It's that time again...
Well actually, it's a special time for a special election.
When the champion of Health Care Reform pased on from this life, we pushed, as he requested for a special election to fill the seat of dear Sen. Kennedy.
Please be aware that you must be registered to vote by November 18 in order to vote in the December Senate primary election in Massachusetts. This election will select the candidates to replace Senator Edward Kennedy in the Senate.
You can register by visiting the Massachusetts Advocates for the Arts, Sciences & Humanities (MAASH) website, www.maash.org, scroll down and click on the "Rock the Vote" logo to pull up a quick and simple voter registration form.
Tell everyone!
What is the cost of doing nothing ?
An American economy crippled by the spiraling costs of healthcare, American businesses or individuals who are unable to compete globally because our competitors have minimized their Health Care cost or in some cases offer none.
Health Care and Health Care Insurance are not the same thing .... some Health Care Insurance policies aren't worth the paper their printed because they cover very little. We cannot rely on Health Care Insurance policies if their are no standards on what minimums they have to cover. Preventative care should be covered for all so that expensive surgeries and procedures due to neglect are minimized.
Having a public HealthCare option makes good economic sense in the long run. We need to work towards phasing in a Single Payer system because the numerous for profit Health Care systems are not cost effective in the numbers they serve. A good first start would be establishing a centralized modern Information System network which could share Health Care information with every Major Health Care facility on an as needed basis. The ultimate goal would be that a U.S. Citizen enters any Hospital or treatment facility with his Social Security or Insurance plan number and a record of important healthcare information about the patient is made available so that nurses and doctors can have some basic information to better care for the patient. Example: A patient has a known allergy to various medications. This information alone could save many American Lives, prevent malpractice lawsuits and eliminate the costly and endless reiteration of basic patient information. Safe Guarding and verification of this centralized Information would have to be a number one priority of a National Health Care Organization; new Quantum Encryption technology could be used to safeguard the security of this data.
Maybe the answer is a Quasi Public Agency (Not unlike the U.S. Postal Service) single payer organization staffed with formerly practicing medical professionals with the goal of maximizing benefits at the lowest reasonable cost ?
We cannot rely on the private sector which is motivated by profit to serve the best interest of the American people. An efficient public or Quasi-Public Agency is needed to institute real change with the ultimate goal of a Single payer system. I urge you to consider these ideas so that we can move forward in providing healthcare for every American citizen in this country.
Please post your opinions on HealthCare here:
http://pol.moveon.org/public_option/?rc=homepage
Sincerely,
Vince Cipriano
United We Can !
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/blog/vince
"This country will not be a good place for any of us to live in unless
we make it a good place for all of us to live in." -Theodore Roosevelt
Let’s be honest. We didn’t really expect Congress to come up with a "bold" stimulus plan, did we? But do we agree that NO action will only aggravate our current crisis?
The GOP surprised us when it failed to respond more constructively to the bipartisan overture from Barack Obama. I personally witnessed the precedent-setting bipartisan dinner for his defeated opponent (my photo of the President-elect at the dinner honoring McCain, January 19) and noted the subsequent meetings with Congressional Republicans. And what did we get in the way of proposals from the loyal opposition? More of the dogma-driven, supply-side ideology that contributed to our current mess: tax cuts!
On the other hand, GOP critics have a point: the bill that passed the House and was embraced by Obama essentially is an accumulation of favorite Democratic spending proposals.
What is missing is CHANGE. The CHANGE Obama advocated in his campaign for the Presidency. The CHANGE that won him a resounding mandate to govern for four years. The CHANGE from policies that have worked to benefit few and imperil many. Where are the first steps toward affordable health care, a sustainable green economy and alternative energy? And why are we not moving boldly to address the systemic failures that underlie the current crisis in credit markets?
Obama asked for ideas. And Paul Krugman and Robert Reich, among others, obliged. But what these brilliant men offer is predictable: rationales for orthodox Keynesian solutions and concern about labor market distortions, respectively. More is needed, not just in additional spending, but in fresh ideas that advance the President's policy agenda. So, if suggestions are still welcomed, here is my two-cents worth. And please do keep the CHANGE.
