Rain is over but here we are in a storm of stupidity

Last half of August in Florida is, this year, the best part of summer.   Still enough rain to water our lawns, no sprinklers, but not so much as to cause the kind of deluge and flooding we've had this summer.   Football season is starting, so I'm starting to salivate.   Work is just as frenetic as ever.  I tried to switch jobs earlier this year, and had an offer, but the counter offer to stay and a promotion was too appealing.  So I'm at peace with my decision, even though the craziness of my small health care company is sometimes too much to bear...and we have two vacancies that are tripling my workload.

Tough thing about this year is the stupidity that we Americans show the world.

     We agree with most of the world on a treaty, but wait for final vote and ratification.   Instead, our Congress takes a month long vacation.

     Despite the fires, despite the torrential rainfall... we, many of us, continue to ignore climate change and profess that man's way of life has nothing to do with how we are changing the world for the worse.

     The infrastructure crumbles.   All due to political gamesmanship on both parties part.

     Calls to make significant change to immigration, to the cost of college and the profit the government makes on the backs of student loan holders, to the lopsided dispersion of wealth in this country, the need for tax and entitlement reform,  to the errors we've made in the criminal justice system that have erupted in protest, all of it,  seemingly ignored while people spend billions to advertise a buncha politicians and entertainers that want to "lead us".  (Is it possible that what is spent on the election in a single day could feed all the hungry in this nation for a month... yes, sadly, it is.)

And then, having not exacted much change in the past years, although we have allowed the economy to recover far better than the rest of the world, the summer is spent making stupid statements about wasting money on women's healthcare (can it ever be a waste?), repealing the right of someone born in this country to have birthright citizenship, and harsh racial and ethnic rhetoric that sets people against each other.....

To the world, we look and sound, Stupid.  I hope at some time we stop this madness. 

Illustrating Stupid:

Smoking Crack AND Drinking the Kool-Aid

ACTUALLY SAW THIS BUMPER STICKER TWICE YESTERDAY

I wrote this post a few weeks back and wondered if I was too impassioned by what I consider to be a legitimate "War on Women".... and then this week the House of Representatives took a totally ugly position on Violence Against Women.  Another move that must have been inspired by crack and kool-aid.   It rekindled my fighting spirit.  See the next post on VAWA.  

Ok. So there are many state legislatures (Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, Mississippi, Indiana, Virginia, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania) who have considered and passed laws in the last 18 months that sew up any possibility of ever getting an abortion within their bounds, forcing women to undergo unnecessary ultrasound procedures, and flirting with the concept of "personhood", which means, frankly, that a person exists at the moment of egg fertilization....thereby raising all kinds of potential problems for their populations. (Need to take birth control in an oral hormone variety? It may be for birth control or to regulate heavy mensturation. I used the pill for 17 years. 7 of those were for actual birth control.... It may not be legal with personhood because the medication takes apart a fertilized egg in its earliest stages.... Go horseback riding in the early stages of pregnancy and then miscarry? Be careful. You may be charged with endangering a "person" by pursuing your pastime.) Ridiculous? Of course it is.

Since the 30's the Catholic church has pursued a course of action that imposed religion on a married couple's desire to have children. They advocated the "rhythm method"... a way to count days on the calendar to reduce your chance of conceiving without the use of any device or medication -- procreation being God's will.  The large number of children in many Catholic families in the 50's and 60's was a testament to the people following the Church's teachings... and the unreliability of rhythm.   In 1965, a poll of Catholics revealed that 61% of them thought the church would reverse its position on birth control. Indeed, it seemed it might be so. However, the modern Catholic church anchored its position during Vatican II, when Paul VI issued Humanae Vitae . In the years that followed, polls found that American Catholic women were using the pill in 66% of circumstances... 75% for those under 30. You hear now that 98% of Catholic women have used birth control; in truth, that number is a little high, but the real usage exceeds 90%. So what does it mean? It began decades where the American Catholic church began a long retreat from Rome.... divorce prohibition was high on the list, as well. And now the American Catholic church has a dearth of priests; not only because of the past pedophile scandals but also because standing up for these dictums is unrealistic in today's modern world.  In 1987, deaf to what was happening to their rules made by men, and not by God, the church entrenched by announcing it was opposed to in vitro fertilization.. on the grounds that it is harmful to embryos.  

