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Dec
24
Jews, Madoff and affinity fraud: when you can’t trust your own
Filed Under Culture, Ethics, Gambling, Jewish, Judaism, Law, Scandal, Social Issues | 6 Comments
Devastating truths. This morning, in an NPR broadcast, Dean Emeritus of the Boston University Law School, who wrote this article for the Wall Street Journal, titled, “Madoff Exploited the Jews,” spoke about his view of how Bernard Madoff preyed on Jews not because that’s who he knew but because that’s who was most vulnerable to trusting in him.
The alleged Bernard Madoff Ponzi scheme is the latest example of a crime referred to as affinity fraud. The SEC has warned about these crimes, in which a member of an ethnic or religious group preys on his own. Ronald Cass, dean emeritus of the Boston University Law School, wrote about affinity fraud recently in The Wall Street Journal. He talks with Linda Wertheimer about why affinity fraud is relatively easy to pull off.
Is this any different from just being gullible? Yeah, it’s worse.
From the WSJ article:
The Madoff tale is striking in part because it is like stealing from family. Yet frauds that prey on people who share bonds of religion or ethnicity, who travel in the same circles, are quite common. Two years ago the Securities and Exchange Commission issued a warning about “affinity fraud.” The SEC ticked off a series of examples of schemes that were directed at members of a community: Armenian-Americans, Baptist Church members, Jehovah’s Witnesses, African-American church groups, Korean-Americans. In each case, the perpetrator relied on the fact that being from the same community provided a reason to trust the sales pitch, to believe it was plausible that someone from the same background would give you a deal that, if offered by someone without such ties, would sound too good to be true.
The sense of common heritage, of community, also makes it less seemly to ask hard questions. Pressing a fellow parishioner or club member for hard information is like demanding receipts from your aunt — it just doesn’t feel right. Hucksters know that, they play on it, and they count on our trust to make their confidence games work.
The level of affinity and of trust may be especially high among Jews. The Holocaust and generations of anti-Semitic laws and practices around the world made reliance on other Jews, and care for them, a survival instinct. As a result, Jews are often an easy target both for fund-raising appeals and fraud. But affinity plays a role in many groups, making members more trusting of appeals within the group.
What I hate the most about the Madoff scandal is how, like discovering the pervasiveness of hanging chads and the fact that the decision remains that of humans who have biases just by being them and not me, is how the foundation of trust in each other – regardless of affinity – has been, again, perhaps irreparably stricken.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 9:34 am December 24th, 2008 in Culture, Ethics, Gambling, Jewish, Judaism, Law, Scandal, Social Issues | 6 Comments
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Dec
23
First Madoff-related suicide reported: Thierry Magon de La Villehuchet
Filed Under Business, Courts, Crime, Economy, Ethics, Government, Judaism, Law, Scandal | 2 Comments
Thierry Magon de La Villehuchet, who ran a fund that invested with Bernard Madoff, was found dead today in his New York office in an apparent suicide, Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said.
“Our investigative premise is that it was a suicide,” Kelly said in an interview. De La Villehuchet, 65, was found “with his feet propped up on his desk, a trash pail nearby to collect blood,” and no sign of a second person, Kelly said.
The money manager had “multiple stab wounds” to his arms and wrists, a box-cutter and pills were found nearby, and no suicide note was found, Kelly said. De La Villehuchet was co- founder and chief executive officer of Access International Advisors, a New York firm that invested $1.4 billion with Madoff, who was arrested on Dec. 11 for allegedly running a $50 billion Ponzi scheme.
The death of de la Villehuchet, who founded Access in 1994 with Patrick Littaye, came as lawsuits mounted in connection with investors victimized by Madoff.
This NYT article talks about the spiritual reflections on Madoff from members of the Jewish community, but the final lines say it all:
According to Jewish tradition, the last question people are asked when they meet God after dying is, “Did you hope for redemption?”
Rabbi Wolpe said he did not believe Mr. Madoff could ever make amends. “It is not possible for him to atone for all the damage he did, and I don’t even think that there is a punishment that is commensurate with the crime, for the wreckage of lives that he’s left behind,” Rabbi Wolpe said. “The only thing he could do, for the rest of his life, is work for redemption that he would never achieve.”
To call it a shanda is an enormous understatement, but it is Madoff himself who appears to be someone who, a very long time ago, shed the shield of shame we’re intended to carry as a necessary part of our moral compass.
