Category Archives: women

Pope washes feet

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Pope Francis washes the feet of inmates of a juvenile detention facility.

When I heard this story over the weekend, I was moved by it.  Of course, it is a symbolic gesture that requires change within the church…

Some have said that there is new hope with the folks who believed Vatican II was the beginning of reform in the church….but were sadly disappointed.

When younger, I was asked to participate in a woman’s forum on Vatican II.  There was just a handful of we women.  When the discussion turned to birth control, I stated that I thought the church should embrace the modern methods of birth control.  (It’s pretty much already in practice by most Catholic women that I knew, so it was merely a blessing by the church.)

Well….that was quickly shot down by the nun that was present.

I wasn’t asked back for my thoughts on women in the priesthood. Ha.  Nor was I asked about my thoughts on women as equals who had more of a purpose in life than just baby machines.  Not trying to devalue that, mind you, as I value that aspect of being a woman–being a mother is the best thing that happened to me, but it was not the only part of me to offer to the world. The church’s stance against feminism speaks to the mindset.  Not that feminists have all the answers, but they offer a different point of view than the traditional that expands one’s thoughts beyond the male mindset of the church.

We get back to the balance needed in the world today–valuing masculine over feminine, valuing culture over nature…when a balance is needed between the two.

It’s good than Pope Francis has taken this step and has asked for Peace.  It is also good that he values the environment–as nature is seen as feminine (Native Americans) and by that standard, our trashing of the environment speaks volumes on our views of the feminine.

Here’s to hope.

Freud’s Legacy

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In our building, we have a small library with some good mysteries (which I love), and we all share the books between us.

I like to read them before bed, and this last one just is over the top in stereotypes.  I quit reading trashy romance novels because of the way women were portrayed as always needing rescued and in some of the cases, the women were…how to put this…gently raped.  Or perhaps I should say date raped….the last romance novel with this in it had portrayed a Native American woman as a princess (there is no such thing) that was  in love with a European guy who thought she was seeing someone else.  He proceeds to throw her on the bed and rip her clothes off….and you get the rest.  This was so offensive that it pretty much turned me off of them (some exceptions are ones where the woman is independent and doesn’t need rescued, but enjoys having a companion to share her life).

So…long intro story into the book I just finished—

This mystery was about a serial killer that was attacking women in a certain area.  I’ll spare you the gruesome details (also not one of my favorite reads–I prefer the kind Agatha Christie wrote that focused more on analytical ability than the gore).  But essentially these women were connected to a domestic violence recovery center and three of them disappeared and two bodies were recovered.  A third survived, but would be blind and deaf for life.  I liked the fact that the book somewhat highlighted centers that helped women to recover from abusive relationships–absolutely get that, BUT that was briefly talked about.  The other women characters, save for our one heroine and the lady running the center, were textbook misogyny.  As Freud did, the acts of the brutal men were blamed on the women in their lives.  The killer, a professional man whom nobody suspected (except me–I had him nailed after the first few chapters), was driven to the horrible crimes by his overbearing, career driven wife.  The book brings up a real life serial killer (whose name escapes me right now) whose mother was so controlling that it drove him to his crimes.   Another woman married to a man who commits domestic violence on her and their child was portrayed as an alcoholic who did not help her son or try to seek help at said domestic violence center—a curious part of the plot.

The heroine of the book was a teacher.  Now, most teachers I know are dedicated as this one was portrayed.  But to portray only her as “a good woman” just left me depressed as women have to be perfect in order to be considered “good women”.

The career woman was a complete bitch who did not care about her child or husband.  I’m not saying that those women don’t exist, but it was just sooo over the top.  And to blame her for the violent actions of her husband was pure Freud.  Anything wrong in the relationship or the man acts in anti-social ways?  Well, then, blame the woman he’s with or his mother….case closed!

As I’ve said before—there are plenty of people who have been abused as children and don’t go on to abuse others as adults.  They make that choice not to repeat the abuse….

