The U.S. Constitution didn't come from the Bible. Rather it came as a direct result of The Reformation & The Enlightenment.
On the back of Modified and Enlightened and Evolved Christian tradition.
So not directly from the Bible, but it was done by children raised within the general European Christian tradition that's true.
When I examine who on the social & political landscape supports a.) the freedom to draw Mohamed, and b.) the publishing of such cartoons, the list is very small: Libertarians who're mostly conservative, and a few very (very) lonely leftists.
When Obama states that his preferred future belongs to people who never talk smack about Mohamed or the prophets of other religions, he's turning his back on the principles of The Enlightenment, principles which allowed America and it's Constitution to exist in the first place. He's also turning his back on all the people who want to (f-ing) leave abusive cults like Islam (& Mormonism & other highly abusive religions).
more info:
http://reason.com/blog/2012/09/25/president-obama-says-we-must-condemn-tho
So, it's true that ex-Muslims / atheists who pop up, rather naturally these days, within Islamic theocracies are little gems who should be valued & protected. They exist & live within countries which are essentially meat grinders, grinding against all opposition to the status quo.
Here's a special vid of an atheist visiting Mecca:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQ5x0vAEaCw
I'm sure that Obama would be upset by such a vid, as per his past comments about the supposed strong need to never offend a devout cult member.
Before 9/11 I had mostly zero idea what Islam was about. After 9/11 I woke up & realized that people in Islamic countries sometimes find their lives to be so shitty that they lash out in unhinged ways - misdirected anger. The 9/11 attacks were performed by men who were angry - but they should have been angry at their religion rather than at 3000+ innocent people in those towers.
The Enlightenment human tradition is a unique one, and one that should be valued. Freedom of speech. Freedom of thought. Freedom of religion. Freedom from religion. Freedom of commerce (mostly). Governmental transparency (hopeful). Freedom for science to progress. Freedom for science to question traditional religious dogmas & doctrines regarding literalist interpretations of a god. When leftists like Glenn Greenwald and Noam Chomsky (& many other 'regressive' leftists) blame America first for all that is wrong with the Middle East, they're also turning their backs on the Enlightenment tradition which allows them to speak & exist in the first place.
Mr. Greenwald is gay for example. If he lived in an Islamic theocracy he'd be suppressed at the very least or killed at worst.
The cold war abuses of America are not responsible for every single thing that ails the world. Religious theocracy, that of a specific religion, is largely to blame. And yes, it's a religion - that is Islam is a religion.
Before 9/11 I sat in my little ex-Mormon chamber and just thought about ex-Mormon things. I knew Joseph Smith was a charismatic charlatan. I know Brigham Young was an abusive authoritarian theocratic bozo. I relished the works of people like Monty Python with their general criticism of Christianity (eg: Life of Brian), and of Mormon specific humorist organizers like Steve Clark (operator of Latter-Day Lampoon now renamed The Salamander Society).
Consider what Muslim versions of the following works of art would look like?
Life of Brian:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monty_Python's_Life_of_Brian
Latter-Day Lampoon (aka Salamander Society):
http://salamandersociety.com/
Would Obama approve?
How about your average MSNBC & CBC & BBC presenter?
So I was raised in an itty-bitty religion which has as it's key tenant a required cult of personality revolving around this guy named Joseph Smith. Then when I got older I wised up & left that religion.
That whole experience provided greater insight into the entirely of the situation with Islam, it's followers, and those who want to leave it and be free of it.
A communist who left it (Maryam Namazie):
http://freethoughtblogs.com/maryamnamazie/2013/02/01/world-hejab-day/
A libertarian (Ayaan Hirsi Ali):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayaan_Hirsi_Ali
Another libertarian & big Ayn Rand supporter (Bosch Fawstin):
http://fawstin.blogspot.com/
And some people stay in to varying degrees, or are just 'marginally' in:
Maajid Nawaz:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maajid_Nawaz
Tawfik Hamid:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxfo11A7XuA
Maajid is considered an 'Uncle Tom' by hijab-loving Muslims though. And Tawfik is a former hard line Muslim w/key info re how Sunni flavor Islam prompts young men within it to consider getting virgins in paradise via suicide as a viable option for sexual expression (check the vid linked to above).
Charlie Hebdo was mostly killed off, and it's remaining members have given up publishing drawings of the prophet of Islam. So Obama's preferred future has been fulfilled re Hebdo. Hebdo was and is an ultra-leftist publication, but one which was 'very lonely' on the left - lonely like Bill Maher is, and lonely like Sam Harris is, and like Salman Rushdie is. Lonely leftists who could never get a Mohamed cartoon published in any mainline leftie publication if they tried.
In any case, I was raised an American Democrat. Now I'm a general middle of the roader. A moderate Republican/Libertarian, or a very very blue dog Democrat. But as per the response of the left to Hebdo (the murder of the artists) & Garland (Garland, Texas cartoon contest attempted to be shot up by Islamic adherents) though I'm a bit loath to refer myself as a Democrat at all. The response of the left to those events shows that the left, as it stands today, as nothing to offer people who want to a.) leave Islam, or b.) criticize Islam exactly the same way we've been criticizing Christianity for hundreds of years.
Also America isn't a full democracy. It's a republic. A representative democracy. There republicanism helps to quell craziness & chaos & stupidity which can come from 'full democracy.'
When 'democracy' came to the Islamic middle east, the secularists were mostly drowned out by the thoecrats (so far).
Where in an Islamic 'democracy' is one free to draw Mohamed? Nowhere? Then the principles of the Enlightenment are not being fully engaged. Freedom of speech. Freedom of though. Freedom of religion. Freedom from religion. Freedom for science to examine & critique literalist religious claims which touch upon the physical world. And so on.
There's slight bright spots here & there. Example:
http://www.breitbart.com/national-security/2015/12/30/egypt-president-calls-for-islamic-reform-again-in-muhammad-birthday-speech/
http://www.clarionproject.org/videos/egypts-president-el-sisi-calls-islamic-reformation
But in which Islamic country can one be an atheist openly? Criticize Mohamed? Draw Mohamed? Lampoon Mohamed - EXACTLY the way Monty Python did regarding Anglican Christianity? Nowhere yet.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2530920/You-parody-Islam-says-Palin-Monty-Python-star-believes-religious-sensitivities-increased-impossible-make-Life-Brian-today.html
But some ex-Muslims (and friends) somewhere shall do this someday soon I hope (parody Islam in total Life of Brian style & more).
Monday, May 9, 2016
Saturday, May 7, 2016
Gay rights has made us dumber: Atheists of Utah prime example.
"Gay rights has made us dumber..."
http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/06/17/gay-rights-have-made-us-dumber-its-time-to-get-back-in-the-closet/
And the dumbest of these are the frantic crusading moron Stonewall warrior children who run Atheists of Utah (Dan Ellis dumbshit et al.) and similar groups...
More info on the general topic Milo talks about in his article linked to above:
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/bering-in-mind/the-end-of-gays-gay-marriage-and-the-decline-of-the-homosexual-population/
Speaking as a straight man who's been to many gay parties via a nephew, I can confirm that there's a very dark and abusive side to current gay culture.
Yes I like Stephen Fry and Oscar Wilde and Alan Turing.
But children needs a mommy and a daddy. Evolutionary evolved human animal born children. 385 million years of sexual history and 13.8 billion years of evolutionary history ought to count for something.
http://www.livescience.com/48400-origin-of-sex-found.html
And there's only one type of marriage: one where inherently reproductive human animals hook up, period.
