Normal
0

false
false
false

EN-US
X-NONE
X-NONE

/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:”Table Normal”;
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-parent:””;
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin-top:0in;
mso-para-margin-right:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt;
mso-para-margin-left:0in;
line-height:115%;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:”Calibri”,”sans-serif”;
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:”Times New Roman”;
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}

  What is Important – Part 3

Continuing with the “kitchen table” issues. BTW – they are
called “kitchen table issues” because these are the things that families
discuss when they sit for their evening meal. These are the issues that affect
Americans day in and day out. I will cut my discussion because I think most are
self-explanatory. Number one was Jobs.

2)  Affordable
available health care, preferably single payer.

This issue has only started. While Republicans want to line
the pockets of the health care industry with government dollars, many of us
long for the day when any American has health care because they are American.
Single payer would also save huge money (insurance companies have @30%
overhead) and would free people from the fear of losing health insurance if
they left their jobs to start a business.

3) Good affordable education through college.

When looking at society as a whole, there is literally no
investment that has a better return than education. It is much cheaper than
housing prisoners and building prisons. And in world competition, we need an
educated workforce to stay on top.

4) Environment.

Fracking, oil spills, farm chemicals, nuclear leaks,
mountain top removal – the list goes on and on. Do you have children?
Grandchildren? Where do you want them to live? Hopefully the planet and the
species will survive, but a little help would not hurt.

A little less “kitchen table” type issues, but also day to
day issues and quit pervasive:

5) Women’s rights.

Should not everyone have control over their own bodies?
Should equal work get equal pay? These are two of the major issues still facing
women in this country.

6) Race.

It seems like as a person digs down to the bottom of issue
after issue much of the controversy is based on not allowing some “other” group
access to full rights or privileges. One could easily include sexual orientation
in here.

7) Religion in government.

Well, it isn’t like the founders didn’t try to warn us. We
are involved in a war in Iraq that had many religious overtones in the run-up
to war. Many, many issues in this country use religious arguments for justification
of desired policies – from slavery a couple hundred years ago to discrimination
against gays today.

8) Lobbyists, think tanks and other non-elected influencers
of policy.

Who is Grover Norquist and why does he have so much power?
As far as I know he has never been elected so much as dog catcher, yet when he
says “jump” Republicans from the court house to the White House say “How High?”
Where is his job in the Constitution?