Regulation is Not a Four Letter Word

I had a thought today.  If the tea partiers and republicans hate regulation so much, why are they in love with the constitution?  Isn't that kind of the ultimate regulation?  And then I realized that because the Constitution regulates the government, that's why they're okay with it.  Here is the lesson:  Some regulation is good and serves a purpose.  The Constitution protects citizens against illegal search and seizures, ensures us a right to counsel, and also a right to assemble peaceably and protest injustices.  In short, the Constitution protects its people and that's what the aim of business regulation is.  Not to destroy jobs, but to protect its people.    The EPA regulates industry so that we can have clean air and water.  The SEC regulates financial transactions and Wall Street so that they can't crash the economy again and continue to take advantage of the poor.  Here's an example of the differences:

When the Tea Party assembled to object to government action, with weapons, the government allowed them to do this because they have the right to protest, and unfortunately, to carry arms.  These are constitutionally protected rights.  When the Occupy Wall Street protesters object to continued corporate greed that has recently crashed our economy, the Wall Street workers menacingly toasted them with Champagne and watched while they were arrested for practicing their rights.  Yes, it was the police that carted away the protesters, but think about all of the corporate money in politics right now and why it might be in their interest to make this go away.  It really makes you think who is really controlling this country.  When you have 'lets cut spending' republicans protecting oil company subsidies and tax breaks for corporate jet owners, you have to ask yourself, "What's in it for them?"  Money, that's what. 

When you allow an entity to do whatever they want, that's exactly what they are going to do.  They are not going to do the right thing for the sake of doing the right thing or because they care about the 99%.  They only care about themselves.  The corporate standard operating procedure in this country for years has been to squeeze the benefits from the bottom so that they rise to the top like a tube of toothpaste.  This consistent action has resulted in taking advantage of people, violating rights, ripping people off, and literally making this world a worse place with no end in sight. 

The reason why they are doing this is because WE LET THEM!  WE vote in the people who are in the pocket of the 1% and are in some cases PART of the 1%.  The protesters have it right.  What is going on is WRONG and it needs to be changed.  Pointing out the hypocrisies is the first way to start this and it is starting to sink in. 

I'm not wrong.  If you take a minute to think about it on your own instead of listening to a talking point constructed by a lobbyist, you'll get it too. 

The Book of WTF?

This is an excerpt from a book I've been reading:

"Although the text was written in an exotic, long-dead language described as 'reformed Egyptian', Moroni had also given Joseph a set of 'interpreters': divinely endowed spectacles that would allow the person wearing them to comprehend the strange hieroglyphics.  By means of these magic glasses, Joseph began deciphering the document, dictating his translation to a neighbor named Martin Harris, who acted as his scribe.  After two months of painstaking work they completed the first 116 pages  of translation, at which point the two men took a break, Moroni retrieved the golden plates and magic spectacles."

No, this is not "Harry Potter and the Magic Spectacles", this is and excerpt from "Under the Banner of Heaven" by Jon Krakauer from the part of the book that explains the story of how Joseph Smith translated 'The Book of Mormon' from the golden plates he claimed to find.  Mormonism would then become the most successful "American" religion.  This is why I stand behind the notion that most Americans are really, really stupid. I mean, come on.  The Angel's name is MORON with an I on the end!

If you haven't read this book, please do.  It is the story of how far a fundamentalist sect will go to control people for power in the name of God and the horrible problems that arise from it. 

Just a Few Questions From a Progressive

Okay...excuse my language...but what the fuck is going on in this country?  I cannot even wrap my head what has gone on in the past 6 months.  I think about it a lot and it's scary.  I hate to pull a Carl Paladino here, but I'm mad.  I'm really mad and I have some questions for the republicans. 

You say you want to save money.  You say you want us to live within our means.  If that is the case, then can you please explain to me how a person is supposed to live within their means when you keep asking them to pay out of pocket for things you get for free?  Can you please explain to me how cutting health care to women's clinics is not an attack on women and the poor in general?  Can you please explain to me how controlling my health care choices fits into your 'small government' argument?  Can you please explain to me how causing more unintended pregnancies, which a good percentage will eventually be put on welfare/medicaid, will save you money?   Can you please explain to me how much further you will be going and what is your endgame? 

