Witches

And so we end the month on the fun note of witches. Fun?  True, for centuries wise women, later known as witches, were persecuted and indeed killed due to their knowledge of herbs and medicines even in countries without Christianity. Once the Christian church got going it became almost a mania In Europe, the panic over witchcraft was supported by the Malleus Maleficarum, published in 1487 by Heinrich Kramer, a German Catholic clergyman. It taught the persecution of witches and was greatly promoted by the new technology of the printing press. It saw 29 printings before 1669, second only to the Bible. The book says that three elements are necessary for witchcraft. These are the evil intentions of the witch, the help of the Devil, and the permission of God.

In the mid 1600’s the wave of witch burnings in England (and Europe) were dying down while the rise in witch hunting escalated dramatically in colonial America. Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” is a remarkable play on the story and a recent book by Stacy Schiff “the Witches Salem, 1692” is a great documentary on how the whole story rolled out. It appears that the fear of witch craft was rampant from the beginning of the British settlements. Cotton Mather the highly influential pastor of New England wrote about a witch in 1689 and was very involved in the Salem Witch Hunts. Puritanism at its height and a deplorable representation of what religion can do to people’s common sense.

While some men were accused of witch craft it was most often women who were accused and killed. An analysis of the data appears to give strong evidence that often the underlying reasons were not so much out of fear but out of economics! 

“Heather Marsh has tied the persecution of witches to the fight of church and industry to control "the power of life and death" at a time when industry needed more workers. She also argues the persecution of witches was a fight for centralized power over the peasant rebellions and the ownership of knowledge by medicine and science which forbade the earlier teaching or practices by women and indigenous cultures. She writes that the persecution of witches has colored misogyny since the 1400s. Silvia Federici tied the witch hunts to a history of the female body in the transition to capitalism.” (Wikipedia)

The 20^th century has found ways to make witches more charming however. “Bewitched” debuted in 1964 and what little girl didn’t twitch her nose to make magic happen? “Charmed” debuted in 1998 and quickly became popular. “Practical Magic” by Alice Hoffmann was turned into the highly successful film with Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman. And most famous of all J.K. Rowling created the Harry Potter series which started a whole generation of adults as well as children to become in love with magic. There is a dark side to witches but these days the art of Wicca and white magic is what makes witching fun.

I think every little girl in America and Canada has been a witch at least once on Halloween – if they haven’t, how terribly sad!

So I end Women’s Legacy theme with the thought that whoever or whatever women might be one thing we all have somewhere in our souls is a little bit of magic.

“I think the best role models for women are people who are fruitfully and confidently themselves,

who bring light into the world." —Meryl Streep

What Do Women Really Want?

We are almost at the end and it’s time to do some summing up. So what do the majority of women truly want? I think we can agree first and foremost women want to be happy, they want their children to be safe, healthy and happy with opportunity for their future, they want the basic things that make life worth living. These are fundamentals and yet sadly lacking for many women around the world.

In order for things to change and to make these fundamentals more widely achieved it seems natural to assume that empowering more women in the political, business and social arenas would ensure such a result. In the “first world” countries this certainly has happened and not just because women are empowered but because men have also seen that creating equality in ALL spheres makes for a better country.

Women don’t want to castrate men nor do they want to wrest all power out of their hands; they simply want a seat at the table and they want their voices to be heard. They want EQUALITY not domination. They want control over their own destiny and their own bodies. They want to be respected as a human being not an object.

"In the future, there will be no female leaders. There will just be leaders."—Sheryl Sandberg

Women Today, Around the World Part 2

Around the globe today we have women in power, some doing a wonderful job and eithers, not so much.  Angela Merkel of Germany is widely described as the most powerful woman in the world, Chancellor of Germany since 2005 and the de facto leader of the European Union.  Aung San Suu Kyi is the State Counsellor (akin to Prime Minister) of Myanmar (Burma), a Nobel Peace Prize laureate who has fallen in world esteem since the genocide of the Rohinga in that country as well as the persecution of journalists. Her style of leadership has been described as imperious and "distracted and out of touch". A very sad fall from grace. 

Current or past leaders include Helle Thorning-Schmidt  of Denmark, Therese May of the United Kingdom, Christina Fernandez de Kirchner of Argentina, Julia Gillard of Australia, Tarja Halonen of Finland, Dilma Rousseff of Brazil and the list goes on.  The question arises again, why are women able to become leaders in other countries but not in “the greatest country in the world”? I repeat myself with the answer “religion”. Whether Americans want to accept the answer or not is up to them but my personal analysis is simply that Americans are encumbered with the veil of religious patriarchy regardless of whether they are personally religious or not.

Americans cling to their Constitution like an anchor and despite amendments (or because of amendments) the said Constitution is holding them back from evolving into a First World country. They are deluding themselves when they believe they are the greatest country in the world. The best countries in the world do not require guns to protect themselves from their neighbours; that is what a police force is for. The best countries in the world allow their women to govern their own bodies and reproductive agenda. The best countries in the world do not accept capital punishment as the best way to curb crime; in the United States they still have the highest crime rate of any country in the “western world” so the philosophy of capital punishment curbing crime is impossible to believe. The best countries in the world do not accept torture and yet the United States have Guantanamo Bay where washer-boarding is still being conducted as a means of interrogation and torture.

