Imagine a serene coastal town. Imagine life in said town being relatively calm for centuries, avoiding the ravages of war, disease, famine, and weather disasters. People and society are both complex and concrete, being passed from generation to generation. Now imagine a ship filled with disease carrying, woman violating, violent people landing on the coast near this town and claiming the land for their far-away nation. I give you America's first immigrants.
Some may wonder why I tell the tale of these intrepid men of adventure. Well, it seems our good friends in Arizona have decided that our nation's history of immigration does not matter and all immigrants should be treated as criminals. In one of the greatest pieces of racial profiling ever committed by government, the state legislature has given Arizona authorities the right to detain anyone "suspected of being an illegal immigrant". That's right. Suspected. Not convicted of a crime. Not having their immigration status checked at a workplace or when arrested for a crime. Nope. Just by looking the part, United States citizens will now have to prove to skeptical law enforcement that they belong in this nation.
We have gone a long way from taking other nation's sick, poor, and oppressed. I guess the generosity of America cannot extend to everybody. Let alone Constitutional rights. Asking American citizens to prove who they are based on outward appearance is a grave step toward a police state. How are police officers not supposed to racially profile against Latino people when they are told that anyone of them could be here illegally. Forget where you stand on the immigration front. It should not matter whether you support deportation or paths to citizenship. The heart of the matter is that an entire state legislature has now told an entire race of people that they will be subject to search and seizure for looking the way that they do. They do not have to commit a crime or violate state law in any way. Police now have the authority to detain whoever they determine to have "suspect" immigration status. "I am sorry that you are a fourth generation American, Mrs. Sanchez, but you look an awful like the people that come through here. We have no other alternative. But, if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear." There is nothing to fear, except the extreme violation of Constitutional protection, racial profiling, and unwarranted confrontations with law enforcement...
When will we wake up? When will we finally realize what we are allowing people to do? There should have been protests outside that capitol building loud enough to keep the officials from hearing themselves think. There should have been people yelling and screaming outside to keep this insane law from happening. Where were the TEA Party Protesters then? Where were the people that claimed the violation of Constitutional rights when the health care bill passed? Where was Sara Palin? Glenn Beck? Michelle Bachmann? Where were the people on this issue? It is time that someone stand up for those that are being disenfranchised by our politicians. It is time that we yell and scream when something so bluntly racist and rights-destroying becomes law. It is time that all of those who have ranted and raved about losing rights to health care to not conveniently lose their voices when people are losing their basic rights to privacy and protection from unlawful searches and seizures. It is time. But the question, as always, remains: Will they step up?
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Repeal, Repeal, Repeal!!!!!!!!!!!!
It is the time of year when televisions across America are flooded with campaign commercials. One candidate is running for office, and the other one is trying to stay in office. The guy trying to defeat the incumbent is always trying to point out how different they are from the person already in office. What amazes me, though, is the central theme in all the Republican candidates' commercials and websites. They all seem to be pushing for one thing, repeal. According to them, we need to completely repeal the health care bill that was passed and start over. We need to put, "common sense reforms", in place that the "American people want". My question is this, what are those plans?
It seems to me that they aren't working toward reform, as much as they are working toward being put into office. The Republican candidates, especially those endorsed by the Tea Party Movement, do not have a definite plan for what they would replace the bill with. What do you replace banning Pre-existing conditions with? What do you replace banning removing coverage from a sick person with? What do you replace establishing Insurance Exchanges, a simpler way of comparing and purchasing insurance, with? There was no bill from a single Republican in office outlining their plans for after Repeal. It seems as if the members of the Right have gotten all caught up in their fiery rhetoric and their doomsday predictions. Rather than establishing a clear, concise alternative to the plan being implemented, they have made people so angry and afraid that they don't need said plan. The candidates in the "Tea Party Express III" do not need clear, logical ideas that counter the ones put into place. They do not need a legitimate plan to be put into action once they would get elected. The reason that the Tea Party will stop being a legitimate force in any election after 2010 is that there is no substance. They will either lose a majority of races and be seen as a barking dog without teeth, or their candidates will get into office, repeal the health care plan, and try to come up with something that will never amount to anything because they did not have a plan put into place. Americans are a funny people: they get excited/zealous about their politics to the point of being blinded, but they are also very fast in pointing out when they have been duped. People that support and sustain the Tea Party may feel victorious in November, but they will feel betrayed from that point forward. Because rhetoric is nothing, if nothing is holding it up.
