by folkbum
With the health care bill about to become law--and, let's be clear, this was done with above-board and legal and usual Congressional practice, not even with "deem and pass" or reconciliation--I thought I would try to find easy info about what's in it and who's affected by it. Here are two good sources.
The Wall Street Journal walks through the timeline of changes in coverage and taxes. Note that even the conservative WSJ helps to point out the lie that "the taxes start now."
The LA Times lays out much of the same, but some more and different, information about the bill in convenient chart form. And you know how much I loves me some charts!
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Monday, March 22, 2010
Debunking that "The Taxes Start Now" Lie
by folkbum
Ezra Klein helpfully provides this graph:
You will notice that the orange bars, meant to represent the revenue (or cost savings) of the health care bill just passed, are negative this year and wee tiny for the next two years. For all the handwringing among the righties about "the taxes start now" nonsense, they're actually exactly wrong about that.
You'll note that this chart also handily debunks the notion that this is a "takeover" of the health care sector or of 16% of the economy. While indeed $180 billion seems like a lot of money to spend or to count as revenue/ savings (looking at the far right of the graph), in 2019 the US is projected (.pdf) to spend $4.5 trillion on health care. For those lacking calculators at the moment, that means that when this bill fully kicks in, this bill will be responsible for about 4% of health care spending. It would take an extreme amount of dishonest manipulation to try to sell the idea that this is a "takeover" of anything.
Ezra Klein helpfully provides this graph:
You will notice that the orange bars, meant to represent the revenue (or cost savings) of the health care bill just passed, are negative this year and wee tiny for the next two years. For all the handwringing among the righties about "the taxes start now" nonsense, they're actually exactly wrong about that.
You'll note that this chart also handily debunks the notion that this is a "takeover" of the health care sector or of 16% of the economy. While indeed $180 billion seems like a lot of money to spend or to count as revenue/ savings (looking at the far right of the graph), in 2019 the US is projected (.pdf) to spend $4.5 trillion on health care. For those lacking calculators at the moment, that means that when this bill fully kicks in, this bill will be responsible for about 4% of health care spending. It would take an extreme amount of dishonest manipulation to try to sell the idea that this is a "takeover" of anything.
RIP, Tom Morgan
by folkbum
I just got a bulletin from MTEA, the Milwaukee teacher's union, that Tom Morgan, the executive director of the union, passed away yesterday. Apparently he had a sudden, unexpected heart attack while on vacation out of the country. MTEA has not posted anything online yet, but I'm sure they will soon.
I just got a bulletin from MTEA, the Milwaukee teacher's union, that Tom Morgan, the executive director of the union, passed away yesterday. Apparently he had a sudden, unexpected heart attack while on vacation out of the country. MTEA has not posted anything online yet, but I'm sure they will soon.
I'm moderately proud to be a Democrat this morning
by folkbum
It took what, 60 years to get here? But the Congress has passed an historic piece of legislation that slightly nudges the health insurance situation in the United States to something closer to universal coverage.
Let's be clear: What was passed last night--the Senate bill will become law on Tuesday, when President Obama signs it--is a modest and disappointing bill. The bill to be passed later this week--reconciliation, which passed the House last night but needs to be passed yet by the Senate--makes the reform infinitesimally better.
However, there are some significant immediate benefits that will begin on Tuesday when the bill becomes the law of the land. Closing the odious Medicare Part D "donut hole" (something Republicans saddled seniors with after their dead-of-night antics passing that bill). Starting a new appeals process for those already covered by insurance, and making it harder for insurance companies to deny new coverage. Helping small businesses to afford to extend coverage to their workers. All of these are good things, and to be commended and celebrated.
And as time goes on, more elements of the reform will kick in, including cost controls and expanded access to basic and preventive care across the nation. These are also all good things, and to be commended and celebrated.
It's also worth celebrating that the Democrats seem to have held together (what was it Will Rogers said about us again?) and got something significant done. This is not something that has happened often in my lifetime. I think the last time may have been passing Bill Clinton's 1994 budget--you know, the one that led to a decade of unparalleled growth and record budget surpluses?--which, like health care, happened without a single Republican vote.
It is almost not at all surprising that Republicans held fast against it; after all, their leadership has been clear of late that that was their only strategy. (Some sensible Republicans have noted that this is a dumb strategy, not just for their party, but for the nation as a whole.) This is in contrast to previous decades when Republicans used to promote exactly the same kinds of reforms that are in the bill now.
I say almost, because in retrospect a couple of things are if not surprising, then at least disturbing. For example, apparently the process of how a bill becomes a law (everyone sing along, now) is "sleazy." Let's recap: Last spring and summer, the House and Senate held weeks of televised hearings on reform, released multiple full-text versions of reform bills, and debated all through the fall the best way to proceed. The House passed a bill in December. The Senate, overcoming a filibuster and days of Republican delaying tactics, also passed a bill. (I'm still looking for the sleazy part.) Last night, after hours of more delaying tactics by Republicans, the House passed the Senate version of the bill and it's now awaiting Obama's signature. That's the way Congress works, has worked, will continue to work. When both houses pass the same bill, it gets signed (usually) and becomes law. What's sleazy?
There is reconciliation. The House passed it last night, and the Senate has the votes to pass it as soon as they can overcome the inevitable delaying tactics by Republicans. But here's the second surprising-slash-disturbing thing: Republicans seem to remain unified against this part, as well. Which I literally do not understand, because the reconciliation bill does indeed make things better. It improves the Senate bill. It kills the "Cornhusker Kickback" and many of the other special deals that may have been the "sleazy" part and which have fueled a lot of the public and tea-party backlash against reform. It makes the bill cheaper, short-term and long-run. It fixes, by everyone's estimation, R or D, con or lib, many of the ugliest parts of the final bill being signed into law tomorrow. If Republicans were honest brokers instead of stubborn dolts, they would realize that the grand fight is over, and they lost, and they ought to be working and voting to make the winning bill more to their liking. Instead, they've continued to stonewall and delay and refuse to participate meaningfully in the governance of this nation.
Which is why, though I am only moderately proud to be a Democrat this morning, I would be utterly mortified and ashamed to be a Republican right now.
It took what, 60 years to get here? But the Congress has passed an historic piece of legislation that slightly nudges the health insurance situation in the United States to something closer to universal coverage.
Let's be clear: What was passed last night--the Senate bill will become law on Tuesday, when President Obama signs it--is a modest and disappointing bill. The bill to be passed later this week--reconciliation, which passed the House last night but needs to be passed yet by the Senate--makes the reform infinitesimally better.
However, there are some significant immediate benefits that will begin on Tuesday when the bill becomes the law of the land. Closing the odious Medicare Part D "donut hole" (something Republicans saddled seniors with after their dead-of-night antics passing that bill). Starting a new appeals process for those already covered by insurance, and making it harder for insurance companies to deny new coverage. Helping small businesses to afford to extend coverage to their workers. All of these are good things, and to be commended and celebrated.
And as time goes on, more elements of the reform will kick in, including cost controls and expanded access to basic and preventive care across the nation. These are also all good things, and to be commended and celebrated.
It's also worth celebrating that the Democrats seem to have held together (what was it Will Rogers said about us again?) and got something significant done. This is not something that has happened often in my lifetime. I think the last time may have been passing Bill Clinton's 1994 budget--you know, the one that led to a decade of unparalleled growth and record budget surpluses?--which, like health care, happened without a single Republican vote.
It is almost not at all surprising that Republicans held fast against it; after all, their leadership has been clear of late that that was their only strategy. (Some sensible Republicans have noted that this is a dumb strategy, not just for their party, but for the nation as a whole.) This is in contrast to previous decades when Republicans used to promote exactly the same kinds of reforms that are in the bill now.
I say almost, because in retrospect a couple of things are if not surprising, then at least disturbing. For example, apparently the process of how a bill becomes a law (everyone sing along, now) is "sleazy." Let's recap: Last spring and summer, the House and Senate held weeks of televised hearings on reform, released multiple full-text versions of reform bills, and debated all through the fall the best way to proceed. The House passed a bill in December. The Senate, overcoming a filibuster and days of Republican delaying tactics, also passed a bill. (I'm still looking for the sleazy part.) Last night, after hours of more delaying tactics by Republicans, the House passed the Senate version of the bill and it's now awaiting Obama's signature. That's the way Congress works, has worked, will continue to work. When both houses pass the same bill, it gets signed (usually) and becomes law. What's sleazy?
There is reconciliation. The House passed it last night, and the Senate has the votes to pass it as soon as they can overcome the inevitable delaying tactics by Republicans. But here's the second surprising-slash-disturbing thing: Republicans seem to remain unified against this part, as well. Which I literally do not understand, because the reconciliation bill does indeed make things better. It improves the Senate bill. It kills the "Cornhusker Kickback" and many of the other special deals that may have been the "sleazy" part and which have fueled a lot of the public and tea-party backlash against reform. It makes the bill cheaper, short-term and long-run. It fixes, by everyone's estimation, R or D, con or lib, many of the ugliest parts of the final bill being signed into law tomorrow. If Republicans were honest brokers instead of stubborn dolts, they would realize that the grand fight is over, and they lost, and they ought to be working and voting to make the winning bill more to their liking. Instead, they've continued to stonewall and delay and refuse to participate meaningfully in the governance of this nation.
Which is why, though I am only moderately proud to be a Democrat this morning, I would be utterly mortified and ashamed to be a Republican right now.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Paul Ryan's Cajones
by folkbum
I've not been glued to CSPAN today (spending time recovering--still--from being sick and cleaning house), but Ezra Klein notes today that Paul Ryan took to the floor of the House to rail "against Democrats who would dare propose 'across-the-board cuts to Medicare.' "
This is the same Paul Ryan, mind you, whose golden-boy "Roadmap tomiddle-class poverty America's Future" absolutely guts Medicare.
I've not been glued to CSPAN today (spending time recovering--still--from being sick and cleaning house), but Ezra Klein notes today that Paul Ryan took to the floor of the House to rail "against Democrats who would dare propose 'across-the-board cuts to Medicare.' "
This is the same Paul Ryan, mind you, whose golden-boy "Roadmap to
Friday, March 19, 2010
It's time to bring Health Care Reform home
by folkbum
I have long believed that Congress is not now, will not now, will probably not ever pass the health care reform bill that I would write. However, the Congress is now at a point where it must vote for the bill it has in front of it. Any further delay--and a failure to get this bill done now--is unconscionable and unforgivable.
There are whip counts everywhere you look, and according to Nate Silver, who counts better than just about anyone else on the internets, "if you take the seeming yes votes and add them to the people who are uncommitted but voted for the bill last time around, they add up to 217." That's one above the current magic number of 216.
The Washington Post is keeping track here, although they list as "undecided" some people who have clearly announced their yes votes or who would be insane not to vote yes. For example, Wisconsin's Ron Kind and Dave Obey are on there, and they're not very likely to vote no this time around. (Although if you live in their districts, it wouldn't hurt to give their offices a call and encourage passage--202-224-3121 is the House switchboard number.) Steve Kagen is on the WaPo's list of undecideds, too, not surprising after last week. Give him a call, too, even though he does not at present appear on anyone else's undecided list.
Steve Benen, who is as good a summation as Nate Silver is at math, lays out what this bill means:
Voting yes on this bill is a moral imperative, not to mention an electoral imperative. (It is easier to campaign on a record of having done something than on a record of having done nothing, particularly when the status quo is deeply unpopular.) It's time.
I have long believed that Congress is not now, will not now, will probably not ever pass the health care reform bill that I would write. However, the Congress is now at a point where it must vote for the bill it has in front of it. Any further delay--and a failure to get this bill done now--is unconscionable and unforgivable.