I might be able to form more rational thoughts within the next 24 hours and make a nice progressive argument against this bullshit, but right now I'm just a little mentally worn out.   Rank hypocrisy will do that to you.

Santorum...There's a Reason This Guy's Name Means What it Does

I tuned in to Meet The Press today, as I do every Sunday because I'm a huge nerd.  But this week was especially exciting because I wanted to see Rick Santorum crash and burn.  He didn't disappoint.


There was so much wrong with the interview today but my main takeaways were:  

1.  Deficits matter now, but not in 2002 when they were trying to start the Iraq war.
2.  No abortion even in cases of rape and incest and doctors should be criminally charged.
3.  He'd get rid of the Affordable Care Act including the 'pre existing condition' protection. 
4.  He prefers home schooling over public schools because of 'weird socialization' public schools create, and he wants to overhaul public schools and make them more like a "one room school house experience".  

Not kidding, my jaw was on the floor through most of the interview.  Good thing no one takes this asshole seriously.  And if you haven't Googled his last name yet, please do it, it's hilarious. 

It's NOT okay

Here's a comment that is currently making the rounds on Facebook:

Florida is the first state that will require drug testing when applying for welfare (effective July 1st)! Some people are crying this is unconstitutional. How is this unconstitutional yet it's okay that every working person had to pass a drug test in order to support those on welfare? Re-post if you… agree!!! Let's get Welfare back to the one's who NEED it, not those that just WANT it.

Since a lot of my friends are re posting this 'I'm okay with drug testing for welfare' thing, here's my blanket comment to you:

Sure, this SEEMS like a good idea.  Like Rick Scott says, we don't want people getting assistance and then laying around all day watching TV.  But not everyone working has to pass a drug test, trust me on that one. The government obtaining your bodily fluids and violating your privacy without probable cause is against the 4th, 5th, and 14th amendment. It's also been reported that Rick Scott, governor of Florida has ties to a company that makes profits off of drug testing materials. 


Here's another concern, and this is just me stretching my own logic, but it makes sense to me.  If you take a drug test, it's possible that the government COULD extract your DNA.  I know this sounds like a conspiracy theory on the Glenn Beck level, but state governments have said before that they wanted to create a DNA database to assist the police in catching criminals.  With all that the new republican governors have done already this year, is the really such a stretch?  While I'm all for catching criminals in crimes where DNA could be a factor (murder, rape, etc.) obtaining a match with DNA provided during a welfare screening (or any other prerequisite test) could be thrown out due to its constitutionality (see previous sited amendments).  Then that person would most likely get off.


Back to the issue at hand.  The whole reason Rick Scott wants to do this is because of the Florida budget.  This is the same argument that I made in Wisconsin but I'm going to say it again, this is not about the budget.  If it was, the governor would not be suggesting that they pay all of this money to test the people who are asking for assistance.  I'm all for means testing, but all us progressives are saying is do it in a logical way that won't cost the state even MORE money (by paying for the testing).  


This is just another 'big government' solution brought forth by people who ran on 'little government' issues.  Just because hypocrisy coming from the right is constant, doesn't mean we should get used to it.  

My New Rule: Re-redistribution

New Rule:  When Progressives talk about taxing the rich, conservatives can no longer call it income redistribution.  It must now be referred to as Income RE-redistribution.  See, because the money has been moving up to the rich for about 30 years now thanks to Saint Reagan.   The more people that understand this, the better.

Real Comments from Rank and File Republicans

Okay, seriously.  Check out the crazy that is out there right now.   I think these comments speak for themselves.

 

Sarah

Happy "The government takes all your money to redistribute to people who don't work & to programs that are ridiculous" Day! :)

 Cassi  Yaaay! I'm so happy for the people that sit on their butts all day and collect welfare for years and years and years! It makes the months my husband spends away helping to protect this country so much more worth it!

Deantha

I am a compassionate conservative. I enjoy and feel called to helping people who need help. I do resent the government stealing my money from me and giving it, not to the true poor who need assistance, but to corrupt government workers wi...th permanent jobs that refuse to work for their pay and to citizens who abuse the government assistance programs. Give me my money and teach me godly ways to support those with true needs, don't give me a corrupt top-heavy government and an populace suffering from "learned helplessness".

Sarah  I agree with helping people however the vast majority of those receiving government assistance have figured out how to work the system and could live without the assistance if they used the program effectively...one girl at work told her supervisor that she couldn't exceed her sales goals to get incentive bc she would make too much & lose her welfare...not exactly the intent of the program!