What do today's state legislatures in many of the states (and notably, the distinguished gentlemen, Governor McDonnell, Governor Brownback, Governor Perry, and the delightful woman governor, Governor Mary Fallin of Oklahoma) have in common with the church? For the most part, the executive hierarchies in state governments and the hierarchy of the Catholic church are made up of primarily men. And somehow, these men believe it is their destiny to cast the law, make the rules, on what women have achieved in terms of their control over their own bodies and plans to give birth ... fought for over the last 50 years... in this year's legislation.

They are smoking crack.

They are made more delusional by the Republican candidates for President who  ALL backed personhood legislation in this election cycle and support measures like the Blunt amendment, which would allow EMPLOYERS to decide if their health plans would cover...procedures that the company was MORALLY opposed to.  This not only would mean employers could outlaw birth control medication in their health plans, but could take a stand on any prescription drug or medically necessary (as deemed by the patient's physician and agreed upon by the insuror) medical procedure they didn't like.  Somehow, I don't think Employers will be allowed to determine that a man cannot have a vasectomy.  Somehow, I think people will cry "foul" if an employer decides it won't pay for a child's operation to have tubes inserted in their middle ears, because the employer believes the procedure can be "over prescribed" in children.  

And then there are our Federal legislators, who aren't really passing laws to limit choice and to intrude in the doctor/patient relationship (actually, they're not doing much of anything to pass any laws at all)...they are just doing political posturing because they think that the issue of religious freedom (it is religious freedom for a Catholic University to deny birth control for its Protestant, Hindu and Islamic women employees) will outway the bedrock it is laid upon.... the dialogue of limiting access to birth control. They SAY it is not about birth control, but about religious freedom. But they are losing the communications battle, because this matter has been outlawed in many of the states, by Governors like Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee. It was never an issue then. It is only an issue because Obama directed the matter at the Federal level.

And, they have underestimated the groundswell of opinion of modern women. Call it what you will, call it religious freedom, call it birth control..... just get the hell out of our vaginal cavities and go win a damn war or anchor a wave of infrastructure rebuilding or jobs production.

They are drinking the Kool Aid.

There have been some cultural wars in America. Republican administrations need to heed the groundswell of sentiment among American women. Before it is too late. They need to put these types of legislation away, and focus on some of their other agendas... like limiting access to the voting booth and trimming the rolls of union labor. I am still an independent voter.  But what the party has become since 2010 is scary.  They need to dial it back.  Or they will doom the party.

My Struggle to Regain My Civil Rights

July looms before me.

For the first time in 8 years, I must obtain a new Driver's License.

A lot has changed since I got the old one.

I won't blame  our fine governor, Rick Scott,  for the DL changes.... no, the effort to exclude people from driving in the state of Florida (and hence, having an official identity here) began in the Charlie Crist area.  It was simple.  Suddenly, in order to obtain a Driver's License, it wasn't enough to have one from another state, along with a Social Security card, like I had in 1996 when I first got my Florida DL, a document I have lawfully possessed for the last 17 years, requalifying for the card in 2004.

Now I must prove my birth, with an official birth certificate, complete with seal.... a document created on paper some 57 years ago (I have this; having replaced it in the last 10 years).    And, since I am a second-class citizen, a woman who, when married, ACTUALLY CHANGED HER LAST NAME to match her husband's... I must prove that my FORMER  last name on my birth certificate matches the former last name on my marriage license.  This document was obtained somewhere in Rochester, New York, some 33 years ago.