There are whip counts everywhere you look, and according to Nate Silver, who counts better than just about anyone else on the internets, "if you take the seeming yes votes and add them to the people who are uncommitted but voted for the bill last time around, they add up to 217." That's one above the current magic number of 216.
The Washington Post is keeping track here, although they list as "undecided" some people who have clearly announced their yes votes or who would be insane not to vote yes. For example, Wisconsin's Ron Kind and Dave Obey are on there, and they're not very likely to vote no this time around. (Although if you live in their districts, it wouldn't hurt to give their offices a call and encourage passage--202-224-3121 is the House switchboard number.) Steve Kagen is on the WaPo's list of undecideds, too, not surprising after last week. Give him a call, too, even though he does not at present appear on anyone else's undecided list.
Steve Benen, who is as good a summation as Nate Silver is at math, lays out what this bill means:
The legislation is fully paid for, reduces the deficit in this decade, and even more in the next decade. It will bring coverage to 32 million Americans -- slightly better than the earlier estimate -- and extend Medicare solvency by at least 9 years while closing the prescription drug "donut hole."This is on top of some obvious benefits that would accrue immediately and the clear long-term cost-reduction and coverage measures that kick in later. This is not a bill any self-respecting Democrat should balk at and, frankly, given Republicans' professed belief in deficit reduction and fixing Medicare, it ought to be something even the GOP can get behind. But Republicans have this thing called party unity, and that apparently is more important than saving lives or walking the talk.
Voting yes on this bill is a moral imperative, not to mention an electoral imperative. (It is easier to campaign on a record of having done something than on a record of having done nothing, particularly when the status quo is deeply unpopular.) It's time.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Milwaukee-based insurer targeted HIV patients for recission
by folkbum
Reuters--and not the Milwaukee media--has the story:
Reuters--and not the Milwaukee media--has the story:
By winning the verdict against Fortis [now known as Assurant Health], Mitchell not only obtained a measure of justice for himself; he also helped expose wrongdoing on the part of Fortis that could have repercussions for the entire health insurance industry.Is this really the kind of behavior Mark Neumann and Paul Ryan want to stand behind as they oppose health care reform? Disgusting.
Previously undisclosed records from Mitchell's case reveal that Fortis had a company policy of targeting policyholders with HIV. A computer program and algorithm targeted every policyholder recently diagnosed with HIV for an automatic fraud investigation, as the company searched for any pretext to revoke their policy. As was the case with Mitchell, their insurance policies often were canceled on erroneous information, the flimsiest of evidence, or for no good reason at all, according to the court documents and interviews with state and federal investigators. [. . .]
Insurance companies have long engaged in the practice of "rescission," whereby they investigate policyholders shortly after they've been diagnosed with life-threatening illnesses. But government regulators and investigators who have overseen the actions of Assurant and other health insurance companies say it is unprecedented for a company to single out people with HIV.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
I have no voice and I must blog
by folkbum
Seeing the doctor today, but haven't had any voice at all, basically, since Sunday (and it was rapidly deteriorating before that). However, some things of note:
• In a follow-up to the Advocates for Student Achievement story that I was following last year: The group agreed to a $5000 settlement after likely breaking campaign regulations.
• Paul Ryan had an op-ed in Monday's Wall Street Journal on health care that, as regular readers of this blog are probably not surprised to learn, was full of falsehoods and other misleading statements.
• One disturbing thing I had not realized about the Obama-Duncan revision to ESEA (known to you folks as "No Child Left Behind") is that while the overall Dept of Education budget for schools in increasing, "the funding for formula grants DROPS by half a billion to 20.3, while that for competitive grants almost doubles to 7.8 billion." In other words, they want states and districts to jump through more stupid Race to the Top-like hoops just to equal their current levels of funding, let alone deal with the effects of the current crappy economy on local school funding sources.
Seeing the doctor today, but haven't had any voice at all, basically, since Sunday (and it was rapidly deteriorating before that). However, some things of note:
• In a follow-up to the Advocates for Student Achievement story that I was following last year: The group agreed to a $5000 settlement after likely breaking campaign regulations.
• Paul Ryan had an op-ed in Monday's Wall Street Journal on health care that, as regular readers of this blog are probably not surprised to learn, was full of falsehoods and other misleading statements.
• One disturbing thing I had not realized about the Obama-Duncan revision to ESEA (known to you folks as "No Child Left Behind") is that while the overall Dept of Education budget for schools in increasing, "the funding for formula grants DROPS by half a billion to 20.3, while that for competitive grants almost doubles to 7.8 billion." In other words, they want states and districts to jump through more stupid Race to the Top-like hoops just to equal their current levels of funding, let alone deal with the effects of the current crappy economy on local school funding sources.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Mark Neumann, protecting us from health care
by folkbum
Thank goodness candidate Neumann is out there, pledging that, if elected governor of Wisconsin, he would "take steps to try to block a health care bill from taking effect" here. Because we need someone like Mark Neumann to make sure that none of these awful things come to pass here behind the Cheddar Curtain:
Thank goodness candidate Neumann is out there, pledging that, if elected governor of Wisconsin, he would "take steps to try to block a health care bill from taking effect" here. Because we need someone like Mark Neumann to make sure that none of these awful things come to pass here behind the Cheddar Curtain:
• barring insurance companies from discriminating against Wisconsinites with pre-existing conditions and from dropping customers who inconveniently get sickIf only all of Wisconsin's candidates had the fortitude to stand up for the status quo, where thousands die and millions more go uncared for because of this country's unique health care model!
• closing the Medicare Part D "donut hole" to save Wisconsin seniors money on prescription drugs
• opening an insurance exchange that would allow Wisconsin individuals to buy into group policies at lower rates
• providing subsidies for poor Wisconsin families to buy health insurance from Wisconsin insurance providers (this might create, you know, jobs or something, and Neumann probably doesn't want that to happen)
• offering help to Wisconsin's small businesses to make it easier for them to offer their employees health care coverage
• removing "lifetime" and limiting "annual" coverage limits that drive some Wisconsinites who have insurance to declare bankruptcy anyway
• building community medical centers in regions of Wisconsin that have shortages of primary care providers
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Happy Pi Day
by folkbum
If I were a better person, I'd have you all over for pie and ice cream. As I am instead a grumpy bastard, instead I will just wish you all have the happiest of celebrations wherever you are.
If I were a better person, I'd have you all over for pie and ice cream. As I am instead a grumpy bastard, instead I will just wish you all have the happiest of celebrations wherever you are.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Tab Dump, Because You Need Things To Read Edition
by folkbum
• Needs more salt: recipes for making good teachers.
• I'm not impressed with these standards so far. And Wisconsin's DPI might chuck its teachers' work to implement these instead!
• You can offer your feedback on those standards here.
• From the outside, Erin Richards makes getting on this list from DPI sound like a hopeful and exciting new opportunity. This belies the panic-on-a-sinking-ship hysteria I've been watching from, you know, inside.
• Also, the four mandated (by No Child Left Behind) options of sanctions for schools on that list are all different flavors of fail themselves, according to the research (.pdf).
• Needs more salt: recipes for making good teachers.
• I'm not impressed with these standards so far. And Wisconsin's DPI might chuck its teachers' work to implement these instead!
• You can offer your feedback on those standards here.
• From the outside, Erin Richards makes getting on this list from DPI sound like a hopeful and exciting new opportunity. This belies the panic-on-a-sinking-ship hysteria I've been watching from, you know, inside.
• Also, the four mandated (by No Child Left Behind) options of sanctions for schools on that list are all different flavors of fail themselves, according to the research (.pdf).
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Chart of the Day, GOP Golden Boy Edition
by folkbum
Via K-Drum, Citizens for Tax Justice have run the tax numbers (.pdf) in Paul Ryan's "Roadmap toScrew You, America Prosperity":
(click for larger image)
So not only does Ryan's "Roadmap" eliminate Medicare, not only does Ryan's "Roadmap" turn Social Security into a game of roulette, not only does Ryan's "Roadmap" not eliminate the deficit (until maybe 50 years out but only if you pretend that the plan doesn't cut revenue), Ryan's "Roadmap" jacks up your taxes. Unless you happen to earn more than 90% of the rest of America, and seeing as how you're sitting around somewhere reading this meagre blog instead of, I don't know, yachting, you are probably not a winner under Ryan's plan.
And Ryan is apparently a Very Serious Person!
Via K-Drum, Citizens for Tax Justice have run the tax numbers (.pdf) in Paul Ryan's "Roadmap to
So not only does Ryan's "Roadmap" eliminate Medicare, not only does Ryan's "Roadmap" turn Social Security into a game of roulette, not only does Ryan's "Roadmap" not eliminate the deficit (until maybe 50 years out but only if you pretend that the plan doesn't cut revenue), Ryan's "Roadmap" jacks up your taxes. Unless you happen to earn more than 90% of the rest of America, and seeing as how you're sitting around somewhere reading this meagre blog instead of, I don't know, yachting, you are probably not a winner under Ryan's plan.
And Ryan is apparently a Very Serious Person!
Tuesday, March 09, 2010
A Mistake Kagen Doesn't Want to Make
by folkbum
I keep being occasionally relieved as I read all the lists posted yon and wide, of Democratic members of Congress who are wavering on health care now that we are inches from the finish line, lists that have not included any Wisconsin reps who should know better. In fact, if last week you asked me to put money down on which Rep would muck up the works, I might have guessed Gwen Moore--I have been afraid she would be hesitant to vote for the Senate bill (a necessary step in the process) because it was not progressive enough.
Pretty much last on my list of possible Wisconsin defectors was Dr. Steve Kagen. Why? When the man courted my endorsement in 2006, he sat across a Starbucks table from me and asserted, flatly, that comprehensive health care reform was his top priority. It was his signature campaign issue. And he was an easy yes vote in the House last year.
So what do I find today? Ugh:
I will be calling Kagen's office tomorrow--hey, we all should: (920) 380-0061--to try to figure out what's going on. I mean, it can't be because Kagen thinks this will save his seat this fall. People who are planning to vote Republican or Tea Party or Martian or whatever aren't gonna suddenly turn around and go, Oh, yeah, Kagen's a swell guy! He lost those votes a long time ago, when he voted Yea the first time, if not long before that.
And anyway, I have yet to see a poll suggesting that any of the rogues gallery up nort' right now poses a risk.
And if Kagen really thinks this vote is the pivotal moment of this election, well, he's got two choices. He can enjoy the full support of state grass-roots Dems and stand on the right side of history, or he can vote no and wonder where his backers are come November.
(Greg Sargent compiles the list of others like Kagen who risk making a dumb mistake in the next couple of weeks.)
I keep being occasionally relieved as I read all the lists posted yon and wide, of Democratic members of Congress who are wavering on health care now that we are inches from the finish line, lists that have not included any Wisconsin reps who should know better. In fact, if last week you asked me to put money down on which Rep would muck up the works, I might have guessed Gwen Moore--I have been afraid she would be hesitant to vote for the Senate bill (a necessary step in the process) because it was not progressive enough.
Pretty much last on my list of possible Wisconsin defectors was Dr. Steve Kagen. Why? When the man courted my endorsement in 2006, he sat across a Starbucks table from me and asserted, flatly, that comprehensive health care reform was his top priority. It was his signature campaign issue. And he was an easy yes vote in the House last year.
So what do I find today? Ugh:
Rep. Steve Kagen (D) of Wisconsin voted for reform, and is now hedging. "I have made the case to the speaker and also to the White House that we should take small pieces, small bites," Kagen said. "In the practice of medicine, I can't give a child a big pill. What do we do? We cut it up into pieces. Let's find things we can agree on."WTF? Seriously? What is this about? His platform in 2006 was not "small bites," and it was a sight more progressive than the current versions of the reform package.
