It's Time to Think
Some books that you start reading…you just know…it’s a keeper. That’s how I felt as soon as I read the first couple pages of Lisa Bloom’s book: Think: Straight Talk for Women to Stay Smart in a Dumbed-Down World. I met Ms. Bloom and she gave me a copy of her book to read—and I think it is absolutely brilliant. And I’m thrilled because Ms. Bloom has offered to do an interview with me on the blog to share with you after I’ve read the piece.You’ve probably seen her on TV before. She is a nationally televised legal analyst and she offers commentary on just about every trial, most recently the Casey Anthony scandal. But that’s just the thing. Ms. Bloom writes about how we as a nation are obsessed with pop culture. Who is Casey Anthony anyway? Does it really matter compared to what is going on in Afghanistan or in our (vacant) classrooms? The meaningful matter—like the fact that young women in third world countries are not able to access an education—has become more of a matter of minutia amongst the meaningless clutter of celebrity livelihood.I’m making Think the book of the month. I really hope you’ll pick it up because truly, I believe it is a life changing piece, especially for young women who are obsessed (whether they acknowledge it or not) with what Kim Kardashian wore rather than how America ranks #31 in the world in regards to female integration, as recorded by the 2009 Global Gender Gap. In fact, America has fewer women in elective office than there were 20 years ago and currently, even places like Rwanda are blowing us out of the water—they have a majority of female legislatures where we are in the minority.
Lisa Bloom has done her research. The facts are startling. Frightening in fact. One in five Americans thinks the sun revolves around the Earth and the majority cannot name a single branch of government (executive, legislative, and judiciary in case you were furrowing your brow). But seriously, this is a problem. It’s a silent epidemic that begins not only with our lack of education, but with our lack-luster love for learning. Ms. Bloom wants to do something about it. And so do I.I think the first step is picking up this book.Keep shining,The Sunny Girl, Lauren Cook