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Relationship Is a Very Big Word

Yesterday, I listened to an eminent relationship scholar talk about the research he has been conducting for decades. It is great work, and the talk was impressive. Except for one thing: When he talked about “relationships,” he was actually referring to just one kind of relationship – a romantic one. Read More »

Posted in Education & Family, Gender & Feminism, Mind & Body | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Forget the Bouquet, Single Ladies Need to Catch a Break

As a frequent single at weddings, catching the bouquet symbolized more than just being next up to the altar. It represented being on a team perceived as less favorable – the singles team. Identifying oneself as such to a wedding crowd is not always fun. It’s like announcing that your batting average in relationships is so low that you’ve resorted to catching a bunch of flowers for good luck in love. It’s no wonder the bouquet toss has fallen out of favor. Read More »

Posted in Creating Solutions, Gender & Feminism | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Violence Against Women on College Campuses

The Violence Against Women Act was signed by President Bill Clinton on September 13, 1994.  This act was drafted by the office of Senator Joe Biden who now serves as the Vice President of the United States. George W. Bush signed the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) into law in 2006, and it will be up for re-authorization in 2011. Acts of violence, both physical and sexual, have been perpetuated against women throughout history. As noted by the National Organization on Women, the VAWA was the “the greatest breakthrough in civil rights for women in two decades.” The VAWA provided $1.6 billion to enhance investigation and prosecution of cases involving violence against women. The VAWA also increased pre-trial detention of offenders, imposed mandatory and automatic restitution to victims and created other civil redress reform programs. This Act has surely helped protect women in a world that can be a dangerous and cruel place. Read More »

Posted in Current Events, Politics & Economy, Education & Family, Gender & Feminism | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Singlism, the 21st Century Problem That Has No Name

I think married people should be treated fairly. They should not be stereotyped, stigmatized, discriminated against, or ignored. They deserve every bit as much respect as single people do.

I can imagine a world in which married people were not treated appropriately, and if that world ever materialized, I would protest. Here are a few examples of what I would find offensive: Read More »

Posted in Culture & History, Current Events, Politics & Economy, Education & Family, Gender & Feminism, Mind & Body | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Rewriting Madams back into Herstory

As I’ve discussed in previous posts, a widely held misconception is that men are responsible for holding women against their will in brothels. However, I have found that women are also  in fact running the brothels that are sexploitating so many helpless victims around the world. When I thought about this, I was so perplexed. “What sort of woman could do that to a fellow woman or child?” I asked myself. And so I went on a small venture to study famous madams across history who have made a living by selling sex. Some of these women have fascinating stories. Although their “success”  is in a profession that some may conceive as reproachable, madams are an important part of women’s herstory. These women have established businesses for themselves and generated revenues for other women at times when women were restricted to jobs as house servants, washerwomen, and seamstresses. As I have investigated some of history’s most fascinating madams, I must admit that even if achieved under scrupulous circumstance, these madams were strong and very powerful women. Read More »

Posted in Culture & History, Gender & Feminism | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Souljourn for Mind, Spirit and Earth: Days 19 – 21 Minimize Clutter Manifest Abundance

The last three days (March 6-8) of this Souljourn, Minimizing Clutter and Manifesting Abundance,were quite interesting, indeed.  Transformative even.  Two of those days were spent at a magical place called the Farm Sanctuary in Orland, California. I then returned home and dealt with all the clutter I collected these past three weeks.  I found some excellent recycling and reusing options that I’m eager to share with you. Please Read More

Posted in Mind & Body | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

My life was so boring til’ I started whoring-NA

Carol Leigh, better known as the “Scarlot Harlot” is an activist, film-maker, and prostitute. She has worked with the COYOTE organization and coined the phrase “sex work” in the late seventies during the sex workers equal rights movement. I learned about Carol’s work when I read the book Sex Work which is a collection of short stories, essays, and poems from women in the sex industry. The authors give their first-hand accounts doing sex work as exotic dancers, adult film entertainers, and some very “high-class whores”. Carol Leigh’s essay entitled Confession of a Priestitute has forever altered my view of sex work and what it means to go “whoring”. Read More »

Posted in Creating Solutions, Culture & History, Current Events, Politics & Economy, Gender & Feminism | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Will you enter your race on the U.S. census?

Multi-racial family

The U.S. census is coming up—the buzz is all over the media. Every time I turn on the TV I’m bombarded with commercials about the census being a “snapshot of America” and how important it is that I fill mine out.

