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TheCount.user_id = null; TheCount.embedder = getParameterByName('from_url'); TheCount.referrer = getParameterByName('from_referrer'); TheCount.url = 'http://exchange.prx.org/playlists/285223'; TheCount.logAction({action:'view'}); }catch(e){ if (typeof console !== 'undefined') { console.warn("TheCount// ", e.toString(), e); } } </script> <div class="column span-16 last"> <div class="top-headline"> <h2> Playlist: The River Is Wide </h2> <p> <strong>Compiled By:</strong> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/individual_accounts/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> </p> </div> <div class="series-image" style="width:240px"> <div> <img alt="Public radio that is truly public prevents the silencing of those voicing concern about violations of human rights. Credit: Susan Cook" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/playlist_images/13955/20230225_171407_medium.jpg" title="Public radio that is truly public prevents the silencing of those voicing concern about violations of human rights." version="medium" width="240" /></div> <div class="credit"> Image by: Susan Cook  <div class="caption">Public radio that is truly public prevents the silencing of those voicing concern about violations of human rights.</div> </div> </div> <div class"description-lead"> <div id="description" class="toggle-truncated"> <div style="display:none"> <p>The River Is Wide is written by a political activist and psychologist. Citizen's Guides, the occasional Congressional Guide, sonnets when no other format seems appropriate, A Sixty Second Moral Inquiry from time to time, original poetry from our Department of Poetic Justice and brief essay-ish commentaries all speak to the many events every day that change our lives. The story that belongs to everyone at some time- the times when crossing the river is very very difficult to do is a focus here.. Public radio that stirs the public conscience- free of personal influence peddling- that values thoughtful voice and speaks truth above partisan rhetoric - helps us all get across. The series began when a local editor refused to publish a letter he called "uncivil" for criticizing a political candidate for his failure to acknowledge human rights violations by the Chinese government. The Candidate for Governor was asked at a public forum why he had pressed bringing Chinese businesses to Maine without speaking to China's atrocious history of Human Rights violations. "What? " he gasped. The questioner then said "We are not going to ignore your failure to acknowledge Chinese human rights violations." "Bring it on," the former Candidate for Governor sneered. Maine Public Radio's censorship of a 30 year jazz radio program "The humble Farmer" whose producer dared to talk in 2003- about disliking war and the Iraq War in particular also drew our attention. After refusing to sign a list of Employee Guidelines censoring his speech as an independent, non-journalist producer who was paid $30 a program, he quit. The event remains small-minded and partisan on the part of a public broadcasting station better known as broad-minded and thoughtful, especially in trying times when public discourse often helps uncover the moral underpinnings instead of concealing them by firing the questioner. <a class="hide-full-description-link" href="#" onclick="toggleTruncated('description'); return false;">Hide full description</a></p> </div> <div> <p>The River Is Wide is written by a political activist and psychologist. Citizen's Guides, the occasional Congressional Guide, sonnets when no other format seems appropriate, A Sixty Second Moral Inquiry from time to time, original poetry from our Department of Poetic Justice and brief essay-ish commentaries all speak to the many events every day that change our lives. The story that belongs to everyone at some time- the times when crossing the river is very very difficult to do is a focus here.. Public radio that stirs the public conscience- free of personal influence peddling- that values thoughtful voice and speaks truth above partisan rhetoric - helps us all get across. The series... <a class="show-full-description-link" href="#" onclick="toggleTruncated('description'); return false;">Show full description</a></p> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="toggle-playlist-commentary"> <a href="#" class="toggle-notes-link">Hide notes</a> <a href="#" class="toggle-notes-link" style="display:none">View notes</a> </div>  <div id="playlist-container"> <div id="playlist_section_285826" class="playlist-section"> <a name="playlist_section_285826"></a> <h3>The River Is Wide </h3> <div class="playlist-commentary"><p>The River Is Wide is written by a political activist and psychologist. Citizen's Guides, the occasional Congressional Guide, sonnets when no other format seems appropriate, A Sixty Second Moral Inquiry from time to time, original poetry from our Department of Poetic Justice, the NEW 2 and 1/2 Minute Conspiracy Theory section and brief essay-ish commentaries all speak to the many events every day that change our lives. In the wake of the 2016 election, we will soon be offering a new part called 'My Human Family', brief essays and interviews with people who have sought asylum in this great civil liberty honoring country of ours. All of these parts of The River Is Wide series tell the story that belongs to everyone at some time in life- the times when crossing the river is very very difficult to do. Public radio that stirs the public conscience- free of personal influence peddling- that values thoughtful voice and speaks truth above partisan rhetoric - helps us all get across. The series began when a local editor refused to publish a letter he called "uncivil" for criticizing a political candidate for a failure to acknowledge human rights violations by the Chinese government. Another inspiration has been Maine Public Radio's censorship of a 30 year jazz radio program "The humble Farmer" whose producer dared to talk in 2003- about disliking war and the Iraq War in particular. After refusing to sign a list of Employee Guidelines censoring his speech as an independent, non-journalist producer who was paid $30 a program, he quit. The event remains uncharacteristically small-minded and partisan on the part of a public broadcasting station better known as broad-minded and thoughtful, especially in trying times when public discourse often helps uncover the moral underpinnings instead of concealing them by firing the questioner. </p></div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_43757"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a> (Series) </h4> <p>Produced by <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a></p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> </div> <h5>Most recent piece in this series:</h5> <div class="playlist-series-piece" id=""> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/552271-gratitude-for-the-winterberries-the-natural-world">Gratitude for the Winterberries: The Natural World's Gifts </a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 01:03 </p> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_1072649" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/552271-gratitude-for-the-winterberries-the-natural-world" target="blank">Gratitude for the Winterberries: The Natural ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="5088979" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="63" data-expires="1732697772" data-piece_id="552271" data-token="d07cdb773785ce267a04d9840e30e1f2" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="PRXGratitudefortheWinterberries"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Edgarlibbymikmaq_small" height="92" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/953459/EdgarLibbyMikmaq_small.jpg" version="small" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Gratitude for the Winterberries<br />-Susan Cook-</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">When the red berries came out in the Fall,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">scuplted, round, leafless amid the starkness</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">of their thin, strong gray stems, carrying all</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">the truth of beauty, amid the darkness</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">autumn brought, my father always said, "Let's</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">go pick some of those red berries. He was</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">a forager, I knew then. As if debts</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">he made by living well, paid off because</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">he never stopped noticing them, the tone cast</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">by his voice, colored with recognition</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">of gratitude, his lineage owned, pasts</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">deep within his bones, defying omission.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">There was forever, as ever, brilliant</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">red, his eyes still gratefully resilient.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">-Sonnet 1125-</p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Gratitude for the Winterberries: The Natural ... | 01:03</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/552271", title: "Gratitude for the Winterberries: The Natural World\'s Gifts on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/552271' addthis:title='Gratitude for the Winterberries: The Natural World's Gifts '>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/552271' addthis:title='Gratitude for the Winterberries: The Natural World's Gifts '>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-552271-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p552271-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/552271/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-series-piece"><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">view all pieces in this series</a></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_102100"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/224023-watch-your-500-pound-gorilla-very-carefully-a-cit">Watch Your 500 Pound Gorilla Very Carefully: A Citizen's Guide </a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 04:17 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p> <br />Not too long ago, I watched a program about a 500 pound gorilla whose owner taught him to sign. That gorilla, all grown up, would move his finger an inch off his massive thigh and the owner immediately recognized it. “Oh, that’s his sign when he’s whispering- kind of like at a cocktail party when you tell someone something from across the room so no one else will know.“ I will acknowledge here that I implied the owner was reading a lot into what the gorilla did. I said, "I would prefer a gorilla- any day- his place or mine- who was more straight forward. After twatching the political landscape, I am reminded: watch the Gorilla carefully.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_473150" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/224023-watch-your-500-pound-gorilla-very-carefully-a-cit" target="blank">Watch Your 500 Pound Gorilla Very Carefully: A ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="5041069" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="257" data-expires="1732697772" data-piece_id="224023" data-token="c19d0c926cb3367b2ee0c40bb7073662" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="GorillaCorrectedACitizensGuide2017"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="20241016_101129_small" height="92" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/948467/20241016_101129_small.jpg" version="small" /> <div style="text-align: center;">Watch Your 500 Pound Gorilla Very Carefully-<br />A Citizen’s Guide<br />-Susan Cook-</div> <div><br />Not too long ago, I watched a program about a 500 pound gorilla whose owner taught him to sign.   That gorilla, all grown up, would move his finger an inch off his massive thigh and the owner  immediately recognized it. “Oh, that’s his sign when he’s whispering- kind of like at a cocktail party when you tell someone something from across the room so no one else will know.“ I will acknowledge here that I implied the owner was reading alot into what the gorilla did. I said, "I would prefer a gorilla- any day- his place or mine- who was more straightforward."</div> <div>I am now thinking it is important to watch the gorilla very, very carefully, especially in the political realm. These days there are many, many in the political realm who are not straightforward, if not downright cagey.</div> <div>Let's take Senator Susan Collins (Maine) and her role in passing the Republican sponsored Tax Overhaul. "You put your right foot in, you take your right foot out, you put your right foot in and you shake it all about! You do the hokey-pokey then you turn it all around. Let's what it's all about."</div> <div>Gorillas also can do the Hokey-pokey. You just have to watch closely, as they may do it in slow-motion, like Senator Collins did.</div> <div>Here's what she did. She wasn't sure if she'd support the bill in its initial form unless they included a property tax deduction for people who own property, like many working class people don't own. (Gorilla puts right foot in.)</div> <div>Then she said she would support it if she got promises (Gorilla bends backward as if laughing uncontrollably) from the Republican dominated Senators that they would pass legislation "soon" to "stabilize" the Affordable Care Act. Senator Collins you may remember had withheld her vote on prior Republican-sponsored measures to completely decimate health insurance coverage for millions of Americans and thousands of Mainers. (Gorilla takes right foot out.)</div> <div>Then after much hemming and hawing and purely deceptive communication (much like the ambiguity of Gorillas using sign language),  she (Gorilla puts left foot in and shakes it all around) again ambiguously waited. After all, the county Ms. Collins hails from has the lowest median income in Maine. So a tax bill that slams the middle class and then does nothing for the working class who will see Mainecare -Medicaid- and Medicare slashed to cover the enormous tax breaks this bill gives the top 1% of income earners, is not exactly designed for those living in Maine.  (Gorilla takes left foot out.)</div> <div><br /><br />But just before the song ends, the Senator votes "Yes" on a whisper and a tap on the thigh- Gorilla sign language after all.  And she steps and turns around and does the Hokey-pokey and that's what's it's all about.</div> <div>Moral of the story? Forget what I said about my 500 Pound Gorilla. Keep a close eye on your gorilla- locally, state-wide and nationally.  </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Watch Your 500 Pound Gorilla Very Carefully: A ... | 04:17</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/224023", title: "Watch Your 500 Pound Gorilla Very Carefully: A Citizen\'s Guide on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/224023' addthis:title='Watch Your 500 Pound Gorilla Very Carefully: A Citizen's Guide '>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/224023' addthis:title='Watch Your 500 Pound Gorilla Very Carefully: A Citizen's Guide '>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-224023-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p224023-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/224023/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_101439"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/538645-the-violence-of-denying-reproductive-rights">The Violence of Denying Reproductive Rights</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 05:03 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Media articles or Judicial discussions rarely if ever include the possibility of domestic abuse toward the child or the mother as risk factors which demand Reproductive choice.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_1044743" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/538645-the-violence-of-denying-reproductive-rights" target="blank">The Violence of Denying Reproductive Rights</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="4903217" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="303" data-expires="1732697772" data-piece_id="538645" data-token="a149bcda5d005952995c282ea3cd9d8e" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="PRXTheViolenceofDenyingReproductiveRights"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Mainewomensmarchwomenarewatching_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/930271/MaineWomensMarchWomenAreWatching_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <p style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; margin-bottom: 0in;">The Violence of Denying Reproductive Rights<br /><em> Published July 27, 2024 Portland (ME) Press Herald</em></p> <p style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; margin-bottom: 0in;">In Maine, 49% of the homicides that took place between 2020 and 2023 were females who were victims of domestic violence (Biennial Report of the Maine Domestic Abuse Homicide Review panel). As this statistic is made public, we know there is transitory astonishmen<span class="gmail_default"><span style="font-family: tahoma, sans-serif;">t just as</span></span><span class="gmail_default" style="font-size: large; font-family: garamond, serif;"> </span>when the numbers of children dying from abuse or neglect surface from the Kids Count Data Center. Each of these murders- and those identified as consequent to domestic violence quickly fade from the public view and consciousness if not conscience.</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; margin-bottom: 0in;">Find me a media article or Judicial discussion of medical risk to a woman seeking to terminate pregnancy which describes suicidality as the outcome for some women denied reproductive choice. Find me one that points to the risk of murder of a woman or a child by domestic violence as a medical risk. Suicidality of the woman or a real risk that she or a child born out of an unwanted pregnancy will be targets of ongoing or emerging domestic violence are rarely if ever identified as medical risks. Being impregnated by an emotionally or physically abusive partner does not spontaneously prevent continuation of that abuse if a pregnancy is brought to term. An abusing relationship history does not evolve into non-abusive parenting spontaneously. Parenting development is complex. Some traverse the complexity. Some do not.</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; margin-bottom: 0in;">Numbers don't convey the compelling narrative of people's lives or bring the realization that anyone can become one of those numbers.</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; margin-bottom: 0in;">Women (and men) become helpless in violent and abusive relationships. They can feel utter hopelessness impregnated by a partner whose tendencies and history suggest a future as a negligent, abandoning, emotionally if not physically abusing parent.</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; margin-bottom: 0in;">The co-option of female choice means she imay be unwillingly forced to become complicit in society's failure to prevent violence- emotionally or physically- to her or children. Maine's homicide statistics analyzed another way reveal the number of children who have died because of abuse or neglect either before or after Child Protective Service involvement. In 2021, 34 children died from abuse or neglect, 31 in 2022 and 25 in 2023. Between 2021 and 2023, the rate of foster care placement per thousand minor-aged children ranged from 9.0 to 9.6 children . There were 2020 children in foster care in 2021, 2320 in 2022 , 2401 in 2023. These numbers from the Kids Count Data Center are after the fact of deep suffering, that has led to removal of child from high risk home and sometimes succeeds and sometimes does not succeed in preventing more suffering.</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; margin-bottom: 0in;">These numbers are never mentioned in Judicial discussions of the medical risk of denying reproductive rights. Despite the fawning of Amy Conant Barrett or Clarence Thomas or Samuel Alito or any number claiming to value human beings, this society , Maine included, fails to protect child-bearing-age women and children far more often than we ever know. We only learn months and months later amid a pile of numbers. The numbers may include women denied reproductive choice who are in deep, irreversible despair . But that too we never know.</p> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>The Violence of Denying Reproductive Rights | 05:03</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/538645", title: "The Violence of Denying Reproductive Rights on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/538645' addthis:title='The Violence of Denying Reproductive Rights'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/538645' addthis:title='The Violence of Denying Reproductive Rights'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-538645-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p538645-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/538645/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_101878"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/89838-the-bad-guy-view-of-the-world">The Bad Guy View of the World</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 03:41 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Many six year olds believe that the only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun. The President of the NRA, is of the same mind, or at least that's what he says. The offensiveness of his use of a child's view of the world to discuss the Newtowne massacre stands beside the reality that many aspects of the real world prove him wrong. Drone attacks, Mahatma Gandhi and the Tarasoff Law that mandates that mental health professionals must inform potential victims of a mentally ill patient with intent to kill all suggest that the President of the NRA (and fast forward to 2022, remarks by Senator Ted Cruz to the NRA) are incorrect. Many things stop homicidal people from killing. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_203228" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/89838-the-bad-guy-view-of-the-world" target="blank">The Bad Guy View of the World</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="4994532" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="221" data-expires="1732697772" data-piece_id="89838" data-token="195423e6c0526671dbcdcde8c156536b" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="TheBadGuyViewoftheWorld"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Protectingthechildrenjpg_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/933095/ProtectingtheChildrenjpg_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" />                                           The "Bad Guy" View of the World<br />                                                        -Susan Cook-<br /><br />Many six year olds believe that the only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun. The President  of the NRA, is of the same mind, or at least that's what he says. The offensiveness of his use of a  child's view of the world  to discuss the Newtowne massacre  and  the Florida high school murders stands beside the reality that many aspects of the real world prove him wrong. Drone attacks, Mahatma Gandhi and the Tarasoff Law that mandates that  mental health professionals  must inform potential victims of a mentally ill patient with intent to kill all suggest that Mr. LaPierre  is incorrect. Many things stop homicidal people from killing. <br /><br />Oddly,  even the cry for genetic testing of Adam Lanza  who carried out the Newtowne atrocityand all the massmurderers who have followed him  argues against Mr.  LaPierre's belief. After all, if genetic testing found a gene that is linked to killing then all the good guys on earth with guns won't  ever  stop the bad guys with guns.  Adolf Hitler and the many wars in which thousands have died suggest that one bad guy with a gun and one good guy with a gun lead to two bad guys with guns and two good guys with guns and on and on and on. <br /><br />If there is a gene ( and we know that a gene is only  important as a phenotype- that is- how it plays out in the real world) then guns wouldn't help. Gene therapy would. Many geneticists don't  believe there is such a gene in the first place. <br /><br />In our nationwide speculation about what stops one mentally ill person who has been given access to a gun from killing people,  the pharmaceutical industry has been oddly silent. There is always the possibility that  they have a drug on their back burner that stops bad guys from killing, if the drug is prescribed and taken. The pharmaceutical industry already has many drugs that assuage homicidal or suicidal  impulses. They also have psychotropic drugs that carry the potential side effect of intensifying agitation and impulsive aggression. It would be the drug industry's ethical responsibility to tell  us which of their kitchen cabinet of psychotropic drugs has the potential for creating this agitated aggressive side effect in patients.  Doesn't it make sense that before we conclude that every school in the country have its own  arsenal, that we ask about the psychotropic medications that Mr. Lanza and  the young man in Denver and  the one in Tucson, and all the other bad guys who had regular contact with mental health professionals were prescribed? And if impulsive aggression and agitation that some of these drugs have as potential side effects contributed to their behavior that the NRA President attributes to their "bad guy" side?  Isn't that a question we need to ask? <br /> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>The Bad Guy View of the World | 03:41</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/89838", title: "The Bad Guy View of the World on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/89838' addthis:title='The Bad Guy View of the World'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/89838' addthis:title='The Bad Guy View of the World'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-89838-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p89838-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/89838/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_102042"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/548727-when-morning-wakes-you-ask-only-if-you-re-willin">When Morning Wakes You, Ask, Only If You're Willing, Sonnet1117</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | :57 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>When it feels unsettling to hear others call for peace between Israel, Gaza and Lebanon, ask what it might be like to be there. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_1065387" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/548727-when-morning-wakes-you-ask-only-if-you-re-willin" target="blank">When Morning Wakes You, Ask, Only If You're ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="5040817" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="57" data-expires="1732697772" data-piece_id="548727" data-token="d56baa580619e667dffe6a8be9d08d6f" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="PRXWhenMorningWakesYouSonnet1117"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="20241014_154225__1__small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/946819/20241014_154225__1__small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">When Morning wakes you, ask only if you're</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Sonnet 1117</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">When morning wakes you, ask, only if you're</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">willing to hear more unanswered questions,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Have I any right to act so reassured</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">with the importance of my reflections?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Is it all distraction, a way to look</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">the other way, another man lying</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">beside the road in Gaza, he who took</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">safety in a refugee camp, trying</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">to save his children from their night terrors,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">the ones he wakes hearing after bombs- this</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">human-made conflict makes- fall- to sever</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">them from trust in human good- its solace.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Thousands of miles between you and this night's</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">shelled hospital, shattered til' morning's light</p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>When Morning Wakes You, Ask, Only If You're ... | :57</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/548727", title: "When Morning Wakes You, Ask, Only If You\'re Willing, Sonnet1117 on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/548727' addthis:title='When Morning Wakes You, Ask, Only If You're Willing, Sonnet1117'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/548727' addthis:title='When Morning Wakes You, Ask, Only If You're Willing, Sonnet1117'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-548727-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p548727-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/548727/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_101841"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/544458-the-sixty-second-moral-inquiry-how-do-we-distingu">The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: How Do We Distinguish the Plagiarism of a Self-serving Imposter from Authentic Shared Purpose?</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 01:01 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry asks questions about the wrong others seem to miss.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_1056647" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/544458-the-sixty-second-moral-inquiry-how-do-we-distingu" target="blank">The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: How Do We ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="4983113" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="61" data-expires="1732697772" data-piece_id="544458" data-token="278bce8388607bb3ec2d295e492eea34" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="PRXTHeSixtySecondMoralInquiryHowdowedistinguish"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Flymagnetphoto_medium_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/939415/FlyMagnetPhoto_medium_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry:</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">How do we distinguish the Plagiarism of the Impostor</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">from the Authentic Commitment to goodness and shared purpose of others?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Plagiarism means there for the taking. An Impostor is quick to take words someone else created if it suits her/him. The meaning of the words or respect for those who make them up to apply to certain situations is set aside for the self-promotion of the Impostor. How do we call out the Impostor's plagiarism? Where is the User's Guide to explain what's wrong with plagiarism and self-promotion masquerading as authentic commitment to some valued shared intention?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: How Do We ... | 01:01</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/544458", title: "The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: How Do We Distinguish the Plagiarism of a Self-serving Imposter from Authentic Shared Purpose? on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/544458' addthis:title='The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: How Do We Distinguish the Plagiarism of a Self-serving Imposter from Authentic Shared Purpose?'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/544458' addthis:title='The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: How Do We Distinguish the Plagiarism of a Self-serving Imposter from Authentic Shared Purpose?'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-544458-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p544458-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/544458/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_101705"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/130852-crossing-wide-water-my-brother-the-sailor">Crossing Wide Water, My Brother the Sailor</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 03:07 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>My now 86 year old brother , is still, and has been his whole life, a sailor. His boat “Significant Other”, a J-24 racing yacht will carry two. But, when he races, he is the captain and the boat carries five. He and the boat have sailed many times in many places where, yes, the water is wide. At 77, he and the crew of the “Significant Other” competed in the J-24 World Racing Championships in the waters off Newport, Rhode Island. He has always been a sailor, even when his body prevented it. I rooted for him then, as I do now crossing wide, probably rough water, to some finish line, in his boat , his “Significant Other”. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_286245" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/130852-crossing-wide-water-my-brother-the-sailor" target="blank">Crossing Wide Water, My Brother the Sailor</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="751287" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="187" data-expires="1732697772" data-piece_id="130852" data-token="c9b22b0ee677b25275d38ee4ba9fab9c" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="CrossingWideWaterMyBrothertheSailor2"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Russellsailingjune1999_001_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/311248/RussellSailingJune1999_001_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div>Crossing Wide Water: My Brother, the Sailor</div> <div>-Susan Cook-</div> <div>My 77 year old brother is, still, and has been his whole life,  a sailor.  His boat “Significant Other”, a J-24 racing yacht  will carry two. But, when he races, he is the captain and the boat carries five.  He and the boat have sailed many times  in many places where, yes,  the water is wide. This week, he and the crew of the “Significant Other”  are competing in the J-24 World Racing Championships in the waters off Newport, Rhode Island.</div> <div>There are two times, when I know he’s been to places where the water is wide.  His 13 year old son died in a car accident in 1987. Eight years later,  on a back country road, his car was rammed head-on by a  young driver who, I suppose,  was afraid of being late for school and passed a stopped school bus. The boy driver died immediately. My brother lived, with almost every part of his body broken and a severe head injury. </div> <div>He was determined in his months and months of rehabilitation that he would drive again and that he would sail.  In all of this, there has only been one summer he couldn’t sail- when his hip, rebuilt after the crash, was made more fragile by a persistent bone infection. He couldn’t get a hip replacement until it went away. So he stayed off the water that year.  He forgave the doctor who ordered him to stay off the boat. But he has forgiven many things in his life, the boy who passed the bus, the rainy circumstance that led to his son’s death. Lots of things,  abandonment, “bum” deals.</div> <div>He sailed the next year and now his crew  are racing in very wide water, seriously. </div> <div>I’ve always admired him. He’s done things I haven’t liked but for some reason I never cast any moral judgment.  Who could? I know he’s always done whatever he could to make things better, never tried to take more than he was due. He’s  forgiven lost victories and defeats.  And after all, the water is wide. And he has always been a sailor,  even when his body prevented it. So I’d like you to root for him this week  please,  along with me ,  crossing wide, probably rough water,  to the finish line,  in his boat , his “Significant Other” .  The Sail  Number is USA 4177.</div> <div> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Crossing Wide Water, My Brother the Sailor | 03:07</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/130852", title: "Crossing Wide Water, My Brother the Sailor on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/130852' addthis:title='Crossing Wide Water, My Brother the Sailor'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/130852' addthis:title='Crossing Wide Water, My Brother the Sailor'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-130852-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p130852-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/130852/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_81530"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/289735-death-of-a-paddler">Death of a Paddler</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 06:41 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Those who sign on for white water rafting trips, fishing and hunting day trips are hoping to find a few hours or so of Great Abandon, an experience the Pandemic has made even more difficult for many Americans to access. Some years back, a River rafting Guide who brought that experience to many passed on. And now so much has changed. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_590363" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/289735-death-of-a-paddler" target="blank">Death of a Paddler</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2245326" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="401" data-expires="1732697772" data-piece_id="289735" data-token="250fc8eb5372fdcc68662e2e272256a3" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="DeathofaPaddler"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Missmoggin_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/623873/MissMoggin_small.bmp" version="small" width="92" /> <p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Death of a Paddler</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">A white water rafting guide died on July 24, some years back,  four weeks after being diagnosed with an aggressive cancer. "Sully" was a white water rafting guide out of the West Branch of the Penobscot slightly northwest of the place where the flow of the East leg joins it to become the Penobscot River. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">When I was told that he died of a very aggressive cancer four weeks after initial diagnosis, my first thought was, "I wonder if he had health insurance." White water rafting guides, registered Maine Guides, commercial fisherman, small family farmers, all the self-employed seasonally based vocations that are the bristling heart and soul that Maine's natural resources offer up, do not have a reliable, affordable health insurance network. Going without means missing medical check-ups.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I only knew this particular guide because he was a guest at a relative's wedding, the groom and his bride, both White Water Rafting Guides. The wedding celebrated every aspect of Maine's outdoors. The vows were exchanged on "Miss Moggin", a lobster boat decorated with white tulle, moored off Pumpkin Island Lighthouse, at the southern end of Eggemoggin Reach. Other wedding guests reached the wedding location on a boat formerly used as an island mailboat which tied up on the port side of the "Miss Moggin" and the "Millie", a smaller lobster boat tied up on the starboard. The officiant, a commercial fisherman, donned his white Captain's shirt, trimmed with gold braid epaulets along with a white dress cap loaned to him for the occasion by the local Fire Department chief. Under blue skies, with a fair wind, over sixty guests on the mailboat, 30 others on the Miss Moggin and 10 on the Millie observed as the couple vowed "to love and cherish" "til' death do us part" noting that "marriage is a vow not to be taken lightly". The bride wore a white, empire-style wedding gown, with beaded bodice and lace overlays. Both the bride and groom wore boat shoes. The Miss Moggin, despite the white tulle, still looked like a lobster boat which the groom's soon-to-be-mother-in-law noted, to no one in particular, “She knows I don't like boats.”</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">At the reception, the couple's engagement with the outdoors was on full display: the two tier wedding cake, decorated with fishing rods, canoes, moose, deer and white water rapids, a collage of the couple with the moose which the bride had shot when she won a permit through the Moose Lottery, with the groom as co-permitee. Several photos of the couple with deer and various fish they shot or caught together were included, along with one photo of a rafting run in which the groom served as stern paddler with the bride paddling at the side. The best man congratulated the groom on sharing his life with a bride willing to lather herself up with fly dope, to walk 2 miles through the woods to fish for trout.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The bride invited the crowd "to party it down". Sully and the white water rafting guides, dressed in their semi-formal wedding attire: water-proof sandals, short-sleeved shirts and dressy water-proof shorts,took her up on it. Their gift to the bride was a bottle of "Hot Damn", a Made-in-Maine liquer. The female rafting guides decided to move away from the stuffiness of the dance floor to the less restrictive area on the top of their table (#11 in the Guest Seating Guide) from which the dishes had been cleared. They were joined , shortly thereafter, by their male rafting guide companions, Sully included. They danced with great abandon until the groom's maternal aunt tapped the dancer closest to her on the ankle, pointing to the table that looked like it might break. "Thank you", she said, and they got down. The party was, one of rafting guides said, "A Ray-jah (spelled R-a-g-e-r). </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Great abandon moves a body through a landscape far different from a cancer diagnosis that ends a life in 4 weeks.Great abandon is what day trippers try to get a taste of when they sign up for a rafting trip. Maine legislators, if they want to insure that young people cultivate careers as Outdoor Crafters of Great Abandon, need to make health care available and affordable to them, maybe even allowing them to buy into the Maine State employees' health plan. Maybe even at the same rate that legislators do. "In wildness is the preservation of the world", Thoreau wrote. He too relied on the expertise of Maine Abenaki guides to craft his trip into the Maine Woods. Someone needs to be looking out to preserve the health and wellbeing of Maine's Outdoor Crafters, who create the rafting, bird hunting, fishing trips, Great Abandon moments for those lacking those opportunities in their everyday lives.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It turns out Sully had moved to Alaska from Maine and found his dream job, calling on his knowledge of the wild,that maybe even gave him health insurance. Twenty years and four new paddlers later, the now very married couple drove to the Forks. They missed the spreading of the ashes but got there in time for the party. </span></span></p> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Death of a Paddler | 06:41</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/289735", title: "Death of a Paddler on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/289735' addthis:title='Death of a Paddler'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/289735' addthis:title='Death of a Paddler'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-289735-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p289735-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/289735/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_101726"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/60158-and-always-from-behind-where-women-are-now">And Always From Behind: Where Women Are Now</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 04:00 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>In 2024, the time is now for women to acknowledge how women are discredited by others. And yes women discredit women. All of this contributes to a character ceiling for women which lies much lower than the one men negotiate. The Election for President reminds that targeting women's character - demeaning it- draws no anger or distress from many many women in this country.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_142760" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/60158-and-always-from-behind-where-women-are-now" target="blank">And Always From Behind: Where Women Are Now</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="268519" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="240" data-expires="1732697772" data-piece_id="60158" data-token="0c9c549ac29767f9abed2443ccebcc8b" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="AndAlwaysFromBehindWhereWomenAreNow"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Mainewomensmarchsusancookpic" height="92" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/465798/MaineWomensMarchSusanCookPic.2jpg_small.JPG" version="small" /> <div>"And Always  From Behind: Where Women Are Now"<br />-Susan Cook-</div> <div>I found  notes I  wrote-not  after I received a doctorate or  jobs at prestigious places.  I wrote them after being  denied jobs that would have been promotions for jobs I was already doing very well, at lower wages, with less job security. </div> <div>Twenty years later, my notes don't qualify as  "sour grapes".  They qualify as the truth. In honor of  this International Women's Day, let us recognize the  ways in which  women are still  discredited. That cultural scion, Shakespeare, started it. They persist today: The Shrew, The Loose Woman and The Sot.</div> <div>When I applied for these job promotions, accusations were  always made from behind. Passive aggression, where one feels the stab in back but cannot see who  holds the knife is acknowledged practice among  4th  grade girls. Among College Deans too. </div> <div>"Feedback" is how women learn what is really going on through what is unsaid: body language and the social signals. </div> <div>Twenty  years ago, I sat down  for feedback   with a woman in a  white suit who leaned against her desk, with arms folded and glared as I asked questions.</div> <div>What happened?</div> <div>"The other person", she said "had  stronger interdisciplinary  teaching and  research  with many perspectives. " "My degree is   interdisciplinary, I've taught interdisciplinary  courses. I've published about interdisciplinary education."  "Yes", she said, "but  the other person had a broader social science background. There really isn't anything else I can say." </div> <div>I gave the Job Reviewers my  teaching evaluations- The average of my overall rating was 3.9 on a 1 to 5 scale, for the 40 courses I had taught.  "But the clarity of presentation  was lower", she said.    "That overshadowed all the other ratings?"  "Well, in your presentation, you might want to do a literature review to investigate the area you are presenting on- rather than present and put it back to the group. Since there is so much work that's been done in this area, you might have wanted to research it." At that moment,  I think,  she remembered that I had written an entire dissertation about the 15 minutes I was given to speak "like I would to an undergraduate class."   "I am struck by the myopia brought to this job process."  "In every area the person was more widely read. You mentioned one book.." And she said, "What stayed with me was when you said, 'and 'The book's premise is  'a happy thought is a happy molecule' [I was quoting Deepak Chopra's  book about mind/body connections, whose work she had not read.] I said "After 2 1/2 hours?" And she said, "Well, the other person was just more well read in all areas- history, political science, etc." And then , she said, "It's done and you should just let go of it. And frankly, you're making me angry." <br /> </div> <div>After 2 years of false promises, and turning down better jobs,  like a woman taking a disproportionate share of responsibility for a job description that said nothing about history or political science, but focused on the content of 40 courses I had already taught, I said , "Well,  I am sorry you're angry."</div> <div>No one told me directly that the shrew, the loose woman, or the sot which weren't me then or now,  limited my reading in political science.   When I asked to look at the job search file, it could not be found. Twenty years later, these kinds of events comprise women's history.</div> <div>Four years  before that,  a woman in a different color suit told me that the job committee thought I might be a shrew.  I had never met the secretaries who made this claim.   When I asked for the student evaluations from  a course I taught later that summer that I knew were excellent,  the Dean couldn't find the evaluations.  They never called the secretaries of  the man who got the job to see if he was  a shrew. Search committees have a hard time summoning  nerve to ask if  a man is " a shrew or loose or a sot." Think Clarence Thomas and Anita Hill here.</div> <div>Women make women's history. The glass ceiling from the  women's museum of aspiration  has been  shattered and replaced by a character ceiling. Behind it, out of site, there are calls of "shrew... loose woman ... sot" from the underground female voice called passive aggression. Shakespeare and Anita Hill were  upfront about it . Women need to be.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>And Always From Behind: Where Women Are Now | 04:00</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/60158", title: "And Always From Behind: Where Women Are Now on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/60158' addthis:title='And Always From Behind: Where Women Are Now'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/60158' addthis:title='And Always From Behind: Where Women Are Now'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-60158-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p60158-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/60158/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_70202"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/141968-a-citizen-s-guide-to-the-difference-between-tellin">A Citizen's Guide to the Difference Between Telling the Truth and an Attack</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 04:51 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>I heard Jill Abramson , the former executive editor of the New York Times say recently that since the George W. Bush administration, there have been no less than eight lawsuits against members of the press for disclosing truth from information held in government documents.</p> <p>Because the truth can change people’s beliefs, we are now in a time when telling it has been raised to the “orange alert” stage- the now unused system for alerting the public to danger. Fourth grade girls knew the truth is threatening in this way all along anyway. But as citizens, we have to ask what we lose when telling the truth is called an attack, something to prevent at all costs and thus beyond the reach of our beliefs because the powers that be don’t want us to hear it. The inner fourth grade girl in all of us is silenced and we are left with whatever the real consequences of the abuse of power are- which getting back to the outcomes history has displayed are often far worse, more damaging because the observers and the people in power who could have stopped those dangers did not have truth on their side or chose to ignore it or pretend that truth telling was an attack rather than act of protection. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_308771" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/141968-a-citizen-s-guide-to-the-difference-between-tellin" target="blank">A Citizen's Guide to the Difference Between ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="834990" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="291" data-expires="1732697772" data-piece_id="141968" data-token="fea8816defdda37fb8d48571c9ac971f" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="ACitizensGuidetotheDifferenceBetweenTellingtheTruthandanAttack"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Fourthgradegirls_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/335234/FourthgradeGirls_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div>A Citizens Guide to the Difference between Telling the Truth and an “Attack”</div> <div>-Susan Cook-</div> <div></div> <div>Much of the harm that has fallen to the  human race might have been prevented if people had told the truth. Cigarette smoking and lung cancer , carbon emissions and global warming, agent orange and cancer among Vietnam Veterans, and the Holocaust, the Rwandan genocide,  the Armenian genocide and on and on. This does not include truth  telling on the Bernie Madoff scale of course credit swap default derivatives and the economic collapse of 2008.</div> <div></div> <div>I suppose we could turn to the Chinese philosophies of Sun Tze for the origins of the belief that deception is central to the art of war which presumes that telling the truth is contrary to successful aggression,  if in fact there is a war in progress. But these days, telling the truth can be cited in the media as an attack. To use the  word “attack” to describe telling the truth is a twenty first century twist on Sun Tze’s fondness for deception.  What do we have on our side if we don’t have the truth? </div> <div></div> <div>But telling the truth as “attack”?  I heard Jill Abramson , the former executive editor of the New York Times  say recently that since the George W. Bush administration, there have been no less than eight lawsuits against members of the press for disclosing truth from information held in government documents.</div> <div></div> <div>I suppose on the one hand we could say that national security has now caught up with the social intelligence that fourth and fifth grade girls have mastered.  Paying attention to what is really going on,  telling the truth is very threatening to people in positions of power because part of what power subjugates is what you are willing to believe. How else would women have put up with being paid 69 cents for every dollar than men make for so long unless someone  had led them to believe that discrepancy was justified? Who would ever buy into the idea that one political party or leader or pubic policy is any better than another if belief systems were not what political power holds sway over? Who would ever believe that insurance company CEOs should be paid millions dollars annually unless people in positions of power had led  others to believe it was justified? Belief  levels the power playing field. Believing in the democratic process what keeps people voting and what makes people stop. Without it, unless there are weapons  and physical aggression involved,  power loses its scaffold- the story, the structure that justifies it.