Strollerderby : huffington post

UPDATE: President Obama Issues Statement About Dr. George Tiller

Brett Singer — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 02:36:00 GMT

President Barack Obama has issued a statement about the murder of Dr. George Tiller:

I am shocked and outraged by the murder of Dr. George Tiller as he attended church services this morning. However profound our differences as Americans over difficult issues such as abortion, they cannot be resolved by heinous acts of violence.

Well said, Mr. President.

TheRoot.com points out: "It's fairly unusual for the White House to comment on this type of local story. But the news of Tiller's murder, allegedly by an anti-choice activist apprehended this afternoon by local and state police, has reverberated across the country in a matter of hours—and inflamed a longstanding debate about abortion rights in America."

Methinks this won't be the last we hear about the matter.

Original post follows:

*-*-*-*

Sad news from Kansas -- Dr. George Tiller was shot and killed while ushering at church. A suspect is in custody.

From Huffington Post:

WICHITA, Kansas -- Dr. George Tiller, a Kansas doctor whose clinic received national attention for performing late-term abortions, was shot to death as he entered his Wichita church on Sunday.
Tiller has been among the few U.S. physicians performing late-term abortion, making him a favored target of anti-abortion protesters. He testified that he and his family have suffered years of harassment and threats. His clinic was the site of the 1991 "Summer of Mercy" protests marked by mass demonstrations and arrests. His clinic was bombed in 1985, and an abortion opponent shot him in both arms in 1993.

Anti-abortion group Operation Rescue was no fan of Dr. Tiller; there is a "Tiller Watch" page on their web site. The group has issued a statement condemning the murder.

Tiller was recently tried for "allegedly consulting a second physician in late-term abortion cases who was not truly 'independent' as required by Kansas state law." It was a big deal case (we covered it on Strollerdery), with both sides tossing out big deal rhetoric. "Columnist Jack Cashill compared the trial to the Nuremberg Trials of Nazi war criminals, while NYU Professor Jacob Appel described Tiller as 'a genuine hero who ranks alongside Susan B. Anthony and Martin Luther King Jr. in the pantheon of defenders of human liberty.'" (Source for both quotes: Wikipedia)

This is an ugly end to an ugly story. Hopefully the police have the right person and they will be punished. That won't bring anyone back to life, of course. No matter what side of the abortion debate you are on, I hope you agree that shooting someone in cold blood is a horrible thing to do.

Source: Huffington Post

Image: CrooksAndLiars

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Cooking with Tamra Davis: Apple Cake

editors — Fri, 01 May 2009 18:00:00 GMT

Tamra Davis, film and TV director, music-video maker, mother of two, Huffington Post blogger, and wife of the Beastie Boys’ Mike D. (their boys wander in and out of the kitchen during filming), has given Babble permission to post some recipes from her online cooking show. Today: Apple Cake!

Now go buy her book, Make Me Something Good to Eat, available on her TamraDavisCookingShow.com!

Cooking with Tamra Davis: Grilled Fish Sandwich

editors — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 18:00:00 GMT

Now go buy her book, Make Me Something Good to Eat, available on her TamraDavisCookingShow.com!

Cooking with Tamra Davis: Red Velvet Cupcakes

editors — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 18:00:00 GMT

Now go buy her book, Make Me Something Good to Eat, available on her TamraDavisCookingShow.com!

Cooking with Tamra Davis: Shrek Pesto

editors — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 18:00:00 GMT

Now go buy her book, Make Me Something Good to Eat, available on her TamraDavisCookingShow.com!

Cooking with Tamra Davis: Granola

editors — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 18:00:00 GMT

Tamra Davis, film and TV director, music-video maker, mother of two, Huffington post blogger, and wife of the Beastie Boys’ Mike D. (their boys wander in and out of the kitchen during filming), has given Babble permission to post some recipes from her online cooking show. Every day this week, we’ll publish her tips for making a healthy, kid-friendly dish. Today: Granola!

Now go buy her book, Make Me Something Good To Eat, available on her TamraDavisCookingShow.com!

The Trouble With Wanting a VBAC

Madeline Holler — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 19:54:00 GMT

With first babies, you have all the choices in the world how to give birth -- drug-free, with a doula, in a hospital surrounded by the family, c-section. Not that the plan always works out, but a mom-to-be can dream.

With subsequent babies, however, the options narrow quickly for a group of women who, for whatever reason, wound up giving birth to the first via cesarean section.

Pamela Paul's article in this week's Time, "The Trouble With Repeat Cesareans," would more accurately be titled "Hey, Good Luck With That VBAC."

Paul doesn't set out to argue whether women should be allowed to choose to give birth via c-section. Rather, she illustrates how, for an alarmingly large number of women, the choice to give birth vaginally isn't even there -- c-section is the only apparent option.

