Friday, December 23, 2016

The Ones Most Likely to Care About Who Uses Women's Restrooms Aren't Women

“Most men think they (transgender people) should use the bathroom assigned to the gender they were born as,” a CBS News poll suggested in May, “while women tend to favor letting transgender people use the bathroom of the gender they identify as.”
 
Although there is no proof that letting trans people use the lavatory of their choice increases crime, bathroom traditionalists, so to speak, often repeat some version of this fear.

As usual, men who place themselves on top of the hierarchy believe that they know more about lower groups than the lower groups know about themselves, and don't listen to women. And these men don't have a problem forcing a hierarchy on someone else, this time the sexual orientation hierarchy. Hierarchical men don't care what anyone else thinks. What is important to them is building and maintaining hierarchies.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/12/21/the-people-mostly-likely-to-care-about-who-uses-womens-restrooms-arent-women/?utm_term=.013b9100b930

Thursday, December 22, 2016

Tegan and Sara Foundation for LGBTQ Girls and Women

The indie-pop sister duo of Tegan and Sara have announced that they have launched the Tegan and Sara Foundation in an effort to fight for economic justice, health and representation for LGBTQ girls and women. 

"LGBTQ women are experiencing disproportionately high levels of poverty, health issues and inequality. LGBTQ women of color, especially transgender women often experience these issues even more severely due to racism and transphobia. Today, given the state of politics in the United States, we must continue to unite and fight for our rights and against all forms of oppression."

At a time when the people would want to build hierarchies seem crazy and out of control, we can be encouraged by positive actions too, along with attacking the efforts of the hierarchy conservators.

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/tegan-and-sara-launch-foundation-for-lgbtq-girls-and-women-w456672

FADA – Hierarchy Conservators Want Everyone to Be Like Them – Again

Apparently, Ted Cruz of Texas and Mike Lee of Utah plan to reintroduce an embattled bill that barely gained a House hearing in 2015. Their First Amendment Defense Act (FADA) has a much better chance with a hierarchy-supporting Republican party controlled House,  and hierarchy-champion Donald Trump as President.

According to NBC News, "FADA would prohibit the federal government from taking "discriminatory action" against any business or person that discriminates against LGBTQ people. The act distinctly aims to protect the right of all entities to refuse service to LGBTQ people based on two sets of beliefs: "(1) marriage is or should be recognized as the union of one man and one woman, or (2) sexual relations are properly reserved to such a marriage."

Is this 2017,  almost, or is this the 1950's when hierarchies were so strong that most people would think this makes sense? As usual, those who put themselves on top of a hierarchy believe their ideas are so superior that everyone else must want or need to be like them.

http://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/first-amendment-defense-act-would-be-devastating-lgbtq-americans-n698416

Monday, December 19, 2016

Want to Live Longer – Get a Female Doctor

In an article on NPR entitled, "Patients Cared for by Female Doctors Fare Better Than Those Treated by Men," Harvard researchers found that that female doctors get better results than male doctors who care for elderly hospitalized patients. As compared to men, patients cared for by women were less likely to die or return to the hospital after discharge.

The study's authors estimate "that approximately 32,000 fewer patients would die if male physicians could achieve the same outcomes as female physicians every year." An editorial in the Journal of the American Medical Association about the study urges the medical profession to remedy the gender disparities in care and the pay gap that favors male physicians over women.

Women grow up in the lower group of at least the gender hierarchy, and know what it is like not to be listened to and acknowledged. Perhaps, as in so many other ways, the advantages of honoring the unique knowledge and wisdom of people in lower groups would improve our society immensely.

http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2016/12/19/506144346/patients-cared-for-by-female-doctors-fare-better-than-those-treated-by-men?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=npr&utm_term=nprnews&utm_content=2047

Friday, December 16, 2016

D.C. High School Bands - No to Trump Inaguration

We who do not wish our country to go backwards to rebecoming a hierarchy-rich society are all planning what we can to do lessen the bleeding from Donald Trump's presidency.

High school bands in Washington D.C. are doing what they can.

“At least one D.C. public school marching band has participated in the past five inaugural parades, but none applied for consideration this year,” according to NBC4.  “A D.C. Public Schools spokeswoman said she was not aware of any band in the district that had applied to participate in President-elect Donald Trump’s inaugural parade Jan. 20.”

Good for them.

http://www.salon.com/2016/12/14/not-one-d-c-high-school-marching-band-wants-to-play-donald-trumps-inauguration/

Who's Who of Homophobia - Trump's Cabinet

According to The Boston Globe, Donald Trump's cabinet includes the who's who of homophobia. This despite Trump's campaign statement that he would be "better for the gay community" than Hillary Clinton.

Trump’s transition team is led by Vice President-elect Mike Pence — the Indiana governor with a history of antigay positions and actions. Family Research Council's Tony helped write the GOP platform considered among the most anti-LGBT GOP platforms in history (and which promotes so-called “reparative therapy”). Ken Blackwell, former Ohio secretary of state and FRC senior fellow, was named domestic policy chair of the Trump transition team. Blackwell has compared homosexuality to arson and kleptomania. Trump named as his education secretary nominee Michigan billionaire Betsy DeVos, whose family’s foundation has given millions of dollars to groups working against LGBT equality. Trump’s choice for health and human services secretary is Georgia GOP congressman, 

Tom Price, who voted to ban marriage equality in the US Constitution. Trump’s choice for attorney general is staunchly anti-LGBT Alabama US senator Jeff Sessions, who has consistently had a score of zero from the Human Rights Campaign.South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, chosen as ambassador to the UN, has spoken out strongly against marriage equality. Kansas congressman Mike Pompeo, named by Trump as his CIA director nominee, supported a bill allowing the federal definition of marriage to be superseded by a state definition. And Trump’s choice of chief of staff, Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus, oversaw the anti-LGBT platform hammered out at the 2016 party convention.

Are all those people who voted for Trump really that hateful? Or were they so clueless that they ignored Trump/Pence stands on so many hierarchies, including sexual orientation. What will they think when the policies of Trump and Pence start to affect them?

http://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2016/12/15/trump-cabinet-who-who-homophobia/9UDr8MnXIQAxjO369qzT0J/story.html?event=event25

Friday, December 9, 2016

Chicago Bulls Game – Gay Man Proposes and He Says Yes

At center court during the Chicago Bulls’ game against the San Antonio Spurs last before last, Jake Conrad popped the question to his boyfriend Michael Holtzman. This is thought to be the first gay couple to become engaged at an NBA game.