</div> <div></div> <div>Because the truth can change people’s beliefs, we are now in a time when telling it has been raised to the “orange alert” stage- the now unused system for alerting the public to danger. Fourth grade girls knew the truth is threatening in this way all along anyway. But as citizens, we have to ask  what we lose when telling the truth is called an attack, something to prevent at all costs and thus beyond the reach of our belief s because the powers that be don’t want us to hear it. The inner fourth grade girl in all of us is silenced and we are left with whatever the real consequences of the abuse of power are- which getting back to the outcomes history has displayed are often far worse, more damaging because the observers and the people in power who could have stopped those dangers did not have truth on their side or chose to ignore it or pretend that truth telling was an attack rather than act of protection.</div> <div></div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>A Citizen's Guide to the Difference Between ... | 04:51</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/141968", title: "A Citizen\'s Guide to the Difference Between Telling the Truth and an Attack on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/141968' addthis:title='A Citizen's Guide to the Difference Between Telling the Truth and an Attack'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/141968' addthis:title='A Citizen's Guide to the Difference Between Telling the Truth and an Attack'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-141968-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p141968-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/141968/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_64186"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/172198-apple-and-the-15-year-old-s-myopic-world-view">Apple and The 15 Year old's Myopic World View</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 05:07 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>So we now know that Apple has made the extraordinary contribution called ‘Enter the wrong password 10 times and all the data on your way-too-expensive made in human-rights-violating China I-phone' disappears.</p> <p>This leads me to believe that yes, Apple is run by and its products designed by those with worldviews like 15 year old Information Technology hackers who live with their parents but stay in their rooms most of the time and have never actually read a newspaper printed on actual paper held in their hands, not even The New York Times.</p> <p>There are worse things in life than having your parents know what’s on your I-phone. Finding out who mass murderers have contacted is important for the whole world. Many 15 year olds don’t realize that.</p> <p>Apple doesn’t seem to see that clever 15 year old hacker privacy features which they use to promote faith in the I-phone is as damaging as any privacy breach. Eliminating all the data on an I-phone can be as damaging and terrorist-like as reading what’s on the I-phone in the first place- depending on whose I-phone it is. And you don’t even need a password to do it. You just need to enter the wrong one ten times. I don’t see too many I-phones being carried around in armored vehicles- more usually in back pockets. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_370331" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/172198-apple-and-the-15-year-old-s-myopic-world-view" target="blank">Apple and The 15 Year old's Myopic World View</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1073184" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="307" data-expires="1732697772" data-piece_id="172198" data-token="b0b3c1017e313881395a29c38a50db6a" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="Appleandits15YearOldWorldView"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Img_0691__1__small" height="92" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/402768/IMG_0691__1__small.jpg" version="small" /> <span> <p>Apple and The Fifteen Year Old ‘s Myopic World View</p> <p>-Susan Cook-</p> <p> </p> <p>So we now know that Apple has made the extraordinary contribution called ‘Enter the wrong password 10 times and all the data on your way-too-expensive made in human-rights-violating China I-phone' disappears.</p> <p>Which leads me to believe that yes, Apple is run by and its products designed by those with minds like 15 year old Information Technology hackers who live with their parents but stay in their rooms most of the time and have never actually read a newspaper printed on actual paper held in their hands, not even The New York Times.</p> <p>There are worse things in life than having your parents know what’s on your I-phone. Finding out who mass murderers have contacted is important for the whole world. Many 15 year olds don’t realize that.</p> <p>Apple doesn’t seem to see that clever 15 year old hacker privacy features which they use to promote faith in the I-phone is as damaging as any privacy breach. Eliminating all the data on an I-phone can be as damaging and terrorist-like as reading what’s on the I-phone in the first place- depending on whose I-phone it is. And you don’t even need a password to do it. You just need to enter the wrong one ten times. I don’t see too many I-phones being carried around in armored vehicles- more usually in back pockets. Eliminating all the data from a 15 year old’s phone so parents can’t see it may be absolutely inconsequential- depending on the health and well-being of the 15 year old. If the I-phone belongs to a Chief of Staff or an Airlines executive, that amplifies the consequence. But the 15 year old hacker is often the most important person in the 15 year old’s world. Which brings us to the difference between a visionary world view and the myopic one of Apple’s 15 year old worldview.</p> <p>Making products in China with no acknowledgement that China remains one of the worst violators of human rights in the world is a passive acceptance of human rights violations. In China, the government Mom and Dad get your information and you are in jail like Liu Xiaobo- but of course they don’t need your password to do that. Publish a paper very similar in content to the political platforms of the Democratic or Republican parties and the Chinese government will eliminate access to paper, pens, and yes, I-phones by putting you in jail. Ask Nobel Peace Prize winner Lui Xiaobo when they let him out of jail.</p> <p>Apple’s 15 year old world view brings it to make products in China which ties this enormous American company to Chinese workers whose human rights survive by a string. It ties Apple to the Chinese economy which is kind of how the Chinese like it, of course. And the Chinese figured out a long time ago that accessing your private data by figuring out your password is old school. They will tae that I-phone completely and eliminate any data making- privacy feature or not- and sentence you the other way- in a court. Apple in its 15 year old worldview has not yet realized parents do that kind of thing which - by making I-phones in China- Apple makes itself vulnerable to- the parent Chinese government taking things away. That only changes when China has civil liberties - not just an I-phone privacy feature. Which brings us back to having an easy way to eliminate I-phone data that does not even require a password- just 10 wrong ones- is as damaging as being able to read the data itself.</p> <p>Apple could solve the problem by getting rid of the eliminate data feature. If Apple could just get over itself- and realize there is a big human rights violating world out there- which a psychologist could lain is extremely difficult for most 15 year olds who stay on their I-phones all day to do.</p> </span> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Apple and The 15 Year old's Myopic World View | 05:07</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/172198", title: "Apple and The 15 Year old\'s Myopic World View on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/172198' addthis:title='Apple and The 15 Year old's Myopic World View'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/172198' addthis:title='Apple and The 15 Year old's Myopic World View'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-172198-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p172198-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/172198/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_64187"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/155106-harper-lee-s-american-mirror">Harper Lee' s American Mirror</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 04:07 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Twenty four hours or so have passed since a portrait of the older Atticus Finch as a bigot, complaining about the integration of “Negroes” into the culture, has been given to us by Harper Lee in the newly published "Go Set a Watchman". She has given us a mirror of the struggle to sustain and protect deep compassion, that is, in many, many ways a uniquely American mirror.To Kill a Mockingbird could not have been published when it was in many other countries. And in another country, or culture- maybe this Atticus Finch in Go Set a Watchman wouldn’t have stung quite as much - because the good one is no longer purely good. But so many people here feeling the sting- recognizing that is part of this country too. We all are the watchman in our own way.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_335598" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/155106-harper-lee-s-american-mirror" target="blank">Harper Lee' s American Mirror</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="933214" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="247" data-expires="1732697772" data-piece_id="155106" data-token="454f1e0152f7ce061dc45f22914f7012" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="AnAmericanMirror"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Breathing_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/series_images/33623/Breathing_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div>Harper Lee’s American Mirror</div> <div>-Susan Cook</div> <div>Twenty four hours or so have passed since a portrait of the older  Atticus Finch as a bigot, complaining about the integration of “Negroes” into the culture, has been given to us by Harper Lee.  She has given us  a mirror of the struggle to sustain and protect deep compassion, that is, in many , many ways an American mirror.</div> <div>We long for the good one to be the good one and the bad one to be the bad one. Deep compassion like that of the  father of the 8 year old boy who died at the finish line of the Boston Marathon is rare and very difficult to sustain. He said  his  family did not want the death penalty  for the bomber . The child’s father said the bomber chose hate in his actions. The death penalty is about hate. The child’s father said  “We chose love. We choose kindness. We choose peace.” And that is what makes us different from him.</div> <div>Sometimes the bad one cannot be sacrificed because if you sacrifice the bad one, compassion and love are also sacrificed. Harper Lee’s mirror in Go Set a Watchman tells us sometimes the good one is not all good and the bad one is not all bad and not worthy of compassion.</div> <div>It is far easier to kill the mockingbird than to tolerate its imitation - mirroring- and yes- being fooled- over and over- because you cannot tell if it is what it really is- which  bird the real one- which one not.  The truth saves us from that or saves our trust in what we hear and see. And so, as an older man, the truer Atticus Finch is not who we thought he was- or not completely.  He is a portrait of the difficulty of sustaining compassion. It is not  impossible- an eight year’s old grieving father shows that- but difficult, taxed out of us by an intrusive culture  or media or a political system that insists- and will lie if it has to- that good ones are good and bad ones are bad. </div> <div>There are many examples of  us being fooled, compassion lost when we thought it would be, there,  the good one being the bad one , the bad one turning out to be a delusional schizophrenic - who maybe was never asked about his delusional fixation- guns- if he had guns, where he kept them, where he bought them and why he wanted them.  And sometimes, the good one being inexplicably mean, greedy, completely ignoring the stark cruelty of what’s been done, running fast and furiously away from any mirror someone might hold up. </div> <div>Harper Lee’s mirror is an American mirror- though.  To Kill a Mockingbird could not have been published when it was in many other countries. And in another country, or culture-  maybe this Atticus Finch in Go Set a Watchman wouldn’t have stung quite as much - because the good one is no longer purely good.  But so many people here feeling the sting- recognizing that is part of this country too. We all are the watchman in our own way.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Harper Lee' s American Mirror | 04:07</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/155106", title: "Harper Lee\' s American Mirror on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/155106' addthis:title='Harper Lee' s American Mirror'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/155106' addthis:title='Harper Lee' s American Mirror'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-155106-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p155106-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/155106/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_64640"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/174407-a-hackle-o-meter-in-every-home-a-not-politically">A Hackle o' Meter in Every Home, A Not-Politically Fit bit On Every Wrist</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 03:19 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Elected officials or politicians aspiring to be elected officials say things that would register on our Hackle o’ meters and our Politically Unfit Bits- if someone would just invent these tools. Our Hackle o’ meters would go up because well, our hackles would go up. And our Politically Unfit bits would practically fall off our wrists because of all the calculations of political unfitness they’d be making. </p> <p>I am not taking about You-Know-Who. I think You-Know-Who, for some people, raises adrenaline by stimulating the amygdala- the part of the brain which raises adrenaline and fight-or-flight hormones because something feels dangerous. Dr. Joseph Ledoux , a neuroscientist says the path signals take to the amygdala is fast and spontaneous, thus he calls it the Low Road. We also respond to danger, he says, by signals sent to the Frontal Cortex when we sense danger but those signals are slower so he calls that path the High Road. <br />A Hackle O’ Meter or a Politically Unfit Bit works very differently. Both work from subtle, subtle visual and auditory cues. And they might be good for the country.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_374824" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/174407-a-hackle-o-meter-in-every-home-a-not-politically" target="blank">A Hackle o' Meter in Every Home, A ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1092287" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="199" data-expires="1732697772" data-piece_id="174407" data-token="0c50c037bee92b5638ea7862e2a19307" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="AHackleometerinEveryHomeAPoliticallyUnfitBitonEveryWrst"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Breathing_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/series_images/33623/Breathing_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <span> <p>A Hackle o’ meter In Every Home; A Not Politically Fit Bit On Every Wrist</p> <p>-Susan Cook-</p> <p> </p> <p>Elected officials or politicians aspiring to be elected officials say things that would register on our Hackle o’ meters and our Politically Unfit Bits- if someone would just invent these tools. Our Hackle o’ meters would go up because well, our hackles would go up. And our Politically Unfit bits would practically fall off our wrists because of all the calculations of political unfitness they’d be making.</p> <p>I am not taking about You-Know-Who. I think You-Know-Who, for some people, raises adrenaline by stimulating the amygdala- the part of the brain which raises adrenaline and fight-or-flight hormones because something feels dangerous. Dr. Joseph Ledoux , a neuroscientist says the path signals take to the amygdala is fast and spontaneous, thus he calls it the Low Road. We also respond to danger, he says, by signals sent to the Frontal Cortex when we sense danger but those signals are slower so he calls that path the High Road. So when we listen to You Know Who, your amygdala might get revved up and you turn off the television, radio or click ‘Power Shutdown’ on the PC. If your Frontal Lobes start firing, you just say ‘I am not voting for him.’</p> <p>A Hackle O’ Meter or a Politically Unfit Bit works very differently. Both work from subtle, subtle visual and auditory cues. We Observe Mitch McConnell for the 450<sup><span style="font-size: small;">th</span></sup> time say he will not give President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee the time of day. We see the visual image of his clamped shut jaw, creating a glacier of pale skin beneath that jaw. I hope he has a sense of humor because really, landscape metaphors work best. I am not saying the man is dangerous ala’ Gorilla walking into your living room. But he may well get your Hackle o’ Meter going and if you had a Not-Politically Fitbit, it might fall off your wrist with its calculations going wild.</p> <p>Now, there are Democrats who effect Hackle o’ Meters and Non-Politically Fit Bit. Some of the ones in my state register so strongly on the Non-Politically Fit Bit, I had to take mine off.</p> <p>If only someone would invent these tools. It would be good for the country. Someone could slip one on Mitch McConnell’s wrist or one of the Politically Unfit Bit high registerers in my state and very gradually- it’s better to go slow- the Hackle o’Meters and the Politically Unfit Bits would convince them. Not their job to undo the US Constitution, not their job to use Internet Bullying to trade votes with Republicans, no amnesia about policy positions and no blocking duly nominated Supreme Court nominees.</p> </span> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>A Hackle o' Meter in Every Home, A ... | 03:19</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/174407", title: "A Hackle o\' Meter in Every Home, A Not-Politically Fit bit On Every Wrist on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/174407' addthis:title='A Hackle o' Meter in Every Home, A Not-Politically Fit bit On Every Wrist'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/174407' addthis:title='A Hackle o' Meter in Every Home, A Not-Politically Fit bit On Every Wrist'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-174407-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p174407-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/174407/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_67602"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/189467-why-women-don-t-tell-dying-from-silence">Why Women Don't Tell: Dying from Silence </a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 07:59 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>The anniversary of the loss of my childhood friend who died from suicide just passed. She, like many women, was sexually abused and never told anyone. Not too long ago, many assaulted by Harvey Weinstein are finally told. For the silence of those who have been exploited or sexually assaulted to end, shame needs to be disenfranchised, for once, from telling. Which means that the blame, the ready cacophony of ‘She’s lying’, the persistent undermining of women’s credibility, no matter what her experience or credential ends. We all bear witness to that in the reduction of an exceptionally experienced, brilliant woman who ran for president reduced to liar, sneaky untrustworthy thief and criminal. We should all fear that the same specter awaits those who have accused Weinstein and that in time, his accusers will be met with the same sanctioned dismissive view.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_405473" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/189467-why-women-don-t-tell-dying-from-silence" target="blank">Why Women Don't Tell: Dying from Silence </a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1559647" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="479" data-expires="1732697772" data-piece_id="189467" data-token="829f11545acf23f21ae3f4dfacfbad12" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="WhyWoeDontTell122017"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Whywomwndontell_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/444595/WhyWomwnDonTell_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: left;">Why Women Don’t Tell: Dying of Silence <br />-Susan Cook-<br />The anniversary of the death of my childhood best friend, who I’ll call ‘S’, passed recently. 'S' drove to an isolated country road, parked her yellow convertible by the side, and, in time, died. She committed suicide. Someone found her there. Over the next few weeks time- word of her death spread to me when her roommate answered my call late one Sunday night,  hoping to talk  to my longest friend. Her ashes were scattered  from a mountain overlooking the ocean.   The long disoriented grieving then began for a 24 year old, who I knew had not always been happy, but presented happiness to everyone else. Yellow was her favorite color.</div> <div>Years later, her roommate, who had an unusual first name, was mentioned in a memoir I was reading. I wrote the author, wondering if the mentioned person was the roommate I had spoken to that night.  It was. In the conversation that followed, the roommate  told me that yes,  ‘S’ had been repeatedly sexually abused by a sibling. ‘S’ and I shared much about our  lives but she never told me that.</div> <div>Sexual assault and abuse unravel the innocence of human development.  I remember when her first high school boyfriend told  her , she had ‘bedroom eyes’. one of those precipitous moments when, she and I knew, there was something emerging in the way she was seen and we did not know what it was. Then there were the nights when  her parents weren’t home, when we each with our then 2 or 3 week - long romances,  disappeared into  separate rooms, the radio on, playing "Strawberry Fields Forever", sometimes. From ninth grade on, she bleached her hair with ‘Summer Blonde’, lighter and lighter shades, the older she got. She had learned males like blondes.</div> <div>Why S never told me, or for that matter, only one other person  was, I suppose, emotional protection- of an extremely isolating and dangerous kind . Not all sexually violated people commit suicide . But if  suicidality doesn‘t come, substance abuse and deep despair and distress may.</div> <div>All of this comes to mind , as it does every year,  because  ‘S’  not telling  makes her like the hundreds of women who have not told. This year, it comes at a time when many women have- only now-  come forth to identify themselves as victims of  sexual assault and harassment by  Harvey Weinstein. They are finally telling.  S never got that opportunity or could not take whatever one arose.</div> <div>We don’t need to travel too far to witness the subtle and unsubtle signs that telling will be met with blame, the ready cacophony of ‘She’s lying’, the persistent undermining of women’s credibility, no matter what her experience or credential . And this year the question is again raised. Why hasn’t shame been disenfranchised, once and for all from the telling of sexual assault and abuse? </div> <div>Many may remember Rep. Todd Akin raising the question in a Missouri television interview about whether a woman claiming rape  “was really raped”. After all, he said, discussion of the choice to terminate a pregnancy after rape is irrelevant because “rape doesn‘t cause pregnancy.” <br /><br /><br /> And then, there‘s the coverage of a 2013 Maine prostitution trial  following the exploitation of a young woman by 140 men. Her feelings, her body, her violation were pretty much ignored as the media devoured the events. The statewide newspaper headlined the “dilemma” of men who paid for sex with her trying to prevent the embarrassment of publicity . And then there was  the Maine Press Herald columnist  who  wrote of the young woman  “oh yes, having sex with well over 140 men who paid dearly for an hour of her precious time” and questioned how contrite she was  when she said “These actions were not taken because I wanted to. I did not feel like I was in a position to choose.” Bill Nemitz, the columnist wrote, “Come again?” “The Madam glides from the spotlight insisting she'd been tricked into turning tricks,” he wrote.</div> <div>The young woman was held in sex slavery  (the human rights term for prostitution)  by Mark Strong, the Thomaston insurance agent barely mentioned by Mr. Nemitz or his newspaper. After her trial, in which she was sentenced to 10 months in jail, she announced that she “was feeling free“. Any humanitarian observer would note that anyone who says she is ‘feeling free’ after being sentenced to 10 months in jail has been  imprisoned by far worse jailers.</div> <div>Most recently,  the same male columnist shared the stage as the interviewer of this year’s winner of the Frances Perkins Center award for  Intelligence and Courage, named after FDR‘s very accomplished Secretary of Labor. This an interviewer  who quite crassly dismissed  the credibility of a sexual assault victim . It was  as if a sexually assaulted  woman’s undermined credibility in telling had absolutely nothing to do with  that of Jane Meyer, the award winner or Frances Perkins, both of whom no doubt encountered as women many efforts to dismiss their believability.  Maybe the Center thought interviewing Jane Meyer would be ‘easy’. Of course, different day, different dollar, as the saying goes.</div> <div>Which brings us back to not telling- and where the  permission to shame and discredit sexual assault victims comes from. To accuse them of lying,  ‘she deserved it’, sometimes with  the subtle collusion of women using long familiar tactics for shaming girls and women. We should all fear that, in a short time, Harvey Weinstein’s accusers will be met with the same sanctioned dismissive view.</div> <div>So, this time of year  yes, I’m angry about that. But not as angry as I am that my friend ‘S’ could not tell about her long sexual abuse because she knew  the consequence of telling and thus died, from silence.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Why Women Don't Tell: Dying from Silence | 07:59</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/189467", title: "Why Women Don\'t Tell: Dying from Silence on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/189467' addthis:title='Why Women Don't Tell: Dying from Silence '>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/189467' addthis:title='Why Women Don't Tell: Dying from Silence '>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-189467-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p189467-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/189467/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_71477"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/94346-ode-to-mr-roubini-s-west-grand-lake-bass-update">Ode to Mr. Roubini's West Grand Lake Bass Update</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 03:18 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>In Maine, Bass fishing on West Grand Lake is a destination respite for many, including Mr. Nouriel Roubini, the legendary economist who was almost single-handed in anticipating the 2008 housing collapse and world-wide recession. This "Ode to Mr. Roubini's West Grand Lake Bass " is revisited in the wake of the recent change in , let's say, the landscape under the "River of Financial Abundance". </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_212355" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/94346-ode-to-mr-roubini-s-west-grand-lake-bass-update" target="blank">Ode to Mr. Roubini's West Grand Lake Bass Update</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2466408" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="198" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="94346" data-token="6422354adefd858cf0bde7936a534646" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="OdetoMrRoubinisWestGrandLakeBassUpdated2020"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Fish6client_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/221030/fish6client_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"><br />ODE TO MR. ROUBINI'S WEST GRAND LAKE BASS REVISITED</div> <div style="text-align: center;"><br />MR. ROUBINI, DO  YOU THINK IT WAS THE WEST GRAND LAKE BASS<br />THAT HELPED YOUR BRAIN CELLS  FORECAST THE 2008 CRASH?</div> <div style="text-align: center;">WHEN YOUR FRIENDS HAD IGNORED THE CREDIT DEFAULT SWAP  DERIVATIVES,</div> <div style="text-align: center;">AND IN 2009, BEGAN TAKING SELECTIVE SEROTONIN RE-UPTAKE INHIBITORS,</div> <div style="text-align: center;">DID YOU GO HOME, OPEN THE FREEZER, REACHING DOWN   PAST  THE CASH,</div> <div style="text-align: center;"> GET OUT THE BUTTER, AND SAY "LET'S HAVE SOME MORE BASS!"<br /><br />LUCKY FOR YOU, SOME BASS STILL REMAINED</div> <div style="text-align: center;">FROM YOUR SUMMER FUN FISHING IN GRAND LAKE STREAM, MAINE.</div> <div style="text-align: center;">WHICH ALL BRINGS US BACK  TO THE VERY BIG QUESTION</div> <div style="text-align: center;">OF INTRODUCING ALEWIVES , NOT YOUR USUAL ECONOMIC REFLECTION.</div> <div style="text-align: center;">PLEASE FOCUS  THOSE BRAIN CELLS ON THE FUTURE AND THE PAST. <br /> TELL US, WILL INTRODUCING ALEWIVES TO THE ST. CROIX RIVER DRIVE OUT  THE BASS?</div> <div style="text-align: center;">IF YOU THINK THAT THEY WILL,CALL A MAINE LEGISLATOR AND TAKE SIDES.</div> <div style="text-align: center;">THERE ARE  EXPERTS THAT AGREE WITH YOU, THE GRAND LAKE STREAM GUIDES.</div> <div style="text-align: center;">THESE ARE THE GUIDES WHO SHOW YOU WHERE TO FIND  BASS</div> <div style="text-align: center;">( OMEGA-3S FOR THE MIND ) SO YOU CAN  MAKE A GOOD ECONOMIC  FORECAST.</div> <div style="text-align: center;">WE KNOW MR. ROUBINI, YOU DON’T HAVE X-RAY VISION TO HELP YOU DELIVER</div> <div style="text-align: center;">AN ASSESSMENT OF THE TOPOGRAPHY UNDER THE 1850'S ST. CROIX RIVER</div> <div style="text-align: center;">BUT IF YOU WERE AN ALEWIVE FACING A 20 FOOT INCLINE</div> <div style="text-align: center;">DOESN'T THAT  SOUND A LOT LIKE THE STOCK MARKET IN JANUARY 2009?</div> <div style="text-align: center;">MR. ROUBINI, THE ONLY WAY FOR THE ALEWIVE IS UP, UP AND UP</div> <div style="text-align: center;">BUT FOR ALEWIVES TWENTY FEET IS REALLY QUITE TOUGH.</div> <div style="text-align: center;">YES, THERE ARE STRATEGIES, YOUR SPECIAL NICHE</div> <div style="text-align: center;">BUT "BUY LOW, SELL HIGH" DOESN'T HELP OUT A FISH.</div> <div style="text-align: center;">DON'T WE ALL WISH, GOVERNOR JANET MILLS HAD YOU ON HER SPEED DIAL?</div> <div style="text-align: center;">WELL, SHE PROBABLY DOES AND CHECKS IT EVERY ONCE IN AWHILE.</div> <div style="text-align: center;">MR. ROUBINI, MANY THINK THE COUNTRY CAN'T MISS</div> <div style="text-align: center;">WITH YOU  ON HER SPEED DIAL AND YOUR WEST GRAND LAKE FISH.</div> <div style="text-align: center;">MR. ROUBINI, YES, THERE ARE THE CRAPPIES AND LITTLE  SMALL TROUT</div> <div style="text-align: center;">(AND NO, WE'RE NOT TALKING ABOUT HOW THEY WILL  VOTE.)</div> <div style="text-align: center;">YOUR TASTE BUDS ARE NURTURED ON MICHELIN 5 STAR CLASS</div> <div style="text-align: center;">SO THAT MEANS NOTHING  QUITE SUITS YOU LIKE A WEST Grand Lake Bass.</div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />The 2022 Prologue,<br /><br /> Mr. Roubini, time to fire up the grill,</span></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em><em>Get out your best marinade, put the Allagash on chill.</em><br /><em>Your very best guide in this time of ticker tape upheaval</em><br /><em>is not Bloomberg News or today's Wall Street Journal.</em><br /><em>To keep your title as Dr. West Grand Lake Bass,</em><br /><em>your Omega-3s jumping, still saving our last</em><br /><em>nickels and dollars from going out with the tide,</em><br /><em>go to www.grandlakestreamguides."</em><br /><br /><br /> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>The 2023 Addendum:</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em><br /></em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>Mr. Roubini , there's truth </em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>and then there's fiction</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>And then there's The Maine Legislature</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>Which some people  consider an affliction.</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>Well,  wrap your mind around the latest proposed bill </em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>To eliminate Bass fishing in some rivers</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em> by removing  any  and all existing  restriction .</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>So any hope we might have that  Novavax executives</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>Might sneak up to Maine and chow down </em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>on your favorite Omega 3 derivative </em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>Or some from AstraZeneca, Crisper</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em> or  others in the biotech sector,</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>Or  Biogen  now that everyone's not</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em> referring to it with an expletive.</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>We might see their stocks  soar </em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>or we might go so far as to say ,</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>By eating Maine bass, they will salvage</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em> the company’s fiscal</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>Hope for a 20 percent rise</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em> not only in workplace serenity </em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>But in their  52 week high </em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>reported by none other than Kai Rysdal.</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>Mr Roubini, the Registered Maine Guides </em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>will make room in the hearing room</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>So your testimony  insures LD 537 redacted </em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>by Maine’s elected political hackers.</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em><br /></em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em><br /></em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>As ever, Mr. Roubini, time to fire up the grill,</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>Get out your best marinade, put the Allagash on chill.</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>Your very best guide in this time of ticker tape upheaval</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>is not Bloomberg News or today's Wall Street Journal...</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>to keep your title as Dr. West Grand Lake Bass,</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>your Omega-3s jumping, still saving our last</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>nickels and dollars from going out with the tide,</em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em>go to www.grandlakestreamguides." </em></div> </em></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><em></em><br />-SUSAN COOK-</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Ode to Mr. Roubini's West Grand Lake Bass Update | 03:18</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/94346", title: "Ode to Mr. Roubini\'s West Grand Lake Bass Update on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/94346' addthis:title='Ode to Mr. Roubini's West Grand Lake Bass Update'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/94346' addthis:title='Ode to Mr. Roubini's West Grand Lake Bass Update'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-94346-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p94346-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/94346/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_77357"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/257494-the-generic-election-2018-senate-candidate-anthem">The Generic Election 2018 Senate Candidate Anthem: In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning)</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 05:19 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning) , a generic anthem for each and every Election 2018 Senate candidate. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_529745" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/257494-the-generic-election-2018-senate-candidate-anthem" target="blank">The Generic Election 2018 Senate Candidate ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1892274" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="319" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="257494" data-token="4d478a464c2ebe5dc786cdf84720449a" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="GenericElection2018SenateCandidate"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Centerformoremoneyformephoto2_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/573116/Centerformoremoneyformephoto2_small.JPG" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p>The Generic 2018 Election Senate Candidate Anthem</p> <p>-Susan Cook</p> <p> </p> <p>Oh beautiful, for spacious me, I am a profound man</p> <p>So don't keep asking me to say for what it is I stand.</p> <p>My friend Big Grouchy told me, "Just say you do not know</p> <p>which Senators agree with you. Voters don't have to know.</p> <p> </p> <p>" Oh beautiful, for spacious me, Big Grouchy meant to say</p> <p>Don't tell them how you'll vote until they really have to pay.</p> <p>Friday before Election Day, when Silver's polls are up,</p> <p>Their vote will be your Hostage! Kavenaugh the final wedge!</p> <p> </p> <p>Oh beautiful for spacious me. Big Grouchy says I can</p> <p>hide all the facts about my past, my voting history.</p> <p>I'm not anonymous you know. But Grouchy gets real mad</p> <p>if someone tells the truth and he can't find out who they are.</p> <p> </p> <p>Oh beautiful, for spacious me. Big Grouchy also said</p> <p>Make sure you scan the Internet and pay some overhead</p> <p>to Google every minute to tell you if they post</p> <p>the facts you know, so they won't blow the cover off of you.</p> <p> </p> <p>Oh beautiful for spacious me. Big Grouchy says he will</p> <p>send out subpoenas rapidly when Truth's anonymous.</p> <p>It's not that he's a liar. It’s public image work.</p> <p>He says just show them what I want. The rest they can forget.</p> <p> </p> <p>Oh beautiful for spacious me. My only problem is</p> <p>because I have said things outloud, it’s not anonymous.</p> <p>I mean the public record. It’s out there on the web.</p> <p>Maybe Big Grouchy’s next lawsuit will ban the Internet.</p> <p> </p> <p>Oh beautiful for spacious me, I know that I can win.</p> <p>I've got them all so nervous. I think it is a cinch!</p> <p>The most important thing to me is getting to D.C.!</p> <p>Constituents? What's that? The issue's loyalty to me.</p> <p> </p> <p>Oh beautiful for spacious me, I don't know what Brie is.</p> <p>Food you know is not my thing. It doesn't go ka-ching!</p> <p>My checkbook always needs me: I round up every sum.</p> <p>The difference goes to charity, Guess what ! Lowers the tax for me!</p> <p> </p> <p>Oh beautiful, for spacious me, I don't do sacrifice.</p> <p>The Senators earn 100 thou. I don't plan to be one of them.</p> <p>There is a difference, I'll tell you, no, I don't think I can.</p> <p>I don't want citizens to think they are the ones I'm better than.</p> <p> </p> <p>Oh beautiful for spacious me, I give to charity.</p> <p>It comes to point zero zero one of my salary.</p> <p>My supporters don't do math. Plus I am not a Mormon.</p> <p>They give their ten percent away. No way I'll outdo them.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p>Oh beautiful, for spacious me, I won't let wages rise.</p> <p>A dollar here, some quarters there. What do poor people buy?</p> <p>I 'm not that big a spender, except for my TV,</p> <p>It's part of my economy. Don't ask me: "So, tax-free?"</p> <p> </p> <p>Oh beautiful, for spacious me, a trillion dollar gap,</p> <p>would not be my problem when I am down there in DC.</p> <p>It's not something I started . It wasn't on my time.</p> <p>Too bad for you. you've got enough to pay me on your dime.</p> <p> </p> <p>And yes, environmentally, contamination might</p> <p>happen somewhere, the EPA has problems keeping sight</p> <p>of chemicals and stuff like that. My votes will all be right</p> <p>Don't start inventing reasons for me to take on your gripes.</p> <p> </p> <p>Oh beautiful for spacious me. There are times when I'm wrong.</p> <p>It doesn't really matter though, because I know I'm right.</p> <p>It shows that I'm a leader. I will do what I want.</p> <p>Do not forget I have to fend for my financ..um.. political life.</p> <p> </p> <p>Oh beautiful for spacious me. I'm not a hypocrite.</p> <p>Computers are for everyone and helps them feel they fit</p> <p>into the world of cyberspace. Who knew they’d be Anonymous</p> <p>and spread the truth about my past while I'm in politics.</p> <p> </p> <p>Oh beautiful, for spacious me, I 'm so glad that I found</p> <p>the time that I will really need to make my way around</p> <p>to donors who will help me run my Senate race for free:</p> <p>Make sure the check's signed properly "For More Money...For me."</p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>The Generic Election 2018 Senate Candidate ... | 05:19</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/257494", title: "The Generic Election 2018 Senate Candidate Anthem: In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning) on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/257494' addthis:title='The Generic Election 2018 Senate Candidate Anthem: In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning)'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/257494' addthis:title='The Generic Election 2018 Senate Candidate Anthem: In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning)'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-257494-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p257494-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/257494/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_78265"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/57772-a-citizen-s-guide-to-cynicism">A Citizen's Guide to Cynicism</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 03:04 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Thirteen plus years or so after I posted the first commentary for The River is Wide series, this remains true: Speaking and seeking the truth is not cynical.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_137913" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/57772-a-citizen-s-guide-to-cynicism" target="blank">A Citizen's Guide to Cynicism</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="456637" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="184" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="57772" data-token="21d3e0f2fb81be8d70f183b4760bd385" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="ACitizensGuidetoCynicismRerecord"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Citizensguide3_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/126593/CitizensGuide3_small.JPG" version="small" width="92" /> <div>The editor of my local newspaper refused to publish two letters I wrote criticizing a political candidate who flaunted the Chinese as fertile potential investors in our state.  China has a horrendous human rights record which includes Tibetan genocide.  “You”, he said, “are doing the dirty work” for another "candidate's campaign" by "taking the moral high ground" which he questioned because of my "known" party activism. </div> <div>I reminded him that the Nobel Committee acknowledged the severity of China's violation of human rights by giving the Nobel Peace prize to the Chinese jailed  dissident Liu Xiaobo. “I’ve been a Tibetan Buddhist far longer than I have been a Democrat,” I said, “My Buddhist teacher's monastery in Tibet has been destroyed. I support a child’s education whose ancestors fled Tibet because of religious persecution.” He said "Well, now I know where you're coming from."</div> <div>Outrage about atrocity has to be All About Me in order to be genuine? Talk about moral high ground is no longer valuable in and of itself and dismissed if the speaker also actively takes part in our Democracy? Speaking - seeking- truth means doing someone's dirty work? </div> <div>"Really?" as my 20-something friends say.</div> <div>And we wonder where cynicism begins? Where motivation to speak and take part in this democracy  gets lost? How  " All About Me" becomes the only voice people recognize and listen to? </div> <div>Cynicism is a ball of dust that stays in the crevices- until we stop seeking and speaking truth because we no longer believe that someone somewhere is,  everyday, little by little, seeking the moral high  ground, where Liu Xiaobo is a media creation. Where taking part in our Democracy and political process is  "doing a campaign's dirty work".  Cynicism all by itself takes the prospect of truth- truth- not fiction- and chews it into tiny pieces that nobody can recognize and metaphor can’t help and that everybody is afraid to believe. When we don't have truth to seek and  speak about, we have nothing, and nothing  is not cynical, it is nothing.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>A Citizen's Guide to Cynicism | 03:04</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/57772", title: "A Citizen\'s Guide to Cynicism on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/57772' addthis:title='A Citizen's Guide to Cynicism'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/57772' addthis:title='A Citizen's Guide to Cynicism'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-57772-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p57772-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/57772/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_78518"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/265885-bannon-s-farewell-an-addendum-i-was-seeing-him">Bannon's Farewell: An Addendum "I Was Seeing Him"</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 02:47 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Great American Wrong Book lyrics for Mr. Bannon, now that Roger Stone, one of 6 of his former campaign colleagues indicted, is one of 3 now convicted. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_545599" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/265885-bannon-s-farewell-an-addendum-i-was-seeing-him" target="blank">Bannon's Farewell: An Addendum "I Was Seeing Him"</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1995566" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="167" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="265885" data-token="49598e4651e347330c58acfb119e3eaf" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="BannonAddendumFarewell"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Christamscard24_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/588091/christamscard24_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Addendum to Bannon's Farewell. "I Was Seeing Him..."</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">to the tune from "I'll Be Seeing You.."<br />-Susan Cook-</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"> </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I was seeing him, yes </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">it was a minor whim</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I probably should have stayed home </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">watching re-runs of </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">a certain Cosa Nostra film .</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I had no idea </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">it was a favorite of his too.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I was hard at work helping You-Know-Who.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"> </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">So I guess I'll change my pattern.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Try to get back to the gym.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Do a lot more yoga. </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">See if my PC could possibly fit in</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">The next space launch they're having</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">maybe Elon Musk could try</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">get it out there- headed straight</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">for Mars, hey, maybe for Saturn. </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"> </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Actually, I barely knew him.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Roger Boulder, was that him?</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">The other thing I do not do</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">is send out emails</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">on a whim.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I hope you understand emails </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">easily are faked.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">The important things- I say, face-to-face.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"> </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">That was why I saw him briefly,</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">usually at yoga class.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">He is a big tanner. </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Not my style. Burns my nose too fast. </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I spend enough time dealing</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">with my allergies to dust.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">How I got by with no yoga, </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Let's just say, it's now a must. </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"> </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Now I won't be seeing him </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">at yoga anymore.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">It may be a little while before</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">a class offered near him. But more</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">and more, federal prisons opt</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">to have it. Keeps the prisoners calm.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">No more tanning booths. </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Just downward facing dog.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"> </p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I will not be seeing him.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I got my computer cleaned up.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Gee, I'm sorry that he's hit</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">a road bump. Sort of a hiccup.</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I don't think back to those days,</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I secretly admired </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Mr. Mueller. Those head stand shoulders,</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">shout out, Yoga something he has tried. </span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"> </p> <span style="font-size: small;"> <p style="text-align: center;">AND DON'T FORGET!<br />THE ORIGINAL!</p> <div style="text-align: center;">‘Bannon's Pose' <br />A Poetic Tribute to the Departure of Mr. Bannon’<br />To the Tune from ‘I’ll Be Seeing You’</div> <p style="text-align: center;"> </p> <div style="text-align: center;">https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/213090-in-the-department-of-poetic-justice-bannon-s-fa <br />Susan Cook-</div> <p style="text-align: center;"> </p> <div style="text-align: center;">Scaramucci didn’t <br />read between the fine lines, <br />called reporters back, <br />still read things in The New York Times,<br />I didn’t ever bother,<br />I never used words like suck or cock.<br />I’m a journalist.<br />You know I just like to talk.</div> <p style="text-align: center;"> </p> <div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"><br /></span>I am kind of Presidential. <br />I think that came through.<br />Yes I’m allergic to<br />Certain foods, mold, cat dander too.<br />That’s why my nose looked stuffy<br />Kind of red, yes, my eyes too,<br />never got a chance to Photoshop <br />my best side for you.</div> <p style="text-align: center;"> </p> <div style="text-align: center;">Then there’s Sean Spicer, Reince Pribus ,<br /> they both do<br />A certain kind of yoga pose,<br />I’ll tell you just between us too,<br />I think yoga is liberal , <br />Mahatma Gandhi had his version too<br />Who’d do that kind of thing? <br />Alt-left wingers ok Melania, too.</div> <p style="text-align: center;"> </p> <div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"><br /></span>There might be a yoga version <br />made with alt-right guys in mind,<br />Politically on target<br />Where you keep your ammo by your side<br />I won’t have that much time,<br />I am not planning to retire<br />I’ll be back at Breitbart,<br />White guys only need apply!</div> <p style="text-align: center;"> </p> <div style="text-align: center;">Scaramucci may be <br />starting his own studio,<br />Sean Spicer, Reince, maybe even <br />Mitch McConnell  might decide to go<br />And when the class is over<br />Lying in Shavasana,<br />They will all be chanting<br />Three times,<br />What happened,<br />Ohm, Ohm, Ohm, Ohm.</div> <p style="text-align: center;">l</p> </span> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Bannon's Farewell: An Addendum "I Was Seeing Him" | 02:47</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/265885", title: "Bannon\'s Farewell: An Addendum \"I Was Seeing Him\" on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/265885' addthis:title='Bannon's Farewell: An Addendum "I Was Seeing Him"'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/265885' addthis:title='Bannon's Farewell: An Addendum "I Was Seeing Him"'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-265885-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p265885-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/265885/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_78533"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/265964-myths-proverbs-and-so-on-the-sword-of-damocles">Myths, Proverbs and so on. The Sword of Damocles: A Citizen's Guide</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 01:23 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Quick and to the point! Citizens' Guides adapted from Greek myths, proverbs and so on.