Our Little Geekling

I’ve been all wound up for awhile over the books The Zookeeper’s Wife and City of Thieves. World War II discussions just do something to me. A flip switches inside of my head and I get really pissed off, really fast.

In these books there is talk of Jewish men being required to drop their pants in the street to check if they were circumcised. Jews were shot in the street, or people were shot in the street if suspected of being Jews. Jewish people weren’t allowed to get married or have sex. And for everything they did, the Nazis believed they were right. They believed they were following God’s will. They even quoted scripture to back up their goals, aspirations, and genetic cleansing of the world.

And, y’all. I’m pissed off.

I don’t understand how people – LIVING, BREATHING, PEOPLE can be treated like animals. Like RATS. Not even like animals (as many animals are treated very well, indeed, as evidenced by my sweet dogs cuddled up on the couch with me and my cats that sleep on my stomach or legs each night in the big bed), but like VERMIN. And how is this different than how the slaves were treated at the beginning of our country (OR HOW AFRICAN-AMERICANS WERE TREATED IN THE LAST 70 YEARS? OR HOW SOME AFRICAN-AMERICANS ARE STILL TREATED)? How is this different than how Muslims are treated since 9/11? How is this different than how prostitutes and drug addicts are treated now? How is this different than how homosexuals are treated now? People ask why same-sex couples should be allowed to marry and have the audacity to ask what’s next? Next will people be able to marry an animal? Their favorite pet? NO! SAME-SEX COUPLES ARE NOT MADE UP OF DOG AND CAT, THEY ARE MADE UP OF HUMAN PEOPLE THAT HAVE HUMAN RIGHTS AND HUMAN LIBERTIES AND DESERVE RESPECT AND RIGHTS.

I’m pissed off that people were treated that way in the 1940s, in the 1700s, in the 1960s, in the present. I’m pissed off. And I can’t do anything about it. I can vote for people that influence change and I can read the Bible in the way that I read it and I can embrace the LGBTQ people in my life and do everything that I can, but really what is that?

I get that the way the Bible is often interpreted depicts homosexuality as a sin. I get that the way many people are taught these days gives some sort of license to treat others badly. I get that not everyone will agree with me. And I get that not everyone can get past the stigmas of people who are different from them in one way or another (my grandmother still doesn’t approve of African-American people, which frustrates me to no end). But the Bible does NOT give you license to judge others, to condemn them, or to tell them they are wrong. PRAY for your enemies, LOVE your enemies. Where does the Bible say to take away the rights of those with whom you disagree and persecute them until they have nothing?

Anyway.

I”ll step down from my soapbox now. I just want to use my blog to promote my own political agenda. I’m a lobbyist at heart. (Too bad I can’t get paid for it.)

Here, look at a picture of my child.

It should be noted that Jim, my voice of reason, talked me off a ledge and iterated that people interpret the Bible in ways that allow them to persecute others in the same way that their interpretations make me angry. It’s judgment on my part to be pissed off by others. I KNOW. Why does he have to be so moderate? (He’s so great.) He also pointed out that the Bible says Christians will be persecuted. So if I disagree and try to change things, some Christians will take it as persecution that drives them. So that’s something.