“At the Chicago Bulls game vs. the San Antonio Spurs on December 8, the Bulls worked with Jake Conrad to set up an in-game proposal for his partner, Michael Holtzman. Michael has been a lifelong Bulls fan and watches every game. After he once told Jake that his dream was to go to a Bulls game, Jake knew he wanted to propose to Michael at a game to show him how committed he is to making Michael’s dreams come true."

As we will be challenged during the Trump administration to keep the gains we have made, we have to remember that there are plenty of Americans all over our country from all walks of life who are committed to what we believe in.

 http://www.outsports.com/2016/12/9/13900394/gay-chicago-bulls-proposal

Rep. Jim Buchy – Insisting on Remaining Clueless at the Top in Ohio

Clueless at the top, and insisting on staying there.

Rep. Jim Buchy, a Republican member of the Ohio House of Representatives, is the co-sponsor of the Ohio bill that could become one of the most restrictive ever. The bill restricts abortion as soon as a heartbeat can be heard, which can occur as early as six weeks into pregnancy. The measure does not include any exceptions for rape or incest, and many women do not even know they are pregnant until more than six weeks into a pregnancy.

But as one of the bill’s strongest proponents, he says that he has “never even thought about” why women might want to get abortions in the first place.

“Well, there’s probably a lot of reasons— I’m not a woman,” he says, chuckling. “I’m thinking now if I’m a woman why would I want to get... Some of it has to do with economics. A lot of it has to do with economics. I don’t know. I’ve never ― It’s a question I’ve never even thought about.

In other words, people like him on the top think they know what is best for everyone else, and they don't have to listen to the people for whom they make decisions.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/jim-buchy-co-sponsor-of-ohio-heartbeat-bill-never-even-thought-about-why-women-get-abortions_us_584af889e4b0e05aded3c31f?

Wednesday, December 7, 2016

Kids with Down Syndrome Promote Products

At at time when we can fear that honoring diversity will never be the same in the United States, we can take heart that changes are occurring. We have come along way since the time that children with special needs were taken from their parents and put into institutions for life.

In an original article in the New York Times, Jeanne Bonner reports that children with Down Syndrome are becoming hired more by retailers and consumer products groups to promote products.

Millennials “expect to see a broad cross-section of families, couples and individuals, including people who are developmentally disabled as a matter of truthfulness,” said Bob Witeck, a former executive with the public relations firm Hill & Knowlton and a communications strategist in Washington, D.C., who tracks ad spending.

“The consumer mindset has really changed. Millennials are so in tune with causes," says Teresa Gonzalez Ruiz, vice president for brand marketing at Fisher-Price.

Hierarchies do continue to break down, and we will not return to the 1950's and before if we join together under one banner: No more hierarchies.

http://www.seattletimes.com/business/ads-with-down-syndrome-models-reflect-millennials-ideal-of-inclusiveness/

Betsy DeVos from a Public School Teacher Perspective

People in the trenches of the hierarchy certainly have a clearer view than those at the top, who try cluelessly to rain down their ideas on everyone else, using their resources to promote the disparity that keeps them on top. From an opinion piece by Patrick Kearney in the Huffington Post, hierarchies are again so predictable.

Betsy DeVos, Donald Trump's opinion of who can do a good job as Secretary of Education, has never attended public school or had children who attended public school, as discussed from a public teachers' perspective.

"I suppose we also need to address the elephant in the room. We are a little freaked out by your nomination to be Secretary of Education. You aren’t an educator. You haven’t ever attended or sent your children to a public school, yet you seem to have some pretty strong opinions about them. You don’t seem to have been involved in the study of curriculum or school standards. What you have done is lobby (and spend millions of dollars of your own money in advocacy) for taxpayer dollars to go to unregulated for-profit charter schools. As teachers we like to look at data. Interestingly, the data from Michigan (where you have been able to use your wealth to influence a lot of education policy) would suggest that the charter schools you lobby for aren’t really achieving any better than their public counterparts."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/an-introduction-from-public-school-teachers-to-betsy_us_5845e2fbe4b0707e4c8171a3

Donald Trump – Bringing Muslims and Jews Together

All of us who are fighting to end hierarchies must come together to realize we are all fighting the same enemy - those who want hierarchies to continue, no matter who is on top and who is in the lower groups.

As an example to the rest of us as we cross barriers that might have seemed before insurmountable, American Muslims and Jews are banding together in a new alliance. Jolted by a string of hate crimes and the election of Donald Trump, divisions are being put aside for now to join forces to resist what might lie ahead.

Nearly 500 Muslim and Jewish women, many wearing head scarves and skullcaps, gathered last Sunday at Drew University in Madison, N.J., in what organizers said was the largest such meeting ever held in the United States. “It’s the Trump effect,” said Imam Abdullah Antepli, the chief representative on Muslim affairs at Duke University, who attended the women’s conference with his wife. “I see the Muslim community even more eager to reach out and to put aside the grievances of the past.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/05/us/muslim-jewish-alliance-after-trump.html

Talk Clearly about What is Reality – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

I take a college class three times a year to broaden my horizons and keep the brain in gear. In a Women's Literature class I took last year, I learned of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie from a Ted Talk entitled, "The Danger of a Single Story." She tells it clearly just like it is, discussing the effects of putting one person's story on top of the hierarchy as more important than another.

We are now at a time in the history of the United States when a single story of Donald Trump could impact what our country has stood for historically. According to Adichie, "Now is the time to counter lies with facts, repeatedly and unflaggingly, while also proclaiming the greater truths: of our equal humanity, of decency, of compassion. Every precious ideal must be reiterated, every obvious argument made, because an ugly idea left unchallenged begins to turn the color of normal. It does not have to be like this."

