Notes from an Absent Blogger

1.  There has been (and continues to be) quite an earthquake swarm in Nevada.  According to (one of my favorite I-am-a-nerd-blogs) Eruptions: There is the interesting coincident that the focus of the swarm is near the Auroa Volcanic Field – however, Graham Kent from the director of the Nevada Seismological Lab at the University of Nevada, Reno, doesn’t think a volcanic eruption is likely.  Eruptions blogger notes that Nevada has seen many earthquake swarms over the past few years (true, says I) and none have led to volcanic activity.

2.  Life is generally good.  Sweetie and I are enjoying our house and the endless list of projects (mostly his!) that come with it.  He is currently constructing two raised veggie boxes for me to plant our own crops.  I am very happy about this!  We inherited, in the backyard of this house, a couple of nice artichoke plants.  I have managed to not kill them yet and they are producing a nice little crop of artichokes.  Wonderful!  I picked three the other day, cooked them up, and served them with my mom’s patented (should be) artichoke dipping sauce.  Delicious! 

3.  Work is good and sometimes crazy.  True to form, my work and overlapping deadlines sometimes results in weeks like last week where I have to work 13 to 15 hours for a while.  Not true to my old (younger self) form, I can’t maintain that level of work/brain effort for very long.  I worked so hard for most of last week, I crashed on Friday.  Went to a meeting I couldn’t reschedule and then came home, hugged my Sweetie, wasted time on the computer, and went to see a movie.  We saw Hanna.  It was good, but not as good as I was expecting. Good, but I was expecting more there there.  But fine because, heck, I was NOT working. I won’t link to the movie trailer because I think it shows too much.  But I will link to a short clip featuring some of the brilliant soundtrack from The Chemical Brothers. That particular music piece was probably my favorite in the movie, but others were quite good.  If you like that sort of thing at all, you’d love the soundtrack.  Sweetie and I definitely appreciated the soundtrack. 

4.  I was thinking of writing a separate blog called “Why I don’t blog about Sarah Palin.”  But then I thought “Well, really.  I don’t blog much at all these days so that seems like a silly title.”  But there actually is a reason I don’t blog about her.  Not that I don’t read about her.  I do.  And there has been plenty to read about lately.  I could say all sorts of things.  The ridiculousness of her posing as some sort of political analyst for Fox News.  How much her reality show (and all the rest of her goings-on) does nothing to really promote the great state of Alaska since she resigned as Governor.  The hypocrisy of her daughter prancing around lecturing about abstinence while supported by a group that advertises abstinence with a close-to-pornographic picture of a young girl wrapped around a guy.  ?  Yeah, that makes sense.  We have to be hip for the young kids and then expect them to absorb a message completely opposite from the visual.  How I don’t really believe most of the conspiracy theories about Trig’s birth.  Mostly because I subscribe to the same belief for almost ALL conspiracy theories: If there were more than 3 people involved, it’s not very likely that a much-talked about conspiracy theory wouldn’t be able to provide proof by now.  I could throw in my two cents about her actions surrounding her son’s birth (was she trying to self-abort for 8 months, including the last few days? maybe).  All of these things (and much more) could have been separate blogs.  But I don’t bother.  Why?  Because when I wrote this, my main interest was that this dear country that I live in not make the horrendous mistake of electing this woman to any high office in this country.  Not in 2012.  Not ever.  I said I didn’t want her on the national stage.  There is nothing I can do about the fact she is all over the national airwaves.  There is nothing I can do about the fact that educated people I know seem to love and support her, blinded by her messages of Faith Faith Faith God God God, without realizing (or acknowledging) what a wicked truly twisted person lies beneath.  But as for high office, I don’t worry about it anymore.   She is a non-entity.  If she runs, it will be for the publicity and her own narcissistic satisfaction.  She is not a viable candidate.  Not for her potential scandals.  Not for her prostituting herself and her family for any amount of cash that can come her way.  And not because she can’t seem to form a coherent sentence on the fly.  But because of this:  She quit.  She quit, ladies and gentlemen.  She was elected to an executive office to serve a term for the voters who cast their ballot for her, and WHAT DID SHE DO?  She quit.  Game over.  Buh bye.  No excuses (should every potential lame duck executive quit??). What more do I, a mere blogger who talks about food as much as I talk about politics, need to say?  Pretty much nothing.  Why do I mention it now?  Because potential candidates are starting to proclaim their intentions right now and there may be another buildup of support for her.  And I may note it as it happens.  But do I honestly believe she has a snowball’s chance in a Texas wildfire to be elected President?  No.  And I trust that a large majority of people of this good country know this too.