She writes that although VBAC is a safe option, nine out of 10 women with a prior cesarean undergo repeat cesareans for subsequent births. Of course repeat cesarean might be the woman's choice, but vast numbers of are basically forced into the operating room.

From Time:

...the International Cesarean Awareness Network (ICAN), a grass-roots group, recently called 2,850 hospitals that have labor and delivery wards and found that 28% of them don't allow VBACs, up from 10% in its previous survey, in 2004. ICAN's latest findings note that another 21% of hospitals have what it calls "de facto bans," i.e., the hospitals have no official policies against VBAC, but no obstetricians will perform them.

These bans left one California woman to drive 100 miles to a hospital where she would be allowed to attempt a VBAC.

This is interesting because the National Institutes for Health, recognizing the tremendous cost and associated risks of surgical birth, has set a goal of decreasing the number of cesareans by, in part, upping the VBAC rate to 37 percent by 2010. In 2006, VBACs only accounted for 8 percent of all births in the U.S.

Paul counters the studies and VBAC safety fears many women, doctors and -- probably most importantly -- insurance companies operate under. And explains how we got to where we are today, even though just over 10 years ago, attempting VBAC was quite common. Several high profile lawsuits sent malpractice insurance through the roof. She qoutes a doctor who admits the "once a cesarean, always a cesarean" is an issue of money, not patient safety.

Paul also writes on Huffington Post her own experience when she wanted a VBAC. She found who she thought was a VBAC friendly doctor, only when she was six months pregnant he wanted to talk c-section scheduling. She balked and when she went in to give birth, the on-call doc at her supposedly VBAC-friendly hospital wouldn't talk to her while she was in labor and didn't answer his pager when it was time for her to push. Lovely!

I'm curious whether what hoops you had to jump through to get support for a VBAC or if you had to through in the towel. If you had a repeat c-section, was that your choice? Avoiding the battle?

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Photo: Time

Breast-is-Best 2.0: Pumping in Public

Madeline Holler — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 18:31:00 GMT

You know I'm all about the breastfeeding. I like to think I support all things boob and breastmilky. And I do, I really do. But we all have our challenges, our things to get over. Pumping in public is mine.

But not Christen Clifford's. She rather likes to pump in public, or at least has no problem doing it. The nursing soldat in me says "Kudos! Kudos to you and your battery operated Evenflo, Christen!" The more squeamish side of me is blushing and quickly looking away.

Clifford writes that she first pumped in public on the subway after a long meeting. She could no longer endure her engorged breasts, so she popped out her boob and latched on her handheld with one hand, held on to the pole with the other. People stared. Her nipple was visible through the clear plastic shell, the steady spray of milk no doubt audible. This wasn't ideal, she acknowledges. Nonetheless, she was hooked (up).

Next, she tells us she pumped at theatre bar during intermission.

From HuffPo:

It wasn't the ideal place to be squeezing out human milk, but I tried to remember that it was a part of breastfeeding: if I think women should nurse everywhere (and I do) then we should pump everywhere too.

Fair enough. Still. Ew?

Clifford brings up the much discussed New Yorker article about companies' attempts to make the office more breast-pump friendly. The writer, Jill Lepore, lays out arguments that what the workplace should focus on is longer maternity leaves. Many readers (Clifford included) think Lepore is waging a new battle in the mommy wars: breastmilk from the breast vs. breastmilk from a bottle. Lepore even asks "who would want to pump in public." Of course, we know Clifford's answer to that.

As for me, no thanks, but I'll keep an open mind. Go for it, public pumpers. If you need me for a pump-in, I'll charge up the Medela, go sit on a sidewalk and suck it up (and out). But I won't be public-pumping on my own any time soon. Not because I shouldn't, but because I just don't want to. In the high stakes breastfeeding competition, I have been bested (breasted?).

What about you? Is public pumping no worse than blowing your nose in the middle of a crowd or is this mother out of control?

Photo: milkend.com

White House Sends Chanukah Card With Christmas Tree On It

Brett Singer — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 20:00:00 GMT

The Bush family really can't win these days.

Not only is the sitting President receiving blame for Republican losses on Election Day, but first lady Laura is getting flak for a farkakteh (pronounced "fuh-kahk-tuh") Chanukah card that had a picture of a Christmas tree on it.

While its fun to make fun of this kind of thing, I have to admit that I don't really care. It certainly is a mistake and shows certain cluelessness on the part of the First Lady's staff, or at least a lack of organizing skills (shouldn't someone have looked at the card first?). But this isn't exactly Hunter Gibson (Mel's dad) denying that the Holocaust actually happened. Also, the card didn't have a picture of the Baby Jesus on it. It was just a tree. (For the record, apologies were quickly offered. Faces, already covered with egg, were red. Feet were in mouths.)

