Big Changes in Medicare

If you have health care coverage through Medicare, don’t forget that between October 15^th and December 7^th Medicare folks have to decide if we’re going to keep our current plan (different versions of straight Medicare or a Medicare Advantage plan, which operates like an HMO or PPO) or opt for a different one. If you decide to keep your plan, you don’t have to do anything. But if you want to change your plan, it has to be done by December 7th - a day that now lives in infamy for this additional reason (in addition to Pearl Harbor, young people).

This year, it’s worth noting that in many instances, what is covered and to what extent it’s covered, has changed more substantially than in previous years. That’s because very extensive budget cuts were made that we’re really going to feel in 2015 and beyond. I have the Blue Cross/Blue Shield Advantage Plan and my co-pays will increase; it seems that some of the medications I take are no longer covered; and there is now a deductible for medications as well as higher prescription costs. I’ve learned this by just quickly glancing at the phone-book-sized package of information I received from BC/BS. I haven’t even had a chance to look at the government’s phone book, “Medicare and You,” but I’m going to have to review them both very carefully and probably make a few phone calls, too.

However, I did come across two articles that nicely summarize what’s going on and can help us plow through this frustrating process: one from Fiscal Times and one in The New York Times, both of which are more than worth a click, so I urge you to click on these links and help yourself understand what’s new, ‘cause it ain’t good news. Note that both articles suggest you also visit the official Medicare site, which is a good idea, as is contacting your current plan (the stuff they send you includes a phone number). And by the way, if you haven’t yet received your “phone book” (you should have gotten it by September 30^th), call your plan and request it. Ditto for the government tome.

I supported the Affordable Care Act and I still do. It’s apparently doing some good for millions of Americans who had no health coverage or really bad or quite unaffordable coverage. But I haven’t forgotten that it was constructed from a very big, very sloppy law with far too much input from insurance and pharmaceutical companies. And the hateful, dysfunctional GOP forced Medicare cuts to help pay for it. After all, what else could possibly have been cut and the idea of tax reform that forces rich individuals and corporations to pay more is out of the question!

The plain fact is, all health care coverage in America is bad, primarily because health care in this country is a profit-making business. If you’re on Medicare (or anything else) and are sick or get sick or need major surgery, you’re screwed. Even if you have a Medicare Supplement Plan, you’re screwed. If you don’t have plenty of your own money to supplement your health care plan – whatever it is, including Medicare – you’re screwed. Indeed, having enormous medical bills they can’t possibly pay is now the primary reason that people go bankrupt – by the millions – and that situation is only going to get worse.

So, after you spend a cozy night by the fire with your latest Medicare information materials – and try to resist throwing them into the fire – I strongly suggest you phone or email the offices of your Senators and Congressional Representative and let them know that the Medicare budget cuts are doing you harm. I promise you that a deluge of such communications will not go unnoticed by them. You might want to do this both before and after the November election – in which I urgently hope you plan to participate. 

Wake up and smell the calendar. It’s not the 20^th century anymore.

Bad, Sad, Mad

I imagine President Obama isn’t feeling too well tonight.  Since I don’t think he’s delusional, he must know that the insane and protracted debacle that just accompanied the raising of the debt ceiling has ended with a really bad deal.  It pleases no one and may very well kick-start an economic decline that won’t stop until we hit bottom.  This man whom, I believe, genuinely wanted to help make America better – for everyone and everything – must know that he’s made a piss poor job of it, but I don’t think he fully understands how and why he and we got here.  But I’ve got the audacity to think I do understand, so here goes.

Things as they are now really started with the rise of Ronald Reagan and, simultaneously, the rise of Christian fundamentalism and the assassination of John Lennon, all of which occurred in 1980.  What was then called The Silent Majority was very displeased with the events of the 60s and 70s that ushered in a new era of social permissiveness.  They didn’t like what they saw as the success of the civil rights, women’s rights and gay rights movements.  They didn’t like uppity blacks and hippies and The Pill and the wholesale questioning of the existence of God.  They didn’t like the tough economic times of the 70s, or Jimmy Carter trying to rein them in, he with his sweater in a cold White House and the 55 mph speed limit and the energy crisis and his complete inability to get a whole bunch of American hostages out of Iran.

So, in the leadership of Ronald Reagan they saw a man who had seen the error of his own youthful Democrat, union-supporting, Hollywood-decadent ways and had been born again (as it were) in the sobering waters of Republican conservatism, traditional social and religious values, and unbridled free-market capitalism.  He made them feel comfortable and hopeful and much less afraid.

