I Can See New Years Celebrations Changed Forever

That is, if the Naked Cowboy really ends up being New York's new mayor. I didn't know he had such a good background though, so that might get interesting.

No S#!t Sherlock

According to Nancy Pelosi, China has failed to make any progression towards the issue of human rights. There can be no such thing as political reform in China unless a revolution is staged or other countries step in to help solve the problem from the bottom up. She has asked the current Chinese President to release prisoners from the Tiananmen Square incident - people who have been jailed for 20+ years. There is no way that the Party will let him get away with that, even if he wanted to do so. I feel like she could've learned a lot from the politics class I took this last semester, in which we examined the gross violation of not only human rights but environmental safety as well in China.

Oh, and Israel is trying to make up BS again. Way to be, chosen people.

Manditory Health Insurance?

Don't worry, there are hardship waivers. But what will President Obama define as hardship?

This may be a bit on the selfish side, but we can take a look at my family and examine all the things that I would define as hardship.

My step-dad, back in December, had a toe amputated. Now, not only is his paycheck cut in half by his ex-wife and the remainder in half by the IRS (he's not the brightest crayon in the box), but now we have to pay off these fees. My sister's seizure has cost a lot of money so far, with the upcoming MRI and EEG sure to add to the total. My mom has too many credit cards as it is and has trouble paying the bills, to the point where she does so every other month too often. Add in that mix a crappy paying job for both of them, without proper benefits, treatment, or reimbursement of mileage, and this is a recipe for disaster.

Now, if my family doesn't quite qualify for governmental assistance in any way and we're barely scrapping by, how fair is it to demand that we get health insurance and not let us have a hardship waiver? Most of the people without insurance, I would gather, do not do so out of hatred of their family, but because of their financial situation.

Finally - The Prevention First Act

With the inauguration of President-elect Obama quickly approaching, it is time to turn our attention to the many problems that need to be fixed both in our country and our world.

For eight long years, abstinence-only education has been the norm and the only federally funded sexual education program. As a result, unexpected/teen pregnancy and STI rates have greatly increased. However, with the change in leadership here, Congress is already planning to back comprehensive sex ed in order to educate the masses about birth control and more. The link embedded in the title of this post goes directly to the NARAL site's explanation of the Prevention First Act. Here are, without much explanation on my part, the goals for the act:

• Help Women Obtain Family-Planning Services.
• End Insurance Discrimination against Women.
• Provide Compassionate Assistance for Rape Victims.
• Improve Awareness about Emergency Contraception.
• Reduce Teen Pregnancy.
• Fund Honest, Realistic Sex-Education Programs.

While these all help everyone in the long-run, they're most important for people stuck in poverty. Women in the middle and higher classes have a better chance of having enough money (as odd as I know that might sound to some) in order to visit the doctor, obtain proper health care, or have access to family planning materials. Planned Parenthood is very popular because of the anonymity and low cost of services. Hopefully, with this act, they'll get more funding and be able to function much better.

Blagojevich Impeached

Finally.

The Illinois House of Representatives impeached Governor Rod Blagojevich for abuses of power after federal prosecutors accused him of trying to auction President- elect Barack Obama’s former U.S. Senate seat.

The House voted 114-1 today to remove Blagojevich for violations of the state constitution such as creating health- care programs unauthorized by the Legislature and rewarding campaign contributors with jobs and contracts. Blagojevich now faces a trial in the Senate of the fifth-most-populous U.S. state.

Blagojevich, 52, is the first governor impeached in Illinois’s 191-year history. A 67-page report underpinning today’s vote said the governor should be removed for “scheming to obtain a personal benefit for the Senate appointment” and engaging in “abuse of office of the highest magnitude.”

“This is a good, glad happy day for the state of Illinois because it shows that no one is above the law,” said state Representative William Black, the deputy leader of Republicans in the House.

Blagojevich, a former prosecutor twice elected to the state’s top office, is the fourth of the past seven Illinois governors to be arrested. His predecessor, Republican George Ryan, is serving 6 1/2 years in a federal prison for corruption.

Now they'll have to spend millions of dollars taking his name off of the toll road signs. Yipee.

I Do Solemnly Swear

Ah, yes, the Presidential Inauguration. The time is near. Personally, I'm excited. It doesn't seem as though others share my enthusiasm.