The United States has more churches per capita than any other country in the world and yet they do not evince much evidence of holding to the true principles of Jesus’s Golden Rule “do unto others as you would have them do unto you”.

“We must open the doors and see to it that the doors remain open so others may pass through them” Rosemary Brown

Women Today, Around the Globe Part 1

Let’s start with Canada and I encourage you to take a look at the link on Global Gender Gap to get all the data you want.

In 2017 Canadian women rank at 20 out of 115 countries when it comes to political empowerment compared with Norway at 4, Sweden at 8, Germany at 10, Denmark at 16, United Kingdom at 17 and the United States at a distant 96 (shocking, isn’t it?).  Is it any wonder that American women are becoming angrier every day? “Women’s unmet demand for family planning” is nil for Canada, Scandinavia and United Kingdom but at 8 for the USA (and we know this is only getting worse for “the greatest country in the world”). 

When it comes to social development Scandinavia leads the way in almost every facet. Here is one little tidbit which is very telling of the type of mindset Scandinavians have; communities in Sweden MUST clear the sidewalks immediately after any type of storm because the government knows that most women walk at least part way to their work and THEY ARE STRONG VOTERS. It is important for the politicians to keep women happy – and they do! Here in Canada we know that businesses are required to do the clearing of sidewalks and while many in downtown districts do a fairly good job there is a long way to go to give real satisfaction to pedestrians.

On a more serious note European countries are far ahead of both Canada (although I must say I am pleased with our stats) and the United States when it comes to respecting and empowering women. I cannot account for it except for one possibility and that is the fact that Americans, and to a lesser degree Canadians, are still at least nominally religious. Thus when we come to religion we have a real dilemma since those who are avowed “Christians” (I will write from the Christian point of view although much may relate to other religions as well) cannot hear anything beyond the rote of their Bible.

Before we go forward, let us go backwards. Dipping into the Bible we know that in the Gospels Jesus is depicted as a liberal man who treated women with deference and equality. Historically we know that as the Apostles went out to spread the Word into the world they were confronted by the patriarchal Greco-Roman society (as well as having to deal with the Judaic patriarchy within themselves) and therefore much of the doctrine of Christianity, over time, became predominantly patriarchal. As time went on women were thrown under the bus as men pursued their own aggrandizement in the church and out of it. A little taste of power goes a long way so here we are today.

So much for the history lesson on how religion became a male dominated world. Let us zip along to Puritan New England and put some focus on the Founding Fathers. Despite Abigail Adams plea to her husband John to “remember the ladies” as he helped write the American Constitution women were excluded from any rights by reason of their ABSENCE. John didn’t want to fight with “petticoats”. The stage was set for the continuation of female subjugation in the new republic. The misfortune continues as America relies heavily on the religious (and religion) in their political sphere.

[NOTE:  Abigail Adams was a remarkable woman for her time, or any other, and I do recommend reading her biography. I have to like any person who cannot wrap her head around the Trinity. “There is not any reasoning which can convince me, contrary to my senses, that three is one, and one three.”]

"Remember the ladies, and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors. Do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the Husbands. Remember all Men would be tyrants if they could. If particular care and attention is not paid to the Ladies we are determined to foment a Rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any Laws in which we have no voice, or Representation." – Abigail Adams 

http://reports.weforum.org/global-gender-gap-report-2017/

https://sweden.se/society/gender-equality-in-sweden/

The Oldest Profession

Prostitution was first given the term “the oldest profession in the world” by Rudyard Kipling in the late 19^th century and certainly it has been around from the beginning of time. In the ancient world it was not considered a demeaning or even wicked way of living but even in many parts of the world considered sacred. It was not outlawed as it later was under Christianity in the Western World. But this is not a history lesson on prostitution but rather an indictment of how women are treated today.

I was probably a little bit peculiar as a teenager because from the time I understood what a prostitute was I thought it was wrong that it was “wrong”. I thought that women should have a right to do what they wanted with their bodies and if it meant selling it that was okay with me. What I thought was wrong was that pimps were benefitting off of these women. With the exposure of Harvey Weinstein the real story has been ripped open since the way women have been treated in Hollywood has been next door to prostitution. Less volatile but no less demeaning is how often women have been harassed in the workplace. Women have for too long been looked upon as sexual objects rather than as equal human beings. But we know this and have always known this and only now we seem to have the momentum to make great changes in that perception. Let us hope so.

Meanwhile I would like to take a few minutes to talk about the men who have for many decades taken the view that women are NOT objects but valuable citizens. I believe one of the first ones to publicly take this position was Phil Donahue way back in the mid 1970’s and I remember thinking what a great guy he was to do it. I don’t think I realized how momentous it was but I do know that I was impressed so perhaps in a way I did recognize it as a huge step. I have worked with a great many colleagues over the years and I would like to give a huge shout out to all my engineering colleagues who very definitely treated their female staff in a respectful and civilized way; much more so than my legal colleagues – MUCH MORE. Sure there was still some misogyny around but for the most part the engineers were “evolved”. They understood that the female staff had strong roles to play and we were given a lot of credit and kudos that I had never experienced in any other work place. I am really grateful and appreciative of that.

And I would also like to give a shout out to our Prime Minister Justin Trudeau because he is another individual who made a great comment after he had appointed his cabinet with many more females on board than ever before. Questioned by the journalists about these appointments he answered “because it’s 2015”. Right on!