For their part, the Boomers – most in our 30s, a few in our 40s – were so demoralized by Lennon’s death and the end of his love-and-peace message that many of us allowed ourselves to be seduced by cocaine and unprecedented opportunities to make a lot of money, which seemed like a good idea, because it had turned out that love was not all we needed, and an ambitious younger generation (the Yuppies) were snapping at our heels like Pac Man.

Bill Clinton notwithstanding, things went on in this vein for a couple of decades, including an increasing lack of compassion for the poor, the under-employed, and the in any way vulnerable and needy on virtually everybody’s part.  The Silent Majority and Boomers may have been different in many ways, but they had come to share a love of money and success and feelings of safety.  They had kids and careers and comfort and they wanted to stay that way.  It was during these years that glamour was prized, and people shopped ‘til they dropped for things that were to die for.

Then 9/11 happened and America suddenly realized it was vulnerable in an unsafe world that was changing once again, filled with new kinds of revolutionaries, new kinds of heathens, more people who wanted a slice of the good times pie and we didn’t feel like sharing.  So we kept Bush-43 around for eight years, because he was butch and patriotic and God-fearing, and didn’t back away from a good fight or reckon with no new-fangled ideas.

Then along came Barack Hussein Obama, a clearly dangerous (liberal) black man (!) with a frightening foreign name who was young and handsome and talked real pretty about change and hope.  So the Reagan Democrats and Traditional Republicans and Super-Good Christians organically joined forces and morphed into a revitalized population of über-conservatives (soon to be known as the Tea Party) and radical Christians who eschewed science, common decency and common sense, along with the poetry and parables of the Bible, and chose instead to take everything literally, from the ancient Bible to the 200-year-old Constitution, to the obvious liberal dangers of the new millennium.  They did not see, and still do not see, any reason for rethinking or updating or changing anything, because if they concede to change, the terrible “other” wins.

And when Barack Obama won in 2008 – thanks largely to a whole new generation of uppity blacks and deviant young people – the now not-so-silent majority/minority made it their mission to bring him down even before he could get on his feet.

For his part, President Obama gravely underestimated the toxic level of racism that would be added to an already-vile witch’s brew of philosophical and political opposition.  His chief goal – the one upon which hope and change were firmly tethered – was to make everyone in the Washington power structure play nicely together, understand and respect each other’s differing views, and from the epiphany that would result from this new rapprochement, they would work together to change America for the better.

Maybe it would have worked if Bush-43 hadn’t ratcheted up the debt and deficit, decimated government regulation and oversight of nearly everything, and put two wars on America’s American Express card.  But he did.  And Barack Obama inherited an indescribable mess.  He kept the American (and world) economy from falling over the proverbial edge of the proverbial cliff, but he didn’t get a lot of credit for that, because to most people (like me), economics is math and math is something we don’t understand.

Then the President took the initiative in changing some things he could change on his own, but he hasn’t gotten a lot of credit for that, because modest but meaningful changes are small news and the media didn’t cover it.  Lastly, the President simply would not abandon his “let’s all get along” prime directive, nor did he play hardball with the disparate members of his own party.  It may also be that negotiation just isn’t his strong suit.  In any case, he ended up presenting the country with really crappy versions of change initiatives we wanted, like universal health care and strong financial reform and making the rich & corporations pay up and, now, even raising the debt ceiling came with poorly thought out, never discussed, and damaging laws and protocols that may very well push us over that cliff after all.

The President turns 50 this week and I imagine that even for a president, that’s a rough milestone to reach.  It was a bitch for me.  But it was also the point at which I decided to stop caring about what other people thought of me and just be and accept myself as I am – and let the chips fall where they may.  With any luck, Mr. Obama will have the same impulse and let us know that if we re-elect him in 2012, he’ll be the Obama we voted for last time, rather than the largely ineffectual compromiser he’s been during his first term.  He’s only got one term left and he’s got nothing to lose.  I hope he’ll see it that way – before the rest of us lose everything.

This is an urgent political message regarding the President's speech tonight

If you have a mortgage, a loan, a credit card, investments in stock, are on Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid HOW THE GOVERNMENT RESOLVES THE DEBT CEILING CRISIS will directly affect you.

If the nation goes into default, the stock markets (here and worldwide) plunge or crash, and America loses its standing as the world's #1 leading country, THESE CONSEQUENCES will directly affect you.

Do you like the President?  Do you hate him?  In this instance, it doesn't matter.

The President spoke to the nation tonight and asked everyone in the country to contact their Congressional representatives and tell them what you want.

The options are simple:

(1) the bipartisan balanced approach to raising the debt ceiling, which means severe cuts (including Defense) as well as closing tax loop holes and raising taxes on the top 1% of the country who are millionaires and billionaires,
OR
(2) the Tea Party Republicans' cuts only approach, which will make devastating cuts in everything but Defense, and will unquestionably affect everybody who has a mortgage, a loan, a credit card, investments in stock, are on Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid.