I like the art of Michael Zichy and Thomas Rowlandson (classic graphic erotic art) as much as the next guy. And certainly people like Spencer Kimball and Boyd Packer should rot in hell for eternity.
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/search/label/Spencer%20Kimball
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/search/label/boyd%20packer
But not every dumbshit idea that pops into the brains of leftist snowflake children should be honored and highly valued.
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/search/label/homosexuality
So you're a man who thinks you're a woman and you want to visit women's restrooms? WGAS - and stay the F out of my wife's and daughter's restrooms.
This is the precise and proper response to such gender dysphoric bleatings from poor morons like Bruce Jenner.
And yes simultaneously masturbation and oral sex and good things in spite of what evil men like Spencer Kimball claimed. And a bit of porn 2 and 3.0 isn't such a bad thing.
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/search/label/porn
People such a Milo Yiannopoulos and Douglas Murray (a gay neocon whom I admire) show there is a non-wastrel side to people with such dispositions (ie: male attraction to other men).
What would a rural Chinese person do who's had zero exposure to the Bible or Quran? They're naturally socially conservative. Whodathunkit.
more info:
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2016/02/lies-present-in-conservative-religion.html
I still likes them boobies and all pretty kitty cats. I just suggest there's some value to outlier-trait male humans continuing to like them as well, and female outlier trait types finding (femmy) heterosexual men to mate and stay with rather than dreaming of a parthenogenic future. And to their all keeping their John Thomases and hoohaws away from the abusive overly permissive deadly evolutionary dead end wastrel glory hole culture of the left.
Having my cake and eating it too? Why not.
Breeders will inherit the Earth.
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2014/06/breeders-will-inherit-earth-problems.html
The talk I gave at my mother's funeral - February 2010
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2010/12/funeral-talk-that-i-gave-in-february.html
Excerpt:
As far as I can tell, relative to our position in the Universe, we're rather like some moss growing on the top of a mountain.
As moss we're very intelligent. And maybe some day, being the smart green moss that we are, maybe we'll find a way to extract ourselves from the mountain top.
In a few years our lone peak which is the only place we can live is going to get scorched. And we happen to be so smart in fact that we have predicted the future scorching.
So if we are very lucky & very smart indeed, our science & technology may save us.
Or perhaps we'll fade away to dust like most life has on the mountain.
It's either the sky god or the volcano god, or the real truth about our rather humble state.
Noble & beautiful, yes, but if we're going to make it in the long term at least a few of us have to take a longer view.
There is no Christian Armageddon waiting. But in about 500 million years our Sun will be 10% brighter thereby causing the oceans boil off. So our descendants either need to re-engineer the Sun by then, or get us off of this rock. And we've only known about this for ten or so years. And there are other huge risks to our survival.
What we teach our children about science may save humanity.
There's no heaven or hell. But that means we have an added responsibility to care for what we have here. To make this life here & now into a heaven or a hell.
We are related to other animals. We are animals, and our morals come from a combination of genetics and socialization. Whether such a fact is good or bad, it doesn't matter. That's simply the way it is.
Being concerned about legacy is an issue. Who will care that you lived in 100 years? Make a contribution. Be a great artist or a great scientist or have kids. And if you have kids, teach them the value cutting edge art and science, and of the value of taking the proverbial red pill as from the film The Matrix.
---end of excerpt
Quite so.
And if you've found yourself to be a gender or sexual orientation dysphoric human male or female, I suggest there's high value in your tying into inherent reproduction, rather than trying to cheat nature & evolutionary history via trips to the sperm bank.
Children need a mommy and a daddy. And there's only one type of marriage: the naturally inherently reproductive type. And as an enlightened post-leftist atheist I get to have my cake & eat it too on these fronts...
-------------------------------------
Additional links:
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/search/label/atheists%20of%20utah
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/search/label/naturalism
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/search/label/atheism%20is%20a%20religion
http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/06/17/gay-rights-have-made-us-dumber-its-time-to-get-back-in-the-closet/
And the dumbest of these are the frantic crusading moron Stonewall warrior children who run Atheists of Utah (Dan Ellis dumbshit et al.) and similar groups...
More info on the general topic Milo talks about in his article linked to above:
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/bering-in-mind/the-end-of-gays-gay-marriage-and-the-decline-of-the-homosexual-population/
Speaking as a straight man who's been to many gay parties via a nephew, I can confirm that there's a very dark and abusive side to current gay culture.
Yes I like Stephen Fry and Oscar Wilde and Alan Turing.
But children needs a mommy and a daddy. Evolutionary evolved human animal born children. 385 million years of sexual history and 13.8 billion years of evolutionary history ought to count for something.
http://www.livescience.com/48400-origin-of-sex-found.html
And there's only one type of marriage: one where inherently reproductive human animals hook up, period.
I like the art of Michael Zichy and Thomas Rowlandson (classic graphic erotic art) as much as the next guy. And certainly people like Spencer Kimball and Boyd Packer should rot in hell for eternity.
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/search/label/Spencer%20Kimball
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/search/label/boyd%20packer
But not every dumbshit idea that pops into the brains of leftist snowflake children should be honored and highly valued.
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/search/label/homosexuality
So you're a man who thinks you're a woman and you want to visit women's restrooms? WGAS - and stay the F out of my wife's and daughter's restrooms.
This is the precise and proper response to such gender dysphoric bleatings from poor morons like Bruce Jenner.
And yes simultaneously masturbation and oral sex and good things in spite of what evil men like Spencer Kimball claimed. And a bit of porn 2 and 3.0 isn't such a bad thing.
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/search/label/porn
People such a Milo Yiannopoulos and Douglas Murray (a gay neocon whom I admire) show there is a non-wastrel side to people with such dispositions (ie: male attraction to other men).
What would a rural Chinese person do who's had zero exposure to the Bible or Quran? They're naturally socially conservative. Whodathunkit.
more info:
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2016/02/lies-present-in-conservative-religion.html
I still likes them boobies and all pretty kitty cats. I just suggest there's some value to outlier-trait male humans continuing to like them as well, and female outlier trait types finding (femmy) heterosexual men to mate and stay with rather than dreaming of a parthenogenic future. And to their all keeping their John Thomases and hoohaws away from the abusive overly permissive deadly evolutionary dead end wastrel glory hole culture of the left.
Having my cake and eating it too? Why not.
Breeders will inherit the Earth.
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2014/06/breeders-will-inherit-earth-problems.html
The talk I gave at my mother's funeral - February 2010
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2010/12/funeral-talk-that-i-gave-in-february.html
Excerpt:
As far as I can tell, relative to our position in the Universe, we're rather like some moss growing on the top of a mountain.
As moss we're very intelligent. And maybe some day, being the smart green moss that we are, maybe we'll find a way to extract ourselves from the mountain top.
In a few years our lone peak which is the only place we can live is going to get scorched. And we happen to be so smart in fact that we have predicted the future scorching.
So if we are very lucky & very smart indeed, our science & technology may save us.
Or perhaps we'll fade away to dust like most life has on the mountain.
It's either the sky god or the volcano god, or the real truth about our rather humble state.
Noble & beautiful, yes, but if we're going to make it in the long term at least a few of us have to take a longer view.
There is no Christian Armageddon waiting. But in about 500 million years our Sun will be 10% brighter thereby causing the oceans boil off. So our descendants either need to re-engineer the Sun by then, or get us off of this rock. And we've only known about this for ten or so years. And there are other huge risks to our survival.
