Open letter to Anti-Immigrant "Christians"

I read an article today - penned on July 6, 2019 by Miriam Adelson (wife of GOP mega donor Sheldon Adelson) in her husband's owned Las Vegas Review-Journal. In the article, she discusses the Bible should include a Book of Trump. I thought I was reading The Onion. Nope. In fact, Trump just honored her with the Presidential Medal of Freedom - the nations highest honor that can be bestowed on a civilian - after she and her husband donated $500,000 to a fund to helps Trump associates with legal fees associated with the Russian interference probe. Naturally, I wrote off the right-wing heresy as idiocy and didn't think on it again until I read the USCCB readings for this Sunday. 

For reference, the readings I'm about to discuss are: 

• Deuteronomy 30: 10-14
• Luke 10: 25-37 (Parable of the Good Samaritan) 

Quick summary: In Deuteronomy, Moses tells his people that they already know the commandments written in the book of the law. The commandments aren't mysterious. Aren't strange. The laws of God are already very near, already in their mouths and hearts, and all they have to do is carry it out. 

In Luke, the very popular Parable of the Good Samaritan, a "scholar of the law of Moses" tests Jesus and asks him what he must to to inherit eternal life. Jesus gives him the simple answer: Love God with all your heart, being, strength, and mind. And love your neighbor as yourself. The scholar asks Jesus, "Who is my neighbor"... and this is where things get awesome. As Jesus frequently did, he gave his lesson in the form of a story: A man was traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho (almost 16 miles) and was stripped, beat, and left for dead by robbers. A priest saw him in the distance and moved to the other side of the road to avoid the man. A Levite (a person who  provided assistance to the priests in the worship in the Jewish temple) did the same thing... saw him and avoided him. But a Samaritan saw the beaten man, helped him, and paid for his medical care. Historically, Jews and Samaritans hated each other. So Jesus asks the scholar, "Who of these three was a neighbor to the victim" and the scholar replied, "the one who treated him with mercy". Jesus simply said, "Go and do the same". 

These two readings - one from the Old Testament and one from the New Testament - complement each other so well in today's current events. The current trump administration has made it their mission to dehumanize immigrants, those people who are trying to avoid being stripped, beat, and left for dead in their home countries in search of a better life. DJT enjoys the comfort of the Evangelical vote and I don't understand how or why. HOW can "Christians" support a man whose every policy represents the the actions of the priest and the Levite - who Jesus himself taught against? To support trump's current immigration policy - America First - kick out all the brown people - no path to citizenship for DACA participants - Or as better said in Karate Kid: "We do not train to be merciful here. Mercy is for the weak. Here, in the streets, in competition: A man confronts you, he is the enemy." 

The hypocrisy of Christians who give trump a pass is inexcusable. A good economy is not an excuse for stripping the dignity of brown people. I intentionally use the term brown people because the trump administration wastes no energy or resources on illegal immigration coming from Asia. According to the Pew Research Center, more Asian immigrants (both documented and undocumented) have have come to the United Stats than Latin immigrants since 2010. Trump masquerades his hate for brown people in the form of nationalist sentiment which is the same play Hitler made. Us against them. Division of a country vs. unifying it together. 

I have to ask you, as you walk into church tomorrow, ensure your belief is in the right Savior. If you believe in the Bible, if you have it on your nightstand or on your bookshelf, if you wear a cross on a necklace, Trust in Jesus, understand his lesson was to show mercy and kindness. Ask yourself, in terms of immigration policy and beliefs, are you the priest, the Levite, or the Good Samaritan? Will you fight for those who have no voice, the immigrants who were figuratively stripped, beat, and in some cases, literally left for dead? If the answer if no, you may need to change your religious affiliation on Facebook and remove that necklace. Remember we all answer for our beliefs one day, and I wouldn't want to be the one to tell Jesus that his definition of "neighbor" was wrong.

Peace be with you.

Sikh and ye shall find

I went to my local bar last night to have a few beers, and a Sikh and what appeared to be three Middle Eastern men sat down at the table next to me. Sikhs are easily identified by their dastar (turban) and beard. With everything going on in the news, I wanted to tell them I was a good guy. I was on their side. I supported refugees in the US. But then I thought to myself… wait… different region of the world, different ideologies, don’t be so racist! Am I that much of a racist asshole to think that just because they don’t “look like an American” should look, that they don’t live a completely normal American life?

Although the intentions were in the right place,  I feel they were misguided. I’m sorry to have confused Sikhs with Muslims (two very different ideologies). But throughout the night, I couldn’t get it out of my mind that I wanted to chat with them and let them know I wasn’t one of those jackasses who persecutes them… who doesn’t think they’re terrorists. Was I a victim of profiling? Seeking them out, even just to tell them I supported them?

Would they have been offended or gracious? I’ll never know. I decided to let them drink their beers in peace and let them enjoy their evening. But I went home with this gnawing feeling in my gut that I wanted to talk to them. Maybe they have no care for current events to even want to discuss with outsiders how they are made to feel in our country.

Maybe, in my own way, I was just trying to fight racial stereotypes the way the Sikh Camptain America does in New York. Great article by the BBC on why he does what he does. Check it out!  http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-30941638

Need some relaxation

WOO HOO! New product in from #BirchboxMan today. I got an English Laundry 3-in-1 shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. I LOVED their cologne that I received in the Birchbox subscription box last month, so I have high expectations for this wash. 

This came on a great day since I needed a little bit of good news. On Tuesday, Feb 4, I celebrated my six year anniversary with my employer Rackspace. It's a neat company to work for as it's a place where you're rewarded for actually taking care of customers and not just stinging them along. A place where customer service is still an action and not a marketing ploy. We've gone through some major hurdles and now we're in competition with the likes of Microsoft, Google, and Amazon. 

