal in gymnastics.

Gold for Italian skeet shooting team – When the Italian pair of Diana Bacosi and Gabriele Rossetti won gold in the mixed team skeet shooting competition, their enthusiasm was contagious. I loved seeing them standing atop the podium and singing along to their national anthem. Afterward, Rossetti said that he dedicated the medal to his late father and coach, Bruno. “We believed in each other and that made the difference,” he added.

The amazing call of the women’s cycling pursuit – Cycling is another sport that I’m usually not really into. But Steve Schlanger’s play by play commentary made it impossible not to be excited during the women’s team pursuit final, which was won by the U.S. team of Kristen Faulkner, Chloe Dygert, Lily Williams, and Jennifer Valente. “A lung-busting, heart-stopping surge!” he exclaimed. “And it’s going to be team USA! An epic gold medal! A breathtaking 4-minute masterpiece, as American cycling rides to another glorious golden moment in Paris!”

An unexpected Olympic experience for Noah Lyles – Admittedly, I’ve never been a huge fan of Lyles. He is one of those athletes who wins almost every time he competes, and I have also found him arrogant and conceited. But I was impressed that Lyles managed to win bronze in the 200 meters despite having covid. It is difficult to accomplish even mundane tasks when you feel lousy, let alone win an Olympic medal. Although this was not the way that Lyles, or anyone for that matter, envisioned his Olympic experience, it made him seem more human, and somehow made me like him more. Plus, the image of Lyles collapsing to the track in exhaustion after the race was a perfect metaphor for how I felt as the Olympics came to a close – tired, depleted, not entirely happy with the way that things went, but glad for it to be over, and proud of myself for handling it as well as I did.

bookmark_borderSociety’s appalling inconsistency regarding Ukraine and the Confederacy

Posted on by Marissa

“Fighting for freedom, fighting for the right to live peacefully and independently”

During the Olympics, one of the commentators used these words to characterize the efforts of Ukraine during their war with Russia.

And it struck me that this is exactly what the Confederate States of America was doing during the war with the United States from 1861 to 1865.

The Ukrainian people are deified and worshipped by our society, praised effusively at nearly every opportunity for their bravery, resilience, and strength. People fall all over themselves in their eagerness to express their solidarity. During sporting events like the Olympics, audiences are reminded, again and again, about how inspirational the Ukrainian athletes are, the difficult conditions they’ve had to overcome, the sacrifices they’ve made, and the fact that they are fighting for something larger than themselves.

Yet the Confederates, who were fighting for the exact same thing, receive the exact opposite treatment. They are unanimously condemned as racists, white supremacists, “traitors,” and “insurrectionists” (as if defying authority is somehow bad). It is accepted as self-evident that they do not deserve to be honored in any way. Their names erased from streets, buildings, and military bases, their commemorations canceled, their monuments sickeningly destroyed in a systematic and relentless campaign of obliteration.

In the eyes of society, fighting for freedom is noble and honorable when done by Ukrainians, but “treason” and “insurrection” when done by southern Americans.

The fact that two nations, fighting for the same thing, are treated so differently, demonstrates the utter hypocrisy and lack of logic of our society.

Freedom. The right to live peacefully and independently.

These are things that all people deserve. These are things that the people of the Confederate States of America deserved just as much as the people of Ukraine do.

bookmark_borderThe agony and the ecstasy of the Olympics for me as an autistic person

Posted on by Marissa

For me as an autistic person, the Olympics is one of the most exciting things in the world, and also one of the most torturous. Sports are one of my special interests, so one would think that the Olympics would be heaven for me, with two and a half weeks of non-stop coverage of gymnastics, swimming, diving, track and field, equestrian, fencing, shooting, and more. But this is the exact reason why the Olympics have the potential to become my own personal hell. A hell filled with overwhelm, stress, chaos, mental exhaustion, and information overload.

I will start by explaining why I love Olympic sports so much. I think what I like most about watching sports is that they have clear procedures, rules, and processes for determining the winner. Every sport has a system, whether that consists of judges giving scores for each competitor’s routine, a horse and rider receiving faults for each rail they knock down, or simply a clock determining who crosses the finish line first. No one knows in advance who the winner is going to be, but one can expect that the competition will unfold according to a familiar and predictable process. For me, watching a sports competition means watching it in its entirety, from beginning to end. It means watching all the coverage that is available. I love to watch the entire process unfold, from the opening video montage, to the heats with dozens of competitors that no one has ever heard of, to the semifinals, to the finals, to the post-race interviews of the winner(s).

As anyone who has glimpsed the Olympics broadcast schedule knows, the sheer amount of coverage is so huge that it is impossible for one person to watch it all. And this makes my brain go crazy. I have a perfectionistic, completionist mindset, to put it mildly. I am a very all-or-nothing person. If I am into something, I tend to become really obsessed with it. If I like something, I am not content merely to have a little bit of it; I want all of it. I find it preferable not to do something at all, than to do it in a way that falls short of my standards of completeness. So when the Olympics come around every two years, I don’t want to miss any of the coverage. I want to watch it all. But because of the enormous amount of coverage, missing some of it is unavoidable. The result is having to make excruciating, nearly impossible decisions about which events to watch and which to miss.

Leading up to this Olympics, I knew that it was going to be a challenge. I knew that difficult decisions would need to be made. I knew that I would likely need to set my alarm in the morning, that I might need to record certain events to watch later, and that I would have to minimize (and carefully time) outings outside of my house. But I was up for a challenge. I was mentally prepared, and I was excited. I had spent hours upon hours catching up on all of the Olympic trials coverage that I had missed over the past couple of months due to my work schedule. I had worked hard to put myself in a position that would give me the best possible chance at success.

Watching the hour-long intro show that aired before the very first events of the Games – preliminary soccer matches that took place two days before the opening ceremony – I was happy and optimistic. The video montages were exciting and the commentary interesting. Everything was elegant and appealing, from the NBC studio in Paris, to the pictograms that represent each sport, to the fonts and graphics used during the broadcast. It was particularly cool to see images of the statues, monuments, and famous buildings in Paris, and I was hopeful that watching the Games unfold among these iconic landmarks would be somewhat healing after the traumatic events involving statues that I’ve detailed at length in previous blog posts. 

But then, shortly before the opening ceremony on Friday, June 26, I checked the TV listings for the following day (Saturday) in preparation for planning a watching strategy. And what I saw made me sick to my stomach. Watching these Olympics was not going to be a challenge; it was going to be impossible.

The competitions started as early as 3:30 in the morning and continued throughout the entire morning and afternoon, usually on 3 or even 4 networks at once. The idea of waking up at 3:30 seemed ridiculous, but recording these events would not work either, because there was no window of sports-free time later in the day in which to watch them. And missing out on these events would be completely unacceptable. The sports taking place at ungodly hours weren’t limited to the ones that I (comparatively) don’t care much about, such as soccer, handball, rugby, cycling, table tennis, badminton, and wrestling. Nor were they merely “borderline” sports like rowing, kayaking, and archery. The ridiculously early sports included my favorites, such as equestrian, diving, swimming, and gymnastics. Missing those would defeat the entire purpose of watching the Olympics.

In other words, even after narrowing down the sports as much as I possibly could, even after eliminating all but the absolute must-watch events… the amount was still not even close to being manageable. 

So my brain exploded. I screamed at the top of my lungs, again and again and again. I pounded my feet on the floor. I punched the walls and the couch. I threw various objects. 

After this explosion of rage, I made the decision to boycott the Olympics. Given that NBC’s coverage choices made it impossible for me to watch in a way that was acceptable to me, I preferred not to watch at all. I was so angry that the mere thought of the Olympics filled me with disgust. 

The following day, I woke up feeling like someone was hammering an ice pick into my forehead. It was the worst pain I have ever experienced. Not only was I completely unable to function, but merely existing was agony. The pain made it impossible to sleep, and neither Tylenol nor aspirin did anything to relieve it. The only activity that was possible for me to do was lying in bed in excruciating pain. The entire day was essentially lost. Watching the Olympics, even if I had changed my mind and decided to do so after all, was impossible. 

But as night fell, the agony finally abated. I realized that the Olympics primetime show was starting soon. And I decided to put it on. Watching the abridged versions of the day’s competitions, knowing that I had missed out on the full, live versions, was a foreign and bizarre experience for me. It was simultaneously torturous and interesting and enjoyable at the same time.

When the broadcast ended, I pulled up the TV listings for the following day. The feelings of overwhelm and frustration started to return. Gymnastics and equestrian were again slated for 4:00 in the morning, followed shortly thereafter by swimming and then archery and then more swimming. I could set my alarm for 6:00 and miss only one session of gymnastics qualifying, I thought to myself. I could set it for 8:00 and miss two sessions but at least catch archery. Or I could set it for 10:15 to ensure that I at least woke up in time for the second session of swimming. I went to bed feeling unsettled, but not nearly as out-of-control as I had felt the night before. 

Miraculously, I woke up, without having set an alarm, at 7:30. Turning on the TV mid-competition, and therefore missing the beginning, is completely at odds with the way that my brain works, but that is exactly what I did. With the early morning sun casting beams of light across my living room, I watched the heats of the men’s individual medley and heard the crowd’s chanting for Leon Marchand reverberate through the stadium. Over the next few hours, I flipped back and forth between channels, catching portions of swimming, gymnastics, archery, equestrian, shooting, basketball, canoe slalom, and skateboarding.

