Jeffersonian

Hi All,
I have heard enough complaints about people being made about me
placing something so personal on a "consumer site"... Well there is a
connection.
Just visit:
http://afa.net/
They list companies to attack and boycott for their support of the
GLBT community...
Is that really worse than someone complainting about their hair
hurting? Please... I think I might have brought a topic up that
might make sense for people to think about... Not the same, I hate
this company because I didn't get my way...
I am all for PFB, but too often politics harm consumers too.
Just my 2 cents. I am not here to offend or "take up bandwidth". I
think PFB is safe from crashing or becoming homo-friendly...

They might not be the typical business, but they certainly have
started acting like one. They cater to the highest bidders. And via
our tax dollars, we do pay them for their services or lack of...
So maybe it doesn't fit perfectly, but a complaint is a complaint.
Its not called Consumer Plant Feedback...
Just my thoughts. Maybe they could create separate sections or
separate complaints by type of business?

People say Love is Blind... I say Religion is...

Following any religion so blindly and placing it before the very
freedoms that allow that religion to exist is DANGEROUS. If you doubt
it's happening, look at history around the world. Look at Iraq, look
at the crusades. Now look at the evangelical uprising here in the US.
It is of things to come... We must stop judging each other and
remember what America is all about... FREEDOM & LIBERTY.

VA BALLOT QUESTION NUMBER 1 November 2006

Shall Article I, the Bill of Rights, of the Constitution of Virginia
be amended to state "That only a union between one man and one woman
may be a marriage valid in or recognized by this Commonwealth and its
political subdivisions"

"This Commonwealth and its political subdivisions shall not create or
recognize a legal status for relationships of unmarried individuals
that intends to approximate the design, qualities, significance, or
effects of marriage. Nor shall this Commonwealth or its political
subdivisions create or recognize another union, partnership, or other
legal status to which is assigned the rights, benefits, obligations,
qualities, or effects of marriage."?


Dear Family, Friends, Associates and Neighbors:

I send this message to you as a plea. Above is the full text of the
amendment that you, as a registered voter, will be voting on this
November. This is a plea because this amendment will deeply affect my
life in a profound way. Please note the section that is bolded and
underlined in red above. It states that no agreement or even
contract, such as a will or beneficiary will be valid between any two
individuals, other than those that are legally married. This impacts
contacts with people that have jointly purchased homes, listed others
as beneficiaries, will agreements, joint bank accounts and many other
legal agreements that you might take for granted.

This entire subject is very personal and private to me. I would never
discuss something of this nature with anyone other than my partner,
for those that know me, you already know even writing this email is
extremely uncomfortable for me. While I might agree and respect the
sanctity of marriage, I do not agree with the wording of this
amendment. It restricts me from legally securing my personal and
financial affairs in my life. This is extremely humiliating to me.
I have confirmed with three different law firms and even spoke with a
retired judge to confirm the implication of this amendment to all
unmarried individuals. This amendment simply goes too far.

I sincerely ask you to vote against this amendment in November.
Virginia already has at least 2 different laws in place that protect
marriage. This amendment not only goes too far, but it is simply
unnecessary.

As your relative, friend, associate and neighbor. I respectfully ask
you to vote against this amendment in November. Please vote "NO" and
encourage your friends and family members to also vote "NO". I rarely
ask anyone for anything, this time my plea is very important.

Honorable Elected Official:

I am writing you today because of this cultural war that seems to have
broken out regarding the marriage amendment. I have taken the time to
speak with both extreme sides on the matter and the results are always
the same and surprisingly consistent.

The deeply religious people always want, "to protect the sanctity of
marriage and define it as a union between one man and one woman";
which is fine from a religious point of view. However if you look at
and speak with homosexual people they say, "They want the same rights
and protections as a married couple."

Both of these arguments are valid in the Liberties outlined in the
Constitution, specifically the preamble. Where the opposition comes
in is when the argument becomes one-sided. When you have the deeply
religious pushing for an amendment and the homosexuals pushing for
equal marriage rights you cause this cultural war. This is
understandable if you take a moment to understand both sides of this
situation.

The answer is simple. While passing this legislature to define
marriage, also attach or push through legislature to protect the
rights of homosexuals. If you don't want to call it a Religious
Marriage and a Civil Marriage, you could just call one Marriage, and
the other a Civil Union. The catch is, when it comes to legality the
word marriage is already on all legal documents between two people, if
you change the wording to Civil Union, all the documents have to
change to accommodate the new status.

This is a topic that many people take sides on. I think if we all
tried to understand each other and tried harder to meet in the middle
agreements could be made to protect both. However, this could not be
done separately. These laws need to pass together as one amendment,
and need to be reviewed by both parties to ensure the wording isn't so
loose that you could drive a bus through the loop holes. This is the
same issue facing Virginia's amendment.

I ask everyone that reads this letter to put down the stones, take a
deep breath, understand the deeply religious aren't going away, and
the homosexuals are only growing in numbers. It is time to find a
peaceful solution that makes everyone happy. Please remember that
"respect does not require approval." We live in the United States of
America; we must all start being American's first and everything else
second. We need to treat everyone with respect and dignity despite if
we agree or disagree with what they are asking for; as long as it does
no harm to anyone else then there is no reason not to accommodate
their liberties and equal rights under the law.

In memory of Coretta Scott King, please remember "justice is
indivisible", not long ago she spoke on this issue and was very plain
spoken about it; please work toward a solution that represents
everyone, not just the majority in this case. Remember, what the
homosexual people want doesn't hurt anyone; if it did, then pass all
the laws you want to, but what they want is respect and liberty like
every other American.

Dear Elected Official:

I found an amazing statement recently I wanted to share with you.

To be a person of faith is to have the world challenge that faith.
Was the universe designed by God? Should marriage only be between one
man and one woman? That's up to everyone in this country to decide
for themselves, because the Framers of our Constitution believed that
if the people were to be sovereign and belong to different religions
at the same time, then our official religion would have to be no
religion at all. It was a bold experiment then--as it is now. It
wasn't meant to make us comfortable. It was meant to make us FREE.

This statement expresses the very fabric of what it is to be an
American. It is our most essential imperative that protects all of us
in the first amendment. I fear our country has lost sight of this.
So many seem bent on protecting the sanctity of marriage.

This entire controversy contrasts our freedoms in this country. I
simply ask that each and every person remember the freedoms our
framers worked so hard to protect and cherish. In the times of modern
conveniences and fast food we have forgotten these most basic
imperatives and are writing things into our constitutions that would
make the Framers of our Constitutions faint.

We all need to be very careful and much less reckless in regards to
our Constitutions and most sacred documents.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or
prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of
speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to
assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

It seems that all the different states are attempting to sanctify
marriage by using the state constitutions. This goes against the first
amendment. It amazes me that our leadership is getting away with this
(probably because they are mostly Christian...) raising an entirely
new issue, but still the same dangerous lack of regard and respect for
these documents. It's time to draw the line again...

I would simply like to ask you to think before you act so quickly.

"To be a person of faith is to have the world challenge that faith.
Was the universe designed by God? Should marriage only be between one
man and one woman? That's up to everyone in this country to decide
for themselves, because the Framers of our Constitution believed that
if the people were to be sovereign and belong to different religions
at the same time, then our official religion would have to be no
religion at all. It was a bold experiment then--as it is now. It
wasn't meant to make us comfortable. It was meant to make us FREE.'