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_545756" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/265964-myths-proverbs-and-so-on-the-sword-of-damocles" target="blank">Myths, Proverbs and so on. The Sword of Damocles: ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1996803" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="83" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="265964" data-token="ef22455ad953e89aa16db005dd0784b7" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="TheSwordofDamocles"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Img_20190126_081559539_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/588199/IMG_20190126_081559539_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua,serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #000000;"><span><span><span><span>The Sword of Damocles: A Citizen's Guide</span></span></span></span></span><br /><span style="color: #000000;"><span><span><span><span>-by Susan Cook-</span></span></span></span></span><br /><br /><br /><span style="color: #000000;"><span><span><span><span>Once in Greece, there lived a king, Dionysius. Many admired him for his wealth. One courtier, Damocles, admired him. Dionysius asked Damocles why he admired him. Damocles said he would like to do whatever he wished for a day like the king. Dionysius said</span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="text-decoration: line-through;"><span> </span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="text-decoration: line-through;"><span><span><span>tomorrow</span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span><span>  </span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span><span><span><span>the next day Damocles would do that. </span></span></span></span></span><br /><br /><span style="color: #000000;"><span><span><span><span>The next day Damocles was dressed in royal robes, he had fine food, and good entertainment. Suddenly he saw a sharp sword hanging from a thin thread hanging above his head.  He asked why  it was there. Dionysius replied, "I live with that sword above my head always." Damocles begged the king to take back his power. Damocles never did envy the king again.<br /><br />COVER    A<br />MYTHS    A-<span style="white-space: pre;"> <br /></span>WRITING   A-<br /><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>SPELLING   A-<br /><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Myths, Proverbs and so on. The Sword of Damocles: ... | 01:23</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/265964", title: "Myths, Proverbs and so on. The Sword of Damocles: A Citizen\'s Guide on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/265964' addthis:title='Myths, Proverbs and so on. The Sword of Damocles: A Citizen's Guide'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/265964' addthis:title='Myths, Proverbs and so on. The Sword of Damocles: A Citizen's Guide'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-265964-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p265964-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/265964/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_79799"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/189789-in-the-department-of-poetic-justice-limbo-a-musi">In the Department of Poetic Justice: LIMBO, A Musical Tribute (The Leave It To Beaver version with song and dance)</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 02:53 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>In today's Department of Poetic Justice, we offer a musical tribute to a fictional radio host, Rushton Limbo, who poetically longs for the respite of television watching and the iconic "Leave It To Beaver".</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_406126" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/189789-in-the-department-of-poetic-justice-limbo-a-musi" target="blank">In the Department of Poetic Justice: LIMBO, A ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1228299" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="173" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="189789" data-token="2883b53f7681051d5e53693f49d23013" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="LIMBOTHELEAVEITTOBEAVERVERSION"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Rushtonlimbotvleavetobeaverversion_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/444639/RushtonLimboTVLeaveToBeaverVersion_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;">L-I-M-B-O- <br />A Musical  Tribute to Rushton Limbo, a fictional Radio Host-<br />The Leave It To Beaver Version<br />To the tune of  the song ‘BINGO’<br />-Susan Cook-</div> <div>My name is Rushton Limbo. I have a big TV.<br />It’s not nearly as interesting as listening to me.<br />But lately I’ve been thinking<br />So fascinatingly<br />Of turning on my TV, a little break for me.<br />Oh, L-I-M-B-O, L-I-M-B-O, L-I-M-B-O, Limbo is my name.<br /><br /></div> <div>‘Leave It to Beaver’ is still on. I will be watching him. <br />Ward Cleaver is a lot like me<br />Way back when I was slim. <br />I’d like to watch some re-runs.  I don’t go on the web.<br />Especially the one of a President, denying he had sex.<br />Oh, L-I-M-B-O, L-I-M-B-O, L-I-M-B-O, Limbo is my name.<br /><br /></div> <div>I have the fondest memories.  A nice big scrapbook too. <br />Of pictures of a girl from then.<br />I bet you know her too. Please join me in remembering<br />We’ll hold our nose together. As we recall repulsively<br />What our country had to weather.<br />Oh, L--I-M-B-O, L-I-M-B-O, L-I-M-B-O, is my name.<br /><br /></div> <div>My moral sensibilities were shaken to the core,.<br />Oh why couldn’t Newt Gingrich <br />Get Bill Clinton out the door. So un presidentially, his index<br />Finger pointed, he even lied to you and me <br />Said he did not have sex.<br />Oh, L-I-M-B-O, L-I-M-B-O, L-I-M-B-O, Limbo is my name.<br /><br /></div> <div>I’ll get out my old videos.. They help me to relax, <br />less turmoil, at least nobody has brought out a blue dress.<br />My job gets harder everyday. With the GOP's big clammor,<br />Where did Mitch and Newtie go, with Hastert in the slammer?<br />Oh, L-I-M-B-O, L-I-M-B-O, L-I-M-B-O, Limbo is my name.<br /><br /></div> <div>The only thing I have to do is think of Hillary.<br /> Can’t  raise my Prozac dose Higher,<br /> lest I  end up asking her on my show.<br />I need some comfort  now that the GOP’s upended,<br />a little harmless Beaver. Don’t go there, no pun intended.<br />Oh, L-I-M-B-O, L-I-M-B-O, L-I-M-B-O, Limbo is my name. <br /> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>In the Department of Poetic Justice: LIMBO, A ... | 02:53</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/189789", title: "In the Department of Poetic Justice: LIMBO, A Musical Tribute (The Leave It To Beaver version with song and dance) on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/189789' addthis:title='In the Department of Poetic Justice: LIMBO, A Musical Tribute (The Leave It To Beaver version with song and dance)'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/189789' addthis:title='In the Department of Poetic Justice: LIMBO, A Musical Tribute (The Leave It To Beaver version with song and dance)'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-189789-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p189789-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/189789/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_79800"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/105058-who-rules-the-world-and-why-it-matters">Who Rules The World and Why It Matters</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 06:00 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Boys' State is an experiment in Democracy that a select group of high school boys attend in Maine this week. We can hope they will learn about the dangers of the cooption of the democratic process. The current administration leaves us all wondering what do they do down there in Washington, sometimes. Using political party membership as a sledgehammer to force agreement just one questionable technique. A democratic process stolen by a small number of Senators or Representatives or Presidential executive order - those who want their opinion to count more than anyone else's matters enormously. <br />This incident described happened about 12 years ago but it raises some of the same questions about the Democratic process the new administration does . So we re-visit: Who Rules the World and Why It Matters.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_234057" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/105058-who-rules-the-world-and-why-it-matters" target="blank">Who Rules The World and Why It Matters</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="585271" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="360" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="105058" data-token="b25bb1030ea3e9982c7afdd878f14887" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="WhoRulestheWorld andWhyItMatters"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Breathing_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/series_images/33623/Breathing_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div>Who Rules the World and Why It Matters</div> <div>-Susan Cook<br /></div> <div>Some summers ago, I had the opportunity to swing on a hammock with my two young grandnephews, one five and the other a summer away from turning 4. They had gathered up from the sandpits two or three Power Rangers, two R2-D2s and several 3 inch tall good and bad guys and placed them in the hammock's webbing so we could all ride together.</div> <div>After a moment or two, the five year old leaned back in the hammock's arch and gazed up at the canopy of oak leaves. he asked "Who rules the world?"</div> <div>With the Power Rangers, the R2-D2s, the good and bad guys up on the hammock with us, I sensed the gravity of his question,. I asked, "Well, who do you think rules the world?"</div> <div>"Queens and kings and presidents and the news," he said.</div> <div>On a warm day, to listen to the honest musings of a five year old about the world is to be reminded that everyone's opinion matters, that we all have a responsibility to protect this opinion sharing, to protect what matters.</div> <div>How does he know that already? Does he know how intensely kings, queens,, presidents and the "news" go about trying to rule the world? More than all the Power Rangers, R2-D 2s, the good guys and the bad guys combined, let alone what happens when Darth Vader rises out of the sand pile to once more have a go of it?</div> <div>This brought to mind the firing of Maine's "Humble Farmer," Robert Skoglund by Maine Public Broadcasting."Humble". as his friends call him, was fired because he ventured, one sentence at a time, to share his honest musings about the way the world works, mixed into his extraordinary selection of our American musical treasure, jazz.</div> <div>Why does this firing matter? Why has the American Association Against Censorship and hundreds of "Humble farmer" radio listeners protested, first to the Maine Public Broadcasting Board of trustees, then to Governor Baldacci and the Legislature and later to a Federal Communications Commission? Why have 60 legislators voiced their protest about the firing?</div> <div>If the "news" is ruled by just a small group of people, say, a Public Radio Board of Trustees who have given big donation- of, say, more than $160,000 to kings, queens or presidents- it means their opinions count more than those of everyone else.</div> <div>Thos of us who can't donate that much money will have our opinions left out. It means a "public radio" that pretends to be open and diverse is not, because the only opinions that really matter are those of the wealthy, white donors who are appointed to the Board by Republican politicians who received their donations.</div> <div>That is not diversity. That is personal influence peddling that somebody has bought.</div> <div>It leaves out the opinions of everybody else: the poor, people of color, of different ethnicity and culture, single parents, whose who won't earn $160,000 in their entire lives. And yes, it leaves out the 5 year-olds too or at least their first advocates whom in Maine are often working two or three jobs just to support their families.</div> <div>There are places in Maine where there no cell phone service, no cable, no high-speed Internet access and very poor television reception. The only free radio and television programs are available on Maine Public Broadcasting.</div> <div>When the rest of us are left out, the "news" that is ruling the world becomes very distorted. What is entertaining in their opinion may not reflect our opinion at all. What we thought was free and open, becomes something sold to a rich person.</div> <div>What five year olds have taught me- that everybody's opinion matters- gets sold to a wealthy donor who - even five year-olds know- just might be using it to rule the world.</div> <div>That's why the firing of the "Humble Farmer" matters.</div> <div>And that's why a democracy that is not stolen by a small number of Senators or Representatives who want their opinion to count more than anyone else's matters and why a government shutdown because of it should never ever happen again.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Who Rules The World and Why It Matters | 06:00</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/105058", title: "Who Rules The World and Why It Matters on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/105058' addthis:title='Who Rules The World and Why It Matters'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/105058' addthis:title='Who Rules The World and Why It Matters'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-105058-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p105058-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/105058/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_79802"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/104501-a-citizen-s-guide-to-what-to-eat-during-a-governme">A Citizen's Guide to What to Eat During a Government Shutdown</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 04:02 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Citizens are being reminded these days of everything they don't have control over. Any nutritionist will tell you that the one thing you always have control over is the food you put into your mouth. Times like these require food with substance and comfort.You would be surprised at the comfort and substance found in the grocery store (as long there were not federal dollars involved in getting it there because of the You-Know-What.) A Citizen's Guide is here today about what to eat during a government shutdown.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_232934" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/104501-a-citizen-s-guide-to-what-to-eat-during-a-governme" target="blank">A Citizen's Guide to What to Eat During a ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1614119" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="242" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="104501" data-token="8fde1dfdc3fc0c1410e2e0b80958211c" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="WhattoEatGovShutdown"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Fish8client_small" height="92" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/251864/Fish8client_small.jpg" version="small" /> <div>A Citizen's Guide to What To Eat During A Government Shutdown</div> <div>-Susan Cook-</div> <div> </div> <div>Well, citizens are being reminded these days of everything they don't have control over. Any nutritionist will tell you that the one thing  you always have control over is the food you put into your mouth. Times like this require food with substance and comfort.You would be surprised at the comfort and substance found in the grocery store (as long there were not federal dollars involved in getting it there because of the You-Know-What.)</div> <div>Some suggestions:</div> <div>Believe it or not, wild boar, organically fed, no pesticides or antibiotics, is right there in the freezer section. A little more expensive than hamburger but far more satisfying.</div> <div>Moving down to the fish section, you can shop both locally and nationally if you choose the Crappie- an abundant fresh water fish. Just to make sure, if you shop alphabetically, that you find the Crappie, it is spelled C-R-A-P-P-I-E. Again C-R-A-P-P-I-E. Like what you vote for, sometimes how things are spelled is not how they sound or what you actually get.</div> <div>Still in the mood to shop local, you could try some of the tender, locally caught trout. Innocent. Easy to fool, easy to catch.  Or bass, well-intentioned, dominant but well-intentioned. Salmon, always virtuous, even the farm-raised. Spelled just almost like it sounds. What you see (or voted for) is what you get. </div> <div>Moving over to Produce, ripe and ready for storage for future use or current consumption, the Squash which contain thousands of something the government has no control over, units of Vitamin A which as you remember helps vision, seeing from A to B, B to C, the Big Picture, the forest and the trees. Plus it has a pro-active taste and feel.</div> <div>Of course, there's dessert waiting to be decided. Well, rescued with no help from You-Know-Who are Sno-balls whose company went under but came back- thank goodness because it would never happen now during the You-Know-What. A Sno-ball, pink, covered in coconut over devil's food cake, has marsh mellow inside. Sno-balls may not be loaded with vitamins but they are substantive now because they are symbolic. When the marsh mellows Sno-balls are made from  are rolled over each other and then covered with the devil's food and the pink stuff and the coconut ( which is the food of gorillas) what is in the center has little to do with what's on the outside. The marsh mellows that began the Sno-ball have nothing to do with the potentially gooey mess on the outside. But there they are. Be careful eating these. Too much swallowed too rapidly can get stuck in the throat and could choke you.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>A Citizen's Guide to What to Eat During a ... | 04:02</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/104501", title: "A Citizen\'s Guide to What to Eat During a Government Shutdown on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/104501' addthis:title='A Citizen's Guide to What to Eat During a Government Shutdown'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/104501' addthis:title='A Citizen's Guide to What to Eat During a Government Shutdown'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-104501-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p104501-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/104501/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_79803"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/95023-civil-liberties-for-sexists-the-purity-ball-and-p">Civil Liberties for Sexists: The Purity Ball and Prostitution Laws</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 03:45 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p> Recently, a man convicted of aiding the prostitution of a young woman who was exploited by over 150 men, was given a 3 week sentence. This sentence from a female judge, on her toes not to appear you-know-what, invites men to pimp. Like the right wing conservative Family Research Council director who promotes "Purity Balls" where fathers sign virginity protection clauses with their daughters, the pimp's sentence devalues women's sexuality and their worth. Women, with all their glorious advancement, are still there for the dirtying, still there for male credibility to prevail when big decisions must be made, that is defining what a women is really worth and whether she can credibly make her own decisions, about her body or anything else.</p> <p>For many women, in the world, in this country and in this state, their worth still lies not when they lean in, but when they lean back.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_213736" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/95023-civil-liberties-for-sexists-the-purity-ball-and-p" target="blank">Civil Liberties for Sexists: The Purity Ball and ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="507013" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="225" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="95023" data-token="176af342fe5cfcd5b8077e68eeecebc8" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="CivilLibertiesforSexistsThePurityBallandProstitutionLaws"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Anitahill6122012_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/511805/AnitaHill6122012_small.JPG" version="small" width="92" /> <div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 10px;">Civil Liberties for Sexists: </span></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 10px;">The Purity Ball and Prostitution Laws</span></div> </div> <div>There is such a thing as a "Purity Ball", an event where fathers sign a pledge to protect their daughters' virginity and then throw a  tuxedo/fancy ball gown event to announce it, tuxedo/fancy ball gown events being a grand way to exclude, discriminate and promenade superiority. A field director for the extreme right-wing conservative Christian group Family Research  Council, is a  Purity Ball promoter. The How-To Purity Ball packet costs $90. According to the New York Times, 3 of the man's daughters have written a book called "Pure Women".<br /></div> <div>Before you begin to swell with humanitarian, card-carrying ACLU  pride because you immediately recognize a sexist double- standard, put down your copy of the Bill of Rights. Remember? The amendment to bar discrimination based on gender failed to be ratified. <br /></div> <div><br /></div> <div><br /></div> <div>The double standard for men and women reverberates, if not  thrives, in the legal system, or at least in the case referred to here. There are pure women and there are dirty women and men the most eligible to determine who fits which designation and who will carry a label or consequence for the "dirtying", or a better word, the "traumatizing". Please bear in mind that the childhood sexual abuse of females by men is estimated to effect 2 in 5 women. A  signature psychological consequence for  the victim is a sense of being irreparably made "dirty".</div> <div><br /></div> <div><br /></div> <div>Here in Maine, Mark Strong the pimp who financially supported and viewed through a webcam in his office,  over 150 men sexually exploiting a young woman, was given a jail sentence of less than 3 weeks for his promotion of prostitution. <br /></div> <div><br /></div> <div><br /></div> <div>The newspapers speculate that the young woman, who was sexually exploited by over 150 men, who was physically and emotionally traumatized by being penetrated over 150 times, has now struck a plea bargain. She will spend close to 1 year in jail,  because there are also  the absolutely non-negotiable income tax evasion charges.<br /></div> <div>This is what Mr. Strong's sentence from a female judge, on her toes not to appear you-know-what,  means. It is an open invitation to men to pimp. It is a confirmation of what groups like the extreme right wing conservative Family Research Council endorse, all be it from the other end of the "sexuality and women’s value “ continuum.<br /></div> <div>Women, with all their glorious advancement in the work place and six figure salaries and opportunity to compete with men in every arena, are still there for the dirtying, still there for male credibility  to prevail when big decisions must be made, that is defining what a women is really worth and whether she can credibly make her own decisions, about her body or anything else.</div> <div>For many women, in the world, in this country and in this state, their worth still lies not when they lean in, but when they lean back.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Civil Liberties for Sexists: The Purity Ball and ... | 03:45</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/95023", title: "Civil Liberties for Sexists: The Purity Ball and Prostitution Laws on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/95023' addthis:title='Civil Liberties for Sexists: The Purity Ball and Prostitution Laws'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/95023' addthis:title='Civil Liberties for Sexists: The Purity Ball and Prostitution Laws'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-95023-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p95023-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/95023/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_79812"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/205645-the-opposite-of-love-is-not-hate-it-s-indifferenc">The Opposite of Love is not Hate, it's Indifference: Cupcakes and the Lineage of Hatred</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 07:52 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>When we don't recognize the unkindness of entitled hatred, we may be quietly consuming more of it than we realize. That may be a way in which a lineage of hatred quietly enters our system and our lives.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_438120" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/205645-the-opposite-of-love-is-not-hate-it-s-indifferenc" target="blank">The Opposite of Love is not Hate, it's ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1375747" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="472" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="205645" data-token="026d79502c5ae5f192b248a84489b9a7" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="TheOppositeofLove2"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Breathing_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/series_images/33623/Breathing_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;">The Opposite of Love Is Not Hate, It’s Indifference: <br />Cupcakes and the Lineage of Hatred<br />-Susan Cook-</div> <div>Dutsi, depending on whether the translation is from the Sanskrit or Tibetan, means human remains. In Tibetan Buddhism, small amounts are consumed during some very high level spiritual rituals. It is said that when Chogyram Trumpah Rinpoche, a modern Buddhist spiritual leader, was a boy in a Tibetan monastery, he was given as part of his monastic teaching, dutsi to eat from his beloved brother who had died. What is consumed is no small matter in Buddhist circles.<br /></div> <div>I help staff from time to time Buddhist retreat weekends, during which Trumpah Rinpoche’s teachings are taught, bringing bagels, tea, sometimes more elaborate celebratory fare. At one retreat, an anti-choice participant brought 46 cupcakes, symbolizing 23 pairs of chromosomes- the veiled gesture being that some of those supporting reproductive rights- would be eating cupcakes ,symbolically chromosomes.  as if they were cupcakes. Chogyram Trumpah Rinpoche was similarly deceived- the legend being that the monastics did not tell him that in his grieving moment of lost idealization of deep love- in this case for his brother. Such are the lessons of impermanence in Buddhism. Left un-grieved,  traumatic loss of idealized love and attachment brings consequences like permission to  physically and sexually abuse, abandonment, addictions , deep maltreatment and trauma. Un-grieved loss, in effect  perpetuates a lack of human compassion. And an absence of  love in the world.<br /></div> <div>Most of the people at the retreat didn’t count the cupcakes or notice the unspoken energy around the mockery in  eating cupcakes they were offered-  as might have been the case for Trumpah Rinpoche in his isolated dependence on his monastic  teachers. <br /></div> <div>One might say that the compassion Buddhist teachings aim for was lost in dogma.  Buddhism’s  Four Noble Truths, include that we all have been given precious human birth. In Tibet, surviving beyond birth has always been and is still extraordinarily difficult. Precious human birth comes in that culture in very, very  different ways than it does in Western culture. Almost 40 years ago, I worked for a year on an observational study in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at a major hospital where we observed infants born before 28 weeks gestation and the environment around them. Very sophisticated medical technology, intubation, oxygen ventilators, umbilical IV monitoring and other complex interventions brought some of these neonates to survive. Others did not. And, no insurance did not cover all the costs, then or now. In 2015, the New England Journal of Medicine, published a study of 5000 premature infants which found that the gestational age at which  some neonates receiving this complex technology could survive - still not breathing on their own- was about  2-3 gestational weeks earlier than sophisticated technology made available 40 years ago. In the Far East where Buddhism began, that medical technology is not now and has never been available.<br /></div> <div>We don’t know how Trumpah Rinpoche experienced the consumption of dutsi. As an adult, he brought his interpretation of Tibetan Buddhism to the West in a palpable and palatable way to white, alienated, privileged westerners. His life characterized great spiritual accomplishment as well as sequelae of trauma. Nancy Steinbeck, one of his early devotees wrote about the "crazy wisdom’ of Trumpah in  her memoir “The Other Side of Eden".<br /></div> <div>Belief in reincarnation is also a steadfast truth among devoted Buddhists. The question often asked  is how could genetics alone and mere nurture bring, so quickly,  such ominous gifts to very very young children. In Buddhism, tulkus are children recognized at a very young age as being reincarnates of Buddhist deities and realized practitioners. In ‘Music in the Sky’, Michelle Martin wrote at length about the recognition and pronouncement of Tulkus.  They’re not recognized because of western smug science about the available gene pool , having ‘good genes’ and chromosomal status. There’s much, much more to the accomplishment of spiritual lineage than that.<br /></div> <div>To get back to the cupcakes, Buddhist teachings about compassion are often displaced by white western proprietary dogma and replacement of "what is" with what someone else thinks "should be".  "Dharma" the teachings of Buddhism, translates as "things as they are".  The holocaust survivor Elie Weisel said "The opposite of love is not hatred. It’s indifference" to things as they are. Indifference is transformed  to mindful awareness through Buddhist practices, meditation in particular. The Compassion that Buddhist practice develops means that hatred and acts of unkindness won’t be unnoticed.</div> <div>During the 2016 campaign, the Presidential candidate- now former  President-  remarked with a not-so-veiled hatred that any woman who terminates a pregnancy should be punished. His remarks were met with some push back but certainly implied warning to any of his former casual sexual “dalliances“ which -  who knows- may have resulted in  unwanted pregnancy-  to not disclose their  private medical history.<br /></div> <div>Elie Weisel reminds us that hatred is not on the opposite end of a continuum that begins with love. Hatred is a different entity. If we do not recognize the unkindness, its mockery, its one-up-man-ship, smug claim to a better version of ‘what is’, in its hidden consumption either as cupcakes or dutsi, we may end up with more of it in our system than we know. And that may well be how the lineage of hatred is perpetuated after all.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>The Opposite of Love is not Hate, it's ... | 07:52</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/205645", title: "The Opposite of Love is not Hate, it\'s Indifference: Cupcakes and the Lineage of Hatred on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/205645' addthis:title='The Opposite of Love is not Hate, it's Indifference: Cupcakes and the Lineage of Hatred'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/205645' addthis:title='The Opposite of Love is not Hate, it's Indifference: Cupcakes and the Lineage of Hatred'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-205645-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p205645-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/205645/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_79822"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/244755-how-to-be-invisible-part-2-preventing-maltreatme">How to Be Invisible, Part 2: Preventing Maltreatment By Listening to Someone Else</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 09:50 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Our society has systematically discredited women's ability to know themselves, their bodies and their ability to parent. Child maltreatment, Harvey Weinstein's victimization and Ireland's long permission to invade women's private medical decisions are consequences of that discrediting. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_505983" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/244755-how-to-be-invisible-part-2-preventing-maltreatme" target="blank">How to Be Invisible, Part 2: Preventing ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2103287" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="590" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="244755" data-token="3b7a08c81d0068056fb07758299ad262" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="HowtoBeInvisibleEgo"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Howtobeinvisible_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/550567/HowtoBeInvisible_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <p><span style="font-size: small;">How to Be Invisible, Part 2: Preventing Child Maltreatment by <br />Listening to Someone Else</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">-Susan Cook-</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">I was driving to the local farmer's market the other day, in the rain. Not torrential, but still, rain. I passed a man walking by the roadside with a ma-a-y-be 4 or 5 month old baby in a baby carrier backpack, the child facing forward. No hat. Legs and arms completely bare and exposed. The child's, that is. I thought for about 3 seconds and I slowed and rolled the window and said to the father (I assume), "Your baby's head is getting wet." Father had his hat and rain jacket, on. He nodded and pointed generally down the road. I rolled the window back up and started to drive. Then, I thought about another 3 seconds, rolled down the window and said "You know little kids get hypothermia a lot quicker than adults do." </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">"Thanks for the help," he said, "[Expletive] ... off."</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">I continued driving , thought about Child Protective's 1-800- line, the local police and continued to drive. Child Protective in Maine has now been documented as negligent following release of a vague "investigation" of 2 child deaths by caretakers since December 2017. Three other events linked to the deaths of 3 other children at the hands of caretakers also took place. That's 5 children killed by caretakers since December. Largely uninvestigated. It is after all, the time of fertilizing political egos. Election season.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Child Protective will take a long time to be "on their game" enough to investigate a baby who "might" get hypothermia from bare skin completely exposed to rain.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">I once told a father of a similarly small baby that he should not take the child in his canoe on a lake that becomes quickly rough during a canoe race. Oh, he had already placed the child in the canoe, the child with a life preserver on. Let's be clear- the life preserver was not the father's good judgement. I did call Child Protective that time. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Ego is inextricably bound to parenting. Every chicken speck of ego fragility, every blurring of the absolutely necessary distinction between what is safe for children and what is safe for adults- after a live birth- gets tossed into the more powerful, more dominant current of a parent's ego. Parenting means putting your own needs on hold- whether it means missing the farmer's market closing or abandoning your addiction.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">"My kids are the ones that look like me," I heard a mother call out to someone recently.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Ego is not just about vanity. It's about when parents won't acknowledge the impact of their actions on their children. Ego can make a parent's conscience as opposite as the perspective of the child sitting behind the father in the baby carrier. And it contributes to child maltreatment. (See Parental Awareness and Child Abuse and Neglect, American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, July 1983).</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">I told one of the fiercer peace advocates I know about this event later in the day. "I've done that and you pay for it."</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">She's right about that. I wrote a letter to the newspaper about the 4 Maine child maltreatment deaths since December. An immediate comment from a Republican said "She's a political operative who accused the Republican State Senate President of "tapping" her phone." The comment reflects the same sloppiness of detail the then- yes- Republican Governor and DHHS commissioner brought to reviewing the 5 child deaths. No effort to be accurate in response to the many calls to Child protective about these children that were dismissed.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">The "[Expletive]... off" comment came on the same day that Irish women were celebrating the successful referendum to remove the abortion ban from Irish law. It comes the day after Harvey Weinstein was charged, arrested and lead off in handcuffs for rape and sexual assault of two of the many women he victimized. Both in their own way speak to the permission to discredit women- pregnant or not- who know best what their own bodies have experienced, their own suitability and ability to parent, and the suitability and ability of the fertilizing male to parent a baby born after that long period of incubation. It's not about the threat to the father's ego called on to support the woman's ego. When one unmarried, single woman who bravely and independently fended off society's then rampant familial shaming and humiliation to give birth to the child, called the emotionally disengaged father from her hospital bed to announce the child's birth, he hung up. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Emotionally, the immediate defense against shaming is a wish for invisibility. Fear of shaming- and its explotation- made Harvey Weinstein's accusers invisibile. Successful shaming leads to real invisibility. Irish women (and Americans) for generations were sequestered in 'homes for unwed mothers", their infants ripped from them and, a Maine newspaper recently reported, sold by the Catholic church to those willing to make donations.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">The zygote, the newly fertilized ova, the embryo are now medically visible to pregnant women, as they have never been before. The physical and emotional needs of the developing fetus, for nutrition, medical care, substance- free, psychotropic- medication free, mothers whose emotional bearings are free from abuse and yes, shaming, remain the same. Very often unacknowledged and ignored. Maine's then Governor and then DHHS head banned child-bearing age women from receiving food stamps if they held over $5000 in assets- a reliable vehicle, a motor home, a savings account. They opposed Medicaid for poor childbearing age women.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">The people who knows best what her body has experienced, much as Harvey Weinstein's victims know best what he did to their bodies, much as Irish Women know best their own invisibility to the physical intrusiveness of Ireland's government and the church, are the women themselves. Any politician's effort to suggest they know better than the woman replicates and breeds the theft of credibility, like that of Harvey Weinstein's victims. Like that of women sequestered in Irish homes for unwed women. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Unconditional credibility for women begins to end shaming as the tool that pries a woman off her own body's instinct to speak up or acknowledge what it knows and makes her gut invisible to herself.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">This brings us to the Gag rule Congress now reviews to prohibit Planned Parenthood clinics from telling women about options for termination of a pregnancy. It is another version of the discrediting of Weinstein's victims, the practice of sequestering of unwed, pregnant women and yes, the hip young dad telling me to "[Expletive]... off". Child maltreatment is, as ever, put on the backseat made invisible egocentrically, by shaming, humiliating and discrediting. Just saying, "[Expletive]... off" if someone happens to notice it. </span></p> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>How to Be Invisible, Part 2: Preventing ... | 09:50</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/244755", title: "How to Be Invisible, Part 2: Preventing Maltreatment By Listening to Someone Else on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/244755' addthis:title='How to Be Invisible, Part 2: Preventing Maltreatment By Listening to Someone Else'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/244755' addthis:title='How to Be Invisible, Part 2: Preventing Maltreatment By Listening to Someone Else'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-244755-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p244755-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/244755/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_79848"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/187390-the-little-prince-and-his-imaginary-rose-her-imag">The Little Prince and His Imaginary Rose: Her Imaginary Care and The Proprietary Life</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 06:17 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>I’m not sure how one marries the proprietary "I give the right to life” to the “I give the right to life free from emotional and physical torment”. Like “The Little Prince” in St. Exupery’s book, the rose some in our society imagine they "give the right to life” becomes even more imaginary when it comes to her care, drawn only on paper. And even when the roses are real, a judicial system that gives only a verbal warning to an alleged sexual abuser to have no contact with children gives only imaginary protection to them.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_401233" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/187390-the-little-prince-and-his-imaginary-rose-her-imag" target="blank">The Little Prince and His Imaginary Rose: Her ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1595088" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="377" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="187390" data-token="c8c76ffc2d4e675768ecfdfb8e675193" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="TheLittlePrinceandHsImaginaryRose"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="20190405_124530_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/603414/20190405_124530_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div>The ‘Little Prince”  and His Imaginary Rose:<br />Her Imaginary Care and  the Proprietary Life <br />-Susan Cook-</div> <div>“I gave my children the right to life“,  a friend said to me recently.  I was struck by how proprietary that view- that who conceives a child owns the right to life. I had never quite heard it put that way. There is much more to be done to own life and nurture children than conception .</div> <div>I remembered that conversation  when the founder of a local youth theater group was indicted for sexual exploitation, unlawful sexual contact with children under the age of 12 and violation of their privacy. The accused’s attorney  sought 500 dollars cash bail . The judge raised it to 5000 dollars cash bail and 50,000 dollars real estate surety and "banned" the alleged perpetrator from having contact with children under the age of 16. The tone of his defender in the local newspaper generously left room for doubt. The demand for a complete and thorough review of policy and practice, conviction on hand or not, was muted by comparison. The fear that some "citizen" might lead to disenfranchisement of the theater group seemed an undercurrent.</div> <div>The founder of the local youth theater group has now been sentenced to 10 years in state prison for the sexual abuse of 8 children.</div> <div>Sexual abuse and molestation damage the right to a life free from emotional and physical torment and life-long impaired functioning. I often wonder why the same  logic used by Second Amendment proponents "If guns are outlawed, only  outlaws will have guns" isn't  applied to someone who has been indicted on sexual abuse charges who has successfully deceived caretakers. Why wouldn’t that same deception apply to his agreement to ban himself from harming them? Why would a judge believe that sexual abuse indictments bring some magical restoration of a conscience which says do not hurt children?  The legal system's bar seems to be set very high for the proof required to show that children are in need of protection from an alleged exploiter.  Five hundred dollars cash bail? All the indicted has to do is nod his head "Yes." The  protesters outside Planned Parenthood clinics holding pictures of fetuses, directed toward those who see parenthood as a privilege, needing responsible commitment and planning are lawfully permitted to engage in far more shaming and hostility than this man indicted on sexual abuse charges will witness. </div> <div>Still, this “sole proprietorship” claim -“I give them the right to life”- does nothing to protect children when there is no ownership or accountability, personally, or by society, for a life damaged by   neglect and abuse, dangerous parenting, poverty, non-vigilant child care or a legal system that relies on a verbal caveat to alleged sexual abusers "to avoid contact with children under 16". I am reminded of the Portland Press Herald report that the average number of years spent in jail by people  convicted of murdering a child in Maine is six years. I am reminded of the Maine Children’s Death Study (1980, Maine Bureau of Health) which found that the co-occurring factor for most  children who die by any means between birth and age 18  is the family’s receipt of food stamps. In other words, poverty. The  "Adverse Childhood Experiences" (ACE) study  now further confirms that abuse and neglect lead to markedly higher levels of  physical and emotional illness, and impaired functioning throughout life.<br /> <br />At the same time, personal choice after conception to continue a pregnancy - or not- what an individual can claim as theirs to decide- is always being disputed by those who claim to be the better judge than the mother of whether she has the emotional, physical and social capacity to bear and raise a child free from abuse, neglect and torment. It is only the child who suffers from their misjudgement and the shaming and humiliation of a woman who does not believe she can give a child a safe life. Nobody contests the average 6 year sentence in Maine of murderers of young children. Nobody contests the gross inadequacy of a judicial system giving a verbal warning to an alleged abuser to have no contact with children under the age of 16. Ownership of the damage and suffering children experience  when raised by parents whose reckless self indulgence or deprivation take precedence over a child’s well-being may be nowhere to be found. It does not freely follow from the sole-proprietor “I give the right to life" claim.</div> <div>We are not a society that takes care of children or mothers. They are not guaranteed good care if the state enters into the home because neglect or abuse has been recognized. The foster care system is miserably under funded and inadequate. Maine has witnessed in recent months yet another murder of a child by a foster home caretaker deemed adequate by the Department of Health and Human Services.</div> <div>A woman  offered maternity leave at 1/3 her prior salary is inadequately paid. There is certainly no wish to extend any care or bounty to chilldren of illegal immigrants, asylum seekers or legal immigrants, a recent suggestion floated that parents and children seeking asylum be held in separate facilities by Immigration authorities.</div> <div>I’m not sure how one marries the  proprietary "I give the right to life”  to the “I give the right to life free from emotional and physical torment”. Like “The Little Prince” in St. Exupery’s book, the rose some in our society imagine they "give the right to life” becomes even more imaginary when it comes to her care, drawn only on paper. And even when the roses are real, a judicial system that requires only a verbal warning to an alleged sexual abuser to have no contact with children gives only imaginary protection to them.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>The Little Prince and His Imaginary Rose: Her ... | 06:17</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/187390", title: "The Little Prince and His Imaginary Rose: Her Imaginary Care and The Proprietary Life on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/187390' addthis:title='The Little Prince and His Imaginary Rose: Her Imaginary Care and The Proprietary Life'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/187390' addthis:title='The Little Prince and His Imaginary Rose: Her Imaginary Care and The Proprietary Life'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-187390-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p187390-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/187390/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_79852"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/253387-i-ve-been-having-a-small-tirade-in-the-department">I've Been Having a Small Tirade: In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning) </a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 03:53 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>With lyrics for the Great American Wrongbook, a tribute to You Know Who and how his workday goes sometimes. Sung to "I've been working on the railroad" that American folk song written for the truly hard-working Americans who make our country a beacon of hope and prosperity for the rest of the world. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_522476" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/253387-i-ve-been-having-a-small-tirade-in-the-department" target="blank">I've Been Having a Small Tirade: In the ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1848168" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="233" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="253387" data-token="550e067934b3382c84523b3fbdb3334f" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="Ivebeenhavingasmalltirade"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Ivebeenhavingasmalltirade_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/615890/IveBeenHavingaSmallTirade_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning)</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">"I've Been Having a Small Tirade..." </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">sung to the tune of "I've Been Working on the Railroad..."</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">with lyrics for the Great American Wrongbook</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">I've been having a small tirade</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">all the live long day!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">I've been having a small tirade</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">If it gets big, clear the way.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Can't your hear the fake news coming!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Fine with me. I'm on my game</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Can't you hear the fake news coming</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">When they hear my name!</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">I've been working on my golf game</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">every chance I get !</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">I've been working on my golf game</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">trim the ice cream off my waist.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Can't you hear the press complaining!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Why is he gone so much?</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Can't you hear the press complaining</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Jealous, that's my hunch.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Yes, I get a little grouchy</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">if they say too quick.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Yes, I get a little grouchy.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">But I can only take so much!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">First, they say that I'm a loser</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">lost by one hundred thousand votes</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Then they start to ask each other, </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">who wrote her that check? </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Cohen don't you blow, </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Cohen don't you blow </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Cohen, don't you blow your horn..</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Cohen . don't you blow</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Cohen, don't you blow,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Cohen, you say, "I don't know!"</span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">I know Mitch McConnell loves me</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Yes, he's kind of shy!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">I know Mitch McConnell loves me</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">He's afraid his a__ will fry</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">if he openly opposes,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">says things that sound like Hillary</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">since he hasn't gotten an inkling</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">how I got chosen.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">I have been extremely good at</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">making friends world-wide!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">I have been so good at taking</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">the small countries for a ride.