Torbellino en un Fregadero

Torbellino en un Fregadero

Torbellino en un fregadero:

El agua desaparece,

Para no volver

Jamas.

Todas las esperanzas se desvanecen,

Todos los suenos tambien;

Todo lo que pensaba que era,

Todo lo que pense que seria -

Todo

Se desvanece.

Girando alrededor de todo lo que es real,

Todo lo que es doloroso,

Y todo lo que estaba escondido

En las profundidades

Del agua

En el fregadero.

Torbellino en un fregadero:

Por todo lo que pensaba que era,

No soy nada

Mas que un fregadero

Vacio.

                                                                 -- Rafi Omar 

The Assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy

For many, November 9th, 2016, felt like a day when the death of someone close hung in the air; like a fog, looming above them throughout the day, lingering in their thoughts, seeping in through the conversations they had that day with their colleagues, friends, and families. Lost, disoriented, they were seeking answers to questions they never once thought that they might be asking. “How did this happen?” “What went wrong?” And, of course, “Who is to be blamed?”

If you are one of those people for whom the last question is the most important one, well, you have plenty of candidates to chose from. You can blame the media, who provided so much air time to every single thing that one of candidates said or did, that that candidate did not even need to waste time and money making ads. You can blame the Democratic National Committee, who succeeded in nominating an establishment candidate during an election cycle in which people were desperately looking for anything but the establishment, and that was dominated by populism; the DNC had a candidate who would have been more appealing, but - as leaked emails show - they actively tried to sabotage his chances of securing the party’s nomination. You can blame the Republican National Committee as well; why did they nominate a candidate who - amongst other things - promoted bullying, objectified women, and called into question the heroism of prisoner’s of war?

There are plenty of groups that you can blame, but, if you must narrow your selection to just one group of who ought to be blamed for the outcome of the 2016 U.S Presidential Election, the answer is quite simple.

It’s us. The citizens of the United States of America.

I am thirty-three years old, and during those thirty-three years, I have never seen this nation so divided on so many issues. Erstwhile, it used to be gun-control, same-sex marriage, and abortion rights that divided us; but now our divisions arises from issues that appear to be the trivial. Last Christmas, some people were outraged that Starbucks chose to have a holiday themed cup that had no Santas, elves or reindeer. It was determined to be yet another part of the “War on Christmas”. On the other end of the spectrum, you had people who got so offended by Bill Maher’s characterization of Islam, that UC Berkeley put up a petition to stop him from giving an commencement speech at the University. Yes; UC Berkeley - the birthplace of 1964 the Free Speech Movement.

To widen the chasm, we took to - of all the places - social media. The internet, we were promised, would bring us together. But take one look at your twitter feed, or scroll down to the comments section of a youtube video, and you would soon find out it had the exact opposite effect. And it is only growing worse. We tend to unfriend, unfollow, block people with whom we disagree, and surround ourselves only with people who share our thoughts and opinions about the world. That only reinforces our preconceived notions and opinions, even when they are wrong. So, we opt to agree with whatever news that we feel is right, even when it is not, and discard the news appears to be a falsehood, even if that is not the case. We create our facts, our truths, our own realities. And anything that appears to contradict with our version of events is deemed as a personal attack that must be responded to in the most uncivilized manner.

At a time of a record 73 month job growth streak, some are complaining about the economic policies of the current administration. At a time when the number of refugees is the highest it has been since the Second World War, some are applauding the foreign policy success of the current administration in the Middle East. Some believe that there is a global conspiracy to eliminate the white people, and anyone who disagrees with it is a self-hating “Cuckservative.” Some believe that Islam is being attacked, and anyone who quotes any passage from the Quran that shines an unkindly light on the religion is a bigoted “Islamophobe”.

Small wonder, then, that the Federal Government has become so stagnated. It is, after all, supposed be a reflection of the people, and if the people won’t compromise between each other, why should they?

This. Is. Not. Good.

This is dangerous. When truth itself depends upon who screams the loudest, mistakes will be made more frequently, and policies that endanger the future of our country - and, indeed, of our planet - are more likely to be implemented.

Mr. Trump won the Presidential election with the promise to “make America great again.” Well, I disagree with that, because the greatness of a society, of a nation, is not reflected by its wealth, nor its military might. It is reflected, instead, by its compassion, and how it treats the most vulnerable amongst it, and how it treats those come to it seeking aid, is a good barometer of that. And the America that I know, that helped me bring my epilepsy under control, that facilitates my job as I seek to find new homes for those who have lost their own in some war in some distant land, and that has allowed me to voice opinions, airing which would have gotten me jailed or killed in some countries, including the one from which I came, that America is the greatest nation the world has ever known.

