I’m currently watching news coverage about the President’s arrival in Tampa. On the day after his State of the Union Address, he is here to announce a new rail system between this city and Orlando. It will create jobs, it will expand the area, it will help traffic, it is entirely needed and very exciting.
Of course, I’m excited simply because he’s in town. I wish I had been able to call in sick from my stay at home mom duties to stand in line and possibly get a ticket into the town hall meeting hosted by the University of Tampa.
But TV coverage will do. It’s all good.
This morning, I took my three year old to open hours at a local indoor petri dish bounce play place. He was excited and I was excited for him to toss himself wildly about until he crumpled into a nap-ready pile that I could carry out of there.
But as I was wrangling shoes, signing in and dealing with my 3yo, I heard this conversation between two of the women working there – one in her 40s and one college aged.
Woman #1: I can’t believe he’s coming here. He’s just going to make traffic a living nightmare downtown.
College-aged Woman: I know. I can’t believe anyone wants to go and even see him. I am going no where near campus today.
Woman #1: I wouldn’t. Plus it could be dangerous. Someone could try and take a shot at him.
College-aged Woman: I know and Biden is with him too…
Woman #1: Well, that would be two for the price of one then wouldn’t it?
Laughing… or maybe it was cackling.
College-aged Woman: Yeah, I wish! …*snort*… I totally hate that man.
While this conversation was happening, my three year old had finally been de-shoed and, as his friend had ran by, I found myself on my feet and chasing him into the room filled with inflatables.
But I felt like I had been slapped in the face.
HATE.
Seething, angry, from the soul… hate.
It’s everywhere.
Before I even had the chance to sit down and write this post, I was watching news coverage of the presidential motorcade speeding through Tampa. And protesters, in all of their tea bagging glory, were booing and giving our President the finger.
HATE.
To say that I am discouraged by our country… to say that I am exhausted by our financial slump… to say that I am disillusioned by politics… to say that I haven’t felt very hopeful recently… well. Yeah. But I’m nothing unique. My frustrations are about par for our county’s course these days.
But I am so sick to death of the negativity. I am so tired of certain political pundits, organized groups and news sources gleefully green-lighting hateful discourse. I am so tired of destructive, spiteful words. I am fed up with a party whose sole purpose is to simply stop any and all bipartisan efforts to fix what we have ALL played a part in dismantling one way or another.
Enough.
I didn’t like Bush in office. Shocking, I know. And sure, I may have been a little seethy towards him. I may have disagreed with pretty much everything that came out of his mouth. And I may have said my piece about that too. But I sat myself down to listen every time he had something to say. I wanted there to be something for me to go on, to be hopeful about. I WANT to like our leadership and SEE positive steps forward, no matter whose party is at the helm. I knew we had to work with what we had.
I see so little listening. I see too many minds made up. I see very few attempts at kind of trying to work it out, you know, for the sake of our country.
And there is certainly no doubt in my mind that all of this frustration and loss we’ve experienced as a nation has fueled a very dangerous vein of anger. Its coursing along and gaining speed rapidly as one person whispers to another that its ok to hate a party you don’t agree with, its ok to hate a president you didn’t vote for, its ok to hate something you aren’t familiar with, its ok to hate something that doesn’t exactly fall in line with your super special beliefs.
All of this frustration, loss and anger should be directed into constructive channels, ones that force us all up off our asses and MAKE us take some responsibility for our neighborhoods, our communities, our towns, cities and ultimately our country.
We’ve only been with this administration for one year. And there are a lot of agenda items trying to go down – because they must go down – at once. It’s not going to be served up to us on a silver platter in a matter of 12 months. Especially while we sit on our couches, snap nasty retorts at our televisions and do nothing positive to fix any part of it.
I had no idea. But I guess I shouldn’t blame myself for being so naive. It seems that many parents don’t have any idea either. We generally assume that the drugs we need to worry about our children abusing are such party favorites as alcohol, ecstasy, pot, cocaine or even heroin. I never thought a popular drug of choice these days was dextromethorphan – a key component in cough medicine.
A few weeks ago, I was contacted by a firm representing the CHPA (Consumer Healthcare Products Association) and asked to attend a two day event in Washington DC covering the Five Moms. (Three of the Five Moms are pictured to the right.)
This Monday, I arrived at the lovely, historic Hotel Lombardy curious about what the next two days would bring me. While I settled down in my room over-looking Pennsylvania Avenue, I reviewed the materials that were left for me.
The Problem
A study from the Partnership for a Drug Free America has shown that about one in ten teens (roughly 2.4 million kids) ages 12-17 have reported to have intentionally abused over the counter cough medicine. And about 28% of teens know someone who has abused it. But only 4% of parents believe their children would actually abuse cough medicine. The Partnership for Drug Free America also reports that “41 percent of teens mistakenly believe that abuse of medicines is less dangerous than abuse of illegal street drugs.” And when teens do abuse dextromethorphan, it has been found that they take 20 – 50 times the recommended dosage which equates to consuming multiple bottles of cough medicine at one time.
