Here I Am

Politicians Gone Wild

johnny — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 09:04:19 -0300

Sen. David Vitter, R.-La, supporting a federal ban on gay marriage:

"It's often said, but it's very, very true,
and it is worth repeating -- marriage is truly
the most fundamental social institution in
human history."

OK so if it's that great, why would you employ the services of an escort???

Also, ironically, the quote above could easily be attributed to someone who is for gay marriage. Strange how the same phrase can be used to justify both sides of the argument.

Slippery Slope

johnny — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 17:29:59 -0300

So the executive branch now governs itself. The vice presidency has become the fourth branch of government. A religious fanatic is nominated for the federal government's top scientific post.

Live Earth

johnny — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 15:36:57 -0300

So I bought a six pack of compact flourescent bulbs for $10. The box claims I'll save $36 on electric within a year. It just kinda made sense to do. I was kinda worried that the lights wouldn't be bright enough in my bathroom, but to my surprise, they were brighter than the round bulbs in my bathroom vanity.

Checkout Live Earth for tips on saving money and the environment.

It's Everything

johnny — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 09:49:02 -0300

ickyPhone

johnny — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 14:59:08 -0300

The iPhone comes out in a week, and with the anticipation also comes alot of doubts.

Apple announced that the screen will be made of optical glass, rather than the very easily scratched ipod material. Won't this be a problem though when the metal encased phone is dropped. Instead of just knicking the shock absorbent plastic, users will end up with unusable broken glass screens.

And I'm sure the interface is fabulous, but having used a touchscreen phone for a while, there are drawbacks. On my phone I have a full keyboard. I use it to text ALOT, as well as send emails, chat on AIM, etc. There is an onscreen keyboard: the buttons are too small and it takes up too much space on the screen. I can use it with a stylus, but to use my finger to control items on screen leaves it greasy and covered in fingerprints. Not to mention that holding the phone to my ear on a hot day can result in a layer of grime across the touchscreen. All I'm saying is that I'm glad I have the keyboard... with actual keys...

Another thing that I didn't realize when I switched from a flip phone to my 8125 was that it is not at all a one handed phone. I used to text and drive, or text at the bar... Don't think you're gonna take your iPhone to the club and hold a drink, smoke a cigarette and send a text message at the same time... You'll end up dropping it... see above for info on that one. lol

Also I think it's kind of bizarre that the iPhone doesn't have GPS technology built in. I have an external BlueTooth GPS reciever that works great. In the TV advertisements for the iPhone, they show Google Maps, and it locates seafood restaurants that are nearby... It doesn't show that you will have to first locate yourself on the map by using a zip code or address. Strange.

Marketing Powdered Alcohol to the Under 16 Crowd

johnny — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 12:24:43 -0300

Dutch students develop powdered alcohol

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Dutch students have developed powdered alcohol which they say can be sold legally to minors.

The latest innovation in inebriation, called Booz2Go, is available in 20-gramme packets that cost 1-1.5 euros (70 pence-1 pound).

Top it up with water and you have a bubbly, lime-coloured and -flavoured drink with just 3 percent alcohol content.

"We are aiming for the youth market. They are really more into it because you can compare it with Bacardi-mixed drinks," 20-year-old Harm van Elderen told Reuters.

Van Elderen and four classmates at Helicon Vocational Institute, about an hour's drive from Amsterdam, came up with the idea as part of their final-year project.

"Because the alcohol is not in liquid form, we can sell it to people below 16," said project member Martyn van Nierop.

The legal age for drinking alcohol and smoking is 16 in the Netherlands.

In Germany, alcopops -- sweet drinks containing alcohol and in powder form -- caused quite a stir when launched on to the market. Alcohol powder, classified as a flavouring, was sold in the United States three years ago.

The students said companies interested in making the product commercially could avoid taxes because the alcohol was in powder form. A number of companies are interested, they said.

June 3 Democratic Debates

johnny — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 12:25:00 -0300

So I watched the Democratic Candidates debate last night on CNN and a couple things stood out and I thought were worth mentioning. First of all, I was impressed that there was a discussion about universal healthcare for Americans. I'm not sure that we're really ready for a Canadian Style healthcare system, but I was just surprised that it was being talked about at all by the mainstream candidates.

