It baffles me why, as a country, we let politics get in the way of making the lives of our citizens better. Why we allow politics (and religion) to stand in the way of proper sex education and health care and transportation systems and better nutrition… and how we’re supposed to be this technologically advanced, free-thinking liberal country and yet we have tons of people out of work, homeless, starving, and generally uncared for. Clearly we don’t seem to worry that we’re only as strong as our weakest link.

I’ve been privileged in my life to never have to worry about health care. My parents always had insurance and whenever i got sick (which was a fair amount as a kid), i was always able to see a doctor and afford whatever prescription was going to make me better. I’ve heard of insurance companies refusing to cover battered women, i’ve seen prescription lists that include Viagra and other male enhancement drugs that also do not include birth control. I have friends that “got all their appts in” before losing their jobs. But yesterday i learned that someone i work closely with doesn’t have health insurance. She’s part time and her husband is self-employed and they can’t afford it on their own. Suddenly it occurred to me how carelessly i’ve been assuming that having health coverage is a standard part of life… because for me, it always has been.

Regardless of the fact that these are two intelligent, smart, educated people with good jobs, even the guy down the street without a job or permanent residency should be able to afford health care. Our country is failing our citizens. Somewhere along the line people got greedy and shit hit the fan. The housing market collapsed. Businesses closed and people lost their jobs. Companies thought they could get away with murder. The insurance industry is no exception.

What would my life be like if i never had access to health insurance. Well for one thing i might not be alive today. Or if i was, either myself or my parents would be very much in debt. And Keith is right, if the desire to extend my life and not die causes me to lower my quality of life because i’m in debt, then someone is failing me. In this case, the insurance companies for being greedy and the American politicians for being the same.

There is absolutely no excuse why there should be people living on our land who are suffering because they do not have access to quality, affordable (or free) healthcare. The United States is the only industrialized country on the planet without Universal Health Care. WTF is keeping us from getting on the “we care for our people too” bandwagon?

… check out Keith’s Special Comment below, in 5 parts.

Part Two

Part Three

Part Four

Part Five

possibly related posts:

1. A Special Comment from Keith Olbermann
2. A Question of Love

photo © brandonwu

last Sunday, a bunch of us went to the VirginFreeFest at Merriweather Post Pavilion. Even though i’ve been living close to the venue for almost half a year, it was the first time i had actually gotten to see a concert there. The festival was awesome (and not just the fact that it was free). there was awesome music in three different tents, roaming performers, great food, free giveaways, prizes, bumper cars, a skate park, and more. Except for some wandering i spent most of the day on a blanket under a tree enjoying the acts on the main stage.

from reading the website before the event i knew that they were promoting green and eco-friendly things, like water fill up stations so you could bring your own bottle to refill all day long, lots of recycling containers, composting, and more:

“Virgin Mobile FreeFest aims to be as clean as we can possibly be! Last year we were able to divert tons of trash away from landfills by introducing composting, recycling, and biodegradable food service items. We also cleaned up our act by running the Festival on B99 biodiesel fuel. This year, we am to do the same thing and more… We are making best efforts to eliminate trash. That’s right, we’re not going to be handing you trash and we hope that you will help us by not bringing any in…  You used it, Now let us help you put it back. Bring us your empty bottles and we’ll recycle them for you, and for the good of the planet.

and yet somehow, as the day went on, you started to notice that the trash cans were empty and the grass was full. plastic beer cups, plates, food, the reusable aluminum Budweiser containers crushed by the weight of passing feet. the sound of plastic being crushed or kicked by people as they walked around. never once did i see someone pick up trash instead of kicking it out of their way. by the end of the night you saw more trash on the ground than grass.

i started to hear the mother of a friend in my head. “don’t,” she says, leaning in to her son who’s cleaning up crumbs on the table at a restaurant. “there are people who do that.” my generation grew up with the assumption is that there are always going to be people who clean up after you. it started with your mother, tireless in picking up your room and clearing the dinner dishes instead of making you do it (this was not my mother, that’s for sure). and then in college you’re tricked by some better-than-thou prick into thinking that by not cleaning up after yourself you’re “creating jobs.” what bullshit. with only slightly more energy than dropping your trash on the ground you could have walked the few yards in any direction to a trash can or recycling bin.

