Actively Nerdy On the Town: 16-Bit Bar+Arcade

You know those ruts you get when all you do is follow the same weekly routine? No matter how fun it can be, sometimes you just need a change. Well I was in one of those ruts all last week. Wake up, write, chores, nap, eat, more writing, Facebook, more eating, sleep. But Thursday, an important anniversary guaranteed that keeping to the same routine would just drive me mad or make me depressed in a hurry. I needed a bit of a change.

So when my friend Emily of the Relatively Geeky Network invited me out for some fun, I jumped on the opportunity. And what can be more fun than a good friend, good drinks, and old school arcade machines?

Welcome to 16-Bit Bar+Arcade, where the drinks are theme, the machines are (mostly) free, and where an acceptable first line is asking what your first gaming console was.

You get carded at the door, because this is a purely 21 and up bar. Sorry 18 and ups, there’s no exceptions. The house rules are that if you buy a drink, you can play any of the arcade games for free. The only exception to this are the pinball machines which are the classic quarter buy-in. It might take a bit to find out how to work the machines, but just look for the glowing white button on the console.

There’s all sorts of games to fit your fancy, from classic Pac-Man or one of the Pac Family, to Donkey Kong, to Time Crisis II and other shooters. They even had a Punch Out machine that was way more punishing than I remember it being. I mostly kept myself to the fighter consoles and quickly realized I had been spoiled by the home versions of fighter games. I would’ve lost more dollars than I care to admit trying to beat the first level of Street Fighter 2.

Where allowances go to die

I mentioned earlier that the drinks were theme. Well, technically the entire bar is focused on the late 80s, early 90s when arcade systems were still one of the most awesome things around. And their cocktail menu reflects that. All of the drinks are named after famous people of that time period, even if they’re not famous now. Neither of us knew who Tawny Kitaen was, but her drink tasted good. My personal favorite was the Alyssa Milano, and I’m very sad to report that I was making “Charmed” puns every time I saw the name. Those were the New Wave cocktails, and all the Old School drinks were named after male stars, like John Stamos and Burt Reynolds. 

Apparently she was the girl on the car in the White Snake music video.

For those of you who aren’t cocktail fans like me, they’ve got a very wide selection of craft beers and domestics, with the highest price you’ll see being $6. They also boast a large selection of bourbon, and cans of Pabst Blue Ribbon are always $2. Of course it is still a full bar, so you can get anything you want. Just be sure to ask for a price!

There’s seating outside and tables inside, but most of the space is taken up by people playing with the consoles. It’s a very relaxed place, and I personally loved the laid-back atmosphere. Be sure to check out the event schedule for their specials though. We were really lucky we went on Thursday, because all of the New Wave cocktails were $2 off.

So would we go there again? That would be a huge yes for me. I’m a gamer, I love the challenge of the old arcade systems, and the drinks are delicious. This was just what I needed to relax, and it was out of the way of the normal bar streets near the Arena District. For Emily? Not as much. The drinks were good and the atmosphere was good, but Em’s not really into arcade games like I am. Might not be our joint go-to place, but I’ll be taking more people there when I get the chance.

You can find 16-Bit, Ohio’s first barcade on 254 South Fourth Street Columbus, OH 43215. For a full drink menu and more information, their website is http://16-bitbar.com/ They're planning on opening up a location in Cleveland in August, so if you're in the area be sure to check it out!

Do you guys have a place like this in your city? Tell me about it! Email me at activelynerdy@gmail.com and if I end up in the area, I’ll check it out.

Also, don’t forget it’s almost Actively Nerdy’s third month online! Email me with any questions you want to ask me for the Q&A video at the same address, or find some way to contact me!

One Week Later: Why it's okay that Thor will be a Woman.

Flashing Back to Tuesday July 15, 1:26 am:

“Finally! I have a strong enough connection to actually post this week’s blog!  I really hope nothing comes up at the last second like the past few weeks. Oh well, it’s going up anyways. There couldn’t be anything major and noteworthy I need to write on within the next 36 hours, could there?