It was painful to watch the third subdivision of women’s gymnastics qualifications, knowing that I had missed the first two, and it was similarly torturous to watch the cross-country equestrian competition, knowing that I had missed the dressage round in which a competitor had set a record for the best-ever score. But I enjoyed getting to experience a variety of different sports, and getting to watch them live, at the time that they were actually unfolding. I enjoyed switching from channel to channel to check out what was happening. I enjoyed watching gymnasts of all different countries, some of whom I’m not familiar with, and some of whom I recognized because they competed in the NCAA. I liked the introductory video to the equestrian competition, which explained the scoring system. I enjoyed the fencing competition, held in the magnificent, theater-like venue called the Grand Palais. And I even enjoyed catching a few minutes of skateboarding and basketball, even though these are not sports that I’m usually super interested in. 

It turns out that losing an entire day, although excruciating in terms of both the physical pain and the sports missed, was necessary. The way that I had been approaching things was not working, and my body and brain forced me to stop. Losing an entire day allowed me to reset, to approach the Olympics with a completely different attitude, and to rediscover what had made sports my special interest in the first place.

Because in addition to the fact that they have systems and rules, I love sports because they make me feel connected to the world around me. I love to watch competitions unfold in real time, knowing that others all over the world are watching them as well. I love that no one knows what the outcome is going to be, and that everyone simultaneously finds out the result in real time. It makes me happy to know that I am watching sports together with millions of people, even though I don’t know them and am not interacting with them

With previous Olympics, I watched as many live sports as humanly possible, and I recorded the rest. Inevitably, the recordings would pile up to a point where I felt that I had no choice but to stay up late trying to get them watched. Inevitably, the second round of a competition would come on before I had a chance to watch the recording of the first round, and I would have to either watch the rounds out of order, or record the second round too. Inevitably, I would begin to cram in a few minutes of recordings here and there whenever I had a spare moment, causing me to miss the beginnings of live competitions when they invariably started earlier than I expected, and also causing me to miss out on the experience of watching Olympic sports that I wouldn’t necessarily have sought out. In general, this way of watching the Olympics created a jumbled, chaotic sports mess that was no longer enjoyable. The sports had gradually transformed over the years, from something fun into something that needed to get watched, a task that had to get done, an item on my to-do list that I aimed to get rid of as quickly as possible. Paradoxically, as I became more and more into sports, the thing that made me enjoy sports in the first place, had been lost.

Over the past couple of weeks, I have been getting up at a reasonable hour and simply watching whichever sports I can, while forcing myself to be okay with missing the rest. Watching the Olympics with this new philosophy has been simultaneously agonizing and exhilarating. Doing anything in a way that falls short of perfection is completely at odds with the way that my brain works. It is a situation in which no option feels right, but I feel that this one is better than the alternatives of either missing out on the Games entirely, or completely destroying both my sleep schedule and my brain in a futile attempt to catch everything. I am proud of myself for being able to adopt this new approach, because I know that the past version of me wouldn’t be able to do so. I am not an Olympic athlete, but in a way, I am doing the impossible every day of these Olympics, and I think that is pretty impressive.

bookmark_borderRevere Beach Sand Sculpting Festival 2024

Posted on by Marissa

Last week, I visited and took photos of the sand sculptures at Revere Beach. A sand sculpting festival and competition takes place there every year in July. Due to my job which requires working on weekends, I wasn’t able to attend the festival itself, which took place Friday through Sunday. But I do enjoy looking at the sand sculptures, so I decided to visit them on Wednesday morning.

I was concerned that the sculptures would have deteriorated by that point, three days after they were built. I was also concerned that the beach would be windy, as it often is. As a person on the autism spectrum, I have sensory sensitivities to wind, which have become more severe in recent years, and can cause spending time outside to become excruciating. The wind was quite painful during the walk from my house to the train station, which boded ill. Plus, people began getting on my nerves during the commute by doing various annoying things such as invading my personal space, blocking my way, and getting onto the train before I had a chance to step off. I was starting to regret making the journey.

But as I crossed the bridge from the train station to the beach, I was pleasantly surprised to find that there was almost zero wind. The day was cloudy, cool, muggy, and still. I was equally pleased to find that the sand sculptures were in pristine condition. They had not deteriorated at all, and were magnificent to behold, as they are every year. They were located conveniently between the Wonderland and Revere Beach MBTA stations, making for an easy walk. Despite it being three days after the festival, there were lots of people milling about and admiring the sculptures, but not so many that it was impossible to move about freely or get good photos (as is often the case during the festival). Overall, it was a successful and pleasant experience, and I am glad that I went.