…which leads to the question of why do some folks go on to abuse and others do not?   Compassion?  Why don’t those that go on to abuse others have that compassion?  Free will plays in this, I know, but why do they choose violence?

Thanks for letting me vent.  End of rant

 

…because even the low minimum wage is too much to pay…

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As Susie Madrak says, just when you think WalMart can’t get any lower…they provide you with even more reasons to loathe them….

As a side note, here is a list of the companies paying the least in taxes.  (hat tip to huffington post)

Note that Verizon is on the list–Verizon in recent years was sending their sales folks out on the street (door to door) to sell their product.  They paid them nothing. Not one cent.  Meanwhile, the poor sap employee used their gas/vehicle to get to the assigned area….only getting a paycheck if they signed someone up–low pay that maybe, just maybe covered their gas expenses…or not.

Here’s another post on companies that pay employees the least. Note Walmart on here, too.  Shock. Surprise. /snark

More here on employees not being paid.  More here.

And here. 

And this on Walmart doing what it does best–using the law for its own purposes to avoid paying health insurance: forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2012/12/09/walmart-bails-on-obamacare-sticks-taxpayers-with-employee-healthcare-costs/

Same here: gawker.com/5950331/olive-garden-red-lobster-scale-back-employee-work-hours-to-avoid-paying-for-health-insurance

(A note here–when I did my search, page after page came up with links for business owners and helping them with legal questions of not paying their employees.  I’m thinking WTH?)

And given the golden parachute….um, yeah, paying one or a handful of people millions of dollars as they leave a company…paying someone for not working versus not paying folks who do work…makes no sense at all….

Krugman on Cyprus

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(hat tip to common dreams)

Paul Krugman has a few thoughts on Cyprus:  Leave the euro now.

The only issue with Krugman’s column is that he should get a little more detailed and put it into context.  Most folks are not literate in the financial world (which I think they bank on (pun intended)), so a little “lesson” on the history of economics and why we continually bail out banks and financial institutions and anyone else they deemed “worthy”…just as long as they don’t give those sleazy poor people food stamps!!

Banks and profiteering on food.

Christie private profiteering

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Well, the good feelings towards Christie for his actions during the storm crises is evaporating rapidly…with the news of him continuing to destroy public education for private profiteers.

Looking at the comments, Amitola mentions how the town has gone the way of most in the U.S.–jobs dry up, people move or the ones that stay are scraping by–not able to support a robust economy.  And the schools follow–poverty is the number one reason for school’s poor performance.  It’s hard to concentrate on school work when you’re hungry, dirty, and your folks are stressed out because you’re *this close* to being out on the street.  (or worse, you’re already out on the street, living in a shelter, with noise all night long and no privacy and no life).

Another poignant comment is by John Randolph:  the 1% bring the city to its knees and then profit off of the carcass.
Disaster capitalism, folks….(speaking of unions, they announced on the news the other day that Indiana has now lost more union members than gained, thanks to “Right to Work” law.  Also, they are airing commercials promoting a tax break…yes, a tax break in this economy…for Hoosiers—Gov. Mike Pence, an APEC toadie, first spouted this hairbrained idea right after election.  Legislature said no.  Now *cough* Americans for Prosperity are taking it to the airwaves trying to get people to call their representatives.)

Unfortunately, charter school takeover is not just here in the U.S., but now in Haiti. (insert a few choice expletives here). Note that Bill Gates has his filthy little fingers in this, too.  Like I said before, he is not the philanthropist he tries to imitate.

See previous posts here. And here. And here. 

And here.

A celiac story

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(Taking time out for a quick post.  Mom is doing better at the moment….but not out of the woods yet)

I asked permission to post this story of the recovery of a GAPS support group member:

Hi you guys
I wanted to encourage all newbies. My son age 4/12 was non verbal when we started this diet. He also had no social skills and he didn’t respond to his name

We have been on the diet for two years now. It has been a rough road to say the least. Not only was he nonverbal he also had extreme behavioral problems. Taking out high candida foods, like fruit, nuts and honey helped tremendously. We also have a Laura V from the group Gaps practitioner and Naturopath ND helping us.

