Canvassing for health care reform is in progress in 11 locations around PA Details at http://hcanpa.org # just got home but is leaving at 4:00 am for Williamsport canvass. Join a canvas near where you live in PA: http://blog.hcanpa.org/?p=170 # Continue reading
PA Health Care for America Now, SEIU and Partners Hold Huge Statewide Effort for Health Care Reform Governor Howard Dean kicks-off Aliquippa Event Health Reform Advocates Reach Out to 10,000 Pennsylvanians In Support of President Obama’s Health Care Reform Plan Jenkintown, Upper Darby, Middletown (Bucks County), Allentown, Wilkes-Barre, Pottsville, Reading, Williamsport, Aliquippa, Erie, and Sunbury, PA— The dog days of August did not keep over 400 activists from spending hours reaching out to their neighbors in support of President Obama’s health care reform plan in twelve locations in every corner of Pennsylvania. Canvassers talked to over 5,000 Pennsylvanians and left fliers at the homes of another 5,000. Continue reading
Dear friends, We in Pennsylvania have built a huge movement for health care reform, so it is not surprising that we were one of the first places to witness the right wing’s vicious campaign of lies and intimidation at the Town Hall held by Senator Specter and HHS Secretary Sebelius in Philadelphia last week. We are fighting back. And if you are willing to step up and join us I guarantee that this opposition will not stop our movement for quality, affordable health care for all. I don’t want to take up space here to explain the right wing strategy and how we will overcome it. Click here for detailed analysis of the situation. Instead let me tell you what you can do in the upcoming week to move health care reform forward. Continue reading
Dear Friends, We in Pennsylvania have built a huge movement for health care reform, so it is not surprising that we were one of the first places to witness the right wing’s vicious campaign of lies and intimidation at the Town Hall held by Senator Specter and HHS Secretary Sebelius in Philadelphia a week ago. I’ll admit that we were all surprised by anti-democratic tactics that I had not seen in over thirty years of political activism. But, if we are all willing to work hard and keep to our strategy and take immediate action when we need you to, I guarantee we are going to win health care reform this year. And the right wing craziness is going to help us. Here’s why: The right wing strategy has two parts. The first is to bring small numbers of people to events to get media attention by means of utterly… Continue reading
A column today by Bob Herbert, and a blog post by a friend, point to the continuing epidemic of violence against women. Thinking about it today led me to do a little work on an essay that will appear in a book I’m writing about politics and sex, called Civilization and Its Contents. The argument of the essay might help us understand some of the sources of violence against women. A warning. This essay is mainly not about violence against women. It’s about certain views of sexuality and certain sexual practices that, I believe, are part of a larger set of misogynistic practices and beliefs that encourage violence against women. I’ll say something at the end of the essay about violence against women. But I take a long and meandering path back to the subject. I initially began this essay because a friendly commentator on the central essay of my… Continue reading
is just back from DC with good news about a few PA Blue Dogs and about how the right wing is shooting themselves in the foot! # My DN oped on taxing health care benefits. Written before the mob arrived to disrupt real debate about health care http://tinyurl.com/lltg2k # @tomfitzgerald While you were away the “tough sell” health care bill cleared three House committees while polls r still strong # Powered by Twitter Tools. Continue reading
There are three approaches to life, that of anger, gratitude and laughter. Those who take the path of anger become bad people, who bring destruction on themselves and others. Those who take the path of gratitude become good people, who bring happiness to themselves and others. And those who take the path of laughter become teachers, who teach us about the choices before us. —dead white Greek guy, I think. It’s not enough to follow the Oracle’s injunction to “know thyself.” We must also have the courage to act on that knowledge—another dead Greek guy Continue reading
ten dumbest arguments against health care reform http://tinyurl.com/ljdyfx # @HCAN: Final push for phone calls: Call 1-877-264-HCAN and tell ur Representative to pass health care before going on vacation! (Pls RT) Continue reading
Don’t make yourself crazy! I generally don’t recommend health care activists follow the ins and outs of the legislative process in Washington. There is always a tug of war between progressives and conservatives and it changes as we move from one field of play to another, that is from one committee to another and then to the floor of each house of Congress. Bills get better and they get worse. There is little that any of us can do to influence the details of legislation at each of these moments. The fundamental thing we need to do is to shape the overall environment in which legislation is being considered by getting the word out about health care reform; building our movement; and keeping pressure on our members of Congress by means of letters, phone calls, emails. We especially need to focus on those who seem to be wavering in support… Continue reading
They key to an an exciting and useful life (and one worth examing, too): stifle your fears and put yourself in as many difficult situations as you can, in your work and everywhere else. Continue reading