So was it a bit dense for the White House to send a Chanukah card that didn't have a Chanukah image on it? Sure. But is it really that offensive? I don't think so. I'm Jewish, and I happen to like Christmas trees. That's a topic for another post, but for now, I'm not ready to add CardGate to the list of Bush Administration screw-ups.

Source: NY Post via HuffPo

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UPDATE AGAIN: Palin Prepper Defends The Gov

Brett Singer — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 05:15:00 GMT

ANOTHER update to the "McCampaign staffers can't seem to stop talking" story. From Gawker:

Republican and former Bush executive secretary of the National Security Council Steve Biegun has gotten in touch with National Review editor/wonderboy Rich Lowry to redeem the former vice presidential candidate by repudiating recent claims she has no idea who's in NAFTA and thinks Africa's a country. He calls the allegations "absurd," while managing to note that she had a "steep learning curve on foreign issues," as Lowry formulates it. It's nice someone is stepping out on Sarah's behalf, but is this half-hearted defense simply part of the larger scheme to discredit her for 2012?

I really am fascinated by this whole thing. The word I keep coming back to is childish. Someone bashes her, someone else defends her, the woman herself uses the words "jerks" and "stinkers." Now the person responsible for preparing the former VP candidate for her interviews says, "there's no way she didn't know Africa was a continent, and whoever is saying she didn't must be distorting 'a fumble of words.'" What does that even mean? Steve Biegun offers a theory about the charge that Palin didn't know beans about NAFTA:

He was briefing Palin before a Univision interview, and talking to her about trade issues. He rolled through NAFTA, CAFTA, and the Colombia FTA. As he talked, people were coming in and out of the room, handing Palin things, etc. She was distracted from what Biegun was saying, and said, roughly, "Ok, who's in NAFTA, what's the deal with CAFTA, what's up the FTA?"—her way, Biegun says, of saying "rack them and stack them," begin again from the start. "Somebody is taking a conversation and twisting it maliciously," he says.

Gawker says that, "this can only be the work of a Republican faction that wants Palin never to speak on behalf of their party again." I guess this could be Karl Rove sneaking his way back into the hearts and minds of the GOP. But after everything we saw this campaign season, I think there is a distinct possibility that the people speaking out about what went on behind the scenes at the McCampaign are NOT the best our country has to offer. At the very least, they're behaving very badly. Is it just me or do they sound like children, and not terribly well-behaved children at that?

Original post and updates are below. This is like "The Neverending Story." (Which, by the way, is only $4.99 on DVD. Not a bad deal.)

*-*-*

UPDATE: Palin Says Critics Are Jerks, Some Media People are Stinkers

Updating the earlier news regarding the comments made by one of Sarah Palin's aides, the New York Times is reporting that Governor Palin has made the bold move of referring to the "unnamed McCain campaign aides who have been maligning her in recent days" as "jerks." Also, some members of the media are "stinkers." No word on whether either group is made of greasy grimy gopher guts and mutilated monkey feet. It is also possible that the unnamed sources are, in fact, poopyheads infected with massive amounts of cooties. We'll stay with this story all night if we have to.

OK, OK, we're being silly, but so is everyone else. And we weren't involved in a Presidential election campaign.

Here's the direct quote from the Times:

Referring to the McCampaign staff members who have criticized her: "that’s cruel and it’s mean-spirited, it’s immature, it’s unprofessional, and those guys are jerks, if they came away with it taking things out of context and then tried to spread something on national news. It is not fair and not right."

As for the media: “For the most part, absolutely, media persons, reporters, have been absolutely right on and there has been fairness and objectivity...There have been some stinkers, though, who have kind of made the whole basket full of apples, once in a while, smell kind of bad.”

And there you have it. The original post continues below:

*-*-*

An aide to Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has fired back at sources in the McCampaign who claim that Palin was, well, something other than a good VP candidate.

"This is so unfortunate and, quite honestly, sickening," Palin aide Meghan Stapleton said Thursday in a written statement. "The accusations we are hearing and reading are not true, and since we deny all these anonymous allegations, there is nothing specific to which we will respond.
"We have the highest regards for Sen. John McCain. Gov. Palin was honored to be chosen as McCain's running mate. And as governor of Alaska, Gov. Palin looks forward to working with President-elect Obama on securing energy independence for America."

Palin herself says she will not respond to "individual accusations."

"I won't comment on anyone's gossip or allegations that are based on anonymous sources," she said. "That's kind of a small, evidently bitter type of person, who would anonymously charge something foolish like that -- that I perhaps didn't know an answer to a question. So until I know who was talking about it, I won't have a comment on false allegations."

