blogworthy

The following stories are far more blogworthy than people running over one another, peeing on themselves or losing their flip flop for a $50 iBook.

First, I enjoyed waking up to the story of Pat Robertson's big mouth opening too far once again. He makes common mistakes like this much too often and yet he still has people following him around blindly.

So the question is begging to be asked, I'm sure: should our "operatives" go ahead and take "[Chavez] out" to "get it over with"? It would, after all, "be a lot cheaper than starting another war."

"Venezuela is the fifth-largest oil exporter and a major supplier of oil to the United States. The CIA estimates that U.S. markets absorb almost 59 percent of Venezuela's total exports." (source)

Maybe we will be getting involved because we can't lose that precious oil. Chavez has also become very anti-Bush, accusing Bush of attempts to topple his government as well as to assasinate him. Since we get so much oil, that we won't want to lose, from Venezuela AND Chavez doesn't seem to like Bush much, I'm sure we'll be finding a way to do invade yet another country. You know, because our troops aren't spread thin already helping to keep *America free* and all that in a $200billion war (has Pat been reading the same economic sources that I have?).

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On a greater note, and I wish grander scale, parental rights were redefined in California, holding same-sex couples reponsible for their children in cases of separation or disintegration of the relationship and granting rights to 2nd moms/dads to be just that, on paper, too.

"The California Supreme Court on Monday became the first in the nation to grant full parenting rights and obligations to gays and lesbians who have children."

I think it's exciting because it's yet another step closer to full equal rights under the (quickly becoming) outdated laws. Justice Carlos Moreno stated that parental rights go both ways: gay/lesbian couples have a right to be legal daddies/mommies, but they also have a responsibility to support their children if the relationship falls apart, just as in any instance dealing with a heterosexual couple.

This ruling has certainly pissed some people off - especially all those nuts who think a woman and man exist only to "participate in the miracle of procreation". Yeah, because a woman giving birth is miraculous now. Oh wait, Randy Thomasson wasn't talking about the woman giving birth to said fetus, he was merely mentioning the act of procreation itself as being awe-inspiring. Duh. Somehow I had forgotten that this is what has been happening since the beginning of time, way before Adam and Eve showed up. We just know how it happens now.

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And when a 15 year old girl doesn't respond to your whistles, barking and otherwise "meaningless" cat calls?

Beat the shit out of her.

This happened last Tuesday in Spotsylvania County, which is not far from where I live. Thankfully, a co-worker saw what had begun to transpire and came to the young girls rescue.

She suffered a fractured cheekbone, a broken nose and had to have 30 stitches in her face and head.

Ramirez, who is an illegal from El Salvador, is being held in jail without bond. I'm thinking the culture he came from breeds, in their men, a certain amount of expectation when it comes to women, so perhaps that is where some of his anger came from. But, break the rules, pay the price, no matter what country you are in.

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I really like this article from the Washington Times today: Efforts aim to show men how to be '24-7' dads.

I have a problem, a huge one, with Peanut's dad. Last year he came to Peanut's first day of Kindergarten then proceeded to tell me how I needed to run my days although he's not ever been involved in our lives before (or since). I try to give R. updates on Peanut but he tells me he only needs to know what Peanut tells him (then complains when he has to *ask* me for information).

When kindergarten was over, they supposedly had some sort of program, but it wasn't graduation. R. bugged me for 3 days wondering what time and day the program was. After telling him several times that I didn't know (it wasn't that important as I knew I couldn't go), I yelled into the phone for him to call the school himself if he needed to know that bad. He didn't.

R. doesn't buy school supplies for Peanut. I asked him on Sunday to take Peanut to Target or K-Mart to get a bookbag and lunchbox but I doubt it will happen. He's only interested in buying Peanut toys or video games.

I also found out that Peanut has 3 pairs of shorts and 4 t-shirts for his 2 week stays with his dad. No socks. And only the underwear I had given him because somehow Peanut's drawer began to overflow with Buzz Lightyear, The Incredibles, Spiderman, the Hulk and even a Harley or two.

R. once told me that being involved meant he took Peanut every other weekend like he's supposed to when he could easily have walked away like my niece's father did. In that same breath, he also told me I should give him respect because of the fact he's still around.

Like Mr. Muslim (from the link) said, "When fathers tell [him] that they take their children to school the first day or they take their children to the park for the afternoon, he retorts, 'You don't get points for that. That's what you're supposed to do.'"

R. doesn't get respect for sticking around and making my life hell too often. He would, however, get the respect if he were actually involved in Peanut's life and tried to understand what our lives might be like just a mere 2 hours away from him.

But he doesn't. He pays his $200 a month in child support and thinks that takes care of everything.