A Muslim woman was removed from a Southwest Airlines flight for suspicious behavior, and guess what: believe it or not, it DIDN'T happen in Texas! This actually happened in San Diego, California, when a flight attendant thought he heard her say into her cell phone "it's a go!" Apparently, these are words that flight attendants are taught to listen for, as they could be verification of a terrorist plot. Otherwise, Miss Ginger suspects most flight attendants couldn't be bothered to spend time during boarding (a flight attendant's busiest time) to eavesdrop on passenger's conversations.
The woman pulled the "musliphobic" card and wants a formal apology, and wants to be ensured that the crew will be disciplined.
Not surprisingly, the blog comments on the Houston Chronicle website linking the article are hugely sympathetic to the crew, and not supportive at all of this woman and her plight.
Miss Ginger, not surprisingly, is torn.
In defense of the crew, one can't help but feel like the flight attendant and coworkers must have had a pretty compelling reason to remove the woman from the plane. Asking a person to leave is quite a kerfuffle- it's not like telling someone they have to check an oversized bag. They will have to involve supervisors, fill out reports, placate other passengers who will now be delayed. Miss Ginger can't imagine that it is something a flight crew would take on "on a lark" because they didn't like the looks of someone.
In defense of the moronic blog commenters, the ARE, in fact, Texans, some of the most narrow-minded people on the planet. They were inbred unto it! While their comments were tacky, the one point they had that was valid is that it is better to be safe than sorry.
In defense of the victim, Miss Ginger really doesn't have a lot of defense! She would like to invite her to consider the cause and effect. She said something into a cell phone that caught a flight attendant's attention as a possible threat. The flight crew acted upon it and investigated the matter. It turned out to be a misunderstanding. No one called her names. No one said she couldn't wear her scarf. Throughout the airport building, a repeater constantly announces "inappropriate remarks or jokes may be treated as a danger to the facility".
What's that? You don't want anyone listening to what you say on your cell phone? DON'T TALK ON YOUR CELL PHONE IN PUBLIC!!! Don't want people misjudging you for wearing a headscarf? DON'T WEAR A HEADSCARF!!! Want to make sure your flight leaves on time? SIT DOWN, SHUT UP, FASTEN YOUR SEATBELT, and listen to the safety demo!
As far as her demands that the staff be disciplined: THEY DID NOTHING WRONG!!! No one can prove they acted out of prejudice, malice, or contempt. And, regardless of how they acted, the company has the right to handle the matter internally as they see fit!
And don't even get Miss Ginger STARTED on the whole head scarf thing! As you know, Miss Ginger has no respect for religion! Any religion they tells a woman she has to cover her head with a piece of fabric is about as useful to Miss Ginger as one that tells its followers that anyone who will refuse to accept only one god and denounce all others will go to hell!
Christianity, Buddhist, Muslim- schmuslim! Believe what you want, but please make sure I don't have to look at it! Treat people with dignity and respect, take care of yourself and those you care about, follow the rules for the situation at hand, don't run with scissors, and keep your hands in the car so they won't blow off! This "religion" has served this ole drag queen pretty well for a long, long, (long!) time and it's the only one she needs!! Thank you, Momma G- the one true Goddess!!
Oh, and PS- just for the record: if Miss Ginger had a terrorist plot, and it got foiled, she would be ALL UP in the race card... can you think of a better cover-up? "You only pulled me off this plane because I'm a DRAG QUEEN!! All I have up under this wig is a sammich for later!!"
This Thanksgiving, Miss Ginger gives heartfelt thanks for the many blessings she has received in her life! As you may assume by the somewhat tumultuous state of her faith, she's not exactly sure to whom she gives thanks, but it doesn't really matter! Jeebus, Buddah, and Allah the rest will recognize her appreciation of the gifts she has received!
She is thankful for an abundance of friends, from all faiths, locations, and walk of life! Truly, it is a blessing to come from her humble background and be given the opportunity to appreciate heritage, diversity, and the future that an appreciation for both can promise!
