the face of politics

If you've read me here or elsewhere, you may remember that my office is in the library. We have a cafe on the main floor of the library, and because of the open design of the library, I can hear and smell happenings--good happenings--when I'm in my office. Carlos has been my coffee guy the whole time I've worked here (this is my fourth year). He knows my two favorite drinks--javalance (think frappaccino but better) and peppermint mocha. We've been known to shoot the shit from time to time, and from that I learned things like: his best friend and her daughter live with him so that he can help look after the little girl, he had emergency surgery in the spring when his appendix burst, he hasn't seen his mother in Mexico in ten years, and he's worked at the College for 18 years.

One thing we never talked about was his immigration status. I never thought about it.

Yesterday, Carlos and at least nine other employees of our food service company (we contract out) were terminated, effective immediately, because they are undocumented immigrants. In language that I don't particularly like, they are here illegally.

Immigration is one of those hot-button issues. It doesn't matter what you think about it. I don't care to argue about it, actually. It's one thing when it's an issue you're debating. It's another thing when that issue has a face, the face of someone you know and like.

I spend too much time with my social scientist friends

Chicagoist is one of my favorite blogs, and while catching up on it this morning, I came across this posting: The Legal Side of the Sizzlin' Chicago Sexpo. Most of the post discusses what attorney JD Obenberger discussed during his presentation, and while some of what he said might be a little extreme, I agree with the overall sentiment that criminializing sex work is problematic, especially when other laws that crimilaze acts associated with sex are also on the books but not often inforced--not that I think those things need to be on the books either. I understand laws against violent acts, but I just don't agree with criminalizing sex that falls outside the mainstream.

The problems Obenberger pointed out weren't what really got to me, though. I had a real problem with the comments people posted, though I doubt posting a counter argument would be productive. Instead, I'm blogging about it. Here's what commenters had to say:

• One of my least favorite justifications for breaking a law is that other people are breaking a law. I learned early on that "But they did it, too" is no excuse. By extension, murderers could make the argument that law enforcement officials are picking on them with impunity.
• So let me get this straight...Dart's picking on prostitutes just because they're doing something illegal. Gotcha. Look, I think prostitution should be de-criminalized, but until then, the law's the law. This isn't a "civil rights" issue. And until adulturers start advertising their "services" on Craig's list, it's being dealt with as it should and doesn't need Dart's intervention (Besides, think how much that would further clog up the courts). as is criminal fornication. [emphasis theirs] What, exactly, is "criminal fornication"? Sex with underage children? Cause if that's what it is, it's being dealt with as soon as it's discovered. And I've had sex that should be considered a crime as well. HEYOOOOOOOO!!!!!
• this Obenberger is an idiot.

What kills me here is the seemingly blind acceptance of "a law's a law." Juts because something's a law doesn't mean we can't question it. I think we have an obligation to investigate where a law like this came from, what it's based on/in. We've constructed this ideology that anything outside vanilla sex between a man and a woman is BAD. Just because that ideology exists doesn't mean that it's true/right (or that it's not). We're getting better at questioning this why-do-YOU-have-a-problem-with-MY-gay-marriage? thing in some places and some states, seeing that just because something's always been one way or another doesn't mean it's right or that it can't change. Even that's going to take a long time for there to be--in terms of national decisions/legislation--a paradigm shift. Will that make it any easier, once we're not so quick to criminalize "deviant" gay sex, for the sex workers and sex work in general to be decriminalized?

(There are so many other issues I don't have time to address here, like my caveats about people entering into sex work, but for the sake of this quick blog post, I'll save that for another time.)

Sweet!

For Immediate Release, March 5, 2009
Contact: Rick Garcia, 312-560-0405

CIVIL UNION BILL PASSES ILLINOIS HOUSE COMMITTEE

SPRINGFIELD, IL -- An Illinois House committee passed a bill today that would extend legal recognition and many of the benefits limited to married couples to same sex couples.

The Religious Freedom and Civil Union Act (HB2234) passed the Youth and Family Committee with a vote on Thursday, March 5. The bill now goes to the full House for consideration.

