There are no women currently serving in the South Carolina State Senate. Just 17 of the 124 members of the SC House of Representatives is a woman. Nationwide, South Carolina ranks dead last in the number of women represented in state government. Women make up half the population of this state and our lack of elected representation in state government is catastrophic. Because there are no women to participate in the political debate, the predominantly older white males representing us seem to have a developed a rather unhealthy obsession with preventing access to preventative and routine reproductive medical care. South Carolina currently ranks number two in the nation in the number of cases of gonorrhea, number three nationally for Chlamydia and number eight for pregnancy among 15 to 19 year olds. The CDC has labeled South Carolina a “hot spot” for HIV infection, the state consistently ranks in the two ten in the nation for per capita HIV/AIDS infection rates.

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Tea Baggers

Date: 2010-03-28, 8:36PM

I did not write this, although I wish I had. This was posted in the Rants and Raves section of Craig’s List in Michigan.-Roxanne

Tea Baggers are:
A misinformed, right-wing corporate media consumer who often fails to understand that BOTH major parties represent a corrupt plutocracy that steals from the middle class by taxing labor and profiting from corporate tax subsidies.
A teabagger also often fails to acknowledge that George W. Bush and his neo-conservative minions perpetrated one of the boldest and most egregious executive power grabs in the history of the United States. Furthermore, teabaggers mistakenly continue to blame a newly elected President Obama for all that ails the United States of America, based on a grossly flawed perception of reality (including latent racial prejudice) and despite the fact the U.S. economy collapsed on the previous administration’s watch.
Teabaggers are also known to base their misguided, right-wing-media-inspired beliefs about President Obama on stupid conspiracy theories about totalitarian takeovers, FEMA camps, etc., despite the fact these very same theories have been circulating around on the Internet for years, and were originally ascribed to neo-conservative cabalists at a time when Barack Obama had not even entered national politics. Teabaggers also are known to be particularly paranoid, xenophobic and intolerant, especially with regard to immigrants and anyone who isn’t white.
Additionally, teabaggers generally echo stupid myths about entitlement spending (it actually only accounts for about 1% of federal budget spending), have no idea that most poor people in America are not lazy, actually do work and don’t want to be on welfare, and have no idea what socialism actually means or that socialist reform in this country is actually what allowed a middle class to flourish and ultimately make the U.S. one of the most prosperous nations in human history.
Furthermore, teabaggers incorrectly equate socialism with Stalinism, think a system that rewards greed (capitalism) is the divine preference (despite Gospel evidence to the contrary), and are shameless champions of a misguided belief in American exceptionalism. Teabaggers also fail to recognize the inherently unpatriotic nature of their failed every-man-for-himself ideology that ultimately vilifies anyone who supports public policy aimed at reaching out to fellow Americans in need. They celebrate an exploitative corporatocracy (holy creator of jobs, blah blah blah) while denigrating the little guy for being “weak.”
Interestingly, teabaggers uphold an immoral, morbidly obese, twice divorced, draft-dodging, college dropout and known drug addict as their de facto leader, and are even known to advocate burning books. Of course, teabaggers fail to recognize the blatant hypocrisy within the GOP and tend to oversimplify all political debate and social issues, much like their pseudo-intellectual, fat-ass leader.
Finally, incredibly, teabaggers fail to recognize the hysterical double entendre associated with their proudly adopted teabag moniker.
Every village has its idiots, of course, but it’s sad when citizens of any nation allow themselves to be whipped into a frenzy en masse by a state-run propaganda machine masquerading as a legitimate, fair, balanced and independent news organization. Teabaggers are right to believe the future of the U.S.A. is in jeopardy, but sadly they have not yet correctly identified the real enemy. Perhaps when teabaggers finally grow up and mature into thinking adults, they will see the right-leaning power establishment for the oppressive and cunning beast that it is.
Teabagger: We don’t care that George Bush tripled the deficit and lied us into a war. The new administration only cut taxes for 90% of the population… fascists. Let’s go throw some Lipton tea bags into a fountain!

Here’s a look at the Tea Baggers in action…

http://www.crikey.com.au/2010/03/22/teaparty/

…”today’s GOP is, fully and finally the party of Ronald Reagan-not Reagan the pragmatic politician, who could and did strike deals with Democrats but Reagan the antigovernment fanatic, who warned that Medicare would destroy American freedom. it’s a party that sees modest efforts to improve Americans’ economic and health security not merely as unwise, but as monstrous. it’s a party in which paranoid fantasies about the other side-Obama is a socialist, Democrats have totalitarian ambitions-are mainstream. And, as a result, it’s a party that fundamentally doesn’t accept anyone else’s right to govern.”

Read the entire column at;

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/26/opinion/26krugman.html