Weave these threads into your reality

Posted on December 17, 2009 by 40andover

In one city, Costco takes tomatoes off its shelves because Sarah Palin is scheduled to appear. I am sure that Costco wanted to protect the tomatoes from an ignoble end.

In Copenhagen, 193 nations are trying to agree on something — anything. When was the last time you got consensus in a family of three members?

Did you know that the food industry is responsible for 1/3 of all of the world’s carbon emissions? Give up grapes in winter and the save the world.

We are trying to agree with China on important things — North Korea, carbon emissions, sanctions for Iran. How about we start with something small, like, “it’s a lovely day, isn’t it?”

Now, no one likes the health care reform bill. The Congress behaved so badly, but of course it is Obama’s fault.

A Republican senator wanted to run out the clock on health care by requiring the reading of a laborious and largely symbolic amendment to the health care legislation. Debate, I get. Screaming and yelling, sure. Stonewalling? Outrageous. That senator ought to be in the penalty box for the rest of his term.

I can drive my Hummer, but Obama, Obama, needs to save us from Waterworld (I really can’t handle that horrible 1980s/90s movie turning out to be prophetic).

If Obama doesn’t fix health care, lower carbon emissions, balance the budget, reduce the deficit and increase jobs, ALL IN ONE YEAR, he will have failed. If I remember my anniversary, I am golden for 12 months. Wow, his job really sucks.

Being a pundit or a talking head must be great. Sanctimony with no responsibility.

An Outsider’s Perspective of US (and Us)

Posted on September 15, 2009 by 40andover

Yesterday, I spent almost two hours talking with a friend who is a businessman from the Cayman Islands. He is in New York on business. Since his business is somewhat US-dependent, he makes it his business to keep up with the news in the States. He is a Libertarian and a pragmatist. I am Democrat and (I like to think) a pragmatist. We agreed on many things, such as the need to compromise and get incremental reform because it is a matter of conscience that people have affordable access to health care. And I agreed with him that the public option will not pay for itself and should be phased in later if other measures don’t rein in the insurance companies. We simply cannot afford to institute this option at this point, given the deficit.

We disagreed on two points. The points of disagreement fascinate me.

First, he thought that death panels could be read into the legislation because it was not expressly disclaimed. My friend is an intelligent, well-read man; he is not Todd Palin. So I had to think about this more. Here is what I have deduced:

if a person distrusts “government” enough to believe that it would kill its own citizens, well, then you can make that argument.
if a person doesn’t believe that our government would kill its own citizens, you might argue that the panel of experts represented a disguised government take-over of health care.
if a person believes that our government is not trying to kill us and trying to cut down on defensive medicine by setting forth safe harbor protocols, then you think the concern is ill-conceived and politically motivated.

I guess what I am learning is while I am firmly in the third camp, not all of the concern may be politically motivated. Sarah Palin must have hit a chord with many, many people who have a deep, abiding distrust of government. Hey, I was scared of government under Bush/Cheney, so I guess I have to be more open to the fear that this legislation unleashed. Interestingly, it took my Cayman Islands friend — an outsider — to help me start to understand the perspective of blog commenter “Jordana”. We still disagree, but now I understand that we may not be starting from the same point of trust. That changes the dynamics of the conversation considerably.

The other point was related to torture. Some torture is understandable under some circumstances. I have never met someone who held that view. While I can see not prosecuting the CIA, I believe that torture is not understandable under any circumstances. I don’t want to be tortured and I would probably make stuff up just to make it stop. So, I don’t see how it helps get to the truth.

Random Thoughts

Posted on August 31, 2009 by 40andover

I realized that I was talking to someone on her cell while she was in the office bathroom. I heard people talking and flushing. I need to sterilize my ear.

I am for universal health care coverage, but I will not pay for hearing aids or ocular implants for people who blast music in their ears. Especially on my subway car.