THE “NEXT” MORNING….

“Okay, what’s the news today…..”

“.......son of a [BLLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE----]”

Okay, lets do this.

It’s been a week since we got the announcement that Marvel’s Thor, one of their big three and Norse god of Thunder, is going to be a woman. I was excited! I’m a huge Marvel fan and really can’t wait to see what the writers plan to do with the character. But of course, we also had the backlash you would expect. The comments thread of even major news sources became pools of bile. But now that the initial reactions have had time to settle, what does it all actually mean that the character is going to be a woman? Will she ever really be Thor?

To help answer this, here’s my top 3 reasons why Female Thor can exist, and probably should.

1. Marvel Thor isn’t the actual Thor from Norse myth, just inspired by him. Gender doesn't have to be "accurate" to the lore.

Yeah, lets just get this part out of the way right now. Anyone who claims that the Thor of the comic books has always been an accurate representation of Norse mythology doesn’t know a thing about Norse myth. Norse mythology is full of blood, murder, weird sexual politics, more murder, and all the things that comic books weren’t able to get away with until the era that was the 1990s. And even then, not very likely. The comic began running in 1962, and there is no possible way that the writers could make it an accurate retelling of Norse mythology. And why we’re still on the subject of Norse myth…

Subpoint 1: The Gods are well documented shape changers.

If you don't read Texts From Superheroes's work, you should. It's hilarious.

Thor is a Norse God. They tend to transform into whatever they really want. Mostly to bone. Is it really a surprise that the God of Thunder could also at one point in time been a Goddess? Gender and species gets a lot more fluid when you can literally take on any form. However all that pales in comparison to another key fact about the comic version.

2. There have been a LOT of Thors.

The current comic book Thor’s name isn’t still Donald Blake, is it? Yeah, I didn’t think so. The hammer has changed hands multiple times, and each of those people have become Thor when there wasn’t already a worthy champion to claim the hammer. When Donald Blake was gone, Thor became Eric Masterson. After that, Jake Olson was our favorite thunder god. Currently, Thor is the actual Thor because of a combination of Loki and the Silver Surfer. It's complicated. But the honor of becoming Thor hasn’t always been reserved for humans. Korbonite Beta Ray Bill was Thor, and this guy is definitely not human.

Hell, he isn't even the average Korbonite either, so double special points.

And who can forget the time that the power of Mjolnir, one of the most powerful weapons in the universe found it’s true potential in the hands of A FROG.

3 Issues in the main continuity, with 55 other stories featuring him. That's 58 issues Marvel has published with this character. Just let that sink in.

His name was Throg. This is a thing that happened. It wasn’t a joke, but a real, honest to Odin Thor. And that’s not counting all the times that the hammer was wielded by other people while there was a dedicated Thor around. Storm, Captain America, Zarrko the Tomorrow Man, and even the Awesome Android have used it. And that’s not counting cannon uses in other comic book companies, like Conan the Barbarian. Even DC characters have used the thing, and not just the obvious Superman. Wonder Woman has used Mjolnir just fine. Each of them was worthy. 

So why can’t a woman be the one truly worthy of the role? Surely it's not as far of a stretch to imagine yourself in a woman's shoes than in a frog's...sticky pads? I'm going with sticky pads. Can you honestly relate more to a frog than another human being? A woman can be just as heroic as a man, and just as capable of wielding a magic hammer. I don't think the hammer really takes your biology into account anyways before deciding, "You'll do, armor up and hit evil in the face!" And on that note....

Seriously, go check them out after this. Their Robin is one of the best things I've read.

Subpoint 2:  In the beginning, Thor as a god wasn’t worthy to wield Mjolnir.

Yeah, that’s right. You know it from the origin, and you know it from the new movies. You might even know it from the straight-to-VHS Hulk movie from the 80s if you were a fan back in the day. 

It was a simpler time...and just as 80's comics as you could get.

