Disqus - Latest Comments for Peter_Allen

Re: California High School Student, 15 Years Old, Gang-Raped for Two Hours While a Crowd Watched

Peter_Allen — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 18:23:30 -0000

Tidbits wrote:

Your reply included the implication that I believe the girl should be held criminally responsible for her own rape. In your words, "The young girl who had the misfortune of being targeted in this atrocity: is she also to be implicated of (sic) the crime committed against her?" That is deeply and personally offensive! An apology is in order. I regret that you haven't the honor to offer one.

I shall assume, then, that your answer to my question would be no. Another thing which we agree upon.

As an aside, what you have quoted from me is, in fact, a question that I posed to you. Were I to have implied, I wouldn't have asked in such a way. I didn't write anything that was misrepresenting you; you read it as if I were. You demand an apology for something I did not do, holding further healthy debates as ransom. It's a rather unfortunate turn of events.

Re: California High School Student, 15 Years Old, Gang-Raped for Two Hours While a Crowd Watched

Peter_Allen — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 00:06:30 -0000

Tidbits wrote:

Here is the exact quote from my comment, copied and pasted to avoid any typos, "We are all implicated in what has become of our culture."

Read it!! Do I anywhere say that we are responsible for the individual criminal act?

Tidbits, you will find that I am actually a quite caring person. Perhaps a bit different than the person I may come across on some random (though quite well-written) news blog. I've helped raise children, tried to mend hearts and bodies, and ache when someone is in pain. This, and other similar stories, do not exactly bring peace to my mind. On this, we are in agreement.

However, please do not read this as anger, but simple emphasis. My culture is not in line with mainstream America. My culture is not willing to accept blame for something it did not create nor condone. My culture has nothing to do with the culture of those that attacked that young girl. I was not raised to be like them. I do not associate with people like them. I will not raise others to be like them. Therefore, I will not be associated with them in any shape or form.

This is, unfortunately yet understandably, a heated topic for conversation. In the realm of letters, it's easy to assume one's tone in speech - even when such a tone doesn't exist at all. When there comes time for me to apologize for something that I have done in error, I shall. However, even in re-reading my response to you, I find it still holds its own weight to your original statement.

Perhaps the best course of action is to agree to disagree on each other's notion of culture. After all, if we take out that aspect, we both agree that the act was an atrocity, that the police should do all that they can, that we hope the victim can heal in some way in the future, and that we would never wish something like this on anyone. I would hope, in the future, that we focus on all those agreements rather than that one disagreement, eh? :)

Re: California High School Student, 15 Years Old, Gang-Raped for Two Hours While a Crowd Watched

Peter_Allen — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 23:00:22 -0000

kathy wrote:

but to suggest that a gang rape egged on by mob violence has no larger cultural, political, or sociological implications, beyond the individual acts involved, is just abject nonsense.

The country is quite a large place. Full of many, many different people. Surely you do not seem to suggest that, to a one, they in some way support this type of behaviour?

Life is full of outliers. So, too, is society. Sometimes, those outliers work for the betterment of humanity; others work specifically against. Luckily, the bell curve of applied ethics agrees with those of us who are angered by the latter. Perhaps, then, it is not the outlier that speaks for an entire culture, but instead the reaction it creates.

Re: California High School Student, 15 Years Old, Gang-Raped for Two Hours While a Crowd Watched

Peter_Allen — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 22:50:58 -0000

Tidbits wrote:

How dare you excuse anyone as being "in no way implicated"? We are all implicated in what has become of our culture.

Because he is correct: those who were not at the scene are not guilty of the crimes committed therein. Those who have no contact with or knowledge of any of the perpetrators are not guilty by association. To reason other is unwise.

But, for a moment, let us walk that path. The young girl who had the misfortune of being targeted in this atrocity: is she also to be implicated of the crime committed against her? Perhaps the person that called the police should be brought in for trial. Maybe the police themselves. After all, they are a part of the society which allowed for the environment of her attack to exist.

No, of course not. I feel sorrow for the victim, and much anger at the attackers. But I do not feel guilt at something to which I not only had no idea was going to occur, but would have tried to stop to the best of my ability. And no amount of reasoning nor hypothesizing will achieve that.

DLS and I may be cold-hearted bastards, to you, for thinking along those lines... but, you know. Too bad :).

