Forgotten Mothers: US faces dramatic increase in maternal death rates

Maternal Mortality Review Terminology

Sen. Michael Bennet Calls on Senate Republicans to End the Shutdown

What is Imperfect produce?

http://imprfct.us/luRDP

Mitch McConnell hides from freshman Congresswomen

By Faith Chatham - Jan. 17, 2019

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell evaded four freshmen congresswomen who chased him around the Capitol Wednesday.  Rep. Jahana Hayes of Connecticut, Lauren Underwood of Illinois, Katie Hill of California and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez pursued McConnell. They visited his Capitol office, cloakroom, went to the Senate floor and even rode the subway to a suite in another office building asking: "Where is Mitch? He's not in his office. He's not on the floor. We've looked in the cloak room."

“He seems to be running away from us,” said Rep. Ocasio-Cortez. They dropped off a letter signed by 38 freshmen members of Congress, calling on McConnell to call ending the shut-down to  vote.  Frustration that the House passed multiple bills to reopen the government and to allow 800,000 furloughed federal workers to be paid, but McConnell has refused to bring any of them to the Senate floor for a vote, the four women, who describe themselves as 'a former school teacher, nurse,  a former non-profit worker. and most recently a bartender' stated that they are not part of the millionaire class. "Working people deserve to be paid."

“At this point, the only thing left is for us to make noise and that’s exactly what we’re doing,” Hill said after they dropped off a letter signed by 38 House freshmen to McConnell’s office asking him to call a vote.

Shirley Chisholm : The First Black Congresswoman

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Hillary Clinton and Tony Goldwyn Play Broadway or Beltway

Explain to me again why we must have a man on the top of the ticket to win?

By Faith Chatham - Jan. 7, 2019

Lupe Valdez had a smaller war chest than any of the previous five Texas governor Democratic nominees, yet got more votes than the four previous male nominees and of Wendy Davis. Lupe also got the most votes in a primary featuring 6 men. She was only a few points shy of avoiding a run-off.

Hillary Clinton's campaign did not deploy a field team to Texas in 2016 until the last six weeks of he campaign, yet she got more votes than any previous Democratic Nominee on the ballot in Texas. More Texans voted for Hillary, a state where little advertising was spent, than in most of the battle ground states where the campaign invested heavily.

In 2018, in every Congressional District in Texas where there was a woman running in the Democratic Primary except 2, the woman won.

Women are running and women are winning. So explain to me again. Help me understand why it is necessary for a man to be on the top of the ticket in 2020 for Democrats to win?

Granted, 60% of Republican men have been reported to say that they do not want to see a woman elected President in their lifetime. That leaves 40% of the Republican men who  do not seem to mind.  And since all Democratic men and all Republican men combined make up less than 49% of the US Population, it seems to me that the 60% of women hating Republican men are definately in the minority.

I think what we need to do is to continue registering and getting progressives out to vote. 
We need to continue changing the culture by changing women. We need to continue showing women that when we run, we do win. When we win, we do serve. When we serve, we improve things for us, for our families, for our communities, for our nation and the world.

Let's continue reminding people that:

And that Ann Richards ignored them when ...

Despite what they said to Sylvia Garcia and Veronica Escobar:

Nellie Ross ignored them when ...

Lupe Valdez didn't see why she couldn't be sheriff when ..

They told Barbara Jordan:

When she considered running for Congress...

It's nothing new. Women have been hearing the same tired ole lines:

If you lose an election, the nay sayers get louder:

In 2018, Terry Meza beat the GOP male incumbent by more than 4,000 votes.

Hillary Clinton heard:

Donors looked at Hillary's numbers and decided that many districts they thought were "too Red to win" weren't quite so red. They gave money to challengers and...

So that brings us back to where we began. Women are more than 51% of the US Population. We comprise 24% of the House and 25% of the Senate. In 2018, in Texas in all US Congressional Districts except two, women beat every man on the ballot. Similar number were reflected in returns in other states. 

Democrats have a strong track-record of electing women and minorities to public office. Only 60% of the White male Republicans says they do not want to see a woman elected president in their lifetime. 

For example, if Republicans have been getting 55% to 60% of the vote and half of them are men,

then only 27.5% to 30% of the voters are Republican men. Only 60% of the Republican men say they don't want to see a woman elected President in their lifetime -- so that is only 60% of 27.5% to 30% of the voters. That is far from being a majority. It is probable that a significant number of the remaining 40% of Republican men and of the Republican women are open to voting for a qualified woman. Democratic men have been voting for women for decades. Democratic women are running and helping other women win.

So, again, explain to me why it is so important to run a man at the top of the ticket? 