The Five Moms
On behalf of StopMedicineAbuse.org, five dynamic mothers have currently become the faces of cough medicine abuse. And this week they arrived in Washington DC with the CHPA to meet with Congress people on Capitol Hill to lobby for their support. They had three goals:
Urge the importance of parental education about cough medicine abuse by promoting the StopMedicineAbuse.org site. The Five Moms believe education about the abuse of this common place medication will do more to curb it’s use rather than simply restricting purchase since these medications are found in every home. As one of the Five Moms noted during our meetings on Capitol Hill, “You can’t protect your family from something you don’t know about.”
Gain support for the dextromethorphan Abuse Prevention Act of 2009 (s. 1383) which would amend the Controlled Substances Act and prevent the sale of cough medicine (or any products with dextromethorphan) to those under 18 years of age.
Gain support for the dextromethorphan Distribution Act of 2009 (H.R. 1259) which if enacted would limit who may purchase bulk amounts of raw dextromethorphan. There are no current limits at this time.
During our time in DC, I got to know four of these mothers (the fifth wasn’t able to come due to an illness in the family) and was truly touched by their stories. Misty Fetko shares a powerful and upsetting story about her son Carl who passed away due to a lethal mix and overdose of drugs including dextromethorphan. Blaise Brooks, a strong mother, speaker and mentor, educates her community about over the counter medication abuse. Hilda Morales-Roybal took on this cause after becoming informed about the abuse of over the counter medication in her own community. And finally Cristy Crandell currently has a son serving a 13 year prison sentence for crimes he committed while under the influence of dextromethorphan. Each amazing, each examples, each changing lives in their communities and now each delivering their message to Capitol Hill.
Dr. Drew
And so now you’re probably wondering how Dr. Drew fit in to all of this. Well, the night before we all went to Capitol Hill, we sat down to a lovely dinner with the Five Moms, the CHPA, the PR firm who organized all of our comings and goings, and we bloggers: Jenn, Janice and myself. While chatting with the mothers and considering our menus, an announcement was made that we would have another guest. Dr. Drew Pinsky was able to come to DC also to support this entire initiative and he would be joining us for dinner in a few minutes as well as coming to Capitol Hill with us the following day. After a few blogger (ahem) gasps (to put it subtly), Dr. Drew arrived soon there after and ate a delicious meal with us.
(And in case you’ve been living under a rock, here is where you might find Dr. Drew.)
Let me add a quick sidebar here to share something about Dr. Drew. He sat down at our table and graciously, patiently, wonderfully took question after question about addiction, abuse and even discussed our own personal stories. He didn’t have to do that. But he did. He truly cares about the work he is doing and obviously goes above and beyond to help others on a daily basis. I would like to extend a very heartfelt thank you to Dr. Drew for a fascinating dinner discussion.
CHPA
I have mentioned the CHPA before but should do so again now. Who are they? The Consumer Healthcare Products Association is a non for profit group representing the makers of over the counter medications. And yes, they brought me to this event because they wanted their message heard here. But during my brief time with the CHPA folks, I was impressed by and truly connected with this very committed group of people. And then we were lucky enough to have Alan, a CHPA representative and our valiant leader on the Hill, as part of our group too. With two children of his own and a clear dedication to this message, he fearlessly guided us through our day with humor and tact.
Moms Storm Capitol Hill
On Tuesday morning, the Five Moms, the bloggers, the CHPA folks, and PR peeps piled into cabs and found ourselves on Capitol Hill. Where was was Dr. Drew? He and Misty had already been up taping 39 segments for local television that morning to support this cause and we would meet up with them later. Check one of the segments out here:
However for the rest of us, our first stop that morning was the Rayburn building, home to Representative offices located directly across from the Capitol building. As we filed out of the cab, we stared up at this building’s grandeur considering what our day had in store for us. But we only took a moment and then continued up the steps. There was work to be done.
We met a lot of people that day. A lot. We criss-crossed Capitol Hill, tromped up and down the steps into and out of both the Rayburn Building and the Hart Building (where most Senator offices are located). While our fancy shoes silently tortured us with every step we hardly noticed because we were lucky enough to have appointments with:
Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS)
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA)
Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA)
Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA)
Rep. Ciro Rodriguez (D-TX)
Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO)
Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI)
Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
We didn’t meet every congress person. In fact, my group usually met with Legislative Assistants. But Dr. Drew and Misty, along with the President and CEO of the Partnership for a Drug Free America, arrived in time for our face to face meetings with both Rep. Fred Upton and Sen. Chuck Grassley.
Every office was welcoming and wholeheartedly interested in the Five Mom’s message. They listened, they gave us time, and they promised further consideration. And as Hilda Morales-Roybal so correctly put forward to each member of her audience: “we are simply asking for you to support common sense”.
Common sense. Yep, that is exactly it. So it would seem these bills are obvious shoe-ins, something every member of congress could get behind – wouldn’t you think? Not so fast. I came to realize that while open to the Five Moms’ message, even the most straight forward, bi-partisan issues won’t be immediately resolved without some behind the scenes work. Call it horse-trading, call it prioritizing, call it plain old politics but these bills have run into a couple brick walls in the Senate. I know, I don’t get it either, but they have.
