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Where Jill Will Talk Like She Writes
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Apr
30
Digby addreses WVWV situation
Filed Under Civil Rights, Campaigning, Voting, Women, Elections, Politics, Announcements, Blogging | Leave a Comment
Please read what Digby wrote here at Hullabaloo.
What she said.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 11:18 pm April 30th, 2008 in Civil Rights, Campaigning, Voting, Women, Elections, Politics, Announcements, Blogging | Please comment
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Apr
30
I’m not extraordinary like Liz Phair at all
Filed Under Politics | 4 Comments
Anyone remember some of my posts from the first months of this blog? Well, if you didn’t like them then, you won’t like this one now.
Today has been an absolutely extraordinary day. And I mean just that - extra. ordinary.
Now, maybe that word has a bad rap - maybe it’s supposed to be beyond ordinary in the sense that you can’t get any more mundane. Because it’s ordinary to the max.
But that would not describe today at all.
Today was…what was today?
Today was a day that’s ending with me drinking a glass of wine - actually, almost but not quite a second, which I almost never do. But I’m cheating - I didn’t really fill either glass that full. But, for the record, I filled it twice (it’s a cab of some kind - leftover Kosher I think - Jeff Hess, you did not drink enough!).
The day started out fine - typical. Kids up and out, taking the OAT (blech) and I left the house at 8am to meet with the woman who was my mentor during the leadership institute I was in, that ended two years ago. It was great to sit with her and we gobbled up the time and could have gone on for much longer. I’m very lucky to have her in my life.
Then I went to the bookstore and bought Cliff Schecter’s book, The REAL McCain which I’ll be reviewing and doing an interview with Cliff for publication on The Moderate Voice, BlogHer and links from here to those. I participated in the conference call he had with another author of a McCain book, Paul Waldman, on Monday evening - or was it Tuesday? I can’t remember anymore.
While there, an uber-mother from my school district tracked me down and got me to commit to volunteering for something while I was waiting to have some presents wrapped for the children of a certain blogger who recently had a new baby. But we won’t say anything more about that, now will we?
I eventually left the store, went home, folded laundry, emptied the dishwasher, packed up a defective wireless keyboard of my son’s and sat down to work on a fellowship application when the phone rang - one of my kids was in the nurse’s office and could I come to retrieve? Lucky for me, my SO was already at the school participating with one of our other children in a class activity and was able to retrieve said sick child.
When said sick child returned home, we ate lunch together and chatted. It actually was very sweet and enjoyable. Sick child went to bed to nap and I went back to my computer.
It was some time after that - while I was then working on a super-secret activity - that I received a couple of emails that made everything about the day become like riding in the back seat of a bus without Dramamine. Sick to my stomach.
But kids were coming home, dinner had to be made, the fellowship application hadn’t been worked on and I have a column due tomorrow. And did I mention an elementary school spring concert to go to?
And the sick child of course.
Sigh. Sip from glass.
Yup - it’s been an extra.ordinary day today. And I really hope tomorrow isn’t a repeat.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 11:03 pm April 30th, 2008 in Politics | 4 Comments
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Apr
30
[update] State Rep. Josh Mandel (R-17, Lyndhurst) returned today
Filed Under Campaigning, Republicans, Military, Statehouse, Elections, Government, Politics | Leave a Comment
Listen here for more.
Update: From WKYC (which says he’s 30 but the PD said 29)
District 17 state Rep. Josh Mandel arrived home from his second tour of duty in Iraq about 2 p.m. Wednesday.
His arrival was totally unlike the “family-friends-media” hoopla that took place at Cleveland Hopkins International airport when he returned from his first tour in 2004.
This time, he was greeted only by his fiancee, Ilana Shafran, of University Heights, and no, their first words were not about their upcoming Aug. 28 wedding.
I agree 100% with Mandel’s kudos to his office aides, Michael Lord in particular who has been very on top of the couple of issues I’ve been following (I still owe him a return call from before my herniated disc).
Mazel tov on the safe return and the nuptuals.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 7:01 pm April 30th, 2008 in Campaigning, Republicans, Military, Statehouse, Elections, Government, Politics | Please comment
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Apr
30
Anger, pleading for Dann to stop the madness
Filed Under Civil Rights, Law, Gender, Democrats, Scandal, Government, Politics, Ohio, Women, Blogging | 4 Comments
Modern Esquire is losing his patience, though not fast enough for me. From this Buckeye State Blog post:
WHAT IS THIS OFFICE DOING TO CHANGE THE CULTURE THERE TO A MORE PROFESSIONAL ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH DANN’S SCHEDULER DOESN’T FEEL COMFORTABLE SAYING “F.U.” TO HER BOSS AND HARD DRINKING AND PARTYING IS STANDARD OFFICE CONVERSATION AND AFTER HOURS ACTIVITIES?!?
