Diversity of a Financial Sort

If you know even a few things about good investing, you’ll know that diversification is one of the fundamental keys to long-term success. This week over at Queercents (and on her own blog), Helen compares two popular ways of diversifying one’s investments, through index funds and exchange-traded funds (ETF’s).

That may send some of you running, but really, she tries to keep it simple. I think it’s good basic knowledge to have even for those with minimal levels of investments.

Of course, sometimes it pays to start even simpler. Our son is having a great time collecting all the state quarters—though I think the lesson he’s learning is more about geography than finance. He’s convinced now, though, that each state has its own currency.

What monetary misconceptions have your children had?

Another Elementary School Suicide

Another 11-year-old boy, Jaheem Herrera, has hanged himself after enduring repeated bullying. (The horrible news comes via Will at Pam’s.) There is some reporting that he was bullied with anti-LGBT taunts, among others.

Just last week, after the suicide of Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover, I asked “How many more children must die before we as a society get a clue?”

This is one too many.

We as a community of parents and citizens must hold our schools to account. It could start as simply as having the parents’ associations require principals to state publicly how many reported incidents of bullying there were each month or semester, and what was done. Parents could then provide further evaluation and a check to make sure enough was done. Other ideas?

GLSEN has anti-bullying resources, focused around anti-LGBT bullying. HRC’s Welcoming Schools program and PFLAG’s Cultivating Respect also have some. Tolerance.org, from the Southern Poverty Law Center, has more general anti-bullying resources.

Family Voices International: X

Here is the tenth interview in this phase of the Family Voices series. This time around, I am teaming up with Julieta of Ju, An y el Perro Activista to extend the series to include non-U.S. LGBT families. Julieta has also done Spanish translations of all the interviews, which you will find after the English below, and at her blog.

Silvia and Daniela live in Italy and were expecting their first child just after they did the interview below. We wish them well with their growing family! Read the rest of this post »

LGBT Family Study – Help Wanted

Passing along this request for LGBT families to take part in a short online survey. I don’t know the researchers myself, but blogger and LGBT activist Helen Boyd of en | Gender, who also teaches at Lawrence University, vouches for the professors and students involved.

If you have a few minutes, please help them out!

To LGBT parents:

We would like to explore the experiences and perspectives of LGBT parents in a wide range of communities in the United States. In particular, we are interested in your views on the unique set of challenges that families with same-sex parents may face as a result of social policies and attitudes, and how they may overcome or manage these challenges. Read the rest of this post »

The Tomboyest Character on Children’s Television?

I was dubious—nay, horrified—when I first heard of Disney’s new variation on the Winnie the Pooh story a couple of years ago. The show My Friends Tigger and Pooh would feature not the beloved Christopher Robin, but a newly created little girl, “Darby.” Darby, Pooh, and their friends would form a group called the “Super Sleuths” and solve mysteries. It wouldn’t be a bad premise for a kids’ show in general, but it seemed like heresy when applied to the sacred Pooh.

We happened to catch an episode here at the House of Mombian the other day, however, and wow, was I surprised. Little Darby just might be the tomboyest character to grace kids’ television since Peppermint Patty. With bobbed red hair and freckles like her predecessor, Darby also sports:

• A baseball cap
• Cargo pants
• A lavender tank top (over a t-shirt)
• Sensible brown shoes
• Nothing pink (Well, OK, she sometimes busts out a hot pink scooter and helmet, but I’d like to think that’s just until she saves up enough for a Harley. Not to mention that Piglet, who uses male pronouns, seems very comfortable wearing hot pink himself.)

Disney might not have created Darby with the intent of making her a baby dyke, but she sure displays many of the signs. (I know, I know, stereotypes. But tell me that wardrobe combination wouldn’t ping your gaydar.)

Now, I like the show well enough, but it doesn’t blow my socks off. It’s less shrill than Dora the Explorer or Bob the Builder, and teaches nice lessons about problem-solving and friendship, but doesn’t display the brilliance of PBS’ Sesame Street, Between the Lions, or even Jakers!, which I like a lot from a storytelling perspective (and did even before I knew the lead character was voiced by out actor Maile Flanagan). Still, kudos to Disney for creating a female character who could be a role model for a young girl figuring out that her identity tended toward the less-than princess-y.

Now if only someone would do a mashup in which she and Peppermint Patty start a softball team . . . .

Weekly Political Roundup

(Parenting-related news gets its own roundup around here.)

• Steve Schmidt, John McCain’s campaign manager, said, “There is a sound conservative argument to be made for same-sex marriage.” (I leave it as a matter of discussion as to whether there is a sound argument for conservatism.) A new poll also shows Republican insiders are almost evenly divided on whether to oppose or support marriage equality.
• Mercedes Marquez, head of the Los Angeles Housing Department and an out lesbian, has been appointed Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. (Think of this as the lesbian obsession with Home Depot, on steroids.)
• Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said any repeal of the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law would have to be undertaken slowly, and that it might not happen at all.
• U.S. Rep Jared Polis (D-CO) explains why we need an LGBT-inclusive federal hate crimes law. Read the rest of this post »

Silence – Then Not

Today marks the 13th annual Day of Silence, an event where students from middle school to college take some form of a vow of silence to bring attention to anti-LGBT name-calling, bullying and harassment.

Last year’s event was in memory of Lawrence King, the California eighth-grader shot to death by a classmate because of his sexual orientation and gender expression.

We hoped his tragic death would at least lead to change.

No such luck.

This year, some students are honoring in memory of Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover, an 11-year-old from Springfield, Mass., who took his life April 6 after enduring constant bullying at school, including anti-LGBT attacks, even though he did not identify as gay. He would have turned 12 today.

This is not a “gay” problem, as Walker’s mother said in an interview with the Advocate. This is a societal problem that affects those most vulnerable, our children.

Today many stay silent to make this point. Tomorrow let’s make some noise about this.

Penguin Three-peat!

For the third year in a row, Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell’s And Tango Makes Three, about two male penguins who care for an orphaned egg and raise a chick, tops the American Library Association’s (ALA) Top Ten list of the Most Frequently Challenged Books. This despite the fact that the book is based on an actual same-sex penguin pair, and they are not the only ones.

Sarah Brannen’s guinea pig tale, Uncle Bobby’s Wedding, enters the list this year as I predicted. Since I’ve gone on and on about book challenges before, I’ll just refer you to my piece for last year’s Banned Books Week, in which I discuss Tango, Uncle Bobby, and even Sarah Palin. If you haven’t read the post yet, try to guess which children’s book featuring rabbits was challenged in 1959 for promoting (gasp!) interracial marriage.

Le plus ça change . . . .