Among my favorites were the cat and mice, and the chameleon. Hopefully you enjoy the photos below:

You can view more photos on my photography website here.

bookmark_borderFour years ago today…

Posted on by Marissa

Four years ago today, three historical monuments were removed from the North Carolina state capitol grounds in Raleigh. One honored Confederate soldiers, another honored the Women of the Confederacy, and the third honored Henry Lawson Wyatt, the first Confederate soldier from North Carolina to be killed in the war.

“Monuments to white supremacy don’t belong in places of allegiance, and it’s past time that these painful memorials be moved in a legal, safe way,” stated Gov. Roy Cooper.

Even four years later, reading these words makes me sick to my stomach.

These were not monuments to white supremacy; they were monuments to the idea of being different, thinking for oneself, and resisting authority. They were monuments signifying the right of people who are different from the norm to be accepted and included.

These memorials were not painful. Rather the removal of these memorials was painful. The removal of these memorials – along with countless others like them across the country and world – was not only painful but was the most painful thing, by far, that has ever happened to me. I believe that it was the most painful thing that has ever happened to any person.

Because I am a person who is different from the norm, these memorials were necessary in order for me to have a life worth living. And Roy Cooper chose to take them away, on purpose. This action was so completely lacking in empathy that it defies comprehension. And Cooper’s words, in which he characterizes the memorials that he removed as somehow “painful” – while completely failing to acknowledge the excruciating, indescribable, and unbearable pain that he inflicted by removing them – are even more lacking in empathy.

In other words, not only does Cooper falsely condemn statues as “painful” and “white supremacist” when they are nothing of the sort, but he simultaneously fails to acknowledge the pain inflicted by his own actions.

Four years later, I am still grieving. I am still in pain from Roy Cooper’s actions and words, and the dozens upon dozens of similarly horrible actions and words of bigots and bullies across the country and world. To some degree, I always will be.

It is reprehensible for bullies like Roy Cooper to describe the statues that they obliterated from existence as somehow painful, when in reality it is the statues’ removals that are not merely painful, but excruciatingly, indescribably, and unbearably so. The words and actions of these bigots demonstrate a complete lack of empathy, complete intolerance for people who are different from them, and complete disregard for our feelings and thoughts.

Confederate memorials are not painful.

Removal of Confederate memorials is painful.

And not just painful, but the most painful thing that has ever happened, and the most painful thing imaginable.

Period. Full stop. No exceptions.

bookmark_borderThe idiocy of Martin Heinrich

Posted on by Marissa

“There’s no law enforcement application for a bump stock. There’s no military application for a bump stock. There’s no self-defense application for a bump stock. These devices are tailor-made for mass shootings. Ban them.” – Sen. Martin Heinrich

It is exasperating and exhausting to keep seeing statements like this. 

The non-aggression principle, the rule that determines objective right and wrong, states that people have the right to do anything they wish, as long as it does not violate the rights of anyone else. This means that, unless owning a bump stock violates the rights of someone else, each person has the right to own a bump stock. 

Does owning a bump stock violate anyone’s rights? No, it does not.

Does owning a bump stock, in and of itself, hurt anyone? No, it does not. 

Therefore, each person has the right to own a bump stock. It really is as simple as that. 

Why does Heinrich care about the fact that bump stocks (allegedly) have no law enforcement, military, or self-defense applications? Why does he think this fact is relevant to the question of whether or not bump stocks should be banned?

It isn’t.

There is no moral rule stating that if something has no application, then it should be banned. There is no requirement that something have an application in order to be allowed to exist. The only requirement is that the thing not violate the rights of others. Bump stocks meet that requirement. Therefore, people have a right to own them. They cannot be banned. 

Contrary to what Martin Heinrich is claiming, people are not required to prove to him that their possessions have an application in order to be allowed to own those possessions. 

Contrary to what Martin Heinrich is claiming, people do not have a right to do only those things that he has deemed useful or necessary. 

People have a right to do anything they wish, as long as it does not violate the rights of anyone else. That includes owning bump stocks. 

bookmark_border“I don’t care how you were raised, unlearn that shit”

Posted on by Marissa

So said an idiotic Instagram post that I had the misfortune of encountering.

“Being from another generation or culture isn’t an excuse for prejudice,” the self-righteous person pontificated in the caption.

My question is: why are other people’s opinions, viewpoints, and perspectives considered “shit” in the eyes of this intolerant and self-righteous person?

How ironic that in the very same post that this person condemns prejudice, they call other people’s perspectives “shit.”

Not realizing that considering other people’s perspectives to be “shit” is the epitome of prejudice.

In reality, the person who made this post is the one who needs to unlearn shit, because they are the one expressing intolerance of, and contempt for, other people.

If this person actually cared about combatting prejudice, the best way to start doing so would be by looking in the mirror.

If this person actually cared about combatting prejudice, they would be making an effort to understand and have empathy for others’ perspectives, rather than contemptuously dismissing those perspectives as “shit” that needs to be “unlearned.”