Bitch Recap

Last night, Bitch magazine publisher Debbie Rasmussen stopped by Sam Weller's to hold a participatory discussion on feminism, what it means to individuals in attendance and how we might get more active and put our passions to good use. Several members of the media represented, including event sponsor SLUG's Angela Brown, Meghann Griggs and Jeanette Moses, Salt Lake magazine's Erin Bean, CW editor Holly Mullen, myself and Salt Lake Tribune's Sean Means. It was nice to see such a great interest generated by those who have an ability to spread the word and hopefully motivate a few more people to join the movement.

The night kicked off with attendees introducing themselves and explaining how they came to consider themselves as feminists. Each response varied, though certain themes surfaced including: the word feminism as a charged term with largely negative connotations; men as feminists and gender equality; feminism and its relationship to the LDS Church and religion in general ... Rasmussen also tossed out the potential problematic relationship between drinking and activism. She said that on her cross-country tour nearly every city she's visited has basically provided one location for Bitch's fund-raising efforts: The bar.

This idea resonated with many in attendance and brought up an interesting question: do you need to be completely sober to effect change? I don't know that answer to that one.

Another interesting revelation: there is about one official community-based feminist group in town. It's called Feminist Empowerment Movement, or FEM. Its founders are "just a bunch of kids" and one mother who are fed up with sexual harrassment, rape, general misogyny, etc. who started a grassroots movement in March. They have plans to organize a Take Back the Night event at the University of Utah later this year. If you're interested in participating, the group meets every Monday night at the Coffee Connection (1588 S. State) from 7 to 9 p.m.
Check out their website.


Much thanks to Davina Pallone, SLUG and Sam Weller's for putting together such an informative and invigorating evening. Since graduating from the U, I haven't been as active in the feminist--or as some prefer, gender equality--movement. There were a lot of issues we didn't get around to exploring--class divides, race, pro vs. anti porn feminism, career choices. I'd love to get the conversation going right here in SLC.


If you're interested in learning more about what's up with feminism today, here are a couple of cool starting points:


Bust


Bitch


Feministing.com

(Jamie Gadette)

Best Music Acts In 50 States

[Music] The Boston Phoenix and ThePhoenix.com recently compiled a list of top bands across America. Categories included All-Time Best Band, All-Time Best Solo Artist and Best New Band. And the Utah winners are...

The Osmonds
Donny Osmond
GAZA

The Osmonds? Here is the criteria judges used to make their decisions:

* Best All-Time Solo Artist: One ground rule: The artist had to be BORN in that state. If the state you’re born in is good enough to follow you around on your passport for the rest of your life, it’s good enough for this list. Our winners range from Motown superstar Stevie Wonder (Michigan) to native Aleut psychedelic nuggeteer Agafon Krukoff (Alaska) to psychobilly pioneer Hasil Adkins (West Virginia).

* Best All-Time Band: Based on where the band was formed. Winners range from the obvious (Velvet Underground, New York) to the historical (The Mississippi Sheiks, Mississippi) to the lesser-known (The Pink Slips, North Dakota).

* Best New Band: Here we combed the country looking for the best 50 newish bands in the land. Our judges tried to balance “newness” with quality to achieve the perfect choice. (Some of the bands in this category have been around for a couple of years, but only a few have begun to really reap national attention.) Our winners range from experimental hip-hop (Minnesota's Doomtree) to avant noise punk (California's Health) to jangly indie rock (Alabama's Wild Sweet Orange).

The best part? Good old Boston Phoenix chose the Osmonds, then proceeded to poke fun at them. Why choose them at all?

Who would you have picked?

(Jamie Gadette)

Guv Going Green With the National Climate Registry

[Green Vibes] Gov. Huntsman back in May of 2007 happily signed onto a 30+ state green coalition called the Climate Registry. Now that the program has officially gotten started Huntsman has announced five Utah companies (including Kennecott) and two state agencies will be taking part in the great, green experiment.

With over 30 states participating, the idea will be to have a registry to track greenhouse gas emissions, and create a standard for the industry to follow and self regulate themselves on their GHG emissions.

The idea sounds enviro-riffic to me!

