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I've written Christina expressing my sincere dismay at the lack of adult behavior at the conference. I would also like to write government officials in charge of sponsorship for that fiasco and express my dismay to them as well.
Anyone have any idea to whom I should address my outrage. I don't appreciate my tax dollars being used to fund censorship of dissenting political views.
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Dr. Sommers civil rights have been violated. I sent a brief email to her as well, but I think the right target is the White House and Tommy Thompson. It's time to clean house at HHS.
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In fact, let's be specific. Let's send letters to Dubya himself (President George "Dubya" Bush) and to Tommy Thompson demanding the resignations of Linda Bass of HHS, and letters to Fordham University President Joseph A. O'Hare demanding the resignation of Jay Wade.
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Good idea, frank. I know how to contact President Bush (via e-mail and snail mail). How do we contact Mr. O'Hare?
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Vis a vis writng to the President, email works faster but is much less effective because there are SO many emails to the White House that they use an auto-answer system. I've found that writing on paper is more effective, and in one case, it got me a signed response. I have to believe that if you take the time to write on paper, that the letter gets read by a person rather than merged into a database and searched for keywords.
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I have my differences with Ms. Sommers but I think this display against her was disgusting and shameful. I do not think the majority of those who hold different views from Ms. Sommers commend this type of behavior or favor censorship of her views or censorship in genera.. I know I don't.
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...yet no one stood up for her while she was told to shut the f**k up.
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I'm at a loss to explain that. Maybe they were just too stunned? I know one thing, if I had been there the fur would have flown. Mostly in the direction of the man who made that ugly comment :)
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"I know one thing, if I had been there the fur would have flown. Mostly in the direction of the man who made that ugly comment"
That's great Lorianne! Why don't you share with us the letters that you've written (or are going to write -- once you've written them) to President Bush and to the president of Fordham University?
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"yet no one stood up for her while she was told to shut the f**k up."
This is easy to explain. Everyone there was either too spineless to stand up to the lunatic hate-mongers or was in complete agreement with them. I would have loudly stood up for her, as I'm sure a number of the other people who contribute to this board would have.
And we would have felt very lonely, indeed.
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Surely there was at least one person in the crowd who agreed with Sommers. They didn't speak up in her defense either.
To truly have a spine would be to stand up for her right to speak even if you don't agree with her. No one did that either, whichto my mind at least, is scary indeed. So much for the oft lauded 1st Ammendment. May as well round-file it.
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Lorianne said, "To truly have a spine would be to stand up for her right to speak even if you don't agree with her. No one did that either, whichto my mind at least, is scary indeed."
You make a very good point, Lorianne. That may be the most frightening part of all of this.
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And this wasn't a bunch of young adult, college-folk, feeling their oats after winning a championship. This was a formal meeting of the Department of Health and Human Services.
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I hope that there is some justice brought into this situation...
feminists are hate mongers... it's simply disgusting.
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Father Joseph O'Hare
President Fordham University
441 East Fordham Rd.
New York, NY 10458
Email: Ohare@fordham.edu
For years, Christina Hoff Sommers has been a courageous advocate of equality and honesty. She began her struggles long before there was any sort of support system for those who speak out against radical feminist hatred and lies. This is important; we need to show her our support in this. I am writing to her, to President Bush and to President O'Hare (who appreciates the title "Father").
Let's be good about responding to this. Ms. Sommers has earned our gratitude and support.
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I just got this info:
Dr. Mary Procidano
Chair Psychology Department
Rm. 345, Dealy Hall
441 East Fordham Rd.
Bronx, NY 10458
Email: Procidano@fordham.edu
Note that they told me on the phone that addressing hard copy mail to either New York, NY or to Bronx, NY will work.
Thanks again to everyone who supports Christina in this.
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Hey! Let's REALLY annoy her and write to her as:
Dr. Mary Procidano
ChairMAN
Dept. of Psychology
etc.
Damn, I hate "gender-neutral speech" when it distorts perfectly good usage.
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... the names involved in this. I will say that the behavior of the crowd appears to be more like a mob. It appears that government funding is also involved, which could explain the vigorousness of the response.
Crisis precipitation could also be a factor here as well. If the talk moved into an area that could trash a study in its early stages then that would be premature and provocative.
I'll see if I can get a copy of the book metioned in the article.
Thanks for keeping us informed.
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Here is a copy of the email that I sent to CHS. Feel free to borrow from it.
I just read of the abuse that you suffered at the recent Department of Health and Human Services meeting on “Boy Talk.” For years, I have had a great deal of respect for you. It takes tremendous dedication and courage to speak honestly and forthrightly in the face of hatred. Your books and actions are an inspiration to all those who seek truth and justice in general and mutual respect and reciprocal decency between men and women. I only wish I could say I was surprised by the treatment you received.
