Why the proposed ban on gay marriages scares me- and I’m not gay

A state constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage and civil unions has been approved by both chambers of the Wisconsin Legislature. The final step is that the legislation must clear both houses again in 2005 before going to voters in a statewide referendum. The referendum would put the issue of gay marriage into the hands of Wisconsinites who, I feel, need to know the affects the ban would have on people (heterosexuals included) before they could vote.

This act would establish that marriage is between one man and one woman and would do away with domestic partnerships rights. This is frightening because as a result of the new constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in some states, such as Ohio, domestic violence laws no longer protect unmarried straight people. There is also language in Kentucky that actually says, "A legal status identical or substantially similar to that of marriage for unmarried individuals shall not be valid or recognized." In other words, if you are not a straight married couple you don’t matter and the government has no obligation to protect your rights. Additionally, common law marriages (such as the one my own mother and step-father had before he died) would not be recognized and no voice would be given to a partner who was left behind after a tragedy.

So I, an unmarried straight female, can be beaten up by an overly aggressive boyfriend and I am not legally protected from him because Conservatives have an issue with what grown people do in the privacy of their bedroom. Thanks a lot guys- knew you wouldn’t let us women down again.

I believe that marriage, in the strictly legal sense, has zilch to do with religion. I am a devote Christian but I am also an American and to me the idea of imposing a highly religious ideal on a secular nation is not only wrong but dangerous.

If Wisconsin citizens should be called on to vote on a ban on gay marriages it will not be a referendum on defending marriage and family values. It will be an attempt to, not only, impose religious morals on others but to marginalize an already vulnerable minority group through a poorly drafted (and somewhat mean-spirited) state constitutional amendment which will have immeasurable and unintended consequences on people of all sexual orientations.

I digress, on women of all sexual orientations.

FELLOW DEMOCRATS: TELL DEAN TO BE "DIGNIFIED"

According to the Star Tribune, Howard Dean was in Minnesota recently for a benefit for the American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota. Dean apparently made a speech that he delivered without notes (a trademark of his Presidential campaign by the way) and did a question and answer session.

What is newsworthy is that during his speech Dean drew howls of laughter from the crowd by mimicking a "drug-snorting Rush Limbaugh". Normally I do not have a problem with prominent Democrats making fun of Republicans as long as it is factual and done in relatively good taste. Dean's remarks and gestures regarding Rush Limbaugh, however, were neither.

As Dr. Dean should know, one does not "snort" pain-killers and if he has read the news at all he would know that Limbaugh was not found guilty of doing cocaine. In addition, as much as I dislike the man, I would think that members of the ACLU would agree that his addiction should be a private matter.

Our DNC Chairman responded to questions about his speech by saying:

"I'm not very dignified, he said."But I'm not running for president anymore."

You know what Dean? I worked for your disaster of a campaign and YOU LOST BECAUSE YOU WERE NOT DIGNIFIED. You had a great record and you had a great plan for this country, but you flushed it all down the toilet because you could not keep your mouth shut. When you decided to run for DNC Chairman, I had hoped that you had reflected on your campaign and your demeanor and had actually learned something about yourself. It seems that you have not.

I hope Dean realizes that while he may not be running for President, that he is the leader of the Democratic party and that requires that he act and speak in a dignified manner.

What I find even more absurd is that Dean, after making these comments, went on to state:

"That Democrats have to learn to speak from the heart and with respect to Americans who have found more comfort in Republican appeals to their fears about their jobs, health care, schools and national security."

Mr. Chairman, How is attacking a political opponent by making false accusations about alleged drug use, talking from the heart? How is that speaking with respect?

I think it would be prudent for the Chairman of the Democratic Party to follow his own advice.

UPDATE:
Many people have commented on how it is possible to "snort" painkillers and other drugs. This is something I do not doubt, I have personally witnessed some of my HS friends snorting ritalin. However, I was more or less referring to Rush Limbaugh's drug use, and it is my understanding that he did not abuse Oxy by snorting it, however, I could be wrong. In addition, reports from the event indicate that Howard Dean was alleging cocaine use in his joke which is factually incorrect.

CREAN REPLACES MASON QUICKLY

The Milwaukee Journal is reporting that Tom Crean has received a verbal commitment from Dwight Burke, a 6-foot-8 power forward from St. Benedict Prep in Newark, N.J.. Burke originally signed with East Carolina but was given a release when coach Bill Herrison was fired.

1832 welcomes Dwight Burke to the Marquette family and hope that he will have a successful career at Marquette as we move to the Big East.

FIRST BAD NEWS OF THE "WILD RIDE" : MASON TO TRANSFER

as reported by the Milwaukee Journal


MU guard Mason plans to transfer
By TODD ROSIAKtrosiak@journalsentinel.com
Posted: April 19, 2005
Dameon Mason, the third-leading scorer for the Marquette men's basketball team last season, told the Journal Sentinel this afternoon that he will transfer to another school at the end of the semester. Coach Tom Crean also confirmed Mason's decision.