What Can You Do?
First of all, every parent should educate themselves. Go to StopMedicineAbuse.org to learn more about the risks, the facts, how dextromethorphan is abused and what signs to look for.
Secondly (and probably MOST importantly) you need to discuss this drug and its risks with your teens. Don’t find yourself assuming your sweet innocent child would never do this. Don’t find yourself dealing with a future overdose just like Misty Fetko did.
Thirdly, read medicine labels, look for the educational icon (see at right) and keep careful tabs on what you have in your medicine cabinets. If you see this icon on a medicine label, you should be aware that it has the potential to be abused and may contain dextromethorphan.
Finally, email or write your Representatives and Senators about this issue. Because you know what? They asked me to tell you that. In fact, Senator Grassley had statistics right at his fingertips about how many letters or emails his office receives and how many they respond to. And then after our meeting, his assistant came up to the bloggers and urged us to tell our readers the same. WRITE YOUR REPRESENTATIVES AND SENATORS. Because they are listening and they will support what you feel strongly about. No really, they will.
My Afterglow
And so, readers of mine, I will wrap up this lengthy post to say that I was officially blown away by my Capitol Hill experience. You see, I got to experience first hand the influence that moms have on their communities and country at large. And it has left me awed and inspired. Because I often flashback a few years to when my children were very young, when I thought I had no affect on very much any longer apart from raising my boys. I was simply a mom not doing too much of consequence apart from wiping bums, washing bottles and watching Ellen from time to time. No no. Actually, we have a voice. An important one. One that is heard on Capitol Hill – whether it be in face to face meetings or via letters and blog posts. We can make an important difference if we get busy, get talking, get writing and get organizing. Don’t forget what we have the potential to accomplish. Thanks to my time with the Five Moms, I know I never will.
Disclosure note: While my trip and hotel expenses were covered by the CHPA, the opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own. This is an extremely important initiative and I was proud to be there to offer my support.
Last night, I had the fascinating opportunity to be part of a conference call with Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), Mike Taylor of the US FDA, Safe Tables and a varietyoffabulousbloggers to discuss the new FDA food safety reform bill. As our country has experienced more and more disturbing food recalls, increased cases of E coli and a whole slew of food borne illnesses resulting in many unexpected deaths – its time we take control of our own food safety.
Safe Tables – or S.T.O.P. (Safe tables Our Priority) – provides consumers with excellent resources about current food safety initiatives. They are a “national, nonprofit, public health organization dedicated to preventing illness and death from food borne pathogens”. I would encourage everyone to sign up for their E-Alerts which will be sent to your email address of choice if there are any sudden food recalls or outbreaks that you should know about.
Also, in case you weren’t aware, the new Food Safety reform bill is hoping to accomplish the following:
Require all facilities to have in place preventive plans to address identified hazards and prevent adulteration, and give FDA access to these plans and relevant documentation;
Expand FDA access to records;
Allow FDA to recognize laboratory accreditation bodies to help ensure U.S. food testing labs meet high quality standards and require results from food testing performed by these labs to be reported to FDA;
Require importers to verify the safety of foreign suppliers and imported food, provide that FDA require certification for high-risk foods, and deny entry to a food that lacks certification or that is from a foreign facility that has refused U.S. inspectors;
Increase FDA inspections at all food facilities, providing for annual inspections of high-risk facilities and inspections of other facilities at least once every four years;
Enhance food-borne illness surveillance systems to improve the collection, analysis, reporting and usefulness of data on food-borne illnesses;
Require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a pilot project to test and evaluate new methods for rapidly and effectively tracking/tracing fruits and vegetables in the event of a food-borne illness outbreak;.
Give FDA the authority to mandate recall of a food product if a company fails to voluntarily recall product upon FDA’s request;
Empower FDA to suspend a food facility’s registration if there is a reasonable probability that food from the facility will cause serious adverse health consequences or death;
Direct FDA to help food companies protect their products from intentional contamination; and
Increase funding for FDA’s food safety activities through increased appropriations and targeted fees for domestic and foreign facilities.
So what did I learn on this phone call? First of all, it is going to take some time. All of these farms and food processing centers need to be brought up to speed. The Senator was clear to explain that small farms will not be targeted, however processors will be and the FDA would ideally have the authority to enforce new FDA regulations on the spot with further and increased inspections.
The Senator also explained that state and local government would need to work much more closely and have better integration in order to enforce these regulations.
And then there are imported foods. They would need to be equally processed and held up to the same standard as domestic foods. Did you know that we currently inspect less than 1% of imported foods? Yeah. Wow.
I have to admit. This is an ambitious plan. I’m not sure how long it will take or how the consistency will be enforced or how much it will cost. The Senator did mention that there is enough bi-partisan support for this bill to give it the momentum it needs. But, I dunno. We have a long way to go, baby. But at least the work has begun and food safety has become a priority (amongst many others).
