Time to stop laughing

If you're a former Catholic, or if you know many former Catholics, or if you've always been mystified by nuns, their dress, and their habits (get it? Habits?) you've probably had occasion to think of nuns as a joke. Well, it's time to stop. The old men who run the Catholic Church are the Navy SEALS of the Republican war on women, and the nuns are on the front lines.


Just look at recent history.


Two years ago the bishops excommunicated a nun and hospital administrator for approving an abortion to save the life of the mother.


Last month they basically declared martial law on the Leadership Conference for Women Religious, an organization  of more than 1500 members, who represent more than 80 percent of the 57,000 women religious in the United States,  on the grounds that it was not speaking out strongly enough against gay marriage, abortion and women's ordination  . What did they do that was so bad? Well, for one thing they supported health care reform. Pretty shocking, huh?


And this week the Vatican . . . censured Sister Margaret A. Farley, who teaches at Yale Divinity School, over a 2006 book she wrote that the church said is out of step with official church teaching on human sexuality.


But you know what? The nuns are not backing down. After a series of meetings their statement says that the conference believes that the matters of faith and justice that capture the hearts of Catholic sisters are clearly shared by many people around the world. As the church and society face tumultuous times, the board believes it is imperative that these matters be addressed by the entire church community in an atmosphere of openness, honesty, and integrity.


"Justice"?
"Honesty"?
"Integrity"?


These are strange concepts to the Catholic Church, but I know the nuns are up to the challenge of teaching the bishops a thing or two.


So as I say, the nuns are no laughing matter. Like all oppressed people standing up for their rights, they deserve our support and respect.

Boycott Susan G. Komen Foundation

Breaking from all over: The Susan G. Komen Foundation has announced that it will cut off all funding for breast cancer screenings to Planned Parenthood.

Or, to be more specific, they conveniently just adopted a new policy barring grants to organizations that are under investigation by local, state or federal authorities. According to Komen, this applies to Planned Parenthood because it's the focus of an inquiry launched by Rep. Cliff Stearns, R-Fla., seeking to determine whether public money was improperly spent on abortions.


You know what Planned Parenthood is. It's the group with chapters all across the country that provides health care to women and men in such vital areas as family planning and cancer screening. In so doing, Planned Parenthood has probably done more to reduce abortions than any other single organization.

And SGK? The behemoth plastering every product and event it can get its hands on with pink, and spending over a million dollars a year bullying any other organization that even comes close to its "For the Cure" trademark.

Planned Parenthood received $680,000 in 2011 and $580,000 in 2010 from Komen for breast-cancer screening and related services. Nearly 170,000 clinical breast exams were supported by Komen grants.

This is a new low. While they claim they are trying to protect the purity of their funding, it seems more likely that they're trying to protect themselves against association with the anti-choice, anti-sex attacks leveled against Planned Parenthood.

The Susan G. Komen message boards are being flooded with comments from women protesting this betrayal of women's health concerns. I encourage you to add your voice.

There are also "Boycott Susan G. Komen" groups popping up on Facebook, and here's where I suggest caution. If you read the group descriptions, at least one of these groups is an anti-choice cause basing its attacks on the fact that SGK was giving money to Planned Parenthood. The group to join is the one I just linked to, not the Boycott Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, which is the anti-choice group.

So today would be a good day to join the Facebook group, let them know how seriously you take this attack on choice and women's health, and contribute to Planned Parenthood's Breast Health Emergency Fund.