Questions, I Got Questions

Some depressing news--the poverty rate in the U.S. is at its highest in 16 years. Ummmm.....why do you suppose it is that for as much as republicans are hammering Democrats on the economy, they're not mentioning this fact? Don't you think the Dems would be pounding the republicans on this were the shoe on the other foot? Don't you think this speaks volumes about where the republicans' interest lies?

The Free Press occasionally runs a pair of pieces on their op-ed page(s), called "Opposing points of view" which are sometimes interesting (and sometimes not). This week's dealt with a proposal to limit appeals of conviction to one year (with our shoddy justice system, I didn't even have to read the opposing views to know where I stood--against!). The first piece, by David A. Moran of the Michigan Innocence Clinic, is a well written and compelling argument against setting a time limit. The opposing piece, by Wayne County Prosecuting Attorney Kym Worthy, argues in favor of the time limit because, of all things, justice demands finality. While I have no doubt that some sort of finality is important, shouldn't the real goal of our justice system be to make sure we aren't incarcerating innocent people? Or how about not wasting thousands of taxpayer dollars incarcerating innocent people? Or, hell, even making sure that we have the actual guilty criminals behind bars and not continuing their crimes on our streets? Why is it that it sure as hell seems prosecutors are a lot more interested in adding another victory notch to their belt on their way to running for higher office than justice?

I've read this piece by Brian Dickerson and I'm honestly not sure what point he's making about the tea party--I'm not even sure it's necessarily your usual mainstream media goop about the tea party. Outwardly, he is discussing the success of the tea party and its seeming lack of leaders, but is he subtly questioning this assumption? How come he never made mention of the New Yorker's Jane Mayer's piece about the Koch brothers' stealth financial support of the tea party? How come there was no mention of Dick Armey's Freedomworks and their behind the scenes structuring of the tea party? No idea, but I have a feeling he missed a good opportunity to educate his readers.

Quote of the week: "When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying the cross." Often attributed to the first American Literature Nobel Laureate, Sinclair Lewis (interesting discussion of the source of the quote here), has anyone seen or heard a quote that better sums up the tea party ("Fucking idiots!" doesn't count)? Check this out for its "newfound" ties to the religious right....

Peace,
emaycee

Woo-Hoo!

A very beautiful thing happened today--despite its flaws, despite our disappointment, some very good pieces of the Affordable Care Act went into effect today, including one that benefits my family personally: if I choose to leave my shit job tomorrow, whatever company hires me will not be able to have its health insurance company deny coverage to the Beautiful Boy because he has a pre-existing condition. To which I have one thought: biiiitttttccccchhhhhinnnnnnn'.

Oh, and one other short thought: fuck the health insurance industry!

Peace,
emaycee

What He Said

Bill in Portland Maine has written a compelling and easy to understand piece on why it is vital for Democrats to hold their noses and get out and vote on November 2nd: because your very survival and any hope you have for progress in America depends upon it. Period.

Preach it brothers and sisters!

Peace,
emaycee

My Healthcare Horror Story

For those not familiar, a few months back the Beautiful Boy was diagnosed with ADHD. No big deal--working with his doctor, and to an extent, his school, we started him on medication. It has gone very well (though certainly not perfectly)--his condition has improved markedly. Also for those not familiar, like many medications, one can eventually plateau with ADHD medication and need to switch to another prescription to reignite the brain. This is what happened to the Beautiful Boy. Like any good parents, we noticed he was slipping, took him to his doctor, who also noticed and wrote a new prescription. Off to the pharmacy, and voila, he'd be on the road to stability again. Not so fast, bucko.... I dropped the prescription at the pharmacy that my company requires me to use or else pay exorbitant prices at 11:00 am on a Tuesday. By five o'clock I was told that it had yet to be authorized. By six-thirty, I was told I'd have to wait until tomorrow because the woman who had to authorize it was off at five. Keep in mind, we're dealing with the health of a five year old here. We went through the same rigamarole on Wednesday. On Thursday, the Beautiful Girl got a call from our doctor's office (but not the insurance company who had to authorize it) telling us the claim had been denied. So she made a trip to the doctor, got a new prescription, and it was finally filled on Thursday, more than 48 hours after we originally had dropped off the prescription. The reason it was denied? Well, we didn't find that out until the Tuesday after the original drop off when we received a letter from the company telling us that the medication wasn't approved for children under six years of age. Of note: neither was the last medication he was on, and they approved that one. Also of note: he turns six in a month. The reason I mention this is because there are people fighting tooth and nail against National Health Insurance by claiming that the government would fuck it up. Really? Worse than the insurance company handled our claim? At no time did we have access to the insurance company, at no time were we notified of the current status of our claim, and even worse, they have banker's hours...who the fuck lives in a five o'clock world anymore? I can guarantee you that if the government ran it we would, at the very least, have a helpline to call to expedite our claims and can absolutely guarantee that people would be on the job past five o'clock. So for all those who claim the government would fuck up our healthcare, I have but one retort: Fuck you, next idiot please! We need National Health Insurance, and we need it now. Still don't think so? Check out this piece: health insurance companies are stopping offering coverage to children because of the law that goes into effect tomorrow requiring them to cover children with pre-existing conditions. May all insurance companies and their executives rot in hell. Peace, emaycee