5.  If I can’t get my act together and blog more, I resolve to at least be better at reading, and hopefully chiming in at, other folks’ blogs. 

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Hodgepodge

It’s late and I should be in bed, so I’ll just throw out a random hodgepodge of brain spew.

Finding myself back in my old company, which I left several years ago right after a merger/acquisition, I am somewhat amused to be plopped right back into a newly-announced merger/acquisition. If I hadn’t left, I could say I’ve worked in the same building for 12.5 years, yet have worked for three different companies. Not too unoriginal in this day and age of consolidation and the death of small companies. Sad. Interesting. Could be good. Good be bad. We shall see.

I learned of the death today of Senator Ted Stevens and, among other things, thought of the blog I wrote a few years ago about Senators Larry Craig and Ted Stevens. I can’t say that Mr. Stevens was someone I admired in any way, shape, or form. But tragic accidental deaths are sad, and I send my condolences into the ether in the general direction of his family and friends. I feel almost bad that I ended that blog referring to another anti-environment Congressperson who died tragically in a moving-vehicle accident. But only as bad as either one of them ever felt about the eradication of many many species of animals living on Earth.

Am I the only one that noted that last week, during the exact same time we had a large solar flare hit the planet, we have 6 earthquakes over 6.0 in magnitude in less than 36 hours? I check the USGS site almost every day. That is not quite normal. But don’t worry. My co-worker who specializes in geology, hydrology, and hazards just laughed at me when I mentioned the correlation to her.

It’s August 10 (yesterday was 8-9-10) and I’m pretty sure I’ve spent over half the year apart from my husband. *sigh* Even for us, that’s quite a large percentage. But I spent a bunch of time in California looking for a job while he was working in Hawai’i. Then, we both moved over here in July and he has spent half of July in another state working. He just left tonight for a 2-day class in the Bay Area. I should be used to saying goodbye. And I shouldn’t worry because I can easily spend 12+ hours at work the next couple of days. But you know what? It still sucks.

I know I’m pretty bad about spending time on this blog updating y’all about what is really going on with me. That was the original intent of the blog. But I haven’t been very good at it. Here’s an update – Sweetie and I are home-shopping. It’s fun. And slightly exhausting. And nerve-wracking. I’ve discovered what I’m sure every other house-hunter in the world has – at this point in time, I wish my Super Power was “Being Able to Mix and Match All the Best Things from Several Different Houses Into the PERFECT House for Me.”

*sigh* Tis not to be. This one has a fabulous kitchen but crap construction. This one has a pool but an ugly backyard. This one is sooooooo cute and soooooo unique, but there is no way I can fit more than one piece of furniture in the living room. This one has great inner space but is in a less-than-desirable-location. And on and on and on. Right now, I think our favorite candidate house is one with: some awesome space inside (large living area); some super-awesome funky-cool details (70’s-like entryway, room partition and fireplace (looks way better than it sounds); and an incredible backyard; but also has a small very outdated kitchen and location issues (a little too close to the freeway). I’m thinking we can live with the drawbacks. Assuming we buy new appliances. But I don’t know. Do we throw out an offer to nab it now? Or do we keep shopping around in hopes of finding something better?

Don’t know. We’ll figure it out. I’m going to do more recon – try and drive around during different times of the day and get a better feel for the neighborhood and noise. Sweetie does NOT understand me when I try and explain that I get “feelings” from houses. I’m not talking ghost-of-your-dead-dog-in-the-backyard or anything like that. I just get feelings about the general flow of a house. Dare I say energy? No, I better not. But I get feelings as to whether or not *I* would be happy in a space. And I need to listen to those feelings because, as much as I liked many things about the house my parents moved into after I went to college, I could NEVER EVER sleep well in it. Even for me, it was bad. But I would only visit. I can’t live in a house that is like that every day. Anyway. Feelings. Sweetie doesn’t get it. But it’s another check-mark in my brain. And this house may get a positive mark.

The search is still young. I’m sure I’ll have a different story to tell in a week. There’s your update for now.

Aloha and good-night.

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Step Away from the Politics

No…….not *politics* politics.  Never fear, my friends, I will never completely shy away from disgorging my own brand of political opinion onto the screen from time to time.

No, I’m talking about what I am relearning about as I jump back into the world of the crowded workplace:  Office politics.

