I'm awful, but here is this...

I've been pretty busy this week, but I have every intention of addressing the HuffPo article on welfare recipients and the Vagina Monologues taking place in Michigan. Also, a bit of crazy about this whole Lebron James: more than a man thing that is going on...

Female physicians make less than male physicians

Shocked, shocked I say. 


A new study has come out looking at the pay gap between male and female physicians. Previously some have claimed that the pay differences are rooted in work hours, productivity, and specialization. You know the same reasons we hear in every field as the causes of unfair pay. 


University of Michigan  investigators led by Reshma Jagsi studied a homogeneous sample of physicians to control for the effects of career specialization. They surveyed over 800 physicians. The survey included questions about age, income, medical specialty, martial status, work hours, time spent in research, number of peer-reviewed publications, location, race, additional grants, leadership roles, and other degrees. 


The results demonstrated an average annual salary of respondents was $200,422 for men and $167,669 for women. After adjusting for factors that could explain the pay differences, such as specialization, title, hours, productivity, the researchers found an income disparity of $12,001 a year or more than $350,000 over a career between male and female physicians for similar work. 


One of the co-authors, Peter Ubel, is not ready to attribute the salary difference to conscious discrimination, noting that negotiation style may contribute. However, he does not that medical and academic centers should pay fairly. 


This looks like an interesting study, I can't wait to read the whole thing. Additionally, something good comes out of the University of Michigan! Brace yourselves, my next post is going to be on the anti-choice bill that just passed in Michigan. 

SOURCE: The full study, "Gender Differences in the Salaries of Physician Researchers," is published in theJournal of the American Medical Association.

Looks like Civil Rights aren't too expensive after all

Yesterday, there was a hearing on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), some critics argue that civil rights is too expensive and frivolous lawsuits will erupt everywhere. Lies! Lies, I say. Civil Rights are for everyone. The picture below is from the Center for American Progress.

US raped service women forcibly required to stay pregnant

For those of you familiar with sexual assault and the military, this isn't news. This is just fact. Yeah, the military is trying to be better on rape and sexual violence perpetrated against service men and women, but it is a slow process.

That being said, if you are raped and end up pregnant, too bad, because military facilities and the military healthcare system denies coverage of abortion, even in the case of rape or incest. If the woman's life is endangered, she pays herself, or seeks medical attention outside the military she can have an abortion.

At the end of May, the Senate Armed Services Committee passed an amendment that would end this policy. It would allow military women and dependents to receive insurance coverage of abortions in the cases of rape or incest.

Personally, I don't think this is enough. Just in the case of rape and incest? Please, women have the right to control their bodies, and abortion should be covered by insurance plans.

Read more: http://battleland.blogs.time.com/2012/06/11/the-u-s-militarys-abortion-policy-neither-fair-nor-equitable/#ixzz1xgyIfWW3

Do parents have the right to kill those who molested their kids?

Over the weekend, a Texas father walked in on a man sexually assaulting his 4-year-old daughter. The father proceeded to beat the man to death, in front of his daughter. The man's cause of death was blunt force trauma and neck injuries. 


The father is reportedly very remorseful. He acted in defense of his daughter. The police will complete the investigation and submit it to the district attorney, who submits it to the grand jury, who will then decide if they will indict him. 


So how are people taking this?

“We have an instinctual desire to protect our kids,” says David Finkelhor, 
director of the Crimes against Children Research Center at the University of New Hampshire. “A sexual threat is seen as a mortal threat against their future and their reputation. It is almost like a trigger where we are completely entitled to feel righteous anger.”

Personally, this whole thing is awful. The man who sexually assaults a child (or anyone) is a monster. But consider the trauma that girl suffered after being assaulted when watching her father beat a man to death. How much force is required to beat a man to death? And then to conclude with Finkelhor emphasizing the idea of reputation and shame. Well, fuck that. This little girl's life isn't over, people suffer sexual abuse and live, they get therapy and help. But to kill, rationalize it as though it is perfectly ok because someone hurt you or someone you care about? Emphasize on ownership of the daughter. Well, I'm guessing to pull from a cliche, the whole world will be blind soon enough. 


Read more: http://healthland.time.com/2012/06/12/should-parents-be-allowed-to-kill-people-who-sexually-molest-their-kids/#ixzz1xblgBjBi

Failed Attempts at Logic: Anti-Choicers

So I'm not 100% this is real, but I'm beginning to think that it is. Regardless, this girl makes some arguments I've heard, and they make no sense. I've pulled some of my favorites, and we'll evaluate them or at least try to talk through the argument...when there is one. Also, she does this thing, as a catch phrase "Checkmate, Pro-Choicers," which I guess is supposed to be cute, but gets real annoying, real quick. I left the Jesus one's be, because there is no arguing with religion.