"Now is the time to refuse the blurring of memory. Each mention of “gridlock” under Obama must be wrought in truth: that “gridlock” was a deliberate and systematic refusal of the Republican Congress to work with him. Now is the time to call things what they actually are, because language can illuminate truth as much as it can obfuscate it. Now is the time to forge new words. “Alt-right” is benign. “White-supremacist right” is more accurate."

http://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/now-is-the-time-to-talk-about-what-we-are-actually-talking-about


Barbara Kingsolver: Lock Arms with the Ones Who Are With Us

Barbara Kingsolver, American novelist, essayist and poet, reminds us that the time is to become vigilant in our commitment to keep the rights that we have worked so hard to achieve, and join hands in doing so.
She says, "Losses are coming at us in these areas: freedom of speech and the press; women’s reproductive rights; affordable healthcare; security for immigrants and Muslims; racial and LGBTQ civil rights; environmental protection; scientific research and education; international cooperation on limiting climate change; international cooperation on anything; any restraints on who may possess firearms; restraint on the upper-class wealth accumulation that’s gutting our middle class; limits on corporate influence over our laws. That’s the opening volley."
We have achieved gains in so many individual hierarchies, but obviously, there are people out there who would take them away. We must unite together in a common language, a common goal, and act like we are one force. Which side are you on – building hierarchies or breaking them down. That is the question.
She continues, "We keep our commitments to fairness in front of the legislators who oppose us, lock arms with the ones who are with us, and in the words of Congressman John Lewis,  prepare to get ourselves in some good trouble. Every soul willing to do that is part of our team...There’s safety in numbers, but only if we count ourselves out loud."

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/nov/23/trump-changed-everything-now-everything-counts

Thursday, December 1, 2016

San Francisco Reaffirms Its Values Following Trump Election

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors has passed a resolution, introduced by the board president London Breed, that reaffirms the values of the city. The resolution was passed in response to the election on Donald Trump.

Topics include human rights, freedom of religion, LGBT rights, women's rights, freedom from assault, climate change, transportation, and health care.

We all need to come together to protect the rights we have won over the last 240 years from the likes of Donald Trump and his minions.

http://sfbaytimes.com/san-franciscos-official-response-to-the-election-of-trump/

Tuesday, November 22, 2016

Salvation Army - No Gay Officers

An internal document circulated by the Salvation Army bans gay people from serving as officers, unless they remain celibate.

Perhaps we should all walk by the bell ringers, and if we want to give this holiday season, find organizations or people who aren't trying to build and maintain hierarchies, specifically the sexual orientation hierarchy.

Moving on to marriage equality. The same document – which is signed by Commissioner Paul Seiler – warns that all members are liable for “termination” if they attend same-sex wedding ceremonies in uniform. Members are also banned from officiating same-sex weddings, even out of uniform.

The organization maintains a ban on gay leaders, saying: “Leadership roles in denominational activities such as teaching or holding local officer roles require certain adherence to consistently held spiritual beliefs. This would apply to any conduct inconsistent with Salvation Army beliefs and would include same-sex sexual relationships.”

http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2014/12/19/salvation-army-bans-gay-people-from-serving-as-officers-unless-celibate/


Monday, November 21, 2016

Cast of Hamilton Cast a Shadow on Pence

The Trump/Pence presidency might be something we have to accept, but those of us who understand them to be hierarchy builders certainly don't need to take it sitting down.

The cast of the Broadway smash hit Hamilton certainly isn't. Mike Pence and a few family members arrived at the Richard Rodgers Theatre in New York City on Friday, only to be greeted with boos. At the end of the play, the cast joined hands and gave Mr. Pence his own curtain call. They asked audience members to get out their phones and record it and send it around the world.
-->
"We, sir, we are the diverse America who are alarmed and anxious that your new administration will not protect us, our planet, our children, our parents, or defend us and uphold our inalienable rights,” said Brandon Victor Dixon, who plays Aaron Burr, the nation’s third vice president, as his fellow actors joined hands. “We truly hope that this show has inspired you to uphold our American values and to work on behalf of all of us.” 
  
-->https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWlwrUFiuUw

Saturday, November 12, 2016

Trump/Pence Supporters – Followed The Indoctrination to Let Top Off the Hook


Clearly with the election of Donald Trump, there are many people who follow the programming of hierarchies, which indoctrinates us not to hold the top accountable. Trump is on top of our hierarchies as a tall, white, able-bodied, not of a religion other than Christianity, wealthy man.

Those of us not in that group, and aware people who aren't, know from our own experiences that if Trump were not on top, he wouldn't have gotten a free ride from so many people. If he were a five-foot-tall male, female, black, had cerebral palsy, Muslim, or poor, he would most likely not be president now. Instead, many more people would not have let him off the hook, but would have, instead, held him accountable for at least one of his horrendous comments and actions. 

It is easy in our hierarchical society to discredit people who aren't on top, even make untrue stories very believable. But even the truth doesn't matter often when it comes to people who have the characteristics of Trump/Pence.

Sticking Together after the Trump/Pence Win

Many people who are hierarchy busters are sickened by the election of Trump/Pence in a country whose principles support the opposite.

One of the most heartening results are the number of people and groups coming together to stand for themselves as well as people from other hierarchies.

An email we received from an environmental group after the election stated their commitment to the environment as well as to end racism, sexism, xenophobia, etc. Trump/Pence have united us like never before!


Wednesday, November 2, 2016

Women: Help in Leaving Problem Date Discretely

In the gender hierarchy, men have used violence or the threat of violence to gain power over women. In Lancaster, England, they are taking that seriously. The county council in England has come up with a clever and discreet way of combating sexual violence and abuse. Here is a sign posted in restrooms of eating establishments:


http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/how-poster-womens-restroom-bar-cleverly-combats-sexual-assault-174370

KKK: Donald Trump Fits Their White Christian Republic Mantra

Perched on top of the hierarchies in our country, white Christian males sometimes have a hard time understanding the liabilities of hierarchies. And typical of people on top, they condemn people who do understand them.

Such is the KKK, who endorsed Donald Trump in one of their most prominent newspapers, The Crusader. Here is what they said:

"'Make America Great Again!' It is a slogan that has been repeatedly used by Donald Trump in his campaign for the presidency," Pastor Thomas Robb wrote in the Crusader. "You can see it on the shirts, buttons, posters and ball caps such as the one being worn here by Trump speaking at a recent rally. … But can it happen? Can America really be great again? This is what we will soon find out!"

