Tag: Equal Rights Amendment

We All Know What the Problem IS

MONEY. Spent by someone, in SUPPORT of a particular cause or a political candidate.

MONEY. Spent by someone, to work AGAINST an opposing political candidate or to support an opposing ideology.

MONEY. Spent by someone, in SUPPORT of a cause that stands antithetical to their OWN core ideals, simply because that group stands opposed to another candidate.

MONEY. Spent by someone, in support of BOTH CANDIDATES in order to establish influence with elected officials… no matter who wins an election.

Whether it’s in the SUNLIGHT or through DARK MONEY methods, the result is the SAME- legislators legislate based on MONEY, and the pursuit there of. Of course it would eventually lead to SELF-ENRICHMENT over the wellbeing of the NATION.

We are ALL BUT MEN, susceptible to fallacy and vice.

In a system based on HONOR, it was only a matter of TIME.

 

 

Without the financial support of the NRA, how many candidates over the course of the last 30 YEARS would NOT have been able to run for elected office? How many SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATES would have LOST without that support?

A generational POWERHOUSE like the NRA falls due to the same vice, the same corrupt motives seen countless times before. Now, the recklessness of individuals at the TOP of that organization have put our LIVES in jeopardy by prioritizing MONEY over SAFETY. In order to strengthen their position, they’ve worked to create a false equivalence between SAFETY and DISARMAMENT, between our Constitutional Right and financial support for a NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION.

 

Talk about effective marketing. How much MONEY did that cost?

 

 

 

MONEY shapes the conversation. MONEY decides who is INCLUDED IN that conversation. MONEY INFORMS you that there’s a conversation to be had on the subject in the FIRST PLACE…

MONEY is spent everyday to make sure you don’t realize that conversation even EXISTS.

Speaking on the issues of Equal Rights for Women in September 2010, Justice Scalia said: “Certainly the Constitution does not require discrimination on the basis of sex. The only issue is whether it prohibits it. It doesn’t.”

 

Maybe it was truly believed at some time in the past, that the protection of women should be SOLELY the responsibility of men and that women were better off NOT having to worry about taking care of themselves. One could… theoretically… construct a legal argument that would rationalize the SEPARATE STATUS of HALF of the population.

BUT… is there ANY DOUBT as to the question of EQUALITY? The only argument against Equal Rights for Women that passes as SUFFICIENT is, “They ALREADY have it.”

Well, it seems we’re ALL in agreement then… they SHOULD HAVE IT.

Yet they STILL do not.

 

WHY.

 

Imagine if HALF of the United States Senate was NOT given EQUAL STANDING. It might have been easier to pass the Affordable Care Act! It might have been easier to SHUT IT DOWN.

The effect of denying Equality to HALF of the population is- it allows the continuation of agendas that are not in the interest of THE PEOPLE, but they ARE in the interest of people and organizations that would stand to LOSE MONEY if the Constitution suddenly demanded Women must have EQUAL PAY.

MONEY should not define our Legislative Moral Agendas. MONEY should not be the deciding factor in whether someone is WORTHY of Equal Justice Under Law. From the HIGHEST COURT to the local Circuit Court. From CORRUPTION to POSSESSION…

 

… with LIBERTY and JUSTICE for ALL.

 

Not just for SOME or a SELECT FEW. If we BELIEVE it is SO, then we should MAKE IT SO!

If MONEY decides who can have ACCESS to POWER, then controlling who can have ACCESS to the MONEY makes it easier RETAIN POWER by RE-DEFINING the electorate. People who are able to make more MONEY will be able to live in… certain areas where property values are HIGHER. And those who cannot will live in… OTHER locations.

Some locations PRE-DETERMINED, in order to assist lower-income families. Locations that exist within or near ALREADY existing, lower-income neighborhoods. Now, add the ability possessed by legislators to RE-DRAW their OWN DISTRICT LINES every 10 YEARS, and we can see where the problem LIES.

 

Change the district, change the vote totals… change the representation.

Change the AGENDA.

Change the NARRATIVE, CONTROL the conversation.

 

When you consider the HUNDREDS of BILLIONS of dollars made by interests like the pharmaceutical industry or oil and gas companies, and compare that to the MINISCULE investment of TENS of MILLIONS of dollars in a handful of political races, there’s no FINANCIAL RATIONAL for these entities to support causes like Equal Rights for Women, or a $15 minimum wage, or mandating employers provide heath insurance coverage for their employees, or mandating prisons pay the added expense of providing feminine hygiene products to female prisoners.