Hattip to a tweet from Breaking News On.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 5:34 pm December 23rd, 2008 in Business, Courts, Crime, Economy, Ethics, Government, Judaism, Law, Scandal | 2 Comments
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Dec
23
PD bias re: deaths of politically-active persons continues
Filed Under Cleveland+, Democrats, Elections, Government, Media, Ohio, Politics, Republicans, Writing | 6 Comments
So, yesterday, I noted how the Plain Dealer left out basic and newsworthy information about the late Michael Connell, an Ohio businessman in all things Internet and computers, who worked with top GOP figures including George Bush and John McCain. The excluded information:
1. The PD doesn’t mention any of the connections Connell had to former Secretary of State and GOP gubernatorial candidate Ken Blackwell or the back end of the SOS’s 2004 presidential election vote compilation.
2. The PD excludes any mention of the federal lawsuit regarding alleged voter fraud and rigging in which Connell had been subpoenaed.
Compare that coverage to this:
Today, we learn the sad and also untimely death of 50 year old Rosemary Vinci. But this time, the Plain Dealer article is replete with information about her connections to politicos and FBI investigations. Look at all the PD had to write, in such a short time (they didn’t report anything on Connell for three days, but Vinci was found at 5pm just last night):
[Cuyahoga County Commissioner and county Democratic Party Chair Jimmy] Dimora and [Cuyahoga County Auditor Frank] Russo are focuses of a federal corruption probe of county government. During a raid of Russo’s home and office, investigators sought pictures of Dimora and Vinci and documents related to Vinci, records show.
An FBI spokesman declined to say late Monday if Vinci was a focus of the corruption probe.
For years, Vinci managed the now-closed Tiffany’s, a high-end strip club on the west bank of the Flats. She recently pursued plans to open a social club at a property she owned in the Flats, but the project stalled because of zoning issues.
She had been active in the local Democratic Party, which Dimora leads.
Three months before the FBI raids, Vinci was at the center of a political storm when The Plain Dealer asked about her job on the county payroll. She made $48,000 a year, but officials gave varying accounts of who her boss was and what her duties were. Dimora ejected two reporters from a public meeting after refusing to answer questions about her.
Russo said Vinci worked for his office only, as a liaison to Cleveland City Hall. But several county employees, including one in the auditor’s office, told the newspaper at the time that Vinci also did work for the commissioners. Vinci said she worked for Russo and Dimora and spoke for both on behalf of the county to City Council members.
Vinci left much of her application for the job blank and did not check “yes” or “no” in the section that asked if she had any felony convictions. So, Russo said he was surprised when a reporter informed him that Vinci was found guilty in 1985 of theft and forgery in Florida. He kept her on his staff because he valued her connections at City Hall.
“She’s a good person,” Russo said at the time. “She committed no crime while on our payroll.”
Vinci’s family has deep roots in the area. Her father operated Diamond Jim’s steakhouse and owned valuable property in the Flats until he was murdered in 1985. Over time, Vinci became a political insider.
Until recently, she had been the head of the Ward 13 Democratic Club, home turf of City Councilman Joe Cimperman. And in 2005, she managed Joe Santiago’s successful council campaign.
She also chaired the Duck Island Block Club and had served as president of the board at Tremont West Development Corp.
Wow. That’s some editorial filtering.
And then, there are six, count ‘em, six hyperlinked headlines, five in a box and one underneath a photo of Vinci, taking you to the following articles: Read more
By Jill Miller Zimon at 12:01 pm December 23rd, 2008 in Cleveland+, Democrats, Elections, Government, Media, Ohio, Politics, Republicans, Writing | 6 Comments
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Dec
22
[text] Inspector General report released in former AG Marc Dann case
Filed Under attorney general, Marc Dann, Ohio, Politics, Scandal | 6 Comments
Thank you to Capital Blog for the links:
By Jill Miller Zimon at 2:53 pm December 22nd, 2008 in attorney general, Marc Dann, Ohio, Politics, Scandal | 6 Comments
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Dec
22
Someone from whom I’ve been seeking advice and wisdom suggested that the idea of a gadfly comes to mind when thinking about me – though it was specifically stated that it was not in a pejorative way.
I had the idea of a gadfly (not to be confused with Mickey Rourke and Faye Dunaway in Barfly – what a dark movie) but wasn’t exactly sure so, being the Internet-dependent person I sometimes am, I googled it and looked first at the Wikipedia result. Wow. Nail on head. Especially for anyone who knows that I “named” my first car Plato and studied a lot of political theory. From Wikipedia:
“Gadfly” is a term for people who upset the status quo by posing upsetting or novel questions, or just being an irritant.
The term “gadfly” (Gk. muopa)[1] was used by Plato in the Apology[2] to describe Socrates‘ relationship of uncomfortable goad to the Athenian political scene, which he compared to a slow and dimwitted horse. The Bible also references the gadfly in terms of political influence; The Book of Jeremiah (46:20, Darby Bible) states “Egypt is a very fair heifer; the gad-fly cometh, it cometh from the north.” The term has been used to describe many politicians and social commentators; in modern Hebrew, which knows many more idioms than those used by Jeremiah, gadfly is “mekhapes pagam” literally “fault finder”.
