Ladybird Johnson

[AngryAmish]

Still alive. Who knew?

[MrBenchley]

1. I didn't....

Nice lady with a funny nickname...

[Captain Hilts]

4. Her father gave her the nickname. "Pretty as a ladybird...."

Beats 'Claudia' any day.

Claudia Taylor Johnson.
Catherine Thelma Patricia Ryan
Betty Bloomer Warren Ford
Rossyln Smith Carter
1)Ann Francis Robbins
2)Nancy Davis
3)Nancy Davis Reagan
Barbara Pierce Bush
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Laura Welch Bush

[MrBenchley]

5. Ladybirds are one of those things that are on the cultural bubble...

Some people find them pretty (they actually ARE beneficial) and others are repulsed because they are, after all, bugs.



"Lady bird, lady bird, fly away home,
Your house is on fire, your children are gone..."

[Captain Hilts]

9. Um, that's a bug, not a bird. nt

[Contrary1]

11. Ladybird does refer to a bug...the ladybird beetle.

http://insected.arizona.edu/ladyinfo.htm

[MrBenchley]

12. It's a bug called a ladybird....

or a ladybug...

A very helpful friend for gardeners; it eats aphids. Some people consider that one landing on you is good luck.

[Captain Hilts]

2. You should have asked me. I do believe she is blind. nt

[Benhurst]

3. I guess she knows.

www.whitehouse.gov/history/firstladies/cj36.html

[tx_dem41]

6. I did..My father lives in Fredericksburg, TX about 15 miles from

the ranch. She attends his church occasionally.

[BlueStater]

7. Still alive. She'll be 93 in December. n/t

[Jack from Charlotte]

8. She's responsible for getting billboards taken off interstate hwy.'s

What was it called? Beautify America Program or some such? Wanted all those huge billboards removed.... which they did. However, billboards still are visible to interstate traffic in some places because their placed just behind the Federal hi way border. But when those big signs were removed... the Feds put up those small signs near exits with the local restaurant, gas station and motel names. Those signs are still called "Ladybird Signs" by some in the road planning business.

[Lisa]

10. and the highway beautification projects, too

She was also one of the first people to make the connection between poverty and environmental destruction. This helped shift the debate from environment vs. jobs ("tree-huggers don't understand that we can't hamstring the economy just to protect nature") to a broader understanding of how poor communities are often "sacrificed" (as industrial sites or toxic waste dumps). When she argued that it wasn't right for the rich to have a monopoly on beautiful things and places, while the poor had to live in ugly, dangerous settings ... it was the beginning of some significant changes in attitudes. I know that some right-wingers still argue that poor people "don't deserve" a healthy, clean, safe environment -- that they are too stupid/lazy/wicked. But a growing number of citizens (and planners and policymakers) are turning against that mindset.

Last year I had my students look at the most scenic and inviting places around town, and assess how open the access was. They were startled to find out that in the majority of cases, you had to live in an upscale neighborhood, or own a car, in order to get to them. There were financial (and in some cases, legal) constraints on poor people enjoying such settings. Ladybird had talked about this kind of thing decades before these kids were born.

[cmd]

13. Thank you, teacher

That was a great lesson plan!