For the de minimis price of a few campaign contributions, companies can continue to charge $1000 for insulin, while insurance companies are able to deny coverage due to the very pre-existing condition that created the need for that insulin in the first place.

I’m not saying anything NEW, we ALL have eyes to see… but all we have are “If’s and But’s”. We’ve been SOLD the idea that THIS is the way it MUST BE… by the SAME PEOPLE who run for office on our hopes for CHANGE, over, and over again every 2 to 4 years.

“THIS TIME will be different… Just send me BACK for another term!”

“… can we count on YOU for a CONTRIBUTION?”

 

We have MAJORITIES on many issues, and legislation DOES NOT MOVE.

WHY.

 

The MAJORITY of the MAJORITY decides the Legislative Agenda. It doesn’t matter the OVERALL number of Senators who support legislation, if a MAJORITY of leaders in the CONTROLLING PARTY do not approve, the legislation does NOT GET A VOTE.

THE MINORITY decides the agenda for the MAJORITY.

And those leaders are there because they are the BEST FUNDRAISERS, able to secure re-election over multiple terms, having raised HUNDREDS of MILLIONS of dollars for their political organization, and their POLITICAL PARTY. And, of course… it’s all TAX EXEMPT.

 

 

I’m not seeking the Presidency for recognition. I’m not doing this as a way to prove something. I’m doing this because… I found the ANSWER. I figured it out. I SOLVED the problem!

I decided to TRY, to answer the question that no one seems to have been able to properly address. And now, knowing that it CAN BE DONE… I see it as MY DUTY to do everything I can to bring it to the attention of every American Citizen.

To be SILENT at this moment would be nothing short of SURRENDER.

The problem within our rule of law is CLEAR to anyone who knows ANYTHING about our government- The problem is the CORRUPTION. Any system that allows the influence of MONEY to determine who will be allowed to legislate for the rest of us, will inevitably favor those with MONEY over those without.

The Framers were RIGHT… this IS an “experiment”. When our Nation’s existence is viewed in-total, as a set of FACTS and DATA, conclusions can be reached. Recommendations can be made.

Our strength and security is ensured when EVERY CITIZEN is guaranteed access to the ballot. Any system that LIMITS access or attempts to correct, distort, or interpret the WILL of the people, is inherently susceptible to corruption.

 

ONE CITIZEN=ONE VOTE. EVERY CITIZEN. EVERY ELECTION.

 

To remove the corruption from our system, we must have 100% TAX PAYER FUNDED Federal Elections. Remove the CORRUPTION, restore HONOR in governance.

Our intellectual debates are decided, not by VOTES, but by who can raise the most MONEY. Who can excite the DONORS? Then, LATER, re-brand or move toward the middle for the general election.

A 20th Century Strategy, employed within an 18th Century electoral system, now being manipulated by 21st Century technology… Where will it go from HERE?

 

“It is their Right, it is their DUTY, to throw off such government, and provide NEW GUARDS for their future Security.”

 

We celebrate our Constitution, not simply because it is OURS. We celebrate our Constitution because it is a document WORTHY of our CELEBRATION!

A document unlike any other that came before it, embodying a genius so profound it has become the STANDARD to which we compare ALL OTHERS that have followed it.

We now have what the Founders did NOT… we have the DATA. We must celebrate because the “Experiment” shows- they were right!

Today, we STAND as PROOF.

 

We must End the Electoral College.

 

JC

As We Cross Another April

I spent the day in Jefferson City, MO, standing up with many other feminists to demand that the Missouri Legislature bring the Equal Rights Amendment up for a vote. With only ONE MORE STATE needed for a Constitutional Amendment, Missouri has the chance to be THE STATE that puts it over the top!

Thank you to Erica Benson for organizing the event, and to MO Sen Jill Schupp and MO Rep Judy Morgan for sponsoring the ERA on this SECOND ATTEMPT at ratification. Everyone who believes in Equal Justice Under Law should DEMAND Equality for Women and Girls… what’s more American than EQUALITY?

Ever hopeful, I prepared a speech before the event, and since it didn’t come up, I’d like to share it here. I believe the historical parallels can help provide us with guidance… because we have seen this all before, and we know how it CAN go. Had I been given the opportunity, this is what I would have said-

 

 

As We Cross Another April

I’ve come here from the FREE STATE, the Great State of Kansas, as a self-appointed representative of the thirty-seven States that have already voted for the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, with a MESSAGE for the remaining thirteen-

The war, is over! Today… NOT tomorrow. HERE is where we have drawn the line here, is where we make our stand… UNITED!