It seems to me that they aren't working toward reform, as much as they are working toward being put into office. The Republican candidates, especially those endorsed by the Tea Party Movement, do not have a definite plan for what they would replace the bill with. What do you replace banning Pre-existing conditions with? What do you replace banning removing coverage from a sick person with? What do you replace establishing Insurance Exchanges, a simpler way of comparing and purchasing insurance, with? There was no bill from a single Republican in office outlining their plans for after Repeal. It seems as if the members of the Right have gotten all caught up in their fiery rhetoric and their doomsday predictions. Rather than establishing a clear, concise alternative to the plan being implemented, they have made people so angry and afraid that they don't need said plan. The candidates in the "Tea Party Express III" do not need clear, logical ideas that counter the ones put into place. They do not need a legitimate plan to be put into action once they would get elected. The reason that the Tea Party will stop being a legitimate force in any election after 2010 is that there is no substance. They will either lose a majority of races and be seen as a barking dog without teeth, or their candidates will get into office, repeal the health care plan, and try to come up with something that will never amount to anything because they did not have a plan put into place. Americans are a funny people: they get excited/zealous about their politics to the point of being blinded, but they are also very fast in pointing out when they have been duped. People that support and sustain the Tea Party may feel victorious in November, but they will feel betrayed from that point forward. Because rhetoric is nothing, if nothing is holding it up.
Friday, April 9, 2010
Homeland Security
My radio is frequently filled with angry conservative show hosts who rant and rave about how bad the country is under the "Obama Regime". They claim he is taking America back before Ronald Reagan with a new nuclear arms treaty, a topic I will tackle later, and with new energy taxes. It really is a head-scratcher to hear conservatives from coast to coast rail against funding for new, alternative energy forms, then turn around and say that liberals are anti-national security. It would seem like the opposite argument would be made by the party that is bent on keeping all of America safe and secure from the scary mass that seems to be creeping into our perfect land of opportunity. While new energy taxes would raise the cost of motor oil, gasoline, heating oil, and other petroleum products, it would also allow new energy options to be fast-tracked with increased funding. While we cannot ignore the benefits of off-shore drilling, it is not a long-term fix. It is like giving a person with a concussion a bottle of Tylenol. While the pills would relieve the headache for a little bit, the underlying condition would only get worse.
The energy provisions in this bill would finally accomplish what every president from Nixon to Obama has claimed to work toward, ending our dependence on foreign oil. Why is that so important? One nugget of information is that with every dollar increase in the price of oil, before the climate/energy bill passes, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, and the other extremely friendly OPEC nations receive an extra cool billion dollars in profits. So when the price of gas rises to the projected $4 a gallon from the average $3 a gallon it is now, all of our friends in the Middle East will be $1 billion richer. I do not claim to be an expert in the oil business, but for a party that passed the USA PATRIOT ACT for our security, opposition to giving OPEC nations more money just seems wrong. Maybe it is something they overlooked when they started their multi-million dollar advertising campaign, or maybe it is just a contradiction they are willing to overlook so long as they get elected into office. Whatever the reason, I guess I will never understand the minds behind conservative radio.
The energy provisions in this bill would finally accomplish what every president from Nixon to Obama has claimed to work toward, ending our dependence on foreign oil. Why is that so important? One nugget of information is that with every dollar increase in the price of oil, before the climate/energy bill passes, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, and the other extremely friendly OPEC nations receive an extra cool billion dollars in profits. So when the price of gas rises to the projected $4 a gallon from the average $3 a gallon it is now, all of our friends in the Middle East will be $1 billion richer. I do not claim to be an expert in the oil business, but for a party that passed the USA PATRIOT ACT for our security, opposition to giving OPEC nations more money just seems wrong. Maybe it is something they overlooked when they started their multi-million dollar advertising campaign, or maybe it is just a contradiction they are willing to overlook so long as they get elected into office. Whatever the reason, I guess I will never understand the minds behind conservative radio.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Another one bites the dust
I am of the pedigree that believes in a well educated society. Nations that have populations full of educated, learned people happen to find themselves with lower crime rates, fairer societies, lower unemployment, and overall better standards of living. With this as this background, you can see why a person such as myself would grumble at education cuts here in Indiana. However, our fearless leader Mitch Daniels insisted that all parts of the government were feeling this pinch. We were told that Hoosier families were tightening their belts, so the government should as well. While we still choked, we swallowed the cuts as a necessary evil for the good of everyone.
