Oh, You Wacky Legislators!

Living in Utah, it was hard to imagine sillier/more time-wasting bills existed, but then I moved to Arizona. And holy cow, it's a whole new kind of crazy. The state is in the middle of a horrific budget crisis, with massive cuts to education, social services, and a slew of other departments. Perhaps you've hear about the many state parks that are being closed or the vast number of rest stops the state has already closed. (Side note: someone sent in a letter to the editor supporting the closures arguing it would force people to develop stronger bladder muscles. Sadly, it was not satire. Guess even bladders need to pull themselves up by the bootstraps.) In light of all this budget hemorrhaging, here are a smattering of bills the state legislature has taken up:

Bill 1024 aka "The Birther Bill"
This bill would require presidential candidates to submit proof to the state of Arizona that they met the conditions for presidential office holders in the federal Constitution (natural-born citizens over 35). Aside from not being the purview of the state, the fact that it was spawned by a person who doesn't think Obama is natural-born citizen alone makes it cringe-worthy. I swear, I think some people would only be convinced if they had a time machine and watched every moment of the man's life beginning at birth. Of course, I also don't see what makes Kenya such a terrifying place, but YMMV. The bill passed the House and is awaiting a Senate vote.

Bill 1104 aka "The We Don't Need No Stinkin' Permits Bill"
This bill (since signed into law) repealed previous legislation that required training and a permit to carry a concealed weapon. Now any US citizen age 21 or older may carry a concealed weapon virtually anywhere. (Exceptions include federal buildings, airports, and private property where the owner has explicitly forbidden concealed weapons.) Needless to say, the police and responsible gun enthusiasts are not pleased. (The paper published this gem from a life-long NRA member and current concealed weapons permit holder: "The problem is that everyone thinks they know how to use a gun.") This comes on the heels of legislation permitting guns in places where liquor is served unless a sign of certain size forbidding it is displayed at the entrance--it's really weird to walk into P.F. Chang's and see "No Guns Permitted" hanging above the bar--and exempting guns manufactured and sold in the state from federal regulation including registration. I don't even begin to see the logic in that. Which brings us to the granddaddy of bad Arizona legislation:

Bill 1070 aka "The Illegal Immigration Bill"
I don't think I need to tell you much about this bill given the media coverage it's received, other than it requires immigrants/legal residents to produce documentation when asked by police. Police may make such a request if they have "reasonable suspicion" that a person may be in the country illegally. I shouldn't have to tell you how bad that looks. (No pun intended). Recently signed into law, it is certain to be challenged in court by a number of groups including the US government (immigration is a federal right). I feel sorry for any cop out there--either ask every single person you interact with or risk being sued for racial profiling. I don't think there are many people who don't think our immigration system needs a massive overhaul, but this isn't the answer. What really galls me about this particular bill (besides that it's very much based on racial prejudice) is that the legislature passed the bill knowing full well that it was going to be tied up in courts for years at a SIGNIFICANT cost to the taxpayers. The state is so broke that it had to sell and then lease back most of the government buildings, scrapped its state healthcare programs (putting it at risk for losing all government funding for Medicaid and Medicare), and had to have a judge issue a two-year stay on an order mandating treatment for the mentally ill in the state's care, and raise taxes. And after all that, the legislature still thinks fighting for a bill which will certainly not pass judicial muster is a good use of its limited funds. Garrrr!

Birthday Wishes

I'd like to thank all of you for your fine birthday wishes. I had a bit of a rough morning (eventually I'll write about that--it's part of an ongoing saga), but by afternoon things were peachy. I met Paul for lunch, which I had only done once before, and enjoyed a surprisingly tasty and unstomach-offending Brazilian flatbread pizza slice. It was nice to see Paul for lunch--he always seems so happy to see me! Anything to break up the workday, I guess. I made all my Chinese class, was "strongly encouraged" to come to a meet-and-greet for visiting Chinese scholars on Thursday, and came home to whisked away to a local steakhouse for a delicious prime rib dinner. Then I had to come back home and study for a Japanese test, which was a bummer but at least I was able to take the time to go out to a nice dinner.

Post #213: In Which Jennifer Gets Religion

I imagine this blog post catches most--if not all--of you by surprise. "What?" You're saying. "That blog's still active?!!" Your second thought is probably something along the line of "Jennifer gets religion? Huh? Did she not before?" or "Jennifer and religion? This is new." Either way, I figured I've confused every one of my (few) readers by the title alone. And thus my ridiculously circuitous plan is one-fourth complete!

Seriously, though, I don't talk much about religion much. I've always considered it to be a rather private and personal matter. Those of you who have seen my Facebook profile may have been tipped off to this by my religious beliefs being listed as "Fiercely Private." And as such, I am a horrible missionary. I do not keep Books of Mormon stashed about to hand out, I do not pray to have missionary experiences, and I do not engage others in conversations about their religious beliefs. I have always had the mindset that if someone wants to discuss it, they can come to me.

And thus I was approached about two weeks ago by a Chinese girl. She looked familiar, but I couldn't place her. She said she was very interested in my religion. I was floored. Based on our short conversation, I couldn't tell if she meant interested in a religious way or interested in a just curious way. We agree to meet in two days to discuss whatever she wanted to know. So two days later, I found myself trying to explain the whole "Apostasy and Restoration" thing, plus basic Christianity, how the Angel Moroni is on the top of temples (not our God), the Protestant Reformation, and the concept of the light of Christ.

It turned out she was interested in a religious way! Throughout the conversation it seemed like she was looking for two things. First, that she could receive help from divine beings. Second, that she could find something that explained how to live life. She was Buddhist, so I think that was why she was interested in those things--they're some of the few things Christianity and Buddhism have in common so they were more easily relatable.

I haven't talked to her much since then--I found the Chinese equivalent of Mormon.org and directed her there to learn more. I also located a Book of Mormon in simplified Chinese and some pamphlets that cover the first three missionary discussions, which I need to actually get from said missionaries.

I don't know if she's still interested or even if I did a good job of answering her questions. I am comforted knowing that if she really is interested in the Church, the Lord will send someone else to help her along the way. She also seemed to understand the light of Christ idea and that makes me happy. I had a religion teacher once say that it was his personal belief that eventually all people sincerely searching for God and happiness would find them. I think that makes sense with how I believe God operates. I hope she finds what she's looking for.

And that's how Jennifer got religion.