During his defense when on trial for his life, Socrates, according to Plato’s writings, pointed out that dissent, like the tiny (relative to the size of a horse) gadfly, was easy to swat, but the cost to society of silencing individuals who were irritating could be very high. “If you kill a man like me, you will injure yourselves more than you will injure me,” because his role was that of a gadfly, “to sting people and whip them into a fury, all in the service of truth.”
In modern and local politics, gadfly is a term used to describe someone who persistently challenges people in positions of power, the status quo or a popular position.[3] The word may be uttered in a pejorative sense, while at the same time be accepted as a description of honorable work or civic duty.[4]
But yeah, remember – not in pejorative sense, got it?
By Jill Miller Zimon at 1:32 pm December 22nd, 2008 in Jill Miller Zimon | 4 Comments
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Dec
22
Plain Dealer plays it safe in Michael Connell article
Filed Under Elections, Media, Ohio, Writing | 8 Comments
As an Ohio paper of record, there is no excuse for the Plain Dealer to have excluded two very specific and known pieces of information related to the late Michael Connell’s work. Here’s the article and here’s what it excludes:
1. It doesn’t mention any of the Ohio connections Connell had to former Secretary of State and GOP gubernatorial candidate Ken Blackwell or the back end of the SOS’s 2004 presidential election vote compilation.
2. It also excludes any mention of the federal lawsuit regarding alleged voter fraud and rigging in which Connell had been subpoenaed.
The PD is an Ohio paper. Hyperlocal request? Not even. How about a little more on just the Ohio connections? Instead, one quote from Alex Arshinkoff of the Summit County Republican Party, who is quoted as saying that he knew Connell by reputation only.
Don’t bother with the “that’s not news or doesn’t belong in a news story about this event” roll of the eyes. NewsNet5 included it barely a day after the incident occurred:
He was subpoenaed in September to testify in a federal lawsuit.
He also helped operate campaign Web sites for President Bush and former presidential nominee John McCain.
Connell was the CEO and founder of Cleveland-based New Media Communications, which built campaign Web sites for Bush and McCain, according to the company’s Web site. The site said the company also worked with the Ohio Republican Party and the Republican National Committee, among other political groups.
A group of voters filed the lawsuit that questioned his methods of running the election machines in Ohio in the 2004 presidential election.
Sigh. Those Plain Dealer editorial filters and its choices. Already someone in the comments at the blog post of this story has submitted a correction to the type of plane reported in the PD’s story. And the story is appearing on 12/22, the accident occurred the night of 12/19.
While I’m pleased that the paper filtered out the conspiracy theory concerns circulating about the accident – there is no need for a published print article on the concerns until site-related investigations are complete or other significant and corroborated information is available, to not include Connell’s connections to Ohio election activity and the Ohio Republican Party? No excuse – just editors being far too conservative in deciding what they think we need to know as news filtering.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 12:21 pm December 22nd, 2008 in Elections, Media, Ohio, Writing | 8 Comments
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Dec
21
Four women and a moderator, though none of them are wearing only a tie
Filed Under Gender, Media, Women | 8 Comments
Oh yeah, the media has great filters. That’s why the Jennifer Aniston naked on the cover of GQ magazine is garnering so much attention. Gotta love those filters the media has and the blogs lack. Woohoo, what a difference they make for telling us what we need to know.
But at least David Gregory on Meet the Press today didn’t make his all-female roundtable match the Anniston cover:
ERIN BURNETT
Anchor, CNBC’s “Street Signs”
Co-Anchor, CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street”
CAROL MARIN
Political Columnist, Chicago Sun-Times
Political Editor, NBC5/WMAQ-TV Chicago
ANDREA MITCHELL
Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent, NBC News
MICHELE NORRIS
Host, NPR’s “All Things Considered”
And his guest was Condelezza Rice. Good for Gregory. But three pieces of advice going forward:
1. Don’t make this the last time or even the precedent. Mix it up. We like being on roundtables with men and women, you know.
2. There is no excuse for having an all-male roundtable of four. Ever. Don’t do it.
3. How about a blogger once in a while?
By Jill Miller Zimon at 12:36 pm December 21st, 2008 in Gender, Media, Women | 8 Comments
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Dec
21
Bush demands concessions from auto industry chiefs, but bank men? Not so much
Filed Under Business, Economy | 4 Comments
From the AP which I can’t quote extensively so you’ll need to go read it:
_Even where banks cut back on pay, some executives were left with seven- or eight-figure compensation that most people can only dream about. Richard D. Fairbank, the chairman of Capital One Financial Corp. (COF) (COF), took a $1 million hit in compensation after his company had a disappointing year, but still got $17 million in stock options. The McLean, Va.-based company received $3.56 billion in bailout money on Nov. 14.