Thor was kind of an ass from the very beginning. The Thor of today had to prove he was worthy, and that he had enough humanity to use his power wisely. And if he has it, he can also lose it like anyone else. It’s what makes him a hero we love, and one of the reasons to be so invested in his story. You wouldn't read a story where nothing changes and the characters don’t grow. Sometimes those changes hurt, but that’s not bad storytelling. It’s art imitating life.

3. The Thor right now isn’t disappearing.

They’re not straight-out replacing the character. They’re just letting a new character take the reigns, but Thor as you know him or will know him soon will still be there. He’s still the Thor we all know, he just isn’t worthy to wield his hammer like we’re used to. He’s got an ax instead, and one that is tied back to a time when he didn’t have the hammer in the first place. He still has stories to tell, and they will be told.

But now it’s time for someone else to be able to tell their story.They have said that it’s a character who has been in Thor’s life, now taking on the hammer and the powers it brings. He even saved her life at one point. But now it's her turn to save others and fight the good fight. It’s not impossible to relate to a character just because they have a different set of chromosomes than you. Trust me, it’s really not as difficult as you think.

The audience of comics, which seemed to be stagnant for a long time, has changed dramatically in the last few years. At least for those willing to say they are fans of comic books. The movies probably had a big part of making comic book heroes mainstream, but it hasn’t stopped there. It's really affecting the younger audience as well.

I never really got to say I was a fan of superheros growing up, unless you count Sailor Moon. It might have been more accurate to say I was a fan of supervillians because I loved the strong females in the Batman universe, but even then if I admitted I liked them I would be made fun of. It was something that was “just for boys” and "wasn't something that a girl should like, and looking at who the most popular heroes were it was hard to deny that.

But I see so many good role models for girls in comics now. My favorite team, the Runaways, is full of different kinds of girls that outnumber the guys. I love Birds of Prey. I see myself in Oracle and Batwoman, Shadow Cat and Molly Hayes. These are strong, real women, and amazing examples of what can draw a girl to comic books. They make me proud to say I read them. I am Batgirl. I am Kamala Khan. They make me feel like I’m welcome in a medium I love.

This is what someone who knows 3 different Lantern Core oaths by heart looks like.

So now Marvel wants to make Thor a Woman.  I say, lets trust the creators. They’ve thought long and hard about making this choice, and it’s obvious from the press releases. Lets see what they do with it.

And anything will be less confusing than Throg.

58 ISSUES Marvel? Really?

Seriously, she better get more issues than Throg. Just saying.

The First 5 Hours: Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor Soul Hackers

As a gamer, I have a certain type of game I love. Everyone does. I’m really not an FPS gamer, and I really can’t stand the modern military shooter branch of the genre. I can appreciate casual games in the way that sometimes my hands just need to do something, but they’re nowhere near my favorite. I don’t really have the time or money to get deeply invested into an MMORPG, or the attention span to keep playing it for too long. Even when I try a free one, it’s really hard to find people that want to completely be their characters that are around my level to fill my roleplaying fix. I like to lose myself in a character, and I really can’t do that in any of these games.

"Anyone want to have a meaningful discussion about the military industrial complex and the side effects into modern media? *gets killed* ".....I'll take that as a no."

So what games do I actually like?

My favorite type of games are the quirky games with mysteries. Especially the story-driven sci-fi/modern fantasies of Japanese RPGs or ones with life simulation elements. I go into Final Fantasy frenzies, and can debate about what the perfect team makeup is in any of them. I have an extreme passion for Persona, and I’m looking into getting a PS Vita to fill the Dangan Ronpa-shaped hole in my life. Phoenix Wright was my pin-up boy. Harvest Moon is my ultimate guilty pleasure. I have the complete soundtrack to Kingdom Hearts on my iPod.  I’m a sucker for great music, creative character design, good voice acting (don’t get me started on Titus), and compelling narratives. There are a few companies that really deliver on that, but only one has such a huge collection of non-episodic games that I’m proud to have in my library.