and someone must have started it. people wouldn’t have been so likely to drop their trash where they stood if they hadn’t already seen it on the ground. it’s like the broken window theory saying that as soon as one broken window doesn’t get fixed, the community starts to decline, crime rising. It doesn’t take much for the landslide to happen once people stop caring, but it takes even less to make sure the window gets fixed, ensuring the unspoken rule that “we care about this community. you will keep things clean.” but it only takes one to start things in the other direction and before you even realize it, you’re living in shambles.

it’s like my issue with dishes. sure, i have a dish fairy who does them all now (we split it, i do the laundry) but when i had a place to myself, if i didn’t wash the dish immediately, it would start to pile up and the less i wanted to deal with it. it’s easy when there’s one. it’s harder to get started when there’s 20.

and that’s the way i’d assume all the clean up /break down staff felt when people cleared out of Merriweather that night. we left a little earlier than the last second because we had people who had to travel a few hours to get home, and we had work early in the morning. had i not had work early in the morning, or even though i did, i should have stayed and volunteered to clean up. or maybe smack around a few of the selfish contributors.

trash gets to me normally, i’m the girl you see taking a walk around the neighborhood, picking up the random soda can or month old soggy paper that she sees laying around. but this really bugged me. the concert attendees were significantly skewed to the young teens + my generation folks, with only a few older music lovers and the always-a-hippie hippies. what i saw laying before me was the future of our planet. my brain evoked visions of a planet dead from reckless abundance, resources dried up and trash left everywhere… WALL-E style. if this is how our young people treat the planet, what’s going to happen to it? I thought that it was our generation that was going to “save the world.” but right now it seems like a myth every generation tells themselves. kinda like the “our kids will be different” myth every scared parent-to-be holds on to.

when complaining about all this to the bf, he mentions that “all music festivals might be like this. we don’t know if this is out of the ordinary for them.” but it doesn’t make things better. people are slobs and there is never an excuse for that.

so i will continue to be careful and cognizant of what i acquire, continue to dispose of things properly recycling and reusing as much as possible, and continue to pick up trash when i see it carelessly left on the ground by someone else. and i will continue to remind others of those 3 Rs we were taught as kids that have somehow taken a back burner to life’s ever increasing (unrealistic and imaginary) demand for more “stuff” and “me! me! me!.” Recycle. Reduce. Reuse.

though at the very least, don’t be a slob.

possibly related posts:

1. symptoms of a very broken world
2. thoughts on charity

Having never run a restaurant before i’m totally guessing as to the reason but i’d assume it’s because of the high level of potential drunk glass breakage on the eve of a large celebration, or because with the large number of customers it might be easier to just buy cups instead of running out of glassware.

Totally makes sense… but did they make a conscious choice with the disposable cups they were purchasing? Or did everyone, around the world, on their time for the new day, simply contribute to the world’s growing trash problem?

I don’t have answers. And this year i can’t say i was part of the solution, myself using at least 3 plastic cups throughout the night (i got real glass a few times, with the note that they weren’t supposed to).

This was on my radar since i’ve been trying to cut back on what i throw out. I’ve even been trying to find a more eco-friendly alternative to my garbage bags and will be trying out BioBags soon.

possibly related posts:

1. Go into details on your own time, not the customers.
2. the world glows as we all reflect (or Happy New Year!)

This morning I did my civic duty, right, and privilege and voted. It doesn’t matter who i voted for (but guessing by my icons and avatars for the last few weeks you probably can figure it out), the point is that i voted. That I stood up and said, “HEY! My voice counts!”

What’s even better about this democracy is that my family, friends, colleagues and i can discuss what we like and don’t like about candidates, the process, and the system without fear of persecution.

For instance, my mother and I have been having very enthusiastic conversations/debates about the each of the major party candidates and their positions.

Eventually, as she was still undecided as of yesterday afternoon, i asked her to trust me. If she was still unsure when she was about to press a button, i asked her to trust my choice. I don’t know if she did, or will, but she will be voting.

While you take your chance to vote today, remember this: The simple act of voting is more powerful than you could imagine.

And if you’re having a hard time making a choice, listen to what i told my mom yesterday, “the world is a different place than it was even 5 years ago. and we can’t make choices based on how the world WAS. we have to make choices based on how the world IS and WILL BE. We can’t KNOW how the world will be, but we can make good, educated guesses and plan for all possibilities.”

