Dilbert is the best!

Dilbert is my favorite comic. Often times it is the only reason that I even pick up the Daily Universe (well, Dilbert and on Tues. the Police Beat - see Andrea and Adam's recent post of the best of the police beat). The sarcastic commentary on the workplace is awesome! And it always has just the right amount of truth behind it. If you ever happen to glance at the comics, just know that I am probably still chuckling from my daily dose of Dilbert.

Since this one is so hard to see, here is the link. http://www.dilbert.com/strips/comic/2008-10-10/

Prop 8: Beyond Defending Marriage

You all have probably heard the name "Proposition Eight" and know that it has something to do with gay marriage in California. I feel the need to shout from the roof-tops that the definition of marriage is only the tip of the iceberg among the implications Proposition 8 will have if it does not pass. The events in California regarding defining marriage will have a huge impact on the entire nation's freedoms of religion and speech. And court cases in other areas tell us what will happen in our future. For example:

(1) In 2000, 61% of California voters voted to have marriage defined as a union between a man and a woman in Proposition 22. On May 15, 2008, the California Supreme Court violated the wishes of the majority by striking down Proposition 22. They completely ignored 61% of Californians!

(2) In Canada where same-sex marriage is legal, ministers who preach against same-sex marriage can be sued for hate-speech and risk government fines. The situation in Canada foreshadows what very likely might happen in America once same-sex marriage is defined legally. This is a huge blow to both freedom of speech and religion. What if our government begins to try to limit what we can say in General Conference?

(3) In Boston, the Catholic Charities recently closed down its adoption program because the state of Massachusetts insisted that every adoption agency must allow same-sex couples to adopt. Thereafter, an affiliated agency in San Francisco did the same. Will LDS Family Services be forced to close its doors?

(4) A Methodist group in New Jersey lost part of its tax-exempt status because it refused to allow two lesbian couples to use its facility for a civil union ceremony.

(5) In Albuquerque, a wedding photographer was ordered by the state's Human Rights Commission to pay $6,637 to the attorney for a gay couple because she declined to photograph the couple's commitment ceremony. She had explained to them that because of her religious beliefs she photographed only traditional marriages.

(6) Doctors in America can no longer refuse to perform artificial insemination of lesbians even if other doctors are willing to perform the procedure.

(7) In Massachusetts, a 2nd grade class was read a children's story of a King and a King who married each other and were told they could marry either a prince or a princess, and these children's parents were told by the courts they had no right to be informed beforehand if same-sex marriage was going to be taught so they could take their child out of school for that part of the curriculum.

Our rights as citizens of America are being threatened. Freedoms of religion and freedom of speech were the rights our country was founded on, and now our own people are attacking these rights. It may be that soon in the future, you will not be legally allowed to act according to your conscience to choose whether or not to support same-sex marriages. But will this be the end to the limitations on our freedoms in the future? Once a law to be passed, courts almost always support those laws that were made previously by the Supreme Courts, such as California's.

Wars have been fought for our freedoms that are currently being threatened. If I recall, there was a little tea party that started a big war because the people's voices weren't being heard. And the courts in California just did something eerily similar. I feel like the question of defining marriage has the potential to snowball.

Protect our rights. Vote for Proposition 8 if you live in California. Educate yourself and spread the word to everyone, because everyone knows a Californian they could talk to about this to get another vote. Donate to the cause at protectmarriage.com. The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.

A Personality Color Code

For my business writing class we were required to read The People Code which was previously published as The Color Code. The author, Dr. Taylor Hartman, claims that every person on the planet has one of four core motives in life, and by understanding how our core motive can influence our lives, we can understand ourselves and and all types of inter-personal relationships better. The four core motives are power, intimacy, peace, and fun (in an incredibly over-simplified explanation), and each motive corresponds to a color: red, blue, white, and yellow respectively.

I took the test to find out which color I am, and what do you know? I am an completely even split between red and blue. Great. According to the book my even, multiple dominant colors indicate that I have the most inner turmoil of any of the color combinations. Having inner turmoil is like my middle-name, so maybe there is something to this theory! Or maybe I just have a split personality and don't know it :)

The book is interesting mainly because after detailed descriptions of each type of motive force, the ease with which colors are combined, pitfalls in communication between person's of different colors, etc. are addressed. If you read this book, you will forever view inter-personal relationships differently. The information this theory provides can be quite helpful, because I think it is relatively accurate.

But the point is, after reading the book, I can more easily identify other's personality color, and as such, I have developed an intense desire to know if my postulations are correct. So if you've ever taken the test or heard about this theory enough to know what your color is, leave a comment for me. I am dying to know! Also, there is a free online test at http://www.colorcode.com/personality_test/. Copy and paste into your browser, take the quiz, and tell me your results!