_John A. Thain, chief executive officer of Merrill Lynch, topped all corporate bank bosses with $83 million in earnings last year. Thain, a former chief operating officer for Goldman Sachs, took the reins of the company in December 2007, avoiding the blame for a year in which Merrill lost $7.8 billion. Since he began work late in the year, he earned $57,692 in salary, a $15 million signing bonus and an additional $68 million in stock options.
A $15 million signing bonus. What IS that? (Don’t be daft – I know what signing bonuses are about but the guy just started one year ago, when all this could be seen rattling and they give him that kind of money?)
So the question remains: what did they actually do that earned them that money? What exactly are the compensation committee members thinking?
We can figure out what they’re not thinking about pretty easily.
So what’s my explanation of the different treatment given to the auto guys?
The bankers are all in Washington. They are in office in government branches that matter. The auto industry folks are not. It’s an inside-outside philosophical preference in terms of how the people in D.C. judge who, outside D.C., really matters to our economy and to what extent.
So when we talk about appointments for the next administration, this is, in part, what we’re looking at: where do the people come from? What will be their philosophical preferences for who really matters to our economy and to what extent? I would argue that it is that change that people like myself, who were not bald-faced supporters of Barack Obama but rather committed Democrats, feel we supported and pray gets implemented at every level. It ain’t socialism, but it sure as hell doesn’t approve of the bank men getting away with our billions while the auto folks are forced to grovel for scraps.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 11:49 am December 21st, 2008 in Business, Economy | 4 Comments
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Dec
20
RIP, Michael Connell, Internet-savvy political consultant for GOP
Filed Under Ohio, Politics, Republicans, RIP, Tech | 7 Comments
Michael Connell was killed when the Piper Supercub he was piloting crashed three miles short of an Akron-Canton Airport runway. He leaves behind a wife and four children.
Connell, 45, of Bath Township, is considered to be one of the Republican Party’s top computer experts. He led the companies that designed websites for the GOP and a virtual who’s-who list of republican political leaders including President George W. Bush, Senator John McCain, as well as national organizations. Connell developed a host of federal government software and data management systems. Connell is also said to be a close confidant of the Bush family.
Earlier this year Connell was subpoenaed to testify in an Ohio federal court regarding voter fraud just days before the November presidential election. His alleged intimate knowledge of White House and Capitol Hill email systems has been a hot topic of conversation for Washington insiders regarding the Karl Rove/White House email scandal.
Ohio.com has details of the crash and scene.
Connell was perhaps best known recently for his creation and success with New Media Communications. From WKYC:
Connell founded New Media Communications, based in Cleveland, is the CEO of GovTech Solutions, based in Akron, and is associated with several other successful IT, marketing and advertising enterprises. His companies have won numerous awards for the development of political websites, marketing campaigns, and use of technology. New Media Communications placed third on the prestigious Weatherhead 100, a list compiled by Case Western Reserve University’s Weatherhead School of Management that recognizes Northeast Ohio’s fastest growing companies.
As of this morning, Mr. Connell’s bio was still posted at the company’s website, so you can read more about him here.
He had a wife and four children. My heart goes out to them.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 2:08 pm December 20th, 2008 in Ohio, Politics, Republicans, RIP, Tech | 7 Comments
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Dec
20
PD’s Campanelli does nice job on Chanukah but commenters can’t resist anti-Semitism
Filed Under Holidays, Jewish, Judaism, Media, Ohio, Politics, Religion, Writing | 14 Comments
Such a shame because John Campanelli does a great job in this Plain Dealer article exploring the evolution of the holiday and using individuals to explain how mainstream Chanukah is now compared to 20-30 years ago. He has his idea as to just what exploded it into the mainstream and while I smile at the thought, it is kind of weird to think that this one song did all that. But just maybe it did. It’s a miracle, as we like to say at Chanukah.
The Original Chanukah Song:
Adam Sandler’s Second Version (all new Jews!):
Adam Sandler’s Third Version (the intro is for the video production company)
Everyone have a great holiday season. Here’s a photo of me pointing out the Chanukiah case on the outside of a home in the Old City of Jerusalem. Displaying the lit candles on the chanukiah (menorah) dates back to the beginning of the holiday.
Israeli Jews display chanukiot on the outside of the home
By Jill Miller Zimon at 10:26 am December 20th, 2008 in Holidays, Jewish, Judaism, Media, Ohio, Politics, Religion, Writing | 14 Comments
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Dec
19
Some people pay me department: Chanukah 2009
Filed Under Blogging, Culture, Holidays, Jewish, Judaism, Religion, Writing | Comments Off
Over at About.com’s Cleveland channel, you can read my essay, Not quite a pageant, but a whole lotta fun.
