The Truth About Today

It's a shame to thing that in today's society, standing up for your own beliefs, standing up against injustice, and in face even just having an opinion is grounds for the rest of the world to judge, and exploit who you are. I know this first hand. Ashton is my pen name, one that I created to serve the purpose that I could express my true feelings, and voice my opinions, without having to suffer the consequences in my daily life. At this point in time, I cannot wait until the day when we are all truly free to say what's on our minds and not be scrutinized by the world around us. Unfortunately, until that day, this is the way it has to be.

We're All the Same on the Inside

I personally love the message in this picture. It doesn't matter if you're gay, straight, white, black, male, or female.... We're all human. We're all red on the inside.

Media Messages

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Global Equality



I just found this video online about Global Equality and the freedom to be yourself! Check it out! ;)

Do You Take This Man To Be Your Lawfully Wedded Husband? Oui!

 

As of May 18, 2013 France has become the 14th countryto legalize same-sex marriage. Only a few days ofter French President Francois Hollande signed the same-sex marriage bill into law, the first wedding took place.

Who Run The World? GIRLS!

 

Beyoncé Knowles acted as the leader of the crowd on June 1^st, at “The Sound of Change” concert at twickenham stadium in London. The concert served as a means of raising funds and awareness of continuing gender inequality, and to support and empower women, and women’s rights. The concert was performed in from of an audience totalling over  50,000 attendee’s as well as being broadcast to over 150 countries and raised over 4 million dollars.



deLUSHious!!

 

Lush Cosmetics is taking an active stance against animal testing in the cosmetics industry by enacting animal testing experiments on a human subject! What an eye opener!!

The Foundation Station

Hey everyone, this is just a quick posting with a series of links to various foundations and websites you can connect with to get involved in the struggle for global equality!!!

The Matthew Shepard Foundation
The "It Get's Better" Project
The Trevor Project
The Center for the Prevention of Child Abuse
Canadian Women's Foundation
UNICEF
SPCA

And MANY MANY others!!

Sweet Tweet Update

Be sure to follow us on twitter for more information updates, and groups that you can get involved with!! Don't just follow the Crowd, Lead It!!

Christian Buchanan - Miracle Child

 

Christian Buchanan is a two year old baby boy who was born on February 18, 2011. He was born with a tessier cleft lip and palate; his eyes were also clefted. At birth Christian couldn’t even close his mouth, and he was blind. This rare condition is only 1 in 50 in the world, and at only 4 days old Christian underwent surgery, which was followed by 4 weeks in intensive care. When Christian was finally able to be taken home by his parents, things were difficult. People treated Christian differently, when taken out in public people would stare and whisper, some parents would even ask Christians mother and father what was wrong with their child? The Saddest thing of all is that Christians mother was called a horrible person for not aborting her baby.

 

The treatment of this child, and his family is absolutely tragic! He was born a beautiful baby boy with an appearance that could be described only as different. That does not make it wrong, or gruesome, or worthy of rejection by society. Christian was born with a physical impairment that couldn’t have been prevented by anyone, and certainly was not his own fault. The mother was right and should be proud of her decision to bring Christian into the world, and it lifts my spirits to hear that he is a happy healthy growing baby boy, who has made plenty of friends, and has been a huge inspiration to other people around the world.

Dying With Dignity

At some point or another, we’ve all heard or spoken the phrase “it’s my life, it’s my decision”, however, when the end is in sight that philosophy no longer seems to apply. As animals grow older and become ill and in pain until it often reaches the point where euthanizing the animal seems almost kind and more humane, and thus that’s what happens. However, when people reach the same stage in their lives, sometimes even consumed by disease such as cancer or Lou Gehrig’s disease the option to willingly end their own lives by medicinal means is not provided. In fact it’s considered suicide, which is illegal. As humans we are not given the choice to come into this world, but when the times comes for us, should we not have the choice to leave it? Nobody wants to live out their life in pain and suffering, waiting for death to slowly and eventually take them. They want to be remembered with dignity and with strength, if that is there choice, then who is anybody else to deny them that?