Regardless of who you cast your vote for, please vote. And get your friends to, too. :-)

——–
Update: Months later, in a conversation with my parents i found out that my mother did indeed come over to the light. Yay mom!

possibly related posts:

1. why last-minute is still my friend
2. How to operate in uncertainty

Don’t know where your polling place is? Enter you address on this google map and it’ll show you!

Need other information for voting in your state? Check out vote411.org

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1. OCLC’s World Map
2. 23 things: week 3, thing 6 (photo mashups)

Why a walk? Well, all the cool kids do it to raise money for good causes, of course!

Here’s the deal: Over 600,000 Americans have died from AIDS since 1981 when the first case was diagnosed. And AIDS isn’t over. People are still getting HIV/AIDS. In fact, this year, over 1.2 million people are living with HIV/AIDS in the U.S., the highest number ever recorded. The world is losing too many people to this disease.

For more facts about HIV/AIDS check out one of these sites:

• CDC Fact Sheet
• Until There’s a Cure: Vital Facts
• AIDS Healthcare Foundation
• AIDS.gov

Help me raise $300 for the AIDS Fund by going to my donation website.
You can also make a general donation to the Philly AIDS Fund or the National AIDS Fund. All donations are 100% tax deductible.

Thanks! :-)

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2. self realization: books and the librarian

Try this- go to POPLine and search on “abortion”.

Can’t do it, can you? Nope!

Thanks to Colleen for tipping me off to this.
Check out Women’s Health News and theexperiment.org for more info.

Their reasoning?

As a federally funded project, we decided this was best for now.

Talk about a crap line!

Rant time:

When you deny access to information, people won’t STOP looking for the information- they’ll just try to get it any way they can. And that might mean getting it from less-than-credible or complete-bs sources! Then these people are running around the world, misinformed, and getting into even more trouble!

No one would put “cancer” as a stop word, would they? I think not. So why is this any different!? News flash: IT’S NOT!
Just like people thinking giving kids condoms promotes sex, taking away access to information doesn’t make the information need go away- it just makes the information gained less good!

Just like i believe prostitution should be legal (and more easily controlled), and kids should get condoms (safer sex, not more sex… and less pregnant kiddies), NO ONE HAS THE RIGHT TO LIMIT A HUMAN BEING’S ACCESS TO INFORMATION! ESPECIALLY NOT HEALTH ISSUES!

It’s 2008 people- WAKE UP!

possibly related posts:

1. Rally around real Health Care Reform
2. a word on Geico commercials

(from http://amommymakeover.com)

I ran into the website after reading Is the ‘Mom Job’ Really Necessary article from NYT this afternoon.

I don’t know which disturbs me more- the fact that the media and marketing have come up with YET ANOTHER thing to tell women is “wrong” with their bodies, causing even further-broken body images or this quote from the article, “There is more pressure on mothers today to look young and sexy than on previous generations, she added. “I don’t think it was an issue for my mother; your husband loved you no matter what,” said Ms. Birkland, who recently remarried.”

… I’ve got so many comments I don’t know where to start. And, frankly, so late in the day it’s probably best that I don’t.

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In order to get ourselves out there in the collective consciousness, Bill Pardue has named September 10th “Slam the Boards” day! Here’s the info from his email:

—-
Let’s take one day where librarians just “take over” the answer boards. I’d like to get hundreds of librarians to make a coordinated effort to each answer a PILE of questions (maybe 10 each? maybe more?) on one day and really get the word out that librarians know a thing or two about providing answers.

Librarians invade the “Answer” sites
Monday, 9/10/07–All Day
Supporting Wiki: http://answerboards.wetpaint.com
I’d like to invite any and all interested librarians to be a little bold and have a little fun by going to online “Answer” sites, such as:

• Yahoo Answers
• Amazon’s Askville
• The WikiPedia Reference Desk

(see a list of others at http://answerboards.wetpaint.com/page/Registry+of+Answer+Boards?mail=1127)

Once there, let’s answer!

I envision a day-long answer fest. Answer as many questions as you feel you can. 5…10…20…you decide. Just try to do what we do well–provide answers from authoritative resources.

…and then MARKET!

This means making it clear that this question was answered by a librarian/library professional/etc. End each answer with the mention your own library, your VR service, etc. Add the link. Mention that readers should consider their own libraries, too. Promote it to local media. Keep in mind how many people don’t even realize that libraries offer reference services. Let’s surprise and delight them with our quality.

I’d like hundreds of librarians to do this. Thousands? Why not?