What we teach our children about science may save humanity.
There's no heaven or hell. But that means we have an added responsibility to care for what we have here. To make this life here & now into a heaven or a hell.
We are related to other animals. We are animals, and our morals come from a combination of genetics and socialization. Whether such a fact is good or bad, it doesn't matter. That's simply the way it is.
Being concerned about legacy is an issue. Who will care that you lived in 100 years? Make a contribution. Be a great artist or a great scientist or have kids. And if you have kids, teach them the value cutting edge art and science, and of the value of taking the proverbial red pill as from the film The Matrix.
---end of excerpt
Quite so.
And if you've found yourself to be a gender or sexual orientation dysphoric human male or female, I suggest there's high value in your tying into inherent reproduction, rather than trying to cheat nature & evolutionary history via trips to the sperm bank.
Children need a mommy and a daddy. And there's only one type of marriage: the naturally inherently reproductive type. And as an enlightened post-leftist atheist I get to have my cake & eat it too on these fronts...
-------------------------------------
Additional links:
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/search/label/atheists%20of%20utah
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/search/label/naturalism
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/search/label/atheism%20is%20a%20religion
Thursday, April 14, 2016
The Moral Blindness of Sam Harris: Horrors of Male Circumcision | Problems with Harrisian Veganism
Recently Sam Harris gave some shallow, grudging, tepid, and also highly reprehensible statements regarding male circumcision.
My response:
============
On Harrisian Veganism:
My video also talks about the risks involved with veganism. Harris is a new vegan. Parkinson's awaits this fledgling neuroscientist.
Veganism represents a f-ing holocaust for insects (!). Think of all the insects much must die to support a vegan diet. All those slave worker bees. All those other insects who're killed, just so that all those f-ing selfish vegans can chomp on a carrot! It's inhumane, or it's ininsectane, or some such thing.
Bottom line is that insects are animals too. Insects are slaves and they die so that vegans can eat their lunches.
Leftist denial of evolution and human nature. It's not a new thing, not at all. Harris is generally speaking in the traditional leftist camp - the mostly non-regressive camp I suppose. A classic liberal / somewhat leftist libertarian. But leftists can and do fall prey pitfalls of denialism.
Veganism is a fundamental dangerous denial of human evolutionary history. Small stomachs. Big brains. Cooked Meat is required. If our ancestors had been vegan, they never would have developed large brains. But the children of Harrisian Veganism are headed for a separate evolutionary track: Parkinson's & small hobbled brains. Rest In Peace (RIP) Robin Williams, a victim of Parkinson's and probably of veganism (same diff' apparently).
Further links, regarding veganism:
Leaders of the Vegan Movement Develop Parkinson's: Case Studies
https://www.drfuhrman.com/library/lack_of_DHA_linked_to_Parkinsons.aspx
10 Reasons Why I’ll Never Be Vegan
http://empoweredsustenance.com/is-vegan-healthy/
5 Reasons Why Vegan Diets May be a Bad Idea
https://authoritynutrition.com/top-5-reasons-why-vegan-diets-are-a-terrible-idea/
I’m not vegan anymore
http://alexandrajamieson.com/im-not-vegan-anymore/
10 vegan diet dangers
http://butternutrition.com/10-vegan-diet-dangers/
Angelina Jolie - The Vegan Diet that Almost Killed Her
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/09/17/angelina-jolie-says-vegan-diet-nearly-killed-her.aspx
Veganism Is Bad | Top 5 Reasons Why Vegan Diets Are A Terrible Idea
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juObXMcjZRk
How the Ethical Argument for Veganism Fails and One Possible Way to Fix It
http://letthemeatmeat.com/post/1141998663/how-the-ethical-argument-for-veganism-fails-and
Cooking Up Bigger Brains - "Our hominid ancestors could never have eaten enough raw food to support our large, calorie-hungry brains, Richard Wrangham claims. The secret to our evolution, he says, is cooking..."
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/cooking-up-bigger-brains/
Meat, Cooked Foods Needed for Early Human Brain
http://www.livescience.com/24875-meat-human-brain.html
Why Fire Makes Us Human - "Cooking may be more than just a part of your daily routine, it may be what made your brain as powerful as it is..."
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/why-fire-makes-us-human-72989884/?no-ist
Raw Food Not Enough to Feed Big Brains
http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2012/10/raw-food-not-enough-feed-big-brains
Food For Thought: Meat-Based Diet Made Us Smarter
http://www.npr.org/2010/08/02/128849908/food-for-thought-meat-based-diet-made-us-smarter
============
Joint Conclusion
By becoming vegan & touting that veganism is one pinnacle of morality on his Moral Landscape, Harris shows just exactly why there's problems with any "scientist" trying to define morality, particularly one with as many moral blind spots as Harris has.
A morality which actively denies human evolutionary history, while ignoring the horrors caused by the genital rape of young boys - that really is telling.
Keep your "morality" to yourself Mr. Harris. Your pinging & beeping MRI machine cannot & will not determine the morality of any human. The "logic" you use in determining exactly where the valleys and peaks are for human morality is fundamentally flawed.
I have been in general a fan of how exactly Mr. Harris takes apart the arguments of his opponents, and how he engages in dialogue with people. But when I find myself on the other side of his apparently sometimes very faulty arguments, I can now see more clearly how Mr. Harris can also be very blind & boring & pedantic & morally flawed & petty himself.
Human morality is largely determined by evolution. As per Steven Pinker there've been improvements over time. But veganism is a de facto cultistic religion which seeks to separate humans too far from our evolutionary roots. Religions which seek to mutilate the genitals of children also do this! A forced separation from our evolutionary roots. Abuse is abuse. And when we are forced to become separated too far from or evolutionary roots we as evolved human animals are hurt by such acts.
My response:
link to my video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QKVUCQOfzA
============
On Harrisian Veganism:
My video also talks about the risks involved with veganism. Harris is a new vegan. Parkinson's awaits this fledgling neuroscientist.
Veganism represents a f-ing holocaust for insects (!). Think of all the insects much must die to support a vegan diet. All those slave worker bees. All those other insects who're killed, just so that all those f-ing selfish vegans can chomp on a carrot! It's inhumane, or it's ininsectane, or some such thing.
Bottom line is that insects are animals too. Insects are slaves and they die so that vegans can eat their lunches.
Leftist denial of evolution and human nature. It's not a new thing, not at all. Harris is generally speaking in the traditional leftist camp - the mostly non-regressive camp I suppose. A classic liberal / somewhat leftist libertarian. But leftists can and do fall prey pitfalls of denialism.
Veganism is a fundamental dangerous denial of human evolutionary history. Small stomachs. Big brains. Cooked Meat is required. If our ancestors had been vegan, they never would have developed large brains. But the children of Harrisian Veganism are headed for a separate evolutionary track: Parkinson's & small hobbled brains. Rest In Peace (RIP) Robin Williams, a victim of Parkinson's and probably of veganism (same diff' apparently).
