Greetings and Felicitations,

I am a 42, year old human male. I have several children. Some are genetically mine and others are mine by association because I don't usually draw a line between the children. I am engaged to a wonderful woman and love my children greatly.

By trade I am a computer technician. My current job is a photo specialist for Wal-mart. I enjoy my job because it allows me a wonderful combination of people and technical skills. I am a perpetual student with interest in multiple disciplines.

I am a child of Star Trek. My favorite characters are the Vulcan's because I think we could learn a lot. However, that is not why I call myself a child of Star Trek. I grew up in the Deep South and was surrounded by racism and hatred in addition to extreme violence. Star Trek afforded me a view of a world where people of different races, and even species, could work together and achieve great things.

I believe that people are capable of solving all difficulties that arise. However, I believe that we are held back by our cultures, our religions and our opinions. Humans achieve their greatest accomplishments by working together despite the illusions that many people have of standing alone. Even the greatest discoveries are built on the work of others.

I don't believe in killing people. I used to. I spent a great deal of time learning about war when I was younger. I had the same illusions of battle that many people have. At a later time a certain influential Buddhist influenced me in my life.

Killing is wrong even for retaliation and I will not do so. Please be aware that the killing mentioned in this arena is the killing of people. I am not a vegetarian but I do seek to limit my meat intake.

The single most critical junction in my life was September 11, 2001. At that time I was faced directly with the results of the militant mindset. I swore from that day I would never engage in such activities again.

I am an atheist. I can find no justification for the existence of a deity because of the state of the world. A god who truly cared for his creation would not let us use his/her existence as a justification. God, in whatever image you see it, exist solely in the realm of human imagination.

I refuse to draw a line for myself from a political POV.

I call myself a teacher. In reality, I am nothing more than that. I seek to teach people to reason and understand. I have let go, as much as possible, the need to do things from the needs of my ego.

Sincerely Yours,
C. David Neely

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Right to privacy----also not in the Constitution.

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"The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others. But it does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods, or no God. It neither breaks my leg, nor picks my pocket."

Thomas Jefferson

Alright, I have bit more time, so I'll type out exactly who I am.

I'll be 35 in one week. I'm married now for what, 11 years? Does that seem possible?

I have four kids. Three with my wife, one from a girl I dated in college. We're still friends & get along great; I see my oldest quite often & talk to her even more. Three girls, one boy.

My wife is a teacher. She teaches in the inner-city. She's a liberal do-gooder who prefers to work with kids who have no shot in life. Most of the parents of these kids are:

a) dead
b) in prison
c) drug-addicted
d) prostitutes
e) MIA

Most of her students live with an aunt, a grand-parent, a friend of the family. There are only a couple of cases where the kids actually come from a decent home. She has 1st grade this year; cutest little people I've ever seen, but I can't help but wonder how many will be dead before 18. Or pregnant. Or in prison. Maybe she can make a difference. At least they'll know how to read & add, & most importantly, they will have gotten a daily speech about self-respect, at least for one year.

What about me? I was a track star many moons ago----two time state champion & a runner-up one time in my events. Went to college & received a degree in history (I specialized in world religions, believe it or not ). Two masters degrees (historical administration & archaeology w/more emphasis on religions). I was raised a Baptist, but I've been a Deist ever since I read Thomas Paine's Age of Reason at age 14.

I've been a museum curator, a museum director, I'm a published author, I make documentaries. I've lived a lot of places (Germany, El Salvador, four different U.S. states) and visited many more (47 states, 14 other foreign nations). I disdain organized religion & think it a refuge for the ignorant and the weak. I don't need anyone or anything to tell me how to think.

