Stephen Baldwin beg-a-thon


Apparently, some Christian big wigs have set up a website where people can donate directly to the blonde Baldwin brother because he had to declare bankruptcy last year. $2.3 million or so in mortgages, tax bills, credit cards, etc. They SAY it’s because Hollywood stopped offering him roles because he’s a Christian.

Well, bully for Stephen. Why does he qualify for this largesse when so many other people don’t?

The boatloads of other decent people down on their luck didn’t buy multiple homes in pricey Hollywood, expecting the good times to go on forever. They didn’t publicly lambaste the people they hoped would hire them–seriously, if you’re hiring for a position, would you hire the guy who gets on every Christian TV show to talk about how evil you are? Many of those people who declared bankruptcy (if they were fortunate enough to have that option) are probably good, God-fearing Christian folk, too, and perhaps even ones that many of us godless harlot-types would respect for their overall decency, hard work, and lack of pretense. Some may have made mistakes, for sure, but in this society, the rich pay next to nothing for huge mistakes they made with deliberate indifference, wreaking devastating consequences for the whole world. Regular folks, on the other hand, better not charge something extra on their credit cards or they’re screwed for life.

Stephen, honey, sweetie. Maybe people stopped hiring you because (1) Hollywood is notoriously fickle to begin with, (2) you acted like a jerk in public towards the very people who were in a position to hire you, and (3) you just don’t bring anything all that interesting to the table as an actor anymore. (Though if the Christian entertainment market is so damned huge, as it’s purported to be, why aren’t you getting hired for blockbusters in that field?)

Not to mention that whole spending-beyond-your-means thing. Isn’t that what people on your side of the debate love to throw at those of us on our side? Come on now, be honest. Why do you deserve that sort of obscene hand-out for screwing up? It’s not like you’re a Wall Street wizard or anything.

I think a lot of people deserve that kindness more than you, though if people want to donate to you, I say it’s their money and they can do as they please. It just doesn’t make them any more Christian or moral in general than the rest of us. For those caring people (Christian or not) who still cling to the notion of “deserving poor” versus “undeserving poor,” I suggest that there are deserving folks in your own back yard who could use the helping hand a lot more than some Hollywood type who bit the hand that fed him.

Relay messsage from the Red Queen

Okay, this is my third attempt to make Blogger my pal and get it to post the WHOLE post. Please, Blogger, be my fwiend?

Got word this morning from the Red Queen herself. She, the Kid and all are fine–it’s just her internet connection that’s fubar. RQ, here’s hoping it’ll all be straightened out to your satisfaction soon. The joint ain’t the same without ya.

But, to pass the time while you’re offline, would anyone like to contribute an ode to Sen. Al Franken for his overall awesomeness? (Or one decrying the 30 male Republican senators who thought the suffering of gang-rape victims should be secondary to Halliburton’s profits?) I’ll start:

The clown speaks the truth
and helps the sufferers more
than their “protectors.”

A few Floridians want to make THE PILL unconstitutional?

From Tampa Bay Online: Anti-abortion conservatives are proposing a new constitutional amendment that critics claim would make it a crime to take birth control pills in Florida.

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/sep/10/110946/would-proposed-amendment-make-birth-control-illega/

Sheesh. I think these folks really need a new hobby. Bowling? I hear bowling’s fun. Knitting’s made quite the comeback. Hmmm….maybe taking care of all the unwanted children now in foster care? Ding-ding-ding-ding! We have a winner!

The good news (if any) is that they need over 676,000 petition signatures by February 1 to put it on next year’s ballot. Now we’ve had our fair share of anti-choice trolls here, but when you get down to brass tacks, even plenty of peeps who hate legalized abortion draw the line at getting rid of birth control. An awful lot of people who don’t like to talk about, well, you know, down there, still use active efforts to try to prevent unwanted pregnancy. I can’t see this effort getting anywhere. Can you? Or am Ijust uncharacteristically optimistic today?

One more woman dead. And MAYBE a ray of hope.

Good morning, all. Gidget Commando here, pitching an inning or two for the Red Queen while she’s on her journey. Please forgive my relative lack of formatting–it’s my first experience with Blogger, so I’m still terrified of mishandling things like, oh, hot links and such.

If you’ve seen or heard the news this morning, you know that police have arrested their “person of interest” in the slaying of Yale grad student Annie Le. The cops and prosecutors aren’t talking squat about motive yet. But why do I get the scary feeling that this was another case of a guy who wouldn’t take NO for an answer? Please, Flying Spaghetti Monster, I hope I’m wrong. I hope the guy had a pre-existing mental health condition, or a flashback, or ate bad shrooms and got violent. But anyone who’s had the feminist “click” is probably feeling what I’m feeling today: unease, and anger that yet one more female life is gone because some guy thought his wants were more important than her full agency and free will.

However, I did glimpse a glimmer of hope this morning…in, of all places, the mainstream corporate media. Good Morning America had the chairman of The Forensics Panel, Dr. Michael Welner, on to discuss the case. (If you go to http://abcnews.go.com/gma and scroll down to Yale Murder: Crime of Passion?, you’ll find the segment.) When host Chris Cuomo asked Dr. Welner if the murder were a ‘crime of passion,’ I nearly threw a shoe at the TV. Thankfully, Dr. Welner shot down that ‘crime of passion’ crap immediately. His was the first voice of reason I’ve heard talking about these kind of crimes since Gavin de Becker in The Gift of Fear (a book I recommend strongly). Give Dr. Welner some love and watch the clip.

I’m preparing to help a dear friend face down a jilted suitor who doesn’t want to take her multiple NOs for answers. He’s escalating. She’s just issued him a firmer NO. For her safety, and mine, I hope he gets it and isn’t inspired by what just happened at Yale. But if she has to face him, I’m going with her. Wish us safety and a good outcome.