I know a number of people who support you and who will not be silent. I will write to President Bush to demand a public apology from Linda Bass at HHS as well as her resignation. I am also writing to president O’Hare of Fordham University to ask that he demand the resignation of Professor Jay Wade. Clearly, if Professor Wade passes himself off to Fordham’s Psychology Department and the university’s students as an expert in “listening skills” he is a charlatan. His actions were an outrage and he should lose his job because of them.
In the face of unrelenting hatred and lies, you have courageously supported truth and justice for years. Those who have received your support, dedication and protection owe it to you to support you in this matter.
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by Anonymous User on Friday December 07, @10:06PM EST (#20)
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It was perfectly within the rights of the people to express their contempt for Ms Hoff-Sommers. What are you trying to say? That a large audience of people should have their reactions censored? Ms Hoff-Sommers expressed her beliefs and her audience expressed theirs.
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It was perfectly within the rights of the people to express their contempt for Ms Hoff-Sommers. What are you trying to say? That a large audience of people should have their reactions censored? Ms Hoff-Sommers expressed her beliefs and her audience expressed theirs.
Sounds to me like someone has decided to be willfully ignorant here. Yeah, the audience has every right to disagree with her, but not to abuse her, especially with taxpayer funding. Also, it is not typical for an audience to disagree with a speaker by shouting her down and hurling obscenities at her.
The audience, particularly "Dr." Wade,was completely out of line in the way they censored Hoff Sommers, who, by the open admission of everyone involved, had "the floor" at the time.
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My email to Christian Hoff-Sommers:
"I was appalled by the extreme rudeness which you were subjected to while giving your speech at the Health and Human Services presentation. Professor Wade was particularly out of line for a so-called professional. It seems that these people feel threatened by any challenge to the status-quo.
I commend you for your efforts to help boys with your book "The War Against Boys." Society needs to abandon its zero-sum mentality regarding boys and girls.
Keep up the good work!"
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I just found this info regarding contacting Tommy Thompson and HHS.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
200 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20201
(202) 619-0257
Toll Free: 1-877-696-6775
Electronic Mail
To e-mail the HHS Secretary or other Department officials, click on HHSMail or send your message to hhsmail@os.dhhs.gov
To send comments or questions pertaining to the HHS homepage, click on WebMaster or send your message to Wmaster@os.dhhs.gov
fritzc77
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but... but... how dare you suggest that we should censor the poor defenseless hecklers. it's within their bounds of the freedom of speech to censor others. you're not trying to take away free speech, are you?
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but... but... how dare you suggest that we should censor the poor defenseless hecklers. it's within their bounds of the freedom of speech to censor others. you're not trying to take away free speech, are you?
;)
As for "sense of humor," I doubt Mr. or Ms. Anonymous User would find it so humorous had they been in Christina Hoff Sommers shoes. As a matter of fact, did anyone e-mail "Professor" Wade and give him the URL to this site? Perhaps "Professor" Wade or one of his ilk happens to be our Anonymous User.
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I just found "Professor" Wade's e-mail:
jwade@fire.fordham.edu
fritzc77
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by Anonymous User on Saturday December 08, @01:22AM EST (#24)
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You people don't seem to have a sense of humor. I think it's hilarious that someone finally told Ms Hoff-Sommers to shut up.
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Sorry, it seems to me that the ones without the sense of humor were the ones who wouldn't let her speak and the one who called her a b***h. Just my opinion.
BTW, here is more contact info:
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
president@whitehouse.gov
The White House Phone Numbers
SWITCHBOARD: 202-456-1414
FAX: 202-456-2461
fritzc77
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Here's what I just sent to President Bush and copied to Secretary Tommy Thompson:
---------
Dear Mr. President:
First, I would like to thank you for your handling of Operation Enduring Freedom thus far. The tragedy of Sept. 11 will be stuck in my mind for a long, long time, but I am proud of the way our special forces have handled themselves in Afghanistan.
That said, I would like to draw your attention, briefly, to an outrageous (and childish) censoring of opinion by Linda Bass of the Dept. of Health and Human Services and Professor Jay Wade of Fordham University; censorship which took place in the taxpayer-supported forum of a Health and Human Services conference on the "Boy Talk" program.
You may have heard reports in the press about the incident. At the conference, Christina Hoff Sommers (noted author of the book "The War Against Boys") brought to the attention of her audience some valid arguments against "Boy Talk" and "Girl Power" two educational programs--one geared toward feminizing boys and the other geared toward masculinizing girls--as a means of creating equality in education.
Ms. Hoff Sommers validly questioned the value of these programs in front of her audience, and was subsequently shouted and heckled off-stage by some of the allegedly mature adults in the audience, among them Professor Wade, who shouted "Shut the f**k up, b***ch," to the delight of some of the other members of the audience. Ms. Hoff Sommers was forced to leave the building. Prior to the heckling, Hoff Sommers was interrupted by Ms. Linda Bass, who, because she didn't like Hoff Sommers' opinions on the "Boy Talk" program, attempted to force her to end her talk.