As someone who is on Social Security & Medicare; who knows other people on these two programs; and who knows several people who are on Medicaid, I AM LITERALLY TERRIFIED.

If these programs are cut FOR CURRENT RECIPIENTS without compensating revenue, my friends and I may very well not get our checks in August/September and going forward; my friends and I may very well not have access to any health care.

And you, in your own circumstances, will also likely be EQUALLY SCREWED.

I BEG  you to do what the President asked.

Here's a link to finding contact information for your Congressional representative:

https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml

Do what you think is the right thing.  Your voice, your "vote," is desperately needed RIGHT NOW.

Thanks for reading this,
Jeanne

Republicans, Reclaim Your Souls

Until fairly recently, we had a vibrant two-party system in this country.  Yes, Democrats and Republicans have always had significant differences in preferred practices and policies.  But the Republican Party has gone from being fiscally and otherwise conservative, but still willing to compromise with Democrats to create laws and programs that serve the public and national good, to functioning as a barrier to compromise, civility and common sense.

There are currently numerous older and previous members of both houses who have been speaking publicly about the “old days,” when Republicans and Democrats socialized together and there were members from opposite sides who were nonetheless good friends.  It may have been the day of smoke-filled back rooms, but it was also the day of camaraderie, decency and some shared goals.

Now, it’s a whole new ballgame.  Both on and off the floor, Democrats and Republicans stay in their segregated groups.  They have become more than just partisan.  They are no longer two different teams playing the same game by principled rules.  This is largely because the Republican Party has been kidnapped by the Tea Party, a disruptive, ill-informed, right-wing-extremist fringe group.  And, it’s important to note that the Tea Party in general criticizes the Republicans for not being conservative enough.

The Tea Party has become a well-oiled political machine and a powerful lobby for a large number of assorted ordinary folks who believe in honoring the success and excess of the rich; who value religion over science; who champion free markets in all things, regardless of any negative impact on society; who prefer rogue capitalism and the profit-motive to social service and compassion; who so want to revive the past that they will not acknowledge the obvious differences and imperatives of the future; and, most of all, who think that their beliefs should be the law of the land – even if they’re contrary to the separation of church and state.  Indeed, the Tea Party will not accept secular law that is in conflict with its values, even though a majority of Americans do not share those values.

As a result (as we’ve all noticed), the Republican Party is in a hyper state of Stockholm Syndrome – the dynamic that occurs when a kidnap victim is held by charismatic captors for so long that they begin to identify with their captors and defend them against the people from their “prior” lives who are trying to free them.

It is time for all Republicans – politicians and citizens alike – to stand up to the Tea Party, which is taking them down a wrong, dangerous road.  Whatever their personal religious beliefs may be, Republicans must renew their faith in the wisdom of secular government as mandated by the Constitution in America  – a country that abounds in differences of faith and opinion and prides itself on its diversity.

It’s also time for Republicans to rededicate themselves to governing in the public interest and respecting the office of the Presidency, even if they don’t care for the man who’s currently President.  It’s time for the Republicans to stop combining the doing of their jobs with the campaigning for their jobs.  It is unconscionable to state shamelessly that as a party you will not work with the President and that your primary goal is to bring him down, no matter what he offers and no matter what the consequences may be.

The Republicans have a right – indeed, a duty – to stand by their party’s core principles of belief in small government, low taxes, moderate government spending and, now, the need to address the national debt and deficit.  They do not have a right to be obstructionist, petulant, rigid, indifferent to the welfare of the people, and threatening to the economic health and world standing of the country.

To the great dismay of the Left, President Obama has been more than obliging and cooperative.  He, in fact, is playing loose and easy with the core values of the Democratic Party.  Real Republicans should see this.  It is only because the Republican Party has allowed the Tea Party to threaten its honor, its history, its common sense, and the better angels of its nature, that at this juncture they will not play a fair game.

Reclaim your souls, Republicans.  If you do, you just might win the essence of what you want, as well as the 2012 campaign.  (I don't want you to win, but if you don't get a grip, everyone will lose, big time.)  I urge you to stop buying in to the fear and loathing and ridiculous extremism of the Tea Party.  You are the party of Lincoln and Reagan.  Look at what they did and ask yourself what you should be doing now.

This Is Class Warfare

Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day.  Teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime.  Teach a man to create an artificial shortage of fish and he will eat steak.  – Jay Leno

My fellow Americans…please look closely.  We are in the midst of genuine Class Warfare, and the rich are winning – not because they’re more powerful (per se), but because they are fully engaged in this fight in order to protect their best interests.  The middle class, working class, and poor are losing – because we are not fully engaged, we are not united, and we’re very confused about what our best interests are and who in politics (greatly imperfect though they may be) are motivated to serve those interests.