Why I'm Going to Vote and Vote Democrat in November

So President Obama is on the road and touting what he's done as well as asking--rightly--exactly what the republicans and their Taliban friends in the tea party are going to do to fix the economy (short answer: nothing!).

The night President Obama was elected, I told the Beautiful Girl that if he turned out to be a disappointment for Progressives, I would probably be the most discouraged voter in history. Guess what? Pretty much every time I look at Obama it's like remembering the girl you never asked out and wondering what would have been had you actually had the courage to ask her. There's just a sinking feeling in the chest. (Note: this only works when you're single--when you're in a good relationship, you don't think about her anymore....)

Still, for all the anguish, can you imagine what it would be like if McCain and that fucking moron Palin had won? Jesus Christ, it would be anarchy at best and utter chaos at worst. I mention this because of the results of some polling in the Free Press--69% of Michiganders oppose raising the age to receive Medicare (26% favor); 52% favor eliminating the cap on payroll taxes to strengthen Social Security (31% oppose); 49% favor letting the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy (42% oppose)...are you sensing a pattern here? Do these sound like conservative ideas? And yet, we're preparing to elect a man by a wide margin from a party that opposes all of these positions supported by a vast majority of Michiganders. What the fuck?

And this is why I'll be voting and voting Democrat this fall--to help protect us from ourselves.

Or as Walt Kelly's Pogo opined: "We have met the enemy and he is us."

Peace,
emaycee

An Analogy

Say you get home late from work one night, and you're starving. Just have to have something to eat...but, it's a few days before payday and all that's in the house is bread and peanut butter. With no funds, a quick jaunt to the grocery store or Taco Bell is out of the question, so you settle for a peanut butter sandwich. It may not be mouth watering, it may not be what you wanted, but it gets the job done. Now switch to a couple of days after payday. You come home starving again, but you've had a chance to do some grocery shopping and you've got some steaks in the fridge, the fixing for some tacos, some pork chops, hell, you've even got some hot dogs and a can of Hormel chili for the quick meal in case you're too tired to cook. Now, are you going to have a peanut butter sandwich on this night? Hell no! You're going to eat good. For those idiots out there like Christine O'Donnell, the republican candidate for Senate in Delaware, in the above analogy the peanut butter sandwich is masturbation; the steak, the tacos, the pork chops, hell, even the chili dogs are sex with a real woman. This is why you're "in the picture" so to speak. (Special shout out for this piece--and video--both quite amusing). Peace, emaycee

Be Still My Beating Heart...Well, Almost

Kind of an interesting week in the Free Press.... Shock of all shocks, Stephen Henderson actually defends Obamanomics, and calls out the republicans for having no ideas and no strategy other than bitching for turning the economy around. And the Free Press editorial board follows it up later in the week with another piece calling out the republicans for having no credible alternative, other than tax cuts (for which there is no empirical evidence for strenghtening the economy). You might wonder why the Free Press has suddenly had a change of heart from their usual Kumbaya mantra, but methinks as the election gets closer and closer, we might see a lot more of this type of narrative: the base just may come home, if nothing else, out of abject fear. Along those same lines, Brian Dickerson finally puts his Princeton degree to good use while pointing out how worried CEOS are about new regulations that will require them to disclose the ratio between their compensation and that of their employees. Dickerson rightly points out that their fears are not that their employees won't fully understand, but will understand all too well how much they're getting fucked by their not so competent leadership. Pinch me, I must be dreaming.... Even old Nolan gets one right in discussing the great state of Michigan's problem with high school dropout rates. And actually proposes ideas that aren't your usual republican LSD trip taker on steroids rant. What the hell...give him a week, and he'll be back to his usual self, but I'll take the occasional surprise. But then there's this and you just have to say what the fuck? Ostensibly, the piece is the weekly business column "At Issue" which (sometimes) discusses various business and consumer issues and gives some sort of analysis featuring arguments from both sides. Apparently this week, that was more than Margaret Collins limited abilities could handle, as she attempted to discuss the upcoming expiration of the Bush tax cuts. In reality, the piece was nothing more than a financial advice column for the wealthiest of Americans (the 315,000 who make $1 million or more who will be affected by Obama's plan to let the cuts expire for those making more than $250k) on how to avoid paying such taxes. In typical business world tone deafness to those of us not fortunate enough to have the ability of carnival booth workers talent for swindling, she poses, as an example, that their increase in taxes will be the equivalent of a BMW Z4. A fucking Beemer! Now that's the way to gain empathy for those wealthy folks--use the price of a car that is more than most people make in a year as an example! And trouble is, there are people stupid enough to fall for this bullshit. Not me--and for those complaing about how much this expiration is going to hurt those poor folks, well, hell, I'll gladly trade salaries for a year with any person making such and happily pay the price of a beemer more in taxes.... In the immortal words of the Wicked Witch as she melted, "What a world, what a world...." Peace, emaycee

The War on the Poor and the Middle Class

Forget about all those on the right who piss and moan about a possible class war--it's already here and we in the middle class and our brothers and sisters who make up the poor are losing. Badly.

There really isn't much to this piece by Kevin Hassett of the American Enterprise Institute concerning the "overpaid" middle class workers that I can refute better than Meteor Blades already has. He doesn't propose cutting his pay, he doesn't propose cutting CEO pay, he fails to mention how many have already taken pay cuts or a loss in hours worked (same thing). I'm certainly not an expert in economics, but deflation and people spending even less money seems like a no-brainer. I have no idea if this line of thought--that more people can be employed if we peons would only take pay cuts from our "fat paychecks"--can gain any traction, but considering that fully one-third of Americans are stupid enough to vote for republicans despite it not being (and never will be) in their best economic or moral interest, is enough to scare me. That, and thanks to Citizen's United, an organization like the Chamber of Commerce (which, as impossible as it may seem, has even less concern for the working men and women of America than republicans) is able to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to spread such bullshit.

One odd point that I thought Blades missed: the American Enterprise Institute (which would scream "socialism" if Democrats farted) is really pushing forth a rock solid socialist principle, don't you think? Spread the wealth, so to speak? I guess socialism is okay for the poor and the middle class, as long as the wealthy get theirs.

Oh, one other thing--I'm not quite as polite as Meteor Blades. My first thought--and strongest thought--to Mr. Hassett's contention that unemployment is my fault thanks to my fat paycheck was fuck you, next idiot please!

Peace,
emaycee

Power to the People, Right on!

It's Labor Day--my personal thanks to all Unions for all they have done for us, as summed up well by Laura Clawson. The AFL-CIO is running some excellent holiday spots. Laurence Lewis sums up well the differences between the best of the Democratic Party and the usual corporate fellating that is the republican party. Michael Moore penned a "fucking" hilarious letter to Rahm Emmanuel (Prick with a capital "P") concerning his "Fuck the UAW" comment. Even President Obama weighed in, surmising that he, too, would join a union (though it would be nice if he'd actually throw some of his weight toward supporting them, e.g., the EFCA). As for myself, I'd like to take a moment of today to thank all of those laborers who have labored for me over the past 28 years, none of whom have had the privilege of joining a union, but who have, despite piss poor leadership, lousy pay, and bullshit benefits, managed to maintain their dignity, their commitment to doing an excellent job, and are, as ever, the true straws that stir the drink. The people who run the companies I work/worked for should hit their knees every night and thank God for these people: they're the reason the companies were or are in business, they're the reason the stores work. God knows if we had to depend on whatever bozo was going to lead us to the promised land we'd have starved in the desert long ago. As the late, great John Lennon once opined, "Power to the people, right on!" Thank you to all those who have done their best for me despite the circumstances.... 