So a quick note: logic is the philosophical study of reasoning. It is divided into three kinds: inductive reasoning, abductive reasoning, and deductive reasoning. I have no idea which one's she is using...

So, this one demonstrates a lack of understanding of biology.  You know what else results in a lack of menstruation (I know big girl gross words) an eating disorder, disease, oh and some parasites.

Because when abortions are illegal, women resort to desperate measures. When  a woman is told her life is over and she has no options, she may make a dangerous decision.

 Please pinpoint the moment of conception, because lack time I checked this wasn't actually possible. Doctors can only guess or use the first day of a woman's last period.

This one I just liked because without Choice, life is meaningless. Just ask slaves.

If pregnancy is natural why do women need doctors? For real though, why give birth in hospitals at all, home births for all. Maybe the US with our 13% rate of mortality while giving birth, we shouldn't talk about when to use doctors. Interestingly this rate is from 2006, and more than doubled from 1987.  Save your own life, don't give birth.

 See Iraq, Afghanistan, and every other war ever. Also, non-wars such as Vietnam. People die for freedom all the time, and we call them patriots or insurgents...new nickname for my nephew, I think so.

Um...complete lack of understanding of public assistance and welfare specifically. Actually, women penalized for pregnancy when receiving benefits, this includes sanctions and a complete loss of benefits for extra children.

A personal favorite, slut shaming. All of the one's about rape, are triggering and just plain offensive. Those taken with this amounts to a accommodation of sexual assault. Women have no choice, must carry the burden, and shame.

Essentially, there isn't much logic here, just opinions, often misguided.

Finally something good happens this week: Woman's victory over man who knowingly gave her herpes

A woman in Oregon met a man online and took him home on the fourth date. Instead of a relationship, which is what she was allegedly looking for, she ended up with genital herpes.

After enduring repeated and painful outbreaks of herpes and spiraling into a clinical depression, the woman filed a lawsuit against the man. The trial lasted four days, but a Multnomah County jury awarded her $900,000 for her suffering.

This was the first time a person suing another for knowingly transmitting herpes went to trial in Oregon. The jury deliberated for two hours before reaching their verdict: the man was 75% negligent and the women carried 25% of the blame. Two jurors believed the man was entirely at fault. The jury also found that the man committed battery by intentionally engaging in activity to harm the woman. The jury felt the man had the responsibility to disclose his disease.

Naturally, cases like this are difficult to prove, and there are rarely criminal charges. The classification of the spread of STIs differs depending on the state for example some states outlaw the intentional spreading of STIs and some limit it to only HIV. Oregon does neither, which allowed for this lawsuit and not criminal charges because the Washington County district attorney's office declined to prosecute because they felt they would be unable to meet the burden of proof.

The woman testified that she asked her date to wear a condom and he agreed, however, she knew he wasn't wearing a condom, but it was too late. Afterwards, they were laying in bed talking about their relationship, and he disclosed his herpes status. She then kicked him out.

Her outbreaks were awful, painful, and repeated. She took anti-viral medication, but it caused large amount of hair to fall out. She now suffers from anxiety and depression, and the drugs caused her to gain 30 pounds.

The defense took the classy, blame the woman approach. Defense attorney Shawn Lillegren pointed to the woman's credibility by arguing that she was lying about her sexual history. You know she's promiscuous and could have pick it up from one of the other men she had sex with. He went on to claim she should have demanded the man wear a condom...which is weird because I thought she asked him to. Lillegren cited that "everyone knows you're at risk for an STD."He went on to say, "Grow up. Come on. You're an adult. He's an adult. They had sex. The point is she is not some little innocent victim." He also accused the woman of looking for easy money.

The man took the stand and claimed he didn't know he could spread the disease when he wasn't suffering an outbreak. Additionally, he claims he told her he had herpes not out of guilt, but because he liked her and wanted to let her know sometimes he'd have to refrain from sex because of an outbreak.

After the verdict came back, the woman mouthed gratitude to the jury as they left.

My angry can barely be contained about this defense attorney. I guess women are supposed to be afraid of sex because there is a possibility of pregnancy and STIs, instead of just expecting partners to be open and honest about their medical conditions.

Turkey, now just like the US

Sunday was a big day for a lot of us...In Ankara, Turkey thousands of protestors took to the streets against plans from Turkey's Islamic-rooted government to cut abortion, which is actually a ban. Sounds familiar.

3,000 women (20-60 years old) gathered in Istanbul's Kadikoy district. Carrying signs and shouting slogans that are also familiar such as "my body, my choice" and the general anti-government slogans.