Take note.  The Republicans are not your friends – nor are they your chief enemy.  The primary enemy in America today is the Tea Party.  They can no longer be dismissed as a wacko fringe group.  No matter how ridiculous you think they are, they are also well organized, growing in numbers, passionate about their beliefs, and willing to engage in a battle to make their opinions the laws of the land at the federal, state and local levels.  With every passing day, the Tea Party is developing into a major third party in this country.  We ignore them at our peril.

Republicans used to be fiscal conservatives.  They were ideologically conservative, too, as demonstrated by their behavior/attitudes toward the civil rights and women’s movements (particularly their historical opposition to integration and legal abortion), and they have never been supporters of gay rights, either.  But it’s only since George H.W. Bush (with a quick, fairly ineffectual intermission with Bill Clinton) that Republicans have become radical conservatives, initially because of the increasing influence of Evangelical Christian political activists.

However, it is only since the election of Barack Obama – too black and too liberal (in their view) to tolerate – that all components of the Right have become mega-radicalized and have joined forces to repeal the progressive strides of the mid-20^th century and ensure that Obama doesn’t succeed in further progressive efforts.  The sad irony is, they have only prevented Obama from succeeding in moderate, deeply compromised efforts.  As a result, we’re in trouble.

Our main problem isn’t the economy or unemployment or the erosion of longstanding civil rights, and it isn’t the debt, the deficit, bad health care, poor education, or decreasing environmental protection.  Our main problem is that we do not know who and what we are, we are not united, and many of us are too busy, disillusioned, or just plain unmotivated to be politically active in any way.

Let’s start with who and what we are.  For quite a few decades now, the middle class – sometimes called the lower middle class – has been unwilling to see itself as working class.  If we wear ties (men) and business suits (men and women) to work and live in at least a half-way decent home, we consider ourselves middle class.  We look down on the poor as much as the upper middle class and rich do, even if we’re currently unemployed and can’t find work, or our homes are either under water or in foreclosure.  We take pride in this middle class label, ignoring the fact that conservative power and an economy skewed to the rich have rendered this label meaningless.

It isn’t just laborers or factory workers or miners or migrants or servants who are working class.  Those who think themselves middle class are working class, too.  Indeed, I would go so far as to say that if you depend on a company for a paycheck, even a substantial paycheck, you are working class.  Even if you are an entrepreneur, individual contractor or freelancer, whether you’re doing well or just managing by a very thin margin, you are working class.  If you are out and out poor, perhaps on public assistance, perhaps on Social Security retirement or disability, you are working class.  Put more simply: if you can’t afford to light your cigars with $100 bills, you’re working class.

My advice to you is wake up and smell the sweat – and the danger.  There are many politicians and others at the top of the food chain who do not care about you.  Even if you’ve worked hard all your life, even if you became a Reagan Democrat 30 years ago or, for some inexplicable reason, identify with the Republican or Tea Parties now, the upper crust does not care about you.  They have no sympathy for your unemployment, or mortgage problems, or inability to send your kids to college, or the fact that whatever money you accumulated in 401ks or IRAs or T-bills or stock investments were wiped out in the economic collapse of 2008.

Nobody with serious money cares about the working class.  Those with serious money and the rich – the distinction being, rich is something you can blow in a New York minute; wealth is something that doesn’t weaken, that flows from generation to generation, no matter what.  The rich may once have been working class; the wealthy, never.  Either way, they don’t care about you.

That’s why it’s essential that we, all of us, the larger, combined Working Class, pay attention to what’s happening in Washington DC and state houses across the land.  Look at what’s happening to unions.  Look at what’s happening to wages (stagnant for years), look at what’s happening to prices of everything (increasing daily), look at your overall circumstances (somewhere between shaky and dire?), look at your children’s future (dicey?), look ahead to your old age (scary?).  If the machinations of politicians are worrying you, if it pisses you off to hear the rich described as “job creators” when all they do is sit on their money or outsource employment opportunities to countries with cheaper labor, if you’re angry or frightened or outraged, think about who and what you are.

Then, acknowledge to yourself that, like it or not, you’re in the midst of class warfare, and not doing your bit for the war effort – whether on the frontlines or the home front – just isn’t cricket.  And, is certainly not in your best interest.

Acknowledging Poverty and Progressive Choices

I was just sitting here thinking about the national budget and its attendant “crisis” and the proposed budget cuts that so far range from the right-wing’s cruel and unthinkable, to the President’s weak and miserable. I was feeling very despondent – then I read Paul Krugman’s column in today’s New York Times, which offered a little cheer and encouragement.

