Yes, it would be predictable to talk about the North Carolina primary on this week's Listen 2 Women. But no. We're not going there. We're going to talk chocolate. Pleasure instead of politics. Our guest this week will be Jael Rattigan, co-owner of French Broad Luscious Chocolates and The Chocolate Lounge in Asheville.
Tune in this Thursday, May 8 from 4-5 pm on WPVM 103.5 FM to hear our conversation about what it's like to be a chocolatier, mother, and entrepreneur, among other things. Tracks from Putumayo's collection, Music from the Chocolate Lands will serenade us along the way.
I'm already dreaming about the lavender infused hot chocolate, or maybe it's the cayenne and cinnamon truffle...
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
NOW President, Kim Gandy, on Listen 2 Women
What an amazing afternoon for Listen 2 Women. Hillary Clinton's campaign called WPVM yesterday to set up an interview as part of the Women's Day of Action tour in North Carolina. After hearing the show options, they specifically asked to be on Listen 2 Women!
While we cannot endorse any candidate or allow electioneering, we were thrilled with the opportunity.
So Wednesday afternoon, I was able to interview Kim Gandy, President of the National Organization for Women. This was truly a milestone in the growth of Listen 2 Women. I had a wonderful conversation with Kim. We talked about the Equal Pay Act, passed 45 years ago and where women are today with equal pay for equal work. We still earn about 20 cents less on the dollar than men.
Kim shared how she became involved with NOW in 1973, after learning that her husband would have to sign her employment contract in order for her employer to contribute money to her retirement plan under the then called "Head and Master" law. She worked for seven years to have that law changed in Lousiana. I feel indebted to her because I have never heard of such a law. We owe so much to her and her colleagues for having done that work -- so we don't have to face the same barriers today.
We also talked about the media's coverage of women and women's issues. She pointed out what a rare thing it is to have a radio show like Listen 2 Women, saying that we "are making an important contribution to the women of North Carolina."
At the end, we had a brief discussion about why she is on the road for Hillary Clinton and why she feels she is the person best suited for the Presidency. Tune in to 103.5 FM this Thursday, April 17 from 4-5pm to hear the whole story.
What an honor to have a conversation with Kim Gandy, President of NOW. Listen 2 Women is more than just an hour a week on the radio, it's an important space on the airwaves to be a real forum for women's voices.
While we cannot endorse any candidate or allow electioneering, we were thrilled with the opportunity.
So Wednesday afternoon, I was able to interview Kim Gandy, President of the National Organization for Women. This was truly a milestone in the growth of Listen 2 Women. I had a wonderful conversation with Kim. We talked about the Equal Pay Act, passed 45 years ago and where women are today with equal pay for equal work. We still earn about 20 cents less on the dollar than men.
Kim shared how she became involved with NOW in 1973, after learning that her husband would have to sign her employment contract in order for her employer to contribute money to her retirement plan under the then called "Head and Master" law. She worked for seven years to have that law changed in Lousiana. I feel indebted to her because I have never heard of such a law. We owe so much to her and her colleagues for having done that work -- so we don't have to face the same barriers today.
We also talked about the media's coverage of women and women's issues. She pointed out what a rare thing it is to have a radio show like Listen 2 Women, saying that we "are making an important contribution to the women of North Carolina."
At the end, we had a brief discussion about why she is on the road for Hillary Clinton and why she feels she is the person best suited for the Presidency. Tune in to 103.5 FM this Thursday, April 17 from 4-5pm to hear the whole story.
What an honor to have a conversation with Kim Gandy, President of NOW. Listen 2 Women is more than just an hour a week on the radio, it's an important space on the airwaves to be a real forum for women's voices.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Just Economics on Listen 2 Women
Tune in to WPVM 103.5 FM from 4-5 pm on Thursday, April 3. This week on Listen 2 Women, our guests will be Sarah Osmer from Just Economics and Trish, owner of Rags Reborn in Asheville. Join us for a conversation about the business of paying a living wage in Asheville.
