tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40391557767707059592024-02-01T23:01:21.226-08:00E.J. OakLoreE.J. OakLorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11631094636814170106noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039155776770705959.post-1870222246284948752019-04-10T07:57:00.001-07:002019-04-16T12:57:05.096-07:00First novel: Chantry of the Hierophim <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Most people who know me, know that I've been working on a number of novel ideas over the years. Some have coalesced more than others. I've been working on this particular one for about two years. I've now made enough progress on it that I can announce this work will be my first publishing effort in the realm of fantasy fiction.</div><br />
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Please enjoy this excerpt from <i>Chantry of the Hierophim </i>(Copyright © 2019, E.J. OakLore, all rights reserved):</div><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">Hours later, Manu and I were still pouring
over books, journals, and loose scrolls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Having found nothing helpful so
far, we had moved our search from the parlor to the study, where the rarest and
a great many unmarked volumes were kept.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“Ugh,” I said, resting my head against a
bookshelf.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“There must be a thousand unmarked
books here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How are we ever going to
find what we’re looking for in time ... assuming it’s even here?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“There’s only one way I know of,” Manu said.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“What’s that?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“Keep doing what you’re doing,” he said with
a smile, glancing my way.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">Though I sighed heavily I was smiling inwardly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I couldn’t help it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was the effect of <u>his</u> smile that
did it to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Manu and I had known each
other for many years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In all that time I
never really thought I’d have a chance with him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was
so ... magnificent ... so talented ... so good-looking ... so intelligent!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dare I admit I have always had a crush on him?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I never acted on it, for I always felt I
knew where I stood with him, which was nowhere apart from a plutonic
acquaintance ... or friend, maybe?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Certainly
not a romantic interest, though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No, his
attentions would certainly be drawn by a more spectacular specimen than me ...
certainly a more <u>magickal</u> one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet in the past day or so ... I find myself
wondering, is he sending me signals?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He couldn’t actually be <u>interested</u> in
me, <u>could</u> he?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I shook it off for the moment and pushed away
from the bookshelf, resuming my search.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">As I flipped through yet another volume
written in yet another language I could not understand, I heard a familiar
shuffling behind me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I turned to see Seamus there, shuffling into
the room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His eyes were glazed over, almost zombie-like.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’d
never seen him quite that ... blank.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m guessing he must have just woken up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“We
haven’t found anything useful yet, Seamus,” I said, turning back to books.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Can I
get you something?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Coffee?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tea?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Something to eat?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">Seamus did not respond.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
seemed to be standing still for the moment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps he was thinking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or
perhaps he was disoriented.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">I turned around just in time to see Seamus
produce a kitchen knife from his robe and lunge at Manu.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“MANU!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>LOOKOUT!” I shouted, as I dove to grab Seamus’ arm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Seamus
and I tumbled to the floor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had the
arm he was holding the knife with in a death grip.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Suddenly, with the other arm, Seamus took
hold of my throat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I looked into his
eyes ... and I saw ... pure evil!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“GARETH!”
