Monthly Archives: June 2012

ObamaCare…It’s time to care!

Posted on by
Reply
ringsidesearbanner_version2.jpg
PRE-EXISTING CONDITION

As soon as the world figured out that CNN and Fox had gotten today’s Supreme Court decision embarrassingly wrong, and the Affordable Care Act had indeed survived, the political prognostications commenced. Yeah, sure, millions will now get or keep health insurance. Lives will be saved and improved, yadda yadda. So now let’s move on to what really matters: Who benefits politically?

Conservatives, freshly aflame with the cause of restoring liberty to the land, are sure it’s them. Bill Kristol opined: “Obamacare survives on June 28, 2012. It falls on November 6, 2012.” Sarah Palin offered the Court (and the Lord) profound thanks: “This ‘Obamacare’ ruling fires up the troops as America’s eyes are opened! Thank God.” Nothing fires up those troops, of course, like that old bogeyman of liberal tax increases—and in keeping the ACA alive by declaring that the “individual mandate” could only be imposed by Congress through its power of taxation, Chief Justice John Roberts handed the right a new rallying cry. “What we have now,” said Rush Limbaugh, “is the biggest tax increase in the history of the world.” It’s a false formulation, of course—but try telling that to the Tea Partiers waving their Gadsden flags outside the Supreme Court building.

How does this benefit Mitt Romney, though? Perhaps the grassroots right will be more fired up to back him—but then again, there couldn’t be more than a handful of Tea Partiers who planned to sit out Election Day and blow their chance to cast an anti-Obama vote. And Romney has powerful incentives not to make the ACA a central issue. As Paul Waldman notes, he’s always been uncomfortable with the subject—something about an individual mandate in Massachusetts, if we’re not mistaken? And the more Romney raises the issue, the more President Obama can fire back: This other guy wants to take away the many benefits of the program. As we saw today, Obama has finally learned how to explain those benefits in a clear and compelling manner.

The likely upshot? Neither candidate gains many voters—or loses them. As Jamelle Bouie writes, the only clear “winners today were the uninsured.” Which is ample reason to stop obsessing over the presidential horse race for a minute—and celebrate an uncomplicated victory for millions of Americans.

With the passing of the Obamacare health plan through Congress, a politcal war has just begun…Actually, wait a minute, that started 4 years ago…what we have now is the continuation of such war, that will last beyond November 2012 regardless of who ends up in the White House. What I urge people to do is take the time to review and research all aspects of the Obamacare plan and truly gain a sense of self-understanding of how this will impact our economy and society. Yes, there will be some drawbacks, but what good has ever been done, what victory ever achieved with sacrifice and struggle? BBS will continue to follow the reports, commentary, and facts of this new legislation. Please continue to provide your thoughts & comments. The American Prospect is one place to look for commentary and to follow this and other politcal topics.

Food for thought…the rising cost of higher education

Posted on by
Reply
In 2003, only two colleges charged more than $40,000 a year for tuition, fees, and room and board; by 2009, 224 were above that mark.
 
 
 
 
Questions to consider
1. What does this mean for our struggle to provide equal access to higher education?
2. How does this impact opportunity?
3. What impact has this had, and will it continue to have on those employed by institutions of higher education (think about this one, you may be surprised at the truth)
4. Is higher education a right or a privilege???

American Healthcare Act Attack

Posted on by
1

great article by Paul Waldman at Beat the Press

I suppose in the wake of all this that conservatives are very proud of themselves. I know they’ve convinced themselves that the individual mandate is the worst infringement on personal freedom since the Alien and Sedition Acts, and if (once) it is struck down, Americans will be able to breathe the sweet air of liberty once more. And the millions who will continue to go without coverage if the ACA is struck down? The people who will continue to get tossed off their insurance once they get sick, or go bankrupt when they reach their coverage caps? Screw ’em. A small price to pay for sticking it to Barack Obama.

I think Mr. Waldman sums it up perfectly, but its not only to stick it to Obama it blind anger and pitiless obliviousness. These people bypass reason for anger and feel so good about themselves, because they’ve stood up to the filthy poor that didn’t take advantage of all they could have, like these hate mongers did.

To HBCU, or Not to HBCU? A popular question

Posted on by
Reply

HBCUs are “not realistic in terms of teaching Black students what they need to know to be able to function in the real world.”

This morning I conducted an interview with a young lady for a student worker position within my office. During the interview she was asked to provide what she thought were some issues that college students face during their first year. She provided the obvious and popular responses of homesickness, adjustment, and potential financial issues. Then she stated that one of the interesting issues to her that she doesn’t think that many people consider are that not all students have support from family or friends “back home” when they go off to college. She also provided personal experience of this stating that she knew some people, who have parents that felt college was a waste of time because they needed to be working to help the family, or they worked during high school to help their families and now they would lose that support. Then she went on to say that in her personal experience, she faced opposition from both family and friends for making the decision to attend an PWI (predominately White institution) instead of an HBCU. She said that she felt HBCUs were ok, but “not realistic in terms of teaching Black students what they need to know to be able to function in the real world.” The interview continued, and she went on with her day, but I was left perplexed by her comment….

