Lysistrata Knew How To Work It

LYSISTRATA: “There are a lot of things about us women That sadden me, considering how men See us as rascals.” CALONICE: “As indeed we are!”

Thus begins a play written by  Aristophanes, deemed the greatest comic Greek poet of fifth-century B.C.E. Athens. He  wrote about the futility of war, and Athens (therefore all of Greece) had been at war since the beginning of time. When Lysistrata was written (411 B.C.E.), the empire was in the midst of the Peloponnesian Wars (Athens against the rest of Greece), the men had been away at war for almost 30 years, and the women were sick and tired of it. They were frustrated that in a time of war, men made stupid decisions that affected everyone and did not listen to their wives’ opinions (sound familiar).

The solution?

The old women of Greece barricaded themselves in the Acropolis (where all the money was kept), and the entire young female population in the major opposing city-states, Sparta and Athens, united behind Lysistrata in a boycott that changed the history of ancient Greece and, therefore, Western civilization: they locked up what men sometimes want more than money – good lovin’.

And the best part of the story is THAT IT WORKED. The men couldn’t stand it, a treaty was reached, and the play ended with everybody having a good ol’ time, dancing and singing in the streets of ancient Athens.

So, wouldn’t it be just peachy if we could pull the same thing off here in Georgia, and everywhere else for that matter? Wouldn’t it be amazing if the women who were sick and tired of what’s going on, could unite and pull the plug on the happy times until men stop fighting about our bodies and the decisions we make about our bodies? How long do you think it would take the phone lines, tweet chats, and blog rolls to light up if the boys were locked out? Not long, I would wager.

Aristophanes had a brilliant ability to blend politics with fantasy, which is not difficult for us to understand: today the two are almost indistinguishable.

There is one fact, however, that can be asserted, given the litany of yammering that emanates from mostly our male politicians: The boys are meddling where they should not be meddling – something they have been doing since our bodies became political fodder when Eve offered up the apple.

How do we stop them? I say we lock it up or lock them out of office. Tell them no.

Either way, we will gain control of what is ours – our bodies.

Party over.

What Would Lysistrata Do?

During spring break (just check out seniors gone wild for some cool pics), crazy stuff went down under the Gold Dome in Atlanta.

For those of you who do not live in our fair state, that is the capitol building – a beautiful, historical structure, where what are supposed to be the brightest minds in the state spend our tax dollars; and now, without our asking, the current House and Senate have also assumed (and we know what happens when we ass-u-me), they should decide how to protect the female citizenry from their doctors.

On February 29, the Georgia House passed HB 954. You can read the AJC account I just linked or check out the The Cobb County Republican Examiner. You can do a search for yourself and read about Rep. Doug McKillip, R-Athens, the bill’s primary sponsor, and his political past (jumped ship from Democratic Party to Republican in 2009 AFTER accepting donations from Planned Parenthood – said he was born again.)

The politics of this reprehensible legislative move are not what matter. This is not about saving babies as the proponents claim. Although deplorable, the fact that this bill is once again an invasion into a woman’s privacy means nothing to the anti-abortionists. What is really at the core of this bill is an effort to establish a platform for opportunistic politicians to interject themselves into a patient/physician relationship. And as a result of the 102 lawmakers who voted for it, an out-and-out attack has been waged on the doctors who care for pregnant women. If you read the bill, you will see that any physician who performs an abortion on a woman after 20 weeks, EVEN IF THE BABY IS DEAD, can be prosecuted and sentenced to as much as 10 years in prison. It’s true. As Dr. Ruth Cline, an obstetrician from Athens, said in the AJC, “It is time for the government to get out of my examination room and my office. If you legislators want to practice medicine, go to medical school!”

The bill passed and has gone to the Georgia Senate. I urge you to get in touch with your state senator and tell him or her (yes, I know it is hard to believe but a few Republican women did vote in favor of this legislation) to VOTE NO. I read where my senator, “Republican Sen. Josh McKoon, insisted ‘that the war that’s being waged is on a religious minority in this country that has strong beliefs’ and predicted that both measures would pass the House, where the GOP has control.” I sent him a text this morning. No reply yet, but I’m not done. I intend to advise him not to go against his beliefs and get an abortion should he find himself knocked up.

As for my state rep Kip Smith, who is a Republican,  I am very proud of him. He, along with the entire Columbus delegation [Richard Smith (R) and Debbie Buckner (D)], voted against HB 954. As far as I am concerned, however, the 102 Yea’s should pack their bags and get a day job. Check out the 102 list and find your state lawmaker. See when he or she is up for reelection and make it your goal to make sure it doesn’t happen. We simply must take back our state capitol from the buzzards who are roosting in its rafters. We simply must take our sovereign state away from those who are hell-bent on dragging all of us into their Draconian pool of self-ordained superiority. Enough is enough.

And as for what would Lysistrata do…she’ll talk to us tomorrow.

Spring Break and Bluebirds

Here’s a picture of my alter ego kicking up some sand and playing in the surf next week, whilst enjoying myself on Spring Break…

I found this shot on a site that features photos of Spring Break, but I’m not going to link you. If you want to check it out, just search “Spring Break photos” for yourself…quite different from when we played in the sand long, long ago…quite different.  And if you visit any of the numerous Spring Break photo sites, you will notice, there are no pics of senior citizen students on Spring Break – which is why I chose the photo of the horse and why senior citizen students do not go on Spring Break – at least to the places where their classmates go.

Now about bluebirds…

Jody Melanson

Did you know that “Eastern Bluebirds are a conservation success story?” According to the Audubon Society, after folks began adding “nesting boxes to their landscapes, these bright blue and orange birds, considered very rare fifty years ago, are now found throughout the eastern U.S.” There have been organized efforts throughout the U.S. to bring the species back and there is even a North American Bluebird Society that has – get this – a Facebook page. The latter site is a wonderful place to see shots regular bird watchers take in their backyards. And if you’re lucky enough to capture one on film, you can share it with the rest of the bluebird friends.

Why this emphasis on bluebirds, you might ask? The first reason is that I love seeing them: they personify happiness and I have a small community of the lovely creatures living at the Crossroads. The most important explanation, however, for the attention given this beautiful stroke of color that can fly is that the reemergence of the bluebird is an example of a gentle nature surviving – and I love it when gentility wins over boorish behavior…I applaud loudly when the quiet defender trumps the angry aggressor. I turn off the television when the politicians turn red and begin erupting (or throwing up as Rick Santorum says he does) and I avoid confrontation if at all possible. Yes, indeed, the bluebirds are making a strong comeback, and I love it.

And you thought I couldn’t turn bluebirds into politics? Oh ye of little faith…

…See you guys after Spring Break.