That comment is the lynchpin of the RNC in Tampa.

 

They are trying to make much of a remark by Obama, by twisting it like a pretzel.

He pointed out that for every success, there is not merely ONE person…but usually MANY…who helped them get there.

Allow me to offer an example from my own life.

 

I have a book of poetry in the Library of Congress.

I own the copyright.

It was written by me, and me alone…no one else wrote the work.

But the book is dedicated to my daughter.

Further….there is page called acknowledgements….where I thanked literally DOZENS of people…for adding to the mix that ALLOWED me to write. I was happy and excited to be published…but I KNEW I had not gotten there alone. It seemed only fair to offer credit where it was due…so I did.

In my mind, NO ONE does anything alone…not truly. And it is selfish and arrogant to pretend you did.

 I was just talking to a friend of mine, who recently saw a family off to Israel…not for a vacation, but for good.

 

I knew they were going.

They had sold their home, their possessions, packed what was left, and left about three weeks back.

They have kids…young ones. The ages are between five and 12.

After three weeks, it has occurred to the kids that this is FOREVER. And they are not precisely happy about that. Speaking Hebrew for the holidays is one thing…having it be the ONLY language at school is something else. I never thought of how the kids might feel…but they were born and raised here…so even if this is the land of their forefathers, it’s STILL foreign.

I found myself wondering if the kids will stay…or come back here, when they grow up.

I wondered if I could have done that to my child…taken her to a place completely alien…and not always safe.

 

NO judgement…just…well…schools around here don’t usually get blown up.

Buses are not frequently the target of suicide bombers…and I wondered how they could make that huge a choice…

 

 

 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Anc_gP2_QeI&feature=share

 

 

You’ve GOT to check this one out.

TESTIFY sisters!

I’ve written about this before.

http://health.yahoo.net/news/s/nm/gynecologists-alarmed-by-plastic-surgery-trend

 

What I did not know was that Vaginoplasty can actually destroy a woman’s ability to feel during sex.

SERIOUSLY? Bad enough we mess with our breasts like they were balloons…but a surgery that “re-shapes” YOUR PARTS, so you can look like a porn atar, but also might DAMAGE them permanently is not worth it.

 

 

I’ve been a long time poster at the Blender of Love…which decided to use my poem “Cool Comfort” for a front page pick for August.

 

Ten minutes ago, Mad Swirl, a site I have wanted to break into, made it read of the day.

 

WOOOOOOOO Freaking HOOOOOOOO~

 

http://www.madswirl.com/content/poetryforum.html

https://plus.google.com/102778563580121606331/posts/StwY9qzafad

 

 

http://www.wibw.com/home/nationalnews/headlines/Rapist-Wants-Custody-Of-Victims-Child-167179285.html

 

And again i say…too DAMNED bad.

The stats say a rapist will usually escalate into other crimes of sexual violence…including child molestation.

Too much chance that a victim may be victimized again…THROUGH her child.

Now I get that people are out of work, and need jobs.

I get that it can be a win/win to connect a person who needs a job, with a person who needs help.

 

But last night, I came across THIS ad.

 

http://boston.craigslist.org/nos/ofc/3221288228.html

 

This woman must be out of her MIND.

This is not one job, with one skill set…but several.

This is also not a part time 25 hour a week gig. To accomplish what she thought to ask for (not to mention the open end she gave to housekeeping tasks) would be a full time job…and then some. She doesn’t need a personal assistant…she needs a staff…or a wife.

 

Now before you come back saying, “Well if you want a job you can’t be picky”, I come back with a job has to be POSSIBLE to complete. She is looking for a housekeeper who can pinch hit as a very skilled PA…and she wants it done in less than 25 hours a week.

Not possible.

I’ve been a new mom…and even though a baby looks tiny, you would be appalled at how much laundry one small person can generate.  I wish her luck…but I think she is out of her mind.

 

I have spoken in the past about protecting victims of rape from harassment by their attackers, and people have suggested I was just “out there” on the topic.

 

http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/22/opinion/prewitt-rapist-visitation-rights/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

 

Today, I found out that THIRTY ONE states grant rapists parental rights for child who are the product of their crime.

Nope…not making it up.

Didn’t pull it from my butt…fact.

