Tickle · the · Pear

I like Ann Taylor too. I wear a lot of their stuff. I also used to wear a lot of Petite Sophisticated but then they closed shop. *sob*

I have been following the news about the cluster bombs. Despite the fact that I was kinda expecting the US to abstain, I couldn't help be a bit disappointed that they did.

Oh yeah Petite Sophisticate! I still have a suit I got there.

Our other big advocacy initiative is the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities and there's no chance the US is going to ratify that either.

The US might not ratify that but in my experience, a lot more is done for the 'Rights of People with Disabilities' in the US than in most of the other countries that I have been to.

The UK for example, will most probably sign that treaty, but most of the cities here are definitely not handicapped friendly. Yeah, most of the cities are ancient, but still, it's really difficult to get around here if you happen to be handicapped.

I agree that the Americans with Disabilities Act is pretty good compared to most countries but (1) many countries don't have the equivalent of ADA so the convention is a solid starting point and (2) the convention covers a lot of things that ADA doesn't, like statistics and census data, and the rights of women and children with disabilities.

I know that most people (myself included before I joined HI) think more in terms of physical accessibility but there other issues as well. For example in our HIV/AIDS projects there's a lot of work with sign language interpreters so that they respect patient confidentiality, aren't freaked out by terms like "anal sex," and know how to sign technical vocabulary like anti-retrovirals. So there's the accessibility part (making sure that deaf people can use appropriate HIV/AIDS materials) but also the awareness-raising part with the rest of the community.

That's a sweater? Don't they usually have higher necks and lower sleeves? Not sure it would provide much protection against the cold in DC.

Bonny, a stay-at-home mom, thinks Ann Taylor has great stuff (though not necessarily for someone who's around kids all the time).

Also...
http://vitw.org/archives/257
Ann Taylor and cluster bombs, together again for the very first time,
though this surely isn't exactly what you meant. 8-)

I have been following the news about cluster bombs to. Spain has signed, but there are spanish companies who manufacture them. There was a local campaign to send them protest cards and I did.

It's disgusting. Every time I'm researching and I stumble upon a company that makes bombs or weapons, I shudder. Luckily my bosses don't want us including these sort of companies in our mappings.

When I was in Brazil the Brazilians were shocked that Brazil is a major producer too - who would ever suspect?

Yeah, it's not like it's advertised on TV or anything. It's good that there are organisations like yours that raise awareness.

And a shame that the US hasn't signed. Do you think that Obama or Clinton would be more receptive? (not asking about McCain because he doesn't seem the type to raise these issues)

Super cute sweater!

It ended up being half price because of an additional discount.

How about this dress for you?

noooo that would only serve to accentuate my giant bum!

Ya think?!