short post on prayer

My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer last week. I live in the South, and most of my friends are Christians. Therefore, I have received many prayer requests for the swift recovery of my mother.

Please allow me to make the point that I am not offended by the prayers. I believe that prayers are a powerful resource for many people, and if you find value out of something, then so be it. My mom, however, has hinted that she is tired of it all.

If mom were religious, she would be praying along with the thousands of others who are suffering from the same condition. Wouldn't it be haughty of her to believe that God would consider her more special than the thousands of others who are suffering from the same ailment, and therefore grant her leniency from the disease?

While this website may sound ridiculous at first glance, it raises a very important question about the true capacity of prayer.

http://whywontgodhealamputees.com/important.htm

The Gender Gap: Will women ever move ahead?

A new study conducted by the World Economic Forum yielded completely unsurprising results - American women are making zero progress in terms of workplace pay equity and job satisfaction. In an era where corporations always seem to pay lip service to workplace equity, why does this gender gap remain?

The 2010 WEF project was the first study to cover the world's largest employers across twenty countries and analyze the workplace environment for women, effectively benchmarking them against the gender equality practices that should actually be in place. The survey contained twenty-five questions regarding representation of women within their establishments and the use of gender-equality practices such as target-setting, work-life balance policies, and availability of training and mentoring opportunities for women. The results were staggering.

While the US has the highest percentage of female employees (52%) across all levels, these workers are concentrated primarily in entry or middle-level positions and remain scarce in executive, board director, or senior management positions. The pay gap was found to be a universal problem, and American women still make only 78 cents for every dollar that equally qualified men earn. 72% of companies surveyed admitted to not even tracking gender pay gaps, though 40% claimed to be setting quotas or other affirmative action devices to help close the gap.

While the study didn't address regional differences within the U.S., it is well-known that the South boasts an even greater gender pay gap. I once had a male manager from a prior job attempt to justify this inequity by explaining to me that women cost corporations about 25 percent more than men do, considering the "extravagant expenses" associated with health insurance for expecting mothers and FMLA pay. I was stunned that anyone would even try to argue this point. If all women stayed at home, then the added insurance costs would be pushed over to their working husbands. Additionally, the average U.S. woman has two children and takes only six weeks off for each child. Does three months out of a woman's entire life justify a 22 percent pay decrease? I think not.

I noticed one major exception in the WEF study: Sweden. Sweden has a government regulation in place that mandates a minimum of 40% of each gender on the boards of public companies. Apparently, compliance is not a issue, as more than 40% of Swedish women are executives or board-level. Why can't other countries follow suit? While I do have some personal issues with quotas and affirmative action, if American minorities and religious groups deserve to be protected by such means, why don't women deserve the same treatment? At the very least, shouldn't there be some loose regulatory force that actually analyzes pay across American corporations and identifies and investigates unexplained gaps?

The practice of pay discrimination benefits no one. The WEF estimates that closing the pay gap could increase U.S. GDP by up to 9 percent. Research has also indicated that workplace morale and productivity generally increase in environments where men and women work together in tandem. I can only hope that by the time my three-year-old is out of college and entering the workplace, he will be joining an environment where professional, educated women are treated with the same dignity and appreciation as their male counterparts. However, considering the amount of progress we have made in the past 30 years, I honestly have my doubts.

Daily scary Bible verse

"And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, which the LORD thy God hath given thee, in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee:"


Deuteronomy 28:53

Why do blue laws still exist?

Blue laws are defined as Unites States laws that were originally designed specifically to enforce religious standards. While many have been deemed unconstitutional and have thus been overturned, most states still have laws banning the sale of alcoholic beverages and restricting commerce on Sundays. The rationale behind the Sunday restrictions is that people should be in church or respecting Sabbath instead of drinking or shopping.

Blue laws seem to be more extreme the father south you travel. While my husband and I were driving to Florida last year, we decided to stop at a Ruby Tuesday's late one Sunday evening for dinner. I attempted to order a glass of wine to go with dinner (it was our anniversary), but the waiter just stared at me in shock. "You do realize it is Sunday, don't you?" he asked, with mouth agape. I quickly realized my mistake and apologized, but he continued to examine me with a concerned glance which clearly read "I think you are a sinful alcoholic."

The most extreme examples of blue laws are dry counties, which can be found all throughout the southern states, including my home state of Tennessee. Dry counties engage in varying degrees of prohibition; many do not allow the consumption, transportation, or sale of alcohol under any circumstances. Critics of dry county laws suggest that prohibition actually leads to higher incidences of alcohol related crashes considering residents are forced to drive father away to drink. Additionally, many studies have proven that moderate alcohol consumption offers many health benefits, including decreased risk of Atherosclerosis.

If separation of Church and State is a guaranteed standard of American living, why do blue code laws still exist? Many U.S. residents are still forced to live under regulations that are centuries old, and repeated attempts to overturn them have failed. How is this not considered religious discrimination, considering the fact that the "Sunday laws" apply only to Christian principles and do not offer Jews and Muslims a day of worship? If the U.S. chooses to legislate morality, how to we chose which mediums of morality to enforce?

daily scary Bible verse!

"Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.

Husbands, love your wives and do not be embittered against them"  ~Colossians 3:18-19