It is possible that my ex-husband still has that marriage certificate somewhere, with the original copy of my birth certificate, and those of my children, which were entrusted to his care by virtue of the fact that he got to keep the fireproof safe in the divorce.  I would call and ask, since we live on good terms, but that didn't work with the birth certificates, all of which I have paid to replace.  It is more likely that the marriage certificate got shredded than those birth papers anyway, meaningless piece of paper it was to him, especially after he remarried.  I digress.

I began my quest yesterday when I learned that, in the state of New York, where I was married, where virtually every official "thing" in the state...outside of the NYC boroughs,  is at the County level.  The County website eventually yielded the fact that the marriage license records are issued and stored by the TOWNSHIPS within the county.  It is likely that mine was issued (I confess, I remember the ceremony, not getting the license) in the town of Greece, where we lived and Frank worked...or in the city of Rochester, where I worked.  I have started with the town, which only accepts apps for copies by MAIL, with money orders attached.  If that doesn't work, I will need to go thru the same process with the city.  Hopefully, one of these two sorties will produce the document I need, some 33 years later, in order to prove that I can drive in Florida.   I ask the question... does this happen to married males?  If I qualified to change my SSN with the freakin' Federal government in 1979, and have filed tax returns ever since (and had DL's in two different states)....why the hell does Florida need to make me prove my name change?

Would you believe I also have to produce 2 utility bills at my current address to get the license?  That particular requirement is designed to curb the ability of non-property owners (translation...young citizens most probably born in Florida).  Good thing I pay my own utilities where I rent.

Oh, yes.  The DL?  The current governor's regime has passed strict new voting laws that could pose a problem for me since I am a renter.  Thus, once I have said DL, I will need to insure that I am properly VOTER REGISTERED, something I have done 8 times before in the state of Florida without having to prove my identity.  Thanks to Rick Scott, there are many, many new rules to follow before you can vote.  I like to think that Rick didn't restrict a large portion of the population (women, young people, the elderly, the indigent) just because he knows that I will vote to move his ass out of Tallahassee at my first opportunity.  He didn't really have anything against me... no more than the rest of women, young people, the elderly, the indigent.  His administration also removed the right of the incarcerated to vote.  I guess I know where I stand.

 I am registered as an independent (or was registered), so it is likely that that I will have no problem getting registered, once I show those utility bills and that much prized DL that I had to move heaven and earth to get.  It would be different if I was formerly registered as a  .... Democrat.  God knows what I would have to produce then.

I'm tired of this nonsense.

Make No Mistake in the War on Women's Health

I return to the use of the word I prefer when standing back and looking at all the laws and suggested laws that make up what the press is calling "The War on Women's Health". This isn't a war....yet. But it will be, if this stuff continues. Right now, it's ...tyranny. Because a number of state legislatures and governors are, sort of in an obsessive fashion, trying to pass all kinds of laws that restrict the power of women in this country. What drives this behavior? I'm not quite certain.

And, if it continues, it will only be for a time. And then women, and the men who support women as equals will strike back. Believe me, it's coming. You don't see it yet because it is unorganized around various state capitols and the heroes of this "war"... Sam Brownback, Rick Perry, Rick Santorum, Nathan Deal, Jan Brewer, Bob McDonnell, Rush Limbaugh, Mitch Daniels... the list is endless. Right now, none of them have experienced the backlash of women at the ballot box...save Limbaugh who felt the lash as his sponsorships die.

Here are two of today's absurdities:

#1 Arizona

A bill is still alive in the senate that would allow ANY employer (churches now have the right) to refuse to provide birth control coverage.

Under the bill, employers with religious or moral objections could decline to provide employees with coverage for birth control drugs being used to avoid pregnancy. Only religious entities such as churches now have that right in Arizona.
Coverage to use the drugs for medical purposes other than avoiding pregnancy, such as treatment for acne, still would be provided through a reimbursement process, but employers could require that workers provide evidence that the drugs aren't being sought for avoiding pregnancy.

