Rep. Richard Hanna: Unexpected advice to women

MoonHowler

40 years ago yesterday, Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment and sent it to the states for ratification.  The ERA is very simple:  equality under the law “shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state on account of sex.”  It still hasn’t been ratified which is just absurd.  Yesterday there were several ERA rallies.  The only Republican in attendance had some strong words, according to the Huffington Post:

As the only Republican Congressman at a rally for the Equal Rights Amendment on Thursday, Rep. Richard Hanna (R-N.Y.) gave women an unexpected piece of advice: Give your money to Democrats.

“I think these are very precarious times for women, it seems. So many of your rights are under assault,” he told the crowd of mostly women. “I’ll tell you this: Contribute your money to people who speak out on your behalf, because the other side — my side — has a lot of it. And you need to send your own message. You need to remind people that you vote, you matter, and that they can’t succeed without your help.” …

Hanna, a pro-choice Republican and co-sponsor of the Equal Rights Amendment, acknowledged that women’s continuing fight for equality is meeting some resistance among his Republican colleagues. He urged women to become more politically active on their own behalf.

“This is a dogfight, it’s a fistfight, and you have all the cards,” he said. “I can only tell you to get out there and use them. Tell the other women, the other 51 percent of the population, to kick in a few of their bucks. Make it matter, get out there, get on TV, advertise, talk about this. The fact that you want [the ERA] is evidence that you deserve it and you need it.”

Those are strong words.  The ERA has been reintroduced in Congress.  It is noteworthy that Virginia never ratified the ERA.   Do we still need an Equal Rights Amendment?  Red is pass.  Blue  is not passed.

 

Being Jewish in a “Christian” County

Elena

Allow me to share my perspective living in this County.  On a regular basis, I find myself having to explain I am not a Christian and  it is always  very uncomfortable.

As I have shared in previous posts, having suddenly felt as though I was being “evangelized”, I made the  decision to leave my hairdresser because the owner of Tranquility chose to spread her faith in her Salon, Tranquility Day Spa.

Here is a story I did not share.  My kids had picked raspberries on our property and sold them on the corner of our property. Our street intersects a main road.  A very nice woman stopped and wanted to buy some berries.  I shared that a portion of the money the kids raised would go to the Wounded Warrior Project.  This very nice woman replied how wonderful  it was that the kids we donating a portion of their hard earned money to a charity.

She then continued on to share her church,  had recently done a fundraiser for Wounded Warrior also.  I told her I thought that was fantastic.  The conversation should have stopped there in my opinion.  It didn’t.  Let me interject, at this point in the story, that I  always wear my Star of David.  In this county, I almost feel like I have to in order to deflect the religious overtures I feel on a regular basis.  Anyway, I digress.

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The Great Wartime Taxpayer Heist

MoonHowler

Guest Post by “Shine Some Light”

Disclaimer: The content of the guest contribution is the opinion of the guest and does not necessarily represent the opinion of the management of Moonhowlings.com.

 

The Great Wartime Taxpayer Heist

 

Taxpayers might not be aware but the Wartime Museum has filed for an extension on their Form 990 and it won’t be due until March 31. Form 990 is the annual tax return filed by non-profit organizations. They are public information and available for public inspection once filed. However, they are asking for more taxpayer money even though we have not had an opportunity to assess their recent performance.

Here are some facts about the Wartime Museum. The deal struck by the Wartime Museum and Board transferred ownership of the land from the Hyltons to the non-profit entity. This was undevelopable land that the Hyltons were paying real estate tax on. The deal also gave the Hyltons valuable development rights elsewhere in the County. Great “generosity,” right? Relieved of tax payments and obtain development rights elsewhere while portraying yourself as making a generous gift to the community. Several supervisors received generous campaign donations from Hylton sources.

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Church State violations here in PWC?

MoonHowler

Richmond Times Dispatch:

RICHMOND, Va. —

The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia announced Monday that its executive director, Kent Willis, will be leaving his position when a replacement is found.

In a statement, the ACLU said Willis announced his intent to leave last fall and that the organization began a nationwide search for his successor. Willis was hired as associate director in October 1987 and promoted to executive director in March 1989.

“I could not have had a more rewarding job,” said Willis in the statement, “and I am proud to have been part of the ACLU’s many accomplishments and enormous organizational growth over the last 25 years. But something told me it was time to move on.”