I love Atlus. I don’t think there’s been a single game of theirs that I haven’t loved. But I could never do a full review of one. Why? Well, it’s quite simple. There isn’t a single game of theirs that I’ve played that is under 80 hours. That’s just not reasonable to do in one week. But the first 5 hours? Yeah, that’s manageable and more than enough to get a good impression of a game.

So lets get started with the First 5 Hours of Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner Soul Hackers.

1st Hour:

Alright, this plot looks like something I can get into. Apparently as the main character, you’re part of a hacker group called the Spookies, and you live in a futuristic city with built-in city wide internet access, including phone booths with computer terminals in them. A bit different, but I like Science Fiction. You even get to choose your own Hacker Handle, so that’s a nice touch.

Yay, fully voiced cutscenes!  I admit I almost freaked out when I heard the Persona 4 Golden voice actor for Chie Satonaka, but it looks like she’ll be primarily a side character so it won’t be too distracting. Hopefully.

It took me a bit to get used to the map screen for moving around the city when you’re not logged into the virtual world, but once I realized that I was specifically moving my dot around the city and other dots were people I could talk to, it wasn’t so bad. The virtual world is done in full first person mode, and the controls are pretty easy to figure out. It was a bit annoying that I had to go to every open space first before being able to get into the game proper, but I’m sure I’ll have memorized the layout by the end. I wonder when I get my first demon?

2nd Hour:

Hello creepy lady dressed as Jack Frost, welcome to my nightmares. I know the Jack Frost design is worked into every Shin Megami Tensei game but I didn’t realize that they could make a cute little guy into a weird costume, and then add on the voice of the creepy too-into-their-job amusement park lady to create my new excuse for brain bleach. And apparently I’m not the only one, because of all of the characters in the series she is the only one I can’t find an image of online. Well done Atlus, well done.

Finally I get to see a familiar face! So in the Persona series, you can take on many fantasy or mythological creatures to be your strength. In the Devil Survivor series, those personas are known as demons, and they’re completely separate from your character. I actually really like the concept, because there is a massive amount of characters used as personas and each game would take forever to come out if they had to find over 100 new mythological figures and gods for every game. The first one I recognized was Leanan Sidhe, who has been a personal favorite of mine since Persona 3. I’m really excited, and want to make her one of mine since she’s one of the best healers in the game.

Never Change Leanan. We love your Sidhe-sass.

There’s also something different about how they classify the demons/personas between the two games. Seeing as I’m used to them being classified with Tarot cards, it might take a bit of an adjustment for the demon classification.

Okay, so the story so far is pretty standard. There’s a virtual reality program being run by a corporation that everyone loves but is actually evil and has released demons into the world. But in this virtual reality, something also tries to devour your soul. And you get saved the first time by what I think is a wolf, who tells you to go on vision quests. And then you unleash a demon that possesses the body of obvious-love-interest. Now you try to defeat that company by binding demons to you to do your bidding. A pretty solid start, and hopefully Atlus pulls off the traditional Shin Megami Tensei plot-twist in a big way. Like maybe the cool, supportive dad is a big bad? I doubt it, but could be fun.

Hour Three:

So that first boss when you have no demons can take a lifetime. I literally got by only because I started to play around with the different battle features and found some demons that would actually join me on about my third try. Before that I  figured out who was doing the major damage on the second try, dying again, and then focusing the damage dealer as hard as I could and then took the littler ones out. Dedicated healer was a must. Either way, it makes you freaking earn the “Survivor” part of the title.

I’m beginning to love how everyone else can’t tell how different Hitomi is when she’s possessed by Nemissa, because the avatars look so different and the attitude matches. They established that she does look different between the two forms, if only in coloration. Do all the NPCs think she has multiple personality disorder or something? Does hair and eye color just change at will in this world?

We are introduced to this game’s version of Igor, named Victor. Granted he doesn’t have the hook nose and dresses like a demonic ship captain, but they serve similar purposes. Atlus seems to have a fascination with demons in its games, and being able to interact with them. I mean, just on the games of theirs I can remember off the top of my head, we’ve got Devil Survivor’s Demons, Eternal Poision’s Falsin, and Persona’s Shadows. I mean I like it, but it really makes you wonder how it all got started.