All uppercase lettering and bold was in the original.
I want to go further and hear from Ohio Democratic Party Chairman, Chris Redfern, but so far - silence. Lest anyone forget, two years ago, when I wrote about how the ODP wasn’t accommodating Eric Fingerhut’s religious observance customs, Redfern called me to ask why I didn’t call him before blogging.
Well - not only hasn’t he called first or called back this time, he hasn’t written either.
How about something from the ODP’s Women’s Outreach effort (listed here under Constituency Issues) ? That would be a start.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 5:20 pm April 30th, 2008 in Civil Rights, Law, Gender, Democrats, Scandal, Government, Politics, Ohio, Women, Blogging | 4 Comments
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Apr
30
[updatex4] Women’s Voices Women Vote controversy
Filed Under Women, Campaigning, Voting, Elections, Ohio, Politics, Media, Announcements, Blogging | 3 Comments
Not long ago, I emailed people and posted entries on this blog about a campaign that the Women’s Voices Women Vote organization conducted. Myself and nine other political bloggers who are women were told that they were the top ten most nominated female bloggers and eventually, Digby was announced to be the Favorite Female Blogger.
The other eight were:
Helen Boyd (update x2: she weighs in here - I agree with her conclusion)
At least a few of these women are actually famous and/or notorious for their blogging, depending on how you look at it. In particular, Digby, Jessica Valenti, Melissa McEwan, Taylor Marsh and Jill Stanek are in fact well-known throughout the blogosphere.
Dave Harding of Progress Ohio, who very generously promoted the WVWV favorite female blogger effort, forwarded to me early this afternoon some incredibly disturbing information about seemingly inappropriate and perhaps illegal activities that WVWV is alleged to have pursued in relation to voter registration.
I’ve written the group and requested more information which I will be happy to share, though I don’t expect it to differ from anything that’s out already.
Here is what I know - and it’s all that Dave sent me.
An entry from Facing South on the allegations
An entry on TPMMuckraker describing the allegations
I apologize and am sorry for any way in which my involvement with the favorite blogger effort broadened the group’s ability to engage in what are now serious allegations related to voter registration - whether due to human error or purposeful deception.
Update: Meta-collection (most recent added to the top): Read more
By Jill Miller Zimon at 4:34 pm April 30th, 2008 in Women, Campaigning, Voting, Elections, Ohio, Politics, Media, Announcements, Blogging | 3 Comments
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Apr
30
Carnival of Ohio Politics #115 now posted
Filed Under Ohio, Writing, Announcements, Carnivals, Politics, Blogging | Leave a Comment
Ben Keeler of the Keeler Political Report edited the Carnival of Ohio Politics #115 and you can read the offerings here.
Thanks again to everyone who contributed.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 3:49 pm April 30th, 2008 in Ohio, Writing, Announcements, Carnivals, Politics, Blogging | Please comment
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Apr
29
Bush to address free-fall economy, 10:30 today (4/29/08)
Filed Under Republicans, George Bush, Economy, Business, Announcements, Government, Politics | 7 Comments
No sooner had I gotten notice about home prices falling a record 12.7% in the last year in 20 key markets and saw this headline on my homepage about Countrywide Financial losing nearly $1 billion in the first quarter minutes apart, then I got an email alert from the Washington Post that:
VIDEO: Presidential News Conference
President Bush is scheduled to hold a press conference at 10:30 a.m. ET. To view live streaming video of this event on the Web, go to http://www.washingtonpost.com/postlive1.For more information, visit washingtonpost.com
More here on the press conference:
President Bush is trying to address mounting anxieties about U.S. economic problems as energy prices soar and more Americans lose their homes in foreclosures.
The president planned to talk about those subjects in a news conference at 10:30 a.m. EDT Tuesday in the Rose Garden. The president planned an eight-minute opening statement dealing with energy prices, food costs and farm legislation, bills to help more Americans keep their homes and giving the federal government more authority to buy student loans.
White House press secretary Dana Perino said Bush would discuss “American’s understandable anxiety about issues affecting their pocketbook.”
By Jill Miller Zimon at 9:28 am April 29th, 2008 in Republicans, George Bush, Economy, Business, Announcements, Government, Politics | 7 Comments
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Apr
28
The Media, Miley Cyrus and Vanity (Fair)
Filed Under Marketing, Gender, Youth, Women, Culture, Education, Media, Parenting | 13 Comments
New Moon Girl Media has a new blog called, Girl Media Maven. I met the blog author, Nancy Gruver, at WAM!2008 and she has accomplished far more than I can pay homage to in this post. Suffice it to say that Gruver, as the founder of New Moon, has dedicated a large chunk of her life to making sure that parents have good materials to introduce to, share with and give to their daughters.
