To subscribe or unsubscribe: irenestuber@delphi.com / istuber@cswnet.com !^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^! ! Catt's Claws ... a feminist newsletter ... February 26, 1995 ! !^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^! Often when the "impartial" media has me ready to give it all up, throw away my reading glasses and start watching daytime TV interview shows (where do they get those "people"?) and Nightline (how Koppel hates Clinton and women!) I head for _The Nation," the weekly news magazine that Danny Quayle complained didn't have pictures like other magazines. _The Nation_ is a mainline shot of good vibes and invaluable information. The 03-06-1995 issue has a marvelous summation of Phil Gramm's _Trail of Sleaze_. The article *starts* off: "Senator Phil Gramm, the monumentally self-righteous Texas Republican who has appointed himself the guardian of the nation's morals and money, is a liar (the great satirist John Henry Faulk used to say of him, "Gramm'll lie on credit when he can tell the truth for cash") and an untiring hypocrite. Many people think he is also a multifaceted crook. "Could they be right? Did Gramm receive $53,567 in goods for using his senatorial influence to help an S&L official (who would eventually be convicted of assorted crimes)? Hey, that's called taking a bribe, and people are supposed to go to prison for it. Did he spend federal funds for personal activities? There's a law against that too. Did he ....?" The article goes on with solid information, including a lot on his wife who, I'm sorry to say, does not always walk on the side of righteousness. Your assignment (claw's scratching post work), if you choose to accept it, is to read the article, and spread the word. Phil Gramm is not the kind of man we need in any leadership role except, perhaps, in those places where the stripes on their suits match the decor on the doors. Make sure your local democratic headquarters or club has a copy. BTW, did anyone see that coverup interview on Gramm that Mike Wallace did on _60 Minutes_? After reading _The Nation_ article, one can see how gently and fondly the media treats the republican blowhards and covers their tracks by hiding their forked tongues and tails. Wallace's supposedly tough interview amounted to a whitewash. ..................................................................... Sniff the sweet smell of success??? Now's the time to press on - Speaker of the House Newt Gingrinch is beginning to feel the heat. His recent blowups about people having the audacity to question his morals and ethics and his whining that his feelings are hurt show that our pressure is working. The House Ethics committee, stuffed as it is by his pet honchos, is holding things together as best they can, but the pressure is growing and (trust me) they'll scatter for their holes and hang the Grinch out to dry to save their own necks. Check back in past Catt's Claws for some of his most blatant misdeeds and then write, email, fax, or telephone (all your reps have local phone numbers, call information) your Congressional representatives (and Senators just to make sure the message is getting through) to question the Grinch's dealings with publishing mogul Rupert Murdock including his secret meeting, his PAC monies, and the financing of his so-called college course on TV. If someone out in Clawland can come up with a two-page summation of the Grinch's misdeeds with attributes, I'll offer it periodically to people who want to know about him. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Letters to the editor are excellent ways to fight those who have a Contract Out on America('s Women and Children). To assist, I have a letter that I have sent to my local newspaper on the true facts of welfare mothers. For a copy that you can sign or use as the basis for your own letter, write irenestuber@delphi.com and in the subject line, ask for "Welfare Letter to Editor." -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Gloria Steinem and White House Associate Director of Science, Dr. M.R.C. Greenwood, will be the featured keynote speakers at the Women in Technology Conference hosted by the International Network of Women in Technology (WITI), June 27-29, 1995, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in California. Conference Advisors include Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, Congresswoman Anna Eshoo and Joint Venture: Silicon Valley CEO Becky Morgan. For information contact Laurie Clark, e-mail: witi@crl.com. ..................................................................... As if Barbie isn't enough with her boobs that hold up her chin, Japanese toy makers will be bombarding our children with dolly-heroines wearing pleated miniskirts and go-go boots. "Sailor Moon," a blond, ponytailed teen-ager, and her girlfriends are on the way to combat evil and sexism -- and sell as many dolls, trinkets and toys as possible. The cartoon series is headed into American homes in September. Promoters are trying to claim the dollies promote strong women characterizations, but they draw their power from makeup -- and get help from Sailor Moon's love interest, a masked man named Tuxedo who often appears when the girls are in trouble. Also, almost all of the forces of evil in the show are older women, not men. The full toy kits of magic scepters and makeup kits retail for more than $100. (Where is Wonder WOMAN when we need her?) ..................................................................... Just six weeks after he went on the air with anti-homosexual remarks and comments about AIDS that offended the gay community, San Francisco's KSFO's talk show host J. Paul Emerson has been fired. Most of the outcry has been the result of Emerson's morning drive-time comments, including statements that people with AIDS should be quarantined and that homosexuals are "sick" and "pathetic." Emerson was fired by radio station KFRC in the fall after he used the term "stinking Japanese" on air during an exchange with a listener about the dropping of the atomic bomb during World War II. ..................................................................... At least the Canadian government responds to its people - or aren't Americans complaining enough? People accused of assault will no longer be able to defend themselves in court with the claim they were too drunk or high on drugs to know better. Amendments to the Criminal Code have been introduced in response to public outrage over a controversial Supreme Court of Canada ruling which allowed a man to use extreme drunkenness as a defense against the charge of sexually assaulting a disabled 65-year-old woman. The bill would outlaw the use of intoxication as a defense in crimes such as sexual or domestic assault. The legislation proposes a "standard of care" that would be breached by anyone who becomes extremely intoxicated and harms another person (The above from ITN news network.) ..................................................................... "... when conditions are evil, your duty...is to see that those conditions are changed. If your laws forbid you, you must change your laws. If your church forbids you, you must change your church. And if your God forbids you, you must change your God." -- Clemence Dane (1861-1965). Got this quote from the Indiana NOW newsletter which this month also has the wonderful stats on welfare mothers that I incorporated into my letter to the editor re welfare mothers. They also have a *Join the Flush Rush Campaign* listing of the various companies that advertise on his radio and TV shows...including Kinko's. You may write Kinko's at PO Box 8000, Ventura, CA 93002-9928 tell them what you'll do with your business from here on out. As possible, I will include the addresses of hate-show sponsors in future issues of Catt's Claws. Yes, writing to sponsors helps. Snapple has withdrawn and so did Florida Orange. We have the power if we choose to use it. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- >>> Send your ideas, comments, and news to irenestuber@delphi.com for inclusion in *Catt's Claws* to be emailed up to three times a week. Newsletters of various organizations, etc., are welcome. This is NOT an interactive discussion net but an exchange of information and is NOT sponsored by any organization.<<<