MOMocrats

The 2008 Farm Bill: Food & Fuel

I'm no policy analyst, but I do eat and I try to give my child as many organic foods as we can afford, starting with organic milk (at $3.19 $3.49 $3.99!! a half gallon). For a lot of moms, organic milk is the "gateway drug", so to speak, that leads to more organic food in the overall family diet.

And I try to keep up with all the movements that have made me more politically aware about food, and eating: slow food, the organic food movement, locavores/eating locally (aka the 100-mile diet). It's our family's way of trying to eat more nutritiously, support local farmers, reward the use of fertilizers and insect control by means other than dangerous pesticides, and reduce the carbon footprint (miles traveled, for one) of the way our food gets produced.

Where individual consumer habits intersect with policy is the government's USDA Farm Bill (final version of the bill posted here, a summary of commentary here).

The cost of caring for aging parents: another issue to consider for same sex unions

Caleb* and Barry* have been in a committed, monogamous relationship longer than me and my husband. They're educated professionals with a mortgage. Barry---now retired---donates time to animal rescue, and Caleb is a teacher. They also both have aging parents who need assistance. About ten years ago, they decided to move from Massachusetts---the only state that recognizes same sex marriage---to Florida to care for their parents.

If they'd had any other choice, they might still have moved to Florida, because they love the warm and sunny state. They like growing orange trees in the backyard, and being near the coast.

They got married nearly four years ago in Canada. Caleb said, "My mother wanted us to be legit. Actually there are lots of legal reasons to sign those papers, mom wanted a ceremony and dinner, so we did it."

Unfortunately, Florida---which has a same sex marriage ban on the ballot this year---may not be as fond of them because they are a same sex couple.

But it's their home, and their options outside of Massachusetts and Canada are fairly limited.

"As we drive across the country, we are recognized as married, in a civil union, no recognized relationship, and unknown - not tested in the courts.  I can recall having four different legal statuses in one day as we drove across borders," Caleb said, recounting their trip across the US.

Currently, only four states allow civil unions and five states allow domestic partnerships. That creates challenges and trouble for same sex partners, but it also creates problems for caretakers of aging parents and can cost the state and taxpayers. 

John McCain, Crazy Like a Fox

As you've seen from LawyerMama's post, the John McCain campaign is, in political parlance, "reaching out" to a variety of progressive bloggers to participate in McCain's weekly conference calls.  I even got to ask a question on his bipartisanship proposal, getting him to acknowledge that he would appoint Democrats to his administration if elected.

Confused about how a true blue PunditMom and MOMocrat can dip her currently unpedicured toes into red waters?  As my husband likes to say, it's good to know the enemy!

Wait, isn't it a problem to talk with your enemies in McCain's book?  Sorry, I digress.

My point in writing some more about our invitation to talk with Senator McCain is this -- I know they aren't doing this in hopes of convincing people like me to vote Republican in the fall.  I'm sure they've done their research and know that's never going to happen.

They're casting for bigger fish.

California Supremes Overturn Gay Marriage Ban

(From the SF Chronicle's Pride 2004 Wedding Album, a non-stop weep-for-joy fest. Aren't they a beautiful family?)

I melt at weddings. There's so much hope, promise, and happiness at a wedding. There's also no little amount of drama, but part of the pleasure is that the drama gets resolved pleasingly. (Mostly.) And it's often more fun to attend than it is to be one of the principle cast members, so to speak.

I got misty with joy when San Francisco legalized gay marriage and the town experienced a flurry of weddings after marriage licenses were issued at the city and county clerk's office, because a couple of friends had finally decided to tie the knot now that they could. (They aren't the ones pictured above, btw.) And I've always loved San Francisco's Gavin Newsom, aka Mayor McHottie, as fellow MOMocrat CityMama's dubbed him, for throwing open the door to people in the LGBT community who want to get married.

As you can imagine, as soon as the environmentally-correct millet was thrown, lawsuits were filed to define marriage as a union specifically between a man and a woman. It took about a month before that door was slammed shut. But recently, the Huffington Post reports that the California Supreme Court recently handed down a 4-3 decision saying that domestic partnerships are not equivalent to marriage (they are instead sort of "separate and unequal" to marriages, to borrow a phrase).

Go Read It: Misogyny I Won't Miss

Race and gender have gotten a lot of play in this presidential contest, but in different ways.

Plenty of outlets have discussed the inappropriateness of taking race into consideration when choosing our next president, as well as how the candidates are covered by the media.  Many haven't quite had the same qualms about playing the gender card.