Miss Ginger and Boy G are truly blessed by a loving family who takes this ride called life with her! They didn't ask for a gay brother, but they got one, and it didn't change a thing! Momma G taught that familial love should be unconditional, and Miss G's bubbas have come through with flying colors! They may not love the idea- but they they love me- and that's really all that matters!
Miss G is blessed to have a FABULOUS job with a terrific company that has values behind it's brand and supports them every day! Miss Ginger is inspired to get results, give back, and win with her team every day, and couldn't be prouder to represent a company with values that align with her own!
And mostly, Miss Ginger is thankful for you, dear GingerSnaps! Without you, Miss G is just an oversized dress on a hanger in the closet; a falling red updo on a mangled styrofoam head. But, through your interest, your love, and your support, Miss Ginger comes to life every day-whether or not she tucks her junk, shaves her chest, and paints her face like a rodeo clown!! You bring Miss Ginger to life every day, and she lives to read your comments and follow your posts!
Earlier this week, Miss Ginger pissed off an old family friend so badly that she was "unfriended" on facebook. Not the first or last time that will happen, but that is probably the closest Miss Ginger has ever come to having someone she considers "family" reject her for who she is and what she believes, so she will admit it kinda stung.
Today, Miss G thought of her newest ex-friend when she saw this clip of Pastor Joel Osteen on the View- (ex-friend is a big fan of PaJo!)
Now, let's level the field here:
Miss Ginger is not really a fan of the View. She has a certain respect for Barbara Walters, gained partially by reading her autobiography, Audition. She loved Whoopi Goldberg in Sister Act 1 and 2, so she can't really hate on her. And even though she finds Joy Behar very nasal and annoying, the woman does come up with some funny lines! And she's always quick to defend the gays! I think there are some other women on that show, but they are insignificant to Miss G.
And in the same spirit, Miss Ginger does not particularly hate Joel Osteen. As far as she knows, he lives the pious life he claims to lead. Other than the unfortunate airline stewardess bashing, which was really caused by his trophy wife, Victoria, he has managed to build the worlds largest church without raising a whole lot of scandal. God knows he's been good for Houston- if he hadn't bought Compaq Center to expand his congregation, that relic would probably be suffering the same neglect and decay as the Astrodome. Thanks to Joel and his followers, Greenway Plaza has remained a well-maintained, vibrant part of the city!
But, Miss Ginger digresses- back to the interview.
Joy demonstrates her total lack of professionalism as an interviewer. As a matter of fact, the conversation degrades from an interview to an attack:
Rev. JOEL OSTEEN: Well first off, Barbara, I should finish that sentence. I should make it clear. I don't think it's God's best for your life, I don't think it's not God's best making us. As far as that pastor is concerned, I don't know that individual situation. I think that - I believe the Scriptures teach us that a pastor in leadership like that is not going to stay in a Christian church like ours. But I don't know whether he's, whether he should come out or not. I believe maybe being open -
WALTERS: If he's in a Christian church, should he get out of the Christian church if he's gay?
OSTEEN: You know, I think that's totally up to him. I don't know. I mean, the main thing Barbara, is we are for people. Sometimes we get stuck on -
JOY BEHAR: You know it's not a choice, Pastor. It's not a choice, and therefore I don't think that God would look askance at homosexuality in that way, because it's not a choice. They're born this way, people are born this way. They are what they are.
OSTEEN: Well, I think that's -
BEHAR: And so the Christian church should embrace that notion.
OSTEEN: Well, you know what Joy -
BEHAR: You wouldn't reject somebody that had a deformity.
OSTEEN: Yeah, no I agree.
BEHAR: Or something else.
OSTEEN: Yeah, I think that - (Applause)
BEHAR: I don't mean to say it's a deformity, but there are other things that are embraced.
Osteen doesn't fare much better. He sort of hangs his head and stammers, and just gives in to the whipping. But the he recovers, and eloquently summarizes why Miss Ginger has a hard time with the whole Bible thing!
OSTEEN: But if you came to our church, Joy, you would see people from all walks of life. We don't have a sign at the door no gays, no drunkards, no people on drugs. We're for everybody, we're not against people. So we're helping them to become -
BEHAR: But when you say that the Bible is against gays, that makes people get bullied, and bad things happen to people because of what the people say about that.
