Monday, October 19, 2009

I Know No One Will Read it, But....

I just sent off a letter to John Cornyn. Which will be summarily deleted, I have no doubt.

Why would I do that, you ask?

Because he voted in favor of gang rape, along with 29 other fine U.S. Senators.

Surely not, you say! But unfortunately, it's true. I first read about it at appletreeblog.com, but it's been in both the news and the fake news:

The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Rape-Nuts
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show
Full Episodes
Political HumorRon Paul Interview


There's not much that can be done at this point beyond expressing my outrage, because despite the acts of these thirty senators, the legislation did pass. Now, thankfully, federal contractors will be subject to civil lawsuits if they are found negligent in cases of sexual assault and other crimes of the person. Victims will be permitted to sue their employers instead of being subject to arbitration agreements; arbitration is not only expensive, but it is weighed heavily in favor of the employers.

Nonetheless, I felt compelled to shoot off a short note to John Cornyn anyway:

Mr. Cornyn:

I was deeply disappointed to learn of your recent vote in favor of protecting overseas federal contractors whose employees engage in rape and other forms of assault against female employees. I understand the scenario of federal contractors protecting violent employees and furthering an environment that makes sexual assaults likely is not uncommon - to see you and a number of other Republicans vote to uphold the status quo was extremely upsetting to me as a woman.

In fact, I cannot stress how much I was upset upon learning that anyone opposed this legislation. As far as I am concerned, the matter is neither Republican nor Democrat, but rather a basic human issue. I have friends who are rape survivors and the victim never completely recovers from the experience; I cannot imagine affirmatively protecting an entity that harbors a corporate atmosphere that makes such an assault possible or even likely. I cannot imagine protecting an entity that covers up systematic sexual assault.

Your vote tells me that you value corporations over women's safety and it makes me wonder why a corporation is a higher priority to you.

Please think about the real consequences of your vote in the future - it's not always "politics as usual." Sometimes you have the chance to really help and sometimes it's more important to do what's right rather than walk the party line.

Sincerely,

[Name and Address]


So he'll have that to delete first thing in the morning, but it was better than not saying anything.

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