For the most part, I can put my head down, do my job, and enjoy time away from the office with some great people who have remained my friends for years.  But I’m coming to the impression that there is at least one person in the office I need to watch my back around.  Not because this person dislikes me or has any reason to question the quality of my work.  I think.  But because I think this person is a very shrewd political player.  Of course, I don’t love this impression.  I am fighting the urge to try and confirm or disprove it.  I wonder what the motivation is (actually I think it’s obviously a well-honed self-interest).  But then I think to myself: Stay out of it.  I’m relatively new again.  The political wheels that are turning started before I came around and there is nothing I can do about them. 

And so, I won’t worry too much.  I’ll try and disengage my inflated sense of empathy for other people and just do my job.  Regular politics take up enough of my limited brain space.  The work place is for work. 

And the consumption of chocolate. 

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Illegal Immigration – An honest question

ok, I’m a bit befuddled and am wondering how people feel about this issue.

As a law-abiding person (mostly – ok, I do exceed the speed limit sometimes) and as a child of a naturalized US citizen (and one parent who was born here), I have to ask – What is wrong with enforcing existing laws regarding legal and illegal residency in the United States? 

This whole bruhaha about Jessica Colotl in Georgia is being paraded in the news as some poster example of trampling on civil rights.  From what I understand, she was never a legal resident of the United States.  She went to college.  She was stopped for some traffic violation.  She gave false information to the officers and couldn’t produce a driver’s license because she never had one.  So, she was arrested.  She faces deportation but it will be delayed until she finishes college. 

ok.  On the human-interest side, I sympathize.  She came into the US when she was 11, so it’s not really like it was her idea to enter the country illegally.  She was a child whose family probably wanted to try and find a good life for themselves and her.  But she is not a legal resident.  She never gained legal residency.  And she was driving a car without a driver’s license.  What are authorities supposed to do?  And why is this case such a lightening rod?  Aren’t there many similar cases across the country?  Why does she get to cry in front of the cameras, thereby possibly granting her some leniency that no one else will get?

When a country has a hard time taking care of its own citizens – with not enough jobs, not enough money for our own needs like health care and defense – then I think a country does have to limit the number of people it allows to live in this country at one time.  If that is the case, there has to be a system in place to identify what is legal and what is not.  And that system needs to be enforced.  If people think this case of Jessica Colotl is an example of all that is wrong with the immigration system, then my question is – What should the immigration system look like?  And if the answer is not “Let anyone in who wants to,” then who are these lawyers, or anyone else, to stand up there and lecture about why any particular person should be an exception to the rule?  I sympathize.  I do.  But I also sympathize with people who went through crap-loads of processes to get legal residency. 

These lawyers grandstand and make a big deal over one case.  But what is their solution?  I’m hearing a lot of people make statements back and forth about the issue.  Why should I be made to feel bad if I ask these questions?

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Shame on You, Discovery Channel [Updated]

UGGG!!

I have a longer draft of what I want to say about this subject.  But I can keep adding to it until next week so I’ll summarize and, hopefully, post more later. Sarah Palin Twitters to her followers to “Reload.”  Then, she posts a graphic on her Facebook page with gun-sight targets representing several Democratic members of Congress who voted for the health care bill.  She may argue “I’m only talking about votes.”  Excuse me?  How many people use the term “Reload” in reference to the voting booth?

Why should we care?  Because people believe her.  They believe in her.  And some of these people are truly violent.  Why should we care?  Because the Majority Leader of the United States House of Representatives (Steny Hoyer, D-Maryland) has already announced that – yes, he feels that members of Congress are at risk.  There have already been violent incidences against Representatives.   Is all the violent rhetoric coming only from Sarah Palin?  No.  There are plenty of others.  But she has a big fat bullhorn.  A much larger bullhorn than many other people in the world. 

And what is The Discovery Channel doing?  They are enlarging her bullhorn by paying her millions of dollars to paste her name onto a new show for them.  Why?  I don’t know.  Maybe just for the blatant ratings grabs that anyone seems to get from her name.  Why?  I don’t know.  They don’t need her name.  They have great shows.  Great programming. 

Part of the reason I’ve refrained from talking about Sarah Palin is because I myself don’t want to feed into the publicity hole that is her existence.  But I’ll post this so that I can say –

I’ve reported Sarah Palin’s offensive graphic to Facebook.

I am composing my own note to the Discovery Channel to express disgust with this decision.  And to let them know, as much as I love some of their shows, I will be boycotting all of them.

I am researching just how many organizations and advertisers are associated with the Discovery Channel.

and

I will be forwarding my note to as many advertisers as possible. 

