California Gay Marriage

Well, not sure what to think about this really.  I guess it is all about medical benefits right?  I mean lets not kid ourselves into believing that it is about anything else but money.  It isn’t about being accepted or changing society’s views.  It is about money.  I am not even saying that I necessarily disagree with the ruling, but lets just call it what it is.  I think that this country was formed based on principles in the Bible.  Which is a bit dangerous since a lot of the Bible is interpretation, thus countless different factions of Christianity.  As an example, the Westboro Baptist church uses the Bible to support protesting funerals of veterans and teenagers killed in car accidents.   I think that we as a society need a compass.  I think the Bible is a good start.  I am a believer in states rights, so if California wants to recognize gay marriage, I guess so be it.   But issues such as these are difficult.  We elect officials who appoint judges that we believe will do whats best for our society.  Is having the government officially recognize something that the Bible fairly clearly denounces put us on a slippery slope?  To say no, means you are not really a believer in what the Bible says, which for some isn’t a problem.  Myself, I believe in the Bible.  I think it has been affected by man but the core, the parts that can’t be lost in translation are real.  So I struggle when we decide we are going away from that.  Can we be tolerant of different lifestyles but not endorse it as a society?  Can we say, we don’t think what you are doing is right, but it is your life?  There is a group of people who are exhibitionists.  Does this mean we should allow them to walk down a crowded street naked?  I should state at this point that I have gay relatives.  It is clearly not an easy lifestyle to live.  To be honest I couldn’t care less that they are gay.  That is not for me to judge as a person.  I will not however endorse their lifestyle.  It is a difficult issue with no right or wrong answer I think.  In closing, I am where I started this diatribe, confused and unsure what to think.

Annika Sorenstam

Rarely does an athlete come along that dominates their sport so completely that there is no doubt that they are the best to ever play.  Annika Sorenstam is such an athlete.  Being a woman, a lot of what she has accomplished hasn’t been heralded like Tiger or Jack but make no mistake she has been every bit as dominating. Just to give you a little feel for what she has done, here is a short (and I mean short) list of her accomplishments.  72 LPGA victories, that is one less than Jack Nicklaus and 10 more wins than Arnold Palmer, 10 majors, 8 time player of the year award, and the only woman to shoot a 59 in a LPGA tournament.  The closest active LPGA player in wins is Karrie Webb with 35.  That isn’t even fair.  She won 5 tournaments in a row twice and dominated tournaments year in and year out.  While Annika only ranks third in total LPGA career wins, the two ahead of her are from an era when amateurs still won tour events.  Undoubtedly, the LPGA fields are much deeper than in years past.  Annika has left no doubt who is the greatest woman golfer of all time.  This week Annika decided to announce that she is retiring at the end of this year at the ripe old age of 37.  She made this announcement after doing what she does best, winning a tournament.  Given another 5 or 10 years she would most likely own every record in woman’s golf.  Annika has been a graceful champion and has given back to the game in many ways.  One such way is her golf academy that she hopes will help others improve their skills but more importantly fall in love with the game she has totally dominated.  With her retirement, women’s golf will lose a great competitor, the ultimate ambassador for woman’s golf, and maybe even some of its luster.  She has decided to focus her attention to marriage, children, promoting golf, and cooking and I am pretty sure no one can fault her for that.