Mason, a 6-foot-5, 190-pound sophomore guard from Kansas City, averaged 11.9 points per game and was second in rebounding at 5.6 per game. He was one of five Marquette players to play in all 31 games, starting 28 and averaging 30.4 minutes.

The Golden Eagles' most explosive athlete, Mason was named to Conference USA's all-freshman team in 2003-'04 and got off to a solid start this season but fell into a funk at mid-season after playing out of position at times when injuries decimated the team's backcourt.

Mason was benched for three games down the stretch but regained his starting spot for the team's final five games, after senior Travis Diener suffered a season-ending hand injury in practice. He never was able to find a cure for the turnover bug, however, and wound up leading the team with 89 - an average of 2.9 per game and 31 more than Diener's total as the Golden Eagles' point guard.

Mason declined to discuss where he might wind up, saying he'd do so only after the transfer process had been finalized.

BREAKING NEWS! MARQUETTE LANDS JAMIL LOTT

Scout.com is reporting that Tom Crean received a verbal today from Jamil Lott, a 6-7 PF from North Dakota St. CS.

Lott apparently chose Marquette over Arizona, UGA and others.

Varies recruiting services have him listed as a two to three star PF and many compare him to a Marcus Jackson type with better offensive skills.

1832 welcomes Jamil Lott to the Marquette Family and will report more details as they come available.

UPDATE FROM MY MEETING WITH OSD

On Friday I met with Dr. McCarthy of OSD regarding 1832's petition to have Pam Peters fired and our overall desire to force drastic changes upon the Office of Student Development in its relations with student organizations.

In order for the conversation to proceed in a productive manner, I had to agree to keep some of the details of our meeting private. After having the meeting, I left feeling that some of the conversation was productive and other parts were not all that productive. However, I can tell you this: the Office of Student Development does realize that their policies and procedures were not prepared for a student body that has become this politically active and they will be making some changes to them for the next academic year.

One of my proposals was to merge segments of the Student Handbook, the Student Organization Handbook, and the MUSG constitution into one document, or a "Students Bill of Rights", to remove confusion and contradiction between them and to possibly add additional rights that are not currently contained in any of them. This idea was received fairly well by the Office of Student Development and it is something that I will personally look into. In the next week or so I will merge these documents together to form one uniform document and then I will ask for suggestions from readers of 1832 and GOP3.com with regards to additional rights that could be added to it.

Lastly, it became pretty clear from my conversation that Pam Peters will most likely not be fired as a result of our current petition effort. However, the petition will remain online until the end of the semester as stated in the petition form.

From my comments I think that it is clear that we must continue to keep pressure on the Office of Student Development to make the positive changes that are needed in order to better the students and student organizations of Marquette. It is my hope that Marquette College Democrats and Marquette College Republicans (and other organizations) will continue to work together on this issue and I am very grateful for the support that College Republicans has given thus far.

THE "WILD RIDE" STARTS WITH GOOD NEWS

as reported by the Milwaukee Journal:

MU recruit changes plans
Mortensen will join team next season
By TODD ROSIAKtrosiak@journalsentinel
Posted: April 13, 2005

Matt Mortensen, a 6-foot-6, 200-pound forward from Provo, Utah, has decided to join the Marquette Golden Eagles this coming season rather than in 2007, as had been expected when he committed last fall.

The change stems from Mortensen's decision not to go on a Mormon mission, which would have seen him arrive at MU as a 21-year-old freshman. Instead, he'll join incoming recruits Dominic James, Jerel McNeal and Wesley Matthews as the Golden Eagles gear up for their inaugural season in the Big East.

"I just had a change of heart, I guess," Mortensen said on Wednesday. "As you grow up, you make decisions for yourself and I just think it's the right decision for me to go to college now instead of on a mission. Coach Crean has a scholarship for me, so it worked out pretty well."
Mortensen, who was named first team Class 4A all-state as a senior this past season at Timpview High School, projects as a small forward at MU as coach Tom Crean begins a shift toward the three-guard lineup he eventually hopes to employ in the Big East. Mortensen played small forward at Timpview as well.

"I think I'm fairly versatile," Mortensen said. "I'll come in and work as hard as I can and see what happens. I haven't been guaranteed anything. If I play, great. If not, it's probably my fault for not working hard enough."

Having originally caught Crean's eye with his ability to shoot the basketball, Mortensen is also considered to be a solid athlete who can run the floor and finish at the rim with dunks, qualities the Golden Eagles have been lacking in the last few seasons.

MU has one more scholarship to use and is looking for both size and athleticism. Chicago Crane's Tyrone Kent remains a possibility as does Philadelphia Lutheran Academy's Maurice Thomas, who had committed to UNLV last week only to have coach Lon Kruger withdraw the scholarship offer on Tuesday.

