(This is an in-class essay in response to an assigned reading of Homophobic: Read Your Bible )
Recently, I attended a party filled with intelligent and scholarly folks, the majority of them African American. We talked about food, music, the current state of the economy and our approval or disapproval of the moves made by President Obama. We talked about how far we as a people have come, how far we have to go and how we are doing our part to change the world.
However, when the conversation turned to the rights of our gay and lesbian citizens, it was amazing how quickly my people of darker skin, whose ancestors endured fierce dog attacks and powerful blasts of water from hoses not that long ago, felt it was acceptable to use discrimination and deny the rights of a group of people. They brought out Bible quotes and ignorant phrases to get their point across that these people should be forced to deal with injustice and all I could do was shake my head and proudly announce they were wrong and how strongly I disagreed with their theories.
In “Homophobic: Read Your Bible,” Peter Gomes list several instances where citizens of this melting pot of cultures, races and backgrounds we know as the US of A, have condemned to hell those who have chosen this unforgiving lifestyle of evil. I deeply respect his vision and interpretation of Bible passages that have been used against homosexuals for many years and with his highly distinguished position in the religious sector, it proves that there are some people who truly do attempt to love and accept all.
Religious fundamentalism is inherently intolerant (Gomes). He is completely accurate in this assessment. Deeply religious persons will take a strong stance on issues regarding situations that don’t fit their needs, yet, bend rules and interpretations on others. Gomes references the Bible being used by Jerry Falwell to keep his churches white as the same Bible used by Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to promote equality and fairness. How can the Bible preach segregation and equality all at once? It’s left up to interpretation and the background of the interpreter.
Gomes references the Holiness Code that prohibits homosexuality as well as eating raw meat, planting different seeds in the same field, tattoos and adultery. How many times are people crusading against a couple for infidelity? How many deeply religious people are picketing tattoo parlors? How many of them have eaten meat that wasn’t fully cooked? I’m sure many will disregard experiences that allow them to enjoy life instead of admitting they too are committing acts considered unholy.
Over and over I’ve stated to many friends that it is not my right to tell someone else how to live their life. I have my own issues, my own problems and my own sins that I will have to answer for one day; why should I impose my beliefs onto someone else without knowing each struggle and path they’ve taken? How can I judge when I don’t know what they’ve encountered thus far in life and don’t know what challenges lie ahead of them? How can I decide that sins I’ve committed are less sinful than ones they have? I cannot, nor should anyone else attempt to pass judgment as the Bible clearly states only one God is worthy of that honor. Prejudice, in any form, is against anything ever taught by God, and those who’ve not learned that lesson lose the true meaning of the Bible each moment they decide to condemn the lifestyle of anyone else.
I hope I gave a few of those party attendees something to ponder that night and the next day when they attended their weekly church services. How can we remember the road our ancestors have traveled in order for us to live as we do today and wish the same struggle and inequality upon others? My Bible tells me to “love thy neighbor as I love thyself.” Doesn’t your Bible say the same thing?
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
This Is What You Call Service
I’ve reached a level of anger beyond words. This time, it’s so high that I’m ready to commit terroristic acts to make them realize just how deep my hatred is at this very moment. Oh yeah, I’m pissed off and every single customer service representative is getting my wrath and I don’t even care that it’s not exactly their fault; they shouldn’t work for a company that exhibits such poor quality to a recent transfer!
Rushing home from my boyfriends house this morning, only one thing was on my mind; witnessing the tremendous step forward many Americans never believed they would see; the day a black family moved into the White House. Sure, every President elected to this great country is making history when sworn in but we all know, this time it is different. I walked in my doors, after being away from home since Thursday evening, plopped down on the couch and prepared to watch an event that the world was also tuning in to see.
There was nothing. A blank screen was staring back at me. Sure, there was info on the show that should have appeared on my screen but the actual show, not there. Okay, maybe this channel is experiencing a glitch; lets flip it over to FOX. Same thing, black screen. I picked up my newly acquired home telephone; no dial tone. I take a deep breath and have to come to grips that I’m experiencing some technical difficulties. You’ve got to be kidding me!
So, I get out my cell phone and call Time Warner. Press 1 if you are having problems with your Digital Phone; press 2 if you having problems with Internet; press 3 if you are having problems with Cable; press 4 if you are having problems with more than one service. I hadn’t quite unpacked my laptop but the flashing light on my modem and the absence of other lights led me to believe it wouldn’t work either. I’m told there is an outage in my area. I begin a tirade about how important it is that I be able to watch TV today, as it is the only reason I’m not sitting at work. I scheduled vacation for Inaugural Day so I could tell my grandchildren about this very monumental occasion where part of The Dream came true. She apologizes but my guess is that her country isn’t one of those as interested in this historic event as I am. I’m very disturbed that all customer service seems to be outsourced to a country where English is usually the second language but that’s a different rant for a different day.
I call back two hours later to get an update and am told that service is out throughout the entire Northeast Ohio viewing area. That really gets me angry as I accuse them of not caring about how important today is. I hung up on her, unhooked my DVR, plugged in my bunny ears and began to watch fuzzy coverage of today’s events. I begin to wonder if the owner of Time Warner is a disgruntled McCain/Palin supporter.
I call back at 3pm demanding to know how service could be out this long. Not only was I unable to record the Inauguration as I had planned to, I’m unable to get online and chat with my close knit group of friends on our message board about their approval or disapproval of First Lady Michelle Obama’s wardrobe choice, which I felt she looked amazing in, if you care to know. I can’t read all the blogs of my conservative friends to see if just maybe they opened up their minds a little to acknowledge that today was indeed a great day for all of America. I could have went down to the library but what if their service is powered by Time Warner too? The outage is for the entire area, so they say; I can’t believe this could be happening. She leaves me on hold too long and I hang up, roll over and fall asleep.
