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
Women's Congressional Policy Institute; Bills Introduced: January 9-13, 2023: Recognizing the Importance of Access to Comprehensive, High-quality, Life-affirming Medical Care for Women of All Ages.
H. Con. Res. 7: A concurrent resolution commending the bravery, courage, and resolve of the women and men of Iran demonstrating in more than 133 cities and risking their safety to speak out against the Iranian regime; A bill to increase the punishment for certain offenses involving children; A resolution condemning the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey and committing to advancing reproductive justice and judicial reform; A bill to provide for research and education with respect to triple-negative breast cancer; A bill to enhance criminal penalties for health-related stalking; A bill to require that activities carried out by the United States in South Sudan relating to governance reconstruction and development and refugee relief and assistance support the basic human rights of women and women’s participation and leadership in these areas. more »
US Justice Department Highlights National Stalking Awareness Month; One in Three Women and One in Six Men Experience Stalking in Their Lifetimes
“The Justice Department is committed to using all its tools to address stalking,” said Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. “Survivors need justice and safety, and communities require resources to respond and prevent this crime. OVW’s grantees play a critical role, providing essential services and justice solutions in their communities.” With the prolific misuse of the Internet and other forms of technology as weapons against stalking victims, today’s Strategies Showcase further emphasizes the White House’s priority to eradicate technology-facilitated violence. Last June, President Biden established the White House Task Force to Address Online Harassment and Abuse, an interagency effort to increase prevention, response and protection measures for survivors. more »
Kaiser Health News: Will Your Smartphone Be the Next Doctor’s Office?
"The same devices used to take selfies and type out tweets are being repurposed and commercialized for quick access to information needed for monitoring a patient’s health. A fingertip pressed against a phone’s camera lens can measure a heart rate. The microphone, kept by the bedside, can screen for sleep apnea. Even the speaker is being tapped, to monitor breathing using sonar technology. In the best of this new world, the data is conveyed remotely to a medical professional for the convenience and comfort of the patient or, in some cases, to support a clinician without the need for costly hardware. But using smartphones as diagnostic tools is a work in progress, experts say. Although doctors and their patients have found some real-world success in deploying the phone as a medical device, the overall potential remains unfulfilled and uncertain." more »
From the Frick Madison Museum Archive: Giovanni Battista Moroni's Portrait of a Woman
“Curator Aimee Ng: We had the pleasure of getting to know this compelling portrait very well in 2019, when it was one of the highlights of Moroni: The Riches of Renaissance Portraiture, the special exhibition that introduced this artist to American audiences. At that time, the portrait was considered one of the finest by Moroni in private hands. We are thrilled to now include it in our permanent collection, thanks to Aso’s great generosity.” Giovanni Battista Moroni (1520/24–1579/80) spent his career painting in and around his native Bergamo, in Lombardy, then part of the Venetian Republic. His portraits are celebrated for the psychological presence and lifelikeness of the sitters, as well as his extreme attention to detail, particularly to his subjects’ clothing and accessories — sumptuous fineries that signal wealth, status, and fashion." more »