So, whilst I disagree with President-Elect Trump, I would concede that there is always room for improvement, and it is up to us, the citizens of this great nation, to point out those areas where improvement is required, and for that to happen, we have to come out of our bubbles and unite. We must learn - or rather re-learn - how to engage with one another; how to disagree but not disrespect; how to share opinions without imposing them on others; how to accept that, as human beings, we too can be wrong; and, above all else, how to be civilized.

On November 22nd, our nation will commemorate the assassination of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy; it will be the 53rd year since it did so the first time. Journalism may now be dead, but perhaps now is a good time to remember what Walter Cronkite - of one of the finest journalist this country ever had - said during his broadcast two days after the death of Kennedy:

“It is said that the human mind has a greater capacity for remembering the pleasant than the unpleasant. But today was a day that will live in memory and in grief. Only history can write the importance of this day: Were these dark days the harbingers of even blacker ones to come, or like the black before the dawn shall they lead to some still as yet indiscernible sunrise of understanding among men, that violent words, no matter what their origin or motivation, can lead only to violent deeds? This is the larger question that will be answered, in part, in the manner that a shaken civilization seeks the answers to the immediate question: Who, and most importantly what, was Lee Harvey Oswald? The world’s doubts must be put to rest. Tonight there will be few Americans who will go to bed without carrying with them the sense that somehow they have failed. If in the search of our conscience we find a new dedication to the American concepts that brought no political, sectional, religious or racial divisions, then maybe it may yet be possible to say that John Fitzgerald Kennedy did not die in vain.”

No more hashtags; no more retweets and likes. The problems that exist in this country cannot be resolved in a hundred and forty characters or through a facebook post; it is much more complex. It does not matter whether you voted for Trump or Hillary, whether you are a Democrat or Republican, black or white, Christian or Muslim, gay or straight; we must all alter the ways we engage with one another; we must learn to respect one another; and, most importantly, learn from one another.

Bear in mind that in this country we do not elect leaders; we elect representatives; and if we are to make sure that they do the work we have selected them to do, then we must unite and remind ourselves that it was we, the People of the United States, who established the Constitution of the United States of America, and it is we who must ensure that it works for us all.

Don't Cut Refugee Resettlement Services

Dear Mr. President, Speaker Boehner, Senators Reid, McConnell, Schumer, Cornyn, Cruz, Landrieu, Coats, Murkowski, Representatives Gowdy, Poe, Jackson Lee, Carter, Culberson, Price, Secretaries Kerry, Johnson, Burwell and Director Negash:

Everyone is alarmed by the escalating number of young people who are arriving at the U.S-Mexico border. It is, indeed, a humanitarian crisis unfolding on a scale that has not been seen for quite a long time. Everyone understands that this crisis is expanding, that the children involved did make the perilous journey to the United States for the fear they felt at home, and everyone wants to do everything that is in the best interest of these children.

Yet, at the same time, we cannot leave others – who are facing equally grave risks – behind. Denying, or reducing, services available to the refugees who arrive from all over the world would place their lives and safety in jeopardy. Many of these refugees have been living in limbo in various refugee camps scattered throughout the globe – some of them have been doing so for decades. The refugee resettlement program is already underfunded. Cutting the funds available to the refugee resettlement program even further would increase their time in limbo and place some in even greater risks; and, here, in the United States – the standard bearer when it comes to refugee resettlement – the cuts will weaken programs that help them make the transition to a new life, in their new homes. These refugees have children as well, and they too have been persecuted and oppressed to the point that they felt it necessary to leave their homes.

There is a crisis taking place at the border. But reprogramming $94 million away from refugee resettlement services will not solve it; in fact, it will create an additional problem when refugees who have already arrived in the United States find that they are being denied services previously available to them.

Instead, the solution lies in increasing the funding available to Office of Refugee Resettlement by $200 million, during the 2015 fiscal year, so that it can effectively meet the needs of both – the children at the border, and the children in the refugee camps.

An estimated 127,000 unaccompanied children are expected to arrive at the border during 2015. At the same time, the number of refugees across the world has exceeded the 50 million mark for the first time since the Second World War. We must ensure that we do not sacrifice the needs of one group in order to serve the needs of the other. We must ensure that all those who seek sanctuary in the U.S are treated equally.