Finally, it left me wondering what WE can do. You and me, consumers, wheeling our carts through the grocery store with wrestling kids in tow. How can we put pressure on the large farms and corporations to move more quickly with these new regulations? How can we hold the folks who make and handle our food accountable? Because you and I both know that corporations get a certain “giddy-up” if they feel any pressure from their consumers. So, while I brainstorm, consider your food and its safety and do what you can to support the new FDA food reform bill.
A quick side-bar…
BlogHer is hosting a conference call with Senator Jeff Merkley about the future of health care on Wednesday, Oct. 21. Interested in being a part of this call? You better get a move on. They are taking the first 20 bloggers who respond here. They hosted an amazing conference call with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi discussing health care reform earlier today.
Also, I am heading to Washington DC next week to be learn more about teen over the counter medicine abuse (StopMedicineAbuse.org) and the Five Moms who are working in conjunction with OTCsafety.org and CHPA. (Remember when I got interview their spokesperson Chandra Wilson awhile back?) These are great people and this is an important initiative. I’m very excited and will be posting more later. So stay tuned.
I’ve been a little burnt out on politics recently. And why is that? Hate and anger have become a normal, tolerable part of political and partisan discourse. Slinging words such as “Nazi” are considered acceptable and perfectly justified. Folks crow about misusing the racist card, but I’ve never seen so many examples of racism and fear in my country before. Not to say my party is innocent of lobbing hateful verbiage at the other side. Keith Olbermann has been making me cringe recently, and I usually love me some Keith.
We are locked down in division, partisan hate and discourse are at an all time high and there seems very little hope of any forward momentum between parties.
And you know what? It exhausts me to even post about this. If you want to know more about my thoughts on our partisan woes, read them here. Because I’m not up to rehashing it any more than I already have right now. It plain old bums me out.
But it’s not as if I can just turn away from politics and standing up for what I believe in either.
Last weekend, Joanne Bamberger (aka Pundit Mom) lead a panel on politics and blogging at the Type A Mom Conference. Not surprisingly, the topic immediately turned to the negativity in current politics. People on both sides are angry and nothing is being achieved with the one upping, the name calling, the seething hate, the taunts that “you lie!”
Folks, nothing is getting done this way. Nothing. Not when there is so much disrespect for one another, not when you or I must prepare for personal assault if we dare offer up any slice of our political persuasions. Not if the space for discourse isn’t safe, isn’t open, isn’t respectful or isn’t mature enough to tolerate differences.
So while we all left our discussion with visions of “safe, bipartisan political spaces” dancing in our heads, the fabulous Down To Earth Mama let me know about Jane Devin’s effort coming up next week. What she proposes is this.
One day with no hate.
On October 6th, Jane suggests that we allow ourselves one day where we drop our pretenses, our built up prejudices, our grudges, our self-righteous “I’m better than you” crap. One day where we quiet down, breathe, look over to the other side and LISTEN. Maybe we can use it as an exercise to find common ground with those we feel so polarized from. Maybe we try the whole “if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all” thing. Maybe we can find some peace somewhere in the middle of this whole mess.
Because if we can’t accomplish ONE day of no hate, we’re in big trouble.
But if we can accomplish one day, maybe that means we can try out a few days without hate. Or a week. Or longer.
So let’s try one day. What do you say?
The twitter hashtag is #1Day0Hate . And go over to Down to Earth Mama for the code for the button I have pasted above and in my sidebar.
The other evening on the Rachel Maddow Show, Rachel was discussing the current state of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” (DADT) in our military. And after hearing further details about this policy and those it is affecting, I was left appalled. In a time when our military resources are as limited as they are, this policy seems outdated and insulting. But before I was ready to list my various reasons in a blog post, I called my friend who is a military wife and we had a very interesting discussion.
Before we jump into this topic, the actual DADT policy can be found here. Also, I would suggest that you watch the Rachel Maddow’s piece that got me all riled up in the first place.
The GLAAD blog also ties a lot of the recent discussion and media coverage together here.
From where I sit as a mom with a vested interest in equal rights, but with no connection to the military, it’s very easy for me to jump head first into a discussion about discrimination and say that DADT is wrong. In my eyes, the policy seems inexcusable and counterproductive.
We are living in a time when our military’s resources are being stretched extraordinarily thin. Men and women are being called to serve 3 or 4 tours of duty in a row, more than they ever signed on for. However, since DADT was made an official policy 15 years ago, almost 13,000 military personnel have been dismissed for being out about their sexual orientation.
I know I am no military guru, but it simply boils down to this: the government is turning away men and women who are willing to protect, fight and die for our country based on a personal lifestyle choice. DADT seems nothing more than a written policy allowing for discrimination in the military. During a time of war, while men and women work and fight to protect us, sexual preference actually matters? Really? Does it? The government is assuming that an out gay individual is actually a threat? Our military is facing all sorts of threats right now, but a gay officer certainly is not one of them. In a time of war or not, discrimination is never ok.