I saw a man standing just outside the employees entrance at a funeral home looking at the traffic going by. Was he waiting for something to happen?

My partner promised to handle a matter but left my cell phone number. Lesbian merger or dumping it back into my court?

How nice do I really have to be?

Would I get away with driving a person off a bridge if I promise to devote my life to public service (even though that wasn’t the quid pro quo for Teddy)?

If a bald, portly nerdy guy doesn’t see that he is lucky to have the girlfriend he has, will a baseball bat knock sense into him?

How come men think they are way better looking and way more desirable than they really are?

If you are blasting Karla Bonoff or The Pousette Dart Band and dancing around thinking you are cool, should you be entitled to social security benefits out of pity?

Did Sarah Palin drop off the face of the earth or was that just a fantasy I had?

Does Dick Cheney sometimes crawl back into his secret bunker for old time’s sake?

Do I have to go to the gym or can I imagine just how gross it is?

Ooh la la la, GOP Hammer Goes Dancing

Posted on August 17, 2009 by 40andover

ss-090817-dancing-2009-03.ss_full[1]
Some of us may remember former Representative Tom Delay, affectionately known as “The Hammer” for his role as GOP whip in the Congress, as an aggressive, partisan operator.

In a move the proves that politics and game shows are alteregos, The Hammer has announced that he is auditioning for a place on TV’s “Dancing With the Stars”. I haven’t decided whether I am more embarassed for him or the show.

This raises some very complex issues:

Will he be paired with a dancer of little fame or a Democrat with star power?
Will he make suggestive dance moves that would alienate the conservative right and delight the left leaning tangoistas?
Will we be able to read into his dance what he thinks of health care reform by just how much he struts his 60+ year-old body around?
What if he is voted off? Will the right wing picket the show and accuse it of being un-American, commie and pro-health care reform?
Will sitting members of Congress be in the audience wildly cheering him on? Will they neck dance?
Will Sarah Palin draw an example from this and audition to be a contestant on the Amazing Race? I just realized how ironic that would be.
Will the GOP release a statement that The Hammer was in no way following the example of disgraced former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich?
Will The Hammer wear effete dancing shoes and tight sequined clothes, signalling a softening on gay issues? Will John Ashcroft, our former US Attorney General and lounge lizard, join him behind the piano with a Liberace candelabra on it?
Will Delay appear with Donny Osmond, a famous Mormon, and will that give Mitt Romney the needed boost to go for the 2012 GOP Presidential nomination?

(P.S.: 40andYoungerForNow — is this less depressing? Tom Delay today was a gift.)

Reckless Indifference to the Truth

Posted on August 13, 2009 by 40andover

If Sarah Palin believed what she says, then, ok, people can disagree on things.

End of life issues are difficult, emotionally, culturally, religiously and not for the undecisive.

But unless Sarah Palin wants to explain in Kerry-like fashion how she was for it before she was against it, I think she is just using anything to burnish her image as the true neo-con leader for 2012.

Why? because a Google search shows the text of her proclamation supporting end of life and quality of life decision-making:

State of Alaska > Governor > Proclamations > Proclamations Archive

Healthcare Decisions Day Printer Friendly

WHEREAS, Healthcare Decisions Day is designed to raise public awareness of the need to plan ahead for healthcare decisions, related to end of life care and medical decision-making whenever patients are unable to speak for themselves and to encourage the specific use of advance directives to communicate these important healthcare decisions.

WHEREAS, in Alaska, Alaska Statute 13.52 provides the specifics of the advance directives law and offers a model form for patient use.

WHEREAS, it is estimated that only about 20 percent of people in Alaska have executed an advance directive. Moreover, it is estimated that less than 50 percent of severely or terminally ill patients have an advance directive.

WHEREAS, it is likely that a significant reason for these low percentages is that there is both a lack of knowledge and considerable confusion in the public about Advance Directives.

