Social & Political

Who Are You People?

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My friend posted this on Threads. I scrolled past it because I wasn’t ready. I was still living in Schroedinger’s Democracy. I have questions about yesterday’s outcomes. Tomorrow I will go through all my emails and unsubscribe from every news organization that I feel betrayed the American values we purported to share. These include The Washington Post, The New York Times, Time, Politico, possibly a few of the Crooked Media podcasts among others that helped heave us into this cesspool of apathy and antisemitism.

Another thread that I want to share came from “OhNoSheTwint” who wrote, “It wasn’t ‘but her emails;’ it was ‘but they’re females.'”

I sat with my friend’s simple, heartbreaking post. I went into my daughter’s room to watch her sleep. She was also in Schroedinger’s Democracy up until the point from her very first vote just over twenty-four hours before to when her eyes opened, and I watched her groggy and yawning and innocently unknowing, and I kissed her head and I went out and brought back bagels.

On the drive, with the window down and the cool air blowing, a litany came to me.

  • Women’s Rights. It is finished.
  • Equality. It is finished.
  • Protecting women and girls from predators. It is finished.
  • Rule of law. It is finished.
  • Department of Education. It is finished.
  • Safe school. It is finished.
  • Climate Progress. It is finished.
  • Voting rights. It is finished.
  • Public safety. It is finished.
  • Separation of church and state. It is finished.
  • Freedom of religion. It is finished.
  • Freedom from religion. It is finished.
  • Freedom of the press. It is finished.
  • Freedom of Assembly. It is finished.
  • The Right to an Education. It is finished.
  • Learning history. It is finished.
  • Social security and medicare. It is finished.
  • Standing up to Jewish hate. It is finished.
  • Facts matter. It is finished.
  • America. After two hundred forty-eight years, it is finished.

It is finished.

Mental Health Monday – Election Edition

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Whatever happens (or doesn’t happen) tomorrow and in the following weeks, once you’ve cast your vote, there isn’t anything left to do. Settling into that in-between time between when the polls open and when the President-Elect is announced can be fraught with anxiety and worry. I feel it, too.

I’m going to vote first thing in the morning with my final first-time voter child, have an unhealthy breakfast (probably McDonald’s), drop my other child off at work, and then go to work myself, and then I’m going to let it go until I catch up to Rachel Maddow in the evening.

We planned our dinner around watching the returns, but my plan is to remain in a neutral frame of mind. That doesn’t mean that I don’t care about the outcome – I care very much, but it will be out of my hands, and I need to hope that everyone understood the assignment.

My advice to anyone who’s very anxious is to turn off the television and do something else. You will know when it’s time to come back to the news. Read a book. Drink water. Watch a rom-com or another favorite genre. I may hit up the Supernatural reruns because they soothe me. What soothes you? Use it.

And tomorrow, we’ll see what the world wants to tell us.

Peace.

Election Connection – 1 Week

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In exactly one week, we will be voting to save our democracy.

Be sure and fill in your circle completely and verify that your ballot is accepted.

Turn your ballot over – there may be ballot initiatives, propositions, referendums that need to be voted on. Here in New York, there is a lot of misinformation going around about our Proposition 1, an amendment to the Equal Rights Amendment.

The claims that they are only out to “save girls’ sports” is disingenuous at best, bigoted and hateful at worst. Please vote yes to save our girls; to give them bodily autonomy, travel autonomy (something that Texas is trying to ban without a pregnancy test), and a reminder that trans girls and women ARE GIRLS and WOMEN. Please get the correct information and don’t fall into the trap of denying girls in New York state their equal rights

Election Connection – 12 Days

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We can do this!

We’re Not Going Back! (c)2024

In our house, we have a first time voter! We are very excited to have her vote for HER rights and who we hope will be the FIRST WOMAN President.

In 12 days, she, her father, and I will walk together into our polling place and watch her “pull the lever” for Democracy. She knows the issues; she knows what’s at stake, and she’s ready to add this civic duty to her growing list of growing up milestones, following graduation from high school, getting a driver’s license and buying herself a car, and working in her chosen field.

We are so proud of all of our kids who are choosing their ways through life, and we are proud that they all know that equal rights are for everyone, and civil rights are human rights.

Take the responsibility and the privilege and go out and vote on November 5, and let’s turn this country around.

BRING THE JOY!

Election Connection – NYS Prop 1

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19 Days

I belong to a group that is a religious based group. I get that I am on the outside of the norm for doctrine, for civil rights, and other issues, but for the most part we amicably disagree and I only correct factual errors. I have never, as far as I know, given my views on abortion. I do speak forcefully on trans rights.

So, here we are.

I was on a conference call last week when one of the members asked to make an announcement, and then proceeded to express a political ad in opposition to New York’s Proposition 1 that will appear on the ballet this Election Day, November 5, 2024.

An announcement would be something akin to informing what the proposition is and where to find more information to make your own judgment call. This was not the usual Catholic call to vote your conscience. This was an out and out vote no, and here’s why.

I listened anyway. I have an open mind, and I want to know where others are coming from. But when he began spewing misinformation, I blew a gasket. Silently, of course, we’re all muted, and I wasn’t going to call him out when 90% of the call would be against me, but I did hang up, and that is something that everyone on the call could hear.