Just Economics is a grassroots, community-based organization. We educate, advocate, and organize for equitable economic conditions, increased union representation, and a fair share for all in the prosperity of our region, regardless of race, gender, or citizenship status.
If you miss the show, listen later on archive, just go to www.wpvm.org/archives/ and click on Listen 2 Women.
Just Economics is a grassroots, community-based organization. We educate, advocate, and organize for equitable economic conditions, increased union representation, and a fair share for all in the prosperity of our region, regardless of race, gender, or citizenship status.
If you miss the show, listen later on archive, just go to www.wpvm.org/archives/ and click on Listen 2 Women.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Bill!
Well, North Carolina is finally on the presidential radar. Bill Clinton came to Asheville last week and Leah and I went to Asheville High School to hear him speak. Live and in person. He spoke for one hour and it was the last stop of his seven city tour of NC last Friday. Whew!
I went for several reasons. 1) I wanted to see a former president. And what better speaker than Bill Clinton. 2) I wanted to see him as part of the presidential campaign. 3) I wanted to learn more about Hillary.
The first two reasons were checked off the list early. It was like a rock concert. Thousands of us jammed into a hot high school auditorium, craning our necks to see Bill Clinton speak. Of course Leah and I are, well, on the petite side, so we were at a bit of a disadvantage.
But the real learning came from his speech. I was on the fence before the event. Barack, Hillary, Barack, Hillary. Back and forth. Call it fear of commitment. I haven't been ready to give myself to just one candidate. But whoa. Hold on for Hillary.
Bill was great -- never criticized the other candidates. He just clearly stated why Hillary is running, what she's achieved in the past, and what she plans to do in the future. And thank god he had an hour, because all I've gotten up to now has been media pre-digested sound bites that are taken out of context. I was so glad to have the opportunity to actually hear what she plans to do about creating jobs and caring for the environment, offering healthcare to all, and supporting veterans. I can't repeat the details -- that's the gift that Bill has -- to provide all the details in such a conversational way. I understood it all in the moment, but it was such a full speech there is no way I can comprehensively summarize it.
I guess the bottom line is that I walked away feeling she is the right person for the job at the right time. She has vast experience as a lawyer, first lady, senator, and activist. She has valuable experience working with both Democrats and Republicans and what surprised me the most on my running pro and con list, was the pro that she's got such a positive track record when it comes to military and veterans affairs. I didn't realize that would matter to me so much. But he was able to put a personal face to it and also show how she's been involved.
So I guess I drank the Kool-Aid. That is, until Michelle Obama comes to town (will I slide that way if I get to hear her speak?)
Most of all, I'm just glad I will have the chance to vote in the most historic presidential primary of my lifetime and to feel like it just might matter.
I went for several reasons. 1) I wanted to see a former president. And what better speaker than Bill Clinton. 2) I wanted to see him as part of the presidential campaign. 3) I wanted to learn more about Hillary.
The first two reasons were checked off the list early. It was like a rock concert. Thousands of us jammed into a hot high school auditorium, craning our necks to see Bill Clinton speak. Of course Leah and I are, well, on the petite side, so we were at a bit of a disadvantage.
But the real learning came from his speech. I was on the fence before the event. Barack, Hillary, Barack, Hillary. Back and forth. Call it fear of commitment. I haven't been ready to give myself to just one candidate. But whoa. Hold on for Hillary.
Bill was great -- never criticized the other candidates. He just clearly stated why Hillary is running, what she's achieved in the past, and what she plans to do in the future. And thank god he had an hour, because all I've gotten up to now has been media pre-digested sound bites that are taken out of context. I was so glad to have the opportunity to actually hear what she plans to do about creating jobs and caring for the environment, offering healthcare to all, and supporting veterans. I can't repeat the details -- that's the gift that Bill has -- to provide all the details in such a conversational way. I understood it all in the moment, but it was such a full speech there is no way I can comprehensively summarize it.