So, you can use the pill for acne. Or excessive menstrual bleeding. But not for birth control. Nyah, nyah, ne nyah nyah.

#2 Georgia


This week the Georgia State Legislature debated a bill in the House, that would make it necessary for some women to carry stillborn or dying fetuses until they 'naturally' go into labor. In arguing for this bill Representative Terry England described his empathy for pregnant cows and pigs in the same situation.

State Rep. Terry England was speaking in favor of HB 954, which makes it illegal to obtain an abortion after 20 weeks even if the woman is known to be carrying a stillborn fetus or the baby is otherwise not expected to live to term.
He then recalled his time working on a farm:

“Life gives us many experiences…I’ve had the experience of delivering calves, dead and alive. Delivering pigs, dead or alive. It breaks our hearts to see those animals not make it.”


Suggesting that if a cow or pig can give birth to a dead baby, then a woman should too was not enough for Rep. England though. He then delivered an anecdote to the chamber in which a young man who was apparently opposed to legislation outlawing chicken fighting said he would give up all of his chickens if the legislature simply took away women’s right to an abortion.

This is Mr. England:


Take a good look. He's happy isn't he? As we speak, he is being hounded by people near and far for these remarks. I'm sure he is and will continue to be popular among women voters. Not.

I am a woman and I have these human rights:

The right to life.

The right to privacy.

The right to freedom.

The right to bodily integrity.

The right to decide when and how I reproduce.

We had evolved into a society that supports family planning and birth control with laws intended to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies and the state costs that go with them – through obstetrical care, pediatric care and welfare. In one state, a free birth control law for low income women was estimated to cost the state $1.36 million and save it $8.1 million. By driving down these medical costs, we also incent better financial circumstances for low income women and families.

Suddenly, mostly male legislatures all around this country are trying to take away these laws and our rights by passing new, absurd laws that truly speak to "big government" . Why?

Don't kid yourself. It's all about power.

Komen.

I really can't sum up the events of last week and my reaction to the actions of the Susan G. Komen foundation any better than Helen Philpot (of the hysterical Margaret and Helen blog) did. You'll have to sit thru her diatribe of the Virginia legislature in the first paragraph, to get the whole picture. Enjoy.....Three cheers for Virginia State Senator Janet Howell who gave the Old White Guys Club a taste of their own medicine. Virginia law makers are trying to pass their own version of the Texas law that requires a woman to have an ultrasound before terminating a pregnancy. Good ‘ole Senator Howell added an amendment that would require men to have a rectal exam and a cardiac stress test before obtaining a prescription for erectile dysfunction medication. I like how that lady thinks. Considering most of them have their head up their ass, a finger up the butt just might knock some sense into their brain. I wish politicians would figure out how to run the country rather than trying to run my uterus. Am I the only one to notice the hypocrisy of the Republican party? They want smaller government all right… just small enough to crawl up my vagina!

And shame on the Susan G. Komen Foundation for letting some Republican nut case from Georgia convince them to start picking on Planned Parenthood. With men like those Virginia State Legislators in the world, we women need to stick together. The folks at Komen might want to remember that is wasn’t all that long ago that breast cancer was another one of those women’s health issues that was feared and discussed in hushed tones, as if it were shameful. Women should be allowed to make medical decisions with their doctors and not with their politicians. Planned Parenthood is one of the largest providers of breast cancer screenings and mammogram referrals in the nation, and that asshat Karen Handel over at Komen is about to find out that Planned Parenthood is also one of the most trusted names in women’s healthcare. I surely would like to introduce Ms. Handel’s ass to my boot. A boot, I might add, that walked in many a Komen Race for a Cure. Now the only walking I’ll be doing is from my door to my mailbox to drop a check in the mail to Planned Parenthood. Women turning on other women when we already have the likes of Rick Perry to deal with… Well I never.

Maybe we should stop Walking for a Cure and start Walking for Respect. I mean it. Really.

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