That’s because it discusses the “People’s Budget” from the Congressional Progressive Caucus. I didn’t know there was a Congressional Progressive Caucus; I didn’t know there were enough Congressional progressives to constitute a caucus. I certainly didn’t know they had created a budget that, as the Caucus details on its Web site, will do the smart, sane thing:

“The CPC proposal:

• Eliminates the deficits and creates a surplus by 2021
• Puts America back to work with a “Make it in America” jobs program
• Protects the social safety net
• Ends the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq
• Is FAIR (Fixing America’s Inequality Responsibly)

What the proposal accomplishes:

• Primary budget balance by 2014.
• Budget surplus by 2021.
• Reduces public debt as a share of GDP to 64.1% by 2021, down 16.5 percentage points from a baseline fully adjusted for both the doc fix and the AMT patch.
• Reduces deficits by $5.6 trillion over 2012-21, relative to this adjusted baseline.
• Outlays equal to 22.2% of GDP and revenue equal 22.3% of GDP by 2021.”

If that’s a bit too technical for you to digest, Krugman sums it up in layman’s terms very nicely:

“[The CPC Plan]… unlike the Ryan plan, which was just right-wing orthodoxy with an added dose of magical thinking — is genuinely courageous because it calls for shared sacrifice. True, it increases revenue partly by imposing substantially higher taxes on the wealthy, which is popular everywhere except inside the Beltway. But it also calls for a rise in the Social Security cap, significantly raising taxes on around 6 percent of workers. And, by rescinding many of the Bush tax cuts, not just those affecting top incomes, it would modestly raise taxes even on middle-income families. All of this, combined with spending cuts mostly focused on defense, is projected to yield a balanced budget by 2021. And the proposal achieves this without dismantling the legacy of the New Deal, which gave us Social Security, and the Great Society, which gave us Medicare and Medicaid.”

As someone who used to be middle-class and is now poor (it’s taken me quite a while to admit that to myself, yet alone say it in a public forum), I want to see this plan adopted – and I’m going to contact President Obama and my Senators and Congressman and tell them so.

I’m also going to tell them that they must at least try to remind the Republicans and Conservatives that people on Welfare, Social Security Disability and Medicaid are not deadbeats unwilling to work, and those on Social Security Retirement and Medicare are not people who were just too lazy and lacking in foresight to save enough money to take care of themselves in later life, no matter what.

Apparently, there are still millions of Americans who genuinely believe that the “social safety net has become a hammock,” as John Boehner recently/famously said. Some people really think that the money garnered from entitlements is excessive and amounts to a gravy train rolling down Easy Street. Recent polls showed that a majority of Americans thought the government spends 10% to 50% of GDP on foreign aid (which they don’t like and think should be cut way back), when actually, less than 1% is spent on foreign aid. Similarly, millions of people think beneficiaries of entitlements receive large sums of money and live high on the proverbial hog. Without going into a lot of personal, embarrassing detail, just let me say this is incredibly untrue.

Everyone (the media, the politicians, those on the right…) has been telling us that to solve our national financial problems, everybody has to take a hit. But that’s neither true nor fair. There really are people who cannot – or can no longer – support themselves through work. Most of the people on Welfare, for example, are unskilled, poorly educated, white single mothers with children who are school age or younger. They should have to “take a hit”? Retirees should take a hit? The disabled should take a hit? Other social services (including family planning), education, the environment, energy initiatives, Veterans' benefits, scientific research, infrastructure repair, the creation of high-speed rail service, the arts and public broadcasting – all these should take a hit? What will it say about us – as a government and as a people – if we do this? And why would our Democratic President allow a right-wing revolution to take hold on his watch?

Please show your support for the budget proposed by the Progressive Congressional Caucus. It’s the only light at the end of the dark budget tunnel that makes sense.

Promises, Promises

I felt cautiously optimistic after listening to the President’s speech about the upcoming 2012 budget yesterday, which I didn’t hear during the day but was able to watch in its entirety last night on the White House Web site (where it’s still up). In that speech, President Obama refuted Republican Rep. Paul Ryan’s inhumane (and insane) budget proposal, saying that he will not maintain the Bush tax cuts for the rich after they expire at the end of 2012 (it would have been preferable if he’d said he would revoke them at the start of 2012), nor would he allow Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid to be dismantled, and, that he would not allow education and the environment to suffer in the name of so-called fiscal responsibility.

It was heartening to hear the President say these things, although his delivery was very low key (a little high-pitched indignation would have been appreciated) and the fact that it was part of a speech (commencement?) at George Washington University in the middle of a weekday did not signal the sense of urgency or determination this situation requires. Today, he held what I hear was an equally encouraging press conference, but I haven’t seen that yet.