Because we have SEEN where division goes. We have seen where entrenchment leads… we’ve built monuments of granite and marble to stand as reminders.

Four score and seven years ago, the ideology of FEAR and DIVISION rose to power in Europe: the Nazi Party became the Majority, giving rise to a new leader.

We are now engaged in a new struggle, testing once again if ours is TRULY a Just Nation. Today, we are gathered in one of the LAST vestiges of our Civil War, just north of the Mason-Dixon Line, in the birthplace of the Missouri Compromise. It is altogether fitting and proper that, the renewed hope for the Equal Rights Amendment has brought us to this place, for as we struggle to recognize Equality for Women and Girls, we must also remember the unfulfilled promises made to Men and Women of Color, who CONTINUE to struggle for the SAME… long after Equality was ratified.

It is for us here today, to be dedicated to the unfinished work that so many have fought for and have thus far so nobly advanced. It is these principles that are born within the hearts of ALL humanity. That we are ALL created Equal, endowed by our creator with certain inalienable rights. It is the basic compassion within us ALL that moves us to STAND UP and DEFEND the Rights of others. We must remember the stories, taught to us by our Great- and Grand-parents:

NO APPEASEMENT.

Stand FIRM for what’s Right.

STAND UP for the Rule of Law.

Yes, the path is long and yes, this struggle is draining, but today, OURS is a BATTLEFIELD of WORDS. We must remember, those words have all of the impact of a DIGITAL BULLET… because they can strike the HEART, and motivate the MIND.

So we must be dedicated to the great task before us. We must HONOR those who have been lost and take increased devotion to the cause for which they LIVED their lives believing in-

Equal Justice Under Law.

Let us not judge, that we be not judged. “Woe unto the world because of offenses, for it must needs be that offenses come; but woe to that man by whom the offenses cometh.”

When fear and division give rise to oppression and tyranny, each one of us is faced with a CHOICE. We know how to defeat the liar and the bully- STAND UP and SPEAK OUT for Equal Justice Under Law. Because when you stand and DEFEND the Rights of OTHERS, you defend them for YOURSELF!

Time-tested, history-affirming, righteous ACTION in defense of Liberty is what makes OURS, a truly BLESSED NATION! When we, individually and BRAVELY, STAND UP for EQUAL JUSTICE… We STAND in GOOD COMPANY!

With malice toward none, with charity for ALL, with firmness in the right, as god gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for HER who shall have borne this battle, and for HER widow and HER orphan, to do all that is necessary to realize that lost promise of a Just and Lasting peace, among ourselves and with ALL nations.

Let us remember the WORDS of Susan B. Anthony:
“These assertions, of the framers of the United States Constitution, of equal and natural rights of ALL the people to a voice in government, have been affirmed and reaffirmed by the leading statesmen of the nation, throughout the entire history of our government.”

And that of James Madison himself:
“Let it be remembered, finally, that it has EVER BEEN the pride and the boast of America, that the Rights for which she contended, were the Rights… of HUMAN NATURE.”

… seems pretty “self-evident” to me.

Equal. Means. EQUAL.

JC

Official Campaign Press Release: STAND UP and SPEAK OUT for Equal Rights! April 11th, 2019 Jefferson City, MO

Let them know- a vote AGAINST EQUALITY means a vote AGAINST THEIR RE-ELECTION.

 

ERA_VA
Rally for the Equal Rights Amendment in Virginia, 2019

Please join me and hundreds of others on April 11, 2019, in Jefferson City, MO, for the Rally to demand ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment in the Great State of Missouri!

With only ONE MORE STATE necessary to reach the required 38 States for ratification, Missouri Legislators need to hear from EVERYONE, because their VOTE speaks not only for citizens of Missouri… but every citizen in THE NATION!

74% of the States have ALREADY DEMANDED Equal Rights for Women and Girls.

Let them know- a vote AGAINST EQUALITY means a vote AGAINST THEIR RE-ELECTION.

 

STAND UP and SPEAK OUT for EQUAL RIGHTS!!

 

Thursday, April 11, 2019

Capitol Rotunda

Jefferson City, MO

9:30 AM

 

Find out what YOU can do to help:

project28mo.com

equalmeansequal.com

 

If you cannot be there IN PERSON, show your SUPPORT with a donation… every little bit HELPS and is appreciated!

 

Hope to see you there!

#MenForERA #ERANow #CEDAW #EqualMeansEqual

#EndTheElectoralCollege

 

Below is the text of an email I recently sent to the organizers at project28mo.com to voice my support for the Equal Rights Amendment. It may not be much, but I will do ALL I CAN to help ensure EQUALITY for Women and Girls… let’s get it DONE!!

