CBS makes me want to boycott the Superbowl

CBS is full of shit! CBS is airing an anti-choice ad from Focus on the Family during the Superbowl, even though in the past, CBS has rejected ads from MoveOn.org, PETA, and the United Church of Christ because they were too “controversial” and they have a “no advocacy” policy. But this year, CBS is airing an ad produced by the ultra-conservative, anti-gay, anti-choice, and anti-birth control group Focus on the Family. The ad FEATURES TIM TEBOW (football fans love him and his little religious sayings under his eyes!) and his mother because she didn’t have an abortion when she was very ill and advised by doctors to do so. So, apparently they changed their “no advocacy” policy.

Oh wait, they didn’t. Guess what still is too controversial, or too much advocating? A gay dating site ad from Mancrunch.com. Here’s the ad from Mancrunch that they won’t air:

So showing two guys kissing isn’t okay. But telling women that they shouldn’t have the right to choose even if their life is in danger because ONE WOMAN chose to have her baby who turned out to be a Heisman trophy winner is just fine. F THAT S!

Breaking News: AuH2O on CNN

AuH2O is going to be on CNN again tomorrow! Well, not CNN exactly, HLN (Headline News) which is a different channel, but still CNN-ish.

The second spot airs tomorrow, August 26, at 6:30am and Thursday, August 27 at 9am on HLN. That’s very early, so if you don’t catch it, that’s okay- this segment is available online (the one from April isn’t for some reason) so you can watch it RIGHT HERE or go to cnn.com:

In other news, my collarbone is getting better slowly but surely. Thanks everyone for the well wishes!

Also, my CNN spot happens to be airing on National Women’s Equality Day which is the day 89 years ago when the 19th amendment was signed and women were given the right to vote. But we’re not equal yet! The U.S. still hasn’t ratified the the CEDAW, the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. This treaty provides a framework for ending international violence against women, ensuring girls access to education, and promoting economic opportunity and political participation for women. The U.S. is only democracy in the world that has NOT ratified the CEDAW, while 186 countries, over 95% of United Nations members, have done so. We’re with Sudan and Iran in opposition. Embarrassing.

We need 2/3 of the Senate to vote for ratification, and then it goes to Obama to sign- and he’s already expressed his support. So call your senators at 202-224-3121 and urge them to support ratification of the CEDAW treaty for the Rights of Women! Do it on the 26th in honor of Women’s Equality Day because we’re not equal yet!

For more info on the CEDAW, go to: womenstreaty.org

Happy Hanukkah! AuH2O (Goldwater) is a Jewish last name, but heck yeah I have a Christmas tree

Soooo, Hanukkah* is just a few days away, and for those of you who haven’t gotten your holiday presents yet and don’t like to go out shopping in the cold, you can always check the AuH2O online store: www.auh2odesigns.etsy.com. We’re in a recession, so all of the items at the AuH2O online store are eco-friendly AND reasonably priced. There’s a bunch of vintage jewelry for between $12-$28 (including some pretty awesome pirate figure earrings,) Obama earrings for only $7 and Obama tops for $20, among other AuH2O items. Plus, I can ship it directly to your friends and family so you don’t even have to move.

Also, if you know someone who really likes the store but you don’t trust your own taste, I’m offering gift certificates in whatever amount you’d like. $20, $50, etc. You can either email me the person’s name and address and I’ll paypal you an invoice and ship it out to them, or you can buy one directly on the online store. Here’s a photo so you can see how they’re actually kind of pretty- for a gift certificate. They’re made from vintage/unwanted cards and fabric scraps and trim:

Front (outside of the card)

Inside of the card (I can write your message in the blank space)

*AuH2O (Goldwater) is clearly a Jewish last name- a last name that I gave to myself actually- so I’m obviously celebrating Hanukkah this holiday season. I legally changed my name when I was 18 from my father’s last name to my mother’s, and altered my first name while i was at it: Katherine Crosse to Kate Goldwater. I just didn’t see why society made us have to have our father’s last name over our mother’s and I wasn’t going to abide by any patriarchal traditions. I’ve always been Jewish, but especially since I changed my name to the slightly-more-Jewish-sounding one (what kind of last name is “Crosse” for a Jewish girl, anyway?) I’ve felt a little more connected to Judaism and Jewish holidays. This is not to say I’m religious- the only thing I do religiously is read Feministe every day, but I light the candles and I eat Hanukkah gelt and potato latkes. Though I’ll be honest, I got a little taste of Christmas recently when my friend surprised me at my store with a Christmas tree, and Jesus Christ (no pun intended, okay, totally intended) it’s fun. I was originally opposed to Christmas trees, not because I’m Jewish, but because I think it’s probably bad for the environment to breed trees just to cut them down, use them for a few weeks then throw them out. Well, I got over that because man, hanging lights and ornaments and eating candy canes every day is GREAT. Though I DID add my menorah to the display, of course.

Thanks Ann for the ornaments and the “tinsel” (a new word I learned)

This is a shot of my Christmas-ed out store by my photographer friend Ann Sanfedele taken from across the street. See it on her smugmug site as well.

Happy Holidays everyone!