So…if a woman DID become pregnant as a result of rape, and is forced to carry the pregnancy, the rapist is allowed visitation. He can demand shared custody.

He can EVEN block an adoption…all because he committed a crime of sexual violence against a woman.  Would someone please tell me ONE OTHER CRIME you can commit, that will give you STATE SANCTIONED permission to fuck with your victim’s life? How are women to feel…handing their children over to a man that violated them?

If you don’t know how fucked up this is, you are an idiot…and I do not apologize for calling you one.

I am always looking for suggestions…this guide while not perfect, offers some great info.

 

http://static.ewg.org/reports/2012/goodfood/pdf/goodfoodonatightbudget.pdf

 

It’s VERY budget friendly, and I suggest their break down is actually useful.  With some tweeks, this could help a lot of people make ends meet…

 

I had an interesting discussion tonight with someone who thinks that regulating industry is a great evil.

This person also seemed to think that when something is being done wrong, it is  a simple matter to report it. Were that the case, we would not need Whistle Blower laws to protect the innocent. Without them, people who did make reports had the tendency to be not only fired, but blackballed in their “industry”, so they could never work again. But even with the Whistle Blower laws, it’s not an easy task.

 

Some towns have EXACTLY one industry. It may in fact be the ONLY employer in an entire county. I recall one incident in Iowa, where a local paint company was running unhealthy toxin levels IN their factory. The EPA team that went to do the testing had to LEAVE the building after only five minutes, because they were getting faint and dizzy from the fumes. Now most companies KNOW when the EPA is coming to test…this one did. But it had been so long since they were compliant to the regs, they had no idea what level was acceptable. They talked to workers, and found out most of them were sick a lot…but since it WAS the only employer, and actually owned the only bank in town…well…it wasn’t healthy to piss them off.

But someone finally stood up. No…they were not following OSHA rules…but OSHA has a very small staff to regulate EVERY industry that exists in the US. The companies count on that.

 

Now I offer the Town of Libby Montana.

 

http://www.epa.gov/libby/

 

http://voices.yahoo.com/libby-montana-declared-environmental-disaster-area-3585191.html

 

Two hundred people died as a result of exposure to the asbestos there….another 1000 are ill.

The population of Libby is currently about 2600.

So give or take HALF the town was effected.

The asbestos came from the SOLE industry in the town…a mining operation. Just about everyone worked there. There were no alternatives. 

If you check the links, you’ll see 1999 as a starting date for the EPA involvement in Libby.

 

What makes that interesting is that we’ve KNOWN asbestos was a carcinogen since 1975. It wasn’t a secret. The mining company knew their workers were exposed. But they made as much money, as quickly as they could…and worried about the lawsuits (if any) later. Nope…no Unions…not in that town.

 

The people who died acquired asbestosis.

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001177/

 

It’s a nasty way to die. It’s probably what will kill most of the 9-11 First Responders. That strange gray ash that fell everywhere? Asbestos. The Trade Center was FULL of the stuff…but they decided it was more risky to dig it out, than leave it in the walls…because Asbestos isn’t an issue…unless it gets in the air.

 

Which it did…at 9-11…and Libby.

 

It Also got in the air when WR GRACE decided that the darker colored asbestos wasn’t dangerous. So they sprayed the inside of their cargo bins with it…DECADES after the original asbestos ban.  The result? More dead and dying workers. But THAT case is a fun one. They have managed to keep it out of the courts for 20 years…long enough for most of the victims to die. (Their suit dies with them, of course.) They have argued that they were not responsible…and even if they WERE responsible, it was their Insurance Company’s job to pay the claims. The Insurance Company has argued that until a certain threshold of claim was reached, they are off the hook. OTHER industries have argued that someone else is responsible. And in the mean time, the people they poisoned still die.

 

Nice trick, really.

Now…a recap. Mining. Insurance. Paint Manufacture. Construction. Shipping. Several industries, all allegedly “regulated”. All making monster profits, while their workers paid for it quite literally, with their lives. That’s not counting the police, firemen, EMT’s, or other workers who were at 9-11.

 

And now the REAL kicker. YOUR taxes paid for the Libby Clean up…because the company declared bankruptcy!

 

Now tell me again how all this evil regulation is hurting INDUSTRY?

Oh…and do have more than theory….