BooMac’s whereIstand Blog

Why the fear of the marriage license? Commitment to marriage makes the people in the relationship take each other seriously. The most meaningful part of a marriage is meeting life’s ups and downs together, working through any problems that inevitably crop up and forging a stronger bond because of it. If you leave yourself the escape route of " we’re not married ", there is no need to push through the tough times, to better yourself, to let your significant other see you at your low points or help them through their down times. It is easy to travel, go out to movies, dinner and have a good time with someone, the real worth of your relationship is how you stay with each other when the going gets rough. Then when the good times are there again, they taste much sweeter, the victory after the struggle is the reward. The marriage commitment means the two of you can be vulnerable, be open, not be afraid to completely expose your strengths and weaknesses, your likes and dislikes. There is no holding back. Isn’t’ that the motto of the 60"s, "Be Yourself- Let it all hang out! " This is easier to accomplish if you are committed in public in front of others. It will just be the two of you after that, being yourselves, living and loving.

whereIstand Tags

• Should a couple live together before getting married?

Athletes are the epitome of the free market. They only have their skills and physical talent to sell, why shouldn’t they be paid as much as possible? If an actor can get 20 million dollars to act in a film that takes three months to shoot, why shouldn’t professional athletes be similarly compensated? In fact, actors can perform at different weights, different ages, even just doing voice overs, while athletes need to keep their bodies in excellent shape and have a limited window of opportunity for their career. John Travolta can get older and still act in various roles, but who is going to want to pay an overage, out of shape athlete to perform? The owners of the sports teams and the organizers of races would not be paying athletes these sometimes astronomical sums if it did not benefit them. I enjoy watching a college football player, drafted in the first round of the NFL draft, be rewarded with a salary that will benefit him and his family for years to come. Only he knows the hours in the weight room, on the practice field, all the dedication it took to provide himself with the opportunity to be a richly rewarded draft pick. If he had been seriously injured at any point in this journey, this opportunity would not have been his for the taking. I say congratulations and enjoy the fruits of your labor and talent without apology.   

whereIstand Tags

• Are professional athletes overpaid?

Sports has always been an avenue for students to better themselves. They come from all walks of life and meet as equals on the field or court.  At what age do you being this testing - 12, 18, 21? If a student does something stupid one weekend at the age of 17, is he or she forever banned from the sport? How about asthma medications, over the counter drugs, tobacco use? I would hate to think how many student athletes who are not cheating tio improve their performance  would be caught up in this witch hunt.  Many of the student athletes I knew in high school in college were at all the parties, socially friendly people. Should they all live like monks, drink only milk, eat chicken and broccoli at all their meals in fear of their next drug test? This testing would bring professional level problems down to the less informal scholastic sports level and have only negative repercussions, scarring some students for life with one failed test. Does anybody think the Duke Lacrosse players will not have this unfortunate episode dogging them the rest of their lives? And they were INNOCENT? Lets leave the drug testing to the Olympics and the professional leagues and allow the few cheaters to get caught when the time is right. In my opinion, the talk and stigma about steroids may allow peer pressure to play a key role in reducing the need for drug testing of student athletes.  

whereIstand Tags

• Should student-athletes be drug tested?

Impeach him for reacting to a threat from abroad? Was I the only person living in NY on 9-11-01? I saw the smoke, the fire, I knew people who died there.They should all have been given military funerals, we were at war already but the terrorists neglected to tell us.  The sentiment was for Bush to act, which he did in Afghanistan. He then took the war to the source, hoping to free the people from Saddam Hussein at the same time. Guilty of misjudging the situation in the Mideast? Yes! Putting all the problems with this war at his feet? No! I seem to recall many senators, even some running for president, voting to go to Iraq. Bush did not so this alone. If it had been a success, if the Iraqi people had greeted the US Army the way they were greeted in the liberation of Europe in World War II, these same senators would be patting themselves on the back for CONVINCING Bush behind closed doors to go to Iraq. Impeachment talk is just revisionist history on speed. If this war is so hopeless, why are the reenlistment rates so high for the military? It can’t just be bonuses and promises of college money. I have seen interviews with returning soldiers, and they never say it is hopeless. They see the good they can accomplish and believe in the work they are doing. Will it work out in the end? Can we stay long enough? Will the Iraqis ever be ready to police their own country? Difficult questions to answer, but pulling out now is not an option, and impeaching Bush for this war is unfair.

whereIstand Tags

• Should President Bush be impeached?
• Can preemptive military strikes be justified?
• Is war ever justified?