I shouted with what breath I had left.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Get
out of him you MONSTER!” It was of no use.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Seamus--or Gareth--tightened his grip on my throat, and was able to
bring his other arm closer to threaten my face with the knife.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With
my other arm I began to lift him by the collar of his robe and slam him back to
floor as I brought my knee up and planted it on his pelvis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Seamus!” I called, struggling for breath,
“You’ve got to fight him!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Get him out of
your head!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can do it!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“Foolish cowan!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You will never know magick!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You will never be worthy of Lilly’s legacy!” Gareth
rasped.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“Neither will you!” I managed to say, rage
building up inside me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With a sudden rush of adrenalin, I twisted his
wrist effectively causing him to drop the knife.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With
my other hand I grabbed his other wrist--the one at my throat--sank my fingers
in and twisted as hard as I could.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Before I knew it, I had both his hands pinned
beside his head, and the rest of him pinned with my legs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">Manu, ever one for perfect timing, had been
knocked off his feet and, I assume, temporarily incapacitated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At last regaining his faculties, he rushed
over to us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He sat up on his haunches,
extended his hand over Seamus’ head and began chanting something in ... I don’t
know ... Latin?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">Gareth shook Seamus’ head violently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“NOOOO!” he howled.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">Manu kept chanting, undaunted.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“I...” Gareth said, struggling hard against
whatever Manu was doing to him, “...will kill...” * huff * puff * “...you all!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“Always good to know where you stand with
people,” I said, bobbing my head with a wink and a smile.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">Manu kept chanting, and suddenly Seamus
passed out.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“Is he free?” I asked.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“He’s free,” Manu said, breathing heavily.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“I thought we were safe from this sort of
thing here?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“Evidently,” Manu said, wincing and short of
breath, “Gareth has found a way around Seamus’ wards.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“Then, we have to find a way to reinforce
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And quickly!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">Manu took a labored deep breath and let it
out slowly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Agreed,” he said, his upper
body swaying from side-to-side.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“Manu?” I said, worried.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">He went side-to-side one more time, then,
head down, he went forward, unconscious, landing on Seamus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“MANU!” I shouted, shaking him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Worry
turned to horror, and the horror tore through me as I noticed the blood pouring
from his back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Seamus’ blade had found purchase!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />E.J. OakLorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11631094636814170106noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039155776770705959.post-39638379389966170602016-12-20T10:50:00.001-08:002019-04-08T13:51:05.971-07:00An important holiday message about pet adoption<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/38czs-2ajFg/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/38czs-2ajFg?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
<br />E.J. OakLorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11631094636814170106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039155776770705959.post-83174725296449573332016-06-17T07:50:00.003-07:002016-06-17T07:50:53.671-07:00Huffington Post debut: "The fight for our national character"<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
I am tremendously excited that my writing career has just been taken to the next level. A couple of weeks ago I <a href="http://www.ejhaley.com/2016/05/theres-windup-and-heres-pitch.html" target="_blank">mentioned in this blog having pitched an article to a major international news outlet</a>. I am happy to announce that yesterday I was officially invited to write for <i>The Huffington Post</i>. My debut article, "<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/the-fight-for-our-national-character-how-four-days_us_5762f9aae4b057ac661b95be" target="_blank">The fight for our national character</a>", is a critical examination of the response of social media to President Obama's Memorial Day weekend trip to Hiroshima, looking at it as a microcosm of the larger war of ideals being waged in America.</div>E.J. OakLorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11631094636814170106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039155776770705959.post-52233916519921256062016-06-08T07:17:00.000-07:002016-06-08T07:28:38.510-07:00Guest Post: An open letter to Bernie Sanders<div style="font-family: "cambria"; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold;">