Further links, regarding veganism:
Leaders of the Vegan Movement Develop Parkinson's: Case Studies
https://www.drfuhrman.com/library/lack_of_DHA_linked_to_Parkinsons.aspx
10 Reasons Why I’ll Never Be Vegan
http://empoweredsustenance.com/is-vegan-healthy/
5 Reasons Why Vegan Diets May be a Bad Idea
https://authoritynutrition.com/top-5-reasons-why-vegan-diets-are-a-terrible-idea/
I’m not vegan anymore
http://alexandrajamieson.com/im-not-vegan-anymore/
10 vegan diet dangers
http://butternutrition.com/10-vegan-diet-dangers/
Angelina Jolie - The Vegan Diet that Almost Killed Her
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/09/17/angelina-jolie-says-vegan-diet-nearly-killed-her.aspx
Veganism Is Bad | Top 5 Reasons Why Vegan Diets Are A Terrible Idea
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juObXMcjZRk
How the Ethical Argument for Veganism Fails and One Possible Way to Fix It
http://letthemeatmeat.com/post/1141998663/how-the-ethical-argument-for-veganism-fails-and
Cooking Up Bigger Brains - "Our hominid ancestors could never have eaten enough raw food to support our large, calorie-hungry brains, Richard Wrangham claims. The secret to our evolution, he says, is cooking..."
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/cooking-up-bigger-brains/
Meat, Cooked Foods Needed for Early Human Brain
http://www.livescience.com/24875-meat-human-brain.html
Why Fire Makes Us Human - "Cooking may be more than just a part of your daily routine, it may be what made your brain as powerful as it is..."
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/why-fire-makes-us-human-72989884/?no-ist
Raw Food Not Enough to Feed Big Brains
http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2012/10/raw-food-not-enough-feed-big-brains
Food For Thought: Meat-Based Diet Made Us Smarter
http://www.npr.org/2010/08/02/128849908/food-for-thought-meat-based-diet-made-us-smarter
============
Joint Conclusion
By becoming vegan & touting that veganism is one pinnacle of morality on his Moral Landscape, Harris shows just exactly why there's problems with any "scientist" trying to define morality, particularly one with as many moral blind spots as Harris has.
A morality which actively denies human evolutionary history, while ignoring the horrors caused by the genital rape of young boys - that really is telling.
Keep your "morality" to yourself Mr. Harris. Your pinging & beeping MRI machine cannot & will not determine the morality of any human. The "logic" you use in determining exactly where the valleys and peaks are for human morality is fundamentally flawed.
I have been in general a fan of how exactly Mr. Harris takes apart the arguments of his opponents, and how he engages in dialogue with people. But when I find myself on the other side of his apparently sometimes very faulty arguments, I can now see more clearly how Mr. Harris can also be very blind & boring & pedantic & morally flawed & petty himself.
Human morality is largely determined by evolution. As per Steven Pinker there've been improvements over time. But veganism is a de facto cultistic religion which seeks to separate humans too far from our evolutionary roots. Religions which seek to mutilate the genitals of children also do this! A forced separation from our evolutionary roots. Abuse is abuse. And when we are forced to become separated too far from or evolutionary roots we as evolved human animals are hurt by such acts.
Saturday, April 2, 2016
Pregnant Limited-English Chinese Woman with Two Small Children given $500 meat fine - No Translator Offered - Zero Leeway
This page and my blog at https://cbpabuse.blogspot.com documents abuses by the United States Customs and Border Protection Service (CBP) against my wife and family, and to make note of & link to abuses received by others.
My wife speaks limited English. She's pregnant. She's prone to morning AKA all-day sickness related to her pregnancy. We have two young children, aged one and three.
She was the one fined $500.
She is the one threatened with expulsion from the Global Entry program, a program we signed up for specifically because we have young children and were hoping to spend less time in line when returning from China.
But, if you sign up for Global Entry, the CBP is much more interested in the contents of your bags - and any little specks of meat which may be inside.
Even if you declare that you do have meat at the Global Entry kiosks, and even if you do declare that you do have meat on the paper customs form, that's not enough for the angry, abusive, and anxious to pounce CBP officers. After 15+ hours of travel you must be required to verbally state every small instance of "meat" you may have, within 5 seconds of being asked. Otherwise it's a $500 fine for you, and a probable boot from Global Entry.
And if you're a limited English person who really should have a translator fully explaining what exactly is meant by the term "meat," doesn't matter! Still a $500 fine and a probable boot from Global Entry.
Fruit sniffing dogs.
Angry conniving & thuggish officers who are ready to pounce at the slightest misstep.
The CBP treats everyone like a criminal and everyone like a terrorist.
The face presented by the USA to visitors and returning citizens & residents is actively hostile.
Included below are quotes from letters we've shared with the White House, and with one of our senators. We've asked them for help, but we're not hopeful.
We suspect that the wheels of the CBP grind very finely. The CBP appears to be a de facto raquet and scam. A scam to get money & frankly to terrorize regular citizens & residents & visitors. Treating all people with the same blunt tool:
You will be treated with the same concise & exacting anger as one might expect for a drug dealer, prisoner, criminal, or a terrorist - if you have the smallest speck of prohibited food in your bags - and even if you select "yes" to the relevant questions on the customs forms and at the Global Entry kiosks as your "official" declaration as to what's inside your bags - and which does knowing route to you to mandatory all-bag inspection.Thug is a strong word. But when it comes to brutalizing pregnancy tired sick women who speak limited English, and who try and "come home" to America with their two young children in tow - the term is fully accurate.
You try to be honest? After 15+ hours of travel you forget one speck of stuff? And even though you've selected "yes" as your official declaration which you know mandatorily routes you to full bag inspection? That's not enough for the thugs at CBP.
More details can be found in the quoted letters below sent to our elected representatives. We shall continue to document what happens with us in this blog.
Key items for your further review of this matter:
Items 1 & 2: Our letter to President Obama; our letter to one of our senators.
Combined PDF (opens in a new window).
HTML version below.
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Jonathan XXXXX with Yanning XXXXX and children XXXXX & XXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXX, Utah XXXXX
March 31, 2016
President Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, District of Columbia 20500
Dear President Obama,
As per your website’s invitation for feedback, and the
general principles of freedom of speech & petitioning our government for a
redress of grievances, I am writing to you today.
My wife is an immigrant from China and she speaks limited
English. Recently she and our family were the recipients of abuse at the hands
of the U.S. Customs & Border Protection Service (CBP) at the San Francisco
Airport.
My wife packed our bags. We did select “yes” in answer to the meat & vegetables questions at the Global Entry kiosks and on the paper customs form. My wife is pregnant and is highly prone to morning sickness (AKA all-day sickness). We have two young children. We had just traveled for 15+ hours and were very tired. Our children were tired and were complaining. We were first greeted at the San Francisco Airport by an angry, yelling, and unhinged CBP officer who was yelling at a Chinese tour group in a large hallway to move on more quickly – while a tour guide was explaining how to fill out the paper customs form to this group. All these factors wore us down and resulted in this:
A failure on the part of my wife to verbally state, within 5 seconds or less to a CBP officer, that there was a very small amount of meat in our luggage. My wife didn’t fully understand exactly what was meant by “meat.” A large piece of meat? Meat in a loose bag & not in a sealed package? And she was never provided a translator. My wife reported that the words of the officer involved sounded muddled to her and were hard for her to understand. And my wife’s condition & ability to accurately & quickly respond was degraded due to tiredness & pregnancy & having to deal with and help our two young children.
But, she was the one fined $500. And she is now the one being threatened with expulsion from the Global Entry program. An expulsion of her from Global Entry would be a de facto expulsion of my whole family. My wife is the mother of our children, and we shall not travel separately nor stand in separate lines.
Enclosed is a petition I am sending to one of my senators, regarding help with the CBP. Inside my petition you shall find further reference to exactly what happened to us. Also included is relevant commentary regarding how others are generally treated by the CBP – how the initial “face of America” as presented to all visitors is a hostile one.
My wife packed our bags. We did select “yes” in answer to the meat & vegetables questions at the Global Entry kiosks and on the paper customs form. My wife is pregnant and is highly prone to morning sickness (AKA all-day sickness). We have two young children. We had just traveled for 15+ hours and were very tired. Our children were tired and were complaining. We were first greeted at the San Francisco Airport by an angry, yelling, and unhinged CBP officer who was yelling at a Chinese tour group in a large hallway to move on more quickly – while a tour guide was explaining how to fill out the paper customs form to this group. All these factors wore us down and resulted in this:
A failure on the part of my wife to verbally state, within 5 seconds or less to a CBP officer, that there was a very small amount of meat in our luggage. My wife didn’t fully understand exactly what was meant by “meat.” A large piece of meat? Meat in a loose bag & not in a sealed package? And she was never provided a translator. My wife reported that the words of the officer involved sounded muddled to her and were hard for her to understand. And my wife’s condition & ability to accurately & quickly respond was degraded due to tiredness & pregnancy & having to deal with and help our two young children.
But, she was the one fined $500. And she is now the one being threatened with expulsion from the Global Entry program. An expulsion of her from Global Entry would be a de facto expulsion of my whole family. My wife is the mother of our children, and we shall not travel separately nor stand in separate lines.
Enclosed is a petition I am sending to one of my senators, regarding help with the CBP. Inside my petition you shall find further reference to exactly what happened to us. Also included is relevant commentary regarding how others are generally treated by the CBP – how the initial “face of America” as presented to all visitors is a hostile one.
I know that Senator Hatch shall be forwarding my concerns
to the agency involved for a response. If in your capacity as President you are
able to provide some positive assistance that would be welcomed also.
Sincerely,
Jonathan XXXXX with Yanning XXXXX, & XXXXX & XXXXX
----------
Jonathan XXXXX, with Yanning XXXXXand children XXXXX& XXXXX XXXXXXXXXX
XXXXX ,Utah XXXXX
March 28, 2016
Senator Orrin Hatch
c/o Help with Federal Agencies, with additional relevance
to the Senate Committee on Finance & other committees
104 Hart Office Building
Washington, District of Columbia 20510
Greetings Senator Hatch,
Regarding the First Amendment, Right to Petition.
We are writing to request your help with the following federal agency: U.S. Customs & Border Protection Service (CBP).
We are writing to request your help with the following federal agency: U.S. Customs & Border Protection Service (CBP).
Our petition for your office & the CBP begins.
The nature of our complaint has main three elements:
Issue 1: Demeanor of CBP officers at the San Francisco Airport port of entry.
Issue 1: Demeanor of CBP officers at the San Francisco Airport port of entry.
Issue 2: Appeal
regarding property seizure and of a fine.
Issue 3: Appeal
regarding threats made to our Global Entry membership status, threats made
during our visit to the San Francisco airport (SFO) on March 27, 2016.
My wife and I were legally married in the State of Utah.
My wife currently has a Green Card and hopes to become a U.S. citizen.
We have two young children, age one (a girl) and three (a
boy), and my wife is pregnant with our third child (a girl).
We obtained Global Entry memberships to help us be able
to more easily return from China, and more recently & particularly because
my wife is currently pregnant. We usually visit China once per year so that my
wife can see her family, and so that our children can see their grandparents
and uncles.
Regarding issue 1, the demeanor of officers at the San
Francisco Airport port of entry.
Upon arrival at the San Francisco airport immediately
after exiting the relevant airplane we were on, we noticed a Chinese tour group
leader telling a group of travelers information about how to fill out a customs
form. This was all happening in a secure large international passenger hallway
& plane exit gate area, right next to a large sculpted artwork present in
the large hallway.
An apparent tour leader was instructing his group
regarding how to fill out the form, a CBP officer started yelling loudly from
down the hall and barking orders for the group to move more quickly. The CBP
officer was very angry and upset. The tour guide responded “ok ok,” whereupon
the CBP officer said “NO IT’S NOT OK!!! MOVE IT! COME ON! MOVE IT!”
This was these peoples’ first introduction to America: An
angry and unhinged CBP officer barking orders at them, all while their Chinese tour
guide was trying to explain how to fill out a relevant CBP form in the large
hallway outside of the relevant airline gate we all were at.
Regarding issue 2, an appeal regarding property
seizure and of a fine:
Our family proceeded through the Global Entry kiosks ok.
We believed we had filled out the relevant customs form for our family
sufficiently. At the Global Entry kiosks we did select “yes” to the question
regarding whether we had brought in any food, vegetables, or meat. And on the
paper form a “yes” was selected.
Primarily & probably solely because of our “yes”
selections as noted above, our baggage was then X-rayed and opened up by CBP
officers.
Inside of our bags the officers found items which matched
up with the Global Entry kiosk selections of (meat & veg) “yes,” and with
the front-of-the-form selections of yes for meat & vegetables.
Specifically one piece of bread with very small pieces of cooked pork on the outside of the bread was found.
Specifically one piece of bread with very small pieces of cooked pork on the outside of the bread was found.
Also one small sealed package of sausage purchased as a
gift for us from Walmart in Nanning, China (yes they have a Walmart there) was
found.
Also one package of noodles with “chicken extract” inside
was found.
My wife speaks limited English and she has a more limited understanding regarding CBP regulations. On the back of the customs form we did indicate the phrase “packaged bread.” And on the front of the form we did indicate a “yes” to the question regarding whether we had brought in meat. We also stated the word “etc” after a phrase similar to or exactly matching “packaged snacks.”
The process of being grilled and interrogated by a CBP officer can be befuddling. After 15+ hours of travel my wife & I were very tired. Our two very young children were tired & upset. And after our encounter with the CBP officer barking & yelling orders, we were further worn down.
We made our “best faith effort” in filling out the relevant customs form. We also made our best & good faith responses at the Global Entry kiosk when we said “yes” to the meat & vegetables question.
The small package of sausage purchased from Walmart in Nanning came as a gift and was mixed in with bag of other non-meat gifts. And again we did answer “yes” to whether we had meat both at the Global Entry kiosk and on the front of the paper form – the most relevant part of that form.
My wife speaks limited English and she has a more limited understanding regarding CBP regulations. On the back of the customs form we did indicate the phrase “packaged bread.” And on the front of the form we did indicate a “yes” to the question regarding whether we had brought in meat. We also stated the word “etc” after a phrase similar to or exactly matching “packaged snacks.”
The process of being grilled and interrogated by a CBP officer can be befuddling. After 15+ hours of travel my wife & I were very tired. Our two very young children were tired & upset. And after our encounter with the CBP officer barking & yelling orders, we were further worn down.
We made our “best faith effort” in filling out the relevant customs form. We also made our best & good faith responses at the Global Entry kiosk when we said “yes” to the meat & vegetables question.
The small package of sausage purchased from Walmart in Nanning came as a gift and was mixed in with bag of other non-meat gifts. And again we did answer “yes” to whether we had meat both at the Global Entry kiosk and on the front of the paper form – the most relevant part of that form.
The piece of bread found came from a bakery. The word
“bread” was mentioned in our declarations.
We gave the CBP full opportunity to check our bags.
We gave the CBP full opportunity to check our bags.
When people answer “No” to the question regarding meat
& vegetables, they are usually just waived on & not fully checked.
We saw this first hand. Thus the CBP appears to have a gotcha-type
system & scheme where common citizens & lawful U.S. residents are
easily trapped & penalized – directly & severely penalized for
attempting to be honest.
There should & must be a difference between treatment & handling of people who answer “no” & are found to have prohibited items, and people who answer “yes” to the related question. YES was our official deceleration, at the Global Entry kiosk, and on the front of the paper form, regarding whether we had meat & vegetables present.
There should & must be a difference between treatment & handling of people who answer “no” & are found to have prohibited items, and people who answer “yes” to the related question. YES was our official deceleration, at the Global Entry kiosk, and on the front of the paper form, regarding whether we had meat & vegetables present.
According to the USDA website at
meat is allowed:
Products for Personal Consumption
Products for Personal Consumption
Federal inspection regulations permit the entry of small
amounts of meat, poultry or egg products for personal consumption 9 CFR, Part
327.16, 381.207, and 590.960. The amount of a personal consumption shipment
cannot exceed 50 pounds for meat, poultry, or dried egg products and 30 pounds
for liquid or frozen egg products. The products must be for personal use only
and cannot be sold or distributed in U.S. commerce.
Such products are exempt from FSIS import regulation, but
they are subject to Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) animal
health requirements. These requirements change frequently, and travelers should
contact APHIS for up-to-date information by visiting the website or calling
(301) 851-3300.
All travelers entering the United States are required to
declare any products of animal origin (including soup or soup products) they
may be carrying. The declaration must cover all items carried in checked
baggage, carry-on luggage, or in a vehicle. U.S. Customs and Border Protection
(CBP) agriculture specialists at the ports of entry will examine the items and
determine if they meet the entry requirements of the United States. Additional
information on bringing agricultural products into the United States is
available from CBP.
---end of quote from http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/international-affairs/importing-products/products-for-personal-consumption/products-for-personal-consumption
Long traveling families, with children age one and three,
and a wife still prone to morning sickness AKA all-day sickness, and families
where a key family member who packed our bags speaks limited English should be
given some leeway. And even more leeway should be given when in the first
instance we a.) tried to be honest, and b.) we set ourselves up for mandatory
inspection as per our YES answer to the meat & veg question at the Global
Entry kiosk.
From our perspective, our answering of “yes” to the meat & vegetable questions at the Global Entry kiosks, and “yes” on the front of the paper form, should have covered what was found.
From our perspective, our answering of “yes” to the meat & vegetable questions at the Global Entry kiosks, and “yes” on the front of the paper form, should have covered what was found.
Long traveling tired families like us are not well
prepared to respond to being verbally grilled, and to verbally remember every
little thing within 5 seconds of being asked. But, we did remember to
select “yes” in answer to the meat & vegetable questions at the Global
Entry kiosks. And we did remember to select “yes” in answer to a similar
question on the front of the customs form.
And again a YES answer at the Global Entry kiosks routes
one, knowingly, to mandatory inspection. Had we answered NO at the kiosk and on
the paper form, we most likely would have been waved on after a quick verbal
question regarding whether we had any fresh fruits or meats.
We COULD have lied & then been waved on. But we did not. We sought to be truthful, and we set ourselves up for mandatory inspection. Plus we answered YES during BOTH opportunities to declare meat & vegetables, at the Global Entry kiosk, and on the front of the relevant paper form.
We COULD have lied & then been waved on. But we did not. We sought to be truthful, and we set ourselves up for mandatory inspection. Plus we answered YES during BOTH opportunities to declare meat & vegetables, at the Global Entry kiosk, and on the front of the relevant paper form.
The CBP officer who dealt with us was not helpful. He
acted rather like an exacting judge in a court room. One wrong word. One wrong
comment. A lack of a proper response within 5 seconds. One temporarily forgotten
piece of bread or packaged sausage (not recollected verbally within 5
seconds) after traveling for 16+ hours including connections & layovers,
and with a wife who is still prone to all-day sickness related to her
pregnancy, and with two very young upset & tired children – one very small
misstep with this abusive CBP officer resulted in the following:
A $500 fine.
A $500 fine.
A
threat to my wife’s current & future Global Entry membership (issue 3).
We maintain & claim that our representations at the Global Entry kiosks and on the paper forms were sufficient declarations to cover the very few things found as noted. Fully sufficient.
We maintain & claim that our representations at the Global Entry kiosks and on the paper forms were sufficient declarations to cover the very few things found as noted. Fully sufficient.
In our tired &
degraded state after our long journey, we provided the best quick answers we
could.
We gave the CBP full opportunity to check our bags, via our “yes” answers as previously noted. When one answers “yes” to the meat & veg question at the Global Entry kiosks, that automatically & mandatorily & knowingly routes such travelers to the more intensive baggage inspection.
We gave the CBP full opportunity to check our bags, via our “yes” answers as previously noted. When one answers “yes” to the meat & veg question at the Global Entry kiosks, that automatically & mandatorily & knowingly routes such travelers to the more intensive baggage inspection.
We basically allowed the CBP officer involved to abusively pounce while he searched for the smallest tiny mistake with our verbal responses. But we, my wife & I, set the wheels in motion for this trap via answering “yes” at the Global Entry kiosks to the meat & veg question. But, we answered “yes” in good faith. We were trying to be honest & to do the best we could under the circumstances.
A pregnant woman
with two very young children who speaks limited English, was the one fined.
As the inspecting & fining CBP officer involved was asking us initial very quick spoken & cutting verbal questions, my wife would not have had time to process his questions & answer them appropriately.
We were never offered an interpreter.
My wife never was asked one question, directly, and with an interpreter asking the questions – particularly during the whether-to-fine-or-not-fine decision-making part of the conversation with the relevant fining CBP officer.
And overall we received zero consideration for the fact that we were a family traveling with two very young & upset & tired children. No leeway. Nothing other than a very quick verbal game which one can either pass or very easily fail. My wife should not have been expected to pass such a game in her state & after such long travel & after being very tired & sick as a result. Yet, she was the one fined.
A lack of equal treatment under the law:
As the inspecting & fining CBP officer involved was asking us initial very quick spoken & cutting verbal questions, my wife would not have had time to process his questions & answer them appropriately.
We were never offered an interpreter.
My wife never was asked one question, directly, and with an interpreter asking the questions – particularly during the whether-to-fine-or-not-fine decision-making part of the conversation with the relevant fining CBP officer.
And overall we received zero consideration for the fact that we were a family traveling with two very young & upset & tired children. No leeway. Nothing other than a very quick verbal game which one can either pass or very easily fail. My wife should not have been expected to pass such a game in her state & after such long travel & after being very tired & sick as a result. Yet, she was the one fined.
A lack of equal treatment under the law:
The CBP officer we dealt with regarding the inspection
& fine stated that Global Entry members are investigated more closely.
However a general principle of the rule of law is that people be treated equally
before the law. Thus the more intense fruit & veg scrutiny to Global
Entry members given by CBP officers violates a principles of equal treatment.
People who answer “no” to the meat & veg question are checked much less often than people who say “yes.”
People who aren’t Global Entry members are checked less than people who are.
This is all unequal treatment.
People who answer “no” to the meat & veg question are checked much less often than people who say “yes.”
People who aren’t Global Entry members are checked less than people who are.
This is all unequal treatment.
The CBP penalizes people who try to be honest.
We did not set out to “sneak” anything in.
We gave our good faith best-effort answers at the Global Entry kiosks, and on the relevant paper form – regarding having meat & vegetables inside our bags. We answered and declared YES.
We gave our good faith best-effort answers at the Global Entry kiosks, and on the relevant paper form – regarding having meat & vegetables inside our bags. We answered and declared YES.
Traveling with two young children, and having a wife
who’s highly prone to all-day pregnancy related sickness, and 15+ hours of
continuous travel, resulted in our being able to be easily befuddled and
tripped up by a ready-to-pounce CBP officer. But as noted we opened the
door to their being able to find the items they were then concerned about. And
we did say “yes” to whether we had meat & vegetables – because we
were trying to be honest in the first instance. This was our declaration first & foremost: an answer of Yes
at the Global Entry kiosks and on the relevant paper form, to the meat &
vegetables question.
Why did we choose to pay the spot fine instead of going
to court? Because we live in Utah. We cannot reasonably be expected to travel
from Utah to a court in San Francisco to fight this matter. And so we paid the
$500 fine quickly so that we could be on our way with our two young kids, and
so that we could get a bit of rest in San Francisco before continuing on to
Utah.
However the CBP officer involved never mentioned, during
the whether-to-pay-quickly-or-not-or-go-to-court part of the conversation, how
my wife’s Global Entry membership would be threatened via our decision not to
fight in court. He only mentioned this way after the fact – and after we paid
the $500 spot fine. Thus the officer did not provide full information during
our decision making process regarding which route to proceed with initially.
Plus again, the CBP provided no Chinese-speaking
translator during the entire verbal interaction process with the CBP. Thus the
CBP officer’s questions verbally expressed to us would not have been fully
understood by my wife. This is a very important point.
During the fine issuing process, my wife was never
consulted, directly, regarding whether she would have preferred to pay the fine
up front, or via check, or whether to go to court – and certainly never with an
interpreter speaking with her directly.
Regarding issue 3: Appeal regarding threats made to our Global Entry membership status, threats made during our visit to the San Francisco airport on March 27.
Regarding issue 3: Appeal regarding threats made to our Global Entry membership status, threats made during our visit to the San Francisco airport on March 27.
My wife’s Global Entry membership could now be revoked,
and her future Global Entry application attempts rejected.
The CBP officer who verbally dealt with us stated that my
wife’s Global Entry membership would most likely be revoked, and that our
future attempts to have her be a Global Entry member would most likely be
denied.
A termination of my wife’s Global Entry membership would mean a termination of all of our memberships. We do not travel separately to China nor to other international destinations. If she cannot use the program then none of us can.
A termination of my wife’s Global Entry membership would mean a termination of all of our memberships. We do not travel separately to China nor to other international destinations. If she cannot use the program then none of us can.
Tired families with small children, who exit their
airplane and first encounter a yelling order-barking CBP officer (issue 1) can
then be easily befuddled by an exacting and similarly angry CBP officer when it
comes time for the meat & veg inspection & for the related exacting
interrogation.
We made our best faith efforts to comply with the
regulations. But we don’t believe the CBP makes good faith efforts to
accommodate families with young upset small & tired children, and a
pregnant wife with pregnancy nausea & sickness, with their exacting demanding
questions & grilling, and with wives who’re threatened with fines &
expulsion from Global Entry who speak limited English - families where one key
member doesn’t understand their questions as they are being asked.
The CBP apparently takes every opportunity to trip people
up, and to then ruthlessly penalize people.
Regular people. Regular citizens who’re just trying to come home after a long journey.
Further notes regarding issues 1 and 2:
Even taking
into account the strict letter of the law, the USDA states that small amounts
of meat are allowed to be brought in. And we tried to be honest via our
responses of YES to the meat & veg questions at the Global Entry kiosk and
on the paper form, which we KNEW would route us to mandatory inspection.
1. One piece of bread with little flakes of cooked pork on the outside.
2. One vacuum sealed package of sausage purchased from a Walmart in Nanning & received as a gift.
3. A package of noodles with no meat except for “chicken extract.”
1. One piece of bread with little flakes of cooked pork on the outside.
2. One vacuum sealed package of sausage purchased from a Walmart in Nanning & received as a gift.
3. A package of noodles with no meat except for “chicken extract.”
4. Answers of “yes” at the Global Entry kiosks regarding whether our family had meat & vegetables.
5. An answer of “yes” on the front of the paper customs
form regarding meat & veg.
6. A mention of the words “etc” after “commercially
packaged snacks,” and also “bread” on the back of the form.
7. Tired families with two young children.
8. A wife with pregnancy related sickness.
9. A wife who speaks limited English and who cannot
understand quickly-spoken questions from angry exacting CBP officers.
All of these factors combine and result in the following
requests:
Request 1: That the $500 fine imposed on my wife be dropped. If it cannot be fully dropped then at least reduced to the lowest amount possible (eg: $1 or $0).
Request 1: That the $500 fine imposed on my wife be dropped. If it cannot be fully dropped then at least reduced to the lowest amount possible (eg: $1 or $0).
Request 2: That the US CBP confirm that my wife’s Global
Entry membership is not threatened by the harassment & abuse &
fine we received at SFO on March 27, 2016.
We are not terrorists. We are not criminals. And frankly
we don’t deserve to be treated the way we have been so far.
We request to be able to appeal the fine imposed, and
appeal in such a way which doesn’t require that we travel to San Francisco nor
to a physical courtroom.
We request to be able to appeal the threats made to my wife’s Global Entry membership. A termination or blocking of her membership will be a de facto termination of all our our memberships.
We request to be able to appeal the threats made to my wife’s Global Entry membership. A termination or blocking of her membership will be a de facto termination of all our our memberships.
Does the CBP ever forget & ever forgive? Or are
citizens & permanent residents given permanent “black marks” if we do not
respond with full & very quick courtroom-style accuracy to their grilling interrogative
questions? Quick probing interrogative questions given to a woman who doesn’t
fully understand what exactly is being asked of her?
My wife hopes to become a U.S. citizen within the next
year or two, primarily because we have two U.S. born children and third on the
way. Will my wife’s ability to become a citizen be threatened by what’s
happened to us so far?
We request that all the factors mentioned in this
letter be read & fully considered, and that our appeal requests as stated
and noted be granted & honored as requested.
---
The way the United States treats visitors &
returning citizens & residents is hostile.
Yes of course terrorists should & must be blocked & stopped. But most people are just regular travelers. The CBP should be more accommodating & kind (yes kind). By comparison when people visit China, very little if any “customs” checking is done. Essentially zero for regular visitors. Same goes for many other countries. Such countries are very welcoming to visitors.
Yes of course terrorists should & must be blocked & stopped. But most people are just regular travelers. The CBP should be more accommodating & kind (yes kind). By comparison when people visit China, very little if any “customs” checking is done. Essentially zero for regular visitors. Same goes for many other countries. Such countries are very welcoming to visitors.
The US regulations regarding meat & vegetables are
overly punitive, and are enforced in a highly hostile & apparently unfair
manner. The face presented by the US to visitors is not welcoming. It’s
iron-fisted & just plain mean. Even citizens & returning residents are
treated badly & harassed & abused.
Jonathan XXXXX
with
Yanning XXXXX
Cc: Senate Committee on Finance; Senate Homeland Security
& Governmental Affairs Committee; House Homeland Security Committee; House
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform; House Judiciary Committee.
-----end of quote of letters to our elected representatives.
Previous photos show our March 2016 trip in China, our
family, and evidence of my wife’s current pregnant status.