On the radio this morning, I heard about a growing movement to check “Other” in the race category and write in “American”. Race shouldn’t matter, they say. The question itself is racist! Let the government know what you think by writing in “American”.

Read More »

Posted in Current Events, Politics & Economy | Tagged , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Human Trafficking Domestic and Abroad

http://www.today.ucla.edu/portal/ut/artwork/9/3/7/1/5/93715/human_trafficking_istock-prv.jpgSomaly Mam is a Women’s Herstory Heroine who we covered earlier in the series. Yesterday, she spoke at the Levin Institute in New York City at an event hosted by the United Nations Association of New York. The UNA has established human trafficking as the main initiative of their advocacy committee. There is a sense of urgency, recognized by the UNA advocacy committee as reports from the UN’s Office on Drugs and Crime estimates that human trafficking is a business worth 4 billion dollars annually. According to this study, there are 4 million victims of human trafficking each year.  There is a number of interesting facts about human trafficking that I learned at the event that I wanted to share with the Conducive Chronicle readers.

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Posted in Current Events, Politics & Economy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Women complimenting other women

All women are beautiful in unique and undeniable ways. With the toxic level of  homophobia that still exists in our culture, it becomes uncomfortable when a woman wants to compliment another woman on her physical appearance. Unless two women are more than acquainted and have established a friendship, comments on attractiveness are often off-limits. This leaves women in a bind, because as we’re not acknowledging the beauty of another woman, we are not allowing others to acknowledge our beauty. It’s a vicious self-defeating cycle. But when does a friendly compliment cross the line? Is it okay for a woman to compliment another woman without being accused of hitting on her?  Read More »

Posted in Mind & Body, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Are Personal Wind Turbines Feasible?

I love the idea of wind energy! Anything that lessens my dependence on the grid is fine by me. It’s not just that our lives depend upon the power that travels over the transmission lines that criss cross our country; it’s that our lives depend upon the power that travels over the, well, you know. Remember the blackout that darkened the northeastern U.S. and southeastern Canada in the summer of 2003? That blackout occurred when an overheated power line somewhere in Ohio sagged into some overgrown trees; the heat of the current was so great that it softened the line. Other lines subsequently softened and sagged into other trees, cutting out and forcing sections of the grid to work harder until they, too, finally failed and triggered a cascade of similar system failures over several states and provinces. Read More »

Posted in Creating Solutions, Environment, Science & Technology | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Is it still the man’s job to approach a woman?

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Nv-4yDSYv3I/Sp4RM_qZN-I/AAAAAAAAAPU/EJihr4hzkWo/s400/pursuing+women.jpg

During this Women’s Herstory Series, I want to discuss relevant issues that women face today while also honoring great women of the past and present. As the economy has changed from an agrarian foundation into the industrial sector, more women have left the conventional roles of homemaker, housewife, and other domestic occupations. Now, we see greater numbers of women in powerful positions making strides in the professional sector. Women have fought for equal rights, representation, and access to resources that their male counterparts freely enjoy. We demand equal pay and opportunity in all sectors both private and public. But for all of the fuss that women make about equality in their professional standing, do we really want the potential burden of equality in our dating lives too? Read More »

Posted in Gender & Feminism | Tagged , , , , , | 9 Comments

More Good News For Renewable Energy (and the Planet)

Wind Turbines And Coal-Fired Electric Plant

I came across two interesting articles on the potential of renewable energy in the United States today.  One detailed research disproving the argument that wind and solar are too variable to be of use for providing baseload power and the other discussed the large and every increasing amount of wind power being produced in the United States today.  So what does all this mean?

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Posted in Environment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Lighten Up by Going Green

My last posts were pretty serious, and with good reason.  So I am going to lighten it up a bit for this installment.  After all, it’s March, the beginning of Spring, and we’re supposed to be thinking green.  We celebrate all things Irish, blossoms arrive on tree branches and grass begins to poke through the melting snow.  With that said, what are you doing to bring more green into your life?  What little changes could you make, or eco-steps could you take to make our world a greener place?  Read More »

Posted in Environment, Optimism & Humor | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The Herstory of Madame Mao

Madame Mao was on the of the most powerful figures in the People’s Republic of China during the Cultural Revolution from 1966-1976. She held significant influence and political power in Communist China under her husband’s Mao Zedong regime. Before becoming one of China’s “Gang of Four” that would create upheaval during its reign, Madame Mao was an actress in Shanghai. Her ability to play different parts and wear many faces explains this women who would die being known by eight different names.

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Posted in Culture & History, Gender & Feminism | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments