WASHINGTON, June 21, 2016 – Do you believe that people fear the truth? Does the truth make people angry? Does the truth warrant threats of violence and death upon the messenger?
In the case of YouTube creator Joey Salads, the answer to these questions is undoubtedly yes.
On Monday, June 13, the day following the Orlando terror attack, Salads posted a video entitled Terrorism, Radical Islam vs Radical Christianity.
In a video that Salads claims is a “social experiment,” he has a friend dress up in Muslim garb and proceed to run around and toss a silver case at people while yelling “Allahu Akbar!” In the second part of the video, Salads, in his everyday street clothes, runs around and tosses the same silver case at people whilst saying “Praise Jesus.”
See original article > http://www.commdiginews.com/entertainment/youtube-personality-joey-salads-learns-that-the-truth-hurts-65916/
Love = Pain
Right now, I hate love. Specifically, the kind of love one experiences through romantic relationships. I hate it, I hate it, I hate it. The amount of emotional pain I’ve gone through for this love is an injustice, and yet this love I feel remains; grows stronger through the crippling heartache.
Why do people allow themselves to feel something that has the ability to shatter your soul into a million pieces within a split second? Do we enjoy torturing ourselves; seeing how long the bliss can last until fate throws us a curve ball that turns our world so completely upside down that we’re face to face with Hell itself? I have never experienced something that can take you to the most unimaginable heights, yet can also slam you down into the darkest fathoms of your worst nightmare.
How many tears will have spilled until I decide enough is enough? I am not the kind of person who gives up when the going gets tough. Marriage is not supposed to be easy all the time, and I didn’t say “Til death do us part” just because I was instructed to by the pastor who married us. No, I take that kind of shit seriously, as a person should. There are deal-breakers, of course, but I’ve not reached one. When there’s a third person tossed into the mix, it gives you incentive to be careful with hasty decisions. Besides, he wouldn’t last two weeks without us.
It’s time to wake up. Is he ready? Is he willing?
Daily Prompt- Countless
Since the first time I saw you…
How many countless times have we gazed into each other’s eyes? I’d wonder if they’d stay the same color they were at birth, or change. You knew, somehow, you knew from the very beginning that you were looking at your mother; your caregiver and protector through and through.
How many countless times have I heard you cry? From that first squeal that announced your arrival into this world, to the disappointed blubber when you figure out I’m walking away from you. But I always come back. As long as I have a breath in this body of mine, I will always come back to you.
How many countless times have I seen you smile? At first you could only do it involuntarily while you slept, but after a few weeks you smiled on your own. It is so rewarding to see those smiles continue to this day. You are a happy boy, which tells me and your daddy that we’re doing something right.
How many countless times have I had the pleasure of hearing you laugh? It is so infectious, that laugh of yours, and to be the one who causes it is a great treat indeed. It’s yet another indication of your well-being and peace of mind, so keep those chuckles and giggles coming.
How many countless times have I soothed your displeasure, pain, or fear? “Shh,” I’ll shush while wrapping you up in my arms and rocking back and forth. Sometimes I sing or hum to you while tracing my fingertips across your back. I’m the best person for this job, that’s for sure.
How many countless times have you given me joy? Truthfully, you give me never-ending joy, and I’m filled with pride every time you accomplish a “first,” or cause a person I don’t know to stop and feel the need to tell me how cute and precious you are.
How many countless times have I told you I love you? You will never know how much love your dad and I have for you until you have children of your own. That’s a lesson I learned after I had you, and that you shall explain to your children when they have their own children, and so on and so on…
You are my son, and you are my most beautiful creation and the most important and special thing in my world.
The Dark Side: A Poetic Memoir
Are you ready to travel to the Dark Side?
A place I am all too familiar with…
Where beauty is an illusion and wasting away is the ultimate goal
Where distortions are your permanent reality whilst you freeze from the cold
Where deceit is your truth and death is your life
Where love is all you hate and lies are disguised as facts
Where the reflection looking back in the mirror is an illusion of which only you can see
Where weakness and strength blur together as one within never ending blackness
Where obsession drives you mad while your loved ones stand helplessly by
Where your essence of self is murdered by the demons who demand control and perfection
Where you come face to face with your own personal demon every time you wake…
And as you count the bones it brings a smile to your face…
Hate & Division —> Tears & Destruction
In case you didn’t already know, there is some sick shit going on in America at the present moment. People are literally losing their minds, while the unscrupulous mainstream media perches on the sidelines, relishing the decimation of the best country in the world.
There is a great deal of dissension, and the resulting division among Americans is as astounding as it is tragic.
• Blacks vs. whites
• Democrats vs. Republicans
• Religious vs. non-religious
• The West vs. Islam
• The rich vs. the poor
• Men vs. women
I could go on and on, as it seems a list like this is endless. Though all it really boils down to is this:
A destructive “us vs. them” mentality
“Proudly racially obsessed”? Is it just me or does that sound a little disturbing?
It is my humble opinion that as long as there’s people (as represented in the above two as well as the following images) like this in the world, white people and black people will never come together in mutual understanding, respect and friendship.
This us and them mentality goes both ways, as you already know if you’re honest to yourself about the realities of this world.
I’d rather not get into the messy business of exploring the definition of racism, but for arguments sake, here is what Merriam-Webster has to say about this loaded term:
We all know there is more than one definition of racism, and something I’ve noticed is that only once the question of racism towards Whites comes up does anyone automatically bring up the definition centering around systemic oppression. I have come across the following statement a number of times:
You can’t be racist towards white people. They’ve never experienced oppression.
Okay, fine. But don’t sit there and tell me that having the phrase “No Whites Allowed” displayed on the banner of your Twitter profile isn’t racist. While we’re at it, don’t say that calling out a person’s “white privilege” isn’t stereotyping and judging that person based on the color of their skin, because it is.
I agree that Whites have not experienced racial oppression in America as Blacks have, but I do fear that this will no longer be true during my children’s lifetime; if not their lifetime then their children’s lifetime, and so on. White people becoming an American minority has already been predicted, and all we have to do is look at what’s happening in Europe, in countries such as Sweden and Germany to see how it can happen–and if you think it’s racist of me to hope my race survives in a future America, that’s your problem. Wishing for the survival of one race isn’t the same as hoping for extinction of another race.
I am not blaming anyone for this reality. I just wish people would acknowledge it and not permit the poison of political correctness to influence their outlook of the world.
Hiding from the truth doesn’t make it go away.
Political correctness breeds negativity, which breeds hate, which eventually leads to destruction and violence.
Don’t believe me? Then you are hiding from the truth, and thus you are a coward.
Black Lives Matter
Many people, notably social justice warriors, are not going to like my opinion about the Black Lives Matter movement. Some of you reading this will undoubtedly label me as racist, but I’m okay with that because I know in my heart that I’m not racist.
The above picture depicts the Minneapolis chapter of Black Lives Matter burning the American flag during a protest for Jamar Clark, who was shot and killed by a police officer late last year. The county prosecutor decided that based on the evidence, there was no case against the cop and he would not be indicted. Black Lives Matter didn’t like that one bit.
To hell with the facts! Can’t you see that this bloodthirsty white cop shot this nice young black man in cold blood?
There is no logic in their arguments because they aren’t looking at the situation as it happened. All they see is that a white cop shot and killed a black person and therefore the white cop must be in the wrong.
There is simply no other way to put it. They should change their name to Black Troublemakers Who Don’t Listen Lives Matter or Black Criminals Who Are Shot by White Cops Lives Matter because then at least the name would be more accurate, as it reflects who gets shot and/or killed and what type of situation they concern themselves with.
I think Black Lives Matter Minneapolis would be interested in seeing what Jamar Clark’s sister thinks about her brother’s death.
The members of Black Lives Matter are completely delusional and extremely dangerous. They are a hate group and this burning of the American flag goes into domestic terrorism territory, but of course no one will say that because doing so would be racist, right? Political Correctness rears its ugly head yet again.
What’s really scary is that our president, Barack Obama, supports Black Lives Matter. But if you know anything about Obama’s adolescence and his time spent with a racist communist named Frank Marshall Davis, the fact the he has backed this vile movement shouldn’t surprised you. Of course no one wants to touch that bit of information with a ten foot pole; doing so would be considered politically incorrect.
The last thing I’d like to touch on is the fact that it seems to be perfectly acceptable for people to express their desire to either kill Donald Trump or otherwise proclaim their desire for him to be murdered. People have written songs about it, made music videos, and talked about it openly on various social media networks.