“We are gratified that the members of the committee understand the importance of recognizing and extending legal protections to Illinois same-sex couples and their families,” said Rick Garcia, director of public policy, Equality Illinois. “These couples make our communities stronger and deserve to have the same protections and benefits as their heterosexual counterparts.”

The bill guarantees some of the rights and responsibilities to persons in civil unions that are currently granted to persons in civil marriages. Among those rights are the ability to participate in healthcare visitation and decision making for one’s partner, survivor benefits and the right to make disposition decisions about deceased partner’s remains.

The bill also re-affirms religious institutions’ right not to solemnize a civil union.

“This bill asks for no special rights, only to grant all families access to what most families now are given automatically under the law,” said Representative Greg Harris (D-Chicago) the chief sponsor of the bill. “We have families in our districts in committed relationships, working hard every day, who when faced with sudden tragedy may desperately need these rights tomorrow or the next day.”

Equality Illinois lined up an impressive list of witnesses to testify before the committee.

The Reverned Suzanne Anderson-Hurdle a Lutheran pastor, mother of three and a Chaplain for her local fire and police departments gave testimony in favor of the bill.

"It seems odd to me that some who tout the idea of family values would push for the defeat of this bill. Their position is incongruent with the nation of family values and seems to lack integrity," said Pastor Suzanne. "It is both naive and ethnocentric to say that the "family" is mom, dad and children. This is not the reality for so many people -- gay or straight and it discounts the experiences of so many people in our communities.

Dr. Randy Georgemiller testified on behalf of the Illinois Psychological Association.

"Heterosexual and homosexual relationships are essentially equivalent in terms of their psychological and social functions and therefore discriminatory policies are unjustified" Georgemiller told the committee. "Government recognition of relationships affords a variety of benefits that are favorable to the couple’s physical, financial, and psychological well being. Just as for heterosexuals, a committed relationship offers a positive sense of self, self worth, and mastery, and provides some insulation from mental and physical disorders."

Gail Clodfelter of Springfield noted the protections that she and her husband have that are denied to her gay son and his partner.

If passed by the full General Assembly, Illinois will join a handful of states to recognize civil unions joining .

In Illinois, the County of Cook and the cities of Oak Park and Urbana have domestic partner registries, but the registries convey no benefits to registrants. The above jurisdictions, the State of Illinois and Chicago extend domestic partner benefits to their gay employees as do numerous Fortune 500 companies.

on the inauguration

When the election results came in, I was alone on the train, riding home from a late day at work. That evening, I watched the results come in for as long as I could, and then I ventured into the realm of radio silence that is the train ride home. The message came via text from , and I cried alone.

Today, I cried among my friends, my colleagues, and my students, as we filled the tv lounge in our student center, all eyes glued to the screen. We laughed, we clapped, we cheered, and we smiled. A lot.

Did the world change today? Not really. Will it change in the next four years? Probably not drastically. We don't know any of this for sure, and if the world doesn't change all that much, I won't be shattered by disappointment.

One thing I do know is this: After the World Trade Center came down, I didn't sleep. I've always battled anxiety in the wee hours of night, but for those weeks that followed that Tuesday morning, I was too scared to lay down in my bed and close my eyes and listen to the quiet of the darkness.

I'm going to sleep well tonight.

it's a good couple of days here

I know that things here are far from perfect, but I can't help but feel a sense of joy and pride as our first African-American president is inaugurated the day after we celebrate the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. In my 30 years, I can't remember any other time we've felt so much excitement for a new president to take office. People are flocking to DC for all the festivities, and even here on campus, folks will be watching the inauguration in the student center. This feels good.

well, isn't this special

Our governor apparently got arrested this morning on federal corruption charges.

And, the state is collectively heaving a sigh of relief.

After the last gubernatorial election, one of the other volunteers at Planned Parenthood attacked me for not voting for Blago because of the good work he'd recently (at that time) done for women's access to healthcare in Illinois. I won't and didn't deny that was good stuff, but he's a corrupt bastard. I'm again pleased to say that I didn't vote for that asshole.

how long till the next mayoral election?

