Conference turris::womannotes-v3

    
    I won't be able to join you for dinner, but I will be at the State
    House tonight for the debates.  I'll probably be out front holding
    a Murphy sign before the debate starts -- at least it's not
    raining :-)  (Last Thursday night I stood outside of WBZ in the rain --
    along with some other Murphy (and Belotti and Silber) supporters.)
    
    Hope to see lots of you at the State House tonight -- it's a 
    great way to find out where all the candidates (except I believe
    Pierce declined) stand on issues like child care, violence against
    women, poverty, housing.
    
    Justine

    Could y'all post the details after the fact, please?
    
    Kate

    I'll admit now that I took no notes, so don't go by what I say. Maybe
    Justine or Nancy or Barb will clean this up for me.
    
    Silber, Murphy, Pierce, Weld and Belotti were at the debates. Pierce
    came in at the last minute, i.e. as the Lt. debates were progressing,
    and nobody was really "prepared" with questions that would put him on
    the spot. I didn't hear abortion even come up, but I may have missed
    it. I also heard that he didn't fill out the questionaire because he
    knew his answers would be unfavorable to a lot of the people present.
    He claimed that he came to prevent anyone from misrepresenting his
    views. He was very adamant about opposing a lot of the legislation for
    mandatory benefits for part-time workers, the "child care linkage"
    bill, and others, because he said that they would hurt the economy. He
    suggested that he would come up with something that would address the
    needs... I didn't get that opinion.
    
    Weld, in contrast, was a very liberal republican, supportive of family
    issues, "pro" all the right bills, but thinking fiscally at the same
    time. Weld did best in the debates. He was friendly, lively, able to
    make jokes, take a few shots at the other candidates, and still come
    across well. He got the last "two minute closing" and used the time to
    point out the flaws in his opponents. And was pretty convincing. One of
    his comments was "don't smear all Republicans just because of people
    like Pierce" or something to that effect. Weld is pro-choice, pro-death
    penalty. He did well on the question about whether he would consider
    gender/race when making judicial appointments. (The politically correct
    answer is yes, in order to make sure that the judicial branch is well
    representative of the state, but not at the cost of competence.)
    
    Silber's biggest foot-in-mouth was his answer to this question. He said
    that if the two candidates were otherwise equal in every other way, he
    would look at race/sex, but he didn't want people with "causes" who
    wouldn't give white males equal treatment under the law. When
    questioned further, he made a statement that he wouldn't put radical
    extremists like Gloria Steinem or Louis Farrakhan on the bench. This
    brought major hisses from the audience, and even Belotti nudged him and
    said that Gloria was pretty moderate. Silber was also against the idea
    of part-time workers benefits. Said it would chase businesses out of
    the state. He and Pierce agreed on this. The question is at a national
    level right now, but may be vetoed by Bush. A point which was raised
    was that if different states had differing laws, a company would just
    move to avoid the hassle of paying benefits in a state that had the
    law. Silber also made some comments about women who have children must
    think that they're adult enough to handle responsibility if they're
    having sex in the first place. This brought a lot of boo's. He said
    that its all about morality, decency and education. There was a
    question from the panel asking for clarification about a comment of his
    that a mother who has a second child should be denied state benefits.
    He tried to explain that he was being quoted out of context, but he
    couldn't take his foot out of his mouth on that one either.
    
    Belotti - I kinda liked him. He touted his record alot, said what he'd
    done for women. Justine, Barb, Nancy and Catherine Iannuzzo thought he
    was: slimy, slick, like a used car salesman, his words carried no
    weight, speaking from a prepared script, etc. Belotti, according to the
    literature is pro-choice but "personally opposed" and sponsored a bill,
    now law, to require that all minors get both parents consent before
    aborting. Belotti had his thunder stolen by Weld on several occasions
    and often ended up saying: "I agree with what Weld said". At some
    point, I think Belotti called Weld a Democrat, or Weld called Belotti a
    Republican.
    