Eli had a wonderful day at the park yesterday. My heart was overwhelmed with joy watching him play with other kids. He saw a little guy his age. He walked over to him and asked if he wanted to play. The other kiddo said yes. They played on the swing, they played tag and ran around. The other kid saw a friend he knew at the park. The friend also played with Eli. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Not to long Eli would shy away from kids. He use to act so strange around them. Perhaps because he couldn’t speak

He is also talking using sentences, asking questions and making comments on things that he hears and sees. We thought we would never see this happen

To all newbies stay the course. This diet can be stressful at times but the benefits of healing is so worth it. Dr NCM talks about adding cherries on top if you don’t see healing within a year or so. We had to get additional help. In addition to the diet. Eli is on homeopathic remedies to address his faulty detox system, his over exposure to antibiotics and his chronic gut issues due to the meds that was given to him as a baby. My doc is in the process of becoming gaps certified. I will post his info as soon as that happens

Hugs
Reg

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I can’t add anything to this.  It’s just absolutely stunning how diet can impact one so profoundly.  God Bless Regina for being the kind of Mom who acts on her intuition and asks questions until she finds the answer.

To Serve…

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….on a plate?  No…that would be too civilized for this guy….

Good Grief.  As one of the commenters stated–it “ceases to be fantasy when real women are named…”  Spot on.

Jeffrey Dahmer in uniform, folks.  This is one reason why an American citizen should have the right to walk away from a public employee–they are not immune to employing the world’s dark ones….

 

 

Drug pushing psychiatrists….

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I found this obit yesterday.  Wow….it never ceases to amaze me how depraved people can be…

“A large proportion of the people who have gotten involved in research in this area have been harebrained and irresponsible — Timothy Leary being the most notorious example — and a lot of the stuff that has been published reflects that,” Klee told the Baltimore Evening Sun in 1975.

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Klee was quoted in the article as saying he took LSD to see what it was like because he couldn’t give a drug to someone without experiencing himself.  Did he had anti-psychotics, anti-depressants, and other drugs, too?  How much did the LSD affect his own performance and brain function?  Did it alter his perception of what happened to not only himself but the poor saps that were experimented upon?

It is good that he finally came clean and reported yet another experiment on the unsuspecting….but it would have been better had he refused to participate and blown the whistle on the whole scheme to begin with.

My thoughts on Leary here.

The people that you meet…

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(PERSONAL BLOG)

I’ve been trying to get my car squared away for the last two days-we are expecting a winter storm that will require the housing folks to clear the parking lot, which means you have to move your vehicle–or else they will tow it.

I finally told my son about my flat tire I got in December. He actually chuckled at the whole story…

Anyway, I got a used tire with some mileage left in it put on.  Meanwhile, my battery continues to go dead.  They say the battery is good, so my alternator may be slowly dying on me.  Can’t blame it–the car is sixteen years old and has over 200k on it.  While I was waiting for them to recharge the battery, I sat in the customer wait area.

You know how you meet someone and they just have a presence about them?  An older African American gentleman sitting in the area had that quality.

They had a TV on in the wait area with the new version of “Let”s Make a Deal” on.  Now, I don’t normally watch it, but it was already on when I walked in the room, so I sat back for a look.

The older gentleman said, “They certainly seem to enjoy themselves, don’t they?”  (speaking about the contestants)

I answered in the affirmative (yeah, I know some of that is acting, but what the hey).   We chatted a little, but it was later when the noon news came on about a devastating fire overnight that he started a conversation.  He said he used to fight fires. Forest fires.  I asked if he worked for the National Parks system, and he said that he fought fires for the CC camp.  He continued to talk as I was wondering if he meant that he worked for the “New Deal” programs.