As much as I want to believe what the President is saying now, I have doubts and fears. My friend LK, an avid Obama supporter and indefatigable news junkie, said she couldn’t listen to the whole speech, because she just doesn’t believe him – and I share a lot of that sentiment. All the dreams of hope and change we bought into seemed to fall away once he won the election, and since he’s now running for election again, one can’t help but ask: are these empty promises, temporary bravado – or will he use his second and final term to do the things he said he’d do from the start?

Those of us who supported the President from the beginning, whether we jumped on his bandwagon after Clinton conceded the nomination or before, truly believed that he would bring forth a brand new day in progressive policy. Everything he said during the campaign gave us every reason to believe that. And it was this vision that brought millions of young, first-time voters into the fold of civic participation that they might otherwise have ignored as pointless and nothing that would improve their lives. Now feeling betrayed, will those folks go back to the polls this fall – or will they just stay home feeling helpless?

Since Mr. Obama took office, we political veterans who continue to advocate the antithesis of everything the Republicans and Conservatives advocate, have essentially stood by the President, recognizing that his bold plans were eviscerated by the fiscal crisis he was thrown into, one that was far worse than the outgoing administration let on. And, rightly or wrongly, he chose to immediately focus on health care reform instead of employment and economic recovery, a decision for which he has been pilloried by the Republicans.

It has been most unfortunate that in the President’s efforts to be civil and conciliatory, to bring opposing sides together in bipartisan cooperation, he allowed a bloated, poorly structured health care reform plan to be the final program put into law; that he approved toothless financial regulation; and that, in general, he has made so many concessions on so many issues he has seemed more like Republican Light than Progressive Super.

Of course, it hasn’t helped that the opposition has been devoted to undermining him at every turn and in every way possible. And whether it’s their attitude toward the President or the pressure of Michele Bachmann’s Mad Hatter Tea Party, they’ve certainly ratcheted up their rich loving/poor hating agenda. I can’t remember who said this recently, but some dufus Congressman said that cutting back on Medicaid would be good for poor people, because it would “teach them how to do more with less.” Oh how I wish these people would go back to whatever planet they came from!

Now, it’s time for President Obama to accept the fact that his foes will never be his friends and he must cater to those who support him rather than oppose him. He must put forth progressive policy, rather than settle for mediocre (or damaging) policy in the name of bipartisanship; he will never achieve bipartisanship with this crowd. And he must be a much more forceful Executive, rather than worrying about stepping on the toes of the Legislative; he could fly over their heads and they would still yell ouch and foul. We cannot afford business as usual. We’re in the midst of a political, financial and ideological crisis and we need a warrior, not a peacemaker. Take up your arms, Mr. President – and give us reason to trust you and believe in your promises once again.

God Bless the New York Times

Today’s Times, that poor battered Gray Lady, has three very important opinion pieces that I want to share with you: two editorials and the weekly conversation between Conservative David Brooks and Progressive (though often a little lightweight) Gail Collins.

The first editorial is Budget Battles: The Price of Ill-Conceived Cuts:

“Mayor Vincent Gray of Washington was so angry that the budget deal prohibited his city from spending its own money on abortion that he blocked traffic outside the Capitol, getting arrested in the process. His rage was a sharp departure from the general self-congratulation of Democratic leaders and President Obama’s failure to tell the truth about the budget deal for this year: It ushers in a denuded era of loss to vital government services, mostly at the expense of the most vulnerable...” Click link to read all.

The second editorial is Budget Battles: Tax and Spending Myths and Realities:

“Here are two numbers to keep in mind when thinking about the House Republicans’ budget plan: They want to cut spending on government programs over the next decade by $4.3 trillion. And they want to cut tax revenues over the same period by $4.2 trillion...” Click link to read all.

Last but not least, One Step Forward, 20 More to Go by David Brooks and Gail Collins:

“Gail Collins: David, now President Obama’s going to make a budget-balancing speech. I guess it could be worse. It’s better than having him announce another war. But I’ll bet you’re more eager to hear what he has to say than I am.

David Brooks: I couldn’t be more excited. I’m hoping he’ll do the whole Ross Perot thing. Bring out some charts. Show the American people the scale of the problem…” Click link to read all.

I left a comment on this piece. It’s #163 and I hope you’ll take a look at it, too.

The budget business aside for a moment, I want to say a few kind words about The New York Times. I know it’s become popular to trash the Times, though I’m not sure why. Yes, they have an abysmal number of typos, outrageous for a paper of their unique stature, but apparently copy editors are expendable in favor of reporters and Web masters. The online site is, I believe, the best news site on the Internet and definitely the best newspaper site.