To everyone celebrating starting Sunday evening, Chag Sameach.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 1:35 pm December 19th, 2008 in Blogging, Culture, Holidays, Jewish, Judaism, Religion, Writing | Comments Off
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Dec
19
The “wait your turn” argument
Filed Under Barack Obama, Campaigning, Congress, Gender, leadership, Politics, Sexism, Women | 7 Comments
Here’s the Judith Warner op-ed that got me started.
I’m unsure if I’m saying properly what I’m feeling, but I am interested in hearing how people feel about this argument. There are plenty of arguments as to why Caroline Kennedy is not the best pick to replace Hillary Clinton as the junior senator from New York to the U.S. Senate. And I actually don’t think NY Governor David Paterson should or will choose her (I have no horse in this race – wasn’t an original Obama supporter, don’t live in NY etc.) for the appointment (whomever is appointed will have to run in 2010). But Warner’s op-ed really bothers me, and this argument she makes, which I’ve been reacting to all week, really disturbs me, but I can’t get my finger on why precisely.
I am distraught over the “wait her turn” argument about Kennedy from the perspective of a woman who was a working out of the home mother for eight years and a work from home mom for eight more years.
On the one hand, I find merit in the argument because if a candidate doesn’t have, relative to the other candidates, experience that makes sense as it relates to the job, it doesn’t matter what the person has been doing before becoming a candidate.
But I can’t stop thinking about how it is also this “wait your turn” line of argument that keeps women, in general, from getting into positions of political leadership, often due to incumbency and the fact that women enter politics at an average age several years above that of men.
For women who try to enter the workforce, and in the case politics, after any time out for childrearing, it’s this exact attitude that devalues and discredits whatever accomplishments were achieved while not seeking political office (or a job in whichever career). Now, I know this is one of the reasons why so-called opting out is such a problem, and so maybe this is just my privilege speaking – and I will accept that as the criticism of my concern.
But I firmly believe that Warner and others can choose so many better arguments for why Kennedy would not be and is not Paterson’s best choice. So why does this argument and the snarkiness in Warner’s oped have to be the argument one that’s published and emphasized?
One of the lessons EMILY’s List and the White House Project try to teach the women they train is that sometimes you have to run for political office over and over and over to win, and so it’s part of why their programs work to recruit women at younger ages. But there’s something that just feels wrong to me about the way in which Warner is proverbially patting Kennedy on the head. It feels not nice and very unsupportive. And, frankly, reminiscent of Barack Obama’s sweetie incident.
Thoughts?
By Jill Miller Zimon at 11:04 am December 19th, 2008 in Barack Obama, Campaigning, Congress, Gender, leadership, Politics, Sexism, Women | 7 Comments
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Dec
18
Research: U.S. employees earn least amount of severance
Filed Under Business, Economy, employment, Law, Retirement | 5 Comments
I use that word “earn” reluctantly because it is the packages deployed that impact what the employee “earns.”
A new global study by Right Management has found that employees laid off in the United States earn the least amount of severance pay worldwide – no matter what level of employee or amount of tenure with the organization.
…
The global study across 28 countries draws from more than 1,500 responses from human resource professionals and senior managers responsible for making severance decisions in their organization, including 456 from the United States. US-based employees consistently earn less severance per year of service than colleagues around the world. Top executives earned as little as 2.76 weeks of severance per year of service, compared to a worldwide mean of 3.39 weeks per year of service. The disparity increases as the level of employee decreases.
More specifically:
Among other key findings from the study:
- US employers are more likely (68%) to enforce a cap on severance payments than the rest of the world (56%).
- Ninety-six percent of separated employees in the US are required to sign a waiver before they can access severance benefits, reflecting the litigious culture of this country.
- Unlike in other regions, 61% of companies in the US tend to offer severance right away with no minimum tenure required, compared to 42% doing so in the rest of the world.
“Companies in the United States lead the way with regard to the practice of waivers and releases – meant to cut down legal claims against employers by separated employees,” said Matthews. “Countries outside the United States do not require releases as frequently, due at least in part to their cultures not being as litigious and the rights of terminated employees are more defined by statutes and regulations.”
The data were collected between May and September 2008. I’m guessing that the beginning of 2009 would be a good time to check in again, sadly.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 4:29 pm December 18th, 2008 in Business, Economy, employment, Law, Retirement | 5 Comments
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Dec
18
Rick Warren; update: Obama statement on invocation selection
Filed Under Barack Obama, Democrats, Gender, intolerance, Religion, Sexism, Women | 30 Comments
When I read the announcement that Rick Warren would be giving the invocation at Barack Obama’s inauguration, I couldn’t place the name or the face. Then I saw the book title, The Purpose-Driven Life and some recognition came to me. But then, I started to read the writings:
The Nation: What’s the Matter With Rick Warren
RHReality Check: The Real Rick Warren
The Guardian: A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing
And most disturbing of all, an essay on women’s submission in what Warren calls “Rick Warren’s Ministry Toolbox,” Pastors.com.
