City Hall Wrap-Up

Last night, I spoke at City Hall with Ryan and Amber there to cheer me on. Also, the Grassroots Director for Planned Parenthood of Southwest Missouri attended to listen.

The meeting began with a prayer. Yes, everybody was asked to stand, bow their heads, and councilman Gary Danver led us in prayer. Of course, we Pastafarians exuberantly cried "Ramen!" when they were done. All the same, this was not a good omen for my upcoming speech about diverting more funding to STD screening. (It should be noted that we are probably going to make some noise in the future about this whole prayer thing...I mean, surely they've heard of the Bill of Rights, the First Amendment, the Establishment Clause...stuff like that.)

After about two hours, I got my five minutes and delivered my speech as best I could. Surprisingly, they listened. They asked questions, expressed their concern, and promised to get the Health Department on it, and to have them send me all relevant information as well - not what I expected at all, but most certainly a pleasant surprise.

Overall, I'd say it was a victory. I will keep you apprised to what happens next.