We just need a great many more men recognize that in the 21^st century we are stepping into a Brave New World where women are going to make their voices heard in a significant way which will, we hope, bring on a great, better civilization!

“You don't have to be pretty. You don't owe prettiness to anyone. Not to your boyfriend/spouse/partner, not to your co-workers, especially not to random men on the street. You don't owe it to your mother, you don't owe it to your children, you don't owe it to civilization in general. Prettiness is not a rent you pay for occupying a space marked 'female.'" —Erin McKean

An Examined Life - Part 3

Reaching this part of my thought process on why I am writing about women’s legacy I realize that I not only want to express the outrage I feel about what is happening in the world today, to women but I also want to motivate other women to see the injustices we face every day of our lives. I want to MENTOR.

I am not here to create a crowd of activists (although it would be wonderful if that happened) but I do want to make women (and men) aware that there is an imbalance in how women are perceived and treated not just in the workplace but everywhere. For too long we have simply accepted that this “is the way it is” and have sucked it up. Sure, many of us have pushed back when it came to inappropriate touching but at the same time we have allowed men to speak to us in a demeaning sort of way by letting them say “girlie”, “dear”, “love” and other things of that nature. When men became hostile to the women’s movement they didn’t change their style in the work place when it came to language, ignoring raised hands, allowing men to interrupt but not women and yet they went out of their way to be ignorant in ungentlemanly ways such as not holding the door for women, closing elevator doors in women’s faces and other defiant acts by excusing them as being against the trend of women acting like men. Oh yes, what woman hasn’t had that happen to them time and time again. Courtesy is courtesy and has nothing to do with feminism. That’s just men being assholes.

Women are expected to take the higher road but this only causes them to appear weaker and less serious about their goals and right to be at the table. An elevated or forceful voice is hysterical if you are a woman but powerful if you are a man (despite using exactly the same words!) I have never seen a more hysterical performance than that of Brett Kavanagh during his hearing but you didn’t hear that once on the media analysis!

I want to tell women that they should not be fooled by Hollywood and the powerful, respected characters on various shows. That’s Hollywood showing us the good life but it is not real and there is no better proof than the MeToo movement. In addition, as I have written in the past, I was terribly shocked to start seeing the American news reports of all the black men in America who were being shot to death, DAILY, for no apparent reason (this started for me around 2012 with the Trayvon Martin killing). For years I had been led to believe that integration was successful, happy, and DONE by watching American shows that had interracial marriages and friendships; there were many non-white news anchors and television hosts, role models like Oprah Winfrey and Whoopi Goldberg. Since then I have been appalled to learn at how un-integrated the USA is and it is only getting worse.

Women need to be informed in a very meaningful way about important issues of the day. It behooves them to be educated in this way and not to think they can sit at home, live their family life and not be affected by what is happening outside their front door. They are affected every single day and so are their children. You cannot live in a bubble of denial and it is incumbent upon every single woman to take note, educate their children (boys and girls) about what is right in society, what is right as a civilization and how we treat each other (male and female) in an equal, respectful way.

We don’t have to be militant about it nor do we need to hammer anyone on the head even though sometimes that is a really powerful urge (I say with a smile but still mean it) but we can push back and we should.

"Feminism isn't about making women strong. Women are already strong. It's about changing the way the world perceives that strength." —G.D. Anderson

An Examined Life - Part 2

In this mad, mad, mad world do we ever have time to pause and reflect on what we are doing? For most this seems an impossibility and yet . . . there are ways. Tiny moments in our day to day life can give us the opportunity to bitch and complain or we can be silent and reflect. Moments on our commute to and from work (if you are on a bus, not while driving when one must stay alert), taking a stroll after eating one’s lunch not only gives one exercise and fresh air but time to reflect or when you prepare for bed, take a little time to yourself and just muse on what has happened that day or deeper into what you are doing with your life . . . or whatever strikes your fancy but that is reflective of YOU.

For those who want to dig deeper than those “tiny moments” I do recommend reading some books by women who are successful but who question their success and so analyze their steps up the ladder. Some excellent books include “Lean In” by Sheryl Sandberg, “The Power of Why” by Amanda Lang and “The Power of Focus for Women” by Fran Hewitt and Les Hewitt. And of course “Good & Mad” by Rebecca Traister.  In “the Power of Focus” I found a great deal of common sense and a good sense of humour were key ingredients to living a good life with less stress. In “Lean In” I found that not being shy about speaking up was key to becoming a leader. As well it was key to not be afraid to simply step up and start doing what needed to be done. From taking some personalities tests I also realized that women need to stop being what they call “Believers” and think that they will be recognized by their work. Women MUST speak up and illustrate to their bosses what they have been doing because otherwise it is just assumed things are running smoothly because of THEIR leadership. Women need to be more vocal and less demure.

The question is “do you want to be a leader”? A leader doesn’t have one look so women don’t need to be afraid to take on a more prominent role in their own life. I remember a wonderful line in “The Holiday” when Eli Wallach tells Kate Winslett she needs to be the leading lady in her own life. That really resonated with me.

Arthur: You, I can tell, are a leading lady, but for some reason you are behaving like the best friend.

Iris: You're so right. You're supposed to be the leading lady of your own life, for god's sake!