Here are my concerns:
The evangelicals are splitting as it is over the very issues with which Obama and Warren supposedly differ: civil unions for gays and retaining the foundation of Roe v. Wade and choice. I can’t imagine any other Democrat selecting someone like Warren and while I’m a big believer in not going out of one’s way to piss off people, I don’t see this group as one that can be relied on for support at any level, let alone even saying nice things.
What is the actual value of trying to add people or welcome in people who really are so opposed to so much that is left of center? We will always have these factions in the U.S. The fact that Warren has lumped Jews in with all the people he thinks are going to hell doesn’t help either.
I’m curious to know who within the Obama camp recommended Warren and how he was selected. Someone else has suggested to me that the quid pro quo has got to be enormous, but I don’t trust that.
Finally, if this is the kind of symbolic selection that the Obama team makes and Obama allows to represent him and his team’s choice, what does it foreshadow?
I know what it is to hold positions that are not consistent with always being on one side of the aisle. But I confess, I’m not sure just how far I want the person I voted for as president to go with that, especially when we’re talking women’s and individual rights. While the chant of “Remember McCain” does make me nod my head “yes, I know,” I believe Obama can do a lot better.
We all just have to wait and see.
UPDATE: Obama statement on selection of Rick Warren, from The Hill:
President-elect Obama defended his choice of the Rev. Rick Warren to deliver the invocation at his inauguration, saying that his swearing-in and the surrounding festivities will see a “wide range of viewpoints represented.”
…
“It’s important for Americans to come together even though we may disagree on certain social issues,” Obama said.
Thepresident-elect asserted that he is and will continue to be a “fierce advocate for equality” for gay and lesbian couples, but he noted that Warren invited Obama to speak at his church knowing that the two men disagree on hot-button social issues.
Obama noted that the Rev. Joseph Lowery, the preacher giving the benediction at his inauguration, holds opposing social views from Warren, adding that there will be “a wide range of views represented” at his inauguration.
“And that’s how it should be because that’s what America is all about,” Obama said.
The piece about Warren’s opposition to women’s rights is getting drowned out by the anger regarding his opposition to gay rights, but the fact remains that Warren opposed both sets of human’s rights.
I continue to believe that there are better choices out there who could show Americans how important it is for us to “come together even though we may disagree on social issues.” This selection seems to emphasize the “disagree” rather than the “come together.” Not to mention the hands-off nature of the Obama campaign toward social, wedge issues.
Eh – they’ll be plenty more to read on this as the days arrive. I try to be a big picture person, but this puzzle piece, I believe, belongs to a different image.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 9:27 am December 18th, 2008 in Barack Obama, Democrats, Gender, intolerance, Religion, Sexism, Women | 30 Comments
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Dec
18
Where the women aren’t: corporate boards behaving badly
Filed Under Business, Ethics, Gender, leadership, Sexism, Women | 2 Comments
I posted this on Facebook on December 12:
Jill is pondering super obnoxious question about the opposite sex, power & money hunger, and sinking industries.
This arrived in my inbox this morning:
Bad Corporate News Finds Few Women on Board
Date: 12/18/08
By Saabira Chaudhuri
WeNews correspondent
The outpouring of bad U.S. corporate news has produced a news gallery of mainly male faces. There’s a matching shortage of women on corporate boards, although Rupert Murdoch did tap opera singer Natalie Bancroft for News Corporation last year.
The obnoxious question I wanted to ask six days ago was: Anyone notice how all the allegations of malfeasance, poor management, general failure to get with it and ethical violations are primarily against wealthy or trying to be wealthy white men in nice suits?
More from the Women’s eNews article:
Women’s presence on the corporate boards of the Fortune 500–an annual ranking by the magazine of the country’s leading companies–inched up in the first four years of this decade.
But over the past three years that progress stagnated, with the composition of women in those influential and high-status posts reaching 14 percent and apparently refusing to budge, according to surveys conducted by Catalyst, the New York nonprofit research organization that focuses on women in business.
“The numbers are very low, but what I think is even more significant is that the increases have become trifling,” says Sheila Wellington, clinical professor of management at New York University’s Stern School of Business, and former president of Catalyst.
Wellington says that, as in the early 1990s, many companies began taking the view that “women’s advancement is a done deal; it’s taken care of.”
