On Ben Carson, Muslim ShariaLaw and Christian Biblical Law

“I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation.”
— Republican Presidential candidate Ben Carson (9/20/15)

I get it. He's worried that a Muslim would place their religious beliefs and loyalties above the US Constitution. That's the same reason I worry about having a Christian in charge of this nation. Later, when asked to clarify, Dr. Carson said that he guessed it would be okay as long as the Muslim candidate renounced Sharia law. I had thought Carson was stupid, but he's on to something. It would be okay as long as the Christian renounced Biblical law.

Please please please intelligent moderate and conservative Republicans: Start throwing your voices, support, and money behind your other candidates who are less about hate, ego, and pandering to extremists and more about rational political debate and philosophy. I may not agree with your politics, but if your more rational candidates don't get more support soon, they are not going to be able to continue their campaigns and you're going to have a Bozo (or Bozette) representing you in the next election. That's a danger we just can't risk.

Everyday I vow again

I vow again to feel better. To be in a better mood.
But my vow is hollow -- hollow just like I feel.
I tell myself that I will force myself to do things, to participate, to act. I'll act not how I feel, but act how I am supposed to feel. I'll be better off. At least those around me -- the people I care most about -- will feel better about me.
Instead I spread my misery like an infectious disease.
Would I, would those I love, be better off if I was simply alone?

Book of Questions 9: Would you accept $1,000,000 to leave the country...

“Would you accept $1,000,000 to leave the country and never set foot in it again?”
— Book of Questions

$1,000,000 isn't enough to buy me off to leave the country. But one could perhaps talk me in to doing it for free if I knew that I would be financially stable.

Make sense?

I wouldn't go against my wishes for a mil but immigrating from the USA doesn't scare me either.

Book of Questions 8: Would you rather be a member of a world championship...

“Would you rather be a member of a world championship sports team or be the champion of an individual sport? Which sport would you choose?”
— Book of Questions, Gregory Stock

Roger Federer, BNP Paribas Open, Indian Wells, CA (March 2014)

Singles tennis champion... preferably the greatest of all time.

Book of Questions 6: You discover that wonderful one-year-old child...

“You discover that wonderful one-year-old child is, because of a mixup at the hospital, not yours. Would you want to exchange the child to try to correct the mistake?”
— Book of Questions

I would not want to make the exchange, but I would feel compelled to do it. There isn't a great solution to this dilemma. I would hope that I would still be able to be involved in some way in the life of the child whom I raised for his first year.

I'd also like to reserve the right to trade back before age 18 if I didn't like my biological kid. (Just kidding.)

Book of Questions 5: If a new medicine were developed...

“If a new medicine were developed that would cure arthritis but cause a fatal reaction in 1 percent of those who took it, would you want it to be released to the public?”
— Book of Questions, Gregory Stock

Yes, though the risk and those odds would need to be carefully explained to the patient who chooses to take the medication. I'm a big believer in choice.

Book of Questions #4: If you could spend one year...

“If you could spend one year in perfect happiness but afterward would remember nothing of the experience would you do so? If not, why not?”
— Book of Questions, Gregory Stock

Sure. I'm up for any amount of time in perfect happiness... or even imperfect. Bring it on. I'm not bothered if I won't be able to remember it later. I even promise not to ask questions.

Book of Questions #3

“If you were to die this evening with no opportunity to communicate with anyone, what would you most regret not having told someone? Why haven’t you told them yet?”
— Book of Questions

(So much for the easy ones.)

There's someone I have known for a long time. He has never seemed very comfortable in his own skin: always seems nervous, always seems ill at ease with most of the people around him. The few glimmers I see of his true self are great. He's a really funny guy and has a lot to offer the world, but most of the time he fades in to the shadows. I would tell him that it is okay to be yourself. It's okay to admit to others -- and even more important to admit to himself -- how he feels. It's  more important to be true to yourself than to other people or to a book.

(If he read this, I seriously doubt he would even realize I was writing about him.)

Why haven't I told him? I guess I'm as big a chicken shit as he is. I'm now too far removed from his life to easily be open with him. (Admittedly, openness is not something either one of us know much about.) I love him and want him to be happy.

Someday, when I'm strong enough, I hope I'll be able to help him be strong as well. Until then, these are just pixels on the screen.