User:Mary E. Livingston

I am in the progress of reading "The Cult of the Amateur" by Andrew Keen, and like the idea of a moderated and edited reference resource on the Internet.

I delivered papers as a kid for spending money. I have an affinity for mainstream media and the professional level of verification required for folks with backbones to use their real names.

I learned my trade (computer technology) in the US Air Force, and earned an Associate's of Science during my 4 year tour. When I got out of the service, I moved to Hawaii and pursued various technical positions over a 30 year time span.

During my stay here in Hawaii, I earned another Associate's degree, this time in Liberal Arts. Went on as a volunteer in my spare time as the Honolulu Chapter President for the National Organization for Women. In that position I spoke publicly to organizations that our foe was actually insurance companies! Because discrimination was still legal against women, the insurers were permitted to pay a lower monthly pension to women because women tended to live longer than men. The political argument at the time against the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) was that women don't serve in combat positions, so don't deserve "equal rights". I believe this struggle is the root cause of why women are now in combat roles, and possibly why most corporations no longer carry company pensions.

My interest in politics having been piqued, I worked as a volunteer as a Hawaii State Senate Research Aide for Senator Steve Cobb. I prepared executive summaries of the various bills being considered on the Senate floor. I must have done ok, because I was invited back in a paid position the following year. Being inside the political process educated me to the slow process of compromise and progress. Being fairly young at the time, I was too impatient to continue further in that direction.

My extracurricular activities from then on were camping, team sports (outrigger canoeing), hiking, and yoga.