In today's Washington Post, Marie Cocco in her article Misogyny I Won't Miss, gives a round-up of the more blatant examples of gender bias in the press, some that she feels even border on outright hatred. of women. 

The worst example of all?  Surprisingly, it's not the Hillary nutcracker.

Cocco feels the worst of all has been the virtual silence of the DNC and the Democratic leadership to the running anti-woman commentary against Hillary Clinton.  Next time guys, step up and speak out against all forms of bias, OK?

Thanks, Marie.

Go Read It: A Girl Named Stanley

Ellen Goodman makes a great suggestion to Senator Obama--that he start having a "gender conversation" with voting women of America who would otherwise support Senator Clinton.

I agree. Put it right out there on the kitchen table: let Obama show off what he knows about women's issues. Skeptical women may yet wonder, will he need spoon-feeding (so unattractive in anyone over the age of toddlerdom or younger than ninety-nine), or does he "get it" on his own? Support can mean 'not being an impediment', or support can mean 'taking proactive measures to ensure opportunities are yours.' Why is opposing "dumb wars" a women's issue (or a Latino issue too, for that matter)? How is the foreclosure crisis or the credit crunch a women's issue? The SCOTUS--a women's issue?

For the GOP, Yachts Trump Teachers

If you live in California, what's more important to you -- finding money in the state budget so over 10,000 teachers don't have to be laid off or allowing a multi-million dollar budget loophole for tax-free yachts?

The Courage Campaign has put out the video below to bring attention to this crazy tax advantage for the rich:

 

Need I say more about why we need fewer GOP lawmakers and more Democrats?

MOMocrat Joanne is wondering how much to spend at the grocery store this week, not how to finance a yacht, over at her place, PunditMom.  She wouldn't know where to park one in her neighborhood anyway.

Dreams of a Mother: Have Something to Eat

What I dream for the world is that we all eat a good meal, three times a day, with two small snacks. By good I mean nutritious and tasty. By all, I mean ALL. Every last person.

Being hungry is a primal worry. If anxiety had a sound, it would be the gurgle of stomach juices rumbling in an empty stomach. Every new mama has "Failure to Thrive" engraved on her heart as Fear About Your Infant #1. When a baby loses weight instead of gaining it. When you can see the ribs on a toddler. When a kid is peckish. Refuses to eat or has problems eating or gaining weight. When your mama looks at you and clucks, "You're looking thin. Are you eating well?", no matter how old you are. Invariably you'll hear or perhaps you've said, "Here, have another helping."

Dreams of a Mother

One of our fabulous MOMocrat sisters pointed us to a wonderful site this week.  On it was the Mother's Day Proclamation by Julia Ward Howe.  Julia was the founder of Mother's Day and the writer of the Battle Hymn of the Republic, but she was so much more.  She was a mother, an early feminist, abolitionist, poet, and writer.

After the Civil War, Julia had a dream, a dream of peace.  She believed that peace was the most important social cause of her time and she wrote about it tirelessly. 

Arise then...women of this day!
Arise, all women who have hearts!
Whether your baptism be of water or of tears!
Say firmly:

We will not have questions answered by irrelevant agencies,
Our husbands will not come to us, reeking with carnage,
For caresses and applause.
Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn
All that we have been able to teach them of charity, mercy and patience.
We, the women of one country,
Will be too tender of those of another country
To allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs.

First Stanza of The Mother's Day Proclamation by Julia Ward Howe.

Julia's proclamation stands as a reminder to all of us that this Sunday is not about flowers, candy, and brunch.  It's about fighting for your beliefs, whatever they may be.  It's about political activism.  It's about standing up for justice.

So the MOMocrats will each be writing about our own dreams as mothers and we encourage all of you to join us over the next week.  In true MOMocrats style, each MOMocrat will be sharing a political or social issue close to her heart.  We'd love it if you did too, but your own special non-political dreams are important as well.  We want the world to hear them.

Take the button above, write about your own Dream of a Mother and link back to MOMocrats.  Come back and comment and give us your link so we can read about your special dream.

****Code on the next page.****

Elizabeth Edwards testifies before US Senate on Funding The Cancer Fight, Healthcare reform

Elizabeth Edwards and Lance Armstrong are backing legislation sponsored by Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson, R-Texas, that would create a more comprehensive approach to fighting cancer. Both testified before the U.S. Senate today on the importance of cancer research, prevention and treatment funding.

Christine-Modern English