Do I think any of this could possibly change The Discovery Channel’s decision?  Why not try?  Isn’t that why we write our elected officials and write letters to the editors of local newspapers and other things?  Viewership of the Discovery Channel must be HUGELY weighted with pro-science, pro-environment, anti-violence people.  We are the WORST target audience for anything related to Sarah Palin.  And we shouldn’t be shoved aside for ratings grabs targeting anyone who supports (or who just wants to gawk and laugh at) Sarah Palin.  The Discovery Channel needs to know this.   Believe me, this bums me out.  I don’t boycott lightly.  But even when I boycott all on my own – for reasons that I never even share with anyone – I do it seriously.  This is more than serious. 

MSNBC keeps giving me the wrong video instead of Steny Hoyer’s short press conference.  But he said had some pretty wise words.  If I can’t find the right link, I’ll try and transcribe a little.  One thing he said:

When people start talking in the rhetoric of putting people on firing lines, that if they don’t do something they will have physical harm done to them, that…other rhetoric of that type…..or they put a target on their faces with cross hairs, that activity ought to be unacceptable in our democracy.    The implication being that the consequences of acting in a democracy are somehow physical, with violence being acted upon those persons….that’s wrong.

UPDATED

There is a petition to boycott the Discovery Channel based on this decision to pay Sarah Palin over $1,000,000 per episode for the new show.  Much as it pains me to think about boycotting “Dirty Jobs” and other shows I enjoy, I meant it sincerely when I signed the petition.  I am done with the channel until they reverse this.  The petition’s goal just rose from 10,000 to 50,000 signatures, but I think it will need many more than that to even catch the attention of the executives at Discovery.  However, given the huge international demographics of the channel, there should be plenty of people outside the United States who would sign because I think many people in other countries view Sarah Palin as a joke.

The Petition is here:   http://www.thepetitionsite.com/21/boycott-the-discovery-channel-networks

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Congressional Pork. Do I Look Like Charlie Brown?

Oh, Charlie Brown,

You sweet trusting soul. 

How many times has Lucy held that football in front of you?  How many times have you raced ahead?  And how many times has she pulled it away and watched as you flail in the air. 

Charlie Brown, do you ever learn?

Lucy, do you ever stop pulling that pigskin away?

It reminds me of our elected officials in Congress and the White House as they make promise after promise to eliminate earmarks in budgets and bills.  As they promise they won’t sign budgets with earmarks.  And as they go on and on about the ills of earmarks.  Remember earmarks?  You know how I feel about those.

The latest started (I think) with Speaker Pelosi’s proposal of a one-year ban on earmarks.  Oh, that would be great, wouldn’t it?  According to the Roll Call article (click on the link above), “for the current fiscal year alone, members of both parties in both chambers secured 9,499 earmarks worth a total of $15.9 billion, according to a study by Taxpayers for Common Sense.”

A ban on earmarks!  I’ve been clamoring for that for a while!  But wait.  By today, I think the proposal has morphed into a qualified ban on earmarks for for-profit entities.  Next week I am sure they will whittle it down to a ban on all earmarks for entities that are for-profit through the buying and selling of the giant letter “E” for highway signs in States that start with the letter Q.  Uh huh. 

Ban on earmarks?  Oh, I’d love to see it.  I surely would.  I would support it and any elected official who helped to pass it. 

But?

You go ahead and hold that pigskin Speaker Pelosi.  You hold it in place all day and all night.  You go ahead and try and sweet-talk me all you want.  I’m not running forward.  I’m not racing with my hopes up towards you or any other elected official who talks the talk about curtailing worthless earmark projects.  Heck, I’m not even on the field anymore.  I’ve taken off my jersey, left the stadium and am sweating away trying to find work for myself in the slower-than-molasses economy before I land in debtor’s prison. 

Hold your pork.  I have work to do. 

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How vapid and idiotic is Pamela Geller?

Seriously? 

omg.  Did Pamela Geller really tell Ron Reagan “You never met him either!” in reference to Ronald Reagan?

“You never met him either!”

That’s your argument?  You don’t agree with something Ron Reagan says and in response to him telling you that he would better understand the mind of his father, you yell at him “You never met him either!”

Aaahahahahahahaha!  I fear your debating skills Pamela Geller!  You fierce debater you!  Hahaha!  Whew!

Pamela Geller – you make Ayn Rand turn in her grave.  Turn and cry because of your vapid spotlight-seeking and idiotic non-arguments.  Poor Ayn Rand.

I know I’m lagging in blogging lately.  Lots of other things going on.

