!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.! ! ! ! Catt's Claws ... A Feminist Newsletter #51 ... June 11 1995 ! ! ! !.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.! By the time you read this, I will be off on my "dream" vacation that loops the West. I've been around the Eastern half, but never seen the Pacific Ocean ... So Catt's Claws will be VERY spotty for the next month ... Hang in there because I'm sure the rest will be good for sharpening the Claws. Be back in full glory July 15. ....................... * ........................ The insurance bean counters have taken over the medical care of new mothers from doctors who don't seem to be really complaining. Sound preposterous? Well, it ain't. HMO's became nifty little money-making machines when the Republicans in Congress destroyed hopes for a reasonable government-controlled health care system such as most nations in Europe enjoy. They are now seeking to increase their profits again. The HMO's are mandating that mothers who give birth vaginally stay in the hospital only one day, some as little as 12 hours - and now the latest money-saving drive is for six hours. Next, of course, will be a drive-through window ... They defend the idea by saying it will save money and no one has PROVED that it is harmful to the mother and child. As the mother of three ... holy male stupidity. Guys, it is tiring, even when it's a normal delivery. And not least, a lot of women are in no condition to take care of a new born only hours after it is born - along with the other children who are at home. They are tired and sore. The HMOs are, in effect, murdering women and babies in order to save $700 to $1000 per birth. Horror stories of what happens when the mother and newborn are discharged too soon are pyramiding. It is a pandemic tragedy in the making. Two states, Maryland and New Jersey, are enacting legislation to FORCE HMOs to keep new mothers and their babies in the hospital at least 48 hours. The U.S. is going backwards in medical care. Next the HMO's might tell the doctors not to wash hands between toxic handling and deliveries because it will kill lots of women the way such doctor behavior did in the days gone by. The HMO's bean counters are probably thinking a cheap funeral is cheaper than a lifetime of medical treatment... One wonders why the AMA doesn't do anything about this ridiculous situation ... or is it that too many doctors have invested a lot of money in HMOs and want the profits? A cyperspace friend is arguing with her HMO about getting a biopsy for a breast-lump. The HMO reps keep saying, "You're young and it's small!" Holy SHIT ! I'm sure Gingrich, Dole, Gramm, and Wilson aren't on HMO's or their Mrs.' little lumps. ....................... * ........................ As promised, President Bill Clinton vetoed the first of the expected many Republican repressive pieces of legislative offal that are coming his way. The media made much of the fact that Clinton didn't veto anything for almost 2.5 years of his term as if that was some kind of wimpiness. Au Contraire, I hope it has dawned on thinkers that the reason he hasn't vetoed anything is because what has been passed during his administration is what he's asked for. Why doesn't the media scorecard up the AMAZING string of successes Clinton had in Congress before the Republican fluke last November? Saw a poll last night that showed not even the Republicans want Gingrich to run for President. That same poll showed Dole would beat Clinton if the election were held today. Which means, to me, that Clinton will win in November 1996 ... remember, Clinton hasn't been campaigning and the media never mentions his name when they can spread Dole or Gingrich's name around and - most importantly - the way the Reps are going, Clinton's reelection campaign will make Truman's look like a waltz in the park. What ammunition ! ....................... * ........................ Phil "Porno King" Gramm has threatened to filibuster the Dr. Foster nomination if Dole bows to the will of the majority in the U.S. Senate and brings Foster's confirmation up for a vote. Read that sentence again and remember Dole's admission on TV that Foster has the votes to be confirmed - if he allows the vote to occur. Republican democracy in action ... Fortunately my two U.S. Senators are Americans so I don't have to try to pressure them into following the morality of the U.S. Constitution. How about YOUR senators? A note to them every week to remind them that in the U.S, the will of the majority rules ... not the 27% who elected that giraffe-hunting Congress last November. ........................ * ............................ There's been a lot of talk about Hillary Rodham Clinton being the first feminist in the White House since Eleanor Roosevelt. My, how effectively HERstory is erased. Rosalyn Carter, wife of Jimmy, was and is a feminist of marvelous proportions. She used to sit in on cabinet meetings which, of course, got Jimmy is all sorts of trouble with the patriarchy. Betty Ford was also a woman of substance. Remember, when hubby Gerry took over from Nixon, he was used to cooking his own breakfast because Betty had better things to do? And Lynda Bird Johnson was probably more a feminist than even Eleanor ... look back at what occurred while she was in the White House regarding civil rights for women. This is taking NOTHING away from Hillary, but home in Arkansas, Bill is the one who is considered the real liberal. I, personally, would say Bill is the bigger feminist while Hillary is just plain "I AM WOMAN, HEAR ME ROAR!" ........................ * ............................ A new book out that equates uplift bras with breast cancer, claiming the uplift restricts the flow of lymphatic fluid in the breast. It is the first book I know of that takes a good hard look at the ridiculous "style" that forces a woman's breast into full erection. The uplift, for those who don't know, was developed by aircraft engineers working for Howard Hughes who had an obsession with Jane Russell's breasts. Breast cancer was around before uplift bras, however, but remember back in those days, many women bound their breasts flat which has the same effect as the uplift. Remember all those remarkable photos of women like Edith Wharton, etc., with those magnificent bodices that had style rather than points? What happened to the idea that clothes should fit the body and not the body squeezed into the mold of what a twisted mind wants to see? I hope more research is done on this matter ... surely no men would go around with wonder shorts that squeezed their endowments into permanent erection. ........................ * ............................ Can't believe it but several of the readers of Catt's Claws made disparaging remarks about the woman who spilled the overly hot McDonalds coffee into her lap. They, of course, didn't see it as a sexist issue, and also considered it "just a spilled cup of coffee, for god's sake." Well, here are the details, the woman was 70 years old and skin gets a bit thinner as one ages ... (Trust me on this statement.) She suffered THIRD-DEGREE BURNS on her thighs, buttocks, stomach, etc. She has had multiple skin grafts with the medical bills well over $50,000. According to court testimony, McDonalds received more than 700 complaints about the temperature of the coffee. McDonalds keeps the coffee at 112 degrees rather than the 102 degrees that is recommended for restaurants. McDonalds refuses to lower the temperature because it keeps the coffee hot between servings at the high temperature. The judgment was reduced to $300,000. Asherah from AOL, who supplied us with more background on this case says that the tort reform being passed by the Republican Congress will keep corporations like McDonalds from being responsible to its customers. ........................ * ............................ There is another god-is-male male-is-god group called the Promise Keepers. They are openly anti-freedom-for-women and talking about how women are to obey men, that Jesus only chose men to deal with, etc., etc. The same old hate-women rhetoric packaged in holy hypocrisy. Bill McCartney, former head football coach at the University of Colorado, quit his VERY lucrative contract so he could work for the Promise Keepers - so you can imagine what kind of money is involved in these guys who believe that women should submit to their husbands. Their meetings are all-male, and believe it or not, "allow" the men to talk about their sexual problems! One of the most voiced hangups seems to be that their wives expect them to perform ... perform is, of course, a euphemism for the wife thinking she deserves an orgasm. ........................ * ............................ One man has turned state's evidence in the five-man North Carolina rape of a woman with an I.Q. of 73 that went on over a two- day period. The second day's multi-rapes were video-taped. He was sentenced to 15 years in jail. The other men are yet to be tried. ........................ * ............................ Have you noticed that no one on the beer commercials has a beer belly? ....................... * ........................ Yes, special prosecutor, Republican Kenneth Starr has indicted Arkansas governor Jim Guy Tucker, Tucker's wife Betty, and her stepson, as well as Tucker's personal attorney - and the whole group is FIGHTING MAD. They are calling Starr everything but honorable as well as sneaky by waiting until Tucker was out of state before handing down the indictments. This allowed Starr to grab all the news space without the newspapers having to abide by the quaint old requirement of balanced reporting. The accused misdeeds occurred long before Tucker assumed political office and all are denying the allegations. Here in Arkie-land, most people are shaking their heads and anticipating early dismissals without trial like the last indictment Starr handed down to huge news crowds while dismissing it in private. I've got a copy of the Tucker indictment, but haven't had a chance to read it because it's one of the Republican special type suits that goes on and on for page after page with alleged details rather than sustenant accusations as are found in normal lawsuits. It's known as trial by paper rather than seeking justice. It's like the suit Paula Corbin Jones filed against Clinton which contains lengthy, rather ridiculous descriptions of his alleged actions - and then says Jones plops herself down on the very couch Clinton is supposed to be sitting on and says, "I'm not that kind of a girl" instead of running for the door. Oh yeah. Tucker, by the way, has consistently opposed Clinton politically and run against him. Yes, it's time for a vacation. ....................... * ........................ From: Marie Lamb who writes: (From a friend of mine. I've deleted the ones that didn't have to do with women. I think this belongs right up there with that Canadian home ec text!! :-) **** STUPID LOCAL LAWS **** In Ottumwa, Iowa, "It is unlawful for any male person, within the corporate limits of the (city), to wink at any female person with whom he is unacquainted." In Oxford, Ohio, it's illegal for a woman to strip off her clothing while standing in front of a man's picture. In Carrizozo, N.M., it's forbidden for a female to appear unshaven in public (includes legs and face). In Pennsylvania it is illegal to have over 16 women live in a house together because that constitutes a brothel...however up to 120 men can live together, without breaking the law. In Michigan, a woman isn't allowed to cut her own hair without her husband's permission. In Kentucky, "No female shall appear in a bathing suit on any highway within this state unless she be escorted by at least two officers or unless she be armed with a club." An amendment to the above legislation: "The provisions of this statute shall not apply to females weighing less than 90 pounds nor exceeding 200 pounds, nor shall it apply to female horses." ....................... * ........................ Yes, it's time for a vacation ... Keep the scratching post in good order. We'll be back July 15th or so ... ....................... * ........................ 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 irenestuber@delphi.com for inclusion in the Catt's Claws feminist newsletter which will be emailed three times a week: Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. This is NOT an interactive discussion net but an exchange of information and is NOT sponsored by any organization. We are accepting *limited* donations (only what can be spared) to help offset the online costs of posting Catt's Claws. Irene Stuber. PO Box 6185, Hot Springs, AR 71902.<<<<