Re: “Sexing Up Halloween”

Peter_Allen — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 23:34:02 -0000

Mark wrote:

Our absorption with things sexual seems disproportionately obsessive to me.

Humans are social, sexual creatures. We can survive without society, without sex, but it is not part of our natural makeup. Further, history has shown that if a society tries to impart a stigma of some fashion on that which is human nature, members of society will, in time, overturn that stigma. If some make a buck or two without harming others, then no harm has truly been done.

Now, as far as "hypersexualization" is concerned, I'm of the firm opinion that there's more hyperventilating than anything else. As Leonidas mentioned, we are one of the more prude nations of the world. Other nations have (again, my opinion) rightfully come to the conclusion that more open expressions of sexuality are not only normal, but healthy for their citizenry. Why create a taboo on a subject for which we are supposed to be proud?

I wager that, for every woman that is said to "dress too scantily" for Halloween, even more examples can be made of women who don't believe that they are beautiful. These women (and, correspondingly, men) use the "excuse" of Halloween to boost their confidence. Why dissuade them? Sure, it could be argued that they can gain confidence other ways. But even David through parties in the streets. After all, humans were also given the capacity for fun and laughter.

To be fair, I think that one of the sexiest things a woman can wear is a properly fitted sweater and jeans. But that's my heterosexual male mind just doing what it does best :D.

Re: Apple Denied Health Care App Over Politics

Peter_Allen — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 23:43:02 -0000

Gadgets should, unless subsidized, be open to running whatever software will work with their operating system and hardware. If PCs are able to run iTunes and play music from the Apple store, then any other hardware that can achieve the same functionality should be allowed as well. A loose analogy would be like trying to restrict mopeds from being able to use the gasoline from a certain station, even though cars and trucks were freely allowed to purchase.

Personally, I would be highly surprised if the app store for Apple remains under such stringent approval processes for extended periods of time.

Re: If Texting Ban Comes, Truckers Want an Exception

Peter_Allen — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 01:29:26 -0000

I don't believe that all cell phone usage should be banned while driving. Used properly (speaker phone or headset), cell phones have about as much distraction as chatting to a passenger. I will grant that some drivers are more prone to accidents during both than others.

I rarely text while driving (a quick, "on my way," while at a red light or such), but would welcome a ban on the practice. Then again, I would also welcome a ban on teenagers driving anything that goes over 35 mph, but that's me :).

Re: Obama Calls Kenya A ‘Jackass’

Peter_Allen — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 22:50:13 -0000

If anything, this "slip" is going to help the President's image aside from a few areas of the public. No real harm done, and nothing that they have to apologize for. If he does, in fact, apologize for use of that language, then we've gotten way to politically-correct than needed.

Re: Biopic on Charles Darwin Is Shunned By U.S. Distributors

Peter_Allen — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 08:44:21 -0000

Austin wrote:

If you are implying it was a book by Glenn Beck, wrong answer!

I was stating, not implying. Glenn Beck currently holds the #1 spot for paperback non-fiction. Michelle Malkin holds the #1 spot for hardcover non-fiction. If it is not these two, then which non-fiction might it be?

By the way, I don't accept books of mythology as non-fiction. As such, the Christian Bible, Koran, Tanakh, Sruti, or a dozen others don't apply.

Re: Biopic on Charles Darwin Is Shunned By U.S. Distributors

Peter_Allen — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 01:33:38 -0000

Austin wrote:

How else do you explain almost no mention ANYWHERE except in very right-leaning places of the top-selling non-fiction book of 2009 (by a HUGE margin), which has spent an amazing 19 weeks as the New York Times #1 best selling non-fiction book?

Mostly in jest: does this mean that the New York Times will lose the "leftist" halo that those on the right bestowed it? :)

I also noticed the asterisk the NYT gave to denote the bulk sales which were counted in the tally for Glenn Beck's book. Mind you, I'm not going to fly off the handle as others do to decry all sales as coming from these. Rather, I'm instead intrigued: what is the percentage of bulk to individual? what is the definition of bulk? why by through booksellers at bulk and not the distributor? These valid questions would be asked of any author, due to that little sidenote that they put on it :).

I tend not to agree with the man's more extreme viewpoints, but kudos to him on the sales.

Re: The American Taliban Is Coming to Florida

Peter_Allen — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 23:06:26 -0000

Gegenschattenbild wrote:

Unless maybe you're someone who works at an abortion clinic.