But ... my inner contrarian points out there are some shortcomings. One thing is that "self-regulating" is not something any industry as a whole has really pinned down, least not of all when it comes to the environment. The other thing is a concern brought up by critic Myron Ebell, of an energy policy think tank who figured the whole move was symbolic. Ebell said in a May 2007 The Nation article Ebell was quoted as saying "you look at these states and a lot of them are just jumping up and down trying to attract a lot of attention."

Ebell imagines the registry as something meant to force the national congress into a more concerted action. But beyond symbolic feet-stamping the initiative might not do much for states working with each other on a regional level. Beyond joining a common list, the initiative can't do much to help states work out their energy issues. Which would've been nice here in Utah where frustrated activists are finding they don't have much say when it comes to stopping a Nevada power plant from being put on the UT/NV border.

But as a united effort the initiative wouldn't necessarily be impotent. If for example the standards became widespread, and were subject to independent verification then there would be a huge incentive for the national house to accept the registry's standards. With voluntary standards reported through the climate registry then used as a measuring stick for federal rewards to individual states and companies, based on their reported progress in reducing greenhouse emissions.

Which could be a great way to harmonize the collective green-vibes of all the states involved, of course, what to do with all those green intentions still will be the decision of the feds. The only problem there being is that an initiative like this one is one that any federal legislator would eat up with a spoon because they can stand behind in their home state and then secretly screw it over in Washington. Then they get all the green they could ask for; green thumbs up from activists back home, and plenty of green dead presidents from the energy lobbyists on the hill. (Eric S. Peterson)

ObaMos

[Politics] The official Barack Obama campaign headquarters of Utah opened last Saturday (1747 S. 900 West)--yeah, we missed the media blitz, too. You'd think they'd want to alert their friendly neighborhood lefty-leaning weekly newspaper, but apparently not. We're even Friends on MySpace, fergawdsakes.

Obama had a good campaign weekend, inching up the polls as Hillary Clinton is dropping--and how about that Oprah stumping? Trumps Barbara Streisand, if not Tyra.

And now he has another powerful ally: Mormons for Obama, "a group dedicated to bringing together members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS or Mormon) who support Barack Obama." Sure, the group only has 103 members at the moment, but just imagine the number-jump when Obama's Utah HQ finally lets someone know they're here! (Bill Frost)

Fodder for the Utah-Vegas Water Wars

[Dry News] Yesterday, NPR's Fresh Air featured an interview with California water researcher Peter Gleick about the "Looming Water Crisis" facing much of the Western United States.

Glick, a MacArthur fellow and co-founder of the Pacific Institute, visited Utah recently, meeting with Legislators, Salt Lake County officials and City Weekly, to discuss a new Pacific Institute study of Las Vegas' water use. The findings—that Sin City could be saving a lot more water through conservation—should interest Utah politicians grappling with Nevada’s plan to pipe water from the Utah-Nevada border to Vegas.

To justify the planned pipeline, Las Vegas water authorities have repeatedly touted the city’s water conservation efforts—particularly a program that pays residents to tear grass out of front yards. The message has essentially been that Vegas is already conserving. (They particularly love to point out that water used in casino fountains is recycled.) So, the argument goes, the city has no choice but to pump water from ranching land. (A move Utah ranchers fear could destroy their crops.) Vegas water authorities have even chastised Utah for doing less on the water conservation front.

The Pacific Institute study calls out the Vegas rhetoric. Institute researcher Heather Cooley gives Vegas credit for the “innovative and effective” turf-removal program, but notes Vegas lags behind other desert regions in use of many other water conservation programs. Cities like Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Tucson are more aggressive and use significantly less water.

The Pacific Institute study identified 80,000 acre feet of water that Vegas could save through conservation. Gleick said if Vegas adopted the water conserving measures outlined in the institute report, the city could postpone building the proposed pipeline for years.

The report is good fodder in Utah’s water fight with Vegas. But Utahns shouldn’t act too superior. Pacific Institute’s researchers note Salt Lake City and St. George residents use less water per person than Vegas residents, but are still significant water wasters compared to standout conservers in New Mexico, Arizona or parts of Colorado. (Ted McDonough)

Utah Diversity: Mormons from Around the World

[Demographics] "Worldly" has always been a funny term for utah. In many ways you couldn't have a more culturally isolated and sheltered place, and then on the other hand you could drive to some small town like Paragonah and probably find half the town speaks a second language (at least the males who went on LDS missions that is).