Deantha  I agree. It is unfortuante, though, that many of us who are commanded to help those with real needs neglect our opportunities to do so, leaving it to a government institution that simply cannot govern itself in implementing such programs and end up creating a dependent populace.

Stephanie  It hurt my soul to write that check to Uncle Sam. A lot.

(ME)  Jill Kresl   Well, Stephanie, then you should be mad at the corporations who didn't have to pay ANY. Public workers pay taxes just like the rest of us.

Sarah I've been waiting for you Jill! Lol

Jill Kresl I'm really trying to restrain myself out of respect for you...seriously, did you guys not watch the budget debate at all?

Deantha corporations provide jobs government provides dependency

Stephanie Oh, trust you me, I'm very mad Jill! I told my husband I'm just going to quit working.. Its more profitable.. Lol

Jill Kresl Sure, it provides jobs for people in the Philippines and India. And you're right, it provides dependency for defense contractors for sure. And on a much larger scale then the one you're worried about.

Deantha oh yeah! you are so right. American corporations provide no jobs in America. :P perhaps if the unions hadn't sucked the employee base into excessive and unreasonable expectations some of those jobs could have remained here. take a walk in our social programs and see how many people your dependency system has destroyed. hold yourself accountable for that horrid vote you cast.

Jill Kresl Sounds like someone took their daily dose of fox news. I'm done here crazies. Happy tax day.      

I mean really, how do I argue with that?  A friend of mine today said, "You can't make them see.  They see what they want."  And unfortunately, that is the truth.

Just One More Reason I Heart Bernie Sanders

Writing this I realized that it's not going to come off as cool as I think it is.  But I wanted to put this out there mostly because it made me laugh, but because it shows how misinformed the mainstream republicans are.  And when I say mainstream, I mean middle of the road conservatives, not the super right wing fringe.  

Former RNC Communications Director, Doug Heye:   "I don’t remember any negotiations on Health Care.  I remember they were using the old Charlie Rich song “Behind Closed Doors” where Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid were negotiating between themselves but not allowing Republicans in the room.  We were not a part of that process." 

Senator Bernie Sanders:   "Doug, I am on the Health committee.  There were days and weeks and months of debate many republican amendments were accepted.  Trust me.  Republicans were part of the debate."

This was from tonight's 'Real Time with Bill Maher'.  Yeah, I know, clearly I have a lefty bias.  That being said,  I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm going to take the word of the guy who was in the room at the time. 

@SenatorSanders, @billmaher, @DougHeye

Smart Girl of the Week

It looks like Smart Girl of the Week is really more like every OTHER week, but oh well. 

My next Smart Girl of the Week is Amanda Terkel.  She is currently a Senior Political Reporter for the Huffington Post and writes fabulous articles.  I read her articles all the time and they are very smart and full of information.  Here's her most recent article on Scott Walker.

She was also a blogger for the website ThinkProgress.org and caught some heavy attention from a Bill O'Reilly staffer, Jesse Watters back in 2009.  This article talks about the stalking and ambush on her vacation.  Anyone who pisses off O'Reilly this much is pretty cool in my book!  I couldn't find much more information about Amanda, so I don't know what kind of degree she has or where she went to school.  But her work speaks for itself and I am a fan.  Check her out!

Follow Amanda on Twitter: @aterkel

Are You Sick of Highly Paid Teachers?

I got this sent to me in an email.  I did not write this.  But I thought it was very interesting given current events.

****
Are you sick of highly paid teachers?  Teachers' hefty salaries are driving up taxes, and they only work 9 or10 months a year! It's time we put things in perspective and pay them for what they do - babysit!

We can get that for less than minimum wage.  That's right. Let's give them $3.00 an hour and only the hours they worked; not any of that silly planning time, or any time they spend before or after school. That would be $19.50 a day (7:45 to 3:00 PM with 45 min. off for lunch and plan-- that equals 6 1/2 hours).

Each parent should pay $19.50 a day for these teachers to baby-sit their children. Now how many students do they teach in a day...maybe 30? So that's $19.50 x 30 = $585.00 a day.However, remember they only work 180 days a year!!! I am not going to pay them for any vacations.