Hour Four:

Cutest. Demon-Summoning App. Ever! Nemechi is an absolutely adorable ball of demon-buying power that uses souls to level up, but to collect those you have to streetpass people. That’s usually not much of a problem, except for the fact that I don’t know anyone else within walking distance that has a 3DS. It should be more workable if I take it to a convention though, so that’s a plan to level up that little cutie.

There’s this really annoying 5 problem quiz about Zodiac symbols that took me a few times to pass, just because I can’t memorize facts about 12 arbitrary constellations and what season they’re prominent in. I did finally get it, but it was more memorizing the 5 problems than actually studying them. And all of that was to unlock a door. Yes, just a door.

Learn to hate him. All of my hate.

The boss battle after that was actually interesting though, and took up most of the rest of this hour and some of the next. He was really tough, not going to lie. I died, went to level up more, died again, did more grinding, died a third time, then grinded until I hit level 25. Then I finally won. Victory at last!

Hour Five-ish Seven:

Okay, the grind took longer than expected. Still won though! Ish. My demon/girlfriend disappeared when another demon tried to hitch a ride with her body. Again. But I won!

And that was the first five or so hours of Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor Soul Hackers! Would I recommend it?

Well it’s not the best Atlus game I’ve ever played, but that’s a very high standard. If you like your RPGs science-fiction based and don’t mind figuring out most game functions yourself, it’s pretty good. Think Netrunners meets Persona 3. A fun concept, and not one I’ve played before in an Atlus title.

I guess when it comes to Atlus games you have to go with franchises to know what will work for you best. If you want fantasy, stick to Eternal Poison or the lighter Etrian Odyssey series. Persona is a good mix of normality and surrealism with a similar setting, but much lighter themes than the original Shin Megami Tensei series.

Yes, even next to Persona 3

Which means the Devil Survivor series seems to be the one based most on sci-fi concepts and based in the not-too-distant future. If virtual worlds where you can essentially live a second life are already real, how often do you think it could spill into the world we consider reality? Or a better question, how much does it do that already?

Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to make sure a virtual world doesn’t suck out the collective souls of an entire city with my possessed girlfriend.

And don’t forget to email me at activelynerdy@gmail.com with any questions you have for the 3 Month Anniversary Q&A! It doesn’t matter what you’re Nerdy about, as long as you’re Active.

Special Saturday Update: Two Month Anniversary!

Actively Nerdy How To: Keeping Tabs on your Federal Legislators

So last week was the most viewed post I’ve ever had by a large margin. I can’t say I wasn’t expecting it to be popular, but three times as many hits? Thank you guys so much, and I hope you all stick around!

One of the comments I really wasn’t expecting to get, mostly from personal messages through Facebook or email, is the comments on how they didn’t know they could keep track of their Senator. I actually got asked in person quite a bit how I found out how to do all of that, and was told they had really learned something. So I really want to put that in its own post, just to make it easier for all of you when election season rolls around again.

Consider this my first Actively Nerdy How-To.

So how do you keep tabs on your Federal Legislator? First, make sure you know which one is yours. There are plenty of places online that can help you figure out which Senator or Representative is yours based on your ZIP code that are anonymous and free. I recommend OpenCongress.org.

http://www.opencongress.org/people/zipcodelookup

With that, you can track down your representative's voting history through roll call votes. Because it can be a bit difficult to navigate the site directly for the US Senate or House, I recommend GovTrack.us. There you can track individual bills or the voting records of your particular representative. I highly recommend it for keeping tabs on exactly what your congressional representatives are doing. https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members

After that, it’s up to your own discretion. Do you feel like your Representative is actually representing you? If so, by all means keep voting for them. But if not, then when it becomes election season it’s time to do some serious research into the other candidates. What are their voting records? If they’re from state or local government, how they voted on issues is a matter of public record. 