Our CEO Lanham Napier guided us through thick and then. He defines charismatic. He is so motivating and influential to listen to, and I've told myself I'd follow Rackspace to the ends of the earth as long as he was at the healm. But today on our quarterly earnings call, he surprised us with his retirement announcement. To say the least, it was a shitty day. 

So now I'll relax with a new body wash (that I can already tell you smells fantastic since I spilled some on my iPad as I was writing this post), enjoy a good Belgian beer, and I'll post a review on the English Laundry in about a week or two. 

Super Bowl’s ‘Merica

I have to admit that I’m not a huge sports fanatic. I just wasn't raised around it.  And in my house the roles are reversed: my mom is the sports fan and shops for the big TVs while my dad is happy in the other room watching History Channel or SyFy.  Nevertheless we all gather for the big game every year with all the junk food you can eat.  This years game was one of the most uneventful I’ve ever seen.  Not even the commercials were great.

One of the top highlights of the whole game was a beautiful performances of our National Anthem by Renee Flemming.  Her rendition was classy, and her interpretation was so beautiful and simple that the pop divas who have sung our anthem in the past few years should take lessons.  Her performance set the stage for a very nationalistic feel for the next few hours.  

I think in lieu of great game high points, the internet went a buzz with the Coca-Cola commercial in which America the Beautiful was sung in multiple languages.  And of course Facebook went crazy with differing opinions on the subject.  Frankly, I think it was bad marketing by Coke and shows us our nation is still so far from acceptance of different cultures.  If you’ didn't see the commercial, you can view it here: http://bit.ly/1cPqcF6

If Coke marketing wanted to relay the message that many cultures make up our America, they failed… in my opinion at least.  The backdrops for all of the scenes were obscure and didn’t show off any of our recognizable landmarks.  As I was watching live, I asked why people from other countries wanted to sing OUR second National Anthem.  If they wanted to show different nationalities making up our America, I would have set it in front of obvious American landmarks.  

What’s the internet in America with a good controversy? Of course everyone with an opinion took to Twitter and Facebook.  The ones most angered by the commercial were those with the least education - based on spelling, grammar, and syntax of their posts.  Ignorance isn’t bliss when they’re posted to a public forum.  This ugliness against other cultures isn’t the national identity we want while walking into the Olympics.  I hope we’re can join as one over the next few weeks to root for the ideal America instead of the racist America we've seen online.

Birchbox

Two months ago, I stumbled across my very first "unboxing" YouTube video.  Until that day, I hadn't heard of the term unboxing, and it opened up a whole new Pandora's box of online shopping.  Specifically the world of subscription boxes.  You see... to me, shopping is fun.  Shopping gives you endorphins and endorphins make you happy.  I can hit up a local dollar store and always find something I didn't really need, but even spending a small amount of money in retail therapy makes me feel better.

Subscriptions boxes put online shopping into a new plane of existence.  Online merchants offer a monthly or quarterly subscription where they will assemble a care package based on your size and preferences and mail it conveniently to your doorstep.  This care package is filled with sample sized (or full sized) goodness that make you look forward to receiving the package in anticipation.  A prime example is the Dollar Shave Club.  If you haven't seen their commercial, you should visit YouTube and laugh your ass off.

Back to the unboxing videos, once the package is received, users are setting up their cameras and opening their packages on film with explanations of what they received.  I just sat there watching video after video of users unboxing their subscriptions.  I guess it's the voyeur in me that wanted to get a glimpse of their surprises.  I finally found http://www.subscriptionboxes.com/ that displays a collection of these subscriptions with consumer ratings.  I finally took the plunge and ordered Loot Crate and Birchbox.  Loot Crate for the geek in me and Birchbox for the gentleman in me.

I haven't gone so far to do an unboxing video, but I did Instagram my boxes with explanations of what I received.  Two days ago, I received the following email from a Birchbox employee:

We've singled you out as a quintessential Birchbox Man—that is to say, you're curious, you're tapped into digital tools and trends, you've got an open mind, and most importantly, your taste is impeccable. (We know, we follow you on Instagram.)
We'll get right to it—we're excited to be launching a network of digital influencers—smart, sharp guys who know what's good in the grooming and style space—and we want you to be part of it. 
You'll have access to a host of Birchbox Man exclusives like full-size products to review and giveaway on your blogs, early access to our content, content sharing opportunities to grow your channel's following, and tons of other things we haven't even thought of yet.

So this is a pretty awesome opportunity to get back into blogging for a purpose.  If I get just two readers I'll feel like John Grisham!

Once upon a dream

I can't get enough of this song!

A crowning jewel of history

I shouldn't be posting this picture, but it’s an interesting story.  The Majestic Theater, first opened in 1929, is one of the crowning jewels of the San Antonio Arts community.  but like all institutions this old, it had its segregation history.  My grandma told me she used to go watch movies here when she was young.  there was the “white” entrance and the “colored” entrance.  Today, only three of the floors are used in the theater (main floor, mezzanine, and balcony), but there is a fourth floor that wasn't remodeled in the 80s which was used by minorities and completely segregated from the white audience.  For the past 8 years, during every rehearsal, I’ve looked for how to gain access to the fourth floor balcony… and found it today! It had its own entrance from the street level behind the theater, its own box office, and six flights of stairs to get to their door into the theater.  I took this picture from up there today.  

I took the second picture from what looked to be a bullet hole in a window on the 6th floor in the stair case.  Great view of the Tower Life building.