Many of the women were accompanied by partners, at least one waving a sign reading "My darling's body, my darling's choice." This maybe my favorite slogan ever...for real.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan called abortion murder, and reportedly his government is working on legislation to ban abortions after 4 weeks from conception, with an exception of emergencies. Now remember back when we talked about how you can't pin point the date of conception? It can be assumed/calculated from the first day of a woman's last period. So try to wrap your mind around not even missing a period and being denied an abortion.

Currently, abortion is legal in Turkey till 10 weeks, which is still kind of crazy. Health Minister Recep Akdag even claims the government will look out for the children, which are products of rape. Upon criticism, he said he didn't mean rape victims couldn't obtain an abortion. These ladies are so lucky, carry your rapist's baby to term and then the government will take care of it...of course I don't know what that looks like.

Some are even arguing the ban on abortion is actually just good old fashion racism. Deniz Ulke Aribogan, a professor of international relations at Istanbul's Bilgi University claimed on Friday that the government is seeking an abortion ban to balance the Kurd's high birth rate, since "ethnic reproduction is used by some organizations as a political took." So Aribogan is claiming the decision is not a moral/religious one, but instead a political one.

There have already been warnings that an abortion ban would result in women terminating their pregnancies on their own, which could be fatal or disabling. 

Walker wins.

This sucks. Walker and conservative super PACs are predicted to win. They called it pretty quick which is disgusting. Walker's campaign spent $29 million and outside groups spent $16 million. Barrett's campaign spent $3 million and outside groups $6 million.

Obama holds 53% in exit polling.

And done.

Paycheck Fairness Act Fails: No One is Surprised

52-47, all Republicans opposed the bill including Olympia Snowe, which means I owe a co-worker lunch. 


Essentially this Act requires employers to demonstrate that any salary differences between women and men doing the same work are not gender-related. Additionally, the bill prohibits employers from retaliating against employees who share salary information with their co-workers. 


Obama's thoughts: 

"This afternoon, Senate Republicans refused to allow an up-or-down vote on the Paycheck Fairness Act, a commonsense piece of legislation that would strengthen the Equal Pay Act and give women more tools to fight pay discrimination. It is incredibly disappointing that in this make-or-break moment for the middle class, Senate Republicans put partisan politics ahead of American women and their families."

I don't know why I even pretend. The Republicans in the Senate don't think enough of women to vote against them just a filibuster. Well, fuck these guys. 

Women, now like cats?

I don't know how these people expect to be elected.


On Sunday, Eric Fehrnstrom, Romney's senior campaign advisor, claimed that social issues important to women were "shiny objects" being used to distract voters. What social issues you ask? Contraception coverage and abortion rights. The direct quote below:

“Mitt Romney is pro-life. He’ll govern as a pro-life president, but you’re going to see the Democrats use all sorts of shiny objects to distract people’s attention from the Obama performance on the economy. This is not a social issue election."

Women folk, so ridiculous. So easily distracted by shiny objects, we better hope they don't produce a giant laser pointer or we'll all be screwed. These ideas of controlling our own bodies. Personally, I love the condescension here about how women's issues don't really matter just being used to distract from what I'm assuming the Romney campaign considers "real" issues? Like, actually, I have no idea. Because Fair Pay for women doesn't count, protecting farm laborers wouldn't count, so foreign policy maybe?


At last look Obama led Romney with the women's vote 51-40, but somehow these jerks are making a comeback. 

US incarcerates large numbers and people continue not to care...

I thought this graphic was worth a full on posting.

What does it say about you when Wal-Mart doesn't want anything to do with you?

Wal-mart has bailed on ALEC, did you hear the sighs of relief from their employees? In case you didn't know Wal-Mart has required employees to watch and read conservative propaganda, which I imagine has at times come from ALEC.


Wal-Mart suspended it's membership to ALEC on Wednesday; they've been members since 1993. They join others who have been jumping ship since Trayvon was murdered, including Coca-Cola Co, Kraft Foods Inc., McDonald's Corp, Procter & Gamble, and the Gates Foundation. Wal-Mart's abandonment comes after ALEC decided to move away from public safety and elections and to focus on the economy. 


Reuters attributes this to the criticism of ALEC's support of "Stand Your Ground" or as we call it "Kill at Will." This is kind of weird, they didn't just support Kill at Will, they pushed it in several states, and probably photo copied the bills for the state legislatures. 


Wal-Mart's Vice President of Public Affairs and Government Relations, Maggie Sans says:

"Previously, we expressed our concerns about ALEC's decision to weigh in on issues that stray from its core mission 'to advance the Jeffersonian principles of free markets. We feel that the divide between these activities and our purpose as a business has become too wide. To that end, we are suspending our membership in ALEC."

Sans also resigned her position of secretary on ALEC's private enterprise board.