As Emma Lazarus’ poem proclaims, the United States has always welcomed those in most desperate needs – the poor, the tired, the huddled masses, all yearning to breathe free. Let us make sure that we continue to uphold that commitment as efficiently and equitably as possible.

Sincerely,

Ahmed Rafi Omar

Houston, TX.

One

One

A person was recently asked by an acquaintance of his why does he not like Human Beings all that much, to which he replied that it all has to do with the Law of Diminishing Marginal Utility, to explain which I would like you to imagine (just as the person asked his acquaintance to imagine), for a moment, and even if it is not the case, that your favorite beverage in world happens to be coffee, a cup of which you would greatly enjoy, maybe a second consecutive cup as well, but by the third consecutive cup you might start to feel slightly uncomfortable, and by the fourth, fifth, sixth or by the time you get to the nth cup you will be sick and tired of drinking coffee, even though it happens, as aforementioned, to be your favorite beverage, and this should help you understand that the Law of Diminishing Marginal Utility basically states that with each progressive consumption of a product, the utility - read: enjoyment - that a person derives from the consumption of the product declines, and, although this is a law of economics, the same could be said about Human Beings, as there are seven billion of them in the world, and you have countless interactions with them on a daily basis, so, just as the Law of Diminishing Marginal Utility suggests, you are bound to get sick and tired of Human Beings eventually, it is just that for that person, given his personality, it happened at an early age, and he is not proud of it, just as he is not ashamed of it, because it is a fact with which he has to live out the remainder of his life, which he is sure he will spend in solitude because nobody wants to be with a person who thinks of Human Beings as products, but what nobody ever realizes, or tends to ignore, is that a person who thinks like that is a Human Being as well, a rambling, irritating, annoying Human Being albeit, but a Human Being nevertheless, who, although would really like to avoid the six hundred and ninety nine billion, nine hundred and ninety nine million, nine hundred and ninety nine thousand, nine hundred and ninety nine “others”, or, at the very least, keep interactions with them at the minimum level possible, is entirely happy with his isolation, and he cherishes his solitude, for this world is not just made up of Humans, but contains a wide variety of other species, that glide through the air, swim the oceans, roam the land, and not to mention all the majesty that Nature in all Her Glory has to offer - the mountains, the forests, the deserts, and the list could go on and on and on - all of which he hopes some day to see, explore, experience, but the most important reason that perfectly explains why he embraces his loneliness, and is not miserable or sad as some would suggest, is that he knows that when he does fall in Love with a person, he will be aware of it, and by “Love”, I do not mean an infatuation, a fling or a physical attraction, but Love in its truest form, and the reason he will know that he is in Love - even if it is not reciprocated - is because he will not view the person with whom he will fall in Love as yet another member of the group he classifies as “others”, but he will view that person as a part of himself - the “other half”, rather than the “significant other” - and it will be in her joy that he shall find his own happiness, it will be over her sorrows that he too shall grieve, and he shall not be able to differentiate between that person and himself, and her desires, her dreams, her joys, her sorrows would be his own, and even though this might make him sound like a narcissist, trust me, he is not, for he wants her to be herself, fiercely independent, however, just to let you all know, he is not seeking that person, nor is he waiting for her, he is not placing Life on hold for her, or anybody else for that matter, to come along, for this is a vast Universe, and his time here, just as that of everybody else, is limited, which is why he plans on utilizing each and every single day of his life to the fullest, and he has made up his mind that he will not just merely “survive”, but that he will actually “Live”, despite being in the midst of the group he designates as “others”, and despite not having her by his side at the moment, he will Live, which is why, if anyone ever tells you that he is the most miserable, saddest person that they have ever met, just tell them - confidently, and with a smile on your face - that no statement ever uttered could be so far away from the truth.

-- Rafi Omar

The Meeting

"Alright, good morning, everybody. Thank you all for coming. Let’s go through the agenda items for today. Item 1: Use fire to cook meat; although, personally, I don’t give a damn, but let’s move on. Item 2: No more flinging of feces; yeah, I mean, seriously people, that’s like so 10,000 B.C; can we please stop doing that now? Good. Now, item 3: Be nice to one another. What the…? ‘Be nice’? Who the hell came up with this?”

“Well, I was thinking that now - since we have survived by being the fittest and all, and established our dominance over the planet - we can quit being pricks all the time and actually be nice with each other.”