    Murphy - I'm embarrassed to say - didn't say anything unexpected or
    critical. She was strongly for all the "right" things, with a certain
    amount of conviction. But she didn't stand out as warm or exciting as a
    candidate.
    
    A few more issues are coming to mind:
                                    Murphy  Belotti  Pierce  Silber  Weld
    Gay lesbian foster parenting     for       ?     against against  for
    
    Weld came out strongly for. Pierce and Silber strongly against.
    
    
    Using "litmus tests" like
     abortion/death penalty to
     pick judges.                   for     against  against  against against
    
    Murphy was the only one to admit that it was a priority that judges
    reflect her values at the same time that they stand for competence and
    fairness. No one else seemed to want to say that.
    
    "Mandatory arrests of
      batterers.                all "for" with qualifications
    
    Pierce brought up the idea that this was supposed to be for the 2nd
    offense, and in this case, he was for it. This brought boo's. Weld led
    off by saying he was "for mandatory arrests and convictions!" Silber
    came next saying "Yes, but please lets have a trial in between to make
    sure he's guilty." Murphy spoke of the overall need for stronger laws, 
    harsher penalties and more incarceration of all crimes against women.
    
    
    I realize that I'm having a hard time remembering ANYTHING that Belotti
    said. Sorry about that; draw your own conclusions. I hope someone will
    add to what I've said. I'll prod Nancy and Barb.
    
    this is Lauren Foster, staunch Womannotes Reporter, signing off... ;-)
    

    I'm glad some other womannoters could get to this event.  I have
    been working on Evelyn Murphy's campaign for just over a year, so
    I probably don't go to these things with a very open mind.  It is
    true, though, that Evelyn is not a very strong debater.  I think she
    had good things to say, but she sometimes steps on her own lines.
    She did take the opportunity to differentiate herself from the
    other candidates, but Weld came off looking almost as liberal as
    she.  I don't think he really is, but he did have an impressive
    showing that night.  (By the way, I think Belotti is a terrible
    debater, but it hasn't seem to hurt him very much.)
    
    Silber really frightens me.  In his book he called abortion murder
    (maybe he should have had Mez for an editor -- no stating opinion as
    fact, John! :-), although he claims to support a woman's right to choose.  
    At BU he had students arrested for protesting against Apartheid -- in a 
    peaceful protest, said they were trespassing.  He has also opposed Safe Sex
    campaigns on the campus.  This is not condoms in highschools we're
    talking about -- these are college students, young men and women -- 
    probably most of whom are sexually active.
    
    Belotti also claims to be "pro choice" but as Attorney General he fought to 
    get the parental consent law on the books (where minors seeking an abortion
    have to get a parent's consent -- let's remember the 17 year old woman who 
    recently bled to death in Indiana after getting an illegal abortion -- she 
    was afraid to tell her parents, but she couldn't get a safe, legal
    abortion without their consent.)
    
    I thought the questioners did a good job of getting the candidates to 
    answer their questions, but I wish they had dug a little deeper, 
    especially on the choice issue.  Most of us know what the candidates' 
    stated positions are, but you can learn a lot about the level of support 
    a candidate has for a woman's right to choose by asking about things like 
    parental consent laws and funding cuts for poor women.
    
    I don't think Evelyn "won" the debate the other night, but I still
    think she is the only candidate who is truly committed to working to
    defend women's right to choose, and she is the only candidate who
    even mentioned working against violence against women in the home and
    on the street in her closing remarks.
    
    It's still always hard for any woman to win a major office in this country.
    And with all the anti-Dukakis* sentiment that's in this state right now, 
    it will be hard for anyone associated with his administration to win.  So...
    can a woman who's been part of the Dukakis administration win the
    Governor's race in this state?  Probably only if women and men who are
    worried about choice in this post-Webster era get out and work for and vote
    for Evelyn.
    
    *I believe that New England states are in financial difficulty because of
    Reagan cutbacks and because we are now at the end of that incredible
    growth period the hightech industry has enjoyed.  If anyone wants to
    follow up on this issue of how Mass got in fiscal trouble, let's take
    it to another note.