I guess the bottom line is that I walked away feeling she is the right person for the job at the right time. She has vast experience as a lawyer, first lady, senator, and activist. She has valuable experience working with both Democrats and Republicans and what surprised me the most on my running pro and con list, was the pro that she's got such a positive track record when it comes to military and veterans affairs. I didn't realize that would matter to me so much. But he was able to put a personal face to it and also show how she's been involved.
So I guess I drank the Kool-Aid. That is, until Michelle Obama comes to town (will I slide that way if I get to hear her speak?)
Most of all, I'm just glad I will have the chance to vote in the most historic presidential primary of my lifetime and to feel like it just might matter.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Follow up on Haiti
Thanks to those of you who emailed me directly, called, or posted about Haiti. I wanted to give a recap of organizations that folks mentioned:
- Here's one that a friend in Asheville is involved with: Mission Manna. In her words, "Check out www.missionmanna.org for a grassroots organization providing health care to children."
- Partners in Health, www.pih.org
- Kiva, www.kiva.org -- for microlending
- CRS, www.crs.org -- one of the largest relief and development organizations; and I used to work for them overseas, so I know they do good work
And I haven't read through it all, but here's a blog about Haiti: http://dyinginhaiti.blogspot.com.
At least this got the conversation started. We'll see where it goes.
Monday, February 4, 2008
Rebates for Haiti?
Here's a letter to the editor that I submitted to the Asheville Citizen-Times last week. I was told it will run in the near future, but there we loads of letters lined up before mine. Since I'm inpatient and can't wait to share it, here it is.
Dear Editor,
I want to give my tax rebate to Haiti, not Wal-Mart. Two articles were side by side in today’s paper (Jan. 29, 2008), but worlds apart. “Haiti’s poor eat dirt as food prices rise” described families eating cookies made of clay, salt, and shortening because they cannot afford food, while “House OKs tax rebates” outlined the stimulus package passed by the House.
Frankly, I don’t want the money. Will it help me pay some bills? Yes, but just in the short term. After reading about a mother feeding her child dirt to fill his belly, I guarantee that I will not go shopping with this money.
I am going to search for a way to get it as close as possible to families living in Cite Soleil, Haiti. I know sending money is a short-term fix to Haiti’s problem; the roots of poverty in the Western Hemisphere’s poorest county are deep and complicated. But faced with the comparison side by side, I don’t feel right doing anything else.
I encourage others to consider donating their rebate to an aid organization in Haiti or a domestic charity. Maybe we can turn this in to a grassroots campaign to stimulate social justice, not spending.
Sincerely,
Shelley Booth
Asheville, NC
And as a p.s. -- I'd love to link the articles from the Citizen-Times, but their website is atrocious for finding archives (even from last week). So here's the Haiti story from MSNBC.
It also got me digging for more information. Check out Partners in Health, started by Dr. Paul Farmer and his work as a doctor and anthropologist in Haiti. I also went to NPR to learn more about his biography, Mountains beyond Mountains, and his work.
Let me know if this speaks to you at all. Do these rebates make sense? Will you consider donating some of your check to charity?
Dear Editor,
I want to give my tax rebate to Haiti, not Wal-Mart. Two articles were side by side in today’s paper (Jan. 29, 2008), but worlds apart. “Haiti’s poor eat dirt as food prices rise” described families eating cookies made of clay, salt, and shortening because they cannot afford food, while “House OKs tax rebates” outlined the stimulus package passed by the House.
Frankly, I don’t want the money. Will it help me pay some bills? Yes, but just in the short term. After reading about a mother feeding her child dirt to fill his belly, I guarantee that I will not go shopping with this money.
I am going to search for a way to get it as close as possible to families living in Cite Soleil, Haiti. I know sending money is a short-term fix to Haiti’s problem; the roots of poverty in the Western Hemisphere’s poorest county are deep and complicated. But faced with the comparison side by side, I don’t feel right doing anything else.
I encourage others to consider donating their rebate to an aid organization in Haiti or a domestic charity. Maybe we can turn this in to a grassroots campaign to stimulate social justice, not spending.
Sincerely,
Shelley Booth
Asheville, NC
And as a p.s. -- I'd love to link the articles from the Citizen-Times, but their website is atrocious for finding archives (even from last week). So here's the Haiti story from MSNBC.