While I do think that the group has a valid point {why should everyone be forced to use a semi-religious oath?}, I really don't see the big problem. Atheism is a belief system, just like Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Paganism, Zoroastrianism and any other -ism you wanna throw in there. I'm sure that if there was a Buddhist President they would not force her *hint hint* to say "so help me God" on the end of her oath or to have any religious figure there. While the inauguration is viewed by millions in person, on the tele, and over the internet, it is mainly a ritual for the President (elect) to express his feelings for his/her country and newly elected position. If Obama wants to have a priest there as a part of this momentous and special day for him, why not let him? If someone else wanted Tony Robbins or some other motivational speaker, I'm sure that would be allowed. And, weird as it might be for some, if a person wanted the Dalai Lama there, I'm sure there wouldn't be a lot of objection.

Why, then, is the atheist group so obsessed with not allowing a freedom to Mr. Obama?

My thinking is that many people see others expressing their religion as a push for others to believe the same way. Sure, I might not like that my family is all Mormonism, all the time {yes, even more than the BYU channel}, but do I have the right to ask them to refrain from expressing their beliefs when I'm around? Absolutely not. According to the First Amendment:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

While that might only really apply to Congress and the legislative wing of the government, we also have EEOC and other laws allowing people to express their religion without fear of persecution as long as they also respect the beliefs of others. Going along with that, why can't the atheists in this group be okay with Obama's expression of his religion and be fine with the difference from theirs?

Why can't any group in the world be perfectly content in the fact that other people believe in different things and not force those same people to conform to their belief system?

If we could fix that problem, I think we might actually achieve world peace.

I Believe in Harvey Dent (Barack Obama)

I bought The Dark Knight yesterday. It was a necessity - I own pretty much every other Heath Ledger movie and every superhero movie. Besides, this movie was the most amazing thing I've ever seen. It's a cinematic masterpiece that will be very hard for the next Batfilm to top.

I've always likened Gotham City to Chicago. Maybe it's because of the few areas of Chicago that've been on the news, or because I think it's worse than Milwaukee... or even because I hate the Cubs. I don't really know. After watching the news coverage of Gov. Blagojevich's poor decisions, I put in my new lovely movie and began to watch.

I realized how much my respect and admiration for Obama was like Gotham City's citizens and their trust in Harvey Dent at the begining. Now, I only equate Obama with the Dent of the first half of the film, so don't think I'm going to start bashing the man that I voted for. The idealism that Obama represents, the ability to rise above the crime and slum and be a role model for people... I am in awe of them.

Obama had not yet spoken out about Gov. Blagojevich when I planned my post, so I wondered how he might react, given his former comment that it would be innappropriate to comment at the time he was asked to. There are so many good speeches and sayings that Dent participates in in the film.

It doesn't really have that much bearing on the situation at hand, but I think it is important these days to remember that the night is darkest just before the dawn, that the hardest parts in life come before things get really good. Obama is the hero that this country deserves right now, the person that we need to help get things fixed. And I think it's pretty cool that my favorite politician and movie kind of line up.

Forgive Me Father, For I Have Voted...

Father Jay Scott Newman from St Mary's Catholic Church in Greenville, South Carolina, is requesting that people who voted for Barack Obama do penance before taking communion again:

Both Obama and Joe Biden, the vice president-elect, support legal abortions. Obama has called it a "divisive issue" with a "moral dimension," and has pledged to make women's rights under Roe v. Wade a "priority" as president. He opposes a constitutional amendment overturning the Supreme Court decision.

At issue for the church locally and nationwide are exit polls showing 54 percent of self-described Catholics voted for Obama, as well as a growing rift in the lifestyle and voting patterns between practicing and non-practicing Catholics.

In a letter posted on St. Mary's Web site, Newman wrote that "voting for a pro-abortion politician when a plausible pro-life alternative exists constitutes material cooperation with intrinsic evil."

Catholics who did so should be reconciled to God through penance before receiving communion, "lest they eat and drink their own condemnation," Newman wrote, echoing a I Corinthians admonition for anyone who partakes "without recognizing the body of the Lord."

The response from parishioners has been supportive by a margin of 9 to 1, Newman said. He also cited Scripture in urging parishioners to pray for Obama and cooperate with him wherever conscience permits.

I can understand that church's stance on abortion interfering with the political stance that many people take. However, when most people vote for a politician, they do not do so based on one single issue. I'm sure that many Catholics who voted for Barack Obama do not like his stance on abortion, but agreed with his plans to fix the economy, Iraq, and other issues. Doing what is best for the country is not grounds for penance.

