ChicagoProud’s Neighborhood

Prego

The story of Thomas Beattie aka The First Pregnant Man has really been overblown. This is very deceptive at first the way ABC and other literature first portrays this case. Congratulations to the Beaties but there is nothing spectacular about this case. Thomas is a female to male trangendered man now he still has his female reprodcutive organs. His pregnancy really is no different than any non-transgendered females pregnancy. I have no problems or issues with this type of family having a child or this type of person giving birth to a child but lets quit making a big deal out of nothing. It is not a miracle of science or nature and I feel like the media is mislabeling the case to rope people in. I actually feel sorry for this family that they would allow the media to use them in this way. Media Empire, come back to me when you have an actual non-reassigned pregnant male that has never had female reproductive organs and has undergone some succesfull form of artificial pregnancy that takes and subsequently the result is a healthy birth.

RedAlert

The Centers for Disease Control has issued a medical alert about a Highly contagious, potentially dangerous virus that is transmitted orally, by hand, and even electronically. This virus is called Weary Overload Recreational Killer (WORK). If you receive WORK from your boss, any of your colleagues or anyone else via any means whatsoever - DO NOT TOUCH IT. This virus will wipe out your private life completely. If you should come into contact with WORK you should immediately leave the premises. Take two good friends to the nearest grocery store and purchase one or both of the antidotes - Work Isolating Neutralizer Extract (WINE) and Bothersome Employer Elimination Rebooter (BEER). Take the antidote repeatedly until WORK has been completely eliminated from your system. You should immediately forward this medical alert to five friends. If you do not have five friends, you have already been infected and WORK is controlling your life.

Beggar

Now I choose to live in the big city, Chicago, and it is expected to walk down the street and be hassled by street beggars. The issue I have is with businesses that allow these vagrants to remain at their doorways or better yet in their establishments. I frequented one of my favorite movie theaters, actually in Evanston, IL, to take in "The Dark Knight" and once again have to walk past the Rastafarian beggar that remains eternally at the doorway to the theater entrance, at times even opening the doors for patrons. I am not sure why businesses let this element stand right at their entrances and hassle people for their extra change. I don't know about you but in these days and times there is no such thing as extra change. No there there has always been and always will be homeless beggars in society but I feel it is the responsibility of business owners or managers to keep this out of their doorways and from bothering their patrons. I like this theater but I am almost to the point of not going there any more because I do not feel like being hit up at the entrance for my extra change. Business owners take control and put your foot down.

On the way to Evanston to see the"Dark Knight" movie with Joe and Tony. The weather sure is dreary. That's Tony at the very far end of the platform being a loner.

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SchoolVouchers

The basic principal of school vouchers to subsidise private school education for families at first sounds like a good idea. The problems to me with this is that it will be a very expensive cost for the government to undertake and the long term benefit of this may actually have a more harmfull effect on both public and private schools. My fear if these vouchers came to fruition it would cause a ripple effect that would water down the benefit of private schools providing better education and being in control of disruptive students that so plague the public school system. The more of the same students that have brought down the public school system will infiltrate the private school setting and eventually the private setting will be what today's public school setting is like today. I would also fear that the voucher system would only furthermore decrease the already lacking quality of education and lack of control of the students that currently exists in the public school setting. If the government is willing to put extra funds towards a voucher system dies that mean they take more money out of the public school coffers? That would be devistating. I say more focus should be in making the administrators and teachers of the public school systems accountable all the while by being more supportive of their ability to take control over disruptive element. This is not something that you would have to pump a lot of money into to change the tide, it is a change in attitude and climate in the public school system. I say change the atmosphere of accountability and not the system structure because if you don't change what is acceptable or not acceptable with the current structure the same problems would only spread even further in a new structure.