I’ll be back.

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Why do I care about health care?

I suppose I should finish this rambling blog that I started a couple of days ago.

I would like to also say, before I sit down to listen to the President’s State of the Union Address, that I hope I am not one of those people who everyone seems to think pinned all my hopes for the country on one man, one new President.  That was never the case with me as I have been following politics for years and became a bit disillusioned with the whole lot of them (politicians) years ago.  Looking back at the blog I wrote when President Obama was inaugurated, I said:

I don’t hold notions that the entire country, or world, can come together into a “beautiful symphony of brotherhood” as Dr. King put it.  But I do believe that the the goodwill of the rest of the world is not something to spit on and we have a better chance of regaining that.  I do believe that the security of this nation is a priority and I don’t think we will be losing ground on that.  I do believe that many people in this country can work constructively towards a better future and I think many people are willing to put their best foot forward. 

That was it and I still believe that.  Although I used the dreaded word “Hope” to title that blog, it was not meant to say that all my hopes rested on one man. 

And now on to the much less controversial topic of health care.  Ha!

I figured it was time to get a little more personal….

When I was about to graduate from college, a friend of mine asked me a question for an article he was writing for the campus newspaper.  It was the end of the school year, seniors were about to matriculate off of campus and into the wide world.  I can’t remember for sure the specific topic of the article – I think it had to do with the things we were anxious about in regards to our graduation.  The job market?  Being on our own?  Maybe it was an article on the things we were looking forward to after graduation.  Independence?  Being on our own?

I think I said something along the lines of: “I’m worried about health insurance.”

Along with being kicked out of the nest of the university, I was also about to be kicked out of the student health insurance I enjoyed during my undergraduate years.  For the last 4.25 years, I had been able to see a doctor whenever I wanted, get prescriptions I needed, and not worry about what would happen to me if I was gravely injured.  Well, you know – not worry about going bankrupt and all that.  I would be worried, of course.  It may seem like a strange thing to feel anxious about when leaving college.  With all the world in front of me and no full-time job lined up, I was most worried about health insurance.   

You see, I didn’t have that growing up.  I’m willing to bet a lot of kids my age didn’t either.  But really, I’m not sure. If their parents worked for a good-sized company, maybe they all did have health insurance. My parents didn’t and so, we didn’t. 

I didn’t understand health insurance when I was a kid.  I remember going to the dentist on a regular basis.  I had to, what with the teeth extractions and the cavities and the braces and all.  But going to the doctor?  Not so much.  I remember a shot when I was very little.  Some sort of pain in my neck in 6th grade when I turned my head too fast.  And……that was it.  I don’t remember seeing a doctor between the age of – oh about 11 to age 19.  Not that I really needed one.  I was a fairly healthy kid. 

Except, really I wasn’t.  I got sick often.  When I finally saw a doctor during my first year of college and he asked me all sorts of questions and listened to my lungs, he said “You have bronchitis” and gave me some antibiotics.  “Really?”  I thought to myself.  Because I was experiencing the same symptoms and problems I’d had many times in the past.  I just never thought to go to the doctor.  Now again, I consider myself to be lucky because, even though it probably caused a world of stress for my parents, I got help when I needed it.  They paid for my braces.  They paid for my eye exams and glasses.  I just don’t remember if insurance was ever part of our vocabulary back then. 

But I do remember a lot of anxiety over the idea of needing to see a doctor.  This had mostly to do with the fact that my dad had a couple of scary stints in the hospital when I was younger.  The irony I came to learn later was that – I think Dad could have avoided the times in the ICU if he had sought medical help earlier with his doctor.  When I was in college and he was in between insurance carriers, he didn’t go to see the doctor until the pain and damage was enough to cause him to pass out when he finally drove to the hospital.  And then, he wasn’t covered by insurance and spent years paying off the hospital stay.  Didn’t matter that he had just been covered.  Or that, in a few more weeks he would be covered.  He didn’t have an interim policy and therefore, he was screwed.

Over the years since college, I’ve watched and listened to friends who won’t go to see a doctor when they are not covered by insurance.  I’ve seen friends fret over getting independent insurance when they fear that some benign old ailment will suddenly become the “preexisting condition” that results in denial of coverage. 