LET'S SEE....That's $585 X 180= $105,300 per year. (Hold on! My calculator needs new batteries).

What about those special education teachers and the ones with Master's degrees? Well, we could pay them minimum wage ($7.75), and just to be fair, round it off to $8.00 an hour. That would be $8 X 6 1/2 hours X 30 children X 180 days = $280,800 per year.

Wait a minute -- there's something wrong here! There sure is! The average teacher's salary (nation wide) is $50,000.  $50,000/180 days = $277.77/per day/30students=$9.25/6.5 hours = $1.42 per hour per student--a very inexpensive baby-sitter and they even EDUCATE your kids!) WHAT A DEAL!!!!

****
Okay, this is me speaking again.  Teachers prepare our youth for the future, you know, so that they can run the country some day.  Stop funneling the money to the rich NOW and invest in the FUTURE. 

The State of the Unions

“A unionized employee, a Tea Party member, and a corporate CEO are sitting at a table. In the middle of the table is a plate with a dozen cookies on it. The CEO reaches for the plate and grabs 11 cookies, then turns to the Tea Party member and says, "Look out for that union guy, he wants a piece of your cookie."  

This is a quote that I took from MoveOn.org which I think originated from the New York Times, but it completely sums up the truth of what is going on in this country.  The Fox News version of reality right now is that teachers, cops, and firemen are the problem.  Their small wages that they stretch between paychecks to support their family are draining the states and the federal government budgets and making the rest of us pay for them.  

Meanwhile, the government is slashing tax rates for corporations, the richest individuals in the country, and handing out subsidies to oil companies in the billions.  These corporations are making billions of dollars a year and in the case of some oil companies, trillions.  Yes, trillions.  Then, the working people in America who are already having a hard time making ends meet are asked to sacrifice for the sake of balancing the budget.  

Here’s where you would expect me to start going off on the republicans, Scott Walker, and/or corporations and hold their feet to the fire over their hypocrisy, greed, and the fact that this is all about Politics, not the budget.  But I won’t.  Because America is finally getting it.  They are finally seeing what the working people are up against.  So I'll just be here in my Red State, peacefully supporting the unions and waiting for the 2012 elections.  

First Smart Girl of the Week

I have been thinking for awhile that girls today need some GOOD role models.  I’m someone who says live and let live most of the time, but that doesn’t mean that I want my daughter looking up to Lindsay Lohan for lessons on how to live her life.  I want to put a spotlight on those girls out there who I would love for my daughter to end up like.   Sure, ending up like Jessica Simpson might be nice.  She’s pretty, has lots of money, and is, well, kind of talented.  But she doesn’t go down in my book as being the smartest.   And when one thinks of a possible Presidential nominee being someone like Sarah Palin, we really need to put the spotlight back on brains.   So here we go, the first Smart Girl of the Week is…Cara Santa Maria!

Cara first caught my attention when I read her article on Science and Religion.  It is a very smart look at the fine line between the belief in science and evolution and the belief in Religion.  This is an issue that is on my mind a lot lately.  I, as a progressive, am sick of seeing conservatives bash Science like it's something still to be questioned.  For example, we have congressmen saying things like, "The science should not even be in the debate, right?  The Science needs to get out of Washington DC and out of the Parliaments and get into the labs.” (Rep. Jack Kingston of Georgia, Republican if you were wondering.)  

Cara said this about another congressman with this kind of outlook, "I'd like to see John Shimkus censured.  And here, it's not about an ethics violation, it's about ignorance to a position that you're in and it really scares me that this man wants to head an energy committee when he is citing Genesis as to why global warming is not going to affect us in this country." (From her appearance on “Parker Spitzer” in December)

And to that, I said, “Right on sister!”  So beyond the fact that I agree with her politics, she has the degrees to back herself up.  Here’s a short bio about Cara:

Cara is from Texas and from her own admission has, “Always been a fan of Science” and competed in several science fairs while in school.  She has an undergraduate degree in Psychology with a minor in Philosophy from the University of North Texas, a masters degree in Neurobiology, and is working on her PhD in Clinical Neurobiology.  Some of her most recent research includes studying the neurophysiology of blindness and working with the Zebra Finch to study Neurogenesis.  She has appeared on “Larry King”, where she held her own as the ONLY woman on the panel next to Dr. Drew and Dr. Amen.  I really enjoyed her appearance on the aforementioned “Parker Spitzer” because when Kurt Loder was talking about how nice a government shut down would be, Cara mentioned she was a ‘Progressive’ so she’d like to see some progress in Washington. 

