Category Archives: politics

Them’s Fightin’ Words

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So, Obama’s Chief of Staff called some of his colleagues “retarded,” and a bunch of other people got mad, most notably, Ms. Palin. Seems it’s not nice to disparage mentally challenged people, even behind closed doors (I’m not disagreeing). But I have to ask, what do his comments have to do with people with learning disabilities specifically? He wasn’t calling them retarded, he was calling his colleagues retarded (or their actions). What does retarded mean? Just like another word I wrote about recently, it means what we want it to mean.

In the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, I find that the definition of the transitive verb retard can be “to slow up especially by preventing or hindering advance or accomplishment : impede.” And in this sense, I do believe it could be said this is exactly what Mr. Emanuel was trying to convey in his weekly strategy meeting. To quote the Wall Street Journal, he “warned [the group] not to alienate lawmakers whose votes would be needed on health care and other top legislative items.” So was he really likening them derisively to people with mental handicap, or was he expressing his opinion that their actions were hindering accomplishment?

I’m going with the latter.

Let Them Have It

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It’s only a word. It’s just a jumble of letters with a representative sound. How can something so insignificant as some squiggles on a page (or a screen) cause so much trouble? After all, words can only have the meaning we give them and nothing more. So what’s the big deal about this one? Personally, I could take it or leave it — I have no real use for it myself. That is why I say, let them have it. If it means so much to them, it’s theirs!

Who is “they”, and what is this word? Let me answer the simpler part first: marriage. The first part is not so cut-and-dried, but I have a solution. It seems to me that the people who hold on to this word tightest in our country are, generally-speaking, affiliated with some religious organization. At least they are the ones who seem to be the most invested in keeping this word to themselves, unwilling to share it with those who don’t comply with their ideal. So give it to them.

Let’s collectively define “marriage” as a religious institution, sanctioned by the state, giving those involved in the union all the benefits and responsibilities as a civil union, aka domestic partnership. Let the state decide who can be bound by a civil union, and let each faith decide who can be bound by a marriage. Two birds, one stone.

Listening to most arguments against allowing gay marriage, it seems to me most are faith-based. And this, to me, is just plain ridiculous. I wonder how many straight marriages in the US are between two people with any real religious conviction? Surely, it can’t be all. Can we say for sure that all marriages performed by Elvis impersonators, justices of the peace, or ship captains were performed while invoking the Almighty? I’m sure atheist couples don’t imagine their weddings are under the eyes of God.

However, if it will soothe their souls, let them have ownership of the word marriage. Let’s have a compromise so that all can have the freedom to legally bind themselves to another person. Let everyone else have domestic partnership—it’s got more letters, anyway. (Right now, in Washington State, only same-sex partners and couples with at least one member aged 62 or over can enter into domestic partnerships. How fair is that?)

Healthcare Plan for the Elective Uninsured

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I’ve been trying to keep up with the whole Healthcare Reform hubbub. I read articles, argue with my uncle, attended a rally. Tonight I read about half of Obama’s prepared speech as published in the NY Times (I’ll read the other half later, I promise). I’m feeling a little better about things, but one thing that initially had me cringing was the notion of inflicting fines on citizens who opt not to purchase health insurance of any kind. To paraphrase a commenter at the Houston Chronicle website, ‘isn’t it my business if I choose to pay out of pocket?’ I chewed this over, thinking about why this would be a fine-able offense. And so I’ve come up with a healthcare plan for the Elective Uninsured in lieu of automatic fines.

The Elective Uninsured would be defined as individuals who can afford to have insurance either through an employer or the insurance exchange proposed in the new plan, but elect not to purchase it. It would not include those whose income makes it prohibitive to purchase insurance.

First, the Elective Uninsured would be registered in a national database that would be accessible to all healthcare facilities in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, Guam, US Virgin Islands, US Marshall Islands, and any other islands with US in their names.

They would agree to pay any and all health services out of pocket. Emergency services would be required to be pre-paid in cash or by credit card. If the person arrives at an emergency facility unconscious, the facility is allowed to retrieve a credit card from their person or in the absence of a credit card, to access their banking information for pre-payment. The person will subsequently be billed for any emergency transportation which brought them to the facility.

Failure to pay for services or medications received will not be a legitimate reason for entering into bankruptcy protection. This would include default on credit cards where it can be shown the default was from medical services charged.

Minor children of parents who are Elective Uninsured will not be denied necessary treatment for lack of pre-payment. However, the parents will be billed for services and medications provided to their child. Failure to pay will result in garnishment of wages equally from both parents.  If the parents are married to each other and divorce prior to the bill being paid in full, they will continue to pay the debt equally, and this will not be negotiable in divorce proceedings.

If you are an Elective Uninsured at the qualifying age of Medicaid, you will not be able to collect benefits.

Anyway, it’s just an idea.

Bailout Misdirected

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I’m sure I’m not the first to say this, but that $700 billion is going to the wrong people. What really should happen is that money should be going to the taxpayers in the form of a rebate. $3000 (probably more) to every individual who paid taxes in 2008. Some people would go on spending sprees, injecting this sad retail climate. The rest would be a little more pragmatic, doing what? Making a mortgage payment, depositing it in a bank account. All in all, it would boost consumer confidence, helping to correct the market scenario in a more “natural” way.

I Heard a Rumor

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I heard very recently that a large corporate entity is making preparations to outsource one of their departments to India. It’s a department of office workers, cubicle residents, jobs that I have no doubt Indians can do and do well. And it’s not a customer service type thing so people won’t be able to make jokes about their accents. So, from a corporate point of view, I say, that is a viable solution. But then I think, what about the Americans who are about to lose their jobs? Did the corporate entity think about what those people would do after they got the heave ho?  Forget the illegal aliens coming in to the US to clean toilets and pick cotton. What do Obama, Clinton, McCain (and Nader, too!) have to say about moving American jobs overseas? How are they going to make it beneficial for companies to keep the jobs here? Maybe they’ve said and I haven’t heard.

Review: Seattle Obama Rally

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On Thursday, I saw a Seattle Times article announcing a Barack Obama rally was to be held on Friday (yesterday) at Key Arena. Since I live and work just a few blocks from Key Arena, I decided I should go. In the event that Obama is elected President, I thought it would be nice to be able to say I’d seen him in person.

The article and Obama’s website said doors were to open at 11 a.m. I left my office at 10:55, knowing it would be about a five minute walk, to discover that the arena was already two-thirds full. By 11:30, it was filled to capacity – people were being refused entry. Wikipedia states concert capacity is 16,641. Mayor Nichols said later that there were an additional 3000 people outside. Apparently they set up a monitor so they could watch from the outside plaza. I’ve never seen the Sonics draw this kind of crowd.

At first it was chaos, as everyone tried to find seating. I sat with some strangers one section over from a friend I had attempted to sit with. For a bit, it was pretty exciting. There was an energy to the crowd that was contagious. The Wave was done several times in the interim, a couple girls had a dance off in the bleachers. But then time dragged on. In retrospect, maybe they were setting up the video feed for the people outside. But in the moment, it just seemed like bad form to keep us waiting so long.

At around 12:30, three people came up on stage. Pastor Patrinell Staten Wright, founder of the Total Experience Gospel Choir; some guy whose introduction was not clear to me; and Matt Cameron, current drummer of Pearl Jam. Apparently, these three musicians and some others got together (on my birthday, as a matter of fact) and made a video for a song they performed together for Obama’s campaign. After a long-winded speech by the unknown man having something to do with his brother coming back from Iraq, the video was played on the monitors.

The stage was empty for another 10-15 minutes when Seattle mayor Greg Nichols came out. He talked for a while then introduced U.S. Congressman Adam Smith (of the 9th district, which includes Seattle’s south suburbs, Tacoma, and part of Olympia). Rep. Smith talked briefly then introduced Washington governor Christine Gregoire, who had just announced her support of Obama earlier in the day. She got the crowd really fired up, shouting out all the great things about Washington Obama would take away with him in his heart and mind. The Boeing plane that got him there! The beef! The potatoes! The apple pie! among other things (except salmon and geoducks – maybe the candidate is hydrophobic).

Finally, at 1:06, Ms. Gregoire introduced Barack Obama, and a minute later he was on the stage. He is a good speaker, I’ll give him that. And as he enumerated the ills of our country I thought, in the great words of GI Joe, “knowing is half the battle.” But in the time I was there, I didn’t hear any solutions. I know what the problems are, too, but I have no idea how to fix them. Does he?

At 1:36 I left Key Arena, and he was still going.

Barack Obama at Key Arena