“Yeah, but being pricks...that is how...that is how we survived. That is in our nature. And what the hell does ‘nice’ even mean?”

“It basically means not being complete assholes all the time and actually caring about each other.”

“Even strangers?”
“Yeah, even strangers. I mean just smile when you see someone, you know?”

“Listen, Bob, we all value your input, but, dude, being complete assholes is our modus operandi. And if we are...what’s the word again?”

“‘Nice.’”

“Yeah, that. If we are ‘nice’ to one another, and smile - even at strangers! - other species might think that we are a bunch of pussies, and before you know it, millions of years of work would be wiped off and who knows? Even the cows might start attacking and take over. I mean, have you even thought it through, Bob?”

“I don’t even think Bob came up with it.”

“Of course I did!”
“I bet it was Debbie from H.R. You know, that hyper-sensitive, politically-correct girl who always goes on about how we shouldn’t call them cavemen, but instead ‘alternative habitat dweller’? I bet she planted the idea in Bob’s head. Bob, we all know how much you want to bang that chick after bashing her in the head with your club, and she knows it too, which is why she totally uses you push through these weird ideas.”

“No she doesn’t!”

“She totally does, bro.”

“Alright! Enough! Regardless of who came with the idea, it’s on the table. So, should we, or should we not, be ‘nice’ to one another? I, for one, would vote for it only if there is a compelling reason for me to do so.”

“Well, Bob…?”

“You know, how we please the gods and they give us rain and stuff in return?”
“Yeah, so?”

“So, I was thinking, if we treat each other in the same way, maybe we can get more stuff.”

“Bob, I can’t give you rain.”
“No, but you can help me set up my hut.”
“And why would I do that again?”
“Cause I just treated you like a god?”
“Hmm…”
“See? All about getting more stuff. Also, if we are nice to one another there would be a greater incentive for us, not only to refrain from bashing each other’s brains out, but to look after one another.”

“That...I must say...that kinda makes sense.”
“What?! I can’t believe you are even entertaining the idea. Clearly, Bob is only doing this to impress Debbie, but what are we going to get out of this?!”
“More stuff? Greater security? Those are all good things to get in return of just a smile.”

“But it’s against our nature! We are assholes by design!”
“Yeah, but we can always adapt, and this gives us a clear advantage. I move to approve the idea of being ‘nice.’”
“So do I.”

“Me too.”

“Aye.”

“Count me in.”
“This is absolute bullshit!”
“Ok, so motion adopted. From here on out, we are going to be nice to one another; even when we think that the person we are being nice to is a total dick and feel like beating him or her to death, we are going to repress our thoughts and still be nice. Good thinking, Bob.”
“Thanks.”

“Now, item 4: ‘Cavemen’ or ‘Alternative habitat dwellers’?”

“Fuck.”

-- Rafi Omar  

Conversations with a Miserable Piece of Shit : Thanksgiving

Conversations with a Miserable Piece of Shit 

Thanksgiving

Acquaintance: Hey, Man! You got any plans for Thanksgiving?

Miserable Piece of Shit: Of course I do! Who doesn't have plans for Thanksgiving?

Acquaintance: Well, let's hear it.

Miserable Piece of Shit: Well, first of all, I plan on getting up at twelve in the afternoon and think to myself "fuck, I'm still alive; why, God? Why?" Then, I have plans to watch back to back episodes of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia while wolfing down gallons of ice cream for no particular reason. Afterwards, I plan on drinking a couple of beers while watching Fight Club for the hundredth time. And finally, before going to bed, I plan on jerking off while watching lesbian porn.

Acquaintance: *silence*

Miserable Piece of Shit: How about yourself? You got any plans for Thanksgiving?   

- Rafi Omar

How Many More?

Niccolo Machiavelli’s Il Principe (The Prince) was first distributed in 1513. Fast forward 500 years, and now you have a world whose reality maybe different from the world in which Machiavelli resided, but only on the surface. The nature of human beings have stayed the same, and that includes the nature of human conflicts, regarding which, Machiavelli had this to say:

“There are two ways of contesting, the one by the law, the other by force; the first method proper to men, the second to beasts; however, because the first is frequently not sufficient, it is necessary to have recourse to the second.”