My 10-year-old is autistic & epileptic. She's taught me a lot about compassion & the need for national health care. Even with insurance, I've racked up over $1 million in health-care costs. I make really good money, but a lot of it is spent on medical bills. Two years ago, she had brain surgery because she had a stroke. I think it's very unfair for people to have to sell everything they own (and then borrow some more) to pay exorbitant medical fees. Health care in this nation is a travesty & nearing the breaking point. All I have to say to anyone who doesn't desire national health care is "fuck you." Sincerely, from the bottom of my heart. Until you've walked a single step in my shoes, you do not know what you are talking about.

I've got good friends who are Republicans who agree with me now because they've also lived this. One friend of mine watched his mother suffer with Alzheimer's. He watched his dad sell all of his possessions (house included) and spend his entire retirement fund to pay for his wife's treatments & meds. His dad died a penniless, bitter man. That's but one example.

I belong to no political party. I think both parties are equally corrupt. Someone stated above that they believe most politicians intend to do well at first, but get corrupted by the system. I completely agree. I go to DC at least once a year (I'm going next week, in fact) and know the game & how it's played. I sit in committee meetings, I go to hearings, I talk to staffers, I see the money rolling in from K Street, & it's all really quite appalling. I think if more Americans could visit DC & see the process up close & personal, they'd stop voting for these shit-heads & put people in office who don't have corporate strings attached. I like the sig line of Mrs. M by Bill Hicks (in a nutshell, American politics is a puppet on the left hand & a puppet on the right hand, but both hands belong to the same person). It is so true. I encourage everyone to stop voting for Elephants & Donkeys & vote for independents. It's the only way we'll ever see the change we desire in this country.

I think the war in Iraq truly is about the oil (no, I don't think it, I know it). I think the fact that we've not directed all of our resources at Afghanistan is a national travesty & a disgrace. I would think all Americans, regardless of party, would be aghast at the actions of this current administration. Their actions have truly been unconscionable.

I think my fellow citizens are too quick to give up their rights. I'm equally dismayed at people who would give up the right to the 2nd amendment as I am at those who would give up the 4th. It's my experience that most people don't put too much thought into their willingness to give up certain rights; they only parrot what the ideologues on the left or right have said. I want my right to own a gun AND the right to be free from illegal search & seizure. I want my right to free speech & free assembly, & I want people who I find ignorant to have their right to spend Sunday morning learning about the latest interpretation of Revelations. I also want secular life to be free from this nonsense.

I have friends from all across the political spectrum, and I don't let ideology get in the way of friendships. At the end of the day, I think most of us want basically the same thing, we just disagree on how to get there. I know I come across as a prick on some of my posts here, but I assure you in person I'm generally much more convivial. I am passionate when I write, and sometimes that spills over into vitriol. I try to control it, but sometimes I fuck up. I'm sorry.

My chief hobbies are baseball and music. I play 10 different instruments, and have a record collection of about 5,000 discs. Most of my musical interests lie in classic rock; in fact, I am writing a compendium of classic rock singles at this moment. I enjoy music across the spectrum of choices, but Zeppelin reigns supreme (even if they did plagiarize the Delta blues. . .).

I try to go to baseball games at least once a week. I've been to most stadiums, but still have a few to visit. Unbelievably, I've never been to Yankee Stadium or Shea Stadium, but I'm going to try to rectify that this summer. I've also not yet seen a game since MLB returned to DC. Don't know that I'll make it this year.

My wife & I also hustle cribbage. Yes, it is possible.

I am in the process of building a greenhouse. I'm trying to become more self-sufficient. We're also installing solar panels & changing our heating system away from natural gas. We do recycle, but we're not maniacal about it. I enjoy a good steak on the grill, a cold beer, and baseball on AM radio (I really miss Jack Buck's voice!). I don't think the world will run out of oil anytime soon, but I do think we should curtail our use so that we're less dependent on dictatorships in the Middle East. I do believe humans are exacerbating global warming, and I think more people are beginning to believe it every day.

I think religion will ultimately be the ruination of our world. Ignorant people making ignorant choices.