Well, Cara, as a progressive, I hope you keep writing and working to bring Science even more into the mainstream!  Women like you are greatly needed as role models for our youth, as well for parents like me to remind us that our kids’ education means so much. 

Follow Cara on Twitter:  @CaraSantaMaria

Just a Thought About Outsourcing

I'm watching yesterday's Rachael Maddow and she's talking about outsourcing being bad for America.  While generally I agree, is there a difference between outsourcing and needing service in different parts of the world?  Like a global company that needs Chinese, Spanish, French, or Japanese speaking agents sending jobs overseas not to save money, but to cater to their clientele.  Is that necessarily wrong?  Another question...if we had better education and taught our children to speak those languages, would we be more competitive to KEEP those jobs?  Deep thoughts, deep thoughts...

You don't know, Jack!

When asked about climate change and evolution, Republican Congressman Jack Kingston of GA says, "I came from God, not a monkey" and "The science needs to get out of Washington DC and out of Parliaments and get back into the labs." No, Jack. You got that all wrong. It's religion that needs to get out of DC and back into the dark ages so that we can progress as a society. Smart policy is made by learning facts and using them to change things for the better. Not by interpreting magical thinking from a 2000 year old book.

Why I had to change my phone number

So as some of you know, I've been getting weird texts and calls on my cell phone and round the same time my mailbox was broken into.  So I've changed my number, email me if you want it.  If this is just a coincidence, fine, I will let it slide.  But let me say this, I'm a smart girl and I've done my research.  I have the names of the people who own these numbers, address, names of their family members, and more.  Do not FUCK with me or my family again or I will use this information how I see fit.  That could include anything from selling it on the internet to giving it to my favorite local sociopath.  Okay...margarita time! 

Stop the Fucking Insanity!

However much I would LOVE to blame the (in my opinion) ridiculous, laughable, extremist, violent Tea Party for this tragedy, I'm going to stop.  The right blames the left, the left blames the right...everyone just stop. People are DEAD. Lets think about this for a minute. The first amendment and it's free speech are very important in this country. However just because you CAN say whatever pops into your head doesn't mean that you HAVE to. With this, let's just all learn to be responsible with our free speech. I'm pledging to do this, will you?

Untitled Rant

The big news yesterday was that the unemployment rate is down to 9.4%!  I was so happy that I did a little dance in my living room when I read the news.  Then later one of my conservative friends said, “See, the new congress is getting things done already!”  -insert eye roll here-   First of all, these are stats from December, you know when that Lame Duck was still in charge?  Second, all the new congress has done is read the constitution and talk about Health Care Repeal.  When did they have time to pull their heads out of their asses and do anything about jobs?  

By the way, this reading of the constitution thing really fucking bothers me!  Not the actual reading of it, but the attitude behind it.  Here come all the newbies ‘schooling’ the democrats on what the constitution is.  My prediction is that they get to the 14^th amendment (equal protection clause), realize that it’s written to include ALL humans (including racial minorities, women, and gays), quickly roll up the document and exclaim, “Nevermind that, let’s talk about taking health coverage away from sick kids and cancer patients!”  Of course, this prediction is assuming that they can get past the first amendment.  But that's okay, I personally don't really need a second amendment. 

I'm on to you, Tom Coburn!!

I've been ignoring the news this weekend because I've been pretty snowed by my cold medicine, so I decided to do some catch up reading.  I came across this article about the new congress coming in and this quote made me pretty mad:

"There will not be one American that will not be called to sacrifice" under the needed spending cuts to deal with the deficit, Coburn said on "FOX News Sunday."  That's Republican Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma.  Yes, the same Tom Coburn who tried to block the 9/11 responders bill.

When we talked about sacrifice during the debates of raising the taxes on the rich, that was 'taking away liberties', being 'unamerican' and 'socialist'.  So when they decide to cut help to the poor or middle class (medicare, unemployment and veterans' benefits, social security, headstart programs, wages for teachers, police officers, and firemen) then it's just, 'we all have to sacrifice'.  Uh huh, I see where you're going with this...I will believe your statement of 'not one American that will not be called' when you start cutting the corporate welfare that is defense spending.