Another point: it is currently legal for same sex couples to marry in an increasing number of states. And in these states, hetero and homosexual married couples are allowed the same rights. Yet our government won’t allow these same residents to be out about their lives or their spouses if they were to enlist in the military? DADT is ridiculous and far too outdated.
But then I called my friend. Her husband is currently serving in Iraq and the military has been a part of their lives for well over a decade. My friend is a wonderful, progressive, baby wearing mom (it is no wonder we are as close as we are). So I asked her. Certainly this policy is something that is simply outdated, correct? Actual personnel in the military can’t possibly agree with this… right?
Well. The answer was not an easy one. This is what I learned. Serving in the military means more than simply having a job. It means you answer to the military for your private and professional life. And if a superior determines a policy, you do not question it. Also, policies, procedures and processes have been set up through history to carefully protect those that serve. To question or break down any of those ingrained policies would take a great deal of congressional work, time, paper shuffling, red tape rearranging, recruitment efforts, educating, briefings and – most importantly – money. Change in the military does not come quickly. Change in the military is not spurred on by political correctness or peer pressure. And she pointed out that during a war such as this, would changing up personnel policies right now be the best time to do so?
We debated for a long time. Our principles certainly do not jibe with how the military does things. I argued that women have recently been given more rights and responsibilities in the military so change is possible – but she argued back “barely”. While minority groups (“out” homosexual personnel aside) serve in the military, they are still very often (although certainly not always) discriminated against. That’s just the way it is.
But still. We can’t be afraid to push for equality just because discrimination in the army is really really hard to change, right? We can’t sit back and swallow DADT just because it is a very expensive pain in the ass to rectify, correct? I have certainly learned that a quick policy change will not just happen overnight with the wave of Obama’s wand. Nevertheless, DADT is outdated, outrageous and flat out discriminatory. I hope Obama does right by his promise to “fulfill his commitment” to change this policy (as noted in the letter on Maddow’s show). I am proud of our military personnel who serve our country, whatever their background, creed, color or sexual orientation. It is time our government is too.
Finally, last night, Rachel Maddow interviewed another decorated solider who has been dismissed for being gay after 18 years of service. This man has done amazing things for our country – what a loss. Please watch.
I used to be such a good liberal American. Years ago, I was passionate about every issue, outraged, engaged and pro-active. Ok, so predictably – yes - I was my most progressive back in my college days. But now, on the verge of 36 and home raising two young boys – what’s happened to me? Do I care enough anymore? Especially now that I have children and should be more invested in the future of our country, am I staying informed enough? Am I a good liberal mom?
Yes, back in college – the glory days – I enjoyed debate in the classroom, sought out political speaking events (and fondly remember when Alec Baldwin came to speak for the College Democrats), marched to Take Back the Night, protested all kinds of good stuff (don’t ask me what, but it was good stuff), was a proud member of a feminist A Capella group (Ani DiFranco was wonderful, required listening), and my dorm room was covered in pro-chick, anti-discriminatory, peace loving posters. Oh yeah. And I didn’t ALWAYS shave my legs. (…What? So!?)
Now fast forward fifteen (cough, sputter) years, and I ask you: when was the last time I went to a political rally?
College.
For someone who gets all uppity about political issues, this is shameful. Even during one of the most exciting elections of my lifetime, did I stand in line with the masses to go see Obama when he was in my area?
Nope.
You see, I have to keep my two year old on his nap schedule and I have to use these coupons up before they expire during a grocery trip before said nap and that nap has to happen before its time to leave and drive a half hour to get my five year old from school who is always hungry when I get there so I better have snacks packed too. …And who wants to juggle a 40 lb. two year old and a hungry five year old at a political rally anyway? Well. I don’t. Yup. I’m just not hard core enough anymore.
It bothers me that I have let my edge go. I have let my immediate life seep in and block out a lot of the larger context. Because for me, my child’s well balanced lunch and nap are ultimately, above all else, my priority.
But its not as if daily pedicures, appointments with my tennis coach (I swear I don’t have a tennis coach) and coffee dates with my girlfriends trump my interest in political issues either. Caring for my children just trumps everything. I don’t do the pedicures and coffee dates either. Well, once in awhile. In a great while. But bottom line, its about the kids right now.
Is that a cop out though? I mean, mom’s bring their kids to see politicians speak all the time. They drag them along to rallies and meetings and community organizations. Moms multi-task, they figure it out, the kids get used to it and know how they are expected to behave. Having children doesn’t mean cutting down the person you are, does it? No. So whats my problem?
Do I care less now?
No, I care more I think. So what is it?
It goes back to my previous point. It’s not really about me right now. I mean, it can be sometimes. But my full time, around the clock priority is maintaining my children’s routine, happiness, education and daily normalcy. And you know what? It’s exhausting. The air gets let out of my political sails and by the time they are asleep, my brain is simply fried. Yes, and as I sink into the couch with remote in hand, I even find myself switching from the amazing Rachel Maddow to American Idol. (Head hung in shame.) I know. I’m not proud of it. But its just my reality right now.