Having said that, I have lots of religious friends and admire many religious people. Gandhi & MLK come immediately to mind. I just think that religion gets perverted to justify just about any damn idea that might make someone a buck at another's expense. There are good religious people & I realize I shouldn't paint with such a broad brush. I just see too many hypocrites taking advantage of hard-working people who don't know any better because they've been brought up to respect & to never question authority. It's the hypocrites I dislike. If that's not you, I don't mean to include you in my brushstrokes. But like Hunter Thompson said, I piss down the throat of these Nazi hypocrites.

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"The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others. But it does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods, or no God. It neither breaks my leg, nor picks my pocket."

Thomas Jefferson

I would like to thank all of the people who have posted about who they are on this thread, it's been very interesting. Starting from the information in this thread one would think that we could all communicate with a bit less acerbic prose and a bit more understanding--and yes, maybe even some compassion. I am going to save these self-descriptions in a word file so that when and if I have an opportunity to write to any of you that I will have some context within which to write.

It seems patently obvious that the teachings of Gandhi, Martin Luther King, and Jesus are all basically the same blueprint for living in peace with each other. Perhaps we'll manage to do that someday.

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The apocalypse is coming... we're gonna need more ammo.

Ted, you've just thrown down the exact same argument people made against inter-racial relationships a generation ago. For your convenience, I've doctored your post a bit to show you how well your words mesh with those of 50 years ago.

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"The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others. But it does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods, or no God. It neither breaks my leg, nor picks my pocket."

Thomas Jefferson

Mr obama is against gay marraige AND civil unions. I am just against marraige. I hold a mainstrem view, not a racist one. I think forcing people to accept gay marriage is wrong, we can agree on civil unions. Even gay people.

Now, yes I am not afraid of gay people in person, I work with some gay people talk to them on a daily basis. Yet I must also admit, that I am not ashamed to say that i feel physically ill when I read a passage on this forum detailing the sexual exploits of two gay men in relation to a movie ford company was supporting. Sorry, And I dont feel like its my duty to change the way i feel.

50 years ago, your view would have also been mainstream regarding the separation of the races. Today, that is an antiquaited view. 50 years from now, people will look back at people who held your views as monsterish.

Your next paragraph could have been uttered 50 years ago as well.

"I'm not afraid of black people in person, I work with some black people and talk to them on a daily basis. I mean, the janitor down at the office is black, and so is the elevator boy. Even the maid who cleans my bathroom at home is black. Yet I must also admit that I am not ashamed to say that I feel physically ill when I read a passage on this forum detailing the sexual exploits of a black monkey and a beautiful white woman. Sorry, I don't feel like it's my duty to change the way I feel."

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"The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others. But it does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods, or no God. It neither breaks my leg, nor picks my pocket."

Thomas Jefferson

maybe but there is a big difference between race and sex. I dont judge the people but I don't think I should be expected to find same sex, that is two men, going contrary to the laws of nature that almost all species of life throughout planet earth, for eons and eons have followed to be an equal to heterosexuality.

my ex girl friend, all of her friends, seem to be either gay Bi or lesbian. she gets really excited about shopping with gay guys hanging out and whatever. yet she still finds the idea of gay relationships alittle "gross" to quote her. i wonder would you think she is a homophobe?

We know that more than 1500 kinds of animals exhibit homosexual behavior, in fact in the newspaper just this morning was an article about two researchers at a west coast university who have been studying male sheep because about 8% of them show no interest in ewes and only mount other rams. Doing brain autopsies they have found that there are marked differences in the brains of "gay" rams vs "straight" rams. Using a variety of techniques, including hormones, the scientists have tried to influence the rams behavior, but have had no success.

All the research in the last couple of decades points to sexual orientation being an innate quality and homosexual orientation being just another variation found in mammals. Any time one tries to use the "laws of nature" to make a religious argument they are on thin ice. Dr. Cynthia Chappell has an excellent presentation on the Biological Explanation for Human Sexual Orientation, you can view it at:
Gay Into Straight America...Two Women & a Poodle on a year long journey, engaging hearts and minds It's the 3rd video down on the page.