Making official visits to MU this weekend will be Dwight Burke, a 6-8, 240-pounder from St. Benedict's Prep in Newark, N.J., and Jamil Lott, a 6-7, 220-pounder from North Dakota State College of Science in Wahpeton, N.D. Burke had committed to East Carolina but was released after coach Bill Herrion was fired and is being pursued by fellow Big East members Pittsburgh, Rutgers and St. John's as well as Miami (Fla.).

Lott is a native of St. Paul, Minn., and played on the same AAU team as MU's Dan Fitzgerald, who redshirted this season after transferring from Tulane. Lott already had visited George Mason, is also considering Georgia and USC and has reportedly piqued the interest of Arizona.
As for James, McNeal and Matthews, all three earned first-team all-state honors from the Associated Press and other various media organizations, with Matthews of Madison Memorial earning Wisconsin's Mr. Basketball award from the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association and the Journal Sentinel.

The 5-10 James averaged 31.1 points per game for Richmond High School, leading the state of Indiana in scoring and finishing as the runner-up in Mr. Basketball balloting. He also averaged 7.1 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 3.9 steals per game and is expected to assume the starting point-guard spot at MU as a freshman.

The 6-3 McNeal averaged 20 points, 9.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 4.0 steals for Hillcrest High School in Country Club Hills, Ill., and was named a third team All-American by Parade Magazine.

REPUBLICANS AND 2 DEMS VOTE AGAINST STUDENTS

The State Senate voted today and passed AB-63 or the Voter ID bill, Gov. Doyle wil veto this bill. While I am upset that all the Republicans State Senators voted for this bill, that is too be expected of them. I am far more upset and shocked that Senators Jeffery Plale and Tim Carpenter of Milwaukee would vote for this bill given the make up of their districts.

Democratic State Senators Jeffrey Plale and Tim Carpenter voted against the rights of minorities, the elderly, and students today by voting for AB-63 today with the republicans. What disgusts me even more about this, is that both Democrats voted against the rights of their constituents. Jeffery Plale’s district includes the UW-Milwaukee’s campus, which for the first time ever in this last election, voted in large numbers. Tim Carpenter’s district includes the South Side of Milwaukee, which contains a lot of Hispanics and Elderly; these are the groups that are going to be disenfranchised by this requirement. Democrats and constituents of these two State Senators need to flood their respective offices tomorrow and let them know that we did not elect them to take out voting rights away:

Call Senator Jeffrey Plale:
Madison:Tel: 608-266-7505
Fax: 608-266-7483

Milwaukee:
Tel: 414-764-5292

Email: sen.plale@legis.state.wi.us

Call Senator Tim Carpenter:
Madison
Tel: 608-266-8535 or 800-249-3543
Fax: 608-282-3543

Milwaukee:
Tel: 414-383-9161

Email: sen.carpenter@legis.state.wi.us

A complete breakdown of the vote can be found here

And the full text of the bill can be found here
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Blogspot.com Error

Blogspot.com recently had an error with the template that I use, which forced me to rebuild the site. This has caused a few of the links on the sidebar to disappear and may have resulted in a few changes to some posts.

As soon as I am done with class today, I will reconfigure the site and restore it to the appearence it had before the error occurred, which takes a little bit of time.

Marquette to make "big annoucement" regarding the Basketball Team

Rumors are currently flying all over the internet that Marquette will be making
a "big announcement" and that Marquette fans are going to be in for a "wild ride" over the next few weeks. The majority of these rumors are coming from the message boards on marquette.rivals.com and marquette.scout.com .

Normally I would not comment on such rumors, but these rumors are coming from "respected posters" on both boards who have been proven correct in the past. Anyway, check out what people are saying, if half of it is true, we are indeed in for a wild ride over the next few weeks.

UPDATE: Links have been fixed so you do not need to log in to view the message boards.

New Petition

It has been brought to my attention that many people have not signed 1832’s petition to have Pamela Peters fired on petitiononline.com because it displays your name and is viewable by anyone. Apparently many people are worried that OSD or Pam may find out who you are and make life unpleasant for you and your organization while we collect signatures. To resolve this problem, I have created a new petition on ipetitions.com that hides your information until it is submitted to the university.

You can sign the new petition here: http://www.ipetitions.com/campaigns/firepp/
All links on this webpage to a “Fire Pam Peters” petition will be changed to this new address.

My apologies to those who have signed the old petition, hopefully you understand that all I am trying to do is gain as many signatures as possible by removing any barriers that are stopping people from signing the petition. It is my hope that you will sign the new petition as well.

In addition, for anyone else out there looking to do a petition, I highly recommend www.ipetitions.com, it is free and it gives you a lot more control over your petition with a lot of cool features (and it looks better too).

