Category: Politics

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Problems with single payer in PA

  By Health Care, Pennsylvania

This is the second of four posts on the health care issue. For an overview of the various posts click here. There are two basic problems with enacting a single payer system in Pennsylvania. The first is that it is pretty much politically impossible this year. The second is that for constitutional and other reasons, a single payer system enacted in Pennsylvania won’t be as progressive as we would like it to be. Let me start with the first problem, briefly sketch the second one, and then come back to the first. Continue reading

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The progressive debate about health care reform in PA

  By Health Care, Pennsylvania

To the extent that people with progressives inclinations are focused on the health insurance issue in Pennsylvania—and, right now, too many of us are not focused enough on it—they find themselves torn between two different plans. One is Governor Rendell’s Prescription for Pennsylvania (RxPA). The other is a single payer plan, put forward by the Health Care for All coalition. It is a strange debate. For one thing, most of us, on both sides of the debate, would like to ultimately move to some kind of single payer system with the costs of health care provided by progressive taxation, not by employer sponsored plans paid for by employers and employees. We differ only about whether it makes sense to push for a single payer system in Pennsylvania right now. It is strange, also, in that the proponents of single payer seem to be focusing more on denouncing those who support… Continue reading

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The elements of RxPA

  By Health Care, Pennsylvania

This is the first of four posts on the health care issue. For an overview of the various posts click here. Governor Rendell’s Prescription for PA has a number of elements. Some of them have already been enacted. The two critical pieces remain to be enacted are Cover All Pennsylvanians and Health Care Reform. Continue reading

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This year the action is Montco

  By Elections and Voting, Pennsylvania

For a long time it is has been obvious to anyone who pays attention to politics that the future of the Democratic Party in Pennsylvania rests on our ability to control the counties that surround Philadelphia. Here, and elsewhere in the country, suburban counties that have historically voted Republican are rapidly turning Democratic. Whether moved by liberal views on sexual and lifestyle issues or by an aversion to the Republican War Machine or, in some cases, by the liberal economic views of a large contingent of professionals and managers, suburban counties are voting Democratic. Indeed the position of these suburban counties is similar to that of white Southern counties in the 1970s. White Southern counties were already voting for Republicans in Presidential and Senatorial elections by the mid-seventies. They started voting for Republican Governors and US Representatives soon after. And then finally, they started voting for Republican local officials and… Continue reading

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My new gig

  By Health Care, Pennsylvania

For the past nine years I have been a citizen-activist while holding down a full time job as a teacher at Temple University. But no more. Now I’m a paid political organizer. I recently took my first ever job doing politics, as the Health Care Campaign Manager for the State Council of SEIU. I’m really excited to be working with SEIU. Over the years, I’ve worked closely with both SEIU Local 32BJ and more recently SEIU Local 1199p on a number of projects: The Pennsylvania Transit Coalition, the Raise the Minimum Wage Coalition, the Philadelphia Campaign for Housing Justice and most recently, the Philadelphia Health Care Coalition. SEIU locally has been at the forefront of almost every progressive effort. And at the state and national level, SEIU has been leading the way to both health care reform and a reinvigoration of the labor movement. My primary aim at SEIU will… Continue reading

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SEPTA to city: stick it

  By Philadelphia, Transportation

I did something unusual for a transit activist the other day. I didn’t protest SEPTA’s new fare increases for tokens and transfers. Instead, I said that while I had some doubts about whether fares needed to be increased as much as SEPTA claimed, I thought it was much better for transit agencies to have regular, small increases than to sock riders heavily every five or six years. And I also said that along with proposing small increases in tokens and transfers, SEPTA should drop its appeal of Judge DiVito’s decision blocking their plan to eliminate transfers. The new fare increases are meant to make up for the revenues lost due to Judge DiVito’s decision. Until the SEPTA Board Meeting last Thursday, SEPTA said that it would rescind these fare increases if the courts allow the elimination of transfers to proceed. At that meeting they adopted a proposal that brings the… Continue reading

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Retirement letter from Thomas Paine Cronin

  By People, Politics

Tom Cronin recently sent the following letter to some his friends and allies among community and labor leaders in the city. It is worthy of a wide readership among progressives. As a preface, let me just say that Tom has been one of the most important voices among labor leaders in favor of progressive public policy. And he has done more than anyone else in the labor movement to forge broad coalitions. I’ve worked closely with Tom on a number of issues–especially transit funding, raising the minimum wage, and most recently inclusionary housing. I’ve learned a great deal from him about coalition building and the importance of militancy. More than one one he has encourged us to push our politicians as hard as possible–to the extent of engagining in sit-ins in their offices. I would say that he will be greatly missed. But, while he won’t be leading DC 47,… Continue reading

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Civil liberties, sexual equality and Larry Craig

  By Sexual and gender equality, US

I’m sure we are all having fun over another example of Republican hypocripsy on gay issues. But is anyone else disturbed about Craig being arrested for merely propositioning someone–and doing it in a way that most straight men would hardly recognize it as such? I can see why laws against people actually having sex in a public restroom might be a good idea. But laws against a fairly subtle come-on? What is the point—except to harass gay men. After all,  straight men make sleazy come-ons, too. And in public. Craig’s actions were actually pretty subtle. I’ve seen a lot sleazier (and, sometimes, borderline violent) come-ons from straight men. But, of course, in our sexist and homophobic society lots of people laugh at sleazy straight come-ons and want to see much less sleazy gay ones prosecuted. It’s not just come-ons but public sex. I’ve seen women giving men head or a… Continue reading

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Feeling the pain of the MTA and SEPTA

  By Philadelphia, Transportation

I don’t often feel sorry for government agencies. But, in the aftermath of yesterday’s shutdown of parts of the New York City subway system after a major rainstorm flooded subway tunnels right before rush hour, I’m sharing the pain of the Metropolitan Transit Agency (MTA). We have very little tolerance for failure in the United States whether it be personal failures, the failures of corporations or—what is most intolerable—the failure of public agencies to do their jobs. Most of the time, we should have high standards. People should do their jobs and businesses and governments should provide the goods and services they are supposed to. I’m not here to make excuses for a Philadelphia Police Department that can’t get a handle on violent crime or a Department of Human Services that regularly loses tracks of children at risk. But accidents happen. And when those accidents are due to circumstances that… Continue reading

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Transfers forever

  By Philadelphia, Transportation

The Confusion Over Transfers Conceptual confusion has marred the transfer debate ever since SEPTA wrongly justified eliminating transfers by saying that they would not be necessary once an electronic fare system was in place. I spent some time trying to correct the confusion in blogs and my emails. But the politics of saving transfers took precedence over the clarifying the difference senses of “transfers.” So now is a good time to get some clarity about the multiple meaning of “transfers” and, also, about what moving to an electronic fare system might mean for our fare structure. Two meanings of “transfers” We use the word “transfers” to talk about two different things. The first is what, from now on, I’m going to call “paper transfers” that is, the physical mechanism by which SEPTA implements a reduced fare for someone who takes two (or more) different buses or trains on one trip… Continue reading