Willis really has been there a long time.  The Times Dispatch has a list of his major accomplishments.  People seem to think that the ACLU picks up every liberal gig it can.  That isn’t always the case.  Several of Willis’ accomplishments caught my eye:

  • Defended the right of Jehovah’s Witnesses to avoid government loyalty oaths, the right of ministers to use public parks for baptisms, the right of Wiccans to perform marriage ceremonies, and the right of churches to feed the homeless.
  • Launched a successful challenge to the widespread practice of local governments opening their meetings with sectarian prayers (Currently litigating such a case in Pittsylvania County.).

I sure didn’t know all that happened under bullet #1.  Who would grouse about churches feeding the homeless?  What loyalty oaths must we take?  I can’t think of any.  I also didn’t realize Wiccans can perform marriage ceremonies although it makes perfect sense that they can.

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Trayvon Martin’s killer graduated from Osbourn High School

MoonHowler

This story is just tragic. An unarmed kid with a cell phone and a bag of candy shouldn’t have to die. It sure sounds like the “Stand your Ground” law is being stretched to the limit. This case is why I simply don’t think everyone has a right to have a firearm. How totally irresponsible.

How will the community react to this news?  I couldn’t believe Zimmerman was from our area.  Frankly, I would be worried too if this thug were following me, especially if I had an inkling he was armed.

Read more at INsidenova.com.

Racism comes to the NCAA Foul Line SMU Style

MoonHowler

From loope21.com:

Kansas State coach Frank Martin always makes it a point to recruit a Latino high school ball player from overseas every year.

Martin, who is Cuban, knows that the islands of Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic and countless others have talent that many U.S. coaches pass over.

But when he brings these players to the states, the last thing he’d ever expect was the treatment one of his players received at the foul line in the school’s opening game of the NCAA Tournament yesterday.

Freshman point guard Angel Rodriguez, who was born and raised in Puerto Rico, was at the foul-line when the Southern Mississippi University {sic} band began chanting “Where’s your green card?”

Holy cow!  Are college students from University of Southern Mississippi   really this rude and ignorant?   Puerto Ricans are American citizens.  They don’t need green cards.  Even if they did, who is really that  rude? 

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Keli Goff exposes attack on the Girl Scouts of America

MoonHowler


This past winter there have been been attacks on the Girl Scouts of America  because of some affiliation with Planned Parenthood.  How absurd.  Indiana Rep. Bob Morris excoriated the 100 year old Girls Scouts of America for being a tool  for  Planned Parenthood.  Nothing could be further from the truth. 

 Keli Goff explains the role of Girl Scouting in developing self esteem and goal setting.  Almost every successful woman has some track record of being a Girl Scout. 

More than condoms or the Pill or ‘don’t do it,’ girls with self-esteem and goals are the least likely to get pregnant and are the least likely to be promiscuous.  What organization helps promote self esteem and teaches goal setting?  The Girl Scouts. 

To read more about the Planned Parenthood/Girl Scout dust up, click here. 

 www.loop21.com

Happy 100th Anniversary, Girl Scouts of America! 

 

 

Rural Crescent on the Chopping Block for Faux Parkland!

Elena

 

Have you ever heard the old adage,” if you believe this, I’ve got some swampland in the desert to sell you ” !

Classic Concepts Developer, Mark Granville-Smith is trying to sell us some swampland in the desert.  He will be asking tomorrow, March 20th, to initiate a full study into trading his 306 acre parcel in the Rural Crescent for high density housing.  He would request that 30 homes be turned into 102 homes.  And what, I know you are asking, is he willing to exchange for this quadrupling of homes?  A “park” that he can’t build on anyway!

Exhibit A clearly shows, in green, the high density housing in the middle of the parcel of land.  Surrounding this area is a creek with various streams running through the edge of the proposed deveopment area.  This area is called an RPA(resource protection area) and you cannot legally build on an RPA.  He is “giving” us land that he can’t use.

This proposal includes running a major road plus a lengthy and hazardous alternative sewer system through not only an extremely environmentally sensitive area, but through multiple streams and a large creek which create the headwaters to the Occoquan Reservoir watershed and your drinking water supply.

However, what taxpayers WILL be able to do is pay for the degradation that is sure to come when this area is disturbed by a road and over a hundred houses.  Why will taxpayers be footing the bill?

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. —

Prince William County is preparing to play its part in the cleanup of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.
The problem is, officials don’t know exactly how to prepare due to a lack of guidance from the federal and state governments, Prince William Watershed Management branch chief Marc Aveni stated.

The state has placed a Feb. 1 deadline on how the county will tackle this issue, which also includes reducing impervious sub­stances (i.e. parking lots) and deciding who will foot the bill.  There is also a potential financial impact to the county should it not comply. Penal­ties could be several thousands of dollars per day, per violation, Aveni said.

