Well I've about had all I can take of the TV ads, "news" programs, and radio shows that do a tremendous disservice to the American public about what the proposed health care reforms are going to do to the health care system in America. Where is the FCC when it comes to truth in advertising? Shouldn't those rules also apply to political ads?
Ah, yes, the government cannot do anything to protect unwitting Americans from being duped by fallacious political ads. They don't count because of Freedom of Speech.
I have no fight to pick with anyone about free speech. My whole belief system centers on the right of people to choose what they want to believe in and their right to express it. What I do take issue with is the idea of presenting false statements as fact to intentionally misinform. Not only does it cross an ethical line, but when the subject at hand is something as critical as health care for all then political parties, politicians, and lobbyists have gone too far. They should be held liable for these mis-characterizations they put out or at a minimum explain why they draw the conclusions that they do.
Check out this commentary from MSNBC News' Rachel Maddow back in May before the debate was anywhere near the heated battle it is today:
Bravo I say to groups like AARP that put out television ads that call out the lobbyists and state that they are trying to "block progress on health care reform".
More of us should do our part to unveil the fallacies of these political ads. We should educate why they are inaccurate....point to facts. We should root out the source of funding for these ads.....health care industry lobbyists and ultra-conservatives determined to undermine the President at any cost. Organizing for Change, the grassroots organization, recently ran a competition for private Americans to do a 30-second ad spot for health care reform. Here's my favorite of the 20 finalists:
Think about it......REALLY think about it.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
Self Pity and Optimism
Well it's 5:38am and I've been up for almost an hour. Patrick was up at 4:30am for a 6:23am flight to San Diego this morning. It's been a week of chaos. Well, actually more than a week but who's counting.
I spent about 3 hours at the hospital ER yesterday afternoon with Matt. He's been sick for almost 2 weeks and been to the doctor twice. Both times she said he had a cold. I was certain he had H1N1; fever, cough, aches, fatigue, but I was wrong. He has mono. I was concerned about him getting pneumonia because his coughing and breathing were getting worse. They did a chest x-ray though and it looked good.
Sarah was sick mid-week and I took her on Thursday to the doctor. He narrowed her illness down to flu or strep and did a rapid strep test. No strep. He started her on Tamiflu and now 5 days later she's feeling pretty good; albeit she still has a persistent cough.
Yesterday, of course, Leah started running a fever and Patrick woke up with a sore throat and swollen lymph nodes. ::sigh::
Patrick's stirring around (okay he doesn't quite "stir" as much as "crash" around in the early morning hours) woke me up this morning at 4:45am. Well or not, he's got a business trip that needs to be taken and so he's off. I had a fitful night of sleep with a noticeable cough waking me every hour or so. Is it my turn to get sick now that Patrick is out of town? That would be my luck.
The gods thought it fitting to land in my email box today this great article from iMom. I think I needed that after the last month. It got me thinking about how I often (well, maybe a few times a year) get to thinking I'm taken for granted. The analogy to a great cathedral builder of Middle Age Europe is a great one. I think I'll take that story and a ferret it away in my memory for those days when self-pity takes over. Great words to remember: "with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees".
Patrick and I went to my sister and brother-in-law's annual Halloween costume party on Saturday night. With flu season in full swing already the turnout was lighter than usual, but we had a great time. At Patrick's urging, I switched from being Cleopatra this year to a maenad with Patrick serving as my minion. It was a take on our favorite television series: True Blood.
The Woodland Elementary Book Fair wrapped up last week. That concludes my PTO projects for the foreseeable future. Next up on my PTO plate is to get the archive binder ready to hand over to the new Secretary for this year. Mostly that involves copying some document files onto a CD and then I'm done. It will be a good transition to the next board meeting in early November. After that, my next PTO project will be to push the board to support a committee continuity idea I have.
The week ahead is a full schedule of appointments, Halloween parties and trick-or-treating. All I need to do is stay healthy.
I spent about 3 hours at the hospital ER yesterday afternoon with Matt. He's been sick for almost 2 weeks and been to the doctor twice. Both times she said he had a cold. I was certain he had H1N1; fever, cough, aches, fatigue, but I was wrong. He has mono. I was concerned about him getting pneumonia because his coughing and breathing were getting worse. They did a chest x-ray though and it looked good.
Sarah was sick mid-week and I took her on Thursday to the doctor. He narrowed her illness down to flu or strep and did a rapid strep test. No strep. He started her on Tamiflu and now 5 days later she's feeling pretty good; albeit she still has a persistent cough.
Yesterday, of course, Leah started running a fever and Patrick woke up with a sore throat and swollen lymph nodes. ::sigh::Patrick's stirring around (okay he doesn't quite "stir" as much as "crash" around in the early morning hours) woke me up this morning at 4:45am. Well or not, he's got a business trip that needs to be taken and so he's off. I had a fitful night of sleep with a noticeable cough waking me every hour or so. Is it my turn to get sick now that Patrick is out of town? That would be my luck.
The gods thought it fitting to land in my email box today this great article from iMom. I think I needed that after the last month. It got me thinking about how I often (well, maybe a few times a year) get to thinking I'm taken for granted. The analogy to a great cathedral builder of Middle Age Europe is a great one. I think I'll take that story and a ferret it away in my memory for those days when self-pity takes over. Great words to remember: "with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees".
Patrick and I went to my sister and brother-in-law's annual Halloween costume party on Saturday night. With flu season in full swing already the turnout was lighter than usual, but we had a great time. At Patrick's urging, I switched from being Cleopatra this year to a maenad with Patrick serving as my minion. It was a take on our favorite television series: True Blood.
The Woodland Elementary Book Fair wrapped up last week. That concludes my PTO projects for the foreseeable future. Next up on my PTO plate is to get the archive binder ready to hand over to the new Secretary for this year. Mostly that involves copying some document files onto a CD and then I'm done. It will be a good transition to the next board meeting in early November. After that, my next PTO project will be to push the board to support a committee continuity idea I have.
The week ahead is a full schedule of appointments, Halloween parties and trick-or-treating. All I need to do is stay healthy.
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