By <a href="https://www.facebook.com/HeatherHewitt" target="_blank">Heather Hewitt Chowdhury</a></div>
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<img border="0" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSO4wzmPj9TQDxN2B0vzwDQLyVjehwa8OdOu1jzOlvUAPEoVdQBWy9bf9uHl51kYcw5XPBjTNc5vOTZthjR104-uMObruw9VpWmRmGAQ-_EpqJ2r0l8j6ewGYymL3lFJR4ftYB55Puwv8/s400/Bernie+Sanders+1.jpg" width="400" /></div>
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Dear Bernie,</div>
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I know, man. It sucks. I get it, believe me. I was really holding out hope that you would somehow just slay all the polls yesterday. But I guess this country just isn't ready for you yet, like it arguably wasn't ready for a woman yet, eight years ago.* Progress is slow. Still, you did a fantastic job at getting people motivated and getting some more folks thinking about what is wrong with this country. That being said, there is a larger threat now, and we need to unite against it.</div>
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At best, Trump would make us the laughingstock of the civilized world (he already kind of has, but we can still be redeemed, at this point), and at worst, and perhaps most likely, he will destroy us as a country. It's like he forgot that the word "United" is even in the name of this place. But you haven't.</div>
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We need to unite now, Bernie. Our country depends on it.</div>
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You ran an amazing campaign, and you went from being virtually unknown to becoming as much of a household name as the other two candidates left in this race. But there's no way to win it now, Bernie. Others were saying this prematurely, but now I think most of us will agree on this point. I'm sorry.</div>
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I understand wanting to take it to the convention, believe me. I'm one of those people who always has to have the last word in an argument, too. And I'm stubborn as hell, especially when I know that I'm right. So I'm asking you, as one passionate, hard-headed person to another, please think about the greater good, now. (And, if that's not enough, consider the looming evil.)</div>
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Love,</div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Heather</div>
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* While I personally think Obama was the better candidate (in 2008), I am sure there were people who just didn't want to vote for a woman.</div>
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Editor’s note: <i><a href="https://www.facebook.com/HeatherHewitt" target="_blank">Heather Hewitt Chowdhury</a> is an actor, singer, freelance editor, and works professionally promoting the safety and well-being of vulnerable persons. This open letter to Bernie Sanders was originally posted on her Facebook page. My sincere thanks for her gracious permission to publish it here. The decision to publish this letter here should not be taken as an indictment of the "Bernie or Bust" movement, nor should it be understood as inviting criticism of those who continue to support Bernie's candidacy. Rather, I felt it presented a thoughtful and well-stated alternative point of view.</i></div>E.J. OakLorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11631094636814170106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039155776770705959.post-20063826894134668922016-06-04T12:11:00.000-07:002016-06-08T22:39:20.368-07:00Celebrating LGBT Pride Month<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center; text-indent: 0.25in;">
<img align="right" border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0vCcGfdPZGaq0kPB3q9FgaGIxqGCNzf1yqlp7l6RmW9hYBYUrJ5xCxsxzisakuaw91DY7wgO1kW27suEoQGuGi9zdk6fwKuLvjYB4uKUB_u_2raDfivR66q4I-GuRueb0i6vlyATPV2Y/s200/pride+flag+supreme+court.jpg" style="margin-bottom: 20px; margin-left: 20px;" width="133" /></div>
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Ah, June – also known as LGBT Pride Month. It's the time of year when that most iconic LGBT sigil – the rainbow flag – becomes the central motif of our summer celebrations. It decorates our homes, our businesses, our cars, our bodies, hell, even our pets!</div>
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A friend of mine once remarked of me that for a “relatively straight-acting gay man” (don't even get me started on <i>that</i> blatantly oxymoronic turn-of-phrase) I had more rainbow-clad gear than anyone he knew.</div>
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I've never understood how displaying pride gear engenders the expectation of other stereotypical behavior, but, whatever.</div>
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For my part, I think it's just about wanting to make the world around me as colorful as the one inside my head.</div>
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I have never been too much the flamboyant type. ...Okay, that's a lie – a giant, blatant, big, buggering falsehood! In truth, when I first came out of the closet back in 1997, I came <i>crashing </i>out! I must have embraced every stereotype out there: the effeminate behavior, the "swish", the catty attitude, the fashion sense, hell, I even did drag – and I was pretty damn good at it, too, I don't mind telling you!</div>
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As I got older and became a somewhat more spiritually-focused person, I grew out of most that. ...Oh I still fit into the gay stereotype in a lot of ways, they're just less obvious now. Having said that, even still, it is freakin' <i>hilarious </i>to me when someone, such as a co-worker or outside observer, is surprised to learn about my orientation.</div><br />
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Some thoughts about self-hating gays</div><br />
