Thoroughly Modern Mary

Katie loves this image of Mary, the mother of Jesus.

She's modern and earthy -- a much more realistic image of Mary than what Katie witnessed during her convent years. Back then and still today, the Catholic Church stressed its teaching about Mary's lifelong virginity.

Katie thinks images of Mary in statues and art too often portray her in men's image of the ideal woman -- an unattainable pedestal from which all women are judged.

The above image, however, seems truer to women's lives. Mary, with little Jesus in one hand and a cup of java in another, is easy to identify with.

Katie keeps the modern image in a frame that hangs in her kitchen. Some mornings, after pouring herself a cup of coffee, Katie imagines chatting with Mary - woman to woman.

(Note: Katie found this image of Mary years ago in a 1998 issue of CCM magazine, p. 44.)

Breaking down barriers at the Times

After years and years of all-male hires, the New York Times has added a woman to its interactive news technologies staff.

Jacqui Maher, 32, joined a department of nine males earlier this month. (Good luck surviving that environment.)

The New York Post reported that Maher has been a developer for more than a decade. "She attended New York University and studied mathematics and philosophy before taking up developer-whiz jobs..."

Last year Maher climbed Mount Kilimanjaro and did volunteer work in Malawi, the Post said.

Katie hopes she'll soar at the Times, too.

She walked away from her dream job

"I didn't get the memo as a young girl that said you should have low self-esteem and put up with crap."


Katie-the-Bobblehead salutes Nell Scoville for respecting herself enough to walk away from a bad workplace.

But she's saddened that women are still put in this position.

Imagine what would have happened if this woman had complained to supervisors or Human Resources about her powerful boss. Do you think they would have cared?

Too often they circle behind the powerful boss -- often a master at spin, such as David Letterman. He's the star of the show, she's a nobody writer. He speaks to an audience of millions, she's an easily-replaced writer.

In many cases, the employers know the powerful boss is a bully, inappropriate, etc... They choose to look the other way or minimize the behavior. When it comes to ethics and justice for women, these employers are bankrupt.

If a woman speaks up what often happens is she finds herself on "trial." Employers often don't care about her story -- only about protecting themselves from lawsuits. They also want to secure the reputation of the "star" as well as their own, and that often means discrediting the worker.

The employer may go through the motions of an "investigation." During this time, a woman may be told to stay home, yet the powerful boss is allowed to continue working.

A double standard? Sexist? You betcha.

More than that, these employers taint the reputation of the worker by proceeding in this way. They also create an atmosphere of intimidation for other workers and send a strong message to other women not to complain about inappropriate supervisors.

They exacerbate the situation and escalate the hostile work environment. How could she ever return to her job? Once demonized, what co-worker would want to be seen befriending her? Most prefer to keep their noses clean and jobs secure. That's the point of these tactics. They also add to the woman's trauma and isolation, in addition to her loss of an income and health insurance.

Think of it in terms of the Good Samaritan parable. There's an individual who has been beaten on the side of the road. In the New Testament story, two people walk by and an unlikely third person helps.

But in the corporate scenario, when women speak out about bosses who abuse their power, often no one comes to their aid. In some worse-case scenarios, women are blamed for "triggering" the supervisor's outrageous behavior. (Battered women are often blamed for their partner's violence toward them, too.)

Katie has heard these stories of women many, many times over the years. And yes, from workers in religious organizations, too. It's not a thing of the past.

She wishes that 19 years ago David Letterman had lost his job instead of the writer. Think of how many other women in that workplace would have been spared harassment and exploitation.

The 30 Republicans

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Katie wishes to thank Jon Stewart for skewering the 30 Republican senators -- all white men -- who voted against a measure designed to help sexual assault victims.

Katie also thanks Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) for exposing defense contractors who force employees to sign contracts saying they won't sue in the event of a sexual assault.

Here's the link to Sen. Franken's Web site, which explains the legislation he proposed to guarantee these sexual assault victims an avenue to justice.

Below is the list of the 30 Republican senators who voted against the measure. Among them is 2008 Republican presidential candidate John McCain (R-AZ)

Lamar Alexander (R-TN)

John Barrasso (R-WY)

Kit Bond (R-MO)

Sam Brownback (R-KS)

Jim Bunning (R-KY)

Richard Burr (R-NC)

Saxby Chambliss (R-GA)

Tom Coburn (R-OK)

Thad Cochran (R-MS)

Bob Corker (R-TN)

John Cornyn (R-TX)

Mike Crapo (R-ID)

Jim DeMint (R-SC)

John Ensign (R-NV)

Mike Enzi (R-WY)

Lindsey Graham (R-SC)

Judd Gregg (R-NH)

James Inhofe (R-OK)

Johnny Isakson (R-GA)

Mike Johanns (R-NE)

Jon Kyl (R-AZ)

John McCain (R-AZ)

Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

James Risch (R-ID)

Pat Roberts (R-KS)

Jim Sessions (R-AL)

Richard Shelby (R-AL)

John Thune (R-SD)

David Vitter (R-LA)

Roger Wicker (R-MS)