Hillary Speaks to the Women at 'No Limits' (Video)

via / Thanks beethovenqueen!

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Policewoman Kim Munley Hailed as Hero for Wounding Gunman at Fort Hood

This is the woman who stopped Major Hasan from killing yet more innocent soldiers at Fort Hood yesterday.

Kimberly Munley, hero and civilian police officer, saved lives when she put an end to the rampage by shooting Major Hasan 4 times, even while Officer Munley herself was wounded.

Officer Kimberly Munley is currently in the hospital recovering from gunshot wounds. She is in stable condition. She is a hero:

Lt. Gen. Bob Cone said Friday morning that Sgt. Kimberly Munley and her partner responded within three minutes of reported gunfire Thursday afternoon. Cone said Munley shot the gunman four times despite being shot herself. . Cone said, "It was an amazing and an aggressive performance by this police officer."

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Rihanna Interview Part 2 (Video)

Rihanna talks about the violent assault by Chris Brown in this clip from Good Morning America. Tonight on 20/20, ABC will air the full interview.


See Part 1.

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Time Magazine Cover: The State Of Hillary

Hillary Rodham Clinton is on the cover of this week's Time Magazine. I haven't read the cover story yet, unfortunately it's written by Joe Klein.

Kate Harding has a few choice words about Joe Klein's twisted point of view.

It's only a paragraph, but I'm betting Kate Harding gets more right about Hillary in this one paragraph than Joe Klein does in his entire cover story. On the subject of Hillary, Harding writes:

Perhaps the big lesson to take from this profile, then, is that Hillary Clinton is nowhere near as predictable as we'd like her to be. For as long as she's been in the public eye (and under insane scrutiny to boot), it really seems like we ought to know her well enough to anticipate her next move — and fully understand her last. But it turns out we might not. Which makes it hard to analyze her but really interesting to watch her.

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Rihanna Talks: 'Eff Love' (Video)

Rihanna shares her experience, as a victim of domestic violence, with the world via an interview with Diane Sawyer on Good Morning America. Be advised. This is just a preview, but it's painful to watch.


Anna N. at Jezebel writes:

One of the saddest parts of the interview was the singer's admission that she still feels ashamed of the violence she suffered. She says, "I fell in love with that person. That's embarrassing. That's embarrassing that that's the type of person that I fell in love with, so far in love, so unconditionally that I went back." And even though she adds that, "It's completely normal to go back. You start lying to yourself," she says she feels guilty about the message her return to Brown sent to her fans.

This is a difficult part of the interview to watch, because Rihanna seems to authentically reproach herself for somehow being a "bad" role model. She says, "I realize that my selfish decision for love could result in some young girl getting killed." It's a big burden to shoulder, especially for someone still recovering from a trauma, and especially for someone who is herself so young.

"When I realized that my selfish decision for love could result into some young girl getting killed -- I could not be easy with that." -- Rihanna

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Kristof: U.S. Health Care Sucks & An Apology to Slovenia

It turns out that Slovenians are sick and tired of having their health care system compared to the miserly American system. Today a red faced Nicholas Kristof apologizes to Slovenia.

Kristof's column is a sad and resounding condemnation of the United States for its abject failure to take care of its own people. Countries with far fewer resources do a far superior job of attending to the health needs of children and adults of all ages. And people wonder why America is falling apart, or crumbling from within. An excerpt follows.

The United States ranks 31st in life expectancy (tied with Kuwait and Chile), according to the latest World Health Organization figures. We rank 37th in infant mortality (partly because of many premature births) and 34th in maternal mortality. A child in the United States is two-and-a-half times as likely to die by age 5 as in Singapore or Sweden, and an American woman is 11 times as likely to die in childbirth as a woman in Ireland.

Canadians live longer than Americans do after kidney transplants and after dialysis, and that may be typical of cross-border differences. One review examined 10 studies of how the American and Canadian systems dealt with various medical issues. The United States did better in two, Canada did better in five and in three they were similar or it was difficult to determine.

Yet another study, cited in a recent report by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Urban Institute, looked at how well 19 developed countries succeeded in avoiding “preventable deaths,” such as those where a disease could be cured or forestalled. [The U.S.] . . ranked in last place.

. . . It’s true that Americans have shorter waits to see medical specialists than in most countries, although waits in Germany are shorter than in the United States. But citizens of other countries get longer hospital stays and more medication than Americans do because our insurance companies evict people from hospitals as soon as they can stagger out of bed. . .

. . An American child is twice as likely to die in its first year as a Slovenian child.

Graphic via The Black Agenda Report

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Dan Savage: 'Where's the Fierce Advocate?' (Video)

In the wake of the loss for marriage equality in Maine, Dan Savage blasts President Obama for his failure to keep his promise to be a fierce advocate for the rights of gays and lesbians. Savage says he's not writing a check!


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Lesbian Annise Parker is Frontrunner for Houston Mayor (Video)

After a December runoff, Houston, Texas may become the largest American city to boast an openly lesbian (or gay) mayor. Annise Parker is the frontrunner in Houston's mayoral race.

Wow, I guess there's hope for Texas after all.

Annise Parker received 30 percent of the vote yesterday, compared with her opponent's 25 percent. Houston law requires that the mayor be elected with at least 50 percent of the vote.


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Maine Voters Repeal Civil Right of Gay Marriage; Catholic Church Involved

The campaign to overturn Maine's same-sex marriage law won last night with heavy help from the Catholic Church. It's hard to understand why, in 2009, the State gets away with giving tax breaks to political organizations that call themselves Churches.

But of course the real problem is the cowardly leaders who make it necessary or permissible to actually put people's civil rights on the ballot. It's a barbaric custom right out of a Shirley Jackson horror story, but good luck finding a 'leader' who will say so. From women's right to vote to the abolishment of state sanctioned racist segregation, all would have failed if they'd been put on the ballot. Putting people's civil rights on the ballot is a chillingly barbaric custom. This country should be better than that.

The Catholic Church was a leading supporter of the repeal campaign, even asking parishes to pass a second collection plate at Sunday mass to help the cause. The National Organization for Marriage also contributed heavily to the repeal campaign; it is under investigation by Maine’s ethics commission for possibly flouting state campaign finance laws by refusing to reveal its donors.

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ABC's V: Charismatic Space Lizard Promises to Bring Hope & Change to Earth

V premiers tonight. The show is said to be all about how an alien or space lizard, disguised as a charismatic leader, charms a planet full of suckers. [Trailer]

Gawker: ABC's new sci-fi series V kicks off tonight. It concerns a charismatic leader who comes out of nowhere promising a bright future and a better life for all Americans. Is that leader Barack Obama or is it a space lizard?

. . [L]ike a Chicago Tribune review by Glenn Garvin points out, it could .. be about our nerd president. .

'V' aims at Obamamania -- Imagine this. At a time of political turmoil, a charismatic, telegenic new leader arrives virtually out of nowhere. He offers a message of hope and reconciliation based on compromise and promises to marshal technology for a better future that will include universal health care.

The news media swoons in admiration -- one simpering anchorman even shouts at a reporter who asks a tough question: "Why don't you show some respect?!" The public is likewise smitten, except for a few nut cases who circulate batty rumors on the Internet about the leader's origins and intentions. The leader, undismayed, offers assurances that are soothing, if also just a tiny bit condescending: "Embracing change is never easy."

So, does that sound like anyone you know? Oh, wait -- did I mention the leader is secretly a totalitarian space lizard who's come here to eat us?

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Misogyny in the Alleged Health Care Reform Bill

Dana Goldstein has the latest over at The Daily Beast on what is increasingly looking like a pro life health care reform bill. And just when you think the alleged health care reform bill can't get no worse, The Nation asks: Where's the Birth Control?

So here are a few choice quotations on the controversial subject of searching for women's constitutional rights in a Democratic controlled Congress and a Democratic controlled White House. Except when otherwise noted, quotes are cited in Goldstein's piece:

"[My health care plan] will include pregnancy-related services, and that will include abortion as insurance policies currently do.”