It seems like the majority of the Catholic Churches aren't too happy about this, especially given the fact that Biden is a Catholic himself. But really, the biggest issue, the article says, is that mass-attending Catholics voted for McCain - who opposed abortion. Those who don't attend mass... well, you can guess.

One of the commenters have listed the Rev. Newman's email address, which I'll list here only for posterity's sake: jayscottnewman@mac.com.

More On Proposition 8

I'm still pissed that it passed.

Religion shouldn't be involved in politics at all. If we are truly a nation with separation of church and state, then gay marriage shouldn't be an issue. Theron says that marriage shouldn't be a word or concept that is allowed in the Constitution, and after giving it some thought, I'm still on the fence. Even if it isn't a religious wedding, we all say that we're "getting married," not a civil union. While marriage really was a religious idea, I think that it's changed to mean a joining of two lives, a partnership between two faithful, loyal, and loving people. If we say that marriage shouldn't be in the Constitution, then we need to call all "marriages" civil unions. If people want to call it marriage, more power to them. Maybe then people won't be so upset with gay people getting the right to marry whomever they want.

This story on CNN really frustrated me. This issue is a big one in my family, because my parents are Mormon and I am not. In fact, my whole extended family is Mormon. I know that my mom is upset with the protests around Mormon areas that the church's support for Prop 8 has brought, even if she hasn't said anything to me. However, I think that the church should've been prepared for it, not to mention that churches should NOT be getting involved in political matters in the first place.

Anyway, here are some parts of the story that really struck me:

"It is disturbing that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is being singled out for speaking up as part of its democratic right in a free election," the church said in a statement Friday.

On Thursday, Roman Catholic and Mormon leaders said their efforts did not target any specific group.

The coalition of religious communities and citizens who supported Proposition 8 wanted to preserve "the bedrock institution of marriage" between a man and a woman, said Cardinal Roger Mahoney, the Catholic archbishop of Los Angeles.

"Proposition 8 is not against any group in our society," Mahoney said in a written statement.

_____

The American Civil Liberties Union, Lambda Legal and the National Center for Lesbian Rights have filed a lawsuit contending the ballot initiative was "improperly used."

According to the three groups, "such radical changes" as outlawing gay marriage cannot be made by ballot initiative, but must, "at a minimum, go through the state legislature first." The groups also argue the measure takes away a "fundamental right" from lesbian and gay Californians.

The three organizations filed the legal challenges on behalf of Equality California and six same-sex couples who did not marry before Tuesday's election, but would like to be able to wed now.

The three groups contend that California must honor the marriages of the 18,000 lesbian and gay couples who have already married.

______

First off, if I'm not mistaken, isn't there some rule that says churches aren't supposed to get involved in politics or endorse certain people? Wouldn't that apply to issues too? They shouldn't really even talk about abortion, let alone gay marriages. Anyway, I love how the churches say that this isn't a measure attacking any group of "our" society. I know they probably meant that their intention is not to attack anyone, but that's exactly what they're doing.

Using the Bible to back up the argument against gay marriage is just like people using it to justify slavery or polygamy. Religious people need to understand that the Bible is NOT to be taken literally anymore. If being gay is such a crime, then why haven't gay people been wiped off the earth Old Testament style? Oh wait, that's what people think AIDS is all about right?

I'm tired of the old mindset. This is the twenty-first century and times are changing. If you don't want to be a part of the change, then move somewhere else. This is America - land of the FREE and home of the BRAVE - and here we accept each person as s/he is and we give them certain inalienable rights. You can have your ideas, your preferences, but you do not have the right to limit how other people can do things. If what Ellen is doing is actually causing YOU harm, then you have a right to mad. Otherwise, shut up because no one is going to make you marry a gay person.

Really? I - I - Really?

So I recently read this story, which just put into words what CNN and other news organizations were saying:

Seven in 10 African Americans who went to the polls voted yes on Proposition 8, the ballot measure overruling a state Supreme Court judgment that legalized same-sex marriage and brought 18,000 gay and lesbian couples to Golden State courthouses in the past six months.

"I think it's mainly because of the way we were brought up in the church; we don't agree with it," said Jasmine Jones, 25, who is black. "I'm not really the type that I wanted to stop people's rights. But I still have my beliefs, and if I can vote my beliefs that's what I'm going to do.