"While Trump wants to make America great again, we have to ask ourselves, 'What made America great in the first place?'" the article continues. "The short answer to that is simple. America was great not because of what our forefathers did — but because of who our forefathers were.

"America was founded as a White Christian Republic. And as a White Christian Republic it became great."

According to the KKK, let's keep those hierarchies strong!!

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/11/01/the-kkks-official-newspaper-has-endorsed-donald-trump-for-president/

Tuesday, November 1, 2016

Trump's Buddies: A group of angry, white, abusive males

Some men just keep insisting on being clueless on top of our country's hierarchies, and will do whatever it takes to stay there. Trump is in great company.

Such is the case with Donald Trump and his right-hand advisors. According to the Chicago Tribune, we have New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie who is notorious for bullying the press, thrice-married, notorious adulterer Rudy Giuliani who went to the Republican National Convention and led the call to "Lock her up," top policy adviser Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., who has questioned whether the conduct Trump boasted about is really sexual assault after all, and Trump confidant Newt Gingrich who went on Megyn Kelly's Fox News show and screamed and pointed his finger at her, accusing her of having an obsession with sex.

Roger Ailes was forced out of Fox News for multiple alleged, gross acts of sexual harassment, and Corey Lewandowski, Trump's fired campaign manager, was caught on tape manhandling then-Breitbart reporter Michelle Fields.

"Might there be a pattern here? White, unhinged men, most well past their prime, acting abusively toward women."

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/commentary/ct-trump-newt-gingrich-megyn-kelly-sex-20161026-story.html

Monday, October 31, 2016

Contraceptive Side Effects OK for Women, but not Men

 A drug trial for a male contraceptive injection has been halted because 20 out of 320 men experienced side effects. Those side effects included depression, muscle pain, mood swings, acne and changes to the libido.

A spokesperson for the World Health Organization said: “The study found it is possible to have a hormonal contraceptive for men that reduces the risk of unplanned pregnancies in the partners of men who use it.”
 
In a trial of 320 men, researchers found that, over a one-year period, it was 96 per cent effective in preventing pregnancy.

Women have endured the same and worse side effects for years, but clinicians just assumed that was part of the responsibility women should bear in reducing unwanted pregnancies. Does this mean that men are just "helping" women in a job that really belongs to women anyway? Does this come from the hierarchical idea that men should not be held accountable for their actions, and don't truly have responsibility for unwanted pregnancies?

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/male-contraceptive-injection-successful-trial-halted-a7384601.html

Monday, October 24, 2016

Up to 281 – People, places, thiings Donald Trump Has Insulted on Twitter

The New York Times today had a two-page spread to list all the people, places, and things Donald Trump has insulted since his candidacy began.

The list has grown to 281 victims ― politicians, celebrities, publications, countries. He has covered a lot of hierarchies. Shows no leadership capabilities.

No person like this deserves to be president, obviously.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/01/28/upshot/donald-trump-twitter-insults.html?_r=0

Sunday, October 16, 2016

What Women Face at the Hands of Men

We realize that men are on the top of our hierarchies, and as such, may not understand how their actions as a culture have an overall detrimental impact on women.

Updated a day ago, because we assume of Donald Trump's sexual assault claims and accussations, Gretchen Kelly does a great job of describing how men as a culture so much inconvenience and damage women's lives.

If you are still clueless, men, how about getting a clue. You can read this for starters.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gretchen-kelly/the-thing-all-women-do-you-dont-know-about_b_8630416.html

Wednesday, October 12, 2016

Thank Goddess for Women, Or We Would Have Trump for Sure

In Nate Silver's article, "Election Update, Women are Defeating Donald Trump," we graphically see that if men had their way, Donald Trump would most likely be our next President. But thank goddess, women can vote.

Here are the projected totals in electoral college if only women were voting: Clinton 458, Trump 80.

If only men were voting: Trump 350, Clinton 188. 

Here are the maps from forecasts from Five Thirty Eight, according to Silver's article cited below:







Time to give women the power in this country, at least as much as men have had in the last century.

http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/election-update-women-are-defeating-donald-trum

Women – Your Feelings Are Real About Trump

In an incredible article in Rolling Stone, Janet Reitman hits home on how so many women feel about Donald Trump. She says that most women were not surprised at the 2005 tape where he encourages sexual assault. This article hits a true emotional trigger among women about how it feels dealing with most heterosexual men, and how the objectification of women is not a joke.

She also discusses the attacks on Hillary Clinton, and how women can sympathize personally how she feels when she is attacked by a male who is so sexist and misogynist. So many of us know exactly what this is like:

"Clinton's smile was not the glorious, killing-it grin of the previous debate, but rather a "kill me now" grimace as she suffered along, absorbing Trump's myriad attacks while simultaneously performing the quintessentially female parlor trick of puddle-jumping over the worst of it, so as not to get stuck in the muck."

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/features/the-year-of-the-woman-how-women-will-take-down-donald-trump-w444090

Trump – Revealing Misogyny for All to See


Misogyny is front and center these days with the actions of Donald Trump, and the support of all those who defend his actions and attitudes against women.

For those who think his 11-year-old attitude while on the studio bus is irrelevant, we wonder how they can defend his feelings as an isolated incident with the knowledge that he used to walk into dressing rooms at his beauty pageants with nude contestants in the middle of putting on bikinis. His excuse was – don't worry, I've seen it all before.

One of the best ways to keep a hierarchy strong is to believe that repulsive behavior of those at the top only comes in isolated times, that the behaviors are not characteristic of that group of people.

Now seeing Donald trending, and this supporters insisting that all men act like Donald does, we have more reasons to insist that males on top have hierarchical attitudes toward that are not isolated.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/10/12/former-miss-arizona-trump-just-came-strolling-right-in-on-naked-contestants/

Saturday, October 1, 2016

Harry Reid: Trump is the Monster the GOP Built

The GOP has reaped what it has sewed. The Republican Congress treated Obama with a degree of disrespect never seen before. They agreed when Obama was elected to oppose everything Obama tried to do.

“The only thing Republicans have truly done this year was to prove that they are the party of Trump,” Reid said. “Republicans would have us all believe that Trump just fell out of the sky, and somehow mysteriously became the nominee of their party.

“But that is not how it is,” Reid said. “Trump is no anomaly. He is the monster that Republicans built. He is their Frankenstein’s monster. They own him."