Others in the McCampaign are bummed out that things fell apart so fast. "Despite the acrimony, many McCain aides say they are sad the campaign team dissolved so quickly." No kidding.

I'm a little surprised as well. Regardless of what anyone thinks of Sarah Palin, she was chosen by the McCampaign. So if they had problems with her, wouldn't before the election have been a good time to figure that out?

Not to get too silly about this, but don't we tell our children to be good sports when they lose? And isn't this type of behavior the exact opposite of that? Frankly, the Presidential election is a hell of a lot more important than a soccer game. Sometimes talking about it doesn't help.

Source: CNN

Image: HuffPo

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They say: Obama Wins

They Say: Sarah Palin Knows Nothing

Brett Singer — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 19:15:00 GMT

Let the backbiting begin!

As Madeline reported over in Morning News, some members of the McCampaign is seemingly saying that Sarah Palin is to blame for John McCain not being elected President of the United States. Even you think that's going too far – I haven't heard anyone say that directly – McCampaign staffers are certainly telling tales out of school. And none of the tales are particularly flattering to Governor Palin.

As Fox News reports it, members of the McCampaign are now saying that there were, "gaps in [Palin's] knowledge." Gaps like not knowing that Africa is a continent. Not knowing which countries were part of NAFTA. Little things like that. As Howard Stern said on his Sirius XM radio show the other day, maybe it's OK for an average citizen not to know these things (he did say that everyone should know that Africa is a continent). But a Vice-President candidate?

The video (at HuffPo) of Bill O'Reilly discussing these revelations with a Fox News is particularly hilarious. Responding to the notion that Palin didn't know a lot of important stuff, he says, "You can tutor people," says Bill O'Reilly. "It's gotta be more than that." It does? Why?

Regarding Palin's refusing to be prepped for her now-infamous Katie Couric interview, Bill says, "She didn't want to be bogged down with a lesson before Ms. Couric talked to her." BUT then "Palin began to attack staff… she hadn't been warned." WHAT????

When the McCampaign wouldn't allow Palin to do an appearance on The O'Reilly Factor alone, Bill said they couldn't make it work "logistically." It makes O'Reilly sound like a guy who just wanted some alone time with Sarah.

Palin was throwing "tantrums… there was the throwing of paperwork and things of this nature." Then she met McCampaign staff wrapped only in a bathrobe. "She's a bit of a shopaholic." That's what the Fox News reporter says he was told.

Do you think McCain's loss was her fault? Or is this just a lot of blame shifting?

Source: HuffPo (also image), Morning News

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They say: Obama Wins

Brett Singer — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 04:11:00 GMT

CNN, The New York Times, and even Fox News have called the Presidential race for Barack Obama. (UPDATE: so has everyone else.)

Amazing to think that it's almost all over after so much campaigning.

Not much to say. I'm still going to watch the news for awhile; I'm like Yogi Berra – it ain't over 'til it's over, y'know? Then again, McCain just conceded. Wow. (Classy speech too, for what it's worth.)

UPDATE: I'm watching Barack's speech now. I can't imagine what must be going through his mind. Think about where he was in 2004. Wow. I know I should have something more articulate to say but "wow" is going to have to do. (It's late.)

My kids don't seem to care that much, which was actually sort of nice in a way. No matter who wins, they get up, go to school, eat lunch, run around, jump on my ribs – a typical day. Eventually I'll talk to them about this election, but not right now.

What about you – how do you feel?

image: me waiting to vote today

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109 Year Old Daughter Of Slave Votes For Obama

Other Stuff to Vote On Today – Same Sex Marriage, Chicken Cages

Brett Singer — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 20:15:00 GMT

So the United States is picking a President today. But there are other candidates, and also many ballot measures in play today.

A quick round-up:

ARIZONA:
- Ban same-sex marriage.
- Require that any initiative involving spending or tax hikes be approved by majority of all registered voters, not just those casting ballots.

ARKANSAS:
- Create state lottery.
- Ban unmarried couples from adopting or being foster parents.

CALIFORNIA:
- Ban same-sex marriage.
- Authorize high-speed rail project.
- Require parental notification for a minor's abortion.
- Create 14-member commission to draw state legislative districts.
- Require all utilities to generate 20 percent of their power from renewable energy by 2010.
- Ban cramped metal cages for egg-laying hens.

I think I'm noticing a trend here.

Several states are voting on ballot measures to "ban same-sex marriage." Personally, I find this bizarre. Isn't it already banned? Are people that freaked out at the possibility of two men or two women marrying each other that they need to put it on double secret probation? (For the record, I think if gay people are crazy enough to want to be married, it's fine. Go for it.)