Not one more generation!

 

I wanted to voice my excitement, both publicly and privately, for the upcoming rally in Jefferson City. As I said, I hope my presence at the rally will help move legislators to allow a vote on the Equal Rights Amendment, and I am happy to offer my assistance in anyway I can while I am there.

Since my independent presidential campaign is currently running on less than a shoestring, I will only be in town for the day. But that day will be dedicated to serving the cause of Equal Rights and doing all I can to ensure ratification.

About a month after I began my initial campaign, (I was not ‘exploring’ anything, except how to make it official, so I hesitate to call it that…) I became acquainted with Erin Eddy and her work advocating for ratification of multiple bills protecting the Rights of Women and Girls. I have lived in the Kansas City Metro almost all of my life, my wife as well… and neither of us were aware of the pending Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), the still unratified international treaty establishing basic rights for children named the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), or the unratified Convention Ending Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).

I would be lying if I said I was surprised to learn this. For me, it only confirmed how rotten the system has become. I began my campaign to raise awareness about the damage being caused by The Speaker of The United States House of Representatives, Paul Ryan, and his use of “The Hastert Rule” in blocking a vote on gun safety legislation in the wake of the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. A subject that touches me deeply, as my high school, Olathe North High School, had to deal with gun violence while I was a student.

Speaker Ryan’s cold and calculated refusal to even allow debate on legislation, laid BARE the intentions of this agenda. It is not to further the lives of American Citizens. It is not to protect children and make their lives safer. It is an agenda that promotes fear and division via legislative inaction, in an attempt to ensure a political advantage. On February 14, 2018, that agenda took the lives of 17 CHILDREN in Florida. Unlike the numerous other tragedies before that day, something happened that CHANGED the political landscape. The survivors… children… became The Speaker on that day, and they said NeverAgain.

I knew they would need help.

I wanted to share some of my thoughts, to clarify my position, so as not to appear to be a political opportunist. The corruption caused by our current campaign finance laws, or lack there of, has tainted every issue in our country. Remove the corruption in our national elections and candidates with honor will seek office, not for self-enrichment, but to serve the people, and make change in the interest of the PEOPLE, and not the DONORS. Any agenda that works to empower the PEOPLE and make their voices heard MORE CLEARLY, is an agenda I want to be a PART OF!

When we have UNIVERSAL, FREE and OPEN ACCESS to the ballot, the TRUE INTENT of the people will be realized. We will have CLARITY in our NATIONAL DIALOGUE, and this will lead to action and solutions, as directed by the people… all of them.
Equally.

Thank you for your time,

JC

-END

 

 

31%

I am shocked and amazed at just how far the “con” has gone. No one is ignorant to the fact that politics is dirty… politicians prefer it that way! The more grey area, the more wiggle-room; the more loopholes and lard, the more room for fulfilling ones own self interests.

But 31%?!? My god… The polling in Virginia on the issue of Equal Rights for Women and Girls, shows the amendment is SUPPORTED by 81% of the State. That’s a no brainer! How many politicians would stand opposed to an issue supported by THAT many people? Well…

The final vote in the House of Delegates in the Commonwealth of the Great State of Virginia was 50/50 AGAINST Equality for Women and Girls in the United States, failing to get a hearing on the floor because of opposition to a RULES CHANGE. Support for the bill was in THE MAJORITY yet the bill was BLOCKED FROM BEING HEARD.

WHY.

That is NOT a question. It IS the answer. It is a DEMAND.

It’s the answer to the question of voter turnout.

It’s the answer to our lack of gun safety legislation.

It’s the answer to our illegal immigration problems,

It’s the answer to the issue of “Dreamers”.

It’s the answer to our failing education system.

It’s the answer to roll-backs on environmental regulations.

It’s the answer to lack of oversight on Wall St.

It’s the answer to the lack of accountability.

It’s the answer to the MASSIVE income gap.

It’s the answer to our failing healthcare system.

It’s the answer to our crumbling infrastructure.

It’s the answer to our addiction to fossil fuels.

It’s the answer to our deepening racial divide.

It’s the answer to the vilification of Women’s Health.

It’s the answer to HOW CAN ALL OF THIS CONTINUE TO NOT BE SOLVED?!?

Paul Ryan called it “The Hastert Rule”. I call it BULLSHIT… because that’s all it is.

When I stood up and said “NO MORE!” to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, he did NOT answer.

The SPEAKER was SILENT.