I am neither a Trump supporter nor a Trump hater — my attitude towards him has remained pretty neutral throughout this campaign season. That said, I don’t understand why some people seem to think it’s okay to wish someone dead just because that person has differing outlooks and opinions about the world.
Do these haters not realize that he’s a husband, father and grandfather? Do they not realize that he is loved and adored, that he has people in his life who need him? Just because you may find it almost impossible to believe these things about Trump doesn’t make them untrue. I find it utterly abhorrent that people are able to fester so much hate about a person they don’t even know.
And just to be clear, the information you get from the mainstream media about Trump does not mean you know him or know anything about him. I’m going to go out on a limb here and assume that if you’ve ever called him a bigot, a sexist, a racist and/or a xenophobe it’s because you heard someone else call him that, not because you know him well enough to make that kind of judgment.
I will end this here, but I still have a lot to say and I’m damn well going to say it.
I am done being silent. I am done harboring my opinion for the sake of others in the name of political correctness. I am ready to be heard, loud and clear, with no apologies.
SJW Checklist
Wondering if you’re a social justice warrior? Just use this handy checklist to find out!
_ Your calendar is full of Black Lives Matter events and you’re white.
_ You burn with hate for Donald Trump, but you’re unable to explain why without using the words racist, sexist and/or bigot.
_ Your go-to response for anyone who disagrees with you is calling them any one of the following:
Bigot
Sexist
Racist
Ableist
Transphobic
Homophobic
Islamophobic
Xenophobic
Any other noun that ends in -ic or -ist
_ You are a feminist.
_ You are more concerned about the well-being of non-Americans than Americans. This goes for other Western countries as well, i.e. if you’re originally from Australia you’re more concerned about non-Australians than Australians, etc.
_ You are constantly worried that you’ll display “offensive” behavior.
_ You are constantly worried that other people will display offensive behavior.
_ You can find racism in any given situation.
_ You can find sexism in any given situation.
_ You believe this (and/or) have done/have thought about doing the following:
_ You don’t practice what you preach, like this woman:
_ You are a follower, not a leader.
_ You go out of your way to accept and tolerate outsiders, while bashing your fellow man every chance you get.
_ You think it’s important to “check one’s privilege.”
_ You cast blame in every direction except inward.
_ You preach tolerance, yet you’re completely intolerant of views that are different from yours.
_ You are the worst kind of hypocrite.
_ You are blind to double standards unless they go in your favor.
_ You want to belong.
_ You are passionate, often overly so.
_ You are disrespectful, selfish and inconsiderate.
_ You spend more than half of your time protesting.
_ You are not interested in the truth.
_ You think anyone with a differing opinion is an evil asshole who doesn’t deserve to breathe the same air as you.
_ You don’t like to be interrupted when you’re screaming in someone’s face.
_ You have no problem disrupting the lives of others.
Results
• You checked 0 — 6 boxes: You’re probably not a social justice warrior, but don’t lose hope!
• You checked 7 — 13 boxes: It looks like you could be a social justice warrior in no time if you up your game. Time to amp up that simmering passion!
• You checked 14 — 26 boxes: Congratulations! You are a true social justice warrior! Keep up the good work!
Disclaimer: the lower your score here, the better off you probably are.
Daily Prompt: Chaos
Chaos chaos all around
Spinning and strengthening
Making that awful shrieking sound
Dizzying to witness
From my place here on the ground
Chaos chaos in the air
Dancing and floating
Over here and over there
Sparking excitement
Fueling anger
Without even a smidgen of care
Chaos chaos across the globe
Seeking and infecting
Those to carry its load
Giving rise to greed
Inciting conflict
Everywhere it goes
Chaos chaos inside of me
Churning and burning
From it I cannot be free
It whispers in my ear
Rushes through my veins
Saturating me with its passion and its glee
Chaos chaos all around
Spinning and strengthening
Making that awful shrieking sound
Dizzying to witness
From my place here on the ground
To My Fellow Writers: Join Up With Me to Promote Our Work
I know I’m not the only writer who is frustrated with a small or sometimes even nonexistent readership on blog sites. I write because I want to be heard, and in a place (the internet) where there’s no shortage of good writers, breaking up and away from the pack can seem impossible.
So here’s what I want to do:
I want to join up with other writers and form a group that promotes one another’s work.
I have created a Twitter account for this purpose, but collecting followers is difficult when you don’t know where to find who you’re looking for, which is why I decided to write this. I plan to post duplicates of this piece on other blog sites, and (if you’re interested) I encourage you to share this article with any blog or social media site you’re a part of. I am hoping I can produce enough word-of-mouth to bring together a sufficient group of writers to get this thing off the ground. Once that happens, I’ll create a profile for this group on Facebook, Tumblr, etc.
If interested please follow @promoteyoume on Twitter and we’ll go from there. Please share this article with other writers too!
WordPress Daily Prompt: Hope
Hope
It can be a dangerous thing
Or so people think
When they say,
“Don’t get your hopes up”
Is there something else they see?
Do they know something I do not?
Should I chase my hopes away
Because there really is no shot?
In the given situation
Of where my hope manifests
Unless you see the future
Please do not make that guess
I am allowed to have
This hope I feel
It should never be
Something you can steal
My Thoughts on the Transgender Bathroom Debate
I was originally uninterested in the controversy surrounding transgender bathrooms, but now the more I hear about it, the more I can’t shut my thoughts out, and thus keep my fingers off the keys. There are so many factors at play, yet many only see the black and white of the matter.
Being the Moderate that I am, I understand and generally agree with both sides of this argument. But I don’t believe the problem lies with the proponents of gender neutral bathrooms, nor the opponents. I believe the problem lies with the media. The mainstream media has created a highly energetic shit-storm out of this issue. Ever since it’s gained public attention, the media has blown it completely out of proportion – scaremongering and feeding into our fears – and I must say that they’re doing a bang up job of it.
Somehow, the press has succeeded in making an entire group of people – mainly conservatives – throw all common sense to the wind.
I don’t want a grown man sharing a bathroom with my daughter!
Okay, I guess it’s not completely irrational to believe that some perverts will take advantage of gender neutral bathrooms, but what makes one believe that only now, when this issue has taken nationwide center-stage, that the rapists and pedophiles are all the sudden going to come out of the woodwork and start practicing peeping Tom-ary? Also, if you think people like Caitlyn Jenner – who is now looking quite womanly – aren’t already using the restroom that corresponds with their gender identity, you’re just plain wrong.
While I was attending a technical college in my early 20’s, we had to do a project on diversity in the healthcare field. Basically we were to come up with a situation where an encounter with diversity could be problematic. This is how one of my classmates (we’ll call her Natalie) told the class that she was a male to female transgender. I’m unsure of what kind of reaction she was expecting, but she got one of dumbfounded surprise. There was no way any of us would have known if she hadn’t chosen to out herself to us. She had brought in a photo of her and her family before her transition. Incredibly, she and the woman she had married (pre-transition) never separated or divorced. They found a way to make it work. Now that’s love! And guess what? She regularly used the women’s restroom with zero problems and no one was the wiser.
I can assure you that if Natalie were to waltz into the men’s restroom she would stand out like a sore thumb, not to mention the danger she’d be putting herself into.
To all the people who are worried about grown men sneaking a peek at your adolescent daughter, what would you think about a person (whom you perceive to be female) using the men’s room? Do you think that, just maybe, it could be dangerous for her? When confronted, should she have to spill her transgender status, potentially further risking her safety?
Anyone who believes that this guy’s trip to the women’s room would go unnoticed is either blind or lying to themselves. On the other hand, I’m sure he would use the men’s room without incident.
I’d like to express a different way of understanding this controversy. There are serious flaws in the opposition here.
For example, should we create a bathroom for gay men for the sole reason that they are sexually attracted to other men? Who knows if the guy in the urinal next to you thinks you’re cute?
What about pedophiles? Should documented sex offenders be banned from using public restrooms? No matter what you think of them, they have to answer Mother Nature’s call like the rest of us. These vile human beings could be peeing right next to your son. If you ask me, sex offenders are a far greater public restroom hazard than anyone, and the fact that no one cares which restroom they use, or that they even use public restrooms to begin with, makes your fear of gender neutral bathrooms look nonsensical.
Bottom Line
There are more things at play here than your irrational fear that some creep is going to go out of his way to pretend to be a female in order to get a look at your daughter, sister, mother, niece, granddaughter, etc. This is not all about you. You may not agree and/or support transgender people and the struggles they face, but they are people who are just trying to get by and find happiness like the rest of us. Just like gun owners shouldn’t be punished for the actions of a few mass murderers, transgendered people likewise shouldn’t be punished for the sickos of the world.
Thought Factor 