A Plague in Austin That Takes Your Money?

There is a plague spreading throughout Austin. No, it’s not rats nor is it the Black Death. It is a plague known as panhandling. Corner after corner that I drive pass, whether it’s to school, work, or even the grocery store I see people with signs asking for donations from drivers stopped at traffic lights. There is continuous debate over whether or not there should be an ordinance against panhandling. In 2005, a judge ruled that an ordinance making panhandling illegal in Austin was unconstitutional because it violated their right of free speech. But how is it ok for these people to ask for our hard earned money and not have to do a thing for it?

Think about how many cars pass each corner and how long these panhandlers stand on a corner. If one out of every twenty cars gives a panhandler $1 and he/or she sees, oh let’s say, 500 cars in an hour, he/she is making $25 per hour. You know what is worse? The money these panhandlers are making is tax free. How is it fair, especially in the current state of the economy, for these people to stand on corners begging for money and not have to pay any taxes for it?

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not trying to sound heartless, but there are people out there, people that could actually work for a living, that shouldn’t be asking for our money. I understand there are those that can’t fend for themselves and need assistance; however, these others are making it harder on them. Not to mention, how do we know we are not just supporting their habits of alcohol or drug abuse? I think that instead of allowing panhandlers to sit on corners, the city should make a fund where if those that want to donate to those who actually need financial assistance or donate to already existing organizations that aid the homeless, they can, and can receive something to write it off on their taxes.

Making an ordinance to stop panhandling would also make people feel safe when stopped at a red light. Many drivers roll up their windows to avoid having to deal with talking to panhandlers, myself included. All in all, in my opinion, Austin would be a much more pleasant city to drive around if we didn’t have to worry about panhandling in our city.

A Cure at Our Fingertips

Jamie’s article, Medical Use of Marijuana, discusses a very hot topic today. Many people with chronic illnesses are dying each day from the effects of manmade drugs used for the purpose of curing their respective diseases. Jaime brought to light the seriousness of the situation by sharing her personal testament to the topic at hand. She makes a good stand for the medicinal use of marijuana only. There are those out there that abuse the use of marijuana; however, I agree with Jaime in that with the right legislation, the law can be written to give doctors guidelines in which to prescribe it. Americans spend millions of dollars each year to find cures for these diseases when we could possibly have had the cure at our fingertips this whole time. Marijuana has been growing naturally for years, just as tobacco has. Why not spend the hard earned tax payers’ money on testing the effects of marijuana on sick patients instead of wasting our money on trying to put people in jail for possessing it?

Texas Falls Short on the Civil Rights Train

What is that sound? Is it a train? No, it is the momentum of the civil rights movement happening throughout the country. There are, to this day, six states in the United States that have legalized some form of gay marriage. The majority of these states have done so in the past year. There is continued hope throughout the nation that the momentum that has been built by these states will continue to include the repeal of the federal law called DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act).

On September 21, 1996, Bill Clinton signed into law the Defense of Marriage Act. This act had two effects: 1) No state is required to recognize a relationship between members of the same sex as a marriage, even if the marriage is recognized in another state; 2) the federal government defines marriage as a legal union between one man and one woman. Almost ten years later, in 2005, an amendment to the Texas Constitution was passed by the Texas Legislature and presented to the public to vote on. The amendment, called Proposition 2, was passed with 76 percent of voters approving the ban. The ban reflected that of DOMA in that it defined marriage as a legal union between one man and one woman preventing same sex couples from the legal rights of marriage.

Many opponents to the civil rights movement have and continue to use religion as the basis to the purpose of the ban and Texas is no exception. Their claim is, because it is written in the Bible that homosexuality is a sin, that members of the GLBT (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender) community are second class citizens who shouldn’t be given the same rights as those in the heterosexual community.

There are many arguments I could make to the claim above, but I want to focus on a very broad argument that not only touches the gay marriage issue but other civil rights issues as well, the merge of state and religion. Part of the first amendment in the Constitution of the United States of America includes freedom of religion and freedom from religion. Our country thrives on the diversity of different religious views and beliefs. Some citizens don’t believe in God or the Christ of the Christian faith, so why are we using religion as an excuse to pass laws in Congress? Why is it okay with the federal government that another religion’s beliefs, including many sects of Christianity, be forced upon the citizens of our country? It seems to me that our nation is becoming one of hypocrisy. Not one state has passed a law forcing a Christian church, or any other religious establishment for that matter, to marry a couple of the same sex.

I write this in the hopes to reach out to my fellow Texans and Americans and show them that members of the gay community, myself included, are human beings. I ask those of you who deny us our civil rights to look back at the struggle our country had with the African-American and Latino communities and ask yourselves, “Are we, as a nation, going forward or backward?”.