Secondly, I was surprised that Hillary made a comment about the military dismissing arabic linguists because they were gay. While discussing the Don't ask, don't tell policy, all candidates raised their hand in favor of repealing the policy. Bill Richardson, added that he supports equal rights for gays and lesbians. Now, I was 'watching' the debate, which really meant I was listening to it while I was making dinner. I had to go rewind to see who had said it. I was actually pretty shocked by his statement. So I visited Richardson's website and read more about his platform on Iraq, healthcare, equal rights, etc.

Also, he has a pretty funny commercial out right now that you can view here: http://action.richardsonforpresident.com/page/s/jobinterview

The Near Future

johnny — Wed, 09 May 2007 17:52:55 -0300

Cauldron of Chaos

johnny — Thu, 03 May 2007 10:46:12 -0300

Yesterday, the Great Decider justified his veto of the spending bill by saying that it would lead to a "cauldron of chaos" in the middle east.

• The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq issued a report last week that described a "rapidly worsening humanitarian crisis" in Iraq and a "breakdown in law and order."

• A report by the Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction said that seven out of eight reconstruction projects declared successful by the United States were actually failures, with widespread corruption among Iraqi officials a major factor.

• The State Department reported that terrorist attacks worldwide in 2006 were up by 28.5 percent over '05, with 14,338 attacks claiming 20,500 lives, most of them in Iraq and Afghanistan.

• The month of April was the sixth-deadliest of the four-year-long war for U.S. forces, with 104 combat deaths. That was the fifth consecutive month in which the U.S. casualty toll exceeded 80.

• An active-duty Army office issued a scathing critique of his superior officers' handling of the war, an almost unprecedented show of opposition that reflects what the majority of Americans believe.

Too late!

When will he get it that an open-ended commitment in Iraq is a waste of American lives and money?

Mission Accomplished II

johnny — Tue, 01 May 2007 12:39:56 -0300

Mission Accomplished

johnny — Tue, 01 May 2007 07:32:05 -0300

May 1st, 2003

Cingular 8125 Essentials

johnny — Thu, 05 Apr 2007 13:29:53 -0300

If you have a Cingular 8125, aka, HTC Wizard, or the Cingular 8525, Sprint PPC6700, or any Pocket PC running Windows Mobile, these are some programs you should definitely check out. I have the 8125, so any observations are based on that model. I can't guarantee that these will work on every PPC.

Total Commander CE

Similar to built in File Explorer, but with more advanced features. Edit registry values, access ftp folders, change file properties. This one's at the top for a reason. Install it first and it will make your life alot easier. If you plan on installing programs, you'll see that they come in 2 varieties. One kind, a cab or arm file, is downloaded to your pocket pc and installed directly. The other, an exe or msi file, is installed on your pc and then ActiveSync will transfer the cab file the next time you sync your phone. If you choose to install via a pc and ActiveSync, it will be very easy to reinstall should you have to delete the program, or perform a hard reset.

If you install using a cab file, you will find that after installation, the original file will be gone. So you won't be able to reinstall without downloading the cab file back to your phone or sd card. There are 2 ways to remedy this.

Set the cab files as read only. This can only be done from your phone. If you set a cab file as read only on your pc and then transfer it to your phone, guess what, it isn't read only anymore. Using Total Commander and right-clicking (OK, I know there's no such thing as right clicking. Hold down on the item until the little circle spins around and turns into a contextual menu. But right-click sounds a lot better.) on the cab file and tapping Properties. In the Properties Menu you can make the file Read-Only.
Edit the registry so that WM5 does not delete the install cab after it has been installed. To edit the registry in Total Commander, make sure that you are all the way to the top of the file tree. You can do this by tapping the backslash at the very top. You will see at the top of the folders:

Double tap the double backslash and double tap registry.

Navigate to this key and change the value to 0. The default is 2.
HKLMSoftwareappsMicrosoft Application InstallernDynamicDelete = 0 (DWORD decimal)

To find some cool registry hacks, check out this website. Registry edits are considered advanced, but if you own a PC that you carry around in your pocket, it's a safe assumption that you're gonna want to play with settings and features. Maybe you're even browsing this page on your phone right now. Total Commander also has an FTP client and LAN browser built in.

