Then I received the chancellor’s email last week and something inside of me snapped. I realized that the rest of the Vanderbilt community deserves a more accurate picture of what had been transpiring privately for so many months. So this is a public plea. A public and passionate plea for myself and any other student who wants the opportunity to make choices for religious organizations based on their religious beliefs.

It’s that simple.

Yet, throughout this process the university has consistently obscured the facts in an effort to gain acceptance for a policy that is widely unpopular amongst those it will affect. I’m going to try to clear up a few of those facts, and then I’ll go on to explain what I believe.

From the beginning, Vanderbilt has denied crafting a new, more expansive non-discrimination policy. Instead, administrators have tried to convince us this is actually a case of a few organizations being asked to conform to a longstanding practice.

According to this story, various offices are finally “catching up” with a policy that has been in place across the university all along. But no matter how the facts are framed, the reality is that the student organization handbook was altered last December, when a section specifically protecting religious association was removed, as highlighted by The Hustler in September 2011. Then, in April, a number of organizations were placed on provisional status as constitutions that had been easily approved in previous years were evaluated under this new standard. Call it a policy change or call it “catching up.” Either way, something changed. And that change will have real consequences for student organizations.

So far, the refrain echoed by a variety of university officials is that for all intents and purposes, business will continue as usual. But in a meeting with the Interfaith Council last Tuesday, Dean of Students Mark Bandas went so far as to admit that religious organizations could come under investigation if there was suspicion that members used religious criteria in voting for their leaders.

Let’s say that you’re a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and that you’re running for president of the organization. You win the election, but the student that you beat feels that he lost because members of the organization cast their votes based on his religious beliefs. According to Bandas, Vanderbilt would have grounds to investigate your organization for discrimination if the other student lodged a formal complaint. That hardly seems like business as usual to me.

For full letter/ article: http://www.insidevandy.com/opinion/columns/article_bed4c3ac-4aec-11e1-8813-0019bb30f31a.html

http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2012/01/whoa-must-see-tennessee-college-republicans-release-the-debt-generation-video/

      Then yesterday, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, said that she was ready to get “off the high wire of American politics”, and would not return to her position if a second term for Obama were to become a reality.

       These type of statements are not unusual in any White House administration. But, perhaps Barack Obama should take a cue from these two high profile Cabinet members, and decide that a second term just isn’t what he wants!

        Just Saying!!!!

If two Florida lawmakers have their way, they might. As reported by the Miami Herald, state legislators have unearthed an obscure law that has not been enforced since it was adopted in 1988. It states that any ballpark or stadium that receives taxpayer money shall serve as a homeless shelter on the dates that it is not in use.

Now, a new bill would punish owners of teams who play in publicly funded stadiums if they don’t provide a haven for the homeless. Affected ballparks would include the Miami Marlins‘ new ballpark in Miami’s Little Havana, the Tampa Bay Rays’ Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg and several spring training facilities. It also includes the homes of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Miami Heat, Jacksonville Jaguars and Florida Panthers.

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mlb-big-league-stew/florida-law-turn-ballparks-homeless-shelters-151458504.html

“OK everyone, let’s have some real fun, shall we? Good! Listen up and please hear me out. The antis are planning a boycott. Let’s counter with a BUYcott. On February 13, 14 & 15, please make the effort to go to Starbucks and buy something. Don’t like their coffee? Get a tea, a cocoa, a pastry, anything. Thank the clerk for Starbucks’ support of the Constitution. And here’s the cool bit . . .

Pay with two dollar bills. Thomas Jefferson, Mr. Liberty himself. If Starbucks sees a huge influx of payment in two dollar bills, people in general, and Starbucks management in particular, are sure to notice.

Why the day before and the day after you ask? Simply to show that we have the power (financial, organizational and political) and the wherewithal to absolutely swamp anything that the antis can muster. Bomb Starbucks with 2A love and money. Three days in a row. What’s it going to cost you? Twenty bucks tops.

There’s a Starbucks a block away from where I work in Cambridge. I plan on giving them a little extra business.

Link to this post: http://wp.me/pOQae-q1Z Spread the word.”

Sen. Rand Paul told his communications director this morning he was being detained by TSA at the Nashville airport.

The Twitter account associated with Paul staffer Moira Bagley, @moirabagley, tweeted around 10 a.m., ET, “Just got a call from @senrandpaul. He’s currently being detained by TSA in Nashville.”

A TSA spokesman disputed that Paul was ever “detained.” But he was not granted access to the secure area of the airport when he tried to board a flight Monday morning.

The standoff was short-lived. By late morning, according to TSA, Paul had been booked on another flight and made it through the screening process.

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/01/rand-paul-in-pat-down-standoff-with-tsa-in-nashville/

Note: The Senator has since said that the TSA Agent “warned” him that if he attempted to “use his cellphone” they would give him the aforementioned patdown!

 abcnews.go.com

“I don’t remember much from that horrible day, but I will never forget the trust you placed in me to be your voice,” the Democratic lawmaker said on a video posted without prior notice on her Facebook page.

“I’m getting better. Every day my spirit is high,” she said. “I have more work to do on my recovery. So to do what’s best for Arizona, I will step down this week.”