Relationships and Going Places
Jo Freeman: There’s Plenty To Do at the RNC – If You Have the Right Credentials
by Jo Freeman
Every national nominating convention has plenty of auxiliary events, some authorized, some not. Getting space can be a challenge; getting the word out even more so. But they do it nonetheless. Press were given a RNC 2024 Master Event Calendar, which was updated a few days later. Events began on Sunday and ended on Thursday. The actual convention sessions were just one item on the list. The calendar said if an event was Open or Closed to press, and also whom to contact to register. I’m going to describe some of the events, including a couple I went to, and a couple I was turned away from.
Since my focus is on women, I obviously wanted to go to those events – if I could.
The National Federation of Republican Women is the largest grassroots Republican women's organization in the country with hundreds of clubs. Founded in 1938, its members made the phone calls and knocked on the doors that elected Republican candidates for decades. It’s Tuesday luncheon featured Arkansas Governor Sarah Sanders. The Master Calendar said it was SOLD OUT and they wouldn’t let me in. I was able to get into their lounge at the Fiserv Forum Wednesday evening, where I was repeatedly asked if I was a member, and if not, would I join. “I’m press,” I said. “I can’t join anything partisan.” I then said: “What brings you here?” On hearing that, finding anyone willing to chat with me was like pulling teeth.
Moms for Liberty met in a concert hall that afternoon. I had pre-registered, and I got in. From high in a balcony seat I listened to several people talk about the evils of transgenderism. It’s webpage says WE BELIEVE Power Belongs to the People. Sound Familiar? With a focus is on parental rights, it wants to “STOP WOKE indoctrination.”
Tuesday I went to “The New Mavericks” reception co-hosted by the Black Republican Mayors Association and the Georgia Republican Party. They honored Sen. Tim Scott, four Congressmen and two Georgia delegates – all male. There was only one mayor on stage, from Aurora, IL. The chair of the Georgia Republican Party was the one white man on the stage. At that event, women served; they didn’t speak. The RNC reported that 55 delegates to the 2024 convention are Black, up from 18 in 2016.
I missed the Independent Women’s Forum toast to “Women Who Make Our Country Great” because I went to Convention Fest: The Official Delegate Experience, which was held in the streets outside the Fiserve Forum and Baird Hall as well as some space inside Baird. To get to that one you not only needed a credential of some sort, but a USSS pass (which I have).
Concerned Women for America parked its pink bus across from the Baird Center the week before the RNC. No one was home. When Convention Fest opened on Tuesday afternoon, they set up a pink tent, from which its leaders preached to whomever passed by. It calls itself “the nation’s largest public policy women’s organization” but its focus is evangelical Christian. The slogan on the side of its pink bus captures this emphasis: “She Prays, She Votes.” A prayer precedes each sermon.
The Uber and Lyft of Dog Walking Fight State Oversight
The gig-economy model for pet care has disrupted a standing industry in somewhat the same way that ride-hailing services upended the taxi industry. And just like in those cases, cities and states are scrambling to make their regulations fit. In addition to Connecticut, many other states and cities, including Colorado, Massachusetts and California, are grappling with overseeing the pet care platforms, whether by implementing new statutes or considering legislation that specifically addresses how they do business. more »
Julia Sneden: The Comfort Zone of Yardley's English Lavender Soap, Merle Norman Sun Cream, Fleers Double Bubble Gum, Miner's Lettuce, A Bosky Dell, A Granddaughter's Hand in Mine
Julia Sneden wrote: Taste: A clean mouth. Miner's lettuce, a small, wild leaf that grows in the California hills. I used to nibble on it straight out of the field, and I can still recall its astringent freshness. Turkey: For kids reared during the war, when meat was rationed and "organ meats" and Spam filled our tables, turkey was a Big Deal. I didn't know what steak was until long after the rationing ended, but turkey was on our table at both Christmas and Thanksgiving, and to this day it tastes like a treat, even the leftovers! Pumpkin pie, because of its association with holidays. Chocolate. Bread. And, again, that first cup of morning coffee, the one that gets the blood flowing and reminds me that I'm glad to be alive and in the comfort zone. more »
Updated: Presidio Discovery, Tunnel Tops, San Francisco - When Nancy Pelosi Isn't Gavelling In the House of Representatives She Cares For the Bay Area
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and 12th congressional district representative: "This is something quite spectacular and it takes us to a new level of park example for the rest of the country, new level of beauty, new level of inspiration, but most importantly, a new level of involving people.” City Librarian Michal Lambert also shared, "This unique destination will afford our community a place to be inspired and connect with nature, but also serve as a safe and inclusive space for youth and families to explore and to experience nature-based education opportunities.”
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The Curbstone Curse: The Fear of the Tumble
Rose Madeline Mula Writes: I have had a couple of falls recently. The time before last, I broke my shoulder. When the orthopedic doctor finally discharged me after a series of follow-up visits, I asked him if I had any restrictions. “Yes,” he said. “Don’t fall.” So of course I did — at the door of my building when I got home. And of course I couldn’t get up. My phobia has extended to even very low-incline ramps. As for escalators, forget about them. Not only are the steps moving, but so is the handrail. You might as well ask me to scale Everest without the help of a Sherpa.
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