Looking at the article on MiamiHerald.com, it looks like the to-do of an insane person. Authorize slot machine gambling, check. Allow state's first casino, check. Ban abortion and dog racing, check. Ban cramped metal cages for egg-laying hens, check. (Those are all from different states, not the same one.) That's not to say that all of the measures are insane, it's just funny to think about them out of context. "Let's see, today...Prohibit mandatory union membership and mandatory union dues, authorize slot-machine gambling, and make English the official language of government proceedings. Got it." Busy day.

Sources: Miami Herald, MTV

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They say: no one with a uterus should vote for McCain

They say: McCain not thrilled with Palin and she wants to run in 2012

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109 Year Old Daughter Of Slave Votes For Obama

Brett Singer — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 19:45:00 GMT

The line to vote for President and other stuff today might be kind of long. If you get cranky, here's an inspiring story to keep you a little bit sane.

From the Austin American Statesman:

Amanda Jones, 109, the daughter of a man born into slavery, has lived a life long enough to touch three centuries. And after voting consistently as a Democrat for 70 years, she has voted early for the country's first black presidential nominee.
…
Jones' father herded sheep as a slave until he was 12, according to the family, and once he was freed, he was a farmer who raised cows, hogs and turkeys on land he owned. Her mother was born right after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed, Joyce Jones said. The family owned more than 100 acres of land in Cedar Creek at one point, she said.
Amanda Jones' father urged her to exercise her right to vote, despite discriminatory practices at the polls and poll taxes meant to keep black and poor people from voting. Those practices were outlawed for federal elections with the 24th Amendment in 1964, but not for state and local races in Texas until 1966.

First of all, the fact that anyone lived to be 109 is cool. More importantly, though, is her story. I can't imagine what it must have felt like for Amanda to cast her vote in this Presidential election.

Source/Image: Statesman.com

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Sarah Palin Gets Pranked By Canadian Radio Hosts – Video

Brett Singer — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 02:07:00 GMT

When you were a kid, did you ever make prank calls? Call a bar and ask to speak to Dick Hertz? Dial 867 5309 and ask for Jenny? Or "is your refrigerator running? Well, you'd better go and catch it!" (That last one is way old school, dude.)

Some lucky grown-ups actually make a living doing that sort of thing. And Sarah Palin is their latest victim.

Marc-Antoine Audette and Sebastien Trudel, two Canadian radio performers who go by the name The Masked Avengers, have made calls to numerous celebrities and government officials, including Britney Spears (she's a celebrity, not a government official – just wanted to clarify that.) Now Alaska's governor can add her name to the ranks of the pranked. The Canuck comedians got through to Sarah Palin herself on Saturday and convinced her – for five minutes – that she was speaking to French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

The remarkable thing is how easily they get through. Sure, one would think that Palin would have figured out this wasn't actually the French Prez when he says that he loved the "documentary" that Hustler made about her, "Nailin' Palin." But the really sad part is the staffer who puts her right on the phone. No, "Are we expecting a call from the President of France?" Nothing.

Another good line: "We have the equivalent of Joe the Plumber in France. It's called Marcel, the guy with bread under his armpit."

The campaign released the following statement: "Governor Palin was mildly amused to learn that she had joined the ranks of heads of state, including President Sarkozy and other celebrities, in being targeted by these pranksters. C'est la vie."

So I guess if you catch your children on the phone asking some stranger if they have Prince Albert in a Can (let him out! Ha ha!), maybe you should encourage them? OK, not really.

Here's the entire Sarah Palin prank call for your listening pleasure.

Source: miamiherald.com, huffingtonpost.com

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N-Word Flies at Palin Rally

Brett Singer — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 21:00:00 GMT

This is really ugly.

I hope that whomever you happen to be voting for, this isn't something you can condone.

As the blog We Are Respectable Negroes (the name comes from the Forty Acres and a Mule document) puts it: "It seems that Barack Obama was finally called a 'nigger' at a recent Republican presidential rally."

Palin will get a lot of flack for not responding, and while I can't argue otherwise, I don't know what she should have said. (In a Palin voice: "Oh, come on now! That's a bad thing to say!") Then again, how do you stand in front of a crowd that screams out something like that?

Michelle Malkin is claiming that the person was actually shouting, "Redistributor!"

Yes, of course. I make that mistake all the time.

(Aside: in case anyone is planning to leave a comment along the lines of, "What about that Sarah Palin hanging effigy? Why aren't you railing against that?" It's terrible and should be taken down immediately.)

I'll ask you -- what do you think you heard? I actually closed my eyes so I couldn't see the captioning on the video. Send the kids out of the room and tell us what you think was said.

Source: We Are Respectable Negroes, MichelleMalkin.com

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They Say: How To Work From Home More Effectively

Kelly Mills — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 14:02:00 GMT

Being a work-at-home mom has plenty of perks, like the flexibility to pick up the kid from school and the ability to do dentist's appointments and teacher conference days without begging a boss for the time off. But there's serious downsides too: As I detailed here, it's hard to escape from work when it stares at you 24-7; the household tasks beg for my time; and no one is paying me to surf the ol' 'net, though that doesn't stop me. So when I hear there's ways to be more productive at home, I think, "Yeah! Sign me up!"

Only after reading this, I'm skeptical. Not because these are terrible, but because it sounds a little like slapping a band-aid on top of a giant wound infected with flesh-eating strep.

The tips. 1. Clean up the clutter. Yeah, if I had time to do that I might actually wanna use that time to hit the five deadlines I'm behind on. 2. Move your desk so it's away from the door in a commanding position. Dude, you have a desk? I schlepp my laptop from surface to surface so I can do five things at once! Though I like the idea of my kid walking in as I swivel my chair around from behind my imposing oak desk. I should make her schedule an appointment for snack. 3. Get a plant. Oh god, one more thing to water and care for. No. Way. 4. Get good lighting. Uh, who has fluorescent lights in their house? 5. Move the TV out of the office. Right. I may not be the most disciplined person ever, but I don't actually watch TV during my "work" hours. The internet is another story, but if I get rid of my computer, I'm SOL for work.

Sorry, the feng shui fixes are not cutting it for a working mom with so much to do, so little time. Frankly, the best thing I could do for my productivity is probably lose the kid. Cough. Screw productivity.

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Babble Talk: The Candidates Health Plans

Brett Singer — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 20:00:00 GMT

Kim Mance breaks down some of the key points in the Obama and McCain health care plans. I have a few thoughts to add.

I didn't realize this, but the debate about a national health care system goes back much further than when Bill Clinton attempted to implement one when he was first elected way back in 1992. "Both Roosevelt and Truman called for health care to be an 'economic right.' Truman then proposed a single-payer health program to cover all Americans. But it was called a 'Communist plot' by a House subcommittee after the American Medical Association denounced it." Funny (not ha-ha funny) how one of the current digs at Obama is that he's a "socialist". I guess socialist is the new communist.

A key difference between their proposals is, "how to ensure that all Americans have access to health insurance. Both want there to be no 'state lines' as there are now, so families can shop around for the best plan. However, Obama will regulate and require insurance companies to cover patients regardless of pre-existing conditions, and McCain will not. McCain will instead work with Governors on (fifty separate) plans to optimize access to health care within each individual state."

One thing that I find very interesting, and encouraging, is that at least both sides are talking about getting more people covered. Back in the 1990's, it was much more of an "us against them" situation, with the Democrats wanting a national health care system and the Republicans wanting everything to stay the same.

To me, a sign that the McCampaign is out of touch on this particular issue is the notion that a family can purchase health coverage for $5,000, or even that they can purchase it at all. First, as Mance points out in her Babble article, $5,000 covers less than half of the typical family's yearly health insurance bill. Obama says that the cost is $12,000, Mance cites a study that puts the number at $12,680. Second, as someone who has run a small business and offered health insurance to employees, I can tell you that it is not that simple to just go buy a plan the way McCain says it is. For an individual, it is significantly more difficult. Health insurers simply don't want to talk to individuals about coverage, they prefer to deal with "groups", meaning employers. So while it sounds nice to say, "hey, here's five grand, you can buy whatever health plan works best for you", it's just not that simple.

There are more details discussed in Mance's article, which is very much worth a read. The bottom line? It's hard to tell what will happen no matter who gets elected, but they agree that the current system isn't good enough. "Neither presidential candidate's health care plan brings us anywhere near a true socialized medicine or single-payer system. But they do both point out the many ways our own health care structure can be improved." That's at least something.

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Palin Speaks Out On Special Needs Trusts

Brett Singer — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 14:00:00 GMT

Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin gave a speech in Pittsburgh on Friday where she discussed the challenges facing children with special needs.

Here is a video clip with a few choice digs at the Obama-Biden tax plan:

If the clip does not appear, try clicking here to see it.

And a couple of pertinent lines from the speech:

As families across America know, the care of special-needs children requires long-term planning, and especially financial planning. A common practice among these families is to establish financial trusts. These are known as special needs trusts, covering years of medical and other costs, and for parents they bring invaluable comfort.
Understandably, then, many families with special-needs children or dependent adults are concerned that our opponent in this election plans to raise taxes on precisely those kinds of financial arrangements. They fear that Senator Obama's tax increase will have serious and harmful consequences -- and they are right. The burden that his plan would impose upon these families is just one more example of how many plans can be disrupted, how many futures can be placed at risk, and how many people can suffer when the power to tax is misused.

I’m unfamiliar with special needs trusts, but it sounds to me like something only someone with money can do. That is, if a family lives paycheck to paycheck, how much financial planning can they really do? Like most political rhetoric, what Palin says is short on specifics and long on fear mongering. (That's true of both sides; lack of details is non-partisan.) Also, "the power to tax"? Oy vey. You would think no Republican administration had ever raised taxes, or that the tax cuts in recent years actually worked. (That's another conversation, but really. Oy vey.)

She also makes this claim:

In a McCain-Palin administration, we will put the educational choices for special needs children in the right hands their parents'. Under reforms that I will lead as vice president, the parents and caretakers of children with physical or mental disabilities will be able to send that boy or girl to the school of their choice -- public or private.

Just like that? Come on. We're not electing a Supreme Ruler; we're electing a President. And anyone who thinks that a school voucher law like the one that Sarah Palin describes (I know that may be an oversimplification, but hey, I can do it too!) will get passed quickly and easily is at best naïve.

A commenter on the nationaljournal.com article says it pretty well:

I find all these promises far too vague and general to mean much of anything. … What about health insurance? … Sorry, I don't need a 'friend' -- I need someone with a plan that does more than 'hope' that 'market forces' will allow me to afford insurance for my child.

I will say that I think it's interesting to hear this much talk about autism/special needs children during an election year. It's possible that this issue was front and center in the past, but if so, I didn't notice.

Text of the full speech is here if you want to read it.

If anyone has more direct experience with special needs trusts, or any of the other issues Palin raised in her speech, I'd be curious to hear your take on what she had to say.

sources: MSNBC, National Journal

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Flip Flopping on Palin's Kids

Brett Singer — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 21:00:00 GMT

I was all set to write something about how I didn't really care if Sarah Palin put her children in the public eye. It's part of running for office, especially national office, and hey, this is her job. People rarely complain about men doing it with their kids. Why should it be different for a woman?

But then this story about Piper and her (fake) Louis Vuitton bag popped up, and I had a change of heart.

Is it really fair to put your kids through that sort of scrutiny? Let's review: We had Piper Palin, on video, spitting on Trig's hair.

Then Palin the Candidate brought Piper and Willow (Piper seems to be getting the most screen time, no?) out to a Philadelphia Flyers game. She thought that Philly fans would NEVER stoop so low as to boo her little girl. (Um, Philly fans would probably boo the second coming of Elvis if he was there to give them each a million dollars, but that's another story.)

These are two of many examples where Palin uses the kids as a bit of a shield. Or if "shield" is too strong a word, I think we can all agree that she's "putting them out there," which means what they do will be scrutinized. Unlike her youngest children (Trig for example), the older kids know enough to realize what's going on and hear the insults being hurled their way. Would I want to subject my child to that sort of thing?

The Presidential couple that did the best job of keeping their kids – actually, kid – out of the news was Bill and Hillary Clinton. For all of his obvious failings, Bill (with Hillary's help, of course) told the press every chance he had that Chelsea was off limits. For the most part the media respected that. Now, that was a different time. Clinton left the White House in 2000, which was before the rise of TMZ, Gawker and the constant barrage of celebrity news programs and web sites that track every move the famous make. Still, I doubt that most mainstream media outlets would have "gone after" Palin's children if they were home in Alaska going to school rather than out dropping pucks on the campaign trail.

Of course, if they were in Alaska, Palin would be separated from her kids for quite a long period of time. But how many hours could she possibly be spending with them anyway? Wouldn't they be better off away from all of this nonsense?

Then again (Live! Flip-flopping in action!) what business is it of ours? Since we don't want Sarah Palin to tell us what to do with our kids, how can we tell her what to do with hers? BUT (flip) doesn't it say something about her judgment that she has no problem pulling her kids out of school whenever it suits the campaign, taking them away from their friends? HOWEVER (flop) don't they benefit from her high profile? Am I judging her differently because she's woman?

And so on. You know what the bottom line is, I think? It's not important. What happens to Sarah Palin and her family is important to Sarah Palin and her family. I disagree with her on virtually every issue she has an opinion on, and I think her behavior at campaign rallies has been reprehensible. (Colin Powell said it much better than I ever could.) That's what matters. Her kids? While I can't say I agree with the decisions she appears to be making, they're her decisions. She'll have to live with them. Right?

What do you think?

Photo: MSNBC.com, via Morning News

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Is Sarah Palin the next Oprah?

Brett Singer — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 18:45:00 GMT

This story from the Hollywood Reporter is making the rounds. It's very odd.

According to HR, "as more and more polls cast doubt on the McCain-Palin ticket, producers and agents across the entertainment world are discussing possibilities for capitalizing on her fame, ranging from an Oprah-style syndicated talk show to a Sean Hannity-like perch in cable news or on radio."

I suppose I could see a Fox News-style show. But Oprah? Come on.

I'm not a big Oprah fan. I think she promotes some questionable stuff, is highly materialistic, and never gets criticized even when her actions might warrant it (she really made some big mistakes with that school she started, for instance). But there's no denying that she is the most successful television host in history, and someone whom millions of people adore. She is also somebody who can say, "I like this book" or "I like this movie" and suddenly that book or movie is number one. (Howard Stern Show producer Gary Dell'Abate told a story on the air about how he tried to get his wife to watch the movie 'Crash' with him. She wouldn't even consider it. Then Oprah said it was great. They watched it that night.) Again, it's not my thing, but Oprah clearly connects with a broad range of people. Sarah Palin is an extremely divisive figure. While that sort of thing plays really well on Fox News and right-wing radio, it doesn't usually work on network or syndicated television. (Anyone remember Rush Limbaugh's late night TV show? I thought so.)

Also, I think Palin has more political aspirations. That's pure speculation on my part, since Sarah and I haven't talked lately. (Actually, we haven't talked ever.) But I'm not the only one who thinks she might want to move into the White House on her own.

Would you watch a show called "Sarah!" starring Palin?

Source: Hollywood Reporter

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The Obamas wear cheap clothes

Brett Singer — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 00:44:00 GMT

This video is from July, but Anya Strzemien at Huffington Post dug it up in the wake of the Sarah Palin's clothesgate.

The video is from Access Hollywood, so don't expect hard-hitting journalism. That said, both Barack and Michelle come across as very normal. Plus you get a really cute moment about 1 minute in when one of the Obama kids says, "But mommy IS important!"

As for the photo, according to Strzemien, that dress costs $34.95. As for Barack, he "hates to shop" and his shoes have holes in them. As someone who goes shopping once a year, and even that is under protest, I can relate.

Here's the video:

Source: HuffPo

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Palin on Katie Couric: She Totally Annoyed Me

Madeline Holler — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 20:09:00 GMT

Sarah Palin defended her incomprehensible Katie Couric interviews this morning in an interview with Fox News in St. Louis. She said she was annoyed that the CBS News anchor didn't ask her the questions she had prepped for. No, she didn't say that. She said she was annoyed that she didn't get asked questions that she, Sarah Palin, thought were important to Americans.

Some might argue that alone is a demonstration of the VP candidate's questionable judgment. Americans might actually want to know where their leaders get information and a little more about their general worldview. And also that she understands the implications of Supreme Court rulings and what the hell Dick Cheney has been doing for the past eight years. (He, Ms. Palin, has been a maverick!)

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Video: YouTube, via Huffington Post

Obama not sure how long he's been married

Brett Singer — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 14:35:00 GMT

Politicians sometimes want to make people believe that they are just like us, that they can relate to our problems. Barack Obama definitely did that for me by telling reporters that he and wife Michelle would soon be celebrating their 15th wedding anniversary next week. Michelle's spokesperson quickly released a statement pointing out that, in fact, it was their 16th anniversary. Um, oops. This husbandly gaffe prompted MSNBC talking head Keith Olbermann to include Barack in the "Worst Person of the Week" list, although Barack lost out to Karl Rove. Here's the video; the Obama part is at the beginning if you don't want to hear the rest of Olbermann's spiel (although the part where he talks about Rove is pretty good):

Olbermann, as far as I know, has never been married, so he may not realize that forgetting the exact year you were married is something that men do on a daily basis (myself included – sorry, dear). The date I have no trouble with, but I have to check every year to see which anniversary it is. The fact that I do traditional anniversary gifts – fifth is wood, twelfth is silk, that sort of thing – only serves to complicate matters. I could go with the "every anniversary is a diamond anniversary" theory, but not in this economy.

Source: HuffPo and MSNBC

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Blind Piano Prodigy, 5, Leaves Judges Weeping

Madeline Holler — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 15:01:00 GMT

Who doesn't love a story about a blind 5-year-old who has taught herself piano and can play any song after hearing it but once? No one, that's who. Sure, it leaves you a little bitter that you're kids can barely tie their own shoes, much less sustain their attention long enough to play a Beethoven ditty (not you? Just me?).

The extra cool thing is ... she's for real. She hits quite a few clunkers during her performance -- but look at those tiny hands stretching for the right note!

She's got a great personal history too ... adopted into a family with zero musical talent (according to mom) and blind since birth. She can sing! She loves the stage!

Check out this clip (via Huffington Post) and watch the performance that left Korean talent show judges weeping. She wound up winning a rather small prize, has garnered lots of attention and will likely find a teacher who wants to help shape this young talent.