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Think of all those in Korea</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">worried I might be mad at them</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">I gave Kim Jong Un the idea</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">that we should be friends.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Rudy, don't you blow,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Rudy, don't you know</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">what you told the press last week!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Rudy, don't you blow</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Rudy, don't you know</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">forgeting makes you seem real weak.</span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">So the butler or the valet </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">wrote that I get a little cross</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Actually, I am not certain</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">What a way to treat your boss!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Put it in the paper, now it's nationally on view</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Just remember nothing changes,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">It's still "Big Grouchy" to you!</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Grouchy, I might be</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Grouchy I might be</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Grouchy I might be on Tues ues day!!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Wait a couple days!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Out on my golf range,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">I'm a really fun golf guy!</span></p> <p> </p> <strong></strong><em></em></div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>I've Been Having a Small Tirade: In the ... | 03:53</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/253387", title: "I\'ve Been Having a Small Tirade: In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning) on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/253387' addthis:title='I've Been Having a Small Tirade: In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning) '>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/253387' addthis:title='I've Been Having a Small Tirade: In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning) '>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-253387-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p253387-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/253387/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_79990"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/276042-it-s-not-what-you-re-given-it-s-what-you-do-with">It's Not What You're Given, It's What You Do With What You Get: My Supermarket Monopoly Game and The Pentagon Budget</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 08:36 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Fifty-four cents of every federally appropriated dollar goes to the Defense Department budget. Exactly where, the Pentagon auditors find "impossible" to track. Maybe they should hire some Supermarket game auditors to help out.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_564638" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/276042-it-s-not-what-you-re-given-it-s-what-you-do-with" target="blank">It's Not What You're Given, It's What You Do With ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2111824" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="516" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="276042" data-token="934cf08678eab24f3a3c96be8e789373" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="SupermarketMonopolyandPentagonBudget2"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="0308130851_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/604514/0308130851_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">It's Not What You're Given, It's What You Do With What You Get: </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">My Supermarket Monopoly Contest and the Pentagon Budget</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">In my state, the annual "Shop, Play, Win Monopoly"game, a"Collect and Win" game offering" "over $250 million in prizes and money saving offers" after 3 months of fabulous opportunities at every checkout moment at my local Supermarket is winding down.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Fingers crossed . I finally went through the hours long process of tearing open (along the perforated lines, of course) each potential gold mother lode held in each small folded square (one for each 10 dollars spent) and then placing each individual rectangular stamp (after meticulously moistening the back) on the "Monopoly Board.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">The one million dollar cash prize required that you randomly receive 6 certain stamps each with an assigned number (333A1, 334B1, 335C1, 336D1, 337E1 and 338F1) of bewildering complexity.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">I knew it would be tough to win that. So I set my sights slightly lower, the $100,000 cash prize maybe with only 5 specifically numbered stamps . </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">In every single category I came up one stamp short with the exception of the One Million Dollar prize in which I came up 2 short. Correction, I also came up 2 short for the $500 Portable Grill and Groceries which I didn't really want. Last year, almost the same thing happened. I won nothing.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">But how is it that a supermarket chain presenting the same contest in several states offering 28 different prizes manages to precisely track the distribution of millions of these tiny rectangular stamps and confidently state that 3 lucky shoppers "might" win the million dollars or 250 "might" win the $500 Portable Grill and Groceries? </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">This is in stunning contrast to The Nation magazine's article (November 27, 2018) "Exclusive: The Pentagon's Massive Accounting Fraud Exposed". Independent auditors Ernst and Young and others hired to externally audit the Department of Defense reported it impossible to have a reliable audit because of a completely flawed Pentagon accounting system. The audit request came because The Pentagon for 26 years failed to internally audit themselves despite the 1990 Chief Financial Officers' Act requiring all departments and agencies to reliabily internally audit. Only the Pentagon has failed to comply. Impossible to have a reliable Pentagon audit? So, why doesn't the Pentagon hire auditors who took the same statistics classes the people who design the "Shop, Play, Win Monopoly " game did? In the supermarket game, "impossible" probably means one person getting all the little stamps to win "the Million Dollars" <em><strong>and </strong></em>"the $500 Portable Grill and Groceries" <em><strong>and </strong></em><span><span>the "$30,000 Jet Skis" . Maybe the "$20,000 College Tuition". And, you know, the Supermarket statisticians know exactly the impossibility of one person winning all 4 of the prizes . </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Now, the bookkeepers at the Pentagon have far better benefits and far better salaries. than the Supermarket chain contest makers, let alone the benefits and salaries of the high school kids and young adults who work as baggers and cashiers. But those Supermarket statisticians still figure out these complicated probabilities and get every penny the Federal government levies on the workers in taxes. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">By the way, The Pentagon receives $.54 out of every dollar of federal appropriations.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">It has a 2.7 trillion dollar budget and no one knows exactly where that money goes. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span><span>The Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan said at least they tried and the Pentagon didn't think they would pass anyway. That attitude would not be tolerated at my local supermarket chain. They after all track those millions of rectangular stamps and insure that only 75 of the "$7500 Family Vacation" prize will be available. Or have the where-with-all to hire auditors who can. No way will more than 75 people </span></span><em><strong>ever</strong></em><span><span> become lucky winners of that prize- unless- through some miracle in which Pentagon bookkeepers are suddenly cast down the ladder of success and hold jobs at the Supermarket Chain corporate headquarters. And then more Family Vacations then you could imagine going to the unsuspecting shoppers who- it turns out- with the same stroke of Pentagon incompetence have a major lucky day.</span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">The Nation article went on to say that years of fraud in the Pentagon books works like this. Quote "When the Dept of Defense submits its annual budget requests to Congress, it sends along the prior year's financial reports, which contain fabricated numbers. The fabricated numbers disguise the fact that the DoD does not always spend all the money Congress allocates in a given year. However, instead of returning such unspent funds to the US Treasury, as the law requires, the Pentagon sometimes launders and shifts such money to other parts of the DoD budget." All of it a violation of the US Constitution. And thus the Pentagon's budget increases every single year.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Congress does not demand that the Pentagon enforce the 1990 Chief Financial Officers Act . Each year, the cost of the military budget goes up and up. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">Going through the Supermarket Checkout line is very poignant sometimes. Food is our life blood. Sometimes, there's the young mom trying to keep a baby quiet and a 4 year old engaged while waiting to see the cost of all the food piled high in her grocery cart. Food is a largely unsubsidized commodity in this country or at least never subsidized at the $.54 cents of every dollar that the military receives. Until Congress demands that the financial record be set straight, no one knows exactly what the Pentagon spends on what. But you can bet, when military conflict comes, the Pentagon is more than willing to entice the low-paid , no subsidized college tuition - federally taxed supermarket workers- to enlist or - be drafted- to place their lives in the the lottery that every military bloodbath inevitably creates. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">One small correction. I did win won thing this year. A free bagel.</span></p> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>It's Not What You're Given, It's What You Do With ... | 08:36</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/276042", title: "It\'s Not What You\'re Given, It\'s What You Do With What You Get: My Supermarket Monopoly Game and The Pentagon Budget on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/276042' addthis:title='It's Not What You're Given, It's What You Do With What You Get: My Supermarket Monopoly Game and The Pentagon Budget'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/276042' addthis:title='It's Not What You're Given, It's What You Do With What You Get: My Supermarket Monopoly Game and The Pentagon Budget'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-276042-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p276042-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/276042/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_80050"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/204132-teaching-a-computer-to-find-you-a-citizen-s-guid">Teaching A Computer to Find You- A Citizen's Guide</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 06:29 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Internet anonymity now is presented as ‘the standard’ . But being anonymous when online really is optional . If like many other human activities, anonymous engagement on the Internet required mutual consent, many of our new Internet ‘problems’ might soon end. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_435100" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/204132-teaching-a-computer-to-find-you-a-citizen-s-guid" target="blank">Teaching A Computer to Find You- A Citizen's Guide</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1359926" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="389" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="204132" data-token="ac6505ee458d7c67f5f7fa2dbfa20de3" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="TeachingAComputertoFindYou"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Teachingacomputeribm6_small" height="92" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/475843/TeachingaComputerIBM6_small.jpg" version="small" /> <div>Teaching A Computer to Find You<br />-Susan Cook-</div> <div>I’ve been thinking that every problem that communicating using the Internet has created might be solved by making anonymity online something you have to ask to be given, not automatically receive.  Anonymity, right now, on the web,  has become something users must struggle to overcome- to find out the identity of the other person who has written a post, emailed you, designed and created a website, or put on the cloud. Two simple choices would be made up front. First, the user chooses yes, I would like to communicate and receive information anonymously . Second, the person who is receiving on the other end  must answer, ‘Will you accept this transmission anonymously? ‘ Adults can pick anonymous if that’s how they would like to receive or transmit information. Parents can make that choice for their children.  There are no technological barriers to making the standard for Internet complete clarity about location and identity. Anonymity has been the standard because Internet designers and users quickly learned they can exploit it.</div> <div>I first started interacting with an IBM 370 mainframe in 1978. There was no question about who was receiving or sending information because the equipment used to do such a thing had to be interacted with directly. At first, I sat at a teletype printer kind of a thing that was connected to a phone modem and  after the phone line connected , I typed in commands including- don’t ask me how I remember this- ‘512K’ which meant that the mainframe had to increase the space allocated to the teletype kind-of-thing so as to accommodate the SPSS program I was using to do statistics. Just to zone in on how technology has progressed. That’s the same ‘512K’ that one little document in your ‘My Documents’ file eats for a snack when you open it.  Around that time, the little ‘teletype kind of thing’ progressed to a video screen which connected directly to the IBM 370 but in order to use the video screen I had to travel to the same building the IBM 370 was housed in. There, others in the ‘user room’ used video screens too. And what everyone was doing got ‘queued up’. When  ‘batch jobs’ as they were called were submitted- some via the commands on the video screens and some on- yes, IBM cards with punched out holes at the top that held the code that the card reader passed on that then got processed by the IBM 370.<br /></div> <div>No one was anonymous. Everybody knew who everybody was and they had to because if they didn’t the output, the printout, the new set of IBM cards, whatever it was would get lost or deleted or could disappear. And nobody sat there seeking idle entertainment. They were doing some task that required an IBM 370 to do. Well, there was not much idle entertainment except for the one guy who had programmed his video screen - which did not belong to him- he paid a fee to use it- so when he was logged on , if someone came by and happened to touch the keypad once, a large digital image of a middle finger came up. Early, primitive trolling I guess, but you knew exactly who it was that was doing the trolling. <br /></div> <div>But now the Internet-which existed in a very primitive form beginning around 1982 in exactly that User Room- is anonymous. Internet anonymity now is presented as ‘the standard’ . But being anonymous really is optional . If like many other human activities anonymous engagement on the Internet had to be mutually consensual, Internet ‘problems’ like the following would very soon end-</div> <div>Fake News<br />Misinformation<br />Unsolicited Pornography<br />Dangerous Chat Rooms<br />Trolling and Smearing<br />Financial Scams<br />Spam <br />Bullying<br />False Information<br />Computer Viruses, Worms, Bots <br />Identify Theft<br /></div> <div><em>because unless you agreed to be anonymous too, the other person would know exactly where you are- just like GPS- and who you are. </em>A name and  a place  which by the way is the only way the Internet finds you in the first place- through your IP address. Your computer and the Internet Service Provider know that to find you as soon as you connect. In a way, the little smart phone you carry is ‘located’ in relation to some big processor just like the video screen in the user room used to be to the IBM 370 at the Office of Information Technology at Harvard which is where I was at the time.  It was Bill Gates, I believe, who not too much later had the building torn down and donated millions of dollars to replace it.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Teaching A Computer to Find You- A Citizen's Guide | 06:29</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/204132", title: "Teaching A Computer to Find You- A Citizen\'s Guide on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/204132' addthis:title='Teaching A Computer to Find You- A Citizen's Guide'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/204132' addthis:title='Teaching A Computer to Find You- A Citizen's Guide'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-204132-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p204132-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/204132/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_80056"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/277188-compassion-and-its-blindspots-women-s-turn-for-no">Compassion and Its Blindspots: Women's Turn for No Compassion in Alabama</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 08:09 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>A Buddhist teacher talking about Compassion told the story of the leader ripping open his vein to feed a starving stranger. Bodily acts coming out of compassion to prevent suffering are found in many spiritual traditions. The blindspots in compassion in this society it appears may now prevent recognition of the decision to end a pregnancy as one of those acts. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_566569" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/277188-compassion-and-its-blindspots-women-s-turn-for-no" target="blank">Compassion and Its Blindspots: Women's Turn for ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2119542" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="489" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="277188" data-token="c4e962c416835785a49e8c40f3465290" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="CompassionandItsBlindspotsNewDedicationsofMerit"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Allhappyfamiliesarealike_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/605644/Allhappyfamiliesarealike_small.JPG" version="small" width="92" /> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Compassion and Its Blindspots: Finding A New Dedication to Merit</strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><span style="color: #222222;"><span>I heard a Buddhist teacher talk recently about Compassion, he born in Bhutan. In Bhutan, wealth is measured by Gross National Happiness, not a Gross National Product. There is no military. Hatred, anger and suffering the teacher said are dispelled by compassion. He explained the origin of a Buddhist liturgy that like in any other tradition people will repeat without really understanding its significance. The liturgy recited after a lengthy practice session or teaching goes like this,</span></span></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>By this merit may all obtain omniscience,</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>May it defeat the enemy wrongdoing,</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>From stormy waves of birth, old age, sickness and death,</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>from the ocean of samsara may I free all beings</strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>A variation of this liturgy says,</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>By the confidence of the golden sun of the Great East</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>May the lotus garden of the rigdens' wisdom bloom</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>May the dark ignorance of sensient being be dispelled.</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>May we all obtain profound brilliant glory.</strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>The merit , he explained, comes from an example set by the ruler of a mythical and beatific country where establishing compassion was the standard by which everyone lived. Some very dark evil carnivorous beings came who had no compassion and because this was a country where killing to eat was not tolerated, they had nothing to eat. They came to the ruler, starving and on the verge of death and asked him to given them food. And the ruler ripped open his vein and gave them blood to save them and from this he created the Dedication of Merit.</strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><span style="color: #222222;"><span>From the beginning of time, war and conflict between men (largely) has been the source of blood sacrifice that is considered noble, patriotic, beyond question as an act of valor. Compassion rarely comes from that. Rather, we are more familiar with body strewn images of the Civil War, World War I and II, the Vietnam War, any war that comes to mind. and the misery of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder so closely associated with those who survive the horrors of war. Somewhere along the line, the ripping open of the veins to feed the starving as an act of compassion to end suffering has been subverted: the patriotic encouraging the blood shed unaccompanied by compassionate intent.</span></span></strong></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>This brings us to the current vitriol surrounding the termination of pregnancies. There is much more beyond conception to creation of compassionate care for the breathing born 40 weeks or less later. This is not a secret. Women know what is not available to the unborn, the deprivations of the unborn in utero that psychological and emotional despair, poor nutrition, poverty, alcohol and opiod use, and abuse of the body of the woman carrying the child creates. Who bears the deprivation of care most significantly, if the infant survives to a breathing birth, is the child.</strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>The decision to terminate a pregnancy is the ripping open of the vein like the king in the Dedication of Merit origin- a choice to bear the suffering oneself rather than 40 weeks later pass the deprivation, the abuse, the harm onto a being only able to breath on their own at birth.</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Like the leader, it is an act of compassion in which one bears the consequence ones self. It is only in white Western elite societies that sophisticated medical technology allows survival of some infants after birth that in third world countries without medical sophistication do not never survive.</strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>The "merit" that Donald Trump know endorses as a criteria for immigration to this country reifies the White Western elitism seen in births that survive because of sophisticated medical technology and the absence of that "merit" in third world countries.</strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>There is no license granted in any spiritual tradition to my knowledge to reserve bodily sacrifice for the War dead. The ruler ripping open his vein to feed those filled with hatred and contempt as an act of compassion is not unlike those ending a pregnancy who openly acknowledge their own inability to provide compassionate care because no mystery here- society or family do not or will not provide the care either. The deprivation of care after birth is passed on after a 40 week gestation period- if a breathing being endures the deprivations. Many do not feel entitled to make the zygote, the embryo, the fetus bear the suffering of the deprivation. Like the Buddhist leader who chose to bear it himself, they choose to bear it themselves and terminate the pregnancy.</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><span style="color: #222222;"><span>There is a spiritual blindspot in the pronouncements of the Alabama and Missouri governors who pass legislation to ban termination of all pregnancies because- this is no mystery either- they fail to acknowledge "the life" they alledgely are saving needs much much more to survive to a live birth let alone grow to and through a healthy childhood. In keeping with the Dedication of Merit, we could establish a new merit rating for each for these states that pretend to glorify life by assessing these qualities:</span></span></strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>-availability of free birth control to all conception-eligible women to prevent unwanted pregnancy</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>-provision of housing, food, medical care and employment at a living wage scale for women during pregnancy</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>- provision of safe, reliable, well monitored child care immediately after birth</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>-Medicaid and Medicare for all</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>- Food stamps distributed without shaming or race-baiting</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>-psychological and psychotherapy intervention widely available </strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>-healthy, safe foster care if a mother cannot provide care</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Men or family may well not be willing or able to provide care. In the United States,society is not- no surprise- our extended family. And for the woman who is victimized, incested, raped, shunned, broke, abandoned, partner-less, or damaged in body, mind and spirit, ripping open the vein, terminating a pregnancy may be the only act of compassion available and she chooses it.</strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Compassion and Its Blindspots: Women's Turn for ... | 08:09</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/277188", title: "Compassion and Its Blindspots: Women\'s Turn for No Compassion in Alabama on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/277188' addthis:title='Compassion and Its Blindspots: Women's Turn for No Compassion in Alabama'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/277188' addthis:title='Compassion and Its Blindspots: Women's Turn for No Compassion in Alabama'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-277188-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p277188-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/277188/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_80958"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/263656-should-old-fish-stories-be-forgot-auld-lang-syne">Should Old Fish Stories Be Forgot? Auld Lang Syne lyrics for 2018</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 05:46 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>To the tune from Auld Lang Syne - for the Great American Wrongbook- a musical tribute to say farewell to the past and anticipate a more visionary future in Maine politics.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_541326" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/263656-should-old-fish-stories-be-forgot-auld-lang-syne" target="blank">Should Old Fish Stories Be Forgot? Auld Lang Syne ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1967617" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="346" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="263656" data-token="74b445b79f37592fa9d92ba4a372231f" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="ShouldOldFishStoriesbeForgot2018"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="0308130851_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/583783/0308130851_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>Should Old Fish Stories Be Forgot?</strong></em></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">2018</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">(to the tune of Auld Lang Syne)</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">-Susan Cook-</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Should old fish stories be forgot </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">and never brought to mind?</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Like humans after business closed </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">and leave it all behind.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">How could we do that now </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">that someone's finally finished up </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">his bariatric surgery paid, </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">the healthcare compliments of us. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">And now that vaseline will take <br /><br />a back seat </span><span style="font-size: small;">in the news,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">no pun intended . We're just glad</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">There'll be respect for diverse views.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">From politicians who will not take offense</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">when they differ</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">and not begin to verbalize</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">the foulest thoughts inside their quiver.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Now to this day, like someone who </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">exagerrates their catch</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">and says the fish was two feet long</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">when it had barely hatched.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">The bright star that delivered Paul Lepage </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">to us in Maine </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">was not divine Providence </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">or because his base all came </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">To vote for him Election day. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">No, that's not the reason why.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">The ones who pushed his vote count up</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">made completely different claims.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">The first one's known as Rasmussen, </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">the rest belong to Equality Maine. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Rasmussen, knows how easily </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">voters voting can be swayed</span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">When a poll shows who is ahead</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Ha! Stochastic bias? What is that? </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">It measures numbers so it seems</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">they are all somehow in-bred!</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">If that sounds like Rasmussen's numbers</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">have relations with each other, </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Well, that is just what Stochastic </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">means. It adds extra numbers!</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Now enter those in Maine</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">who said "Wow! Rasmussen's polls are up!"</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">The Honorable Libby Mitchell falling </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">like water poured out of a cup.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Here, in Maine, gay marriage was</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">high up on the to-do-list</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">of Equality Maine, and the rights</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">LBGT folks had missed.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Now please remember Mr. </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Nine Million Dollars said he'd try </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">to protect gay marriage,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Cutler the name we got to know him by.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Eliot Cutler knew that his chance </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">of winning almost quarantined!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Here comes Rasmussen fixing a long shot,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">His polling almost warrantied!</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Equality Maine's leaders (now</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Matt Moonen in Maine's House, </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">turned nauseous, sick to his tummy,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Yes, he turned white and quite pale.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">He too decided to email</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">their membership and push</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">a vote for Cutler, not for Mitchell,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Polling Statistics not his forte. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Now Gay marriage, Equality Maine </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">feared was headed south, </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Rasmussen chuckling from afar</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Made sure his polls left no doubt.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Maine Press joined Rasmussen's band, </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">he resting down in New Jersey </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">or who knows where. We only know he turned</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">the Governor's race topsy-turvy.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Who knows if Equality Maine</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">has brushed up stochastically</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">when it comes to skewing numbers</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">how to make polling numbers lean.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">We only know that Paul LePage </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">got enough more of the votes</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">because Equality Maine fell for</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">a pollster's pre-election hoax.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Eight years have passed </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">and Mr. Moonen has a brand new job</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">seeing the wreckage left by lack of vision</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">by someone who shouldn't have risen to the top.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">So from now on let's try to find</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">the visionaries in our politics</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">who refrain from cyber trash-mouthing<br /><br />and took courses in statistics!</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">An edge in the elections, as if </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">the outcome could be hacked.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">LePage likely would not get in </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">without vote-changing emails hijacked. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Should old fish stories be forgot</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">and not allowed to surface</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Not if you want bad pollsters banned,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Elections fair, not contaminated on purpose.</span></p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Should Old Fish Stories Be Forgot? Auld Lang Syne ... | 05:46</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/263656", title: "Should Old Fish Stories Be Forgot? Auld Lang Syne lyrics for 2018 on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/263656' addthis:title='Should Old Fish Stories Be Forgot? Auld Lang Syne lyrics for 2018'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/263656' addthis:title='Should Old Fish Stories Be Forgot? Auld Lang Syne lyrics for 2018'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-263656-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p263656-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/263656/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_80960"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/207635-in-the-department-of-poetic-justice-scurrilious">In the Department of Poetic Justice: "Scurrilious, Mr. Sessions said!" (The song and dance genre) </a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 02:00 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>The Senate Intelligence Committee hearings about Russian meddling in the 2016 election are Scurrilous one especially important testifier said.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_442018" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/207635-in-the-department-of-poetic-justice-scurrilious" target="blank">In the Department of Poetic Justice: ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1399296" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="120" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="207635" data-token="b944b3bed179a1cc4860b2552fbda94d" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="Scurrilous"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Breathing_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/series_images/33623/Breathing_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;">Scurrilous<br />-Susan Cook-<br />To the 1921 tune of ‘Baby Face’<br />In honor of the testimony<br />before the Senate Intelligence Committee of<br />Attorney General Jeff Sessions</div> <div>Scurrilous, you got me thinking this is<br />Scurrilous<br />You ask me questions<br />That I’ve already <br />told you before<br />I had no prior <br />knowledge for.</div> <div>Squirrelish, you treat me just like I am<br />Squirrelish<br />Like I am running off<br />To hide something <br />in the backyard<br />Nuts, acorns, <br />I would not go that far.</div> <div>Un furl-it, that’s what I do<br />With my flag, back at home<br />In Alabama, I mean my Old Glory,<br />Our country’s flag, <br />I don’t let her secrets<br />out of the bag.</div> <div>Churlish, I know I seem a little <br />Churlish and <br />No, I’m not like that when <br />Russians came to the GOP<br />Convention,<br />So they can party with me.</div> <div>Girlish, that Susan Collins, was so<br />girlish  when she told you <br />that I’m a decent, good<br />Hail fellow well met,<br />a.k.a Donald Trump’s favorite bet</div> <div>For credibility <br />Now that it turns out Putin <br />Likes the inside track<br /> He won’t get from me, <br />Executive privilege, gee,<br />The Tiffany of privacy. <br /><br />Scurrilous, you got me thinking this is<br />Scurrilous<br />You ask me questions<br />That I’ve already <br />told you before<br />I had no prior <br />knowledge for.<br /><br /> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>In the Department of Poetic Justice: ... | 02:00</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/207635", title: "In the Department of Poetic Justice: \"Scurrilious, Mr. Sessions said!\" (The song and dance genre) on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/207635' addthis:title='In the Department of Poetic Justice: "Scurrilious, Mr. Sessions said!" (The song and dance genre) '>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/207635' addthis:title='In the Department of Poetic Justice: "Scurrilious, Mr. Sessions said!" (The song and dance genre) '>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-207635-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p207635-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/207635/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_80963"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/267687-irrelevant-for-you-know-who-in-the-dept-of-poe">"Irrelevant!" For You Know Who! In the Dept of Poetic Justice, with lyrics for The Great American Wrongbook</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 05:21 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Attention Evangelicals! What if Jesus holds the Second Coming down in San Joaquin- you all stuck on the other side of the W--- that You Know Who just had to build? </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_549120" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/267687-irrelevant-for-you-know-who-in-the-dept-of-poe" target="blank">"Irrelevant!" For You Know Who! In the Dept of ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2193952" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="321" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="267687" data-token="b0b57a2d47beb336b2a4bf873bd20438" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="Irrelevant"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Ismyonemarshmellowbetterthanyourtwosecond_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/591669/IsMyOneMarshmellowBetterthanYourTwoSecond_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">Irrelevant!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning)</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">with lyrics for The Great American Wrongbook</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">(could be sung to the tune from "Unforgettable!)</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">-Susan Cook-</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Irrelevant!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Mr. President! How you'd become so irrelevant!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">I only say this since you now forget</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Democracy's genetic </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">inheritance-</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">one nation free . That's what the founders meant.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">It's not for you to decide who is relevant. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Irrelevant.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">This is how you got to be so irrelevant?</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Even alt-right wingers start to see</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">six billion dollars quite</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">excessive. See, </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">you could be buying ammo</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">for the army, navy, you know, militarily? </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">It's better spent</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">in ways that aren't quite so</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">irrelevant.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Mr. President, you could buy some more</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">fries and burgers</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">feed the NFL some more . </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">At least free tickets </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">when you're shown the door? </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Spending our last cent</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">on burgers a little closer to what</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Ben Franklin meant</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">When he signed the Constitution, </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Oh, McDonald's </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">had not been invented yet.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">But you can bet</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">burgers are more relevant.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Evangelicals</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">think there's something more angel-ical</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Steel slats, see through,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">What if Jesus means</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">to hold the Second Coming </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">down in San Joaquin,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Even Ted Cruz can not intervene</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">and he'll miss out on the biggest scene?</span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Irrelevant!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">How'd you end up </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">so irrelevant? </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">When the alt-right chose you as President</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">more ammo coming. You were heaven-sent.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Is Home Depot, </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Lowe's your new constituent?</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Big boxes making us irrelevant?</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Mitch McConnell too,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">at Home Depot somewhere </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">down near aisle two</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">cannot find where steel slats are on view,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">looking for the large post diggers too,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Waiting for the clerk to </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">help him find </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">wall stuff. Is this a waste of Mitch's precious time?</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Irrelevant.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Now tell us, Mitch, are we irrelevant?</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Please don't tell us that you do not care </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">If Home Depot signed up for</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">some new welfare</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">six billion dollars because of You Know Who? </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">And you still waiting there </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Customer assistance? Not for you?</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Even Scarramouchi knows</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">-since he's not working he's been down at Lowe's</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">checking prices on their wall supply-</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">noticing they're getting high.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Kelly Ann and Sarah Huckabee</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">he's seen them down near aisle twenty three</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">six billion dollars for a wall would be</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">a lot of gift cards- yes, those would be free-</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">but still no ammo for their constituency.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Even Scarramouchi here</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">could help you out. He'd warn you not to smear</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">with words the New York Times will have for lunch</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">on paper plates recycled from their private hunch</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">that you are sexist, racist, the whole bunch</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">of alt-right buzz words.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">which will be relevant</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">and make you more irrelevant.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Irrelevant!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Now we find out that he never meant</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">to lead this country </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">like Abe Lincoln did</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">or FDR. Yes, we know, those guys are dead </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">but Principles live on in what they said,</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">The Girl Scouts get it </span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Just like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.</span></p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>"Irrelevant!" For You Know Who! In the Dept of ... | 05:21</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/267687", title: "\"Irrelevant!\" For You Know Who! In the Dept of Poetic Justice, with lyrics for The Great American Wrongbook on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/267687' addthis:title='"Irrelevant!" For You Know Who! In the Dept of Poetic Justice, with lyrics for The Great American Wrongbook'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/267687' addthis:title='"Irrelevant!" For You Know Who! In the Dept of Poetic Justice, with lyrics for The Great American Wrongbook'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-267687-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p267687-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/267687/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_81060"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/285138-why-women-don-t-tell-part-2-july-20-1969-for-so">Why Women Don't Tell, Part 2: July 20, 1969 for Some Women Means Remembering Violence</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 06:29 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>The 54th anniversary of the Moon Landing reminds some of us that violence toward women and girls is still minimized. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_581548" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/285138-why-women-don-t-tell-part-2-july-20-1969-for-so" target="blank">Why Women Don't Tell, Part 2: July 20, 1969 for ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2199292" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="389" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="285138" data-token="b31e26283614b9c0479544b59ecca48f" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="WhyWomenDontTellPart2"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Whywomendonttelltwo_small" height="92" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/862454/WhyWomenDontTellTwo_small.jpg" version="small" /> <div>Why Women Don't Tell: Part 2</div> <div>This Time It is Not the Victim Who Is Silent</div> <div>Everyone was remembering where they were the night Neil Armstrong took his first steps on the moon on July 20, 1969.</div> <div>I was too. That 1969 night, I was upstairs in my bedroom  cowering, full of fear at the family home  where I grew up.  Not fearful for Collins, Armstrong or Aldrin  but for myself.</div> <div>My brother who had beaten me up a few weeks earlier after, drunk, he drove the station wagon off a small dirt road was sitting  in the living room downstairs, drinking. No one else was home and as I came downstairs to see one small step for man, one giant step for mankind, I could see he was very drunk. He was a violent drunk. I had no way of knowing whether he would draw his fist again.</div> <div>I was 17. I had never been beaten up before. I always thought it fortunate that I was able to open the passenger side door and get out .  I was able to outrun him. </div> <div>As I watched the American Experience and Nova programs about the Apollo flights, I was wondering  how many other women and girls on July 20, 1969 were cowering somewhere , fearful that a relative, a boyfriend, a stranger passing them in a subway station late at night would turn and assault them. </div> <div>And on July 20, 1969, as  so many were remembering that night 50 years ago, how many girls and women were cowering that a male known or unknown to them would attack them.</div> <div>Out of all that technology has brought us since then, most men are still stronger than women and certainly physically stronger than girls. And violence against women and girls is still to be expected. The assault, the public shaming and humiliation, the denigration of credibility, the character assassination , the demeaning  and the implicit passivity these are all met with when they are directed at females persist.</div> <div>The President of the United States has taunted. demeaned, and encouraged violence toward  4 women - they are women first-  and few in Congress have spoken loudly and yes- aggressively- spoken out against the violence toward women this President has encouraged.</div> <div>They have instead focused on the correct political rubric- let's see... is it racist or sexist- and um signed  a resolution. A stranger walked by me the other day in a  store the other day and commented " He's going to end up getting someone killed." He took more a risk in saying that to me than Maine's Senator Collins has. She has said nothing against the violence.</div> <div>"We're always going to feel strangers to these men," Eric Sevareid, the television commentator said after the landing. " They will in effect be a bit stranger even to their own wives and children. Disappeared into another life we cannot follow.." </div> <div>But they were not strangers to us at all, nor were the leaders who rushed to congratulate them. They divorced, wrestled with celebrity.  