To be political means to speak out, to risk being called 'catty', or worse. I don't hear men worrying about whether they may be right or not. They enjoy the fight, whether it is with words or fists. Women still tend to shy away from controversy, to be uncomfortable with competition.

If we are serious about providing upward mobility and building a skilled workforce, pre-school is the place to begin.

It is easy but inaccurate to label any legislation which makes it easier for working families to combine family and work responsibilities 'job killers.'

Contradictory as it seems, malnutrition is a key contributor to obesity.

Many women do not want to venture out into the 'opinion world' until they are certain of themselves, the facts, and that they are right. They are afraid of being shot down. The result is often silence.

Women in leadership cannot cry without raising a storm of commentary.

Many businesses oppose any government mandates, even if they are already following them.

There are no more excuses for leaving women out of the inner circles of power. Qualified women are everywhere. Women are ready for leadership; they just need to be identified and asked.

Most often, qualifications are defined by the credentials of the person who last held the job. If that is to continue to be the litmus test, white males will continue to be the top choice on any list, if the interviewer is also a white male.

Remember what Susan B. Anthony said? 'Failure is impossible.' Failure is possible if women don't vote.

A source of conflict for women everywhere is the pull between reproduction and production. Women worldwide have difficulty in balancing their dual roles as caregivers and providers.

Most babies know how to win us over. We cannot help but smile at them and watch them smile back.

Why is computer science a good field for women? For one thing, that's where the jobs are, and for another, the pay is better than for many jobs, and finally, it's easier to combine career and family.

In Washington, the translation of E Pluribus Unum has been lost. The belief that we are one nation - united in purpose - caring about and for one another is no longer the practice.

Legislative proposals that would enable an employer to determine whether or not a woman's insurance would cover the cost of birth control strikes women as particularly bizarre. Is the boss going to take care of the children that are conceived accidentally? Stop treating us like children. Women are grown ups.

Video games seem to be mostly a boy thing - viewed by young boys and created by big boys. I believe that if more videos games were created by women, the violence in these games - especially against women - would be rapidly toned down.

The health benefits of paid sick days policies are obvious. They prevent the spread of disease. But the impact is wider. If a working mom or dad loses a job because of sickness, the family may slip into poverty.

Babies are smart. They can tell the difference between a responsive face and a blank face, wiped clean of emotion.

The first thousand days of a baby's life are likely to determine the rest of her life - whether she grows up to be healthy or not, both physically and emotionally.

Statistics do not convey emotion. They shock us for a minute or two, and then we click again.

The focus of Congress is on keeping the nation secure - and it doesn't see that food security is an essential part of that responsibility. Instead of putting more food on the tables of America, they are busy finding ways to take it away.

We continue to blame the poor for their own condition. They are lazy. We do not want to know that the poorest of the poor are toddlers under three years of age.

A small pay discrepancy between men's and women's salaries for the same job may seem inconsequential. But over the years, salary discrimination adds up to a significantly smaller pension.

Simply put, when women do well, everybody does better.

We must speed up the time table for fathers, brothers and sons to provide their mothers, daughters and sisters with the same opportunities that they give themselves.

One reason the United States is one of three countries in the world that do not have any form of paid maternity leave is that many American business leaders, like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, oppose any family-friendly policies. They scare people into thinking maternity leave will be a job killer.

Most female CEOs have been more understanding than their male counterparts, of the stress that new mothers experience to 'do it all,' which often means, 'all by themselves.' Why? They've been there. They understand the policies needed to keep women in the workforce.

Investment in early education is not a Liberal or Conservative idea. Nor should it be decided along party lines.

The United States is no longer first in the world in upward mobility. We can reverse that trend by giving our young children an equal start in life as they begin their journey to fulfill the American Dream.

The best antidote to poverty remains simple - a paycheck. Policies like paid family leave, workplace flexibility and affordable quality childcare can make the difference for two-parent or single-parent working families who struggle to make ends meet.

Working moms, and increasingly working dads, don't want a government handout, but they do need a hand up.

'Job Killer.' Those are the two words you are most likely to hear uttered by most American CEOs when confronted with proposals to enact family-friendly work policies.

If we are to create a new agenda for family/work policies, employers and employees have to take a seat at the same table and recognize their mutual gains.

To make flexibility work, it is not only necessary to change our attitude about who is a good worker and who is not, but we have to train managers at all levels to recognize the difference between the number of hours worked and the quality of work produced.

When I ran for governor, was I ambitious? Yes. Anyone, male or female, who goes through the trials of a campaign must be ambitious.

'Power' is an explosive word, particularly when applied to women.

There are not many female role models to guide voters, and the tradition that a Southern woman's place is in the home still lingers in some quarters.

The vice presidential candidate does not usually make much difference at the polls. But that may be changing as voters become more aware that the understudy must be ready to take over if needed.

I'm not going to be bullied or pushed around by the group of the day. You've got to have political courage. You've got to have your own inner beliefs.

If being a woman is a factor politically, it's usually not because of a conscious bias, but because women are a novelty.

Somehow I got the feeling at an early age that I had to do something important with my life.

You have to build your credentials as a candidate, not just as a woman. You also have to be willing to exercise power. We've been educated to be mothers, peacemakers, but we must learn that we can't please everybody.

It is the future, of course, which politicians grapple with, and that is why politics is so disorderly. Only history clears away some of the debris.

As for a fantasy life, working women are more likely to fantasize about finding the perfect child care provider who she can both trust and afford. She might also fantasize that tonight her husband will both shop for and cook dinner.

I hadn't thought that women were particularly dangerous golfers. Could that be the reason that the Augusta National Golf club refuses to take down its 'No Women Allowed' sign?

Money often determines not only who gets elected, but what gets done. Which voices do lawmakers listen to, the banks or home owners, coal companies, or asthma sufferers, the CEOs or the unemployed?

Children refuse to compromise. Adults learn how.

Sometimes compromise is painful.

It's time to recognize what compromise means: no side wins or loses all.

We assume in our daily lives that the world is both safe and sane. Otherwise, we could not carry on.