Health Care
Obama has promised the nation affordable health care similar to his own Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP), to be available to all by the end of his first term. There is no need to back off this goal. Health care is one of the largest drags on our economy and the stimulus bill provides a real opportunity to begin managing its cost. In addition to the bill’s provisions to help state governments fund Medicare and work projects, I suggest that the federal government reimburse all state and local governments for their employer's share of health care for the rest of this year. In exchange, recipients may not fire government workers and must commit to integrating their health care plans with the existing FEHBP starting in 2010. That provides additional and immediate financial assistance to state and local governments, while paving the way for the establishment of a Public Employees Health Benefits Program. By January 2010, the federal government’s negotiated health care program would expand its base and economies of scale. The next step will be to apply the system to businesses, and subsequently to capture the un- and under-insured.
Energy Independence
Most honest leaders recognize that in due course government will have to produce the substantial additional revenue to pay for the stimulus. But good luck finding a politician willing to propose increasing taxes of any kind. So let me suggest instead a hefty tariff on imported oil to fund the “green economy.” A tariff of 50 percent or more on the landed cost of all imported energy (probably with some form of accommodation for our NAFTA partners) can be justified because of national security as well as the external costs to our environment inherent in the use of fossil fuels. And such a levy would promote conservation, subsidize domestic production, and help to fund and protect our investments in alternative energy. This is a measure that should be welcomed by Republicans who advocate "drill, baby, drill” as well as environmentalists interested in promoting clean energy. The windfall earned by American producers could be invested domestically or taxed as profits. And while there may be a marginal increase of fuel cost at the pump, it will pale in comparison with the amounts we forked over to foreign potentates rather than our own Treasury these past few years, when oil was effectively 200% greater than its current price.
Reestablish a ‘Risk-Free’ Investment Benchmark
Explanations for our current credit crisis and financial market meltdown abound, including the Washington Post's excellent series. But absent from all the expert analyses is any mention of the Treasury Department's October 2001 decision to discontinue issuing 30-year Bonds. That decision, on the heels of 9/11 and the cusp of Bush's costly war on terror, both lowered mortgage yields and prompted increased sales of bundled mortgages marketed as alternative 'risk-free' instruments, which in turn fueled the housing bubble and distorted both government and corporate credit point spreads. Treasury Bond auctions have resumed, but a clear provision to finance America’s recovery through borrowing would repair yield spreads – both between short and long term sovereign debt and in relation to all other debt instruments. Transparent budget financing will help re-establish more realistic risk pricing and global confidence in the US economy. But the 30-year Bond will not regain its position as a benchmark for 'risk-free' long-term investment if Fed meddling in the market, as it proposes to do with its planned purchase of Treasuries from troubled banks. In fact, this central-bankers-gone-wild approach will only create a greater Treasury bubble that will seriously aggravate our problems. Once markets are allowed to properly price the cost and risk of our recovery without Fed manipulation, global confidence in the US economy has a chance to be recover.
So Pay the Bill, and Keep the CHANGE
Barack Obama attended his last inaugural event, the Staff Ball, at the DC Armory on January 21. But he arrived after a performance by the opening act, Arcade Fire. So here are some insightful lysircs from their “Intervention”:
You say it's money that we need As if we're only mouths to feed I know no matter what you say There are some debts you'll never pay
You say it's money that we need
As if we're only mouths to feed
I know no matter what you say
There are some debts you'll never pay
The message is relevant to the stimulus bill now before Congress.
We can act responsibly and cautiously if we:
Pay the Bill and Keep the CHANGE.
Martin Luther King Day of Giving Back
Please consider giving your time on this day. Many event are posted at usaservice.org.
The Afghan Project
Monday, January 19 at 12:00 PM
Make personalized afghans for children in State Care.
SIGN UP AT:
http://www.usaservice.org/page/event/detail/dayofservicejanuary19/4v29l
Interfaith Celebration for MLK Day (Day of Service - January 19) An interfaith celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr.- the Voices of MetroWest and the Peacemakers Chorus, keynote speaker The Rev. Debora Jackson of The First Baptist Church in Needham, celebrate with the community. Time: Monday, January 19 from 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM Host: Seth Asaroe Location: Wilson School Auditorium (Natick, MA) 22 Rutledge Rd Natick, MA 01760
Check out the story behind the Obama logo as told by Sol Sender, who led its creative development. Sender recounts the story in two parts on the VSA Partners website. A graphic presentation of the other ideas that were considered in the development process leading up to the ultimate selection of the now ubiquitous design is at "Obama logo ideas that weren't chosen."
Both parts of Sol's interview are on YouTube. And if you advance to minute 2:18 on "Sol Sender - Logo Design Part 2 of 2" you will see our Food Tasters for Obama logo -- conceived by me and executed by my son Zach -- used as an example of the "viral expression" of the grassroots movement.