If I were accused of supporting the agenda of a “serial rapist”, I would have at least made a public denial, or questioned the direct link between the legislative tactics being engaged in and the legislative tactics of Dennis Hastert, convicted fellon.

No. Paul Ryan choose SILENCE. My goodness… Yes, it really is THAT SIMPLE!

Paul Ryan’s political agenda was built upon a foundation of LIES and DECEPTION. When the political winds of change came his way, it all BLEW AWAY like a house of cards, HOLLOW to the core.

How many ‘Paul Ryan’s’ are there in Congress?… in the Senate?… in YOUR Statehouse?

When men and women of HONOR stand up and DEFEND the rights of others, there is no argument on Earth that can bring them down! And when we stand united, we BECOME the beacon, as the pure unified intentions of our nation shine a light wherever darkness rules… JUST BY STANDING UP. We cannot help but exude confidence in our American Exceptionalism!

It’s infectious… Liberty is. That’s why leaders in a nation ruled by tyrants SILENCE the press, SILENCE citizens who speak too loudly. Once it’s heard… it cannot be undone. The mind will NOT let it go. “… with Liberty and Justice for ALL.”

Somehow, one hot summer in Philadelphia, a mere man sat in-conference with the gods, and envisioned a world where ALL men are created EQUAL, just as the day they were born. There is none other on Earth that is as desired as ours! If we are to hold it up as THE example, should it not be the best it can? The absolute… The Pinnacle of Human Societal Evolution. It is an experiment, incomplete in its current form. Tethered to the whims and wills of mere mortals.

Never before had such a nation been conceived! Doubts in the fidelity of the common countrymen made many question if it were even possible. But the HOPE in the idea, that one day it COULD be so, led those imperfect men to create the perfect document, enshrining a system of EQUAL JUSTICE UNDER LAW.

 

 

… sometimes, all you have to do is SHOW UP and the barriers will start to FALL.

JC

“On Equal Rights for Women: Where do YOU Stand?” Official Campaign Statement.

I celebrate the First Amendment today because it is the weapon we use when we engage in REVOLUTION against TYRANNY and OPPRESSION. It is the ‘ball and musket’ that will advance our Liberty in ANY BATTLE… so long as mankind lives FREE.

It is the weapon we reach for when we defend our SECOND AMENDMENT Rights.

And it is in THIS frame of mind I say these words, because we are WITHIN the battle right now, for the hearts and minds of EVERY American… and our adversary wins when we lose faith in WHO WE ARE, when we are skeptical of Our Rule of Law… in Our Constitution. When we no longer believe in “Equal Justice Under Law”, they win. We fight this battle to ensure the BATTLEFIELD continues to exist.

with respect.

 

 

…

 

 

Whether or not abortion is a sin, is an opinion… a belief. A decision made between a woman and her god. A decision thankfully, I will never have to make. What is not opinion is what method is the surest and most effective way to MINIMIZE the number of abortions in our country. One thing I agree with every Evangelical Christian on- it should not happen. There should be a loving home for every child that needs one, and every child should be given a chance.

Another thing we stand in agreement on is the existance of evil in this world. Unfortunately, decisions must be made in one’s life that, without the influence of a chance encounter, they would never face in their lifetime…

And that is why we are a Nation of Laws.

I keep coming back to a poorly worded phrase that explains my thoughts about the situation- “Women are men, too… deal with it!”

It’s cheesey, it’s hokey, it’s not quite “right”… but it is clarifying. There is no legislation dictating or directing any aspect of my reproductive life. I choose to end it when I am ready to. I choose when it should begin. I could not imagine accepting restrictions on my decisions and I would fight any attempts to do so, as EVERY other man would.

I want that for EVERYONE.

I want to DEFEND that for EVERY AMERICAN CITIZEN.

Right now, to stand hypocritical on the World Stage, claiming to be the Arsenal of Democracy while denying Equal Rights to women and girls, weakens American strength abroad, and it threatens our Constitution by lessening the importance of our Rule of Law.

It is the directive and agenda of our enemy, to weaken the American People’s respect and pride in our Rule of Law, as well as that of our allies. That slow slippage away from “American Idealism” in-favor of the opinion “democracy is ALL the same… corrupt.”

It is a slippery slope.

Right now, it threatens the existence of our Constitution… but the solution is simple!
We must CELEBRATE every good and just aspect of our country, and it is no exception- Equal means equal!

To deny ONE is to DENY ourselves. We may point the finger and say “well what about…” all day, but we must make a clean break from that thinking and look to the day ahead and say, “THIS is what we aspire to BE!”

… and BECOME IT. Right now, for our country, and our SHARED future.

JC