 

    re: Silber
    
    I ws talking with a friend of mine last night and we both had a very
    similar opinion of Silber.  I've seen this personality type before:
    attack/denigrate each minority group in term, setting it up so each one
    thinks its superior in some manner to some *other* minority group:
    
    men vs. women (women's issues)
    Cambodians vs. other (race)
    young vs. old (health care)
    rich vs. poor (fiscal conservatism)
    
    He reminds me an awful lot of a certain personality who came on the
    scene in the early 1930's in a European country...

    My sister says that Silber is the anti-christ...I wouldn't go that
    far, but I'd like to see his face on FBI wanted posters someday.
    
    I can't help but wonder if he'd give the state the same *wonderful*
    social advances he gave to B.U.  Among my favorites is the Silber
    Anti-Sex Statute wherein B.U. students cannot have overnight guests
    in their rooms of the opposite sex.  He's says that it is for
    everyone's "protection" Everyone I know at B.U. says its designed
    to keep students from having sex.
    
    So he thinks college students can only do it at night? sheez...
    
    This is John Silber at his most benign...I shudder to picture him
    in the state house...
    
    daniel

    re:.7
    
    Seems to me that the "Silber Anti-Sex Statute" was only designed
    to prevent *heterosexual* BU students from having sex.
    
    --- jerry

    Yah, that occured to me too...eitherr he's living with blinders on or,
    well, I don't know what.  He's not exactly the kind of guy who projects
    an understanding of homosexuality, is he?
    
    -- daniel

	re: 250.3 (Ren's commentary on the debates)

>    Silber, Murphy, Pierce, Weld and Belotti were at the debates. Pierce
>    came in at the last minute, i.e. as the Lt. debates were progressing,
>    and nobody was really "prepared" with questions that would put him on
>    the spot. 

	(re: Pierce)
	Yea, that was smart of him to slip in like that unannounced
	so the panelists didn't have questions ready for him.  
	I thought Pierce condemned himself at the end when he said that
	the only reason he came was so that the others wouldn't 
	misrepresent his views (as though he wasn't really interested
	in attending in the first place.)  It sounded like a cut
	at the legitimacy of the debate to begin with.

>    Weld, in contrast, was a very liberal republican, supportive of family
>    issues, "pro" all the right bills, but thinking fiscally at the same
>    time. Weld did best in the debates. He was friendly, lively, able to

	(re: Weld)
	Yes to all of the above.  He definitively (IMHO) won the debate.

>    his comments was "don't smear all Republicans just because of people
>    like Pierce" or something to that effect. 

	I remember it as 

	"Don't tar and feather me as a Republican just because of
	 Pierce's anti-woman voting record..."

     (re: Silber)
>    questioned further, he made a statement that he wouldn't put radical
>    extremists like Gloria Steinem or Louis Farrakhan on the bench. This

	I found it amusing that Silber would feel so threatened by
	a woman like Gloria Steinem that he would say that. 

>    Silber also made some comments about women who have children must
>    think that they're adult enough to handle responsibility if they're
>    having sex in the first place. 

	I think he said "teenage girls" in place of "women" above,
	which I found ludicrous.  It sounds like he feels a woman/girl
	shouldn't_have_sex_at_all if she's not ready at that point 
	in time to carry a pregnancy to term and raise a child.  

	And I believe he also said something about taking the second
	illigitimate child away from a (poor?) mother {or was it just
	taking the benefits away?  It sounded to me like he wanted the
	child removed from the situation}

	Something Justine or Barbi said that I agree with -- he came 
	across sounding even weirder than he does in the papers.

>    Belotti - I kinda liked him. He touted his record alot, said what he'd
>    done for women. Justine, Barb, Nancy and Catherine Iannuzzo thought he
>    was: slimy, slick, like a used car salesman, his words carried no
>    weight, speaking from a prepared script, etc. 

	(re: Belotti)
	Yes to above.  Absolutely nothing he said sounded believable.

