This is not a can-did-ate diary... well, not really though it does have them in it.
Where I intended to go with this as originally encouraged from my posting of a comment in an open thread has morphed with the dawning of the day and happenings here at dKos both general and specific.
Basically I felt the need to highlight this issue because I was banned from an internet site, SisterTalk by Genia Stevens purporting to be about feminism and further to specifically speak up for the issue of Domestic Violence.
Many of you already know I've dealt with my own violent relationship. I eventually had four broken bones which really were the least of the injuries and in fact I still deal everyday with the residuals of those including pain and a brain injury affecting my processing abilities that makes dealing with the "swarminess" that is inherent in dKos difficult. There's often a comment or issue I wish to address but whether from pain, exhaustion, or needing time to digest I end up just passing it by.
But I can't tell you that I don't often feel intimidated here as well. One reason this is only my third diary. I'm known for my diary sized comments but I suppose on some level those are safer as they are often not seen by all that many (or at least not acknowledge).
On Christmas morning a diary was posted here at dKos (and soon deleted) regarding the presidential candidates stances on Domestic Violence. I'm not after chastising the original poster here. The information was pulled from another site and there should be no reason to question whether that site did their homework as they claimed they had. Except when it comes to the partisanship of candidate support it appears there is no end of lengths people will go to.
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UPDATED to show the original claim for clarity (sorry everyone):
Apparently, lots of individuals and groups are concerned about domestic violence, except the 2008 Presidential candidates. The only Democratic candidate who [directly] addresses violence against women [on his campaign page] is John Edwards:
Ending Violence Against Women Achieving full equal rights for women includes the right to be free of violence everywhere. Edwards supports efforts to fully fund the Violence Against Women Act, which provides resources for crisis centers, domestic violence shelters and continuing education to law enforcement and the courts. Edwards will also aggressively support political and economic rights for women where they do not exist and supports efforts to reduce violence against women and children around the world.
I didn't find anything on Obama's page [under the Issues tab] on domestic violence; however, I did find an article on his concern with domestic violence in Congo. As a Senator, Clinton was concerned about domestic violence, but in her bid for the Presidency, the issue has disappeared. Shame on her!
Those that are in brackets were not originally there when I first went to the site and started commenting.
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I went to the original site and posted in the comments essentially the same information I posted here (which is that all the Democratic candidates have done great work regarding DV). However, it didn't go over well there.
In fact, it was greeted rather hostile way. New information was brought in that was also distorted. No big deal. I had other things to do that day.
But when I went back a few days later my comments had been deleted as though they had never existed.
To me this was an attempt to give false truth to the original claim as well as deny that there was any issue with it. I found that to be disgusting.
I had however, saved the comments. Having dealt with the issue of Domestic Violence first hand I tend to remember detail and save evidence. So I reposted them as they are in their entirety included here below.
So here are the comments that lead to my very first banning ever:
So that's how you deal with it?
Delete my comments that point out all your errors? How ironic that you write about abuse when you utilize so many of the behaviors of abusive people.
You've shown me that you are not someone to pay any attention to because you manipulate your message to put yourself in the best light even if that means holding on to being wrong. Too bad anyone bothers to consider what you have to say.
csi | 01.04.08 - 5:44 pm | #
Good thing I kept a copy of the comments. You are completely dishonest. And I can show people now that you are. You even edited other people's comments that mentioned me. How narcissistic.
In 5 minutes of googling I found at least as much as Edwards has on his site, if not even more, from 3 of the other Democrats running on their sites (Obama, Dodd and Richardson while Kucinich has a permanent congressional page devoted to it, has been pushing for a Department of Peace which would cover DV, and has spoken about it on the campaign trail in interviews with the press giving it even more attention). I like Edwards but I despise misleading and false claims such as this one.
csi | 12.25.07 - 8:27 am | #
CSI, please spend another 5 minutes posting the actual results you found in your 5 minutes of Googling.
I finally found Obama's plan to end domestic violence as a sub heading under the PEOPLE tab -- not under the MAIN issues page:
Women. Am I to assume that the fight to end domestic violence is an after-thought, and not a main concern for Obama? Just as rights for gays and lesbians seems to be an after-thought placed in the PEOPLE section and not his MAIN issues page.
As for Dodd, Richardson, and Kucinich: I didn't check their records because I don't see any of those candidates as being serious contenders for the Presidency. I was only concerned with those candidates who I thought had a real chance of winning the Democratic nomination.
But I did go back and check their pages, just to be fair:
SistersTalk | Homepage | 12.25.07 - 10:20 am | #
Richardson makes mention (briefly -- just as Edwards) of the 1994 Violence Against Women Act.
Dodd also briefly mentions the 1994 Violence Against Women Act. I don't feel so bad though, his comment on the Equal Rights Amendment (just below the women's health comment) was even shorter than his comment on protecting women from violence. It was 1 sentence.
SistersTalk | Homepage | 12.25.07 - 10:21 am | #
As for Kucinich, he addresses violence at home in his 2000 campaign and in his 2001 Department of Peace writings. Again, I don't see Kucinich as a serious contender for the Presidency since his fundraising efforts have been nonexistent.
All of the candidates are piggybacking off the 1994 Violence Against Women Act ("oh, I supported that act. pick me for president!"), but very few of them have outlined a comprehensive plan to end domestic violence here in the US.
All of the candidates are concerned about violence against women in the Republic of Congo. There's lots of information on that issue since I guess, at one point, it was a hot issue (for somebody!). But the fact that I have to spend hours hunting for their plans to end violence against women right here in the US really bothers me.