Additional reference photos of our children:
-----end of quote of letters to our elected representatives.
Friday, February 19, 2016
Lies present in conservative religion force children into the abusive arms of the denialist myopic left.
Frankly, the thing which hurts conservatism are the pervasive and *required* lies present within religions like Mormonism and Evangelical Christianity.
Are you a pro-family & pro-life conservative?
Then don't lie to your children about a mystical god, or a about a prophet who's rear end all are required in your religion to kiss, or a non-existent Savior who also likes rear-end kissing (of his own).
By lying to your children, and by forcing them to lie (oh, and by too much shaming regarding such issues as masturbation (!)), you will force them to respond ping pong style.
Ultra-right as a chump in your religion, and THEN ultra-left!
The exact opposite of what you were hoping for.
It's quite true that the left (including the hippie & communist left) deals with the new technology of birth control with the same care & consideration as nuclear bombs were dealt with back in the '50s - ask all the cancer-ridden 'down winders' who were exposed to radiation during that time.
It's quite true that birth control & easy birth-control-connected-abortion have given humans the false impression that sex is for anything BUT reproduction, which it is not. Sex only exists in an inherently reproductive context, period.
So, Mr. & Mrs. conservative religionist, I can see why you're wary of having your children exposed to the vagaries of leftist relativism, extreme naivety, and myopia.
But you aren't helping things via lying to them about your imaginary god, nor about how everyone MUST suck up to your prophet or to your Savior, or else.
The Atheist Movement needs more laxative. Room should and must be made for social & political conservatism.
Exactly what connection does rural China & rural India have to do with the Bible or the Quoran or the Book of Mormon? Zero. So they are essentially a de facto control experiment, and can be accurately seem as an example for your average leftist atheist / "humanist."
Is "religion" the root cause of social conservatism, or is it human nature & evolution? Will life be a f-ing panacea if we can all just live like Bonobos, and let it all hang out? No. Lives are destroyed via such assumptions. We are NOT bonobos.
Let children be raised by two non-inherently-reproductive outlier-type females or males? It matters not, right?
Being "childfree" helps you be the most "true" YOU there is, right?
Don't have children because people in third world countries have too many, but for some reason they don't get enough peas in their diet so you still need to have as many peas in yours as you can in response, right?
Let strangers raise your children while you show that your EQUAL EQUAL EQUAL in all ways to men, right?
These are a few key tenants of current denialist leftistism. Denial of human nature. Denial of human history, evolutionary history, and sexual history.
And when you essentially force your own children out of your house and out of your religion, by a.) forcing your children to believe lies and maintain-as-true key lies, and b.) engaging in far too much (!) sexual shaming & too much shaming & control on other fronts, you will force them right into the hands of abusive leftist relativist denialist moron culture. The exact opposite of your otherwise reasonable goals for them.
So, how to move forward?
Some degree of shame regarding sex is warrantied, the type that helps people avoid lethal STDs for example, but not the type which says that masturbation is evil! Why mention the latter, because f-tard leaders in religions like Mormonism do.
Teach your children about the >fact< of evolution, but also teach them that religion & culture *evolved also and simultaneously* to help us *avoid* destructive behaviors!
Yes we should wake up about the non-existence of all gods and the facts of evolution by natural selection, but we should also be woken up to the FULL facts, not the partial denialist relativist "facts" which are generated solely from the ultra-left side.
Religion is a fully natural phenomenon as is culture.
Yes humans have fully evolved destructive & outlier proclivities which can destroy. Prohibition-elements of various types *also* evolved to counter destructive impulses.
Like it or not that's how things have been set up in us, not by some god, but rather by fully natural evolution by natural selection.
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Where does social conservatism come from? From human nature.
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2015/11/where-does-social-conservatism-come.html
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Where does social conservatism come from? From human nature.
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2015/11/where-does-social-conservatism-come.html
Lives and families are destroyed by Tranny and Gay acceptance and promotion - LGBT abusive outliers are not equal
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2015/07/lives-and-families-are-destroyed-by.html
The Atheist Movement needs move laxative - Making room for social & political conservatives!
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-atheist-movement-needs-move.html
Conservative Naturalism: Don't put your willie in the deadly destructive glory hole of the left. You might get both an STD and an MTD
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2014/05/conservative-naturalism-dont-put-your.html
Conservative Naturalism: Culture War General Commentary - 5-22-2014
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2014/05/conservative-naturalism-culture-war.html
Embracing true honest naturalism: Marriage is about children
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2014/05/embracing-true-honest-naturalism.html
More on the ping pong game - hard facts for the Mormon & Catholic churches:
Are Mormonism & Catholicism homosexual & pedophile generators?
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2014/05/are-mormonism-catholicism-homosexual_24.html
The talk I gave at my mother's funeral - February 2010
http://jonathanshome.blogspot.com/2010/12/funeral-talk-that-i-gave-in-february.html
Friday, January 8, 2016
Welcome sweet & kind refugees from Islamic countries.
Cologne Out Of Control: One Week Since Migrant Attacks, Another Teenage Girl Hospitalized By Gang
http://www.breitbart.com/london/2016/01/08/cologne-out-of-control-one-week-on-from-migrant-attacks-and-another-teenager-hospitalised-by-gang/
Welcome sweet & kind refugees from Islamic countries.
There's a price to be paid for Puritanical dress & dating & sex codes. This is the price: Young men so f-ed up they're willing to rape & molest en masse.
Islam comes to Europe.
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Tawfik Hamid talking about how Puritanical Islam fucks up the brains of young Muslim men:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxfo11A7XuA
http://www.breitbart.com/london/2016/01/08/cologne-out-of-control-one-week-on-from-migrant-attacks-and-another-teenager-hospitalised-by-gang/
Welcome sweet & kind refugees from Islamic countries.
There's a price to be paid for Puritanical dress & dating & sex codes. This is the price: Young men so f-ed up they're willing to rape & molest en masse.
Islam comes to Europe.
---
Tawfik Hamid talking about how Puritanical Islam fucks up the brains of young Muslim men:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxfo11A7XuA
A high percentage of Muslims believe in medieval barbarism and iron-fisted theocracy
"Total number of those Muslims who want sharia law and also want death penalty for leaving Islam = 269450621
in percentage = 32.69% worldwide."
from https://www.quora.com/Is-it-true-that-90-of-Muslims-think-you-deserve-death-when-shifting-away-from-Islam
Find "death penalty for leaving Islam" at:
http://www.pewforum.org/2013/04/30/the-worlds-muslims-religion-politics-society-beliefs-about-sharia/
more info:
http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/pages/opinion-polls.htm
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2013/05/01/64-percent-of-muslims-in-egypt-and-pakistan-support-the-death-penalty-for-leaving-islam/
Nearly 270 million worldwide. And these people love their prophet more than not only their life, but more than your life also.
in percentage = 32.69% worldwide."
from https://www.quora.com/Is-it-true-that-90-of-Muslims-think-you-deserve-death-when-shifting-away-from-Islam
Find "death penalty for leaving Islam" at:
http://www.pewforum.org/2013/04/30/the-worlds-muslims-religion-politics-society-beliefs-about-sharia/
more info:
http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/pages/opinion-polls.htm
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2013/05/01/64-percent-of-muslims-in-egypt-and-pakistan-support-the-death-penalty-for-leaving-islam/
Nearly 270 million worldwide. And these people love their prophet more than not only their life, but more than your life also.
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