Never corrected the omission of woman kind from the first words spoken. Richard Nixon, who until recently was the least admired President  in the history of the United States, greeted the astronauts as quickly as he could. Just a month earlier, on June 21, 1969, his Vietnam War- it had become his- killed the first boy my mother ever let me go on a date with - in his car By 1974, Richard Nixon had violated every ounce of civil political discourse imaginable- authorizing a burglary at the Democratic National Committee Headquarters. Shifting funds to silence the perpetrators. A pettiness so earthly and easily avoided such that no moon shot could cast a shadow big enough to  cloud the small minded self-serving-ness of it.</div> <div>Eleven billion dollars was spent getting the first men to the moon.  Corrected to present dollars-  it is accurate to say that in the 50 years following the moon landing - eleven billion dollars has not been spent on preventing and solving violence toward women   and girls.</div> <div>As so few condemn the incitement  of violence by this President (Does he mean to drag them back to "where they came from" by their hair? Or at gun point? )  we have to ask why  we tolerate his encouragement of tacit character assassination, attacks on credibility, and oblivion to violence toward women. </div> <div>And we have to ask why in not speaking loudly, vociferously, we tolerate the complicit postures of our Senators and Congress members. Because this time, they are the ones who are silent not the victimized this President is taunting.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Why Women Don't Tell, Part 2: July 20, 1969 for ... | 06:29</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/285138", title: "Why Women Don\'t Tell, Part 2: July 20, 1969 for Some Women Means Remembering Violence on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/285138' addthis:title='Why Women Don't Tell, Part 2: July 20, 1969 for Some Women Means Remembering Violence'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/285138' addthis:title='Why Women Don't Tell, Part 2: July 20, 1969 for Some Women Means Remembering Violence'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-285138-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p285138-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/285138/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_81364"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/232871-no-reason-two-asking-questions-about-gun-access-f">No Reason Two: Asking Questions About Gun Access for a HCFA-1500 Form</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 03:55 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>We cannot expect care providers to intervene with individuals who intend to use a gun to harm others or themselves unless we do everything we can to make sure providers ask the questions in the first place. Do you own a gun? How many guns? These questions are the point of entry for prevention. On a HCFA-1500 form, that required data begins to answer the questions about conditions we all second-guess later. Did the individual have a mental health diagnosis or a physical health problem? Had they been treated for it before? What was the treatment the provider offered? If the Billing specialist who must complete the HCFA-1500 form in order to avoid rejected payment requests, is the person insisting that the care provider remember to ask questions about gun access, so be it.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_487014" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/232871-no-reason-two-asking-questions-about-gun-access-f" target="blank">No Reason Two: Asking Questions About Gun Access ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1653166" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="235" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="232871" data-token="5ce241267aa5ae450314424b9a67a01e" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="Noreason2HCFA"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Hcfa1500section10dfive_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/578190/HCFA1500Section10Dfive_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">No Reason Two: Asking Questions about Gun Access for a HCFA-1500 Form</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">In the wake of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas School shooting, many suggestions have been made about changing gun access. In order to effect access, we first have to know who has access, either legally or illegally. One way to do this would be to require every health care provider to answer on the HCFA-1500: Does this patient own or have access to a gun? How many guns? You could even ask what kind.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">HCFA-1500 stands for Health Insurance Claim Form.It is regularly revised by the Center for Medical Services. It is the universally required form that any health care provider, from your podiatrist to your opthamologist, must complete in order to bill Medicare, Medicaid, and any health insurance company for payment. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">Any information on a HCFA-1500 form is HIPPA protected. The Health Insurance Portability and Privacy Act prevents any of the information on a HCFA-1500 form from disclosure- unless subpoenaed by a legal authority or with the patient's permission. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">The HCFA-1500 includes the patient's name, age, employer's name, diagnosis,the date the illness or injury started, the procedure code for the service or supplies the health care provider gave, the dates of service, prior hospitalizations for the illness, if the service is the result of a disability, car accident or work-related injury, similar injury treatment, marital status, school enrollment,employment, other lab services and all insurance-related information- a prior authorization number from the insurer, plan name.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">There is even an empty space "reserved for local use" that could now be used to enter gun ownership information.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">Why do this? Because we cannot expect care providers to intervene with individuals who intend to use a gun to harm others or themselves unless we do everything we can to make sure providers ask the questions in the first place. Do you own a gun? How many guns? These questions are the point of entry for prevention. On a HCFA-1500 form, that required data begins to answer the questions about conditions we all second-guess later. Did the individual have a mental health diagnosis or a physical health problem? Had they been treated for it before? What was the treatment the provider offered? </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">No health care provider gets paid without a properly completed HCFA-1500 form. If the right spaces aren't completed, the bill is rejected. And if it is the billing specialist who is insisting that the health care provider ask the questions so the HCFA-1500 form is not repeatedly rejected- so be it.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">There is no reason not to use this required and widely used tool to document that an individual has access to a gun or many guns. The data gathered- which is HIPAA protected- will answer many questions that we speculate about – later. </span></p> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>No Reason Two: Asking Questions About Gun Access ... | 03:55</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/232871", title: "No Reason Two: Asking Questions About Gun Access for a HCFA-1500 Form on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/232871' addthis:title='No Reason Two: Asking Questions About Gun Access for a HCFA-1500 Form'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/232871' addthis:title='No Reason Two: Asking Questions About Gun Access for a HCFA-1500 Form'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-232871-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p232871-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/232871/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_86830"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/256333-the-thickness-of-the-moral-skin-of-the-us-senate">The Thickness of the Moral Skin of the US Senate: To Be the Catcher in the Rye</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 08:19 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>The thickness of moral skin is sometimes measured in the willingness of its inhabitants to take on the risk of being the catcher in the rye- the one who protects the children running toward danger. The US Senate during the hearings to vet a Supreme Court nominee stepped aside- almost to a one. The spectacle was almost like watching the ingenuousness of Holden Caulfield falling away after encountering the world's indifference- this time right in front of us.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_527492" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/256333-the-thickness-of-the-moral-skin-of-the-us-senate" target="blank">The Thickness of the Moral Skin of the US Senate: ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1877873" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="499" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="256333" data-token="1308bfbb0ae768dbbb4ba863cd81ee40" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="TheMorallyThinSkinoftheUSSenateandOurCathersintheRye"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Catcherintherye_small" height="92" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/570923/Catcherintherye_small.jpg" version="small" /> <p><span style="font-size: medium;">The Thickness of the Moral Skin of the US Senate: To Be the Catcher in the Rye</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span>"You know that song 'If a body catch a body comin' through the rye? I'd like-</span><em>"</em></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span>"It's 'If a body </span><em>meet </em><span>a body coming through the rye'!" old Phoebe said. "It's a poem. By Robert </span><em>Burns."</em></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">"I <em>know </em>it's a poem by Robert Burns."</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">She was right, though. It <em>is </em>"If a body meet a body coming through the rye." I didn't know it then, though.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;">"I thought it was "If a body catch a body'," I said."Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody's around-nobody big, I mean-except me. And I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch eveybody if they start to go over the cliff-I mean if they're running and they don't look where they're going I have to come out from somewhere and <em>catch </em>them. That's all I'd do all day. I'd just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it's crazy, but that's the only thing I'd really like to be."</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">After Holden Caulfield has this conversation with his little sister, in his sojourn before entering a psychiatric hospital, he calls up Mr. Antolini, the Pencey Prep teacher . "He's the one that finally picked up that boy that jumped out the window I told you about, James Castle. Old Mr. Antolini felt his pulse and all, and then he took off his coat and put it over James Castle and carried him all the way over to the infirmary. He didn't even give a damn if his coat got all bloody."</span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">In the aftermath of the confirmation hearing of a prep school alumnus who left a trail of nightmares and unresolved trauma in the emotional web of one 15 year old, the thickness of the moral skin of US Senate members comes to mind. I'll talk about the 2 from my state since I know most about their moments of moral cowering.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">In 2007, I was interviewed and quoted by a reporter for <em><strong>Current.org ,</strong></em><span> a public broadcasting newspaper. Susan Collins had contributed mightly to the firing of a popular Friday night jazz host who had criticized the Iraq War- in a genial, understated. way Turns out that the Maine public broadcasting Board of Trustees was comprised of members who together gave over $160,000 to the Republican party. I said (look it up) that Mainers would work hard to defeat Susan Collins in her next go-round she being someone who engages in activities that usually get legislators thrown out of Washington. Now, Senator Collins does not like anyone making reference to her pre-marital relationships in her first 50 years of dating eligibility or recreational activities. That off-sides view that Susan Collins endorses about her own past, may explain her minimizing the testimony of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh's sexually assaulted victim. Indecent exposure is also illegal. Instead, she insisted his distortions, lies and beligerence toward his 2018 Senate questioners had nothing to do with his judicial temperament. By Collins' side, as she announced her choice, was Maine's recent failed GOP gubernatorial candidate, former DHHS Commissioner Mary Mayhew whose cost-cutting adminstration co-occurred with an almost unparalled number of deaths of children at the hands of their foster, biological or step-parents.(</span></span><span style="font-size: x-small;">https://www.pressherald.com/2018/05/14/letter-to-the-editor-mayhews-dhhs-neglected-maines-children/)</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;"><span>Senator Collins usually hires out her thin moral skin and backlash toward those who threaten. Her one-time Director of New Media Matthew Gagnon was a player on the Maine political commentator scene whose willingness to bully has been documented on the front page of Maine's largest newspaper. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;"><span>Then there's Maine's other Senator Angus King who ires quickly when anyone calls him out on his - ahem- purchase - when he was governor- of a state-owned oceanfront parcel of land abutting one of Maine's pristine ocean-side state parks. I even a wrote some lyrics sung to the tune from "America the Beautiful" which his purchase decidely was not.The purchase was documented in the Times Record and noted there was no "public bidding" on a piece of property that any one knew would do nothing but increase in value. It is now worth many times what he paid for it by encouraging the right state employee .</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;"><em><span>"Oh beautiful for spacious me, for land I'd like to buy,</span></em></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;"><em><span>that borders on state property in Georgetown or nearby,</span></em></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;"><em><span>that suddenly the state of Maine would like to sell to me,</span></em></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;"><em><span>the ocean deep, the price real cheap, what better guy than me?"</span></em></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;"><span>The morally thin skin of US Senators created a Brett Kavanaugh nomination and hearing that has left millions of sexual assault survivors in this country with a deep sense of moral betrayal. While survivors are compromised because of the emotional fissures trauma creates, many have stepped forward to disclose, despite the insistent cacophony of shame and the self-doubt that the assault is their own fault. Withstanding that self-blame requires morally thick skin which the moral imperative of the Kavanaugh hearing creates.</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;"><span>I do not trust Senator Collins or our other Senators- to be- we all hope they might- the catcher in the rye. Only one came to Holden Caulfield's mind- the teacher who carried the suiciding adolescent boy and didn't even care if he got blood on his jacket. Senator Collins and her GOP Senators minimized the belligerance, hostility and denial of his past of a Supreme Court nominee accused - not in a trial- but a job interview. In the wake of that dismissal, many, many sexual assault survivors who the equally morally thin-skinned Lindsay Graham said "have a problem"( hint: are flawed, damaged, mentally ill) will go home and direct the damage toward themselves- in self-harm, self-mutilation, if not suicidality. </span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;"><span>Not one of these Senators can be trusted to be the catcher in the rye- nor can this Supreme Court nominee-. They are far too frightened of getting blood on their jackets or their morally thin skin.</span></span></p> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>The Thickness of the Moral Skin of the US Senate: ... | 08:19</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/256333", title: "The Thickness of the Moral Skin of the US Senate: To Be the Catcher in the Rye on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/256333' addthis:title='The Thickness of the Moral Skin of the US Senate: To Be the Catcher in the Rye'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/256333' addthis:title='The Thickness of the Moral Skin of the US Senate: To Be the Catcher in the Rye'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-256333-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p256333-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/256333/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_86943"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/335245-dept-of-poetic-justice-nate-silver-s-still-counti">Dept of Poetic Justice! Nate Silver's Still Counting All the Numbers! Extra Golf Strokes!</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 07:10 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>No False Equivalence here! The Pandemic. Trillions of Dollars of National Debt! And You Know Whose Extra Golf Strokes! Counting Every One!</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_673314" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/335245-dept-of-poetic-justice-nate-silver-s-still-counti" target="blank">Dept of Poetic Justice! Nate Silver's Still ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2681175" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="430" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="335245" data-token="25f18826764b10dfa74313485a7adda4" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="NateSilversStillCountingAllthenumbers"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Flymagnetphoto_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/684940/FlyMagnetPhoto_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><em><strong>Nate Silver's Still Counting All the Numbers"</strong></em></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">In the Department of Poetic Justice and Reckoning</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">(With lyrics for the Great American Wrongbook to the tune from</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">'It's Beginning To Look Alot Like Christmas'</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Nate Silver's still counting all the numbers.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">It's that time. It's what he does</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">like post offices sorting mail,</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">delivering snow, sleet or hail.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Nate Silver's on it. Never fail.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">We're hoping he's got more time to focus.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">There's no football. All that fuss</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">is finally put on hold</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">so we are hoping we'll be told</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">what voters will actually do.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">We're taking a moment to remind him</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">like we did two years ago</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">to call Ellen Langer right up, try</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">a seance, maybe two with Stephen </span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Jay Gould. They both know.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">When voters pick up the cell phone ringing</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">and they're asked who they will choose</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">the next thing he must require</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">is this answer. Yes, it's dire.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Will they be mailing in their vote?</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Kelly Ann Conway has decided</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">a good way to sabotage</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">the abundance of dislike now</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">for You Know What he's called.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">He lives in Washington D.C.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Cheryl Sandberg creates the conscience</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">for Facebook. Yes, she's not an app</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">but she and Mark Zuckerberg</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">decided to make Truth their act</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Just click Like on a Facebook Page.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Just in case you haven't noticed</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">how she and Mark just said "Ok"</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">to posting lies left and right, on Facebook pages,</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">What's the gripe with Russians</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">sharing Voting plans?</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">So what if they're not really voters?</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Remember US citizens</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">have always had to enroll, prove they live here,</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Zuckerberg, Cheryl Sandberg,</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">look it up!</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Nate Silver, I guess, did not have Facebook</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">on his radar, plus Russian hack-</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">ers would not answer calls, </span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">"Are you voting in the Fall?"</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Til' Paul Manafort said"Hi, it's me."</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">When You Know Who's not on a golf course </span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">spoiling for those who admire</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">the skill of hitting the ball,</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">the little white one so it will fall</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">into a hole with a big flag.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">One of the most disturbing shortfalls</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">of this man's abilities</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">is when he picks up the stick</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">tries to reach it back to hit</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">the little ball off of the tee,</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">There are probably house flies in the suburbs</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">who are thinking while they laugh</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">along with the PGA</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">and Sunday Hackers who would say</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">"Maybe his fly swatter works best?"</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">For accomplishing something that eludes him.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">In this case, to hit the ball.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Mitch McConnell likely regrets</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Not just the trillion dollar debts</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">but Trump's golfing embarassment.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Displaying ridiculous ineptness.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">We're not talking when adhoc</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">he starts making things up to say</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">in press conferences. No, it is the way</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">he pretends he's playing golf.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">To get back to Nate Silver's special forte</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">accuracy, counting skill</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Though statistics cannot predict</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Election outcomes that will stick</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">because the ballots must arrive.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Nate Silver learned that the hard way.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">We know now he's on his game.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Maybe lovers of golf can save</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">admiration for this game</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">and hire Nate to clarify</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Exactly how many strokes are taken </span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">by You Know Who after he shakes</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">his golf club above the tee,</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">tries to give it the old heave-</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Ho to make it move toward that small hole.</span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Nate Silver can finally help them realize</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">the cost the country now must bear.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">The Pandemic has taken more</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">lives than several major wars.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">And then there's Donald fake golf scores.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">The country has got to hope there's something</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">left when- Syonara- he is gone.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Yes, I mean living human beings</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">but don't forget the viewers seein'</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">the mockery he's made of golf.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">We're not making falsely equiva-</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">lent. The Pandemic is far worse</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">but give us a little break</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">for Sunday hackers now trying to take</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">socially distant honest strokes.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><br />It's beginning to look alot like Christmas.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Don't hold your breath. Just check your mail.</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">The golfers in every town want Nate</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">counting extra golf strokes You Know Who takes!</span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;">Something Russians cannot hide!</span></p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Dept of Poetic Justice! Nate Silver's Still ... | 07:10</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/335245", title: "Dept of Poetic Justice! Nate Silver\'s Still Counting All the Numbers! Extra Golf Strokes! on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/335245' addthis:title='Dept of Poetic Justice! Nate Silver's Still Counting All the Numbers! Extra Golf Strokes!'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/335245' addthis:title='Dept of Poetic Justice! Nate Silver's Still Counting All the Numbers! Extra Golf Strokes!'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-335245-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p335245-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/335245/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_87468"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/340713-in-dept-of-poetic-justice-when-the-saints-see-my">In Dept. Of Poetic Justice "When the Saints See My Receipts" Turbo Tax Tribute!</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 03:58 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Lyrics for the Great American Wrongbook! Depreciation. Commuting miles. My Old and Trusty Mileage Log. Tax Experts Waiting to Answer! And much much more.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_684012" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/340713-in-dept-of-poetic-justice-when-the-saints-see-my" target="blank">In Dept. Of Poetic Justice "When the Saints See ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2733342" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="238" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="340713" data-token="ab3ecd976dbf35c2b9681fb8f56d4af0" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="WhentheSaintsSeeMyReceipts"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Watervilleenoughisenough1_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/692306/watervilleenoughisenough1_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p>“<span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>When The Saints Find My Receipts”</strong></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><span>--Susan Cook-</span></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><span>A Musical Tribute to Turbo Tax To the tune from </span>“<span>When I Paint my Masterpiece”</span></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"> <span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><span>by Bob Dylan</span></strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Oh the sheets that hold </strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>all my deductions</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>MS Works and Excel too</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Spread mighty wide,</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>The rows and columns,</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"> <span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><span>stretch up high,</span></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"> <span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><span>toward heaven too.</span></strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>Refrain</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>I sleep calmly knowing my deductions</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>for my taxes clean as they can be.</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>If I've erred, I'll find my redemption</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>I have always kept receipts. </strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>You’ve got all last </strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>year’s deductions,</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Rental properties, you knew,</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>The nonprofits</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>I give my time to</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>My hourly fee</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Of course you knew.</strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>Refrain</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>Sleeping calmly kmowing contributions</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>to non-profits where they ought to be.</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>Someday, maybe more things will be tax-free</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>Then I'll stop keeping receipts.</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>My mileage log</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>is old and trusty</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Audometers </strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>I use to tell</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>The truth to you if I get busted</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Commuting miles? </strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>The road to hell.</strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>Refrain</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>Tax experts are always standing ready</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>Answer any questions I might have.</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>Do I have depreciations?</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>God Bless You! You know I have!</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Just goes to show</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Our home computers, </strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Desktops or a laptop too</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Can bust the chops</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>of higher taxes</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Knock down how much</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Federal tax due.</strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>Refrain</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>Of course you always  Will review them.</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>Ask politely let's go through again.</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>You looking hard for one more tax break. </strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>For hard earned cash I shouldn't spend. </strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>The streets where gold </strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Is used for toilets</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Mostly down </strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>In Manhattan.</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>The IRS</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"> <span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><span>tries to stay on it, hence</span></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>you devised Audit Defense.</strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>Refrain</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>I sleep calmly knowing the deductions</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>for tax I've paid accurate and clean.</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>If I erred I'll find my redemption.</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em><strong>When the Saints see my receipts.</strong></em></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Oh the sheets that hold </strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>all my deductions</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>MS Works and Excel too</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Spread mighty wide,</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>The rows and columns,</strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"> <span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><span>stretching  high,</span></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"> <span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong><span>toward heaven too.</span></strong></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>In Dept. Of Poetic Justice "When the Saints See ... | 03:58</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/340713", title: "In Dept. Of Poetic Justice \"When the Saints See My Receipts\" Turbo Tax Tribute! on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/340713' addthis:title='In Dept. Of Poetic Justice "When the Saints See My Receipts" Turbo Tax Tribute!'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/340713' addthis:title='In Dept. Of Poetic Justice "When the Saints See My Receipts" Turbo Tax Tribute!'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-340713-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p340713-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/340713/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_87757"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/344510-nate-silver-does-not-believe-in-santa-in-the-dept">Nate Silver Does Not Believe In Santa! In the Dept. Of Poetic Justice!</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 04:18 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Polls do not predict the future. Remember the poll that really counts most always is the vote you cast. To the tune from "It's Beginning to Look A lot Like Christmas!" With lyrics for The Great American Wrongbook!</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_690826" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/344510-nate-silver-does-not-believe-in-santa-in-the-dept" target="blank">Nate Silver Does Not Believe In Santa! In the ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2767343" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="258" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="344510" data-token="3c6d5182149cba979a7f00162df109d2" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="NateSilverDoesNotBelieveinSanta"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="20201107_120358_hdr_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/698640/20201107_120358_HDR_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <hr /> <div>"Nate Silver Does Not Believe in Santa"<br />In the Department of Poetic Justice</div> <div>With lyrics for the Great American Wrongbook</div> <div>to the tune from "It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas"</div> <div>Nate Silver does not believe in Santa,</div> <div>or  those other jolly times</div> <div>when all of a sudden there's a special present waiting where</div> <div>you were worried there'd be none.</div> <div>It's probably what led him to the racetrack</div> <div>or attendance in the stands</div> <div>of football (we know it's lame) Apparently, he likes the game.</div> <div>It entertains his numbers brain.<br /></div> <div>Football players are not well known<br /> for calculating variance.</div> <div>Instead all the players run like buffalo from Ohio</div> <div>trying to get back to their homes.<br />Does Nate Silver somehow believe he'd predict</div> <div>which ones could survive to roam</div> <div>not the night clubs in Las Vegas. We will give you one small hint.</div> <div>There's a range they call their home.<br /></div> <div>We're talking about the buffalo who've<br /> gone the way of Hillary.</div> <div>Please remember what Nate had said. Two to one she was ahead. I googled it. </div> <div>God help those who made bets.<br /></div> <div>While I am on the topic of the</div> <div>buffalo, have you seen <br />out on South Dakota Plains or Colorado's grazing range</div> <div>descendants with their DNA?</div> <div>There used to be buffalo out there<br />in South Dakota where they'd roam<br />"So-called experts" now would say<br />they've preserved their DNA in Kristi Noem, the Governor.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I'm not talking about who's in the White House.</div> <div>You Know Who has not left yet.</div> <div>I mean the buffalo so ask Nate Silver did he know</div> <div>they disappeared long years ago?<br /></div> <div>Henry Louis Gates could tell him</div> <div>along with ancestry.com.</div> <div>Did he have any ancestors who were living way back then</div> <div> did their Chi-Squares on chalk boards.<br /></div> <div>I'm taking this time to just remind him</div> <div>if he was working in those days</div> <div>He'd say "Buffalos everywhere!" not the kind You Know Who has dared</div> <div>to tell the public. Trump's lies now bared.</div> <div>That's kind of what we all expected</div> <div>reading Nate's forecasts for when</div> <div>the numbers had all come in. No surprise according to him,</div> <div>Hillary got elected!</div> <div>So now that we've seen the disappearance</div> <div>of government, Hillary and</div> <div>buffalo who used to roam where they belonged not in the home</div> <div>we call the White House. We should have known.</div> <div>To get back to our old buddy Santa.</div> <div>By the way he is not real.</div> <div>Like the numbers that make up polls . What the future now will hold</div> <div>depends on you casting your vote!</div> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Nate Silver Does Not Believe In Santa! In the ... | 04:18</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/344510", title: "Nate Silver Does Not Believe In Santa! In the Dept. Of Poetic Justice! on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/344510' addthis:title='Nate Silver Does Not Believe In Santa! In the Dept. Of Poetic Justice!'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/344510' addthis:title='Nate Silver Does Not Believe In Santa! In the Dept. Of Poetic Justice!'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-344510-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p344510-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/344510/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_89510"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/230826-the-indifference-diaries-the-opposite-of-love-is">The Indifference Diaries: The Opposite of Love is Indifference: How to be a Good Neighbor and Warship Builder </a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 09:56 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>As Bath Iron Works ships become more sophisticated in their use of sonar devices, we recall the 40 million dollar Maine Legislature approved tax break for a subsidiary of the fifth largest weapons producer in the world. A reporter recently disclosed via the Freedom of Information Act the communication between the bill's sponsor, a legislator, and the Vice President of the General Dynamics-owned Bath Iron Works which will receive the money . The VP's solicitous tone and responsivity is in striking contrast to his refusal to respond and his frank indifference to a neighborhood citizen seeking information about the devices used/installed/tested in the shipyard and their pronounced health impact on residents. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_483690" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/230826-the-indifference-diaries-the-opposite-of-love-is" target="blank">The Indifference Diaries: The Opposite of Love is ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2096409" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="596" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="230826" data-token="9c9149730a9138a49e99d43370b021da" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="IndifferenceDiaryPart1April262019"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Christmas12017_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/528841/Christmas12017_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div><br /> The Indifference Diaries: The Opposite of Love is Indifference- A Defense Company Ignores the Impact of  What They Do<br /> -Susan Cook-</div> <div>Elie Weisel ,the Holocaust survivor once said, "The opposite of love is not hatred, it's indifference".  It is everywhere, every day, indifference that is.</div> <div>In my state,  a bill passed last year sponsored by 2 local legislators to give 40 million dollars to a subsidiary of the world's fifth largest weapons producer.  In this case, the subsidiary makes destroyers, now themselves weapons because of the addition of sonar. Now, living nearby as I do, I am well aware of their building and their intense security measures and when it is in use- either because they accompany it with radar/ intense security surveillance or because of what the sonar itself does. It  kills whales. Its installation  and testing here means the cell and neurological  busting that sonar is suspected to do can and does effect people nearby. I have contacted various levels of adminstrators at least a hundred times and asked them what they are doing.  I started by asking  who the medical physicists are that the company consults with to ensure  the safety of children, adults and mammals in the neighborhood exposed to their sonar tinkering and intense security measures - radar, for example.</div> <div>I wrote to the communications director, who was preceded by another communication director, who was preceded by another communication director.When I called the first one,  he would actually speak to me. One time he told me, "Oh they are testing a navigation radar and a low level powered radio system today." Bless his heart.  The next one and the next one after that have never responded. At some point I decided to communicate directly with the CEO of the subsidiary, of which there have been 4, the overseer of Fleet services- who presumably is the Navy's liason- the communications director and the  lawyer, Jon Fitzgerald who is a vice president and whotestified about the 40 million dollar indifference bill.</div> <div>I finally included a note that I was cc:ing the text to New York Times reporting staff. And then when they ignored that, I specified the lead writer on the front page New York Times story about the sonic attack on employees at the U.S. Embassy in Havana. </div> <div>I have never gotten a return registered letter like the one I sent to Mr. Geiger and Mr. Harris, former CEOs respectively, about the damage caused by their 1) sonar 2)radar systems 3) security devices. All of which takes place at the end of the yard, by the way, with the big old briny Kennebec River right there, to keep watch over.</div> <div>Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2016 at 4:45am<br /> Dear Mr. Harris,<br /> What testing is in place at BIW this morning from 3 AM or so on? Sonar is harmful.</div> <div>Thursday, April 14, 2017 Matt Wickenhouser, the Communications Director called me  back after multiple multiple contacts by me.  "They are not testing any thing (with an emphasis on the word testing)" When I threatened legal action if they didn't respond, Mr. Wickenhhouser wrote: <br /> "At this point I will no longer respond to your messages , given your decision to pursue legal action. Our counsel is Jon Fitzgerald." Now, Mr. Fitzgerald is a vice-president.ewho testified as theleadl lobbyist on this tax break bill who I have also contacted multipletimes  precisely when the disturbance because of sonar/radar/"you tell us" is happening.</div> <div>I  contacted Mr. Fitzgerald multiple times: August 29, 2017 3 am  July 17, 2017 3 am  Dec 7, 2017 7:37am  Nov 19, 2017 5:58am  October 28, 2017 12:08am  Dec 28, 2017 1:42AM  Jan 5, 2018 5:05am  Dec 26, 3:45am</div> <div>My text pretty much said and asked the same question.<br /><br /> Dear Mr. Fitzgerald,  Starting at about [fill in the time], the sound of testing of a sonar device at or near the drydock on Washington St. is loud and disruptive. Please inform me before your company testing begins. And please remember the Duke  University Engineering work which indicates that sonar  disrupts on the cellular level."</div> <div><br /> After this bill was filed,  a  reporter using the Freedom of Access law, obtained copies of Mr. Fitzgerald's communication with the bill's sponsor.<br /> The legislator needed "talking points" from Mr. Fitzgerald. <br /> “I am available at your convenience, thanks for sponsoring.”<br /> “[H]appy to host a working lunch or whatever works for you,” Fitzgerald said in a Dec. 8 email to the bill's sponsor. “At that time, I will have the expanded list of city/town BIW employment, a draft of the legislation, a multi-page listing of state, county and municipal assistance provided to Ingalls in Mississippi. It would be great to get specific on co-sponsors and any other details you require.”<br /><br /><br /> [Ingalls Shipbuilding is a BIW rival based in Pacagoula, Miss. Bath Iron Works has argued the renewal of a 1997 tax deal from Maine is essential to maintaining the company’s competitiveness with Ingalls, which has received considerable subsidies from its state".] The two met Bath Iron Works’ offices.<br /><br /> “[W]ould you like me to order lunch?” Fitzgerald wrote. “I would get something from the Sandwich Shop. If that works for you, let me know what you would like, they usually have fish chowder on Friday.”<br /><br /> “Sounds good,” former State legislator Jen DeChant replied. “Turkey sandwich. Thank you.”</div> <div>In the many times I texted Mr. Fitzgerald and other managment, he never expressed any concern about the children, adult, animals, mammals, including me who live in the South End. Nor we might add, has the bill's sponsor. <br /><br /> Truth be told, I received one response from Mr. Fitzgerald to the multifold I sent. "There is no testing of sonar equipment at 4 am. " he texted on Wednesday September 13, 2017. Testing as opposed to installing; using as opposed to testing; sonar as  opposed to radar; radio waves as opposed to radar. I am not a medical physicist so parsing exactly what they are doing is difficult.<br /><br /> </div> <div>The obvious question is  what is happening there because children and adults, mammals, feel the physical consequence when BIW is using/testing/installing/exploring with sonic/security/radar devices.  Because they have not bothered to respond. That is indifference.  One local principled activist has decided to go ona hunger strike to protest the 40 million $ indifference bill. Coincidence isn't it that in the  long run the most compelling evidence of indifference against this weapons producing company may be an emaciated human body.</div> <div> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>The Indifference Diaries: The Opposite of Love is ... | 09:56</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/230826", title: "The Indifference Diaries: The Opposite of Love is Indifference: How to be a Good Neighbor and Warship Builder on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/230826' addthis:title='The Indifference Diaries: The Opposite of Love is Indifference: How to be a Good Neighbor and Warship Builder '>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/230826' addthis:title='The Indifference Diaries: The Opposite of Love is Indifference: How to be a Good Neighbor and Warship Builder '>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-230826-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p230826-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/230826/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_89950"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/365821-small-an-american-sonnet">Small: An American Sonnet</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | :57 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>In the large, large universe, the mind's eye still sees what it will.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_729727" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/365821-small-an-american-sonnet" target="blank">Small: An American Sonnet</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2966363" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="57" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="365821" data-token="399bcc9019972470344c1632e14e261b" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="Small"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Coverprx_medium_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/749023/CoverPRX_medium_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <div>Small<br /></div> <div>-Susan Cook-</div> <div></div> <div>It doesn't matter how diminished we</div> <div>feel, situated deep deep within the</div> <div>large, large universe, we now know, we see</div> <div>more and more of, its every corner, the</div> <div>source of a revelation, a surprise</div> <div>appearance of something we did not know</div> <div>was there but has been all along. The size</div> <div>of anything is not important, no,</div> <div>changes mostly depend on nothing more</div> <div>than the sun's cast shadow, the patterns we </div> <div>create, in our mind's eye, largeness ignored,</div> <div>the small persistent,  so convincingly. </div> <div>Small, large do not matter in the mind's eye,</div> <div>in its slow watch leaving no place to hide. </div> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Small: An American Sonnet | :57</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/365821", title: "Small: An American Sonnet on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/365821' addthis:title='Small: An American Sonnet'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/365821' addthis:title='Small: An American Sonnet'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-365821-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p365821-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/365821/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_89955"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/365820-the-discovery-of-light-an-american-sonnet">The Discovery of Light: An American Sonnet</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | :55 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Thomas Edison and what his light did- understood through an American Sonnet. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_729725" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/365820-the-discovery-of-light-an-american-sonnet" target="blank">The Discovery of Light: An American Sonnet</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2966358" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="55" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="365820" data-token="60f3b0645f3fed8ff8da3884a81c1b9c" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="TheDiscoveryoflight"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Breathing_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/series_images/33623/Breathing_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The Discovery of Light: An American Sonnet</span></span></span></p> <p>-Susan Cook-</p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Thomas Edison discovered cotton,</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">carbonized, sent out strands of silky light.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The non-believers drove for miles, not in </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">fascination, but in doubt that night sight </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">didn't  require burning  fire first,</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">a kindling so much harder to ignite,</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">the loss of life, from time to time, the curse</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">of other lamps, the tragedy of fire</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">placed too close, times when frightened horses kicked</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">the stable candle, burning hay that brought</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">entire  towns  to ash, the flames that licked </span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">up everything, the cost of fire caught.