Fresh Zucchini Cornbread

By Faith Chatham - Jan. 6, 2019

1 pkg yellow corn bread mix
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup milk (Almond milk works fine)
1 zucchini squash sliced fine and diced
1/2 onion, diced
1/4 tsp of finely chopped fresh thyme
1/2 tsp of chopped cilantro


Mix together and bake in oiled pan  for 20 minutes at 350 degrees or until brown
Serves 6.

Optional a small can of drained yellow corn and/or a half-cup of cheese can be blended in before baking.

Preparing for 2019

By Faith Chatham - January 1, 2019

It is 2019. What are the most important things to experience and accomplish this year? What must be done to for each of us to individually enjoy what we want to enjoy, and to accomplish what we want to accomplish?

For me, one thing on my to do list is cleaning the kitchen. I let things slide when I'm involved in causes or projects. The exterminators treated the apt. while I was in San Antonio. Everything is out of the cabinets. I've been running the dishwasher continuously since getting home. Each load of dishes placed in a recently cleaned cupboard shelf, each tray of silver arranged, instead of hastily flung into a drawer, moves me closer toward being ready to proceed with the new year. By the end of today, the kitchen and dining area will be probably be in better shape than it will probably be any other time in the coming year. Then I will move to bedroom closets. Hopefully within a week this rare obsession with orderliness will spill over into the studio.

I am not a tidy spic and span priority person. I live in creative, mental, research, literary, political and artistic worlds. When in those creative zones, I am oblivious to food, clocks, germs, clutter, sleep. So, whenever a rare spell of obsessive straightening and scrubbing overshadows me, I try to ride it as long, and as far, as it can be sustained, because it may be months before it enters my door again. The longer it remains outside, the harder it gets to find space to work inside.

This year there is lots of work to be done. I feel characters, images, causes, and projects pushing to get out.

There are relics here of people and causes I respect and value. I still have evidence of activism in Ready for Hillary and Hillary 2016 intermingled with 2018 buttons for Lupe, Kim, Terry, Gina, MJ, Vikki, Victoria, Shirley, Sheryl, Sylvia, Rhetta, Beverly, Ana Maria and others scattered about.

It is nice to see that the phrases on cards and posters have changed from messaging in 2014. Then we were trying to help Texans understand how few Dems, minorities, veterans and women Texans sent to Congress. We need to acknowledge the scope of a problem before we can inspire enough people to help change it. Now the messages are targeting getting specific Democrats, specific women, specific veterans, specific minorities elected to office.

This year, despite the harm wrought by Donald Trump and his enablers, we have victories to celebrate. On Jan. 3rd in DC over 100 women will be seated in the US House when the new Congress is sworn in.  I look forward to being in the gallery of the Texas Capitol Jan 8th to see friends seated as newly elected Senators and State Representatives. We've made progress. We have a long way to go. Now we have a few more warriors in place to watch the backs of the ethical and brave and to carry the torch in legislative relays.

I want 2019 to be more than just the year when we share our stories and say "Me Too!' I want it to be the year when those who enable or refuse to pursue and punish serial rapists are removed. This should be the year when instead of 1 out of 3 women and 1 out of 5 men being survivors, it becomes the year when the majority of perpetrators are stopped and prevented from every violating any boy or girl, man or woman every again. Instead of #METOO I want to see #ZeroTolerance.

I truly hope and pray that the Trump administration comes to a speedy, and abrupt end. We need to rid this nation, and our psyche, from the excesses, corruption and violation of that man and his henchmen and enablers. I hope both Trump and Pence are nothing more than a footnote by March of this year. We need to push the RESET button and begin anew. These are some of the things which are on my heart. They are goals and causes worth working for, worth enduring clutter and other inconveniences to accomplish jointly with others who care and sacrifice. Caring also means helping worthy people have the means to step forward to run for office and to win in 2020. Those of us who are older owe it to those who protected and nurtured us when we were young and to those who are younger and deserve to be nurtured and mentored.

This may be the year to write and publish your book

By Faith Chatham - January 1, 2019

Many of the people on this list will write and publish this year. Some, even some who have previously used publishers, may decide to self-publish. There is no longer a horrible stigma attached to self-publishing. In some instances, it is the best route.

There are pitfalls which should be avoided. A good editor is crucial. Marketing is essential. Actually writing, and getting the book printed, is a milestone marking when the really hard work begins. It is also when it is essential to sift through the vendors who tout how much they can help you get your book read and promoted.

The fee may seem reasonable and affordable, but if the author is required to pay to get the book reviewed, it is probably a scam. Avoid any company which charges an author a fee to have a reviewer read and post a review of the book It is not the author's responsibility (or role) to pay a reviewer. It is the publications who pays the reviewer for content. It may be called a "book promotion package" which "includes an independent review" of your book. If you pay for it, the "independence" becomes suspect. You paying for the review lessens the value of having your book reviewed!

Now I am not referring to having someone read your unpublished work to give you feedback to help you improve it before you publish it. That is a legitimate part of the editing process and it is appropriate to pay for their time.

