Ellen's getting married!!

I adore Ellen and DVR her show every day. I always watch her and Martha after work to wind down from my day. She seems like a genuinely awesome person, always trying to help people in need, and it always makes me happy. Some of the parts of her show can be a bit annoying (games and copious dancing... but I have fast forward on my DVR!) but I still love her. When I watch Portia and Ellen together their dynamic reminds me unequivocally of my relationship with Bob.

I'm a supporter of gay marriage and (as a married person) feel that it strengthens the value of marriage rather than taking anything away. This week California's Supreme Court declared that banning gay marriage is unconstitutional, equivalent to racial and sexual discrimination. Hopefully other states will soon follow suit.

Yay and Congratulations to Ellen!

I participated in one of those phone surveys yesterday about my voting habits. It was really interesting. It was obviously skewed towards Nancy Boyda the democrat running for something or another in Kansas. There were alot of general questions like "How do you feel about President Bush" and many statements like "Does so and so's platform on economic reform make you more or less likely to vote for them". I'm voting democrat straight across the board because it's obvious that a congress that is weighted against the President is much less likely to get anything done.
When they were reading the questions for Nancy Boyda they gave the statement and then said does this making you more likely, somewhat likely or not make any difference in your vote. For the other candidate, Lynn Jenkins (I think) they read the statement and said does this make you MUCH LESS likely, Less likely or ambivalent in your vote. In essence, even if I agreed with some of her positions I couldn't say I found it favorable on the questionarre. Likewise I disagreed whole heartedly with one statement by Nancy Boyda (on illegal immigration) and there was no way to say that this influenced my vote negatively. So they are working with skewed numbers. I am not sure how the survey helps them then.

On illegal immigration: Am I very radical in the belief that people in poverty have the right to make a better life for themselves? I listened to an episode of "This American Life" yesterday which highlighted the story of a girl who came to the US with her mom as a baby but is an unregistered illegal. She made it into a major university and wants to be a doctor. Her grades are impeccable and she is an asset to society. Still, with her degree she can't go on an practice anywhere because she will be deported, so now she is waitressing and getting paid under the table. This is ridiculous.
Also Bob's exchange student from Peru, who has a masters in business, came back to the US and spent the year last year (and thousands of dollars) trying to get a green card. She also would be an asset to the US but was turned away and had to go back to Peru. Most immigrants do not have the thousands of dollars to waste on lawyers and whatnot. Not to mention that it flat didn't work.

And what about taxes? Illegals don't pay them, but our tax dollars go into their doctor bills and other things. Why can't we make it easier for them to get into the system? We are a country of immigrants... let them come! I (not being a politician) have no idea as to how to make this better for everyone. But I think "cracking down on illegal immigration" is a REAL negative. Also, building that wall? As Colbert said the other day, then why don't we ask the Chinese how that worked out?

Also interesting in the questionarre they asked what were the two biggest issues affecting my voting opinion. My number 1 is Gas prices/Viable Renewable Energy. This is a big one for me right now. It may get to the point in the next year or so where my cost of gas is more than my income. In other words, unless my boss addresses the inflation with a pay boost, I will no longer be rationally able to work here. It's very unlikely I will find another great job like the one I have. With the housing crisis I cannot sell my house. (That was my number 2 issue) So if this continues either I continue working here, and lose my house and probably NOT BE ABLE TO EVEN RENT because of the hit on our credit, or I quit when the gas prices reach 6.00 or so and find a job that won't pay for my monthly mortgage. Buying a new car is not an option for us, as we are stretched too thin at this point.

Interestingly, the housing crisis was not an option on the list of voting influences, apparently I am one of the only people who feel this strongly.