People like to throw out terms like “death panels” when talking about the proposals for health care reform that have been winding their ways through Congress last year.  As if the idea of someone dying because he or she is denied health care coverage under the new proposals is a completely novel idea.  Really??  Where have you been?  Oh sure, you say that anyone in this country can walk into an emergency room and get help.  Sure.  But they still have to pay for it if they are not covered.  For some people, the choice of trying to manage their own pain versus paying thousands and thousands of dollars for emergency care is not a choice at all.  Or, some people who seek treatments are flat out denied coverage by their existing insurance carriers and, believe me, there are not many things harder to do than make an appointment with a doctor, let alone a specialist, without health insurance.  I tried to do it. 

Years ago, I was dissatisfied with my existing doctor and wanted to meet a new potential primary care physician.  I wanted to meet this doctor first before switching to her so I made an appointment.  I went into the office to check in and gave them my insurance card. 

But wait, I was told, Dr. A is not your PCP. 

I know, I said.  I want to meet her first before I assign her as my PCP.

But then your’re not covered by your insurance.

Well, that’s irritating but ok.  Can you give me an estimate of how much it will cost to talk to her?

No.

No?  Excuse me?  Can you just give me a ballpark figure of how much it would cost to walk through that door right there, sit down with the doctor for 10 minutes and walk out?

No.

Why not?

We cannot possibly cover all the possible things that may happen.  We can’t give you an estimate. Why don’t you just call your insurance, change her to your PCP, make a new appointment and if you don’t like her, you can change your PCP again. 

Now tell me, is that a WTF? moment or not?  I’m standing about 20 feet away from the doctor I want to meet.  But I have to pay money to open that door and meet her.  And her staff cannot give me a price estimate.  Cannot give me a price estimate.

WHO DOESN”T DO THAT????  WTF?  You need your oil changed in your car?  You call a garage and get a price estimate.  You want to switch your cell phone carrier?  You can call companies and get price estimates.  You want to buy a new TV?  You can shop around and look at price tags.  Hell, if you want me to write you a Population, Employment and Housing section of an environmental impact report for a new development, the least I can do is give you my billing rate. 

But ask how much it costs to see a doctor in this country?????  Nooooooooo.  We can’t do that.  Who knows -you might slam the door shut on your finger, bump your head on the counter and suddenly – the doctor needs to perform brain surgery.  Yeah.  That’s right stupid little patient.  Do what your insurance company tells you and it will all be better.

So, that was my attempt to get help without proper insurance coverage.  I ended up walking out, switching my PCP and going back to meet her.  Crazy how we can meet with anyone else in the world we want to hire beforehand but we can’t seem to cross that magic door to see a doctor without the proper paperwork. 

After I graduated from college, I was lucky enough to picked up for a full-time position with the research group I had been working for as a student.  Ever since then, I’ve either been working full time or covered by a COBRA policy.  Or – now that I am working on my own, covered by my husband’s work insurance.  There are still problems, especially if we want to move back to the mainland.  But still – I’m one of the lucky ones. 

I don’t believe in, nor want, an only-government-run health care plan in this country.  I’ve said it before – it’s not feasible in the United States.  I don’t think it would be efficient either.  I’m not in favor of the government spending more money than they take in.  But I do believe that reform is needed so that people who can pay for coverage and want coverage can get it.  I think that, if we require drivers to have current auto insurance, we should require citizens to have current health insurance.  I don’t say this because I am some sort of bleeding-heart who wants universal love and peace.  I say this because covering costs for the uninsured ultimately raises costs for the rest of us.  And I say this because I’ve seen the detrimental effects on my friends and family members of not having health insurance. 

I suppose there is more I could write but I’m not really trying to convince anyone of anything with my babbling here.  I’m just trying to give a little personal perspective.  People expect stereotypes in politics.  “Well, you are XYZ, so you must believe ABC.”  Sometimes I follow a stereotype.  Sometimes I don’t.  Sometimes I believe in things because I research both sides and talk to people and learn as much as I can.  Sometimes I believe in things because of personal experience.  Sometimes, it’s a little bit of both.

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Don’t Fear the Filibuster

*sigh*

I have been trying to decide on a proper title for this blog.

“The Irony of Massachusetts”?

“The Perils of Parliamentary Procedure”?

“How the Cockiness of Politicians F*ed Up Another Election”?

“Health Care Reform Now!?!” ? 

“What the TV Show “West Wing” Taught Me About Congressional Shenanigans”?

