Tomorrow at 9:30 am we'll take the next step. We've gotten a virtual second opinion from a friend of a friend who is a gyn oncologist at MD Anderson in Texas. All the docs are in agreement about the kind of chemo MJ should undergo, so tomorrow we start the process.The food deliveries continue and are miraculous and life affirming. In fact, the breadth of support that finds its way to MJ makes her courage about this voyage possible. And that's just as it should be.
"All things appear and disappear because of the concurrence of causes and conditions. Nothing ever exists entirely alone; everything is in relation to everything else." - Buddha
JR
Thinking of you; sending healing thoughts; and cheering for the chemo!!!
ReplyDeleteWay to go team Tocci! We are rooting for all of you.
ReplyDeleteHi, Bonehead: Is that a name from your past, or what? I saw how you handled moronic defense attorneys during our time we worked together, and I figure that you will stare down these chemo events with the same success. You are dearly loved by so many people that you will be carried through this with gusto. Much love, Nicki.
ReplyDeleteOK. You can do this, MJ. Imagine that all of us are holding you, gently but firmly. In many ways we really are. Much love, laurie
ReplyDeleteI love the image from Laurie above... Yes sweet MJ
ReplyDeleteWE ARE ALL HOLDING YOU GENTLY BUT FIRMLY
Much love from debrajune, terry, ella and lauryn
xoxo
dj.book@yahoo.com
My dear MJ:
ReplyDeleteThinking of you constantly and sending as much positive energy as I can muster. There is so much love and energy flowing your way there must be disturbances in the air pressure over Pittsburgh! Stay strong - and make sure they give you Atavan!
much love,
linda
All of you will be in my thoughts and prayers tomorrow morning, and going forward.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Ellen
"And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make," as the Beatles sang. So it's no surprise that MJ receives such an outpouring of love and support. We are with you on this journey, MJ.
ReplyDeleteMJ - I thought this would interest you:
ReplyDeleteSometimes a Girl Can't Win
Vivia Chen
July 20, 2010
Here's a hot tip for law firms that want to quash possible discrimination lawsuits by disgruntled women partners: Take those gals out of the income partner and of-counsel rank and give them equity--or something that kinda looks like equity.
In a big victory for Pittsburgh firm Dickie McCamey & Chilcote, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled that Alyson Kirleis is barred from suing her firm for sex discrimination. The Legal Intelligencer says that the court based its ruling on her status as a shareholder and director, which "gives her the ability to participate in firm governance and a percentage of firm profits."
Here's more:
ReplyDeleteReports the Legal Intelligencer:
The appellate judges issued a tersely worded, four-page, nonprecedential opinion that adopted the lower court's reasons for dismissing the case on summary judgment.
"We cannot agree that Kirleis is a mere employee of DMC, and our review of the record supports the district court's conclusion in this regard," Senior U.S. circuit judge Jane R. Roth wrote.
Because Kirleis was a Class A shareholder at her firm, the court said she had "the right not to be terminated without a vote by a supermajority of the firm's board." Hence, she couldn't "qualify as an employee under the multifactor test created by the U.S. Supreme Court." Only employees, reminded the court, have the right to sue for sex discrimination. (Kirleis argued that she should be "treated as an employee because her work is subject to the control of the firm's 13-member executive committee.)
I'm no expert on sex bias, but the ruling seems to bar claims of discrimination if you fall within the definition of equity, even though you might have suffered gender bias. Got that?
Indeed, Kirleis described some disturbing inequities at her firm that the court skipped over. Besides charging that her firm paid women lawyers less, she alleged:
[S]he was told by a male partner that a woman with children should relinquish her partnership and work only part-time. Kirleis, who has worked at the firm since 1988, also claimed she was told by another male partner that the role of women lawyers was to prepare lawsuits for trials that would be handled by male lawyers. The suit also included allegations that Kirleis has suffered retaliation since her suit was filed, and that Dickie McCamey's annual Christmas party is effectively closed to women "because of the sexually explicit nature of the entertainment including skits, songs, pornographic materials, and props."
Skits, songs, pornography--what fun! Who says the Mad Men era is dead? I love the series, but would women lawyers want to suffer the indignities that befall Peggy Olson in the pursuit of her career?
Look, I don't know if all of Kirleis's allegations are true, but I wish the court probed deeper instead of relying on a formalistic definition of equity. Does it take that much imagination to realize there could be inequity in the equity ranks? As any first-year law student knows, it's best to buddy up with those on the compensation committee or the executive committee. It's also a no-brainer that those committees tend to be populated by men.
The Intelligencer reports that Kirleis's "remaining options have now dwindled to statistically unlikely ones--seeking a rehearing before all 14 judges on the Third Circuit or petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court to take up her case." (Her lawyer, Edward Friedman, told The Intelligencer that he intends to seek a rehearing before the full court.)
I don't see much of a silver lining in this case, but Cynthia Calvert, one of the founders of PAR (Project for Attorney Retention at Hastings Law School), finds one: "Although the law firm won the appeal, it may have lost the war to the extent its reputation and its ability to recruit and retain women lawyers have been damaged by the allegations."
Let's hope the firm cares. To me, though, the case still points to the perils of suing for discrimination--at any level.
Hi, MJ, Jonathan, Sam, Zoe - we're checking in after a timely kick from Jody yesterday (just back from cabin, where we missed all of you a lot).
ReplyDeleteLove to all of you from Bobbye, Bob, Robby.
We'll stay in touch on the journey, MJ. We love you.