Peace,

emaycee

A Glimmer of Hope

I came across this piece quite by accident. I have no idea who John Mangalonzo is (other than a reporter for a small Iowa newspaper), but he has written one of the best pieces I have read this year. It concerns the accidental drowning of an illegal immigrant, a man with a family who was here in America to try and bring a better life for his family. The article doesn't dwell on on his immigration status--no, it focuses on what it should: his humanity, what it was that brought him here, and what it is that makes America so great. Trust me, it is the kind of piece that gives me great comfort and hope that Journalism can and will be one of the beacons for all of us to a better life. (Unfortunately, the comments section is muy depressing--republicans spreading their lies and hatred in their continuing quest to bankrupt America both morally and financially.) In short, all I would like to say is this: well done, young man, very well done! Peace, emaycee

Just a song before I go

The Free Press has jumped on its high horse over a scam by some Dems to run false tea party candidates in order to take away votes from republicans in closely contested elections. Wonk has even suggested that--gasp!--we should "throw the book at" them. Let me preface the rest of this post by stating that these are not the type of tactics (though I thoroughly appreciate where such tactics came from--utter frustration with a political system and media that do not have ordinary Americans best interests at heart) I support. And I certainly hope it turns out to be only a couple of low level renegades--I would be sorely disappointed if the leaders of the Democratic Party in Michigan resorted to such republican tactics. That being said... ...methinks I might swallow the Free Press' indignation a bit easier if they had been just as indignant over republican voter suppression in the ACORN "scandal." I'm not even sure they bothered to report on it. Maybe, too, I could buy their anger if they had the prescience to publish pieces such as this or this--you know, pieces that actually look out for the working men and women that populate Michigan; you know, pieces that aren't about their usual Kumbaya bullshit that will get nothing for those same working men and women here in the great state of Michigan. Of late, it's dawned on me that there may be a reason more and more newspapers are paying lip service to republicans and tea party supporters: more subscriptions. Think about it: the tea party tacks old, conservatives tack old--who's more likely to eschew newfangled contraptions like the web? With younger voters tacking to the left, with very few Progressives and Liberals who buy the "liberal media" bullshit (after ten years of living here, the only Progressive issues the Free Press stands with Liberals on are the death penalty, abortion, and, as far as civil benefits and anti-discrimation go, gay rights), who's most likely to abandon the corporately influenced newspaper industry? It's all about the Benjamins, folks. Just a thought. Peace, emaycee

Yeah sureee...

Shouldn't these two "op-eds"--one by a paid shill for the insurance industry, the other by an attorney with "clients" in the firearm industry (and I honestly give kudos to the Free Press for noting such) --really be published for what they are: paid advertisements? Seriously, how stupid do you have to be to believe the insurance industry in the state of Michigan has your best interests at heart? Don't you think--if they truly did--they wouldn't be so quick to reduce the amount you can receive when some drunk numb nuts knocks you out of work for weeks, cripples you and takes you out of work forever, or at worst, kills you and ends your family's support? The only reason the insurance industry wants to give people more choice is to make more money by taking more of yours. How fucking stupid do these people think we are? How fucking stupid do you have to be to believe their bullshit? Bet plenty of republicans did, though. As for the corporate lawyer for the firearm industry, it reads like what it is: a corporate talking points memo. What bravado by the Free Press to allow a corporate hack to spew the industry selling points. William Lloyd Garrison and John Peter Zenger must be rolling over in their graves: a profession--Journalism--that was supposed to bring out the best in us has become the best that corporate influence and money can buy. Peace, emaycee

Area (Park) 51

Leaving aside the constitutionality of the Park 51 Islamic Center (so convenient for conservatives to scream about the constitution until it serves their purposes to ignore it), the one argument conservatives make that just kills me is the one that goes, more or less, that we'll open an Islamic Center two blocks from Ground Zero when Arab nations allow construction of Christian churches in said nations. What the fuck? Aren't conservatives so fond of touting the superiority of America, the superiority of Christianity, the superiority of our ideals--and now we want to be like them by refusing to allow the construction of a religious building that offends some people? Really? We want to sink to their level of disrespect for other religions? Conservative idiocy would be funny if it wasn't so utterly pathetic (and demeaning to everything America stands for). Peace, emaycee

Gonna go round in circles...

Yeah, sureee--we're going to lose, but at least we're going to lose on our terms. A world of hurt? Maybe in the short term, but not for long. Nope, I think old Nolan is terrified that Dems are setting themselves up for pretty well for 2012 when the climate for Dems will be better. After two years of seeing that the republicans have no ideas, and don't have their best interests in common, voters just may recall that Virg Bernero and his running mate Brenda Lawrence did indeed run for Main Street and the republicans ran for Wall Street. And at least be honest--most (smart) Americans do hate business these days, and rightfully so. Bernero and Lawrence are not running on a "Hate Business" platform: they're running on a let's level the playing field and give the working men and women of the great state of Michigan a fair chance. Methinks come 2012 (and 2014) voters may just come to realize the wisdom of that platform. Remember: republican = liar. Peace, emaycee