Fox News would tell you there is a lot at stake today with the special-election vote for US Senator to take the seat of the late Ted Kennedy.  I’m guessing this because of the disparity I’ve noticed this past week in the content of CNN versus Fox News.  Since the earthquake in Haiti, CNN has been spending a lot of time on the aftermath of the tragedy.  They have their first-string reporting crew on the ground in Haiti.  As do CBS and NBC.  However, every time this past week I have turned to Fox News it has been politics politics politics.  Oh, except for the one report from some correspondent I’ve never seen in grainy video in front of a gas station somewhere in Haiti.  Turn on the TV to CNN – they are interviewing former Presidents Clinton and Bush (the second) about their combined efforts to spearhead an aid campaign to Haiti.  Turn to Fox News and, once again, I am faced with the butt-ugly, caked-on-make-up, plastic face of Charles Krauthammer talking.  And talking.  And talking. 

ABC, CBS, NBC- on the ground in Haiti.  Fox News – Krauthammer in the studio.  CNN – Anderson Cooper in Haiti.  Fox News – Krauthammer in the studio. MSNBC? – well, I have no idea.  I never watch MSNBC for fear of Keith Olbermann yelling at me. 

Then, *ding* I suddenly remember that the Massachusetts special election is coming up.  I learn  that the race is pulling closer and closer with the Republican candidate Scott Brown suddenly ahead of the Democrat Martha Coakley.  I realize that one party in the Senate is in danger of losing their supermajority of 60 seats.  And then I understand why Fox News seems to feel they cannot waste any time on some humanitarian tragedy in a developing country when there is a possibility that Republicans in Congress may once again be free to wage a filibuster war without fear of cloture.  A-ha!  

Well, not to worry Fox News.  Maybe there will be another devastating natural disaster next month and you can cover it with some amount of respect.  Maybe it will happen in a more glamorous spot than Haiti. 

So, all this bruhaha for the Republican candidate who has vowed to fight President Obama’s health care agenda.  And a few other domestic issues.

And can he do it if elected? 

Can the Republicans in the Senate torpedo the health care legislation that has already been passed in the House and passed in the Senate by the existing members of Congress?  Ummm……possibly yes if the House has any changes to the Bill that would require the Senate to vote on it again. 

Funny how quickly things can change.  Vote in the Senate in December with 60 members who would not allow a filibuster to delay the process.  Vote again in January with 41 members who will allow a filibuster on the floor.  And Bam! all the pundits are discussing the death of health care reform in the United States.

And so…………not unusual…………my brain starts working overtime.

The Irony of Massachusetts?  That would be the irony of Ted Kennedy being the champion of health care reform and having his death be the potential sticky widget in the works that kills health care reform.

The Perils of Parliamentary Procedure?  That would be the fact that the practice of delaying the vote has been carried forward in certain types of governments since ancient Rome.  Caesar faced it in 60 B.C., so garsh darn it, we Congress members are going to uphold the right and tradition.

How the Cockiness of Politicians F*ed Up Another Election?  That would be the complete inability of certain campaign managers to learn to NEVER TAKE AN ELECTION FOR GRANTED.  Hindsight commentators criticize Hilary Clinton’s primary campaign for being so sure of a win they had no strategy for a prolonged primary contest.  Seems that Martha Coakley let her lackadaisical campaign get a little too self-assured for their own britches. 

Health Care Reform Now?!  The reason I care about this issue at all is because I do believe that some health care reform is needed in the United States.  I’ve been trying to explain to people my feelings on the difference between Universal Health Care and Government-Run Health Care.  I support the former, oppose the latter.  I think that those of us who pay for health care ultimately pay the higher costs of a system that takes care of the uninsured.  I think that those of us currently covered by a health care plan should be able to transfer from one state to another as I face the specter of searching for a new health care carrier if I move back to California without finding a full time job.  I think that people who are searching for a health care provider shouldn’t be afraid to seek medical help for fear of suddenly being denied coverage because of an “existing condition.”  I have seen mandates for health care coverage work in other countries that provide public and PRIVATE health care options.  I do not advocate that the whole system be government-run.  What a disaster that would be. 

What the show “The West Wing” Taught Me About Congressional Shenanigans.  I think about certain episodes where staff members kept running to Josh Lyman, the Deputy Chief of Staff, for ideas on how to delay a vote (can’t remember if it was House or Senate).  Josh would pull archaic parliamentary rules from his memory that members would use to take up time on the floor.  Or the episode, The Stackhouse Filibuster.  When the White House staff realized why a particular Senator was waging a filibuster, they tried to help him out by enlisting the aid of other Senators via a rule that allows him to yield the floor without abandoning his delaying cause.  Of course, that seems to promote the nobility of the worthy filibuster. 

So, I decided on “Don’t Fear the Filibuster.”