I wake up at 7:30pm, more upset than I was before I drifted off. I’ve got nothing accomplished today. I still have a paper to write for English and I’ve got the stink of garbage that needs emptied that should have been taken of before I left Thursday. I need to unpack my bags, wash a few dishes and I should make a trip to the grocery store. That single green light is flashing on my modem and instead of releasing more anger onto an innocent CSR, I run a few errands in hopes that my service is restored by the time I return home.
Was it on when I got home, of course it wasn’t. Not only is service not restored, when I dial that number again, I’m told there was never an outage in my area. Phrases like incompetent employees, full of crap, canceling service and bunch of liars spew from my tongue. Are you kidding me? All day, four different women have not only told me there was an outage but one of them actually gave me the name of the technician in my area who was working on it and you are now telling me they all lied. I’ve only had your service since Thursday, five days, and if this is the type of run-a-round I’m going to get, I’d rather buy the damn digital converter box and switch my Internet back to AT&T.
An hour later, I call back but instead of going the technical route, I go the billing route and I finally get Drew, the guy who doesn’t solve my problem, but is much easier to understand and gives me a better service date than the previous CSR who said the best she could do was Saturday.
I have to wait until Thursday morning for a technician to come out and hopefully get this problem taken care of. Time Warner has people like me exactly where they want us, unable to get AT&T service in this area, and forced to deal with them but they better be careful. As soon as people are able to switch, I know many will and Time Warner will only have themselves to blame for not providing the service and quality they should have when they were the only ones.
Rushing home from my boyfriends house this morning, only one thing was on my mind; witnessing the tremendous step forward many Americans never believed they would see; the day a black family moved into the White House. Sure, every President elected to this great country is making history when sworn in but we all know, this time it is different. I walked in my doors, after being away from home since Thursday evening, plopped down on the couch and prepared to watch an event that the world was also tuning in to see.
There was nothing. A blank screen was staring back at me. Sure, there was info on the show that should have appeared on my screen but the actual show, not there. Okay, maybe this channel is experiencing a glitch; lets flip it over to FOX. Same thing, black screen. I picked up my newly acquired home telephone; no dial tone. I take a deep breath and have to come to grips that I’m experiencing some technical difficulties. You’ve got to be kidding me!
So, I get out my cell phone and call Time Warner. Press 1 if you are having problems with your Digital Phone; press 2 if you having problems with Internet; press 3 if you are having problems with Cable; press 4 if you are having problems with more than one service. I hadn’t quite unpacked my laptop but the flashing light on my modem and the absence of other lights led me to believe it wouldn’t work either. I’m told there is an outage in my area. I begin a tirade about how important it is that I be able to watch TV today, as it is the only reason I’m not sitting at work. I scheduled vacation for Inaugural Day so I could tell my grandchildren about this very monumental occasion where part of The Dream came true. She apologizes but my guess is that her country isn’t one of those as interested in this historic event as I am. I’m very disturbed that all customer service seems to be outsourced to a country where English is usually the second language but that’s a different rant for a different day.
I call back two hours later to get an update and am told that service is out throughout the entire Northeast Ohio viewing area. That really gets me angry as I accuse them of not caring about how important today is. I hung up on her, unhooked my DVR, plugged in my bunny ears and began to watch fuzzy coverage of today’s events. I begin to wonder if the owner of Time Warner is a disgruntled McCain/Palin supporter.
I call back at 3pm demanding to know how service could be out this long. Not only was I unable to record the Inauguration as I had planned to, I’m unable to get online and chat with my close knit group of friends on our message board about their approval or disapproval of First Lady Michelle Obama’s wardrobe choice, which I felt she looked amazing in, if you care to know. I can’t read all the blogs of my conservative friends to see if just maybe they opened up their minds a little to acknowledge that today was indeed a great day for all of America. I could have went down to the library but what if their service is powered by Time Warner too? The outage is for the entire area, so they say; I can’t believe this could be happening. She leaves me on hold too long and I hang up, roll over and fall asleep.
I wake up at 7:30pm, more upset than I was before I drifted off. I’ve got nothing accomplished today. I still have a paper to write for English and I’ve got the stink of garbage that needs emptied that should have been taken of before I left Thursday. I need to unpack my bags, wash a few dishes and I should make a trip to the grocery store. That single green light is flashing on my modem and instead of releasing more anger onto an innocent CSR, I run a few errands in hopes that my service is restored by the time I return home.
Was it on when I got home, of course it wasn’t. Not only is service not restored, when I dial that number again, I’m told there was never an outage in my area. Phrases like incompetent employees, full of crap, canceling service and bunch of liars spew from my tongue. Are you kidding me? All day, four different women have not only told me there was an outage but one of them actually gave me the name of the technician in my area who was working on it and you are now telling me they all lied. I’ve only had your service since Thursday, five days, and if this is the type of run-a-round I’m going to get, I’d rather buy the damn digital converter box and switch my Internet back to AT&T.
An hour later, I call back but instead of going the technical route, I go the billing route and I finally get Drew, the guy who doesn’t solve my problem, but is much easier to understand and gives me a better service date than the previous CSR who said the best she could do was Saturday.
I have to wait until Thursday morning for a technician to come out and hopefully get this problem taken care of. Time Warner has people like me exactly where they want us, unable to get AT&T service in this area, and forced to deal with them but they better be careful. As soon as people are able to switch, I know many will and Time Warner will only have themselves to blame for not providing the service and quality they should have when they were the only ones.
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