She points to the danger of tokenism. Many companies, she says, consider their boards diverse when they appoint a woman or two. For that reason it’s important to continue disseminating hard data about representation.
Wellington, who teaches a class on women in business leadership, also says the low level of women on boards reflects a general defection of women from the corporate work force, leaving far fewer at senior levels.
The tandem issue is: does it make a difference when women run or help run a corporate board? Is their absence from the boards of bad actors enough to say that women won’t or don’t err?
I haven’t done a search on that, though I’m sure that there is some information out there on that question and hopefully I’ll be able to take a few minutes to find some of it. But what would be even more probing to look at is the myth that women become or take on behaviors and attitudes similar to those of men behaving badly in order to compete, when they are on the field to compete. I’d like to know more about the women who are on the corporate boards of the men behaving badly boards and understand what if anything they did to encourage or impinge the decisions that led to their companies’ foibles.
Some possible research:
Women on Corporate Boards of Directors: a compendium of case studies, 2008
Women on Corporate Business Boards Make Good Sense: May 2003
And, from a May 2008 white paper by Sharon Allen, Chairman of the Board, Deloitte: The ABCs of Board Room Dynamics – Attiude, Behavior, Candor:
Catalyst Inc. found that Fortune 500 companies with the highest representation of women board members attained greater financial performance, on average, than those with the lowest representation of women board members — and the differences weren’t just significant. They were stunning. Returns were 42 percent higher on sales, 53 percent higher on equity, and 66 percent higher on invested capital.
Furthermore, the average returns at companies with three or more women on their boards were even higher — an additional 30 percent or more on sales and equity and an additional 70 percent on invested capital.
Depending on how you look at the numbers, however, it’s fair to ask if it’s the presence of women on boards that makes successful companies better — or, if it’s the fact that they are good companies to begin with and that’s why they added women to their boards. But with numbers like those discovered by Catalyst, why spend too much time debating which answer is right?
A rich area for research, if only we can get enough women on the boards to make the research statistically significant.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 8:48 am December 18th, 2008 in Business, Ethics, Gender, leadership, Sexism, Women | 2 Comments
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Dec
17
Carnival of Ohio Politics #146 now posted
Filed Under Blogging, Carnivals, Ohio, Politics, Writing | Comments Off
Many thanks to Ben Keeler of the Keeler Political Report for compiling this week’s Carnival of Ohio Politics, #146. For as close as we’re getting to holiday breaks, the bloggers just keep blogging. Thanks to the participants as well.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 3:38 pm December 17th, 2008 in Blogging, Carnivals, Ohio, Politics, Writing | Comments Off
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Dec
17
Humor: Caroline Kennedy asks to be TIME Person of the Year, 2009
Filed Under Congress, Democrats, Humor, Politics | 2 Comments
What Caroline wants Caroline gets (why would anyone even believe that? ugh):
Caroline Kennedy Asks to be Time’s Person of the Year
Places Phone Call to Magazine’s Editor
Caroline Kennedy would like to be considered Time magazine’s Person of the Year for 2009 and has let the magazine’s editor know of her interest in the honor, aides to Ms. Kennedy confirmed today.
While some observers considered Ms. Kennedy’s bid to be premature, especially since 2009 has not officially begun, aides to the New York senatorial aspirant said that it reflected her view that 2009 will be a very big year for her.
“I think Caroline’s calling Time magazine and asking to be put on the cover shows just what a tireless worker she is,” said cousin Kerry Kennedy. “When she really wants something, she’s not afraid to roll up her sleeves and make a phone call.”
Her cousin said that having witnessed Caroline’s work ethic, she has no doubt that she is deserving of Time’s highest honor: “I can’t tell you how many times she’s gotten the wrong number, been put on hold, or had calls dropped altogether.”
In addition to the Person of the Year honors, Kerry Kennedy said that Caroline had also expressed an interest in next year’s Nobel Peace Prize.
“That’s a call she hasn’t made yet,” Ms. Kennedy said. “She has to figure out the time difference in Oslo.”
If you haven’t figured it out because you didn’t click on the hyperlink, this was written by Andy Borowitz.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 12:45 pm December 17th, 2008 in Congress, Democrats, Humor, Politics | 2 Comments
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Dec
16
Someone is laughing at Kevin DeWine’s farewell to Chris Redfern, right?
Filed Under Ohio, Politics, Statehouse | 12 Comments
I honestly can’t see how anything that Kevin DeWine is reported to have said on the occasion of his and Chris Redfern’s end of service in the Ohio statehouse is funny. I know some people think I have no sense of humor, but I gotta say, I’d rather have no sense of humor than be someone who laughs at what DeWine apparently thought was humorous:
“Just the fact that you’re leaving is what’s so rewarding and exciting for many of us,” DeWine told Redfern in this the final week in the Ohio House for both lawmakers, who are term limited.