SistersTalk | Homepage | 12.25.07 - 10:22 am | #
CSI, are you really pulling from Kucinich's 2001 "Department of Peace" which he is STILL working to get approved?
We need a President who can get things done. Kucinich's 2001 plan that is STILL in the works does not show he can get things done.
Let's not forget that he's raised very little for his 2008 campaign (again, he can't get anything done!).
I ask again, CSI, are you really pulling from his 2001 plan?
Bradley | 12.25.07 - 11:03 am | #
Jill said I dont see violence against women as a major issue because I dont know anyone who is in an abusive relationship.
There's one of the problems. People don't view something as problematic unless it's happening to them or someone they know. The "media" has been quiet about domestic abuse issues unless it's someone famous or someone in a position of authority. Like Genia said, until domestic abuse issues blow up like the Terri Schiavo story, it won't get the attention it deserves.
To CSI: One paragraph on a candidate's campaign page is not what I would consider "addressing" the issue. It looks more like you threw the issue in there just to be on the safe side.
I have to disagree with Genia on the Obama issue. It's not possible to address all issues on a single page. The fact that Obama has a separate page where he lists all his sub categories is impressive in my eye.
Mark | 12.25.07 - 11:29 am | #
csi | 01.04.08 - 6:02 pm | #
And then the rest of the deleted comments:
Wow... so it goes from claiming they have nothing on their sites to not having enough and then not being viable candidates?
That's dishonest.
Not to mention (which of course you didn't) that Hillary established with Janet Reno the office at the DOJ on Violence Against Women and Biden is the one who WROTE the Violence Against Woman Act (VAWA) which established the National Hotline (which at least 1.5 million woman have used) and also funded several programs including counseling and support programs for children and their families who have suffered from DV which my daughter and I personally benefitted from.
FROM BIDEN:
Stopping Violence Against Women: Joe Biden led the fight to criminalize violence against women and to hold batterers truly accountable by writing the ground-breaking Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) in the 1990s. It encouraged states to set up coordinated community responses to domestic violence and rape; spurred states to pass hundreds of laws prohibiting family violence; and provided resources to create shelters so battered women abused by husbands and boyfriends had a safe place to go. The law also established a national hotline for abused women that over 1.5 million have used for help. By training law enforcement and prosecutors to treat abuse like the crime it is by arresting and convicting abusive husbands instead of telling them to take a walk around the block, and by empowering women to make changes in their lives, domestic violence is down 50 percent and rape is down 60 percent nationwide. However, there remains work to be done, so in 2007, the Senator introduced the National Domestic Violence Volunteer Attorney Network Act, an innovative initiative that would recruit volunteer lawyers and match them with domestic violence victims.
Nevermind, just MOCK him for piggybacking on his own legislation.
But hey, here's one on Obama that you missed and are attempting to downplay as if it just doesn't exist.
http://www.dailykos.com/... 408621
[here's a working link to that diary]
And you missed Richardson and Dodd as well. And no, I'm not pulling from Kucinich's 2001 page. But you might want to check that line of reasoning on Dennis as it very much could have John's name substituted in similar statements.
Diminishing my words does not give truth to yours. It's not my homework to do or misleading statements that I've put up. That sort of tactic along with several others I've seen here is very much the sort an abuser would employ so there is a certain amount of irony being displayed here.
It doesn't help your candidates to publish false and manipulative lies about the other candidates. It gives the appearance your candidate is desperate and grasping which I find personally annoying because I do really like Edwards. Attacking me for pointing out the truth doesn't make reality any different. Please do something that those who commit violence against others rarely do and take responsibility for your words and actions.
Please accept my apologies for having other things to do on this holiday and not addressing the issues you brought up as quickly as you would have me.
csi | 12.25.07 - 6:39 pm | #
csi | 01.04.08 - 6:03 pm | #
Well, those were of course deleted as well and I was:
Banned by webmaster. Your comments will not be added
The main issue I had at the time was the dishonesty and trying to appear better than it seemed she is by not allowing disagreement no matter how true.
But also what bothers me is that by denying what the other candidates have to say and have done on the issue of Domestic Violence is to say that unless they do so much it will be seen as nothing, even less than nothing. Might as well do nothing.
That is in many ways what allows Domestic Violence to flourish as it does. We don't see it. I didn't even see it when I was deep in it. I thought it had to be more than it was and when it was I was much more stuck not to mention that by then no one else would see what was happening to me.
But it seems we do that in so many areas of our lives. One of the reasons I came to dKos in the first place was because I wanted to expose those companies we support everyday without thinking much about it but which are very much a part of the reason the Republicans are in charge.
Over the last couple weeks as I mentioned earlier in a diary I let myself get sucked up into today, I've been referred to as anti-science, a Luddite, "you people" with the addition that I am well-fed so willing to let millions starve because I'm unable to understand hunger, as well as dismissed as a bible thumper and my favorite which is a reference to being brain dead. Of course I've had thrown at me that I must be off my meds as well which is just about as obnoxious as they can come but it was clarified that I was not being called insane because legally that comes down to whether I know the difference between right and wrong. Yes, I've even had one person attached to my comment in what I can only imagine was that there was no other answer to what I present, alluding that I had been the one calling her a troll, and that it is sexist to assume just because of her profession that she is male which I'd not done either.
None of these are things I would have remotely pegged myself as being or doing.
Are we that willing to resist truth to hold on to the ideas we have? Do we need to label and dismiss others in such ways? Is what we hold on to that fragile?
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Anyway, I've run out of time. Please take this where you will and hopefully not into the candidate bashing. I will answer and attend as I am able.
Thanks for letting me have this time.