CloseAll

This comes in very handy to easily close all applications. One of the first things I wondered when I got my phone was how do I close applications. Windows mobile works on the assumption that it can manage memory better than you can. It leaves applications open so that when you go back to them, they reopen quickly. Once in a while saving a programs state and actually closing it. However, when you use a lot of apps, this doesn't work so well. Programs will run slow and with the limited memory that the 8125 has, you run the risk of freezing your phone.

So to close programs individually, you have to go to Settings->System->Memory, and then click the Running Programs tab. This will show you exactly what is open, and you can highlight any program and click Stop, or simply click Stop All to close everything. CloseAll simplifies this process. It is a small program that will close all applications other than ActiveSync and Comm Manager. It can be located in your program menu, or you can have it show up on your Start Menu, as seen to the right. Clicking it is a good idea if you plan on opening up something that takes up a lot of memory. I will also use it if I plan on restarting my phone, syncing with my PC, or when I go to sleep at night and don't want to wake up to a frozen phone.

There are other ways to use this, and to access the running programs menu, but we'll get into that in a few minutes.

AIM

So when you get bored text messaging and sending pictures to everyone you know, installing this will let you connect with your friends on AIM. There isn't a version of AIM for WM5, don't ask me why... This version was found on AOL's UK site, and is designed for Windows CE. Functionally, it works just fine. There are some kinks with the display when switching from Landscape to Portrait mode. But since you'll most likely be using the keyboard to type, it isn't really that big of an issue. There are alot of messenger programs out there. I've tried several of them. All that I have found either didn't work very well, or weren't free. Or both.

Agile Messenger Sucks

johnny — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 15:57:49 -0400

OK, so I have been using a program on my Cingular 8125 for chat. I commented about how well it worked in this post. It worked perfectly, quickly, and had all the features I use. Then, one day it asked me to update. I thought, oh, how cool, it updates automatically. So I updated.

After opening the program I notice a string of characters labeled 'customer id' at the bottom. Agile Messenger never worked right after that. It would log me into my different accounts, and though it said I was logged in, no one on google talk could message me, nor did any of my contacts show up.

Agile Messenger updated again, which enabled me to connect to google talk again, but now anytime I want to talk to someone who has IM forwarding on, and is chatting on their phone, I get unrecognizable text instead of their response.

Then, to kick it all off, Agile Messenger now pops up a window when I log in that counts down the hours until they shut off my access. Uh, they want me to pay for this shit???

No thanks.

Lameness, Courtesy of Walgreen's

johnny — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 17:14:07 -0300

On August 26th, I dropped off some photos at Walgreen's. I had never taken them there before, and I usually don't ever use regular film cameras. It was close to my house, so I figured I'd give it a shot. How bad could it be. The answer: bad.

I went back the next day to pick up my one hour photos. They weren't done. Strange. Their machine was broken, they offered me $5 off, which was fine. I then called the next day, and they told me the machine was fixed, only did one roll, and they would call me when my photos were ready. I proceeded to call every day on my lunch break until I went on vacation.

So I go to PA for a week and a half, get back and no one had called me. Still... So on Monday I went in and picked them up. I didn't look at them until I got back to my house, but was disappointed to see that they had printed all of my pictures as panoramas. None of them were supposed to be panoramic. It was Advanced Photo System film, which let's you choose the format of the printed picture.

The photo CD and index print were missing also. So on Tuesday I took the photos back. I simply wanted my money back. They had messed them up so bad, I just wanted to take them elsewhere. The gentleman assisting me in the photo department had no clue what he was talking about. I tried to explain to him about the 3 picture formats, and showed him how the tops and bottoms of most of my pictures were cut off. He just told me that they were supposed to be like that, and also told me that there was no way for them to make a photo CD using the APS machine.

I've never had problems like that anywhere trying to get film developed. Thank God for digital cameras, right. Anyways, I wouldn't recommend going to Walgreens to process film. If they can mess up what is an almost completely automatic process, then they don't need my business. haha

Anyways, so I took them to CVS, and they did a beautiful job. Yay!

Cingular 8125

johnny — Fri, 18 Aug 2006 16:18:08 -0300

So, I've had my new phone for a couple weeks now. I'm completely enamored by it.