I will be calling Kagen's office tomorrow--hey, we all should: (920) 380-0061--to try to figure out what's going on. I mean, it can't be because Kagen thinks this will save his seat this fall. People who are planning to vote Republican or Tea Party or Martian or whatever aren't gonna suddenly turn around and go, Oh, yeah, Kagen's a swell guy! He lost those votes a long time ago, when he voted Yea the first time, if not long before that.
And anyway, I have yet to see a poll suggesting that any of the rogues gallery up nort' right now poses a risk.
And if Kagen really thinks this vote is the pivotal moment of this election, well, he's got two choices. He can enjoy the full support of state grass-roots Dems and stand on the right side of history, or he can vote no and wonder where his backers are come November.
(Greg Sargent compiles the list of others like Kagen who risk making a dumb mistake in the next couple of weeks.)
Diane Ravitch Repents
by folkbum
This interview with Diane Ravitch about her new book is interesting to me for a number of reasons. For one, I was taught early on that everything Diane Ravitch said was actually the opposite of reality. (Although lately I have found myself quoting her, unironically.) For another, the Milwaukee Public Schools is now at the end of the rope that is No Child Left Behind, and running into exactly the kind of consequences Ravitch used to advocate but now says are dangerous:
This kind of follow-the-money dance is not good leadership, it is not good practice, and it is not good for the students and professionals dragged along for the ride. Some of us were warning about it way back when, and we're still waving every red flag we've got now. It's nice to see Ravitch come around.
This interview with Diane Ravitch about her new book is interesting to me for a number of reasons. For one, I was taught early on that everything Diane Ravitch said was actually the opposite of reality. (Although lately I have found myself quoting her, unironically.) For another, the Milwaukee Public Schools is now at the end of the rope that is No Child Left Behind, and running into exactly the kind of consequences Ravitch used to advocate but now says are dangerous:
Ravitch writes that she came to believe that [NCLB] “ought to be ended rather than mended” at a 2006 conference in which researchers presented studies showing that parents with children in failing schools weren’t taking advantage of provisions of the law that would have enabled them to transfer their children out of those schools or get free tutoring.What has happened--and we've seen it in the last decade over and over again in Milwaukee--is that local and state education agencies, strapped for cash, are scrambling in all directions after any promise of cash from anyone. For example, when Gates was funding small high schools, MPS did small high schools. When Gates realized that was a 20-sided Fail, MPS stopped doing small high schools and moved on to what Gates was funding next. Look at the contortions otherwise-sane folks wanted Wisconsin and MPS to do to get "Race" funds--something that was always going to be a long shot anyway.
Later, she also came to blame the law—the current version of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, which was first passed in 1965—for putting too much emphasis on testing, narrowing the curriculum, and leading some educators to try to game the system by teaching to the test, lowering proficiency standards, or even cheating. [. . .]
[New York City's] reform efforts, she adds, became a sort of blueprint for the NCLB law under President George W. Bush, which imposed consequences on schools and districts that failed to boost students’ test scores.
Parents and local schools also lost some control as major philanthropies, such as the Gates Foundation, the Los Angeles-based Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, and the Bentonville, Ark.-based Walton Family Foundation, began pouring unprecedented amounts of money into schools to underwrite initiatives that they favored, Ms. Ravitch argues.
“The money expended by a foundation—even one that spends $100 million annually—may seem small in comparison to the hundreds of millions or billions spent by public school districts,” she writes. “But the offer of a multimillion-dollar grant by a foundation is enough to cause most superintendents and school boards to drop everything and reorder their priorities.”
The “hijacking” of public education continues now, Ms. Ravitch writes, with U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan’s Race to the Top Fund, through which states enhance their competitive status for a share of $4 billion in extra federal aid by putting in place education measures that the Department of Education favors.
This kind of follow-the-money dance is not good leadership, it is not good practice, and it is not good for the students and professionals dragged along for the ride. Some of us were warning about it way back when, and we're still waving every red flag we've got now. It's nice to see Ravitch come around.
Monday, March 08, 2010
Theological Question
by folkbum
Can God create a permanent marker so indelible that not even He could wash its ink off His hands?
Can God create a permanent marker so indelible that not even He could wash its ink off His hands?
Sunday, March 07, 2010
Yes There Are Consequences
By Keith R. Schmitz
For those of you continually warn that "a government takeover" of health care is going to be a disaster (hard to believe that $200 B a year could be a take over) and for those of you who want a "perfect" health care bill, today's New York Times editorial about what happens if reform does not pass is worth reading.
Do you feel lucky?
For those of you continually warn that "a government takeover" of health care is going to be a disaster (hard to believe that $200 B a year could be a take over) and for those of you who want a "perfect" health care bill, today's New York Times editorial about what happens if reform does not pass is worth reading.
Do you feel lucky?
Saturday, March 06, 2010
The sick. It hurts.
by folkbum
i don't know what germ gods I have offended, but good grief I'm in a bad way. Need moar nap now.
i don't know what germ gods I have offended, but good grief I'm in a bad way. Need moar nap now.
Friday, March 05, 2010
Thursday, March 04, 2010
Paul Ryan thinks of the children--tied up in closets
by folkbum
If ever there was a gimme bill to vote for, it's the "Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act." I mean, seriously. Who doesn't want to be on record as opposed to duct-taping kids and locking them in empty rooms.
Apparently, Paul Ryan. (Not to mention Tom Petri and F. Jim Sensenbrenner.)
First, he wants to kill John Galt. Now he wants to lock ... well, Ayn Rand never really wrote children, so let's say, widdle Howie Roark in a box. Lovely!
If ever there was a gimme bill to vote for, it's the "Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act." I mean, seriously. Who doesn't want to be on record as opposed to duct-taping kids and locking them in empty rooms.
Apparently, Paul Ryan. (Not to mention Tom Petri and F. Jim Sensenbrenner.)
First, he wants to kill John Galt. Now he wants to lock ... well, Ayn Rand never really wrote children, so let's say, widdle Howie Roark in a box. Lovely!
Wednesday, March 03, 2010
Comedy, Covers, and Camaraderie: Jay Bullock's Spring Oh-Ten performances
by folkbum
Don't miss yr hmble folkbum in action all spring long!
• Monday, March 8, 7:30 PM, FREE: Comedy Sportz--competitive improvisational comedy. Wear red to support my team, the Sparklers! The bar will be open at 7 or before, so come early and bring friends!
• Friday, April 9, 8:00 PM, $4 plus two cans of food: Coffee House--food pantry benefit. Featuring four acts doing covers of songs by Bonnie Raitt and Jackson Browne. Featuring me, Eric Baer, the JT Bandits, and David Kaye & the Electric Moustache.
• Saturday, May 1, 8:00 PM, $5: Coffee House--7th annual Portage Road Songwriters Guild New Song Concert. Come see me and Eric Baer, Chris Head, Mark Plotkin, Chris Straw, and Barb Webber perform the best of the original songs we've written over the past year.
See you at the shows!
Don't miss yr hmble folkbum in action all spring long!
• Monday, March 8, 7:30 PM, FREE: Comedy Sportz--competitive improvisational comedy. Wear red to support my team, the Sparklers! The bar will be open at 7 or before, so come early and bring friends!
• Friday, April 9, 8:00 PM, $4 plus two cans of food: Coffee House--food pantry benefit. Featuring four acts doing covers of songs by Bonnie Raitt and Jackson Browne. Featuring me, Eric Baer, the JT Bandits, and David Kaye & the Electric Moustache.
• Saturday, May 1, 8:00 PM, $5: Coffee House--7th annual Portage Road Songwriters Guild New Song Concert. Come see me and Eric Baer, Chris Head, Mark Plotkin, Chris Straw, and Barb Webber perform the best of the original songs we've written over the past year.
See you at the shows!
Monday, March 01, 2010
DPI, MPS, and $175 million
by folkbum
I haven't been blogging on the Wisconsin DPI's threat to withhold $175 million from the Milwaukee Public Schools, but only because I was writing about it for the Compass. It's online now, for your reading pleasure.
I haven't been blogging on the Wisconsin DPI's threat to withhold $175 million from the Milwaukee Public Schools, but only because I was writing about it for the Compass. It's online now, for your reading pleasure.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Paul Ryan votes to kill John Galt
by folkbum
Yesterday, a bill passed the US House of Representatives passed a bill by a remarkable margin of 406 to 19. This is not because Democrats have suddenly taken over an extra 150 House seats without your noticing; it is, in fact, because the bill is one following an ages-old American value: Corporate monopolies are bad for business, for consumers, and for workers.
The bill removed an exemption to anti-trust laws that was specially crafted for insurance companies. While states currently have theoretical authority to investigate and block insurance company monopolies, many simply don't: A study by the AMA (pdf) finds that the vast majority of markets are dominated by a single insurer, crossing the usual Department of Justice threshold for market concentration. In some states, a single insurance company writes upwards of 2/3 of the policies.
Here in Wisconsin, 52% of us are insured by WellPoint; in neighboring Iowa, 71% are insured by Wellmark. Across the lake, 65% of Michiganders are insured by Blue Cross. And so on.
One of the 19--all Republicans, by the way--who voted against removing the special protections insurance companies receive was Wisconsin's Paul Ryan. This may have something to do with where his campaign contributions come from, I can't say for sure. But in another way, it kind of surprises me. Ryan professes to be a fan of juvenile philosopher Ayn Rand, whose two-dimensional heroes (and, yes, I've read some of the books) tend to be self-made entrepreneurs who have to struggle for acceptance and success against the reigning corporate or political hegemony. By voting to allow insurance companies to maintain monopoly or monopsony power, Ryan is voting to keep the John Galts of the world shut out of a major sector of the US economy.
All of which just reenforces the pretty clear narrative about Republicans like Paul Ryan: While claiming to be pro-business, they ae actually just pro-existing business. Other health insurance reform measures, like those making it easier for small businesses to offer health insurance to their employees, have been shut down or shouted down by Ryan and his ilk. In return, they offer race-to-the-bottom proposals designed to enrich their corporate sponsors at the expense of working Americans--not something even Ayn Rand would approve of.
Yesterday, a bill passed the US House of Representatives passed a bill by a remarkable margin of 406 to 19. This is not because Democrats have suddenly taken over an extra 150 House seats without your noticing; it is, in fact, because the bill is one following an ages-old American value: Corporate monopolies are bad for business, for consumers, and for workers.
The bill removed an exemption to anti-trust laws that was specially crafted for insurance companies. While states currently have theoretical authority to investigate and block insurance company monopolies, many simply don't: A study by the AMA (pdf) finds that the vast majority of markets are dominated by a single insurer, crossing the usual Department of Justice threshold for market concentration. In some states, a single insurance company writes upwards of 2/3 of the policies.
Here in Wisconsin, 52% of us are insured by WellPoint; in neighboring Iowa, 71% are insured by Wellmark. Across the lake, 65% of Michiganders are insured by Blue Cross. And so on.
One of the 19--all Republicans, by the way--who voted against removing the special protections insurance companies receive was Wisconsin's Paul Ryan. This may have something to do with where his campaign contributions come from, I can't say for sure. But in another way, it kind of surprises me. Ryan professes to be a fan of juvenile philosopher Ayn Rand, whose two-dimensional heroes (and, yes, I've read some of the books) tend to be self-made entrepreneurs who have to struggle for acceptance and success against the reigning corporate or political hegemony. By voting to allow insurance companies to maintain monopoly or monopsony power, Ryan is voting to keep the John Galts of the world shut out of a major sector of the US economy.