>   Belotti, according to the literature is pro-choice but "personally opposed" 
>   and sponsored a bill, now law, to require that all minors get both parents 
>   consent before aborting. 

	Too bad nobody asked him about those views in light of the
	2 girls who recently died from illegal abortions in states
	that require parental consent (Becky in Indiana was one).

>    Murphy - I'm embarrassed to say - didn't say anything unexpected or
>    critical. She was strongly for all the "right" things, with a certain
>    amount of conviction. But she didn't stand out as warm or exciting as a
>    candidate.

	(re: Murphy)
	Agree with above. I think she should have taken Silber to task
	more than she did for his comment about Gloria Steinem.  

	My problems with Evelyn Murphy as candidate for governor are that 
	-  she is/was an economist _and_ the #2 player in the last 
	   administration
	-  I think she would turn to higher taxes as a knee-jerk solution
	   to the state's fiscal problems

>    Murphy was the only one to admit that it was a priority that judges
>    reflect her values at the same time that they stand for competence and
>    fairness. No one else seemed to want to say that.
 
	I don't understand the big deal being made about her answer.
	That's how judges have been picked all along!  Like Reagan
	didn't pick judges that reflected _his_ values !?!
     
>    this is Lauren Foster, staunch Womannotes Reporter, signing off... ;-)
    
	Lauren, your hair looked great!  

	How long did it take to get it done :-P ??  And how
	many books did you read during that time :-) ?

							nancy b.

    
    Maybe it just shows where priorities lie and how strong they are!
    
    As an NRA pro-2nd-amendment gun-owner and licensed deer hunter
    it appears Pierce is the only candidate who is endorsed by the
    people I trust for the reasons I believe in regarding keeping
    my personal liberty and freedom to keep and bear arms intact.
    
    If there is no perfect candidate I will vote for my rights as
    a gun-owner and fight "issues" like abortion rights for women
    after the candidate is elected to the office.  There simply
    never seem to be any "ideal" candidates in elections any more!
    
    ~-sdt-~  voting to keep our 2nd amendment rights above all else
    

    Well, I've got a litmus test (yes, that horrible phrase!), and it seems
    that only one candidate manages to pass.  Evalyn Murphy is both solidly
    pro-choice and anti-death penalty.
    
    Gotta vote with my scruples.
    
    daniel

    RE: .15 There is an other approach. If no one is doing the right
    thing, run your self. Hard for a lot of offices but not so hard
    for local ones.
    
    		Alfred

Re:      <<< Note 250.12 by BLUMON::GUGEL "Adrenaline: my drug of choice" >>>
                -< If it's Silber vs. Pierce, I'm moving to NH >-

    Oh wow, to the land of Judd Gregg (and Gordon Humphrey, and Chuck 
    Douglas or Bob Smith...)

    If you'd be moving to escape the conservative right-wing, I don't think 
    I'd call that an improvement.

		From the Cape Codder, August 3, 1990
		The Polical Scene:
    		Packaged Anger and Emptiness, or Hope?
			by Janice Walford

		(reprinted without permission)
    
    An admittedly pro_Murphy editorial -- I liked it, though :-)
    
    BTW- If you live in Mass., and you want to vote in the September
    primary, you have to be registered by the end of this week.
    

With the Democratic Primary a bare six weeks away, voices are rising in 
some quarters calling for Evelyn Murphy to drop out of the race.  These
voices theorize that if the lieutenant governor continues, she is 
guaranteeing the election of John Silber.  Evelyn Murphy must bow, they 
say, to the person who can beat him, Frank Bellotti.

It should come as no surprise that the public and private espousers of this 
theory are predominantly white males.

Some of them smugly talk about being realists, pragmatists.  Their 
pragmatism?  Frank Bellotti has a million dollars for television 
commercials.  That's where elections are won today, they say patronizingly. 
"Only Frank has got the money to save us from four years of Silber."

It is this kind of moral and philosophical bankruptcy that has brought not 
only Massachusetts to its knees.  