And then, "The governor has said he's skeptical the lawsuit can succeed. But he says his assessment is based not on analysis of the constitutional issues involved, but on the courts' historical reluctance to limit federal powers."(http://www.wibc.com/news/Story.aspx?ID=1212765)
that happened. Governor Mitch Daniels, after slashing millions of dollars from the budgets of schools, colleges, and universities, publicly applauded the Attorney General's office for joining a lawsuit against the Federal Healthcare legislation. We all took a double-take.
It was not enough to tell the children in Indiana that their future was not important. It was not enough to cut teachers, increase class sizes, cut after school programs, and increase tuition for thousands of students in our public university system. My Man Mitch had to slap Hoosiers in the face one more time and play politics over their children's futures. This lawsuit is not about protecting the rights of Hoosiers, but scoring political points from the loud and intimidating Tea Partiers outside his office. While the programs that were keeping kids off the street and in school disappear, he can feel good knowing that the extreme Right is satisfied with his political maneuvering. While class sizes double and children across the Hoosier state see their test scores drop, Mitch Daniels can see his poll numbers go up as he considers a run for President. While yet another generation can expect to see themselves become dumber than their parents, Mitch will be applauded for how smart this move was. My generation is dumber than the one that came before us, test scores prove it. The one that comes after me is also expected to suffer the same fate. Generations of politicians using public education as a quick piggy bank in times of crisis has finally caught up to us. We have written and signed the sentence for children not yet born. We have taken things like this time and time again during Daniels' two terms in office. We can lay down and allow him to trample over our children, our future, and our hope once again.
Or, on November 2, 2010, we can rise once more and say that enough is enough. That we are tired of our children's future being mortgaged for political points on the national stage. That we refuse to allow the Daniels Administration to continue to dumb down our future generations for short term political gains. It is not too late. We can change the way business is done in the State of Indiana, and across the United States of America. We can do it. The future rests in our hands and the only thing I have to ask is this; Will you join me?
And then, "The governor has said he's skeptical the lawsuit can succeed. But he says his assessment is based not on analysis of the constitutional issues involved, but on the courts' historical reluctance to limit federal powers."(http://www.wibc.com/news/Story.aspx?ID=1212765)
that happened. Governor Mitch Daniels, after slashing millions of dollars from the budgets of schools, colleges, and universities, publicly applauded the Attorney General's office for joining a lawsuit against the Federal Healthcare legislation. We all took a double-take.
It was not enough to tell the children in Indiana that their future was not important. It was not enough to cut teachers, increase class sizes, cut after school programs, and increase tuition for thousands of students in our public university system. My Man Mitch had to slap Hoosiers in the face one more time and play politics over their children's futures. This lawsuit is not about protecting the rights of Hoosiers, but scoring political points from the loud and intimidating Tea Partiers outside his office. While the programs that were keeping kids off the street and in school disappear, he can feel good knowing that the extreme Right is satisfied with his political maneuvering. While class sizes double and children across the Hoosier state see their test scores drop, Mitch Daniels can see his poll numbers go up as he considers a run for President. While yet another generation can expect to see themselves become dumber than their parents, Mitch will be applauded for how smart this move was. My generation is dumber than the one that came before us, test scores prove it. The one that comes after me is also expected to suffer the same fate. Generations of politicians using public education as a quick piggy bank in times of crisis has finally caught up to us. We have written and signed the sentence for children not yet born. We have taken things like this time and time again during Daniels' two terms in office. We can lay down and allow him to trample over our children, our future, and our hope once again.
Or, on November 2, 2010, we can rise once more and say that enough is enough. That we are tired of our children's future being mortgaged for political points on the national stage. That we refuse to allow the Daniels Administration to continue to dumb down our future generations for short term political gains. It is not too late. We can change the way business is done in the State of Indiana, and across the United States of America. We can do it. The future rests in our hands and the only thing I have to ask is this; Will you join me?
Sunday, April 4, 2010
The Case for Real HealthCare Reform
Picture a pristine day. A local teenager goes to the hospital to visit a sick friend and has to wait in line at the front desk before he can find out which room the friend is in. He normally doesn't ease drop on other people's conversations, but this was different. Because the lady in front of him wasn't having a typical conversation, but was instead begging for her husband's life.
