<^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> ........Catt's Claws # 143 ... January 30, 1997......... ........ A Feminist Newsletter by Irene Stuber......... istuber@direclynx.net is solely responsible for its content Catt's Claws archives located at http://www.imageworld.com/istuber.html <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> <^> One of the finest summations regarding the welfare reform system came in last week's column of William Raspberry, a black man who is certainly not part of the brotherhood of reactionary right, better known as Lotts of Newt that is gradually replacing the KKK. Raspberry quotes Henry Cisneros (an Hispanic, former mayor of San Antonio, and former Clinton cabinet officer) to give us a level-headed version of what the welfare reform bill is all about. Clawers have all been deluged with the knee jerks of those screaming, "the sky is falling," feminists when NOT ONE of them have come up with an alternate plan to finance the growing welfare rolls as well as do something about the growing fraud. Cisneros explains what the news media isn't writing about - either because the media thinks it's too difficult for *the American people, to understand or, most likely, it is too difficult for *them* to understand and write about in an understandable manner. Look at the news conference when President Clinton wanted to talk about the budge - something VERY important - and the news hounds were baying at false scents trying to make scandals out of information they just uncovered - like teenagers thinking they just discovered sex. Anyway, back to business ... Cisneros said, " Signing the welfare reform bill was one of the most difficult, controversial and politically dangerous things President Clinton did during his first term - and potentially one of the most important. That welfare reform bill may have within it the seeds of just the sort of coalition that cities need for their resurrection. "You see, signing the welfare bill pushes the cities, and for that matter, the federal government, to the wall. If jobs are not created to take up the people who are coming off of welfare, social chaos is the result. That's unacceptable. Therefore, there's no alternative but to address the problems of jobs in the cities. "And to do that, you've got to work backward into a whole other agenda. Now, you've got to create a tax climate so business will come. Now you've got to create environmental policies so you can clear the land. Now you have to create job training programs and improve the schools. Now you've got to cultivate the Fortune 500 people so that they will themselves invest private resources, et cetera, et cetera ... "In other words, you've back yourself into a very good urban agenda because of welfare reform." Clawers, I was around when President Lyndon Johnson unveiled the various welfare programs and I remember how proud the American people were to be able to join with each other to help each other. What a WONDERFUL feeling. We were actually going to stamp out poverty! No one in the United States would ever go hungry again ... I don't know why that generous welfare system failed. I guess we judged human nature wrong. We expected it to be a help for people to get out of poverty, not a way of life. For example, we built apartment complexes that have become symbols of government contempt. Somehow we forget the shacks and the filth that they replaced. I had friends who lived in those projects and I remember how proud they were to be in a rat-free environment with heat against the northern winters. They worked hard to move on from government subsidies and they all became home owners ... others did not ... many others were unable to. And I think that's where we bogged down. I have never thought - and I don't think it now - that the Johnson-era system of welfare was wrong. Our government didn't fail the people. The people failed themselves. And now, it is time to accept human nature for what it is and work within that framework. It's time, my airhead PC feminist leaders, to stop moaning and complaining. It is time to get to work and help build a bridge out of poverty not a moat around the devastation. . . . . . . . ^c^c^ . . . . . . . We tend to think (and are brainwashed into so thinking) that the U.S. is in front of the world in women's rights. Well, in Germany the Bundesrat (somewhat analogous to our Senate) voted against an amendment that would allow a wife to stop proceedings against her husband-rapist, even at the last minute. Many Germans see it as a opening so that the wife can be threatened or bullied into not prosecuting. In most of the U.S., the wife MUST press charges or the case is dropped - even though criminal proof exists. We aren't sure, of course, but we believe prosecution of violence against a wife is the ONLY case where criminal charges are withheld if a witness is reluctant. Sorry to criticize the U.S. of A legal system, but in many ways it stinks, especially when it deals with women's rights. Dogs are given more rights against violence under the law than a wife ... Makes you wonder about this christian nation in which so many of the churches don't stand up for mothers and wives ... they just rise (ahem) to banning condoms and abortions. . . . . . . . ^c^c^ . . . . . . . In October, 1996 President Clinton announced he was providing $30 million for research into the genetics of breast cancer and created a new breast cancer information site on the Web. The National Action Plan on Breast Cancer web site location is: http://www.napbc.org. International Trade The NAPBC web site provides an exciting forum for learning about and gaining easy access to the most up-to-date sources of breast cancer information on the internet. It is well planned - easy to follow - it's done RIGHT. A Spanish Version of the web site is also available. Another campaign promise fulfilled. . . . . . . . ^c^c^ . . . . . . . The "support-the-Republican-party-at-all-costs" who are trying to prosecute the persons who revealed the details of the deal-making, save Newt's chubby little ass conference phone call forget that the call was intercepted in