Month: April 2013

Linux and a cisco AE2500 sittin in a tree, NOT k-i-s-s-i-n-g. First comes the ndiswrapper, then comes the windows driver, but still no love in the heart of the linux city. Ain’t got not wireless love in the heart of town. Forgive me for the mixing my musical metaphors, but I’m thinking Meatloaf’s, 2 out of 3 ain’t bad, isn’t quite good enough for my Ubuntu install. Me wants some wireless internet…

So, to elaborate a bit about on my earlier post about Annette Funicello and Margaret Thatcher. In school during the 80’s and 90’s, I heard and read a lot about Margaret Thatcher as I studied current events, world history, and to a lesser extent, politics. It wasn’t that I didn’t know who Annette Funicello was, I had probably seen a movie or two of hers, but she wasn’t on the same radar, that’s for certain. I had other analogues, to be sure- Molly Ringwald, Bo Derek and Daryl Hannah come to mind, but this was different.

You see, up until a certain age, barring deliberate indoctrination by parental units or other close authority figures, you pretty much live your life assuming that men and women can do, and be, pretty much anything they want. If your dad wanted to stay home and clean house, you didn’t care. If mom wanted to run for mayor, that’s not something you questioned, you just accept that’s what they set out to do. Margaret Thatcher was a lot like that. Prime Minister of Britain, a place that plays a significant role in a lot of our earlier education, she was the leader of a very powerful country. We didn’t question her place there, we just accepted that she had earned it and it was perfectly natural for women to be in positions of power in leadership.

It wasn’t until I got older that terms like glass ceiling, sexism, gender inequality, etc. made their way into my understanding and I was able to question why there were a lot of female teachers, but much fewer administrators. Why Oprah, Meg Whitman and Condoleezza Rice were exceptions rather than expectations.

So yeah, an iconic star of a memorable tv show has passed away and she gets top billing. A definitive film critic passes away and he gets breaking news. But one of the most influential women of the 20th century in the world gets a line item*…that has me asking, “Why?”

*Note, this applies to MSN.com only, as I have been assurred that other news stations have handled things differently.