Sounds ridiculous, huh? It isn't all that uncommon. The woman in the hospital wasn't crying because her husband needed life saving surgery or had an untreatable disease. Rather, he was a diabetic, who like millions of us, had lost his job and taken whatever he could find in order to feed his family. He wasn't "wasting his money away on luxury items" or "drinking his paycheck away before he got to the bank.". He didn't qualify for health insurance at his new job and had trouble putting food on the table, so he did what many have to do and cut out medical expenses. Except, the expense he cut was the one keeping him alive, insulin. His wife, without his knowledge, had gone to the hospital to beg the administrators for a sample or two to get him through the next week. "He had trouble waking up these past two weeks, and almost didn't get up at all today..." she said through sobs. The overwhelmed clerk had her take a seat and called in someone to talk to her.
I don't know what happened to that family, and it really shouldn't matter. When citizens of the wealthiest nation on the planet are reduced to begging samples of life saving medication off of institutions because they couldn't afford to pay another institution to cover them for it, it is time for a change. Not this stupid excuse for a change that just puts more people at the mercy of the insurance giants. Not this stupid excuse of a change that makes people the slave of businesses. Not this stupid excuse of a change that forces people to pay companies thousands of dollars a year for the hope of being kept alive when they need that same company to come through. It is time that we demand more from our government. There will be people out there that rant and rave. They have health coverage and don't want anything to change. As one tea-party sympathizer put it to me, "Healthcare is a privilege for those who can afford it; not a right. Where in the bill of rights does it mention healthcare?". They were right, it doesn't mention healthcare as a right for all Americans. Of course, the Founding Fathers didn't imagine that a land of unlimited potential and prosperity would eventually force it's citizens to fight and claw with tyrannical systems to have the basic necessities. Things need to change. People need to rise up. Not through violence or screaming. It will be the quietest and most peaceful Revolution in the history of the world. As one voice, the poor, lonely, and dejected will rise up and take back America. We will finally say that it is time for the American public to be taken care of without question or hesitation. And when that day comes, the establishment will put their tails between their legs and run like hell. And not a single soul will miss them.
Sounds ridiculous, huh? It isn't all that uncommon. The woman in the hospital wasn't crying because her husband needed life saving surgery or had an untreatable disease. Rather, he was a diabetic, who like millions of us, had lost his job and taken whatever he could find in order to feed his family. He wasn't "wasting his money away on luxury items" or "drinking his paycheck away before he got to the bank.". He didn't qualify for health insurance at his new job and had trouble putting food on the table, so he did what many have to do and cut out medical expenses. Except, the expense he cut was the one keeping him alive, insulin. His wife, without his knowledge, had gone to the hospital to beg the administrators for a sample or two to get him through the next week. "He had trouble waking up these past two weeks, and almost didn't get up at all today..." she said through sobs. The overwhelmed clerk had her take a seat and called in someone to talk to her.
I don't know what happened to that family, and it really shouldn't matter. When citizens of the wealthiest nation on the planet are reduced to begging samples of life saving medication off of institutions because they couldn't afford to pay another institution to cover them for it, it is time for a change. Not this stupid excuse for a change that just puts more people at the mercy of the insurance giants. Not this stupid excuse of a change that makes people the slave of businesses. Not this stupid excuse of a change that forces people to pay companies thousands of dollars a year for the hope of being kept alive when they need that same company to come through. It is time that we demand more from our government. There will be people out there that rant and rave. They have health coverage and don't want anything to change. As one tea-party sympathizer put it to me, "Healthcare is a privilege for those who can afford it; not a right. Where in the bill of rights does it mention healthcare?". They were right, it doesn't mention healthcare as a right for all Americans. Of course, the Founding Fathers didn't imagine that a land of unlimited potential and prosperity would eventually force it's citizens to fight and claw with tyrannical systems to have the basic necessities. Things need to change. People need to rise up. Not through violence or screaming. It will be the quietest and most peaceful Revolution in the history of the world. As one voice, the poor, lonely, and dejected will rise up and take back America. We will finally say that it is time for the American public to be taken care of without question or hesitation. And when that day comes, the establishment will put their tails between their legs and run like hell. And not a single soul will miss them.
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