green

You all ought to change that Constitution. The anchor baby thing has got to go. Up here in Canuckistan we do grant citizenship to any and all infants born on our soil. Then we deport their parents if they are illegals. The parents have the option of taking their Canadian infants with them or finding them good homes here. The children are always welcome to return at a later date, eh.

Battygreen, who is to say that your version of God is the correct version? There are a lot of religions in this world. There are also a lot of different interpretations of the Bible amongst those who call themselves Christians. Did it ever occur to you that your interpretation of this material is erroneous? The Old Testament is a somber and violent document. There you will find approval of infanticide, abortion and genocide. I can supply you with chapter and verse, if you are interested Furthermore, you show no love for, no openess to the experiences of your fellow men and women, no acceptance of their weaknesses, personal tragedies, and foibles. You behave like a schoolyard bully in the name of your God. Do you really think that your Jesus would approve? Why don't you relax? God, if He exists and if He cares to, will do the judging.

I am very impressed by your post. You and your husband sound like fine people to work for/with and you do have reasons for concern. According to most of the reports I have been hearing, the economy is in recession or worse. This alone means that folks don't have the cash to go shopping and that will have a bad impact on businesses who in turn will lay people off. It is an awfully ugly spiral.... I do know that up here in Canada folks are heavily taxed but this is on their net earnings and those individuals who operate businesses are able to make a lot of business-related deductions. I can only imagine that you have the same system south of the border. Presumably, too, Obama is not going to want to kill the geese who are laying the golden eggs and by that I mean keeping their fellow citizens employed. Remember that neither Obama nor his wife came from money. Remember, too, that he was working with a disadvantaged neighbourhood in Chicago. Surely he must understand the valuable role that American-owned and run businesses play inside the community.

Nope, genuinely meant.

He was considered a goof by the international press.

Thanks. I have always had gay friends, both male and female. I have grown up around gay folks just my mum did. It is difficult to see a group of people denied the same rights and respect that I myself enjoy.

D'oh! Now I get it! I am not only old, I am also blonde.....

Where is the The One posting?

Sometimes the majority can be wrong. Might doesn't always equal right. In Canada we have the Charter of Rights which is designed to protect the rights of minorities. The Charter carries the same weight for Canadians as your Constitution does for you. It was because of the Charter of Rights that the issue of the rights of gay folk to marry first became an issue and then became law. So same sex couples can legally marry up here and, as I have said in an earlier post, folks are now used to this. It really is no big deal except to those couples who can now marry and who were once unable to....

LBT's prophet....

Perhaps tax breaks for big business could be tethered to the creation of new jobs inside of America.

Plain and Kyband, thanks for advising me on big business and off-shore activities. I hadn't understood these aspects before.

Pattygreen, God's official interpreter......

Exactly. I don't consider myself proud to be a Canadian for this was not my achievement. I was born here is all and that is something I had no control over. I do consider myself very lucky!

Some of the provinces here decided that same sex marriages were legal and then the federal government of Canada picked up the idea and ran with it. The Liberal party which was at the time the party in power proposed a bill to make same sex marriages legal across this country. Though there was a lot of outcry at the time this bill passed. Now everyone accustomed to the idea. It really is no big deal.

Hey, Luluc, I am one half Jewish, too. Although my family were and are atheists we were raised to have a strong sense of civic commitment. This means that those who have should help out those who are in need. Unlike many of you, I really don't believe that those who are in need are all a pack of scammers. Some may be but you will find scam artists and cheapskates amongst all levels of society from the richest to the poorest. I would rather contribute to the health of my fellow citizens by paying taxes than through giving voluntarily to charities though I do both. Charities will apply emotional judgements as to who will receive their help and those who are in need are forced to go cap in hand in order to beg for a hand-out or a hand-up. The government source of aid is much more neutral and thus much less humiliating for the recipient. If I were in need I would rather depend on the government than on private charity. Also, not all of those who can afford to be generous are. I have heard it said by waiters, etc that some of their wealthy clients are real cheapskates when it comes to tipping. A fair taxation system is the one way of ensuring that everyone contributes. I would also remind you that much of your tax money goes towards many other things.

A good response, Bjean.

Most people tend to be quite sentimental. They like to Celebrate their love for and commitment to each other by getting married. At present only straight Americans are able to do this; when viewed this way prop 8 is a denial of rights. I don't think that this is fair. Do you?

But big business does have an incentive to stay within America and to employ its fellow citizens. If Americans are not working then they will not have the money to buy the products that big business produces.

You mean that funny little cowboy.....???

Hmmm..... Plum wine sounds interesting. I've never had it.

Yep, I can get married with no hassles even though I have never, ever wanted children just because I am straight. In fact, the only time I was legally married, the ceremony was performed in a Catholic church. I have a Lesbian friend who has two children; unlike me, she loves children and is very maternal. Scientists reckon that about 10% of the population are gay and that folks are born with their sexual preferences, be they attracted to their own sex or the opposite sex. Same sex sexual behaviour has been observed among other species; it is not just a human thing. Given that it is a helluvalot easier to live as a heterosexual, it seems unlikely to me that 10% of the population are going to decide, "uh, I think I want to be homosexual; I really like being the target of bigotry." It is because one has no more personal control over which sex one will be attracted to than one has over one's sex or skin colour - all these things are a matter of what you were born with - that homosexuals must be granted all the same rights and respect as the rest of us. If straight couples who love each other feel the need to marry, it only makes sense that same sex couples will have the same urge. Why deny them this? Why make them second class citizens? There is no way that a same sex marriage will "harm" or take anything away from a man and woman one.

Give the gift that can't be broken or lost. Give him a tattoo.

I was 57. I needed the band because after I hit menopause I kept gaining and gaining. I weighed 195 lbs the morning I was banded. Ten months later I weighed 147 and looked oh so much better! And although I have always eaten healthily, I began to eat even better than I had before I was banded. The operation was easy to recover from and having the band has been an altogether positive experience for me. It is great to be able to wear nice clothes again.

Thanks for posting the video of Obama's speech, Watcher.