I ask you, Mr. President, if the proponents of educational programs like "Boy Talk" and "Girl Power" cannot discuss and argue the value of their programs without resorting to foul language and heckling, do we really want these people teaching our children? If the individuals responsible for teaching our children to listen with open minds put their hands over their ears and shout "la la la" in their loudest voices when they hear something they don't like, do we want them deciding the methods and programs by which our children learn to associate and communicate with each other? I would hope not.
Therefore, I am writing you this letter and copying it to Secretary Tommy Thompson in the hopes that you will request or demand the resignation of Ms. Linda Bass from the Department of Health and Human Services for initiating the censorship of dissenting points of view in a taxpayer supported forum. I also ask that someone from your staff express your disappointment in this turn of events to Father Joseph O'Hare at Fordham University, who will also receive an e-mail from me demanding the resignation of Professor Jay Wade.
Thank you for any attention you may give this matter, and, again, I appreciate the job you are doing in the war on terrorism. If you would like to read some press reports on the censorship of Christina Hoff Sommers at the conference, you may find a good example here:
http://www.nationalreview.com/contributors/kurtz12 0501.shtml
My best regards, sir,
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And here is what I'm sending to Father O'Hare and Mary Procidano:
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Father O'Hare:
I am writing to you to express my dismay at the recent child-like behavior of your Professor Jay Wade at a conference he attended by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. No doubt you may have heard reports in the media about the conference, at which was discussed the "Boy Talk" and "Girl Power" educational programs (designed to feminize boys and masculinize girls, respectively, in order to create some kind of false sense of equality).
At the conference, Christina Hoff Sommers (noted author of "The War Against Boys" and critic of modern feminism) espoused some of her criticisms of the "Boy Talk" program in particular. When Ms. Linda Bass--of the Department of Health and Human Services--heard some opinions she didn't like, she jumped up and demanded that Hoff Sommers end her talk (mind you that this was a taxpayer/government supported forum, one place in which the censorship of dissenting opinions is particularly dangerous).
When Hoff Sommers went on speaking, your own Professor Jay Wade heckled her and shouted obscenities at her. (The precise words he reportedly used were "Shut the f**k up, b**ch.")
I think you may agree with me that Professor Wade's behavior reflects well on neither your university nor its psychology department. It likewise does not reflect well on those who favor the "Boy Talk" and "Girl Power" programs. If the individuals who support these programs cannot, themselves, behave in an adult fashion, do we really want them teaching our children?
Hoff Sommers was successfully heckled from the conference, said heckling instigated by Bass and your own Professor Wade.
I am writing to you (and copying this e-mail to Dr. Mary Procidano) in the hope that you will see fit to either discipline or demand the resignation of Professor Wade from your university. For a man allegedly skilled in the art of "listening," he doesn't sound to me to be very open-minded or tolerant of dissenting points of view to his own.
If you would like to read some of the media reports about this incident, you may find one good description here:
http://www.nationalreview.com/contributors/kurtz12 0501.shtml
I have likewise written to Secretary Tommy Thompson of the Department of Health and Human Services, and to President Bush, demanding the resignation of Linda Bass for her role in this government-sponsored censorship.
Thank you for your time and attention to this matter.
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Here's what I sent to Christina and cc'd widely.
Dear Christina,
I don't think we've met, but my name is Kingsley G. Morse Jr. and I'm the
reproductive rights chairman for the National Center for Men.
The mensactivism.org web site reported that you caught hell for questioning
the value of a "Girl Power" program at an HHS conference.
You haven't asked for my advice, but it seems to me that you'd be wise to
hang tough. Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl Warren once said
"Everything I did in my life that was worthwhile I caught hell for."
Thanks,
Kingsley G. Morse Jr.
Reproductive Rights Chairman
National Center for Men
Protect Planned Fatherhood
www.choiceformen.com
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Here are more contacts to write to in protest of the treatment Christina received at the conference. These contacts came straight from Ms. Hoff Sommers herself (commens in parentheses are hers to me when I asked about other people to contact):
Alvera Stern, Ed.D.
Special Assistant to the Director
Center for Substance Abuse Prevention
email: astern@samhsa.gov
(Dr. Stern is the official who was in charge of the conference. I have written to her and left her messages, but so far she has not responded to my protests of mistreatment)
Stern reports to :
Ruth Sanchez-Way
Director
Center for Substance Abuse Prevention
Email: RSANCHEZ@SAMHSA.GOV
Sanchez-Way reports to:
Charles Curie
Email : CCURIE@SAMHSA.GOV
Mr. Currie reports directly to Secretary
Tommy Thompson
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
(202) 619-0257
Toll Free: 1-877-696-6775
Email: general email for HHS officials hhsmail@os.dhhs.gov
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This may not have been apparent to those who only read his comment out of context.
Ummm, how out of context can you take "Shut the fuck up, bitch?"
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Ummm, how out of context can you take "Shut the fuck up, bitch?"
I totally agree with you. Just posting what I was sent.
-----
This signature has been infected with Anthrax. Take your medicine.
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