We will be back with more political analysis and satire soon. If you would like to be notified when a new article is posted join Food Tasters For Obama.
All of us who voted for Barack Obama on Tuesday should take a day or two to bask in his historic victory. What an incredible relief to know that hope can triumph over hate. What a joy to watch people dancing in the streets to celebrate all that Obama’s election symbolizes. What a delight to remember how good it can feel to be American. But it’s also time for a reality check. Millions of us are looking to our first African-American president to heal the nation and the world, to cleanse our souls of an eight year-old stain. As the international reaction to last night’s results demonstrates, hope in Obama is a global phenomenon, fueling the expectations of hundreds of millions people beyond our shores. Could anyone possibly live up to the expectations we have all pinned on this man?
When President Obama moves into the White House, he is going to have to deal with the trash heap left behind by the previous tenants. Two wars, the continuing threat of al-Qaeda, an economy in freefall, a monstrous federal debt, a national health care crisis, a Social Security system teetering on the brink of bankruptcy, global warming, an oil addiction that undermines our national security, and an ideologically divided nation. No matter how intelligent, charismatic, pragmatic, and driven this incredible man might be, the magnitude of the mess is mind-boggling. If he fails, the conservative backlash against the vision and philosophy that inspired 53% of voting Americans could be brutal. That’s why we have to remain as invested in the success of his presidency as we were in the success of his campaign. Just as it took a movement to elect him, it’s going to take a movement to help him succeed. We can’t let up now. If anything, Barack Obama needs us more than ever.
How can we continue to make a difference? We can:
- Accept that President Obama can’t take on everything at once. Some of the issues we care passionately about are going to have to wait. Let’s try to be patient and understand the need to prioritize – even if we wouldn’t necessarily set the same priorities ourselves.
- Remain engaged on the basis of reliable information, not ideology. Rather than trying to push a particular political agenda (or being disappointed when President Obama doesn’t), we should become as informed as possible about the issues and try to understand all the variables that factor into the decision-making process.
- Look for common ground with McCain supporters. Real change will only happen if President Obama can mobilize support among Republicans as well as Democrats, and a second term will only be possible if he holds onto the independent and conservative voters who decided to take a chance on him yesterday. He can make everyone feel like they’re part of the movement from above, and we can do it from below.
- Remember that he’s only human. Let’s cut the guy some slack, especially in the first few months when he’s settling in to the hardest job in the world.
In short, we must continue to be the change we’ve been looking for, because the hard part is just beginning - for Barack Obama and for us.
There is a new spirit of change in this country - a time to throw off the chains of cynicism and apathy that have strangled our great nation for the last eight years. With the election of Barack Obama as our President, we stand poised to usher in a new era of prosperity, peace, and progress. We've been in this fight together and last night our efforts were fully realized as Barack Obama became the nation's choice for the presidency.
I know there is already an organization developing so that we may continue onward to change this nation for the better, but I also wanted to reach out to all of you that I've enjoyed being alongside on this road to victory. On a personal level, I hope that I will one day meet many of you. To that end, I'd like to extend an invitation to get to know me better, to connect, and network (if I may be of service to you in that regard) and embrace the vision that we are all each other's keeper.
If you are interested, I invite you to connect with me at the following places online. I'm looking forward to expanding my own circle of friends and new allies in the push for a better tomorrow. I hope you'll consider saying hello and reaching out as well.
Where I'm at online:
http://www.twitter.com/jonfmerz
http://jonfmerz.wordpress.com
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=709881835
http://www.linkedin.com/in/jonfmerz
http://jonfmerz.myplaxo.com
http://www.thefixer.tv
I hope to hear from lots of new friends! I'm still on cloud nine that victory was achieved and am filled with boundless enthusiasm, hope, and commitment toward a brighter, better future.
Be well!
-Jon
***
Jon F. Merz
Hi! We made history. When Barack Obama was elected President today it was because of a trillion small acts from millions of Americans ovet the past 2 years that has brought us to this moment. Every little thing we do has an impact be it big or small. Every little thing can matter a great deal. A little push is all it takes to set off a chain of dominos.
Each of you has contributed to this moment in history. We've each given what we could. Please take a moment to reflect and write down some of the things you did that mattered most to you, or write down everything you did. It doesn't matter. Then, pass this on to everyone you know who contributed time, energy, and/or money to this effort so they can be included.
Please cc meltzer7@charter.net . We'd like to see how the list grows.