A company charging an author to have their employee read and review a published book so that company can post the review on their website, or in their publication, is a different thing. DO NOT FALL for that. Even if they have been in business doing this for years, it is still a shady practice.

The more authors they suck in and charge marketing/book review fees, the more readers they need. Not everyone is qualified to write a credible literary review.

Things to know:

Do their reviewers have literary or publishing backgrounds, education, publishing resumes?

Do they have expertise evaluating books in your field? If they do not know history, they are not qualified to evaluate a history book. You do not want an artist evaluating a physics book or an engineer without art history expertise reviewing an art book. Those who have only reviewed prose and have read few poems should not be assigned to write reviews on volumes of poetry.

Once a review is published, it is too late. Bad reviews, even by (or especially by) writers who are not qualified to review books in that particular field, can do significant harm to potential book sales. Some books deserve bad reviews. Some good books get bad reviews. Some reviews are simply wrong. Avoid getting a WRONG review if you can. Do not pay someone who probably is not qualified to review your book and risk paying for a WRONG review.

Publications have the right to pay writers/reviewers for  content to publish in their periodical or on their website. This is standard industry practice and is ethical. Authors have no control over the review or whose review is published. The publication has a responsibility to carefully vet their writers. The reputation of the publications rests on the quality and integrity of the work they publish. 

There are some companies which resemble publications which publish independent reviews. RESEMBLE and INDEPENDENT are the key phrases. Some companies offer authors marketing promotion packages which include advertising space and a review of their book. To casual observers, these site may seem similar to more reputable literary review publications because they contain book reviews.  The difference is WHO writes the reviews, the credentials of those who write the reviews and who pays for the content in the review. If the author pays for it, it is really advertising not an independent review. If you are paying for advertising you should have control over the message. Frequently, with these companies which offer marketing packages including book reviews, the author has little control over anything once they pay their fee. They are inviting a company to assign their book to someone who may or may not have any expertise in reviewing books of that genre. hey probably do not attract reviewers from the academic//publishing world. If they advertise for people to read and review their books and pay for the reviews with Amazon gift cards  BEWARE. Credible book reviewers with credentials in publishing and academics rarely work for Amazon gift cards!

When a company offers to review your book for a fee which you (the author) pays them, BEWARE!

So, what do you do? You want your book reviewed by someone who is credible in your field. People who have THOSE kinds of credentials are probably not going to write a review for a $20 Amazon gift card. They are not going to advertise to authors offering to review books for a fee. How do you find them? How do you get them to review your book?

Some people engage literary agents who have contacts with people who review and publish book reviews. Some people use publishing companies who have contacts with people who review and publish book reviews. Some authors have friends who know people qualified to review books in certain genre or fields. Some people know professors who need publishing credits who sometimes write book reviews and submit them to various literary journals and periodicals. They will not ask an author for a fee. They may welcome a copy of your book. You can query university literature department heads or faculty members. If they write a review it will be independent. Their academic reputation depends upon the reasonableness and validity of what they publish.

There are other ways to get your book reviewed without paying for it. Google "book review no fee". Invest in copies of your book and postage to send to reputable literary reviewers / publication who publish truly independent reviews. If you self-published send only to those publications which review books which are self-published.

Marketing your book is not easy. It is time consuming and costs money. You should decide how much of your time and money it is REASONABLE to invest in promoting thus book.

Most writers prefer writing to promoting. Weigh how important your current or "next" project is. It is hard to think out of the marketing/promoting side of your brain while you are writing, creating, or polishing a current literary project.  This is why authors usually sell rights to their work to publishing houses. 

When selling rights, it is important to evaluate the publishers track record on promoting and marketing authors of your genre. Sometimes it is worthwhile to make less money per volume sold if your work is marketed and distributed by a company which gets it marketed and sold to many more people than you would without them. Weigh the benefit with the cost and do not discount the value of your time, especially if you have other projects you are working on or want or need to be working on.

Evaluate how important it is to you to devote your resources to promoting this particular book. Some books are more for family and friends or your current circle of peers. If this particular book is more for yourself, your family and friends, then self-publish and promote it to family, friends and within your circle of peers. There is no need to spend a lot on promotion  Invest your time and resources into your next project. That may be the book which has wider appeal and should reach a broader audience. Write it, and develop a strategy to get that book out there where it will truly be independently reviewed and marketed to that broader audience.

Think about it. Is this book a learning experience, preparing you to write your great novel or definitive work of your career? Treat it accordingly.  Don't underestimate it and don't try to make it more than it is.  Know your worth. Create what you can. Release it. Give it the respect (meaning time and resources) it deserves. Don't give it too much or too little. Decide if you want to put your time into marketing and promoting it, if you prefer to pay someone else to do that for you, or if you simply want to move on to the next project.

Do not let one book or one literary project stall you from creating something better. Write it, polish it, release it and move on!