I agree and yet I disagree. Those who protest peacefully are not one and the same with those who act violently and take life. There are extremely significant differences in the mindsets between the two.

I'll go one step further, in saying that abortion-clinic murderers are still not of the same ilk as the Taliban: they do not disagree with over 75% of the modern American mindset. Yes, they are still murderers and thus wrong, but the focus of one who murders over abortion is different than one who murders over ethnicity or even levels of education.

I have to take a moment to explain that, for few things in life am I adamant about one's usage of labels or words in politics; it is what it is, and hyperboles abound. However, throwing around the mark of "Taliban" (as with other labels) dilutes the real issue while exaggerating the lesser one being discussed. It is because of this that I can't accept a mixing of the two.

Re: The American Taliban Is Coming to Florida

Peter_Allen — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 23:53:18 -0000

Ah, but the difference between this group and the Taliban: I don't have to worry about being at the opposite side of a gun in expressing my dissent from their views.

Re: The Permission Slip Of The Silly (Well Not To Some) Times

Peter_Allen — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 18:37:13 -0000

I wish that I needed a permission slip when younger, for having my parents force me to watch most State of the Union addresses - and that was after school, in the safety of my own home. I would have loved, at that point, to have been able to skip the political science lesson and focus more on my own interests. For me, the President was just a stodgy old guy talking to other stodgy old people who clapped every now and then.

Now that I'm a little closer in age to that "old guy," and directly due to my having watched so many speeches that I didn't want to, I have a much better appreciation for what's going on in my country, and its government. It also taught me a valuable lesson: I may not agree with what your speech says, but I'd be a damned bit better off hearing it and scowling than smiling as I pretended it never happened. Ignorance may be bliss, but intentional stupidity is just plain... stupid.

Re: 19 Kids And Counting (How High ?)

Peter_Allen — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:17:10 -0000

DLS wrote:

The celebrity or tabloid aspect of it is what is disgusting, as well as the whiff of anti-children radicalism here.

Far from it, actually. I adore children; that doesn't mean that I want to try to repopulate the earth within two family generations. Moderation. It's a good thing.

Re: 19 Kids And Counting (How High ?)

Peter_Allen — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 00:42:51 -0000

Having a few more kids than the average seems fine, to me. Having a few more ~times~ the average? It's a wee bit much.

As someone who might some day be a parent, cost factors alone come into that decision: medical, education, clothing. Add in the emotional contributions, and I just don't see how I would be able to "give my all" to that many of my own children at once.

Re: BREAKING: Lutherans votes to Allow Gay Clergy

Peter_Allen — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 20:26:42 -0000

Good on them. Undoubtedly news which we'll hear about on Prairie Home Companion.

Re: More Evidence of GOP-Style “Bipartisanship”

Peter_Allen — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 07:02:24 -0000

Leonidas, I would agree with this sentiment. I would even go one step further, in stating that I would be willing to pay more taxes if my lifestyle choices required a government-funded health care option to have to pay more for correcting those choices.

Re: More Evidence of GOP-Style “Bipartisanship”

Peter_Allen — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 22:23:35 -0000

A suggestion for the on-going discussion, if I may (which, by the way, is unfolding quite nicely here). In trying to see the forest for the trees, perhaps overall questions should be answered before details are meshed out. That said, is there agreement on whether or not each and every American citizens should be eligible for some sort of basic health coverage? In addition, what is your idea of basic health coverage, so that the answer can be taken in context?

Re: Things really haven’t changed…

Peter_Allen — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 14:48:06 -0000

DLS's politicizing attempts aside, the four websites which were on display in the original post are more indicative of the way tools have changed in journalism than journalism itself. An investigative journalist - whether they be considered professional or amateur - is now able to more easily gather information on a given subject than ever before. I've used at least two of those sites, myself, to find new information on current topics.

Perhaps this, more than anything, is where journalism is changing once more. Before the Associated Press and other conglomerates, local news would allow for independent reporters or citizens to investigate stories. The editor's job remained somewhat the same as now: verifying the information present. Over time, the staff reporter was all that was allowed in the paper. Now, however, that scheme isn't held as acceptable by a growing number of readership. For that matter, the same can be said true for viewership of the last journalistic trend: television.

