The 111th time around – Update

So for anyone who cares or was interested in any of the bills I am/was following in the new Congress here’s the update of where they are:

- H.R. 2: To amend title XXI of the Social Security Act to extend and improve the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and for other purposes. Signed by President Obama, yay!

- H.R. 18: Powder-Crack Cocaine Penalty Equalization Act of 2009. Still in committee, probably won’t see the floor, sigh.

- H.R. 11 Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 and S. 182: Paycheck Fairness Act. Enveloped into S.181 and signed by President Obama, another yay!

- H.R. 59: Ex-Offenders Voting Rights Act of 2009. Committee.

On the list to watch because of absurdity or awesomeness of name:

- H.R. 390: College Football Playoff Act of 2009. Committee.

- H.R. 386: CLASS Act of 2009. Committee.

- H.R. 227: Sanctity of Human Life Act. Committee.

- H.R. 87: Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is Act of 2009. Committee.

So yeah, not much movement, but two bills already passed and signed, I’m a fan of that. Well, I’m a fan of that cause I’m a fan of those bills. Some of these I wouldn’t be so thrilled if they were signed into legislation. I wonder if the spending bill will ever make it out of Congress…

- suse

I, too, sing America.

Quite perfect for this week.

I, too, sing America.

I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.

Tomorrow,
I’ll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody’ll dare
Say to me,
“Eat in the kitchen,”
Then.

Besides,
They’ll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed–

I, too, am America.

- Langston Hughes

Talk about change…

It would be silly of me to try and write something about a man who was a wordsmith and orator of utter greatness. So here’s a simple link to give you some clips and words about the man and by the man.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

– suse

The 111th time around

Cause I have way too much time on my hands I was looking though govtrack.us at the new bills/actions introduced by the 111th Congress already this year. There are about a bajillion, so I didn’t look at all of them. I did look at a few and here are the ones I’ll be watching:

- H.R. 2: To amend title XXI of the Social Security Act to extend and improve the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and for other purposes. (Yay SCHIP! Expand away, but do so wisely, thanks.)

- H.R. 18: Powder-Crack Cocaine Penalty Equalization Act of 2009 (long overdue, and interestingly sponsored by a Republican)

- H.R. 11 Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 and S. 182: Paycheck Fairness Act (I’m not up on all the details of both bills, how they will be implemented in ‘real life’ and if they will actually get results, but I’m interested to see how these play out. Hillary Clinton is the main Senatorial sponsor of S.182, so that’s one thing she won’t be doing anymore.)

- H.R. 59: Ex-Offenders Voting Rights Act of 2009 (Allows for felons to vote after a certain period. I’m interested cause I had a previous discussion with someone about how it was interesting that felons can be in office, but they can’t vote.)

On the list to watch because of absurdity or awesomeness of name:

- H.R. 390: College Football Playoff Act of 2009 (That’s right folks, no more BCS rankings determining bowl games, Congress is asking for a full on playoff system, and, unsurprisingly, it is sponsored by a Texan.)

- H.R. 386: CLASS Act of 2009 (Get it, CLASS act, get it? Also could be good, well from my point of view, I think it is giving more tax breaks to those who are currently repaying their student loans. Yeah, I’m a huge supporter of that.)

- H.R. 227: Sanctity of Human Life Act (It is as bad as you think it is. ‘The life of each human being begins with fertilization’. Oy. You can believe that, but don’t put what are basically religious beliefs into law and impose them on the nation. It is also a nice little way to get around the whole debate of Roe v Wade and just make all abortion completely illegal as they would be ‘murders’ under this law. Maybe we should look to actually provide access to low cost family planning programs and contraceptives, but of course, that just encourages sex, silly me.)

- H.R. 87: Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is Act of 2009 (I’m only in this for the name. Don’t see why this wouldn’t pass, just puts the option of giving $1 or more to the Federal Treasury on tax returns. Most definitely wins for best name.)

Also, Senator Inouye from Hawaii has three (that I saw, maybe more?) interesting health related bills that would expand public health service loans to also cover graduate programs in professional psychology, to expand Medicare coverage to include nursing school clinics, and to provide health care practitioners in rural areas with training in preventive health care, including both physical and mental care.

Also, also, the House has two resolutions that are to stop Congress from automatically getting a pay raise in 2010. Very interesting. Lets see if they actually vote to not give themselves more money.

- suse

Change is Here!

For all of those of you who are sort of wistfully wondering in the salad days of the Obama transition team, “dude, where’s my change?” here you go!  Via the WaPo and Jezebel:

Jon "No Relation" Favreau Exemplifying Change

When Sam Cooke intoned “Change is Going to Come,” do you think that this is what was meant?  Regardless, change is certainly here.  Jon Favreau (no relation to Jon “Iron Man” Favreau) is intelligent, young, perhaps a speech writer you’d like to chastely discuss the finer points of prose with?  Certainly a change for this country.  This is the kind of dull, not so scandalous, Facebookery that will come with the new administration of digicam wielding millennials.

Speaking of which, I have a digital camera, a blog that I may come to regret at some medical school interview and a penchant for cardboard cutouts, where is my job, please?  I’ll take Secretary of Fierrrrrrce!  Or HHS.

- Ferrrosha

Unintentional Subversive Messages Sent on 14th Street

Somehow this post disappeared. We’re not sure how, but we’re bringing it back cause it shouldn’t be lost…

This is a purely anecdotal story but I thought I would share anyways.

I was strolling along 14th Street near Union Square last week when I started to notice tons of flyers scattered all over the ground. I stopped to read one and found that they all said ‘why are you white?’ in big capital letters. I initially thought to myself, ‘Yes indeed, what a relevant question to be posing in this day and age! Why am I white?’

I noticed someone passing the flyers out, so I walked over to get one, still thinking that maybe it was a flyer for a discussion on white privilege, or whiteness, or the history of race in general. I took one. And it was laminated. I thought ‘Wait a second, this isn’t right. Discussions on whiteness don’t usually have the budget for glossy, graphic-artist-designed flyers.’ Sure enough I flipped it over and it was an advertisement for a tanning place.

Anyways, I kept it and have it up at my desk now because I thought it was partially sad, partially funny: sad that whoever designed it didn’t seem to consider the meaning of the question, but funny that this tanning place is paying to have laminated messages spread over the streets of New York that question whiteness (at least when the flyer is picked up by white people).

- missingwhitewomanohmy

I’ll have Equal with my coffee, Mr. Hart

A few days ago I watched 9-to-5 with Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda, the always incredible Lily Tomlin, and lots of big hair.  Its a movie about getting back at the boss with some beer, pot and friendship thrown in, too.

See LOTS of big hair

Oh, and Colin Higgins who wrote Harold and Maude also wrote this one, so that’s a good precedent. I really did enjoy the movie. Fonda actually plays an endearing character in a non-annoying way, Parton feels like she’s just being herself (I heart Parton, so ‘being herself’ means good in my book), and Tomlin, well, she brings the awesomeness. But what I found interesting was at the end of the movie when the ladies take control of the office and start implementing their changes. This is the climax of the movie and some of the policies that you see go over their proverbial desk are job sharing/part-time work policies, providing a daycare center for children of employees and giving equal pay to all employees doing the same job (meaning all the ladies be getting raises). Let’s start the discussion with that last one…

Dishing out the dough

Apparently there is an organization called The Giving Back Fund that releases a list every year of the biggest celebrity givers. Good ol’ Oprah is at the top of their list this year with $50.2 million in givings-awayness. This is a nice big number. I whole-heartedly am a fan of people (including those with uber amounts of money) who donate to deserving charities and organizations. And by deserving this means I probably wouldn’t really have let Mel Gibson creep onto my list just because he gave $9.9 million to the church he is a member of in Malibu, the Holy Family Church. Granted, I could be totally wrong, but I’m guessing the ways in which this money were used wouldn’t all fall under what I believe in as ‘good things’. But I’m actually getting away from the point I wanted to make here. Let’s get to that…

Get Out of Here America

So Good Morning America is doing a whistle stop tour where they’re visiting all 50 states and commenting on the state of the nation or whatever. Anyway, they stopped in the upstate NY town where my parents grew up and where I still have family – Rome, NY. Here is part of the video (uh, I guess wordpress doesn’t let you post videos from abcnews. ugh):

http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=5812243

Anyway, even though I think everything they said is true (it is kind of a shithole, in all honesty), residents are understandably kind of pissed because it showed them in such a negative and white-trash-ish light.  My mom emailed me a letter that the Chairman of the Board of the Rome Chamber of Commerce (whom my grandmother taught when he was in kindergarten, fyi!) wrote to the show:

Liveblogging: Obama, McCain Shutdown Morningside

Hey Friends,

I’m here at Columbia’s historic Morningside campus observing the leadup to the possibly historical discussion between presidential hopefuls and senators (question: who’s watching the senate if everyone’s gone?) Barack Hussein Obama and John Sidney McCain III. Oh, and Bollinger will be there too. There’s a jumbotron set up for all of us peons who didn’t get in by lottery or birth rite. Currently blank, but the masses have begun to assemble and stare at the looming, blank screen. Sooooo many people have gathered, like, an appropriate number for a protest, if Columbia protested. I guess this is more of a power-elite flash mob. Anyways, a few blocks and shut down, many campus entrances, and both GED and ESL testing services have been canceled (you need a Columbia ID to get even close to the wrought-iron fence). So many metaphors for Americana here.

But, I’m hopeful that something magical will happen. I’m hoping that, since this is not meant to be a debate, that reason may co-exist with rhetoric. Especially today, when, collectively there is much to think about and discuss.

Ok, off to class. See you at the after party!

-Ferrrosha