"Strong, Smart & Bold" girls and women: A threat to Conservative Agenda

Another group has come under fire from the "Religious Right." this time it's the American Girl company because of their affiliation with Girls Inc.

If you're not familiar with these groups, Girls Inc. is a national non-profit that started 141 years ago as Girls Clubs of America. Since the 1990 merger that created the Boys and Girls Clubs, they have existed as Girls Inc. They manage centers where "generations of girls have learned their strengths, explored their worlds, prepared for productive, interesting lives, and offered each other the support necessary in dealing with the challenges of growing up." Their motto is "Inspiring all girls to be Strong Smart and Bold." They serve about 800,000 girls a year, many of them black or Hispanic and most from low-income families. Now, I'll admit I have a bias toward the organization because Cathy worked at their national resource center in Indianapolis for a year, but even with that, I don't think this is an evil organization worthy of the ire of America.

American Girl makes large, expensive, historically accurate and multi-ethnic dolls and associated accessories like books and is a subsidiary of Mattel. Mattel has had a long history of association with Girls Inc., going back to the Working Woman Barbie which included a CD of activities partially written and designed by Girls Inc. They formed a relationship with Girls Inc. after the public backlash from their "Teen Talk Barbie" which uttered such inane phrases as "Math is hard!", "I love shopping!" and "Will we ever have enough clothes?"

Mattel's current venture with Girls Inc. is the American Girl I CAN promise and bracelet. The I CAN promise for girls is:

I can be myself, follow my dreams, and always do my best. I can reach for the stars, lend a hand to others, and be a good friend. I can make a difference! I promise to try.

Sounds like a great promise. A great way to teach girls to be Strong Smart and Bold. According to Mattel, the I CAN initiative "supports specific Girls Inc. programs - building girls' skills in science and math, developing leadership skills, and encouraging athletic skills and team spirit."

The current controversy comes from two ultra right wing groups; The American Family Association and the Pro-Life Action League. These groups take offense at some of the things that Girls Inc. is teaching girls and wants all right thinking Christianss" to boycott American Girls until they end their relationship with this evil group. According to the Pro-Life Action League, the things they find offensive are:

• Girls Incorporated supports a woman's freedom of choice, a constitutional right established by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1973 in Roe vs. Wade.
• To make responsible decisions about sexuality, pregnancy and parenthood, girls need and have a right to sensitive, truthful sexuality education; convenient access to safe, effective methods of contraception and protection from disease; and referral to comprehensive information, counseling, clinical and other services that support their responsible decisions.
• Girls have a right to positive, supportive environments and linkages to community resources for dealing with issues of sexual orientation.

The Pro-Life Action League Executive Director, Ann Scheidler, stated on their web site, "While Girls Inc. has some good programs, they also support abortion, oppose abstinence-only education for girls, and condonelesbiansm." The web statement by The American Family Associationn states that Girls Inc. "support[s] abortion and a girl's right to abort an unwanted baby," supports theSupremee court decision on Roe vs. Wade, "supports contraceptives for girls" and "offer resources encouraging lesbian and bi-sexual lifestyles."

So, to these groups, Girls Inc. is probably a bunch of bra burning abortionists trying to turn their daughters gay. They want to think that the Roe Vs. Wade decision never took place and that anyone who fights for the reproductive rights of women are "pro-abortion" and "pro teen sex." They think that abstinence only educationn will keep their kids from experimentingg with sex. Instead, their kids doexperimentt with sex and they have no knowledge about how to prevent sexually transmitted diseasess or keep from getting pregnant. And they want to pretend that there are no gay people in the world.

New $10 and nickel

I saw on the news recently that the US will be getting new design for its five cent coin and $10 bill.

Changes to the nickel follow special issue nickels in 2004 and 2005 to commemorate the Louisiana Purchase and the Lewis and Clark expedition. This is the first major redesign of a US coin by the US Mint since the Lincoln Memorial was put on the reverse side of the penny in 1959. Here's the full press release.