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A few years ago, during my now infamous and mercifully brief foray into restaurant management, a co-worker – indeed a very <span style="text-indent: 0.25in;"><i>lesbian</i> co-worker – told me the rainbow button I wore on my hat “bothered” her. “It’s hard enough for gay people to get ahead in this world,” she told me. “It’s even worse in small town, rural upstate New York. I think it is unprofessional be so ‘out there’ with our sexuality in the work place. It places us at a disadvantage because of people’s unspoken prejudices.”</span></div>
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Never mind that this little nugget of wisdom, fully soaked in her own self-righteousness, comes from the mind of a woman who openly admits contempt for the LGBT community, which, in my humble opinion makes her the worst kind of gay person: a self-hating one! ...But, I digress.</div>
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Listen, I don't agree with everything that goes on in the LGBT community – especially among gay men. And I, too, have wrestled with what seems to be the inevitable self-loathing that comes from getting older in this community. But sometimes you've got to look at the larger picture. Motivational Speaker and Life Coach <a href="https://twitter.com/JoelReadence" target="_blank">Joel Readence</a> wrote <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/joel-readence/healing-the-gay-community_b_4591782.html" target="_blank">a wonderful piece on this</a> in <i>The Huffington Post</i>. He writes, "This community’s fight for equality and real acceptance is far from over. But we don’t stand a chance of reaching our goal if we destroy ourselves from the inside out."</div>
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Silence is deadly, unity is hope</div><br />
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Personally, I believe <i>silence</i> does us a greater disservice – even now, when LGBT people know more acceptance than ever before, and the rights of LGBT people are at the forefront of our national conversation. We have seen – especially recently – what happens when we become complacent and fall silent: eventually the bigots find a champion, and the march of progress comes screeching to a halt.</div>
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Nothing to me is more sickening than using the preservation of one person's rights as an argument for taking away the rights of someone else.</div>
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So bring on the rainbow flags! Show your colors, gay America! We are, after all, in the month set aside for that. LGBT Pride isn’t just about celebrating ourselves individually, but the strength of who we are together.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
...Wait what? ...A united LGBT community? <span style="text-indent: 0.25in;">Hell, that <i>is</i> worth celebrating!</span></div>E.J. OakLorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11631094636814170106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039155776770705959.post-38828526764251751272016-05-29T18:16:00.000-07:002016-06-01T11:05:33.971-07:00There's the windup ... and here's the pitch!<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
I've been writing professionally off and on since 2007, and I've had work published in some substantial places. I've even had work appear in some pretty major media outlets. But this will be the first time I've ever actually <i>pitched</i> an article to an <i>international</i> news outlet.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
I was moved to this by the recent vitriol I've seen thrown at President Obama over his visit to Hiroshima last Friday. Seeing what I've seen on Facebook and other social media, I could not help but think that this Memorial Day weekend has served as something of a microcosm of a larger war of ideals.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
I needed to speak my mind.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
And with the recent revival of my professional writing career this seemed the ideal motivation to approach a major news outlet. I have entitled the piece, "The fight for our national character: How four days in May showed us the best and worst in American culture".</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Here's hoping!</div>
E.J. OakLorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11631094636814170106noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039155776770705959.post-40015198052222381102012-09-23T12:49:00.000-07:002016-06-01T09:42:51.129-07:00Senate Republicans to veterans: your future not as important as ours<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidZ_tCOIF-Ft8ivZBS_kS2470syGXLSgVSiaAVlfiEozd-t4DqrzLTCLn7ryz7yl-P743HMSaDGsWL4rj37I0De_CB0AgSAFIECvautTdO2-N6a6JzI4CZRs81o218QENeLUiK6zkEhIU/s1600/163409.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidZ_tCOIF-Ft8ivZBS_kS2470syGXLSgVSiaAVlfiEozd-t4DqrzLTCLn7ryz7yl-P743HMSaDGsWL4rj37I0De_CB0AgSAFIECvautTdO2-N6a6JzI4CZRs81o218QENeLUiK6zkEhIU/s400/163409.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div style="font-size: medium; text-align: start;">
<span style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 24px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell at a legislative press conference.</span></span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Shrewd
politics or business as usual? Senate
Republicans have said unequivocally that it is more important to them to deny
Obama a legislative victory before an election, than it is to do the right
thing for our nation’s men and women in uniform.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
S.3457,
the Veterans Jobs Corps Act of 2012, was a $1 billion jobs package that proposed
the establishment of a veterans jobs corps that would have put up to 20,000
veterans to work in their local communities over the next five years.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
The
bill, which came up on the senate floor for a vote on Wednesday, September 19,