Because right now, I’m a little pissed about the whole idea of a worthy filibuster.  But I’m more pissed that the Democrats and Republicans and pundits seem to think that a filibuster would kill the entire months-long effort of passing a health care reform bill.  It all comes down to votes in Massachusetts today because without a supermajority to end a filibuster, the Senate is doomed to not pass a bill?  What am I missing?  If you  have the votes to pass a bill, you have the votes?  How long, in the history of our government, did the longest filibuster last?  Hours?  Days?  Weeks?  I’m pretty sure it wasn’t weeks.  In fact, it was a 24-hour and 18-minute-filibuster conducted by Strom Thurmond in 1957 arguing against the Civil Rights Act of 1957.  He read Washington’s Farewell Address and talked about his mother’s biscuits.  What happened to the Bill?  It passed.  Eventually.

So, my question is “Why Fear the Filibuster?”  So the vote is delayed.  Yes, it sucks.  It delays the work of the Senate on other important matters.  But maybe the Senators’ constituents will be upset enough to call filibuster shenanigans on their Senators.  Ultimately, won’t a vote still be made?  And if there are enough votes to pass the bill, it will pass.  Why does the entire health care initiative have to die if Scott Brown is elected?  Why are we being told the stock market is up today on expectations that health care reform is dead.

Seriously, someone help me out here.  Are filibusters that effective?  Can’t the other Senators hold their ground?  Or do we just ask the House to ok the bill as put forth by the Senate, negating another Senate vote, and hope adequate changes are made afterward?  When are the Democrats going to grow a pair?

I seriously understand how Jon Stewart feels here at about 8:22.

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Sarah Palin book signing commentary

Most of this speaks for itself but some minute-by-minute commentary below provided by me.  I wish the interviewer had asked some more questions but I also like that he just steps back and lets people speak. 

0:10:  She wants to meet you too!  Or at least meet your money.

0:31:  Ma’am, I am so glad you are not my grandma.  You’ve got that classic pissy “You are an insolent frak-up!” look down pat.  You scare me. 

1:22:  Way to protect yourself from those “Gotcha!” questions.  Because – “What are some issues of hers that you agree with?” is fraught with danger.  Run away! Run away!

2:00:  Are you related to the older woman from 0:31?  You have that look down too. 

2:22:  Word Salad Alert!  She’s trying very hard but is missing some of the key elements of grammar.

2:33: So, you would like to eliminate the Department of Veterans Affairs?  You’d like to leave our service men and woman out in the cold?  What a good patriot you are. 

2:43:  Word Salad Alert! Are you trying to impersonate Tina Fey impersonating Sarah Palin?  Cap and trade.  Job creation. Trade! Alaska! 

3:06:  Good job sir.  You are compliant with Principle #7 of Mr. Glenn Beck’s 9 Principles: ….Government cannot force me to be charitable.

3:53: Sir, if an atom bomb goes off in the United States, I guarantee you that you and I are going to have more important things to worry about than the President declaring martial law.  Couldn’t you come up with something slightly less dire?

4:00:  No! Noooooo!  You are violating Principle #1……America is good.  Glenn Beck is gonna be mad at you.  Out of the club with you!

4:22:  She’s not going to have the votes because of illegal aliens?  I don’t think that is why she won’t have the votes to become President, but I’m just guessing.

4:35:  I wish the interviewer had let this woman expound a little. I’m curious where we need profiling.  At the grocery store?  The bank?  Does she advocate starting up something like the Hitler Jugend so kids can report on what is going on with their suspicious (non-white?) neighbors?  Because the police are a little overtaxed right now. 

4:55:  Pretty much speaks for itself.  ok.  No wait.  I have to ask – how many illegal aliens enter the US via the Bering Strait??  Or are you talking about illegals from Yukon?

5:45:  Oh!  She’s talking about endangered species.  PETA?  PETA?  They do weigh in on some endangered species issues, but they are not the main proponents.  You might want to talk with the lady from 2:33 about eliminating the Department of the Interior. 

6:04:  Holy crap! Why didn’t anyone tell me? I could be an oil millionaire!  I’m grabbing my shovel.

6:30:  I’ve heard over and over again that Braveheart is a good movie.  Doesn’t make it true.

7:45:  Well, I think this guy is typical of about 80-percent of all voters.  80-percent.  Am I being too generous?

7:57:  True.  When in doubt, raise volume.  Have you seen the tea-bagger rallies?

8:05.  I think so too!  It’s called: Multi-Million-Dollar-Book-and Speaking-Deal. I’m afraid to look up her other sleeve.

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