All of which just reenforces the pretty clear narrative about Republicans like Paul Ryan: While claiming to be pro-business, they ae actually just pro-existing business. Other health insurance reform measures, like those making it easier for small businesses to offer health insurance to their employees, have been shut down or shouted down by Ryan and his ilk. In return, they offer race-to-the-bottom proposals designed to enrich their corporate sponsors at the expense of working Americans--not something even Ayn Rand would approve of.
Monday, February 22, 2010
And while I'm on the subject
by folkbum
This post by mpeterson reminds me of another absurdity in Bruce Thompson's op-ed yesterday. He writes,
At the present moment, as Thompson is writing his screed against "special interests" in Board elections, there are two, out of nine, members of the board who were supported by the union in their last contested elections. (A third, Larry Miller, was supported by the union but ran unopposed in, ironically enough, Bruce Thompson's old east-side district.) That makes six of nine members that the union actively opposed.
So at best, if you want to grant the union all kinds of unbridled power that it really doesn't have, the union has three puppets on the Board out of a possible nine. If Thompson and his five presumably anti-union cohorts on the Board find themselves unable to overpower the three union cronies, well, he should maybe consider what that looks like before he goes whining on the pages of the daily paper.
This post by mpeterson reminds me of another absurdity in Bruce Thompson's op-ed yesterday. He writes,
[T]he emergence of powerful teachers unions changed the dynamics. If the unions were unable to get what they wanted at the bargaining table, they could work to elect school board members who were dependent on union support. Low turnout in school board elections, combined with the lack of overall interest in the School Board, meant that the unions were the only consistent players in School Board elections. [. . . A]t times, it felt as though the union was negotiating with itself: not getting what it wanted at the negotiating table, the union would go directly to who would override the negotiators.Thompson is living in the past. The Milwaukee Board of School Directors hasn't had a majority of union-supported members for five years, since Danny Goldberg--now gone from the board, even--was elected. Even before that, the "majority" was not terribly strong, and in fact for much of Thompson's first tenure on the Board, the union lacked that majority.
At the present moment, as Thompson is writing his screed against "special interests" in Board elections, there are two, out of nine, members of the board who were supported by the union in their last contested elections. (A third, Larry Miller, was supported by the union but ran unopposed in, ironically enough, Bruce Thompson's old east-side district.) That makes six of nine members that the union actively opposed.
So at best, if you want to grant the union all kinds of unbridled power that it really doesn't have, the union has three puppets on the Board out of a possible nine. If Thompson and his five presumably anti-union cohorts on the Board find themselves unable to overpower the three union cronies, well, he should maybe consider what that looks like before he goes whining on the pages of the daily paper.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Oh, the irony
by folkbum
Bruce Thompson, of all people, has an op-ed in Sunday's paper complaining about special interests in MPS school board elections. Sigh.
Bruce Thompson, of all people, has an op-ed in Sunday's paper complaining about special interests in MPS school board elections. Sigh.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Another Duffy moneybomb question
by folkbum
So far, I haven't heard an answer as to whether or not Sean Duffy (who's trying to eke some milage out of the falsehood that the economic stimulus package passed a year ago by Congress is a failure) thinks Wisconsin Republican Rep. Paul Ryan, and the countless other Republicans taking credit for stimulus funds, is being dishonest.
The next question Duffy should have to answer is whether the good folks of Ashland County, his home turf and where he currently District Attorneys from, should give back the $13,939,620 in stimulus funds so far distributed there. Ashland, in fact, has raked in more per capita than the state or national average when it comes to stimulus (in large part because of distributuons to tribal authorities, granted), so I'd say his constituents are currently getting a good deal out of the package.
Ask Sean Duffy if Northland College should take back the more than a quarter of a million dollars' worth of students loans it has given out under the stimulus, to keep students in college who might have had to drop out due to the poor economy.
Ask Sean Duffy if the recipients of well over a million dollars' worth of guaranteed home loans should move back into their cars.
Ask Sean Duffy if Historic Red Bridge over Armstrong creek, a century old and a tourist attraction, should be allowed to fall further into disrepair.
Ask Sean Duffy if the Mathy Construction Company there in Ashland should return its $3 million and lay off the workers called in for the highway projects they're doing.
If Duffy is going to make this an issue, then he needs to answer these questions.
So far, I haven't heard an answer as to whether or not Sean Duffy (who's trying to eke some milage out of the falsehood that the economic stimulus package passed a year ago by Congress is a failure) thinks Wisconsin Republican Rep. Paul Ryan, and the countless other Republicans taking credit for stimulus funds, is being dishonest.
The next question Duffy should have to answer is whether the good folks of Ashland County, his home turf and where he currently District Attorneys from, should give back the $13,939,620 in stimulus funds so far distributed there. Ashland, in fact, has raked in more per capita than the state or national average when it comes to stimulus (in large part because of distributuons to tribal authorities, granted), so I'd say his constituents are currently getting a good deal out of the package.
Ask Sean Duffy if Northland College should take back the more than a quarter of a million dollars' worth of students loans it has given out under the stimulus, to keep students in college who might have had to drop out due to the poor economy.
Ask Sean Duffy if the recipients of well over a million dollars' worth of guaranteed home loans should move back into their cars.
Ask Sean Duffy if Historic Red Bridge over Armstrong creek, a century old and a tourist attraction, should be allowed to fall further into disrepair.
Ask Sean Duffy if the Mathy Construction Company there in Ashland should return its $3 million and lay off the workers called in for the highway projects they're doing.
If Duffy is going to make this an issue, then he needs to answer these questions.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
When you righties give to Duffy tomorrow, ask if he thinks Paul Ryan is a liar
by folkbumSean Duffy is running a losing campaign (so far) up nort' against Dave Obey, Wisconsin's elder House statesman. One of Duffy's longest-running themes is that last year's economic stimulus package was an abject failure. That is, of course, an utter lie.
The broad consensus of economists? It worked. And it continues to work (.pdf). (Many economists note that the original stimulus was probably too small, and too focused on things like tax cuts (.pdf) that don't actually stimulate the economy. And that guy was a McCain supporter!) (UPDATE: More here.)
But don't just rely on economists. I mean, it's just their job to know about these things, but that doesn't mean anything in this day and age. I mean, experts? Come on.
But what about Paul Ryan?
Rep. Paul Ryan, a Wisconsin Republican who called the stimulus a "wasteful spending spree" that "misses the mark on all counts," wrote to Labor Secretary Hilda Solis in October in support of a grant application from a group in his district which, he said, "intends to place 1,000 workers in green jobs."Why would Paul Ryan encourage people in his district to use stimulus money to create jobs? Is it perhaps because the stimulus really does, you know, stimulate the economy? (And note that Paul Ryan is hardly the only Republican around reaping the benefits of the stimulus bill that they voted against.)
So your task, conservative readers, should you choose to accept it, is add a question to any donation you might want to give to Duffy (assuming you want to throw that money away). Ask Duffy about Ryan's tacit admission that the stimulus creates jobs and helps the economy. Ask Duffy who's right--him or Paul Ryan (or the scores of other Republicans celebrating stimulus success). Ask Duffy how he can keep calling the stimulus a failure with a straight face.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Actual conversation about the Olympics
by folkbum
Me: It just seems wrong that Canada hasn't won "home gold" in the Olympics. (*)
My Wife: I guess.
Me: I mean, couldn't they at least invent some sport guaranteed to let the Canadians win? Downhill Pleasantry or something?
My Wife: It's the winter Olympics. In Canada. They have curling.
Me: Oh.
* Congrats to the great white north for breaking the streak today.
Me: It just seems wrong that Canada hasn't won "home gold" in the Olympics. (*)
My Wife: I guess.
Me: I mean, couldn't they at least invent some sport guaranteed to let the Canadians win? Downhill Pleasantry or something?
My Wife: It's the winter Olympics. In Canada. They have curling.
Me: Oh.
* Congrats to the great white north for breaking the streak today.
They Call Me the Miranderer
by bert
You have the right to remain silent. But, if you want to, you can instead pipe up with some more lyrics here. Now that "mirandize" has become a new and (apparently) naughty word, I felt like updating the old Dion song.
Once it's done, we can submit it to Folkbum to perform. Maybe he can do a Johnny Cash-type-a-deal once the renovated prison opens in Illinois.
You have the right to remain silent. But, if you want to, you can instead pipe up with some more lyrics here. Now that "mirandize" has become a new and (apparently) naughty word, I felt like updating the old Dion song.
Once it's done, we can submit it to Folkbum to perform. Maybe he can do a Johnny Cash-type-a-deal once the renovated prison opens in Illinois.
Oh well I’m the type of guy the right-wingers all oppose
'Cuz I don’t torture guys with would-be bombs hid in their clothes
I don’t copy that scene in Braveheart or the Fox show "24"
I don’t tap every call made from Abdul’s gas-station store
They call me the miranderer
Yeah, the miranderer
I roam around, around, around
I’m not so lily-livered that I freak out at this threat
so much so that I think the constitution we just forget
What if the panty-bomber talks even without water boards
Or hooking up his private parts to 10-gauge power cords?
they call me the miranderer . . .
Friday, February 12, 2010
Charlie Sykes and Paul Ryan: These Guy Are Good!
by bert
Any of us can bitch of course. But there is a reason that radio talk show host Charlie Sykes gets paid to do it all week long.
A Baryshnikov of bellyaching, Sykes is able to leap gracefully on "his" blog from complaining about an idea to cut Medicare when it's a Democratic idea to the geometrically opposite position in support of cuts. He gets from here to there because now the idea is Republican Paul Ryan's.
Paul Krugman of the The New York Times has noticed this same acrobatic about-face by the GOP on the issue of caring for our grannies.
As snowboarders would say, that leap was sick.
Any of us can bitch of course. But there is a reason that radio talk show host Charlie Sykes gets paid to do it all week long.
A Baryshnikov of bellyaching, Sykes is able to leap gracefully on "his" blog from complaining about an idea to cut Medicare when it's a Democratic idea to the geometrically opposite position in support of cuts. He gets from here to there because now the idea is Republican Paul Ryan's.
Paul Krugman of the The New York Times has noticed this same acrobatic about-face by the GOP on the issue of caring for our grannies.
So cutting Medicare by $500 billion is wrong--support Republicans, who [Paul Ryan, to be specific] want to cut it by $650 billion!
As snowboarders would say, that leap was sick.
Creatively Titled Friday Paul Ryan Post
by folkbum
One of the most frustrating things about the whole current Paul Ryan situation--his suddenly elevated national status ahead of a likely 2012 Senate run--is that the media here at home have failed to do what national media have done in response. Ryan, for example, gets a regular page in the Racine Journal Times with no checks on his accuracy or partisan balance offered.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the state's largest paper and the respectable face of the state's largest media organization, has given Ryan fawning piece after fawning piece for years now. In this current wave, the story for them has been repeatedly something along the lines of, "Wow, look at all the attention Paul Ryan is getting!" This morning's story by Diana Marrero is no exception. This is somewhat funny, since the impetus for the story seems to be criticism from Ryan's opponents that the local media from Democrats that Ryan is getting no scrutiny for substance, just attention for being suddenly nationally visible.
Merrero's story includes this disappointing paragraph, which exemplifies the problem:
Repeatedly in the local media Ryan is lauded merely for being prominent. It would be nice to see some scrutiny applied to why that is so.