As one matures it is to be hoped that confidence also grows but in reading Sheryl Sandberg’s book (which I read several years ago when it first came out in 2013) I was surprised to find someone so talented and accomplished still has insecurities about her competence and even right to be “at the table”. Coupled with the insights gained from “Good & Mad” I now know that despite what our parents might have told us about being able to do anything we want to do once we get into the work place we discovered it is DOMINATED, and I mean DOMINATED in every possible way by men both visibly and invisibly. Furthermore many women who have reached leadership heights are more focused on fitting in with the male version of leadership and therefore look at other women as rivals rather than colleagues who need to be mentored upwards. It is amazing to realize that women can be their own worst enemies.

Amanda Lang writes in her book about styles of thinking and advises that we not assume that others think the same way we do. We are not encouraged in school to have diverse thinking; instead we are given the one-question, one-answer paradigm. I very clearly recall having a major dispute with my grade 12 English teacher when I said that I had “pity and contempt” for Tess. Mr Scalletta was appalled that I had contempt because in 1971 we were supposed to have washed away those 19^th century Victorian principles. He didn’t allow me to explain the reason for my contempt was not because she became a “fallen woman” but because she was so clueless as not to read the signs of the seducer! That was MY 20^th century knowledge coming into play. I rebutted him in a paper I did comparing Tess to Jane Eyre and got an A. Vindication!

Examine your life and your motives and always ask “why”. Leaders are mentors, thinkers and questioners and there is no reason why you cannot fulfill your true potential. Listen to others and Live Your Best Life.

“In order to properly understand the big picture everyone should fear becoming mentally clouded and obsessed with one small section of truth” Xun Zi

An Examined Life - Part 1

As I reflect on other lives and research this subject of “women’s legacy” I ask myself, and my family asks of me “why are you doing this”?  Good question and I wish I had a good answer other than “it seemed like a timely theme” given this maelstrom we call the world today.

But it has given me pause to question my motives beyond that “good idea at the time” quip. I spent the summer writing humorously about my childhood and teenage years while externally I was become more and more angry with the way things were evolving with that whole Ford/Kavanagh incident. By the time I had completed the September theme of “Infamous Diary” I was at a boiling point at the treatment of women today. If I didn’t write about it I thought I would explode somewhere less appropriate. And as “luck” would have it I was watching other programs and hearing other women expressing a lot of the same emotions I was feeling. And along came Rebecca Traister and her book “Good & Mad” which will make any righteous person good and mad at the treatment of women in America. But we can to some extent say this treatment has and is being done around the world although probably not to the disgusting degree it is in America.  Case in point, Marie Curie was never treated with the respect she deserved in her adopted country of France during her lifetime. Only when she was traveling abroad did France realize she was not showing off any French honours (because she didn’t have any) and they suddenly wanted to give her some award or other. She declined. (Good on her). Now if an amazing woman like Marie Curie could not be honoured by the good old boys . . . who the else stands the heck of a chance?

I wrote earlier about women being between a rock and a hard place when it came to their decision to choose between motherhood and a career however when it comes to achievement then women are really between the devil and the deep blue sea. The devil being “man” and the deep blue sea being the chasm of hollowness in any achievement due to the tepid way it is acknowledged by said devil. Women who continue to go their own way are intrepid warriors who have to work harder than any man to be acknowledged in any way; for her to achieve at the highest level she has earned it ten times over. Saying that, and believing it with all my heart, I feel that men ought to go down on their knees in thankfulness, admiration, humility and also in pleading forgiveness.

Dear Readers – to clarify when I say “man” or “they” I am talking about a collective that has the power to make or break a person. I am not picking on “man” in general or “they” in general although those who I AM picking on are anonymous as well despite their power. Media, journalists, academies, professional clubs and so forth remain almost exclusive when it comes to recognition of one kind or another.

“... now I know how to take a deep breath and keep my hand up. I have learned to sit at the table.” Sheryl Sandberg, Lean In pg 38

The Right Place, the Right Time

Oprah and I have a little disagreement about success. She believes that luck has nothing to do with it but rather that it is all work and determination on the part of the person. I would use the quote from Edison “genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration” thus success is 99% hard work and 1% luck, serendipity or being in the right place at the right time.  I don’t believe that this should take anything away from a person’s achievement but I do believe that luck (or whatever you want to call it) has its place in that success.

Having said that I will also say that often we create our own luck consciously or unconsciously whenever we act in positive ways that may be noticed by others. These actions may someday turn into that “luck” when someone remembers you and offers you the chance of a lifetime. So in a way you have indeed worked for your success but I always believe there is that little light of “something” that brings some people forward while others stay in the shadows. In making this observation I am not thinking about celebrities (in whatever sphere) but every day people.

Rather than taking any credit away from those who are successful I like to think that my observation gives everyone hope for themselves.

“Great discoveries and achievements invariable involved the cooperation of many minds.” Alexander Graham Bell

The Road Less Travelled

In the ordinary course of a woman’s life she will be a daughter, a wife, a mother and an employee. Perhaps she will become a professional of some kind so you can add that role to her list but the fact is that until very recently this latter role was either non-existent or still at the bottom of the list of her “roles”. I was really interested, even fascinated, to read the story of Marie Curie who very determinedly stood out as a scientist first, everything else was secondary. It is the more remarkable because she did this in the 19^th century and it was a very conscious decision. Not only did she ensure that HER findings would be recognized as hers rather than her husband’s but she also worked diligently to have both their papers published as quickly as possible in order to be recognized for their research. Even so they were beaten to the punch a few times. 

After Pierre’s death Marie hired governesses to care for their two daughters while she continued on with her work. It’s interesting to note that her daughter Irene followed her into science while Eve excelled in the humanities. Both daughters made their own mark in their fields, Irene also getting a Nobel Prize while Eve worked tirelessly for UNICEF. Oddly enough her husband got a Nobel Prize for his work but she did not despite working beside him. Meanwhile Irene got her prize along with her husband (not to discount Irene’s work, but rather to highlight that her sister’s work did not gain the same respect as her husband’s).

Irene’s children also excelled in the sciences but did not get a Nobel Prize and her grandson is an astrophysicist. 

A remarkable legacy for a remarkable woman. 

Reportedly Albert Einstein said of her that she was probably the only person who could not be corrupted by fame.

"To all the little girls who are watching, never doubt that you are valuable and powerful and deserving of every chance and opportunity in the world to pursue and achieve your own dreams." —Hillary Clinton

A Shrew

Continuing with “Good & Mad” I find myself amazed at almost every paragraph!  I now realize why I was alone (or so it seemed to me) in KNOWING that Hillary Clinton out-debated both Obama and Trump.  The reporters were listening to the supposed sound of her voice instead of actually listening to her words!  How silly of me to think that content mattered more than any imagined delivery.  And I do mean imagined.  The poor darling couldn’t win for losing, as they saying goes.

What am I on about?  Rebecca Traister describes how women are perceived when they send out a message in an elevated tone of voice.  This is perceived as hysteria, screeching, caterwauling, or other like-minded hogwash.  Unfortunately the book was published before the infamous Ford / Kavanagh hearing as I would have loved to see her take on that farce.  My own opinion, now that I have read the description of hysteria as illustrated by a dozen political women is this – if ever in the history of media coverage I saw someone in the throes of hysteria it had to be Brett Kavanagh.  The man was beside himself, ranting like a lunatic and going so far as to reach into a 20+ year time that somehow made it possible that Ford’s accusations were related to the Clintons.  Holy cow.  And yet media gave him a PASS.  Even so called left wing media were not all over him for losing his cool from beginning to end.  The way he slapped those papers down was crazy.  If a woman had behaved like that they would have nailed her to the cross.  As it was Dr. Ford was still marginalized by them saying “well, something happened to her but it wasn’t him” even after she said she was 100% sure he was the one.

Excuse me . . . are you catching my tone?  Do I sound hysterical, mad, shrewish, perhaps?  Ah, you cannot really tell from print.  But stop . . . you know this is a female writer so yes . . . I must be frothing at the mouth.  Is it any wonder that women may still want to hide behind initials?

But I digress.

I am still barely half way through this book but as I say, I am really stunned by the incredible bias women are facing with respect to their right to be angry, even furious.  And oh my goodness, for a non-white woman she has 2 strikes against her.  She becomes “the angry black woman”.  Incredible to read about how Michelle Obama was first treated and how she had to “send a message” rather than speak like an ordinary, sane woman.

“When they go low, we go high.”  Michelle Obama

A Meow Instead of a Roar

Doom and gloom is not all this woman sees as she writes about “Women’s Legacy”. Women have found joy in their pursuits and they have learned to excel to remarkable degrees.

I love the story of Beatrix Potter who despite being denied recognition in her botany work she became famous as an artist, author and environmentalist. Her legacy to her chosen area of England has been an incredible boon to the land, sheep and tourism! Children around the world adore her little books, made for their little hands. How creative was Beatrix? WOW

Laura Ingalls Wilder created a series of pioneer stories that has resonated with generations of children (and adults) and inspired a beloved television series that is still rerun today. It’s a memoir that includes nuggets of pioneer life such as making butter and cheese, making straw sunhats an d butchering a pig and using all the parts for something edible.  In “Farmer Boy” Wilder describes her husband’s boyhood on an Eastern farm and how different peddlers came to the home to buy, sell and trade goods.  It is a wonderful rendition of “olden days”.

Edith Holden and her sisters were successful artists and naturalists.  Those who read my blog know how much I love Jessie Wilcox Smith’s art.  Georgia O’Keefe’s bold art was ground breaking as was Frida Kahlo’s.  Coco Chanel, Mary Kay, Elizabeth Arden, Helene Rubinstein and Kate Spade were women who took their own path in fashion and beauty.

My favorite mystery writers are all female, Agatha Christie, Georgette Heyer, Leslie Ford, Mary Roberts Rinehart and Daphne Du Maurier.  Indeed my favorite authors are also predominantly female including Edna Ferber, Jessamyn West, Alice Hoffman, Geraldine Brooks, Kate Gibbons, Jodi Picoult and Katherine Mosby as well as the Brontes and Jane Austen.  No one does horror and suspense like Stephen King but no one does hot button topics like Jodi Picoult.  Her “Nineteen Minutes” was one of the most powerful books I ever read (I’ve read almost all of her books).

Women have made their mark in all the same arenas as men even to the top most levels of power except in the supposedly “greatest country in the world”.  America.

"Women belong in all places where decisions are being made... It shouldn't be that women are the exception." —Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Decisive Action

I have been having discussions with family members and we are all in agreement that civilization at a precarious point in time. I sometimes feel that we are all sitting on a powder keg waiting for it to explode.

Anyone who has watched Middle East politics over the years will pretty much agree that there will never be peace in that region, ever. The mindset of Arabs and Jews is so ingrained in animosity built over centuries and there is no give on either side. There is an American president who fawns over murderous dictators and alienates traditional allies, where can that lead but to disaster? Europe is becoming more populist by the day and anti “otherness” grows by the week. Refugees from other parts of the world are pouring their way into countries which is threatening their economy, culture and stability.

No one seems to have any answers to these various crises. We have UN summits, EU summits, G8 summits, NATO summits and what-have-you summits and what happens? They talk about climate change, trade agreements and money, money, money.  Yep, that helps civilization – hardly. No one can even agree on sanctioning a murderous country like Saudi Arabia because, oh, we need their oil. Do we really? Oh, let’s not forget that the Americans sell some 10 billion dollars’ worth of munitions over there . . . good grief, is that nuts or what? Well, let’s not step on their toes to hard, shall we?

The trouble with politicians is that they are in it for themselves and the money. They have no ethics, no values, no morals, no compassion, and no sense of consequences. For them it is all Instant Gratification – for themselves.

Yes, we are living in a sick, sick world and I am sorry to say that I have absolutely no idea how we poor, tiny little citizens can make BIG CHANGES. Except to say, we need more women in government because at the end of the day (despite any anger issues they may have) they do have cooler heads when it comes to fighting.

"If you want something said, ask a man; if you want something done, ask a woman." —Margaret Thatcher

 

Reimagining the World

Thinking about women and their struggles to become persons under the law has led me into some very stressful issues and sometimes I feel mired down by all the garbage we have endured and are still putting up with.  One can experience righteous wrath, raw anger, frustration and a myriad of other hot feelings but at the end of the day what does that accomplish?  In America they are hoping that these feelings will make a difference in the Primary elections in a couple of weeks’ time but again, what will that really for them?

There is more to be done than simply working towards female empowerment, equality under the law for race, creed and gender. People around the world need to reimagine the world as a far better place; a place that is peaceful, civilized, generous and selfless. Readers have seen my frequent observation that for a species that has been around for such a long time our veneer of civilization is very thin indeed. Why is that? Why can’t we seem to live the Christian creed of “do unto others as we would have them do unto us”? Why can’t people acknowledge that everyone deserves to live a wholesome life? Do not begrudge your neighbour welfare or employment insurance if that is what they need at this time of their life . . . there but for the grace of God go you. Did you think that your hard work got you everything you have now? You would be wrong; friends, luck, circumstance AND your hard work got you where you are. Not everyone gets the same opportunity, nor do they necessarily have the same abilities as you but that does not mean that they don’t deserve a decent living wage which includes a proper minimum wage as well as a full 40 hour work week.

I am dead set against businesses being allowed to operate on a 24/7 basis and allow the majority of their employees to only have 20 hours of work per week. There is something seriously wrong with our labour laws; if a business is open for those lengths of hours at least 80% of their work force should be fully employed and have full benefits. END OF DISCUSSION.

When you are selecting your candidate in an election what are the types of questions you want to ask them? Is the thing uppermost in your mind “I don’t want to pay more taxes”? I believe for the majority of Canadians the answer would be yes and I would admonish you to say – wrong question. Instead ask “what do I get for my taxes?” What is the percentage of my taxes compared with corporate taxes? Why aren’t the banks, insurance and pharmaceutical companies, Tim Horton’s and Walmart paying higher taxes than individuals? Is there a fairer way to do this?

Moving beyond the bugbear of taxes, let’s ask another question. As my candidate what would you do to make life better for ALL Canadians? And wait for the answer (and it wouldn’t hurt to time the pause before the candidate scrambles for an answer). It should amuse you or enrage you, depending on how you feel at that moment.

"I love to see a young girl go out and grab the world by the lapels. Life's a bitch. You've got to go out and kick ass." —Maya Angelou

Barefoot and Pregnant

I believe most women would go out of their minds with rage if their families suggested to them that their role in life was to be barefoot and pregnant. I like to walk around barefoot in the summer and no I never wanted to be pregnant but plenty of women love being mothers. But using such a phrase on them would most likely sound like an insult to them which I believe it is meant to be. In Nazi Germany women were given a bonus to produce a child which seems pretty horrifying to me.

I bring this up because I see phrases and innuendos which echo this type of mentality today (notably by the man who shall not be named). Here’s how I respond. What makes you so insecure that you dislike having a woman be educated, get paid as much or more than you, and generally feel that her only place is under a man? Let’s look at this upside down – for centuries women have been under the man and finally they said “no more” and slowly built up some “rights” in this modern world. A lightbulb seems to have gone off in some men’s head where they are saying

“Hey, they are smarter than us, they are getting more than us, they are working harder, but what is happening to us? Hell, let’s knock ‘em down a few pegs. Hell, let’s get them barefoot and pregnant. Hell, let’s make them go back to church and believe St Paul was right about their position under man and God.”

Like that is going to happen . . . but sadly it appears that for some women that is precisely what is happening.

Now there are a lot of things I cannot stand in this world but one of the worst things I dislike in an “argument” is cherry-picking. If you bring up the Bible you better be prepared for me to go at you hammer & tongs; if you bring up the old saw “my parents said never discuss politics or religion” then go back to kindergarten because you aren’t in the grownup world yet. Don’t even get me started on the idea of who is allowed to raise their voice and who isn’t. [and no, I haven’t even gotten there in the book Good & Mad!] If one has a proper discussion on an issue then the arguments should be bold, strong and direct; there is no skirting around an issue or pulling out ancient rhetoric and attempting to make it the holy of holies. That won’t wash in a true discussion.

So where am I going with this? I am going to the garbage dump to get rid of all these old men’s tales about women. We are grownups and we can toe the line as good as . . . anyone.

"I'm tough, I'm ambitious, and I know exactly what I want. If that makes me a bitch, okay." ―Madonna

 

Knee Deep in Quandary

Yesterday on The View they ran an interview with Hillary Clinton wherein she still defended her husband and switched the tables by talking about Trump’s allegations.  Then they turned on the questions and there was a cacophony of objections to Hillary’s being “tone deaf” to the MeToo movement, etc.  Here’s my response – why does Hillary have to be questioned about her husband’s conduct of 20+ years ago?  What does that have to do with her and what she is attempting to do with her life?  And why should she divorce him when she obviously still cares about him?  Can’t people move on about something so old?

So here’s the quandary. Having just said the above, then why was Dr. Blasey Ford’s allegations relevant 36 years later? I would say this is a situation where a person’s conduct needed to be told in light of his being appointed to a lifetime seat on the highest court in the land. The ship has sailed now and we need to forget about it as it cannot be undone.

Where do we go from here with respect to listening to assault allegations? I think we need to be awake at every moment, of every day to lethargy when it comes to the rights of humanity IN ALL THINGS. Whether we are talking about sexual assault, racism or human rights at home or abroad, citizens of humanity need to stay tuned, stay alert and make their objections and convictions heard regularly. The best way of doing this (but not the only way) is to VOTE. Please do not think that your vote is wasted; if you are uncertain about who to vote for at least go to the polls and use the ballot even if it is to invalidate it (not the best choice, but at least you have “attended to your duty”). A better way is to get as much information as you can about the candidate, the party and the issues of the moment and make a concerted effort to have an opinion. To say you don’t care is shameful. Yes, shameful.

For those with more time, passion and patience get even more involved but be sure that it is in with something you believe strongly about. There is no point in doing things in a haphazard or sloppy way when it comes to make a difference in other people’s lives.

Male or female, we are humans and I truly believe that we are put on this planet to make it a better place for humans. We are here to elevate our civilization to something higher than greed or power.

"A feminist is anyone who recognizes the equality and full humanity of women and men." Gloria Steinem

Influential Women Today

Some women that I admire today include Rachel Notley, (Premier here in Alberta), Hillary Clinton and Oprah Winfrey. Premier Notley has conducted herself and her party with exemplary management through very difficult economic times in this province. Two years before her election the province saw a rapid decline in the job market as the world turned away from the oilsands and by the time she was elected the province was already suffering financially with loss of revenue from the industry. Despite this she decided to spend where funds needed to be spent rather than “cut, cut, cut”, the mantra of the Conservatives no matter if we are in the best of times or the worst of times (hence seeing a dramatic failing of infrastructure over the last 3 decades).  Media coverage of her progress has been negligible and the bias of the press is so blatant it makes this writer sick. One must do one’s own research in order to gain the facts of her leadership and the successes she has brought to the province.

Hillary Rodham Clinton is another woman who has been maligned to such an extent I marvel at her resilience in still being active in trying to make a better world. Only a few days ago she was at Oxford for the unveiling of a statue of Eleanor Roosevelt honouring her for her part in developing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In her first book “It Takes a Village” she wrote admiringly of the social quietness of Denmark which naturally struck a chord with me. Her many efforts towards getting an affordable health care to Americans has been another reason why I like this woman. Her grit and determination, her amazing ability to speak knowledgably on a variety of important issues (I will go to the mattresses on the Obama-Clinton debates; she won those debates and the journalists were merely having their ears tickled by Obama) and her sheer stamina and determination to make a difference make her one of the top 10 admired women of the 21^st century, in my opinion.

The third woman that I admire is Oprah Winfrey. From the moment she took the national stage as a TV host she has made a huge impact on women. Her fearlessness in tackling any topic made her show ground-breaking and her openness about her own personal issues made her beloved by millions of women. I think she has done a remarkable service in promoting others into celebrity, such as Dr. Phil, Dr. Oz, Rachel Ray and others. She isn’t selfish in that regard. One of her wonderful initiatives has been to create a Book Club which in turn has inspired thousands of book clubs around the world. Being an avid reader she has regularly spotlighted books and interviewed authors in her O Magazine. For a long time she had a monthly feature where a celebrity would write about their favorite books and every magazine has the latest books reviewed. She does tours and inspires women (and men) to “Live Your Best Life” and I am sure we will hear of legacy stories in the future.

There are few women who impact the world in a meaningful way but these are three of my favorites.

"I raise up my voice—not so I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard...we cannot succeed when half of us are held back." ―Malala Yousafzai

Good and Mad

I received my books by Rebecca Traister yesterday and have already taken a deep dive into both of them, “Good and Mad” and her earlier book “All the Single Ladies”. I can already tell you that they are worth reading if you have any interest in women’s experiences past and present.  But as I have not finished them by any means my comments will be limited to my own consideration of women being angry with what is wrong in this world.

First of all let me say that most women I know do not show anger nor do they speak of it.  They may speak about frustrations and this is mostly personal frustrations as they deal with government bureaucracy of one kind or another. Men or women, people generally don’t get angry until it becomes personal and affects their lives. Sure, they can get riled up when taxes seem to rise but mostly people are lethargic about the circumstances in their life, their world, their country.

Then there are the ones who really do care, the ones who become activists, who get involved, who speak out and attempt to make a difference. And as Traister points out oftentimes women are at the forefront of such movements but are quickly suppressed from keeping the lead by male domination. A case in point MADD’S (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) CEO is a man. While I don’t have details on the Pro-Life movement I noticed many years ago that there were an awful lot of men at various protests which I find incredibly annoying for reasons I won’t go into here.

However women have stood strong in this last decade in staying at the forefront of movements such as Occupy, Black Lives Matter, MeToo, Times Up and the women’s march on Washington these past two years.  Women on the right have also had some movements, most notably their involvement in the Tea Party and suppressing the passing of the Equal Rights Amendment (not a good thing in my opinion).

As Traister writes women’s voices are not only suppressed but derided as strident and unattractive when they raise them in protest. Meanwhile men are considered strong and forceful when expressing their wrath. The recent display by Judge Kavannagh is a good example of how he was used as a victim of injustice while Dr. Ford was seen as some sort of lying tool because she spoke in a measured way about her experience, neither embellishing her story nor sounding angry. These double standards will still take a long time to eradicate but I can say this, Righteous Wrath is never wrong as Jesus displayed in the temple 2,000 years ago. And a reckoning is coming for women because we cannot continue on this path where we are not seen as equal citizens under the law in every possible way.

Indeed time is up gentleman and the ladies will have their say.

"It took me quite a long time to develop a voice, and now that I have it, I am not going to be silent." —Madeleine Albright

White Privilege

This is a complicated topic because as a white woman it is not easy to completely understand the experience of a non-white person. I would not say that I as raised up with “privilege” in the sense of coming from a well-to-do family but we were not poor in any real sense of the word.

For women such as Jane Fonda, Maria Shriver and others who had the means, opportunity and the heart to be activists in various ways. I recall an interview quite a few years ago that Maria Shriver gave and she spoke about her father who asked her “what are you doing now to change the world” and she said she had just published a book and he waved that aside saying “that was yesterday, what are you doing today?” She laughed about it but said that in her family they were always pushed to help make the world a better place. I thought “wow that is really nice but some of us actually have to earn a living first”.

Recently Jane Fonda spoke about white privilege and while it wasn’t a new phrase to me the way she spoke about it was interesting in the context of how we see through a very different lens from those who are not white. We don’t have the experience of fearing being stopped willy-nilly by police officers, the fear of being shot almost by random and we don’t have the misfortune of being stuck in low income housing where schools are under-funded so that opportunities can so easily slip away, if they were even available in the first place.  Yes, of course I knew all these situations existed, indeed this past spring I virtually wept through most of Black History Month as I listened to the stories of individual women. But using the term “white privilege” in the same breath with these other experiences really opened my eyes to how fortunate I have been without ever realising. Does it make me happy? Well, yes and no.  I am glad I didn’t suffer as African Americans or other visible minorities have suffered but I also feel a sense of shame in not really understanding sooner how much these people go through EVERY SINGLE DAY.   

Listen to her speech and that of Patrisse Cullors here

https://www.facebook.com/TheUnitedStateofWomen/videos/vb.728080537326482/1225330537601477/?type=2&theater

“It takes more than empathy – it takes intention – to even begin to comprehend what people of color, no matter their class, face every day. And how much privilege, quite unconsciously, is enjoyed by those born white, even the poorest of us.” Jane Fonda

Scholars, Pioneers and Recognition

A list of women who were pioneers in one way or another is below; I let them speak for themselves.  In the meantime consider how women had to struggle to overcome the “handicap” of being a woman in order to get her education, get into her area of interest and finally get the recognition for what she had achieved.  Even such outspoken women as Golda Meir or Indira Ghandi are overshadowed by their male counterparts and compatriots.  One frequently has to dig deep to find achievers in various fields, not because they weren’t outstanding but because they were not recognized as such.

One truly remarkable woman was Marie Curie; she was recognized twice by perhaps the most prestigious award given to a human being, the Nobel Prize, one in Chemistry and one in Physics.  She was the first of 48 women out of 882 individuals to receive a Nobel and the first (male or female) to receive it twice. 

There have been remarkable women in all walks of life but very few are well known, or even known.  Not that these women are seeking out recognition.  I admire their commitment to their passions, whether it be in learning all that they can about apes, medicine, photography, nursing, mythology, education and so much more.  I chose to put Rebecca West on the list below because I think she was a diverse writer, feminist and activist in a time when I was quite rare to have such a combination of interests.  Another amazing woman, Eleanor Roosevelt, had such diverse interests and the incredible dynamism to get things done.  I close with her really wonderful quote.

 

·         Florence Nightingale

·         Clara Barton

·         Elizabeth Blackwell

·         Marie Curie

·         Edith Hamilton

·         Jane Goodale

·         Mary  Leaky

·         Golda Meir

·         Indira Ghandi

·         Eleanor Roosevelt

·         Maria Montessori

·         Anne Frank

·         Rebecca West

·         Christina Broom

"A woman is like a tea bag—you never know how strong she is until she gets in hot water." —Eleanor Roosevelt