WHEREAS, one of the principal goals of Healthcare Decisions Day is to encourage hospitals, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, continuing care retirement communities, and hospices to participate in a statewide effort to provide clear and consistent information to the public about advance directives, as well as to encourage medical professionals and lawyers to volunteer their time and efforts to improve public knowledge and increase the number of Alaska’s citizens with advance directives.

WHEREAS, the Foundation for End of Life Care in Juneau, Alaska, and other organizations throughout the United States have endorsed this event and are committed to educating the public about the importance of discussing healthcare choices and executing advance directives.

WHEREAS, as a result of April 16, 2008, being recognized as Healthcare Decisions Day in Alaska, more citizens will have conversations about their healthcare decisions; more citizens will execute advance directives to make their wishes known; and fewer families and healthcare providers will have to struggle with making difficult healthcare decisions in the absence of guidance from the patient.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Sarah Palin, Governor of the state of Alaska, do hereby proclaim April 16, 2008, as:

Healthcare Decisions Day in Alaska, and I call this observance to the attention of all our citizens.

Dated: April 16, 2008

The only thing being murdered is the truth.

If this is the face of the New America, then

Posted on August 11, 2009 by 40andover

then, I am moving to Alaska (she left there and moved on to bigger places and bigger things, right?)

Protected Speech or Tyranny?

Posted on August 10, 2009 by 40andover

There are groups of “protesters” at town hall meetings to discuss health care reform. These protesters are paid by organizations that wish to defeat health care reform and shout lies and half-truths intending that those who hear these sounds bites or see the “groundswell of opposition” will be swayed.

These are not grass roots organizations but a roving pack of operatives paid to invade local areas to cast doubt and sow seeds of fear. This is not democracy as some in the GOP claim. This is tyranny by big corporations and those politicians supported by big corporations. This is paid-for speech.

What is astounding to me is that the news organizations are staying away from the story. This is reminiscent of the passivity of the press in the run up to the Iraq War. Maybe those in the news corps are too busy digging deeper into Michael Jackson drug dependencies. Ah, journalism at its best.

I’ll wait until 11pm to get my news from ComedyCentral. G-d bless you, Jon Stewart. And you, too, Rachel Maddow (although I am usually putting my son to bed or eating dinner when your show is on).

Glenn Beck — the unhinging of the right

Posted on August 10, 2009 by 40andover

Ok, this is apparently a real book. It is so ironic since Mr. Beck is one of the biggest idiots ever and you can’t argue with him because he will scream you down. He looks like Nazi-esque on the cover, which I am sure is intentional and intentionally offensive.

Glenn Beck called President Obama a racist, Sarah Palin calls his health care initiatives evil, Lou Dobbs stokes the birther conspiracy and Rush Limbaugh, well, he just stirs the pot. This is the Republican think tank. Septic tank, more precisely.

But, Glenn, you are leading the pack with this book. You are the star of the septic tank.

Palin says Obama’s health care plan is ‘evil’ [but she is the DEVIL]

Posted on August 7, 2009 by 40andover

Is this Sarah Palin’s America? Fear-mongering and power-grabs? Did she read the various committee bills? I don’t think so.

The premise is so ludicrous that one doesn’t know where to begin. Today, in the current system, health care and coverage are rationed and claims denied all of the time. And all the bill says is that people should have health care proxies and end of life directives so doctors and family know their wishes. I have a great plan and my partner and my sister have my proxies and my directives. My mother was dying of cancer and gave us proxies and directives about what she wanted and did not want done at the end. This is called planning ahead and having a say in your care. This is NOT about euthanasia. This is about individualism and choice.

Does anyone’s health insurance cover a 95 year old who wants a heart transplant? No. Cataracts? Sure. The government is not taking away a right that exists.

In fact, GOP took health insurance away from CHILDREN, so stop touting your special needs child. I have a child with special needs, too. So, I know that is a photo-op and I am appalled.