Hillary Rodham Clinton, 1993

“I think we also have a tradition of, in this town, historically, of not financing abortions as part of government-funded health care. Rather than wade into that issue at this point, I think that it’s appropriate for us to figure out how to just deliver on the cost savings, and not get distracted by the abortion debate at this station.”

-- Barack Obama, 2009

“We would say the bill leans toward the pro-life position.”

-- Judy Waxman,

National Women’s Law Center, 2009

"See, when Hillary Clinton was First Lady, it was all right to fight for women's access to a full range of reproductive healthcare services. Democrats weren't embarassed by that then, but times have changed."

-- Natasha Chart, 2009

“It’s a disappointment there isn’t more in the bill to proactively further women’s rights. I wish I was counting ways to improve women’s access to abortion. But right now, we’re counting ways to keep women from losing the coverage they already have.”

-- Nancy Keenan, President of Obama-Endorsing

NARAL Pro-Choice America, 2009

“We would like significant support from the administration on women exercising their constitutional rights.”

-- Judy Waxman,

National Women’s Law Center, 2009

"The first thing I'd do, as president, is sign the Freedom of Choice Act. That's the first thing that I'd do."

Barack Obama, 2008

“If women have to buy abortion coverage as a rider, all men have to buy special erection insurance in case they need medical care for sexual dysfunction. As far as I'm concerned, if a man can't get it up, it's God's will and I can't in good conscience have my money touch any money that pays for that. Those Viagra ads literally make my stomach lurch. It's very, very icky.”

-- Digby, 2009

Related: Who Are The 40 Anti-Choice Democrats Bart Stupak Claims To Have In His Pocket To Kill Health Care Reform?

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Iron My Pants!

File this one under "What second-wave feminist movement?"

From the UK -- Secretaries asked to darn bosses' trousers, survey shows:

Secretaries are bullied, undervalued and asked by their boss to perform inappropriate tasks such as sewing up a trouser seam, walking a dog or helping with a child's homework, according to new research. . . One secretary had to bathe her boss's elderly mother, another was asked to make curtains and one respondent said she had to hold her boss's hand on a car journey.

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Obama's OFA Silent on Maine's Anti-Gay Ballot Measure

Organizing for America, formerly Obama for America, is ignoring the crucial anti-gay ballot measure in Maine.

Instead OFA is telling Maine activists to get involved in the New Jersey election!

John Aravosis writes:

Joe wrote last night about how the DNC's "Organizing for America" organization (formerly known as "Obama for America") emailed Maine voters yesterday about today's election, but failed to mention the anti-gay ballot measure that is the number one issue in the state right now.

Today things got worse. We just received a copy of an email message that OFA sent to Maine voters yesterday asking them to get involved in.... New Jersey! . . Tell us again why any gay voter should help the DNC ever again? And where is our President, the "fierce advocate"? . . So, who came up with the idea to ask Maine voters to contact New Jersey when Maine has its own hugely important election? Did the White House have a say in OFA not helping gay Americans keep their civil rights in Maine?

Update: NPR - Marriage in Maine in Dead Heat
Related: Plumline - Obama’s Political Operation Takes Heat For Lack Of Push Against Maine Anti-Gay Initiative / Maine Marriage Equality

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Rape Victim Confronts Senator "Small Penis" Vitter (Video)

In the video clip below, a rape victim asks Senator David Vitter why he voted against the right of rape victims to have their day in court. Senator David "Small Penis" Vitter appears unsympathetic to say the least. The Shameless Senator was one of 30 Republican senators who voted against an amendment that would defund government contractors who prevent employees from seeking justice after being raped. See TGW's bio of Senator "Small Penis" Vitter.

"The inspiration for the amendment was Jamie Leigh Jones, who was gang-raped by co-workers at Halliburton subsidiary KBR while on assignment in Baghdad, and was then prevented from pursuing the matter in courts.". . Last year a number of women came forward who were gang raped while working for various Haliburton subsidiaries but cannot take the company to court because their employment contracts prohibit it."