Though I know that these ideas about HBCU are not new (I have been hearing the same arguments for years), I was surprised to see that people, especially young people still felt this way…She is 19, and is going into her sophomore year in college. She is from a very urban environment and attended a high school that was predominately Black and Hispanic…it would seem that if that environment was “realistic” enough to prepare her for the “real world” of college….why would an HBCU not provide the same? It is one thing to make these comments and hold these opinions if one has spent some time as a student or completed a degree at an HBCU, but it is another to not have actually had the experience, and still feel this way. I think what is a present is a very close-minded and limited outside perspective. The problem with this is I truly believe that many of these ideas are being passed down from adults to children, and they never even consider attending and HBCU, or the benefits of what it can do for a Black man or women matriculating into adulthood.

There is a valid reason why HBCUs were created and while they still exist. This reason is deeply rooted in history and should be taught as a part of the culture, heritage, and history of Black (or African American) people. The positive side and the cultural preservation of HBCUs will continue to be relevant and important as long as higher education exists and there is a need to educate Black people in a traditional academic setting. After the interview, I walked her to the elevator and inquired more about her perspective. As she got on, I smiled at her and told her about the pride I have in my HBCU experience as an undergraduate student and reminded her that all people are different and young Black people are in need of diverse experiences in more than one way. My education and time spent at an HBCU was a diverse experience for me. I was thrown into an environment that was actually very different than that of my upbringing, but I was challenged and I learned and grew. As far as my preparation for the real world, I NEVER would have survived graduate school at a large HBCU, been prepared for a career in Higher Education, or learned the values of networking and social capital if I did not attend an HBCU. For some people it is an experience that is needed and can be beneficial, and for others being immersed in a PWI environment can help them as well. The thing that people need to remember is not to force or influence anyone one way or the other. Teach them both sides, and allow them to decide which is best for them without bias.

Hating of Black Hockey Players

Posted on by
4

There are very few person’s of color in hockey, hell I didn’t know there were any, but no matter where they might run, walk, or skate, racists follow them. The National Hockey League is surely one of last bastions of white domination when it comes to major sports. Whereas the NBA, NFL are 70+ % Black, and MLB is at least 50% Black (even though they don’t count the Blacks that speak spanish, ‘and that’s just about all of them’), there are what 30 Blacks of around 700 players in the entire leage? On top of that, I can’t think of any Black hockey fans of the top of my head… So this article hits even harder:

Violence On And Off The Ice: Twitter Racism And The NHL

As one imagine, the backstage has been place rife with racial epithets, jokes, stereotypes, and other white racial frames that don’t mesh with the post-racial narrative. The advent of the Internet, the hegemony of Facebook, and the power of Twitter have merely provided glimpses into those backstage conversations. The online world merely recapitulates the racism, sexism, homophobia, and violence of the “real world.”

Yes, its a bunch of punks on the internet talking about things that they would never have the guts to say in the average Black person’s face without a mob (or guns) to back them up, but still these are the thoughts of people who think they are safe.

Many Left Behind

Posted on by
Reply

Thank you Colorlines.com

In the decade since No Child Left Behind has been on the books, income inequality has worsened and economic disparities have meant that communities of color, who are disproportionately poor, have gotten squeezed tighter and tighter by policies that ignore their everyday reality.

They don’t care enough to actually fix it: Philidelphia Public Schools

Posted on by
Reply

So they plan on tearing it apart. My take on is that since no one actually cares about the education of inner city youth except for those without enough money or political clout for it to matter, what actually happens to inner city schools and the education that they provide is of little to no consequence. Philly just had to balls to actually make it plain to the world.

Plans to dismantle Philadelphia’s public education system have met with sharp criticism from parents, educators and education watchers nationwide.

But this isn’t going to stop them. Hey some would say that its better to know what you are facing presented to you plainly and this is plainly showing that they don’t give a damn.

“What we do know through lots of history and evidence and practice is that the current reform structure doesn’t work, said Pedro Ramos, the chairman of Philadelphia’s School Reform Commission, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. “It’s not fiscally sustainable and it doesn’t produce high quality schools for all kids.”

Programs that Pay

Posted on by
1

“In disciplines such as medicine, for instance, an advanced degree can provide a 190 percent salary increase over a pre-med-focused bachelor’s degree, according to the Georgetown study. For other programs, the return on investment isn’t as certain: In some cases, available job opportunities are scarce or low-paying, or employers may value relevant work experience more than another diploma“

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/5-graduate-programs-arent-worth-070045929.html

From your experience and knowledge of these areas, do you think this is true? Especially considering the shift in workforce demand and our economy…

Tactics of the Police State

Posted on by
Reply

“Yeah so I screamed at the guy, I said, ‘you grabbed my boob! what are you, some kind of fucking pervert?’ So they took me behind the lines and broke my wrists.”