For the most part, it does everything I want it to smoothly. The internet runs quickly and the chat program I downloaded works really well. My favorite feature of Agile Messenger is that you can use it to take a picture and send it to one of your online buddies. Or you can send a file from the phone's memory.

Memory is a slight issue though. I haven't yet received a 2GB miniSD card that I ordered from ebay. If you plan on installing games, videos, music, etc., plan on upgrading memory. I got a pretty good deal on the memory card. After conversion to GBP I believe it was around 60 USD. Not bad at all for a chip that's not even 1" x 1" and holds 2GB.

I had to, unfortunately, perform a hard reset on my device several days ago. While installing a program, something went wrong. Horribly wrong... My phone would no longer sync with any PC, nor would it let me install or remove any programs using Microsoft ActiveSync.

Resetting my phone to factory settings fixed the problem when nothing else would. Fortunately, everything was backed up... Except for my contacts. Yes, they were on the SIM card, but SIM cards only hold name/number combinations, not multiple phone numbers for contacts (home, work, cell, etc.), email addresses, pictures, etc. So I sent part of my contacts to myself via email as vcards (.vcf). This preserved everything except for the user picture.

I think in the future I'm going to export my contacts as vcards and store them in my ipod's contacts folder. I don't yet know of a program that will mass export an entire address book. It's kind of a pain to do these individually...

Also, I later found that on the HTC Wizard phone, the contacts, calendars, notes and tasks are stored in a file on the root of the file system called pim.vol. So copying that file before performing a hard reset would theoretically save your contact information. You need to rename the pim.vol file before you are able to move it. For some reason it allows you to rename it but not copy it from the phone to the PC...

Bush at G8

johnny — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 11:55:23 -0300

The great decider...

This clip, from CNN, shows a discussion Bush and Tony Blair had while Bush stuffs his face and acts completely disinterested, then he adds that Syria needs to "get Hezbollah to stop doing this shit."

Superman Returns

johnny — Mon, 17 Jul 2006 12:25:08 -0300

I watched Superman Returns last night. I really enjoyed it, I think it was filmed beautifully. It slowed down at the end, I guess to resolve some things with Lois Lane, who, honestly, got on my nerves throughout the movie. I guess she is kind of essential to any Superman plot though.

From Kill Bill: "An essential characteristic of the superhero mythology is, there's the superhero, and there's the alter ego," Bill says. "Batman is actually Bruce Wayne. Spider-Man is actually Peter Parker. When he wakes up in the morning, he's Peter Parker. He has to put on a costume to become Spider-Man. And it is in that characteristic that Superman stands alone. Superman did not become Superman — Superman was born Superman."

Bill adds, "When Superman wakes up in the morning, he's Superman. His alter ego is Clark Kent. His outfit with the big red 'S' — that's the blanket he was wrapped in as a baby when the Kents found him. Those are his clothes. What Kent wears — the glasses, the business suit — that's the costume. That's the costume Superman wears to blend in with us. Clark Kent is how Superman views us. And what are the characteristics of Clark Kent? He's weak. He's unsure of himself. He's a coward. Clark Kent is Superman's critique on the whole human race."

How Gay Is Superman?

Opera Mini

johnny — Thu, 29 Jun 2006 11:21:16 -0300

So, my new favorite toy for my phone has got to be Opera Mini.

Compared to the built in browser that came with my phone, it has so many more features. It uses a remote server to pre-render pages to fit my phone.

On the built in browser, any page not formatted for WAP will load, but be incredibly large, and require lots of horizontal and vertical scrolling. It also has problems rendering pages that include dynamic data or embedded media.

With Opera Mini, pages render so that they require no side to side scrolling. All images are resized to fit your phone and enable quicker download times. You can set the preference to download full size images if you want, however, which could come in handy. Opera makes it easy to scroll through long pages by using the left and right arrow keys to effectively do a page down or page up move.

The main page features field for search and URL entry, as well as bookmarks and history. Bookmarks are easy to add and you are able to customize which ones you would like to see on the homepage. The first 9 bookmarks on the homepage also have shortcut codes assigned to them (*1 through *9).

Get Opera Mini via SMS: Send an SMS with OPERA to 96077 (SMS costs $2.99 - AT&T and Cingular)

This service is supported by the following carriers.