</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Some still don't  trust a horse's fear, sudden</span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">swaying, still not sure what this  light has done. </span></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>The Discovery of Light: An American Sonnet | :55</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/365820", title: "The Discovery of Light: An American Sonnet on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/365820' addthis:title='The Discovery of Light: An American Sonnet'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/365820' addthis:title='The Discovery of Light: An American Sonnet'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-365820-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p365820-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/365820/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_91820"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/240832-the-sixty-second-moral-inquiry-shouldn-t-facebook">The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: Shouldn't Facebook Be Accountable for their Exploitation of Anonymity - the Faceless- by FacebookTrolling?</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 01:35 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Shouldn't Facebook also be held accountable for their moral indifference to the human consequence of Facebook trolling that the platform's anonymity has helped flourish?</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_498561" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/240832-the-sixty-second-moral-inquiry-shouldn-t-facebook" target="blank">The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: Shouldn't ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1705771" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="95" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="240832" data-token="67a33d4b068ff39cc38f4074531a6b38" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="TheSixtySecondMoralInquiryFacebookAccoun2"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Marchwatervilleenoughisenoughlady2_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/545736/marchwatervilleenoughisenoughlady2_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div>The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: Isn't exploiting the power of  anonymity- Being Faceless- as Morally Indifferent as Violating People's Privacy?</div> <div>Facebook has made millions by discovering the power of giving away anonymity: the secret holder who then exploits it for abuse, money, what-have-you, morally indifferent and facelessly. Why didn't anyone ask Mark Zuckerberg  why Facebook makes it so hard to find out who's trashing you on Facebook but easy-peasy for advertisers to track your every move? For every adolescent, who before  suiciding,  was victimized by an aggressive, slanderous  anonymous Facebook user's posts, that Facebook has made almost impossible to trace the  origin of,  shouldn't Facebook acknowledge the consequences of this tactic which every genocide has also exploited? For every request that the post-er be identified that Facebook has dismissed as insignificant, because we the small and vulnerable are the requesters, shouldn't Facebook be asked to explain their moral indifference? Isn't that just  as much a violation of human rights as their disregard for the constitutional right to privacy? </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: Shouldn't ... | 01:35</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/240832", title: "The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: Shouldn\'t Facebook Be Accountable for their Exploitation of Anonymity - the Faceless- by FacebookTrolling? on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/240832' addthis:title='The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: Shouldn't Facebook Be Accountable for their Exploitation of Anonymity - the Faceless- by FacebookTrolling?'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/240832' addthis:title='The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: Shouldn't Facebook Be Accountable for their Exploitation of Anonymity - the Faceless- by FacebookTrolling?'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-240832-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p240832-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/240832/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_92475"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/198453-sonnet-for-the-us-ducks-independently-verified-to">Sonnet for the US Ducks Independently Verified to Have been Neither Forcefed for Foie-Gras Production Nor Plucked of Their Feathers and Down During Their Lifetime </a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 01:17 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>A United States outdoor clothing store sells coats, labelled to assure us that the down is from US Ducks Independently Verified to Have been Neither Forcefed for Foie-Gras Production Nor Plucked of Their Feathers and Down During Their Lifetime. Scott Pruitt who sued the Environmental Protection Agency over a dozen times had been installed as the agency's head, when I wrote this sonnet. In reading the label on a down coat, I have found consolation, hope and small victory that our environmental sensibilities will survive, sentiments presented here in a sonnet, in the Department of Poetic Justice. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_423786" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/198453-sonnet-for-the-us-ducks-independently-verified-to" target="blank">Sonnet for the US Ducks Independently Verified ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1307320" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="77" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="198453" data-token="39964786b879153ad0214adc02dea3a2" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="SonnetfortheUSDucksIndependentyVerfified"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Breathing_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/series_images/33623/Breathing_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;">Sonnet for the US Ducks Independently Verified <br />to Have been Neither Forcefed for Foie-Gras Production <br />Nor Plucked of Their Feathers  and Down During  Their Lifetime<br />-Susan Cook-</div> <div style="text-align: center;"><br />I want these ducks to know my faith in our<br />country has been re-nourished by this feat<br />when they grow the down , in their pro-life hour<br />in their solitary stance against the elite<br />practices that feed the rich while the ducks<br />live lives of strangulation, the minute’s<br />peace, lost, the moment when the neck curves, tucks<br />itself inside the plush gift. Diminish<br />the significance of the gift, the down’s weight,<br />the coat that will keep anyone warm, no<br />matter their social standing, EPA<br />head or not? Surely, they’re not our new foe. <br />Even ducks saved from force feeding won’t feed<br />you, Mr.Pruitt, your stick figure needs.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Sonnet for the US Ducks Independently Verified ... | 01:17</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/198453", title: "Sonnet for the US Ducks Independently Verified to Have been Neither Forcefed for Foie-Gras Production Nor Plucked of Their Feathers and Down During Their Lifetime on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/198453' addthis:title='Sonnet for the US Ducks Independently Verified to Have been Neither Forcefed for Foie-Gras Production Nor Plucked of Their Feathers and Down During Their Lifetime '>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/198453' addthis:title='Sonnet for the US Ducks Independently Verified to Have been Neither Forcefed for Foie-Gras Production Nor Plucked of Their Feathers and Down During Their Lifetime '>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-198453-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p198453-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/198453/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_92671"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/400064-auld-lang-syne-repurposing-the-bottom-line-to-hea">Auld Lang Syne Repurposing the Bottom Line To Hear For Whom The Bell Tolls!</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 03:45 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>This year, even with its dashed hopes and fear of "deja vu all over again" an abundance of good prevailed. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_793044" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/400064-auld-lang-syne-repurposing-the-bottom-line-to-hea" target="blank">Auld Lang Syne Repurposing the Bottom Line To ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="3338847" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="225" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="400064" data-token="f47f5407cbaf6ab205c60059890c9136" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="AuldLangSyne2021"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Breathing_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/series_images/33623/Breathing_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Auld Lang Syne !</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Repurposing The Bottom Line To Hear For Whom The Bell Now Tolls!</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">-Susan Cook-</span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>Should old stock options be forgot and not put up for trade?</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>Curevac, Novartis, Sputnik Five</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>Oh, right Sputnik's not on our exchange.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>Now do not fret. Moderna and German-based Bio N Tech pulled through</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em> and managed to earned good money</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>unlike what Pfizer, their US partner could not quite do. </em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>For those of you who wonder how vaccine makers gears did shift</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>to their bank accounts</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>and  bigger wallets to make sure their profits fit. </em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>Into their pockets to not confuse the world (they are discrete)</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>their job of saving lives</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>with good old American Wall Street greed.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>And don't forget the home test kits, administered at your leisure</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>so when you board a New York bus </em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>your weapon will not be your sneeze. </em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>Now for a minute, let's forget Nancy Messonier, the queen</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>of 2020 Test disasters</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>like the CDC had never seen.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>And put on hold her minimizing so she'd stay employed</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>the virus which we needed testing for,</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>the bug we needed to avoid.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>So fortunately Abbott, Quidel stepped up to the plate</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>and gave us Binax, Quick-Vue tests</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>to check on antigens we've made.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>And since we're on the topic, yes, these home tests are great.</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>Please remember twenty-nine point six,</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>Abbott's stock increase this year, to date. </em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>Now, no one in their right mind, well, hard times can bring forgetting</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>this country's favorite sound. </em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>It goes like this: Ca-ching, ca-ching, ca-ching.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>Even so, some companies disregard the bottom line</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>when a crisis comes</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>(think 3/10/20) they thought of us all the time.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>In Maine, some companies said, “We 'll make products that will help”</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>Protective clothing and face masks, hand </em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>sanitizer, and brand new tests.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>Alcohol once used in Maine Spirit Bourbon quarts</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>was repurposed in a Growler size</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>to sanitize germs of all sorts.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>And Idexx didn't drop the ball, recommissioned Canine tests</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>to accommodate Covid genomes </em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>found in human nostrils through their tests.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>And LL Bean did not bail out on doing what they could.</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>They made masks, protective shoes,</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>and gowns. Just their way of doing good.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>These times have been exhausting. Yes, we've been raked through the coals.</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>For some Maine business, the bottom line</em></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-family: Perpetua, serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><em>listens for whom the bell now tolls.</em></span></span></p> <p> </p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Auld Lang Syne Repurposing the Bottom Line To ... | 03:45</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/400064", title: "Auld Lang Syne Repurposing the Bottom Line To Hear For Whom The Bell Tolls! on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/400064' addthis:title='Auld Lang Syne Repurposing the Bottom Line To Hear For Whom The Bell Tolls!'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/400064' addthis:title='Auld Lang Syne Repurposing the Bottom Line To Hear For Whom The Bell Tolls!'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-400064-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p400064-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/400064/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_93821"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/411532-tell-me-how-many-black-seabirds">Tell Me How Many Black Seabirds</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | :56 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>In these times, a poem for the places we find resilience.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_813034" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/411532-tell-me-how-many-black-seabirds" target="blank">Tell Me How Many Black Seabirds</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="4791613" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="56" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="411532" data-token="a4574368861367043183dbf7e3f31d96" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="TellMeTwoHowManyBlackSeaBirds"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Christmas12017_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/779694/Christmas12017_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p class="Standard"><span>Tell Me How Many Black Seabirds<br />-Susan Cook-<br /></span></p> <p class="Standard"><span> </span></p> <p class="Standard"><span>Tell me how many black seabirds</span></p> <p class="Standard"><span>woke up this morning, flew to a high place,</span></p> <p class="Standard"><span>shook off a thousand drops of river, heard</span></p> <p class="Standard"><span>each one, in slow motion, fall, a trace</span></p> <p class="Standard"><span>of where each one began inside. This is</span></p> <p class="Standard"><span>a daily ritual. They celebrate</span></p> <p class="Standard"><span>with such silence, quiet applause, which is</span></p> <p class="Standard"><span>to say, this abundance will tell a (late</span></p> <p class="Standard"><span>sometimes) lie. The absence of chaos, just</span></p> <p class="Standard"><span>drops of water shaken off, lets the heat</span></p> <p class="Standard"><span>from the sun's dependable rays, we trust,</span></p> <p class="Standard"><span>bring heart to any body's weary beat.</span></p> <p class="Standard"><span>Tell me how we remind ourselves to turn</span></p> <p class="Standard"><span>to the deliberate, needing it just now.</span></p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Tell Me How Many Black Seabirds | :56</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/411532", title: "Tell Me How Many Black Seabirds on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/411532' addthis:title='Tell Me How Many Black Seabirds'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/411532' addthis:title='Tell Me How Many Black Seabirds'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-411532-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p411532-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/411532/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_94121"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/177696-it-s-not-what-you-re-given-it-s-what-you-do-a-pa">It's Not What You're Given, It's What You Do: A Parenting Guide to Understanding Presidentialism</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 04:52 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Human Growth and Development textbooks may be the ‘go to’ reference to explain ‘what the hell is going on’ as the new Republican opponent apparent, Mr. Trump has said, in his newest Presidential race. </p> <p>You may remember from your Human Growth and Development class the different kinds of parenting power and decision-making that Gerald Lesser, Diana Baumrind, Carolyn Newberger and others have identified. There’s the egalitarian parent’s power- the child has more influence in decision-making than the parent. Then there’s the democratic parent’s approach to power- decisions are made collaboratively. Finally, entering the room via the gold escalators, just to remind you who brings the bacon home, there’s the absolute authoritarian parent- What Dad says goes. Dad makes all the decisions. If Dad says we’re building a wall, we’re building a wall. Dad divys out praise or shame or warmth depending on whether Dad thinks you need it. Dad’s power, after all, controls the resources- financial, emotional and physical . If Dad thinks public humiliation and shaming is in order- well, this is just what Dad has to do. He doesn‘t have to apologize for injustice, crudeness or even the psychological violence of what he says or does. He is Dad.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_381542" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/177696-it-s-not-what-you-re-given-it-s-what-you-do-a-pa" target="blank">It's Not What You're Given, It's What You Do: A ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1120753" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="292" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="177696" data-token="716114b16d22297527267a6bb710dadc" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="DadDonald andHisUnlistenedtoChildren"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Breathing_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/series_images/33623/Breathing_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <span> <p>Dad Donald- A Parenting Guide to the 2016 Presidential Race</p> <p>-Susan Cook-</p> <p>Human Growth and Development textbooks may be the ‘go to’ reference to explain ‘what the hell is going on’ as the new Republican opponent apparent, Mr. Trump has said, in this 2016 Presidential race.</p> <p>You may remember from your Human Growth and Development class the different kinds of parenting power and decision-making that Gerald Lesser, Diana Baumrind, Carolyn Newberger and others have identified. There’s the egalitarian parent’s power- the child has more influence in decision-making than the parent. Then there’s the democratic parent’s approach to power- decisions are made collaboratively. Finally, entering the room via the gold escalators, just to remind you who brings the bacon home, there’s the absolute authoritarian parent- What Dad says goes. Dad makes all the decisions. If Dad says we’re building a wall, we’re building a wall. Dad divys out praise or shame or warmth depending on whether Dad thinks you need it. Dad’s power, after all, controls the resources- financial, emotional and physical . If Dad thinks public humiliation and shaming is in order- well, this is just what Dad has to do. He doesn‘t have to apologize for injustice, crudeness or even the psychological violence of what he says or does. He is Dad.</p> <p>In this and many cultures , The Dad persona- and the person assuming it- is given broad license to do what Dad will. Parenting is an innate, developmentally and culturally defined mindset. I wrote an entire Masters’ Thesis about its intricacies. When someone subtly or overtly begins to play ‘the parental power card’ and exercise parental power over you, it’s hard to immediately recognize because - well, we all there at one time. None of us become our own parents- or parents ourselves- until we grow up or had to. Which is part of the reason it has been so hard to hear what Mr. Trump has been doing. He will parent us, or treat us and the problems of this country as if is he were the authoritarian parent yielding his absolute power like authoritarian parents do. And those of us who never rebelled - whether our parents liked it or not- and became our own parents can really be kowtowed. A turning point in human development is telling Dad- up front- “You can’t tell me what to do. “ Or some variation of questioning Dad’s omniscience. That power shift forever more changes human development.</p> <p>This is Donald Dad Trump. He doles out humiliation as needed- he threatens to take the car keys or build a wall- and once he comes down the gold escalator- Dad built that-you know-he will tell Mr. Cruz he’s smart. He will tell Reince Pribus what a big boy he is doing his job as Republican Party chair. And on and on.</p> <p>Great dads are a wonder to behold. My father was a great father. He held leadership positions of influence. He was the President of the Automobile Dealers Association in the state I grew up in the 1950’s- the automobile’s heyday. He knew parenting is also about knowing what you don’t know- and respecting that every child- every child- has something to teach a parent about how to be a parent. And to be President you have to listen to the economist , the defense and state department , the Supreme Court, and the Congress children. And I do not believe Dad Donald gets that not doing that is the end of the house of Dad Donald’s power. Many a three year old has told a shocked parent, ‘You’re not the boss of me.‘ Dad Donald doesn’t remember that .</p> </span> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>It's Not What You're Given, It's What You Do: A ... | 04:52</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/177696", title: "It\'s Not What You\'re Given, It\'s What You Do: A Parenting Guide to Understanding Presidentialism on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/177696' addthis:title='It's Not What You're Given, It's What You Do: A Parenting Guide to Understanding Presidentialism'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/177696' addthis:title='It's Not What You're Given, It's What You Do: A Parenting Guide to Understanding Presidentialism'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-177696-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p177696-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/177696/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_94338"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/423107-shaming-and-humiliating-by-choice-roe-v-wade-and">Shaming and Humiliating By Choice: Roe v. Wade and Denying Consequence</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 06:13 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>As 6 Supreme Court Justices end Roe v. Wade, shaming and humiliating Pro-Choice advocates becomes the anti-choice strategy.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_833200" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/423107-shaming-and-humiliating-by-choice-roe-v-wade-and" target="blank">Shaming and Humiliating By Choice: Roe v. Wade ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="3586117" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="373" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="423107" data-token="a2b6e088e07ec15679a1f66d4034fab7" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="ShamingandhumiliatingTwo"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Nytimesprochoicepicture_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/791474/NYTimesProchoicePicture_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div>Shaming and Humiliating Women By Choice</div> <div>Shaming and humiliating have always been behind actions made toward females who do something adverse to the (the male- dominated) status quo. Ten year old girls slapped across the face when they disclose for the first time to an adult that they have been repeatedly sexually abused by another person or adult women standing up to defend women's right to make choices about her body  are examples of targets of actions intended to summon these feelings.</div> <div>At the Planned Parenthood of New England rally I attended,  a man held up his poster of a mutilated face (just enough of face to imply that this photo-shopped image was a baby) . Other protesters went over and held up their signs to block his sign. He eventually put that sign down then held up his picture of a 3 or 4 month old infant. His intention was clear: shame, humiliate and the unsaid about the rally attendees : murderer, torturer with whatever grotesque imagery or distortion he could make.</div> <div>Zygote, embryo or fetal health- and that of a newborn- are - as reproductive rights insist- fundamentally linked to the physical and mental health of the mother. As Gloria Steinem points out, reproductive rights also protect giving birth to an infant at the same time protecting a woman's right to not be forced to give birth against her will.</div> <div>Pro-choice exists for the suicidal woman with an unwanted pregnancy, the pregnant woman in an abusive relationship who knows the physical, sexual or emotional abuse from a partner will not end just because a pregnancy is brought to term and will very likely make the newborn a victim of that abuse as well. Pregnancy does not cure physical, emotional or sexual abuse. The ectopic pregnancy of a woman who will die if the pregnancy continues, all of these are the object of the man who showed up to shame and humiliate. Would he be an abusive, shaming and humiliating father too? His intent at the rally was clear.</div> <div>Shaming and humiliation have always been the back pocket strategy to denigrate women- prostitutes, rape victims (she asked for it), sexually abused children (they're lying), the abused woman who cannot make the abuse end or the woman in a relationship where the cold indifference to her emotional well-being did not succeed in preventing pregnancy. The recourse for women in these situations is limited.<br /><br /> Reproductive choice supporters know each of these circumstances has precipitated many female suicides.</div> <div>If all else fails to denigrate the authentic pain women experience, when an unwanted pregnancy takes place, Ed Whalen, a prominent anti-choice lawyer on PBS “Firing Line” emphasized another “go-to”. Roe v. Wade should be overturned because, he said “Roe was lying. She made it up.”</div> <div>There is explicit gender bias in anti-choice laws. Males who've fertilized a female ova have always found ways to avoid parental obligation. “Ignore the pregnant woman” is one which 23andMe and Ancestry.com are rapidly undoing by uncovering actual paternity of children previously unidentified, born to mothers who by threat or force remained silent. A woman recently discovered her half-sister much to the rage of her 90-something mother .</div> <div>Another way is to present complete indifference to the pregnancy, making it clear that the sole provider of caretaking will be the mother if she carries the pregnancy  to term. Remember women earn 70 cents or so for every dollar men make, a figure which has been much much lower in the past.</div> <div>Threats to the woman by the male if she brings the pregnancy to term are not unheard of,  literally again, forcing her to terminate a pregnancy is also not unheard of.</div> <div>And then there are the stories about the women who brought an unwanted pregnancy to term calling the father to announce the birth upon which the male immediately hangs up the phone, these days the text or email deleted.</div> <div>The man showing up with his grotesque photos carries on that cycle of shaming, humiliating, abusing and precipitating physical and mental illness, if not suicide, with, by the way absolutely no consequence (as there are none for Ed Whalen) for his actions.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Shaming and Humiliating By Choice: Roe v. Wade ... | 06:13</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/423107", title: "Shaming and Humiliating By Choice: Roe v. Wade and Denying Consequence on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/423107' addthis:title='Shaming and Humiliating By Choice: Roe v. Wade and Denying Consequence'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/423107' addthis:title='Shaming and Humiliating By Choice: Roe v. Wade and Denying Consequence'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-423107-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p423107-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/423107/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_95910"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/165929-in-the-department-of-poetic-justice-and-reckoning">In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning): 'To an Itsy Bitsy Spider'</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 02:50 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning), The River Is Wide offers a poem that could be sung to the tune from a tune in the public domain, of course, The Itsy Bitsy Spider. With lyrics for the Great American Wrongbook, "To an Itsy Bitsy Spider" is a reflection.</p> <p></p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_357542" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/165929-in-the-department-of-poetic-justice-and-reckoning" target="blank">In the Department of Poetic Justice (and ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1019292" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="170" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="165929" data-token="6ef94236eaadee7c89916ae0c0540c6d" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="InthDepartmentofPoeticJusticeToanItsyBitsySpider"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Itsybitsypicture_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/584508/ItsyBitsyPicture_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <span> <p>In the Department of Poetic Justice (and reckoning) with lyrics for the Great American Wrongbook</p> <strong><em> <p>To an Itsy Bitsy Spider</p> </em></strong> <em> </em> <p>-Susan Cook-</p> <p> </p> <strong><span style="font-family: Perpetua;"> <p>To an Itsy Bitsy Spider</p> <p> </p> <p>The itsy bitsy spider went up the water spout.</p> <p>Once he was up there no one could get him out.</p> <p>So they chose him for governor. Now they’re sorry Itsy sits</p> <p>up there cause the itsy bitsy spider keeps having little fits.</p> <p>The itsy bitsy spider doesn’t like the income tax</p> <p>He had an itsy fitsy when his bill could not get passed</p> <p>So the itsy bitsy spider went looking for revenge</p> <p>And itsy said he’ll never sign another bill again.</p> <p>The itsy bitsy spider wanted to reduce</p> <p>The government budget. Itsy doesn’t have no use</p> <p>For asylum seekers coming here who’d  like to be</p> <p>like the itsy-bitsy spider, enjoying liberty.</p> <p>The itsy bitsy spider forgot it’s not just him</p> <p>creating legislation. Itsy doesn’t seem to know</p> <p>he’s not the most important legislator who's around, so</p> <p>he vetoes everything and tells them no, no, no, no no.</p> <p>The itsy bitsy spider seems like he's inflated</p> <p>his own self- importance which is a little over-rated.</p> <p>It’s a problem that is treated with some sure de-levitators.</p> <p>That is heading to the State House to deal with Legislators.</p> <p>The itsy bitsy spider can have a real hard time.</p> <p>Just like Nikita Khrushchev sometimes you think he’ll pound</p> <p>his sneaker on the table when he gets very mad. Whoops!</p> <p>That’s the part we fantasized. Has itsy had past lives?</p> <p>The itsy bitsy spider did not come out of nowhere.</p> <p>His message is so simple. You wonder where he found</p> <p>the voters who believed him. Voters sometimes can be the sucker</p> <p>now they’re left to try and find a way to impeach… the itsy bitsy spider!</p> <p>…went up the water spout...</p> <br /> </span></strong> <p> </p> </span><strong></strong><em></em> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>In the Department of Poetic Justice (and ... | 02:50</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/165929", title: "In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning): \'To an Itsy Bitsy Spider\' on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/165929' addthis:title='In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning): 'To an Itsy Bitsy Spider''>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/165929' addthis:title='In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning): 'To an Itsy Bitsy Spider''>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-165929-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p165929-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/165929/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_97785"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/135048-referendums-on-arrogance-a-citizen-s-guide">Referendums on Arrogance- A Citizen's Guide</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 05:14 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>In politics, arrogance can be hired, purchased or -in volunteer organizations- a gratuity that comes with volunteer labor.- or elected. In Maine , the incumbent Governor who was re-elected on Tuesday certainly had very public moments of arrogance. But voters decided - on Tuesday-alongside their bond referendums- who had less arrogance. They decided he had less- 48 to 44%. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_294735" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/135048-referendums-on-arrogance-a-citizen-s-guide" target="blank">Referendums on Arrogance- A Citizen's Guide</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="783170" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="314" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="135048" data-token="d926f496ce09ac7dc822608578e70701" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="AReferendumonArrogance"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="My2003fordrangerclutchalldone3_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/320470/my2003fordrangerclutchalldone3_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div>In my state, there will be vast humming and hah-ing and ahem-ing about the  failure of millions of dollars spent by Democrats to elect a Governor, a 2nd CD House of Representatives member, to keep the State Senate majority and the previously  solid majority in the Maine House. So  exactly what referendum did the millions spent convince voters to pass? It was a referendum on arrogance.</div> <div>Not the arrogance of  big ostentatious displays of wealth or aloof elitism. We don’t really have that here in Maine. Let us not forget the down-to-earth unpretentious  humanitarian care of the late physician and philanthropist Richard Rockefeller and  of course, you-know-who’s husband. </div> <div>No, this referendum was about the arrogance  communicated in 140 characters, sound bites, face book entries and video-tape, when available. </div> <div>Maine legislature members seem to have forgotten that while they were busy trying to read, grasp and vote on bills, their activities were televised every evening on public broadcasting. So, when a representative sheepishly presented a bill to give the attorney general (instead of the Executive branch) the power to set the salaries of Assistant Attorney Generals, we all could watch it  and other bills in the evening.  </div> <div>They seem to forget that their campaign for office was ongoing and summarized on twitter feeds  by the State House Communications staff in 140 characters. On those State House  twitter feeds, negativity, the contemptuous dismissive, lack of consideration for the other side’s view are common.  That’s the campaigning that was being done for legislators while they were busy doing other things. “Bad CEO” one tweet’s hash tag.</div> <div>Which arrogance? The kind in the decision by the Democrats to hire an expensive videographer to follow the Governor around so they would have “proof” if he made a  gaffe.  No political party “owns“ civil liberties. The Governor stood up for his right to be free from intrusive surveillance.  He refused to meet with Legislative leaders until they stopped. Then more arrogance in the Senate President’s offer to “break bread” with the Governor and his wife to sort things out- as if the insult from the videotaping was just a matter of filling tummies. Even the solidly anti-Lepage-ists found the video-taped surveillance over-reaching.  It didn’t matter whose Democratic frontal lobe the idea came from. Every single Democratic legislator carried a chip of that arrogance on the shoulder  by their silent acceptance. </div> <div>Then there was the violation of the ancient Stonehenge-era ritual of never, ever taking sides in a Democratic party primary because the rules that the party grass roots spend hours and hours making regulate fairness. The rule was ignored in the 2nd Congressional primary race and probably was paid for in the loss of Democratic base voters. </div> <div>Words from Washington were also tinged with arrogance- in their disregard for substance, sensitivity and respect.</div> <div>The day after the Aurora Colorado tragedy one Congressional chief-of-staff posted: “I just got a pedicure!”  Many, many Americans sent the day, night, weeks ahead  praying. After the Newtowne school tragedy, one Congressman publicly pronounced that he  didn’t think it was time to talk about gun control.</div> <div>Entitlement to arrogance can be hired, purchased or -in volunteer organizations- a gratuity that comes with volunteer labor.  Did the incumbent Governor who was re-elected have arrogant moments? He certainly did.  But voters decided - on Tuesday-alongside their bond referendums- who had less arrogance. They decided he had less- 48 to 44%. </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Referendums on Arrogance- A Citizen's Guide | 05:14</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/135048", title: "Referendums on Arrogance- A Citizen\'s Guide on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/135048' addthis:title='Referendums on Arrogance- A Citizen's Guide'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/135048' addthis:title='Referendums on Arrogance- A Citizen's Guide'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-135048-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p135048-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/135048/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_98261"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/79639-credibility-in-business-casual-sexism-wears-a-new">Credibility in Business Casual: Sexism Wears a New Outfit</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 04:46 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>The Republican attack on women, a not- so thinly veiled attack on credibility, the females, that is, is not new. Women, you may remember, require more “proof” that they are telling the truth than men do. Women’s credibility remains the non-credentialed, not appropriately dressed, inarticulate sweetspot where, when hit just right, sexism implants its tendrils and goes viral, its derision entitled, origin unknown, because we are talking about women.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_182498" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/79639-credibility-in-business-casual-sexism-wears-a-new" target="blank">Credibility in Business Casual: Sexism Wears a ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="401275" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="286" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="79639" data-token="8e608e542a3acb3726987a6f8653b893" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="CredibilityInBiusnessCasualSexismWearsANewOutfit"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Anitahill6122012_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/179778/AnitaHill6122012_small.JPG" version="small" width="92" /> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Much is heard about the "new" Republican attack on women,  a  not so thinly veiled attack on credibility, the females’, that is. Women, you may remember require more “proof” that they are telling the truth than men do. Women’s credibility remains the non-credentialed, not appropriately dressed, inarticulate sweetspot where, when hit just right, sexism implants its tendrils and goes viral, its derision entitled, origin unknown, because we are talking abut women.<br /><br /> Many women don’t realize that today’s war on women’s credibility is like that faced by Anita Hill during the Clarence Thomas hearing either because they now have credentials that they hope protect their credibility or they were not old enough or not allowed to watch that spectacle as it unfolded on national television in the early 1990’s. During the hearings to admit Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court, Anita Hill, an African-American attorney was subpoenaed to testify about the sexual harassment she endured at his hands at his previous job.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I still have my “I Believe Anita Hill” button. Many women don’t. Many men never got one in the first place. The smug confidence that Clarence Thomas evinced during those hearings has metastasized into complete silence, as he now sits on the Court.  He perhaps  now believes he doesn’t have to say anything  to have credibility as he has not said or asked any questions during the oral arguments for something like 6 years.  </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Some believe that blatantly different standards for male and female credibility have gone away. We need go no further than the recent trial of John Edwards for federal campaign law violations for “proof” that sexism’s new  business casual dress does not mean standards have changed. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Criminal law trials are about credibility. The “designer” proof presented by John Edwards that he was telling the truth was this: A video of his nationally-televised appearance lauded as his moment of truth-telling, the “tell-all” in which he stated that he had a brief affair with Rielle Hunter but it had ended and his unethical staffer had fathered her child.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> This “truth telling” explique was presented  to the jury as evidence that the man before them was really not telling the truth then, even though he said he was before a national television audience, but he was telling the truth now. This, strategized his defense team, was, yes, a wardrobe failure in credibility that would now be restored with that ever-trustworthy safety pin- the fact that John Edwards is a man. They knew that would hold up better than the fact that Edwards is a lawyer. One word captures how a woman engaging in such tactics would be characterized: Flighty!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">The Credibility dress standard  is not the same for men and women.  Credibility remains an icon of sexism that presumes that women have to meet different standards of proof than men do.  There are cultural and social questions that we all must ask about the different standards for “proof” that apply to men and women, that are as unfair and unequal now as they were when Anita Hill was subpoenaed to testify about  Clarence Thomas. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">When we ask for proof from men and women, do we ask each of them, equally, no matter what the context, no matter who has been  privileged with the presumptive “truth-teller” status?  When the ” court of public opinion” is courted, really deep down, don't you think you can overlook what she says is true? That what everybody else thinks is better proof?  That any  other truth that she might offer is really just her reaching for a safety pin- when really- there isn’t one big enough to fill the gap?</p> <p> </p> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Credibility in Business Casual: Sexism Wears a ... | 04:46</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/79639", title: "Credibility in Business Casual: Sexism Wears a New Outfit on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/79639' addthis:title='Credibility in Business Casual: Sexism Wears a New Outfit'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/79639' addthis:title='Credibility in Business Casual: Sexism Wears a New Outfit'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-79639-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p79639-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/79639/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_98503"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/483898-why-women-don-t-tell-part-3-the-cultural-anomie">Why Women Don't Tell, Part 3: The Cultural Anomie that Keeps Violence Toward Women Hidden in Broad Daylight</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 08:36 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>The arrest of a Fifth Avenue architect as the alleged serial murderer of several women brings up the question of whether anyone over that long period of time knew of the man's aggressive and violent underworld life. Did they know and just not tell? Is this yet another example of Not Telling about Violence Toward Women, about the cultural anomie about disclosure- "a lack of moral standards" a "lawlessness" about disclosing about violence toward women? </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_944760" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/483898-why-women-don-t-tell-part-3-the-cultural-anomie" target="blank">Why Women Don't Tell, Part 3: The Cultural ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="4597371" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="516" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="483898" data-token="6d4faa80e3e57da599dafbe238fee283" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="WhyWomenDontTellPart3fixed"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Whywomendonttelltwo_small" height="92" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/862581/WhyWomenDontTellTwo_small.jpg" version="small" /> <p><span>Why Women Don't Tell Part 3<br /> The Cultural Anomie that Keeps Violence Toward Women Hidden in Broad Daylight</span></p> <p><span style="color: #252525;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>In the 15 or so years since the first woman was murdered by the alleged perpetrator, the now- indicted and arrested Fifth Avenue Architect, didn't anyone suspect or even know this man had violent tendencies? Aggression toward women? Was there no speculation that his wife and children periodically left because of a recurrent aggression no longer suppressed? Some recurrent resurfacing of a pathology? Did no one suspect or even witness events that raised doubts about violence and aggression in the man's life?</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #252525;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>The deaths of these women described only as “prostitutes” as if there was nothing else to say about them, renews fears that this culture's anomie about violence toward women has not gone away or is at least quietly accepted. Anomie, Google says, means “a lack of moral standards, or a sense of lawlessness, or sometimes the anxiety that comes from being in a lawless place.” </span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #252525;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>Then there is the Anomie about Telling What We Know about someone else's violence and aggression. The arrest of this particular alleged perpetrator hiding in plain sight raises renewed anxiety that cultural acceptance of failing to Tell What We Know persists-Why Women Don't Tell. Surely, someone must have known or suspected this alleged perpetrator's violent side. The Tarrasoff Law would dictate that even healthcare providers disclose to authorities threats of known violence or homicide or committed ones. </span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #252525;"><span> <span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Sometimes, the most fiercely internalized moral lessons  come from witnessing in ourselves or in others the horrible aftermath of moral atrocities. The next step is to speak out but we know too well that if you see something you very often do not say something. Telling, comes at a cost- a well known cost that many avoid. Our internalized evolutionary tool for bettering the human race by telling- our sensitivity to human pain and suffering  betrays us. There is no telling. The secret is kept. </span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #252525;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span><span>I am a psychotherapist who for many years has studied and continues to study and provide Trauma intervention. Knowing itself- witnessing- violence- the discovery of the dark truth can be all by itself traumatic. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders V acknowledges hearing about and witnessing violence, atrocious events can lead to post traumatic stress disorder. The frontal lobes- where we plan, decide, our executive skills which lead us through our lives, go offline, as Bessel Van der Kolk writes. Psychotherapist Sebern Fisher notes the neurobiology of a response to trauma may bring fight or flight, tonic immobility, collapsed immobility, an orienting freeze, or loss of consciousness or fainting (the vasovagal response) The human abilities through which we function are hijacked or shutdown completely. All reasons why others don't tell what they have seen, heard or know. </span></span></span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #252525;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>There is also plenty of exposure to culturally sanctioned punishment for Telling by the discloser. A shameful example of that punishment if not assassination  for telling is best exemplified by a Washington Post Pulitzer Prize toting- columnist who reviewed in 1997 “The Kiss”, Kathryn Harrison's telling about her father's incestuous acts with her. The words in the book synchronize almost with precision the torturous emotional sequalae of the act of telling about incest and the incest itself. So precise as to bring  chills which they did on my first, second and third reading. The real topic of the Washington Post reviewer Jonathan Yardley is given away by the article's title: “Daddy's Girl Cashes In”. His review explicates how to take down the girl who tells the truth about being the object of violence- physical or sexual- or fearful that violation or victimization has taken or is about to take place. The visual metaphor of Yardley's stance is that of him standing with his heel on the back of Kathryn Harrison's neck- pushing her face, the mind with which she eloquently and painfully found the words to disclose and the lips that mouthed them in mud. “Slimy, repellent, meretricious, cynical”, he wrote. “His seduction of the not-unwilling her. Its essential elements are not graphic sex -- in that department Harrison is coy rather than revealing -- but a revolting mixture of self-pity and narcissism“. “The real act of dishonesty is this shameful book, which exploits the private life of the author's family -- if, by the way, anything herein actually happened as she claims it did...” As if telling about sexual violence is exploiting “family privacy”.</span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #252525;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span><span><span>Jonathan Yardley could have served as Consultant for anyone hoping to suppress suspicions about the now DNA-verified suspect in the Gilgo Beach murders. He reminds any perpetrator how to irreducibly discredit Anyone who might Tell the Truth of what they have seen, heard or observed. Yardley even refers to the same geographic area, the “polygon” of the alleged murderer's route writing that salaciousness rather than the atrocity of Harrison's sexual abuse drew readers. “The chattering classes of Manhattan and the Hamptons have homed in on it with the unerring instinct of swine slopping in swill. It is the Flavor of the Month.” </span></span></span></span></span></span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: #252525;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>If the response to the trauma of hearing the atrocious does not bring shut down, freeze, a loss of conscious willingness to know what we know, our ethical core can be part of the making sense. There's a chance here that the Cultural anomie of Telling about Violence toward women will be uncovered- if it's held up to the light here- broad daylight where it has been hiding all along. </span></span></span></span></p> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Why Women Don't Tell, Part 3: The Cultural ... | 08:36</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/483898", title: "Why Women Don\'t Tell, Part 3: The Cultural Anomie that Keeps Violence Toward Women Hidden in Broad Daylight on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/483898' addthis:title='Why Women Don't Tell, Part 3: The Cultural Anomie that Keeps Violence Toward Women Hidden in Broad Daylight'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/483898' addthis:title='Why Women Don't Tell, Part 3: The Cultural Anomie that Keeps Violence Toward Women Hidden in Broad Daylight'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-483898-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p483898-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/483898/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_99169"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/90597-a-poem-to-the-president-of-the-nra">A Poem to the President of the NRA</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 01:09 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>This poem to the President of the NRA has no statistics, no logic, no legal reasoning or principle. Only profound grief and sadness..