See here is the problem with the cops. They are like trained dogs, which is so ironic when one is looking at a K-9 unit. There are intelligent dogs, there are well trained dogs, and then there are dogs that are more valuable because they do not question any direction or order that is given to them because they take GREAT pride in serving their masters.
You also cannot get a larger dog to take is easy on a smaller dog because of the fact that its a dog and all it understands is its dog mentality, so every dog that it can dominate it will. Males are usually larger than females so the male dog takes what it wants. Or in this case takes liberties.
If you are not getting the dog metaphor, the police of any state organization are there to enforce the will of its masters. There is no such thing as a dog being out of control unless its master allows it to be. So if the police in your area are sexually assaulting female protesters its because the behavior has been allowed to happen from the higher ups. There are no ifs ands or buts, in any organization, any and all behaviors are either tolerated or squashed becuase the ones that cannot or will not follow orders will be removed.

Commentary on Romney’s economic thoughts…..

Posted on by
Reply

Romney calls Obama’s handling of the economy ‘a moral failure of tragic proportions’

By Holly Bailey | The Ticket – 2 hrs 6 mins ago

Romney in St. Louis (Evan Vucci/AP)Mitt Romney called President Barack Obama’s handling of the economy a “moral failure of tragic proportions,” suggesting he’s failed the American people by enacting policies that have been “muddled, confused and simply ineffective.”

Speaking at a campaign event in St. Louis, the Republican nominee said it is “painfully obvious” that Obama was “inexperienced” and “simply not up to the task” of leading the country out of this “great economic crisis.”

“We have waited, and waited and waited for recovery, and enough time has passed to pronounce judgment on the economic policies of this administration: They have not worked,” Romney told supporters at a campaign event in St. Louis. “Your government has failed you.”

The Republican nominee accused Obama of being unfriendly to “free enterprise” and said his administration has failed to deliver on its chief commitment to the country: helping “every American help themselves.”

“I do not believe this has been done with evil intent or ill will,” Romney noted. “But for a family watching their house being sold at foreclosure, or the family that is forced to spend their kid’s college savings just to make ends meet, the results are just as devastating.”

Romney vowed to do “everything in my power to end these days of drift and disappointment,” suggesting something is “fundamentally wrong” with the country’s course when 23 million Americans remain out of work.

“Yet the president tells us he’s doing a great job,” Romney said. “I will not be that president of deception and doubt. I will lead us to a better place.”

Romney’s remarks in Missouri expanded on a general theme the GOP nominee has been pushing on the campaign trail in recent weeks. He’s argued that the nation’s economic struggles are not just a test of policy but a “moral” issue because of the suffering of so many Americans. In his remarks today, Romney used the word “moral” or a variation of it five separate times in pushing the idea that Obama’s policies have been a failure for the country.

Echoing a message he repeats regularly on the trail, Romney accused Obama of trying to restart the nation’s economy by building up the government rather than helping private business. He called Obama’s vision for the country “deeply flawed.”

“There is nothing fair about a government that favors political connections over honest competition and takes away your right to earn your own success,” Romney said. “And there is nothing morally right about trying to turn government dependence into a substitute for the dignity of work.”

Under Obama, the country was on the brink of a “government-led economy,” the GOP nominee warned.

“It doesn’t have to be this way,” Romney said. “These have been years of disappointment and decline, and soon we can put them behind us. We can prosper again, with the powerful recovery we have all been waiting for, (and) the good jobs that so many still need.”

———————————————————————————————————————————————–

My Commentary:

I find it outrageous to believe that a Republican Agenda can ever be a means of “helping EVERY American help themselves”….the basis for the modern Republican ideology is the exact opposite. We are a nation that screams “equality for all” and I do believe in capitalism and a free enterprise, but the way we have gone about it has come at the expense of true equality and more than that equal access for all. Trina Madry once said, “Never mistake comfort for equality”…In the last 25 years, on an average more Americans became more comfortable, leading them to believe that real equality existed and when the nation’s economy tanked, it then became an issue. Now here we are four years into trying to truly make a change for the best, and people are ready to give up & switch to a different leader thinking it will change things? Well, they are correct, things will change if Romney becomes president, but in my opinion it will not be for the best. We have seen the conservatives undercut, undermine, and wreak serious havoc on congress and in many states in terms of some of the very important areas that affect EVERY American….public education & other public services. Yes, many people have had to leave their homes due to foreclosures, and yes there are still millions without jobs, but we cannot expect for someone to snap there fingers and have things happen overnight. It took years to bring about the destruction, and it will take years to rebuild…we should know that just from looking at US history….our government serves a valuable purpose and it is our duty as leaders of the free world to be informed, vote to exercise our rights, and  continue to hold in place someone who is truly making attempts to balance equal access…it will take more time but it can be done.