Sprint
AT&T (Cingular Blue)
Cingular (Cingular Orange)

Download Page: Phone Selection

Opera Mini Simulator

The Omen

johnny — Thu, 15 Jun 2006 17:00:30 -0300

I went last night to see the Omen with Nick. I'd heard bad reviews for it, and people I know who'd already gone to see it said that I wouldn't like it.

But I did. I'd never seen the original version, so it was completely new to me. The beginning was kind of slow, but the suspense and action built up throughout the movie. Its ending also came as quite a surprise.

Also ate at TooJay's before the movie. We got there a little late, and had about 15 minutes to eat our food before the movie started... lol

Gay Panic Gets Votes

johnny — Wed, 07 Jun 2006 16:46:40 -0300

Obligatory statement on marriage definition constitutional ammendment:

The constitution should not be used to define law-abiding people as second-class citizens and take away their rights.

Narus and Mark Klein

johnny — Tue, 23 May 2006 10:23:43 -0300

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has filed a class action lawsuit against AT&T for its cooperation in the government's domestic spying program. On March 31st, based on witness accounts and documents they have filed under seal.

Mark Klein was an AT&T technician for 22 years, who is now retired. During the course of his employment, he learned details of a secret room that was set up at AT&T headquarters in San Francisco. The rooms are only accessible to individuals who hold an NSA clearance, however, none of the information that was available to him was marked as top secret or classified.

Wired.com has published his documents here, and explain why they have done so here. They have joined the EFF, as well as a body of other news organizations to unseal this evidence. On May 15th, the US government filed a motion for dismissal.

Mark Klein's affidavit, claims that he observed the creation of a secret room and that the room contains surveillance equipment, particularly, the Narus Semantic Traffic Analyzer.

Narus makes network interception devices for businesses and ISP's to monitor network traffic. Narus software and hardware can capture and analyze data moving at high speeds (10GB/s). The software can recreate webpages, databases, oh, and this is comforting: VOIP phone conversations.

Mark Klein, the EFF and others have alleged that AT&T has installed these types of systems directly into live Common Backbones (CBB):

Another “Cut-In and Test Procedure” document dated January 24, 2003, provides diagrams of how AT&T Core Network circuits were to be run through the “splitter” cabinet (pdf 7). One page lists the circuit IDs of key Peering Links which were “cut-in” in February 2003 (pdf 8), including ConXion, Verio, XO, Genuity, Qwest, PAIX, Allegiance, Abovenet, Global Crossing, C&W, UUNET, Level 3, Sprint, Telia, PSINet, and Mae West. By the way, Mae West is one of two key Internet nodal points in the United States (the other, Mae East, is in Vienna, Virginia). It's not just WorldNet customers who are being spied on—it's the entire Internet.

Interesting Random Stuff

johnny — Fri, 12 May 2006 10:55:34 -0300

This article caught my eye. It's about a nomadic tribe in Colombia, the Nukak-Mak� . They recently, for no obvious reason, trekked about 200 miles to leave the jungle and "join civilization."

Child Abuse or Child Wonder?

Toni Morrison's Beloved named the best work of American Fiction in the last 25 years.

Science Project (Magnetic Bacteria)
This article from Wired discusses how a 16 year old high-school student's science project could become a practicle source of clean, renewable energy.

Barcode of Life (Smithsonian)
Also from Wired, this article describes the Smithsonian's Barcode of Life project. The project seeks to document a specific portion of DNA, one that varies little between members of the same species, and greatly between different species. Starting with birds, the project aims to extract a "barcode" of every species of bird by 2010.

Gas Tax:
http://wiredblogs.tripod.com/cars/index.blog?entry_id=1478140

NSA recording every call since 9/11
http://wired.com/news/wireservice/0,70878-0.html?tw=wn_index_12

DOJ drops wiretap investigation:
http://wired.com/news/wireservice/0,70879-0.html?tw=wn_index_13

Outrageous

johnny — Fri, 28 Apr 2006 15:31:10 -0300

Yes, we're all concerned about gas prices reaching $3 a gallon, but today I'd like to write about something we should all be much more concerned about.

We can all live without gas. Those of us who plan on being around for the next 70 or so years might even have to. One thing we as humans can't survive without, is clean, drinkable water.