It seems Utah really is a diverse place through an LDS lens, but could all that be changing? An ominous news story covered in the dailies recently showed Mormons making up a historic low in Utah's population--only 60 percent.

Which comparatively speaking is still quite the stranglehold for any one religious demographic for an entire state. Yet what is interesting is that Utah is sssllooowly making a move towards greater diversity, but the only question is whether or not the shape of diversity in utah to come will be outside the church's influence or just another manifestation of it?

Many things seem to point to an all together cosmopolitan outlook. On the economic front we've never had a Governor more active in introducing Utah business directly to foreign powerhouses like India and China. Politically the University of Utah is garnering people active in Intl. politics, and not just academically speaking.

Like the U's recent law school hire Chibli Mallat who is currently running for president of Lebanon, while also teaching about Middle Eastern law, quite impressive and worth checking out here

Beyond that our wise city planners and masterminds of the Downtown Rising project are hoping to create a "Utah World Trade Center" which would actually consolidate all of the scattered international business and nonprofit interests in the state, as well as a university partnered conflict resolution and peace studies center, all into a sleek downtown building that kind of looks like Al Pacino's casino in Ocean's 13.

So the future looks bright and diverse, but when all is said and done it will be hard to say whether or not it will be truly cosmopolitan or just an evolved Mormon mecca as it is today. Not until we get there at least. (Eric S. Peterson)

Ain't Worth Two Bits

[Currency] The Utah quarter is coming! The Utah quarter is coming! Aren't you soiling yourself in anticipation?

The Utah Department of Who Gives a Shit -- excuse me, that would be Community and Culture -- sent out a press release today soliciting press registration for the "Utah Commemorative Quarter Launch" to be held 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. Friday at the Rio Grande Depot. That's right, you too can join Governor Huntsman, the director of the U.S. Mint and other dignitaries for five freaking hours to celebrate the fact that the homeless people on Main Street will now be soliciting change with a local connection. Oh, and we can also schedule interviews to find out how all of these very important people feel about this very important development.

Naturally, the local television newscasts will trip over themselves to report on this non-event, the way they dutifully report on everything where there is a ribbon to be cut or a photo to be opportunized. (Scott Renshaw)

Pregnant Pause

[Sex Ed] I just finished a telephone interview with Melissa (Missy) Larsen, executive director of Planned Parenthood Action Council for Utah.

PPAC is the political action committee for Planned Parenthood. It has the legal status to lobby and raise funds for pro-choice and family planning education. So whenever you hear or read about a small but determined cadre of activists at the Utah Legislature trying to keep the Capitol Hill braintrust from turning back abortion rights to the Flintstone era, it's pretty much PPAC doing heavy lifting.

Fun facts about Utah's lack of smarts in preventing pregnancy, via Larsen:

1. Utah's Planned Parenthood clinics have the highest distribution rate of all PP clinics in the country of Plan B contraception, aka "the morning-after" pill. You know how this works, right? You think you might be pregnant from sex the night before and you don't want to be. You get a prescription for Plan B. You have to take it before 72 hours are up--after that it's useless.

2. The highest numbers of Plan B prescriptions in Utah come out of the Orem Planned Parenthood clinic in Utah County.

3. Why? Because in Utah, where we refuse to talk openly or educate kids in school about what makes babies and how to prevent having them, men and women are doing it just as often as in any other state. It's just that, according to Larsen, the women who come to the clinics "think the planets are alligned or the moon is right and I won't get pregnant if I do it just this once."Then they visit the clinic for a dose of morning-after magic and "swear they will never do it again."

4. They do it again, of course. And again. They keep coming back for Plan B,which makes you nauseous and carries a much higher risk of not working than the good ol' birth control pill ever did. Says Larsen, with a sigh: "They don't want to use contraceptives routinely because that would mean they are actually thinking about sex and planning for it. And good girls don't do that." (Holly Mullen)

5 Spot: Judi Hilman

[CW Extra] Judi Hilman is Utah Health Policy Project’s executive director. Her organization seeks sustainable health-care coverage for every Utahn. Are Hilman and her minions tilting at windmills? Or are they on the verge of ushering in a new era of health-care reform? Read her comments below and you can decide. (Excerpts of this interview appeared in City Weekly’s July 5 Five Spot column.)