I was really furious.

Yes, of course, vote your conscience, but learn the facts about an issue. Telling a captive audience that this bill is a “wolf in sheep’s clothing,” and making it about “girls’ sports” and of course, the behemoth single issue, abortion, I just can’t.

Proposition 1 is:

This is the complete text that you will see printed on your ballot.:

Adds anti-discrimination provisions to State Constitution. Covers ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, and sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity and pregnancy. Also covers reproductive healthcare and autonomy.

 [Italics mine.]

This is an official summary of the measure provided by your election administrator:

This proposal amends Article 1, Section 11 of the New York State Constitution. It prohibits any person, business, or organization, as well as state and local governments from discrimination pursuant to law. The current protections in the Constitution cover race, color, creed, and religion. The proposal will add ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, and sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy. The amendment allows laws to prevent or undo past discrimination.

 [Italics mine.]

Combatting Misinformation

Myth#1: This will increase abortions.

This will NOT increase abortions. This will save women’s lives. It will decrease the unnecessary deaths of women (look up Amber Thurman of Georgia). It will give everyone bodily autonomy and enable them to make their own medical (and other) decisions. Women are not second-class citizens. When Brett Kavanaugh was asked during his confirmation hearing if there were any laws restricting a man’s choices for his body, he could not name one. That’s because there are none. Equality is for everyone.

Reproductive rights include the decision of when and if to have a family, the use of fertility procedures and contraception. Bodily autonomy includes cancer treatments and vaccinations. Some contraception drugs are used for other ailments. Those decisions are between a patient and their doctor.

And don’t forget that more than a few Republican politicians including the candidate for VP, Senator Vance has said they will require girls and women to submit to a pregnancy test before they are allowed to travel across state lines.

Myth#2: Loss of Parental Rights due to anti-age discrimination laws

This is a ludicrous argument. Children will not be able to do whatever they want any more than they do now. Parents will still have a say in their children’s decisions. This is no way that will change that.

Your 5-Year-old still cannot get a tattoo. Your 15-year-old still cannot have breast enlargement (or reduction) surgery. Your 10-year-old cannot now drive a car. When you say these things, you sound stupid unless you’re just fear-mongering which frankly is worse.

Myth#3: Trans Rights will threaten girls’ sports

And while we’re on the subject, I mean, why no concern over boys’ sports?

Is it that we honestly don’t care? We certainly didn’t care when Michael Phelps won award after award, and no one batted an eye despite his “natural advantage,” something genetic, with which he was born. (Google it.)

Trans girls and women are not “men in dresses”. They are women and girls, and they deserve to spend their childhood playing the sports that they want to (just like the boys do).

Let me ask you a few questions:

Do you color your hair? Cut it? Wear nail polish? Makeup? Choose a style of eyeglasses? Do you shave your legs? Or face? Or go to the gym?

These are ALL examples of gender-affirming care.

For Catholics (which is the group on my conference call), there is nothing inherently anti-doctrinal about trans people, but there is and should be an issue when you are bigoted and when you misinform about who and what trans people are, and transness is.

You can call it freedom of speech, you can call it parental rights, you can call it protecting girls’ sports, but what it really is, is bigotry, plain and simple.

Saying everyone should be equal, and passing laws that do just that should be a positive thing; we should be striving towards equality for all, and not creating a caste system of second-class citizens.

Equality for all means EQUALITY. FOR. ALL.

I will be voting YES on Prop 1 in New York state, and I hope you will too.

Election Connection – 41 Days

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Geeks and Nerds for Harris

Watch the Fundraiser for Democracy, hosted by Lynda Carter, featuring Brad Meltzer, Mark Hamill, Jon Cryer, the casts of The Boys, Supernatural, and Star Trek, and other geeks and nerds who want this American experiment to continue.

I would recommend watching as much as you like, but please watch Mark Sheppard (the sci-fi king!) and Jim Beaver, from Supernatural as they express what many are feeling as only they can, as an immigrant and a veteran, respectively. They both gave a beautiful tribute to this country and freedom.

DONATE TO KAMALA HARRIS AND TIM WALZ HERE

Penny Prompts #3 – Art vs Artist

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This quote is from the eleventh book in Louise Penny’s Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series, The Nature of the Beast.

The story itself centers on a play written by a serial killer, and Armand questions the appropriateness of performing a play written by someone with questionable to no morals in addition to his heinous actions. This is something that I sometimes struggle with, in the past, currently, and imparting my feelings to my children while letting them make their own decisions on the subject.

Armand and Reine-Marie seem to disagree in the quote below.

What do you think? How would you or how have you separated the art from the artist? Have you had to do this? Have you dropped someone or something completely because of that internal, moral struggle?

Think deeply and then write your thoughts.

“Should the creation be judged by its creator? Does it matter?”

…

““So it has nothing to do with Fleming and his crimes?” asked Reine-Marie. “Nothing to do with him as a man?” “It has everything to do with him,” said Armand, his voice clipped, strained. They looked at him. Never had they heard him come even close to being upset with his wife. “If John Fleming created it, it’s grotesque. It can’t help but be. Maybe not obviously so, but he’s in every word, every action of the characters. The creator and the created are one.””