I don’t think it will always be like this. In fact, as my boys grow older, I see changes in my freedoms daily. I will be participating in the March of Dimes walk this year with my family for the first time because I think the kids will be fine for it. And I was able to drag my boys to one small community Obama meeting before he was elected. Sure we had to leave early due to their wrestling, but change is coming (to steal a certain liberal theme these days).
And in the meantime, I’ll step up onto my soapbox here. Writing doesn’t require packing snacks-drinks-diapers-wipes, stuffing the stroller into the trunk, getting shoes on kids, bringing games and books, strapping kids into carseats and breaking up “he’s touching me again” fights. I can still rally, speak up and speak out right here. My blog can be like a dorm room poster and my posts can be my classroom political debates. Yes. I can still do this. So while I may not be a liberal college kid anymore, I am certainly still a liberal mom.
This is my thirdpost in a series written to honor Women’s History Month. My life has been profoundly influenced and affected by women writing and advocating on my behalf. And now, as I spend my days in a thinking, blogging, posting frenzy, I fancy myself a writer of sorts too. So, it’s high time I acknowledge the women that inspire. Here is my list of top 20 recommended women political bloggers, in no particular order.
Before we get started, please note that I did ask my fellow bloggers and readers who they read also. So this list includes my favorites along with those who have been recommended to me.
Ok then. Here we go.
1. Momocrats: While this is in no particular order, I still must put the Momocrats at the top of my list. As hardworking mothers and progressive thinkers, it often seems as if these women are speaking and advocating exclusively on my behalf when I read their posts. They are amazing writers, they know what they are talking about and the world is sitting up to listen to them.
2. Punditmom is my “go to” political blogger. When something is going down, I want to know what a smart, liberal minded, feminist pundit has to say about it. PM comes through for me every time. And sometimes you’ll even catch her speaking her mind on CNN and Fox too.
3. Julie Pippert is probably smarter than all of us put together. She’s extremely well informed, passionate about her politics and is a mother like so many of us.
4. Queen of Spain is kind of political blogger celeb in my mind. She landed an interview with President Obama during the election and has been seen on TV and at major political events ever since.
5. Writes Like She Talks is a fantastic political blogger and has written for Newsweek.com, has made several appearances on CNN and is a columnist. She is certainly a political blogger to be reckoned with.
6. Sairy is a Momocrat who’s found herself reporting from a White House Press conference, amongst other things. Here is her full bio – she is an important voice worth following.
7. Angry Black Bitch: Straight forward, very brilliant and never afraid, I met Shark-Fu on my first day of BlogHer 08 and have been reading her ever since.
8. Viva La Feminista writes as a feminist, Latina and mother – her voice is powerful, her message is important.
9. Mombian is an established lesbian family blog which discusses political topics affecting rights (or lack thereof) for same sex parents.
10. Feministing “is an online community for feminists and their allies.” The women here have created a talented and diverse community as they advocate for equal and human rights.
Other blogs recommended to me:
11. Citizen Jane Politics is described as an un-partisan, independent, political blog from women.
12. Blonder Than You is a DC blogger shooting straight from the hip, so to speak.
13. Women Wired In is a blog created for and about women, politics and technology.
14. Bang the Drum describes herself as a die-hard democrat and political junkie. She’s also a mom of three and lives in CA.
16. The Feministe: To quote directly from their bio, “Feministe is one of the oldest feminist blogs designed by and run by women from the ground up.” Now go read it.
17. The Little Pink Clubhouse claims that she has a “consuming interest in politics” and writes from a small town outside Seattle.
18. HeartFeldt Politics is written by Gloria Feldt, a women’s activist whose voice is heard – and read – everywhere from the Huffington Post to the New York Times.
19. Womanist is written by a mother who describes herself as a pacifist, anti-racist and humanist – oh yeah, and a woman-ist.
20. The Political Voices of Women: If 20 women political bloggers just aren’t enough for you, check out the Political Voices of Women where you will find over 500 women telling it how it is.
For all that these bloggers do to keep me informed and advocate on my behalf, I am grateful. Happy Women’s History Month to all of these political bloggers and the women they reach.
In honor of Women’s History Month, last week I took on the daunting task of listing some top women television journalists that deserve our support. I would like to continue to honor this month by attempting to list top political newspaper journalists, columnists and editors who deserve the same kind of respect, support and place in history. And for a final tribute next week, I will tackle my list of top twenty liberal women political bloggers.
Women are now expected voices during political dialogue – speaking their minds and taking names, so to speak. But how did we get here? After all, we have only had the right to vote since 1920 (a mere 90 years ago) and finally had our first shot at a woman President only in the past year. Wouldn’t you know it, women have been affecting the political scene long before we were voting and have been fighting for their spot on the soapbox in the male dominated field of journalism ever since. Did you know that the International Federation of Journalists reported that only of 38% of working journalists are women?
So as a woman blogger, political junkie and proud feminist, I would like to tip my laptop to the following women of note:
Marguerite Higgins was the first woman to win a Pulitzer prize for international reporting in 1951.
Ethel Payne covered the civil rights movement and became the first African American commentator employed by a major news network (CBS) in 1972.