Jess in MA: Phonebanking, postcard writing/organizing, event hosting, and lots of other stuff. Jonathan Meltzer (Berlin MA) Standing in the rain with 700 other volunteers listening to Barack speak before heading out to door knock on the first day of canvassing in NH April 2007.... Convincing a woman in Nashua at 5:30 PM primary day who was not going to vote to go to the polls and vote for Barack.... organizing a massive student outreach in MA, VT, NH, NY and RI to get college students from NH to register and vote absentee in NH....
Emma RUddock (mass HQ) - pulling an all nighter at the Mass Headquarters with some amazing people and entering data, my amazing college dems leaders who's enthusiasm is so incredible and inspiring, realizing after the NH primaries that this was not going to be easy but that we were going to do it anyway, succeeding in convincing my parents to let me take the year off from college to work fulltime on the campaign, meeting some of the most incredible people that I have ever gotten to know, voting in my first presidential election
After the polls close tonight, here's the next step: Grow The Hope <http://www.growthehope.org>
For so many of us the Obama campaign has inspired us to hope for a better future and engage in the political process to make change possible. We know that something special is happening in this campaign. We feel it. We experience it personally and share this profound and moving feeling with others.
We celebrate this special moment and continue our work to elect Barack Obama the next president of the United States. The final day of this historic campaign is crucial to our success. We will canvass, phone bank, and organize until the polls close. While we keep focused on the prize - electing a smart and moral man as the next president of the United States, we also feel moved to do what we can to nurture the hope that has built within this campaign and within many of us. Thus we begin the process of building Grow The Hope - a people's movement for progressive social change. We seek to capture the spark of creativity and hope that has come alive during this campaign. If you are interested, please join us. Explore the brief introductory website at: http://www.growthehope.org and sign up by giving us your contact information. As this movement unfolds we will reach out to you.
Those of us working on Grow The Hope are so busy with the campaign that we don't yet have complete answers about what's next. We have not yet determined our organizational structure, programmatic initiatives, or funding options. If you get involved now, you can help shape the future direction of this emerging movement. At this point, we urge all those interested to take one minute to sign up, spread the word, and get back to working on the campaign! Let's do all we can this final crucial day of the campaign to make sure that we can celebrate on November 4th. Then on November 5th, let's take a day of well deserved rest. On November 6th, let's be back in touch to see how we might join together and Grow the Hope.
Yes We Can!Brian
Brian CorrOrganizer, Progresive Massachusetts for Barack Obamahttp://my.barackobama.com/page/group/ProgressiveMassachusettsforBarackObamaBCorr@CambridgeConsultingServices.com-----------Grow the Hope is not affiliated with Obama For America.
A beautiful day for voting here in Massachusetts. Unseasonably warm with bright sunshine. At 11:00am, usually an off-hour for polls, my precinct was hopping. My daughter, age 6, was thrilled to go to the polls with me. She was sad that she isn't 18 and able to vote herself, but was proud to be able to "help" by offering our address at the check-in, placing her hand over mine as "we" voted for Obama, and kissing the ballot before I submitted it to the machine.
I collected my Starbucks coffee, and perused my Facebook account to check in with friends around the country. The news and the vibe is good. In New York City, a friend stood in line for over 3 hours. In Virginia, the mood was cheerful.
Antsy and eager to do something else, I logged on to my Obama page to start making calls to Florida voters.
And now, I wait and HOPE!
Thank you all for your continued support and belief, based in action that YES WE CAN! Yes We Can and Will continue to weave strong connections of unity, where it was said that none could be formed! We are almost to the starting line. Please keep moving. Your help is needed now, and will be needed even more after the ballots are counted! The work you have done, no matter how seemingly small, is powerful and moving towards a better American and world. Thank you all for your efforts. See you tomorrow! The rally went well even with the chill of fall in the air, the Obama music provided by Marina's son was pumping and helped to keep us moving! Thanks to all the organizers and the coordinator of the event Deborah Lannon who planned it in a few short weeks!
Thanks to Norma Shulman who videotaped and edited the METROWEST OBAMA RALLY, tentative viewing times for the Cablecast of yesterday’s rally are Monday at 2:00, 3:30, and 9:30; and Tuesday at 2:05 and 6:30 on Comcast 9, RCN 3 and Verizon 43!