There is also the factor of campaign contributions. Now that can be a lot harder to find, but https://www.opensecrets.org/ makes it a lot easier. You can even search for people running for office to see who has contributed to their campaign, and there are profiles on who contributes. Just make sure you’re well informed.

Eventually I will expand this for the state level, and I’m pretty sure by then you’ll all be able to figure out the local level. This week is a short one, but that’s just because I’m setting a plan in motion!

Expect a special Saturday post this week, and until then keep on being Actively Nerdy!

Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.

Yet another thing has pushed back my planned post, but this seems like it’s more important. As you all know, it’s Supreme Court decision announcement time. I tend to watch the decisions coming out, especially if there will be long-lasting repercussions. Which brings us to Monday’s decision in the Hobby Lobby case.

Lets just get my stance out of the way right now. I believe religion is private and everyone’s beliefs are different. I myself identify as a non-dominant sect of a religious minority, so compromise is a pretty big part of my belief system just by necessity.  Business and the economy is regulated by the government, so compliance with public policy is a state matter. I also don’t agree that business owners should impose their religious beliefs on their employees because it breaks the doctrine of separation of church and state established in our Bill of Rights. I can almost guarantee that I won’t be of the same religious background of my peers and possible employers, so to protect my rights this is one doctrine that I will fight for to my dying breath.

Sort of my life's mantra, if you will.

On a slightly more personal note, I myself am pro-choice but I respect people with opposing views if they are willing to participate in meaningful discussion. And by meaningful discussion, I mean nobody devolves into calling the other a baby killer or a godless heathen. I myself use hormonal birth control for medical reasons, and have been called some pretty horrible names at the pharmacy just for picking it up. It’s an important step towards equality to allow women to have easy access to birth control without stigma, and I don’t believe it’s right that you can be medically covered for Viagra and not for something that prevents ovarian cysts. I understand if religious institutions don’t want to cover it, but for-profit businesses are around to make a profit and should not force their ways into their employees private lives and decisions. Everyone’s religious beliefs are different.

So when I saw the Hobby Lobby decision, I had a few reactions. First, just reading the vote and basic description of the decision.

Then I saw who wrote it.

Alito and I aren't on speaking terms.

And then I saw exactly what the implications were.

So yeah, I was a bit pissed. But then I got to thinking of why I was so ticked off. It wasn’t that it was another moral attack on female rights. I left Catholicism long ago because of extreme versions of that, and we’ve been living through a majority Republican House lashing out at feminist advances in equality, no matter how meager they are. I’ve learned to deal with that in a way that doesn’t get a 10 on my rage-o-meter. It’s not that some of the opinions and testimony for Hobby Lobby ignore some basic biological facts of human reproduction, although that’s pretty bad (Birth control is as bad as abortion? Seriously?) But yet again, something I’m getting used to and able to laugh at. No, I think I finally figured out what it is.

The decision is giving preferential treatment to one religion’s beliefs over that of its employees in the public market, and is directly effecting their lives. It’s a direct violation of the Separation clause.

Just because you have the right to practice your religion doesn't mean the rest of us have to believe the same things.

Hobby Lobby is a privately owned company with public holdings in the stock market. That makes it open to government regulations based on economic grounds. The Affordable Care Act is an economic regulation to help guarantee public health for all employees, and to help alleviate individual economic strain in obtaining basic health care. That includes primary care for women, including multiple forms of birth control. Religious organizations are allowed to be exempt if it directly contradicts the beliefs of the organization, but those organizations are mostly non-profit by nature. A purely for-profit organization does not apply for the exemptions. Until now.

There’s a fee for those corporations that do not want to provide health care that includes birth control, which is what Hobby Lobby built its case on. They claimed that it would put an undue financial burden on the company and it was religious extortion. Granted, they would’ve had to pay $475 million per year for not complying. But it also wasn’t costing them anything to choose a healthcare plan that did not include the forms they were against that were grandfather-claused into the possible plan choices. It did not cost them anything to add birth control to their plans, because it was covered by the insurance company itself. The decision just expanded the concept of corporate personhood, which I inherently don’t agree with.

