politics

I feel like I've had a pretty balanced exposure to politics. My dad is a die-hard conservative. Fox News has been a frequented channel in my house. (I just admitted that online. I know, I know...) BUT I grew up in a liberal state, a very liberal one at that. Any history or current event class throughout my schooling was always shaded blue. I didn't really care because I think it's important to hear and synthesize both sides.

College was the ultimate test of independence and finding out where I stood on each issue. Am I an elephant or a donkey? (I could have substituted another word there. Can I just say that is the worst party mascot ever? Did no one have the foresight to see that would be a bad choice?)

Well, when all is said and done, I am an Independent. At least that's how I registered. I always thought being moderate just meant you were a fence-sitter, but for me it just means I cross party lines with every issue.

I would call myself a fiscal conservative. I believe in safety nets, but I don't believe in hand-outs. I think everyone should pay some kind of tax. (If I hear the phrase 'fair share' one more time, I'm going to pull my hair out.) I believe in working hard and this thing called self-reliance. I favor small government.

BUT being conservative doesn't mean I'm close-minded or uber-traditionalist. I'm a vegetarian; I try to protect the environment; I don't think Planned Parenthood is a society of baby killers; I think stem cell research is wicked awesome; I believe in equality for all ethnicities and sexual orientations; don't even get me started on "Don't ask, don't tell." It's ridiculous. To say it's obsolete would even be incorrect because that would imply that it had some use at one time. And it didn't. (I know it has been repealed, but I've heard things about republicans trying to undo the progress made or something to that effect, which is a waste of time...)

I digress.

Anyway, I think people should think about every issue independently of their affiliated parties. I'm kind of sad that I'll miss the political storm of November 2012 because it seems like it will be an intense one. However, I will be living the devoted life in Canada, which I think will be much more meaningful. :)

Lately

Happy September 11th!! Oh wait...

I couldn't resist that joke because everyone was such a downer on facebook. If you didn't know, sometimes I have inappropriate responses to things.

-One time I laughed when a drunk person broke down crying about her life. (Even the non-sober people knew this was out of line.)

- I generally laugh when people get physically hurt.

- I giggled through a breast examination.

- And I cried during an animated movie.

So I have some mis-wirings. I don't thing September 11th is at all funny, but sometimes I joke about serious things. That's all.

I know you think I hate the troops now, but that's not true. I love our military. I love our country. I love democracy. I love freedom. I love our constitution. I don't love war, but I respect that people are willing to risk their lives while defending the BEST COUNTRY IN THE WORLD!!! (How's that for nationalist?)

I've said this before, but I don't think our country is flawless by any means. I believe in change, but I also believe in a lot of the core values this country was founded on. Basically, I believe in striving to be our best. That's why we vote!

Independence

Sometimes I lose faith in our legal system after verdicts like today with the Casey Anthony trial. I think it's an appropriate time for:

WTF?

Where do they find these juries?

But I feel like anti-America comments are really unbecoming. I don't agree with everything our country does, but I like to be optimistic that we can change and make things better with enough effort. I'm grateful to be a citizen of this country. I'm grateful that I can vote. I'm grateful that I can be part of a change. I'm grateful that I have rights. Maybe this is a little Pollyanna of me, but America is still a great place to live. Can we do better? Yes. But we're doing better than, say, North Korea. So things aren't as bad as they could be.

hair

Note to self: Don't assume gender of a child.

I was just an offender of the she's-so-cute-HE-oh-um-yeah... situation. There was this adorable Native American boy who had beautiful hair and a beautiful face. Oh the androgyny! I should have looked down at the power ranger shoes.

Dear Tanya,

In other cultures, boys have thick, long hair too. Why are you so ignorant?

Love,

The Politically Correct World

(To my credit, when I pointed out the child to my co-workers, both of them said, "oh that little girl?" I'm not that crazy.)

love me some stem cells

Evidence that I am a nerd at heart:

I watched a lecture about stem cells, and it just made me tingle with excitement. And we read a beautiful paper in biochem where they induced differentiated pancreas exocrine cells to insulin-secreting beta cells. It was the coolest thing ever. Seriously, when people talk about developmental biology or stem cells, I can't help but fall in love with the topic. I think that is what I want to study forever, even though it's a longer road because it takes longer to publish results due to the lengthy nature of the experiments. But it's just so mesmerizing.

I'm too lazy to form an organized argument on stem cell research right now, but basically it's ridiculous to prohibit government funding of embryonic stem cell research when it can do so much good. Suffice it to say, (and I am in no way demeaning the value of life) I do not believe that a 4-cell embryo (give or take a few stages) created in a lab has a soul that we are deliberately destroying. I don't believe that "life" begins at conception. I don't think we are foiling God's plan by finding new medical advances. I believe that God, among many things, is a scientist, and I believe we should take advantage of as many scientific frontiers as possible.

peace. love. and science.

Health Care

This is by no means a comprehensive argument on the pros and cons of socialized health care, but for the moment, I just wanted to say this: I don't agree with socialized health care.

So many Americans take their health for granted. Heart disease, cancer, and stroke are the leading causes of death (not to mention, diabetes coming in a close 6th.) All these diseases have a large lifestyle aspect that factors into their causes. Before you freak out at my insensitivity, I'm a scientist. I know about genetics. I know sometimes we draw the short straw and get a bad combination of genes that predispose us to these illnesses. BUT, genetics aren't everything. Take responsibility for your health and for your life. Some of us have to try harder than other people. That's life.

The point is that I don't want my tax dollars paying for your irresponsibility. Am I saying there shouldn't be safety nets? No. Am I saying there shouldn't be compassion for genuinely uncontrollable circumstances? No. But if you shove junk through your body and watch reruns of Jersey Shore (an extreme example, I know) and wind up with diabetes or arteriosclerosis, don't expect me to front the bill.

I know I'm feeling rather unsympathetic today, but that's the harsh truth. Get over it.