Can you beat an angry, polarizing zealot with someone who epitomizes every 
politics-as-usual trait that has angered the populace during the last two 
years?  No matter how many millions are spent on commercial packaging, 
Frank Bellotti is not offering a new product, or even an improved one.  He 
does not present any vision or philosophy of government to counter the 
tyranny implicit in John Silber's bullying rhetoric.

Elections are supposed to be about choices.  Often they are looked upon 
instead as voting for the lesser of two evils.  Too often elections become 
demoralizing self-fulfilling prophecies.

Talking this week with Murphy supporters across the Cape, several factors
are repeatedly stressed by them, including the need to elect someone with 
the knowledge and experience to get the state's economy and fiscal house 
back in order; support for public educations; access to health care; and 
the desire for someone to lead the state away from the (in many ways 
self-created) abyss with the promise of some brighter future.  But above 
all these Cape residents stress two issues: the environment and the 
freedom to choose abortion.

Democratic State Committeewoman Etta Goodstein of Dennis, a silversmith and 
goldsmith on the Cape for 18 years, says there is "no economy here without 
the environment."

For Alix Ritchie, Evelyn Murphy is the only candidate who understands the 
linkage between the environment and the Cape's economy.  Ms Ritchie, 
chairman of the Provincetown Planning Board and vice chariman of the Cape 
Cod Commission, says she was "appalled to hear Silber and Bellotti during 
the last debate" go against the court order for secondary treatment in 
cleaning up Boston Harbor.  "They are saying it is okay to pour that 
(sewage) into Stellwagen Bank, our fishing grounds," she says angrily.

"Evelyn was the only one to say, No.  If Bellotti and Silber are going to go 
against a court order on Boston Harbor, what are they going to do as 
governor about our closed shellfish beds?  Evelyn understands the linkage 
between the environment -- our fishing industry, shellfish beds -- tourists
and the economy."

			Pro-Choice, No Reservations
Environment and pro-choice issues hit me where I live," Ms Ritchie says.
"I cannot understand how any woman who respects her own body could support 
Bellotti or Silber.  They are hiding behind their claim that they support 
Roe vs Wade."

Since the resignation of Justice William Brennan, Ms Ritchie says, Roe vs 
Wade "has become totally meaningless" because it will be overturned with 
the appointment of a conservative replacement.  Without the protection of 
federal law, "a woman becomes the slave of the state," she says, unless the 
governor of that state believes in the principle of a woman having a right 
to protect her own body.  This is a principle, Ms Ritchie believes, neither 
Mr Bellotti nor Mr Silber is willing to espouse.

County Commissioner Victoria Lowell puts the issue succinctly: "Evelyn 
Murphy is pro-choice without an asterisk."

Evelyn Murphy is as multi-issued as she is mutli-faceted.  Because it is 
the easy, lazy way out, the predominantly white male Boston press corps 
sees her and characterizes her as a female Michael Dukakis, a humorless 
technocrat.

John Silber is "great copy," a good subject for quick, colorful reaction 
(for or against); he's the man people love to hate.  Frank Bellotti is
comfortable.  He's the warm, back-slapping, "trust me, we can work this 
out," type of politician they have covered for years.  Evelyn Murphy, like 
Diane Feinstein in California and Ann Richards in Texas, has learned the 
media hold to the old double standard: It's not enough to be equal to a 
man; to succeed, a woman has to be better than, smarter than, work harder 
than, be funnier, warmer than a man.  But, heaven forbid she should ever 
cry, or complain that she does not earn as much or cannot raise as much as 
a man -- that would only prove what they have said all along: women are not 
up to playing with the Big Boys.

Frank Bellotti gets a lot of ink and air time because his latest TV ads 
attack John Silber because he "wants to ration health care for the elderly" 
to give a little more funding to the young.  Evelyn Murphy gets little 
coverage, little credit for confronting the BU president on this 
generational conflict face to face, almost close enough to feel each 
other's breath.