I’m sure you know that the Times is now charging a subscription fee for the site, which has a lot of folks up in arms. While I appreciate that this sets an unfortunate precedent, I’m confident that it’s necessary for them – and you should know that anyone can review the homepage anytime and as often as you like, and, you can read any 20 articles on any page for free each month.

I’d be lost without the Times online, and there are several ways to get one’s money’s worth. Subscribers can either have unlimited access to the site on computer and they’ll give you one or more aps for your assorted communications devices. Since I don’t have any devices (not even a cell phone!), I opted to get some form of home delivery of the print version, which automatically gives me unlimited online access. So I got just the Saturday/Sunday papers (the cheapest subscription at about $13 a month).

I got my first papers this past weekend and I was shocked. It was like seeing an old friend in the midst of a terrible illness. The entire paper is smaller; no longer the majestic broadsheet. And every section is thin as a rail. The Book Review is virtually a pamphlet. The Magazine is a shadow of its former self and all the sections are a few pages each. Most stunning are the classifieds, once a massive section in and of itself, now just two pages in the business section in what must be 5pt or 6pt type.

For most of my life, the Sunday Times was a massive fixture, first in my parents’ home, later in mine. But like millions of other people, I abandoned the print version in favor of the more immediate and less cluttering online site. I knew the Times was in trouble and that newspapers are dropping like flies nationwide. But I didn’t know how bad it had gotten. It frightens me to see the Times in this condition and to think about what print journalism will become if all print newspapers go the way of the typewriter. Something important to consider in these ever-increasingly dumbed-down times.

Things We Can Do to Fight Back

I’m very aware that our current political and economic realities are so awful, so shocking, so surrealistic, even given our nation’s checkered past, that it’s all enough to render us immobile – not just unable to act, but convinced that there’s no point in acting. It looks like the bad guys have won, and all we can do – all we want to do – is stay beneath the radar and focus on our personal lives, reaping whatever purpose and satisfaction we can.

I can’t argue with this, especially when I know that most people are busy with jobs (or job hunting), families and friends (if they’re lucky enough to have them), and the myriad details of maintaining daily life – sometimes with major obstacles and burdens to bear.

Admittedly, as a single person who doesn’t work, I have more time than many people (if not most) to vent my spleen on this blog and advocate social/political action. Ironically, my chronic depression and ongoing agoraphobia have made it very difficult for me to do more than run off at the mouth. However, the budget-2011 debacle we just endured, as well as the thought of what comes next, have convinced me that I must do more, do whatever I can, and encourage others of like mind to do the same. I don’t plan, nor do I propose for others, to turn my life upside down, endanger my home or personal freedom, or, in general, get into trouble with the powers that be. That said, action is still necessary. The following is a summary of my current activities and plans; I hope it inspires you to devise an action plan of your own, if you don’t already have one.

First off, I try to be as aware as possible of what’s going on politically. I eschew the Big-3 (or 4) network news programs in favor of the nightly PBS NewsHour, both on air and online and Charlie Rose, arguably the best roundtable discussion series on TV. Other PBS programs also in my viewing repertoire include Washington Week and Frontline, as well as other documentaries, among them those from American Experience and anything by Ken Burns and Hedrick Smith. I also watch the three main cable news networks – CNN, MSNBC and FoxNews – with an occasional visit to the BBC. I rely on HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher for both comic relief and important commentary. I peruse an assortment of newspapers, magazines and blogs each day, making sure I get the facts and not media pulp. And I contribute comments on blog posts and press articles, whether it's a quick sentence of agreement or a cogent message of disagreement.

I also enjoy independent documentaries and fictional features that touch and inspire. At the moment, I recommend Michael Moore’s Capitalism: A Love Story, a two year old film that I’ve only recently seen, and for reasons I’m not sure of can be seen in its two-hour entirety, for free, at the link above. Second is The American President, also an older film, but extremely pertinent to today – most especially a five minute speech by the president (Michael Douglas), the essence of which I wish we would hear coming out of Barack Obama’s mouth.

Thirdly, I’m very big on signing petitions and writing letters/making phone calls to my Senators and Congressional representatives. I can tell you for a fact that these missives are taken very seriously, that it is assumed that for every letter received, hundreds of other people hold the same views but just didn’t bother to write. I know there are folks who dislike doing this, because they fear getting on some Nixon-style enemies list. This may be a reasonable concern – but I contend that speaking out in this way is not likely to have dire ramifications and, one way or the other, it’s worth the risk. Also, when I can, I practice a little checkbook liberalism. I don’t spend much; a $10 contribution to whatever organization(s) resonate with me is meaningful. Think what it would mean if all of a sudden, hundreds of thousands of people began sending in $10 apiece to a broad range of liberal enterprises. That’s serious bucks.