Wow, I'm seriously hating Daley right now. Like whoa.

My friends* over at Chicagoist brought us this gem this afternoon: City Buying Police Department 2,000 SUVs, Still No New Officers.

The cost of these SUV? Almost fifty-three million dollars.

I haven't liked the superintendent since his start (in the not too distant past), but it's pretty clear now that he's a slimeball. How could he go along with Daley (slimeball as well) giving this much money to the police department for cars when he knows that crime is up** and they [claim they] don't have money to hire more officers?!?!?!

If you have a minute, go read the Chicagoist posting. Seriously. Their commentary is excellent, spot-on.

_____________________________________________________
* I actually do have a friend who writes for Chicagoist on the weekends.
** I have no proof of this, but I suspect crime's gone up since Weis has been superintendent. That's worth researching.

this feeling... it's indescribable... hope

It's been so lovely reading what friends have to say about the election. I've so enjoyed the excitement resonating through their words.

But you know, there's something special about being from Chicago.

Not only did we prove we're not afraid to have an African-American president, but he's ours. I cried tears of joy last night as I watched the crowds my friends were part of gather on the grass I've walked on downtown, as they cheered for the man from Chicago, as he humbly accepted the honor of the presidency.

I've always been proud to be a Chicagoan, even with all of Chicago's faults. It's been a long time that I've been able to say that's also how I feel about being an American.

Knowing how hard the road will be for Obama and for all of us does nothing to crush this feeling of joy.

various and sundry

I've been remiss in my blogging duties. Apologies, kind readers.

So, what's been going on...? The wedding is in 11 days, so it would be fair to say my stress level has been higher than I would like. Along with the rising stress level come the rising levels of depression and anxiety, which make it kind of hard to do the things that are stressing one out--go freakin' figure. Add in a dash of Anne having the final tax deadline of the year and zero time to breathe, and you've got our lives right now. Phew. I got tired just writing that.

I had a nightmare this morning about the wedding. No one was listening to me and taking my directions. Instead, they were all just goofing around, and it was really, really frustrating. We were there with guests and everything, and we tried to start the ceremony six times. Add to that the dj playing the wrong processional music and me having to hook my iPod up to his speakers to play the right song. Nothing was going right. Needless to say, there wasn't any sleeping going on after that. Instead, I got up almost 2 hours before my alarm and get some wedding stuff done.

Work's been feeling stressful, too. I feel like I never have any time, and then things seem so overwhelming that I don't know where to start. But, I do start, and stuff gets done, and I work late and come in early. Lather, rinse, repeat.

On the other side of all of the stress and planning is what I know is going to be an awesome day. I hope that my inner bridezilla can control herself on the day and just have fun.

So, let's quit talking about all that wedding business. How about politics? I'm having such a great time watching Tina Fey as Sarah Palin I haven't been interested in SNL for years, but poor Palin is so ripe for SNL-type comedy. Tina Fey needs to win a friggin' Emmy for this stuff. And, how about Queen Latifah as Gwen Ifill? Brilliant, folks. Bring on President Obama.

Did I tell you I got an iPhone? Did I tell you I'm breaking up with Anne because I'm so in love with this little piece of technology? Amazing thing. Truly amazing.

The only other noteworthy thing that comes to mind at the moment is that we're starting the first faculty/staff team for the College's Relay for Life in the spring. Our team name? The Itty Bitty Knitty Committee: We're Yarned and Dangerous. Why yes, we do think we're clever; thanks for asking. We're going to make/sell handmade goods to fundraise. When we get everything up and running, I'll likely hound you for five bucks to support our team. if nothing else, it'll be fun, and the student in charge of Relay this year was SO excited when I told her I had a faculty/staff team together.

reasons why I need to buy an Obama t-shirt

Both of these came to me via Bitch, PhD, which I love.

Amnesty International is calling out the police involved in the arrests of protestors at the Republican National Convention for using excessive force.

Amnesty International recognizes the challenges involved in policing large scale demonstrations and that some protestors may have been involved in acts of violence or obstruction. However, some of the police actions appear to have breached United Nations (U.N.) standards on the use of force by law enforcement officials. These stipulate, among other things, that force should be used only as a last resort, in proportion to the threat posed, and should be designed to minimize damage or injury. Some of the treatment also appears to have contravened U.S. laws and guidelines on the use of force. The U.N. standards also stress that everyone is allowed to participate in lawful and peaceful assemblies, in accordance with the principles embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Gosh, I'm glad to see them speaking out about this.

And if you were starting to regain a little of that warm and fuzzy feeling about government now that the convention in St. Paul is over, think again. This story from Alaska disgusted me. The police chief of Wasilla when Sarah Palin was mayor spoke out against state legislation in 2000 that would prevent sexual assault survivors from being billed for the cost of their evidence-collecting exams, claiming it would put a burden on the police department to fund the exams.

[House Bill 270, signed into law by the governor] makes it illegal for any law enforcement agency to bill victims or victims insurance companies for the costs of examinations that take place to collect evidence of a sexual assault or determine if a sexual assault did occur.
[...]
"In the past we've charged the cost of exams to the victims insurance company when possible. I just dont want to see any more burden put on the taxpayer," Fannon said.

Glad to see he was looking out for the female taxpayers in his community.

Let's round this out with some Gloria Steinem, who I've always loved. This came to me first via Siobhankha.

Republicans may learn they can't appeal to right-wing patriarchs and most women at the same time. A loss in November could cause the centrist majority of Republicans to take back their party, which was the first to support the Equal Rights Amendment and should be the last to want to invite government into the wombs of women.

And, if Gloria's not your taste, you can always go watch my political tv girlfriend Rachel Maddow over at MSNBC. Love that woman; she's super smart and sassy.

the hell?

What the fuck is happening in the Twin Cities?! I haven't read anything yet about problems with people flying in and out of the cities, but I'm still nervous that Anne has to travel from there.

there's no room left for doubt

Planned Parenthood Action Fund has officially endorsed Barack Obama.

we laughed until we cried

Merdie came across this when we were in the hotel in Memphis on Saturday night. It was so funny that we couldn't' stop laughing. Now, you must see it and revel in the awesomeness.

Obama '08: Look at This Fucking Candidate

hurry up, November!

My friend Jane posted this over on her Facebook this afternoon, and I thought it was worth sharing. Here's your teaser:

This morning, on the fifth anniversary of the Iraq invasion, ABC’s Good Morning America aired an interview with Vice President Cheney on the war. During the segment, Cheney flatly told White House correspondent Martha Raddatz that he doesn’t care about the American public’s views on the war.

I'm *that* liberal

I knew when the first question asked about what kind of bumper sticker I would have and I had a hard time choosing because they were all so good that I would have fun with this quiz.

My Liberal Identity:

You are a New Left Hipster, also known as a MoveOn.org liberal, a Netroots activist, or a Daily Show fanatic. You believe that if we really want to defend American values, conservatives must be exposed, mocked, and assailed for every fanatical, puritanical, warmongering, Constitution-shredding ideal for which they stand.

Take the quiz at www.FightConservatives.com

I hate our governor

I can't even be happy about all the good he's done for women's health. Right now, he's pissing me the hell off.

We're now four days away from Doomsday for transit cuts without revised state funding. And you know what? Last week, the legislature approved a tax increase to end the crisis...and the governor wouldn't sign it. Instead, he inserted an amendment to it that all seniors ride free and sent it back to the legislature. It's a nice idea in theory, but a bill that could have passed last Friday now sits, waiting for the legislature to approve it--approving it the first time was a narrow margin.

And so here we are. A good--though depressing--graphic was in the paper this morning, showing the effect of the loss of 81 bus routes (that's more than half) on the city.

To recap, that damage represented by those maps is the governor's fault, at least for this week (and in my book). And being the jerk he is, he added insult to injury yesterday when he told seniors to "hold your nose and take a bus for free." *blink* If I worked for the CTA, I would be HIGHLY offended. Hell, being a rider, I'm highly offended. What does he think about the transit system of Chicago? Apparently, he thinks it stinks from the funk you can only imagine...urine, vomit, and Gawd Forbind....the homeless! (note sarcasm) No wonder he's not in a hurry to fund the CTA. He obviously hasn't paid any attention to the work Ron Huberman (my CTA crush--I can admit it) has done to make the system more efficient and cleaner. (The first time I rode on a Red Line train with a newly waxed floor, I was afraid to set my shopping bags down for fear it was wet...no, it wasn't wet, it was just that clean.

If you can stomach his rhetoric and get through this without laughing yourself silly at his craptastic hair, you can hear the advice to seniors straight from the ass's horse's mouth.

As for me, I guess I'll get a helmet, find my bike somewhere in my mom's basement, and fork over the extra $10.80/month it's going to cost me to ride the train to work because Metra got a raw deal, too.

Fuck you, Rod Blagojevich.

Hey Illinois voters!

If you're interested in seeing who's considered a pro-choice/pro-women's health candidate, Planned Parenthood had a new website for Illinois voters.

I inch a tad bit closer to a decision

This morning, I watched the video of Hillary Clinton that everyone's talking about--she got teary and emotional in an interview. I know for some people, this shows weakness in her. For me, it was really quite the opposite reaction. She always seems so serious, so composed. In the video, that facade cracks, and she finally seems more real. She gets emotional and lets that real passion she has for her country and her part in it--and that passion is emotional, not analytical--slip out. Someone who feels like that about the job is someone I, now, take a little more seriously as I'm making my decision of who to vote for in the primary. It does sadden me, though, knowing that being emotional--hell, having emotions--is a strike and has been a strike against getting a woman into the White House.

I'll be interested to see what New Hampshire does today.

I'm only surprised by who ended up on top.

Though I don't trust a meme to help me make my decisions for the primary, I did think it was interesting, especially since it picked Edwards--an electable Dem as a white man (for better or worse)--as my top pick.

91% John Edwards
91% Barack Obama
90% Chris Dodd
87% Hillary Clinton
85% Joe Biden
84% Mike Gravel
81% Dennis Kucinich
75% Bill Richardson
45% Rudy Giuliani
31% John McCain
27% Tom Tancredo
25% Mitt Romney
25% Mike Huckabee
18% Ron Paul
13% Fred Thompson

2008 Presidential Candidate Matching Quiz

A friend recently asked me who I'd vote for if I had to vote Republican and was shocked when my initial response was Giuliani and not McCain, who was my second pick. Interesting that they came up in that order here, too.

I had righteous indignation for breakfast

I got all worked up about the fact that only half of our state legislature bothered to show up yesterday when they were called back into session. According to this morning's Red Eye, which I read on the train, only 70 of 118 members of the House and 14 of 59 members of the Senate showed up yesterday (page 10). Transit in the Chicago area is in serious trouble, and if something isn't figured out at the state government level, MAJOR CTA cuts are due January 20th:

The CTA will eliminate 81 of its 154 bus routes; lay off more than 2,400 employees; and raise fares to record levels. In addition, with more than 700 fewer buses operating due to the bus route eliminations, the CTA will close three of its eight garages. Service on the remaining routes will be provided by other locations.

(For those of you not in Chicago, it's a lot of things, including a method of determining allocations of transit funding that hasn't been updated since the 1980s. You can read about it from transit advocates over at SaveChicagolandTransit.)

So, here's where the misguided righteous indignation came in... Today's the primary caucus in Iowa, and I got SUPER PISSED at Barack Obama for no-showing to this session Blago called yesterday--he was obviously in Iowa.

And then I remembered he's my US Senator. *headdesk* Did I mention I'm sleep-deprived?

I got to thinking, though... What has he done for me lately? He's a baby senator who's spending his time running for president. Shouldn't he be proving himself as a national political leader by rocking his first term in the Senate? Instead of his political work, we're hearing about his political campaign. I want to hear about what he's done, not just what he thinks he could do as president.

So, despite the fact my sleeplessness had me bitter and confused this morning, I still think I can't vote for him [in the IL primary], not until he has more time under his belt. 'Course, if he ends up being the Democratic candidate, I reserve the right to revise this paragraph.