Michelle Obama on Why Educating Girls is Vital

First Lady Michelle Obama spoke about the importance of girls’ education on International Women’s Day Tuesday, at Union Market in Washington, D.C. The day was the first anniversary of Let Girls Learn, a White House initiative to address gender inequalities in education. Obama spoke about how she first got involved in the issue after learning the stories of some of the 62 million girls around the world who are not currently attending school.

American Exceptionalism: Part III

Part I

Part II

In Parts I & II of this series on international aspects of American exceptionalism, I dealt with America's failure to ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, and its failure to ratify the UN Arms Trade Treaty. As it happens, America is even more exceptional than that.

As it happens, America feels about United Nations treaties the way the National Rifle Association feels about measures to control gun violence -- they're an "infringement." Like the NRA, America believes it has a god-given right to do whatever the hell it feels like, because, damn it... the Founding Fathers, the Constitution, the Free Market, the Bible, sovereignty, enhanced interrogation (shh!).

But surely America would have no problem ratifying a treaty protecting the rights of children. Oh yeah?!

Although Presidents Clinton and Obama have supported ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), its ratification has been opposed by Senate Republicans. They say it would usurp American sovereignty. For example, the treaty prohibits, "cruel and degrading punishment of children." Opponents say that overrides a parent’s decision on how to raise their children -- 'spare the rod, spoil the child,' sort of thing. That may seem a stretch, but remember until 2005, America permitted people under the age of 18, that is, 'children,' to be sentenced to death. The CRC was perhaps a bridge too far for such a country.

America is not alone in its failure to ratify the treaty, however. South Sudan, a nation that gained its independence only four years ago, hasn't yet ratified it. They are about to. That will ensure America is exceptional in every sense of the word.

What about the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)? That has to be a treaty America can get behind, right, especially since it's based on our own Americans with Disabilities Act, signed into law by the first George Bush, and supported overwhelmingly by Republicans. But here's the thing, this is a very different Republican Party. Today's freedom loving, faith-based, anti-government (except where government controls women's reproductive rights), anti-science, and, clearly, anti-United Nations GOP is an animal of a different stripe.

Republicans in today’s strange witches brew of a political party see the phrase “sexual and reproductive health” in the CRPD (Article 25) and jump to the conclusion that the UN is covertly promoting an unfettered global right to abortion. What this portion of the treaty actually says is that persons with disabilities should be provided with, "the same range, quality and standard of free or affordable health care and programmes as provided to other persons, including in the area of sexual and reproductive health and population-based public health programmes."

Ironically, this provision probably stemmed from the practice in many countries of involuntarily sterilizing persons considered deformed, demented, developmentally disabled, or in some manner, undesirable (e.g., homosexuals, like Alan Turing). To our shame, America was the first country to concertedly undertake compulsory sterilization programs. The targets of the program were ostensibly the intellectually disabled or mentally ill, but in many states the deaf, blind, and physically deformed were also targeted. Many women were sent to institutions on the pretext of being “feeble-minded,” because they were promiscuous or became pregnant while unmarried. African-American and Native American women were frequent unknowing targets of the program, while being hospitalized for other reasons.

Given their ignorance of this historical artifact of America's record on "sexual and reproductive health," perhaps a quick history lesson would change Republican minds on ratifying the treaty -- you think? Me neither. Because Republicans seem to object to UN treaties on principle. Here's a brief list on other treaties they oppose:

Mine Ban Treaty
Convention on the Law of the Sea
Convention on Cluster Munitions
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women
Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture
International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance

Given America's record on "enhanced interrogation," and "extraordinary rendition," it's easy to see why we wouldn't ratify those treaties. But the others? I suppose Republicans feel they'd be an intrusion on our right to plant mines wherever we see fit, use the sea for whatever purposes we deem necessary, maintain full employment for the manufacturers of cluster munitions, and pay women lower wages than men for the same work. Who knows what today's batshit crazy, "end of times" Republicans are thinking? Whatever it is, I'm sure it's exceptional.