“No one expected them to agree with everything he did ― but America deserved better than the way Republicans behaved toward President Obama,” Reid said.

The GOP has reaped what it has sewed. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/harry-reid-gop-obama_us_57ed1c78e4b082aad9b97321?

Gun Rights Group To Raffle AK-15 and Picture of Hillary

People who put themselves on top of hierarchies think nothing of using violence or the threat of violence to keep the status quo. There are no limits, except those the rest of society can manage to impose.

A North Carolina gun rights group has plans to raffle off an AR-15 rifle, 1,000 rounds of ammunition, and a picture of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has, on at least two occasions, used the implied threat of violence when speaking about Clinton.

Time for us to understand that people like this are not worthy of consideration of their opinions.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/grass-roots-north-carolina-hillary-clinton-raffle_us_57ecbb0be4b082aad9b94bdf

Great Summary on Trump's Temperment

"The point is Trump’s character. His original comments about Machado reeked of sexism and racism. His behavior this week has highlighted, anew, his impulsiveness and lack of discipline. As the Washington Post’s Paul Waldman, if Trump did somehow make it to the Oval Office, “he’d have to regularly set aside whatever impulsive reaction he has to a particular turn of events in favor of a long-term strategy that would be more beneficial to the country.” Could he do that? The answer is available on Twitter."

http://www.newyorker.com/news/john-cassidy/the-meaning-of-trumps-early-morning-tweet-storm

Monday, September 26, 2016

John Lewis: In Civil Rights Movement - Discrimination Against Women

Hierarchies exist everywhere. In places where people are trying to end one particular hierarchy, other hierarchies rise up. It is time to use the common language of hierarchies to address them all. 

John Lewis, a 14-term congressman and civil rights leader himself, said the civil rights movement of the ‘60s was “dominated” by men, most of whom were ministers.

Lewis continued:
There were some women like Ella Baker, Diane Nash, a student in Nashville, one of leaders, the leader of the Little Rock Nine effort ― and others, you had Gloria Richardson. But I truly think and believe women were discriminated against. They did all of the work, they did the heavy lifting. They were kept back.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/john-lewis-women-did-all-the-heavy-lifting-during-civil-rights-movement_us_57e41c3ae4b08d73b8301795

Sunday, September 25, 2016

NPS - Sexual Harrassment is Everywhere

According to a congressional committee report this week, sexual harassment and bullying among National Park Service employees at some of the nation's most iconic parks—including Yosemite, Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon—is pervasive and has continued unabated for years.

At Yosemite alone, at least 18 employees described working conditions as “toxic,” said Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), who chairs the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. 

As women become more and more in positions of power and their remarks less likely to be shouted down, they are able to demand that sexual harassment issues be addressed and challenged.  

Park Service executives vowed last spring to end harassment, declaring a “zero tolerance” position on sexual harassment. But congressional committee members accused Park Service management of failing to take harassment seriously.  

 http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/09/national-park-service-sexual-harassment-scandal/?google_editors_picks=true

Arnold Palmer – Speaking Against Casey Martin

Arnold Palmer died today. Many think of him as a great golfer. That he was.

But we remember him for sending a video, along with Jack Nicklaus, in opposition to the federal case that Casey Martin filed against the PGA for the use of a golf cart because of his disability.

We were in the courtroom to watch that case, as it is a wonderful depiction of a hierarchy – the five PGA white male lawyers in expensive almost identical suits believing themselves to be on top of the golf hierarchy, and Martin trying to just participate in the sport.

That is a legacy we hope eventually Palmer came to understand was wrong.

http://www.espn.com/golf/story/_/id/17639539/arnold-palmer-dies-87

Trump - Top of the Hierarchy Again

People on top of the hierarchy expect that they will not be held accountable for their actions. People such as Donald Trump. They believe the universe revolves around them.

According to the New York Times, Trump, again, has used his top-of-the-hierarchy lack of accountability to do it for another week.

"Virtually all of Mr. Trump’s falsehoods directly bolstered a powerful and self-aggrandizing narrative depicting him as a heroic savior for a nation menaced from every direction. Mike Murphy, a Republican strategist, described the practice as creating 'an unreality bubble that he surrounds himself with.'"

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/09/24/us/elections/donald-trump-statements.html?_r=0

Thursday, September 22, 2016

Tamika Catchings ends Illustriuos Career; Team Knelt during National Anthem

Tamika Catchings was proud of the stand her WNBA Indiana Fever teammates took before the final game of her illustrious career when the entire squad knelt during the national anthem, locking arms and lowering heads in a show of unity. They join players in other sports who are protesting social injustice, racial oppression and police brutality in the United States. This was the first time an entire professional team took a knee.

Fever coach Stephanie White said, "We don't create change by seeing it on the news and waiting until next time. People who have the platforms have the ability to affect change, and I'm proud of our group for using the platform in a respectful manner."

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/wnba/2016/09/22/catchings-career-ends-and-fever-kneel-in-anthem-protest/90824894/

Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Pat Summitt - Honored by UT Band

Pat Summit, the great basketball coach at the University of Tennessee, was honored by the UT band during their half-time show. So wonderful to see that women's sports have come so far from the pre-Title Nine days, and no one contributed more to those efforts than Pat.

http://www.espn.com/espnw/video/17570878/tennessee-band-pays-tribute-pat-summitt

Tuesday, August 30, 2016

Jackie Robinson – Not Standing for the National Anthem

In this experiment in diversity that is the United States, we still have many hierarchies that we must overcome, though we have come a long way.

In sports, very few people exemplify this struggle more than Jackie Robinson, the first African American to play major league baseball.

We are reminded of his feelings about standing for the national anthem at a time when Colin Kaepernick refused to stand for a rendition. The presence of strong hierarchies in this country eventually led Robinson to feel the same way.

http://mlb.nbcsports.com/2016/08/29/jackie-robinson-i-cannot-stand-and-sing-the-anthem-i-cannot-salute-the-flag/

Monday, August 22, 2016

Women Can't Drive, but They Can Fly Commerical Airplanes

Three women piloted a commercial plane into Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, a place where women aren't allowed to drive a car.

The first ever all-female flight deck crew for Royal Brunei Airlines flew a plane from Brunei to the country that greatly imposes a gender hierarchy.