I know that the chances are quite high that you will not agree with me on the subject I am about to discuss, and the reason I can say this with a fair amount of certainty is because the subject I am about to discuss - the issue I am going to advocate for - is military intervention in Syria by the United States Armed Forces. And I can understand your disagreements. Whether you are an American, or a citizen of some other nation, the last decade has left nearly everyone across the globe fatigued by war - both emotionally and economically. Besides, the fact of the matter is... nobody likes wars. Nobody likes wars; nobody likes to watch pictures of dead children; hear stories of families being torn apart due to displacement. It is all very depressing; and I count myself amongst those who do not like wars.

Oddly enough, it is precisely because I do not like wars that I am advocating for a limited military strike against the regime of Bashar al Assad. It is precisely because I am against wars, I believe that the time has come to opt for the method proper to beasts rather than the method proper to men.

The civil war in Syria has raged on for more than two years now. More than a hundred thousand people have died. More than two million people have fled their homes. From the very onset of this crisis the international community had been trying to bring about a cessation of violence through a political solution - the first method of contesting: by the law - and every single time they have ran into obstacles. At the United Nations Security Council, Russia and China have vetoed resolution after resolution that simply condemned the al Assad regime. The Syrian government and the Syrian National Council does not even want to talk to each other. All options for a political solutions had already been exhausted.     

Then, on August 21st, 2013, for the first time in the 21st century, chemical weapons were used by a government against its own citizens. If all options for a political solutions had already been exhausted before, the hopes a political solution is now gone.

Despite all these, I have heard a range of arguments from people who are vehemently opposed to any military intervention: The United States should not act as the world’s policeman; it will cause even more bloodshed; it is their war, let them settle it.

Prima facie, they all sound good. But dig a little deeper and you will notice flaws in every single one of them. But let’s start with the “it’s their war” argument. Yes, it is their war; but think of what will happen should the U.S not intervene. It will only embolden Bashar al Assad and others like him to use chemical weapons more frequently; the killing will only escalate. Not holding the al Assad regime accountable for their actions provides them a get out jail free card. You will see more pictures of dead children on t.v, you will hear more stories of displacement. On the other hand, if the rebels win, the first question they will ask themselves is “where was the international community when needed them the most?” The rebel ranks are filling up Islamist militants; they will present this question to the citizens. And if there is no American military intervention now, they will persuade the Syrians to turn their country into a terrorist base. So, if you think a limited strike against the al Assad regime is not in the national interest of the United States, think again.

The “it will cause more bloodshed” argument falls flat on its face. The very nature of the strikes would be to reduce, if not eliminate, the capability of the al Assad regime to attack the citizens of Syria. Would there not be civilian casualties during the strike? Yes; in all probability there would be. But if al Assad goes unchecked, there would be far more civilians being massacred on a daily basis for the foreseeable future. The strikes would bring the massacres to a halt, and the loss of a few to prevent the loss of many is worth the sacrifice.

And finally, the “U.S should not act as the world’s policeman” argument. This is, strangely, a favorite among liberals, conservatives, Americans, and non-Americans alike; and this is the one argument that worries me the most. As I mentioned before, if the U.S does not strike al Assad for his actions it will embolden him to take more actions. He will be pushing the boundaries to see how far he cab go before someone says stop; until finally, one day, a headline will appear on the news: “Syria Attacks Israel”. If not Syria, then Iran, or someone else, and if not Israel, then Turkey, or someone else. What the neo-isolationists do not understand is that the world is shrinking fast: a tweet sent from the Guangdong can easily reach California, but so can an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile. The world needs a policeman because there are international laws that all nations must abide by. If there is no cop to enforce the law, then chaos will be the norm. If the United States, the country that was founded upon the notion that all were created equal, is not present to provide protection to those who aspire to introduce the same notion in their countries, no one will ever seek equality again, and those who do will be prosecuted. I have heard some Americans refer to their country as a “once great nation;” a wrong assumption given that the United States has the biggest economy and the greatest military might. Should the United States sit on the sidelines while tyrants massacres their people, that assumption will turn into a reality.  

          

The decision to go to war is never an easy one, and it is always unpopular, even when it comes with guarantees that there will be no boots on the ground and it would be limited in time and scope. And I know, despite all the arguments I laid down for a limited strike against the al Assad regime, there will be still be many among you who would be vehemently against it. Despite my arguments, and despite Edmund Burke’s warning that “all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.”

If you happen to be one of those against the limited strike, ask yourselves just one question: how many more people need to die before you change your mind? How many more?