Americans cannot cheat death. But we can live healthier and longer with a health care system that covers more wellness programs so that there is less need emergency surgeries or long hospital stays.

And, Sarah, preying on the fears of Americans who don’t have the resources or the time to understand the issues is UNAMERICAN and CRIMINAL. There are too many people in this GREAT country who have no insurance and we the taxpayers pay their entire bill when they show up in the emergency room at a critical stage THAT COULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED had they access to health care professionals. But, hey, those ideas are mavericky and we all know you are not the real deal.

You say that Obama’s health care plan is “evil”. That is proof enough that it is a good plan. Why? Because you are the Devil.

*********************************************************************************************

By MARK THIESSEN, Associated Press Writer Mark Thiessen, Associated Press Writer – 7 mins ago

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – In her first communication since leaving office, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin described in an Internet posting Friday that President Barack Obama‘s plan to overhaul the health care system was evil.

“Who will suffer the most when they ration care? The sick, the elderly, and the disabled, of course,” the former vice Republican presidential candidate wrote on her Facebook page.

“The America I know and love is not one in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama’s ‘death panel’ so his bureaucrats can decide, based on a subjective judgment of their ‘level of productivity in society,’ whether they are worthy of health care. Such a system is downright evil,” Palin wrote.

An e-mail sent to Palin’s spokeswoman to confirm authorship was not immediately returned Friday.

Obama, a Democrat, campaigned on a promise of offering affordable health care to all Americans, as the United States is the only developed nation that does not have a comprehensive national health care plan for all its citizens.

He has proposed a system that would include government and private insurers. Republicans say that private insurers would be unable to compete, leaving the country with only a government-run health program. They warn that could leave Americans with little control over their health care.

Republican criticism has included claims that the reform plans will lead to rationing, or the government determining which medical procedures a patient can have. However, millions of Americans already face rationing, as insurance companies rule on procedures they will cover.

Denying coverage for certain procedures might increase under proposals to have a government-appointed agency identify medicines and procedures best suited for various conditions.

In the posting, Palin encouraged her supporters to be engaged in the debate. “Nationalizing our health care system is a point of no return for government interference in the lives of its citizens. If we go down this path, there will be no turning back,” Palin wrote.

“Let’s stop and think and make our voices heard before it’s too late,” the posting said.

Palin resigned as Alaska governor on July 26 with nearly 18 months left in her term. She cited not only the numerous ethics complaints that had been filed against her also her wish not to be a lame duck after the first-term governor decided not to seek re-election next year.

Palin, popular with conservatives in the Republican party, has said she wants to build a right-of-center coalition, and there is speculation she will seek the presidency in 2012. In the two weeks since she resigned, Palin has made only one public appearance, giving a Second Amendment rights speech last Saturday before a gun owners group in Anchorage.

Palin also has been largely silent before Friday’s post. She was a voracious user of the social networking site Twitter, and promised to keep her supporters updated with a new private account after she left office. But that hasn’t happened, leaving some of her fans begging for updates in the past two weeks.

Did anyone understand what she said?

Posted on July 27, 2009 by 40andover

On Sunday, Sarah Palin gave another speech, this time, REALLY stepping down. As a parting gesture of kindness, I will assume that her unintelligible press conferences of last month were the result of a hastily-made decision to quit. (Because we she says she is not a quitter and yet she is quitting in the middle of her term, there she goes again speaking English words strung together in a most fascinating way. Maybe it is Palinese.)

She had over a month to prepare her REAL good-bye speech and calibrate her parting impression on her former constituency and the nation. Hmmm. She did not put that time to good use. I wonder what her high school English teachers think? Are they cowering in a corner? Is this the product of a public school education in one of the richest countries in the world? If so, G-d help us.

Sarah, dear, get a speech writer and stick to the teleprompters.

40 — oh wait, yikes!! 50 — andoverblog

Aging and living in urban US

Category Archives: Sarah Palin