Framingham cell phone bank was well attended. Thanks so much callers! Special thanks to Chris Walsh who allowed us to use his office for the phone bank with all the trimmings! There are so many people to thank! Know that you are appreciated even if you are not named in my email. I have to enter the data from the phone banks today and run a bank tonight. And it is all worth it!
TO THE POLLS TOMORROW!
CALL YOUR NEIGHBORS AND FRIENDS!
REMEMBER NEWLY REGISTERED VOTERS! THEY MIGHT NEED SUPPORT TO ACTUALLY MAKE IT TO CAST THEIR BALLOTS.
YES WE CAN! For Obama our Nation and Our world,
The following song is one which reminds me what we are fighting for!
"YES WE CAN CAN" - made popular by THE POINTER SISTERS Now's the time for all good men to get together with one another. We got to iron out our problems and try to live as brothers. And try to find a piece of land without stepping on one another. And do respect the women of the world. Remember you all have mothers. We got to make this land a better land than the world in which we live. And we got to help each man be a better man with the kindness that we give. I know we can make it. I know darn well we can work it out. Oh yes we can, I know we can can Yes we can can, why can't we? If we wanna get together we can work it out. And we gotta take care of all the children, the little children of the world. 'cause they're our strongest hope for the future, the little bitty boys and girls. We got to make this land a better land than the world in which we live. And we got to help each man be a better man with the kindness that we give. I know we can make it. I know darn well we can work it out. Oh yes we can, I know we can can yes we can can, why can't we? If we wanna, yes we can can. ---Written by Allen Toussaint---
I went through a period in childhood when I dreamed of not growing up. While other girls my age fantasized about becoming teachers or doctors or rock stars, I aspired to die a young virgin martyr. My most prized possession was a series of illustrated books about girls with names like Agnes and Philomena and Beatrice who had died gruesome deaths for their Christian faith. I read and re-read their stories, well, religiously. Growing up in an Irish-Italian Catholic family, I took my catechism seriously, so I was not frightened by the prospect of a tragically abbreviated life. If anything, I was exhilarated by it. I could imagine no greater fate than dying in a hail of pagan arrows, bloodied but pure, a human pincushion of chastity and devotion.
Admittedly, virginity might have held a lot less allure had I grown up in Alaska, where testosterone seems to pool in even greater abundance than oil. I can easily imagine my saint-in-training self falling for one of the neighborhood boys who grew up learning how to take down a grizzly bear with his bare hands. Tempted by such potent virility, even Agnes or Philomena might have found herself giving birth eight months after a hasty elopement or quitting high school to get married and have a baby.
Speaking of Alaska, around the time in life when I was pondering the merits of being crucified upside down versus right side up, Sarah Palin was baptized in the Pentecostal Church. Having once yearned to be stoned for my own beliefs, I probably shouldn’t be casting stones at someone else on the basis of religion. But considering that Palin is seeking to become Vice President under a 72-year-old man with a shaky medical history, I can’t help but worry about the difference between my version of rapture and hers. While I fanatically anticipated the end of my own days, many Pentecostals await the End of Days – a time when the battle between Satan’s forces and God’s will culminate in the end of the world and the redemption of a chosen few Christians. Don’t you have to wonder how that religious philosophy might factor into the decision-making of the commander of the world’s most powerful military? I may have limited credibility on this issue given my status as a failed virgin martyr, but I dread to think what it would mean to have a successful Prayer Warrior in Chief.
Our local newspaper's the front page is about the Presidential election. The reporters ask "the voices of Main Street" who they will vote for, or if they are undecided, they ask why. Technically, Plymouth is the borderland between the old Yankee Cape Cod and the more working class South Shore. This paper is on the South Shore side, still people down here tend to be pretty even handed. Obviously like the majority of Mass most are Obama supporters, but there are plenty McCain supporters. Anyway, here is what one man said and it really suprised me someone from here spoke this way:
"We're tracking a guy named Osama Bin Laden and I'm voting for a guy named Barack Obama? What are you, out of your mind? I don't trust him. I don't trust where he is from, I don't know who put him there."
I mean I know we have talk radio stoking this sentiment, but it was surprising. I can deal with diagreement like "I don't agree with his tax policy" or "I think he may not finish the job in Iraq" or some other issue related reason for why one does not prefer Obama. But I am so tired of this "be afraid of Obama" nonsense. Thank goodness this quote was also included:
"Things are changing, especially with my generation. Race isn't necessarily as much of an issue as it would be with, say, my parents' generation or my grandparents' generation. We've grown up so engulfed in the differences, so it doesn't necessarily jump out as much to us."