called for job openings to be created in “conservation, resource management,
and historic preservation projects on public lands and maintenance and
improvement projects for cemeteries under the jurisdiction of the National
Cemetery Administration; and as firefighters and law enforcement officers.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Acting
in true form, however, senate Republicans, many of whom had spent the better
part of the Republican National Convention touting the importance of job
creation and veterans’ benefits, voted rank-and-file against the bill, merely
to deny President Obama a legislative victory before the general election in
November.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Just
what are we telling the some 800,000 unemployed veterans in this country? What message are we sending to the next
generation? That it is okay to place
politics ahead of the needs of our nation’s defenders; the men and women who
sacrificed and bled bravely for our country? Need we even be reminded of how many of these
men and women never came home? Is their
memory and the honor, courage and sacrifice of those veterans who did make it
home not worth the commitment of our government to do the right thing, partisan
politics aside?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
What
about all these politicians who spend so much time saying that caring for
America’s veterans is our country’s “most sacred duty”?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
“The
fact is, it’s a national disgrace that veterans’ unemployment is 14 percent,”
said Sen. John McCain, directly to the face of veteran and citizen journalist
Meg Lanker-Simons at the Republican National Convention in Tampa, “That’s a
national disgrace. And we’ve got to try to find more ways and better ways to
hire veterans. And that has got to be our highest priority.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Right
on, Sen. McCain! Well said! Few people in this country would disagree.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
So
why then, a few short weeks later, did you vote to kill the Veterans Jobs Corps
Act, right before you voted yourself and your fellow senators on vacation for
the remainder of the election?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
“We
already have six veterans’ job-training programs, but what the heck? Let’s, ah,
let's have another one,” said McCain in a sarcastic tone on the floor of the
United States Senate. I wonder, where,
then, was all this “national disgrace” impetus that characterized his remarks
to that veteran at the RNC?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
“Instead
of meeting us halfway, we have been met with resistance. Instead of saying yes
to the nearly 1 million unemployed veterans, it seems some on the other side
have spent the last week and a half seeking any way to say no,” said Democratic
Sen. Patty Murray of Washington.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
And
there we’ve hit the proverbial nail right on the head, haven’t we? From as far back as 2009’s rise of the Tea
Party to Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s now infamous remark
that “our top political priority over the next two years ought to be to deny
President Obama a second term,” Republicans have held the progress of our
nation hostage merely so that they can attempt to win back the White House, and
get themselves re-elected.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Repeatedly
they shoot down legislation intended to bolster the economy and create jobs, so
that they can stand on their soap boxes and point their fingers at President Obama
for his “failed economic policies”. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Make
no mistake folks, the failure is not President Obama’s. The failure is with the party that sabotages
the political process in order to accuse a President of failures that are not
his own, but are instead failures of the party. The failure is with any
politician who puts political ambition or the party line before the job the
American people elected them to do; that which is in the best interest of the
country and its citizens.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
In
an effort to get re-elected as well as to deny President Obama a second term, senate
Republicans have said to the electorate that their political future is more
important to them than our veterans. But
this should come as no surprise. They
have repeatedly said that their political future is more important to them than
middle class families, civil rights, balanced budgets, healthcare, or
jobs. Why should our nation’s veterans
fare any differently on their list of priorities?<o:p></o:p></div>
E.J. OakLorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11631094636814170106noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039155776770705959.post-5146520425299365142012-09-20T09:12:00.000-07:002016-06-01T09:53:05.773-07:00Doctor to patient: your religion is ‘very offensive’<div style="text-align: center;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9u8aC85yoKx7gqADMNlSjd-BW4ZMt_x1VMisSwHaJXt7MOW6odJCYc3nsI_E8tSlroyUNNyLPltxINZnZOv6sh0d9UdoG1LpOC0YYVfl2qoZ9oCJDOwyJgO9MwQ4ZTdx2lE9PBGrU698/s1600/Witch+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9u8aC85yoKx7gqADMNlSjd-BW4ZMt_x1VMisSwHaJXt7MOW6odJCYc3nsI_E8tSlroyUNNyLPltxINZnZOv6sh0d9UdoG1LpOC0YYVfl2qoZ9oCJDOwyJgO9MwQ4ZTdx2lE9PBGrU698/s400/Witch+1.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Practicing Witch Kristen Menard and the pentacle necklace she wears every day as an expression of her Wiccan faith. Image by KPLC 7 News, Lake Charles, LA.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Dateline,
1956 – A Louisiana doctor is drawing attention for having asked his patient, Kristen
Menard, a practicing Witch for more than 15 years, to remove her pentacle medallion
because it was “very offensive to (him) and (his) Christian clientele.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
There’s only one problem with this story so far.