Ida M. Tarbell was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame for her historical investigative reporting about the Standard Oil company at the turn of the century.
Margaret Fuller was the first writer for the New York Tribune in the mid 1800s and was also the first female foreign and war correspondent.
Nellie Bly is famous for her undercover work as a journalist who faked her insanity so that she could report on the inner workings of a mental institution in the late 1800’s.
Katherine Graham was a Pulitzer prize winning author and managing editor of the Washington Post during the explosive early 70s when the Post unearthed the truth about Nixon.
Nancy Hicks Maynard was the first African American female reporter for the New York Times and former owner of the Oakland Tribune.
Ellen Goodman is a Pulitzer prize winning columnist who has focused her career on bringing attention to the women’s movement while writing a nationally recognized syndicated column.
Anna Quindlen is a Pulitzer prize winning journalist who, in 1990, became the third woman in history to write a regular column for the New York Times Op-Ed page.
Helen Thomas was the first female member and president of the While House Correspondents Association and has been in the white house press corps since JFK, sitting front and center of every white house press conference. (See image above.)
Arianna Huffington was named as one of Time’s worlds 100 most influential people and is the co founder of the Huffington Post.
Margaret Carlson was the first female columnist at Time magazine and is now a columnist at Bloomberg News.
IN 1937, the National Federation of Press Women was founded. For a list of accomplished women journalists found in their Hall of Fame, please visit their site.
With such amazing journalists and inspiring women preparing the ground for future female writers, it is no surprise that such a fabulous crop of political bloggers have sprung forth today, enlightening, demanding and questioning the political arena at large. So who are my favorites? You’ll have to wait until next week when I will finally reveal my top twenty favorite political bloggers. Until then, happy Women’s History Month!
While it may come as no surprise to you, I still think I need to fess up: I am a news and politics junkie. And in honor of Women’s History Month, I would like to share with you my favorite women pundits, correspondents, news anchors, bloggers and political writers. Women news sources are still in the minority so this is my simple way of supporting every woman out there reporting on what will certainly become history some day.
Now how could I ever sum up the women I support in one concise post? Exactly, it’s utterly impossible. So this will be a three part post – and even then I am quite sure I’ll be skimping on you. Nevertheless, I’m going to give it a shot. This week, I will share with you my picks for the best women television news sources that you need to turn on and follow. Sure, do it for the future of women’s journalism, do it for women’s solidarity but really just do it because they are accomplished professionals making an important impact on mainstream media.
Until the early 1960’s, news reporting was strictly a man’s gig. So first things first – let’s give a shout out to some of first women who reported the political goings on in Washington. Nancy Dickerson was in fact the first woman television reporter. She opened the doors for such news greats as Diane Sawyer, Barbara Walters, Ann Compton, Lesley Stahl and more recently, Katie Couric. The stories I’ve read about how difficult it was for these women to break into journalism makes the hairs on my neck stand up. They deserve respect and credit for the ceiling they have all cracked together.
Today, there are a number of television pundits and correspondents who have established themselves as top news contributors. But who tops my list? None other than the amazing and brilliant Rachel Maddow. If you don’t watch her MSNBC show at 9pm every weeknight (or follow her on twitter), you are missing something impressive. Ann Marie Coxis often a guest on her show and I have become a fan of hers also.
Another good perspective comes from Campbell Brown and her show “No Bias, No Bull” is my “go to” when I am not watching Keith Olbermann (and while he’s a “he” and therefore does not fit the bill for this post, I am a loyal viewer of his also). And by the way, Alison Stewart(previously of MTV fame and Emmy award winner) does a fabulous job filling in for Maddow and Olbermann – I hope to see more of this amazing news contributor in the future.
Gwen Ifill is the Moderator and Managing Editor on PBS’ Washington Week. Along with the stiff shirts of the McLaughlin Group, my father watches her regularly. I am a big fan myself and think she handled the vice presidential circus debate with grace and professionalism.
And while I stare at my monitor most afternoons, I usually have MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell quietly on in the background. She’s smart and does a fantastic job asking the right kinds of questions. And then Norah O’Donnellis the MSNBC chief washington correspondent and also hosts the 3pm hour of MSNBC.
While not your traditional political pundits, I have to mention the women on The View. They have made a significant impression on this country with their ideals and fiery political debates. Say what you will about The View being an actual news source, Whoopi Goldeberg and Joy Behar have my utmost respect.
And finally, Christiane Amanpour, CNN’s chief international correspondent, deserves every bit of recognition she has received including the Peabody Award, two Emmy Awards and has been named the Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE). She speaks three languages and fearlessly positions herself at the epicenter of war, chaos and international instability on a daily basis. There is no question that she has earned my deepest admiration.
The only way we will see more women reporting and commenting on important news stories is if we support the women currently doing just that. Take note of who sits around the table during Meet the Press or gather in the White House Press conference room. Is our women’s perspective represented? Let’s hope it will be the case more frequently in the future.