"God doesn't approve it, so I don't approve it. And I approve of Him."

The overwhelming rejection of same-sex marriage by black voters was surprising and disappointing to gay rights advocates who had hoped that African Americans would empathize with their struggle.

Pablo Correa said his mind was made up by a TV spot in which a young girl comes home from school and tells her mother she learned how a prince could marry a prince.

Really? I can kinda understand the church argument, but really?

I thought that black people, especially those who had lived through (or relived through stories) the era of interracial marriage banning AND the era where blacks couldn't officially get married at all, would support the homosexuals. Am I really just too far out there? Does religion override their ability to help people in a similar situation?

I am really sad that this ban passed. Eventually, gay marriage will be allowed (most) everywhere, but I really felt like now was the time. If we're so ready for change and equality, why can't we grant it to the group that is the most discriminated against?

This argument that children will have to learn about princes marrying princes is bullshit. Kids aren't taught about marriage of ANY kind in school until they're old enough to understand (aka middle school at the very earliest). Even then, this information is NOT shoved down their throats.

This election, with the exception of Obama being put in the White House, was a failure on many fronts. Not only did Proposition 8 pass, so did a ban on unmarried adoptions and foster care in Arkansas - which was directly aimed at gay couples.

That's right, because every gay child is the result of a gay parent...

All this discrimination is just freaking ridiculous. Since people seem to NOT understand the basis of the Constitution and Bill of Rights, I'm rewriting both.

This Is Your Victory

I'm reminded of the famous Goonies line "This is our time, it's our time down here."

I don't know whether it was because I knew I got to see Theron or because I knew Obama was president-elect, but I was eager to wake up this morning, to greet the sun with a cheery smile and not one of those classic "five more minutes" routines.

I know, deep down in my heart, that this is what our country needs. Hopefully other people will realize that soon too.

For a fun audio slideshow, via CNN, click here.

Rock the Vote!

Vote. Do it. Everyone who's anyone is doing it. *peer pressure*



NOTE: If the video isn't done loading onto youtube, I am sorry. I have to run, so check back in a bit to see if it works then.

<3

Miss Independent

So, in watching the, uh, Presidential debate the other day, I started wondering... Who is running on the Independent ballot? CNN hasn't talked about it - Fox News hasn't talked about it. WTF?

Sooo, I decided to go a-searchin' to get some answers... Oh, how I love the interweb.

Surprise, surprise - Ralph Nader is running again. His VP would be one Matt Gonzalez. He really hasn't done that much of note. While normally I would say that Nader needs to give up on running (isn't this like the third time he's run?), this might be his year. I sincerely hope not, but you never know. Enough people are tired of the two choices that are always being televised...

Bill Ingram, with VP Jon Greenspon, is also running. Apparently he's from Wisconsin? I never heard of him before today. Here are their goals for the first week of their stay in the White House if anyone else magically knows they're running:

During the first 178 hours, not days or weeks, We intend to:

1. Go to Iraq and Afghanistan.
2. Stop unchecked earmark spending in the United States Congress
3. Put the Southern US Border Fence on a fast track to protect American citizens, and
4. Give America back to the people.

Seems like a friggin' tall order to me.

And Bob Barr is also running. Wayne Allyn Root would be his VP. These Libertarians really have no chance. Not that I think any of these crazy Independents do...

I'm all registered to vote now. If you plan on doing so, the deadline in Wisconsin (unless you plan to do so when you vote) is October 15th, so get on it. If you don't plan on voting, don't whine if you don't get your way. :)

One Day More

In high school, awebunch of my friends (and my sister!) and I were in Les Miserables. While everyone ended up getting bronchitis and, in fact, being miserable, it was one of the funnest experiences of my life. SO, imagine my happiness while surfing Funnyordie.com (run by Will Ferrell and his friends - think YouTube but all comedy) today and finding this lovely video.

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

I'm spreading it around like wildfire. Palin as Madame Thenardier is amazingly awesome. Honestly, I think this is the best video since... umm... the press conference over Yost getting fired yesterday?

Politico!

Okay, so I had a million pages to read over the weekend in between working and all that fun stuff. Funny enough, part of my homework was to look up things about women in the news. I decided to look around the election areas to find some issues that obviously exist and are being pushed in everyone's face.