I vote each and every time any sort of election comes up. Another way of voicing protest is changing one’s party affiliation. I plan on dropping my lifelong Democratic allegiance and re-register as an Independent. It’s the only way I know how to tell the Democrats that they can’t take me for granted. If, suddenly, thousands of people dropped those donkeys, they would be very curious and very concerned; really give them something to think about.

Perhaps the most important thing any of us can do is talk about serious political issues with friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, the guy in the deli, your hairdresser; anybody and everybody. In the final analysis, it’s word of mouth that creates a buzz for and of change. Even though we’re all going through this, it often, sadly, feels like we’re going through it alone. Empathy, togetherness, a sense of shared purpose are enormously valuable because they’re incredibly strengthening.

I’ll close for now, but I’ll continue to spread the word about things of this nature – as well as more aggressive activities – when I learn of and adopt them. All of this may or may not make a shred of difference, but I believe that it will make me feel better. And in times like these, any little bit of pride and peace of mind is well worthwhile.

A Political Hangover

I don’t know about you, but I spent the weekend feeling betrayed, insulted and sullied by the political theatre production of Budget. If you looked at the programme, you know it read: “Starring John Boehner and Harry Reid, with Barack Obama as the President Who Does Nothing, and introducing The Tea Party as The Hateful Minority That Has Seized Undeserved Power."

After the performance was over Friday night and the players were taking a bow, I felt sick and furious watching these supposedly arch enemies pat themselves and each other on the back. (Then on Saturday, Obama went sprinting up the steps of the Lincoln Monument to remind visitors that they could enjoy being there because he and Congressional leaders had done the right thing and managed to keep the government up and running. Give me a big break!)

How is it possible that the Democrats, who could and should have presented a fiscally responsible and socially progressive budget six fucking months ago not do so and instead collaborate with the Republicans, the Conservatives and the Ignorant Teabag Maniacs after allowing the budget process to come down to the wire? How could the President allow military and civil service families suffer horrid anxiety about money for their day-to-day lives when he and all the cronies on both sides knew very well they were not going to let the government shut down? And how has the Tea Party, undeniably representing a minority of American opinion, gained so much political influence so quickly?

Smarter and better-informed heads than mine are pondering these questions and writing about them today. Since my ultimate question is: how can American Progressives sit back quietly while the noisy, hateful opposition use previously-successful left-wing tactics to successfully push forward their right-wing agenda?, I want to offer you links to some of the better things I’ve read this morning – with the hope that you’ll read them, too:

The President Is Missing

by Paul Krugman

Why the Right-Wing Bullies Will Hold The Nation Hostage Again and Again

by Robert Reich

Why Progressives Keep On Losing and the Right Keeps On Winning

by Richard Eskow

As I was traversing the blogosphere and news outlets this morning, it was clear that most folks were willing to put the budget-2011 fracas behind them and focus on the bigger battle currently gathering steam: budget-2012. Perfectly reasonable. But in order to fully prepare yourself for this onslaught, it’s worth noting what really happened last week – and why (therefore, the links above).

Going forward, confronting the deficit, the debt and (now) the debt ceiling may seem necessary, although that’s questionable… But let’s assume it’s as essential as the Republicans would have us believe. Why is there no deafening call for more revenue on the part of Democrats? When is someone going to find the balls to proportionately tax very rich people, as well as end tax cuts for corporations who outsource American jobs, and go after the huge sums in other unpaid corporate taxes (e.g., GE)? When will truly non-essential monies be cut out of the bloated Defense budget? When will the federal government look at its own house and defund programs that duplicate the functions of others already successfully in place (which in itself would save billions)?

And when will President Obama stop playing Mr. Nice Bipartisan Guy and start talking and behaving like the liberal he’s supposed to be? When will he let the opposition know that budget cuts will not be made on the backs of women, children, the poor, the environment, education, and the best that American culture provides – all of which, combined, doesn’t even begin to compare to the costs of mismanaged Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Don’t get me wrong: I do not want to see cuts in those programs made in such a way that they take anything away from the people they were established to serve. But no one can deny that there’s waste and fraud there, and a fine scalpel (instead of an ax) should be used to cut them out. And, once again (I’ll keep saying this over and over), the U.S. would save billions and earn billions if marijuana were legalized and taxed – and the War on Drugs could be waged against substances that truly kill people, cripple lives, and damage communities.

My final question is when will We the People start getting more concerned and involved – but I’m saving that commentary for another post, something that might be called Effective Dissent for Busy, Tired People. Keep an eye peeled.