The issue of equitable distribution of health care was at the forefront of 
the lieutentant governor's mind during a recent tour of Freedom Crest, a 
new 110-bed nursing home in Falmouth.  Accompanied by two Freedom Crest 
administrators and Clerk of Courts Phyllis Day, it was more a fact-finding 
good will tour than a campaign swing.  At every opportunity, Ms Murphy 
reassured the residents that despite what they thought they had heard John 
Silber say, they would not lose funds for their eyeglasses, their dentures, 
their medicine.

With them, she was firm, gentle, calm.  But during a wide-ranging interview 
before meeting the residents, Ms Murphy did not hide her anger at John 
Silber for the polarization he has brought to the governor's race and at 
Frank Bellotti for ducking the major issues facing the state.  
"Something is wrong with Frank Bellotti's candidacy when he and his staff 
spend their time trying to undercut my base," she said of attempts to woo
liberals away to the Bellotti camp rather than go after the undecided 
voters.  "The effort to undermine me is a very sharp statement about the 
weakness of his campaign.  His candidacy is bankrupt on ideas and 
positions."

"They are saying Frank Bellotti is the one who can beat Silber.  But I am 
the one who is standing up to him.  I am the one who is speaking up against 
John Silber's negative and wrong-minded policies.  I will not let him scare 
the elders.  That is not a trade-off I will allow."

She said she will keep making the case that she believes John Silber's 
angry, divisive behavior shows "he is not fit to be governor."  Ms Murphy 
said John Silber does not seem to understand that when running for governor 
a candidate has to take responsibility for the language used.  "You can't 
take parables, myths, analogies and expect the larger public not to take 
them seriously.  You can't make provocative statements and then deny them."

She said that the recent statements about Boston Harbor cleanup and public 
funds for private schools, Mr Bellotti and Mr Silber have both shown "they 
are anti-environment, anti-public schools.  And, while they say they are 
pro-choice, all their language, all their qualifying clauses" show a lack 
of commitment to a woman's right to choose.

Ms Murphy said Justice Brennan's resignation and the change that will 
result on the Supreme Court "means a governor's office will be the front 
line of protection for a woman's right to choose.  I will use that office 
through personal leadership and political power, to guarantee a woman's 
choice."

Asked whether she thinks it is correct to submit Supreme Court nominees to 
litmus tests, Ms Murphy replied: "The term 'litmus test' has become so 
charged I avoid it.  What we are masking, by using it, is the real thinking 
about what's at issue: privacy, access to abortion services."

But should the question be asked?  "I think we have come to a time in this 
nation's history when a full discussion and presentation is a very 
important part of the process.  I think questions that probe basic 
attitudes, biases, values, judgement, reasoning powers are all legitimate 
questions because they help people understand and know better someone who, 
presumably, is going to serve for the rest of their life on our nation's 
highest court.

A full discussion of the issues facing Massachusetts is being denied the 
voters because first Republican Steve Pierce, then Frank Bellotti, and now 
John Silber duck forums.

Mr Silber says he will now appear only in forums televised live.  That's 
fine with her Ms Murphy says.  "I'll take every bit of public exposure I 
can get.  Live television can be a very revealing medium."

Live television is certainly far more revealing of anger and emptiness than 
commericals.  But, because no one is dropping out of this race, Democratic 
Primary voters do have a third choice: hope.

re: -1

"...can save us from four years of Silber."

I thought it was 6 years?

D!

    
    Thanks for the reminder about registering.  I'd better go do it in my
    new town.
    
    CQ

    re .19:
    
    Wrong, governor is a 4-year term in Mass.

    Anyone know the dirt on Silber being taken to court for sex
    discrimination and loosing? Who is this woman from BU?
    
    I think we need a change. I have been a democrat since my 18th
    birthday. We in Massachusetts can not operate on the spsend,spend,
    spend mentality anymore. There's no balance of power here.
    
    I may turn coat and vote for Bill Weld in the primary. He's very
    liberal for a Republican. He's pro-choice and he's not part of that
    complacent majority on Beacon Hill.
    