Florida which has a VERY strong "government in the Sunshine Law" which I am proud to say was pushed through the Florida legislature by the Florida women's newspaper writers organization while I was a member. (I did NOT work on the passage. A LOT of strong women in Florida!) A conference call that discusses government business and reaches a decision in secret is an indictable offense in Florida; two or more government officials reaching for a decision have to make that decision in the sunshine - and those save Gingrich Republicans made their decisions where the sun never shines. Of course, one might say that phone calls made on cell phones are not private ... at least anyone with common sense knows that, so maybe these guys should be indicted for stupidity instead. Imagine! Gingrich, second in line for the presidency, is so stupid as to use a cell phone to make political deals that border on jail offenses? GAWD save our nation ... (Yeah, I know, federal law superceeds state so Newt and company are going after the whistle blowers instead of being blown away themselves... How convEEnient, as the Church Lady says... . . . . . . . ^c^c^ . . . . . . . Laurie Mann states that she has built a U.S. Senate contact page at: http://wlo.org/woc/senate.html complete with phone numbers and e-mail addresses - But she is having problems doing the same thing for the U.S. House of Representatives. If you have numbers and email addresses for your local people, please write Laurie at lmann@city-net.com. Her Web site http://www.city-net.com/~lmann was one of the pioneer locations on the web and is still one of the best. There is LOT of effort being made out there to commercialize and make big bucks off of women on the net (and thus control what is being said). ] We bless those who think it will work, but the heart of online women's activism will always be the volunteers like Laurie who put in thousands of hours for almost no monetary return. But because they follow their own hearts instead of the god almighty dollar are able to keep their honor and integrity and tell the REAL story of women's lives. I get so damned sick and tired of women's nets and pages that contain more about makeup and hair styles and bust enhancers than women's rights or wages or job harassment or equality. Sometimes I almost pound on my monitor trying to reach inside and rip those false eyelashes to pieces. Oh, those cute pictures and the pinky-pink colors. Who is their art consultant? Tammy Baker and the always-wearing-a-dress-two-sizes-too-small- Liddy Dole? For example, someone gave me the URL of a LESBIAN page with the words: "this you gotta see ..." The opening screen has women's legs clad in six-inch heels ... HUH? This is lesbian or created by women ??? Various links were not working so I really didn't get a chance to investigate too far but what I did see made it a drag queen's delight. Oh, mary, please. . . . . . . . ^c^c^ . . . . . . . In a recent daily Internet report on AIDS by the Centers for Disease Control, the unknown CDC editors took (justified) exception to a Wall Street Journal commentary that suggested the treatment of homosexuality would reduce the risk of HIV transmission. (The Wall Street Journal is the bible of the rich and powerful Republicans who still think their money can buy them immunity from the diseases that infect the common folk. How many of them insist on a blood test before they hire hookers - male or female?) The CDC report quotes several scientists who point out that AIDS/HIV worldwide is a heterosexual disease and that the U.S. is the ONLY country where it is primarily homosexual - although in some census categories that is rapidly changing ... Also, and we quote, "... the reasoning behind the (WSJ) commentary would also mean that straight women should be encouraged to become lesbians to reduce their risk of HIV infection." CC==> Several things come to mind here. A ton of money has been poured into AIDS/HIV treatment and seems to be paying off. The new cocktails of drugs are enabling tested men to live *almost* normal, healthy lives. There is much optimism that the end of the AIDS scourge is in sight. That the cocktails are EXTREMELY expensive is beside the point. A cure rather than preventative medicine is good for the economy. Push drugs not messages like "You dumb creeps, wear a condom!" But, would it be asking too much for ANY research to be done on whether the cocktails of AIDS drugs that are saving MEN's lives are as effective for WOMEN? There is a dearth of research on the curing or slowing down the HIV infection and the AIDS death rate for women. Yet women are the largest growing segment of the U.S. population being infected with HIV. Worldwide they are almost 50% of the cases. This lack of research for women is murder, pure and simple: mass murder. All of the research on the cocktail of drugs has been done on MEN and men only. The AIDS inhibitor drugs work differently on men and women. Yes, ladies - YOUR TAX DOLLARS AT WORK, as usual, saving men's lives while you die. And - and - The mention in the CDC news release that alludes to lesbians and their meager-almost-non-existent rate of HIV/AIDS** ... for several years the GAY community (and let's be up front about this: GAY means homosexual MEN unless it is to their advantage to include homoaffectional lesbians) has pointed to the lowering AIDS/HIV rate in the OVERALL gay community as a sign of better behavior and safe sex practices - when, in truth, the reason was that some bean counter threw lesbians into the GAY pot and viola!! HIV transmission rates dropped dramatically. Actually, same number of sick people remained the same but with the addition of the almost AIDS/HIV free-lesbian population, the percentages dropped. IF the bean counters took away lesbians from their pool of subjects, we doubt if the AIDS/HIV rate has slowed to any great extent. AND - AND Of course, American heterosexual women are not being educated in the dangers of HIV infection from their men friends or husbands, all thanks to the CDC emphasizing MALE care and prevention and education. The idea of safe sex for women would, of course, include