In a country that would never consider imposing such limitations on men that they do on women, obviously women are perfectly capable of doing more than their hierarchical religion with rules made by men dictates.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/royal-brunei-airlines-first-all-female-flight-deck-crew-lands-plane-in-saudi-arabia-where-women-are-a6931726.html

Wednesday, August 17, 2016

United Methodists – First Non-heterosexual Bishop Elected

With our roots in the United Methodist Church, we are watching what will happen with the election of Karen Oliveto as resident bishop for the Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, and part of Idaho. She is the first openly gay bishop, and was elected in July.

The United Methodist Church tenets state that homosexuality is "incompatible with Christian teachings," and bars homosexual people from ordination. Some members have asked that Oliveto's election be ruled invalid, and a ruling is expected possibly in October.

http://www.cpr.org/news/story/methodist-churchs-first-openly-gay-bishop-prepares-move-colorado#st_refDomain=www.facebook.com&st_refQuery=/

Tuesday, August 16, 2016

Andy Murray Corrects Interviewer – Women are People Too

 "You're the first person ever to win two Olympic tennis gold medals. That's an extraordinary feat, isn't it?" BBC interviewer John Inverdale asked gold medal winner Andy Murray.

"Umm," Murray said. "Well."

He then stated that Serena and Venus Williams have each won four gold medals.

Guess "people" only means men, and only men are important in the scheme of things, according to Inverdale. Benefits of being on top of the hierarchy, we suppose.

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetorch/2016/08/15/490056480/watch-andy-murray-reminds-interviewer-that-women-win-gold-too

Friday, August 12, 2016

Most Racially Diverse Gymnastics Team in History

This year, the Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Rio noted that gold medal All-Around winner Simone Biles, Olympic medalist Gabby Douglas, and Olympic first-timer Laurie Hernandez make up the most diverse gymnastics team in United States history, a group that won the gold medal in the team competition.

Sure is a good thing our country is so diverse, as we work so hard to break down our hierarchies and become more inclusive. Looks like one of the many benefits is Olympic Gold!

http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/12/health/simone-manuel-simone-biles-olympics-make-history/

Wednesday, August 10, 2016

No More "Honey" and "Darling" In Court

All women know how easy it is to demean or discredit women, just by a look or a comment. The American Bar Association is finally catching up with many states in addressing tactics against female lawyers.

Now, one of the ways lawyers try to discredit female lawyers will no longer be tolerated. The American Bar Association has now prohibited sexual harassment including demeaning terms for women, spoken under the veil of "niceness."  It will now be ruled as professional misconduct to discriminate against or harass opposing counsel.

Those settings not only include the courtroom, but also “interacting with witnesses, co-workers, court personnel, lawyers and others” and “managing a law practice or law firm” or “participating in bar association, business or social activities in connection with the practice of law.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/10/business/dealbook/aba-prohibits-sexual-harassment-joining-many-state-bars.html?smid=fb-nytimes&smtyp=cur

Monday, August 8, 2016

The Atlantic: The Men Who Support Trump

Patriarchy as a form of hierarchy (gender based) is alive and well, but perhaps faltering: From James Hamlin, M.D., in The Atlantic:

"Still the foundation of Trump’s base is white men without a degree. The dominance of white men is being challenged on many fronts, including the code by which they fraternized with and identified one another. If their dominance is shrinking, it is a regression toward parity, an undoing of entrenched inequality, but not an outright attack. Not oppression.

"The fact that Trump’s impetuousness and thoughtlessness are rewarded rather than punished only further evidence the boys-will-be-boys system. His weakness is not in “speaking without thinking,” as apologists have offered, but in being unable not to speak when challenged. Trump is both a product of a masculine culture and a beneficiary of its musky tenets. Rather than criticize him or lose faith, his fans forgive and apologize for his words.

"Masculine culture is both a reason that Trump does what he does and a reason that people accept and trust it. To watch Trump is to appreciate that “fuck the patriarchy” may belong in everyday use, possibly in place of “what’s up?” His classical brand of masculinity becomes toxic and feeds tribalism and violence and entitlement among his followers—those who prefer fighting to talking, walls to bridges, grimaces to smiles. But it can stop holding sway whenever we stop valuing it, stop accepting it at all."

http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2016/08/trump-masculinity-problem/494582/

President Obama - A Feminist

In an article in Glamour, Barack Obama writes, "This Is What a Feminist Looks Like." Very good analysis coming from our president. He says that for his daughters, it is important he is a feminist, because that is what they expect of all men.

Obama says that everywhere he goes across the country, and around the world, he sees people pushing back against dated assumptions about gender roles. We need to keep changing the attitude that punishes women for their sexuality and rewards men for their theirs.

He admits that as he looks back now he can see that when his daughters were young, he "helped out," but it was usually on his schedule and on his terms. The burden disproportionately and unfairly fell on wife Michelle. 

He notes that two hundred and forty years after our nation’s founding, and almost a century after women finally won the right to vote, for the first time ever, a woman is a major political party’s presidential nominee – an historic moment for America.

http://www.glamour.com/story/glamour-exclusive-president-barack-obama-says-this-is-what-a-feminist-looks-like

Wednesday, August 3, 2016

How Trump Supporters Act - Video

Want to see how people act who want to support hierarchies that Donald Trump pushes? Just listen to responses from people who support Donald Trump.

New York Times reporters have covered Donald J. Trump's rallies for more than a year. His supporters at these events often express their views in angry and provocative ways. Here are some examples.

Warning – vulgarities and racial slurs.

http://www.nytimes.com/video/us/politics/100000004533191/unfiltered-voices-from-donald-trumps-crowds.html?smid=fb-share

Wednesday, July 27, 2016

Vast Difference in Diversity of RNC and DNC

Hillary Clinton’s campaign told Fusion that 2,887 of this year’s 4,766 DNC delegates are women. Black men and women account for 1,182 delegates (compared to 18 at the RNC) while 292 are Asian American, 747 are Latinos, 147 Native Americans, and 633 are LGBTQ-identified people. This year’s DNC has at least 27 trans delegates.