Related: Lorena Bobbitt Quote of the Day

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Socialized War & Private Health Care

via Daily Kos

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TV Violence Against Women Skyrockets in 'Family Values' USA

I used to be a fan of Family Guy, that was before I noticed that the show is one big misogyny festival. Move over Bill Maher! Speaking of broadcasting misogyny across the nation, a recent report finds that violence against women on U.S. television has skyrocketed in the past 5 years -- by 120 percent! And the depiction of teen girls as victims of violence has surged by 400 percent! That's according to a report by the Parents Television Council:

The report suggested that violent acts against women and teen girls was increasing at rates that far exceed the two percent increase in overall violence that the study found existed on TV between 2004-2009.

The PTC compared prime-time programming on networks ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox in February and May 2004 and the same months in 2009. It said every network except ABC showed a dramatic increase in stories that included beatings, violent threats, shooting, rape, stabbing and torture. But the report singled out Fox, saying the network allowed violence against women to be trivialized through punch lines in its satirical animated comedies "Family Guy" and "American Dad." It cited one May 2009 episode of "Family Guy" in which a character gets divorced under a fictional 18th century procedure -- by shooting his wife dead.

Feminist News Gender Politics Terrorism Violence Against Women Hate Crimes

Basketball Star Nancy Lieberman Challenges Obama to a Game

In an open letter to the President, Basketball Hall of Famer Nancy Lieberman challenges President Obama to a game -- a game which would tell the nation that, um, women can too play basketball with the men. Because Lady Magic knows that abolishing sexist stereotypes and gender segregation is change we women are waiting for.

Mr. President:

Let me be frank. Some women are saying you need a time-out. Your men-only basketball games have been scrutinized—and criticized for consistently leaving women out.Your defenders call that charge ridiculous, saying everyone knows that women can play golf with men, but not basketball...which of course only annoys women more. Well, I have a solution. To score some real points with the public, stop arguing and just play ball—with the best. Shoot some hoops with yours truly.

That’s right. Today I am declaring myself eligible for the presidential pickup games. Please allow me to present my credentials. I am no stranger to being on court with the boys. In high school and college, I played pickup with guys at Harlem’s Rucker courts and also played in summer leagues with NBA stars from the L.A. Lakers and the Utah Jazz (and I’m still pals with those teams’ then-coaches, Pat Riley and Frank Layden). I was also the first and only female player in the all-male United States Basketball League. I’ve played against the most famous team in the world, the Harlem Globetrotters. I'm fortunate to have been an Olympic silver medalist in women's basketball, and honored to be a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Plus, your right-hand man Reggie Love, the former college basketball star who plays in your games, can vouch for my reputation as a former college player who still has serious skills.

And here’s your PR bonus: Everyone at the Basketball Hall of Fame, the Women's Sports Foundation, the WNBA and the NBA would have smiles on their faces, because it’s always good for sports when new barriers are broken.

I would be honored to get on the court with you, Mr. President, not just to play but also to help you make change. It's what I've done my whole life as a woman in sports and it's what you've done your whole life as a politician and now as our Commander in Chief.

Warmest regards to you, the First Lady and your daughters. If invited to play at the White House, I solemnly vow to protect, preserve and defend the basketball until my team wins. Let me know if I've got a game.

Sincerely, Nancy Lieberman
Basketball Hall of Famer, ESPN Analyst

via USA Today

"Nancy Lieberman was the first high school student, male or female, to make a U.S. Olympic basketball team, the first woman to play in a men's professional league, and the first woman to tour with the Washington Generals (foils for the Harlem Globetrotters)."

“Most men I talk to say, ‘What’s the big deal? So a guy can’t play basketball?’ But many, many serious thinking women say, ‘Let’s call this for what it is: This is a networking opportunity. This is a political event.”

-- Savannah Guthrie, NBC White House Correspondent

[Thanks Zee!]

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