So a corporation is now enforcing its religious beliefs on its employees. And this decision made it possible for others to do the same. But what can we do?

Well the first is obvious and immediate. Show your disapproval by not shopping there anymore. This is a for-profit corporation, and there are plenty of other places to get your hobby supplies. Even if you can’t find a brick and mortar store in your area, the internet is a beautiful thing. A hit in profits can help show that we are not happy and will not stand for it. I will feel sorry for employees that may possibly get laid off, but after seeing exactly what kind of company they’re working for it may be the best chance they have for seeking other employment.

The long-term game is a bit more intensive. It is very unlikely to impeach a Supreme Court Justice. The first and only successful impeachment was of Samuel Chase, who was appointed by George Washington himself and was impeached during Jefferson’s presidency. It’s pretty safe to say that it isn’t going to happen anytime soon.

Signer of the Declaration, only Supreme Court Justice Impeached in History.

But there is still hope! The Supreme Court may not change its decisions quickly, but there is a window of time where it is much more likely. Within the first 20 years, before an entire generation grew up with the statute, is the sweet spot for new statutes to change. Especially with a change in Justices. Within that time, there’s sure to be at least one spot open, either from a justice retiring or just passing on while in office. Which means we have to be very careful with who we elect in the next three senate elections and presidential elections.

The Presidential election’s importance is obvious. They choose the candidate. And if we assume that a candidate will win their second term election (a very easy bet), that means we will have to look out for the next 3 elections. The Senate elections are a bit more subtle. While the President chooses, the Senate has to confirm. And a Senator’s seat is something that is a lot more easily controlled through elections than a President.

So how do you keep tabs on your local Senator? First, make sure you know which one is yours. There are plenty of places online that can help you figure out which Senator is yours based on your ZIP code that are anonymous and free. I recommend OpenCongress.org.

http://www.opencongress.org/people/zipcodelookup

With that, you can track down your Senator’s voting history through roll call votes. Because it can be a bit difficult to navigate the site directly for the US Senate, I recommend GovTrack.us. There you can track individual bills or the voting records of your particular representative. I highly recommend it for keeping tabs on exactly what your congressional representatives are doing. https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members

After that, it’s up to your own discretion. Do you feel like your Senator is actually representing you? If so, by all means keep voting for them. But if not, then when it becomes election season it’s time to do some serious research into the other candidates. What are their voting records? If they’re from state or local government, how they voted on issues is a matter of public record. There is also the factor of campaign contributions. Now that can be a lot harder to find, but https://www.opensecrets.org/ makes it a lot easier. You can even search for people running for office to see who has contributed to their campaign, and there are profiles on who contributes. Just make sure you’re well informed.

And for those of you negatively influenced by the decision, I urge you to keep every official record and evidence of how it affects you. Find others who are similarly affected, and join together. Make your voice heard, and contact pro-bono legal counsel for your options. Be this statute’s Edie Windsor. My heart goes out to you.

For the rest of us, I know that this isn’t exactly nerdy but we need to get active. The constitution was just attacked in a way that benefits corporations over individual citizens. In this case, Hobby Lobby is the big name. Now I’m not saying we should stoop to their level...but if you want to express your opinion about their policies and your future purchasing choices, direct all letters or calls to:

Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.

7707 S.W. 44th Street

Oklahoma City, OK 73179

Phone Number: (405) 745-1100

And the link to their customer service email form is: http://www.hobbylobby.com/customer_service/contact_us_form.cfm?company=1&addr=1&dept=1&mypage=1

Keep your eyes open, everyone. The long term-method I gave you above can help fight a lot of wrongs if we learn to use it correctly, but it doesn’t fight all of them. Be ready to fight for what you truly believe, and actively pursue what needs to be done. But don’t forget to respect another person’s beliefs. If you just deny the possibility that what you believe may hurt another person, nothing will change. And we need to change things.

Lets make sure those changes are all for the better.