    Kate

    re .22, Kate:
    
>    Anyone know the dirt on Silber being taken to court for sex
>    discrimination and loosing? Who is this woman from BU?
    
    Could you be referring to the case about 7-8 years ago where
    a female teacher in the English department had been denied
    tenure by John Silber?  She took BU and John Silber to court for
    discrimination based on sex and won.
    
    As I recall (someone correct me if they remember differently or
    if Kate's referring to another case), the jury didn't feel they
    had enough evidence to award in the woman's favor *UNTIL* John Silber
    took the stand and made a few comments that led the jury to believe
    that Silber believed that a) women need to work harder to prove
    themselves and b) Jane Austen (which was the area of expertise of
    the woman who brought the suit) was not "serious enough" English
    literature.
    
    Anyone remember it differently?
    

    
    re .23  Yes, that's the case.  I didn't know about Silber hurting
    himself by taking the stand, though.  I know that he was quoted
    in some paper as calling the English department at BU a "God damned
    Matriarchy."  He also had students arrested for protesting Apartheid
    on "private property" (his words) -- this was BU property, and they
    were BU students.  He also had a student evicted from his dorm room
    for hanging an Anti-Apartheid banner out his window.  Don't expect
    to protest anything on Beacon Hill without getting arrested if he's
    governor.  (Anybody wanna buy a house in Mass?)
    
    Justine
    

    
    
    Another reason that I am so strong in my support for Murphy over all
    the other candidates is her position on the death penalty.  She is the
    only candidate who opposes it.  I have always been strongly opposed
    to the death penalty, but last night I watched Susan Hayward in
    _I_WANT_TO_LIVE_ -- based on the true story of Barbara Graham - first
    woman executed in California (I might be wrong about her being the
    first).  This woman's story made me want to work against the death
    penalty.  You can release an innocent man/woman from jail, but you
    can't bring him/her back to life.
    
    
    Justine

    
    I believe the last day for registering to vote is tomorrow (at least in
    Marlborough).  Call your town/city clerk's office for times, places and
    hours.
    
    CQ 

    I went to BU School of Theology pre-Silber.  When he got to BU, he
    really did an arrogant number on the STH faculty - firing and otherwise
    making life difficult for them.  I have never had any use or respect
    for him and virtually no trust for anyone he has 'placed' in the STH
    (as Dean, etc.)
    
    There was also an issue regarding tenure for a women professor in the
    STH sometime in recent years.  I remember a lot of letters and
    publicity but I don't remember the details nor the final outcome.
    
    Sometime this summer I got the annual request for funds from alumni.
    I said that I would not contribute anything to BU as long as Silber had
    any connection with it.  The caller politely pointed out that this was
    for the School of Theology and that, anyway, John Silber was not
    actively involved in the school because he's running for governor.  I
    said, "That means I have a whole other set of problems, doesn't it!!?!"
    
    The caller, apparently flustered, said something like, "Oh, you're from
    Massachusetts...."
    
    Nancy

    Did anyone hear last nights debate? I was sleeping. (3rd shift, you
    know). Details, please.
    
    Also, if anyone taped it I would love to borrow it. I promise to take
    good care.
    
    Kate (an undecided seeking input)

    
    
    I was at a pre-debate party for Murphy and didn't get home in time to
    see the debate :-(  I'd love to borrow a copy, too, if someone taped
    it.  At the party I attended Ellie Smeal spoke.  I'll try and post some
    of what she said here later today.
    
    
    Justine
    
    ps  I'll make copies of the tape if someone lets me borrow it.

          Acton Area NOW called me Friday night about attending a fund
          raiser tonight in Concord for Bob Durand(D), and also about their
          meeting next Wednesday night (mail me for further details if
          you're interested).