I, personally, am disturbed and outraged that bottled water prices are now up to $7.50 per gallon. Aquafina, the most populer bottled water, sells for about a dollar a bottle, and it takes 7 and a half of these 500mL bottles to make a gallon.

PepsiCo is making a fortune off of thirsty consumers. Someone must stop these billionaires from further lining their pockets!! Before it's too late. Perhaps our government should impose fines or taxes. Or perhaps subsidize water prices.

And!!!! To make matters worse. I was at Disney world, and their vending machine charged me $2.50 for one bottle of water. That is a whopping $18.75 a gallon. Price Gouging!!!

OK, Enough Silliness, read the rest here.

Of course, this article isn't really about water. Rising oil prices are big in the news right now. Politicians are up in arms, consumers are outraged, and everyone is looking for someone to point the finger at. Oil companies, the president, greedy oil-rich nations.

Oil is, however, a commodity, bought and sold on the market. Many things affect oil prices. Let's keep in mind though, that oil is a natural resource. Its supply is limited. At some point in the future, extracting oil from the earth will require more energy than the oil will produce.

In other words, it's not gonna get better. Oil will get more expensive, and eventually only governments and extremely wealthy individuals or corporations will be able to afford it. Hopefully we'll get over the whole fossil fuel craze of the last 100 years or so and find a better way to do things.

It's hard to imagine, really, a life without oil and gas. Much as it would've been for people who had never seen a lightbuld to imagine life with electricity. Think about the phrase: Industrial Revolution. Key Word: Revolution.

So, in conclusion, we aren't going to drill in ANWR and find a magical, endless supply of oil. Gas prices will not go down... If we did, we should be more concerned about the destruction of the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve, and the unabated pollution of our air caused by burning up cheap gasoline in our SUV's and Hummers.

Oh, and while I'm on the subject of the environment, can we stop pretending global warming doesn't exist...? I live in Florida, and after the record breaking 2004 hurricane season, and then 2005 which broke the 2004 records, I'm convinced. I'm sure there are some people in New Orleans who would agree.

Blah, I'm out. TGIF!

Bushisms

johnny — Wed, 26 Apr 2006 15:25:50 -0300

"I aim to be a competitive nation."—San Jose, Calif., April 21, 2006"

Out of the rubbles of Trent Lott's house—he's lost his entire house—there's going to be a fantastic house. And I'm looking forward to sitting on the porch." —Mobile, Ala., Sept. 2, 2005

"I'm looking forward to a good night's sleep on the soil of a friend."—On the prospect of visiting Denmark, Washington D.C., June 29, 2005

"We expect the states to show us whether or not we're achieving simple objectives—like literacy, literacy in math, the ability to read and write."

—George W. Bush on federal education requirements, Washington, D.C., April 28, 2005

"This notion that the United States is getting ready to attack Iran is simply ridiculous. And having said that, all options are on the table."—Brussels, Belgium, Feb. 22, 2005 (Thanks to Fred Kaplan)

"In this job you've got a lot on your plate on a regular basis; you don't have much time to sit around and wander, lonely, in the Oval Office, kind of asking different portraits, 'How do you think my standing will be?' "—Washington, D.C., March 16, 2005

Ban All Marriage!

johnny — Tue, 25 Apr 2006 09:59:33 -0300

Marriage for all, or Marriage for no one. You decide...

Let's think about this rationally. Rather than ban gay marriage, it makes more sense to leave such a silly thing as holy matrimony to the church. And the church alone.

We won't have to vote on whether or not gay people should be able to marry each other. Some guy with a white robe and a big hat can decide for us. Well, you, since I'm not catholic. Then gay people can go to, say, a unitarian church, and get married. Everyone's happy. Well, except for that one gay guy who was raised baptist and always dreamed of getting married in the same church his parents did. But he'll just have to deal.

So, this might sound like a strange and confusing concept. But what business does the government have in sanctioning the marriage practices of a religious sect, while shunning the churches that will marry gays.

Should the constitution be ammended to include discrimination against gays? No!

Your marriage should be sanctioned by your church, and recognized in the eyes of your god. Just not by the U.S. government. Want to get married to your spouse legally? Move to Canada. I hear they do that there.

With all the hype about banning gay marriage, several changes have been made to laws across the country degrading marriage for everyone. In texas, broad legislation has been approved (known as proposition 2) that could ban all marriage in the state. The wording of the ammendment: the state can't recognize any union "identical or similar to marriage." So... marriage is similar to marriage, in fact, it's identical to it as well.

In Oregon, Benton County has banned all marriage until the state can decide who can and can't marry.

Virginia's governor recently declined to sign an ammendment to the state's constitution banning same-sex marriage. The state already does not allow same-sex marriage.

There are lies, damn lies, and of course, statistics:

Now, those are some sad old people...

Texas:

Full Text (.pdf)

Wording of Ballot Proposition:

The constitutional amendment providing that marriage in this state consists only of the union of one man and one woman and prohibiting this state or a political subdivision of this state from creating or recognizing any legal status identical or similar to marriage.

Analysis of Proposed Amendment:

The proposed constitutional amendment would amend Article I, Texas Constitution, to declare that marriage in this state consists only of the union of one man and one woman, and to prohibit this state or a political subdivision of this state from creating or recognizing any legal status identical or similar to marriage. The joint resolution in which the constitutional amendment is proposed also includes a non-amendatory provision recognizing that persons may designate guardians, appoint agents, and use private contracts to adequately and properly appoint guardians and arrange rights relating to hospital visitation, property, and the entitlement to proceeds of life insurance policies, without the existence of any legal status identical or similar to marriage.

Background

Current state law prohibits the issuance of a marriage license for the marriage of persons of the same sex. Section 2.001(b), Family Code. The Texas Legislature passed the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), Section 6.204, Family Code, in 2003. The DOMA declares that a same-sex marriage or a civil union is contrary to the public policy of this state and is void in this state. The DOMA further prohibits the state or an agency or political subdivision of the state from giving effect to a public act, record, or judicial proceeding that creates, recognizes, or validates a same-sex marriage or a civil union or to a right or claim to any legal protection, benefit, or responsibility asserted as a result of a same-sex marriage or a civil union. The DOMA defines “civil union” as any relationship status other than marriage that is intended as an alternative to marriage or that applies primarily to cohabitating persons and that grants to the parties of the relationship legal protections, benefits, or responsibilities granted to the spouses of a marriage.

The DOMA was adopted in Texas as a response to court cases and legislative actions in a number of states on the issue of same-sex marriage and civil unions.

One of the first constitutional challenges to the prohibition of same-sex marriage in a state’s marriage laws occurred in Hawaii in the 1990s. The plaintiffs in Baehr v. Lewin, same-sex couples who were denied marriage licenses, alleged that Hawaii’s marriage laws were unconstitutional under the equal protection clause of the Hawaii Constitution. Before the case was finally decided, the Hawaii Legislature adopted a constitutional amendment declaring that the Hawaii Legislature may reserve marriage to opposite-sex couples. Hawaii voters approved the amendment in 1998.

In 1999, the California Legislature adopted legislation allowing same-sex couples who meet certain eligibility criteria to register with the state as domestic partners. Registered domestic partners in California have rights, benefits, protections, responsibilities, obligations, and duties prescribed by California’s statutes that, in most instances, are the same as those granted to the spouses of a marriage. Other states, including Oregon, Washington, New Mexico, New York, and Rhode Island, offer domestic partner benefi ts to certain employees but do not establish a registry of domestic partners.

In 1999, the Vermont Supreme Court, in Baker v. State, held that under the Common Benefits Clause of the Vermont Constitution, the plaintiffs, same-sex couples who were denied marriage licenses, were entitled “to obtain the same benefits and protections afforded by Vermont law to married opposite-sex couples.” In response to the court’s decision, the Vermont Legislature created an alternative legal status to marriage for same-sex couples, called a civil union. Under Vermont law, the parties to a civil union are granted the same benefits, protections, and responsibilities as are granted under Vermont law to the spouses of a marriage. Civil unions became effective in Vermont in July 2000.

