Doris O'Brien is a retired college Speech teacher and banker. She has published two books of humor (Up or Down With Women's Liberation and Humor Me a Little) and for many years contributed light verse to the Pepper 'n Salt column of the Wall Street Journal. She is an avid writer of letters to the editors.
Doris celebrated her 50th wedding anniversary in the same year she welcomed her first grandchild. She now lives in Pasadena with a great view of the San Gabriel mountains — and the annual Tournament of Roses Parade.
She can be reached by e-mail: witsendob at (@) gmail.com
Jo Freeman's Book Review of The Women’s Suffrage Movement by Sally Roesch Wagner
By the time the 19th Amendment was added to the US Constitution on August 26, 1920, there were only eight states in which no woman could vote for anything. Sally Roesch Wagner has devoted her life to understanding this "journey of courage and cowardice; of principles and capitulation; of allies and racists." In this collection of dozens of reports and statements from primary sources, she allows the participants to speak for themselves. Her first section shows how women lost the vote before they gained it. Her documents argue that "women had full suffrage in Massachusetts from 1691 to 1780." In many places, ownership of property was a sufficient qualification to vote, regardless of sex or race. more »
The PBS Mystery of Mrs. Wilson: It Begs the Question What Do We Actually Know About Our Partners
Editor's Note: The very idea of someone being married to a partner who has had several relationships existing at the same time ... each thinking they were the only wife is not unknown. Another dramatization of this situation was portrayed by Alec Guinness in The Captains' Paradise. Masterpiece Theater has been presenting the drama, Mrs. Wilson, and is streaming episodes. more »
*GAO Reports on Testing Security Screening at US Airports: TSA Has Limited Assurance that Security Operations is Targeting the Most Likely Threats
Security Operations has not been able to ensure the quality of its covert test results, and GAO identified a number of factors that could be compromising the quality of these results. Unless TSA assesses the current practices used at airports to conduct tests, and identifies the factors that may be impacting the quality of covert testing conducted by TSA officials at airports, it will have limited assurance about the reliability of the test results it is using to address vulnerabilities. more »
Congressional Bills Introduced & Hearings: Child Care at Vet Centers, Child, Dependent Care Tax Credit, Safe Contraception, Climate Change, Parental Leave Benefits, Maternal Mortality, Child Sexual Abuse
On Wednesday, the House is scheduled to consider H.R. 1585, the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act; A bill to make it a criminal offense for individuals to engage in sexual acts while acting under color of law or with individuals in their custody, to encourage states to adopt similar laws; House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel is scheduled to hold a hearing, “Examining the Role of the Commander in Sexual Assault Prosecutions”; Addressing Campus Sexual Assault and Ensuring Student Safety Rights; A bill to require training and education to teachers and other school employees, students, and the community about how to prevent, recognize, respond to, and report child sexual abuse in primary and secondary education.
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