Re: Holding Firm on the Public Option

Peter_Allen — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 09:51:56 -0000

superdestroyer wrote:

Why should someone who gets up and goes to work have exactly the same healthcare benefits as those of the welfare class, illegal aliens, and those who refuse to work?

These are important questions. So, too, is the question as to why someone who works 3 jobs cannot have health care benefits at all? Or, perhaps someone who works 1 job, salaried at 50 hrs/wk, for a small employer who can't afford to provide health care? What about children, who aren't eligible to work?

Examples can easily be made on the extremes of issues, like health care, on why reform is a good or a bad thing. However, somewhere in the middle is a much more agreeable area than what is touted by the vocal minorities on each side.

Re: New York’s Big Gay Ice Cream Truck

Peter_Allen — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 11:40:12 -0000

Paraphrasing one of my friends at a park, "Don't you think that selling cornsticks to kids should be outlawed? It's entirely too suggestive. Not to mention all the other foods they sell here."

Mind you, he said this sarcastically, as just about anything can be taken any which way the observer chooses. Shall we discuss Barbies, or Teletubbies, or what about fountain pens? Water slide parks, hot dogs, summer squash?

Of course not. Let it go, Silhouette. There are other, more important issues that children face in their lives that we can change, right now. The name of an ice cream truck really isn't one of them.

Re: APA Reports: Sexual Orientation Cannot Be Changed

Peter_Allen — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 23:01:49 -0000

I've had various ex-girlfriends tell me that I might have one psychological disorder or the other, depending on what mood strikes their fancy. Secretly, I harbour thoughts that my attraction to such women might be the disorder itself, hiding in plain sight. Of course, no one has tried to stopped me being attracted to them. Maybe I'm not trying hard enough.

Re: A Time To Play, A Time To Shut Up

Peter_Allen — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 14:44:43 -0000

Jeremy wrote:

If you doubt my wisdom, try challenging your drill instructor, run a red light in view of a police car or fail to file your income tax returns. Life isn’t always fair on you terms.

...all circumstances that have little to do with a graduation ceremony. You can bet that, were I to blow a kiss at my mother and be deemed ineligible for graduation due to it, my mother and father (who are divorced), extended family, and half of the school would have been in an uproar over the incident. Will it now be considered indecent to wink at the crowd, as it, too, is an unplanned gesture?

During my eighth-grade graduation ceremony, we were also given a set of rules. One of those was to wear a suit and tie (for the boys). I obliged - with a black suit and hawaiian-themed tie. The principal, unamused, could do nothing. If it were not for the conversations that she had previously had with my (and other) parents over the rules of conduct, I'm sure that she would have held onto that diploma tighter. But, unlike Mr.s Lukas it seems, she knew how to act like an adult and take it in stride.

Re: Twitterverse Tries To Confuse Iranian Censors

Peter_Allen — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 19:09:29 -0000

CS: Free speech doesn't mean that the library or auditorium will be available any time that you want to use it. It simply means that you can complain about it to the closed sign on the door instead of inside the building.

If what you have to say has any merit to it, I'm fairly certain that you'll find another avenue to express it should one of several not be available to you at the time. Otherwise, it really wasn't that pressing.

Re: Some Thoughts on Gay Marriage and DOMA

Peter_Allen — Sat, 02 May 2009 23:41:57 -0000

Silhouette began with:

Add that to the fact that gay culture factually seeks to recruit [see my post above discussing gay events thrown and advertised towards "bi-curious" youth],

Actually, it can easily be demonstrated how homosexual culture "factually seeks to recruit" as well. Boiled down to the similar thread that weaves between the two, humanity's sex drive seeks to recruit. After all, regardless of the target to our desires nor the reasoning behind them, they are (quite simply) desires. In order to achieve the goals that most sex drives exhibit, you have to recruit someone, somewhere :).

The above was concluded via:

you have a problem with how deviant marriage being mainstreamed will affect future populations.

It's in humanity's better interest to stop the exponential population growth that it's currently experiencing, given the continual strain on food and other resources. This is not to say that a reduction in numbers is preferred, mind you, simply that not all marriages require offspring these days in order to maintain the human race's survival. This is already seen in heterosexual marriages, where procreation is not deemed necessary. On the other hand, there are multiple instances where gay, lesbian, polyamory, or other relationships do produce children.

In other words, the population seems to be handling itself quite well these days.