Jodi Arias - Life, Death, Justice??

 

 

With all the recent hype over the 2013 Jodi Arias trial, I feel the need to ask if there is justification in sentencing criminals to death. In my personal opinion there is no victory in providing convicted criminals with the death penalty. To them it is more of an easy way out, they don’t have to atone for their crimes. Do we truly get any satisfaction in knowing that they will soon be dead? It doesn’t create progress, and it doesn’t better the future in any way. We feel like these people should be punished for taking a human life, and that it’s fair in return for them to have theirs taken away. To me that doesn’t make sense. How do you feel about criminals and the death penalty? Do they deserve it or does life in prison serve as justice?



The Customer is NOT Always Right!

 

From a business management point of view, it’s understandable that the philosophy that “the customer is always right” is valid. You’re in business to make a profit. It’s your livelihood, and if stretching the limits here and there keeps a roof over your head and food in the fridge then of course you’re more than happy to do so. But what happens when the customer who is always right, becomes the customer who also happens to be abusive? In 2010 Steven slater, a JetBlue flight attendant, quite his job in quite a spectacular fashion after getting into a heated quarrel with a passenger on board his flight shortly after it had landed. The flight was taxiing to a stop on the runway, and a passenger had left her seat and began retrieving her baggage from the overhead storage compartment. After being repeatedly instructed to leave her baggage in the overhead compartment and remain seated, she continued to retrieve her baggage and in doing so accidently hit slater over the head with her bags, resulting in a cut on his forehead. When asked for an apology, the passenger replied with profanity which sent the situation spiralling out of control. Slater grabbed the aircraft public-address microphone and announced he had had enough, grabbed a couple beers from the refreshment cart in the galley and then proceeded to deploy the emergency exit chute, he slid down and made his way to his vehicle where he then got inside, and headed home. Many people consider this debacle a spectacular display of intolerance of disrespect, yet others feel its entire purpose was specifically to garner attention. As an employee, if you had been treated in such a disrespectful, and blatantly rude manner would you embrace it, or defend yourself?

John Galliano - How The Mighty Have Fallen

                                          

It’s not unheard of to hear news stories and broadcasts everyday about stars and celebrities who have clawed their way to the top of the fame chain, glowed in the lime light for a few years and then fallen spontaneously off of the band wagon. Sometimes they make a comeback and return to center stage, sometimes they don’t.  However if you consider it carefully, we (the public) are the determining factor in whether or not their return to fame is successful or not. It truly depends on if these people of the public eye have performed such terrible deeds, and made such dire mistakes that we should opt to deny them our forgiveness and send them, and their careers packing their bags. They had their shot and they blew it. In the Case of John Galliano, he started off as a promising young fashion star and swiftly rose to prominence as the creative directors of Givenchy and soon afterwards the House of Dior. He was creative, talented, artistic, and had a vision that was truly unique and a reflection of himself. In 2011 after succumbing to the temptations of substance abuse, he was arrested at a bar in France for making public racial and anti-Semitic remarks, he went to trial, faced charges, and was dismissed from his position at Christian Dior. Now, over 2 years later, he has been given a second chance. Taken under the wing of Oscar de la Renta, and backed with the word of Anna Wintour, Galliano is struggling to reclaim the name he so swiftly tarnished. But what I’m wondering is, does he deserve forgiveness? Does his creative talent make him an exception to the morals and ethics of standard society? I want to you know your thoughts and opinions in the comments below.

We're Making Progress!

2013 – For the first time, A New York high school has named a same-sex couple (Dylan Meehan & Bradley Taylor) as “Cutest Couple” in the school yearbook! This is a huge step forward for both the teenage LGBT community, and public high schools in general. It is a sign that progress is being made and acceptance is finally spreading out, and the doors of opportunity are opening wider for future LGBT students and couples in public schools!