Oh, and because I simply can’t resist – I hope this is true: Rove Informs White House He Will Be Indicted [Turns out not to be true, unfortunately. Truthout.org is a propaganda site. See this: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/13/washington/13cnd-leak.html] (Thanks to Liam for posting the link.) Maybe there’s a little hope out there in the midst of this Pandora’s Box we’ve got open right now…

A couple more things I forgot last night, in the haze…

First up, while we were stuck in traffic last night, heading down to see Midsummer, I tuned in to Marketplace in the middle of this story:

A mom’s road back to work is often bumpy

At least I’m not alone.

Before kids, when I interviewed, generally speaking, I had the option to turn offers down. So far this time, I’ve been on two interviews, and I’ve been told twice I’m not right for the job. I suspect it’s because of my kids.

So what do I do? Lie? Tell them I have kids but I also don’t care?

I don’t want to freelance anymore. It’s a pain and the pay is insufficient to cover everything. But if I can’t get a job with the kind of pay I need to cover child care, then what’s the point in trying?

With all the fuss made about “family values” I’d like to see some fuss made to help *support* those of us who care about those family values. Lucky for me, my husband has a decent job. I can’t imagine what would happen if that wasn’t the case.

You know, for all the fuss we’ve made over the last 20 years about the improvements to life and work, how am I so much different from a woman in the 50s? I suppose the opportunities are out there, but if the companies aren’t hiring me, then they aren’t opportunities, are they?

On a related note: I ranted at a friend’s a few weeks ago about education and No Child Left Behind. It’s a sore point for me. Very sore. Having gone through a year of life with today’s kindergartener, I can say with certainty that 15 years down the road, we’ll see all the damage the current administration has done with this so-called insurance policy for kids. We’ll have fewer teachers, more kids to teach, and more kids falling through the cracks or dumbing down because the needs of the few outweigh the needs of the many.

If you’re going to force kids to know the stuff they should *before* starting kindergarten, and you’re not providing proper advance notice to parents, there’s no way the kids will be able to catch up. I’m lucky (again). I can afford to send my kids to preschool (even if it’s a coop program and I have to be in class once a month). But how is it for the kids whose parents can’t afford preschool, but who can’t qualify for Head Start either?

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.

Don’t give me another damn tax cut. Better yet, don’t give yourself another tax cut. Go give the money to the programs (like Education) that need it! Regulate the industries where spending has gone out of control! Or find a way to mandate something for education for which you can actually afford to pay.

And you can start by making it possible for us women with children to find a place in the work force so we can afford to help pay for all this stuff!!!