Marty

Whilst I agree with most of what The Reaper says, and could write a lot myself on the topic, I'm also aware that the one rule for The Lounge (apart from the General Rules affecting the whole of GA) is: Please do not discuss politics here. I'm wondering whether this discussion might be better taken to a Blog... ~ Marty ~

Ahhem! I will happily agree there! The prefix "cent", after all, denotes 100. Oops! A mathematical goat! What on earth shall we see next?

There's such a thing as Due Process under the law. And the concept of Innocent Until Proven Guilty. Two things which are extremely important. At present, regarding the use of a gay prostitute, all we have in this case are allegations. Some of what is being said here sounds very lynch mob-like to me. Which brings up another serious question. That of whether the restrictive drug laws really do reduce the harm that drugs may cause, or actually increase it. But I suppose: a] that could be construed a political question, so doesn't belong in this forum; b] and it's ~ Marty ~

Or, as my granddaddy used to say: Here's hoping you get what you want, and not what you deserve. Not for a moment suggesting that what people here want from the elections is not what they deserve.

But I do notice that a certain goat is rapidly approaching that bicentenary mark himself, CJ....

Way to go, girl !! And keep them coming !!

I tend to agree with you,, Dez. And. as a Spiritual-Aetheist (if that's not an oxymoron), I'm reminded of one of the quotes attributed to Jesus: Judge not, that you be not judged. (Matthew v7 Ch1) ~ Marty ~

Amen to that! Can't thank you enough Myr. And I love the upgrade ~ Marty ~

And a belated happy birthday from me! ~ Marty ~

Yay !! Many Happy Returns !!

As am I. But thanks from me as well. The work that goes on in the background is so often taken for granted. But without all this unpaid/voluntary work, GA would not be what it is. Pat yourselves on the back, folks. ~ Marty ~

Ditto (Dom has a lot to answer for )

I'm not sure how the law works in the US (the federal/state divide - if divide is the correct word - confuses me). However, there is an interesting case being considered by the Irish High Court at present. Details can be found here. Basically two lesbian women, who married in Canada, are seeking to sue the Irish Revenue Commissioners (something similar to the US IRS?) after they returned to Ireland to find that they would continue to pay higher taxes as single people, rather than less money as a married couple. They are claiming that the equality provisions of the Irish Constitution have been violated. Judgment has been reserved; which basically means that the judge is considering all the legal arguments before making a decision. The two women have indicated that they are prepared to appeal to the European Court if they lose the case (in the EU a case can normally only be heard in the European Court after it has been through the courts in the member state first). The Irish Government may well appeal the case to the Irish Supreme Court should it go against them. But, that said, the Government is currently considering legislation to at least recognise civil partnerships (if not full same sex marriages) along the same lines as happened in the UK recently. Many gay activists in Ireland are of the opinion that a Civil Partnership bill would only give gay and lesbian people second class status. Homosexual acts were only legalised in Ireland as recently as 1993, on foot of a case brought to the European Court by the (now) Irish Senator, David Norris, in 1988. ~ Marty~

LOL!! My thoughts exactly!!

Yea. What everyone else said! Happy birthday. And many of them! ~ Marty ~

I also had the problems Grame listed (several sections that I really enjoyed). As an alternative, why not ask people to place each page/section in an order of preference or enjoyment? Or even ask us to give a rating on, say, a 1 to 5 scale to each section... ~ Marty ~

Have a great 23rd, Dom !!! This may seem to be early - but it's the 10th already in Europe. May your year bring everything you want. ~ Marty ~

If the Queen of England can have two birthdays a year, I don't see why Jared can't

Many happy returns, Centaur!! And remember: Age is just an accident of birth (as I keep reminding myself) ~ Marty ~

Happy birthday, and many happy returns, Red

Big welcome to Colin! Just read your first three posts in Teen Spot. Looks like you're going to be a great addition to the community. ~ Marty ~ edit: this post has been merged into the New Member Welcome thread per the intent of Marty. No content was harmed with this edit. - Vic

Exactly that I was thinking, Kurt! Indeed I was going to post about the political nature of some of the posts as I was reading through this thread - until I got to the last post (yours; that I am replying to here). NicholasJames did make some points that I felt an urge to reply to. But this thread is in the Lounge, which has the rule: Please do not discuss politics here, so I felt it would be inappropriate. Can I take this opportunity to agree with Michael's post in which he congratulates Kurt for having the courage to discuss the whole School Shootings phenomenom (if that's the right word). I think it's always a healthy sign when I see young people feeling that they are able to discuss what others may think to be sensitive issues. On the whole subject of school shootings I can't really come up with any concrete suggestions. The country I live in (Ireland), in spite of it's troubled recent political past, has (touch wood) not yet experienced this type of violence. As an outsider I am incined to think that the problem in America may stem to a lage extent from the media and the easy access to guns and rifles. I'm not inclined to go along with the idea of placing the blame largely on discrimination (on whatever grounds), powerlessness, or hopelessness, etc. These have been with us since the dawn of civilisation. The whole school shootings phenomenon is much more recent. Another possible cause for maybe some of the shootings might be the fifteen minutes of fame syndrome. I think this term was first coined by Andy Warhol in the 1960's, but I seem to remember reading somewhere that psychologists believe it may be responsible for at least some of the atrocious acts that some individuals perpetrate these days. ~ Marty ~

Many happy returns, Howie!! Sweet sixteen times two, huh? Hope you have a great day. ~ Marty ~

I second that emotion !!

I've just read the Announcment from Myr re: Amazon Links.... As I live in Ireland I normally order through amazon.co.uk What I'm wondering is, if I were to click on to amazon.com from GA, and then redirect to amazon.co.uk using the link at the bottom of the page, would any order I then make from the amazon.co.uk site still generate some revenue for GA. Hope this makes sense. ~ Marty ~