UPDATE
The New Petition only requires NAME, EMAIL, AND YOUR CLASSIFICATION
YOU ARE NOT REQUIRED TO FILL OUT THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:

Are you a member of a student organization?
What student organization(s) are you a member of?
Are you a leader of a student organization? If so what position?

However, I would encourage you to fill out these questions if they apply to you. Our petition will be given more weight if we have more members of student organizations and leaders of student organizations on it to show to the Office of Student Development.

Picture of me with Dean during his campaign  

REAL DEMOCRATS SUPPORT THE MILITARY ON CAMPUS

This article was brought to my attention by a poster who goes by the name of Final Four or Bust on Marquette.rivals.com. The full text of this article can be found online by the Santa Cruz Sentinel. Below is a brief excerpt from the article:

Students protesting military recruiters disrupt UCSC job fair
By JONDI GUMZSentinel staff writer

SANTA CRUZ — UC Santa Cruz junior Jonathan Perez dressed in a suit
and tie Tuesday, hoping to impress company recruiters at the campus job fair.

But more than 200 student anti-war protesters got there first,
storming the Stevenson Event Center, shouting and banging on windows and demanding that military recruiters in the corner of the room leave.

The noisy sit-in ended after an hour of chaos and tension when
military representatives vacated their posts. Student protesters hugged each other happily after administrators allowed them to hand out information on alternatives to military careers and agreed to a meeting to discuss future job fairs.

Barbara Bedford, director of UCSC’s Career Center, said UCSC
complies with a 1995 federal law called the Solomon amendment, which denies federal funding to universities that bar military recruiters from
campus.

One of the protest leaders contended UCSC should follow the lead of
Harvard Law School, which banned military recruiters after a federal appeals court in Philadelphia invalidated the law. The U.S. Justice Department has announced plans to appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.UCSC administrators stepped up security at the job fair, hoping to avert a confrontation. Students had to present identification at the door and reporters asking to enter were screened.
That didn’t stop the student protesters. About 75 of them pushed their way in, carrying signs and a banner that said "Military Off Our Campus." They chanted, "Racist, Sexist, Anti-gay. Hey, recruiters, go
away."

In keeping with the theme of 1832, I am blogging on this topic to criticize the actions of the “liberal” protestors and to make it clear that this is not a view that is held or should be held by all democrats. For those of you who do not know, I was a cadet in Marquette’s Air Force ROTC, and only left because I could not work on Kerry’s campaign while being in ROTC.

The real issue in this article is the 1995 Federal Solomon Law, which requires schools that receive federal funding to allow military recruiters and ROTC on campuses (Currently many Ivy League schools are challenging this law). Real Democrats should be in full support of this law, not because they should agree with military service, but because it promotes an expanded “exchange of ideas” on campus. A school that lacks a military presence on campus is lacking an important part of the debate, just as a school would be lacking an important component of the discussion if they did not allow non-violence groups and/or the teachings of Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. on campus.

The Government has a vested interest to recruit the brightest of individuals to serve in our military, therefore, the Solomon law makes sense. Ivy League schools are particularly shameful in their actions: after 9/11 there was large student movement to have ROTC reestablished, which was met with large protests from faculty and other students. All these Ivy League schools have done is further the image of the Ivy League being “liberal havens”. If these schools contain our best and our brightest leaders of tomorrow, why not give them a chance to be the best and brightest MILITARY LEADERS of tomorrow?

Lastly to the subject of the actions of the protectors: The protestors had no right to disrupt the Career Fair and to force their way past security. This was not a traditional “sit in” as a traditional sit in would have allowed the Career Fair to continue, while also showing the view of the protestors. In addition, the protestors could have protested outside the event, but should have allowed students to speak with the recruiters.

In short I think this quote from UCSC student Chris Swanson sums up my viewpoint nicely:

"If they want free speech, they should let people speak to the recruiters," he said.

Correction and Change to previous post

After talking with several people, I decided to remove Jon Dooley from the entry titled "Fire Pam Peters and Jon Dooley of OSD" due to the fact that I do not mention him as doing anything wrong. Likewise, he has also been removed from the petition.

While I do not mention him doing anything in particular, I still believe that he should be held accountable as he does have a supervisory role over Pam Peters and is thus also to blame for a lot of what is wrong with OSD.

When I first posted that entry, I did not think that it would circulate that quickly and be linked to that soon and was more or less looking for advice as to how my blog looked and the content of my first post from a few individuals.

This is my first day as a blogger and I am still learning how to work this site what exactly it means to be a "blogger". I will do my best to ensure that this doesn't happen again. In retrospect I should have deleted the entire entry, and posted this correction in its place and then followed it up with a new entry that only named Pam Peters. Either way, I will not edit the substance of any future posts.

I apologize for any inconvience that this has caused.