Hamburgueso

One of the main supporting arguments pro-illegal immigrant supporters continue to rant is that the jobs that these illegal immigrant workers are doing are jobs that Americans will not want to do. There is on factor that never is brought into this conversation, the untapped young adult and elder American workforce available. I have a 17 year old son that has been trying to get a part time job during school or full time job during the summer break for over a year now. It is not like he is going out and trying to be picky about what kind of job he would do. He has gone from chain stores to mom and pops, from restaurants to shoe stores, from dollar stores to department stores. The fact is the service industries are oversaturated with non U.S. citizens. I say the government should protect it's youth and elder workers before it spends so little energy trying to protect non-citizens. The infusion of younger and elder workers from this country can only have positive benefit for this country. Take the following examples for instance:

-  Give the elderly a sense of still being a usefull asset. It is very common for the elderly to no longer feel that they can add value to society and the number of clinically diagnosed elders with depression is increasing as the baby boomers are reaching and passing retirement age.

- It can teach the young adults/high school aged workers responsibility. Help teach them how to take direction from someone other than their parents. Also help them to learn financial responsibility.

- The increase of these workers in the work force would also help add to paying into the Social Security System. Could you imagine if even only 25% of young adult workers and 25% of elderly workers replaced positions held by illegal immigrants the effect on the Social Security system. To think the elderly workers could actually be working and paying back into the benefits that they are already receiving.

The fact of the matter is you never hear any politician or pundit bring up the issue of the young worker and the elderly worker bring up the issue that it is so difficult for these workers to get a job in the U.S., especially in large cities like Chicago where we live. The argument that if these illegal workers weren't doing these so called undesireable jobs the U.S. would be in trouble and lost is just another scare tactic by spineless panderers and politicians that are to weak to make some tough decisions to protect the citizens, especially the young and elderly, of this country.

Shame on you. Grow a spine and make some tough decisions. That is what you were elected to do.

In honour of Bastille Day, show us something French.

I know it was yesterday, but this was too good to miss...

So I had a fairly interesting dream last nite. Now before I detail it let me say that my dreams (or at least what I remember of them) are rarely linear in nature.

It started with me in the desert just wandering around.

Then I was runnin thru the sand on my way to try and find somebody (in particular)

As I got out of the desert area I arrived at a poolside type setting full of super hot guys. I was still frantically searching for this one person but he was nowhere to be seen.  Now all of these guys were crowding around the pool (which was drained of water btw) and getting in my way. Like they were pushing me into the center of them and preventing me from continuing my search for the guy I was lookin for.

Well I pushed my way out of there and before I knew it I was in a more street type setting. The streets were empty though. There was no-one around; anywhere. Still I could not find him.... As I going from one empty intersection to another my brand new phone rang. I looked at my phone and it was him!!! I remember feeling complete elation  when I saw his picture on my caller ID. So I answer the phone and we talked for just a moment about this and that. I explained everything i had gone through to contact him that day. He seemed touched. Then I told him I loved him and wanted/needed to see him; but I had some doubts about us..... him specifically.

All of a sudden he hung up. I was overcome with the notion I just lost him forever. 

I woke up crying.

 I'm dreaming of sleeping next to you
I'm feeling like a lost little boy in a brand new town.
I'm counting my sheep and each one that passes is another dream to ashes
and they all fall down.
And as I lay me down tonight,
I close my eyes, what a beautiful sight.

Sleeping to dream about you
and I'm so damn tired.
Of havin' to live without you
But I don't mind.
I'm sleeping to dream about you and I'm so tired.
Oh, yes I am...

I found myself in the riches
(Your eyes, your lips, your hair.)
And you were everywhere.
Well I woke up in the ditches.
I hit the light and I thought you might be here
But you were nowhere. (You were nowhere)
Oh love, you were nowhere at home.
As I lay me back to sleep, 
This love I pray that I can Keep.

Sleeping to dream about you
and I'm so damn tired.
Of having to live without you
But I don't mind.
Sleeping to dream about you and I'm so tired.

(Just a little lullaby to keep myself from crying myself to sleep at night.

Once I dry my eyes Ill close .......

Sleeping to dream about you
and I'm so damn tired.
Of having to live without you
But I don't mind.
Sleeping to dream about you and I'm so tired.

I read this poem the other day that made me think of one of my favorite quotes. Here it is:

"The truth is generally seen, rarely heard"

~Balthasar Gracian~