I think it's interesting to note that, in just about every teen pregnancy, we always get mad at the girls - like they could've done something to fix it... I really hate this double standard crap.

We were comparing issues that Palin and Clinton have been faced with in this campaign in my American women history class today, and comparing those to any issues that Obama and McCain have faced so far. Obama was criticized for the church that he attends and Rev. Wright's views. Palin's (former, but only because of her move to Juneau) church has some issues too. Sure, some people might see Obama's church as racist. I see Palin's former church as sexist and ignorant. Oh, and ignore the errors in the article... :)

If you don't like McCain, you can look up some of his short-comings here. However, if you have issues with Obama, click here.

EDIT: If you want information on the misconceptions surrounding Palin, here's yet another page from factcheck.org that Theron found.

You can expect to see more frequent blog postings as I nail down a real schedule here... Ohhh bad pun wording by the religious studies major...

The Sex Files

David Duchovny really is a freaky m-f-er. Then again, I suppose that sex is a much better addiction than anything else he could be exposed to in Hollywood. Given his recent Showtime show Californication, however, it could be expected. It's still kinda weird to think of him as a sex addict though.

I guess McCain has picked a woman for his VP. I'm sure it's so that people will vote for him based on the "I wanted Clinton because I'm a feminist" situation. I wonder what her position is on drilling for oil in Alaska?

The classic cartoon move comes to life! Of course, it didn't turn out exactly right, but the baby is okay at least.

I'm not entirely sure how this kid was planning on using the heart or the eyelids for that matter, since I'm sure they both would've brought up a lot of questions. It makes me wonder if it's something that his former heart's owner planned on... similar to The Eye, which was a much better movie than I thought it'd be.

And, speaking of attempted murder, Steve Jobs' obituary was recently published in Bloomberg News. I guess they make pre-death obituaries in order to get the story out faster when the death occurs, and it accidentally got published. I wonder what they'll do when he actually dies now.

At least they got it fixed before death. This poor witch was executed and just recently was exonerated. I guess she was Europe's last executed "witch" but the last witch trials in Salem were held almost a year earlier. How very odd.

Oh, and to avoid losing your head like the witch, I wouldn't go to Mexico right now... or at least the Chichi Suarez and Buctzotz regions.

Joe Biden!

When the Presidential race started earlier this year, I was cheering on Delaware Senator Joe Biden. During the debates he continued to impress me with the answers he gave. I was sad when he left the race, but knew that I would see him again as Obama's VP.

Biden understands that we can't just pull out of Iraq right away, that it needs to be done carefully and in stages, otherwise chaos will ensue in that region... again. He grew up a regular middle-class kid and has worked so hard to get where he is. He brings a huge amount of experience to the Obama ticket.

He can be quite wordy, which takes away from what he has to say. However, being the same way, I know that he doesn't mean to. He just is trying to fit so much information into everything he says - both in order to get hiss ideas/answers out there and to seem smarter.

All in all, I think Biden was a great choice for VP. I'm excited for them to get into the White House and make some much needed changes.

It'll be interesting to see who McCain chooses as his VP.

That's Hot

I was wondering when Paris Hilton would respond to McCain's celebrity ad. Her energy plan is actually not that bad.

Funnyordie is hilarious for one big reason - Will Ferrell. He has got to be my favorite actor, but when he teams up with John C. Reily, it's magical.

Researchers found around 125,000 Western lowland gorillas in the Congo region. I think that's just proof that nature can help protect and hide animals from hunting when there's not 8 million people trying to hunt them down. I wish that humans could stop interfering with nature so much.

The Brewers won last night by a huge margin. It was a nice game to watch, but the games where we get a huge lead early on always get a little boring to watch. Hopefully tonight will be a good win.

Tomorrow I have my first dentist appt in a million years. Yay for insurance!

Politics Anyone?

I'm sorry, but Jesse Jackson should learn to keep his mouth shut. Honestly, if you're a self-proclaimed spokesperson for a whole race, you'd think that you'd watch your mouth a little better. I definitely would. He made a very rude comment about Barack Obama during an interview the other day after the camera had cut away and he "didn't know the mic was still on." He whispered to the person sitting next to him that Barack has been talkin' down to the black people and that he wants to just "cut his nuts off."

I'm sorry, but um, is that diplomatic? Is that going to help you out in any way possible, even if it's not aired? Is it going to win you the respect of the person sitting next to you? I think not. Moreover, even if the mic wasn't still on, there's still the camera mic which would've picked up that comment I'm sure.

