Geez. I just saw that my last post was in August 2010. Really? Where did 2011 go? Certainly there were plenty of things on the news and around town making me mad and thus worthy of a Rogue Quaker rant.
One noteworthy nugget of 2011 news has to be the proposed amendment to the North Carolina state constitution that will ban gay marriage. If this passes in early 2012, it will not only elevate discrimination in our state to a sacred status (after all, it will be a part of the constitution),it will also close the gap that currently exists in the South: right now, North Carolina is the only southern state that doesn't have such a constitutional amendment.
Another source of aggravation continues to be the abundance of threatening church signs. One of my "favorite" was on display for several weeks in front of a church on the west side of town. It asked, simply, "Where will you spend eternity? Smoking or non-smoking?". My favorite kind of evangelism--scare people into a relationship with God. Of course, that is not really a relationship, is it? It's more like fire insurance.
Finally, 2011 will be remembered (for me at least) by the astounding number of murder-suicides that have taken place. As a Quaker, I do not carry a weapon of any kind. Instead, I am to trust that God will protect me should danger come along. But I am increasingly concerned about the use of guns to "solve" problems in our society. And what used to be seen as a tragedy--someone taking their own life--is often accompanied by disbelief, for many folks choose to take a "friend" or two on their journey these days. When someone decides to do that, there is little the rest of us can do, especially if we have been chosen to be a co-traveler (our own desires to live be damned).
2012 is on it's way. What will we do with it? Will I be complaining about the same sad and angering things next year? God, I hope not.
