Huckabee & the "Scourge" of Single Motherhood: A Personal Story

"Most single moms are very poor, uneducated, can’t get a job and if it weren't for government assistance, their kids would be starving to death and never have health care. And that’s the story that we’re not seeing, and it’s unfortunate that we glorify and glamorize the idea of out of children wedlock.[sic]"     --Former Gov. Mike Huckabee

I was 25 years old when it became clear to me that my (now ex) husband didn't have the maturity, desire, or will to fight his severe drug addiction.  But it was the night he called me, high as a kite, and threatened to rape and murder me in front of our daughter that my decision was made for me.  I didn't want my daughter to grow up thinking that that's the way women are supposed to be treated, so I became a single mom.

Even so, it was an agonizing decision.  Not because of my ex-husband--his addiction and abuse had long since killed any positive emotion I had toward him--but because I was terrified of the prospect of becoming a single mother.  Growing up in the Bible Belt, I had been socialized since I was very young that women were incapable of raising a child on their own.  Becoming a single mother was not an easy decision to make, even if the alternative meant a lifetime of pain, abuse, misery, and neglect.

The Myth of the Worthless Public Employee

Damn those greedy Public Employees!!!  They've got their cushy jobs where they make cash hand over fist and contribute NOTHING to the world!

If you believe this, think again.  First of all, the money is NOT great.  More and more recent research has found that if you take education into account, public employees make LESS than their private sector counterparts:

Bender and Heywood did a study last year for the Center for State & Local Government Excellence, a nonpartisan research group in Washington, in which they concluded that “although a comparison of unadjusted average earnings will show that wages are higher among jobs in state and local government, this result is largely due to the fact that the workers in those sectors have more education.”

They said, “Holding education and other characteristics the same, typical state and local workers earn an average of 11 percent less and 12 percent less, respectively, than comparable private-sector workers." (from A Guide to Public Employee's Rights and Benefits)

I can personally attest to this.  But what about the part of the myth about how public employees don't create anything or contribute anything to the economy?

She Was Asking For It: HR 3 and the Sexual Assault of Lara Logan

More than 60% of rapes go unreported. Given how our
society blames the victims, it's no wonder why.

Between 1 in 4 and 1 in 6 women will be sexually assaulted in their lifetime; only 39% report the crime (Source: National Crime Victimization Survey, 1999).

The reason that more than 60% of rapes go unreported is because many women are too scared.  Some of them are scared of their attacker, but most are more afraid of being labeled, libeled, and left longing for justice and feeling like it's their fault.

Sexual assault, "victim blaming" and sexism go hand-in-hand.  No matter how heinous the crime or how clear the circumstances, women are constantly blamed for their misfortune in allowing themselves to become a victim.  If she's attractive, she should have been more careful.  If she was dressed provocatively, or even if she was wearing anything short of a burka, she was asking for it. If she had a healthy sex life, she was a slut and therefore her "claim" of assault is suspect.  If she was a woman in a predominately male profession or doing a particularly risky job, then she was just a silly girl who should have known her place.

All of these accusations have been thrown at the incredibly brave, exceedingly talented Lara Logan.

Why Mubarak Leaked His "Resignation"

The rumors that Mubarak was going to step down today were widely heard across the world.  Protesters listened in quiet anticipation to hear the words they had been fighting so hard to hear...but 12 1/2 minutes into Hosni Mubarak's speech, all of their built up anticipation had turned to anger.  They realized he wasn't resigning, and the anti-Mubarak chants erupted into deafening roars.

What purpose was there to build everyone up to a resolution to the revolution only to bring them crashing down?  Did Mubarak just decide backstage he had changed his mind?

Twiends...my new best friend.

I don't shill for things on my @thechickabides account.  I'll make a promise, here and now, to never, EVER promote something on my @thechickabides account OR my blog unless it's freaking AMAZING.  But I'm a big believer in Twiends...and my 5 day trial has convinced me that it's worth sharing.

Since February 3rd, I've gone up by 300 followers, and counting.  Don't believe me?  Check out this chart:

Click thumbnail to see larger image

It's simple, it's easy, but be warned, it's addictive.  Just remember that even AFTER you get all the new followers you must keep tweeting good stuff to KEEP them.  Click here to sign up.

I'm not getting paid, although, full disclosure, I do get credits on my Twiends account if you sign up through this link.  But really, I don't care if you use my link or not, I think it's that cool.

Why, In Spite of It All, Rhetoric Still Matters

In the Summer of 2010, fear was spreading across America.  Conservative pundits and politicians like Newt Gingrich, Sarah Palin, Rudy Giuliani and Sean Hannity spoke against it in the direst of terms.  Thousands of little-known local radio hosts, fringe religious leaders and no-name armchair pundits joined in the chorus.

In spite of all the concern from the Right,
Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf was an ally 
in the war on terror, worked with the FBI,
 and had never been quoted using violent,
anti-American rhetoric

They spoke about the disrespect to thousands of Americans who died four blocks away.  They warned of the danger that was to come by allowing such a violent religion, with it's violent "jihad" rhetoric, on our soil.  Bloggers claimed that building this mosque would directly lead to violence, as the rhetoric would turn Americans into violent Muslims.

Nationwide, there was protest, the burning of Korans, the burning of Mosques, and the passing of Unconstitutional planning ordinances to prevent Muslims from spreading their "hatred," because, as Newt Gingrich's movie warned us, America Was At Risk.

It seems that the Right has recently had a change of heart regarding violent rhetoric.

Democracy, Public Servants, and the Price of Violent Rhetoric

The moment I heard of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords' attempted assassination, I was in total shock.  Here was a highly intelligent, attractive, moderate democrat who had been literally SHOT IN THE HEAD LIKE A DOG.

This resonated with me for many reasons.  First, I was formerly a political staffer for a controversial politician.  As her Legislative Assistant, I dealt with threatening and angry attacks on a daily basis.  I was the person who answered when you called her office, I was the person who had the first crack at the abusive emails.  I didn't agree with every policy position that the Senator took, but I supported her and researched for her and responded to emails for her because that was my job.

Gabe Zimmerman, Rep. Giffords' Director of Community Outreach, was just a political staffer doing his job.  He died in the attack, in spite of the fact that he made no political decisions.  His job was just to ensure that Rep. Giffords was as available to her community as possible.  And for that, he died.