What did you think of the Michael Moore film Sicko?
Overall, thumbs up. I think it’s definitely worth seeing, but it is a pretty devastating portrait of our health-care system, and whether that’s accurate or not, that type of portrait may not be helpful for when it comes to getting people focused on solutions. States all over, including Utah, are finally tackling the beast of our health-care crisis, so I wouldn’t want Moore’s reputation to slow down momentum on solution seeking.

Was there any moment in Sicko when you felt sicko?
Sicko but also catharsis. At the moment when the medical director from Humana got up in front of Congress and testified that she denied claims. I just broke down completely. I think what that confession showed us is there is an awareness of the problems with the current system, the cherry picking and the social Darwinism that goes along with the experience rating that we do. We finally have a critical mass that sees there is something horribly wrong with that. It’s not just the Michael Moores of the world that find that outrageous but the actual former medical director of Humana.

That sicko feeling is not especially new to me. What got me really sicko was the difference between U.S. and, say France in terms of our quality of life and ultimately family values.

Why does health care in our country languish behind other nation’s?
We have not seen health care as vital part of our social infrastructure. I think that what’s happening now in the U.S. is that we have more and more businesses saying, “Hey, we can’t compete.” I think that’s what in the end is what gets the U.S. to do something meaningful. I think we are on the brink. I think Utah is on the brink of meaningful reform. It’s not because of the tragic stories so much as businesses can no longer compete. They have to continually pay double-digit health-care costs.
Moore’s movie points to specific historical developments that moved each European country and Canada to financially sustainable coverage for all. I’m optimistic that the U.S. is next, starting with Massachusetts and the other earlier implementers. Utah is not far behind.

What does the Utah Health Cooperative (UHC) hope to accomplish?
Financially sustainable health-care coverage for every man, woman and child in Utah, whether through the UHC or the Exchange, which is a mechanism to facilitate efficient purchase of insurance.

Utah is trying to model the Massachusetts Connector Model in Utah. Utah solution seekers want to call it the Exchange. The idea being that right now some big pieces—making it truly affordable, doing community ratings so we are share risk appropriately—those are big pieces that are being seriously considered in the Exchange. If we get those big pieces, if they fit, that will be a very meaningful reform, and we will be happy to put all of our energies toward it.

We are hopeful about the Exchange, because so far at least at this concept stage, it will allow everyone covered on the Exchange to share risk—no more cherry picking! And it will be affordable.

What or who are the biggest obstacles in achieving your aims?
The concept that health care is a commodity. And the idea that authentic charity care could somehow make up for whatever the market lacks.

Is it possible for one state to offer universal health care?
Absolutely. Look at Massachusetts, Maine, Vermont, soon California, Illinois, now Wisconsin. Utah is next! All are learning as they go, but that’s how it starts.

If yes, won’t everyone want to move here?
What’s wrong with that? If we make coverage affordable and accessible, businesses will want to locate here … and everyone wins when this happens. Far as I can tell, our governor’s No. 1 priority is to bring businesses to Utah.

Do you ever feel threatened for speaking out on health-care reform?
No, not anymore. You would be surprised at how open political leaders are now to positive changes. We are at the table because everyone is relaxing about change and realizing we have to do something fast. In Utah, there is increased urgency to do something before the next presidential election. This is why solution framework for the Connector and for the Exchange is coming right out of the Heritage Foundation.

Do state legislators have a clue how increasingly out-of-reach affordable health care is becoming for the average family?
Yes, some of their own families are impacted. I can introduce you to at least six legislators who’ve had medical crises that they had trouble paying for. Now, whether this awareness translates into making sure coverage is affordable for low-income families: we have work to do here.

What can local residents do to see that universal health care is enacted in Utah?
Join the UHPP Health Matters alert list and consider endorsing our nine principles for health-care reform. Visit HealthPolicyProject.org.

Do you have any message for the CEOs of insurance companies?
I say: Please stay with this Exchange concept: what you might lose in any disruption to your business model you will gain in increased volume of business. (Jerre Wroble)