Submitted by Linda Henderson
Since no one will be surprised to find me on this blog, I will join the others who are standing up and standing out. I appreciate you all - Peter, Michael, Joann!
I am thankful for many things today, so this will be positive. When the loud and negative voices weigh too heavily on my mind, there seems to always be divine intervention. It's the unexpected kindness of complete strangers that strikes me the most. Throughout this last year, they have wondered into the Latonia. They are usually 50 or older, curious to see what is developing in the place where they remember coming to shows as youth. They are excited to share their memories and end the visit with a directive. "You girls keep doing what you are doing" and say it's wonderful that the Latonia is coming back to life. They have heard the nay sayers and have taken a moment to tell us they see the project as positive and beneficial to the community. They still believe the "L" stands for Latonia. I am thankful for the reminder that this place has meaning to many and it encourages me to work a little harder to remember them the next time a storm rolls over.
1 comment:
If you want jobs, money, culture, then you have to allow people to create jobs, money and culture.
If you start telling people who they may and may not associate with, they will simply go elsewhere.
We now have openly gay and lesbian people living in Oil City?
Is there chaos in the streets?
Has the moral fabric of our community broken down?
Namoli Brennet, a transgendered artist, performed here.
Has the town been overturned by anarchists seeking to make everyone homosexual?
It's time for society to grow up.
We have the internet here in Oil City. And books too!
You can now actually see on the internet what homosexuals do, and why they do it.
You can see sex online and see that people who have sex are really no different than you and I.
Imagine that?! Shocking I know.
You can go online and see two people of the same gender in love and still being productive members of society.
Imagine love being so universal and powerful that it includes people of the same gender?
I bring this up because it is often said that society needs to protect children from homosexuals and transgendered people.
Well, times have changed. Your kids with access to technology have seen it all, including homosexuality, transgendered people, and who knows what else?!
Yet, we still manage to have heterosexual children. They didn't all convert to homosexuality. Some of them still manage to be honest, caring, and compassionate people who have faith, hope and charity in their lives.
Imagine that?! Another myth created by fearmongering religious zealots was wrong.
If you go online, (or read books, ) you can also see the results of religous groups who are intolerant of those who do not follow their beliefs.
The videos of the violence and mayhem are right there on You Tube for all to see. How many wars are being fought right now because one religions hates another?
How many people are being maimed or killed because someone did not follow the authority of some religious zealot?
It's all online and your kids have seen it.
Should you support gays and lesbians who want to create art and businesses in Oil City?
Please.
Haven't we adults gotten past this yet?
Aren't there far more relevant questions, like where will how will we find clean water, renewable resources and sustainable jobs?
People who spend their lives worrying about what other people do with their genitals are the real perverts if you ask me. What a perverse use of their lives. What a perverse use of God and religion.
While people starve and face war and environmental chaos, there are actually people out there who find time to fuss over other people's sex lives. And not only that, they do it to the point of starting committees and sending out newsletters, and creating non-profit organizations.
That pretty much defines "perverse" if you ask me. If nothing else, this is one very unhappy group of individuals with way too much time on their hands.
I mean, really. Can we find some of the city tax money to get these people dates.... or lap dances? Maybe they're so unhappy because they just can't find anyone to have sex with them?
Let's make music, art, dance, while we create sustainable jobs, clean water, and a healthy life for the kids and adults of this amazingly beautiful community.
If people want to sit around moaning about how awful it is that other people are falling in love and having sex, then I don't have time for that.
However if these same people start sending out threatening letters and create an atmosphere of fear for law abiding citizens then I say it's time for the city to speak up before they do more damage than they've already done.
Personally, I can't wait to see all the festivals, music and art planned for the coming year. It's exciting to know we have so many artists, scientists, entrepreneurs, and hard working honest people in this town.
Things can only get better if we all support each other with respect and nurture each other's creativity.
Finally, I think it's good to remind people every once in a while about the First Amendment.
Freedom of Expression was put first for a reason. It's what made the United States such a beacon of hope, and a wealth of creativity in the past, and it's the foundation of any sustainable future we may have.
You can not create solutions if your mind is closed. You can not find answers if someone is keeping your mind closed for you.
It's the very basics of good business. Research and development come from creative open minds, not religious zealots.
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