It also got me digging for more information. Check out Partners in Health, started by Dr. Paul Farmer and his work as a doctor and anthropologist in Haiti. I also went to NPR to learn more about his biography, Mountains beyond Mountains, and his work.
Let me know if this speaks to you at all. Do these rebates make sense? Will you consider donating some of your check to charity?
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Lauging to keep from Crying
We got a chance to have a girls night out to see a local comedy troup called the Lylas. It was good to remember that I could laugh until I started crying. It has been a while. Mostly because being a grown up is just so...well grown up. I'm glad that we took a little time out to laugh. It is good medicine.
Tonight, Shelley and I are interviewing a Respiratory Therapist on our radio show Listen 2 Women. To hear our radio show go to WPVM.org at 4pm EST or if you're in the WNC area tune in at `103.5 fm. Listen 2 Women archieves can are also be found online. Listen 2 Women is a women's radio collaborative.
Also, keep an eye out for Breathe Magazine. I've got a column in there called "Sustainability in the City: One Woman's Quest for the Green Life." Breathe is a sister magazine to the Blue Ridge Outdoors and will soon be available, for free, anywhere where Blue Ridge Outdoors Magazine's are available.
Tonight, Shelley and I are interviewing a Respiratory Therapist on our radio show Listen 2 Women. To hear our radio show go to WPVM.org at 4pm EST or if you're in the WNC area tune in at `103.5 fm. Listen 2 Women archieves can are also be found online. Listen 2 Women is a women's radio collaborative.
Also, keep an eye out for Breathe Magazine. I've got a column in there called "Sustainability in the City: One Woman's Quest for the Green Life." Breathe is a sister magazine to the Blue Ridge Outdoors and will soon be available, for free, anywhere where Blue Ridge Outdoors Magazine's are available.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Counting questions
This is an example of when all my worlds come together. I got up early to swim this morning, so I was tired mid-day. When my almost 3 year old daughter went down for a nap around 1, so did I. But first I turned on the TV -- just for a little bit. I ended up getting sucked in to watching CSPAN because Thomas Friedman of the NY Times was interviewing Al Gore and Bono at the World Economic Forum.
Two interesting points.
One, Gore cited a study just released by the League of Conservation Voters that counted all major debate and interview questions asked of the US presidential candidates in 2007. Over 2,900 questions were asked, but only 25 mentioned the climate crisis and only 6 specifically referenced global warming. Not many more than the 3 that were asked about UFOs. Here's the link: http://www.whataretheywaitingfor.com/facts.html
Two, a question posed to Bono got me thinking. Friedman asked if in his travels, has he seen countries hit by these three things: ravaged by the climate crisis, facing extreme poverty, and instability/political crisis? Absolutely. Think about it -- global warming impacts the availability of food (not enough) and water (flooding or drought), leading people to move in search of land or resources, causing stress and strain on communities and countries. I admit, that I had not thought about the interaction of these three major phenomena before. But now it seems painfully obvious.
The downturn in the interview came when they all laughed, saying that they are a few of the only 500 people who are talking about these issues. What? Maybe they are the only ex-Vice President and world famous activitist/musician talking about it on TV. But the rest of us are talking about it too -- in fact, we're talking about it all the time. That's why Leah facilitated a meeting of our local Bike and Pedestrian Task force this morning. And we're doing things on a daily basis. Small steps from taking cloth bags to the store, to teaching our children to save water and grow vegetables. They are pretty arrogant if they think they are in an elite 500 Club of famous people who care.
Anyhow, I'm glad I turned the TV on during my naptime. It also makes me want to ask climate change questions as many times as possible in 2008. Let's get our questions counted.
Two interesting points.
