• Bedtime thoughts

    Do you trust the health insurance industry more than your government?

    Really?

    The right spent the last thirty years (at least) selling the idea that government is the root of all problems, and they’ve made a killing. But ask yourself, has your government let you down that much? If so, have you ever called your representative in Congress or Senator to let them know? Have you ever written them a letter? Do you know who your representative is? Did you vote in the last election? Did you vote in the last election that didn’t involve the Presidency? Do you know who you voted for? Did you know who you were voting for at the time?

    Maybe it’s let you down because you allow it to represent someone else by default.

    Writing a letter takes a few minutes and costs less than a buck. Email is free. A phone call might take ten minutes of your time, and is likely free if you call their local office.

    Do you spend more time complaining about it than doing something about it?

    Some say you get the government you deserve.

    What kind of government do you deserve?

  • Lunchtime thoughts

    What gets your attention? What does it take to create enough spark for you to read more than a few words, or stop pressing the channel up button? Does the quality of content suffer from too much quantity, for reasons beyond dilution?

    I’ve only got a few more minutes before I should get back to work. Every day I need time to get away, hide, and decompress. It’s not because I find my job inherently stressful. It’s being around other people I find exhausting – even though I really enjoy being around my coworkers.

    I am chuck full of contradictions.

    Today I’m hiding in my car. A storm is rolling in, the rain starting to flick at the roof and windows, and I’ve found contemplative peace. Today I’m thinking about a few questions many have asked, but not for the reasons you might think. I’m not sure I could care less about my hit count. I haven’t looked in some time. I’m thinking big picture. I’m thinking about tomorrow’s picture.

    Time’s up.

  • Getting Ted wrong

    I was born in Massachusetts so I’m required to have a soft spot for the Kennedys. There was rarely more tension in my house growing up than when my mother would accuse my father of voting for Nixon or Reagan… herself a liberal Democrat in the Kennedy mold – and fan of Ted, the liberal lion of the Senate, in particular.

    She named one of our cats Ted during the dark years of Reagan/Bush – allegedly for a little push-back against my father. (Having lived through the sequel they seem like the good old days now.)

    I get my politics from my mother, and I morn the passing of one of the last unapologetic liberals in the Senate.

    Like Joan Walsh, I’m a little irritated by the claims of conservatives that Ted would have made compromise on healthcare happen. Universal healthcare was a career-long goal of his, and the current proposals were already a compromise (irrational hysteria by the far right, the misinformed, or the just plain scary not withstanding).

    Here’s video of Ted arguing for an increase in the minimum wage back in 2007 on the Senate floor (via TPM).

    Say what you will about universal healthcare, “public options,” or the proper role of government. Do you see that guy compromising further on his lifelong passion? I don’t. I’ll tell you what I do see: more BS from the right on healthcare.

    Sadly, his views on the subject are probably irrelevant now.