</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_204769" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/90597-a-poem-to-the-president-of-the-nra" target="blank">A Poem to the President of the NRA</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1650016" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="69" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="90597" data-token="72cf60e8afbb4c2793e739dd81a3f77b" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="PoemforOneNRAPresident"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Americassonnetjpg_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/883203/AmericasSonnetjpg_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;">A Poem to One President of the NRA</div> <div style="text-align: center;">-Susan Cook-</div> <div style="text-align: center;">Let's begin, Mr. Lapierre. You too</div> <div style="text-align: center;">visualize: death's examiner, see</div> <div style="text-align: center;">where there's the trail strewn with bloody hearts, blue</div> <div style="text-align: center;">bodies, drained of life, their luscious mouths, we</div> <div style="text-align: center;">can't begin to open because each one</div> <div style="text-align: center;">comes back to this. We feed our young with spoons</div> <div style="text-align: center;">of silver, gold. Someone acquires a gun</div> <div style="text-align: center;">or leaves the door wide open to the rooms</div> <div style="text-align: center;">and rooms where the guns are manufactured,</div> <div style="text-align: center;">with a day like this in mind: someone, scared</div> <div style="text-align: center;">(it could be you) whose fear has finally lured</div> <div style="text-align: center;">him into thinking: This is truth or dare.</div> <div style="text-align: center;">Whose child knows now, guns mean death, do not care,</div> <div style="text-align: center;">don't distinguish truth from fear, fear from dare.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>A Poem to the President of the NRA | 01:09</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/90597", title: "A Poem to the President of the NRA on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/90597' addthis:title='A Poem to the President of the NRA'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/90597' addthis:title='A Poem to the President of the NRA'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-90597-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p90597-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/90597/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_100887"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/179299-big-fish-small-pond-small-fish-big-pond-an-ame">Big Fish, Small Pond; Small Fish, Big Pond: An American Conscience and a Vietnam Remembrance</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 07:06 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>History is written by the Big and the Small. "The Vietnam War" documentary has reminded us that. The Moving Wall, a half scale version of the smooth black granite Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC which names the 58228 who died in that war, chronologically, from the first in 1959 to the last in 1975 does too. It came to Maine last year. I found my first date’s name- John Leo Murdock, who had just turned 20 when he died. I found his name just days after President Obama visited Vietnam and lifted the decades old arms embargo there. We are friends now, in other words. </p> <p>I knew long ago that conscience was a big word, not to be thrown around by political office-holders looking for a brand, a legacy. I think President Obama was sincere in his hope to earn us moral lessons from that war. He too, like my first date ‘Jack ’Mad’ Murdock - my mother didn’t know that was his nickname- was once a small fish thrown into the big pond. Obama became a big fish, big power not small, who never quite put aside his small fish priorities which may be what sustains our conscience after all. </p> <p>I just know I wish I had kissed ‘Mad’ more than once. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_384816" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/179299-big-fish-small-pond-small-fish-big-pond-an-ame" target="blank">Big Fish, Small Pond; Small Fish, Big Pond: An ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1500970" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="426" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="179299" data-token="19aedfd577f2eb18fab0ad4c48c71f3b" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="BigFishSmallPondMemorialDayConscience2"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Jackmadmurdoch_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/420288/JackMadMurdoch_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;">Big Fish, Small Pond; Small Pond, Big Fish: An American Conscience and A Vietnam Remembrance<br />-Susan Cook-</div> <div>At a jazz performance, the lady next to me and I struck up a conversation. During World War II, she, a Czechoslovakian, and her family were exiled to Latvia. They were sent to an American-occupied section of Germany at war's end, and lived in Displaced Persons Camps for six years. "Then we came to America", she said. She, her husband and their daughter were there listening to the daughter's boyfriend play saxophone in a jazz quintet. She was, I knew, a woman who knows what it is to be a small fish in the very large pond called the world.</div> <div>Dutifully, as mothers in every pond since the beginning of time have done, she took a sip of her daughter's just purchased martini. Turning in my direction, the mother grimaced as if she had just tasted 1000 proof alcohol retrieved from an ancient civilization where it was a fire substitute. Here was the mother as the forever big fish in the small pond in which her adult daughter still swam in which no martini eludes the mother's discriminating tongue to see how strong the drink.</div> <div>These are the life experiences of which conscience is made, if we remember them: that we are always small fish in very big ponds and large fish in the very small pond of our home, our lives, our communities, our quotidian routines. It is the tension between keeping both in mind at the same time, the remembering the two- going back and forth as we live- that makes conscience available but also elusive to us all.</div> <div>To be in a small pond is to know, if we are lucky, compassion that comes from the indelible ink of human concern, the mother taking one sip of her daughter's martini.</div> <div>And when we are small fish in big ponds, as we always are, conscience brings the indelible imprint of compassion, the do-unto-others-as-you-would-have-them-do-unto-you, and on and on. The inability to do that is what distinguishes having a conscience from not having one at all.</div> <div>It is extremely difficult to hold both in mind.  A small fish can have big fish consequences. Someone called it small power.</div> <div>We have many distinguished office holders who forget that they are both- who abuse the bully pulpit - their big fish status and big fish privilege in ways that have a profound impact on the small fish of the world. The big fish American politician acting very much like it all- the whole democratic process - is his pond now.  The small fish who carry out their personal agendas-without conscience- to keep their own jobs. History is written by the big and the small.</div> <div>Not everyone has the privilege of knowing they are both. Sometimes the events of the time make it impossible to ignore. When I was a 17 year old university freshman, I joined the nationwide student moratorium in protest of the American bombing of Cambodia and the shooting of 4 Kent State students protesting the Vietnam War.  I spent my days writing letters to small Maine newspapers saying that the moratorium was a “question of conscience” because we could not continue to attend classes while thousands of soldiers (almost 50,000 at that point) died in an unfair, unjust war that was never approved by the American public. I know I didn’t know what conscience really meant. I did know that the first boy my mother allowed me to go to the movies with, him driving his 1967 Ford LTD, died in that war, plucked off our local street corner by the Marine recruiter next to our ice cream shop hangout. He died in Vietnam on June 21, 1969, the first day of summer.  So I did know there was a big pond, in my small fish way.</div> <div>I was reminded of that when The Moving Wall, a half scale version of the smooth black granite Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC  which names the 58228  who died in that war, chronologically, from the first in 1959 to the last in 1975, came to Maine.  I found my first date’s name- John Leo Murdock,  who had just turned 20 when he died, found his name just days after President Obama visited Vietnam and lifted the decades old arms embargo there. We are friends now, in other words.</div> <div>I knew long ago that conscience was a big word, not to be thrown around by political office-holders looking for a brand, a legacy. I think President Obama was sincere in his hope to earn us moral lessons from that war. He too, like my first date ‘Jack ’Mad’ Murdock - my mother didn’t know that was his nickname- was once a small fish thrown into the big pond. Obama  became a big fish, big power not small, who never quite put aside his small fish priorities which may be what sustains our conscience after all.</div> <div>I wish I had kissed ‘Mad’ more than once.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Big Fish, Small Pond; Small Fish, Big Pond: An ... | 07:06</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/179299", title: "Big Fish, Small Pond; Small Fish, Big Pond: An American Conscience and a Vietnam Remembrance on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/179299' addthis:title='Big Fish, Small Pond; Small Fish, Big Pond: An American Conscience and a Vietnam Remembrance'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/179299' addthis:title='Big Fish, Small Pond; Small Fish, Big Pond: An American Conscience and a Vietnam Remembrance'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-179299-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p179299-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/179299/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_100889"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/205077-you-scratch-my-back-i-ll-scratch-yours-in-the"> "You Scratch My Back, I'll Scratch Yours" In the Dept. Of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning) </a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 05:08 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>In the Department of Poetic Justice, we offer a poetic tribute to the complex topic of hiring candidates for government jobs who carry heavy political indebtedness. Might be sung to the tune of "Love and Marriage" which was written for a 1955 production of Thornton Wilder's "Our Town". </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_436974" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/205077-you-scratch-my-back-i-ll-scratch-yours-in-the" target="blank">"You Scratch My Back, I'll Scratch Yours" In the ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="4814235" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="308" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="205077" data-token="1711781ef884e12e7fd201e21853f16e" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="YouScratch4MyBackIllScratchyours"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Youscratchmybackillscratchyoursprx_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/917587/YouScratchMyBackIllScratchYoursPRX_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>In the Department of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning) with lyrics for <br /></strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong>the Great American Wrongbook!</strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><strong>‘<span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong>You Scratch My Back, I’ll Scratch Your Back’which could be sung<br /></strong></span></span></strong></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>To the tune   from "Love and Marriage"<br />from a 1955 production of Thornton Wilder’s  ‘Our Town’</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>-Susan Cook-</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>You scratch my back, I’ll scratch your back</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><strong>Julius Caesar didn’t take the right tack,</strong></span></span></strong></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Handing out some big jobs might  </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Help Brutus fix the numbers and do the  math right. </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>One for you and one for me, I guess</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>It’s kindness, a certain specialty, </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>political repayment</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>In the form of six figure paycheck improvement.   </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>You did my way, I did your way,</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Surprise, surprise, I’m ready for my payday,</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Call me clever, greedy,</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Pick me, I suddenly feel needy.</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Just remember, when you cover</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>my butt, I  certainly will re-consider</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>yours when you’re caught lying, </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>vote trading,  need some good denying .</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Exculpation, exoneration</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Pardoning  in any situation,</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>You for me, no matter</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Who else gets nailed- My checkbook fatter. </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>This is not Ukraine, or Moscow, </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Putin territory, where you might go</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Hoping for some bribing </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>In Maine, it’s done through legal hiring. </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Advocacy, conspiracy,</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Cover my butt, six figures should do that nicely,</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>I’ll advocate so publicly, </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>for your job with the DEP or chairing public utilities. </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>There are people, who will be skilled</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>negotiating <em>jurisprudence </em>until</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>they're ready to retire. Lifetime</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>appointments if you hire</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Them just after you take office.</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Let's see what knowledge of the law can offer</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Maybe not pronto, tout-de-suite</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>your law firm partners will gladly wait for their seat.</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Let's be honest. Take the high road</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Facilitating, as you take on that load</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Chairing this and chairing that</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>But don't forget the itchy spot on your own back.</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Permission-er, Commission-er,</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Half-a-dozen, six of one. I have heard</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Put your eggs in one basket.</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Rewarded depending on who gets elected. </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Chief of staff, hey, turn your back, hey,</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>I got you covered, every night and day.</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>I know you and you know me, </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Composting dirt on any adversary.</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Let's see now, the best advisor,</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>find a million dollar salaried devisor</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>of perfect plans, utilities</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Last time I checked that's where the money's hiding.</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Don't forget the sons and daughters</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>hoping waitressing will soon be fodder,</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>now compost paper resume</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>The new job? Highly Paid Superior Aide. </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Looking for someone to okay</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>a multi-billion dollar forested way?</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Put some shiny towers up!</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Power binging instead of watching Netflix!</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Or instead of Ben and Jerry's</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Multi-nationally Christmas stockings</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>filling up with pristine Maine.</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>The moose, deer, beaver never in the fast lane.</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Not like David, Ben or who's </strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>the other one- Goliath, all big men</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>who made their mark in history</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>ignoring little people just like Maine's, see</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Multi-million dollar dealers</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>have always taken more than they de-served</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>Before they found what their paycheck lacked</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><span style=""><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong><strong>the lubrication from scratching someone's itchy back.</strong></strong></span></span></span></p> <p><strong><br /></strong></p> </div> <div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br /></strong></div> </div> <div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><em>This is not Ukraine, or Moscow, </em></span></div> </div> <div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>Putin territory, where you might go</em></strong></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>Hoping for some bribing </em></strong></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>In Maine, it’s done through legal hiring.</em></strong></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em><br /></em></strong></div> </div> <div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>Advocacy, conspiracy,</em></strong></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>Cover my butt, six figures should do that nicely,</em></strong></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>I’ll advocate so publicly, </em></strong></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>for your job, with the DEP or chair of public utilities.  <br /></em></strong></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em><br /></em></strong></div> </div> <div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>You scratch my back, I’ll scratch your back</em></strong></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>Julius Caesar didn’t take the right tack,</em></strong></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>Handing out some big jobs might  </em></strong></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>Help Brutus fix the numbers and do the  math right.</em></strong></div> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>"You Scratch My Back, I'll Scratch Yours" In the ... | 05:08</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/205077", title: " \"You Scratch My Back, I\'ll Scratch Yours\" In the Dept. 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Of Poetic Justice (and Reckoning) '>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-205077-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p205077-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/205077/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_100929"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/206846-in-the-department-of-poetic-justice-the-bills-are">In the Department of Poetic Justice: The Bills Are Alive to Get Rid of Healthcare (The song and dance genre)</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 04:00 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Congress has taken on eliminating affordable health insurance coverage for all citizens. For many, this year is 'anno horribilis'. In the Department of Poetic Justice, we observe possible outcomes of the proposed plans- still in flux- and explore the implications.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_440417" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/206846-in-the-department-of-poetic-justice-the-bills-are" target="blank">In the Department of Poetic Justice: The Bills ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1390323" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="240" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="206846" data-token="7f3a997479e31bac8d198a446570d246" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="TheBillsAreAlive"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Dequired_small" height="92" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/482377/Dequired_small.JPG" version="small" /> <div style="text-align: center;"><br /> <div style="text-align: center;">The Bills Are Alive… To Get Rid of Health Care..</div> <div style="text-align: center;">To the tune of ‘The Hills Are Alive’ from the Sound of Music</div> <div style="text-align: center;">-Susan Cook-</div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;">The bills are alive to get rid of health care</div> <div style="text-align: center;">with words that exclude </div> <div style="text-align: center;">for a hundred years</div> <div style="text-align: center;">your arthritic knees, your heart palpitations,</div> <div style="text-align: center;">the caratoid plaque</div> <div style="text-align: center;">stopping your blood flow.</div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;">Since you’re too young for hip replacements, </div> <div style="text-align: center;">dental implants, colonoscopy, </div> <div style="text-align: center;">you won’t have to think</div> <div style="text-align: center;">about how to pay for them</div> <div style="text-align: center;">unless it’s an emergency.</div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;">So what if Mitch McConnell has his hemorrhoids</div> <div style="text-align: center;">Something that just might happen to you.</div> <div style="text-align: center;">Yours are very different </div> <div style="text-align: center;">in his health care proposal</div> <div style="text-align: center;">Itchy butt? Preexisting?</div> <div style="text-align: center;">No surgery for you!</div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;">Crisis management won’t effect  you . </div> <div style="text-align: center;">No anxious nights wondering how to pay  </div> <div style="text-align: center;">for Health care. Morticians </div> <div style="text-align: center;">remind you: when you die, </div> <div style="text-align: center;">it’ll be just like you never knew.</div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;">There’s a chance all this might depress you</div> <div style="text-align: center;">And your Zoloft has not changed a thing,</div> <div style="text-align: center;">If you start self-medicating, drinking fifths of tequila</div> <div style="text-align: center;">You’re on your own,</div> <div style="text-align: center;">no in-patient  detox for you.</div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;">Unless you’ve paid for expensive premiums</div> <div style="text-align: center;">And are insured for two thousand a month.</div> <div style="text-align: center;">Oh Cigna, Aetna, Anthem, Republicans </div> <div style="text-align: center;">in Congress  </div> <div style="text-align: center;">are always there for you.</div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;">You aren’t a free-loading Socialist are you?</div> <div style="text-align: center;">You know Donald Trump</div> <div style="text-align: center;">doesn’t like them any more.</div> <div style="text-align: center;">That’s why he’s proposing</div> <div style="text-align: center;">The American Health Care Act</div> <div style="text-align: center;">To kill off those he can’t manage to deport.</div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;">Susan Collins steps up pretending </div> <div style="text-align: center;">That she thinks health care </div> <div style="text-align: center;">is a good idea</div> <div style="text-align: center;">Now that she’ll be leaving the Senate ending</div> <div style="text-align: center;">Years of voting down </div> <div style="text-align: center;">health care bills that were completely fair. </div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;">She and her husband, I guess that’s</div> <div style="text-align: center;"> how they’re related</div> <div style="text-align: center;">can get health care in retirement</div> <div style="text-align: center;">You’ve  paid for it for her so very nicely</div> <div style="text-align: center;">With every nickel, dollar, dime </div> <div style="text-align: center;">that she voted to tax. </div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;">Next time an obese wealthy  Republican </div> <div style="text-align: center;">-I’m not talking about you-know-who-</div> <div style="text-align: center;">gets Medicare, </div> <div style="text-align: center;">unsurprisingly</div> <div style="text-align: center;">to pay for multiple bypass surgeries,</div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;">Just remember to thank us for buying </div> <div style="text-align: center;">The surgical intervention for him . </div> <div style="text-align: center;">Aren’t we kind, </div> <div style="text-align: center;">nice and generous? </div> <div style="text-align: center;">I’m talking about good old me and you?  </div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;">The lazy ones who don’t have unions</div> <div style="text-align: center;">Or work at companies just too small  </div> <div style="text-align: center;">to give coverage to their employees </div> <div style="text-align: center;">WTF, why do you keep trying to make </div> <div style="text-align: center;">the Republicans </div> <div style="text-align: center;">Give to you after all?</div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;">The bills are alive to get rid of health care</div> <div style="text-align: center;">with words that exclude </div> <div style="text-align: center;">for a hundred years</div> <div style="text-align: center;">your body, your health, your expectations</div> <div style="text-align: center;">That the richest country in the world</div> <div style="text-align: center;">Would  take care of you.</div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span><br /></span></div> <br /><br /><br /><br /></div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>In the Department of Poetic Justice: The Bills ... | 04:00</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/206846", title: "In the Department of Poetic Justice: The Bills Are Alive to Get Rid of Healthcare (The song and dance genre) on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/206846' addthis:title='In the Department of Poetic Justice: The Bills Are Alive to Get Rid of Healthcare (The song and dance genre)'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/206846' addthis:title='In the Department of Poetic Justice: The Bills Are Alive to Get Rid of Healthcare (The song and dance genre)'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-206846-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p206846-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/206846/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_100937"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/253391-anonymous-used-to-be-a-woman">Anonymous Used To Be a Woman</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 06:52 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>In the not so distant past, Anonymous was usually a woman. a woman composer, artist, author, musician, writer unless she was an accused criminal, an adulterer or a witch. A NYTimes editorial raises the specter that the machinations of power have truly shifted in this country to stifle freedom of speech, a civil liberty which keeps citizens visible and named. Is it possible men now need Anonymity to speak their mind? </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_522485" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/253391-anonymous-used-to-be-a-woman" target="blank">Anonymous Used To Be a Woman</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1848193" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="412" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="253391" data-token="8de4546660b5c35df23c8ab61f9e3bc1" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="AnonymousWasAWoman"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Charlottegravelpit2009_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/566565/CharlotteGravelPit2009_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <p><span style="font-size: small;">Anonymous Was A Woman</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">-Susan Cook-</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">As a regular New York Times reader, I always am very disappointed when I miss a "must read'" as I did when Anonymous published a disturbing analysis of President Trump.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">In the not so distant past, Anonymous was usually a woman. a woman composer, artist, author, musician, writer unless she was an accused criminal, an adulterer or a witch.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">That's not to say there is something regal and righteous about anonymous authorship. The NYTimes editorial raises the specter that the machinations of power have truly shifted in this country to stifle freedom of speech, a civil liberty which keeps citizens visible and named. Is it possible men now need Anonymity to speak their mind? </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">I had the pleasure of being the object of an Anonymous editorial first appearing through the anonymous machinations of the local journalism power brokers in my town that the tactless Downeast Magazine editor- a Republican- re-published I don't think the statute of limitations for libel have run out but basically, I testitified at the 2011 Congressional District re-districting hearing and I criticized recent actions by the Other party. I then said, completely misquoted later by a journalist who was emailed the inaccurate quotation by Who Knows Which party staffer- that the consequence of the other party actions could very easily be voter intimidation. Preface - please- by remembering that creating circumstance that will intimidate voters is a lot different than having the capacity to recognize that what you do intimidates voters. There are legislators that " all the live long day"like the tired working class song goes- engage in acts the consequence of which they will never, ever, ever, ever grasp- because of what ever set of blinders they bring to the position. Use whatever adverb or adjective you like. They don't get consequence. I gave three examples of these actions: moving 350,000 voters to a collectively newly configured district, eliminating same-day voter registration and a Senate President recording voter phone calls ( possibly as a courtesy to another shared user of the same phone then on the Other Party's National Committee) . Each of these examples require the further cognitive perambulation to recognize that some voters- witnessing these actions- may say "I can't participate in voting or voicing my opinion (paradoxically)." Some legislators and policy makers may just not have je-ne sais quoi- the recognizing that consequence thing down. Kind of like, some members of the current administration might not get around to recognizing the consequence of having an out-of-control President.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">My criticism led to an anonymous editorial written by Who Knows, pushed through by Who Knows supplying the proper email addresses to Who Knows, facilitated by the Insider Track of Who Knows. Susan Cover now of the Kennebec Journal misquoted me. Who sent her "the misquotation" as if it it was what I actually said is another Who Knows. Sometimes, it takes a whole village to create spinelessness. Think Flint, Michigan.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">My original observation of the legislator began with me calling about an act of environmental devastation which- several years later- sure enough- is now a fait accomplis.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">When the machinations of power lead to those who speak out being targetted, publicly harassed, leading to the need to editorialize anonymously, very dark, entitled and priviliged permission-giving taking place in the inner circles of authority. If the anonymous editorial is based on inaccuracy and misquotation, as it was in my case, - very dark, entitled and privileged permission-giving taking place in the inner circles of authority. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">I bet there are Democrats and Republicans in my state who are bloated with pride about the publication of an anonymous editorial factually condemning this President. The use of anonymity is also a functional MRI of a power structure gone very bad indeed- possibly revealing endemic spinelessness and, in that, a corruption of freedom of speech.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-size: small;">By the way the anonymous condemnation of me, misquoting my re-districting testimony about- paradoxically- intimidation of citizen voice is also an MRI of sorts- of a spinelessness- based on power abused not to correct the problem but to keep the jobs of the powerholders in place or find them new ones. </span></p> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Anonymous Used To Be a Woman | 06:52</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/253391", title: "Anonymous Used To Be a Woman on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/253391' addthis:title='Anonymous Used To Be a Woman'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/253391' addthis:title='Anonymous Used To Be a Woman'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-253391-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p253391-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/253391/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_100978"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/278042-speaking-as-if-they-know-legislators-and-reprodu">Speaking As If They Know: Legislators and Reproductive Rights</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 07:09 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Legislators in Maine and across the country debate now bills to limit Reproductive Rights. Their limited or completely absent knowledge of the dependence on the pregnant woman's prenatal mental and physical health of the zygote, embryo or fetus becomes clearer and clearer. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_568223" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/278042-speaking-as-if-they-know-legislators-and-reprodu" target="blank">Speaking As If They Know: Legislators and ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2128788" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="429" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="278042" data-token="34dc3b5e8ab7bf2d07547d6ac1a14af9" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="SpeakingBeyondTheirKnowledge"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="0419104230a_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/606816/0419104230a_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong>Speaking As If They Know: Legislators and Reproductive Rights<br /><br /> </strong></span></p> <div style="text-align: left;"><strong><strong>I have watched the Nova Program "The Miracle of Life" at least 25 times. I always showed it when I taught Human Growth and Development ("Erection to Resurrection" as a Republican friend called it), Life Span Development and Child Development (at minimum wage as an adjunct or fixed length professor paid half of what the male Chair of the Business Department at the same university was paid). <br /><br /></strong></strong><span style="font-size: x-small; font-weight: bold;">All of my viewings of this film did not unteach me what I learned as an intern observer for one year in one of the first Neonatal Intensive Care Units in a research study of neonates of 28 weeks gestational age. The focus was the impact of this intense 24-hour illuminated environment on their physiology, state and responsivity. From the point of conception to the moment after a live birth, independent of the life of a breathing, living mother, very complex medical intervention is required for possible survival of the nenonate. In the 40 years, since I completed that internship, the earliest gestational age at which a neonate can survive outside of the uterus - with the aid of the most sophisticated medical technology in the world- has decreased by about 2 weeks. The 2015 New England Journal of Medicine study of 5000 premature neonates emphasizes that survival outside of the womb after a live birth remains </span><span style="font-size: x-small; font-weight: bold;"> precarious.<br /><br />Now here is Maine's State Senator Stacy Guerin commenting after voting against a bill LD 1312 which the Maine Senate passed to allow advanced nurse practitioners, physician assistants and midwives to perform some procedures to end a pregnancy.</span></div> <p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><strong>"Sonograms clearly show a beautiful little human, not just a blob of tissue," she said.<br /><br />What Ms. Guerin does not know is that the beautiful human she is referring to - we do not know what gestational age she refers to when she makes these statements- may very well not survive outside of the the uterus without a healthy mother's prenatal experience and extremely complex medical intervention. </strong></span><span style="font-size: x-small; font-weight: bold;">We also do not know how well the ethical code is enforced for Ultrasound technicians who may well give factually inaccurate and misleading remarks when sonograms are made about the presence of "heartbeat". The fact remains that survival outside of the womb is only possible-again with complex medical intervention- many gestational weeks after conception or a prenatal sonogram. As the Maine legislature considers the bill to expand which practitioners can provide gynecologic intervention, the licensing board that licenses ultrasound technicians must also be rigorous in sanctioning ultrasound technicians who distort information given to pregnant women in the privacy of the examining room.</span></p> <p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-size: x-small;">And here is another Maine legislator State Senator Scott Cyrway (R- Albion) who voted against the bill. "What would be the difference of us voting for a veterinary to do it? I'm saying that we are looking at life and we need to take this more seriously." Again, we confront the lack of knowledge of legislators who have not read the rigourous licensing and educational and professional standards nurse practioners, midwives and physicians assistants must meet for licensure and how they differ from veterinarians.</span></p> <p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-size: x-small;">The debate about terminating a pregnancy frequently excludes any mention about the complete dependence after the point of conception with the mother's life. If the zygote, the embryo or the fetus does not survive during pregnancy, the mother will live. The reverse is very often not true.</span></p> <p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-size: x-small;">You would not know that listening to the debate- largely along partisan lines- about reproductive choice. You also would not know that based on the bills- along partisan lines- in Maine in the last 8 years- to deny workers a living wage, to make sure that food stamp recipients- pregnant mothers too- were not allowed to keep more than $5000 in assets. That amount is a two month security deposit on an apartment, an emergency fund or just enough for a used reliable functioning car. You would not know that based on the refusal- along partisan lines- to expand Medicaid to young child-bearing age youth- who instead- left with no insurance- have no access to reliable birth control, mental health care to prevent suicide or self-harm or self-medication with drugs or alcohol.</span></p> <p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-size: x-small;">The complete interdependence of the mother's life during the pregnancy with the developing zygote, embryo or fetus is left out in discussions of the "miracle of life" by people who are uneducated about what happens after conception that 40 weeks later leads to a live breathing birth. Without knowledge, discussion of the termination of a pregnancy is reduced to misleading, distorted information from white men, politicians, unethical ultrasound technicians, anti-abortion and religious groups who are silent after a neonate arrives. There is instead ample room for shaming and humiliation- however they can manage it- toward women who see reproductive choice as a moral responsibility, who know this society is not waiting to sustain after a live birth the breathing infant. In Maine, underfunding of Child Protective Services led to complete negligence in overseeing care of at-risk children and deaths of several foster care children. There was- then- limited concern for pregnant women- similar to Alabama's historic lack of compassion toward people of color, now brought to pregnant women.</span></p> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Speaking As If They Know: Legislators and ... | 07:09</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/278042", title: "Speaking As If They Know: Legislators and Reproductive Rights on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/278042' addthis:title='Speaking As If They Know: Legislators and Reproductive Rights'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/278042' addthis:title='Speaking As If They Know: Legislators and Reproductive Rights'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-278042-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p278042-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/278042/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_101197"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/290733-as-american-as-apple-pie-domestic-violence-and-t">As American as Apple Pie: Domestic Violence and The Abuse of Power to Tarnish Victims' Credibility</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 09:31 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>An exhibit at the Holocaust and Human Rights Center in Maine called "Finding Our Voices: Ending the Silence of Domestic Abuse" opened just before Domestic Violence Awareness month. From the halls of the US Senate to a poetry reading, readiness to silence the credibility of the accuser persists.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_592085" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/290733-as-american-as-apple-pie-domestic-violence-and-t" target="blank">As American as Apple Pie: Domestic Violence and ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="2255092" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="571" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="290733" data-token="0d3f11af3c84186345bb09432a68a551" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="AsAmericanAsApplePie"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="0420105808_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/624878/0420105808_small.JPG" version="small" width="92" /> <p>As American as Apple Pie:  Domestic Violence and The Abuse of Power to Tarnish Victims' Credibility<br />-Susan Cook-</p> <p>The other day on a radio call-in program, Susan Collins, Maine's Senator, justified her vote for Judge Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court because (she said this) even though she thought something awful happened to PhD Holder and Academic Scholar Christine Blasey-Ford, Susan Collins didn't think it was Brett Kavanaugh who did it. In other words, Susan Collins just can't bring herself to grant Dr Ford credibility. Playing both ends against the middle, this time with Dr Ford's credibility, like she has in the US Senate. At the same time, Susan Collins said that to believe Dr. Ford threatens the entire judicial standard of innocent until proven guilty. What she didn't say is that by automatically granting credibility to a Job Applicant over his accusing victim, she replicates an abuse of power that keeps victims silent.</p> <p>Two of the most agonizing moments for assault victims are when it happens and when the victim discloses. For women, credibility is immediately questioned- with or without professional accomplishment, with or without the scrutiny of a large audience.</p> <p>On men's side, and on the side of Susan Collins who has gained longevity by playing the middle against both ends, is Power and the fact that men require less Proof to back up their statements than women do. We have seen the backwash from men finally held accountable for their abuse of power in the #Me too movement. Many of those men remain "miffed" or staunch in their refusal to take responsibility for the abuse of that discrepancy - financially, culturally, physically, in professional hierarchies ( 80.7 cents for women for every dollar men make). Indeed, many fall back on their reverence for "Power" to justify the reluctance to continue to fight #Me too.</p> <p>The Public Radio host whose host public radio organization distanced themselves rapidly finally published his NOT "Mea Culpa" column, advising the reader to "look what happened to me" over a "harmless flirtation". Discrepancy of power places whoever was on the receiving end of the "harmless flirtation", in a subjugated position. Power interferes with saying "No", further undermined when, as the Pubic Radio host said, "she worked for me but it never happened in the office." He called upon his concern for the powerlessness of children in the NOT "Mea Culpa" piece to explain how he has managed to water down his anger toward #Me too which remember "Look what it did" to him. A negligent out not unlike Susan Collins claiming herself the better judge of what happened to Christine Blasey Ford. The magnitude of the discrepancy in physical power of adolescent boys and adolescent girls is not that hard to fathom.</p> <p>This call-in program preceded the opening of an exhibit called "Finding Our Voices: Breaking the Silence of Domestic Abuse" at the Holocaust and Human Rights Center in Maine, encouraged by Patrisha Mclean, the ex-wife of the singer Don McLean of "Bye, bye, Miss American Pie". He was convicted 3 years ago of domestic violence criminal threatening, criminal mischief and criminal restraint.</p> <p>One of the women in the exhibit, the wife of a man named "Charlie" who took out a gun and threatened to shoot her after she told him she had almost suicided, did not speak for years of the domestic abuse in her marriage. She left, still not disclosing until two years after she left, at 65, 43 years into the marriage. Had she disclosed before, her credibility would be on the line.</p> <p>Many years ago, I was a colleague of the man who physically assaulted his wife for those 43 years. With 3 other Professors, we flew to a northern Maine University to teach graduate students. I taught life span development, always including sections on childhood sexual abuse, abusive relationships and abusive parenting. Those were topics that I had a deep commitment to, and still do. In one of the videos I always showed in the class, the victim said "Sexual abuse is about power. The abuse of power." Thirty three years ago, the reality of incest was not broadly acknowledged. Nor was wife battering or domestic violence. Or child abuse. Or parents who gave themselves license to terrorize or abuse. The college where I taught was sexist. I complained about the job inequities of assigning me to teach 4 courses I had never taught before and The "Dean" clearly made a mental checkmark against me for speaking out about that.</p> <p>No one would have guessed that this quiet man had his own private target when his power was challenged. His wife. And to this day, abuse of power to keep victims quiet persists. The Edna St Vincent Millay Poetry and Arts Festival began a day or so after Susan Collins' radio appearance. It included a Poetry Slam and reading held at night at a local bar. The organizers felt compelled to include a Caveat to poets and artists taking part.</p> <p>"Please be advised. As participants will include people of all ages, please be sensitive to content and language that might be of concern, scare children or trigger trauma."</p> <p>No one wants to scare children or trigger trauma. The accusatory nature of the statement was inflated and not necessary in this context. Even when that was pointed out, the organizer still would not take it off the website.</p> <p>And with it, the perpetrating "Charlies" and the adolescent "Kavanaughs" go about exercising their power. Yet, one more time, those who have experienced trauma will question if they have the power to speak about it or will say it "right" or won't "upset" anyone. Even at a Poetry and Arts Festival. The contributions to the power that diminishes women's credibility are many and varied. From the US Senate, to the dimly lit bar at night, credibility of the victim takes second place to the protective tidings of the powerful. I noticed that a person featured in that video many years ago had signed up for the poetry slam. I made the decision not to take part. I don't know if the person who appeared in the video 33 years ago did.</p> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>As American as Apple Pie: Domestic Violence and ... | 09:31</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/290733", title: "As American as Apple Pie: Domestic Violence and The Abuse of Power to Tarnish Victims\' Credibility on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/290733' addthis:title='As American as Apple Pie: Domestic Violence and The Abuse of Power to Tarnish Victims' Credibility'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/290733' addthis:title='As American as Apple Pie: Domestic Violence and The Abuse of Power to Tarnish Victims' Credibility'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-290733-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p290733-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/290733/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_101244"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/178990-longing-for-a-poem-getting-mpbn-numbers-instead">Longing for a Poem, Getting MPBN Numbers Instead</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 07:35 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>I hope you’re in the mood for some numbers. Or at least I hope you’re not in the mood for a poem. In Maine, the daily poem we all could feast on for FREE when Garrison Keillor’s The Writers Almanac was aired at 9:00 am on weekdays, 6:00 am on weekends is gone. It has been moved to NOT FREE Maine Classical Radio, an HD radio venture that doe not reach the far parts of this very rural state, is not available in used cars or cars with low tech radios and is only available to those with high speed internet access. In rural Maine that is a wished for acquisition. Cable access is still not available in many places in this rural state. All the ways, The Writer’s Almanac is now available, to Mainers, cost money. They are not free. </p> <p>Maine Public Broadcasting Network seems to have forgotten what somebody wrote as their mission statement on their 2014 990 form, the poetically named “Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax”. </p> <p>‘Maine Public Broadcasting is Maine’s premier independent media resource serving the entirety of Maine..” </p> <p>And on page 2, ‘MPBN is the only statewide Public Media service providing local and national content on the Radio, Television and Online to Maine residents, free of charge.”</p> <p>Thus The Writer’s Almanac is no longer available to the ‘entirety’ of the state nor is it free of charge.</p> <p>Now, I, along with many others, have asked MPBN to place the 5 minute program back on Maine Pubic Radio- their transmitter tower based service. And they have not. One has to ask why? Somebody doesn’t think 5 minutes about important historical events, lives of creative people and others doesn’t fit with the new ‘talk’ format MPBN is striving for? Somebody tired of the poems, not sure what they do for humanity anyway?</p> <p>Ah let us soothe our souls by perusing the 2014 MPBN 990 tax return, to make the ineffable, um effable- like a good poem does. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_384189" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/178990-longing-for-a-poem-getting-mpbn-numbers-instead" target="blank">Longing for a Poem, Getting MPBN Numbers Instead</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1132416" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="455" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="178990" data-token="9b02d5cca988374c04b676f153c9bfb8" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="LongingforaPoem"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Breathing_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/series_images/33623/Breathing_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;">Longing for a Poem, Getting Numbers Instead</div> <div style="text-align: center;">-Susan Cook-</div> <div>I hope you’re in the mood for some numbers. Or at least I hope you’re not in the mood for a poem. In Maine, the daily poem we all could feast on for FREE  when Garrison Keillor’s The Writers Almanac was aired at 9:00 am on weekdays, 6:00 am on weekends is gone. It has been moved to NOT FREE Maine Classical Radio, an HD  radio venture that doe not reach the far parts of this very rural state, is not available in used cars or cars with low  tech radios and is only available to those with high speed internet access. In rural Maine that is a wished for acquisition. Cable access is still not available in many places in this rural state. All the ways,  The Writer’s Almanac is now  available, to Mainers,  cost money. They are not free.