Equal rights, equal opportunities: Progress for all...

Founded in 1910, International Women's Day marked its 100th anniversary this past Monday. Begun by Clara Zetkin at the Conference for Working Women in Copenhagen, Denmark, the holiday has evolved into a day to mark the progress women have made and to call attention to the work that still needs to be done.

To that end, I have a couple stories today marking women's progress and achievements. The first comes from Good Housekeeping. As part of the magazine's 125th anniversary (anniversaries all around this week, I guess), the editorial staff chose to recognize and celebrate 125 years of influential women in the April issue. The website Tonic quoted a press release that said the event GH is hosting, called "'Shine On,' will salute icons, visionaries, goddesses, and even 'hellraisers,'" including Susan B. Anthony, Sally Ride and Madonna. "Shine On" will be held to raise money to build the first-ever permanent location of the National Women's History Museum in Washington, D.C.

International Women's Day (which is a national holiday in places like Vietnam, China and Bulgaria...) was observed in D.C. by a number of organizations. Congress was not about to miss out on the action. The Boston Globe reported the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) received the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honor, in a ceremony today. WASPs flew non-combat missions during World War II to free up male pilots for combat duties overseas. Thirty-eight of the more than 1000 women pilots were killed in the service of their country, yet never received military honors or recognition for their sacrifice since they were technically civilians.

Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness...

Little known fact about the Fourth of July: then-future president John Adams thought people would celebrate our nation's day independence on July 2, the day the Declaration was officially accepted by the Continental Congress, not July 4 - the day it was official to the rest of the colonies.

So in deference to both President Adams and history, I'm going to split the difference and celebrate on my blog today. : )

The LA Times has an abridged version of the Declaration of Independence on one of its blogs. It is edited for length and typographical understanding. Personally I'm okay with omitting all the haths and thous in favor of clarity; this version does not diminish the power of the ideas and motivations of the men who crafted the original document.

The Daily Star in Oneonta, N.Y., publishes an editorial annually in time for the Fourth of July, entitled "Independence is the cornerstone of America." It talks not in grand language about the lofty ideals of the American democratic experiment but in simple terms about what it means to everyday people. It's no soapbox appeal, just a reminder that our country was founded to give people the freedom to say and do what they believe, regardless of whether someone else agrees with them. I think that's why I appreciate the Fourth on a level other than the ninth-grade U.S. history way - it's the one political holiday people all along the party spectrum can celebrate and not tilt its meaning to the left or right.  

On a slightly more down-to-earth level, the Denver Business Journal reported MillerCoors and Pizzeria Uno donated 8000 cases of beer and 25,000 pizzas to the men and women fighting in the Middle East on July 4. MillerCoors, Pizzeria Uno and DHL partnered with Pizzas 4 Patriots, a non-profit committed to sending food and beverages to soldiers overseas. 

I thought it might be fitting to put the National Anthem on here instead of a picture today, and this particular version struck me on YouTube. I still can't decide if it's original or slightly disrespectful. I'm leaning toward original since I've never seen the reaction Marvin Gaye gets to his rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" (written in Baltimore - yay Maryland!) at the 1983 NBA All-Star Game.