It’s not 1956. By gawd (sic) it’s
2012!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
I
suppose it should come as no surprise that ignorance and intolerance of this
level still exist in the world. Even in
the United States, the world’s bastion of freedom and so-called democracy (more
on that remark in a later article), here in the twenty-first century we are
still plagued with widespread bigotry and cultural ignorance (only these days
we have the class enough at least to veil it – albeit thinly – under the
auspices of groups like the Tea Party).<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Like
most Witches, Menard wears a silver pentacle medallion around her neck. The display of this symbol is no different an
expression, of course, from the wearing of a cross or Star of David. Like all such religious symbols, the wearing
of the pentacle is an outward testament of a person’s faith and beliefs.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
“I
wear it every day. It’s a symbol of protection and each point (of the star) represents
something different,” says Menard.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
“In
my faith that is wrong,” says Lake Charles, LA chiropractor Shaine Rider, “It’s
very offensive to me and I don't want that in my office. And if someone can’t respect that enough to
put in their shirt then there is going to be a problem.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Menard
claims that for the first month or so she was in Dr. Rider’s care, he
frequently questioned her about the medallion, implying through his line of
questioning that he believed it to be satanic.
Recently, however, Dr. Rider’s questioning turned into an ultimatum.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyYheM5WaYQ1S__bQSgGolJtdaboz112jv8vYg5TBWOVSSpW5WLM6FiwrqnoaFvgYQz3x75LrcRAVx9buEdUoVxLj7zSrDi9VtwRGj5cEQdJO5ShHg9I7sF-S53bcinJ8-Gz5qPOy0RVU/s1600/Witch+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyYheM5WaYQ1S__bQSgGolJtdaboz112jv8vYg5TBWOVSSpW5WLM6FiwrqnoaFvgYQz3x75LrcRAVx9buEdUoVxLj7zSrDi9VtwRGj5cEQdJO5ShHg9I7sF-S53bcinJ8-Gz5qPOy0RVU/s400/Witch+2.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Lake Charles, LA Chiropractor Dr. Shaine Rider, who says Menard's "flaunting" of her pentacle is "wrong" and "offensive". <span style="text-indent: 0px;">Image by KPLC 7 News, Lake Charles, LA. </span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /> “He
said you are going to have to take that necklace, put it away or take it off,” said
Menard, recalling the incident, “I said ‘why?’ I didn't understand. And he said
something about his son.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Standing
her ground, Menard refused.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
“I
said ‘I'm not taking this off,’ and that’s when he said basically he couldn’t
treat me. And I walked out,” Menard said.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Not
surprisingly, Dr. Rider’s explanation illustrates a poor understanding of what
Witches actually believe.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
“Those signs and those symbols are very
satanic and very new age,” said Rider.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Satanic? That’s a pretty interesting leap for a
religion that does not believe in Satan – or any devil-like figure for that
matter.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Himself
a devout catholic, Dr. Rider claims he never asked Menard to take her necklace
off and that he never refused to treat her, though he did go on to say, “She
came in and I very briefly said, and very nicely said, ‘Would you mind doing me
a favor? Would you mind putting your pentagram inside your shirt? …It’s very offensive to me and other
patients... those that are Christians.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
For
the record, Menard was wearing a pentacle, not a pentagram. What’s the difference? A pentagram is a depiction of an interwoven star
by itself. A pentacle is a depiction of
an interwoven star – pentagram – inside of a circle. The latter symbol sees much more common usage
among Pagans / Witches than a pentagram alone.
Why would I spend a whole paragraph on this distinction? I don’t know… call it a pet peeve.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
“I
don't try to wear this on the outside of my shirt which is a scapular,” said
Rider. A scapular is a small religious
object worn by Catholics that represents a particular devotion. “It’s my belief. It’s what I wear inside my shirt. That’s all I
was asking her to do is put it inside her shirt out of respect for my beliefs,
and for the loss of my child and for our faith here. And she got irate and
called me names and left,” Rider said.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Dr.