</div> <div>Maine Public Broadcasting Network seems to have forgotten what somebody wrote as their mission  statement on their 2014 990 form, the  poetically named “Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax”. </div> <div>‘Maine Public Broadcasting  is Maine’s premier independent media resource serving the entirety of Maine..”</div> <div>And on page 2, ‘MPBN is the only statewide Public Media service providing local and national content on the Radio, Television and Online to Maine residents, free of charge.”</div> <div>Thus The Writer’s Almanac is no longer available to the ‘entirety’ of the state nor is it free of charge.</div> <div>Now, I, along with many others, have asked MPBN to place the 5 minute program back on Maine Pubic Radio- their transmitter tower based service. And they have not.  One has to ask why? Somebody doesn’t think 5 minutes about important historical events, lives of creative people and others doesn’t fit with the new ‘talk’ format MPBN is striving for? Somebody tired of the poems, not sure what they do for humanity anyway?</div> <div>Ah let us soothe our souls by perusing the 2014 MPBN  990 tax return, to make the ineffable, um effable- like a good poem does.</div> <div>Let us note on  page 2, Schedule A which tells us - no onomatopoeia here- 97.7% of ‘gifts, grants, contributions, membership fees are from the public.  For a 2014 total of 11 million, 747 thousand, and 311 dollars.  Over the last 5 years, those donations equal  58 million, 662 thousand and 322 dollars.</div> <div>The memorable phrase that pops into my mind is ‘Why don’t they listen to us?” ‘Metaphor here- What could be more important than NOT biting the hand that feeds you?</div> <div>To plumb the depths of this complexity we must stare dark and dreary like at the rest of the numbers on the 990.</div> <div>Well, I suppose we could proffer that protecting the salaries, wages and compensation  which equaled 5 million, twenty five thousand dollars on this 990 is high on  their list of priorities.  The four person management team  are paid 602667 dollars to make these big decisions. That‘s 214,000 dollars for Mr Vogelzang, the President and CEO, 139,000 for the Senior Vice President  Alexander Maxwell , 138,000 for Claire Hannan the other Vice president and  110,000 for Charles Beck, the Director of Programming. So surely, they’d like to keep the 11 million in donations coming. Even if it's in rural Aroostock and Washington Counties, where HD radio is not widely available to most people, places where  the median salary is $38,000 and the poverty level is at about 18 percent for Washington County, thirty seven thousand median salary in Aroostock with 20% there living in poverty.</div> <div>They’d like those people to donate too and you know what. I bet they have. But for some strange reason that does not influence the MPBN 602,000 dollar management foursome when it comes  t o keeping programming free and available to the entire state like the now familiar 990 form.says</div> <div>What could be behind this decision to shift the The Writer’s Almanac? Well, the usual way MPBN is broadcast is through transmission towers. You may remember a few years back when the then  MPBN management  planned to shut the Washngton County transmitter off, thinking cable must have gotten to Washington County. It hadn’t. They changed their mind. But the transmission towers are expensive- about as expensive as the 602,000 dollar management foursome. The 990 form falters slightly here in that “Electricity and Towers’ are on one line and maintenance  and repair are on another but suffice it to say the two lines together total 616201 dollars.</div> <div>The 990 shows it is expensive to run a radio and television network.  MPBN has  to pay an out-of-state company called Blackbaud in South Carolina 229285  dollars a year just for their membership- you know who that is-  database management. And 154720 dollars to a Minnesota company to print direct mail pieces. I guess there’s no company in Washington County or Aroostock County they could find  to do that.</div> <div>But the 602,000 MPBN management foursome still- would like their donations. And did I mention have listeners sit quietly by when the 602,000 dollar foursome decides to limit their access to free public radio , take a free five minute radio program  and make it only available to those who can pay for the new technology.</div> <div>I said  I hope you are in the mood for numbers because numbers it is, big ones that  the MPBN 602,000 four person management had in mind when they took The Writer’s Almanac off free public radio. Decreasing reliance on those bothersome transmission towers which have made public broadcasting in Maine  a special gift for a very long time. But the big  numbers the 602,000 foursome had in mind were their own. I wish them poetry instead.</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Longing for a Poem, Getting MPBN Numbers Instead | 07:35</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/178990", title: "Longing for a Poem, Getting MPBN Numbers Instead on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/178990' addthis:title='Longing for a Poem, Getting MPBN Numbers Instead'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/178990' addthis:title='Longing for a Poem, Getting MPBN Numbers Instead'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-178990-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p178990-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/178990/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_101388"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/537106-in-the-aftermath-an-american-sonnet">In the Aftermath: An American Sonnet </a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 01:03 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Joseph Biden withdraws from the Presidential race.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_1041586" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/537106-in-the-aftermath-an-american-sonnet" target="blank">In the Aftermath: An American Sonnet </a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="4889592" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="63" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="537106" data-token="a8a30e0c85df61d32b8f52afdd9e5598" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="PRXIntheAftermathAnAmericanSonnet"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Signal-2022-03-31-20-33-33-672-5_small" height="92" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/927915/signal-2022-03-31-20-33-33-672-5_small.jpg" version="small" /> <div style="text-align: center;">In the Aftermath: An American Sonnet<br /> <br />In the aftermath, the fear's aftermath, <br />there is the settling, the drawing down <br />of a nectar of calm, now,  buckling up wrath's <br />intensity, taken from the lost. Found <br />now, the consequential, the valued stuff <br />we always think might drift away like a <br />moth caught in the wind’s draft. It's just enough <br />to restore us all and finally find the  <br />angle upon which the head can place <br />itself, find solace, as if the sun’s rays <br />shining shield us all now from cold, misplaced <br />night, we need not fear, in the bright of day. <br />When fear is put away,  finally ended, <br />there, still, kindness, its garden well- tended. <br /> <br /> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>In the Aftermath: An American Sonnet | 01:03</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/537106", title: "In the Aftermath: An American Sonnet on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/537106' addthis:title='In the Aftermath: An American Sonnet '>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/537106' addthis:title='In the Aftermath: An American Sonnet '>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-537106-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p537106-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/537106/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_101399"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/183321-the-sixty-second-moral-inquiry-isn-t-the-individua">The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry:Isn't the Individual Candidate Who Won't Listen Just Like Congressional Politicians Who Refuse to Listen?</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 01:02 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Today's Sixty Second Moral Inquiry asks "What's the Difference Between Politicians Who Refuse to Consider What Politicians in the Other Party say and an Individual Candidate Running for Office Who Refuses to Listen to Any of the Politicians in His Own Party Trying To Tell Him What To Do"?Is It Possible that the Congressional Refuse-To-Listen Politicians Led the Individual Candidate to Think Not Listening is the Right Thing To Do?</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_392961" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/183321-the-sixty-second-moral-inquiry-isn-t-the-individua" target="blank">The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry:Isn't the ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1170849" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="62" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="183321" data-token="347af170c4f32260b97c034e212a90ba" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="TheSixtySecondMoralInquirywhatsthedifferencebetweenpoliticians"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Breathing_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/series_images/33623/Breathing_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div>The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: What’s the Difference Between  Politicians Who Refuse to Consider What Politicians in the Other Party Say and an Individual Running for Office Who Refuses to listen to Any of the Politicians Who Are Trying To Tell Him What To Do?<br />-Susan Cook- </div> <div>If Politicians in Congress refuse to listen to politicians in the Other Party in Congress doesn’t that show a disrespect for other opinions and meaningful dialogue? If an individual  Candidate running for office refuses to listen to what any of the politicians in his own party say and will not take their advice, doesn’t that show a disrespect for other opinions and meaningful dialogue? Even when the politicians in one party trot a member who appears to disagree with them and seems to be listening to the other party’s politicians, how come she never convinces any of the politicians in her own party to go along with her? Isn’t the Individual Candidate who won’t listen just like the  politicians in Congress who won’t listen? Really aren’t they- all of them - the Individual and the Congressional politicians just disrespectful  of healthy discussion?</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry:Isn't the ... | 01:02</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/183321", title: "The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry:Isn\'t the Individual Candidate Who Won\'t Listen Just Like Congressional Politicians Who Refuse to Listen? on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/183321' addthis:title='The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry:Isn't the Individual Candidate Who Won't Listen Just Like Congressional Politicians Who Refuse to Listen?'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/183321' addthis:title='The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry:Isn't the Individual Candidate Who Won't Listen Just Like Congressional Politicians Who Refuse to Listen?'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-183321-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p183321-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/183321/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_101716"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/176061-sexism-at-the-five-and-dime-discrediting-women-fo">Sexism at the Five-and-Dime: Discrediting Women for a Dollar or A Dime</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 05:42 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>In my state, this week, leaping off the lower right hand corner of the Front Page of the state’s largest newspaper was this “Educator who won one million dollars denies stealing $14.99 blouse“. </p> <p>One of the state’s most gifted educators who against many, many odds started her own successful school, has written textbook ‘best-sellers’ on teaching children the literary arts went to the local expanded Five and Dime store to return a blouse. Having done so, the sales associate told her to go to the clothing rack and take another one to replace the one she returned. She did.</p> <p>End of the story? No. The security personnel, who were watching, saw her take the replacement and put it in her bag. Immediately alerted, the ‘guard’ called the local police chief who came over and watched the store’s security camera and, unable to identify the woman in the film, placed the picture on the department’s Facebook page. Within an hour, the gifted educator called the police department and explained the situation. End of story? Believe her? No. She was charged with a misdemeanor crime and given a court date. The exchange with the clerk who took the returned item was not on the camera. End of story? No. The Portland Press Herald deemed it worthy of Front Page lower right hand corner announcement. </p> <p>The school spokesperson said it is a misunderstanding.</p> <p>Why does this “misunderstanding” not get resolved by the woman who just received a one million dollar prize presenting her proof that she was not shoplifting a $14.99 blouse? The story tells us - once again- that sexism is alive and when a woman’s credibility is questioned the first and primary place the media, this culture, lawyers and yes, many women go, is that her proof is not good enough and there just might possible be something wrong with her to have committed whatever it is she committed.</p> <p></p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_378194" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/176061-sexism-at-the-five-and-dime-discrediting-women-fo" target="blank">Sexism at the Five-and-Dime: Discrediting Women ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="1106058" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="342" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="176061" data-token="d59123f3b0370a6c649fc5d357f2ba6a" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="Sexismatthe5anddime"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Breathing_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/series_images/33623/Breathing_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <span> <p>Sexism at the Five and Dime: Discrediting Women For a Dollar or a Dime</p> <p>-Susan Cook</p> <p> </p> <p>In my state, this week, leaping off the lower right hand corner of the Front Page of the state’s largest newspaper was this “Educator who won one million dollars denies stealing $14.99 blouse“.</p> <p>Whew. Front Page. Lower right hand corner. One of the state’s most gifted educators who against many, many odds started her own successful school, has written textbook ‘best-sellers’ on teaching children the literary arts went to the local expanded Five and Dime store to return a blouse. Having done so, the sales associate told her to go to the clothing rack and take another one to replace the one she returned. She did.</p> <p>End of the story?. No. The security personnel, who were watching, saw her take the replacement and put it in her bag. Immediately alerted, the ‘guard’ called the local police chief who came over and watched the store’s security camera and, unable to identify the woman in the film, placed the picture on the department’s Facebook page. Within an hour, the gifted educator called the police department and explained the situation. End of story? Believe her? No. She was charged with a misdemeanor crime and given a court date. The exchange with the clerk who took the returned item was not on the camera. End of story? No. The Portland Press Herald deemed it worthy of Front Page lower right hand corner announcement.</p> <p>The school spokesperson said it is a misunderstanding.</p> <p>Why does this “misunderstanding” not get resolved by the woman who just received a one million dollar prize presenting her proof that she was not shoplifting a $14.99 blouse?</p> <p>Because sexism is alive and when a woman’s credibility is questioned the first and primary place the media, this culture, lawyers and yes, many women go, is that her proof is not good enough and there just might possible be something wrong with her to have committed whatever it is she committed. No filter. No impulse control. Under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Suffering from a deep irreversible character disorder that must have showed up earlier in life. Or maybe she - you know women- spent the one million already.</p> <p>Please bear in mind that even a woman claiming sexist treatment since men were made more aware of sexism thanks to the Gloria Steinems of the world- is also often considered suspect . Her proof is not good enough. She is making excuses. Thus a misdemeanor charge which should not have been placed in the first place is made. Because her proof was disregarded- readily available- but disregarded -despite all the evidence in the world- in this case literally- that her character, exceptional intelligence and gifts and reputation are sterling. And why discredit her proof without even questioning the recklessness of the police chief charging her? Because she is a woman and the reputation on the line is that of a man or men who failed to ask if the practice in this store was followed. “Go get another one from the rack“ the clerk says.</p> <p>What might be left to do? Well, I suppose a civil liberties numb lawyer now as prosecutor could do whatever could be done to tarnish her reputation further by investigating deeply to see if this remarkably gifted educator had some hidden character flaw or secret substance abuse problem rearing ugly blemishes now as shoplifting. Or maybe the man whose reputation is on the line could hire a communications person- a new young one who knows Twitter and New Media to tarnish her further. Or dig around in the community. Outlandish? Unheard of for a man whose unethical if not criminal activity because his reputation is on the line would go to such lengths? No. Because sexism is alive and well, and the first ‘read’ of this situation will not be - repeat not be- to question the man’s credibility. The suspect is a woman. And even a Senator- even the girl ones- remain oblivious to the corrupting influence of that particular variation of sexism. The proof is right there on the front page of the biggest newspaper in the state. If you care to read it.</p> </span><strong></strong><em></em> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Sexism at the Five-and-Dime: Discrediting Women ... | 05:42</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/176061", title: "Sexism at the Five-and-Dime: Discrediting Women for a Dollar or A Dime on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/176061' addthis:title='Sexism at the Five-and-Dime: Discrediting Women for a Dollar or A Dime'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/176061' addthis:title='Sexism at the Five-and-Dime: Discrediting Women for a Dollar or A Dime'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-176061-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p176061-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/176061/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_101765"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/542754-sonnet-for-the-dead-protester-in-memoriam-rachel">Sonnet for the Dead Protester: In Memoriam Rachel Corrie</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 01:05 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Remembering another Non-violent Protester who died.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_1053179" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/542754-sonnet-for-the-dead-protester-in-memoriam-rachel" target="blank">Sonnet for the Dead Protester: In Memoriam Rachel ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="4960520" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="65" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="542754" data-token="717948d437f9d6eb2b51ed1fb4682f9d" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="PRXSonnetfortheDeadProtester"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="20240525_145957_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/936755/20240525_145957_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;">The Dead Protester</div> <div style="text-align: center;">In memoriam: Rachel Corrie who died on March 15, 2003</div> <div style="text-align: center;">A bulldozer ran over her because </div> <div style="text-align: center;">the driver said, he didn't see her. Those</div> <div style="text-align: center;">machines are high, impossible to pause</div> <div style="text-align: center;">once he began, pushed the blade, put the nose</div> <div style="text-align: center;">down, in the dirt. She was not supposed to</div> <div style="text-align: center;">be there. He was doing what his boss had said.</div> <div style="text-align: center;">There is a schedule to be followed, new</div> <div style="text-align: center;">homes Israelis bought, land that history led </div> <div style="text-align: center;">them to believe belonged to them, theirs,</div> <div style="text-align: center;">the questions answered long ago, that now</div> <div style="text-align: center;">no one has asked, asking done. Who despairs</div> <div style="text-align: center;">when asking's left undone, exactly how</div> <div style="text-align: center;">protesting at twenty-three, Rachel Corrie</div> <div style="text-align: center;">dies, her question- asking still undone but free?</div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Sonnet for the Dead Protester: In Memoriam Rachel ... | 01:05</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/542754", title: "Sonnet for the Dead Protester: In Memoriam Rachel Corrie on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/542754' addthis:title='Sonnet for the Dead Protester: In Memoriam Rachel Corrie'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/542754' addthis:title='Sonnet for the Dead Protester: In Memoriam Rachel Corrie'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-542754-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p542754-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/542754/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_101826"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/543672-this-is-the-meaning-of-the-crow-s-morning-re-seei">This Is the Meaning of the Crow's Morning: Re-seeing the World is Caring for Us All</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | :53 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>The natural world makes meaning each morning.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_1055053" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/543672-this-is-the-meaning-of-the-crow-s-morning-re-seei" target="blank">This Is the Meaning of the Crow's Morning: ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="4976485" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="53" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="543672" data-token="19c6699ce3e768169db834c07435c94c" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="PRXThisisthemeaningofthecrowsmorning"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Frogatohfrogpond1_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/938575/FrogatOHFrogPond1_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">This is the meaning of the crow's morning</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Sonnet 1107</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">-Susan Cook-</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">This is the meaning of the crow's morning</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">caw, the starting, stopping. They fly within</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">the light's river reflection. Their warning</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">comes off as a greeting, a welcoming</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">as if the obligation each day is</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">to bring the outside alive, to distill</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">from silence, Being, all over again, made in</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">us, becoming who we are each day, filled</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">with the inside of us, the mind's eye there</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">in every movement of the river's wake,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">moving like a minute hand we have dared</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">to hold in the hand's fragile give and take.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">We come each morning merely to listen,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">come to listen, emptying out old visions.</p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>This Is the Meaning of the Crow's Morning: ... | :53</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/543672", title: "This Is the Meaning of the Crow\'s Morning: Re-seeing the World is Caring for Us All on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/543672' addthis:title='This Is the Meaning of the Crow's Morning: Re-seeing the World is Caring for Us All'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/543672' addthis:title='This Is the Meaning of the Crow's Morning: Re-seeing the World is Caring for Us All'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-543672-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p543672-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/543672/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_101965"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/546821-sonnet-1111-when-calmness-comes-apart">Sonnet 1111, When Calmness comes apart</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 01:01 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>In times when everything we think is calmness seems gone.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_1061486" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/546821-sonnet-1111-when-calmness-comes-apart" target="blank">Sonnet 1111, When Calmness comes apart</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="5014359" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="61" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="546821" data-token="12ea983b0ad086d3fa218e394c5b3044" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="PRXSonnet1111"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Img_20241011_201707_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/943855/IMG_20241011_201707_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Sonnet 1111</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">-Susan Cook-</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">On this day the sky is grayest above</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">the trees, resisting still, lost green the cold</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">will bring, the gray detached from blue, the sun,</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">lost too, its rays invisible. I hold</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">to moments when I think of all the things</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">that never stopped, now different than before,</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">acceptance I turn to when what I think</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">is calmness comes apart. There's nothing more</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">to do but wait. I know Time passed invents</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">a life becoming ours, stillness sung</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">transforms us slowly, makes in increments</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">who we have been and who we will become.</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">When small is hard to see the dullest days</p> <p style="color: #222222; font-size: small; font-family: garamond, serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">I watch the sky, persistent in its way.</p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Sonnet 1111, When Calmness comes apart | 01:01</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/546821", title: "Sonnet 1111, When Calmness comes apart on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/546821' addthis:title='Sonnet 1111, When Calmness comes apart'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/546821' addthis:title='Sonnet 1111, When Calmness comes apart'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-546821-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p546821-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/546821/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_102017"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/547964-i-have-no-intention-of-walking-through-this-earth">I Have No Intention of Walking Through This Earth, Sonnet 1114</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 01:01 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>A sonnet for the blueberry muffins I bought only to find they had travelled thirty two hundred miles in their thick plastic container. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_1063818" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/547964-i-have-no-intention-of-walking-through-this-earth" target="blank">I Have No Intention of Walking Through This ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="5030700" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="61" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="547964" data-token="aaf30905f3c3e868279e624f49ae2d21" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="PRXSonnet1114"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="20241021_090942__1__small" height="92" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/945659/20241021_090942__1__small.jpg" version="small" /> <div style="text-align: center;">I Have No Intention of Walking Through this Earth, Sonnet 1114<br /></div> <br /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;"><br />Sonnet 1114</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">I have no intention of walking through</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">this earth and leaving industrial grade</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">plastic to lie in landfills only used</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">to hide the excessive waste we have made</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">out of the earth's abundance we're given.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">I'm fooled too. I buy blueberry muffins.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">Later, I see the distance they were driven:</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">Three thousand two hundred miles, enough in</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">one migratory bird's life to spread seed</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">for berries nation-wide, to bear fruit lain</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">before the children, the weary who feed</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">on plastic bits, succulence of fruit drained.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">Three thousand two hundred miles for food I'd buy,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">just walking to the farm market, nearby.</p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>I Have No Intention of Walking Through This ... | 01:01</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/547964", title: "I Have No Intention of Walking Through This Earth, Sonnet 1114 on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/547964' addthis:title='I Have No Intention of Walking Through This Earth, Sonnet 1114'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/547964' addthis:title='I Have No Intention of Walking Through This Earth, Sonnet 1114'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-547964-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p547964-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/547964/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item even" id="playlisting_102213"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/550367-the-difference-between-propaganda-and-verbal-abuse">The Difference Between Propaganda and Verbal Abuse: A Citizen's Guide</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 06:55 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>Why was verbal violence and verbal abuse minimized in the recent election. </p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_1068756" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/550367-the-difference-between-propaganda-and-verbal-abuse" target="blank">The Difference Between Propaganda and Verbal ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="5063608" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="415" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="550367" data-token="4e64fbf5af26c8019c89a0db4fae7776" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="PRXTwoTheDifferenceBetweenPropagandandVerbalAbuse2"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Childlesscatladies_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/950239/ChildlessCatladies_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">The Difference Between Propaganda and Verbal Abuse</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">-Susan Cook-</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">In this country, we lose track of the many ways in which words are used to hold power over people. Verbal abuse in which the sole purpose of words is to hold power over people was rarely identified in the public offerings of the election. Enter Donald Trump whose essential tactic in this campaign was using words to hold power over people. His message held- not because he convinced with facts and evidence. Much of what he said was based on falsehood and a singular lack of evidence, a form of verbal abuse called “withholding”, refusing to give information, fact, intention or feeling.</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Susan Glaser, author of “The Divider” about the Trump Years refers to his language as “propaganda”, a word that fails to capture how pummeled the public was by his verbal abuse. The observation comes out of the work of Patricia Evans, author of “The Verbally Abusive Relationship: How To Recognize It and How to respond”. I quote her here:</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">“<span style="font-size: small;">verbal abuse is a violation not a conflict...In a conflict, each participant wants something different...If we describe verbal abuse from the standpoint of boundary violation, we would describe it as an intrusion upon or disregard of [the public who disagreed] by a person who disregards boundaries in a relentless pursuit of Power over, superiority, dominance by covert or overt means.” “What blinds people most to [verbally] controlling behavior is the belief that the person who consistently defines them truly loves them.”</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Verbal abuse is the countering, (constantly disagreeing with no awareness of the other's view), discounting (absolute denial that the abuse victim has any right to his/her thoughts, feelings or experience), verbal abuse disguised as jokes (Puerto Rico as a floating island of garbage), blocking and diverting ( “January 6 was a love fest”), accusing and blaming of outcomes that are outside of the victim's control,judging and criticizing, trivializing of the victim's wants, needs, experience, undermining (Why should I go [the Aisne-Marne Cemetery, near Paris] ? It's filled with losers.” </span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">“<span style="font-size: small;">Those marines who died at Beleau Wood as ”suckers” for getting killed”, “She has a Low IQ"), threatening, name-calling,forgetting, ordering, denial and abusive anger we have all witnessed in the last months.</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">In my work as a psychotherapist, words are the medium- helping adults, children and adolescents use them, recognize them in ways which affirm their whole being, their authenticity, experience, thoughts and yes, feelings. Trump is the most sophisticated verbal abuser in this country's history, the first to flagrantly present it as acceptable political discourse with little public or media outcry. Propaganda, Merriam-Webster tells us is “deliberate spreading of ideas, facts or allegations to further a cause or harm an opposing cause.” The media did that for him. Trump's focus was to damage the people at the heart of the election, not their cause. He personalized almost every sentence and rarely spoke in abstraction.</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Why did so many minimize- “Oh sometimes his words are a little out there”? Dr Bessel Van der Kolk tells us when people are traumatized executive functions go offline- the prefrontal cortex where cause and effect, planning and anticipation, empathic understanding happen- shut down. Recognition of context fails. Minimizing verbal abuse comes from the sad reality that in this culture and in relationships many are verbally abused and paralyzed to respond.</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Many women in this culture have been frozen into silence by a partner's verbal abuse, a relative, a culture that uses words to hold power over. Numbed. And certainly children in families are often with no notice by others. In this election, as many populaces have been before, many were pummeled and triggered, if not frozen by the verbal abuse we heard everywhere. This was not propaganda focused on a cause. These were words targeted at individuals, groups and ethnicity. This speaker targeting individuals was not unlike many historical or current figures who have used verbal abuse to paralyze- only identified and diagnosed as having deep psychological pathology years later. Often, only in the wake of outrageous crimes against humanity.</span></p> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>The Difference Between Propaganda and Verbal ... | 06:55</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/550367", title: "The Difference Between Propaganda and Verbal Abuse: A Citizen\'s Guide on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/550367' addthis:title='The Difference Between Propaganda and Verbal Abuse: A Citizen's Guide'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/550367' addthis:title='The Difference Between Propaganda and Verbal Abuse: A Citizen's Guide'>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-550367-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p550367-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/550367/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <div class="playlist-item odd" id="playlisting_102307"> <h4> <a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/551242-bannon-s-new-probation-mojo-in-the-dept-of-poetic">Bannon's New Probation MoJo! In the Dept of Poetic Justice with Lyrics for the Great American Wrongbook!</a> </h4> <p>From <a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide">Susan J. Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 02:41 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>A new tune for a certain Special newly released Someone!</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_1070538" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/551242-bannon-s-new-probation-mojo-in-the-dept-of-poetic" target="blank">Bannon's New Probation MoJo! In the Dept of ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="5075263" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="161" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="551242" data-token="7c28e1fa5333e09292ffbf00789a9257" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="PRXBannonsNewProbationMojo"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="20240523_073537_small" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/951523/20240523_073537_small.jpg" version="small" width="92" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">In the Department of Poetic Justice with lyrics for The Great American Wrongbook!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Bannon's Probation Mojo!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">To the tune from "<em>I'll Be Seeing You</em>!"</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Yes, I'm out of the Big House!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I got my Mojo back!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">And those of you who thought I'd be more humble,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Hey why would I change my act?</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I have been quite successful.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Impeccable ! Among the best!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">And my favorite General, he'll clean up the rest!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">When I was on sabattical,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I did some forward bends.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I leaned into pranyyama, sinus cleansing which will bring</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">more balanced circulation.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">My nose is no longer red!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I wasn't snorting coke like all the liberals said.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I don't know where they get off</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">prying into my life. The only time that's justified</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">is when I've had enough</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">of some loud yappy liberal</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">then I take my jacket off.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I'm professional.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I will not take their guff!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Yes, you know I'll savage you.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Especially if you say</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">something that goes against the grain</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">of what my General says.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">White males are disenmpowered!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">This is the fight I'm taking on!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">My probation officer should watch his step!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I'm a towering figure.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I have been silenced just once.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">The January 6 love fest, evangelic manifest!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Yes, four people died</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">but the most important thing Donald Trump</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">showed how great he would be as King!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I have a lot of personal reverence</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">for my white male friends</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">and even those I don't know well, I bet they're better than</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">those people from those countries</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Yes, they happen not to be</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">white like us. That's racial justice!</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">What I like to see!</p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Bannon's New Probation MoJo! In the Dept of ... | 02:41</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/551242", title: "Bannon\'s New Probation MoJo! In the Dept of Poetic Justice with Lyrics for the Great American Wrongbook! on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/551242' addthis:title='Bannon's New Probation MoJo! In the Dept of Poetic Justice with Lyrics for the Great American Wrongbook!'>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/551242' addthis:title='Bannon's New Probation MoJo! 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Cook</a> | Part of the <strong><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/series/32002-the-river-is-wide">The River Is Wide</a></strong> series | 01:03 </p> <div class="playlist-commentary"> <p>The natural world gives us much to be grateful for, a sonnet.</p> </div> <div class="html-prx-player" id="player_1072649" style=''> <div class="instance"></div> <div class="interface"> <div class="deck"> <div class="readout"> <dl> <dt>Playing</dt> <dd><a href="https://exchange.prx.org/pieces/552271-gratitude-for-the-winterberries-the-natural-world" target="blank">Gratitude for the Winterberries: The Natural ...</a></dd> <dt>From</dt> <dd><a href="/users/63227-theriveriswide" target="blank">Susan J. Cook</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="controls"> <div class="progress"> <span class="time"></span> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="track" title="full" disabled>Track</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="buffer">Buffer</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="seek">Seek</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="playhead">Playhead</button> </div> <span class="duration"></span> </div> <div class="playback"> <button type="button" name="track" title="previous">Previous</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="play">Play</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="pause">Pause</button> <button type="button" name="track" title="next">Next</button> </div> <div class="volume"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="mute">Mute</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="unmute">Unmute</button> <div class="selector"> <button type="button" name="volume" title="bar">Volume selector</button> <button type="button" name="volume" title="handle">Volume level indicator</button> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="playlist" style="display: none;"> <ul class="setup"> <li data-audio_file_id="5088979" data-derivative="broadcast.mp3" data-domain="https://exchange.prx.org/" data-duration="63" data-expires="1732697773" data-piece_id="552271" data-token="cf87b44011bedaec6b29f483a166f792" data-type="audio_file" data-use="prxplayer" title="PRXGratitudefortheWinterberries"></li> </ul> </div> <div class="summary"> <p> <img alt="Edgarlibbymikmaq_small" height="92" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/production.mediajoint.prx.org/public/piece_images/953459/EdgarLibbyMikmaq_small.jpg" version="small" /> <div style="text-align: center;"> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Gratitude for the Winterberries<br />-Susan Cook-</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">When the red berries came out in the Fall,</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">scuplted, round, leafless amid the starkness</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">of their thin, strong gray stems, carrying all</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">the truth of beauty, amid the darkness</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">autumn brought, my father always said, "Let's</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">go pick some of those red berries. He was</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">a forager, I knew then. As if debts</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">he made by living well, paid off because</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">he never stopped noticing them, the tone cast</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">by his voice, colored with recognition</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">of gratitude, his lineage owned, pasts</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">deep within his bones, defying omission.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">There was forever, as ever, brilliant</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">red, his eyes still gratefully resilient.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> </p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">-Sonnet 1125-</p> </div> </p> </div> <div class="footer"> <p>Gratitude for the Winterberries: The Natural ... | 01:03</p> <button name="share">Share</button> <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy" target="_blank" class="privacy">Privacy</a> <a href="//exchange.prx.org" class="logo">exchange.prx.org</a> </div> <div class="share"> <button name="dismiss">×</button> <h2>Share this piece:</h2> <ul> <script> var addthis_share = { url: "https://exchange.prx.org/p/552271", title: "Gratitude for the Winterberries: The Natural World\'s Gifts on PRX"} </script>  <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_twitter' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/552271' addthis:title='Gratitude for the Winterberries: The Natural World's Gifts '>Twitter</a></li> <li class='share-this-link'><a class='addthis_button_facebook' addthis:url='https://exchange.prx.org/p/552271' addthis:title='Gratitude for the Winterberries: The Natural World's Gifts '>Facebook</a></li> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://s7.addthis.com/js/250/addthis_widget.js#username=sysadminprx"></script>  </ul> <h2>Embed on your website:</h2> <textarea id='embed-552271-full' class='piece-embed' readonly='readonly'><script id='prx-p552271-embed' src='https://exchange.prx.org/p/552271/embed.js?size=full'></script> </textarea> </div> </div> </div> <div style="clear:both;"></div> </div> <br style="clear:both"/> </div> </div> </div>  <div class="column span-6 sidebar last"> <div class="sidebar-content"> <h3>Average Rating</h3> <div class='jquery-stars-box' id='playlist_285223-rating-box' style='width:200px'><input name="playlist_285223-rating" class="star {half:true}" type="radio" disabled="disabled" /> <input name="playlist_285223-rating" class="star {half:true}" type="radio" disabled="disabled" /> <input name="playlist_285223-rating" class="star {half:true}" type="radio" disabled="disabled" /> <input name="playlist_285223-rating" class="star {half:true}" type="radio" disabled="disabled" /> <input name="playlist_285223-rating" class="star {half:true}" type="radio" disabled="disabled" /> <input name="playlist_285223-rating" class="star {half:true}" type="radio" disabled="disabled" /> <input name="playlist_285223-rating" class="star {half:true}" type="radio" disabled="disabled" /> <input name="playlist_285223-rating" class="star {half:true}" type="radio" disabled="disabled" /> <input name="playlist_285223-rating" class="star {half:true}" type="radio" disabled="disabled" /> <input name="playlist_285223-rating" class="star {half:true}" type="radio" disabled="disabled" /></div><br/> <div class="action-box"> <h3>Actions</h3> <ul> </ul> </div> <div> <h3>Other Playlists by Susan J. Cook</h3>  <ul> <li> <a href="/playlists/366918">Bad Internet 101: Moral Development for Cyberspace</a> </li> <li> <a href="/playlists/370769">Civil Liberties for Lifelong Learners</a> </li> <li> <a href="/playlists/373941">It's Not What You're Given. It's What You Do With What You Get</a> </li> <li> <a href="/playlists/383084">National Poetry Month: American Sonnets and One Ode</a> </li> <li> <a href="/playlists/402835">Poem In Your Pocket Day</a> </li> <li> <a href="/playlists/403314">Poet Susan Cook Poems</a> </li> <li> <a href="/playlists/394886">Roe v. Wade and the Shaming of Women Part 1</a> </li> <li> <a href="/playlists/76887">Susan Cook's Favorites</a> </li> <li> <a href="/playlists/364201">The Citizens' Guides</a> </li> <li> <a href="/playlists/355900">The Department of Poetic Justice (and Poetic Reckoning)</a> </li> <li> <a href="/playlists/373808">The Indifference Diaries</a> </li> <li> <a href="/playlists/364743">The Sixty Second Moral Inquiry: The Anthology</a> </li> <li> <a href="/playlists/368108">The Two and One-half Minute Conspiracy Theory: Assorted</a> </li> <li> <a href="/playlists/411416">Yoga for Former Appointees of a Certain Someone</a> </li> </ul> <ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div id="footer" class="column span-24 last small footer"> <div id="footer-navigation" class="column span-24 last"> <div class="column prepend-1 span-4 quiet"> <dl> <dt>Resources</dt> <dd><a href="https://help.prx.org/">Help & Support</a></dd> <dd><a href="https://help.prx.org/hc/en-us/articles/204422780-Station-Membership-Options">Membership Options</a></dd> <dd><a href="/terms-of-use">Terms of Use</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="column span-6 border quiet"> <dl> <dt>Stay Tuned</dt> <dd><a href="https://www.facebook.com/publicradioexchange">Facebook</a></dd> <dd><a href="https://twitter.com/prx"><a href="https://twitter.com/prx">Twitter</a></dd> <dd><a href="https://medium.com/public-radio-exchange">Medium</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="column span-4 quiet"> <dl> <dt>Projects (<a href="/projects">See All</a>)</dt> <dd><a href="http://www.radiopublic.com/">RadioPublic</a></dd> <dd><a href="http://prx.mx/">PRX Remix</a></dd> <dd><a href="http://matter.vc/">Matter Ventures</a></dd>  <dd><a href="/themoth">The Moth Radio Hour</a></dd>   </dl> </div> <div class="column span-4 quiet"> <dl> <dt>About Us</dt> <dd><a href="https://www.prx.org/company/about">What is PRX?</a> <dd><a href="https://www.prx.org/company/about#contact">Contact</a></dd> <dd><a href="https://www.prx.org/company/about#staff">Organization & Staff</a></dd> <dd><a href="https://www.prx.org/company/about#funders">Funding</a> | <a href="/donate">Donate</a></dd> <dd><a href="https://www.prx.org/technology/">Technology</a></dd> <dd><a href="https://www.prx.org/company/news/">Press Room & Resources</a></dd> <dd><a href="https://prx.workable.com">Jobs</a></dd> </dl> </div> <div class="column span-4 append-1 quiet last"> <dl id="contact-information"> <dd style="margin-right:10px;margin-top:10px;"><em>PRX is a 501(c)(3) organization recognized by the IRS: #263347402.</em></dd> </dl> </div> </div> <div class="column span-24 last quiet" style="margin:auto; text-align:center;"> © Copyright 2003-2024 PRX <br/><a href="/terms-of-use">Terms of Use</a> and <a href="https://www.prx.org/privacy-policy">Privacy Policy</a> </div> </div> <script type="text/javascript"> document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 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