On the first night of the DNC, there were 18 black speakers last night. (Coincidentally, that’s exactly as many black delegates at the RNC - TOTAL). 

 http://fusion.net/story/330193/dnc-rnc-women-people-of-color-numbers/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=partner&utm_campaign=beingliberal

Donald Trump - Doesn't Care Who He Hurts

Donald Trump continues his belittlement of anyone who he feels gets in his way. Epitome of the top of the hierarchy - it's all about me.

During a speech yesterday at The Hotel Roanoke, he suggested that the air conditioning was not working properly and suggested that they not be paid. Now negative publicity about the hotel is all over the news. The staff at the hotel say the air conditioning was working properly.

We have been many times to The Hotel Roanoke, a nice historic property just off the Blue Ridge Parkway, and hope that their reputation is not damaged. And we hope they get paid for their efforts, not like so many people supplying Trump with services.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/donald-trump-air-conditioning_us_5797754ee4b0d3568f8485e4?section

Thursday, July 21, 2016

Republicans - Making Sure They Stay Mostly White

In an article published by NBC News, there are pictures of the legislative interns for the Republican and Democratic parties. Almost all the interns for the Republicans are white, and racial diversity with Democratic interns is clearly evident.

Republicans have a appeal-to-whites race problem which they obviously don't want to solve.

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/gop-dem-intern-class-photos-show-diversity-differences-n614261

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Trump Gets His Wall

Donald Trump must be thrilled. He finally got his wall.

A smaller wall than he envisioned complete with American flags, tiny “Keep Out” signs and tiny razor wire appeared around Trump's star on the Walk of Fame in Hollywood. Created by a street artist by the name "Plastic Jesus," it went up on Tuesday afternoon.

And as the article says, alas, Mexico did not have to pay for the wall.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/plastic-jesus-trump-wall_us_578f8fe8e4b0f180da63ca82

Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Lying Runs in the Trump Family Apparently

People on top of hierarchies find all sorts of rationalizations to lie. Sometimes it is because they just can, or they want more resources than they currently have, or they want to convince others that they deserve to be on top and everyone else deserves to be on the bottom.

Donald Trump has been caught in numerous lies, but now it appears that his wife Melania Trump is made of the same cloth.

Last night in her speech in front of the Republican National Convention, she was found to have lifted parts of her speech from that of Michelle Obama in the same situation a few years ago.

Now apparently she also made up her college degree, in that she has said she has a degree in design and architecture at University in Slovenia, but her biographers say she dropped out her freshman year.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/melania-trump-college-claims_us_578dd95ce4b0c53d5cfac0dc

Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Transgender Ad to Run Same Night as Trump's Acceptance Speech

During Donald Trump's acceptance speech at the Republican convention, On the evening tha Donald Trump is expecting to be accepting the presidential candidate nomination from the Republican party, a coalition of gay rights groups will run an advertisement that criticizes laws that limit which public restrooms transgender people can use, like the one passed in North Carolina.

The minute-long commercial will run on Fox News during Mr. Trump's acceptance speech.

Fight hate in hierarchies with understanding, and hope for the best.

 http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/12/us/politics/transgender-rights-ad-trump.html

Republicans Keep Wanting to Build Those Hierarchies

The New York Times is reporting that in its platform committee meetings, the Republican Party keeps going right, which in today's politics, means supporting hierarchies more and more.

Its staunchly conservative platform takes a strict, traditionalist view of the family and child rearing, bars military women from combat, describes coal as a “clean” energy source and declares pornography a “public health crisis.”

"While public and legal opinion has moved steadily in one direction, the official declaration of Republican party principles appears to be heading sharply in the opposite direction."   "The platform approved in committee on Tuesday is a text that can seem almost Victorian in its moralizing and deeply critical of how the modern American family has evolved."

Nearly every provision that expressed disapproval of homosexuality, same-sex marriage or transgender rights passed. The platform calls for overturning the Supreme Court same-sex marriage decision with a constitutional amendment and makes references to appointing judges “who respect traditional family values.”

Nothing like digging yourself into a bigger hole.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/13/us/politics/republican-convention-issues.html?smid=fb-nytimes&smtyp=cur

Republican Death Struggle

As the primary political supporters of hierarchies in this country, the Republicans are certainly showing signs of being in a death struggle, as are many of the pillars of our hierarchical way of life.

In S.V. Date's article "Republicans Left Wondering if Donald Trump will Kill the Party or Just Maim It," he points out that Trump supporters harken back to a time when a high school diploma, and sometimes not even that, was all that was necessary to make a middle-class living in a country that was overwhelmingly white.

“What they want to do is go back to 1956. And it’s just not going to happen,” said Mac Stipanovich, a longtime Republican consultant who served as former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush’s campaign manager in 1994. “If that’s who we are, then we’re headed for the ash heap of history.”

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-gop-control_us_5782d526e4b0c590f7e9ec0d


Monday, July 11, 2016

Honoring Transportation Alternatives - Portland, Oregon

At the very popular Mississippi Street Fair in Portland, Oregon, car parking is at a premium.  So drivers of 83 cars decided to park in the bike lanes. Bad idea.

A single city parking enforcement officer almost certainly paid for his or her time at the Mississippi Street Fair Saturday, issuing 83 parking tickets for $80 each to cars parked in Mississippi Street's bike lanes during the annual north Portland festival.

Drivers ignored the alternative transportation options suggested in this city that is serious about car-less travel. Highlighted on the organizer's website was the paid parking lots at two nearby schools, with proceeds to benefit the schools. It also noted three temporary bike parking locations and transit access via the Yellow High-Speed Rail Line and TriMet’s frequent No. 4 bus line.

http://bikeportland.org/2016/07/11/after-83-cars-park-in-mississippi-ave-bike-lane-city-issues-83-tickets-187458

Break Through Ageism - 41-year-old Woman to Compete in Olympic Gymnastics

Oksana Chusovitina  will be going to her 7th Olympics and is 41 years old, and will be competing in the women's gymnastics competition representing her native Uzbekistan. The Olympic committee has had to put a lower limit on the age of women who could compete, as the Olympians kept getting younger and younger.

This week, Bernard Lagat won the 5,000 meter USA Olympic Trails qualifying him for the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, his fifth Olympics. Lagat is 41.

