OnLine With Zoe

You need to see this! You deserve to see this!

The Fair Pay Act passed today - 247-178.  Be proud of yourself, for everything you have ever done to advance women.  Every time you said no to sexism, every time you wanted equality for yourself and others, every time you didn't answer to "hey guys,"  every time you believed girls can do anything!

The American Women's Movement is taking way too long but, you can be sure, it cannot be stopped. 

A Little Economics Lesson

I keep tuning in, hoping to find the one thing I just adore about Barack Obama.  That is all it takes for me to reshuffle my feelings.  I have fallen in love a few times in my life and the slick slide into love only takes one good shove down the slope.  It isn't that I am a curmudgeon, I enjoy a lot of speakers, politicians, leaders.  Actually, the picture taken this last week of Senator Obama in front of 10 Downing Street made me think of another thin traveling changemaker visiting the British Prime Minister, M.K. Gandhi. And you know how I feel about him.

So I watched Meet the Press today.  It is rather early for me but I am really searching here.  There was a lot of banter about the trip; Afghanistan, Iraq, the Taliban and Al Qaeda.  On to meeting with both Palestinians and Isrealies.  Closing the rap with the European tour.  Ok, I say.  I am open.

There was the stupid fishing around for VP info.  It is a ridiculous game.  It should embarrass the narrators who press well beyond the decline.  Then Brokaw asked what will you be doing this week?  Senator Obama said,

And so one of the things that I'll be doing on Monday, I'm going to be pulling together some of my core economic advisers--Paul Volcker, the former Fed chairman; Warren Buffet; Paul Schmidt--Eric Schmidt, the chairman of Google; Bob Rubin; Larry Summers; a host of people--Bob Reich--to come together and examine the policies that we've already put forward--a middle class tax cut, a second round of stimulus, a effort to shore up the housing market in addition to the bill that was already passed through Congress, what we need to do in terms of energy and infrastructure.  FULL TRANSCRIPT

WHAT??? What did he just say?  Could someone dial up Drew Gilpin Faust and ask her about this?  Do you think that H.R. at Harvard can suspend the unemployment benefits for Larry Summers as he has found employment with Senator Obama's Economic Advisory?  And while you are on the phone with President Gilpin-Faust, ask if there are any women economists.  Maybe she could send a CV over for one to be considered.  I would guess that since women are 51% of the population, heads of most households and are trying to live on less than 75% of what men make, they may have some vested interest.  (p.s. I can't resist wondering how many people of color are on this advisory.)

A Dream of Possibilities

There has been a lot of conversation about party platforms.  What would YOU like on the platform??  Here are some fine ideas --- and imagine if the ticket was a Black Congresswoman and her VP is a Latina who has been a Labor Organizer.  Now that would be a fantastic dream.   

A Platform on Women's Rights
Since the beginning of what we call civilization, when men's dominance over women was firmly established until the present day, our history has been marred with oppression of and brutality to women. We deplore this system of male domination, known as patriarchy, in all its forms, both subtle and overt - from oppression, inequality, and discrimination to domestic violence, rape, trafficking and forced slavery. The change the world is crying for cannot occur unless women's voices are heard. Democracy cannot work without equality for women that provides equal participation and representation. It took an extraordinary and ongoing fight over 72 years for Women to win the right to vote. However, the Equal Rights Amendment has still not been ratified.

We also support, and call on others to support, the many existing and ongoing efforts for women:

a. We support the equal application of the Constitution to all citizens, and therefore call for passage of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). We urge accelerated ratification by three or more of the remaining 15 states.

b. We call for equal representation of women in Congress instead of the current 16%.

c. We call for U.S. passage of CEDAW, the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women, which was adopted in 1979 by the U.N. General Assembly and ratified by 173 countries. The U.S. is one of the very few countries, and the only industrialized nation, that have not ratified it.

d. The Equal Employment Opportunities Commission should actively investigate and prosecute sexual harassment complaints.

e. We support the inclusion of an equal number of women and men in peace talks and negotiations, not only because these efforts directly affect their lives and those of their husbands, children and families, but also because when women are involved, the negotiations are more successful.

Reproductive Rights
f. Women's rights must be protected and expanded to guarantee each woman's right as a full participant in society, free from sexual harassment, job discrimination or interference in the intensely personal choice about whether to have a child.

g. Women's right to control their bodies is non-negotiable.
h. We endorse women's right to use contraception and, when they choose, to have an abortion. This right cannot be limited to women's age or marital status.

i. We encourage women and men to prevent unwanted pregnancies. It is the inalienable right and duty of every woman to learn about her body and to be aware of the phases of her menstrual cycle, and it is the duty for every man to be aware of the functions and health of his and his partner's bodies.

Economic Equality
j. Since, nationally, women still earn only 70% of men's wages for equal jobs, We call for the introduction and passage of federal and state laws to achieve pay equity, and funding for the enforcement of such laws.

