Does this strike anyone else as odd?

I have always heard Debbie Rowe described as "a nurse" or "former nurse of Michael Jackson" whenever the press was discussing the mother of Michael Jackson's children, so I was a little thrown off by a comment (original link now broken) she made in the media about why she only bore him two children. According to Debbie, after she gave birth to the second child, she couldn't have kids again because:

"The delivery was so hard. My insides were all torn up and I was barren. When he
knew I couldn't have any more babies he didn't want anything to do with me ." [emphasis mine]

Now I'm no nurse, but still this doesn't seem like the most medically accurate description of why she is now infertile...

It seems fairly likely though that in Michael Jackson's world doctor:drug dealer::nurse:rent-a-womb...

And on an even sadder note, Debbie (who is identified as living on a farm surrounded by animals) will not fight for custody of Prince Michael or Paris saying, "I know I will never see them again. I was never cut out to be a mother - I was no good. I don't want these children in my life. My children are my animals now."

Wow.

[FULL STORY]

QUICK TIP: Thank You Conservatives!!!

I have looked all over for a website that provides an organized charting of local and national politicians and easy way to reach them... Undeniable this website provided far an away THE EASIEST WAY TO FIND YOUR POLITICIANS AND LINK TO THEM, superceding even Congress.org. Thank you conservatives, this site is GENIUS and you know it kills me to give you the props you so richly deserve here!

The site also gets huge bonus points for an equally as easy way to navigate contacting your local and national media (newspapers, call-in radio, and politician televisions shows) and providing tips to writing an editor! I honestly have never done this, but now they've got me all inspired!

Balloons Over Iran

"Blogging" in Iran

Are we witnessing the beginning of a trend here?

Fort the first time, the United Nations have "lavishly praised drug decriminalization" in its 2009 World Drug Report on the state of global drug policy.

My favorite part: "The world's 'drug czar,' Antonio Maria Costa, would have you believe that the legalization movement is calling for the abolition of drug control," he said. "Quite the contrary, we are demanding that governments replace the failed policy of prohibition with a system that actually regulates and controls drugs, including their purity and prices, as well as who produces them and who they can be sold to. You can't have effective control under prohibition, as we should have learned from our failed experiment with alcohol in the U.S. between 1920 and 1933."

The axis of this debate has been dramatically altered ever since Portugal decriminalized the posession of small quantities of drugs in 2001. I will be interested to see how this issue picks up steam here, but guess is that this economic crisis will just accelorate legalization. We can no longer afford the infrastructure of our countries failed "War on Drugs".

The Death Clock

This widget (available for your perusal to the right) has been running on a progressive website I regularly frequent and while I have glanced at it, I have never paid it much mind. On that same site today there was a diary which included information gleaned by analyzing who has been tracking that widget.

As the diarist so succinctly put it: "So you think those special interests (bribing) lavishing money, to the tune of $1.4 million a day on those we elect to do our business, aren't watching and reading, here's proof that they're circling us."

I don't have a lot of money, just my voice. Still there are enough voices out there, that the health care industry is more than a little scared.

A Word of Advice

Don't know where to begin? What makes you the angriest when you watch the news? Which topic do you hear politicians discussing and think to yourself, "What freaking world do YOU live in???" Start there.

The reason I say this is if you are waiting until the Senate/House is voting on a bill (or until it has come to the Presidents desk awaiting a signature or a veto) to call and tell them which way you think they should go, then you are closing the barn door after the horse has gotten out. You have let others shape the debate. And I will guarantee you, your representative already knew which way he/she was voting before you bothered with your 11th hour phone call.

The phone calls are a part of it but only one part, actually following an issue is what takes time. But hey, you can take a couple minutes away from facebooking to click a few links and read, right? If the topic is dear to your heart then it will be worth the effort.



DISCLAIMER: At this point I have only told my mother and husband that I've even started this blog. Who knows if anyone will ever read it, or what level of experience any future readers may have. I might be talking down to my imaginary masses, and if that is the case then I appologize.

MUST HAVE PHONE NUMBERS

Take a moment to add the following phone numbers into your cell phone contact list:

The White House: 1-202-456-1111

The Capital Hill Switchboard: 1-202-224-3121

The switchboard operator should be able to connect you to the office of any senator or congressman. Some of the larger committees also have their own offices and phone numbers and can be reached here.