complete birth control, something intolerable to the CDC cadre of male chauvinists who held back the secret of Nononxinal 9 for so long. They have probably spent more money on finding ways to keep the baby from contracting the HIV than educating women on the dangers of HIV infection from their adulterous husbands and whoremongering lovers. After all, it produces the perfect male chauvinistic society situation: a woman gives birth and gets out of the way by dying. <==cc. Oh, by the way - as I am reminded over and over and over and over AGAIN: Gays are men. Lesbians are women. And in homo sex land, seldom do the twain meet ... . . . . . . . ^c^c^ . . . . . . . Col. David C. Rauhecker has been removed from his command as one of the highest ranking officers at Hurlburt Field, Florida and is facing court- martial for allegedly pawing and slobbering over a female captain against her will. (The male press describes it as fondling and kissing - women KNOW that is far from what is experienced, namely grabbing breasts and hurting them, grabbing buttocks and leaving bruises, and slobbering that only men in heat could possibly think are romantic kisses...) Oh, yes, in addition to indecent assault and conduct unbecoming an officer (have we all seen the movie of the same name to see how things are whitewashed???) he is charged with "unprofessional relationship" with his civilian secretary. You know, women are ridiculed for the PC stuff (and some of it deserves to be ridiculed) but these absurd, unbelievably silly euphemisms that men have concocted to describe their filthy actions are unbelievable. "Unprofessional relationship" indeed! That could mean anything from asking her to shop for his mistress to trying to force her to have sex on the tarmac. If convicted, he could be sentenced to 11 years in prison (6 months jail time, or less in all probability), military discharge and loss of pay and benefits. However, the pay and benefits as well as the bad discharge are often quietly fixed behind closed door at a later date. . . . . . . . ^c^c^ . . . . . . . Talking about getting fixed behind closed doors, Catt's Claws predicts that Newt Gingrich will VOLUNTARILY step down as the Speaker of U.S. House of Representatives after the summer break. It is obvious the Republicans agreed to keeping him as a figurehead to reduce the scandal for the party and then, in typical fashion, will quietly retire him when things cool down. Health, or family matters, or a new direction will be the excuse. Trust me, he's history. . . . . . . . ^c^c^ . . . . . . . In Kleberg County, Texas, Leonso Canales led a successful campaign to change the courthouse greeting to heaveno. "I see `hell' in hello," Canales said. "It's disguised by the `O' but once you see it, it will slap you in the face." That's not the only thing that slaps you in the face, pardner. Obviously all Canales' jingle jangles aren't in his spurs. . . . . . . . ^c^c^ . . . . . . . With uncomprehending horror we read about a female National Guard member who was raped during the Gulf "war" and her nipples slashed, almost cut off by her fellow soldiers. She was ONE DAY short of being recognized as a veteran by the VA so she has NOT beeen entitled to any service-connected compensation, including medical care. Is this how we honor our soldiers? The scandal of the VA and the military non-treatment of women veterans grows. . . . . . . . ^c^c^ . . . . . . . A woman's risk of stroke doubles -- but is still extremely small -- during the six weeks after she delivers a baby, a study found. The study published in today's New England Journal of Medicine. found that the hazard increases just AFTER delivery, not during pregnancy itself. There were 18 strokes after six weeks for the 141,238 women reviewed. But guyz, according to all your propaganda, giving birth is a simple, undangerous enterprise today ... Ah, the lies women are told. . . . . . . . ^c^c^ . . . . . . . Brian Clayton Charles, 28, was charged with terrorizing a Planned Parenthood abortion clinic in Tempe, Ariz., allegedly smashing its computers and windows, scattering files and pounding on a storage room door where two people were hiding, while five others hid in an office and others fled out the back door. Peace on earth ... turn the other cheek ... let him who throws the first stone ... . . . . . . . ^c^c^ . . . . . . . One in eight women in our country will develop breast cancer during her lifetime, compared to one in 20 a generation ago. And 46,000 American women will die of breast cancer this year. Time for your monthly breast exam - remember, the breast you examine is the one you want to keep. For those who don't read Women of Achievement and Herstory, Born 02-02-1647, Maria Sibylla Merian, German entomologist and botanical illustrator of extraordinary accomplishments... She actually traveled to Surinam to study insects in their natural settings instead of using dead samples collected by others. She also added commentaries to her work ... even including the native women's habit of chewing the seed kernels of a plant called Flos Pavonis (plate 45) which prevented conception and resulted in spontaneous abortions. Note the dates of her life. Have you heard anything about Flos Pavonis???? ....................... * ........................ Women's rights are young and tender and we must protect them from the plagues of holy hypocrisy and newts. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- >>> Send your ideas, comments, and news to istuber@cswnet.com for inclusion in the Catt's Claws feminist newsletter which will be emailed up to three times a week. This is NOT an interactive discussion net but an exchange of information. Catt's Claws is NOT sponsored by any organization. It is *meant* to stimulate thought and discussion. We are accepting donations to help offset the online costs of posting and archiving Catt's Claws. Copyright 1997, Irene Stuber. PO Box 6185, Hot Springs, AR 71902, email istuber@direclynx.net<<<< To receive Catt's Claws by email, write and in the body of the note We thank Jennifer Gagliardi for handling the madding subscription list through her listserv.