Dr. Chappell has two sons and one of them is gay, she studied this subject to help herself understand why. I suspect that you might acutally watch this, Kinetic and his crowd refuse to do it because they are afraid to find out what science has learned, but you obviously have more brain cells than the whole lot of them combined.

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The apocalypse is coming... we're gonna need more ammo.

Good point, Mare. Like it or not, metalted seems willing to at least engage in intelligent dialogue. That I appreciate.

To answer your question, no I wouldn't necessarily consider your girlfried a homophobe, Ted. I myself have many gay friends, by the idea of engaging in homosexual behavior makes me a little queasy. It's because I personally am not attracted to other men, not because I find it "gross." To restate it, maybe it's that I would find it gross to engage in such relations myself, but I have no qualms whatsoever about what other adults want to do. I suspect that's what your girlfriend really means. She likely finds that she would not enjoy a homosexual relationship.

I had a curious conversation with a friend of mine from St. Louis earlier tonight. Her birthday is coming up, and because I know she likes porn, I asked her what kind of video I could send to her. She said she would really like some inter-racial porn (white men w/black women--she's a black woman & enjoys white men) & perhaps something with lesbians. I asked her if she had ever had a lesbian experience. She said that she had not, nor would she ever consider having one, but she still enjoyed masturbating while watching lesbian porn. Does that make her gay? Bi? On the fence? Somewhat open? Curious? I do not know, but I think it speaks to how complex we are in terms of our sexuality.

I think attempting to boil sexuality down to what is "right" or "natural" is a fool's errand. Sexuality is either what we personally like or do not like, and it's not really our place to assume that everyone might be a vanilla as me (considering that I am just a boring white guy in a monogamous relationship with my wife).

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"The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others. But it does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods, or no God. It neither breaks my leg, nor picks my pocket."

Thomas Jefferson

My ex gf thinks gay men relationships are "gross" too you know. But she Loves gay men. I just do not think I should be compared to a racist. I do not care what anyone does in thier private life, and I do not think most people care. But I think asking government to officially put its stamp of aproval on it as equal to heterosexual marraige is a bit much. I don't mind rosie O donnal and ellen degenerous, elton john, and fashion design shows, I don't mind various sit coms. I do not want to watch gay people kissing on tv and will change the channel tho. But I really don't care that much even if it is passed, tho i will vote against. and I will be very angry if someone calls me a racist or a homophobe in public, if i decide to leave a movie theater or if i leave a resturaunt or a dance club if there are gay people there making out or whatever.

I did not want to insinuate that you are a homophobe, Ted, I just wanted to point out that your argument is the same one made by generation's worth of racists. If we accept that the racist argument is invalid (which I do), then it only follows that we must accept that the gay marriage argument is equally invalid.

It may turn your stomach to see a black man with a white woman----that still doesn't mean it's your place to see to it that these people should not be married, just as it's not your place to see to it that two gay people cannot be married.

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"The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others. But it does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods, or no God. It neither breaks my leg, nor picks my pocket."

Thomas Jefferson

Please do not fall into Kinetic's trap of seeing legal marriage for all being a "stamp of approval". Marriage is not denied to even the lowest murdering scumbag, child molester, drug dealers--so is that a government stamp of approval for these people? Marriage in US law is a legal contract that confers 1049 specific legal rights and privileges, denying these legal rights to any consenting adults is un-Constitutional (the equal protection clause). The government should not be in the business of deciding which law-abiding, taxpaying citizens are allowed to have full legal rights and which are not, especially when the decision is based on religious dictates.

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Fanaticism is redoubling your efforts after you have forgotten your goal.

Right on! Times are-a-changin' and it's people who are ignorant to these changes that will never give the chance for world peace.

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Power is not a means, it is an end. One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish the dictatorship. The object of persecution is persecution. The object of torture is torture. The object of power is power.

- George Orwell, 1984