Rider may keep his scapular under his shirt, but his Catholic faith is nonetheless
apparent. A crucifix hangs on the wall of
his office not far from a portrait of his son, whom he lost to cancer.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
While
the loss of Dr. Rider’s son is tragic, this writer fails to see how a patient wearing
a pentacle is somehow disrespectful to the son’s memory. Nor do I see how it disrespects other
patients – or the good doctor himself for that matter. Menard was wearing a symbol that expresses
her faith. The wearing of a religious symbol
does not malign other religions not represented by that symbol. It’s a freakin’ necklance, people, not a
declaration of war!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
“To
discriminate against anybody – race, religion anything… is completely wrong,” Menard
went on to say, “And it shouldn't happen especially when he’s a doctor and he’s
supposed to treat somebody.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
What
is perhaps most disturbing to me about this story is not simply the ignorance
with which Dr. Rider approached this situation, making stupendous assumptions
about the nature of Pagan beliefs, but that it rather illustrates an ingrained dichotomy
present in Christianity; the belief that that if something is not Christian, it
is satanic.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Facing
this kind of intransigent belief which bases itself on blind faith, there is no
hope for reason and enlightened discourse.
This is, at its core, the very reason that we, the supposed free-est
society in the world, in the year 2012, still face the same ignorance and
prejudices that have plagued us since the dawn of man.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
To
my mind, we will never be a truly free society until we can free our minds of hereditary
prejudices, and, as Albert Einstein so eloquently suggested in his “Great
spirits” soliloquy, boldly and thoughtfully <i>use</i>
our intelligence.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Menard has rightly filed
complaints with the Better Business Bureau and the Chiropractic Association
against Dr. Rider. Sadly though, while
it may force him to change his business practices, it will do nothing to change
his closed and bigoted mind.</div>
E.J. OakLorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11631094636814170106noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039155776770705959.post-40707038626344605252012-09-19T19:33:00.001-07:002016-06-01T11:01:58.827-07:00Adventures in freelancing<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
So it begins; this, my freelance writing adventure. Benjamin Franklin once said, “Either write
something worth reading or do something worth writing.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
<i>Indeed</i>, I thought to myself as a sipped
a cup of hot tea, head in hand, staring at my computer monitor this evening. There I sat wondering what profound,
ground-breaking topic or quixotic prose I would compose that would so magnificently
inaugurate this blog as to immediately set it apart, thus launching me extant
into a glorious career as a topical writer / commentator.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Of course, no one starts off famous or even noteworthy right out of the gate. I’ve had some successes with writing in the
past, sure; been published a few times.
I used to write for local newspapers in upstate New York. I got a couple of kudos from the publisher in
the form of New York State Press Association Award nominations. No, I didn’t win, but the nominations were a
pretty kewl nod.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Still,
in this world of self-made pop writers and guerilla journalism, it is becoming
harder and harder to really make a name for yourself – much less a living –
being a writer, particularly of the freelance variety.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
The
good news is that it’s not impossible.
It just takes a lot of hard work and patience. Let me reiterate that – it takes a LOT of
hard work and a LOT of patience. So all the
experts tell me and so I have discovered even on my own. Before launching this blog I read probably
about a hundred others. I read blogs
about politics, blogs about religion and spirituality, blogs about science,
economics, philosophy…heck, I even read blogs about blogging. I found some of them informative, some
humorous, some were rather dry reading, and others were utterly
forgettable. But what I took away from
all that reading was this: great blogs begin with great writers. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
See
I’ve read blogs that were popular, but not at all well-written or topical. They rather reminded me of the penchant we
have in this country of rewarding stupid people with fame. For example, <i>Jersey Shore</i>, <i>Keeping Up with
the Kardashians</i>, and the most recent television abortion, <i>Here Comes Honey Boo-Boo</i>. I mean, really people? C’mon!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
Notwithstanding
that those examples are television shows and not blogs, the principle is
nonetheless illustrated. Blogs may be
popular because they’re written by popular people, but that doesn’t make them
great. Great blogs are topical,
well-written, insightful, thought-provoking and often witty or humorous. I have found some great examples out there;
some of the greatest in fact are by authors that are not at all famous. For my part, fame isn’t so much the goal here
as is the ability to make a living doing what I love: writing. And that, to me, would be just swell!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.25in;">
So here’s to greatness
from small beginnings (hint for those not conversant in Latin: that’s what the
headline means)! I am committed to my
course, and I am looking forward to the adventure. With a little luck, I might pick up some
readers along the way.</div>
E.J. OakLorehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11631094636814170106noreply@blogger.com4