In this post about Miley Cyrus’s photos that accompany a June 2008 Vanity Fair article, Gruver reviews the contribution or last thereof of the parties involved in that shoot:
You no doubt know that Miley plays Hannah Montana on the Disney Channel’s most-watched show. She and her character are beloved and idolized by millions of tween girls (on the Hannah Montana website emails from fans give ages from 8 to 12). Many parents have been relieved there’s a teen star who didn’t follow in the hyper-sexualized footsteps of Lindsay, Britney, Paris and countless others. Guess it’s time to re-think that relief.
I don’t blame Miley - she’s a media star in our oh-so-tired popular culture that still values women (and increasingly younger girls) for sex appeal and little else (no matter what it says, the images tell the truth). And she’s at an age when exploration of her sexuality is appropriate and important.
But her exploration shouldn’t be fodder for Annie Leibovitz, Vanity Fair or anyone else. That’s called voyeurism and it’s creepy. Which is exactly the feeling I got looking at the photo. Not only does it look like she’s been surprised in bed, her posture and expression make her look even younger than 15, giving the photo a very disturbing whiff of child porn.
Go for it - what do you think?
You should know that Miley has issued a statement about being embarrassed by the story and photos:
“I took part in a photo shoot that was supposed to be ‘artistic’ and now, seeing the photographs and reading the story, I feel so embarrassed,” Cyrus said Sunday in a statement through her publicist. “I never intended for any of this to happen and I apologize to my fans who I care so deeply about.”
And from the wayback machine, does anyone remember what they thought of or how they felt when Brooke Shields was in Pretty Baby?
By Jill Miller Zimon at 5:40 pm April 28th, 2008 in Marketing, Gender, Youth, Women, Culture, Education, Media, Parenting | 13 Comments
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Apr
28
Daniel Jack Williamson starts a blog: Buckeye RINO
Filed Under Ohio, Announcements, Media, Politics, Blogging | 4 Comments
I am thrilled with this development because Daniel Jack Williamson is one of my most favorite commenters. He also writes for The Other Paper and frequently comments * and I believe also guest posts at The Word of Mouth aka Wom blog. He is thorough, engaging and a Republican, can you believe?
Just kidding. Please welcome Dan to Ohio’s political blogosphere, on his own turf. You can read his new blog, Buckeye RINO here. It will be an excellent addition, I have no doubt.
And knowing the time and energy it takes, I give Dan a lot of credit for taking it on. We’re going to keep at you to keep it current!
*See Dan’s comment below. My bad. Sorry to both Dan’s.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 10:00 am April 28th, 2008 in Ohio, Announcements, Media, Politics, Blogging | 4 Comments
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Apr
28
Exclusive Gov. Strickland interview, Six Point Plan & voucher veto threat on SB 57
Filed Under 'Roots News, Law, Ted Strickland, Statehouse, Government, Politics, Education, Ohio, Blogging | 4 Comments
Many thanks to Phil Hayes of the Columbus Education Association for notifying me that the CEA interview with Ohio Governor Ted Strickland is now posted on the CEA blog. Kudos for a very nice job.
The Six Point Plan elements:
1. Strengthen our commitment to Ohio’s public schools and public education.
2. Modernernize education system directly linked to our state’s growth and prosperity.
3. Identify, build on existing school strengths.
4. Utilize the best teachers to improve instruction.
5. Provide personalized education programs that are relevant to the needs of each Ohio student.
6. Make testing and assessment diagnostic and prescriptive, showing students’ strengths and weaknesses.
On Senate Bill 57:
Senate Bill 57 would allow the parents of special education students throughout the state to get up to a $20,000 voucher to send their student to any school in the state— traditional public, charter or private.
Under this legislation, the student’s originating district would still be responsible for custody and maintenance of their Individualized Education Program (IEP) yet would not receive any funding to do so. The proposed legislation has received its sixth hearing in the Senate’s Education Committee, and could soon be sent to the floor for debate and a potential vote by the entire membership of the Senate. Strickland is unwavering in his opposition.
“Well, you know there was a similar effort made with the budget recently, and I carved that provision out with a veto,” said Strickland. “I’m not supportive of this legislation—it’s one more attempt to privatize public education with public dollars and public resources. I’ve been very clear with my attitude towards vouchers— public money should be used for public schools with public oversight.”
Governor Strickland went one step further, going on record for the first time ever as to what his actions would be if Senate Bill 57 survived the legislative process and made it to the Executive Office.
“If this bill comes across my desk in its current form, then I will veto it,” resolved Strickland.
Please read the entire interview article here.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 9:34 am April 28th, 2008 in 'Roots News, Law, Ted Strickland, Statehouse, Government, Politics, Education, Ohio, Blogging | 4 Comments
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