I'm happy to report that I got an email from my mentor and first employer Erika this weekend. I love her and appreciate her impact on my life probably more than she would ever know. She was my boss at my first activist job after college at Planned Parenthood in Kansas City, Missouri. But I find myself saddened by her note because she's discouraged by the election of President Bush and how it has empowered all of the anti-choice nuts who protest outside the clinics. They now are even more excited and enthused about trying to destroy (i.e. bomb) the clinics and intimidate, frighten, and threaten the patients and staff. And with Ashcroft the choice for Attorney General, they are even more emboldened that they will not be stopped.

This reminds me that elections, news coverage, and political debates actually do have real life consequences affecting everyday people and that they are not just news stories.