As goes California, so goes the nation. Don't let this happen in your state!! Eve Ensler nails it!

As you may or may not know, The Governator thought it would be a good idea to eliminate domestic violence funding in California. 100% of it. Shelters are starting to close. Personally I had to lay off staff last week and reduce everyone's hours to the point where services will suffer and I will end up losing some really great employees, I'm sure of it. And even after all of that our shelter will still be at risk. It's the only safe house in the entire county here in rural california.

I was on a national domestic violence conference call last week and a few other states are now considering the same action, seeing California's example.

The first thing people can do is pass along this piece by Eve Ensler from The Huffington Post - Help get the word out what happened here so that it doesn't happen to your state. Put it on your facebook pages, twitter it. email it.



The Terminator is Back

What governor - once an actor, then a Terminator, married to a major women's leader - has the chutzpah to wipe out 100 percent of the domestic violence budget of California, the biggest state in the country, with a single grope of his veto pen?

What same governor does this as the state economy is plummeting and violence is escalating? When the STAND Hotline, that serves Contra Costa County, fielded more than 12,500 calls for help in the first seven months of 2009, triple the number in a normal year (if violence is ever normal)? In a state where over the past six months at least five men, desperate from losing their jobs, have murdered their families and themselves? What other governor is willing to sacrifice the lives of his constituent daughters and mothers in order to protect oil corporations from paying taxes on their multi-billion-dollar profits - fair taxes that could easily fund these same programs?

I try to imagine what the governor thinks as he draws his veto pen through 40 years of women's struggle and work, how he sleeps knowing women across his state who are exposed to brutality will be left without escape, shelter or even a friendly voice at the end of a hotline. How he justifies women having to choose between becoming homeless or staying in the midst of danger. Then I am reminded he is the Terminator - no pity, no remorse, no fear.

Fortunately, other governors do feel pity and remorse. They know that having muscle isn't what makes a man, but it is compassion and wisdom and respect for women and girls. In New Mexico, Governor Bill Richardson has not only preserved funds for domestic violence programs, but has made a sincere and deep commitment to ending violence against women in his state.

Schwarzenegger has always had contempt for the vulnerable, or maybe it's just his own inner girlie man he despises. But now he has gone too far.

This cut is reckless and dangerous. It could begin a wave of cuts throughout the country. It sends a message to perpetrators. It basically says no one is watching, no one is coming. All bets are off. Having just spent months in the Democratic Republic of Congo, I can tell you that this climate of free-for-all spreads violence like a California wildfire.

Governor, too many hours in your cigar smoking corporate oil drilling boy's tent has made you think that you can get away with this. We've got your number. Unlike you we don't act alone. There are thousands of us, we are organized, and we won't be stopped by one muscle-bound veto.

Don't terminate. Reinstate the funds. Don't annihilate. Alleviate the suffering.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eve-ensler/the-terminator-is-back_b_263493.html

when we get what we want. What I mean is that people don't want to have to have their taxes raised and don't want to have to pay for things... but they expect them. And i am not referring to the domestic violence funding really... I am speaking more broadly. The kids that are now going to have no insurance.... and all the other programs that people have taken for granted are now going to be gone because people got what they wanted.... It's ridiculous.... do people think all these things just are there??? i swear it's like they are children who think you can just go to the ATM and take money out all you want. But you can't have the things you take for granted if you don't pay for them.

In Erie County in buffalo they had something similar but on a much smaller scale. The county executive had basically cut taxes too much, and then used the surplus to hide that fact for years. Then when the surplus was gone... he had a problem. They closed parks... libraries.... everything was gutted and he threatened even worse. people were very mad. obviously they were mad. but they never made that correlation..... these are all things covered by our taxes. we can't have both.

I would hope that sooner or later people get the hint.... we have things that as a community and as a society we need.... and in order to have these things, we have to pay for them. we will have to pay taxes to pay for them.

I hope to god you get your funding back. It's hard enough for victims of domestic violence without having any avenue of escape cut off. It's unconscionable that the governor could do that.... Things are tough, sure... but they are going to get a lot worse if people don't wise up.

California is not a cheap place to live. In Alameda County we pay almost 10% taxes for everything. In big cities the housing is incredibly expensive and every time a house is sold the taxes on it go up to the current rate.

The problem is Ahhhrnold won't raise taxes so his corporate and his Republican buddies won't have to pay them. He would rather drop the programs that pay for things like choldren's welfare, abused women and education. We'll be paying for his actions like we're still paying for Reagan's action of turning the mentally ill onto the streets.

California does tax and have fees. It's just that due to current mostly voter initiated laws our Tax base is not very sound. Which means during poor economies California is very vulnerable to huge deficits.

It's gut wrenching.

The Terminator is also a Regent of the University of California (all California Governors are) and he's slashed state funds to all ten campuses. I have two jobs in UC Berkeley and in one of the an entire administrative unit is being laid off.

I swear it is pitchforks and torches time....

assholes.

kick

This is an equation that has only one correct solution. I simply don't care about whatever cockamamie Constitutional amendments you've put in place. Amend again, and raise property taxes. If you do not, I'm not sure what you think the rest of us can do for you. :shrug:

I don't see how that would break the state. How much do you pay?

I pay over $4500/year for my bungalow in the State of Michigan. Wanna bet that your condo is worth over twice what my house is? :hi:

Michigan being in even worse condition than California.

Do you think that's your fault for paying so little?

California's is said to be close to 10 times that. California doesn't have anything like 10 times the population of Michigan. :hi:


And yes, btw: to the extent that we have a budget shortfall in Michigan, we'll have to raise taxes or cut services. This is not a state specific sort of logic. :silly:

property as well as residential. So what you say? A good portion of real estate in commercial/industrial area is held by an LLC or corporation. Even those that are "owned" by other corporations. When they want to sell the property, which one think would reset the property taxes, they don't actually sell the land/building itself. They sell the LLC/corp. instead. No new deed gets recorded. No taxes get raised. The LLC's sole assets are the particular property. I help businesses do this all the time in my line of work - one thing (of many) I don't like about my job.

this is reckless and dangerous -- for women and children left at the mercy

of abusers.

a little under $200,000 a piece. Big whoop.

:kick:

Evil, pure evil. :cry:

The only mainstream one at the time was run by Catholic Charities, which (surprise!) wouldn't take women who had been battered by their same-sex partners.

One time she even sent a referral over to my spare bedroom!

And now the "Golden" State is trying to emulate New Orleans?! :wtf: