Prayers for Romney

It doesn’t take a genius to recognize that the first amendment grants a freedom of religion that was once unparalleled by the former rulers of the American colonies. That being said, the ideal has not lived up to its full potential. The United States remains a “nation under God” in which politicians, both left and right, swear to uphold the words of God while executing quotidian affairs. This system’s inherent flaw rests in the assumption that all of America is God-fearing. Oaths are taken by our nation’s professionals to evoke a sense of commitment to a duty by making a deal with divinity. For example, the Hippocratic Oath requires new physicians to swear to uphold certain values of medicine. The tradition is rooted in a Greek ceremony that highlighted the importance of divine influence on professionals. Ironically, Bill Maher’s satirical documentary, Religulous, indicates that an overwhelming majority of contemporary physicians and scientists identifies as atheist or agnostic. It seems as if the first amendment should include an asterisk with a footnoted clause that reads, “so long as that religion is theistic”.

The current political spectrum conveys varying attitudes towards religion. Since the right wing tends to uphold more fundamentalist, biblically rooted values, God is often exploited as a weapon in the argument for a conservative cause. As the presidential election approaches, my LGBTQ peers have expressed outrage towards Romney’s adamant plans for same-sex couples indicating that a vote for Romney, though arguably economically appealing (not necessarily my own opinion), is a sacrifice of civil rights, especially for the LGBTQ community. Right wing extremism has resolved that God’s word shall prevail over the civil rights struggle of the homosexual community seeking same-sex marriage rights because of certain biblical passages. 16% of Americans (millions of people, myself included) do not identify with religion, so why is God an acceptable source in the argument for civil rights? The scientific community only values evidence-based claims, and the fact of the matter is that evidence has eternally degraded faith. After all, you wouldn’t use Harry Potter to support a political argument. What makes the Bible different? I just hope that American lawmakers and politicians will keep in mind that freedom OF religion should also entail freedom FROM religion.

That Awkward Moment When...

On a campus famed for "hookup culture," it's no surprise that flirting breaches the classroom. The phenomenon is multicultural. I found myself in a sandwich of a Korean conversation five minutes prior to the start of my neuroscience discussion, as my male classmate in front of me and his female friend behind me exchanged loud, flirtatious banter.

Suddenly, I became a part of the picture when my male classmate awkwardly included me in the conversation: "Daniel, do you think she's nice?". I proceeded to respond very affirmatively and mentioned that I had seen her at the bus stop earlier, remembering that she had been a nice girl in my discussion section. She thanked me and also remembered having seen me at the bus stop just a few minutes prior. Subsequently, her male friend, suddenly jealous of the attention we gave one another challenged me, "Daniel, is that how you land girls? By following them onto buses?". His jealous remark slapped me in the face as heterosexism.

I quickly apologized to the girl for having caused awkwardness by complimenting her, but an apology on my behalf was unnecessary. I turned my attention to the boy, and two words sent him into a priceless state of confusion: "I'm gay". He looked puzzled, so I repeated, "Gay; I'm gay". Still speechless, his attention was drawn by a classmate who spelled it out for him, "G-A-Y; homosexual". As soon as he understood, he apologized for having assumed me straight. Fortunately, class began shortly afterwards, further awkwardness averted.

Culture has primed teenagers and college-aged students to presume intersexual flattery as flirtation. Clearly, I had no intention of "landing" my classmate. I consistently compliment my female friends on appearance, but none of them question my sexual intentions. It's shameful that female friends can acceptably compliment one another's fashion, appearance, or personality, yet a gay male's words raise eyebrows. Next time you overhear a compliment, appreciate the kindness of the speaker rather than assuming a conformation to promiscuity.

Daniel