Several homebuilders active in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed have been hit with penalties in the last few years. The Ryland Group Inc. was fined $625,000 to resolve alleged Clean Water Act violations at its construction sites, including those in the watershed.
“The county is looking what it can reasonably do with its resources towards [meeting] this goal,” Aveni said. “…We are doing everything we possibly can, and at the same time, not bankrupting our citizens.”

 

I have an idea how to prepare, DON’T approve projects like Mid County Parks and Estates as a starting point!

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John McCain flip flips over lady issues

MoonHowler

According to the Huffington Post:

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said in an interview on Sunday that he opposes a controversial bill moving through the Arizona legislature that would let employers restrict health insurance coverage of contraception to only those cases when a woman can prove a need for it because of a medical reason, such as endometriosis or an ovarian cyst.

The GOP-sponsored bill, which would put some women in the uncomfortable position of having to explain to their boss why they use birth control, already passed in the state House of Representatives and was endorsed by a Senate committee last week. McCain said, however, it has little chance of becoming law.

“I am confident that that legislation will not reach the governor’s desk, and if it did it would be vetoed,” McCain said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “It certainly doesn’t reflect, in my view, the majority view of the people of Arizona.”

 

The question becomes, how far is John McCain willing to go with letting women make their own decisions about  personal issues?  It seems that McCain is not at all consistent on letting women make their own morally appropriate choices.  He is not pro-choice and he voted for the Blunt Amendment which is remarkably similar to the Arizona Contraceptive Bill.  McCain’s wife and daughter need to get hold of him and beat him like a rented mule, as the old saying goes.  “Lady Issues” are going to rule the day and next election and it won’t be pretty.

 

Coming home: When a country has been at war too long

MoonHowler

There is a show on Lifetime, right after Army Wives that just screams that we have been at war too long.

The show is a reality show called “Coming Home.”  It is a series that shows all sorts of surprise homecomings for families with  a family member overseas in very public places. 

There is something about a reality show based on that kind of raw emotion that just isn’t right.  Tonight featured a father dressed up as the mascot horse.  He comes out and surprises his daughter.  There is something wrong when this becomes reality.  Time to stop the wars.  enough is enough.  Something touching just became very vulgar and I can’t even say why.

Open Thread……………………………………………….Sunday, March 18

MoonHowler

First Eagles, James and Virginia share an intimate moment.  Love is in the air.  A second chick should hatch today.  The proud First Eagles are parents of young eaglet already.

Do there seem to be a lot more eagles these days?  This is a good thing.

What the first egg hatch on the Richmond Eagle cam.

 

 

Chick flick.  The chick hatched at 7 am Monday morning.

Kathleen Parker: The Silence of the Lions

Angelina_Apr

 This opinion piece is a must read. 

Kathleen Parker from the Washington Post:

Warning: This column is not suitable for children, and its content may be offensive to some.

In the wake of “Slutgate,” the operative argument seems to have devolved into a barnyard taunt: “My pig isn’t as bad as your pig.”

This pithy summation comes from Fox News anchor Greta Van Susteren, who has been leading the charge against vile language used to describe women in the public square. Among other things, Van Susteren deserves credit for single-handedly shaming the Radio and Television Correspondents’ Association into parting ways with its headliner for this year’s dinner, comedian Louis C.K.

On her blog, “Gretawire,” she promised to boycott the dinner and invited others to join the protest. Her reasons should be clear with a quick scan of Louis C.K.’s shtick, which we’ll get to shortly. But first a word about some of the other offenders and why we need to have this conversation.

As many have observed lately, including Peggy Noonan, who this week wrote a powerful column about misogyny aloft in the land, Rush Limbaugh isn’t the only culprit to use the word “slut” and “prostitute” to describe a woman with whom he disagreed. MSNBC’s Ed Schultz called radio host Laura Ingraham a slut and later apologized. Limbaugh, who reserved his comments for a 30-year-old law student, Sandra Fluke, also apologized, if begrudgingly once sponsors began pulling away.

And, of course, everyone remembers what happened to Don Imus when he referred to a women’s basketball team, which happened to be mostly African American, as “nappy-headed hos.”

There isn’t sufficient space here to comb the history of slurs — or how we got to this point from the hilarious “Jane, you ignorant slut” skit from the original “Saturday Night Live,” though a quick note of distinction bears mentioning: Jane Curtin was in on the joke. And, remember, she countered with: “Dan [Aykroyd], you pompous ass.”

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