Time to change our stereotypes about age.

http://www.nbcolympics.com/news/gymnast-oksana-chusovitina-prepares-7th-olympics-41-years-old?utm_network=facebook&utm_post=6014648&utm_source=FB%20-%20NBC%20Olympics&utm_tags=srm%5Bolympics%2Carticle%2Cgymnastics%5D

http://www.runnersworld.com/olympic-trials/bernard-lagats-amazing-victory-in-12-photos

Wednesday, July 6, 2016

Random Drug Tests for Top Paid Businessmen Who Get Frequent Tax Breaks, Like Low-Income People?

Michigan tests low income people for drugs in order to receive benefits. In a pilot program, 303 people were tested and all passed.

Now Representative Gwen Moore has introduced an "accountability bill" that would see top paid businessman privy to frequent tax breaks be required to complete drug tests at random, similar to the provision that mandates the same requirements for lower income welfare recipients.

Let's have those people on the top of the hierarchy be treated the same as lower groups they have power to control. Looks unusual, doesn't it, but a great idea!

http://www.essence.com/2016/06/28/michigans-drug-testing-low-income-residents-zero-positive?xid=essence_socialflow_facebook

http://www.essence.com/2016/06/17/rep-gwen-moore-proposes-new-bill

Archibishop: Divorced and Remarried Catholics Should Live as Brother and Sister

Philadelphia archbishop Charles Chaput has decreed that Catholics who are divorced should not have sex with new partners if they are to remain in good standing with the Catholic Church.

"Undertaking to live as brother and sister is necessary for the divorced and civilly remarried to receive reconciliation in the Sacrament of Penance, which could then open the way to the Eucharist."

Here is a man who supposedly knows little if anything about sexual relations imposing rules on those who do. So typical of those on top of the hierarchy thinking they know more about the lives of those below and can make decisions for them.

http://www.nola.com/religion/index.ssf/2016/07/archbishop_no_sex_for_divorced.html

Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Miss Teen USA Pageant Eliminates Swimsuit Competition

Though apparently not applying to mature women, the Miss Universe pageant has announced that in the Miss Teen USA pageant, the swimsuit competition will be eliminated. Instead, contestants will compete in athletic attire.

The organization hopes their decision will show their support for feminism and equality, and athleisure wear will feel less exploitative and more focused on the importance of physical fitness for its younger participants.

They also had the nerve to say that the bathing suit competition was intended to prove athleticism.

While this is a tiny step forward to end to address the gender hierarchy of the female body industry, until beauty pageants end, or we see the same type of events for men promoted the same way, we aren't convinced.

http://www.eonline.com/news/776566/miss-teen-usa-to-eliminate-the-swimsuit-competition

Monday, June 27, 2016

The World Is Changing, and Hierarchies Are Falling: London Pride

From David Mixnor on Facebook: "Who says the world doesn't change? A photograph today of a Muslim Mayor of London speaking to their Gay Pride. Wow."


https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10157209662240372&set=a.100582895371.185095.802800371&type=3&theater




Friday, June 24, 2016

Feminism and Antifeminism - Shaping of Clinton and Trump


Like history, politics, and the molding of Clinton and Trump? Then we suggest reading Jill Lepore's article, "The Woman Card: How feminism and anitfeminism created Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump" appearing in the New Yorker on June 27.

In the article, she traces the history of the Democratic and Republican parties as relates to their inclusion and appreciation for women, and how they went back and forth through history.

Included in the timeline, are key times of both of the current presidential candidates, and how their lives correspond to decisions made by both political parties.

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/06/27/hillary-clinton-and-the-history-of-women-in-american-politics

Thursday, June 23, 2016

Gun Violence - The Top Wants That Option

Is it possible that the top of the hierarchy will really be held accountable when it comes to gun violence? Is it possible that mostly white males who want to be able to use violence to keep their power will be held accountable?

Who knows, but we like this reference in the Washington Post to today's New York Daily News cover, where they refer to Rep. Paul Ryan as the NRA's Ll'l Lapdog, following his refusal to bring control bills to vote.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/daily-202/2016/06/23/daily-202-house-sit-in-guarantees-gun-control-will-be-a-top-issue-in-fall-election/576b343f981b92a22d2a951a/

Friday, June 17, 2016

Angels to Block Westboro Baptist Church at Orlando Funerals

Representatives from the Orlando Shakespeare Theater and the Orlando Arts community are coming together to block members of the Westboro Baptist Church from the funerals for victims of the Orlando Pulse night club mass shooting. The theater and arts people are dressing as angels. Good for them!! 
http://m.sfgate.com/news/article/Angels-to-block-Westboro-Baptist-Church-s-8303872.php

Wednesday, June 15, 2016

AMA Going After Gun Violence

The American Medical Association passed an historic resolution calling for gun violence to be called officially a public health issue. This is in contrast to the efforts by the NRA and other gun groups to have unlimited rights to possess guns as they please.

Violence or threat of violence has always been used by groups on top of the hierarchy to control others. The people who promote gun use no matter the negative effects on others are typical of those actions. Do what they want and expect no one to question.

http://thinkprogress.org/health/2016/06/15/3788662/ama-gun-violence-research/

Monday, June 6, 2016

Boys Will Be Boys on the Stanford Swim Team

A steep price to pay for 20 minutes of action’: Dad defends Stanford sex offender Brock Turner.

From the victim: “You have dragged me through this hell with you, dipped me back into that night again and again. You knocked down both our towers, I collapsed at the same time you did. Your damage was concrete; stripped of titles, degrees, enrollment. My damage was internal, unseen, I carry it with me. You took away my worth, my privacy, my energy, my time, my safety, my intimacy, my confidence, my own voice, until today.”

We can only imagine how much longer than six months in jail and three years probation sentence would have been if the assaulter would have not been a white male Stanford student, but, instead, lower on the race, gender, and private/public university/college hierarchies.  After all, the judge who gave the sentence, Aaron Persky, was once a Stanford student like the assaulter. 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/06/06/a-steep-price-to-pay-for-20-minutes-of-action-dad-defends-stanford-sex-offender/

Trump Invents African American Support

Donald Trump decided to counteract claims of racism against him by making up a family that supports him. Turns out they don't.

This picture comes up on Google Images when putting in "black family" as a picture from a black family reunion. The Donald is truly a discredit to our election process.

       
http://www.peacock-panache.com/2016/06/trump-plagiarizes-photo-racist-23309.html