One, Gore cited a study just released by the League of Conservation Voters that counted all major debate and interview questions asked of the US presidential candidates in 2007. Over 2,900 questions were asked, but only 25 mentioned the climate crisis and only 6 specifically referenced global warming. Not many more than the 3 that were asked about UFOs. Here's the link: http://www.whataretheywaitingfor.com/facts.html
Two, a question posed to Bono got me thinking. Friedman asked if in his travels, has he seen countries hit by these three things: ravaged by the climate crisis, facing extreme poverty, and instability/political crisis? Absolutely. Think about it -- global warming impacts the availability of food (not enough) and water (flooding or drought), leading people to move in search of land or resources, causing stress and strain on communities and countries. I admit, that I had not thought about the interaction of these three major phenomena before. But now it seems painfully obvious.
The downturn in the interview came when they all laughed, saying that they are a few of the only 500 people who are talking about these issues. What? Maybe they are the only ex-Vice President and world famous activitist/musician talking about it on TV. But the rest of us are talking about it too -- in fact, we're talking about it all the time. That's why Leah facilitated a meeting of our local Bike and Pedestrian Task force this morning. And we're doing things on a daily basis. Small steps from taking cloth bags to the store, to teaching our children to save water and grow vegetables. They are pretty arrogant if they think they are in an elite 500 Club of famous people who care.
Anyhow, I'm glad I turned the TV on during my naptime. It also makes me want to ask climate change questions as many times as possible in 2008. Let's get our questions counted.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Race, Class, Gender
So, I haven't yet decided on a candidate, but have spent a lot of time reading the front Democratic, front runner's websites. Not surprisingly, I've found that there isn't much difference between their platforms and the election really is about race, gender and class. Perhaps, it is also about history and "so called records" but as Obama put it "No one's hands are clean".
Speaking of keeping it clean. On the last Listen 2 Women show, I read a letter written by a women who are sick of Hard Ball's host Chris Mathews comments regarding women. Read the letter http://guerillawomentn.blogspot.com/2008/01/womens-groups-to-protest-sexist-chris.html. The protest resulted in a long apology by Mathews on his show. It was basically the "I'm a good guy" and therefore "Not a sexist" even if "I said things that hurt people" and were "dismissive" to a women running for president. http://mediamatters.org/items/200801170019. It's worth watching the video. I know I'll support the nominee. The primary in North Carolina happends so far after Super Tuesday no one will even know it happend, but as a women I want Hillary to win or lose on her merrits. It's disheartening to see how much overt sexism still exists.
Speaking of keeping it clean. On the last Listen 2 Women show, I read a letter written by a women who are sick of Hard Ball's host Chris Mathews comments regarding women. Read the letter http://guerillawomentn.blogspot.com/2008/01/womens-groups-to-protest-sexist-chris.html. The protest resulted in a long apology by Mathews on his show. It was basically the "I'm a good guy" and therefore "Not a sexist" even if "I said things that hurt people" and were "dismissive" to a women running for president. http://mediamatters.org/items/200801170019. It's worth watching the video. I know I'll support the nominee. The primary in North Carolina happends so far after Super Tuesday no one will even know it happend, but as a women I want Hillary to win or lose on her merrits. It's disheartening to see how much overt sexism still exists.
Democracy Now! report on Congo
This was copied from the Democracy Now! daily news digest yesterday.
* Corporations Reaping Millions as Congo Suffers Deadliest Conflict SinceWorld War II *
A new mortality report from the International Rescue Committee says that asmany as 5.4 million people have died from war-related causes in the Congosince 1998. A staggering 45,000 people continue to die each month, both fromthe conflict and the related humanitarian crisis. Amidst the deadliestconflict since World War II, hundreds of international corporations havereaped enormous profits from extracting and processing Congolese minerals.We speak to Maurice Carney of Friends of the Congo and Nita Evele of CongoGlobal Action.
Listen/Watch/Read: http://www.democracynow.org/2008/1/23/corporations_reaping_millions_as
You can hear DN! three times a day on WPVM 103.5 FM. DN! covers the international and national news the way mainstream media won't.
For more on Congo and how to take action, see our August 23, 2007 post about the V-Day campaign.