One of the most frustrating things about the whole current Paul Ryan situation--his suddenly elevated national status ahead of a likely 2012 Senate run--is that the media here at home have failed to do what national media have done in response. Ryan, for example, gets a regular page in the Racine Journal Times with no checks on his accuracy or partisan balance offered.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the state's largest paper and the respectable face of the state's largest media organization, has given Ryan fawning piece after fawning piece for years now. In this current wave, the story for them has been repeatedly something along the lines of, "Wow, look at all the attention Paul Ryan is getting!" This morning's story by Diana Marrero is no exception. This is somewhat funny, since the impetus for the story seems to be criticism from Ryan's opponents that the local media from Democrats that Ryan is getting no scrutiny for substance, just attention for being suddenly nationally visible.
Merrero's story includes this disappointing paragraph, which exemplifies the problem:
Ryan's plan tackles annual federal deficits by changing Medicare into a voucher program for people under 55, introducing individual accounts for the Social Security program and eliminating the tax preference for employer-sponsored insurance. His plan also would eventually raise the retirement age to 70 and reduce the growth of Social Security benefits over the long term.Nowhere does the story actually mention several key facts about Ryan's plan, including a brand-new consumption tax on all Americans. And the key fact that despite this tax, Ryan's believes that the deficit wouldn't go away for 50 years. And the key fact that nonpartisan analysts (including the CBO) show the deficits wouldn't go away at all, which make Ryan's plan to "tackle" the deficit no such thing.
Repeatedly in the local media Ryan is lauded merely for being prominent. It would be nice to see some scrutiny applied to why that is so.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Why We Can't Pull out of the Economic Tail Spin
By Keith R. Schmitz
Hot read for cool minds.
According to Henry Banta of the Nieman Foundation, Republicans are locked in an embrace with the corpse of Reaganomics. Not only will they not let go but the media will not break the grip:
Hot read for cool minds.
According to Henry Banta of the Nieman Foundation, Republicans are locked in an embrace with the corpse of Reaganomics. Not only will they not let go but the media will not break the grip:
Efficient market theory dominated economic thinking from the days of Ronald Reagan to the collapse of 2008. It was the rationale for deregulation, the cause of a massive transfer of wealth and income from the middle class to a tiny number of the very rich. Now it is dead and gone but Republican politicians won’t let go, and many in the media show no understanding of the issue.But who bears the brunt of this philosophical justifications for greed?
Despite catastrophic events, it is folly to expect the suffering of millions and an onslaught of inconsistent facts to wipe out an economic theory whose tenets were and still are so convenient for so many powerful economic interests. At present the defenders of the efficient market hypothesis are engaged in trying to pin the cause of the financial crisis on the government. (If the financial crisis was the result of government policies, then one could still plausibly claim the market to be rational, efficient, etc.) Their targets include the mortgage practices of the quasi-government lenders, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977, the low interest rates of the Federal Reserve, and a pessimistic speech by President George W. Bush. The problem with this “blame-the-government” approach is the disproportion between these purported causes and economic effects.It comes down to the notion that a smart nation makes the economy work for its people. Not the other way around.
GOP hanging Paul Ryan out to dry
by folkbum
The Republicans in the House of Representatives have made a pretty crucial error: They appointed a true believer to write their budget--Paul Ryan.
Okay, maybe Ryan's not a capital-T True capital-B Believer, in the true neo-Tea Party sense if the phrase. In fact, Ryan came in for some significant criticism from the true True Believers in the last few years for bailing out corporations like banks and auto companies. Maybe True Corporatist then is the better word, especially given that Ryan pretty regularly comes in for criticism from the likes of me and my ilk for supporting the interests of other corporations, like insurance companies, over the interests of the flesh-and-blood citizens of his own district.
But his "shadow budget"--or, rather the Road Map to Etc. he's been pimping around for a few years now that by his own admission won't even balance the budget until long after he and I are probably dead--is just the right kind of document to be taken up as a banner by the true True Believers. People like Sarah Palin, who probably didn't read past the headline, and others who are more than happy to try to balance the budget on the backs of their worsers.
The problem for the GOP, then, is that exposing the real agenda of the corporatist wing of the party (bounty for bankers and insurers, nuts to anyone with a real job) is not such good politics. When voters hear about plans to add a new 8.5% consumption tax and dump people from Social Security and Medicare while trimming the taxes of the already well off, they tend to start complaining. Hence, fewer co-sponsors for Ryan's budget than Ryan has fingers.
In the olden days, when Ryan didn't have the big-boy chair and Democrats were generally spineless, it wouldn't have mattered. But Ryan now writes the GOP budget officially and Democrats are smart enough to bring up the thing for a vote.
And the Republicans are already choosing door number two: Pretend Paul Ryan doesn't exist. You got Representatives on TV last weekend bragging all about the GOP's 2009 budget. Hell, even Paul Ryan is now saying he doesn't exist.
So, really, how narrow is the ledge Ryan's party is making him walk here? And why, if he's so goldanged smart, is did he even crawl out there?
Unless, maybe, the golden boy isn't so golden any more--and he's not really as smart as his boosters want us to believe.
The Republicans in the House of Representatives have made a pretty crucial error: They appointed a true believer to write their budget--Paul Ryan.
Okay, maybe Ryan's not a capital-T True capital-B Believer, in the true neo-Tea Party sense if the phrase. In fact, Ryan came in for some significant criticism from the true True Believers in the last few years for bailing out corporations like banks and auto companies. Maybe True Corporatist then is the better word, especially given that Ryan pretty regularly comes in for criticism from the likes of me and my ilk for supporting the interests of other corporations, like insurance companies, over the interests of the flesh-and-blood citizens of his own district.
But his "shadow budget"--or, rather the Road Map to Etc. he's been pimping around for a few years now that by his own admission won't even balance the budget until long after he and I are probably dead--is just the right kind of document to be taken up as a banner by the true True Believers. People like Sarah Palin, who probably didn't read past the headline, and others who are more than happy to try to balance the budget on the backs of their worsers.
The problem for the GOP, then, is that exposing the real agenda of the corporatist wing of the party (bounty for bankers and insurers, nuts to anyone with a real job) is not such good politics. When voters hear about plans to add a new 8.5% consumption tax and dump people from Social Security and Medicare while trimming the taxes of the already well off, they tend to start complaining. Hence, fewer co-sponsors for Ryan's budget than Ryan has fingers.
In the olden days, when Ryan didn't have the big-boy chair and Democrats were generally spineless, it wouldn't have mattered. But Ryan now writes the GOP budget officially and Democrats are smart enough to bring up the thing for a vote.
And the Republicans are already choosing door number two: Pretend Paul Ryan doesn't exist. You got Representatives on TV last weekend bragging all about the GOP's 2009 budget. Hell, even Paul Ryan is now saying he doesn't exist.
So, really, how narrow is the ledge Ryan's party is making him walk here? And why, if he's so goldanged smart, is did he even crawl out there?
Unless, maybe, the golden boy isn't so golden any more--and he's not really as smart as his boosters want us to believe.
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
Curing Health Care with Tort Reform
By Keith R. Schmitz
Some in the heath care reform debate offer up two supercures to our dysfunctional system -- (1) allowing health insurance companies to sell their products across state lines and (2) tort reform. And so, presto chango, problem solved. We are not outspending our international competitors and life is grand.
Let's talk about the latter.
Never mind that malpractice costs represent a small portion of our overall $2.3 trillion pile of costs.
Here's what I'm wondering about.
Is what we are saying here is that all malpractice suits would be eliminated? Of course not. It is certain that a number of members of the GOP have in fact sued for damages relating to medical care.
So if we don't eliminate all malpractice suits, what's an acceptable number? 25%? 50%?
It has been argued that malpractice suits weed out bad doctors, but a CBO study found that is fact individual doctors are insulated from the effects of their ineptitude.
In fact the study also found that limiting suits would have a negligible affect on health care costs.
So when the GOP comes to discuss health care with the President later on in the month, if they have the guts, one could hope they are packing reality and not slogans.
Some in the heath care reform debate offer up two supercures to our dysfunctional system -- (1) allowing health insurance companies to sell their products across state lines and (2) tort reform. And so, presto chango, problem solved. We are not outspending our international competitors and life is grand.
Let's talk about the latter.
Never mind that malpractice costs represent a small portion of our overall $2.3 trillion pile of costs.
Here's what I'm wondering about.
Is what we are saying here is that all malpractice suits would be eliminated? Of course not. It is certain that a number of members of the GOP have in fact sued for damages relating to medical care.
So if we don't eliminate all malpractice suits, what's an acceptable number? 25%? 50%?
It has been argued that malpractice suits weed out bad doctors, but a CBO study found that is fact individual doctors are insulated from the effects of their ineptitude.
In fact the study also found that limiting suits would have a negligible affect on health care costs.
So when the GOP comes to discuss health care with the President later on in the month, if they have the guts, one could hope they are packing reality and not slogans.
Sunday, February 07, 2010
Talk From the Hand
by folkbum
To me, the saddest thing about Sarah Palin's having written some cheat-sheet notes on her hand (video of her checking those notes here) is not that she did it at all, but, rather, that in doing so she screwed up her own already oversimplified message:
(originally, AP, blow-up via HP)
Her hand reads, "Energy/Budget Tax Cuts/ Lift American Spirits." She couldn't even remember, in the moment pre-speech with Bic in hand, that the important cuts are tax cuts, not budget cuts.
You'd think for $100,000, the tea-partiers could have gotten someone who has their message memorized.
To me, the saddest thing about Sarah Palin's having written some cheat-sheet notes on her hand (video of her checking those notes here) is not that she did it at all, but, rather, that in doing so she screwed up her own already oversimplified message:
Her hand reads, "Energy/
You'd think for $100,000, the tea-partiers could have gotten someone who has their message memorized.
Friday, February 05, 2010
Quiet Americans in Haiti
by bert
It just so happens that I was reading the Graham Greene novel The Quiet American this past week when the news broke about this case of well-meaning Americans wreaking havoc in the Third World with the best of intentions.
Ten members of a Boise-area Baptist church led by a self-described missionary Laura Silsby were arrested trying to cross from Haiti into the Dominican Republic with 33 children. The group members say they were attempting to rescue children victimized by the earthquake last month and bring them to a Dominican orphanage. However, they admit they did not have any proper documentation to do so, and it is a fact that some children still had living parents in Haiti.
Freaky that I was just then reading Greene's 1955 novel about an idealistic but naive American agent in French Indochina. (Also a movie with Brendan Fraser as Pyle).
With simplistic and earnest ideas about how to fix things, the agent Alden Pyle victimizes Vietnamese and makes a mess that others have to clean up. Greene describes Pyle at one point in the midst of the mess as "impregnably armoured by his good intentions and his ignorance." Elsewhere the narrator, a wizened British reporter, said of Pyle "I never knew a man who had better motives for all of the trouble he caused."
Who knows the true level of ignorance or criminal intent on the part of these folks from Idaho. One emerging possibility is that the leader Silsby instigated a rash act for which the rest will have to pay.
But the novel about Indochina says best what is wrong with this picture in Haiti, and its verisimilitude (I've been itching to use that word for a week now) furthers the case that the late Greene kicked a#% as a writer.
It just so happens that I was reading the Graham Greene novel The Quiet American this past week when the news broke about this case of well-meaning Americans wreaking havoc in the Third World with the best of intentions.
Ten members of a Boise-area Baptist church led by a self-described missionary Laura Silsby were arrested trying to cross from Haiti into the Dominican Republic with 33 children. The group members say they were attempting to rescue children victimized by the earthquake last month and bring them to a Dominican orphanage. However, they admit they did not have any proper documentation to do so, and it is a fact that some children still had living parents in Haiti.
Freaky that I was just then reading Greene's 1955 novel about an idealistic but naive American agent in French Indochina. (Also a movie with Brendan Fraser as Pyle).