In 2003, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, considered a challenge to Massachusetts’ marriage laws brought by same-sex couples who were denied marriage licenses. The court held in that case that “barring an individual from the protections, benefits, and obligations of civil marriage solely because that person would marry a person of the same sex violates the Massachusetts Constitution.” In accordance with the court’s decision, the state of Massachusetts began granting marriage licenses to same-sex couples

in May 2004. In response to the court’s decision, the Massachusetts Legislature in 2004 preliminarily approved a constitutional amendment that would defi ne marriage as a union between opposite-sex couples and establish a system of civil unions for same-sex couples with the same benefi ts, protections, and rights as those granted to the spouses of a marriage. If approved again by the Massachusetts Legislature, the proposed amendment will be submitted to Massachusetts voters in November 2006.

Same-sex marriage continues to be a rapidly developing issue in other states and around the world. In 2005, the Connecticut Legislature passed legislation authorizing same-sex couples to enter into civil unions and other jurisdictions, including Canada and Spain, have passed or are considering legislation extending marriage to include same-sex couples.

Arguments For:

1. Adoption of the proposed amendment would prevent potential legal challenges to Texas’ marriage statutes. The equal protection clause and other provisions of the Texas Constitution are similar to those in other state constitutions and could be interpreted by courts to permit same-sex marriage or to require the recognition of a legal status identical or similar to marriage. Citizens of Texas, rather than the courts, should defi ne marriage in this state. Seventeen states have added a definition of traditional marriage to their constitutions, all approved by voters by substantial margins, and President Bush has endorsed a similar amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

2. The union of a man and a woman in the long-standing institution of traditional marriage promotes the welfare of children and the stability of society. The sanctity of marriage is fundamental to the strength of Texas families, and the state should ensure that the institution of traditional marriage cannot be undermined by a future court decision or statute of the Texas Legislature.

3. The proposed amendment would not discriminate against any person. Approval of the amendment by the voters would not prevent same-sex couples from pursuing their lifestyles. Approval of the amendment would only ensure that the union of same-sex couples is not sanctioned by the state.

Arguments Against:

1. Amending the Texas Constitution is unnecessary and inappropriate. A constitutional prohibition is unnecessary because Texas law already prohibits same-sex marriages and prohibits the recognition by the state or its political subdivisions of a same-sex marriage, a civil union, or a right or claim asserted as a result of a same-sex marriage or a civil union. A constitutional prohibition is inappropriate because it limits future state legislators’ flexibility to promote the health and safety of families in whatever form those families may take. Evidence of society’s changing notion of what constitutes a family is seen in the decision of the United States Supreme Court less than 40 years ago to invalidate laws banning interracial marriage and in the greater frequency in recent years of divorce, remarriage, and single parenthood.

2. The language in the proposed amendment prohibiting the creation or recognition of “any legal status identical or similar to marriage” is vague and goes too far. While the state’s DOMA statute narrowly defines a “civil union,” the proposed amendment contains broader language that has the potential for being interpreted to nullify common law marriages or legal agreements, including powers of attorney and living wills, between unmarried persons.

3. If the purpose of the proposed amendment is to defend the sanctity of marriage, that purpose would be better served by state laws addressing the high incidences of divorce, adultery, and family violence that occur within traditional marriage between a man and a woman and that are more damaging to the institution of marriage, the welfare of children, and the stability of society, than same-sex marriages.

Text of H.J.R. No. 6: HOUSE AUTHOR: Warren Chisum et al.
SENATE SPONSOR: Todd Staples et al.
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION proposing a constitutional amendment providing that marriage in this state consists only of the union of one man and one woman.

BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF

TEXAS:

SECTION 1.
Article I, Texas Constitution, is amended by adding Section 32 to read as follows:

Sec. 32.
(a) Marriage in this state shall consist only of the union of one man and one woman.
(b) This state or a political subdivision of this state may not create or recognize any legal status identical or similar to marriage.

SECTION 2. This state recognizes that through the designation of guardians, the appointment of agents, and the use of private contracts, persons may adequately and properly appoint guardians and arrange rights relating to hospital visitation, property, and the entitlement to proceeds of life insurance policies without the existence of any legal status identical or similar to marriage.

SECTION 3. This proposed constitutional amendment shall be submitted to the voters at an election to be held November 8, 2005. The ballot shall be printed to permit voting for or against the proposition: “The constitutional amendment providing that marriage in this state consists only of the union of one man and one woman and prohibiting this state or a political subdivision of this state from creating or recognizing any legal status identical or similar to marriage.”

APPROVED

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