A More Perfect Union

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

I abhor the institution of marriage. I absolutely do. To me, marriage is an antiquated and over-rated institution which, by its very nature, deprives a person from enjoying the freedoms he or she can only enjoy as an individual. I plan on never getting married myself, and, on several occasions, I have called into question the intellect of people who have decided to get married. Yet, I was not a least bit surprised when, on the 26th of June, 2013, I found myself defending the right of same-sex couples to get married, along with the notion that all marriages should be treated equally.

Before explaining why, I believe a definition of marriage is first required. “Marriage” is, essentially, an agreement between two consenting people which binds them together with a set of rights and responsibilities towards each other. In other words, it is just another contract, and just like all other contracts, it is a relationship based upon obligations; everything else is secondary.

One thing becomes clear from this definition: Consent is the chief requirement for marriage. Not coerced consent; not uninformed consent; but consent that is provided willfully after being presented with all the facts. Ergo, those who are afraid that same-sex marriage will somehow lead to human-baboon marriages are dead-wrong as baboons are yet to demonstrate that they have the skills provide an informed consent.

Besides, if drunk hetero-sexual people can legally get married in Las Vegas, Nevada, on a regular basis without even knowing the basic facts about their spouse, why can two people who just happened to be of the same gender but love each other and have known each other for years not do the same? Is it in any way right?

Having said that, let me explain why I think all marriages – same-sex or otherwise – should be treated equally; and my explanation has nothing to do with beliefs, politics, or sexual orientation. Instead, my reasoning stems from the Constitution of the United States itself. To be more specific, it stems from the Ninth Amendment backed up by the Fourteenth Amendment, unlike the majority decision in United States v. Windsor (2013) which was based on the Fifth Amendment.

The Ninth Amendment basically states that just because some rights were not exclusively mentioned in the first eight amendments does not necessarily mean that people do not have those rights.

“The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.”

If one gives it some thought, the Ninth Amendment is the best one of all as it – let's be honest – saves a lot of time. For instance, it would be ridiculous if there was an amendment stating that “the government shall not infringe upon the rights of the people to churn butter, nor shall it interfere with the people's right to go to bed at an hour of their own choosing”. The Constitution skips over several rights, including the right to marry and the right to have a family, by compressing all of those rights into the Ninth Amendment.

But my favorite amendment to the U.S Constitution has to be the Fourteenth Amendment – section one to be more precise. The Fourteenth Amendment essentially turns the values enshrined in the Declaration of Independence into law by making it crystal clear that everyone has to be treated equally and no one can be deprived of a right that has been provided to others.

“No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

If Citizen A has the right to vote, so must Citizen B. If Citizen C can sit in the front seat of a bus, so can Citizen D. If Citizens E and F can get married, so can Citizens G and H. Regardless of gender, ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation, every single citizen of the United States of America has the same unalienable rights that are guaranteed by the Constitution.

Those who truly stand for American values, the chief amongst which is the right of all to be treated as equals, those who truly respect the Constitution of the United States, which guarantees equal rights for all, will not be dismayed by the decision reached by the Supreme Court on the 26th of June, 2013; they will be delighted by it.

There are those who say that same-sex marriages will disrupt the natural order of things, just as there were those who thought the same of inter-racial marriages. But just as the latter have faded into the horizon of history, so shall the former; for in this universe filled with chaos there is but only one fact that is natural: All were created equal and all were endowed with certain unalienable rights.

Two hundred and thirty-seven years ago, an experiment began to see how many people can be sheltered under the umbrella of democracy and equality. Cynics at that time asked how can a group of slaveholders declare that “all men were created equal.” A legitimate question, but every time it has been asked, it has always been answered. William Whipple answered back by freeing his slave; Abraham Lincoln answered by freeing all slaves; Susan B. Anthony answered by advocating for women's suffrage; Dr. Martin Luther King answered by championing the civil rights movement; and, on the 26th of June, 2013, Supreme Court of the United States answered by providing all marriages with equal protection.

The United States of America is an ongoing experiment, and that question will continue to be asked; but the good news is that there will always be someone to answer it. Perhaps the plaintiff in the case, Edith Windsor, said it best: “The truth is, I never expected anything less from my country.”

Happy Fourth of July, and may God Bless America. 

The Susan G. Komen Speech by Kristin Knerr

A dear friend of mine, Kristin Knerr, was diagnosed with cancer fifteen months ago. She has survived it and is still with us to share her life, her laughter, her smiles, her joys, her story with us. Sadly, many, many others who fought with cancer are no longer here to share their stories. Kristin recently spoke at an event called the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. I believe her story should be shared with all so that a cure for cancer, regardless of stage, could be found as soon as possible.