Rapturous Michele Bachmann former member of the House of Representatives and U.S. Presidential Candidate

Annie Get Your Gun

Ethel Merman, Annie Get Your Gun, 1946

In the Broadway musical, Annie Get Your Gun, Ethel Merman belts out

The gals with 'umbrellars'

Are always out with fellers

In the rain or the blazing sun

But a man never trifles 

With gals who carry rifles

Oh you can't get a man with a gun.

With a gun, with a gun,

No, you can't get a man with a gun.

Sarah Palin might well disagree. She's all for guns and she has her man, Todd, and she's the darling of the National Rifle Association, where she was a featured speaker at their annual "Stand and Fight" convention in Houston. Palin tried to hit all the gun nut hot buttons; President Obama, a hot button needing no elaboration, gun control, the liberal media, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and those of us who "exploit" tragedies like Newtown to press our liberal agenda. Palin's brief talk was a highlight for many of the conventioneers, who pushed forward to get a good look at Palin's tee shirt, which had antlers and the words, 'Women Hunt' written across her ample breasts in bright pink.

Despite Sarah's appeal to the female shooter, the percentage of women gun owners in the population as a whole, an estimated 10%, is only about a third of that of men. Among people who admit to owning guns, 74% are men and 26% are women. The NRA is trying to change that statistic, as seminars and product displays at their 2013 convention demonstrated. The message being broadcast by the NRA is simple. If women want equality with men, buy a gun, and CRASH goes the 'glass ceiling.' Not really, but doesn't a woman feel safer carrying a gun in her handbag? You're damned right they do, at least according to the blogs cropping up promoting gun ownership among women.

It used to be that men owned guns to hunt. Then the NRA began getting out the message that they needed guns to fight the "jack booted thugs" of the ATF, and the FBI, and Obama's government tyranny, bent on denying them their Second Amendment rights. And men bought the message and they bought semi-automatic assault rifles (much higher profit margin) and 30-clip magazines.

The government tyranny pitch was a harder sell for women, so the NRA pushed the idea that women needed guns for protection from home intruders, murderers, rapists, and census takers. And they made designer handguns and holsters and concealed carry handbags, and knowing how women love to accessorize, NRA fashion consultants came up with concealed carry denim jackets, and 'tactical slacks,' and 'Women Shoot Too' tees, and holster bras, and sleepwear featuring gun motifs; all specially designed for the new Annie Oakley.

Display at the NRA 2013 Convention

The gun industry isn't contributing millions to the NRA to conduct safety classes. They expect the NRA to generate gun sales by whatever means necessary. The NRA has responded by appealing to a man's sense of independence, self-reliance, and patriotism -- all characteristics the male dominated NRA leadership believe their gun-toting male demographic exhibit, in addition to the paranoia that they encourage.

Not so with women. Women are still viewed by the NRA as 'the fairer sex,' basically little scaredy-cats, who, unless they have a CCW (concealed carry weapon) male companion, must substitute a sleek, compact Glock 26 to feel safe maneuvering their shopping cart in the Walmart parking lot (accessorize with a flashbang bra holster for concealed carry, ladies, and ask for a weapon with a pink grip to show you care about women's health).

The NRA's campaign to recruit more women to their ranks is eerily reminiscent of the tobacco industry's push to swell the ranks of the addicted by glamorizing smoking. The industry's sophisticated advertising transformed the image of the woman smoker as decadent slut to emancipated sex symbol, and convinced women that the way to slim down those waistlines was to take up smoking their 'torches of freedom.' And as the waistlines of women smokers slimmed and their ranks swelled, the tobacco industry could proudly proclaim, 'You've come a long way, baby.'

The NRA's campaign to recruit women gun owners has so far been less sophisticated than the tobacco industry's campaign, but given time, the gun industry will succeed in building its female demographic. They'll have a hard time, however, matching the tobacco industry's success in getting women killed -- there's been a 600% increase in smoking-related lung cancer deaths among women -- but give the NRA credit for trying.

Oh, by the way, ladies, more than twice as many women are shot dead by their spouse or intimate other, than by a stranger. So be sure you're armed around your gun-toting man, and do practice your quick draw from that flashbang bra.

Georgetown University Responds to Attacks on Sandra Fluke

Messages to the Georgetown Community - Georgetown University