This is handy because it allows me to make a couple phone calls while I am on the road (unencumbered by children) during the day. When possible I jot down a few key points I want to be sure to get across and throw the paper in my purse so I can reference it later.

Remember, just because you are not a particular politicians constituent does not mean you can not contact him/her. Our politicians make decisions all the time that effect all Americans, not just the ones living in their individual districts. That being said, when you are calling YOUR representatives it is important they know that you are a constituent. I also like to throw in some comment at the end like, "I look forward to seeing how (insert name) votes on this issue." But that's just me. It reminds them that someone is paying attention.

Do this and you won't be able to ever use the excuse that you simply to have time to get involved. Unless you prefer excuses.

Advocacy Made Easy

From a business billboard in Brighton that caught my eye while driving the kids to daycare this morning:

"If you can not do something great, do something small great."

Regardless your political beliefs or affiliations, none of us has adequate time to devote to personal advocacy, as it can easily become a full-time job in and of itself! It is very easy to get overwhelmed, throw up your hands in disgust, and claim it's useless... I encourage you to take a little time to make your voice heard. It's your civic (and often even your parental) responsibility.

I've been at this game for a while now, and while I am by no means expert, I have developed a few strategies that help to streamline the process of personal advocacy to make it as efficient as possible. It is important to maximize the little time you have. I am going to post a series of useful tips to help you do just that, and hopefully as I come across new ones I will post them as well.

And if anyone else out there has some suggestion, PLEASE SHARE! Or if you find that something isn't working at all, please share that as well! Feedback is welcome and greatly appreciated...

May Unemployment Numbers

THIS is the single biggest reason you should be caring about access to a public option for health care! It is no small coincedence that even though this is a NATIONAL news story on the increase of states being hit hard by the economy, all the quotes are from Michigan.


Posted using ShareThis

Barney Frank Seeks to Decriminalize Pot Possession

Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts has introduced two pieces of legislation on marijuana -- one medical and one recreational. The first, HR 2835, would change federal law to allow states to experiment with medical marijuana without interference from Washington. And the second, HR 2943, would drastically reduce federal penalties for "personal possession" of marijuana.

To date the first bill has 16 cosponsors, including two Republicans (Ron Paul and Dana Rohrabacher). Frank has so far gotten less support for H.R. 2943 than for the medical marijuana bill, shown by the fact that there are currently only four cosponsors (two of which are the aforementioned Republicans).

This is a matter both of personal liberty and states rights and needs to be viewed as such. It's important to note:

• The legislation would not affect federal laws prohibiting the cultivation or sale of marijuana for profit.
  


• It would not legalize major drug dealing or create obstacles for federal officials from prosecuting such activity.
  


• It would not affect any state or local laws regulating marijuana.
  


• It would not alter the status of marijuana as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act
  

It would, however, provide long overdue reform for US drug policy. Our courts are already stressed and our prisons are over-crowded. It seems irresponsible spend scarce resources prosecuting people who are doing no harm to others.

I strongly encourage anyone who cares about this issue to search for the these bills' cosponsors, and if you don't see your representative on those lists, contact them and ask them why!

A sympathetic treatise on apathy...

I know lots of smart, opinionated, motivated individuals but some how when it comes to the topic of political activism they suddenly go all shrinking violet on me. It's completely understandable, politics has become a dirty business. The public feels a growing disconnect between it's own interests and the interests of their politicians.

You learn in school that voting is your primary role in a democracy, but in a modern society that places a large value on immediacy the act of voting alone makes one feel incredibly powerless. "So get involved!", I say. "Contact your representatives!" "Accountability is a wonderful thing!" But often what I hear back is, "I don't have enough time to constantly be calling Washington (and/or Lansing), keeping up on my representatives stance on every topic or how he/she voted, emailing, reading up on individual bills, searching out information from multiple sources..." And so a vicious cycle is born. Don't get me wrong, I hear ya. I try to do my share and I know what I am personally able to accomplish is a fraction of what is needed to get real change.

The fact is that I don't have any answers. And frankly, if you were coming here to find answers - you must be pretty hard up yourself! What I do know is that having two small boys has opened up my eyes and left me feeling increasing responsible for the world I have brought them in to. In order to live with myself, I have to do SOMETHING.

I hope to use this site as an outlet for my overabundance of righteous indignation. A place to post political links and stories, offer my humble opinion, and encourage individual involvement in this government. A government that should be OF the people, BY the people, and ultimately FOR the people.