* Corporations Reaping Millions as Congo Suffers Deadliest Conflict SinceWorld War II *
A new mortality report from the International Rescue Committee says that asmany as 5.4 million people have died from war-related causes in the Congosince 1998. A staggering 45,000 people continue to die each month, both fromthe conflict and the related humanitarian crisis. Amidst the deadliestconflict since World War II, hundreds of international corporations havereaped enormous profits from extracting and processing Congolese minerals.We speak to Maurice Carney of Friends of the Congo and Nita Evele of CongoGlobal Action.
Listen/Watch/Read: http://www.democracynow.org/2008/1/23/corporations_reaping_millions_as
You can hear DN! three times a day on WPVM 103.5 FM. DN! covers the international and national news the way mainstream media won't.
For more on Congo and how to take action, see our August 23, 2007 post about the V-Day campaign.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
What really bothers me
Watching the Democratic debate in South Carolina on Monday night really bothered me. Not the personal attacks exchanged between Clinton and Obama. That was kind of entertaining.
What really bothered me was that I only heard from Clinton, Obama, and Edwards. Where were the other candidates? CNN thinks they have the right or the intellectual superiority to decide who participates in the debate? It infuriates me that they excluded the other candidates. I want to hear what they all have to say so I can make an informed decision. The media is essentially telling us that Clinton, Edwards, and Obama are the only three candidates we need to care about. Don't figure it out for yourself, just let us decide. How arrogant.
It just means voters have to work harder to make our own decisions instead of letting "the media" co-opt our freedom of choice.
Here's a video on Kucinich's website about being invited, then barred from participating in the Las Vegas debate: http://www.lasvegassun.com/videos/2008/jan/16/74/#.
What really bothered me was that I only heard from Clinton, Obama, and Edwards. Where were the other candidates? CNN thinks they have the right or the intellectual superiority to decide who participates in the debate? It infuriates me that they excluded the other candidates. I want to hear what they all have to say so I can make an informed decision. The media is essentially telling us that Clinton, Edwards, and Obama are the only three candidates we need to care about. Don't figure it out for yourself, just let us decide. How arrogant.
It just means voters have to work harder to make our own decisions instead of letting "the media" co-opt our freedom of choice.
Here's a video on Kucinich's website about being invited, then barred from participating in the Las Vegas debate: http://www.lasvegassun.com/videos/2008/jan/16/74/#.
Friday, January 4, 2008
This has nothing to do with Iowa
We are missing an opportunity here. An opportunity to talk about the presidential candidates in a more meaningful way than just categorizing them as the woman, the black guy, the Mormon, or the crazy one (that kind of applies to several of them though, in my opinion).
What’s gotten me fired up this morning isn’t the results of the Iowa caucus, it was a post I read on my local yahoo listserve, ashevillemamas. A discussion thread about supporting Ron Paul.
All I have to say is that any man – or any candidate for that matter – who comes out as pro-life will never, ever get my vote. It is an automatic deal-breaker. I don’t care if he supports home schooling and voted against the Iraq war. With pro-life politics, he’s waging a deadlier war – a war against all women.
So, look beyond Iowa and seriously consider your vote. Do a little research. Find out about the candidate for yourself. Make a decision on your own, without being influenced by who's waving a flag or flying a banner.
I guess posting a question on a listserve is one way to find out more. It just disheartens and saddens me that women in my so-called progressive community are supporting a man who says women shouldn't have the right to choose.
What’s gotten me fired up this morning isn’t the results of the Iowa caucus, it was a post I read on my local yahoo listserve, ashevillemamas. A discussion thread about supporting Ron Paul.
All I have to say is that any man – or any candidate for that matter – who comes out as pro-life will never, ever get my vote. It is an automatic deal-breaker. I don’t care if he supports home schooling and voted against the Iraq war. With pro-life politics, he’s waging a deadlier war – a war against all women.
So, look beyond Iowa and seriously consider your vote. Do a little research. Find out about the candidate for yourself. Make a decision on your own, without being influenced by who's waving a flag or flying a banner.
I guess posting a question on a listserve is one way to find out more. It just disheartens and saddens me that women in my so-called progressive community are supporting a man who says women shouldn't have the right to choose.
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