Yes, indeed, he did.

He was paid $1 per day.  He had his clothes and his meals provided for him.

He later said that he also worked the loading docks–carrying cargo up and down the planks.  He said it was hard work (probably back-breaking, too). I was unclear on whether it, too, was a part of the CC camp or whether he meant that was what he went to after his two years of CC camp.

I mentioned a large park in Illinois that has been largely untouched by the modern world.  It is a beautiful area that is so far off the beaten path, you would not know of the traffic, pollution, etc.  It’s preserved so well it’s stunning.

And, no, I’m not naming it because I want it to stay that way.

Anyway, this park was built with New Deal labor–small cabins and a huge lodge with dining room.  Trails blazed by their labor.

The older gentleman said no, he had not worked there.

We went on to talk about gardening–something we both love.  Love to play in the dirt.  Love to see the plants spring up from the ground.  I said it was amazing that you could put a seed in the ground, and see a plant shoot up with more food for you.  He said he used to grow watermelons when his wife was still living, but she has passed, he no longer does that.  I told him that I never could grow watermelons…just didn’t have the knack for it. (same with melons and pumpkins, too…)

He said he had two wives–one he was married to for 36 years and the other 24 (?) years.  He outlived them and five children.  Wow.  I don’t know how I would handle losing one child–let alone five.  One of his children started as a police officer and is now a detective.

We chatted a little while longer about nothing in particular, and then his vehicle was ready to go.  He slowly rose from his chair with his cane and shuffled out to the registers.

He had told me during our talk that he didn’t expect the auto repair to cost so much and he was short $20.  I overheard the customer service rep tell him “don’t worry about it, we’ll take care of it.”

This was not a mom and pop service shop.  This was a major national chain, folks.  Major national chains don’t do that.  They just don’t.  I imagine the manager put in his own $20–he was a personable person who actually seem to give a crap about his customers.

Then it was my turn to check out.  My windshield wipers were worn thin, and unsafe.  I purchased new ones, planning to put them on myself–we’re supposed to be getting blasted with a winter storm with up to 8 inches of snow and the ones I had just smeared the stuff on the windshield–not safe at all.  The service rep grabbed the wipers and took off for the mechanics’ bay area.  She then came back and said she had the mechanic put them on.  What a sweet kid.

So…now I have to take back every bad thing I’ve said about chains….

Sometimes, they do bend the rules and act like human beings. (And yes, I’m not mentioning what chain it was on purpose–I don’t want the young lady to get into trouble because they charge $2 for wiper installation.)

For the circumstances, it was an enjoyable and surreal morning.

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While I’m on this, I wanted to talk about a conversation I’ve had recently with a black lady.  She said that she worked for the FW schools, and she also worked in nursing homes.

She said, “I’m not prejudiced, but black folks take care of their own.  White folks?  They just abandon their family (members).”

I told her that I didn’t think she was prejudice, because I’ve made the same observation.

Black folk in my building take care of each other.  They’ve helped me, too, when I’ve asked for it.  Even when I haven’t asked for it.  One gentleman asked about my flat tire when he saw it.  He even tried to help get it off, but the previous owner changed the rims and I can’t get them off with the lug wrench that came with the vehicle.  (I know, I know, I should get one, but with a car that is looking at perhaps another 20,000 miles, it doesn’t make much sense….) Anyway, he didn’t have the right lug wrench, either.

One white lady has been a Godsend because she has helped me out on several occasions (she even sat with me while the stupid battery was being charged the first time).  She has offered to help without expecting anything in return.  And we cry on each other’s shoulders about life as poor women.  Until one lives it, you just don’t understand how difficult the life is.  And to say that we’re poor because we just didn’t work hard enough is utter bullshit.  Nobody works harder than a cleaning woman or a ditch digger….but you don’t see them living in mansions, do you?  And my staying home for twelve years with my children was the best contribution to society I could have given –hard work and even better rewards that can’t be counted in $$.