Also, in continuing efforts to thwart counterfeiters, the Bureau of Printing and Engraving is releasing a newly redesigned $10 bill. This follows similar changes to the $100, $50 and $20. Is the $5 far behind? The new $10 includes red and orange in addition to the traditional green inks and watermarks of the first line of the Constitution and the torch of the statue of liberty.

Look for both of these in your change in early 2006.

Download the 2006 Fuel Economy Database

Tired of high gas prices? Tired of sensely American military deaths in the Middle East? Download the 2006 EPA Fuel Economy Database and buy a car that doesn't continue to support our dependence on foreign oil.

Parker: Month 1 (Take 2)

Ok, so, Yahoo! Photo won't allow direct linking to images. Neither will Kodak, so looks like I'm going to be using Flickr for web image hosting and Kodak Galleries for full sized images, album sharing and prints. Anybody have any suggestions for a good all imclusive photo hosting site?

You can see the full Parker: Month 1 album here.

Paul Foster Macy

Paul Foster Macy, originally uploaded by jcroach.

Paul Macy and mom, Dair Brown, originally uploaded by jcroach.

First pictures of Paul Foster Macy taken Tuesday, October 12th.

Condolences and Congratulations

Some long delayed condolences and congratulations.

Our condolences to the family of Vladimir Micuda who died on September 20th. Vladimir was the father of my boss, Tom Micuda. He died in State College, Pennsylvania, after a long battle with brain cancer. Memorial contributions can be made to the American Brain Tumor Association, 2720 River Road, Des Plaines, Il, 60018.

Congratulations to Ryan Williams and Jennifer Hughes who were married on October 2nd. I had the privilege of being the best man for the ceremony that was held in Indy's historic Athenaeum building. This was the first time I've served as the best man for a wedding and fortunately my toast went off without a hitch. Laughs in all the right places. The newlyweds have just finished a honeymoon in the beautiful river town of Memphis, Tennessee. We wish Ryan and Jennifer all the best.

And finally, congratulations to the Macy/Brown family on the birth of Paul Foster Macy! Paul was born on Friday, October 7th, at 8:17 AM and weighted in at 8 lbs 10 ozs. Jon and Dair should be bringing Paul home today and I'm sure big brother Cooper is excited. Pictures will be posted shortly!

What's a childhood without a Big Wheel?!

Alpha International Inc. has brought back the one, the only, Original 16 inch Big Wheels! These were the absolute best when I was growing up. They're been made since 1969. I remember the annual Big Wheel race in the Lebanon Memorial Park around the 4th of July. i never won, but it was fun. I might have to buy one for Parker now in case they stop making these!

Vonnegut, on politics, presidents and librarians

Here's a great story about Kurt Vonnegut from USA Today.

Vonnegegut starts off the interview with this quote:

"What do you want to talk about? Politics? Our president is a complete twit. I'll talk about the death of the novel. I'll talk about anything you want."

Great stuff.

Parker at the hospital

Now that we've had Parker home two weeks, it's time to post some of the pictures from his birth and hospital stay. You can see all of the pictures on Kodakgallery.com, just follow the link.







Parker had his first "Well Baby" check-up on Tuesday. He's now 21 1/2 inches long and 8 lbs 11 ozs. He's in the 75th percentile for height. Where did that come from?!

U2 takes over the Conan O'Brien show. Tonight!

U2 will spend an entire hour on NBC's "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" tonight, Thursday, October 6 (12:35-1:35 am).

U2 are expected to perform multiple songs. U2's Thursday appearance will be the first time that "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" has devoted an entire show to one guest. Other groundbreaking stints by the biggest musical artists of the day on "Late Night" have included a surprise performance by Bruce Springsteen before taking "Late Night" drummer Max Weinberg on the road, a weeklong stay by The White Stripes and a month-of-Tuesdays with The Strokes.

Here's the full story.