Be clear…you’ll almost certainly be helping patrons who aren’t yours, but I see this as an opportunity to make the reference librarian community more visible. I’d like to see a number of us remain engaged in the answer services, on the chance that the users will have us in the backs of their minds when they have questions they don’t want everyone to see. As such, I’m not expecting to see a huge “blip” in our reference/VR stats because of this. But who knows?
The point is to meet some folks where they otherwise wouldn’t expect us.

What to do next?
First of all, pass this message along to anyone who might remotely be interested.

Second, this is a very informal “action,” so you can just mark the date and start answering, but you may also want to visit the Wiki and put your name up as a participant: http://answerboards.wetpaint.com/page/Participating+Librarians. I’m very lonely there right now!
While you’re on the wiki, share. Think of good marketing “tags,” signatures, etc. that we can use.
Most of all, visit the various answer sites, see if you need to set up an account. Try answering a few questions. A couple of us have already done this and we’ve already got a few “Best Answers” under our belts. See the “Exemplary Answers” section of the Wiki. Post one if you’ve got one!

Then, on September 10, get ready to “Slam the Boards!”
—–

possibly related posts:

1. Slam the Boards update: we’re on the Yahoo! answers blog
2. In progress: Reference 2.0 discussion

Let me elaborate. Being a librarian is heavy stuff. No one should enter into the profession if they are not prepared (or willing to become so) to deal with hardcore issues such as personal privacy, confidentiality, and fair access to ALL, despite content or viewpoint.

Here are some more of my thoughts/notes from today’s (free) pre- conference, Can the KKK meet in the library?

First Amendment and Libraries

The library is a public forum. The courts have upheld that the public library is a designated public forum for the receipt of information.

“Limited public forums” (such as a library) CAN have time, place, and manner restrictions:

Time restrictions, eg opening hours. If you’re open from 9a – 9p, it’s unreasonable for someone to want access at midnight.
Place restrictions, eg branch locations, book mobiles, etc
Manner restrictions, eg “no shoes, no service” (remember that “must wear shoes” is objective but “offensive body odor” is subjective and subjective policies will get you into trouble.)

Most libraries break the 1st Amendment weekly! Take a look at your policies. Are you one of these libraries?

…

If the law is neutral and generally applicable, you won’t win if it “happens” to infringe on your religious beliefs. i.e. no headgear in the military… yarmulkes.

…

Parents have the right to control what their OWN (biological, adopted, or legal) children can see, view, or hear. You (as the library) can not restrict access based on age, but can advise the parents that they have that option personally.

MCAA Ratings can restrict access because they are a PRIVATE business. A 10 year old can’t go see an R rated film in most chain theatres but they CAN borrow that movie from the library. You (as the library) can not restrict access based on age, or any other factor because you are a public institution. Similarly (and strangely), Starbucks can choose to not sell tires because they are a privately owned business.

Parental permission forms are a barrier to access. Also an increased liability for when your systems fail or gotten around.

…

You can’t go wrong if you have a policy, let people know about it, and refer to it often. Policies are to guide staff and send clear messages to customers. Policies are good for 5 years. Don’t reinvent the wheel – steal ideas from other organizations that have good policies! Get your policies approved by your board.

…

Rely on paperwork. If you are asked to hand over records, or told a search is happening, get the paperwork – the search warrant or subpoena.

…

Don’t worry about the establishment clause of the 1st Amendment (congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion… aka separation of church and state), the free exercise clause (congress shall… prohibiting the free exercise thereof) is the one you have to worry about. Aka – don’t break the FE clause because you’re worried about the E clause.

…

As a government agency, the library CAN put up displays or hold events on whatever they want but they CAN NOT restrict the public, allowing some but not others. Remember, are you facilitating access to information or promoting? (Christmas, Kwanzaa, and Ramadan displays versus the local church putting up a nativity…)

…

Be wary of the Hecklers Veto. You can restrict, say a meeting of group X if you have evidence to believe that it will cause a threat to others (ie, every time Group X meets, a riot breaks out). You can’t restrict a meeting of Group X if you think their presence will create a disturbance because of others being vocal about the group. The Group itself causing trouble versus trouble following the group.

…

Think about why you’re restricting or denying access.

Resources
ALA Office of Intellectual Freedom
ACLU

I have lots of example cases to list, but I’ll do that in another post.

possibly related posts:

1. holding myself accountable
2. A day in the life of a librarian Or You got a masters for that? (day1)