Feel free to comment about some of your favorite women journalists below. And stay tuned for next week’s second post in this series about my picks for favorite women political newspaper journalists and writers that deserve their place in history.
The other night after putting my children to bed, I settled onto my couch with my laptop and switched on MSNBC. I was ready to hear from our President. I was looking for hope, for answers, for any sign that there will be a light at the end of this very long and difficult tunnel. Homes in my neighborhood stand empty, friends are losing their jobs, funding for my son’s education is being cut drastically and I’m getting nervous about affording even groceries right now. This speech needed to assure me that eventually everything is going to be alright. And did it? Here is my reaction to the President’s address to congress.
After thunderous opening applause and a quick introduction by Pelosi, President Obama launched enthusiastically into his speech. Right away he recognized just how bad it’s gotten. He explained that he didn’t need to rattle off any more statistics about this recession since we are all experiencing it first hand.
With my arms folded and my heart sadly resigned, I certainly agreed. As much as I support our President whole-heartedly, I know the reality and can’t help but worry the obstacles in front of us are impossible to overcome.
He then reminded us that we are all responsible for our economy, for our environment, for our children’s futures. After years of excessive spending and with no regard for the consequences of bad loans or oil dependence, we’ve wound up where we are. His words were strong, he spoke plainly and he spoke right to me.
All this time, I’ve been smugly blaming the previous administration and everyone else for this mess. But it was at this moment when I realized that this problem is all of ours. We have all played a part in this mess and we all need to make an effort to fix it.
“Now is the time” he demanded. Ok. You’re right. I’m listening.
He then went on to explain this recovery plan will do the following:
Create 3.5 million jobs
Give 95% of Americans a tax cut by April 1
Give families paying for college tuition a $2,500 tax credit
Honestly? These promises practically make me giddy with hope. I was ready to leap to my feet during this part of his speech faster than Pelosi herself. But I didn’t. I was still holding myself back. These are promises and certainly look great on paper – but I am still waiting and seeing.
Obviously, this recovery plan means that a lot of money (read: trillions) will be floating around. Considering our reckless past, I appreciated the President explaining that careful tabs will be kept on every dollar spent. Americans can go to recovery.gov to see where our money is going. This is good. Actions and process have to be kept transparent if we want if regain any economic confidence.
The next points he brought up were about banking, credit and loans. The message came across loud and clear that our money in our banks is safe and that we cannot stop loaning to individuals and businesses. This will stop economic growth in its tracks. Clearly, trust needs to be rebuilt again.
He also pointed out that “responsible” families struggling to hold on to their homes will be assisted. He said that:
“…the average family who refinances today can save nearly $2,000 per year on their mortgage.”
For a family like ours who followed the rules, bought a home within our means but are still scraping to pay our mortgage – this was very encouraging to hear.
Further into his speech, I was thrilled to hear the three priorities of the recovery plan:
“…the budget I submit will invest in the three areas that are absolutely critical to our economic future: energy, health care, and education.”
He explained that ignoring these areas will change the future of our country if we do not give them immediate support and attention.
This was where my cautious “we’ll see” grumblings gave way to affirmative exclamations. I was emotionally on board then. All I could think about was my child’s school staying open, my $150 co-pays to treat my son’s flu that never responded to his $25 flu shot, and the empty homes scattered all over my neighborhood. Maybe? Could it be? Well, it seems there actually is hope.
As our president concluded his speech, he mentioned the stories of individuals who have made differences in their communities. He then introduced us to the young high school girl who reminded our congress that “We are not quitters!”
You see, that is exactly it for me. I am scared right now. I am nervous that from the bottom of this economic hole, these promises are just too good to be true. I want to hide my head in the sand and wish it all away. Or maybe just wait for someone else to fix it. But we are not quitters. No matter what side of the tracks you fall on: get up, get out and do something. This is everyone’s problem. Not just Wall Street’s or Congress’s or our President’s.
No doubt about it, our President is a fantastic speaker. But he is also an extremely smart and capable leader. The impossible is ahead of us but instead of moaning about what can’t be done, I will follow his lead and consider all that can be done. He is inspiring me to take responsibility, move forward and do my part. It was an excellent speech and I’m excited and ready to see what our future has in store.
I had no idea. But I guess I shouldn’t blame myself for being so naive. It seems that many parents don’t have any idea either. We generally assume that the drugs we need to worry about our children abusing are such party favorites as alcohol, ecstasy, pot, cocaine or even heroin. I never thought a popular drug of choice these days was dextromethorphan – a key component in cough medicine.
Moms Storm Capitol Hill
We didn’t meet every congress person. In fact, my group usually met with Legislative Assistants. But Dr. Drew and Misty, along with the President and CEO of the Partnership for a Drug Free America, arrived in time for our face to face meetings with both Rep. Fred Upton and Sen. Chuck Grassley.
Thirdly, read medicine labels, look for the educational icon (see at right) and keep careful tabs on what you have in your medicine cabinets. If you see this icon on a medicine label, you should be aware that it has the potential to be abused and may contain dextromethorphan.
Last night, I had the fascinating opportunity to be part of a conference call with 
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