Now he's apologized for his comment, citing that he is not jealous of Obama as some analysts would claim. However, he has also said that it's a part of his anger over Obama's comments that black men need to step up and be there for their children. I agree that Obama's comment there wasn't really one that I would've made on my run to the White House, but maybe if we took the race part out of it? I think fathers of all colors, nationalities, and socioeconomic backgrounds need to be there for their kids, need to man up and assume the responsibilities of being a father instead of just enjoying the niceties of making the babies.

______________________________________________________________________________________

Ah, and on the other side of the fence, we have McCain dodging a question asked by one of his own campaign members:

"Let me give you a real, live example, which I've been hearing a lot about from women. There are many health insurance plans that will cover Viagra but won't cover birth control medication. Those women would like a choice," she said Monday.

"I certainly do not want to discuss that issue," the Arizona senator said aboard his "Straight Talk Express" bus in Ohio, according to the Associated Press.

After praising President Bush’s efforts to expand faith-based programs, McCain pivoted: “I also think that we should do everything that we can, and one of those in my view is respect for human life both born and the unborn.”

So women aren't allowed to take birth control but men can get hard even when they're 85 and their heart is in no condition for sexual activities? That just simply makes no sense. I can understand not wanting to lose the conservative vote, but you gotta try to get the feminist vote a bit if you expect to 'reach across the aisle.'

In essence, I will always make less than my husband, my insurance will be less (thank goodness), I will be expected to work hard on my education and career AND do house chores and raise the children seemingly single-handedly, but I might not be able to get birth control on my insurance because the conservative party thinks I'll be killing babies?! Maybe the human life quote was a bad move. If the egg doesn't get fertilized or doesn't attach to the wall, I'm not killing babies by taking birth control because then I'll just have a normal period.

If someone is making a choice that does not affect you but only themselves, then why protest that choice? So if I'm in an abusive relationship and I don't feel like I can get out, but I then get pregnant, I can't get an abortion and protect my unborn baby from the hellish life they'd live getting abused? Or if I'm raped and get pregnant, I can't get an abortion? Or if the baby is a product of incest? That's always a stickler in the states that require parental consent for children under 18 to get an abortion.

And homosexual people can't marry the ones they love in most every state because it bugs other people? I love how people cite the Bible for that, when it also says that slavery is good, as are polygamy and other cruel and gross things. I don't get why it really bugs anyone. It's not like people are forcing each other to be gay and get married, and it's not like it's bugging anyone at all. Britney Spears can get married in Vegas for mere hours or people can get married minutes after meeting, but people who actually love each other and want to be together for the rest of their lives can't get married because it gives other people the creeps. I'm sorry, but that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard.

I really hope that soon people can open their eyes and think about the harm that they're doing to other people by being so prejudiced. Maybe then the world can be a better place.

Shouldn't There Be a Bystander Law?

So in Hartford, CT, an old man was run over by a car. The footage of the crash is terrifying itself. What's even worse is the footage for minutes of people driving around him in the street, walking past, even staring - anything but helping the man crying out in pain.

The man somehow was helped to the hospital and is now in critical condition. I understand that the people won't likely be punished for not helping because of the fact that the security camera couldn't get good enough footage to make out the license plate of the car, let alone anyone's face.

But wait, they wouldn't really be punished anyway, would they? What're the cops gonna do, charge them all with accessory to commit murder? Highly unlikely. Reckless behavior? Why do we not have a bystander law?

Think about it. How many people were bystanders before WWII, when Hitler's reign of terror could've been stopped, saving millions of lives? And as an aside, why do we never talk about the non-Jewish people who were also systematically attacked during this time? Homosexuals, mentally and physically disabled people, gypsies, and even people with the wrong colored hair, skin, or eyes were also murdered en mass.

So many people are afraid of helping, getting involved, assisting their fellow man. I could never understand this frame of mind. You can't just stand around and watch someone lying there in the street bleeding to death and not do anything. How incredibly heartless is that?

What I'm proposing is not a jail time offense in most cases. Just a fine or community service - something that maybe will help them understand the value of helping others. I'd only ask that they be jailed if the person injured died as a direct result of not being helped.

I sincerely wish we didn't have to have a law like this, that people would follow the words of their parents, religion, even society and help the people around them.