I'm a little nervous that I'll make a goofy face or that I have something stuck in my teeth, or a prosthetic could end up around my knee cap. You never know when that could end up on a billboard all over town.

I'm not much of a public speaker but I'm going to give it my best here..

I have to say that sometimes it's hard to talk about my cancer. Some days I don't want to think about it at all. But to stand up here, and speak about it in front of hundreds of my own heroes, is such a tremendous privilege. It's overwhelming because I KNOW the power of a survivor and I feel united with all of you.

I would like to just take a moment to remember the men and women who are NOT here today. To our warriors who did not make it through the battleground and to those who are too sick in the fight today to be here with us. I acknowledge those of you who are here today, walking in the memories of someone you love.

Sending out peace and love to all of you.

My name is Kristin and I am many, many things. One of the things I am, is a cancer survivor. I was diagnosed with stage IIIc invasive Ductal carcinoma 15 months ago. My story of treatment and survival is most likely much like yours.

I think the unique part of my own journey has been the fact that I did not live here at the time I was diagnosed. I had been living and working in Mexico for years and was here in Washington to visit some friends for ten days for Christmas. On the third day of my visit, I'm the one who got the surprise and was diagnosed with cancer and told I could not return home.

In the course of a 15 minute phone call, my life was erased. I was wrenched from my family and friends, I lost my home,  and all I had worked for. I was separated from my daughter and precious grandson. And could not reach out for the hand of a friend when I was afraid.

With  a tremendous faith and hope, and a simple stubborn refusal to give in or give up, I have survived cancer and treatment and have made Spokane my home. I am so very proud of all the people who have walked with me here through this truly incredible journey.

I had noticed a lump in my breast two years before my diagnosis. I had numerous mammograms and ultra sounds in Mexico but all of those tests revealed nothing. I was first told I had a cyst and that women get them all the time and I shouldn't be concerned about it. When I continued to insist that something was wrong with me, I was deemed a hypochondriac and put on Xanax. Because of poor, faulty equipment and the lack of a trained physician who could actually read the film, I became a stage IIIc hypochondriac. Yes folks, this tragedy still happens all over the world, even today.

We need to put an end to Stories like mine. Why am I running? Why am i standing here, telling my story?

Because I believe that my life has been spared so I can stand here today and add my voice to yours in the fight against cancer. I believe in fighting for prevention and early detection. i believe in fighting for better treatment options, for better, kinder therapies, i believe in fighting for a higher quality of life for survivors, better support for our families and I believe in fighting for a CURE.  When this race is over today, I will still be running and I will run for the rest of my life. Let it count for something.

The most important lessons i have learned are that God loves me more than I understood.  I found strength i didn't know i had, i found that i am much more loved than i ever knew before, i found comfort from strangers along the way, hope and support through other survivors, and gained a really rowdy group of cheerleaders who did not leave me before the finish line. (WHERE ARE YOU GUYS )

My peeps, the ones who never let me quit and the ones who make me laugh when life just sucks. i love ya. I hope you know just how much you mean to me and how much better this world is with all of you in it. You truly make my life, worth living.

Thank you to Susan G. Komen for changing the direction of my journey and for the incredible support and opportunity to speak out. Thank you to all the local sponsors for caring and supporting the people that make up this awesome community. Thank you to the medical teams, our nurses, and our local hospitals. I'm going to insert a huge thank you to Lake City physical Therapy for putting me back together again. You girls are like Humpty dumpties men. Spokane just rocks!

To all my sisters in the fight, Dig deep. Fight hard. Be fierce!

To the rest of us, lets go take a walk!

"We Have Won"

A clock hanging on a wall to my left informs me that it is now 1:57 p.m, here in Houston, Texas, and a quick calculation in my mind reveals that it is 2:57 p.m Boston, Massachusetts. Right now Dzhokar Tsarnaev, the person apprehended for the Boston Marathon bombing, is sedated and unable to speak. He is still in serious condition, but is stable; which is crucial for there are a million questions that only he can answer at this point. How were the bombs made? Did he receive any training? Were he and his brother acting alone or as a part of a group? And, of course, the ever crucial question, why? What motivated him and his brother to do what they have done? Was it religion (Islamic fundamentalism)? Was it politics (Chechen nationalism)? Was it economics (lack of money and/or opportunities)? Or was it all of the above? Three people lost their lives in the bombing, another during a gun battle on the MIT campus. Their deaths demand answers; their families deserve it. However, as I mentioned earlier, the only person who can provide these answers is currently sedated, and I have no desire to engage in speculation right now. Instead, I would like to share my thoughts about what happened in Boston last Monday. Not surprisingly, a closer look reveals that what happened in Boston last Monday was actually yet another example of an act that has taken place several times before throughout the course of history.

