Sidney Rigdon

"We will never be the aggressors, we will infringe on the rights of no people, but shall stand for our own until death."

The above statement is a pretty powerful statement. It is from a speech Sidney Rigdon made in the months leading up to Missouri Executive Order 44 being signed and that executive order was not rescinded until 1976. If you go to wikipedia you will see that Sidney Rigdon spoke those words in 1838. Missouri Executive Order 44 is also known as the Extermination Order. It dealt with Mormons in the state of Missouri. Apparently it gave the Mormons fellow citizens the ability to kill them if they were found in Missouri because they were viewed as a threat to the public order and society in general. If you do a little more digging you will find that Sidney Rigdon was part of a schism in the Mormon church- apparently he was too liberal even back in 1838.

Funny how quickly the oppressed can turn the tables and become the oppressor. I am not equating the passing of Prop 8 with Missouri Executive Order 44. I am just trying to make the point that denying a minority all the full civil rights accorded to American citizens has a long history in this country. Hell, slavery was still legal when the order was signed and African American slaves were only viewed as three-fifths of a human. My point is that at some point the country realized the deny any citizen the right to pursue life, liberty and happiness was inherently wrong and rectified. I doubt there will be actual armed conflict or that it will take close to 140 years but it will occur. It will not be easier but hopefully those who were denied their inherent civil rights as Americans prior to this will realize that by deny us our rights and hence our humanity that they are betraying the people who fought for theirs in the past.

It's Veterans Day. Regardless of what your position is on the current wars, you should thank anyone who has fought for this country or currently is fighting. It's their blood that allows all of us to actually debate the finer points of who counts as a legally recognized couple with all the rights, privileges and responsibilities.

Speaking of Veterans Day you'd think the NYSE would be closed for the day. Seriously- the bond market and banks are closed, why not equities?

Ok AXP had access to the CPPF already but apparently that was not enough money. Late last night the company announced it was becoming a bank holding company. That means they can now tap the Fed for all sorts of cash. One has to wonder how bad things are that AXP decided they were better off becoming a bank.

The auto makers. I say let them file and reorganize, shed their massive liabilities that make them slow and unprofitable. If they become nationalized who's to say the government won't tell them what kinds of cars to make and how many? Didn't the Soviets try that? I can't recall if that was successful or not...

I often wonder what I would do if I lost my job on the Street. Well I figured it out today after catching an ad on tv about a professor who will sell you a dvd on how to buy and sell things on eBay. I am sorry but I thought that was all pretty self-explanatory. Apparently it is not. so my idea will be selling booklets on how to do your own garage sale. I am so confident it will work that I know the next time you can't figure out how to switch a light bulb that I will be able to sell you a booklet telling you how...

Had drinks after work with an old co-worker, RK. He is doing well sort of but getting ready to make some big steps at the work place. I told him what I would do but also qualified the statement that I am a natural risk taker whereas he is risk averse. I hope it all works out for the best for him. I also put the hard sell on him about coming to our house warming party next Saturday. We met at a bar I had never been too but it was actually pretty nice.

It was the boss's birthday today so I made sure a lot of people knew- because I knew it would embarrass the shit out of him. It did especially when a mutual friend of ours arrived at the office late in the day with a birthday cake and sang Happy Birthday to him. He texted me later this evening saying thanks for embarrassing him. My reply was that he needed to remember he was part of a team not just the team captain. He told me payback is a bitch. I said I imagine it is but I have to take my birthday off as I have to go to two parent-teacher conferences that day- HA!