OSTEEN: Well, it's -
BEHAR: It's terrible.
OSTEEN: I think the difficulty Joy is we're not for bullying. I mean, if you follow our ministry at all, we're for uplifting people. But there's the Scripture that we can't necessarily change.
And there lies the issue Miss Ginger can't get past: "But there's the Scripture that we can't necessarily change".
So let's get this straight (so to speak): The Bible was written over 2 million years ago in a language no longer spoken, by whom we have no idea. It has been translated, interpreted, simplified, amplified, illuminated, glorified, or otherwise manipulated thousands of times over those years. Yet Osteen is willing to stand behind "scripture" that he knows can cause hatred, bullying, and ostracization! Really?! You feel good about preaching from that book? Scripture that you know has been "interpreted" to oblivion? And you are willing to preach that living your life the way you were born is a sin?
One asstit made the comment: "What if Pedophiles say they were born that way? Does that make it ok?" How crazy is that? Pedophilia is an aggressive act- a crime committed by pathetic bullies who prey upon victims who are innocent and vulnerable! The fact that Miss Asstit would use pedophiia and homosexuality in the same sentence proves her ingnorance. That, and the fact that capitalized "pedophilia" as though it were a religion worth recognition!
Several others got off on this tangent about eating seafood- apparently PaJo doesn't eat shellfish because the bible tells him not to! Two million years ago, when there was no refrigeration, anti-bacterial soap, and Clorox, it probably wasn't a great idea to eat shellfish. Someone ate an oyster and got sick, someone else wrote a psalm about it, and the rest becomes the gospel? It's crazy! Even those crazy Cajuns were smart enough to figure out that it was a sanitary issue, and realized that they would only go to hell if they ate an oyster when there was no "r" in the month!
Miss Ginger is fine with that one- it just leaves more of those luscious bivalves for her!
And finally, someone else got busy speculating about the fabric in Osteen's suits, since apparently blended fibers are an abomination in the bible. Well, all I can say is: Miss Ginger KNOWS where Osteen shops, and she can guarantee that the suits who buys are made of modern blends of wool, rayon, viscose, silk, cotton, and a myriad of other fibers. Not only would a 100% wool suit look like hopsack, he would sweat his balls off in one- assuming Vickie hasn't had them removed already!
Really, the gist of it is this: WHY are christians so damn worried about what other's do?!! The jews don't expect me to light a candelabra in December, as long as I let them leave work early on Rusha Homa! The hindus would prefer I didn't step up bugs, but they are not telling me I will go to hell if I do it! Why do the christians care what the hell I do when I close my bedroom door?! I sure as hell don't care what they do!
Kinda reminds me of a joke Daddy Ginger used to love to tell:
Q: Why is it forbidden for Southern Baptists to fuck standing up?
Right off the bat, my best childhood friend's older sister, an evangelical christian (my description, not hers) chastised me and unfriended me!
Evangelical Sister: Really? That's crude and rude. Not going to have to worry about any of this any more. It's all pretty bad, but the last line is pretty disgusting. I guess that's your point. I'm signing off and you will not have to see my post, which are a love for God and Jesus and a conservative person. All the best.
Next, my dear, dear Nutwood Beth came to my protection (as she is wont to do!) with an extremely supportive, heartfelt, and appreciated comment:
Nutwood Beth: I posted this a while back here on FB, and I stand by my posting of it, and I stand by David's posting of it, and I stand by YOUR posting of it. When the Catholic church continues to cover up the abuse of children, all bets are off. They apparently have no mercy for the children who are abused at the hands of some of their priests; why in holy hell should I show any mercy to the abusive priests or the church that allows them to get away with it?
Now, an old friend from high school chimes in, and kind of skirts around my whole appreciation of the issue, meanwhile stepping in a big pile of dog doo:
Kitten: Sounds like maybe you've had some run-ins with "religious" folks, George. There's a BiG difference between religion and FAITH--I suggest, for your eternal soul's sake, that you investigate the difference! To borrow a phrase from the Bible "we are but a vapor", here today and gone tomorrow--eternity is FOREVER!! Try to look at it this way: sometimes those who talk "religion" to you do it because they love you--and I do love you, George--always have and always will. I will continue to pray for you, too! And to your friend who posted the above response--a lot of people in this country feel the exact same way about the gay lifestyle---don't force it on our kids or down our throats!!!
Kitten's always had my back, God wise, and I've always loved her for it. The gay thing kinda stung, though, but I'm gonna just say she was jabbing back.
Then, another high school friend, who happens to be lesbian, came in with her strong support of Christianity, and all hell broke loose, so to speak! Miss Ginger LOVED it!! To have her little post spark such heartfelt debate made her appreciate the electronic social venues more than she already did!
And it really got Miss Ginger thinking about the point of the whole issue: "faith" vs. "religion". So, she did one of her favorite things when she wants to research a concept: she went to ask.comimages and asked for images of "faith" and "religion". Miss G had an angle for this article, so she selected the following image to represent "faith", although she must admit she sifted through a lot before she came upon it:
She chose this image to represent faith, because the sun and star seem to represent diverse ideologies, and the open hand symbolized an open mind, and an acceptance of all. A "faith" in Miss G's mind is quite personal- each individuals "faith" defines their personal spirituality, and it is as unique as their fingerprint or their DNA! To Miss Ginger, any faith worth following should hold those ideals to be important! Truth be told, most of the images that Miss G had to sift through represented "faith" as christianity, with images of churches, praying hands, nuns, doves, and crosses.
"Religion", on the other hand, means a "ritual observance of faith", or "a set of beliefs governed by a moral code of human affairs". So, religion is godsreich, so to speak. Does anyone appreciate it expressed that way? Miss Ginger thinks not! So, she was quite surprised when she asked for images of "religion" and got many images that in her mind represent "faith"!
To Miss Ginger, this image represent the diversity of faith that makes the world a better place! Yasee, Miss Ginger's primary problem with christianity is it's belief that it is the only true faith, and that all others are blasphemous, unworthy, and hell-bound. Certainly Miss Ginger is no student of theology, but the fact that her christian friends all insist that she must accept christ as her savior or burn in a lake of eternal fire just make her mad!! Miss Ginger simply refuses to worship a "deity" who is so self-centered that all other points of view are considered blasphemous! Miss G knows many Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, and others, and they are lovely people who will follow their faith to an afterlife of their desire and belief! While Miss Ginger certainly hopes to spend her afterlife with her family and loved ones who came before her, she hopes it will be in a place of love and acceptance of all people! Even if the streets are paved in gold and it rains Absolut every day, Miss Ginger simply cannot imagine spending her eternity in a place that only allows people of one specific belief!
What do you think, GingerSnaps? Are you "faithful", "religious", or "none of the above"? Where do you expect to spend YOUR eternity?
Those of you who know Miss Ginger know she will do just about anything to avoid conflict. She loves harmony of opinion and abhors the ruffling of feathers. However, on this momentous day, she has decided to open a can of worms.
She is as thrilled to see America move forward with our new President. Regardless of your opinions of him or his predecessor, I think well all have to admit America is ready for change. This Inauguration will surely go down in history as one of the most watched in American history.
For many, the one low point was Obama's selection of the minister who gave the benediction. And there is my can of worms- why do we even have a benediction? Why does this State occasion even include the words and opinions of some church's religious leader? It has absolutely nothing to do with our country, or our President's ability to lead this country. Our country was founded upon freedom of religion, among others, and I personally don't think it's appropriate to bring religious opines into the process. We should be free to enjoy our Country and State and completely avoid religion, if we so choose!
AND while I've got the can open- why the HELL do we have the President-elect of the United States place his hand upon a Bible when he is sworn in? Many American may not even believe in the Bible, and even the ones that do may not believe in the specific version upon which he (or she) places his (or her) hand!
Wouldn't it make far more sense to have them place their hand upon a copy of the Constitution? I'm not sure about you, but it is far more important for me that the President of the United States of America understand and uphold the constitution that we have all agreed will govern us. Personally, I could care less whether he even reads the Bible, much less swears on it!