It is 2:22 p.m now in Houston; 3:22 p.m in Boston.

When Pierre de Coubertin set about reviving the Olympics, his primary motivation was the promotion of international peace. When the Greeks held the Games during ancient times, a sacred truce was enforced amongst the nations that participated. Might a modern Olympics not have a similar effect? Also, could the Olympics not be used to promote understanding across cultures, and thereby, lessen the dangers of war? Along with de Coubertin, the initiators and organizers of the modern Olympics began selecting the events that would be incorporated into the Games. What they specifically had in mind were events that reflected the glory of Ancient Greece. This is where Michel Breal steps in and suggests an event does precisely that – a long-distance running event that commemorates the fabled run of the messenger Pheidippides to announce the victory of the Greeks over the Persians at the Battle of Marathon.

It is now 2:45 p.m in Houston and 3:45 p.m in Boston.

The reason why this specific battle was chosen to demonstrate the glory of Ancient Greece is quite clear. The Ancient Greeks could not have been more different than the Ancient Persians. Persia was an empire, ruled by an Emperor, and her inhabitants, his subjects; his wish was their command. The city-states of Greece, on the other hand, were mostly republics, inhabited by citizens who had rights and freedoms of their own; if they had a grievance with the way their city-states were being run, they had the option to walk straight into the Assembly and state their problems. Of course, Greece did have the institution of slavery, but so did Persia; but unlike the Persians, the Greeks debated over this institution, with some claiming that not only was it necessary but also natural, while others – most prominently the Stoics – calling it an abomination. Greece was a haven for individuals and citizens, for rights and freedom. If there was a “leader of the free world” during ancient times, it was Greece; if there was a “land of the free” during that time, it was Greece.

3:16 p.m in Houston; 4:16 p.m in Boston.

It is easy, therefore, to understand exactly what was at stake when ten thousand Greek soldiers volunteered – yes; “volunteered” – to defend their nations, their democracy, their freedom, against a tyrannical empire which showed up at the plains of Marathon in the form of a hundred thousand Persian soldiers. Ten thousand citizens against a hundred thousand subjects. Their victory proved, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that Citizens cannot be subjugated subjects; that those who love Freedom will place their lives on the line in order to protect it; and that whenever Liberty is threatened – whoever the foe; whatever the cause – someone will always be there to defend it. Whether it is by defeating an army, or whether it is by rushing to the aid of those who have been wounded by a terrorist attack, someone will always be there. This is what happened at Marathon; this what happened at Lexington; this is what happened in Boston last Monday; and this is what will always happen whenever someone tries to threaten those who love Freedom.

I do not know what motivated the Tsarnaev Brothers to do what they did, but I do know, with no doubts in my mind, that the flames of Liberty can never be extinguished.

It is 3:36 p.m now in Houston, Texas; 4:36 p.m in Boston, Massachusetts; and 11:36 p.m in Athens, Greece. 

Yes, Pheidippides; 

Nenikikamen; 

And we always will.

The Picture Perfect Picture

The last drop of rain has fallen long ago,

But the sun is still eclipsed.

Thunders can still be heard.

And I sit here,

And stare,

Silently out the window.

There’s a drop of rain

Sliding down a wire;

And it’s going to take its time

(All of its time)

To fall.

Cool moving air,

Moving at uncertain speeds,

Towards uncertain directions.

Leftovers:

Didn't make it to the scene,

But now

Gently swaying the branches

Of some nearby trees.

Then there’s a soaking wet crow,

That flew in under a sunshade

Of a building.

Did find a shelter,

But didn't find it in time.

A million year old stone

Being thrown

Right into the center of a puddle

By a group of children

Playing on the spot.

The drop of rain on the wire hasn't fallen yet;

And the sun is still eclipsed;

And I sit here,

And I wonder,
Covered 
By the warm blanket 
Of tranquility.

I have never seen a Picasso,

A Warhol or a van Gogh;

But for all I know,

I did get to see

The picture perfect picture,

And that’s one I saw,

When I stared

Silently out the window.

Rafi Omar
Originally written for my friend Sarika on her birthday.