With simplistic and earnest ideas about how to fix things, the agent Alden Pyle victimizes Vietnamese and makes a mess that others have to clean up. Greene describes Pyle at one point in the midst of the mess as "impregnably armoured by his good intentions and his ignorance." Elsewhere the narrator, a wizened British reporter, said of Pyle "I never knew a man who had better motives for all of the trouble he caused."
Who knows the true level of ignorance or criminal intent on the part of these folks from Idaho. One emerging possibility is that the leader Silsby instigated a rash act for which the rest will have to pay.
But the novel about Indochina says best what is wrong with this picture in Haiti, and its verisimilitude (I've been itching to use that word for a week now) furthers the case that the late Greene kicked a#% as a writer.
We've Got Your Bipartisanship Right Here
By Keith R. Schmitz
In an interview on Fox and Friends, the defacto leader of the Republican Rush Limbaugh declared, “I thank God every day that it is going down the tubes.”
Number 1, try and defend this. Ddoesn't having an African-American president just bring out the best in some people?
Number 2, imagine it is October 2001 and the screaming that we would hear from the right if some liberal made such a statement.
But we write it off in recognizing that in his own little way Limbaugh has always promoted the downfall of this country. He has now just taken the courtesy of being explicit about it.
In an interview on Fox and Friends, the defacto leader of the Republican Rush Limbaugh declared, “I thank God every day that it is going down the tubes.”
Number 1, try and defend this. Ddoesn't having an African-American president just bring out the best in some people?
Number 2, imagine it is October 2001 and the screaming that we would hear from the right if some liberal made such a statement.
But we write it off in recognizing that in his own little way Limbaugh has always promoted the downfall of this country. He has now just taken the courtesy of being explicit about it.
The Cost of Doing Nothing
By Keith R. Schmitz
Reported by the Los Angles Times, health care spending grew to a record 17.3% of the U.S. economy last year, marking the largest one-year jump in its share of the economy since the government started keeping such records half a century ago.
Obviously the cost of making us well is making the economy sick, and if we do nothing health care will eat us alive.
Sorry, the answer here is not tax cuts. Nor is it high deductible insurance plans, which are driving people into debt. What we need is thinking along the lines of sending a man to the moon, but thanks to our campaign financing system and rigid ideologues, the chances are slim.
Reported by the Los Angles Times, health care spending grew to a record 17.3% of the U.S. economy last year, marking the largest one-year jump in its share of the economy since the government started keeping such records half a century ago.
Obviously the cost of making us well is making the economy sick, and if we do nothing health care will eat us alive.
Sorry, the answer here is not tax cuts. Nor is it high deductible insurance plans, which are driving people into debt. What we need is thinking along the lines of sending a man to the moon, but thanks to our campaign financing system and rigid ideologues, the chances are slim.
Call To Action - Make The Call Today!!
by capper
Fellow Supporters of Milwaukee County-
Things are really starting to move in regarding the much needed dedicated funding for our transit system and our parks system.
The state legislature is poised to consider two very important bills.
One is SB-511, which is the bill that would allow Milwaukee County to pass the half-cent sales tax for the transit system as the prelude to the RTA.
On January 19, Governor Doyle was joined by many of the area’s business leaders, each of whom pointed out that a sustainable, and even extended transit system would be good for not only their businesses, but for the entire regional economy. Without a doubt, the fact that our transit system, which has been cut by some 20% over the last few years, has contributed to the fact that the Milwaukee area lost nearly 50,000 jobs in the last year, as well as why we are lagging in our economic recovery.
No less important, even though it is receiving less attention, is AB-504, which would provide the vehicle for getting dedicated funding for our parks system. And as has been proven in New York City, parks are also vital for a thriving economy:
Such cuts could turn out to actually cost the city money. Fine parks contribute to the economy by increasing property values and, as a result, real estate tax receipts. A 2008 analysis found that the completion of the Greenwich Village section of the Hudson River Park raised real estate prices in the adjacent two blocks by 20 percent.
[...]
Parks also attract tourists and residents who come to events and activities or who just want to enjoy the surroundings, generating economic activity inside and near the park. Central Park attracts more than 25 million visitors a year, about one fifth of whom come from outside the city, according to “The Central Park Effect,” which was prepared by the economic analysis firm Appleseed for the Central Park Conservancy. The study determined that in 2007, spending by visitors and enterprises in the city’s most famous park directly and indirectly accounted for $395 million in economic activity. This activity, as well as increases in property values near the park, generated $656 million in revenues for the city in 2007.
“Measuring the Economic Value of a City Park System,” released in April by the Center for City Park Excellence at The Trust for Public Land, analyzed seven ways that city parks provide economic benefits: property values, tourism, direct use, health, community cohesion, clean water and clean air. Starting with conservative assumptions of park use and other variables, researchers calculated dollar values for each of these benefits in a different city.
Even though supporters of Milwaukee County like yourself, as well as the other like minded groups, such as the Park People and the Coalition for the Advancement of Transit, have made many calls and sent many emails in support of these two bills, I have learned that there are some legislators that state they have hardly heard a peep in support of these two vital bills. This is especially true for the leggies that represent the suburban areas.
Please take a few minutes now to call and/or email your state representative and state senator and call on them to support this bill. Everyone needs to do this, but especially those that live in the suburbs.
If you don’t know who your representative or senator is, you can find out by clicking on this link.
We thank you in advance for supporting our community by making these important calls.
Cross posted at Milwaukee County First and other places.Tuesday, February 02, 2010
Scott Walker's Paradise
by folkbum
If there's anywhere that the modern conservative model of governance has been carried out to its logical conclusion, it's Colorado Springs, CO. The effects--somewhat ameliorated recently by Democrats--of a statewide "Taxpayer's Bill of Rights" combined with government elected from literally the home of a significant chunk of movement Christianist conservatism has left Colorado Springs weak enough that it has just about drowned in Grover Norquist's bathtub:
If there's anywhere that the modern conservative model of governance has been carried out to its logical conclusion, it's Colorado Springs, CO. The effects--somewhat ameliorated recently by Democrats--of a statewide "Taxpayer's Bill of Rights" combined with government elected from literally the home of a significant chunk of movement Christianist conservatism has left Colorado Springs weak enough that it has just about drowned in Grover Norquist's bathtub:
This tax-averse city is about to learn what it looks and feels like when budget cuts slash services most Americans consider part of the urban fabric.The author of Colorado's TABOR and other recent anti-tax measures is a resident of Colorado Springs; one has to wonder whether he'll be out at his local park with the weed whacker this summer, or if he'll be here in Wisconsin campaigning for his brother-in-ideology Scott Walker.
More than a third of the streetlights in Colorado Springs will go dark Monday. The police helicopters are for sale on the Internet. The city is dumping firefighting jobs, a vice team, burglary investigators, beat cops — dozens of police and fire positions will go unfilled.
The parks department removed trash cans last week, replacing them with signs urging users to pack out their own litter.
Neighbors are encouraged to bring their own lawn mowers to local green spaces, because parks workers will mow them only once every two weeks. If that. [. . .]
"I guess we're going to find out what the tolerance level is for people," said businessman Chuck Fowler, who is helping lead a private task force brainstorming for city budget fixes. "It's a new day."
Sunday, January 31, 2010
It's Been a Bad Week For Paul Ryan
by Bert
With all the grace of a power-drunk pachyderm, the Republicans are attempting this weekend to execute a hockey-stop now that the country finally sees them with total clarity as a no, nothing party. The turning point was maybe the session that President Obama presided over with retreating Republicans in Maryland on Saturday.
Congressman Paul Ryan is also trying to switch directions.
As recently as Friday, Ryan instinctively dismissed and mocked the Obama visit when “interviewed” by right-wing radio host Charlie Sykes. Sykes asked Ryan if this visit to the GOP retreat wasn’t just Obama paying lip service to the idea of bipartisanship.
“Well it’s a ten-minute speech with a bunch of tv cameras filming it and then he takes off,” Ryan replied. “So I’m not sure what we’re going to get out of that.” Ryan wrapped up with condescending insincerity: “I’m glad he’s coming. Always it’s a delight to hear from the president.”
Well, it turns out the session in Baltimore lasted 90 minutes and, rather than empty photo op, was “riveting political theater”
And, since Obama insincerely praised an insincere counter-proposal by Ryan at the session, now Ryan is suddenly willing to highlight the meeting for his own publicity purposes. Pundit Nation also noted that this is quite a shift in tone for Ryan.
Ryan, in his press release after the meeting with Obama, in effect acknowledges that the “Party of No” label is sticking to the GOP. Reminds me of the Hamlet line: “My lady doth protest too much, methinks.”
I applaud the President for rejecting his Democratic colleagues’ false ‘Party of No’ attacks. Tackling our economic and fiscal challenges require real solutions and serious dialogue. I look forward to working with the President on rising above the partisan attacks – and tackling our generation’s greatest challenges.”
Sorry Charlie, but who is it again that is paying lip service to bipartisanship?
Friday, January 29, 2010
If you want to know why I haven't been blogging much
by folkbum
Jon Stewart lays it out pretty well here.
It's just really, really hard to watch my people shoot themselves in the foot, over and over and over.
Jon Stewart lays it out pretty well here.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Blues Clueless | ||||
| ||||
It's just really, really hard to watch my people shoot themselves in the foot, over and over and over.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Bring It Back
By Keith R. Schmitz
A recent article from the strategy+business web site points out that thanks to rising fuel costs and other factors manufacturers are starting to bring back some production to the US.
Though it is possible to see the case for fair trade, our companies have been giving away far too many American jobs -- you know, the one's that should have the same rihts as US citizens -- and maybe it is wake-up time.
A recent article from the strategy+business web site points out that thanks to rising fuel costs and other factors manufacturers are starting to bring back some production to the US.
Though it is possible to see the case for fair trade, our companies have been giving away far too many American jobs -- you know, the one's that should have the same rihts as US citizens -- and maybe it is wake-up time.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
The most exciting thing to happen to me this month
by folkbum
This morning, the desktop in my classroom got upgraded to Windows XP.
This morning, the desktop in my classroom got upgraded to Windows XP.
Monday, January 25, 2010
It's Been a Bad Week for the Right Wing
by Bert
My, my, my. This past week has been a very bad one for right-wing conservatives, hasn’t it? I mean, youch.
There was the exuberant gloating about the election of Republican Scott “Mr. 41” Brown in Massachusetts, unequivocal cheers for the Supreme Court ruling for corporate cash in elections, clucking indignation at the president’s call for bank regulation.
Most of the time the right is disciplined in their dissembling. But they couldn’t contain themselves last week. For once they let loose with what they really stand for.
It is obvious now to everyone that the right wants no change in a problem-riddled health care system, that their only role is to obstruct and destroy any government initiative. When Rush said his only goal is failure for America he was speaking not just for himself, but for an entire party. The GOP is the no, nothing party.
And if conservatives have any core beliefs at all besides political power, it is that they want to deliver for their real constituency: the wealthy and powerful. This past week showed the right adores banks and corporations more than anything else, and certainly more than democracy.
That makes last week ultimately bad news for the right. Because Americans will begin now to see through the tawdry garments they use to festoon savage capitalism and oligarchy.
The fact they have shed any last pretense and now openly support the tyranny of privilege makes the last week the beginning of the end for the right. The fact they have danced on graves rather than strive along some path toward the horizon proves they have no vision. They are classic vandals.
In a manner that annoys the merde out of worldly-wise Europeans, Americans are genetically idealistic and optimistic. You can implant a nameless, unreasonable, and unjustified fear in some of us in dark times like the present. But you can’t fool all of the people all of the time. And nobody likes a whiner.
My, my, my. This past week has been a very bad one for right-wing conservatives, hasn’t it? I mean, youch.
There was the exuberant gloating about the election of Republican Scott “Mr. 41” Brown in Massachusetts, unequivocal cheers for the Supreme Court ruling for corporate cash in elections, clucking indignation at the president’s call for bank regulation.
Most of the time the right is disciplined in their dissembling. But they couldn’t contain themselves last week. For once they let loose with what they really stand for.
It is obvious now to everyone that the right wants no change in a problem-riddled health care system, that their only role is to obstruct and destroy any government initiative. When Rush said his only goal is failure for America he was speaking not just for himself, but for an entire party. The GOP is the no, nothing party.
And if conservatives have any core beliefs at all besides political power, it is that they want to deliver for their real constituency: the wealthy and powerful. This past week showed the right adores banks and corporations more than anything else, and certainly more than democracy.
That makes last week ultimately bad news for the right. Because Americans will begin now to see through the tawdry garments they use to festoon savage capitalism and oligarchy.
The fact they have shed any last pretense and now openly support the tyranny of privilege makes the last week the beginning of the end for the right. The fact they have danced on graves rather than strive along some path toward the horizon proves they have no vision. They are classic vandals.
In a manner that annoys the merde out of worldly-wise Europeans, Americans are genetically idealistic and optimistic. You can implant a nameless, unreasonable, and unjustified fear in some of us in dark times like the present. But you can’t fool all of the people all of the time. And nobody likes a whiner.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Meet the new boss
And This Is Bad Because?
By Keith R. Schmitz
Actually had the pleasure of introducing Paul Ryan at one of these Economic Trends breakfast, and had a very nice conversation with him during the breakfast.
In this video Cong. Ryan accuses Democrats in Congress of trying to create a "socialist welfare state."
As if.
Actually had the pleasure of introducing Paul Ryan at one of these Economic Trends breakfast, and had a very nice conversation with him during the breakfast.
In this video Cong. Ryan accuses Democrats in Congress of trying to create a "socialist welfare state."
As if.
Shameless Plug
By Keith R. Schmitz
And looking forward to it as well.
Jay will grace the Open Book Cafe tomorrow night with his original music. None of it will be posts set to music, but it will be a great way to kick off your Saturday night.
Here at the details. Drop on by!
And looking forward to it as well.
Jay will grace the Open Book Cafe tomorrow night with his original music. None of it will be posts set to music, but it will be a great way to kick off your Saturday night.
Here at the details. Drop on by!
FriTunes: Good Old Days edition
by folkbum
Ah, this takes me back to the good ol' days when Democrats had a majority in the Senate and President Bayh wasn't setting the direction of the country ... If you've missed me, it's because I'm busy incorporating myself, seeing as how that's probably the best way now to both avoid taxes and exercise my first amendment rights now.
Ah, this takes me back to the good ol' days when Democrats had a majority in the Senate and President Bayh wasn't setting the direction of the country ... If you've missed me, it's because I'm busy incorporating myself, seeing as how that's probably the best way now to both avoid taxes and exercise my first amendment rights now.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Brother Teabag
By 3rd Way
There are a handful of things the Democratic party hopefully learned last night; don't go on vacation during a drastically abbreviated campaign, don't field a candidate opposed to campaigning in the cold in a January election, make sure the candidate learns who the most famous stars are on the most popular local sports teams, make sure the people campaigning with the candidate know what the candidate's name is and don't offend a huge population of a certain religious denomination by telling them they shouldn't work in emergency rooms.
But the main thing that should stick in their minds is that the American people were serious last November when they voted for change. If the Democrats can't bring change, free themselves from special interests and get something done they will be beaten by opposing politicians that claim they can bring change. The populace wants a change in the status quo, and in extreme times people will side with anyone promising it. Just like Brother Malcolm articulated long ago:
With that said, anyone expecting meaningful, people-empowering change from the contemporary incarnation of the GOP should prepare to be bamboozled.
There are a handful of things the Democratic party hopefully learned last night; don't go on vacation during a drastically abbreviated campaign, don't field a candidate opposed to campaigning in the cold in a January election, make sure the candidate learns who the most famous stars are on the most popular local sports teams, make sure the people campaigning with the candidate know what the candidate's name is and don't offend a huge population of a certain religious denomination by telling them they shouldn't work in emergency rooms.
But the main thing that should stick in their minds is that the American people were serious last November when they voted for change. If the Democrats can't bring change, free themselves from special interests and get something done they will be beaten by opposing politicians that claim they can bring change. The populace wants a change in the status quo, and in extreme times people will side with anyone promising it. Just like Brother Malcolm articulated long ago:
“You’re living at a time of extremism, a time of revolution, a time when there’s got to be a change. People in power have misused it, and now there has to be a change and a better world has to be built and the only way it’s going to be built is with extreme methods. And I for one will join in with anyone, I don’t care what color you are, as long as you want to change this miserable condition that exists on this earth. Thank you.”
–Malcolm X
With that said, anyone expecting meaningful, people-empowering change from the contemporary incarnation of the GOP should prepare to be bamboozled.
Weighing In
by folkbum
Well, people are probably expecting me to comment about it, so I guess I should
Let me say this, first, though: I wasn't really following the run-up, and I certainly don't have any kind of strong attachment to either of the people involved in what went down. But since it is THE story of the last few weeks, it's hard not to hear about it and the pressure, as a member of the commentariat, to opine is pretty strong, especially now that the outcome is clear. So here it is:
I'm with Conan.
Well, people are probably expecting me to comment about it, so I guess I should
Let me say this, first, though: I wasn't really following the run-up, and I certainly don't have any kind of strong attachment to either of the people involved in what went down. But since it is THE story of the last few weeks, it's hard not to hear about it and the pressure, as a member of the commentariat, to opine is pretty strong, especially now that the outcome is clear. So here it is:
I'm with Conan.
Monday, January 18, 2010
MLK Dream
By 3rd Way
And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."
Amen.
UPDATE:
Autotune makes anything hipper.
And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."
Amen.
UPDATE:
Autotune makes anything hipper.
Thumbs Down
By Keith R. Schmitz
Movie critic Roger Ebert gives the Nazi Gasbag Rush Limbaugh both well deserved barrels over typical El Rotundo's psychopathic remarks about channeling aid to Haiti on the White House site:
Divisive is one thing. Stupid is another.
Movie critic Roger Ebert gives the Nazi Gasbag Rush Limbaugh both well deserved barrels over typical El Rotundo's psychopathic remarks about channeling aid to Haiti on the White House site:
You should be horse-whipped for the insult you have paid to the highest office of our nation.Ebert goes on:
Having followed President Obama's suggestion and donated money to the Red Cross for relief in Haiti, I was offended to hear you suggest the President might be a thief capable of stealing money intended for the earthquake victims.
I went to Obama's web site, and discovered the link there leads directly to the Red Cross. I can think of a reason why anyone might want to go via the White House. That way they can be absolutely sure they're clicking on the Red Cross and not a fake site set up to exploit the tragedy.But once again, Limbaugh proves he is dumb as a bag of rocks with his comment about Obama's speed in responding the Haiti crisis as a play to African-American voters. Aside from the 5% outliers, doesn't Obama pretty much have that segment wrapped up already?
Divisive is one thing. Stupid is another.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
IOKYAR*
by folkbum
Remember when Barack Obama--he who is reportedly going to create** a "civilian military arm that could be used to subdue Americans in a police state scenario"--went out and told a bunch of middle schoolers, "Be my little army. Be my young army of young people"? Yeah, I don't, either.
* It's OK if you're a Republican
** That post has the highest paranoia-to-words ratio I've seen in a long time. Scary, scary stuff.
Remember when Barack Obama--he who is reportedly going to create** a "civilian military arm that could be used to subdue Americans in a police state scenario"--went out and told a bunch of middle schoolers, "Be my little army. Be my young army of young people"? Yeah, I don't, either.
* It's OK if you're a Republican
** That post has the highest paranoia-to-words ratio I've seen in a long time. Scary, scary stuff.
Friday, January 15, 2010
FriTunes
by folkbum
Far-ahead preview edition:
You may have noticed that the sidebar over there (->) and down a little has been updated with some dates of shows I'll be playing in the coming months, including next Saturday, 1/23, at Open Book, starting at 6 PM. (The dates are also available at my sparse music site here.) But the schedule also has me listed as doing one of the monthly food-pantry benefit shows at the Coffee House. I'll be playing there Friday, April 9, and the theme of the night is Jackson Browne and Bonnie Raitt. The song above is one I'll be doing. Hope to see you at some show somewhere soon!
Far-ahead preview edition:
You may have noticed that the sidebar over there (->) and down a little has been updated with some dates of shows I'll be playing in the coming months, including next Saturday, 1/23, at Open Book, starting at 6 PM. (The dates are also available at my sparse music site here.) But the schedule also has me listed as doing one of the monthly food-pantry benefit shows at the Coffee House. I'll be playing there Friday, April 9, and the theme of the night is Jackson Browne and Bonnie Raitt. The song above is one I'll be doing. Hope to see you at some show somewhere soon!
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Need something to do? Help Haiti
by folkbum
Via digby and others, ways to help out:
Via digby and others, ways to help out:
• The Red Cross: You can give $10 to the Red Cross’s International Response Fund by texting HAITI to 90999. 100 percent of your donation benefits the Red Cross, and you can print a receipt through mGive, a foundation that helps non-profits take advantage of mobile technology.
• UNICEF, the United Nations Fund focusing on children, has worked on the ground in Haiti since 1949, so has the expertise to make a difference. You can donate here.
• Doctors Without Borders is also present in-country. One senior staff member reports, “The situation is chaotic. I visited five medical centers, including a major hospital, and most of them were not functioning.” Donate to support public health efforts here.
• MADRE, the international women’s rights NGO, partners with the Zanmi Lasante Clinic on the ground in Haiti. “The most urgent needs right now are bandages, broad-spectrum antibiotics and other medical supplies, as well as water tablets to prevent cholera outbreaks,” MADRE reports. Donate here.
• Action Against Hunger has had a team in Haiti since 1985, and is ready to fly planeloads of emergency supplies from Paris to Port-au-Prince. Food is one necessity, but so is sanitation; in some Haitian towns, 70 percent of homes do not have plumbing. Donate here.
• Mercy Corps has a history of deploying aid to regions affected by catastrophic earthquakes, such as Peru in 2007, China and Pakistan in 2008, and Indonesia last year. They are deploying a team to Haiti, and you can support their efforts here.
• Partners in Health is the NGO founded in Haiti in 1987 by Dr. Paul Farmer, the celebrated physician and anthropologist who focuses on international social justice. The group’s emergency response focuses on delivering medical supplies and staff. Louise Ivers, PIH’s clinical director in the country, sent the message, “Port-au-Prince is devastated, lot of deaths. SOS. SOS.” Donate here.
Also, the Clinton Foundation has set up a way to help via text message: Text "HAITI" to 20222 to donate $10 to U.N. relief efforts.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Jobs -- Bad But Getting Better
By Keith R. Schmitz
As the phrase goes a down turn that is a recession for you is a depression for someone out of a job, and many people are. But for those who will suggest next week at the one year anniversary of the Obama inauguration that nothing is being done about jobs, here is a chart showing the job loss trends:
Note that the job loss went up during the last year of the Bush administration. Something must have happened in the years leading up to it.
Note that for the past year job loss has been ebbing. Yeah Obama cannot claim complete credit but the economic and political climate can impact the mentalities that lead to changes and this provides evidence that the stimulus bill contributed to the upturn.
Don't know about you, but I'd rather have the 2009 numbers versus the 2008 members. But of course for those with a vested interest in the failure of America this is bad news. Good news for the rest of us.
As the phrase goes a down turn that is a recession for you is a depression for someone out of a job, and many people are. But for those who will suggest next week at the one year anniversary of the Obama inauguration that nothing is being done about jobs, here is a chart showing the job loss trends:
Note that the job loss went up during the last year of the Bush administration. Something must have happened in the years leading up to it.Note that for the past year job loss has been ebbing. Yeah Obama cannot claim complete credit but the economic and political climate can impact the mentalities that lead to changes and this provides evidence that the stimulus bill contributed to the upturn.
Don't know about you, but I'd rather have the 2009 numbers versus the 2008 members. But of course for those with a vested interest in the failure of America this is bad news. Good news for the rest of us.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Tragedies small and large
by folkbum
Horrible news out of Haiti, which just does not need more of this sort of thing. Context:
Horrible news out of Haiti, which just does not need more of this sort of thing. Context:
Haiti, by far the poorest country in the Western hemisphere, has been beset by natural disasters for most of its recent history. The island is struck by an annual series of hurricanes and is particularly vulnerable to storm-related disasters because much of its forests have been chopped down and used for fuel, leaving the country with very little tree cover. In one of its hardest hit years, 2004, Haiti was rocked by powerful Hurricane Jeanne, which caused untold destruction and killed 3,000 people.And, because I have a google news alert for my name, I have learned that an Atlanta-area man who shares my name lost his son this past weekend, when he fell through thin ice during the South's recent freakish cold weather.
Since 2008, the island has been struck by at least three severe hurricanes — Gustav, Hanna and Ike — that have wrought nearly a billion dollars worth of damage and killed 800 people. All of this has taken place against the backdrop of food riots, health crises and near constant government instability and upheavals.
McIlheran Watch: Actually half-right on Harry Reid
by folkbum
Credit where credit is due: Patrick McIlheran demonstrates some solid reading comprehension today and notes what Harry Reid actually said, as opposed to what a lot of Republicans and the local rightblogerati wish Harry Reid had said. Whereas the afore-mentioned are somehow insisting that Reid is racist*, despite a long history of supporting civil rights and no history of making racist remarks, McIlheran explains that Reid was, in fact, noting the the US has a history of racism:
Black governors? Okay, a little better: David Patterson, currently governor of New York--for about thirteen more seconds--is the fourth African American to rise to that title in this nation's history. Deval Patrick, currently gov in Massachusetts, is the third. Only two of the four have been elected to the office--Patrick and Virginia's Doug Wilder. Think about that--in all this nation's history, only two black men (and no black women) have been elected to lead a state.
The US Senate's history is a little more colorful, sure; six African Americans have served in that body. The one currently serving black senator--Roland Burris, of Illinois--was appointed by a governor (it was a bleeping golden thing), and two were appointed by the Mississippi legislature during reconstruction. So in all of US history, only three African Americans have ever been elected by the people of a state to the Senate. (Interestingly: Six black senators out of--if teh Wiki is to be believed--1818 in US history is a total of 0.33%. That means there have been, proportionally, more black presidents--2.2%--than black senators. Hm.)
That sounds to me like we live in a country reticent to elect African Americans to state-wide or higher office, if only six have ever achieved it (counting Obama).
Now, McIlheran's problem with Reid--and the reason why he's only half-right here--is that McIlheran is offended that Reid noticed this country's history of racism. Now, if the global warming denial nonsense has taught us anything, it's that accurately describing the world around you is a cardinal sin for McIlheran and his ilk. It is no wonder, then, that Harry Reid comes in for criticism from those who may just be a little too accurately described in the remarks.
UPDATE: The Brawler documents my last sentence for me!
* Compare, of course, to Trent Lott, whose history of racial insensitivity and actual nostalgia for the days of segregationist candidates made his remarks about a brazillion times worser.
Credit where credit is due: Patrick McIlheran demonstrates some solid reading comprehension today and notes what Harry Reid actually said, as opposed to what a lot of Republicans and the local rightblogerati wish Harry Reid had said. Whereas the afore-mentioned are somehow insisting that Reid is racist*, despite a long history of supporting civil rights and no history of making racist remarks, McIlheran explains that Reid was, in fact, noting the the US has a history of racism:
No, consider what Reid was saying: That because Obama’s skin wasn’t so dark and because of how he spoke, he’d go far for the party. He’d be marketable. He’d go over well with the American voter. In short, Reid was presuming that the electorate consists of bigots who’d be put off by a darker skin or a stronger accent.There is, of course, nothing inaccurate about that. Quiz: Before Barack Obama, how many black presidents have we had? Speakers of the House? Majority Leaders in the Senate? All zero.
Black governors? Okay, a little better: David Patterson, currently governor of New York--for about thirteen more seconds--is the fourth African American to rise to that title in this nation's history. Deval Patrick, currently gov in Massachusetts, is the third. Only two of the four have been elected to the office--Patrick and Virginia's Doug Wilder. Think about that--in all this nation's history, only two black men (and no black women) have been elected to lead a state.
The US Senate's history is a little more colorful, sure; six African Americans have served in that body. The one currently serving black senator--Roland Burris, of Illinois--was appointed by a governor (it was a bleeping golden thing), and two were appointed by the Mississippi legislature during reconstruction. So in all of US history, only three African Americans have ever been elected by the people of a state to the Senate. (Interestingly: Six black senators out of--if teh Wiki is to be believed--1818 in US history is a total of 0.33%. That means there have been, proportionally, more black presidents--2.2%--than black senators. Hm.)
That sounds to me like we live in a country reticent to elect African Americans to state-wide or higher office, if only six have ever achieved it (counting Obama).
Now, McIlheran's problem with Reid--and the reason why he's only half-right here--is that McIlheran is offended that Reid noticed this country's history of racism. Now, if the global warming denial nonsense has taught us anything, it's that accurately describing the world around you is a cardinal sin for McIlheran and his ilk. It is no wonder, then, that Harry Reid comes in for criticism from those who may just be a little too accurately described in the remarks.
UPDATE: The Brawler documents my last sentence for me!
* Compare, of course, to Trent Lott, whose history of racial insensitivity and actual nostalgia for the days of segregationist candidates made his remarks about a brazillion times worser.
Ailes Is Analyzed by Freud
By Keith R. Schmitz
Pull up a front row seat. This is good.
Trouble in the House of Murdoch.
It appears that the monster created by father Rupert -- Fox News -- has become an embarrassment to his kids. And it's not just financial.
Here's the story:
Pull up a front row seat. This is good.
Trouble in the House of Murdoch.
It appears that the monster created by father Rupert -- Fox News -- has become an embarrassment to his kids. And it's not just financial.
Here's the story:
The first shot—really a nuclear device—was fired today on The New York Times’ Web site by British public-relations executive Matthew Freud, Murdoch’s son-in-law. Freud’s on-the-record quote, for a front-page profile of the 69-year-old Ailes, who launched and runs News Corp.’s most profitable division, is stunning in its condemnation—a frontal attack on Ailes and an apparent attempt to force News Corp.’s founder to choose between blood and money, between his progeny and his most-prized executive.Wonder how they are grooving on Fox's latest addition to their staff?
“I am by no means alone within the family or the company in being ashamed and sickened by Roger Ailes’ horrendous and sustained disregard of the journalistic standards that News Corporation, its founder and every other global media business aspires to,” Freud told the Times. A News Corp. spokesperson fired back: “Matthew Freud's opinions are his own and in no way reflect the views of Rupert Murdoch, who is proud of Roger Ailes and Fox News.”
Monday, January 11, 2010
Friday, January 08, 2010
Wednesday, January 06, 2010
For everyone keeping score at home
by folkbum
Democratic House retirements so far this cycle: 10
Republican House retirements so far this cycle: 14
Democratic Senate retirements so far this cycle: 2
Republican Senate retirements so far this cycle: 6
Democratic Governor retirements so far this cycle: 3
Republican Governor retirements so far this cycle: 4*
* 5, if you count Palin.
Democratic House retirements so far this cycle: 10
Republican House retirements so far this cycle: 14
Democratic Senate retirements so far this cycle: 2
Republican Senate retirements so far this cycle: 6
Democratic Governor retirements so far this cycle: 3
Republican Governor retirements so far this cycle: 4*
* 5, if you count Palin.
Tuesday, January 05, 2010
MPS Mayoral Takeover Hearing Today
by folkbum
The State Senate Education Committee has commandeered the auditorium over at central office (5225 W. Vliet St.) to hold a hearing on the future of MPS. It starts at 10 AM today and will go for as long as there are public speakers to keep it up. If you want input into the process, whether you're for or against surrendering our right to Democratically elect the leaders of our local schools, you should show up and voice your opinion, if you can.
The State Senate Education Committee has commandeered the auditorium over at central office (5225 W. Vliet St.) to hold a hearing on the future of MPS. It starts at 10 AM today and will go for as long as there are public speakers to keep it up. If you want input into the process, whether you're for or against surrendering our right to Democratically elect the leaders of our local schools, you should show up and voice your opinion, if you can.
Monday, January 04, 2010
Your reading for this week
by folkbum
The New York Times Magazine has a long article out today on "Obama's War on Terrorism." It gets to the heart of the difference between the pre-1/20/09 mentality and the post-1/20/09 mentality:
The New York Times Magazine has a long article out today on "Obama's War on Terrorism." It gets to the heart of the difference between the pre-1/20/09 mentality and the post-1/20/09 mentality:
Obama, then, found himself in a place where he seems most comfortable, splitting the difference on a tough issue and presenting it as the course of reasoned judgment rather than of dogmatic ideology. Where Bush saw black and white, Obama sees gray. Where Bush favored swagger, Obama is searching for a more supple blend of force and intellect. Where Bush saw Islamic extremism as an existential threat equivalent to Nazism or Communism, Obama contends that that view warps the situation out of proportion and plays into terrorists’ hands by elevating their stature and allowing them — even without attacking again — to alter the nature of American society. [. . .] Bush felt it in his gut. Obama thinks about it in his head.Welcome back to reality after the holidays, eh?
Friday, January 01, 2010
Also, too: Set your DVRs
by folkbum
Once again, this Sunday morning Owen Robinson and I face off on UpFront with Mike Gousha featuring guest host Patrick Paolantonio. I'm the one rocking the tweed jacket with the leather elbow patches; Owen's the one with the tie that doesn't match.
We talked about the 2010 Wisconsin governor's race, FIFA World Cup Soccer, intricacies of the Large Hadron Collider, and the proper treatment of spider bites. They may have to edit that down to six minutes, though, so who knows how much of the conversation will actually make it to air.
Once again, this Sunday morning Owen Robinson and I face off on UpFront with Mike Gousha featuring guest host Patrick Paolantonio. I'm the one rocking the tweed jacket with the leather elbow patches; Owen's the one with the tie that doesn't match.
We talked about the 2010 Wisconsin governor's race, FIFA World Cup Soccer, intricacies of the Large Hadron Collider, and the proper treatment of spider bites. They may have to edit that down to six minutes, though, so who knows how much of the conversation will actually make it to air.
FriTunes
by folkbum
I once saw Erica Wheeler in a cramped, badly-lit, unamplified upstairs from a coffehouse/ feminist bookstore in downtown Beloit, WI. True story.
Happy new year.
I once saw Erica Wheeler in a cramped, badly-lit, unamplified upstairs from a coffehouse/ feminist bookstore in downtown Beloit, WI. True story.
Happy new year.
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