          I decided at the last minute to go tonight (not knowing who Bob
          Durand was or what he was running for :-).  I'm very glad I did.
          He's running for State Senator in a district including Worcester
          and half of Middlesex County.  Bob Durand has the endorsement of
          Mass Choice, NOW,  ***and*** (I nearly dropped dead when I heard
          this) Gun Owner's Action League (GOAL).  After questioning him
          about his stance on choice, gay rights, CLT(Citizens for Limited
          Taxation), etc., I asked him how he felt about gun control, and
          he immediately took the defensive, appeared concerned, and said
          that this is one issue that we'd probably disagree.  Ha!  He
          fully supports the right of law-abiding citizens to possess
          firearms.  This, combined with the endorsement of Mass Choice and
          NOW, is enough for my vote.  I asked him for a lawn sign.

          U.S. Representative Chet Atkins(D) was also there.  I wish I had
          known that in advance to be better prepared, but I still gave him
          an earful about the misconceptions he's spread in his taxpayer-
          paid mailings to his constituents about how he's fighting the war
          on crime by going after the "assault" rifles.  He struck me as
          very much the "establishment", happy to be making rules for us to
          follow.  The government knows what's best for us.  I realized he
          was ignorant of reality when, when in a discussion about the so-
          called "assault" rifles, he made a comparison to letting people
          have Stinger missiles.  I just rolled my eyes, decided this was a
          hopeless situation, and retreated to the bar :-).  Others seemed
          to be coming down on him about something when I came back, so I
          kept walking (and smiled).

          Pam Resor(D) was also there.  She is running for state
          representative in the Acton+ area.  I have talked with her before
          at NOW meetings.  She describes herself as having a "progressive
          liberal" agenda.  I still don't understand what that means.  She
          is committed to the pro-choice position and many other women's
          and family issues that I've heard her discuss.  Her presence
          always leaves me with the impression that she is a very strong
          woman in a quiet sort of way.

          Mark Collins(D) was also there.  He is running for the state
          representative seat that was vacated by Cile Hicks, representing
          Maynard, Sudbury, and Wayland.  He is pro-choice, pro-gay rights,
          against CLT petition, and iffy on gun control.  His opposition in
          the primary is Bill King(D).  According to Collins, they differ
          on their stance on gay-rights.  I know he is telling the truth,
          because Saturyday I had a chance run-in with Bill King.  In
          asking Bill King how he felt about allowing homosexuals to be
          foster parents, he basically said only as a last resort.  I have
          never met a politician who was such a strong middle of the road
          performer (C) on just about everything as Bill King.  With the
          state in the situation it's in, I don't think that's what we
          need.    Collins seemed to have some very clear ideas of where
          the fat is in MA and what can be done without negatively
          affective human services.

          Anyway, at least I now have a much better idea of who I'm going
          to work for, as well as who I'm going to work against.

                                                  nancy b.



    I haven't been paying much attention to the Massachusetts governor race
    (since I don't live there), but after reading Holly Sklar's article in
    the September 1990 issue of Z magazine, "Uh Oh Silber:  Massachusetts
    Masochism", I will be interested to see what happens.  The article
    discusses Silber's views on women and minorities, and his affiliation
    with the Reagan administration's policies in Central America (including
    support for the Contras in Nicaragua).

    Sklar ironically comments on many of Silber's offensive statements. 
    One that I particularly liked was this one:  '"There's not very many
    years that a woman is a beautiful girl," said the homely Silber.'

    -- Mike
    

    re:  .30

    
    Point of interest......Bob Durand was Chet Atkin's Town Co-ordinator
    in Hudson when Chet took his first run for the MA State Senate seat
    in 1972.  Bob was in high school at the time.  Chet was in the MA
    House at that point.  Chet won by only a 10% margin.  The highest
    money spent on a campaign to that date was spent in that race.  How
    do I know?  I was the Town Co-ordinator for the opposition!  We kept
    Chet in town the WHOLE election day as it was Hudson's last election
    with the town being ONE precinct (The Hudson Amory).  Got to be an
    interesting experience standing in line with all the candidates.  At
    one point, one of the present-day candidates for Lt. Govenor came 
    by in his leather jacket and a tee-shirt to say hi....he was just out
    of one of his law school classes.....now he's giving Bobby a chance 
    to get his seat in the Senate!

    justme....jacqui