Okay – yeah, smirky smile. Not particularly funny, but smug.
DeWine started off promising to keep his remarks short. “The only thing you like more than other people talking about you is the opportunity for you to talk about yourself directly,” he said, drawing laughs from the room.
Eh. Weak, really weak. When people tell me I’m longwinded, does anyone laugh? But when Joe Biden gives a one word answer when people expect him to go on and on, that’s very funny.
DeWine went on to poke at Redfern’s boyish looks and style, noting he doesn’t have to shave everyday, doesn’t wear “big-boy socks,” and resembles “a cartoon character my boys watch on a regular basis (Jimmy Neutron).”
Run of the mill school-yard taunt that is more or less accurate as far as caricatures go.
He called Redfern cocky, arrogant and smarmy. “And those are just the things your caucus told me.” On the rumors that Redfern might take another government job: “Chris will never take another job where he has to fill out an ethics statement.”
I can’t find anything funny in that.
Redfern, of Catawba Island along Lake Erie, also served as House minority leader until he took over as party chairman about three years ago. This year, with Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Columbus, serving as leader, Democrats regained control of the House for the first time in 14 years. “It was Joyce Beatty who was able to accomplish what you were unable to do,” DeWine said with a smile.
That’s funny?
Yeah you know, I think DeWine is just incredibly bitter. I’ve never met him and I suppose lots of people love and support him – maybe he is really a nice person. But this ribbing sounds an awful lot like spite to me.
And if that’s what passes for humor in our statehouse, I can see why they meet so rarely with one another.
I was just leaving a comment about film’s greatest villains at historymike and was saying how, when people are mean just to be mean, that to me is the utmost torture and villainry. This “humor” of DeWine’s sounds much more like mean to be mean than anything else.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 9:30 pm December 16th, 2008 in Ohio, Politics, Statehouse | 12 Comments
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Dec
16
State your case: Why isn’t Caroline Kennedy qualified to run for or be a U.S. senator?
Filed Under Congress, Democrats, Gender, Government, Hillary Clinton, Politics, Women | 24 Comments
[NOTE: Let me be clear - I'm very aware of other qualified and more than qualified men and women vying for what will be an open seat in the senate when Hillary Clinton takes the Sec'y of State position. There are several that deserve the appointment, I'm certain. This post is about my frustration at just how hard people are working to discredit someone who clearly meets at least minimum qualifications for the U.S. senate - look what we've thrown out of that office, for starters. I trust NY Gov. Paterson to do his thing, but that doesn't mean that Kennedy shouldn't do this thing if she wants to. Everyone needs to start losing political challenges sometime. So just let her go.]
I’m completely serious. Come on.
First of all, she is the ultimate inside outsider. Second, she’s got brains. Third, she’s spent decades being involved in multiple causes that impact numerous demographics. And she’s lived in the state she wants to represent.
How many U.S. senators don’t have or haven’t had even one of those qualifications when they first ran for office?
Sheesh. Let her run. And if she wins, she wins. If she loses, she loses.
So.What.
OF COURSE SHE IS QUALIFIED. What exactly do you think the threshold IS for being qualified to merely run for a U.S. senate seat, given what people have voted for re: other political offices?
Anyone remember the 118 or so Californians who ran in that – was it, the recall effort?
Let her run. Let her have supporters – support her yourself.
I have no idea who I’d vote for as getting the appointment but for goodness sakes, just let her do her thing if she wants. Paterson will figure it out and if he makes the wrong choice, the voters will let him know.
Done. Just be done with it.
Goysh!
And I have to edit in – don’tcha think New Yorkers could do worse?? Do you know how many voters would be thrilled to have someone even as “minimally” qualified as Kennedy already in office representing them?
People are so weird sometimes.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 11:18 am December 16th, 2008 in Congress, Democrats, Gender, Government, Hillary Clinton, Politics, Women | 24 Comments
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Dec
15
Law prof analyzes Don Rosenberg’s lawsuit against Plain Dealer
Filed Under Blogging, Cleveland+, Courts, Culture, Law, Media, Ohio, Scandal | 1 Comment
Look no further than this post at Geniocity by CWRU law professor and blogger, Peter Friedman, for a thorough review of arts critic and long-time Plain Dealer reporter Don Rosenberg’s lawsuit against the PD, Susan Goldberg and others. You can read more about the legal action here but it’s based on Rosenberg’s belief that his not positive reviews of the Cleveland Orchestra’s conductor and complaints about those reviews led to his removal from covering that beat. Strike up the band comments over there.
By Jill Miller Zimon at 9:21 am December 15th, 2008 in Blogging, Cleveland+, Courts, Culture, Law, Media, Ohio, Scandal | 1 Comment
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