Violence and Oppression
k. Language is often used as a weapon by those with power, and women have traditionally borne the brunt of inflicted injuries. Freedom of speech is vital to democracy. However, we believe that this freedom should not be used to perpetuate oppression and abuse.

l. Rape, domestic violence and other violence to women are increasing nationwide. We must address the root cause of all violence even as we specifically address violence to women. We cannot allow this to continue and call for increased funding for programs to address it.

o. We have zero tolerance for the illegal international trafficking in humans

You should know that this is not a dream at all - Check out these magnificent women who are offering to serve the US.  And did you LOVE the platform - that is real too!  I know most of my readers are going to vote for the Democratic ticket - but I do hope all of us know about this historical ticket and just platform.  Imagine an all women-of-color ticket!   It is not TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE - it is true.  Its the Green Party.      

An Iconic Event

There is a very interesting post on Feministing.com asking readers to vote on feminist icons.  And they ask the question, do we even want icons?   Do they serve a purpose in this vast ocean of information we swim through every day?  I sat and really thought about whose picture on the cover of a magazine would instantly relay to me that this is a feminist and a champion of feminism.  From Magdalene to Ginsberg, from Sappho to diFranco, from Gentileschi to Kahlo, Cleopatra to Maloney - I have hundreds in mind whose lives advanced gender equality whether they meant to or not. 

But today I think it is not icons we need but an iconic event.  We need to shift the expectation of inequality; the natural acceptance of less pay, less respect, injustice, poor education, diminishing reproductive freedom, sexism in all its forms.  We need to admit that it is both an impossibility and unreasonable request to put this all on a single human being or even a group of people.  Yes, it can begin with a small group of people but now we are tilting at a tipping point.   

Feminism has reached as far as it can on the shoulders of individuals and now we must, as a collective consciousness, call for all genders, in all its variations of expression, to offer our services to Mother Earth and manifest equality.  Our minds must hold full pictures of the world as we want it to be.  As we travel, work and simply live ~ we must posit equality in each step, each action, each intention. 

You may recall that Gandhi believed that the will of millions of Indians could not be permanently neutralized by 100,000 British soldiers.  His teachings are that when enough injustices had been made visible, imperialism would lose its strangle hold.  As the British oppression became increasing intolerable, Indians' belief shifted, they reclaimed their autonomy in their minds and, ultimately, the British walked out of India.

So let us all agree today ~ enough is enough.  I am going create a world of equality through my will, my mind, my intention.  Breeches will be instantly recognizable because they clash with my direct belief.  Lets start each day expecting justice, holding the intention by saying, "I am grateful that today there will be more justice in the world."      

This Man is Not in the NOW or the Know

If I recall, presidents are expected to know the price of a gallon of milk or gasoline.  They are voting on bills that influence the market.  For me health and reproductive justice are on the list as well.  Senator McCain can't even hold a conversation about bills he has voted on in regards to this subject.  The news shows are calling it an, "akward moment."  Akward?  Really?  Why invest in diminising the fact that McCain has no idea what is happening in 2008 for women or men ~ though he votes on bills that will shape the future.  (except Fair Pay, of course, he did not show up that day) 

And why is it being touted as a question about Viagra?  It is about birth control, reporductive justice, women's self-determination and priorities.  Earlier this week while stumping for McCain, Carly Fiorina said that women should be able to obtain birth control through their insurance.  He voted no.  Let's pull up a chair and see if McCain is teachable or if he takes a blue pill and lets Carly have it. 

Now ~ I am Distressed.

That horrible word ABORTION is in the news.  NO one is PRO-ABORTION.  I have had two and I am not PRO-abortion.  Both were extraordinarily difficult and rocked my soul.  But going through the process made me even more certain that each woman needs to have all options obtainable, must be able to consult with people of her own choosing and deserves compassion before, during and after her decision.

After 35 years of legal abortions and experiencing some of the years before, I really have come to accept that minds are made up.  Most people have really formed their opinion, that opinion has taken on meaning beyond their own lives and, somehow, adherence to that opinion demonstrates their morality.  Almost no one is actually arguing about the woman, the pregnancy, the circumstances.  They are arguing about their right to hold a moral decision that they hold as correct for all humanity.

The point being that in 1972, the US Supreme Court ruled that each woman has the right to choose how to exercise her conscience.  Some people are offended.  Some people take it for granted.  All people have opinions about it.  But lets state the one thing that is always true, an unwanted pregnancy is a terrible circumstance.  It can be a danger to one’s health; mental or physical. 

So what happened this last weekend that Barack Obama, Constitutional Law Professor, said publicly that he was in favor of permitting late term abortions only when the health of the mother was threatened, BUT THAT DOES NOT INCLUDE MENTAL HEALTH.

Here is the quote - I have repeatedly said that I think it’s entirely appropriate for states to restrict or even prohibit late-term abortions as long as there is a strict, well-defined exception for the health of the mother. Now, I don’t think that “mental distress” qualifies as the health of the mother. I think it has to be a serious physical issue that arises in pregnancy, where there are real, significant problems to the mother carrying that child to term. Otherwise, as long as there is such a medical exception in place, I think we can prohibit late-term abortions.

What does this mean?   Lets just put the abortion issue entirely off the table – it leaves me with a terrible conclusion, that MENTAL DISTRESS is not equal to physical.  Mental distress can not carry “real significant problems to the mother.” 

I just don’t know what to say – this really distresses me.

Happy Birthday to His Holiness!

Happy Birthday to His Holiness the Dalai Lama!

In the land encircled by snow mountains
You are the source of all happiness and good;
All-powerful Chenrezig, Tenzin Gyatso,
Please remain until samsara ends.